Chapter Text
Legends, myths, fairy tales. Folklore repeated throughout the ages, endlessly recounted in any way possible. Mankind is fond of recounting the exploits of heroes and villains, of good and evil, forgetting so easily that they are remnants of a past long forgotten.
Man, born from dust, was strong, wise, and resourceful, but they were born into the end of their lives. From ashes rose Grimm, beasts of unknown darkness and destructive nature. The Grimm, naturally, set their sights on mankind and its creations, and it seemed that the Grimm's mission was to drive man back into the dust, into the darkness.
And yet, a light. The flicker of hope, a small, smoldering cinder, was enough to ignite change, and soon, man's passion and ingenuity led them to the tool that would help even the odds: Dust. An appropriate name, for those born of dust.
With the powers of nature at their command, man burned away the darkness, and the light that ensued birthed strength, civilization, technology, and, above all else, life.
And yet, light fades. A candle reaches the end of its wick. The dream shatters. Light returns to dust, and when it inevitably does... Darkness shall return from the ashes.
...That's a bit of a downer, isn't it?
And? It is the truth. One may prepare all the armies, all the weapons, all the fortresses in the world... But no victory has ever been achieved through strength.
Perhaps, but perhaps victory may instead be in the hands of the individual.
What. Did you hear a single thing I just said.
I did, and I think with a sufficiently strong singular person-
AS PER MY LAST-
A lone man with also four goons behind him strolled down the alleyway. It just so happened that today, the thirteenth of April, was thwithout even waiting for the narration to continue, he stopped at the mouth of the alleyway. The city streetlights illuminated his outfit - black slacks and leather shoes, a teal bandana underneath a white overcoat, black gloves and a matching bowler hat, and most importantly, a cane he had hooked around his right wrist. He slowly removed a short pistol from his pants pocket and held it up to his lips - a click of the ignition later, and the lighter had lit his cigar.
"Easy drill, boys." The man chuckled debonairly. This was Roman Torchwick, as the subtitles suddenly introduced to us very stylishly in a manner that would have been very cool if this was a visual format. "Go in, acquire the payload, get out. No need for a plan, no need for a ghost - just in and out. Easy money, innit?" His goons chortled as they made their way to their mark - From Dust 'til Dawn.
The store bell gave a pathetic little jingle as Roman strode in, his goons in close pursuit. There were only two people in the store - a girl in a red hood and what looked like an altered maid dress crossed with a schoolgirl outfit, and the shopkeeper himself.
"Good fuck," Roman sighed, catching the shopkeeper's attention as he exhaled smoke in a wreath around him, "Do you know how hard it is to find a dust store open this late at night? You should advertise it more." Roman smiled and snapped his fingers. Immediately, two of his goons took out guns. "Wait, hold on, I know this is a cyberpunk story kinda technically, but- actually y'know what I don't even care. This is a robbery, btw."
"oh teh NOES!" The shopkeeper screamed, putting his hands in the air. "ure robin ME! ahhhh i dont hab any monyes call the pollice!!!"
"What the fuck." Roman muttered, then said louder, "Hey, you sound like a real piece of work, shut the fuck up for a second. Silenus, Hamor," the redhead pointed to two of his goons, "Grab the dust."
The four goons began to ransack the place.
"Hey, boss, what exactly is Dust, anyhow?" Silenus asked.
"Oh, fossil fuel, gunpowder, magical focus, whatever you need it to be, really." Roman shrugged, chalking up the end of his cane as if it were a pool cue. "I don't really get it myself, but it's whatever."
"Hey, wouldn't it be funny if Dust was like, ancient people?" One of the goons asked.
"That'd be fucked up, Bottom." Roman replied. "...Maybe a little funny, but it's totally unlikely, with the way this show's going."
Meanwhile, the last goon had walked up to the girl in the red hood. "Nyehhh, I sures dos love bein' evil, nyehhh!" He announced. He pulled out a real fucking sword and pointed it at the girl's back. "Nyehhh, gimme all ya Dust, goilie!"
The girl turned around. She had black hair and silver eyes, but luckily they weren't the local flavor of Sharingan, so the last goon wasn't in danger of getting gunched.
"Hey, I can't hear you, I'm wearing headphones." The girl, Ruby Rose if her title card was any indication, announced.
"Oh, mys mistake." The goon apologized. "Could yas..."
"Of course," Ruby nodded, taking off her headphones.
