27

Chapter 27

Ruby pounded on her mother's gravestone with both hands clenched into fists of rage. She screamed out her rage and pain and struck the stone again and again. Only when the stone began to crack under her fists did she stop, the sight of a narrow crack in the stone going down the center of her mother's memorial shocking her out of her fury.

Ruby sank back on her knees, panting and staring at the cracked stone. Slowly, she became aware of how much her hands hurt. Of the cold of the snow under her knees, soaking through her stockings.

She was back. Back to the beginning once again. There was no other explanation. Once again, upon seeing her friends on the verge of death... on knowing that she and her sister and Blake... and even poor Dr. Oobleck were all doomed to die, she'd somehow traveled back in time to this point. With an agonized sob, she collapsed atop the grave, clutching at the edges of the stone as if hugging it. She'd failed. She'd lost them. Lost them all. Again.

Ruby's breath came out in shuddering pants. The pain in her hands was faint, and slowly fading as her Aura repaired the damage. She felt tired. So very tired. It was hard to remember how she'd felt the first time she'd gone back in time, but she'd been tired then as well. Was it because she'd used her semblance to travel back in time? Did the fatigue of the trip follow her somehow? Something Blake had suggested tugged at Ruby's memory. She'd suggested that Ruby could have used her semblance to send herself... as energy, back in time to become part of her current self. Perhaps that was what made her so tired? Absorbing the energy from her past self probably took a toll on her.

Ruby's cheek felt cold against the stone of her mother's headstone, and she pushed herself away from it slowly, forcing herself into a sitting position as she simultaneously tried to force herself to accept her situation.

"I'm back to the beginning." She told herself softly. "That means... I have another chance." Ruby face hardened with resolve. "I can't give up. I've got a third chance. I can't waste it."

Ruby growled and punched the grave again, although not half as hard. "I'm an idiot! Of course there were too many Grimm for us! The first time the only reason we survived is because the train broke out into Vale, and everyone came to the rescue!"

Ruby remembered that day. Weiss had put them inside a shield of ice to protect them as they'd crashed up and into the middle of the town square in that Vale shopping district the day of the breach. At first they'd fought alone. Tired... running on fumes... it had looked bad. Dr. Oobleck and Zwei had come, and still, it looked to be too much for them. But then team JNPR had arrived, and team CFVY, and Professor Port, and Sun and Neptune, and then a bunch of Atlesian drop ships filled with their new combat androids... and then more hunters and huntresses had arrived. Finally, Professor Goodwitch had sealed the tunnel. If not for that, the Grimm might have still managed to get past them all into the city.

Even without all of that, they might have been able to survive somehow, if not for everything else that had happened. First, she'd forgotten her bag of explosives. Second, Pyrrha had gotten injured. They'd used a lot of their ammo and supplies on fighting before they'd even gotten to the train as well.

"Damn it!" Ruby swore. "Why was Adam Taurus there? He wasn't there the last time! And that scorpion faunus was so strong! And that huge man with the dust crystals! I mean... I get why Mercury and Emerald were there... but the rest? What could I possibly have changed to make things so much harder?"

Even as she said the words, Ruby knew the answer. They'd defeated Cinder in the CCT. More than that, she'd captured Roman Torchwick not once, but twice when she'd never managed it the first time through. Emerald and Mercury must have called for reinforcements when Cinder was captured, and they'd brought their strongest because they were more on guard than they'd been the first time through.

She couldn't be sure she was right, but it seemed to fit. There hadn't been anyone nearly so strong their first time through Mountain Glenn.

The question was, how did they fix things? How could SHE fix things so that they didn't go wrong a third time?

She knew more. Ruby's mind raced over all the new things she'd learned this time through. The Maidens... Ozpin's secret cabal. She'd seen the fighting styles of some very dangerous hunters who she now knew she'd have to be ready for. And she knew that the tunnel between Mountain Glenn and Vale would be a death trap without a way to get out. Or a whole lot more firepower than they'd brought.

Either way, she wouldn't be making the same mistake again. This time, she'd do it right, and save everyone.

Ruby felt a little strength return to her along with that determination, and she slowly got to her feet. She felt a bit unsteady still, but she could walk. Ruby's eyes narrowed as she stared at the trees that she'd need to pass through to get back home to her father. She was so tired. Could she beat the huge horde of Beowolves that were waiting for her?

Ruby's eyes flashed dangerously. "Of course I can beat them." She told herself. "Beowolves? Who cares if there are fifty or a hundred? I can handle them."

Ruby glanced at the ground. It seemed closer somehow. She reached over with her right hand to grip her left forearm, and it felt noticeably smaller. She'd lost muscle mass as well. She pulled her scroll out, glancing at the date, even though she knew what she'd see. It was the anniversary of her mother's death. She was fifteen again. Although, to be honest with herself, she'd never quite reached her sixteenth birthday. This time, however, she'd be sure to make it.

Ruby took a deep breath and started marching into the woods, heading towards her home and her father.

/-/

The fight had taken longer this time. She'd been forced to use almost every round of ammunition she'd brought, thinning their numbers and buying herself time to recover between bouts of violence. There was no doubt that these trips back in time were taking something out of her. Her first time through this fight had been almost fun. She'd slaughtered the Beowolves in minutes. The second... her aura had broken, although she'd still handled them quickly. This time, she'd barely managed. Even with everything she knew about fighting through nearly four semesters training at Beacon now, she'd been so much weaker this time through that it had been almost more than she could handle.

She'd managed, but she was truly exhausted now. She forced herself to stagger onwards. She'd dealt with the pack, but there could always be stragglers, especially with how dark her mood was. Third chance or not, she was furious with herself for her failure under Mountain Glenn. New enemies or not, even ones as strong as the people she and her team had faced this last time through, it was no excuse. She should have had a plan to deal with the train before it ever even started moving. They should have been able to disable the train, then retreat back up through the subway entrance to the surface and escape. After that, they could have gotten into range to make a scroll call and called in reinforcements to deal with the White Fang and the rest before they could get their train full of bombs working again.

Ruby was still trying to make plans when her log cabin home came into view. Taiyang Xaio-Long, her father, was waiting outside the front door for her, and Ruby forced her back to straighten, and started walking with energy, doing her best to hide her utter fatigue. Whatever else happened, she couldn't afford for her dad to keep her home. She needed to get to Vale, to get started.

"Hey kiddo, how'd it go?" Tai greeted her with a cautious smile, a concerned look in his eyes.

Ruby stared at him for a long moment, trying to come up with something to say. "It was... kind of rough." She said simply, giving him the barest portion of the truth, and letting only a small fraction of the rage and pain she felt into her eyes.

Tai gathered her into a hug regardless. "You're going to miss your sister, huh?"

Ruby hugged him back but didn't answer. After a long minute, she pulled free. "I'm... kind of tired, dad. I think I'll go to bed early."

Tai blinked incredulously. "Are you sure? I fixed your favorite!"

Ruby cracked a ghost of a smile. "Leave it in the fridge for me? I'll probably get hungry in the middle of the night..."

Tai's face softened. "Sure, kiddo. Anything you like."

Ruby hugged him again, then pushed away from her father to make her way up to her bedroom. She needed to think. She WAS tired, but there was too much going on in her head to sleep quite yet. She had some decisions to make.

/-/

Laying on her bed, Crescent Rose hanging on the hooks she had on her wall for her weapon, Ruby stared up at her ceiling and pondered how to deal with things this time through. "I need to write everything down..." She decided. There was too much to just rely on her memory. She needed to get everything right this time. But the question was, how?

"I have to save Jaune first." Ruby decided. "Well... I also need to get into Beacon again, obviously. But saving Jaune has to be top priority." Ruby wrinkled her nose. "Except... I know where Cinder will be in two days. She'll be in that Bullhead that Roman escaped in the first time. If I could just... get to her..."

