A/N: Hello. I know I've talked about dropping RWBY plenty of times now and that is somewhat truthful. I stopped watching right before the Volume 3 finale and have 0 intention of picking it back up. That being said, I feel I might get drawn back into writing stuff for it every now and again. Such as I am now. The original plan was for this to be a short-ish one-shot for Christmas. Clearly, that didn't happen. Then the plan was for it to be a short-ish one-shot for New Years. I almost went with that. But, as I was writing this, I wondered if maybe I could actually try and write something that wasn't a one-shot. I'm... uncertain how long this will be, but probably only two or so more parts. No idea when the next part will go up but, well, you'll see it eventually. As always, I appreciate comments and criticism, especially the latter, as I'm still unhappy with my work but am unsure of how to improve it. In any case, I hope you enjoy.

"I'm not real."

The words seemed to echo in both Ruby's mind and the dark, restricting room she found herself in. Even if she had watched Penny leave with a smile on her face, Ruby could not shake how certain the redhead was when she said those words. "Penny…" she softly whispered, feeling her fist clench as those horrible words bounced around her mind.

Her mousey companion chimed in with an excited squeak, causing Ruby to jump and slam her head on the dumpster's solid ceiling.

Rubbing her messy dark hair, Ruby used her other hand to open the lid of the dumpster. It had been a moment since Penny had hid her to leave with the Atlesian troopers and it seemed the coast was clear. Pulling herself out and onto the pavement, she picked a rotten banana peel off her skirt, her face scrunching up as the slimy feel and awful stench assaulted her senses. As the young huntress shook off the remaining grime from her boots, she reached for her Scroll. Yang had always been there to cheer her up as a kid, Weiss spent her life being put on a pedestal, and Blake… well, she was smart. Between the three of them, at least one would have to have advice for this problem.

Before she could decide on a friend to ask, the Scroll beeped loudly, displaying Blake's face and name. "Everyone!" came the urgent voice. "If you can hear me, we need back-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" interrupted Sun, his comical cry bringing a small smile to Ruby's face.

Ruby looked down the alleyway that Penny had left through. She might not be good at reassuring friends, but if there was one thing she was good at…

"They've got a robot! And it's really big!"

Ruby's spare hand strayed to brush up against the cold steel of Crescent Rose and the grin grew. In a flash of petals, she was darting out of the alleyway, pushing her concern down. For now.

"I'm not real."

Ruby squirmed in bed, her blanket long since kicked off the bed. The discomfort from earlier in the day had returned, in spite of the showdown against the Atlesian Paladin.

The fight against Roman had gone swimmingly and the elusive gangster was now behind bars. As glad as Ruby was for that outcome, it seemed to soothe Blake even more. The team leader didn't get to enjoy the victory, as her mind had already wandered back to her friend's dilemma before they had even handed Roman over to the police.

"I'm not real."

Ruby knew why those words bothered her so badly. Some time ago, she recalled someone using a similar set of words...

"I'm not your real sister," a young Ruby had once said, tears streaming down her face.

Yang had looked at her confused. "What on Remnant are you talking about, Rubes? Of course you are!"

"No I'm not!" was the stubborn reply. "I… I don't belong here…" A loud sniffle sounded through the small living room as she rubbed her silver eyes against her sleeve.

A firm hand had clasped her shoulder. Ruby had looked into Yang's bright lilac eyes and saw a vivid intensity beyond the warm smile. "Ruby, you are definitely my sister and you definitely belong here."

"How… How do you know that?"

"Because I know you are and you do." Ruby could not believe how simply and matter-of-factly Yang had said those words. But Ruby felt the truth of them wash over her. "Well, that and…"

"And…?"

"And…" Yang's kind smile turned mischievous. "I know all your ticklish spots!" Before Ruby could defend herself, Yang had sprung forward. Ruby's tears of fear and loneliness were replaced with a symphony of giggles and laughter as she was knocked over onto the couch.

I'm definitely real.

"Geez, sis," laughed Yang, her mouth half-filled with cereal. "Looks like somebody had a fun night."

