Ruby knocked on the heavy oak door. The door knocker was crafted to appear as a silver dragon, the symbol that the Lie family often used. The door was answered by a man dressed in dark green suit; he smiled as he saw Ruby. "Ruby come in, let's get you out of the rain"

"Thanks Ren"

"What brings you here tonight Ruby", Ren graciously taking Ruby's wet umbrella.

"Mother told me your ships brought in one of my father's packages; she said it was supposed to arrive today". Ren frowned, scratching his head in confusion.

"I haven't heard anything of this, but I will go ask my father, please help yourself to some tea while you wait". Ren rushed upstairs, taking the steps two at a time. Ruby poured herself a small cup of tea, delighting in some biscuits that accompanied the tea.

A few minutes passed before Ren returned. Worry was written on his face and his posture had visibly straightened. Ruby rose as he approached, "Is something wrong Ren, you look like you have something on your mind?"

"No it's fine; father said that the delivery has been delayed. Apparently General Ironwood has closed the ports for some reason or another. He wrote a letter explaining the situation; your mother would probably very much like to see it"

"Oh, sure, I will get it too her immediately"

"Good, good. Be careful out there Ruby, the streets of London are not kind at night"

"pppffft, don't worry Ren I will be fine"

"Of course, but just keep it in mind". Ren presented her with her umbrella, handing over the sealed letter in the process. With a hug goodbye, Ruby left. Ren's words made Ruby move that little bit faster, while Ruby would very likely be fine as she was in a nicer part of town, there was serious concern behind Lie's words. Her nervousness caused her to take more than one wrong turn, and soon she was certain that she would be late getting home.

The streets of London were slick with the recent rain, the sound of carriages travelling across the uneven cobblestone the only sound present in the dark night. Ruby walked down these streets, rushing underneath a black umbrella, desperate to get home. Her mother would be fretting; she would no doubt call the constabulary and send them on a search after her. She hated being the cause for worry especially when it was her mother, more so when father was not there to temper her. Her father had left on important business, heading out into the countryside with her sister. Ruby's father, Taiyang Xiao Long was a fairly prominent trader, hailing from Hong Kong he had set up an enterprising business transporting goods from Europe to the East.

He met Summer Rose on one of his journey's to London. They had hit it off immediately and were soon wed. Ruby's sister, Yang, was the result of a previous marriage of Taiyang's. Yet they had made a wonderful family, Summer had well and truly accepted Yang, and it was not long before Ruby was born.

So far Ruby had lived a simple life. She had received a good education thanks to her father's success, and now helped her father with some of the company's work. The Lie family had been a long-time ally of the Xiao Long Trading Corporation; they often assisted each other with various trading expeditions. Lie was one of Ruby's closest friends due to their family's exposure to each other.

Ruby arrived hastily at her house, a small two story building surrounded by a simple garden and an iron wrought fence. To Ruby's surprise there were no lights on in the building, at this hour her mother would usually be reading in the salon. Ruby approached the house carefully, a strange feeling in her gut prompting her sudden need to act cautiously. Creeping through the gardens Ruby saw nothing out of place. She knocked softly at the door, resting an ear against the cold wood. She heard shuffling from inside, followed by a soft metallic clicking. The door burst open, inside stood a dishevelled woman, holding a pistol. "Mother what's wrong, it's me"

"Oh Ruby, come inside quickly. Oh thank god you're here I was so worried", Summer brought Ruby into a tight hug, one that would rival Yang's.

"Mum, I need to breathe", Summer released Ruby and quickly shut the door behind her. "Mum, what's going on, why are we here in the dark, why do you have a pistol, what's going on?"

"Something is very wrong dear, I got a message from you father. Head downstairs, to the basement, stay there until I come for you ok"

"Mum, what's going on, what's wrong"

"Not now, there is too much to explain. Please just go downstairs, don't come up unless I come for you". Ruby looked into her mother's eyes, the silvery orbs, much like her own, spoke of desperation. Ruby nodded, her mother was serious. She raced downstairs, her mother closing the door behind her. Encapsulated in darkness Ruby waited, fearful of the strange events that were happening. What is happening, why does she have a pistol? The thoughts raced around her head, she had many questions. In the darkness she managed to find a somewhat comfortable seat.

