The house was unusually quiet that morning, aside from the occasional car speeding by and the birds chirping outside. It shouldn't come as a surprise to her, Summer knew, but it was pleasant anyways. Yet she had a feeling that quiet wouldn't last very long.

Sitting on the kitchen while sipping on her coffee, Summer looked up at the ceiling, paying attention to the muffled steps coming from upstairs. It was laughably predictable, but more than that, it was adorable, which was why she was choosing to let the charade go on until the end.

When she was finished, Summer stood up and put on her jacket, then went to the front door. She paused and fiddled with her belt, as if to check if she hadn't forgotten her gun, but what she really was doing was listening to the sudden stomping coming from the stairs.

Even she wasn't fast enough to stop the incoming tackle, and she almost went down along with the girl hugging her around the waist. Summer held on to the wall and pulled herself back up, laughing, then pushed her daughter off of her.

"Ruby!" She exclaimed, feigning surprise. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be at school!"

Ruby looked at her feet guiltily, but Summer still saw the tip her lips curving up into a smile. "I wanted to see you to go, so I hid under the bed so dad would think I had left already."

"Oh, you little imp," Summer shook her head in amusement. "Your father's going to be so mad."

"Not you?" Ruby looked up at her hopefully.

"Nope. I'm proud. You're going places, kid."

Ruby smiled a bit wider, but her eyes went somewhere else, and that didn't escape her mother's notice. Summer kept a straight face, even as a wave of guilt struck her.

This was the hard part, always. Leaving her children and husband behind, not knowing when she'd come back. If she'd come back. Taiyang always understood. He was a rock, her rock, and Yang had taken after him. But just the thought of saying goodbye to Ruby made her heart hurt.

"Hey, Little Rose," Summer crouched down in front of her, holding her chin and bringing her gaze back to her. "Don't be upset. I'll be back so fast you won't even notice I left."

"You always say that," Ruby pouted. "But sometimes you're gone for months."

"Ruby… You know I don't take those kind of jobs anymore," Summer sighed. "Listen. My client's from Vale this time. It's just a few hours by plane to get there and back, and she only paid for one week of protecting. You can hold down the fort for that little time, right?"

Ruby was silent for a few seconds, then she crossed her arms and raised her chin. "Alright. But only if you promise to bake cookies when you come back."

"Ruby, please," Summer winked knowingly. "They're already waiting for you in the kitchen."

Ruby's eyes widened, and she ran to the kitchen in record time, almost tripping over herself in the process. Summer stood up, smiling at the sight of the girl putting three cookies in her mouth at once.

Today, Ruby was almost at her elbows.

Summer wondered if she'd be any taller when she came back.

RUBY ROSE

THE RED HUNTRESS

Ruby's head bobbed along to the music blasting on her headphones, the tip of her tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth as she stared down at her notebook. She knew there was something wrong with her sketch, she just knew, but at the same time, it was so close to being right…

She spun her pencil in her fingers and quickly erased the lower end of the scythe. It looked way too big to be properly held by anyone, let alone her, with her tiny hands. But if she made it too thin, wouldn't it run the risk of snapping when she swung it?

Problems, problems. Maybe when she actually built it, it would turn out okay. It would be easier to sort out the flaws then, if there were any. It was the scientific process, or whatever her professors like to call it.

Speaking of professors… She looked up carefully to scan the classroom, and her face went pale. Everyone else was absorbed in their work – actual school work, that is – and the teacher was going from desk to desk to help and make sure they weren't just pretending. Worst of all, there were only a couple more desks before he reached hers.

"Oh gosh," Ruby muttered under her breath, reaching for her headphones. In her panic, she moved way too fast, and the headphone's cable popped from her phone's jack. Suddenly, the classroom was filled loud, aggressive rock music.

Ruby squealed and slammed her hand down on her phone, stopping the music. It was way too late, though. Everyone was laughing, except for the professor, who was glaring daggers at her.

"Miss Rose," he said, approaching her desk. "Care to explain yourself?"

"That was… uh… my alarm," Ruby gulped. "I forgot to turn it off, I think. S-sorry."