Ruby groaned as she rubbed her eyes, hoping that the burning feeling would die down sometime soon. After waking up from her dream of childhood memories, she couldn't bear to rest. She had to find out a way to help Penny. Most frustratingly of all, about all she had figured out from the sleepless night was that she would probably have to try an alternate route to a tickle fight.

"It's Penny…" she muttered, collapsing onto her usual seat in the cafeteria. The team had a class together shortly but the two sisters were often late so that they could grab extra breakfast.

"What about her?" asked Weiss, taking a seat next to Ruby. The steam rising from under the lid of her coffee cup stung Ruby's eyes, causing them to water further.

"She…" Ruby stopped. She had promised Penny that she wouldn't share her secret. She trusted her team. The four of them had made a promise to be truthful with each other and Ruby refused to break that sacred bond. But it wasn't her secret to tell. "She feels lonely. Her dad is…" Ruby turned to Yang. "Like what Dad used to be like."

"Yikes," said Yang, in between chews of the crunchy cereal. "So what are you thinking?"

"I… I don't know." The lack of any real progress almost infuriated Ruby. She could fight Grimm til the cows came home but people's feelings… That stuff made no sense. "I was hoping maybe you guys would know."

Yang took a loud gulp before standing up. "Well, why don't we pay her a visit? I know that when Dad got really into setting curfews, the best parts of my day were whenever my friends would visit."

"That sounds an awful lot like trouble," Weiss said, her eyes narrowing as Yang smiled sheepishly. "Breaking curfew is an easy way to get her in trouble with her father."

"Definitely," nodded Blake, her sudden yet silent arrival at the table sending the other three girls into the air briefly. "But I know I would appreciate my friends being there for me if I was getting caged in. I'm sure you can relate, right Weiss?"

Weiss opened her mouth but soundlessly closed it a split second later. "Fine. But we do this after all our classwork is finished."

"Classwork can wait, Weiss!" exclaimed Yang, grabbing her in a headlock. "Friendship is what matters here!"

"She's right!" Yang and Weiss's playful bickering halted as Ruby jumped on top of the lunch table, a fire reigniting within her eyes that had been burnt out from the night before. "Team RWBY! We have a noble quest to help a friend! Are you in?!"

"Obviously."

"There is a book store I've been meaning to put in a good word for…"

"You already convinced me! Let's just get on with it!"

"Alright Team RWBY," declared Ruby, a wide grin on her face as she aimed a finger at the ceiling. "Let's go find Penny!"

There was a moment of silence before Blake spoke up. "Do you have any idea where she might be?"

Ruby did everything she could to hide the sweat that began to dampen her brow. "Uhm… Somewhere in… Vale?"

Weiss massaged her temples. "Okay, fearless leader. What's our next step? Just… search all of Vale?!"

After searching the majority of the city, Ruby let out a long groan. How could it be that her friend was so hard to find?

"It's a big city," said Blake, trailing behind the team leader. "That and she always seems to find us, rather than the other way around."

Ruby froze in her place and turned to face Blake, her eyes narrowing. "I know your Semblance is that shadow clone thing but are you certain mind reading isn't your secondary one?"

Blake couldn't contain her chuckling at Ruby's inquiry. "I am certain. But if I did have a second Semblance in mind reading, it would certainly be helped by you saying your thoughts aloud."

"Sorry," replied Ruby, who once more began walking forward, scanning buildings for any sign of Penny. The setting sunlight cascaded across the varied architecture, with cold and warm colours weaving a beautiful tapestry across it all. But one colour stood out to Ruby: the bright oranges stayed distinct despite the melting pot of colours. The colour of Penny's hair.

"You don't need to apologize." Blake put a hand on Ruby's shoulder as the younger girl had once again stopped in her tracks. "You care about your friends. That's nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, that's part of what makes you such a great leader."

As Ruby turned to face Blake, Blake couldn't help but notice a few tears in her eyes. "It's just… I always mess up and can't help as much as I should…"

"No." The word was not a question but a statement of fact. "Ruby, you're a great friend and an excellent leader. You put your all into doing what's best for everyone, no matter what. We all look up to you." Blake paused as she looked down into Ruby's shining silver eyes. "Even if that's a bit awkward since you're so short."