"Thank yas." The goon politely curtsied. He then pointed his cutlass at the girl. "Now put all yas Dust in tha bag."
"Oh, you're robbing me..." Ruby realized. She pulled out a six-shot revolver. "Yeah, no."
Roman puffed at his cigar as he watched Balaam get like thirty rounds of molten lead pumped into him. Luckily since this was an anime he'd be fine.
"Oh, okay, so there's no gun control laws either." Roman muttered. "I mean, obviously there wouldn't be, since we have guns, but..." Roman sighed and pointed to Hamor. "Get her."
"Right away, boss." Hamor replied enthusiastically. He pulled out a gun. Suddenly, Ruby teleported behind Hamor and roundhouse kicked him so hard that he crashed through the window. Ruby then bodily tackled Silenus through a different window, before she got up and pulled out a tube of lipstick.
"Moon Rose Power!" Ruby announced, "Make Up!" At once, she began to twirl the lipstick tube, and it unfolded into a gigantic fuck-off scythe.
"That's right I heard the story over and over again," Roman mocked her. He motioned to Bottom and the recovered Balaam. "Let me show you MY other friends, little girl."
Bottom and Balaam raced out of the store, sword and axe in hand. Suddenly, Ruby pirouetted around her scythe's handle, kicking Balaam in the face. Landing properly, Ruby removed her scythe from the ground and, taking advantage of the properties of recoil, fired a round of buckshot in order to rocket the handle into Bottom's face, sending him flying into a third window.
"Cool, it's also a gun," Roman frowned as he watched his goons get got by a teenager with a scythe. "I guess that means this isn't a Soul Eater knockoff." He puffed the cigar one last time before crushing it in his grip. "Well, if we're going to be going fast, I might as well take a kill shot." He muttered, and he held up his cane like a sniper rifle, a reticle coming out of it to help him aim. Unfortunately, Ruby's constant movement meant lining up a headshot was difficult, and soon the police began to roll up. "Well, fuck." Roman sighed. He aimed directly above Ruby. "Sorry, grapefruit," Roman apologized, getting Ruby's attention, "But this is where we break."
A fiery blast shot out of Roman's cane, and Ruby shielded her eyes as the flare burst into a colorful firework. After one two three doing the Nicki Minaj blink, Ruby's vision cleared away well enough to see that Roman was booking it up the fire escape.
"Hey shopkeeper who has apparently been standing there this whole time," Ruby called over to the shopkeeper who had been standing there the whole time, "You mind if I go after him?"
"ye"
"Thankies~~~~~~!" Ruby replied, and then she sat astride her scythe and began to fire the gun chamber to achieve a horrifying mockery of the tenants of flight.
"What the fuck." Roman frowned. "No, seriously, what the fuck. I'm like 90% sure that shouldn't be able to work."
"It's the power of friendship!" Ruby called out as an explanation.
"What friends?! You're literally alone and we're the only characters that have been introduced!" Roman screamed. Suddenly, an airship appeared.
"Get in the choppa!" The pilot, a black-haired woman with a red dress, shouted at Roman.
"Aren't you a sight for sore eyes, Cinder?" Roman muttered, before he produced a small white grenade with a red stripe. "Sorry, grapefruit, but you're pocketing a red today!" He laughed, and he took a forty foot vertical leap into the back of the airship as he threw the explosive device.
"Why can you fly but I'm not allowed to?!" Ruby demanded.
"Because it's the power of friendship." Roman mocked before he shot at the grenade, whereupon it exploded. "Well, that's over with."
"Think again, thot!" A voice commanded imperiously. The smoke cleared, revealing a blonde woman who would be the show's only MILF representation for the next three seasons. She had purple eyes and a sleek black pencil skirt that ran up most of her body, accentuating her curves. Under the skirt was a white blouse which was struggling to contain her breasts, and a jagged, flowing purple cape, which was billowing in the magical glow of the spell circle she had conjured to protect Ruby.
"Hm." Roman frowned. "I don't like how horny the writing got there." He made his way through the airship's corridors before he got to where Cinder was flying the plane. "Hey, heads up, we've got a Hunter on our tail."
"Can't you do ANYTHING right?" Cinder huffed as she pushed past Roman.
"Damn bitch who put you on the planet." Roman muttered as he sat down at the control panel.