"Ah, yes, the infamous…" he looked at the watch on his wrist. "09:37 AM alarm." He shook his head. "You are at least doing your work, right?"

Before Ruby could say anything, he snatched her notebook from her lap and took a long look at the page it was opened at. With every second that passed, his eyebrows rose more and more, to the point that Ruby feared they would fly off his forehead and stick to the ceiling.

Finally, he tore his eyes away from the page. "Is this physics homework?"

"…Yes?" Ruby answered hesitantly. "It uses, you know, calculations of mass and force and all that stuff."

"It looks like a scythe to me." The professor pointed out, inciting more giggles from her colleagues.

"Well, yeah. It is a scythe," Ruby frowned. "But it's also a-"

He raised a hand, stopping her in her tracks. "Never mind. I don't wanna hear. Focus on history class, Miss Rose. You can finish your project at home," he turned to the rest of the class. "What are all of you staring at? Get back to work."

As everyone returned to their tasks, the professor sent her one last look. She couldn't tell if he was concerned, angry, or just utterly confused. Whatever the case, she couldn't be more embarrassed.

The last periods of class felt like centuries to Ruby. She didn't dare drawing again after getting caught once. The next teacher might not be as kind and send her to the headmaster, or worse… her father.

When the bell finally rang, Ruby was the first out the door. Good for her, as the hallways of Signal High were always crowded at the end of class, and waddling along with the masses was dreadfully dull, especially for someone as hyper as her.

She raced down the stairs that lead out of the school, keeping ahead of the crowd behind her. Deciding to have a little fun, she jumped and slid down the rails of the stairs, sticking her arms to her sides to keep her balance. People were always yelling at her to not do that, that it was too dangerous, but she had years of practice. She was practically a professional rail slider by now.

As she got closer to the end, however, the world doubled in front of her, and Ruby felt a great force weighting down her shoulders. The sensation didn't last more than a few seconds, but it was enough to make her dizzy and lose her balance. She fell forwards and off the rails, crashing hard on the ground in front of the school.

Ruby groaned, getting to her knees. She shook her head and looked down at herself. No blood. Nothing felt broken. Her clothes were a mess, and there was a big tear in her backpack.

A girl she didn't know stopped by her side and offered a hand. Ruby took it and stood up, her knees shaking a bit.

"Are you okay?" The girl asked, looking at her worriedly. "That fall looked like it really hurt."

"I'm okay, I think," Ruby rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "Just a little sore."

"Really? I can go to the infirmary with you if you want."

"Uh, no, thanks," Ruby looked at the incoming crowd. While many people also looked concerned or sympathetic, a lot more were laughing and joking about the accident. "I think I'm more embarrassed than anything else. Man, this is just not my day."

"If you're sure…" The girl said hesitantly. "Well, I hope your day gets better. See you."

Ruby watched the girl leave, feeling incredibly dumb. She heard the crowd catching up to her, and so with burning red cheeks, she gripped her backpack and walked away quickly, eyes fixed on her feet.

"…the correlation between the organization's increased activity in Patch and the rumors that Torchwick's gang has planted roots in the city seems obvious, and Commander Glynda Goodwitch's refusal to as much as acknowledge that fact only lends more credence to it."

Ruby rolled her eyes, tired of hearing about the same thing over and over again. Every news station had been talking about Torchwick for weeks now, and though she had been very excited about the idea of a famous crime lord moving into her city when she first heard about it, that had quickly lost its charm.

She reached for the TV remote on the desk in front of the sofa, but with the way she was lying down, almost upside down, it became an impossible feat. Ruby groaned in frustration, then gave up. She would just have to endure the rest of the report.

"…the local police chief has released a statement, declaring that no help was ever requested or needed from Beacon. The statement was retracted later in the day, but animosity between the two organizations seems to remain…"

"Yaaang!" Ruby yelled. "Heeelp!"

She waited for a moment, then heard her sister stomping to the living room. Yang came into view carrying a large bowl in her hands, her blond hair tied back by a hairband. Her eyes were filled with concern, but when she saw Ruby just lying there lazily, she just shook her head.