Ruby's eyes hardened. "If I kill her, maybe Amber will wake up?" She seriously considered it. "If I got the drop on her... maybe... but..." Ruby lifted her left arm above her face, and gripped her left wrist in her right hand again. Her arms were different. It wasn't a huge difference, but she really was weaker than she'd become in the previous timeline. "And my body's muscle memory doesn't have all my new moves down either..."

It had been obvious during the fight with the Beowolves. Several times, Ruby had attempted moves that she'd practiced during her time at Beacon, but she'd been slow with them. She knew how the moves went, but they weren't at the level she needed to use them in combat. At least not at the level she'd need to be at to beat Cinder Fall. She just MIGHT be able to beat Cinder if she caught her by surprise, but more likely, Cinder would just kill her. Ruby held no illusions about that. Cinder was just plain stronger than she was. Even at the best she'd gotten in her second timeline, Cinder had still been stronger. It had taken all four of them to beat her, and it'd still been a tough fight. And if not for Pyrrha, they might have lost... or at least let her get away. No... Ruby couldn't risk it. If she could be certain she could win, it'd be worth it, but... it was too much of a risk.

"If I die..." Ruby muttered. "If I die, my semblance... however I'm doing this, it IS me. It's got to be me. If I die, then I can't send myself back in time again. You can't use a semblance when you're dead." She sighed. "Apparently I can only travel in time if someone I care about dies..." She hadn't seen what had happened to Yang, but she'd heard Pyrrha's scream, and with the mass of Grimm all around them, her older sister's fate had been sealed. "Yang... I'm sorry. I'll save you this time. I won't let you die again."

It was too morbid for words. While it was nice to be able to get another chance to save everyone, how the power seemed to work was horrible. Ruby pictured the last moments in Mountain Glenn and shuddered, forcing herself to think of something, ANYTHING else. She didn't want to remember. She couldn't LET herself remember, because she didn't have the time to shut down. She couldn't let herself do anything but get into Beacon, and save Jaune Arc. And then... what? She needed to fix things. Save Tuckson, of course. Stop Cinder, and Torchwick, and the White Fang. All without anyone having to die this time.

"I can do this..." Ruby told herself, willing herself to believe it. "I just need a plan." Ruby closed her eyes. "I could... just tell everyone?" Ruby considered that for a long time. How would her dad take it if she told him she'd traveled in time not once, but twice? "He'd think I was crazy." Ruby said with a sigh, trying to see a way she could convince him. "I could get dad to believe me... in time. If I predict enough things accurately in a row... tell him enough stuff that I shouldn't know about, he'd believe me. He'd have to."

Ruby wrinkled her nose. "But there's no time to convince dad quickly enough. If I try now, he might keep me home because he wants to protect me. He might even take me to a doctor to try and figure out what's wrong with me. I'll miss my chance to get into Beacon."

Ruby wrinkled her nose. "Yang would believe me... if I could show her enough proof, anyway." She considered it. "And even if she thinks I'm crazy, she won't tell anyone." Ruby grimaced. "Unless she thought I was really nuts and it was for my own good." She sighed. "OK, so if I tell Yang, I need to be careful so she doesn't think I'm TOO crazy. So I need to... kind of break it to her a bit at a time, I guess?"

Ruby started going over what she remembered of the next couple days, and what she could tell Yang that would convince her that she'd really traveled in time.

"I can't start with, 'I'm a time traveler'." Ruby decided. "But if I just predict a few things at a time, she'll be super curious. She'll be dying to know how I'm doing it. I just can't tell her everything immediately. I just need to kind of... ease her in." Ruby smiled. "Yeah. That'll work." Ruby sighed. "And... once Yang's convinced, she can help me figure out what to do next." Ruby closed her eyes again. "That was something else I did wrong on my second time through. I thought I had everything figured out, but I should have asked for help sooner!"

She considered who else she might be able to convince. "If I could convince Professor Ozpin, he could help." She thought about it. "I know all about the Maidens, and his vault under the school. And Amber. She's already down there, right? He said she was attacked a couple weeks before school started."

Ruby seriously considered that. "Except I guess Uncle Qrow could have told me about all of that. If I just tell him about what I know about the Maidens and his group, he'll think it's Uncle Qrow's fault. He won't just accept it's because I'm a time traveler. I need to tell him stuff that nobody could have just told me... I have to be able to tell him about stuff nobody else could possibly know." Ruby looked thoughtful. "I can predict stuff before it happens, if I don't change things too much. If I predict enough things in a row, he'll have to believe me!"

Ruby sighed. "But if I make him think I'm crazy before that, he could throw me in a mental hospital, or..." She shivered. "Maybe he'll think I'm a bad guy, or a spy?" She frowned. "Ozpin might even get mad at Uncle Qrow." Ruby grimaced. "What do secret societies do when you know too much about their secrets anyway? He might just lock me up, and lock Uncle Qrow up too for betraying his secrets!"

Ruby sighed. "I can't risk it. But... maybe if I'm careful, I can manage to convince everyone without getting myself locked up somewhere." She nodded decisively. "First Yang... then we can figure it out from there."

Ruby looked up at her ceiling. She was tired, but too wired to get to sleep. She rolled out of bed and went to her desk, looking for an empty notebook. After a bit of searching, she found one that only had a few pages written on, mostly doodles and ideas for weapon schematics. She tore those pages out and started on the first page, writing down the events she knew would happen, as long as she didn't change things, in order of when they'd occur.

1. Yang will be at Junior's club, and she'll wreck the place.

Ruby stared at that line, and remembered the two previous times she'd met Yang outside the building. She could remember almost exactly where the big bar owner had fallen after crashing through the window. She grinned, already having an idea of how to use that to her advantage.

2. Roman Torchwick will rob From Dust till Dawn.

Ruby considered that. As much as she wanted to catch Roman right there and then, he'd escaped both times she'd captured him in the past, and as far as she could tell, it had given her enemies reason to prepare themselves more. Things had been much more difficult at Mountain Glenn the second time through. Despite her team being significantly stronger the second time, they'd still only barely made it to the train, and then, of course, stopping the train had been a mistake. Ruby then listed all the other people she knew she needed to be wary of. Cinder, Mercury, Emerald, Torchwick, Ice-cream girl, the giant, and the scorpion faunus were all extremely dangerous opponents. Then there was Adam Taurus and the White Fang, of course.

"Blake... she looked so scared of him." Ruby's eyes flashed. "And he was so mean!" Ruby frowned angrily. "How could Blake have been in love with a guy that cruel?" Ruby's shoulders sagged and she sighed. "I remember... in the first time through, after Yang... after Yang got tricked into punching Mercury in the leg after his Aura was down, Blake told us more about him. About the person she'd trusted, how he'd changed slowly over time, becoming more and more cruel... how he'd made excuses... that she wanted to believe him."

Ruby's eyes narrowed. "Oh... I wish I could punch him in his stupid face right now." Ruby wrinkled her nose. "I guess Blake's already left him on that train. That was probably days ago by now..." She sighed. "And Amber was attacked weeks ago now. She's probably already in the Vault under the school."

Ruby turned back to the first page of her notebook, and looked at the second line she'd written there. "OK, I can tell Yang about Torchwick... but if I do, she'll want to be there to protect me, and if Yang shows up, I won't get to beat up Torchwick's goons and impress Professor Ozpin so that I can get into Beacon."

Ruby considered that, then wrote another line.

3. Glynda Goodwitch shows up at the last second and helps fight Torchwick and Cinder.

Ruby frowned at that. With Glynda's help, she MIGHT just be able to beat Cinder. Glynda Goodwitch was scarily powerful. But again, if she failed to stop Cinder, she'd just give Cinder Fall that much more information about her. And Cinder Fall was powerful and smart. There was a really good chance she'd escape.

"What if I have Yang show up at just the right time?" Ruby asked herself aloud. "And dad?" She frowned deeper. "The timing would have to be pretty tight. If they show up too early, Cinder will run and leave Torchwick behind again. If they show up too late, Cinder and Torchwick will just get away. I could tell them to hide till they see Cinder in the Bullhead, but... how could I convince them to do it?"