"Blake!" Ruby made an ineffectual slap at Blake. "We had a moment there!" The two girls laughed, despite the odd looks from a few passerby.

After having a few moments to wipe the tears from her face, Ruby smiled softly at Blake. "Thanks… I needed that."

"Consider it payback," Blake said, before feeling her Scroll vibrate in her pocket. As she answered the call, Weiss's face greeted her, beaming with pride.

"Did you find her?" asked Ruby, looking at her own Scroll.

Weiss's smile dropped and she rolled her eyes. "No, I was just calling to tell you about this lovely restaurant Yang and I found."

"Weiss! We need to focus!"

"I was being sarcastic, Ruby!"

"Calm down, you too," laughed Yang, showing off a toothy grin. "We found her…" Yang paused for a moment as she angled the Scroll's camera behind her. "Well, we think we did."

Behind Yang, an enormous glass building was wreathed in light, not just from the sunset but from numerous spotlights shining up alongside it. A multitude of people milled around inside it, visible even in the distance. But Ruby's eyes only had to scan for a second before seeing a small bobbing head of orange.

"You two are the best!" she yelled into the Scroll, flicking through settings as fast as her nimble fingers would allow. Before Weiss could accept the compliment or Yang could deflect it, Ruby had the location, ended the call, and shot forward like cannonfire towards her isolated friend, Blake following closely behind her.

Penny sat down on the side of her bed, running her fingers along the bright red blanket. It was soft. She knew this because of the texture analyzers on her fingers told her the exact composition of the item. 96.4% cotton, 3.6% Mulberry silk. Her internal database analysis showed her that this is often considered a very desirable mix, especially as Mulberry silk was the rarest and finest silk in Remnant.

Penny knew that this blanket was soft and luxurious. But she couldn't feel it.

I'm not real.

Ruby's face was heartbroken when she had told her she wasn't human. That she was fake. Ruby had told her that it didn't matter but Penny saw that look of hurt in those beautiful silver eyes.

Penny brought her knees up to her chin and pulled them tight. She was foolish for going out. She had hurt her one friend by burdening her with knowledge she had no need to know.

A soft knock on her door caused her to jump from the bed, ignoring a mental pop-up that it was better to rise slowly to avoid stressing the joints of her limbs.

"Yes?"

The door opened slowly and two men were standing just outside the doorframe. The taller and sharper dressed of the two was General James Ironwood, headmaster of Atlas Academy and leader of the nation. Substantially less tall, especially with his bad back, was Father. He shuffled in, his white lab coat dragging along the ground. As he lifted his head to look at his daughter, a lock of false blond hair drifted in front of his tired grey eyes.

"Penny…" His raspy voice was quiet as always, only measuring at 31.3 dB. "My daughter… I hear you've had some adventures since we've arrived."

"Father, I…"

"My soldiers found her in an alleyway," interrupted Ironwood, watching Penny with unmasked distrust. "She claims she merely went for a walk."

"Is this true, Penny?"

"Yes, Father!" Penny barely got the exclamation out before a small hiccup escaped her lips. The two men exchanged a glance.

"She lies." Ironwood's words were spoken with the weight of the world.

Father lightly shook his head. "Not my daughter."

"You must be joking me."

In a shockingly quick movement, Father stepped between Penny and Ironwood. "You wished to ask my daughter a question. You have your answer. Feel free to leave now, James."

There was a moment of tension, as Penny's combat mode turned to standby. Ironwood was a capable Huntsman but if he tried to harm her or Father…

Ironwood sighed and moved towards the door. As he reached it, he turned his head to look at the inventor and his… creation. "I am not your enemy, Cornelius. I worry about Penny's safety just like you do. I want what's best for her… What's best for all of us."

"Then you will leave us now, James." Father's back straightened for a moment and suddenly the height difference between the two men seemed notably less. Ironwood turned his head forward once more and left, closing the door behind him.

Father let out a deep sigh and his back was hunched once more. Penny felt the energy radiating from her standby cool down. "Father…"

He turned and looked at her. Her sensors indicated he was suffering from a lack of healthy sleep and malnutrition. "Penny… I love you, as you are my daughter. But you are more than that, you know that, right?"