"Can you change the channel?" Ruby asked. "Pretty please?"

Yang sighed, then put her bowl down on the desk and sat down on the sofa. She grabbed the remote and changed to a channel that was running a program about the migratory habits of birds. Not exactly Ruby's cup of tea, but it was better than what had been on before.

"What you got there?" Ruby asked, pointing to the bowl.

Yang took it back and wrapped it with her arms possessively. "Chocolate pudding. I made it myself," she smiled proudly. "Gotta put on some weight so I can wear that graduation dress. It just slips off of me, every time," she shot her a significant look. "Remember to never let dad buy you a dress."

"That's not a problem for me. You know I don't like dresses." Ruby pointed out.

"Whatever you say, sis," Yang shrugged. "Why are you watching TV anyway? I thought you would be working on that weird pickaxe project you showed me."

Ruby spun so she was sitting upright in the sofa and punched her in the shoulder. "It's a scythe! I've told you that, like, a thousand times already!"

Yang mumbled a half-hearted apology, then swallowed a spoonful of pudding. Ruby eyed the chocolate for a moment, her stomach rumbling greedily. She had eaten a whole pack of instant noodles for lunch, but still… it looked so delicious…

Yang cleared her throat and edged away a bit, putting her meal at a safer distance from her sister. Ruby blinked and looked away, trying to appear innocent.

"Uh, I don't have the stuff I need to build the scythe yet. I need to go to the junkyard to get it, but…" Ruby sunk a little in the sofa. "I'm too tired to go today."

"Tired? You? That's a first," Yang frowned. "Did you do anything special today?"

"Nah. I'm just tired."

Yang looked at her suspiciously, but didn't say anything more, deciding to just let her be. Their attentions turned to the TV, though neither of them were very interested in the differences between a pelican's and a toucan's mating calls.

After a while, they heard their father's car entering the garage, then him entering the kitchen through the door connecting the two places. Ruby's face paled as she remembered he had been at lunch with his colleagues, the school staff from Signal – including her history professor.

He entered the living room and stood beside the sofa, shifting his gaze between his two daughters. "So," he finally pointed to the bowl in Yang's hands. "You gonna eat all of that?"

Yang growled at him, then started to eat the pudding at a much faster pace. Taiyang grinned, having gotten the reaction he wanted, then looked at Ruby.

"So," he began. "I heard a funny story today…"

Ruby scanned the living room for an escape route, but all the windows were locked, and he was standing in the way to the front door. "Uh… What story?"

"It was about a girl who didn't pay attention to class, instead choosing to draw overly complicated axe designs." Taiyang said.

"It's not an axe, it's a-" Ruby cut herself short, realizing that wasn't an appropriate response, considering the situation. "I'm sorry, dad. It's just that history class is so boring… And I don't even need to pay that much attention to it! My grades are just fine."

"If by just fine you mean barely passable, then yes," Taiyang sighed. "I get it, Ruby. You're doing fine, you're passing every subject, some better than others… But that won't always be enough. What about after you graduate high school? The best universities don't accept people that are only average."

Ruby groaned, wishing she could be anywhere else right now. Her father wasn't like this often, he usually was fine with her only doing the absolutely necessary. Maybe hearing about her from his colleague had upset him?

"I mean, look at your sister," Taiyang continued. "She might not have the slightest clue what she wants to study, and she might have almost flunked every single year at Signal, but at least she went ahead and planned her road trip for next year. That's something!"

"Thanks, dad." Yang said, not tearing her eyes away from the screen.

"You're welcome, sweetheart," he patted her head absently-minded. "Look, Ruby. You can goof off all you want. I don't mind. But at least think about what you wanna be, okay?"

"But, dad," Ruby turned to look at him, her face deadly serious. "You already know what I wanna be."

The TV became the only noise in the room, as Ruby and him stared each other in the eye. Between them, Yang held a spoonful of chocolate in front of her mouth, frozen as she waited for an outburst coming at any moment, from either of them.

"Yeah. I know," Taiyang said finally, but instead of anger, there was only sadness in his voice. "You want to follow in your mother's footsteps. You always have," he shook his head. "How silly of me, thinking you had grown out of that death wish."