Ruby considered her first two lines. Two details about the future she could use to prove her story. But it didn't seem like enough. Finding Yang was easy to explain. Their scrolls already had the program to locate each other installed, and while she might convince Yang that her knowing about Yang busting up the club was something she shouldn't have been able to know about, her father might not be so easy to convince. He'd suspect a prank, that Yang had been in on it. Roman Torchwick attacking Dust till Dawn, on the other hand, would be great evidence, but would there be anything she could say to convince her father to let her fight a bunch of armed goons in a Dust shop while he hid and watched?

Ruby sighed. It didn't seem likely. If it worked, they could catch both Cinder and Torchwick in one go. But Torchwick had been busted loose in days. They'd bust Cinder out just as easily, and she'd be in worse shape then ever. She could try and convince Ozpin that Cinder held the other half of the Fall Maiden's power... but if that didn't work, or if Cinder escaped before she managed it, they'd be in worse shape than ever, with Cinder more on guard and her identity known, she'd do something completely different. There'd be no way for Ruby to predict how she'd act. Catching Cinder at the CCT tower had worked. It had been a hard fight, but they'd managed, and Ruby was convinced she could manage that again. Plus, the extra time would give her more opportunities to get properly prepared.

Ruby nodded, convinced. She wouldn't bring her father or Yang in to witness the attack on From Dust till Dawn. She'd use it as evidence of her future knowledge, but she'd have to set it up so that it would go down as it had in her original timeline.

Ruby wrote another line.

4. Professor Goodwitch takes me to the Vale police station.

Ruby nodded thoughtfully. That part was really predictable, and easy to use as an example. Yang wouldn't try and 'save' her from Miss Goodwitch. Her presence might change things there a little, but not enough to disrupt the timeline. It seemed like a safe bet. Ruby wrote down another line.

5. Headmaster Ozpin will bring me chocolate chip cookies, and he'll tell me I have silver eyes.

Ruby scratched her head at that. It had been such an odd thing to say, and he'd never explained himself. Was it really that odd that she had silver eyes? Her mother had had silver eyes... and she was sure she'd seen other people with similar eye colors. Mercury's eyes had been silver, right? Well... grey at least. However, this would be her first opportunity to show off her future knowledge to Professor Goodwitch and Ozpin. Ruby smiled, already having some ideas on how to use that. She considered, and wrote down the next major thing she remembered happening.

6. Jaune will vomit on Yang's boots on the airship to Vale. There will be a news story about Roman Torchwick, about the White Fang, and Professor Goodwitch's hologram will welcome us to Beacon.

Ruby grinned at that. It'd be kind of funny to let Yang know about her boots just a BIT too late for Yang to avoid the mess. It was also kind of mean, but... Ruby put a pin in that idea. Maybe she'd just give Jaune some airsick medication as soon as she saw him? Of course, that would ruin that particular prediction. Probably should let it happen. It wouldn't really harm anyone, and it would be excellent proof.

Ruby closed her eyes, and found it difficult to open them again. She sighed, closed her notebook, and stretched. She needed sleep, and she had enough of a plan to start on already. She'd work out the rest after she managed to convince Yang that she was telling the truth. Once Yang believed her, she could start working on everyone else.

Ruby crawled back into bed and let her eyes close. She wasn't sure she'd actually be able to get to sleep, but the next thing she knew it was morning, and her alarm was blaring, startling her awake.

Ruby got out of bed quickly, her stomach growling angrily at her the second she was awake enough to notice. She groaned. She'd forgotten to eat dinner. Ruby rushed through getting dressed and went down to the kitchen, then to the refrigerator, where, indeed, her father had wrapped up the meal he'd prepared for her the previous night.

Ruby reheated the food and wolfed it down before her father joined her in the kitchen. "Hey Rubes. You feeling any better?"

Ruby grinned and nodded. "Lots better, dad. I'm going to go see Yang in Vale today!"

Tai grinned at her. "Well, have fun in town then." He raised an eyebrow. "You sure you're OK? You seemed pretty beat last night."

Ruby nodded quickly at him. "Nothing a good night's sleep couldn't cure!" She assured her father. "I'm all better today!"

Tai nodded agreeably, seeing the crumbs of the meal he'd prepared for her the previous night on her plate. "Alright. Want me to make you a lunch for the ferry?"

Ruby hesitated, then smiled. "Yeah dad. That'd be great."

/-/

Ruby had taken the first ferry into Vale, and had spent her time while waiting to meet up with Yang wisely. She'd stopped at a general store, and picked up some supplies, packing them away in her belt pouches, and she'd taken the time to check out the area around 'From Dust Till Dawn' to see if she could figure out any way of effectively ambushing Cinder Fall. Unfortunately, while Ruby had a pretty decent guess as to where Cinder would have the Bullhead parked, Ruby couldn't formulate any plan to try and stop her early that had good enough odds of success to risk. She resolved to go with her original plan.

Ruby watched Yang go into Junior's club from a nearby rooftop, and hopped down to head around to the back alley where the window Junior had been thrown out of was. She took a long look around the deserted alley, and walked to where she'd been standing under the window the last time, doing her best to remember exactly where Junior had landed. Then, she reached into a pouch, and brought out a small can of red spray paint.

/-/

Ruby hummed to herself, listening to the explosions and sounds of fighting from inside the club while she waited patiently for Yang to finish up. "Any second now..." She glanced up at the window she was standing under, and on cue, a large man with a beard came flying through the window to land in the alley beyond. Right in the middle of the large red circle Ruby had spray painted on the ground.

"Bullseye!" Ruby cheered as Yang came through the window after the man.

Yang heard her sister's voice, and turned to see her. "Oh, hey Ruby, have you been waiting long?"

"Not long." Ruby told her with a grin, nodding at the man in the circle. "Just stopped to do a little street art."

Yang blinked, then looked at Junior, laying in the middle of the red circle. "Huh... how did you...?"

Ruby winked at her, then pulled out a can of spray paint, waving it at her sister. "I got here a while ago."

Yang blinked again, looking from the circle of red paint with the man in the middle to Ruby, then back again. "Er... you painted a circle on the ground...?" Ruby nodded, grinning. Yang looked down at Junior again. "Right where Junior landed?" Ruby nodded again, still grinning. Yang blinked, then looked at her sister oddly. "How? I mean... why did you paint that circle?"

Ruby pointed at Junior. "Just giving you a bullseye, sis."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Er... what? You can't have known I'd have knocked this guy out this window... to right there. I mean... I guess you could guess I'd knock SOMEBODY through a window, but how did you get the circle in exactly the right place?"

Ruby shrugged modestly. "I can see the future."

Yang snorted. "Sure. Whatever you say, sis."

Ruby just smiled at her. "You'll see." She nodded to her sister. "So, want to head to your hotel? It's getting late."

Yang looked at Ruby suspiciously. "Er... sure. Let's do that." She gestured. "My bike's just around the front."

Ruby nodded. "And your hotel is on 16th street, right?"

Yang blinked again. "Have you been following me all day?"

Ruby shook her head. "Nope. I can see the future!"

Yang rolled her eyes. "OK sis. I take it you're going to keep this one going for awhile then?"

Ruby nodded with a smile. "Probably!"

Yang chuckled. "Well, I'll give you this... this was a pretty good gag. I'm actually kind of looking forward to what you pull off next."

Ruby's eyes twinkled. "Oh, you haven't seen ANYTHING yet, big sister."

The sisters retrieved Yang's bike and went back to Yang's hotel, where Ruby unerringly led Yang to her hotel room.

Yang shook her head. "Man, I didn't catch even a glimpse of you today. How did you find out which room I was in?" She looked thoughtful. "Bribe the guy at the front desk?"

Ruby shook her head. "Nope. I can see the future."

