It's been ten years... Oh how the time has flown...

Ruby Rose looked over her collection of pictures, a small smile growing ever bigger as she got in the more recent ones. She gave a big sigh when looking over the last one and stood from her seat, moving to her bathroom in the apartment she lived in.

She glanced hard in the mirror, looking back into her scarred features, brushing her somehow absurdly long hair back behind her ear. Red lines adorned her face, some old and new, some washable and some untouchable. Her left eye was a dark red, a battle about five years ago bursting a blood vessel in her eye and covering the retina with a new tone of color, one of blood.

Ruby felt tears cloud her vision and moved her arm quickly to disperse them over her skin, the hairs prickling at her face.

I bet everyone else is living better lives than I am...

After the adventures of Beacon and everyone graduating Ruby Rose had gotten a letter from her uncle Qrow, inviting her to his house for a celebration. She excitedly accepted, and dressed in a semi-professional manner, leaving her Crescent Rose with her sister Yang. Arriving at her uncle's Ruby expected to meet her uncle with a few of his colleagues. What she got was a surprise.

Ten Years Ago...

"It's been four years since I've last seen Uncle Qrow. I wonder what surprise he's got planned for me." Ruby wondered, skipping slightly down the lit streets of Vale. After getting the letter Ruby was able to convince her teammates to go back to their families for some time, more fighting Yang on that decision. A funnier part of the fight was when Ruby tried to go weaponless, riling her sisters nerves. In the end she was able to convince her sister with some blackmail. Ruby rolled her eyes with a slight smile as she recalled the humorous fight. She let the memory disperse however when she reached her uncle's house. She knocked and stood patiently, thinking it was just her uncle increasing the anxiousness in her. After about five minutes of waiting however Ruby realized something was wrong. She knocked a little more loudly and patiently waited again. After five minutes she got fed up and opened the door and rushed in.

She was stopped hurriedly however when she slipped in some type of thick liquid and fell face first, her nose getting a heavy dose of whatever it was.

W-what is this...? Ruby asked, disgusted as she felt her skin tingle against the liquid. She brought herself up slightly and looked down, now noticing she was in a pool of blood. Ruby turned green and stumbled until she stood, slipping constantly in the liquid.

"W-what the hell..." Ruby whispered in horror, her silver eyes dilating till they were the size of her pupils. Bodies were strewn and abandoned across the house, which Ruby recognized as her uncle's colleagues and friends.

"No..." She mumbled, bringing her hands to her mouth to not scream. She let the tears fall silently and got up to call the police before she heard a familiar cry.

Uncle Qrow! Ruby thought, her retina's receding to their earlier form. A second scream was all it took before Ruby made her way through the house, trying to be careful to not slip in fall. She reached the kitchen and was met with an almost horrifying sight. Her uncle was being held by his collar as a kitchen knife already stained with blood was moving towards his left eye. The person who held Qrow up was Cinder Fall... Now Ruby was pissed.

As the knife wasn't more than three inches from her uncle's eye, Ruby lashed out, "No!" She cried, grabbing a pan nearby. Ruby rushed Cinder as the latter turned towards her, unable to react in time. A loud echo and snap vibrated he room and Cinder felt her jaw break and a few teeth fly out. Cinder dropped Qrow, him falling to the floor with a thud. Ruby could tell he was unconscious by this point, and saw the knife within diving distance.

"Well, if it isn't the pest I was looking for." The cinder haired woman laughed in a somewhat slurred voice, considering her jaw was snapped out of place and was now missing a few teeth. She stood and used her aura to grab some knives and threw them at Ruby. The graduate of Beacon rolled under the counted and let her rage boil as the knives were imbedded into the counter she was covered by. She saw the kitchen knife and rolled for it, successfully grabbing it and moving to the counter nearby.

"Oh, I see you plan to kill me with the knife I used to kill your uncle's old friends. I doubt you have the will to kill another human though." Cinder taunted, slowly moving towards the cowering rose. Ruby gulped and waited till the noise was close, but became confused when they suddenly stopped.