"Dad!" Yang snapped, glaring at him.

"Sorry," he muttered. "But I'm right. And that's the last I'm speaking of it."

True to his word, he turned around and disappeared in the kitchen, not uttering a sound. Ruby and Yang sat in the sofa in silence for a while, the latter staring sympathetically at her little sister.

"I'm going to my room." Ruby said, getting up.

"Ruby…" Yang reached for her arm, but Ruby had already walked past her.

"It's not about what dad said," Ruby paused. "I'm just…"

Tired.

That's how she felt like that whole day. And the next. And the whole week after that.

She spent most of her time lying quietly in her bed, reading a book, listening to music, or working on her project. Sometimes, when she got up, the world would become a blurry mess around her, and she'd feel that same weight on her shoulders she had felt when she fell at school.

Yang and her father checked up on her constantly, asking if she was sick, and she always said no. Not that she knew the answer, but it didn't feel like she was sick. No, she was experiencing something else, though she had no clue what it was.

She knew her father felt guilty, as if it was somehow his fault. Ruby assured him otherwise time and again, but she knew he didn't believe her, and that only added to how bad she was feeling.

Maybe, she thought to herself one time, it was just a temporary thing. Maybe she had eaten something odd. Maybe the consequences of staying up all night for months had finally caught up to her.

It would pass. It was just a matter of time. Or so she hoped.

"Hey, Ruby. Wake up."

Ruby opened her eyes and looked around. The blinders on her window were shut, a few rays of sunlight escaping between them, and the clock at her bedtable said it was six in the morning. Yang was kneeling by the side of her bed, looking up at her face anxiously.

"Mm," Ruby mumbled. "Sleepy. Why wake?"

"I'm taking you to school today," Yang said. "If you're feeling up to it, of course."

"But dad. Dad, car. Vroom vroom." Ruby poked her in the forehead accusatorily.

"But big sis. Big sis, motorcycle. Vroom vroom too," Yang smirked. "Just get up and meet me downstairs when you're ready."

Ruby tried to sound her agreement, but it only came out as a grunt. That was good enough for Yang, though, and she got up and left the room.

Ruby lied in her bed for a few more minutes, then forced herself to sit up. Somehow, she was feeling even worse. Every movement she made felt like it took double the time it would normally take, and it was hard to keep her eyelids from closing.

"No, no. Up!" She mumbled to herself. "Push through, Ruby Rose…"

With some difficulty, she dropped to her feet, wobbling dangerously for a second. Not wanting to test her luck by standing still any longer than she needed to, Ruby grabbed her school uniform from the ground and put it on, then took her backpack from her bedtable and exited her room.

As planned, Yang was waiting for her downstairs, sitting on the kitchen. She shot her a look of horror, then hurried to her and started to palm her hair in several spots. "Ruby! Did you forget to comb your hair? And wash your face? And everything else?!"

"I don't have time for that. Nobody's got time for that." Ruby defended herself lamely.

"It's six in the morning. You have more than enough time for that," Yang clucked her tongue. "Fine. At least I fixed your hair. A little bit. Hopefully those dark rings around your eyes will go away before class."

Yang grabbed her by the arm and started to drag her towards the garage. Once they were there, she went to her motorcycle and grabbed her helmet, then began to look around for Ruby's.

"Speaking of class and it being six in the morning," Ruby spoke up, now able to find coherent words as her mind began to work properly. "Why did you wake me up so early? Class starts at eight."

"I know. But I wanted to have some time alone with you, so we could talk," Yang explained, clawing through a box full of useless stuff. "Besides, we're going somewhere else first... Now, where is that – Aha! Found it!"

She returned with a red helmet peppered with illustrations of flowers and hearts. Ruby looked at it and grimaced. It had been a joke gift from their father, from when he had bought the motorcycle for Yang. Unfortunately, it was the only helmet they had that fit her, and it wasn't like she could ignore using it.

"Come on," Yang got on her motorcycle. "Bumblebee's waiting for you. You can manage holding on to me, right?"