Yang laughed. "OK, going to play this out as long as you can keep it going, huh?" She nodded. "OK sis. Game on."

Ruby just winked. "I've got plenty of game, Yang. Just you wait and see."

/-/

The sisters parted ways the next day, Yang wanted to spend the day window shopping around Vale, and Ruby had her own preparations to make.

It was late in the evening, and Yang was pulling up to their hotel, when Ruby called her scroll. "Hey sis."

Yang smiled at her baby sister. "Hey Rubes, what's up?" She recognized the shelves behind Ruby. "Ah, checking out the weapon mags at 'From Dust till Dawn'?"

Ruby nodded. "Yup! Yang, I want you to open the storage compartment on Bumblebee. You'll find an envelope there. Open the envelope and read the letter you find inside."

"Hey! Put your hands up!" A rough male voice came faintly through the scroll.

Ruby grinned at her sister. "Got to go, sis. Bad guys to thwart!" Then the scroll went dead as the call ended.

Yang blinked, frowning. "Bad guys?" Her eyes went wide. "No... no way." She was tempted to jump back on her bike and race toward the Dust shop she knew her sister was at, but grimaced and quickly opened the storage compartment behind the seat instead. Inside, as predicted, there was a small envelope. Yang grabbed it and ripped it open, then quickly started to read the letter inside.

Hey Yang! If you read this when I tell you to, I'll be busy fighting a bunch of goons who are trying to rob 'From Dust Till Dawn'. Don't worry, most of them are just going to be a bunch of thugs with Black suits, sunglasses, and red ties. Easy pickings. Their leader is a guy named Roman Torchwick. He's a bit more dangerous, but nothing I can't handle. By the time you get here, the police will probably be loading them into a paddy wagon!

Oh, and Glynda Goodwitch (that's the combat instructor for Beacon Academy, by the way, DON'T try to fight her), will have taken Crescent Rose from me and will be taking me to the police station as well for questioning! Don't worry, I'll be fine! Professor Ozpin will be there, and he'll offer me a spot at Beacon two years early, and a bunch of chocolate chip cookies! Pick me up out in front of the police station in a couple hours, OK?

Yang flipped the note over, looking for anything more, but that was it. "What in the actual...?" Stuffing the note into the front pocket of her vest, she jumped on Bumblebee and revved the engine, shooting out onto the street and heading straight for 'From Dust till Dawn' as fast as she could drive.

Yang arrived at the Dust shop to find, as Ruby's letter had predicted, several police cars and a large van for prisoner transport, currently being loaded with a bunch of Junior's goons. She spotted her sister as well, being led over to a police cruiser by a rather severe looking blond woman who wore spectacles, a black pencil skirt, and who apparently carried a riding crop as a weapon. She was also carrying Crescent Rose.

Yang was about to charge over and demand answers when Ruby spotted her. "Yang! Hi!" Her younger sister was grinning and waving. "Did you get my letter?"

Yang blinked. "Er... yeah? What in the hell is going on, Ruby?"

Ruby gave her a firm look. "Do what the letter says, Yang. I'll see you soon." Yang blinked, pausing what she'd been about to do, that is, stomp over and demand to know what was happening and for them to let her sister go... immediately, or she'd start breaking things... and people, and instead paused in confusion.

The severe looking woman... who Yang had to assume was Glynda Goodwitch, eyed Yang suspiciously. "Are you responsible for this girl?" She asked Yang seriously.

Yang hesitated, while Ruby took a small step back to get out of Glynda's peripheral vision and shook her head quickly from side to side. "Not... technically?" Yang tried, trying to figure out what on Remnant was happening, and how far she could afford to humor her apparently insane baby sister.

The woman sighed. "If you are her friend, I will have her contact you." She eyed Ruby threateningly. "When we are done with her."

Yang hesitated again, then nodded, deciding that, if on the off chance that Ruby was right, and the woman with her sister was the Beacon Combat Professor, that there was a better than even chance that she'd get her ass handed to her if she did anything but agree. "Er... right. You... er... you do that." She watched in a mix of terror and fascination as the police car carried Ruby and what was, if Ruby was correct, one 'Glynda Goodwitch' away. Then she got out her scroll. "Um... dad? I don't know how to tell you this... but I think Ruby just got arrested."

/-/

Yang was waiting out front of the police station, sitting on Bumblebee. A couple cops had come over half an hour ago, wanting to know why she was loitering in front of the station, but she'd explained that she was waiting for her baby sister, and gave them one of her biggest, most charming smiles, and a nice lean forward so they got a better look at her cleavage. It had worked. One of the cops had even asked her sister's name, and offered to check on her status, and had, in fact, done so, telling her that Ruby wasn't under arrest, and she'd be out soon.

Yang had scrolled Tai at that point, letting him know the news. It had been too late for Tai to catch a Ferry to Vale, otherwise he'd probably have already been here. As it was, Tai was relieved to hear that Ruby wasn't ACTUALLY being arrested.

"Did you find out what happened?" Tai asked her with only a little residual concern.

"Apparently Ruby thwarted a robbery." Yang told him with a shrug. "And then a professor from Beacon showed up and brought her to the police station for... debriefing, I guess?"

Tai relaxed further. "Oh? Anyone I know?"

Yang shrugged again. "I'm not sure. Blond, glasses, kind of scary looking?"

Tai laughed. "Oh, Glynda! Yeah. She can be a bit intimidating." He gave her a warning look through the scroll. "Don't piss her off, Yang. She's the combat instructor at Beacon, and you really don't want to get on her bad side."

Yang nodded. "Yeah. I'll be careful." She shrugged. "Anyway, they say Ruby will be out soon, so I'll take her back to the hotel with me when she gets out?"

Tai smiled and nodded back. "Great. Thanks Yang. It's good that you're there to look out for her."

Yang frowned, glancing at her front breast pocket, where the note from Ruby sat. "Sure dad. I've always got her back. You know that." She turned to face the scroll again. She wanted to ask him if he had any clue what Ruby was up to, but decided she'd wait at least until she'd gotten an explanation from Ruby herself.

"I do." Tai said warmly. "Don't think I haven't noticed." He sighed. "I haven't always been the best dad, I know..."

Yang cut him off. "Dad, come on... you know we don't hold any of that against you..."

"You should." Tai said sadly. "You've practically raised Ruby for the last decade. I should have been there more for you."

Yang frowned, not wanting to see her father so unhappy. "Dad... it's OK..."

Tai smiled. "It's really not. But... I guess that's my issue. I just want you to know, kiddo... that you've been the best daughter I could have dreamed of. I'm really proud of you, you know that?"

Yang beamed, trying not to let herself cry. "Thanks dad."

"Yeah." Tai looked a bit embarrassed, but he gave her a warm smile anyway. "Well... let me know when you get back to the hotel safe."

Yang snorted. "It's not like there's anything in Vale that could get in our way, Dad."

Tai shrugged. "Apparently there are criminals robbing dust shops."

Yang rolled her eyes. "Ones that Ruby beat up by herself. Once we're together, there isn't anything we can't handle."

Tai laughed, but quickly sobered. "Not every crook is going to be that easy to deal with, Yang. Some criminals have Aura... and hunter training."

Yang sobered as well. "Yeah... well, we'll be careful." Tai raised an eyebrow expectantly. "AND I'll call you when we get to the hotel."

Tai smiled. "Thanks. I know I shouldn't worry, but..."

Yang rolled her eyes. "But it's your job, I know."

Tai nodded, still smiling. "Fraid so. That, and scaring away any of your potential boyfriends."

Yang rolled her eyes again. "I do that pretty well on my own."

Tai laughed. "That you do. OK kiddo. I'll let you go. Talk to you soon."

Yang nodded back. "Right dad." Tai ended the call, and Yang went back to waiting.

She didn't have to wait long. Within minutes, Ruby walked out of the Police Station, Crescent Rose slung behind her back in it's usual place under her cloak.