Penny nodded, a smile growing on her face at a question she could answer truthfully. "I was built to save the world."

For a moment, Penny saw a look in Father's eyes that she could not understand. She assumed expressing her purpose would fill Father with pride but all she saw was… Sadness?

"My daughter… I need you to stay safe." He sat down next to her and placed a hand on hers. After a brief moment, he slowly pulled the fingers away, opening her balled up fist The new layer of paint had long since dried but Penny knew his eyes were fixated on where she had 'hurt' herself, when stopping the vehicle 26 hours, 38 minutes, and 15 seconds ago. "I need you to trust me. I love you and I would never be able to live with myself if something happened to you."

He patted her hands before using them to push off the bed and stand up. "I need you to stay in the hotel for a few days, until I can personally chaperone you around town."

Penny bounced off the bed, her visual scanners adding a tinge of red to the green. "But Father! You said I was to come to Vale to explore! To learn more of the world!"

"And that you will do. With me, once I have finished handling some issues with Ironwood and bug-testing the Paladins." His voice was level and calm, hitting a maximum of 32.7 dB. "I had thought Vale was a city that had things under control. Apparently, I was mistaken."

"Then I should help! That's what I was built to do! Help!"

"Stop…" Father's voice trembled, as he moved towards the door. "I am your father and I am telling you that you are to stay here." As he left, he whispered so low that Penny's audio receptors barely picked it up. "You will save the world when it is ready to be saved."

Penny collapsed on the soft bed, which creaked under the pressure. It was so unfair! Father knew she could handle herself out there; she was strong enough to stop anyone who might try to attack her. He had been so excited when he told her about coming to Vale and seeing the world. But now? Now he was too busy worrying about everything.

The sound of a pebble hitting glass softly called to Penny. Taking a moment to wipe her face, just in case, she moved towards the source. Taking a step outside the room onto the balcony and adjusting her vision to look out in the night, she spotted four figures standing in the lawn of the hotel. As her vision zoomed in, she made out the grinning faces of Team RWBY, all waving up to her.

"Salutations!" she cheerfully called down to them. Immediately, she regretted the impulsive act and lowered her voice. "What are you doing here?!"

"We're here to show you around," Weiss replied, a sincere smile on her face. "As a fellow Atlesian, I figured you would appreciate the chance to see what sets Vale apart from our homeland."

"But… Father said…"

"Father shmather!" shouted Yang. "Just cuz your dad's a wet blanket doesn't mean you have to be one as well! We'll have you back before sunrise, on our honour."

The rest of the team nodded. Penny looked away from them. It was a kind gesture but…

"Penny." The softness of Ruby's voice made Penny stop. It was kind and sad and gentle. "I know things are… complicated. But we want to make this a wonderful night for you. One that can be spent with friends."

Friends… Penny didn't move. Ruby said she'd still be her friend, even after Penny told her about her… condition. Here she was, saying it again. She looked to the door, closed and unmoving. She looked to the bed, still as soft as ever but it looked colder and colder the more she gazed at it.

Penny spun around, a smile growing on her face as she waved down at Team RWBY. "OK! I'll be right down!"

Yang turned to Blake and chuckled. "Is Penny gonna try and sneak out of the place? We'll be here all night!"

Blake looked up. "I… don't think that's what we should be worrying about."

"Hu-?" Before Yang could finish stating her confusion, Blake had pulled her out of the way as Penny landed where she was standing but a moment ago. Her landing was punctuated with the sound of cracking earth beneath her. "Ahhh!"

"Oh, I'm sorry! I seem to have miscalculated my landing pattern."

"What's with that?" asked Weiss, as Penny moved out of the small crater she had created.

"Oh. Umm…" Penny began to squirm as she realized that most girls do not leave that sizable a crater when they land.

"It's her Semblance!" Ruby cut in, a goofy grin on her face. "She has weight manipulation powers, isn't that right?"

Penny looked into Ruby's big expectant eyes. A mistake to be sure as she found herself even more flustered than normal. "I… Umm… Well… Yes?" Penny felt a small hiccup rise in her throat but managed to hold it back.