Ruby put on the helmet and nodded, then climbed on behind Yang and wrapped her arms around her. Yang fished the remote from her pocket and pressed a button on it, opening the garage gate. After a little winding up of the wheels, she raced out of the house.

"So, where are we going?" Ruby asked, leaning her head over Yang's shoulder. "Is it the ice cream place? 'Cause I'm kinda hungry for ice cream…"

"Oh, me too, actually!" Yang exclaimed excitedly. "But no. It's somewhere else. Don't try to guess it, it'll just ruin the surprise."

"But I have eyes. I'll figure it out before we get there," Ruby said. "There's no way it will be a surprise."

"Well, uhm… Just… just play along, okay?" Yang sighed. "Stop being cute."

Ruby glared at the back of her neck. "I'm not cute, I'm-"

"Ruby!" Yang protested.

Ruby pouted, but decided to let Yang have her way, if only to make her happy.

They navigated the streets of Patch pleasantly fast, as there was little to no traffic so early in the morning. Ruby watched out for familiar landmarks and places they visited often, but Yang sped past all of them, never slowing down except to stop at red lights.

It wasn't until they were reaching the edge of town and the tree line that marked the beginning of the forest to the east of Patch that Ruby began to understand what was happening. Yang and her used to play there a lot when they were children, climbing on the trees and chasing the animals that lived there. They hadn't a care in the world back then.

But that had changed, at the same time that their cookie-baking competitions had ended, and their father picked up one more job at another school, and the house suffered from an emptiness that could never be filled again.

Everything had changed that day. Those memories felt like they were from another life. But clinging tightly to her sister, feeling the still familiar smell of the forest on her nose, Ruby pretended everything was the same.

"Ruby," Yang spoke softly, slowing the motorcycle down to a leisurely pace. The autumn leaves made cracking noises beneath the wheels, and the birds flew away from their path, alarmed by the unusual intruders. "You know dad didn't say it to hurt you, right? And that he wasn't mad at you or anything?"

"I know," Ruby muttered. "I just wish he'd understand me."

"I think he does understand. Maybe not completely, but a little. Just enough to accept it one day, when you're older," Yang said. "He doesn't want to lose you like he lost mom."

They came to a stop when a deer passed in front of them. It halted in its tracks, looking up at them with its beady eyes, then lowered its head again and walked away. Ruby watched it leave, her eyes shimmering a bit.

"Do you remember mom's funeral?" She asked.

"Sure," Yang replied, moving forward again. "It was huge. Lots of people came. Like, so many there almost wasn't enough space to fit everyone. And we didn't recognize half of them."

"Yeah. Dad and Uncle Qrow said they were past clients of her, or old colleagues and friends," Ruby said. "I didn't cry that much, remember? Not right then, at least. I was so amazed that so many strangers had come to pay their respects. Because, in some way or another, she had touched all their lives…"

"And that's when you knew you wanted to be like her?" Yang asked. "A bodyguard?"

"Yeah, right. Bodyguard," Ruby rolled her eyes. "We both know she was a superspy or something!"

"I don't know, we joked about that back then, and she laughed every time she heard it. I don't think she would have done that if she were a superspy," Yang said. "And why would she lie about her job?"

"Because that's what superspies do! Duh!" Ruby exclaimed, exasperated.

Yang smiled at her outburst and didn't object further.

"You don't think I'm stupid, right, Yang?" Ruby rested her chin on her sister's shoulder. "I don't have to be a superspy, or whatever mom was. But I wanna help people, just like she did."

"I get it, and I completely support you," Yang said kindly. "But there's lots of ways you can help people. You could try pursuing a career in mechanics or something like that. Think about all the stuff you could build and invent that would better people's lives!"

"That sounds neat," Ruby muttered. "But it's not enough."

Yang stopped the motorcycle, then got off of it. She stood with her back to Ruby for a moment, her hands at her hips, then turned around to face her.

"Ruby. You know I love you. I really do. I couldn't ask for a more awesome little sister. And Summer might not have been my mom, but it felt like she was, and that's what matters in the end," she said. "So trust me when I say, whatever you do… I know she'll be proud of you. Just like dad will be."