Yang waited till Ruby got close before pulling out the note. "OK Ruby... what the hell was this? Do you know how worried I was?"

Ruby shrugged sheepishly. "Sorry, Yang, couldn't be avoided." She reached into a pocket and held out the contents to her. "Want a cookie? They're chocolate chip!"

Yang blinked, then took the cookie. "You... you just bought this at a store before all this went down, right? Professor Ozpin didn't actually give you these."

Ruby blinked back, looking surprised. "Huh. I didn't think of that." She nodded. "You're right. I COULD have totally done that!" She shrugged. "But I didn't. This cookie was given to me by Professor Ozpin. You can ask him if you want."

Yang looked dubious. "And... he's inside?"

Ruby pointed at a Bullhead that was taking off from the back lot of the police station. "I think he's actually in there." She said. The Bullhead turned and started flying in the right direction to go to Beacon, although it was quickly out of sight behind some of the taller buildings.

Yang blinked. "OK... but you're not really... you're not really getting into Beacon two years early, are you?"

Ruby nodded. "I am, actually." She smiled at her sister happily. "So, lets go back to the hotel, shall we? It's been a long day."

Yang blinked again. "... what?"

Ruby gestured to her motorcycle. "Can we go back to the hotel?"

Yang shook her head. "What...? You're just going to leave me hanging? How did you pull all this off?"

Ruby raised an eyebrow. "I already told you... I can..."

"You can see the future?" Yang said incredulously. "You're sticking with that?"

Ruby frowned. "Do you have another explanation?"

Yang glared at Ruby. "I haven't figured it out yet... but this whole thing is getting out of hand! This is WAY past prank material, and going right to scaring the living daylights out of me! I don't know how you managed all of this, but it's got to stop, Ruby. This is not OK."

Ruby sighed. "Yang... I can't stop now." She held out her hands placatingly as Yang looked like she was about to explode, her eyes shifting to red. "No more thwarting robberies or fighting bad guys... or getting arrested."

Yang glowered at her. "And...?"

Ruby shrugged. "I'm going to keep predicting things till you either believe that I can see the future, or you tell me how I'm doing it."

Yang frowned. "Damn it Ruby, this isn't funny."

Ruby's eyes turned sad for a second, then she brightened. "It's a little bit funny."

Yang's eyes narrowed in concern. "Glad somebody is enjoying themselves." She shot back acidly, but her heart wasn't in it. Something was up with Ruby, and more than whatever prank she was playing. She couldn't remember the last time Ruby looked so... tired. What was going on? "Fine." Yang finally agreed reluctantly. "I'll drop it for now. But if you do anything like this again..."

"No more thwarting bad guys." Ruby promised. "Not in the next week, anyway."

Yang sighed, and took what she could get. "Right." She gestured at her bike, hopping on herself. "Come on. Let's get back to the hotel." She waited till Ruby got onto the bike, then grinned to herself as Ruby wrapped her small arms around her waist. "But YOU have to explain all this to dad."

/-/

"I guess I was just at the wrong place at the wrong time, dad." Ruby lied blithely to her father over the scroll. "But I couldn't let them rob my favorite Dust store!"

Tai sighed. "Honestly, Ruby... I know you want to be a hero like in your stories... but you've got to be more careful."

Ruby smiled innocently at him. "I was careful dad! I used the blunt end of Crescent Rose on them!"

Tai laughed. "That's my girl." He shook his head ruefully. "So, everything go OK with Professor Goodwitch?"

Ruby nodded happily. "Yeah! Professor Ozpin showed up as well, and he said he wanted me to come to Beacon this year!"

Tai blinked. "He what?!"

"Dad... you know this is what I've always wanted." Ruby hit him with her best puppy dog pout. "And this way I can go to school with Yang!"

Tai sighed. "Ruby... are you sure you'll be OK? Two years is a lot of course work to miss."

Ruby nodded. "I'll work really hard, dad. I promise. I can do this."

Tai sighed again. "I know you can, Ruby. I just worry about you."

Ruby smiled gently at him. "I know you do, dad. That's your job."

Tai chuckled. "I use that line too much, huh?"

Ruby shook her head, still smiling. "Nope. Just enough. I love you too, dad."

Tai smiled at her. "Yeah. I love you, kiddo." He nodded at her. "Now, put Yang on, OK?"

Ruby handed the scroll to Yang, who took it with a sigh. "Hey dad."

Tai shrugged. "Looks like Ruby is going to Beacon with you."

Yang glared at her baby sister. "Apparently... although I have no idea how she managed to pull it off."

Tai blinked. "What do you mean?"

Ruby looked alarmed, and started waving her hands wildly and mouthing 'no!' at her over and over, and Yang sighed. "Just... she had to be pretty lucky to run into a Beacon professor on the same day she thwarts a robbery."

Tai laughed. "Yeah... that's pretty wild alright."

"Yeah... wild." Yang agreed, looking annoyed, but she rolled her eyes, deciding not to tell Tai what was going on. Not yet. Not till she figured it out for herself, anyway. Her eyes narrowed in sudden suspicion. "Dad... you'd tell me if anything... funny was going on?"

Tai blinked, looking confused. "What do you mean?"

Yang hesitated. "Like... the biggest practical joke of all time?"

Tai laughed. "Hey! That would be something, huh? This whole thing being some kind of massive practical joke?"

Yang blinked. "Er... yeah?"

Tai shook his head. "Wow... the scale of it." He looked thoughtful. "Man... that gives me an idea for the next time Qrow's in town though."

Yang laughed uneasily. "Heh. Well... if you do decide to pull one over on Uncle Qrow, count me in."

Tai laughed back, and threw her a thumb's up. "Will do." He shook his head, still laughing to himself. "Anyway... goodnight Yang. I guess you and Ruby won't be heading back to Patch before initiation?"

Yang sighed. "Not enough time, really. Just... send Ruby's stuff to Beacon after we get in."

"IF you get in." Tai said with a bit of a warning in his voice. "Initiation isn't a cakewalk." He grinned. "Who am I kidding. You two should do fine." He sobered. "Just... look out for your baby sister, OK?"

Yang nodded automatically. "Always."

Tai smiled at her. "Love you, kiddo."

Yang smiled back at him. "Love you too, dad."

/-/

They got to the airship going to Beacon without Ruby doing anything else out of the ordinary, although Yang could tell something was up. As they boarded the airship, Ruby handed Yang another small envelope.

"Put this in your pocket." Ruby instructed quietly. "And whatever you do, don't open it till after we get off the airship."

Yang looked at the envelope curiously. "Why not?"

"Because..." Ruby said slowly. "They are predictions of the future involving you. If you know what's going to happen, you'll change events, and they won't happen."

Yang blinked. "Right..." she drawled slowly, unconvinced. "Is that how it works?"

Ruby nodded. "That's exactly how it works. Now promise me. No peeking till after we get to Beacon."

Yang hesitated, then sighed, and pocketed the envelope. "Fine... but you're going to explain how you're doing all of this."

Ruby nodded again. "I promise I will. Just... not yet."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Why not yet?"

Ruby shrugged. "Because you're not ready yet. And if I tell you too soon, I won't be able to predict as much."

Yang nodded slowly, a skeptical look on her face. "Sure..."

Ruby smiled sweetly. "You'll see." Yang just sighed.

Before long, Beacon came into view, and Ruby encouraged Yang to come look at it out the nearest window. Suspicious of her sister or not, Yang had to admit that it was a spectacular view. Then, a news report came on, and the reporter started talking about the robbery her sister had thwarted the previous night. Yang gaped at the broadcast in mild astonishment.

She shook her head. She knew it was a long shot, but there went one theory, that Ruby had somehow managed to convince Junior's gang to stage the robbery as part of her extremely elaborate prank. Maybe with her Uncle Qrow's help. But if the news was taking it seriously, then... then what? How had Ruby known that there was going to be a robbery? Had she managed to overhear something and decided to deal with it herself rather than contact the police? Yang frowned. That sounded a lot more likely. Her sister HAD always wanted to be a hero, and Yang wouldn't put it past her to try and stop a robbery on her own, thinking she could deal with the criminals without the help of the police. It was wildly irresponsible, but then again, Ruby could be more than a little impulsive.

