We do not own RWBY or any other copyright content. All rights to it go to Monty Oum, Viz Media, and their original owners. All OCs are owned by myself or my friends.
Writing credits go to Uzumaki Ricky, Monsterhuntergod, Sharad the hedgehog, and Traines, as well as Kima Whitehawk Jordan on Facebook.
Tiger King and Dragon Queen
Volume 1 Chapter 15: Trip Short of a Calamity
The city of Vale was always a daunting, yet almost mystical place for Ruby. She rarely ever got to go there by herself. It felt kind of nice for her to be so brazen as to head off by herself for once. However, this time it was with purpose, a plan. With both Azura and Yang heading off to Beacon, she wanted at least to get them a going away present of some kind. She had saved a decent amount of lien, so she could surely get something they would like.
As she waded through the crisp night air, the lights and sounds of a bustling city, she noticed a dust shop nearby. Dawn to Dust. With a smile, she rushed off inside. Dust shops were always a fun surprise, you never quite knew what else the store owner had inside and was selling. There was a couple her father and sister would not let her go into for reasons of "questionable merchandise." Whatever that was supposed to mean. They said they were going to tell her when she was older, but she was fifteen and they showed no signs of budging on that, so Ruby silently lamented they just lied to her.
Entering inside the small, yet clean and crisp shop, she began to wander around. The elderly store owner looked through his large bushy eyebrows and mustache but paid her no mind. Ruby was simply enjoying herself and was not causing any trouble. She put on her headphones and began to listen to music as she found a lovely weapon magazine to look through. She had some hours before her family would notice her being gone, and plenty of stores to check out. What was the hurry?
As the red cloaked wonder flipped through her own form of indecent material, things rapidly became less peaceful. A man in a black bowler hat, white trench coat and cane walked in, followed up by imposing armed men. Ten large and imposing men and women clad in dirty camo green fatigues rushed. Each face was covered by an enclosed helmet like a motorcycle helmet, with various addons, almost akin to if it was crossed with a gasmask. Brandishing high quality rifles, pistols, and other simple weapons, they rapidly got everyone's attention. One even was brandishing what appeared to be a massive shotgun to the common man.
"Location secure, sir. What are your orders?" A somewhat metallic, scrambled voice said through one of the helmeted assailants.
"Where have you low lives been all my life?" The bowler hat-wearing thief asked smoothly as he puffed out smoke from a cigar he had in his hand.
"Now we steal and plunder to our heart's content. Grab the Dust and everything that isn't nailed down, boys!" The man said with a dramatic twirl of his cane, stopping and pointing it at the terrified shop owner, "Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a Dust Shop open this late at night? Utter madness, I tell you."
"Copy that, sir. Engage ravager protocols, people! Smash, grab, and rendezvous! Gunner, lockdown the civi's! Everyone else, follow orders! And focus on the Dust!" The second-in-command barked out, hurting the customers ears by the harshness of the enhanced voice.
Rapidly, the nine spread across the store like rampaging bulls. Wasting no time, they unfurled expandable packs and began putting dust into containers. The one with the shotgun pumped his weapon and pointed at the large weapon, more akin to a small cannon than a mere shotgun. Staring down the bore, they could practically see the Fire Dust shell loaded on the other end, as if staring down to the heart of a volcano. One soldier, however, found Ruby, who due to her headset had not noticed the massive commotion.
The soldier tapped her shoulder, causing her to turn around. Opening his hand and making a common motion to denote having her give him something, Ruby raised an eyebrow.
"Are you robbing me?" Ruby asked, forcing a nod from the soldier, furthering the motion.
Ruby let out a sigh, put away her headphones, and put the magazine back as the man pulled out his pistol to drive the point home. However, as much as he thought he was likely to get a cooperative response from Ruby, that could not be further from the truth of what happened. Before he could react, he found himself kicked in his armored stomach with enough force to send him flying through the window and out onto the asphalt. This caught the attention of the other soldiers and the man in the bowler hat.
"Nothing ever goes smoothly, does it?" The head thief said with an exasperated sigh and turned to where his hired help was kicked through and began to walk outside.
"Permission to terminate hostile civi, sir?" The sergeant asked, raising his rifle to Ruby.
