Chapter Text
Ruby Rose, she is a young wolf Faunus with big adorable ears a long fluffy tail and two terrifying rows of sharp mouth daggers. Ruby herself wasn't all that sure how she ended up where she was, on the side of the road, her shoes so ripped up she would call them improvised flip flops instead of shoes, covering the bottoms of her feet just enough so they didn't get cut up by the rough tarmac any more then they already were.
She wasn't sure how long she's been walking for either, all worry of Grimm and unclean men gone from her mind as she screamed in her head the same word over and over again
FOOD
It was a big driver for this twelve-year-old girl, she's been living off public water fountains for the last week, then again public water fountains didn't tend to like the girl. If you press down too hard you get sprayed in the face, if you press down too weak you can't get anything out! Is there no middle ground?!
In hindsight there probably is, but Ruby wasn't in the state of mind to be contemplating the different pressures of a water fountain, nor the mood to contemplate the pressure of a water fountain. Why? May you ask? Perhaps it was because she's been walking for a very long time, she didn't know where to go, she didn't know what to do, nothing made any sense at any point.
Her walk wasn't much of a walk anymore, it was more of a drag, a half-assed attempt of a limp, she's forgoed limping a while ago In favor of just pulling her mangled ankle behind her, it hurt less and that's all that mattered.
Though as the young Faunus girl dragged herself into a city full of loud cars that terrified the living daylights out of the girl, a thunder storm decided now would be a good time to make Ruby's bad day into a terrible day. Really it was a terrible... week? Month? Year? She wasn't sure, she was pretty sure it might be Tuesday, but she was about as sure that it was Tuesday as she was sure that it was Friday. So about... 1/7 sure ish.
*CRASH*
Ruby suddenly made a sound, the first sound to leave her lips in a while, that was a high pitched squeak, the girl jumped a whole meter off the ground and dashed under cover, though Ruby's lack of understanding of household objects tampered with her judgment in hiding places. Her choice was a dirty cardboard box, instead of the little out cove above a door way that was quickly taken up by a less then friendly stray dog.
And now Ruby was very glad she had enough energy left in her to growl at the mangey mutt, that stood its ground but didn't bother the cowering wolf again. Ruby was down right exhausted, her feet ached, her legs ached, her hip ached, her everything just ached. her arms where barely covered by her ripped up sleeves, her skirt only covered the places that needed to be covered, and at this point, Ruby didn't really care about her skirt or shirt, all she cared about was her scarf, which was the only thing she's revived in any act of kindness.
"At least I got you doggy," Ruby said looking towards the dog that had died, "oh" the girl whined sniffling slightly at the fact her violent companion for the last half hour had passed on to doggy heaven.
After an additional hour of heavy rainfall the trusty cardboard box was proving it's self to be a lot less trusty then initially thought. And Ruby refused to move the hairless dog that had tired to rip off her face from it's final resting place, so she was left trying to find some sort of shelter in a melting box. Though suddenly, the raging rain stopped and she looked around confused at the fact it had stopped, she could still see it falling but she couldn't feel it any more.
So she looked up to see two white booted feet standing in front of her, she followed the legs up and saw a skirt which became a dress, then a girl. A girl who looked down at her with disgust, a look she wasn't all that unfamiliar with, but Ruby was more focused on the umbrella being held above her.
Ruby had two options, one of them was to ask this good Samaritan what in the remnant she was doing, giving a Faunus of all things her help, and the other was something Faunus where presumed to do.
Steal
So Ruby sole the umbrella with a quick lunge she grabbed the handle, ripped it out of the white-haired girl's hand and sprinted as quickly as her lame foot could carry her down the ally way.
"Hey!" The girl shouted giving chase to the now very scared Faunus, who quickly wiggled her way though a fence onto a construction site. The little wolf squeaked when The gate was blasted open, and she dived behind a digger and straight into a puddle, soaking her clothes even more then they already were.
"Nowhere to run now stray," the white-haired girl said encroaching on where the girl was trying to hide when she dug into the mud, but the white-haired girl grabbed onto her leg pulling her out of the puddle and out into the open.
"I'm sorry!" Ruby quickly squeaked shoving the somehow clean umbrella at the girl who practically hit the young Faunus with it.
"You insolent little stray! I try and help you and you steal things from me!" The white-haired girl shouted keeping a firm grip on the Faunus who desperately tried to scramble away "do you even know who I am!?" She screeched.
Ruby, quickly shook her head her ears flattening against her scalp as she whimpered at the loud shout.
But after Ruby answered the girl's angered expression softened slightly "of course you don't" she growled grabbing the Faunus' arm and dragging the sodden wolf to her feet "Come with me" the girl growled gripping onto the tired Faunus and pulling her along.
Ruby had determined that this was officially the worse day of her life, she was wet, muddy, in pain, hungry and She's being dragged by this strange girl who chased her down presumably all for a fancy umbrella. worst of all though? After all this, it was pretty likely that she's just ended her way in the pound for her stupid actions.
even after this long journey she didn't know where she was going, or who on Remnant is this girl!? She just waltzes into her life for no reason and Ruby was getting very agitated with the brick wall that is this person. She's met all sorts of people on her travels but this person was just a huge butt, even more then that ghastly woman with the huge butt.
But then eventually they reached a big gate, Ruby was confused but she was quite sure she could probably wiggle under it if push comes to shove "Stay" the white-haired girl commanded towards Ruby. Ruby huffed as she watched the girl take out her scroll and unlock the gate, but she took a chance when it was given to her, so she sped forwards slipping though the small gap in the slowly opening gate before sprinting.
She didn't know where she was and she will fix that problem once she's out of that huge butt's eye line. But this horrible day just got a whole lot worse when she crashed into a blond woman with a purple cape, and a now muddy shirt "how dare!- who are you!?" She screeched grabbing Ruby's ear making the girl growl at the strange woman.
"Come back here!" That white haired girl from earlier shouted "professor GoodWitch!" They then said as the widest smile spread across her face that the young faunus has ever seen. "I'm so sorry for her behavior, but I was wondering if I could keep her as my new Faunus"
"Miss Schnee I should have known" the mean woman called Goodwich sighed dropping the struggling stray on the ground "I'm fully aware that you are still mourning the loss of your last Faunus but that doesn't mean you can just walk into Vale and kidnap a stray"
"But professor we both know that there isn't any other Faunus left, and if I don't have a Faunus I can't continue my education, I'm already three months behind"
The professor sighed rubbing the bridge of her nose looking down at the young faunus in disgust "Fine, I'll give you two weeks, get her cleaned up, curb that attitude, and get her registered and then and only then will I even consider that street rat being your partner" she snided making the street rat in question growl. "And you will be held responsible for anything that stray does"
"I'll ensure she's on her best behavior" the white haired girl smiled grabbing Ruby's arm as the young wolf twisted and turned in her grip, trying to get free.
But that wasn't an option when she was dragged into a large building.
Ruby Rose really wasn't having a good day.