"How does it feel... Knowing you can't save the ones you love..." Cinder muttered before grabbing Ruby's head and smashing her into the side of the counter.

Ruby shook her head, her tears slinging everywhere. She couldn't remember more after that, however that scene was enough to give her nightmares. Ruby glanced back into the mirror and cleared her vision, her black hair grew down to her mid back, and with Ruby refusing to cut her hair she eventually stopped wearing her cloak. As mentioned before, she had different colored eyes, one silver and one red, however she had eye color changing contacts to make her eyes normal. Scars adorned her face, but her memory was foggy between her head being crushed into the counter and waking in a ditch next to train tracks, so she never knew how she got them. Her attire was similar but different compared to what she wore when she was younger.

Ruby primarily wore a white short-sleeved shirt with a shattering red moon with what Weiss Schnee, a close friend, called a Combat Skirt. Her skirt went down to her knees and was streaming with black and red. Her belt, instead of her signature rose everyone knew her for when she was younger, was instead a gold eagle with its wings spreading above its head, almost meeting at the tip. To Ruby, the eagle meant freedom, however still trapped down, unable to fly. She left the bathroom after sliding in her contacts and grabbed her red sweatshirt and moved to switch off her T.V., which had been on for some time, when some shocking news stopped her.

"Word has it that the prestigious Grimm hunting team of RWBY has decided to make their stay here while on mission. Our little town of Hirano has the honor of having such intelligent, courageous, and beautiful women stay here!" The journalist yelled with excitement. Ruby let her remote drop, eyes wide and mouth dropped.

T-team... RWBY...? The former leader thought, falling to her knees.

"Yang... Weiss... Blake..." Ruby let her tears fall.

Out in the forest next to Hirano...

"Stupid trees." A blonde muttered, trying to smack dangling branches away. A white-haired woman behind her shook her head, but gave no comment.

"If you hate those branches so much Yang, why don't you join me?" A black-haired girl asked, jumping from one branch to the next. The blonde, now known as Yang, glanced up at her friend, who sat in the branch above her perched like a cat.

Yang grinned, "I'd rather deal with branches than have someone get a look at my panties Blake. Nice cat decoration by the way." Yang ended with a whistle and a wink. Blake flushed a bright red before jumping down to join her friends.

"Alright, enough you two. We're getting close to Hirano and I'd prefer to not have the locals think were insane." A male said with laughter, jumping into view. He was black-haired with his eyes being covered by sun glasses, and had a scar on the lower part of his right cheek. His attire was a simple black muscle shirt with a similarly colored sweatshirt, and dark-colored jeans. The white-haired woman turned to face him, an indifferent look on her face.

"Let them say what they want Recca, I hardly think other people will care. After all, we are considered the ones who saved the world from the Grimm." She shrugged, fixing her neck length hair. Recca in turn glanced back and forth between the bickering friends and the white-haired girl, shrugging.

"Well, you guys weren't the only ones to stop the Grimm, team... who were they...? Oh, team JNPR was it? Weren't they there as well?" Recca asked, trying to rack his memory.

The white-haired girl nodded, "Yes, they did. Jaune Arc actually delivered the final blow while that spirit was toying with us." She recalled with distaste.

Yang jumped into the conversation , "Actually, have you heard of what they've done since then Weiss?"

"Why are you asking me?"

Blake spoke this time, "Because you have all the connections princess. We're not as deep into the FBI as you are." Blake recalled with a smirk.

Weiss' face went red, "Hey, that was one time!" Her cries fell on deaf ears as her team just laughed, reminiscing old times.

Everyone became calm a minute later, allowing Weiss to answer, "Anyways, no, I've gotten no information on them besides a rumor that they've broken up." The info drop caused everyone to stop and stare back at her with unbelievable expressions.

"What? Why would they do that!?" Yang cried in disbelief, causing Blake to flinch because she was closest to the blonde.