Ruby jumped to her feet and approached her for a hug, her lips trembling out of control. Yang smiled and wiped a tear away from her eye, then took her in her arms.

"And just like, most importantly," Yang said. "I will be."

Enduring school in her condition was still difficult that day, but her talk with Yang and the ice cream they'd had after helped a bunch. Without those, Ruby feared she would have fallen asleep before the first period was even halfway over, and that would have gotten her in serious trouble.

When the bell rang, indicating the end of school day, she was the last to leave the classroom. She stalled behind the mass of students leaving the building, going down the steps at a pace that would have driven her crazy were she her normal self.

Yang would be staying in school for a little longer, to take care of some things related to graduation, then she had kickboxing class afterwards, so she wouldn't be able to drive Ruby back home. Her father also was teaching in the afternoon that day, so he was out of the question too.

"Gah," Ruby grunted, taking her headphones from her backpack and putting them on. "Guess that means walking. Hopefully I'll get there before nightfall. Hopefully…"

It wasn't as if she disliked walking back home. If anything, she quite liked it, even when it was by herself. It was always nice to see how people were doing at noon, during their breaks from work or coming back from school, just like her. And it helped that Patch rarely ever had bad weather.

Today, however, she wanted nothing more than to crash on her bed and sleep until next month. Or maybe she could find a cozy alleyway and sleep there for a while. Nobody would mind, right?

She walked for a while, not caring much for the people that passed by, then came to the corner of a street. She stopped at the curb and started to lean forward unconsciously, her eyelids dropping slowly…

Ruby gasped and shook her head, then turned up the volume of her music, just to be safe. She really had to get a hold of herself before something bad happened. Eager to get back home, she stepped off sidewalk to cross the street.

Halfway there, a loud honk interrupted her music, and she turned her head to the right, only to see a car coming straight her way. Her eyes widened…

And everything stopped. Everything. From the pedestrians on the sidewalks, to the vehicles in the busy midday traffic, and even herself, with one foot raised to run. Her music had stopped playing too. Now there was only silence.

Before she could even begin to question what was happening, Ruby felt the weight that had been plaguing her for the past week being lifted off her shoulders, and if she could, she would have laughed for how relieved she felt.

The world turned brighter and brighter, as if the sky itself was coming down on Remnant. Whiteness overtook the buildings, the cars, the people… A sharp noise surrounded her from every direction, like glass shattering into a million little shards...

Then everything started moving again, and Ruby found herself running so fast that her surroundings were but a blur of a million colors mixed together. She registered the feeling of her feet hitting the sidewalk on the other side of the street and tried to stop, but her body ignored her brain and kept going, even faster than before.

Her running came to an abrupt end when she slammed into a lamppost and went rolling on the ground. It took her a while to recover from the impact and stop, but oddly enough, she felt only a dull pain.

As people gathered around her in worry, Ruby got to her knees and held back a sneeze, feeling something tickling her nose. She grasped whatever the thing was in her hand and took a long, confused look at it.

A rose petal. Where had it come from? More importantly, what had she just done? And how had she done it?

"Miss?" A woman called hesitantly. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just…" Ruby rose to her feet, shaking her head in awe. "I think…" She added under her breath. "I think I have superpowers."

*ahem*

Miss Rose, you've become a part of a bigger universe. You just don't know it yet...

Sorry. I just couldn't resist the reference. But hey, it should give you an idea of what exactly this story is, and what will become of it. Let's say I have... big plans... But let's not talk about that now!

Ruby Rose: The Red Huntress will be a fairly short story, at eight chapters, or so it has been planned. I think it's obvious where my inspirations for it are coming from, but rest assured, I'm not copying and pasting any movie/comic plots here. Ruby is not actually Tony Stark. That would just be... weird...

I hope you guys have liked what you've read so far, and that you'll come back for next week to accompany Ruby on the beginnings of her new journey. And I'd love to hear your thoughts on the story so far, so if you can spare the time, drop a review!

And, of course, have an awesome 2017!

-Zeroan