"Be my guest, sergeant. Take her down and mind the merchandise, boys!" The bowler hat wearing thief said with a flourish as he walked out to go check on the man down outside.
"Terminate hostile now! Delay other orders!" The sergeant yelled as he began to open fire.
"Everybody down!" Ruby ordered the civilians as they took cover from the gunfire.
Using her Semblance, the red reaper dashed up onto the wall in a burst of rose petals before bouncing down off the wall and slamming down feet first onto one of the soldiers, sending him skidding across the floor with her riding on top. Drawing Crescent Rose in its scythe form, she swung it with a flourish of her own and dashed forward through the hail of bullets. Appearing close enough to one of the gunmen, she sliced off the barrel of his rifle with the scythe blade of her weapon before spinning with the weapon's momentum into a kick that launched him out the door. Looking around the Dust shop, Ruby surveyed her surroundings to take stock of the situation.
'I need to move this outside, not just for my safety, but the people in the shop. These guys are firing military level weapons. One stray shot and everyone's dead!' Ruby thought.
With her Aura now wreathing her, she sprinted out of the shop with her Semblance in a flash of rose petals. Shocking the soldiers as it confused their helmet sensors from the speed, the Sergeant quickly regained order.
"Move out after the hostile! Keep formation!" The sergeant barked out harshly as he, the gunner, and most of the squad moved out of the shop to engage as he activated his comms, "Evac bird this is theta squad, we need reinforcements stat! Borderline Huntress-level combatant encountered, most of squad currently engaged! Three men down already! Cargo needs to be fully secured!"
"Copy that, Theta squad. Reinforcements and evac are on their way." A voice said through his helmet.
With that, the sergeant and the rest of the remaining squad ran out in formation to deal with their enemy. Taking up their formation, the two gunmen Ruby had managed to knock outside got up and trailed their weapons on the red reaper while the one she knocked down in the shop got up and rejoined his squad. Ruby eyed them carefully as she readied her scythe, prepared for the fight to start.
"Volley fire formation! Take her down!" The sergeant yelled as the soldiers took up two rank lines, one on their knees in front, and the rest standing in the rear.
Taking stock of the soldiers, Ruby made note of their efficiency and kit. 'Military-grade weaponry, efficient formation and response to orders. These guys are definitely paramilitary, probably an illegal one if they're stealing Dust and working with a known thief.' She thought as the squad opened fire.
Using her Semblance, Ruby dashed through the hail of bullets and leapt from the ground to the wall of a nearby building to get the civilians in the Dust shop out of the way of the gunfire and avoid a stray bullet going inside. As the squad tried to follow her movements with the sensors in their helmets, she kicked off the side of the wall as soon as she made contact, getting within their formation. Slashing the barrel off another rifle, she planted the blade of Crescent Rose into the asphalt and swung into a kick that knocked the merc soldier back into a wall. Swinging herself up and over the pole of her scythe, she pulled it from the ground and swung it to cut through a hail of bullets that came her way.
Rushing in at high speed, she slid underneath the gunner's fire and along his side to behind him. Slashing with Crescent Rose, her scythe blade cut into his Aura-covered armor and launched him into a wall, leaving a small crack on impact. Making note of the impact as she rushed into the formation again, she went right for the squad sergeant.
'Aura too. Definitely paramilitary.' The red reaper thought as she dashed through the squad, forcing them to resort to melee weapons instead of their guns to avoid hitting each other as she shot towards the sergeant.
Appearing in front of the sergeant in a flash of red rose petals, Ruby swung her scythe as he tried to trail his rifle on her. Slicing the barrel off, she used the momentum of her swing to whirl around and bring the scythe blade back for a slash across his torso. This blow knocked the sergeant back, but he was not done. Drawing his pistol from his hip as he was sent sailing, he fired a shot at Ruby before she could react. On pure instinct, Ruby tensed her muscles and body up in preparation for the shot hitting.
To the surprise of all those present, the bullet expanded to the sides and flattened against her with a metallic thud without seeming to even make her flinch. This threw the soldiers off when they saw it as Ruby looked down at herself in surprise while the bullet fell to the ground with a clink. Immediately, the soldiers were on guard.
'I… I actually did it! I managed to use Iron Body!' Ruby mentally thought in disbelief and joy as she smiled.