Nervously she waited in the basement for what seemed like a year. She started to drift off to sleep, before she was brought back by the sound of broken glass. She sat upright, listening intently. Upstairs she heard the sounds of commotion, the tumble of furniture, shouts in the night. Then the deafening sound of a gunshot, the smell of black powder drifting down into the basement. Another shot rang out, this time Ruby knew it was from directly outside the basement door.

For while there was no more noise, and then only the sounds of muffled of talk. Ruby was frozen in fear; she could hear someone trying to break into the basement. In the near pitch black darkness Ruby began scrambling for some sort of weapon. There was little down in the dark that Ruby found, her family were merchants, not soldiers. If by chance or otherwise she came upon something that felt sharp, something that felt like a blade. It was not very sharp, obviously dulled from age, yet its blunt nature made it possible for Ruby to grasp it, as there appeared to be no handle. With knife like weapon in hand Ruby hid in the corner of the room, her back against the wall.

The sound of the doors lock being smashed broke her quiet focus. She could hear someone take steps down towards her. "Now where are they, they have got to be around here somewhere", the voice was male, with an indignant and condescending air to it.

"Mr Torchwick, hurry up down there someone is sure to have heard those gunshots"

"Yeah, yeah whatever. If that bitch didn't give me any trouble things would have been much quieter". Ruby fumed with rage, they were talking about her mother. Ruby sprung from her hiding spot as the man called Torchwick stepped into the basement. She lunged at him, wielding the scrap of metal that resembled a knife blade. The man wore a simple suit, white in colour, and completed with a bowler hat adorned with a red feather. He moved with speed and intercepted Ruby's furious stab with his cane. Unfazed by the attack, Torchwick followed his block with a swift punch to Ruby's gut, knocking the wind out of her. With a flick of his cane he sent Ruby's weapon flying. Ruby tried to throw a punch, but yet again he easily parried the blow. He kicked Ruby's feet out from under her. Ruby groaned in pain as she tried to scramble away from Roman.

"Hey there little Red, seems like mummy left us a little present down here after all"

"Go…to…hell", Ruby sucking in deep breaths between her words.

"Ah this one has a little fight in her. Just like her mother, and just like your mother, you will have to die". Torchwick raised his cane, revealing a hollow end. Roman cocked the flint hidden at the top of the cane. Ruby slowly realised the cane's horrible second use. "See ya Red".

She shut her eyes, awaiting the cold embrace of death. A shot once again sounded in the night, yet Ruby was not dead. "What the hell was that?" Torchwick turned looking back upstairs, forgetting Ruby. Ruby pounced, jumping to her feet and planting a kick in between Torchwick's legs. He groaned as he fell to his knees. "Little bitch". Ruby raced past him and up the stairs, she had to get out of the house; she had to go to the constables.

Ruby ran through the hallway, desperately trying to escape. She stumbled over a slick surface, landing on her hands and knees. She looked back at what had caused her fall. Her mother lay motionless, her skin a sickly pale white, her eyes lifeless. Her blood pooled around her, staining the carpet that lined the wooden floors of the house. Ruby fought back sobs, unable to look away from her mother's corpse. She sat staring into her mother's glassy eyes, a single tear spilling from her eyes, choking back a wave of emotions. Then she heard movement, it seemed that Torchwick had recovered. Ruby whispered her last goodbyes before returning to her escape. Her eyes watering as she held back her tears, she ran.

