Chapter Text
“Hey, Mom. Sorry I haven’t come by in a while. Signal’s been really busy lately. It’s weird, having Dad as a teacher now! I keep calling him Professor Dad or Mr. Dad, so trying to keep the whole parent-kid thing to a minimum is a bit of a no-go.” Ruby let out a little laugh, shaking her head before continuing. “But it’s going really well. I’m doing a lot better than I did last year! I actually got all A’s! Well, er, not in math. Math’s still a C, but I got a B on the last test!
“It’s the Yule break now, so we’ve been getting everything ready. Yang’s nervous about her entrance exam to Beacon, not that she’ll tell anyone. I can tell though, she’s been focused a lot on her studies. I’m sure she’ll do fine!”
As the snow fell around her, Ruby’s smile fell and she sighed. “I miss you, Mom. I’m glad we have the videos of you though, or else I’d end up forgetting your voice. Dad and Yang miss you too. They couldn’t come today, but we’ll come by the day after Yule… wish you were here. I still have so much to tell you, I dunno if I’ll ever be able to fit everything in all of these visits. Dad says I’m looking more and more like you every day. Sometimes I think it hurts him more than he’ll tell us. He still tries to hide how much he hurts from you going missing. But Yang and I can tell. He gets quiet and his smile doesn’t really reach his eyes when he’s having a hard time.
“I’m glad Uncle Qrow checks in on him as often as he does. I think he helps a lot more than he knows. But you know how he is, always the cool tough guy who keeps a strong face on for us. I’ve heard them with Barty and Pete sometimes during card nights. They get just as emotional. I think Uncle Qrow and Dad try to hide the worst of it so they don’t worry us. You know how they get. I’m pretty sure if you were here, you’d smack them out of it.”
A cold wind caught her cape, sending a shiver down her spine. All she could hear were the chirps of birds and rustling of wildlife around her. It was quiet, but pleasantly so. When she looked up she saw that the sun was setting fire to the snow as it kissed the horizon. “It’s getting late, and Dad gets his shorts in a twist if I’m out too long. I should go…” Ruby gave the memorial stone a sad smile. “I’ll see you soon, Mom. Love you.” With a last lingering smile, she turned away. The teen’s thick-soled boots crunched the snow underneath as she made her way through the forest back toward her home. Her thoughts were far away.
With Yang off to Beacon, it would just be her and Dad, and sometimes Qrow. Oh and Zwei. How could she forget her adorable little pup? Though she wasn’t sure how she felt about being alone at Signal. She had a few friends, but nobody was super close to her. Not like Yang. A lot of kids thought she was weird, and her dad being a teacher meant that usually they were wary of her, in case any shenanigans outside of class somehow ended up reflected on their academic record. It was a bit of a bummer.
When she reached a clearing, her wolf ears perked up. It was then that it struck her: the silence. The usual chirps had disappeared, and all she could hear was the rustling of leafless branches. That, and the crunch of snow under clawed feet. She swallowed hard. “Uh-oh.”
As the first Beowolves attacked, she became a scattering of petals which launched into the air. The height gave her an aerial view of her opponents. Immature Beowolves. No carapaces yet. Only six, might be more in the trees. Thankfully, she never left home without Crescent Rose. The carnelian metal gleamed in the bright moonlight as it transformed from dormancy into sniper mode.
As she had been taught, she was careful with each shot, never wasting one. Soon enough she switched from rifle to scythe. A Beowolf was caught on its blade. The bright red teeth only confirmed that they were recently created. Ruby smiled, and sliced its head off.
“Immature Beowolves lack the strength and agility that their older brethren have. They’re a lot like adolescent pups, bumbling around. Kinda like Zwei when you first got him. It’s why they come at you in packs--they need to depend on numbers to overwhelm you. They know that otherwise, they’re dead meat.”
Just as her uncle had said, more and more Beowolves were coming out of the trees at her. Some, she noticed with concern, were sprouting the white bony protrusions and new teeth that meant they were older. It also meant they had more experience. She zipped from enemy to enemy, using her shots to add more force behind her blade. The spins and her Semblance only bolstered each blow.
A click alerted her that she needed to change cartridges. The timing, however, could not have been worse. A howl made the Beowolves stop as she landed. Her ears pinned themselves to her head. Out of the dark trees came a large Beowolf. The Alpha.
Marked by the thick spikes protruding out of its spine and joints and the half-skull that covered its head, the Alpha was the strongest Grimm in the bunch. The other Beowolves seemed to back up, to allow it the prey it so craved. Unfortunately, Ruby knew, the prey was her .
It seemed to consider her carefully. It at least gave her the chance to switch cartridges. Without warning, the Alpha roared and lunged toward her. With a shot and a swirl of petals she darted around its bulk, aiming a blow at its neck. It blocked. As she bounced off its arm, she found a wave of Beowolves coming straight at her. She couldn’t help the grin that pulled at her lips. “Okay, let’s go!”
Her next shot combined with her Semblance to create a devastating whirlwind of firepower and blade. Everything was a blur, limbs flying every which way, leaving pools of ichor glowing black and red in the moonlight. Each blow was unwasted, leading into chained attacks of ruin. She decimated the immature Beowolves with a shocking amount of ease. With the majority out of the way, she focused her energy on the Alpha Beowolf.
In one swift swing an arm was gone. The Alpha howled its rage but couldn’t find its mark. Its intended prey made herself known with a stab from behind through its ribcage, and one more shot ripped the beast apart.
Ruby landed in the snow with her scythe held behind her, snowflakes replaced with shell casings. She held the pose for about five seconds before she put her weapon back into its dormant form on her back and jumped up and down a couple of times with her tail wagging. “I did it! I got rid of the whole pack and the Alpha! Wait until I tell Dad and Yang!” She went back on her way with a happy little hum. “Too bad Uncle Qrow’s on a mission. I’ll tell him when he gets back!”
Behind her, a lone crow flew out of a tree and into the night.