Huzzah, I'm not dead, neither is this story! Again, we haven't even breached 1K views yet and it's ALREADY garnered this much attention. Thank you all, really. And also sorry for the long while not saying anything, been getting my ass handed to my via University assignments. Enough about me, let's see what YOU all got on your minds!

Rivera92: Thank you so much dude! Hope that Weiss and Ruby's initial introduction makes sense, given the context behind Ruby's altered character, but that's not to say things'll be quiet between them. As for Ruby and Pyrrha... you might be surprised.

lovecrazyhedgehog: I'm glad that you're sticking around dude, I hope not to disappoint despite the lack of a physical crescent rose... a physical one at least;P. Odd you should mention Bakugou, he's actually who I drew inspiration when I thought about altering Ruby. Not to say that she'll fly off the handle all the time but... eh, you'll find out later.

T-B-R: If that's your initial hype going into this... then you won't be disappointed dude! Smash indeed!

KHARAKI TAKAN: Anger is a bit of a harsh word, and hatred wasn't exactly part of the emotional spectrum that Ruby was picking up. I don't fault you for thinking this, and I'll be further developing Ruby being able to read people as the series goes on, but to put it shortly, she can only pick up general intents and emotions, nothing specific yet, so what she may perceive as anger could realistically be more along the lines of an 'intent to fight or do harm'. Ruby and Pyrrha's relationship is gonna be pretty interesting, at least as far as my writing goes. As for JAUNE... woooo boy, I'll be sorting out THAT mess of a character. Thanks again for the kudos dude! (I'm going to assume the last comment is directed towards the series proper, not this fic) In my opinion, I understand how you percieve episode 2 of RWBY as disappointing, but to Monty's credit, it WAS just episode 2.

Omniscient Tree: More you wish for, more you shall have! I'm also really excited to write up this brand new Ruby, and I hope people will come to enjoy her too!

x7porkchop123w: Thank you dude, honestly I tend to rush through the chapters and publish it as soon as I can once I'm done, so I'll get to revamping that chapter... eventually XD.

Kivuntappaja: Nailed it in one dude! Like my previous RWBY story, I wanted to keep a general guideline for this fic but at the same time go wild with new possibilities, like stuff that wasn't explored in the show and add my own twist to it. There still IS going to be drama, that's unavoidable, but again, I want it to centre around the changes as established in the beginning, some of them familiar, others completely brand new. Stick around and you won't be bored!

bobcobthehentaiguy: Thank you so much man, I'm glad that people still enjoy my writing and I'll be sure to keep it up!

yintheyang: Oh don't worry, this is still the same Weiss, and there's definitely going to be similar development, it's just the situations leading up to it are going to be a bit different than what you'd normally see in RWBY proper. Happy that you like my new twist on Ruby, I'll be sure to keep up the good work!

Now with all that said, onto the show!


Fighting Rose

Chapter 3

Small Talk


"…short, sweet, rolls off the tongue, ladies love it!"

"Do they really?" Ruby shot back, Weiss very much sharing the same sentiments. In her eyes, Jaune Arc was a bit of a buffoon, a good-natured one to be sure, but a buffoon nonetheless. Though, something was off about him, something that even Ruby noticed: he was rather lanky. Sure, he was quite tall and had traces of soft-muscle, but the fact that he didn't appear to have any solid meat on his body. He wasn't unhealthy, but… he was lacking training. Both opted not to question it, instead laughing as Jaune stuttered to find a good response.

"Th-they will! Probably. Give it time, my mom always said… never mind," He slumped, earning a giggle and an amused scoff from ruby and Weiss respectively. There was a bit of an awkward silence before Ruby spoke up.

"So, uh… hope you guys don't mind me asking, but how do you fight?"

It took Weiss a second to process what she was asking before she finally understood what Ruby was asking. With a smirk and a stylish flourish, she whipped out her prized possession from her hip, scaring the daylights out of Jaune from the sharp speed of her draw.

