Chapter Text
Weapons weekly and music. Was there anything better to take on her break at her boring dust store job? Well, not to say Ruby didn't enjoy her retail job, it was a nice part time gig, but to say it was exciting would be a massive lie. Still, a gal could dream, couldn't she? And what better way to dream than staring at the WW magazine as the rock blasted her ears, all the while imagining how cool it would be to become a student at Beacon! After all, if the magazine was correct (which it was), then as a school designed for Hunters, it would be Ruby's dream school! Of course, Ruby already knew how awesome Beacon was, but the idea of actually attending such a prestigious school made her sigh. Sigh so hard, in fact, that she barely felt the tap on her shoulder. Immediately, she turned around to face what was probably some customer looking for a specific type of dust, and that was the moment she came face to face with a man in a pitch-black suit, sunglasses obscuring his eyes. Without hesitation, the man pointed to his ears, causing the girl to let out a small exhale of understanding, before taking off her headphones
"Yes, admired customer?", she asked, her tone that standard sweet customer service voice she had hones over dozens of hours.
The man looked at her with a puzzled look, before pulling out a massive machete.
"Hands up! This is a robbery!"
The next moment, the man was flying past the isle and what seemed like compatriots and straight into a wall. 3 more men, dressed identically, began to approach, a sequence which made Ruby's heart race. She was just itching to test out her new augments she gave to her gun-scythe, and these lowly crooks were gonna be her guinea pigs!
The first one was shot directly in the leg as he lurched forward, causing him to fall past her. The second's weapon was caught by the edge of her scythe, before being thrown, alongside its wielder, into the employee bathroom. The third one received a kick to the chest, sending him flying out the window.
By this point, Ruby noticed the leader of the operation: A sharply dressed gentleman smoking a cigar, his fire red hair evident underneath his rather stylish fedora. Ruby immediately recognized him, but to say she could remember exactly from where was impossible.
"You. Out of the store!", she commanded, but her smirk betrayed just how much she was enjoying this impromptu brawl.
Her boss, a sweet old man who was positively shaking from being threatened, turned to face her, his features softening.
"Well, well, seems we've got a fighter", the man who Ruby now realized was prominent mafioso Roman Torchwick smiled as he finished his sentence, "You all done with the siphoning yet?"
"Yes, sir!", the goon he was talking to responded, beginning to pull out what looked like a standard pistol.
"Idiot! Take the goods and run, she's mine!", Torchwick barked.
"Sir, yes sir!"
But just Roman lunged for Ruby, she activated her semblance, speeding past him and crashing right into the mook carrying the stolen dust, causing it to spill all over the floor.
"Clever girl", the mafioso let out.
All it took was one shot to the leg to cause the minion to stop struggling, coward that he was.
Next, Ruby turned to the main prize.
"Heh", Torchwick grinned, "Every man for himself!"
And so, he began running.
Ruby turned back to her boss.
"Permission to go after him?"
The man, still shaking, managed an uneasy smile.
"Make him pay, kid!"
With her semblance on high alert, she quickly caught up to Torchwick, but despite her attempt to grab him with her scythe, he just barely dodged, before straightening his cane. Ruby, ever the gun enthusiast, saw exactly where this was going, and so dodged it with an after wind of flower petals in her wake. But it was then that a gust of wind whooshed through the streets as a massive airship appeared in the skies before the duo.
"What are you waiting for?! Let down the damn rope!", Roman yelled as the side of the airship opened, gears turning both literally and in Ruby's head as he struggled beneath her.
Suddenly, a bright flash appeared from the airship's open side as a rain of fireballs came flooding down towards the two of them. Quickly, Ruby sped away from them, too quick to notice a rope being dropped at the same time.
"Hey, watch the suit! I just got it made!", squealed Torchwick as the fireballs just barely missed him.
Ruby, now focused on her new attacker, grabbed crescent rose and aimed. It was hard to see due to the constant flashing, but her new foe seemed like a...woman? In a dress? Ruby couldn't afford to think as she shot bullet after bullet, trying to take down the threat. And yet, try as she might to aim, one can't focus both on dodging and attacking at the same time, causing one errant fireball to head straight for her face. Ruby braced as best as she could...before finding nothing but the now slightly warm air rushing past her face.