The news switched to one of her favorite anchors, Lisa Lavender, and Yang found herself listening with half an ear to the, Yang had to admit, rather attractive newscaster talking about some sort of faunus civil rights protest. But before Lisa could finish, the screen switched to a hologram of the Beacon Professor from last night, Glynda Goodwitch.

Yang frowned. Could their dad have convinced Miss Goodwitch to be part of this whole prank somehow? That seemed farfetched, and yet, her father WAS a teacher at Signal, and he obviously knew the woman. It wasn't completely impossible.

A blond boy in a rather minimal breastplate and shoulder guards stumbled past her and Ruby, looking sick and holding his hand to his mouth, making gagging noises. Yang grimaced in sympathy, till she noticed the bit of vomit on her left boot.

"Oh... yuck..." Yang said in distaste. "That's nasty..."

Ruby seemed to be trying not to laugh, and Yang rolled her eyes, lifting her left foot as if she planned on rubbing the boot on Ruby's tights or something, and Ruby danced away, snickering. Yang rolled her eyes and went looking for something to wipe her boot off with.

Before long, the airship pulled up to Beacon's airdock and everyone started filing out. The blond boy with the airsickness problem was off first, evacuating whatever was left in his stomach into a trash can just outside the ship, and Yang walked past him and well out of projectile range before she stopped.

Ruby nodded at Yang. "You can open the first envelope now." She told her sister, holding out a second envelope to her. "You can wait on this one for awhile. And whatever you do, don't let ANYONE else see them... but you can open the second one whenever you like. I have... some things to do right now."

Yang blinked, starting to open the first envelope. and Ruby frowned. "Oh... wait. Your friends from Signal are right over there. You need to spend some time with them today!"

Yang blinked again. "Er... what?"

Ruby nodded earnestly. "If I didn't give you those envelopes... and changed things, you would have just gone off with them as soon as we got off the airship, Yang. So... humor me and spend some time with them?" She sighed. "None of them are going to make it into Beacon this semester anyway... so it'll be your last chance for awhile."

Yang frowned. "You can't know that."

Ruby shrugged. "Well, don't tell THEM they're not going to make it. That'll change things too." She put a finger to her nose. "In fact, don't tell ANYONE about my being able to see the future. It won't end well."

Yang looked dubious. "Oh, why is that?"

Ruby sighed. "Because they'll think I'm crazy and want to throw me in a mental institution or something, duh." She glared at Yang. "Promise me you won't tell ANYONE."

Yang frowned. "Ruby..."

Ruby glared at her hard, a look Yang couldn't EVER remember being on her baby sister's face before. "Promise me."

Yang shivered. "Er... sure." For just a moment, the look on Ruby's face had sent a shiver down Yang's spine. When had Ruby become that... intimidating? Yang shook herself, then went to find her friends. Sure enough, several members of her class at Signal were all there together as a group, and she quickly fell in with them, chatting about old times, and about what Beacon would be like. Yang tucked the second note into her pocket with the first, deciding she'd check out both of them after she took some time to catch up with her friends. Whatever was on the notes, they could wait.

/-/

As Yang walked off with her classmates from Signal, Ruby looked around carefully, spotting Blake, and then a moment later, Weiss... as well as the heiress's cart full of luggage. She needed things to go exactly as she remembered them if she wanted to be able to prove to Yang... and anyone else she could manage, that she really did know what was going to happen in the future. She needed as many things to go the same as possible.

Ruby closed her eyes, and took two deliberate steps backwards, and crashed into Weiss's luggage right on cue.

/-/

By the time Yang and her friends got to the atrium where the headmaster was supposed to give his welcoming address, Yang's curiosity had started to overcome her desire to continue to catch up with her friends. For one thing, she was afraid Ruby was right. Her friends, while fun guys, weren't actually the strongest fighters. The four of them had all had not-so-secret crushes on Yang throughout most of school, and while she'd managed to let them down easy, and even maintained a friendship with each of them, they'd kept going to Signal and were applying to Beacon out of, Yang suspected, a desire to have another chance at winning her over. Not because they really had much ability or natural desire towards being a huntsman. If Beacon's initiation was as tough as she'd heard, most of them probably wouldn't make it.

She finally excused herself from the guys, and pulled out the first envelope Ruby had given her as they'd boarded the airship, opened it, and pulled out the letter. She started to read, and as she did, her eyes started to go wide.

Hey Yang! You should be reading this after we've gotten to Beacon. While we were on the Airship, if everything happens as I've seen, we'll see a news report about the robbery from last night. Roman Torchwick will be on the screen, and they'll warn us that he's still at large. Second, there's going to be a news report about the White Fang... something about a rally? And then Professor Goodwitch will appear and welcome us to Beacon. Finally, before we get off the airship, Jaune Arc... that's the blond boy with the white breastplate and the sword (his sheath is actually a shield that transforms into a sheath!) will be airsick, and he'll get some vomit on your boots. Probably. He'll vomit nearby for sure though. Now Yang, remember, you promised not to tell anyone. DON'T TELL ANYONE! It could literally mean life or death if you do, so don't. Please Yang. Just trust me and keep every letter I give to you a secret from EVERYONE. At least till I let you know it's OK.

Yang stared at the letter in blank astonishment. This was impossible. It was absolutely impossible! She couldn't understand how Ruby could have possibly pulled this off! The blond kid... maybe Ruby had bribed him to stage getting airsick... and he had some fake vomit or something. But the news? How could Ruby had known what news articles would be running? She'd described each... accurately. She might have seen the news earlier somehow... known that they'd re-show bits and pieces of it, but to show those two stories while they were on the airship? Did Ruby somehow have a contact at the news station?

Yang shook her head. "Either Ruby is the most amazing prankster of all time or..." she blinked. Or what? Her baby sister couldn't actually see the future, could she? Yang shook her head in denial. She grinned slightly. Actually, this was getting kind of fun. However Ruby was pulling it off, Yang was really starting to get tempted to see what happened next. And if Ruby could pull this kind of prank on her... just WAIT till Qrow got back from his mission. Yang had to grin as she imagined what SHE could do with the kinds of resources Ruby must have put together to pull this prank off.

"OK, little sister. I am officially impressed." Yang said quietly to herself. She shoved the first letter back into its envelope and stuffed it into a pocket, then pulled out the second one, now extremely curious as to it's contents.

Inside, was a list. A very detailed list with a series of names. Names of people Yang had never met, complete with very detailed descriptions, including what their weapons were called and what they did, their semblances, even some details about their personalities. Yang peered around the room, looking for a 'tall girl with red hair in a high ponytail, wearing a tiara' and spotted the girl immediately.

"Huh. Pyrrha Nikos... championship fighter. Shy. Doesn't like being famous. Wants to be treated like anyone else. Super strong?"

Yang blinked. "Really?" She looked at the woman a second time, now interested. "OK, this could be useful..."

Pyrrha Nikos, if Ruby's list was to be believed, noticed her staring at her, and gave her a polite smile and nod. Yang nodded back, then gave her a quick wink and shot her with a finger gun before going back to Ruby's list.

"Weiss Schnee... heiress to the Schnee dust corporation... white hair, white clothes, dust rapier with rotary chamber..." Yang muttered under her breath, looking around and easily spotting the girl. White on white... with pale skin to boot. She LOOKED kind of fancy and stuck up, and her clothes were obviously high quality. Yang nodded to herself. She didn't know how Ruby knew all this, but so far, it looked like Ruby was spot on.

"Blake Belladonna. Long black hair, wears a black bow on top of her head at all times. Black vest, white crop top, white and purple leggings, carries a Variant Ballistic Chain Scythe called Gambol Shroud. Semblance is shadow clones. Shy and kind of snarky." Yang trailed off as she read the next section to herself silently, her mouth agape.