"Zodiac!? Switch to black cap ammo! Maximum Accuracy!" The sergeant yelled, and the rifle bearing soldiers switched to clips with bullets coated in a black tip. Ruby, however, intuitively knew what they meant by that.
'Armor piercing rounds! Can't rely on Iron Body this time! Need to stay on the move!' She thought, taking off as she rushed into the mercs' formation.
The soldiers opened fire as they tried to hit her, firing single shots instead of rapid fire to preserve ammo. Ducking and weaving through the hail of gunfire, Ruby slashed the barrel off a rifle every time she passed by a soldier. Planting Crescent Rose's blade into the ground as she got past them, she swung with momentum and reversed her position without losing speed due to the circular motion before pulling her scythe blade out of the ground in the same motion as she was taking off back into the formation. The first soldier she ran into, she hit with a full speed kick to her armored chest that her Aura barely took, bouncing off her as she was flung back to launch herself at the next and swiped at her with her scythe blade to knock her pistol from her hand.
Spinning with the momentum, she swung back around and slashed at her with full strength. This blow managed to cut through the trooper's aura and carve a scar into her chest armor with the force knocking her back into a wall. Before Ruby could continue, levitated shards of rubble flew up from the ground and were launched into the paramilitary crooks, knocking them back. Turning, Ruby and the soldiers looked to see a woman standing before them.
Towering over almost all of them at six-foot-four in heels, she wore white sleeves and a black garter dress, wielding a riding crop. While Ruby did not exactly know who she was, the soldiers clearly did.
"Huntress inbound! It's Goodwitch! Evac team, what is your fucking status!?" The sergeant yelled into his comms.
"Cargo secured, sergeant! Coming around to pick you up now!" Another voice called out over the comms.
"Cancel roof drop! I repeat, cancel roof drop! Change to street drop, we need to leave yesterday! I repeat, yesterday! Permission to use airship grade weaponry, give us fucking covering fire!!" The sergeant roared, clearly getting irritated at how long his evac was taking and not doing their part of the mission.
"Copy that! Swinging around to provide you cover and pick you up!" The other voice called out over the comms.
Soon the air was filled with the sound of airship engines as the pilot forced it into an unhealthy drop. Firing all guns and missiles it could, the Huntress waved her riding crop to force the munitions to stop and explode harmlessly in front of them. This exchange, however, was enough as the smoke gave the remainder of the squad the precious seconds they needed to board. Soon the airship was firing all the guns it had as it made a hasty retreat. Glynda, after having been forced to use her powers more than she liked, sighed at the result, before turning to Ruby.
The woman scowled at her before looking her over. "You… handled the situation surprisingly well, young lady." She told the red reaper.
"Um… thank you?" Ruby asked, confused honestly at what just happened in front of her.
Later: Vale City Police Station; Interrogation Room
Ruby trembled in nervous fear as the harsh light of a spotlight was put on her in the room. It did not help that the simple wood chair was not the most comfortable, or Miss Glynda was staring down at her with a stare she swore as trying to bore into her soul with a recording device between them. Every time she tried to steel herself, the glare got worse to crush any attempt further.
"Now then, Miss Rose. I would like you to tell me again what exactly happened. Right from the very beginning." The tall blonde woman sternly told her.
"I've told you already, several times…" Ruby said exasperatedly before being cut off by a stern look from the Huntress.
"I wish to hear it again and clearly for the recording. Your testimony may be used in court should we catch those responsible." Glynda told her, narrowing her eyes a bit.
"Alright. I was heading to the Dawn to Dust shop to look for a present for my sister and my friend to congratulate them on getting into Beacon Academy. I was reading a magazine while listening to music when the initial altercations happened. I only noticed something was up when a soldier tapped me on the shoulder. He was motioning to his hand in a way that seemed like he wanted me to give him something. I asked if he was robbing me, he nodded and pointed a pistol at me. After that, I engaged in combat and tried to minimize issues by taking it outside. After extended fighting, it only stopped when you arrived, and the soldiers fled in an airship." Ruby explained, hoping that was enough.
Glynda nodded, giving a bit of approval. "Good. And, in your opinion, what kind of threat did you believe you were dealing with as you engaged them?" She replied, motioning for the young girl to continue.