"Well, I was taught by the finest instructors in Atlas on the perfect style of the rapier. This is the only weapon worthy to be held by me, forged by the greatest Atlesian scientists, behold the Weapon of A Thousand Flowers, Myrtenaster!" Curious, Ruby leaned in to inspect it, eyes a bit wide.

"Grooves etched to the blade for precise dust-exhaust, a nine-chamber dust cycler, not to mention this entire thing is made out of pure Aerodite… yeah, this is an A-Grade Weapon. How does it mesh with your Glyphs?"

It was Weiss' turn to be surprised. "How do you know about ou – my Semblance?"

"Aura is… kinda my thing," She said sheepishly. "Your family is one of the rare cases of a Hereditary-Type Semblance."

"That's… fair," Weiss conceded, still a bit put off by Ruby's snooping. "Well, you've noticed the high aura and dust conductivity of Aerodite: Myrtenaster essentially helps me both form Glyphs by concentrating my Aura, while also altering my Glyphs with Dust to create different effects." She demonstrated by pointing at the ground with her rapier and instantly forming a glyph that burned red-hot, Ruby watching and feeling keenly. "I don't need to use Myrtenaster, but without it there's a delay." Putting her weapon away, she pointed at the ground and there was a noticeable delay. Not by long, but by a second at most.

"I think I know why there's a delay," Ruby said, "But that's a topic for later. That's still a really cool style! I've only seen small clips of the Schnee Semblance and I always wondered what they could do at their full potential. I'd love to see a demonstration-!"

"Of course, it would be my pleasure!" Weiss said instantly, setting herself in a stance before Ruby stopped her with a wry grin.

"-When we aren't in Beacon's courtyard without having become students here yet. Careful princess, your pride's showing again." Weiss instantly turned red, her eagerness to show off having nearly been her undoing.

"W-well, you-! Ugh… you're insufferable!" Weiss cried, embarrassed at nearly being caught out like that, Ruby only laughing at her slip-up. Practically fuming, Weiss tried to snap back at her, hoping to find a dent in Ruby's armour. "W-well then, what about you? Surely your weapon can't match the grace and quality of my own!"

"That's rich, coming from someone who could literally swim in her daily allowance," Ruby shot back again, much to Weiss' further embarrassment. "Hey, not everyone can afford to buy out an entire mall."

"I-!... I don't know why I bother arguing with you at this point," Weiss sighed, pride cracking at Ruby's victory, the younger girl gleefully laughing at Weiss' pain. "…Really though, where is your weapon? Tall, blonde and scraggly at least has a sword and shield," The boy flinched, his eyes surprisingly vacant and his voice absent, "But you don't seem to be carrying anything on you…"

"Yeah, it's just myself really," She said sheepishly. Weiss' eyes went wide as she realized what Ruby was implying.

"You fight without any kind of weapon!?"

"Yup! Well, sort of. My bracers and boots can fit in dust-crystals to power my attacks, but I don't really like using anything besides Wind Dust if I have to. Other than that, it's my feet, fists, and aura that does the magic."

Weiss wanted to berate the girl on how foolish such an endeavour would be before she took a mental step back and really looked at Ruby Rose. She wasn't that tall really, barely matching her in height at 5'3" (granted, Weiss was in heels), nor was she large. However, from the way her leggings clung to her and, along with her bared shoulders and upper-arms, it was clear that she was built. Lithe, powerful muscle that was still soft and flexible, these were the markings of a true hand-to-hand fighter, someone who had truly worked their entire body, and yet it strangely didn't detract from Ruby's femininity, as if she was born to do this. Still, something she said stuck with Weiss…

'…Hold on, aura?'

"U-um, ladies?" Jaune spoke up, "Aren't we supposed to have a meeting in a few minutes? With like, the Headmaster and stuff?"

"Drat, that's in… five minutes!" Weiss hissed, "We must make haste!"