In the meantime, the blonde woman took out her personal weapon, an actual ass riding crop, and with a single wave created several magical circles that began to circle around her. Her cut-in card introduced her very stylishly as Glynda Goodwitch, and as the introduction faded, the circles began to fire lasers at the aircraft. The lasers moved with the circles, so she directed the circles to slowly box in the aircraft's movement.
"Perhaps you should pay more attention," Glynda scolded Roman and Cinder, "After all, one shouldn't be flying in inclement weather!"
"The hell...?" Roman wondered, suddenly noticing the gigantic magical circle floating above the craft, gathering the surrounding clouds.
"Water Moon Sign!" Glynda declared, "Boreal Diamond Necklace!" At once, the cloud burst, producing a heavy hailstorm that was so powerful that several hailstones cracked and pierced the cockpit's glass.
"Shit!" Roman swore, taking out his revolver-lighter and cranking up a dial on the side. He pushed the barrel through the hole in the glass and pulled the trigger, creating a much stronger flame, but not one particularly strong enough to melt the hail. Nonetheless, it was a stopgap measure, as he couldn't fit the cane through the hole.
Cinder, meanwhile, had finally made it to the aft of the craft, and heat shimmered off of her before it manifested as actual fire. "I hate having to clean up others' mess, but since I'm the only bitch in the house..." She growled, and at once the flames shot out in a jet at Glynda, who blocked it with another magic circle. The flames splashed around her and Ruby, and the magic circle glowed brighter from having to endure Cinder's heat. With a motion, the fire's glow intensified, and Glynda's eyes widened.
"We're moving!" She announced, grabbing Ruby and leaping back. The minute she broke concentration, the various magical circles, including the ones firing the lasers and the one holding the clouds together, shattered in a massive fiery explosion. The explosion shattered part of the roof, which Glynda took advantage of. "Earth Moon Sign!" She announced, coating the roof shards in a purple aura, "Septentrion Warning Shot!" The concrete formed together into a large arrow, which fired at breakneck speeds towards the aircraft.
"No you don't!" Cinder shouted, forming her own arrow of flame which she fired at the approaching cinderblock arrow. Time seemed to slow down as the two arrows collided head-on, shattering both like shards of glass.
Glynda smirked, and then waved her riding crop like a conductor's baton. At once, the shattered stone arrow reformed into its original shape and hit the side of the airship. It then broke apart and reformed into several smaller arrows, which continued the assault.
"Shatter like glass!" Cinder commanded, and the flames from the arrow moved to intercept the other arrows. She then waved her hand and summoned several chakrams of fire. "Let me show you a trick I learned from playing Kingdom Hearts 358/2 days!" She shouted, and she threw the chakrams at Glynda and Ruby.
"Oh, I'm a character!" Ruby realized, and she aimed her scythegun at the approaching chakrams and began to fire explosive rounds at them.
"What?!" Glynda shouted, grabbing Ruby with her psychic magic powers and jumping away from the ensuing explosions. "Why would you use explosive rounds to combat fire?!"
"Roman, fly us off." Cinder commanded.
As Cinder and Roman flew off with the Dust, Ruby sighed. "Well, I guess all's well that ends well!" She announced.
"What." Glynda demanded. "They got away! They stole millions of dollars worth of Dust! You did nothing except help them escape!"
Ruby looked off into the sunset. "Iggy!" A vision of a Boston terrier manifested in the sky. "Kakyoin!" A red-haired young man loomed in the sky. "The nameless Dust salesman!" The nameless Dust salesman. "We did it!" She said, and the apparitions departed for the heavens.
"Did he die?!"
One line break later, and Glynda was pacing in front of Ruby in an interrogation room.
"...And on top of all that!" Glynda gesticulated wildly with her riding crop. "Reckless endangerment of not only yourself, but a civilian! You escalated a situation while there was a de facto hostage in the same room being held at gunpoint! While the ensuing brawl could be considered self-defense, the fact of the matter is is that you continued to pursue a fleeing enemy, meaning you then crossed the line from self-defense to vigilantism! You broke more laws than didn't tonight, not even getting into your engagement in a fight you were clearly outclassed in! What on Remnant where you thinking?!"
Ruby looked shyly at the table, utterly browbeaten. "But... But I said all's well that ends well..."