Weiss shrugged, "No clue." Silence fell on the four as they entered Hirano, where everyone was there.

The four stared blankly, "Uh... Hello?" Yang asked with a timid wave. That was all it took for the entire town to swarm around them, now bombarding the quartet with questions.

"How's the mission?"

"Has Team JNPR really disbanded?"

"Who is the new addition to the team?"

"Is he replacing Ruby Rose after she-" The last man couldn't finish his sentence because he was sent flying back into a nearby building, Yang having her arm extended with Ember Celica activated.

"If anyone mentions her name, I will kill them." Yang said with vivid fury, her eyes red. The media backed away and allowed the team to move through the streets.

Ruby watched her team from her apartment, torn between rushing down there and meeting them or staying in her room. Before a decision was made her phone rang.

She picked it up, "Hello?"

"Ruby, I know you want to meet them, but you can't." A familiar voice informed with haste.

Ruby in response sighed, "Why can't I though? Those three girls down there are my friends! I should be allowed to go see them!"

The voice retorted, "The reason is Cinder Fall! We've finally got a read on her and apparently Team RWBY has as well! If your cover is exposed and Cinder finds out as well I guaran-damn-tee she will kill you and them along with, just to prove her point!"

Ruby bit her lip, gripping the phone cord with her other hand, "Bu-... Fine Christian, I'll stay incognito." Answered Ruby reluctantly.

"Look, I'm sorry for snapping at you like that, but with how close we are to finally catch her, we can't risk it."

"It's ok, I understand. I'm going to go shopping, goodbye Christian."

"Goodbye Ruby."

Christian set the phone into cradle, giving a deep sigh. He swung his chair over to the desk behind, grabbing an old paper. He glanced over the title of the cover a deep frown littering his face.

Ruby Rose Destroys Vale, Massacring Hundreds!

Christian shook his head and let the paper slip from his fingers.

"I don't know how to tell you Ruby... But good luck getting your former teammates to not kill you..."

Ruby walked down the street, glancing at the nearby passerby's as they raced down the streets and sidewalks to get a glimpse at Team RWBY.

The former leader sighed, I wish I could be among those three, walking through the crowds, giving smiles off to the crowd, and having a good time. That's when she had another thought.

Who was that male that was with them? Was he a boyfriend to one of them? Or... Maybe my replacement...? At that last stretch Ruby stopped, her head down.

"He is..." She mumbled. Before she could dwell further loud noised starting making their presence known. The 28-year-old craned her head to meet a ravenous crowd of people following the three girls she once knew and the man she had just been curious about.

They look...different, more mature... She said, getting a look at her old friends. Blake Belladonna, that sly cat girl that she found out two years later after the start of Beacon that she was crushing on her sister Yang. Her hair stayed relatively the same, but was a little curved at the end. Her bow was missing now, and to Ruby it seemed that she was comfortable with being a Faunus. Her clothing was more light, with a white tank top and a thigh length black skirt, low heels accompanying. Gambol Shroud still kept its place on her back and her neck adorned a slim necklace with her symbol on it.

Weiss Schnee. Ice queen with a quick reaction and enough intelligence to outsmart the White Fang single-handedly. Her hair was without its signature side pony tail, and was cut down to neck length. Her clothing still held its semblance to her love of white, with Weiss's shirt a short sleeved white shirt with her snowflake on its center. Her signature white jacket with a bright red inside covered the shirt, and had white shorts. Ruby felt slightly confused as to why Weiss wore a jacket while it was close to summer. That was in the back of her mind though, because she was focused on mainly two things, how to get around Christian forcing her to not meet her former teammates and wondering who that man was. That's when her eyes caught her only true friend when she was growing up.

Yang Xiao Long, her beloved and protective sister that who went berserk when someone messed with her hair even a little. Her hair was shorter, but not by much, and her ahoge was trimmed slightly as well. Her clothing stayed exactly the same, leaving Ruby dumbstruck. Her gauntlets, as Ruby saw earlier, were still with her. The only thing Ruby truly saw different with her sister was a necklace with her old emblem.