The salon was a mess, the couch lay upturned, the body of one of Torchwick's goons lay bleeding over top it. The coffee table was split in two and broken glass littered the carpet from the smashed window. However all these things were overshadowed by the duel taking place out in the garden. Two of Torchwick's goons lay dead as the third engaged a girl, not much taller than Ruby. She wore white, and wielded a rapier that sent the goon tumbling. Her blows were swift, graceful and ultimately deadly. Her rapier breached the defences of the goon and slid through the man's throat without resistance.

Ruby watched as the man fell to his knees, gargling blood. The woman turned to her, her face seeming to scream a warning, eyes looking beyond her. Ruby spun, Torchwick's cane levelled at her from down the hall, "You have been a bad girl little Red". The cane fired and Ruby stumbled over the ruins of the coffee table, clutching her stomach. She barely felt the warm liquid ooze from her body. In a flash of movement the girl in white was in front of her, rapier poised to strike Torchwick. Words which Ruby could not discern were spoken, and Torchwick lunged at her saviour. Her vision flickered and she only caught glimpses of the fight. Somehow Torchwick escaped, the girl in white had fought him off and was now trying to drag her out of the house. Another woman, this time clad in black approached and started helping move Ruby. She remembered calling out for her mother, for Yang, for her father. Then only flashes as she faded to and from unconsciousness.

Ruby awoke suddenly, a great soreness in her stomach and a deep aching in her back. She felt lightheaded and weak as she tried to rise out of the bed. It took her some time before she could comfortable raise herself and try to ascertain where she was. The bed she had woken in was large, big enough for three people, the sheets were fine linen. Around the bed, attached to the large frame, were a series of curtains that gave Ruby a measure of privacy. She looked down at what she was wearing, shocked to find that her usual corset and dress had been replaced with a loose hanging white shirt and baggy brown trousers. She lifted the shirt to find a series of bandages wrapped around her stomach.

She stood slowly, groaning with effort as her wound sent bolts of pain through her body. Stumbling through the wall of curtains Ruby found herself in a large open room. The room looked like a large cellar, or storehouse. However instead of goods it was made to seem like a living quarters, complete with a fireplace, lounge setting and a large round table. Soft carpets made tracks around the room, softer under foot than the cold grey stone. Ruby approached the fireplace seeking warmth, while there were no windows to let a breeze travel through the cellar, a chill still permeated the air.

The fireplace was a wonderful construct of marble, simple figures carved into the marble gave the fireplace a distinct aura of ancientness. At the centre of the mantel piece a large symbol similar to the letter A, it was the central and most dominant carving on the fireplace. Ruby's hands traced the cold stone; the symbol was oddly familiar in her mind. The quiet of the cellar was broken by the sound of a slamming door. Ruby twirled towards the sound, the action causing her wound to ache. Slowly she set herself down on one of the lounges; desperately she searched the room for some sort of weapon. Her eyes could find none; it would seem that she was at the mercy of whoever had brought her here.

The girl in white came down the stairs. She appeared flustered, stomping her way down the winding staircase. Ruby could make out her features much better now, her long white hair tied into a slightly off centre ponytail. Her face was pale, her eyes a piercing blue, a scar ran down her left eye. She wore a simple outfit that consisted of a tight white jacket that appeared to be padded slightly and a short dress over the top of simple white trousers. She wore heavy boots, accented with a dark blue, as was most of her attire. A rapier remained at her side, the same one she had been using at Ruby's home.

"Your awake finally, how is your wound? We were worried about you for a little while but it seems you have pulled through". Ruby's voice would not come, she tried to speak, but all that came was a quiet squeak followed by a whimper. The girl stood a few feet away from her, having frozen in her tracks. Ruby broke down crying, each sob reigniting the pain in her wound, causing even more tears. The girl in white simply stood, wincing with each sob. She tried to embrace the crying girl but was unable, her insecurities preventing her from getting any closer. Ruby crawled into a ball, and she let it out. Her mother was dead; she had seen it with her own eyes, her lifeless face forever imprinted on her mind. Eventually she felt a soft hand on her shoulder; the girl had sat down next to her, shushing her softly. "My name is Weiss, I'm here to help".