"Seriously, 'make haste'? What time period are you from?" Ruby laughed as they broke off into a brisk run, Jaune barely keep. There was a brief moment were Ruby brushed against Jaune and she almost tripped up over herself, eyes almost bugging out.

"Are you alright!?" Weiss called back as Ruby sharply regained her balance, Jaune having almost helped her with arms outstretched.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine!" She said as she broke back into a steady run, her head turning to stare at Jaune for a moment. He looked slightly unnerved by her dead stare, sweat forming on his face. A moment later, she broke off the gaze and they eventually found the amphitheatre, packed with students. Weiss and Jaune especially were breathing heavily from the run, though Ruby herself seemed almost entirely fine.

"My sister probably saved a spot for me. Let's chat later… when you're not dying."

"Oh hush… you brat," Weiss heaved, doing her best to recover as Ruby walked away. As soon as the girl in white managed to compose herself, she looked to Jaune, the boy still heaving for air.

"You there, blonde lout." Jaune immediately snapped his head up. "Fetch me some water and be quick about it. It wouldn't do to keep a lady waiting."

"So sis, how're ya finding Beacon?" Yang asked.

"Pretty… interesting so far. Actually, I just ran into Weiss Schnee, and I got to see her Semblance! It's so cool, and I've already got some theories on how it works. Glyphs allow the Schnee family to manifest specific types of 'forces' into the world, like propulsion, gravity, push, pull. It's like they're 'imparting their command' of forces into the world with the wave of a hand. But for Weiss it's almost like a delay and it makes me wonder if she's somewhat doubtful of herownlevelofauthorityandistryingtoforceherselftoohardto-!"

"Ruby, space your words and take a deeeep breath," Yang laughed, the girl in red doing so. "That being said, what do you think your chances are against her?"

"Hmm…" Ruby's grin sharpened, "She's skilled, there's no doubt about that, and her agility isn't anything to scoff at. But… she's too stiff. If I bring the fight to her and put some weight behind my strikes, grapple with her, keep her off balance, don't give her a moment to breathe, then I'll have her in the bag. To be honest though, you probably have a better chance at beating her than me."

"Eh? Why me?"

"Yang, you're way stronger than me, and you don't need to move that much to beat Weiss. I can keep up with her, but you can break her down. I don't doubt that she's probably got ranged attacks with her glyphs like dust-bolts, but those aren't even an issue for you, while I might trip up because of them."

"Huh. Good point."

"Ahem…" A wave of something washed over the crowd of teenagers, everyone falling silent. "I'll keep this brief. You have come here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people." A feeling of righteousness surged through Ruby, yet she held herself back at the dull, tired look on his face.

"However, when I look among you… all I see is wasted energy, without purpose, direction. You believe that knowledge will free you of this, but your time here will prove that knowledge will only carry you so far." Righteousness turned to burning determination, eyes narrowing and teeth grinding. Wasted energy? No purpose? She'll show him then. Maybe her words weren't enough to prove it, so she would show him.

"It is up to you," Ozpin finished, "To take the first step."

He stepped away from the microphone, leaving the students to murmur amongst themselves, slightly put off by the blunt speech. There were only a handful though who took it as a challenge, the wolfish girl in a red cloak, another as bright as a sun, another with hair as white as snow, even a blond boy who truly didn't belong. It was Headmistress Glynda who stepped up next, grabbing everyone's attention yet again.

"For tonight, you will all be sleeping in the main hall. Tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are all dismissed."

As students began to shuffle out, Yang and Ruby went back to their conversation.

"Well uh, he seemed kind of…" Yang started.

"Out of it?" Ruby finished.

"Yeah, like he wasn't even there. Still, that was one way to light a fire under our asses huh?" She chuckled, knowing that Ruby felt the exact same thing as her.

"Yup," Ruby chuckled, that same sharp grin on her face for a moment before she wiped it off. "…I feel like we're forgetting something."