"Considering their level of equipment, training, and coordination, they were on the level of either a former military unit or paramilitary group." Ruby answered.
Glynda nodded, considering the girl's words as the door opened. An equally tall, yet thin man walked in wearing a well pressed suit of an incredibly old fashion, a well-crafted cane, and a long thin face topped with bottle glasses and white hair. Ruby instantly straightened her back as she knew exactly who it was. Headmaster Ozpin of Beacon. Carrying a plate of cookies and a glass of milk?
"I apologize for my tardiness. Glynda, tell me you haven't grilled her too much while I was gone." Ozpin said, looking at the woman, who immediately turned subservient.
"No, Ozpin. I was merely getting her testimony and her thoughts during the situation." Glynda replied, getting up and stepping aside so that Ozpin could take the seat across from Ruby.
"Um…" Ruby nervously let out, now becoming nervous enough to start shaking.
"Please relax, Miss Rose. You aren't in any trouble. I merely wish to speak to you and learn more about you before telling you about a decision I've come to regarding your future." The Headmaster of Beacon told her before making a call on his scroll.
Meanwhile: On Patch; Xiao Long-Rose Cabin
"Look Yang, I'm not saying I don't like the boy. But the energy he gives off… it leaves a father concerned like leaving a henhouse open to a fox." Tai tried to say in an eloquent way… and failed miserably.
"Dad, Azura's been nothing but a gentleman to me. And believe me, he's had plenty of opportunities to try something inappropriate." Yang insisted a bit defensively.
"Exactly my point! You have to be more careful with…" Taiyang started before being interrupted by a ring from his scroll, "Who the hell is calling me at this bewitching hour?"
"I don't know, maybe a fine lady that's attracted to overprotective parents?" Yang asked teasingly.
"We'll finish this discussion after this call, young lady." Tai pointedly replied before picking up his scroll, "Hello, Taiyang Xiao Long speaking."
"Hello, Tai. It's been a while." An eerily familiar, gentlemanly voice came from the other end.
Tai's eyes widened in surprise at the voice. "Ozpin? Is something wrong?" He asked, surprised at the man calling him at this hour.
Yang's eyes widened in shock. "Ozpin? As in 'Professor Ozpin,' the Headmaster of Beacon Academy?" Yang asked before being shushed by her father as he held up a finger for silence.
"Quiet Yang, I am on the scroll!" Tai shushed out.
"Well, I'm currently at the main Vale City Police Precinct with a young lady who says she is your daughter." The voice of Ozpin answered.
Taiyang was surprised at this. "Ruby's there? Did something happen?" He asked immediately concerned about the safety of his daughter.
"Well, I have good news and bad news…" Ozpin said before Tai cut him off.
The elder sun dragon sighed. "And I suppose you aren't going to tell me until I get down there, are you?" Tai asked in exasperation.
"That wasn't my original plan but thank you for the suggestion. Do head over as quickly as you can. Tell the men at the front I sent for you, and they will let you in. I'll arrange for a police airship to pick you up at the Patch station's landing pad." Ozpin answered.
"We will be right over." Tai said before hanging up and looking at Yang, "We have to head to the Main Police Station in Vale. Ruby is there."
Yang was immediately concerned. "Ruby's in a police station!? Is she okay!? What happened!?" Yang asked, rapid firing off worried questions.
"Ozpin said he would tell us when we got there. He sent for an airship at the landing pad. Lesson one for you about Beacon, Yang. You never get an answer from Ozpin on the first ask." Tai said as he grabbed his things for the short trip.
Yang immediately began grabbing what she needed. "Noted! Now let's get to the Patch airship station!" She all but demanded, grabbing Zwei.
"Something wrong, you two?" Qrow asked, popping into the room.
"Ruby is in police questioning right now! Hold down the fort, Qrow! I'll let you know when we know!" Tai yelled as he opened the front door.
"I was gonna take Zwei with us but watch him until we get back okay!?" Yang asked, handing the corgi to Qrow without waiting for an answer and heading out the door.
Qrow looked down at the dog, holding him up. "Well… looks like it's just you and me watching the house while they're gone, boy." Qrow told the pup, who simply barked in response.