Blake is secretly a cat-faunus. DO NOT TELL ANYONE THIS! This means you, Yang! I know more, but I'm not telling you yet! Oh! She's currently reading 'The Man with Two Souls'. You can ask her what she's reading tonight if you like, you'll see.

Yang blinked, then looked around for anyone matching that description. Sure enough, she saw a girl that fit Ruby's description perfectly standing against a wall near the back. Yang let her eyes slide off the girl before she could catch Yang staring, and went back to reading Ruby's list again. She DID wear a bow. How did Ruby know she was a faunus? Yang glanced back at the girl, getting one good look before looking away again. That bow could hide cat ears, Yang realized. But how did Ruby know about it?

Yang glanced around herself carefully, making sure no one was in a position to read the letter. While she didn't know how Ruby knew all of this, she agreed with one thing. If this Blake wanted to hide that she was a faunus, Yang wasn't going to be the one to out her. She knew full well that the faunus had it rough sometimes. If Blake wanted to pretend to be human, that was fine with her. Yang promised herself that she'd look out for the girl... if she needed it. Ruby wouldn't have gone into so much detail about her if she wasn't someone worth caring about.

Yang blinked at that thought, but it seemed true. Ruby's descriptions of these people... it seemed like people she knew really well. It was difficult to believe, but... somehow Ruby knew these people... and apparently wanted Yang to know them too. It seemed too much for just a prank. Maybe they were all secret pen pals or something? If so... well, then she WOULD get to know them. If they were down to pull a prank like this on her baby sister's behalf... then Yang was already starting to like them.

Yang read on. She read about a boy named Jack Spriggen, who carried a collapsible staff that turned into a rifle, who was apparently very short but would, according to Ruby, be growing very quickly over the next year, and who, Ruby told her, had about a fifty percent chance of making it past initiation.

Yang blinked at that. Ruby had already told her that none of her friends from Signal would get through, but she thought this guy had a decent chance? Why? Yang shook her head and read on. She spotted the pair Ruby called "Ren and Nora" and she had to agree. They did look like they were a couple, even if Ruby assured her that they weren't actually 'together, together'. Ruby explained that she thought Nora was interested, but Ren was trying to stay friends, and they were otherwise inseparable. The details were... fascinating. Also a bit frightening. Ruby had drawn Nora's weapon, a hammer/grenade launcher called Magnhild, complete with a partial blueprint... and a note about modifying it to carry a lightning dust crystal to synergize with Nora's semblance, which was apparently the ability to charge up her strength when effected by electricity.

Yang shook her head. Ruby either knew these people extremely well, or she was the greatest bullshitter of all time. Yang wasn't sure which she wanted to be the truth. She went on, passing over descriptions of the teachers, a couple of whom she'd met herself at their home on Patch, she vaguely recalled, although it had been years and years ago... and finally came to the entry on Jaune Arc.

The physical description was, again, spot on. But as she read further, Yang started to frown.

Jaune's Aura is not activated yet. He forged his transcripts to get into Beacon. If things do not go perfectly during initiation, he will die when he hits the forest floor. When you read this... come find me. Do not tell anyone before we talk. Yang... I don't know what to do about Jaune. We can't let him die... but he's going to be my best friend. He's got a ton of potential, and I know he'll be a great huntsman someday, but I can't let him die either. I need your help, Yang. Come find me now. Please.

Yang's heart seemed to slow in her chest, then speed up to pound so hard it was all she could hear for a moment, the thudding of her heart filling her ears. She felt faint. This wasn't funny anymore. Not even remotely. Was Ruby saying... what was she saying? That Vomit Boy would die? Tomorrow?

Yang shook her head, not wanting to believe it. This wasn't even remotely funny anymore. It wasn't a joke. Either Ruby was somehow telling the truth... which was utterly insane, or she planned on somehow arranging for Jaune Arc to die during initiation? Yang shook her head. Ruby wouldn't do that! She grimaced, her mind racing. Maybe this Jaune had some sort of semblance that let him fake his own death? That seemed like something that could be a thing. Maybe he was in on the prank? He'd been the one to puke on her boot, after all. It fit... except... if this was a prank, it was the sickest thing she'd ever heard of.

Yang stared around the room, her eyes glowing red. She spotted the blond boy standing near the back, over by where the tall red haired girl... Pyrrha, was. Yang started towards him, determined to end this stupid prank, once and for all.

Ruby intercepted her before she'd gotten three steps. "Yang!" Ruby hissed. "Your eyes are red! Calm down!"

Yang grabbed Ruby by both arms and hustled her out of the room, ignoring the looks they were getting from all sides. Ruby gave in and went with her meekly enough, obviously realizing that she wasn't going to get out of this one, and apparently not wanting to cause even more of a scene. Yang got Ruby outside the building and took her around the side till they were out of earshot of the main entrance before rounding on her, gripping both of Ruby's arms tightly, her eyes flashing momentarily to red again. Ruby immediately winced away, as if worried Yang would hit her, and Yang took several slow even breaths, controlling her semblance and forcing her eyes back to their regular lavender.

"This has gone far enough." Yang said warningly. "I don't care if this IS the greatest prank the world has ever seen, I'm calling it off. I'm done. You can't tell me that some boy is going to... going to DIE tomorrow and expect me to just let it happen!"

Ruby's face turned hopeful. "Do you mean you believe me?" Yang blinked in confusion. That was not the response she'd been expecting.

In another moment, she flashed back to rage. "Believe you? What are you talking about? People don't see the future, Ruby! I don't have any idea how you managed to pull this off..." She forced herself to lower her voice, forced herself to try and appear at least outwardly calm... or at least not homicidal, then continued. "But you want me to believe that you can predict someone's death. That they're going to die tomorrow. That's not cool. I don't care how you plan on doing it, it's too risky! Beacon's initiation is no joke, Ruby!"

Ruby nodded. "I know, Yang. We're going to get flung off the cliffs by catapults into the Emerald Forest. We'll meet up with our future partners... the rule will be, the first person you make eye contact with after you land will be your partner for the next four years... and then we'll have to find relics from an old ruin and return them to the cliffs." She paused. "The relics are chess pieces."

Yang blinked in astonishment. "You... how do you...?" She shook her head. "No... I don't care. OK, Ozpin is in on this with you. Wow. Very impressive, Sis. You're impressing the fucking hell out of me. But it's enough. You can't risk someone's life just for a prank!"

Ruby sighed. "Yang... Jaune really has no Aura. He'll die if someone doesn't save him. If... if everything goes exactly perfectly, Pyrrha will save him by tagging his hoody with her spear and pinning him to a tree before he hits the ground. Then she'll unlock his Aura in the woods before they get into any real danger from Grimm." Ruby scratched her head. "I'm not sure how Pyrrha found out that Jaune doesn't have Aura, but it's the only thing that makes sense..."

"None of this makes any sense!" Yang yelled almost hysterically. "Why are you still pretending that... that this isn't totally insane?"

Ruby sighed. "Yang... this IS totally insane. I know that. Of course I know that." She sighed. "Yang... I don't know how to prove it to you... except..." She thought about it. "Yang... I want to fight you."

Yang blinked. "What? You want a sparring match now?"

Ruby nodded. "Unarmed. Hand to hand. No weapons."

Yang blinked again. "Ruby... you suck at hand to hand."

Ruby nodded. "I did. But I've changed, Yang. Seeing the future brought more than just knowledge about events. I know skills that I learn in the future as well. I don't have them all down perfectly yet... muscle memory hasn't kicked in, but I know how to fight a lot better than I did two days ago. And I'll prove it to you."