It's hard to believe Yang still remembers me... Ruby thought with a slight frown.

Yang was darting her voice to answering questions and talking to her friends on where they should go for lunch when her eyes laid on a stray, young women who was staring at them. Her black bangs were frayed over her face and her brown eyes bore into...her maybe?

"Yang?" Weiss asked. Yang snapped her attention back to the former.

"Yes Weiss?"

"What are you staring at?"

Yang turned her focus back to where the woman was, "H-" She stopped barely a syllable when she noticed no one was there.

"Yang?" Weiss asked again.

"N-never mind. It was nothing..." She trailed.

Ruby was fast walking way from the crowd, her heart racing at Yang noticing her.

I've got to be more careful. I can't let them spot me. She thought, however deep in her heart she still wished to walk up and speak with them.

No, I can't. I need to follow Christian's orders. He hasn't led me astray so far, so I have no reason to not believe him. Not yet anyway. She gave a last defiant thought before moving to a nearby grocery store.

"Now, to pick stuff up for dinner." Ruby spoke to herself, hoping to get her mind off of her old friends. She grabbed a small basket and started shuffling through the store grabbing ingredients for what grabbed at her stomach. A few minutes later she ran into someone when she wasn't paying attention, knocking both down.

"Sorry." Both victims spewed. They sat up and saw who they were saying sorry to. It came as a shock to Ruby on who it was. If his blonde hair and blue eyes didn't give it away, his attire sure did.

"Jaune!" Ruby yelled excitedly, before realizing what she just blurted. The blonde in question rubbed his head and stood a moment later, a small grin on his face.

"It's been a while since someone I've ever seen before blurt out my name like that." He laughed, "I don't know whether I should take that as a compliment or insult." Jaune reached his hand out to Ruby. The girl accepted it with tentative awareness.

"Sorry, it's just I remember reading about you delivering the final hit against that Grimm Spirit." She lied.

Jaune however had a confused look, "That's up for speculation. Every paper I read back then talked about Team RWBY doing that. I really never minded though, I was never one for being the center of attention." He revealed with a shrug.

Ruby knew her plan was lynched, "Uh... Not the one I read. It was...published... In uh... Hirano, here... Yeah..." She laughed nervously.

I am acting like an idiot. She thought to herself. Jaune glanced at her warily before shrugging.

"Oh well, that's in the past anyway. Speaking of anyway, as you've said earlier, I'm Jaune Arc." He held out his hand, "Who is the young woman who knows my name?"

Ruby accepted the handshake, "I'm Scarlet Rosette." They gave small, welcoming smiles before an awkward silence bestowed upon them, before Ruby, or Scarlet, popped a question.

"Lunch?"

A few minutes later Ruby and Jaune were sat at a booth, eating some sandwiches. They once again sat in an awkward silence before Jaune laughed mildly, catching Ruby's ears.

"What's funny?"

Jaune shook his head, "Nothing really. I just remember the time when I met my future girlfriend. I could hardly do anything near her without embarrassing myself, and when she took me out to lunch I almost passed out from embarrassment." He sighed, recalling his memories.

Ruby raised an eyebrow, not knowing Jaune got himself a girlfriend.

"Who's this girl who became your future girlfriend, if you don't mind answering a stranger?"

Jaune chuckled, "No, it's quite alright. Her name is Pyrrha Nikos." The answer caused Ruby's eyes to widen and choke on her food.

Jaune noticed this, "H-hey, you ok?" He asked, leaning forward to pat the coughing woman's back.

Ruby cleared her throat, "I'm ok. Food just went down the wrong pipe." She lied, her brain still racking at the fact Jaune got Pyrrha as his girlfriend.

Jaune's more of a man than he was 14 years ago. I'm impressed. Ruby laughed mentally.

"I'm surprised you actually accepted my lunch invitation. I'm only a stranger to you really."