"As if that's supposed to erase your many crimes tonight!" Glynda snapped. She placed a hand to her temple and sighed, visibly calming down. "Honestly, however, due to you carrying your student license on you, I can excuse almost all of these crimes as you following your training and getting in way over your head. Gods know we forget to include the element of civilians in our exclusively anti-Grimm training..." She muttered that last part. "Due to these extenuating circumstances, I'm perfectly willing to let you off with a stern warning."
Ruby looked up in hope.
"However, I think dealing with your next guest is going to be even more of a punishment." Glynda tsked, looking off to the side.
"That's kind of mean, isn't it?"
"Trust me, you'll get it. Ozpin!"
At once, the door opened, revealing a white-haired man with the stupidest fucking pince-nez sunglasses you've ever seen. He had golden eyes and was wearing a dark three-piece suit. An emerald green scarf was wound around his neck, held in place by a silver cross brooch. A cane was being held under his arm as he balanced a plate of cookies and a mug of what smelled like coffee.
"I don't drink coffee." Ruby said, confused.
"Ah yes..." Ozpin realized, suddenly moving his left hand to be akimbo on his hip while he began to stare at his right palm. Somehow, his objects froze in midair, as if they had absolutely no kinetic energy. "That's right... Youths do not enjoy coffee... I'm like... The Joker..."
"No you're not, no one knows what the Joker is." Glynda huffed, snatching the plate of cookies out of the air and placing it in front of Ruby. She then took the coffee and downed it in one go. "I swear to the gods, if you say you forgot the cream because you're The Joker or whatever the fuck, I'm leaving the school."
"I'll behave." Ozpin immediately broke his pose and sat down across from Ruby, who was monching on some cookies. "Hm..." He wondered.
"Wha?" Ruby asked, cookie crumbs spraying out of her mouth.
"Don't talk with your mouth full." Glynda scolded.
"Your eyes..." Ozpin noted, "You have silver eyes..."
"...Is this like a Kurapika situation, or...?"
"Oh, pay me no mind." Ozpin waved his hand. "Please, let me introduce myself - I am Headmaster Ozpin, of Beacon Academy." His title card zoomed in, revealing that exact information in a calming manner. "Now, Miss Rose, your fighting style is... Rather unique. I understand you're a student at Signal Academy?"
"How did you know?!" Ruby gasped. "Are you like the Joker, whatever that is?!"
Before Ozpin could spiral, Glynda cut in. "Headmaster Ozpin founded Signal Academy as well as Beacon Academy." She explained. "Furthermore, your attendance is listed on your student license."
"Indeed." Ozpin nodded. "Who taught you to fight like this?" He motioned to his tablet, which was showing a replay of the earlier fight scene.
"Wait, we have tablet computers?" Ruby blinked, squinting at the screen.
"Yes. We also have smartphones, television, and motorcycles, as well." Ozpin nodded.
"Huh." Ruby blinked. "So... Are we, like, in the future, or, like, the- the current time, or..."
"Don't worry about that." Ozpin interrupted her. "Please, answer my question."
"Oh, okay." Ruby nodded, sidestepping her current temporal confusion. "My drunkle Qrow did! He's great with scythes, and he taught me everything I know, like how to fish, how to shotgun a beer, how to smoke cigarettes, how to play mini-golf, and how to rend flesh with a deadly instrument of murder!"
"Fascinating." Ozpin muttered. "And - Signal Academy? That would be where Qrow teaches, yes..."
"Oooh, you're on a first-name basis?" Ruby leaned in. "Sounds juicy! Drunkle Qrow never talks about his love life, he just complains about- well, never mind what he complains about. Are you two ex-lesbian lovers?"
"Wh. What. Why did you misgender both of us?"
Ruby masterfully evaded the question. "Y'know, I'm only at Signal Academy 'cause I'm too young. My older sister, Yang, is starting at Beacon this year cause she wants to be a Hunter, and I want to be a Hunter but I'm only two years younger than Yang, and our parents always said we should help people and never to trust the cops, so Hunter seemed like the best bet! Yang tried other things, too, but she told me, and I quote, "training to be a Hunter feels just right", and I'm like, yeah, wow, I wanna be a Hunter too, so... Um..." She suddenly realized how much she had been talking. "Y-Yeah..."
Ozpin blinked, then slowly turned to look at Glynda. Glynda, for what it was worth, seemed to entirely disapprove of whatever Ozpin was thinking.
"Ruby, how would you like to come to Beacon?" Ozpin smiled.