In front of her stood another woman, alongside a strange shield made seemingly of...ice? Ruby looked on in shock as the woman fired her own barrage of sharp icicles at the ship, and specifically at the now on-board Torchwick.
"Nice try, Glynda, but we've got the upper hand now!", he said as the ship began picking up speed into the direction it came from.
Both girl and woman fired off a few potshots at the airship, but somehow none seemed to connect, as though blocked by some unseen force. 'A semblance?' Ruby thought.
But as though as a last parting gift, strange circles to appear beneath Ruby and her savior, and next thing they knew fire erupted from them, thankfully slow enough for both to evade. It was in that moment, as the airship flew off into the distance, that Ruby managed to get a glimpse at her unknown hero. A blonde woman, sporting square glasses and with a stern look so frigid that it could freeze an entire ocean.
The next moment, Ruby found herself in a nearby alley, her ear aching with a dull pain.
"Do you have any idea of what you just did?!", the woman shrieked.
"Uhhhh..."
"Young lady, you just put yourself into a very dangerous situation! The right call would've been to let the authorities handle it!"
"I'm...sorry?"
"Ugh, the naivete of youth! Tell me your name right now! Your parents must be worried sick!"
"...My name's Ruby. Ruby Rose".
For a second, the woman before Ruby seemed to accept this information, but then immediately her eyes seemed to hulge out of her head.
"You're...Ruby Rose?"
"...Yes?"
"Stay right there! I need to make a phone call!"
The next few moments left Ruby in a daze as the adrenaline rush began to wear off. Through all of the arguing and sighing and overall harsh lecture that whoever on the other end of the line was receiving, one thing stood out to Ruby about the woman's words.
Did...She mention Qrow...As in...Uncle Qrow?!
Within a few more moments, the woman came back.
"Well, young lady, I am shocked to have to say these words, but you...Have proven yourself a hero tonight".
"I...Thank you?", Ruby responded.
"You're welcome. At any rate, due to some...vouches from people i trust, you are hereby offered a place as a student...of Beacon".
Ruby blinked.
"Miss..."
"Glynda"
"Right! Miss Glynda, could you please pinch me?", Ruby sighed.
"...Excuse me?"
"I'd like to wake up from this dream now. It's just too good to be-"
Ruby was interrupted by a loud sigh.
"It's no dream, girl. And you should know, such opportunities aren't come by that often, so I would appreciate it if you could be more accepting of such a-"
"Yes! Yesyesyesyesyesyes! Please let me be a student at Beacon!"
Glynda sighed, and Ruby hoped that she would never have to wake up from such a beautiful dream.
_______________________
As Ruby opened the door to her house, she was met by two imposing figures. The first was of Tai, his arms crossed and eyes narrowed in a way that screamed "parental anger", not that Ruby had seen it many times. Most of the time his face instead spoke of exhaustion and despair. Next to him was Yang, and it was in that moment that Ruby noticed the resemblance between the two. Expect, of course, that instead of worry, on her face was plastered a wide grin as she basically leapt at and embraced her sister.
"Ruby, I'm sooo proud of you!", she squealed, "Just yesterday I thought tonight would be the last moment we'd ever see each other!"
However, as excited and thankful Ruby was that she'd be attending the same school as her sister, there were more pressing matters to attend to...Like how Yang was currently squeezing the air out of her.
"Yang, yang...", Ruby breathed, "Please, you're kinda-"
"Oh, I'm so sorry!", Yang responded, letting go of Ruby.
But it was in that moment that Ruby turned to Tai.
"And what made you think you were allowed to go after dangerous criminals, missy?"
"Well....", Ruby began, "All's well that ends well, right Tai?"
"Ugh...I thought i told you, it's 'dad'., Tai responded with a deep sight
"Hm, that's strange. Last time i checked, my name is Ruby ROSE, not Xiao Long", Ruby responded with sass and confidence Tai knew all too well," "...Anyway, Yang, you got that new catalogue, right?"
"Of course!"
"Great! I still need to pick out some cute outfits to get before we go!"
But Tai wasn't impressed.
"Hold on, since when did we have the money to-", he began, but the second he turned to face them, he instead found nothing but displaced air.
Although Ruby couldn't hear it, something in her mind told her that Tai was probably sighing right about now. Oh well, there were outfits to peruse!