Yang shook her head. "No... you've been practicing... and there's no way I'm not going to kick your ass regardless... but just because you think you've gotten a bit better with unarmed combat doesn't mean I'm going to buy this crazy story. You can't see the future. Even if that was something someone could do... I mean... there are some really crazy semblances out there, so I'm not saying that someone couldn't see the future... as crazy as that sounds... YOU can't do that. Your semblance is speed. Nobody has two semblances."

Ruby nodded again. "I know that, Yang. Except, my semblance ISN'T speed."

Yang blinked. "What are you talking about?"

Ruby shrugged. "You've got a good grip on my arms, right?"

Yang nodded slowly. "Yeah... why?"

Ruby grinned softly. "Then keep holding on. Don't let me go now."

Yang frowned, then gripped a bit tighter, not wanting to hurt her sister, but ready to hold on for dear life if it would prove that Ruby was... what. Ruby was lying to her? She could always tell when Ruby was lying to her... except right now, she couldn't. There wasn't a hint of any of Ruby's usual tells. In fact, Ruby wasn't acting anything like how Yang would have expected. She was acting strange... like she wasn't her baby sister at all.

Ruby looked her deep in the eyes. "You've got a good grip now, right?"

Yang frowned. "Yeah. I don't know what kind of trick you're planning on..." Ruby turned into rose petals, and Yang's hands were gripping air. The petals swirled around Yang and suddenly Ruby was at Yang's back, holding her in a rear naked choke. Yang gasped and grabbed for Ruby's arms, pulling at them to get air. Ruby let her go at once, and dropped down behind her. Yang slowly turned around and looked at her baby sister hard. "How... how did you do that?"

Ruby shrugged. "Turns out, my semblance isn't speed at all. It allows me to... well, disintegrate myself and turn into... well, energy, I guess. I can move that energy wherever I want... and when I become solid again, I keep whatever momentum I gained. It allows me to hit things really hard... but I also can get out of any grapple, because I can just... kind of teleport."

Yang blinked. "OK... that's kind of disturbing... and also kind of awesome. But what does that have to do with you seeing the future?"

Ruby hesitated. "It's not exactly seeing the future." She admitted. "It's actually more like... time travel."

Yang looked at her with a deadpan expression. "Time Travel."

Ruby shrugged. "I know... I know. It's insane. Blake had the best description of what I do, I think... how did she put it?" Ruby wrinkled her brow, as if trying to remember.

"Blake?" Yang questioned. "You mean the cat faunus from inside?"

Ruby winced. "Yang! That's a secret! You can't say anything!"

Yang winced slightly as well, looking apologetic. "Right... sorry. Yeah, I won't out her. I don't know how you know she's a..." she lowered her voice to a whisper. "A faunus... but it'd be shitty of me to tell on her if she's trying to pass for human. I know the faunus have it rough sometimes."

Ruby nodded firmly, her eyes flashing. "Don't hurt Blake, Yang, or I'll have to hurt you."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Huh... you really like this Belladonna girl, don't you?"

Ruby blushed. "Well... yeah. She's one of my... our... best friends. Or she's gonna be."

Yang sighed. "In the future, you mean?"

Ruby nodded. "She'll be your partner, actually. As long as you don't mess that up."

Yang looked dubious. "How would I mess that up, exactly?"

Ruby looked thoughtful. "Well, what you SHOULD do is go for distance as soon as you get launched. Just keep firing behind you and try to get as far into the forest as possible right off the bat. If you do that... well, if you just do what you'd be most likely to do if you DIDN'T know about me being a time traveler, you'll meet up with Blake near the temple. I think Blake was aiming to get to the relics as quickly as possible as well, and she's pretty agile in the air, so I'm not surprised you and her ended up near the same place."

Yang blinked at that. "OK... assuming I buy any of this... you just want me to go for distance, get as much air time as possible, and head for the temple and these relics like I normally would?"

Ruby nodded. "If you do, you'll meet Blake first, and you'll be partners."

Yang shook her head. "Wait... first... explain what you were trying to tell me before. How come your semblance lets you travel in time. It's... well, OK, it's not speed. But it's teleportation... or whatever. That's not time travel."

Ruby gave her sister a look. "Yang. Don't you remember watching Trek to the Stars with me?"

Yang blinked. "Ruby, that's a science fiction show."

Ruby sighed. "Yeah, well... the principle of how it works is a bit out there... but let me try to explain." She paused again, thinking, before continuing. "Blake thought that if my semblance can actually turn me into energy... and teleport me, that maybe I could have somehow... with enough motivation, jumped my semblance to a new... power level or whatever... that I sent my energy back in time, back to an earlier version of myself, and that energy merged with the earlier me. So... I'm me... your sister... except I've also got the memories of another year and a half or so of our time here at Beacon."

Yang shook her head. "Wait... how does teleporting equal time travel?"

Ruby frowned. "Blake said it better... but... it's kind of like... if you can travel along one axis of space and time... it's not completely impossible to travel down another?" She pointed at Yang with a grin. "Oh! Like how Weiss can use Glyphs to speed things up or hold them down... but she can ALSO speed up her own localized time and move super fast!"

Yang blinked. "Weiss? You mean that heiress in your notes?"

Ruby nodded. "Yeah. Weiss can do time dilation. It's really hard, and she'd just started getting good at it, but she can do it already."

Yang blinked. "So you're saying that if you can teleport through space... you can also teleport through time?"

Ruby nodded again. "I think so. Or at least, that's the best explanation we came up with."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "We?"

Ruby nodded a third time. "You, Me, Pyrrha, and Blake. We formed team RPBY. That was my second time going through all this."

Yang blinked. "What do you mean, your second time?"

Ruby shrugged sheepishly. "This is... my third time. My third time living through this day. Each time, I end up going back to Patch... on the anniversary of mom's death. I end up in front of mom's grave. I think it might have something to do with me having an emotional connection to that point..."

Yang looked confused. "I don't get it. Why would you have... an emotional connection to...?" She stopped talking, looking confused and a bit worried. "Ruby... what... what happens that makes you... go back in time?"

Ruby brightened again. "Do you believe me now?"

Yang hesitated. "I don't know. Maybe. It's crazy... but... I... I can't believe you'd want to hurt me... like this..." She hesitated again. "Ruby... this really... really hurts. I don't want to believe it. So if this is all some crazy story... please, stop now. I can't take it..."

Ruby hugged Yang so quickly Yang was halfway convinced her sister had teleported to close the distance. "No! Yang... no." She choked back a sob. "Yang, I love you. I never, ever want to hurt you. I promise! I promise!" Ruby pulled back enough to look her sister in the eyes, her own eyes welling with tears that were already starting to roll down her cheeks. "I know it's hard. I know it hurts... Yang, I'm so sorry... I... I don't have anyone else. I have to save Jaune. I have to save everyone! If I don't..."

Yang's heart went still again, then once again, it beat in her chest so hard she thought she would faint. "Ruby... what... what happens? What makes you come back to... to now. To mom's grave? What happens... who... who... dies?"

Ruby sobbed. "You, Yang. You die. Not the first time... the first time it was Pyrrha... but you got hurt... hurt really bad, and I went back, and I tried to fix everything, except I made it worse, I screwed up everything... and you died... and... Blake, and Pyrrha, and even Dr. Oobleck... they were all going to die too. I... it felt like I was going to die. I wanted to do anything to keep it from happening... to be able to save everyone... and that's when I came back. That's how... how I felt both times before I came back to the past... to mom's grave."

Yang sank to her knees, Ruby following her to the grass, and the two girls sat there in silence except for their heavy breathing, and Ruby's very quiet sobs of pain.

Slowly, her sister's pain broke through her shock, broke through her own pain, and reached something powerful inside her. Yang wrapped Ruby into a tight hug, then started slowly stroking her sister's hair.

"OK." She said softly. "OK. We're going to fix it."

Ruby turned to look at her again, her eyes red from crying, tears covering her cheeks. "Yang?" Ruby's voice was soft, pleading, with just a hint of hope.

"We're going to fix it." Yang said with more conviction. "I'll help you."