Jaune shrugged, biting into his sandwich, "Pyrrha taught me to be more open to make new friends. She hasn't led me astray so far, so I have no reason not to trust her." The last sentence rang through Ruby's ears, causing her to freeze.

That... Sounds like me and Christian... He hasn't betrayed me, so I should believe in him... She led that thought into a smile.

"What's with the sudden smile?" Jaune asked.

Ruby looked up, beaming slightly, "You reminded me of an old friend..." She trailed. They sat in a comfortable silence before Ruby stood.

"Leaving?"

Ruby nodded, gathering her trash, "Yes. Thank you for the lunch."

He nodded in response, "Think nothing of it. Want to come over to my house sometime this week? I'm sure Pyrrha would love to meet you?" He asked with a smile.

Ruby mimicked it, "I would love to. Wanna trade numbers so you can call me when it's ok?" At his nod Ruby and Jaune traded numbers after she discarded her trash. They both went their separate ways and after what seemed like a long time, she gave off a genuine smile.

At an abandoned dust factory...

Cinder Fall gave a cold stare out at the town of Hirano, not noticing a subordinate walk up behind her.

"Sir." The male directed, standing professionally. Cinder glanced behind herself and saw who it was. She turned fully, fire almost literally in her eyes.

"Speak."

The man bowed, before clearing his throat, "Hirano we believe houses Team RWBY and Project Zero."

"What evidence supports your claim?" The man held out a folder in response. Cinder snatched said papers and quickly glanced through them, skimming through the documents, but grazing carefully through the taken pictures to see if the accusations were true. She nodded slowly and handed the folder back.

"Alright. Send if a few Beowolves so we can scan their combat capabilities then-"

The man interrupted her, "Actually sir, we believe that Team RWBY is there for a mission that's related to you."

Cinder became curious, "Oh?"

Now the man was hesitant, "Well, we believe that our location was leaked, and now Team RWBY is here to find and either take you captive or kill you." He flinched back. Cinder stayed silent for a moment before her fist flared into a ball of fire. The man ran in the opposite direction, but he wasn't careful enough and caught a table, tripping over and falling face first. He turned to face Cinder just in time to catch a fireball to his face.

Cinder ignored the cries of agony and flipped open her phone, dialing a familiar number.

"Yes?" The voice asked.

"They know where we are. I need you to send in a Deathstalker and terrorize the town of Hirano. Make sure you either deathly injure or kill Team RWBY. I will pay depending on how gruesome the bodies look." Cinder said with open fury.

The voice was static for a moment before answering, "What about Project Zero?"

"Bring her in as uninjured as possible. I would prefer knocked out being the most damage possible. Can you manage that Roman?"

Roman cackled through the phone, "Why deary, I was hoping for a bigger challenge of of someone as dastardly as you. Alas, you have a deal." He shut the phone off not a moment later.

Cinder followed suit, looking back at the now dead worker; his face down to charred skin, looking like he just came out of a zombie movie. She walked over to the body and started chipping away at the remaining crude skin barely attached to his face.

"Oh my dear little Ruby, I treated you like my own daughter and in the end you still tried to whip me after all the love and care I've given you." She opened her hand and sliced some skin off, letting the blood flow into her other hand.

She moved the semi-dry liquid around for a minute before tilting her hand and let the blood drip like a waterfall back onto the worker's face, the red singed liquid now splashing onto nearby surfaces.

Cinder gave a psychotic grin, "I will not be so kind next time."

Kira: Alright, I think this is a good place to stop. Just like A Queen's Hurt, I sparked this idea from nothing. I plan on working on this for sometime between working on Aftermath and RWBY. Hope you enjoy. :)

Kira: Actually, before I forget, the reason why Ruby's left eye is still red, for those of you who know about blood vessels popping in the eyes, is because, well, blood stains right? Well, in this case, the blood stained her eye, and that will be of importance later. Again, hope you enjoyed.