Ruby gasped, then leaped across the table and tackled Ozpin to the ground. "Thaaaaaaank you Headmaster Ozpin!" She shouted, "You're, like, sooooo totally not like the Joker!"
"Haha, good luck with that," Ozpin wheezed, "Can you uncrush my ribs now?"
Glynda sighed and snapped her fingers, changing the scene.
"Oh, this is so exciting!" A blonde girl, revealed to be Yang Xiao Long by her sudden boss subtitles and health bar, shouted as she hugged Ruby. "My cute little baby sister is going to be attending Beacon Academy with me!"
"I know! It's so exciting, Yang!" Ruby tried to match her enthusiasm. Yang seemed to pick up on her hesitance, and slowly broke the hug to look into Ruby's eyes.
"Hey, Ruubs, what's wrong?" Yang asked in sisterly concern. "You know I'm proud of you, right? Everyone in the family's happy for you. Even drunkle Qrow was super excited for you... I think. He mostly just started mumbling about birds and something called The Joker, but it sounded like he was proud of you."
"I know, I know, and I'm happy you guys are, but..." Ruby sighed and looked out the window of the airship they were on. "What if I embarrass myself? I mean, I'm two years younger than everyone else and the only thing I'm good at is fighting. Everyone's gonna think I'm just some kid who got lucky."
"You are, to be fair." Yang pointed out, before shaking her head, golden locks flying with the movement. "But don't worry about that! I mean, weren't you at the top of your class in weapon design at Signal? When everyone sees how cool you are, they aren't gonna care about your inexperience! In fact..." Yang smiled. "I can think of one person who thinks of you as just right already~!"
"...Who?" Ruby asked, looking at her sister.
"Your big sis, obviously!" Yang laughed, going in to tickle Ruby.
"Pfft, aha, Y-Yaaaang, you're embahahahahrassing us!" Ruby wheezed, recoiling from Yang's assault.
"Oh, they don't care." Yang brushed it off, leaning away and motioning towards the other passengers on the plane, who were either talking to other passengers or absorbed in ther phones and books. Still others were watching the news on a huge plasma television hanging from the ceiling.
"The robbery was committed by Roman Torchwick and his personal goons." The reporter, a man named Cyril, reported. "While the goons were all arrested, Roman Torchwick remains at large. If you see him, contact the Vale Police Department. Or shoot on sight. The police have stated they don't care one way or the other. Back to you, Lisa."
"Thanks, Cyril," The reported, a young woman with lavender hair, replied. The camera then shifted to footage of a protest involving dozens of people with various animal ears, as well as a still image of a banner showing a snarling wolf with claw marks. "Last Saturday's Faunus Civil Rights Protest took a dark turn when the notable terrorist organization the White Claws made their support public, leading t-"
The broadcast suddenly cut out, revealing Glynda's talking head.
"Hello, future students," Glynda happily greeted them, revealing it to be a pre-recorded message.
"Who is that?" Yang wondered aloud.
"My name is Glynda Goodwitch, and I am the deputy headmaster of Beacon Academy."
"Wow... We don't even know who she is... How mysterious..." Yang wondered. A black-haired girl shot a confused look at her.
"You are among a privileged few who have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy! Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and as future Hunters, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world. End Transmission." She said all this uninterrupted and then vanished.
"I wonder who that was..." Yang wondered.
The airship rumbled as it began to take off, and with that, they were on the move.
"Oh wow..." Ruby gasped softly, looking out the window. "Is that- That's Signal Academy..." She wasn't alone in her awe, as many future students were looking through the windows, having never been in an airship before. "It's so big on the ground, but up here... Oh, and there's our house, Yang! Right down there!"
"Oh gods..." A blond boy stood up and rushed to the aft of the ship.
"Poor guy." Yang grimaced. "I remember when I first got motion-sick." She dug through her bag and pulled out a small box. "Hey, dude, take this."
"Yang, look, the ocean!" Ruby exclaimed, pressing up against the window to watch the azure waves roar beneath them. "Y'know, maybe Beacon won't be so bad after all... After all, I have you, don't I?"
"Sisters forever, whether we like it or not." Yang rolled her eyes good-naturedly, rubbing small circles on the blond boy's back. "I just wonder who that lady was..." The blond boy shot a bewildered look at her that was quickly overtaken by nausea.
"I can just tell I'm gonna make friends..." Ruby sighed happily. "And besides, what can possibly go wrong?"