"Ah shoot, I left our bags are still on the airship!" Yang cried.

"Oh, that's not so bad."

"It's leaving in the next five minutes!"

"DANGIT YAAAANG!"

The main hall was packed with students from across the world, Vale, Atlas, Mistral, Vacuo, humans and Faunus alike. Most of the boys were horsing around, wrestling or attempting to show off to the female populace with their well-trained figures. Though mostly ignored, a few of the female population were receptive of this, Yang being one of them.

"It's literally just a biiiig slumber-party!" She cheered, flopping back on the pillows.

"Yeah, dad would just love knowing that his two daughters were surrounded by a bunch of hormonal guys," Ruby said wryly, typing away on her scroll.

"You don't seem too interested in the… menu," Yang said salaciously, waggling her eyebrows at Ruby. "Any reason for that 'lil sis?" The girl in red turned… well, red at the jab, her eyes flicking up to double-check the males in the room.

"… they're alright, but…"

"Really? You're still with that obsession?" Yang groaned playfully, rolling onto her back and poking Ruby in the side, the girl squawking and smacking her hand away.

"It is not an obsession!" Ruby cried, "Freckles just so happen to be something I find really attractive on someone!"

"Kiiiiiink." Yang was immediately beaned in the face by a high-speed pillow, the elder sibling bellowing with muffled laughter for a while as Ruby managed to focus back on her task at hand. As soon as Yang calmed down, she looked over Ruby's shoulder, curious at what she was writing this time. "Finally got some ideas?"

"Yeah, Weiss helped me snap out of my funk," Ruby said, her gleeful shine somewhat returning to her eyes. "Sort of, at least. It's given me a couple of cool ideas for what she could possibly do, but when it comes to me and you, I think I've hit a dead end." She felt a hand on her head, playfully ruffling her hair.

"Ruby, slow down for a bit," Yang chided, a soft look on her face, "You've helped me improve my Semblance leaps and bounds compared to how I used to force it to work, and on top of that you're still trying to find ways to evolve your own. Learn to be a little selfish every once in a while and focus on yourself, geez."

"Yeah-yeah whatever," She groaned, though she was smiling the entire time as she shut her scroll off. Her eyes went to wandering around the room, gauging the people within it once again. The majority of them were what Ruby expected, fairly strong, decent experience against Grimm, solid auras. A few stood out to her, namely the sharpness of Weiss, the brilliant heat of Yang, and… oh? Her eyes locked onto a familiar black-haired girl on the far wall, reading a book.

"You know her?"

"Sort of? Kinda stopped an argument between her and Weiss earlier today," Ruby replied. "I think she's sympathetic to the Faunus, but that's just a wild guess off of how much she seems to hate Weiss. Real catty type too."

"Oooh, look at you, all grown up and playing the mediator!" Yang cooed, again embarrassing Ruby. "Come on, let's get you two properly introduced."

"Wait, what!?"

She fought against the strong grasp of her sister, Yang dragging her all the way to the girl who had just about taken notice of them approaching her, an eyebrow raised as Yang gracelessly put Ruby on the spot. The young girl was especially awkward around the older one, seeing as she'd basically scolded her earlier in the day.

"U-um… hi?"

"Hello there," Blake said back, mildly amused enough to look over her book.

"Hey, name's Yang, this is my 'lil sister Ruby!" Yang butt in, thankfully giving Ruby some room to breathe.

"Blake. And, you two don't exactly look alike," Blake pointed out.

"Half-sisters by blood, full siblings by heart," Ruby joked, "So, uh… I like your… bow?" Ruby instantly felt as if she said something wrong, the tiny smile on her face dropping off and her body-language more defensive.

"Yes, well, thank you. Now, as lovely as this conversation was, I'm going to go back to enjoying my book," She said curtly, the two sisters standing there awkwardly for a bit. "…as soon as you two leave."