Meanwhile: Azura's Cabin
Azura hummed a small tune as he diligently packed his things for Beacon. Despite the roller coaster of the past several months, and the loss of his father, his move to Patch was one of the best things that happened to him in his life. He treasured it so much partially because it was a choice influenced and facilitated by his father, but also the island, if he wasn't in the position he was in, would be his ideal home. As his thoughts drifted to more pleasant ones, he was not focusing too much on the TV in the background. He was not one to watch it all that often, he kept it mostly for noise. Soon, however, the news channel he was on made a sudden update story.
"Live from Midtown Vale, we are on the scene of a recent Dust robbery turned firefight." The voice of the news anchor, Lisa Lavender, said as footage of the carnage began to roll out.
That immediately perked Azura's ears up. "A firefight? In Midtown Vale?" He asked in disbelief, ceasing his packing to turn to look at the TV.
"Early reports are coming in of a firefight between a large group of paramilitary fighters of an unknown faction, and a red-cloaked Zodiac girl with Huntsmen level training and wielding a large scythe weapon." The anchor continued.
Azura's eyes widened in disbelief and horror. "Ruby!" He called out in concern, grabbing his weapons, keys, scroll, and wallet before rushing out the door, locking and slamming it shut behind him as he got on Azure Dragon and rode to the nearby airship station like a bat out of hell.
As he rode over on his bike, his mind was running a mile a minute in concern for his friend. As soon as he showed up, he parked and secured his precious bike before pulling out his scroll to call his mother. As he ran up to book an emergency flight to Vale City, he saw an airship already being boarded… by Yang and Tai…
"YANG! LORD XIAO LONG!! WAIT FOR ME!!" Azura yelled at the top of his lungs as he screamed and bolted up the stairs to the platform.
"Hold off a second! He's with us!" Tai yelled to the pilot, who gave a brief nod as Azura, panting and wheezing leaped himself into it with a running jump.
"You know you always find a way to make an entrance." Yang said with her hands on her hips at the sight of the azure samurai panting on the floor.
"Ruby…! Dust shop robbery…! Firefight…! What happened…!?" Azura panted out in concern.
"How did you find out about that?" Tai asked.
"News report…!" Azura panted out, starting to catch his breath.
"Take a seat. We are heading to Vale now. She's currently in police custody with Headmaster Ozpin. He'll explain when we get there." Tai explained.
"Yeah. What are you doing on your scroll anyway?" Yang asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Calling my mother in case Ruby needs a lawyer." Azura told them.
"Let's hope it doesn't get to that point…" Tai muttered as the airship slowly got ready to take off while Verdant picked up.
"Azura, what in the name of your untold great ancestor Sakura have you done with getting that sweet girl into trouble!?" Verdant yelled through the scroll.
"Why do you automatically assume it is my… never mind! Just meet us at the Main Vale Precinct with an attorney, please!" Azura replied in exasperation.
"Alright I will be right over! You better hope, however, that this does not get too big. Remember what Sakuya said last year about cutting legal expenses." Verdant said in a warning tone.
"Oh, you accidentally cut off a bandit's arm protecting civilians one time…!" Azura groaned in frustration.
"Do not you pull some medieval argument out of your ass, mister! Emperor Shikoku III specifically outlawed lethal force towards banditry unless absolutely necessary under the Tenet of Compassion of the Bushidō Code!!" Verdant yelled back as they both hung up.
"Are you going to be okay or is this going to be a thing?" Yang asked, giving Azura a weird and concerned look.
"It is fine, Yang. It was this whole crazy thing that I am not going to get into right now." He told his blonde friend.
Meanwhile: Back in the Vale City Main Police Precinct
Ozpin reentered the room after making the call to see Glynda still intimidating Ruby with her mere presence. Sighing, he headed over to sit across from her again, getting Ruby's attention. Surprising him, she had not touched the cookies and milk he brought her.
"Help yourself, Miss Rose. Your father and sister are on their way." He told the silver eyed girl.
"Am I in trouble?" Ruby asked a bit fearfully.
Ozpin shook his head. "Not at all. I simply wish to learn more about you before I make up my mind on what to do with you." He told her, causing the young Rose to let out a sigh of relief.
"What would you like to know?" Ruby asked as she began to eat the cookies.