"That's pretty rad," said Yang, already leaving the hotel lawn behind. "But we can talk about all that junk later." She spun around and Penny saw an brilliant sparkle in her lilac eyes. "We've got places to go and things to do!"

Penny took a quick glance around the party of four that she was now with. "Like what?"

Ruby did everything she could to suppress the yawn that had been begging for release for quite some time. But it escaped and she only prayed that Penny didn't see it.

"You seem tired, Ruby. I know how to get home from here, if you need to go back and sleep."

Ruby knew that this was an offer of kindness that she should probably take her up on. But she couldn't. "I'm fine, Penny. Trust me, after staying up late night to get homework done at the last minute, I can handle one all-nighter."

Penny looked slightly unconvinced but all Ruby could do was smile sheepishly. The night had been a hectic one. They had started with Yang's plan. They spent some time at a nearby night club that Yang knew. Judging by the looks of the staff and a few club-goers, Ruby guessed that maybe this was an establishment Yang had done a number on previously. At the least, none of them worried about being hassled. Penny had quite enjoyed herself too, showing a love of dance Ruby never would've guessed she had.

After that, Blake took them to an independent bookstore that was hosting a spoken word poem night. Blake herself even got up and gave a reading. Penny had called it 'stupendous!' and suggested that she pursue writing as a career, if she had time to do so alongside her work as a Huntress.

Finally, Weiss surprised everyone by taking them to a large hill to stargaze. Everyone had a blast, winding down from a busy night. Weiss and Penny both were skilled at identifying stars and constellations, which made for some 'friendly' competition. But Ruby was a bit starstruck with a different beautiful celestial body.

The entire night, Ruby watched as Penny enjoyed herself. She had worn a wonderful smile that made Ruby's heart skip a beat every time she saw it. She was so pretty, so kind, so full of love and wonder.

"Ruby, my sensors are indicating your heart is beating too fast." Ruby blinked and she was at Penny's side, her friend's bright green eyes watching her, concerned. "Do we need to go to a hospital?"

"N-No!" Ruby's face lit up like a traffic light. "It's just… Tonight was great, wasn't it?"

Penny smiled again. That soft, warm smile. "Oh, it was! I'm so glad you all talked me into doing it! And you all got to show me something you love! Yang had the club, Blake the poetry reading, Weiss had competitive stargazing…" As she counted each activity out on her fingers, Penny stopped. "Wait, you didn't get a pick!"

"Actually," Ruby scratched the back of her head, looking at the ground. "I asked if I could walk you home. Spending time with you… That was my pick."

As Ruby looked up, Penny's face was no longer visible. Just her bouncy orange hair as she seemed to pick up the pace. "Hey, Penny! Wait up!"

Ruby reached out and caught Penny's hand. She spun around and was face-to-face with Ruby. As Ruby took in the quiet night, Penny seemed to almost glow. "Penny, I…"

Penny picked Ruby up and took her in for a tight hug. Maybe a little too tight, as it drove all the air from Ruby's lungs, preventing her from finishing her sentence.

"Thank you, Ruby Rose." Penny's voice was but a whisper. "You are the best… friend I could ever have."

The hug lasted a moment longer before Penny let go. Ruby looked around and realized they were back at the hotel. "We… We should do this again sometime."

Penny looked at Ruby, framed by the soft light of sunrise. She smiled but Ruby had seen enough genuine smiles from her to recognize a fake one. "I hope so. But… Probably not. I'm sure Father knows about me breaking curfew. I might not see you for some time, Ruby." Penny grabbed Ruby's hands tightly with her own while trying to avoid eye contact. "But I'm… I'm happy I got to spend time with your team… With you."

As she let go of Ruby's hands, she turned away and leapt up to the balcony, her jets ensuring she didn't land as heavily on it as she had jumping down earlier. She could not bring herself to look back and entered her room once more.

Ruby watched her back and stayed even as Penny left her sight. She brought an arm up to her face to clear the tears that were welling up. It had been one of the best nights of her life and now it was over. Not only that but there was no telling when, or even if, she would see Penny again.

As she left to go back to her team and Beacon, she recalled the beautiful smiles Penny had shared with her that night. "I'm happy I got to spend time with your team… With you."