"Yeah, this was a longshot anyway," Yang whispered not too subtly, Ruby resisting the urge to smack her upside the head seeing as this was Yang's idea in the first place, though something that caught her interest held her back.

"What book is it?"

That surprised Blake. "Eh?"

"What's the title?" Ruby asked again, her genuine curiosity surprising Blake.

"Oh, it's Two Souls, the one where the main character's body is inhabited by two different personalities, each vying for control."

"Huh, it's a pretty good one, but not really my taste," Ruby chuckled, more easily able to fall into the conversation. Blake raised a brow and actually smiled, putting the book down after marking the page.

"Oh? And what exactly is your taste?"

"That's easy, the Legend of the Wolf Knight," She answered, Blake's eyebrows, shooting up at that. "I've always loved everything about the story, the love, the action, and the sacrifice of the Knight to stop the Father of Grimm invading our world will always be my favourite part."

"That's not a very well-known story… you know that the Wolf Knight is more of a… Faunus tale, right? The knight himself was supposedly a Faunus after all."

"Pfft, so? He's cool and part of what inspired me."

'Yeah, this one's alright,' Blake thought with a grin. "So fairy-tale heroes are your thing then?"

"Always will be," Ruby said honestly, "There's nothing better than putting everything you have into saving the innocent and making the world a better place, for everyone."

"True, but… it's still a fantasy," Blake pointed out.

"Sure, it is. That's why it's our job to make it a reality, don't you think?" Ruby said innocently, before her eye suddenly sharpened dangerously. "If my mom could get close to doing it, then so can I!"

"Aww, look at you, all grown up but still my little sis!" Yang cooed, picking Ruby up by the waist and completely obliterating the tone of the conversation. Still, Blake found this girl undeniably interesting: clearly younger than 17, but with determination and drive she'd seen in few others. The open-mindedness about Faunus was a plus, but she supposed that was her being biased.

"Excuse me, people are tying to get some sleep!"

'Speaking of bias,' Blake growled internally, watching the walking beacon of arrogance strut up to the two sisters, who were currently tussling around.

"Tell that to-! Oh, hey Weiss," Ruby said just as her body had blurred around Yang's, her arms wrapped around Yang's neck in a surprisingly well-formed rear-naked choke. "Sorry about that, but someone," She growled, "Can't keep their hands to themselves!" Yang let out a choked laugh as she casually gripped Ruby's arms, prying them away before she flipped Ruby over onto her back with a yelp.

"Aww come on, can't two sisters have some fun?" Yang said playfully, thought Weiss ignored her somewhat and raised a brow at Ruby, who was currently splayed out on the ground.

"This lout is your sister?"

"Half sister by blood, full sibling's by heart," She sighed, as if reluctant at the fact now. That earned a tiny snort from Weiss before she turned and noticed Blake, the two locking eyes as tension spiked.

"Well, hello Weiss Schnee," Blake said, inclining her head and never taking her eyes off of her.

"And hello again…" Weiss responded, though it had occurred to her that she hadn't bothered to remember her name, something that Blake picked up with a small scowl.

"Blake. Just Blake."

"Hmm."

Tension seemed to spike even further, silence heavy in the air before Ruby just sighed. "You know what? I'll just hit the emergency escape-button for this conversation." She promptly looked at the candelabra that was at Blake's side and sharply blew, the flames instantly put out. The silence was now a lot more awkward, Ruby turning red again.

"…you do know that blowing out some candles doesn't change the fact that the overhead lights are still on, right?" Weiss said almost smugly.

"Oh shut up princess, I know that!"

Ruby was thankful that the lights suddenly went out a moment later.

(TWBY Continued...)


I know, I know, not much happening, but it's the little things in life, right? We'll get to the fun stuff in... what, two chapters? Yeah, sounds about right. Also, in regards to Volume 8 Episode 2 (spoilers)... calling it now, that new Grimm that I'm totally calling the 'Black Hound' is almost DEFINITELY Summer Rose. More on that later. Peace out!