"Well let's start with your background and where you learned to fight as you did. I must say that I'm quite impressed. Especially with how you pulled off the Iron Body technique in the middle of a battle despite a seeming lack of hands-on experience." Ozpin offered.
"Oh, Azura taught me that." Ruby simply answered as she kept eating.
Glynda was shocked to hear this as Ozpin raised an eyebrow. "Azura? As in 'Sōtora Azura?'" He asked in a tone that showed that, if he was surprised, he was not showing it.
"Yeah. Met him some months ago right before Yang started her last semester at Signal. He joined before the semester started. We helped him move in and had him over a lot. He's a really nice guy once you get him away from all the big important stuff going on." Ruby explained as best she could.
"I must say, it's quite impressive that a girl from Patch knows the potential heir of arguably the strongest Zodiac clan." Ozpin replied, noting Ruby's nonchalance about the idea.
"One of those soldiers brought that word Zodiac up too. I never really thought much about asking. Mostly because it makes Azura uncomfortable. I don't like doing that to a friend." Ruby answered.
"Miss Rose. The Zodiacs, regardless of how uncomfortable it makes him, are alongside the Kingdoms' militaries and the Huntsmen as the most powerful means of security and safety in this world." Glynda said sternly.
"Is he really that important?" Ruby asked, nearly choking on a bit of cookie at that and having to pound on her chest to force the piece down.
"Miss Rose, before the founding of the Huntsman system, the warrior clans and houses were the main major defense towards combating the Grimm. The oldest, most powerful, and influential among those surviving in the modern day are the thirteen Zodiac clans, who practically helped build the Kingdoms and Menagerie. And the Sōtora clan of Mistral, the one your friend Azura is from and is the most favored candidate to become the heir of, are debatably and arguably the strongest and most influential in the world." Ozpin explained.
"And?" Ruby asked simply.
"And they're also the Mistrali Zodiac most known for having the ear of the higher ups in the Mistral government's hierarchy. Meaning that your friend has likely gotten the best training and education his clan could afford, but likely also led a very lonely life outside of his family and retainers." Glynda added.
"And that's supposed to change my opinion about Azura, how?" Ruby asked, genuinely confused about where the two were going with this.
Glynda seemed a bit confused as Ozpin gave a small smile. "You're a very interesting girl, Ms. Rose." He told her.
"How so?" Ruby asked, only getting increasingly confused.
"You were raised and trained by two members of Team STRQ, the greatest Huntsman team to come out of Beacon in their generation if not of their generation overall, and you're closely acquainted with essentially a warrior prince. Yet, despite all of that, you think nothing of it." He told her calmly.
"Look, my dad and uncle taught me everything they know, and my sis and Azura helped whip me into shape. But my parents also taught me not to judge someone on what they do in life, what they have, and their connections, but by who they are as a person. Azura is someone I'm glad to call a friend, and he gets uncomfortable talking about all that stuff. So, if that's what he wants, then that's all I need." Ruby answered simply, before taking a sip of her milk.
Soon, there was a knock at the door. It then opened as one of the police officers stepped into the interrogation room. "Professor Goodwitch, Professor Ozpin sir. Miss Rose's father and sister are here, along with Sōtora Azura, his mother Verdant, and a Sōtora clan attorney." He told the two Hunters present.
"Glynda, go and get them, please. I'll be out in a second." Ozpin politely ordered her.
The experienced Huntress nodded in response to her superior's order. "Yes sir, Ozpin." She replied, heading out to meet with their guests escorted by the officer.
"From what I saw from cameras, heard from eyewitness testimony, and what I can tell here, I see a lot of potential in you, Miss Rose. However, you are still obviously very inexperienced and unrefined. I wish to give you an offer to improve on what you have, become better. I am giving you an offer to take a test to skip ahead to join Beacon Academy. Don't give me an answer now. I want you to sit here and think about it while I'm talking to your family and friends. You can give me your answer when I come back." Ozpin said before standing up to leave.
"You mean it?" Ruby asked, stunned at the offer.
"Every word, Miss Rose. Now sit tight and think about that offer. I'll be back for your answer." Ozpin said before closing the door behind him, leaving Ruby to her thoughts.
To Be Continued…