Havoc on Remnant

Ch. 15: Unforseen complications

The golden sun hung in an orange sky over the tall grass and autumn trees. In front of a single gravestone was a young girl with a cloak billowing petals in the breeze. Hands clasped and hood up, Ruby Rose stood over the white stone memorial.

Ruby: (lowering her hood, smiling sadly downward) Hey, mom.

The young huntress stared down at the inscription: "Summer Rose – Thus Kindly I Scatter".

Ruby: Sorry I haven't come by in a while. Things have been... well, things have been, pretty busy. Oh, Dad's here, too! He's, uh, you know... Dad. (shrugs) He's still teaching at Signal. But he told me that he's going to be on some mission soon. I think he misses adventuring with you. (looks forlornly) I miss you too... Haven't gotten kicked out of Beacon yet! So that's cool. I think being on a team with Yang helps. I keep her in line... That was a joke. She's actually a really great fighter! You can tell she's learned a lot from Dad! Oh, so are Weiss and Blake. Oh! They're my teammates! Together, we form Team RWBY! And yes, before you ask, that does cause a lot of confusion. Anyways, I made a bunch of new friends, and then I met some... let's just say, uh, odd teachers. Oh! We've also stopped some bad guys, too! I guess it's like they say: "like mother, like daughter"! I still wonder why Ozpin let me into the school early. But uh, I guess he'll tell me one day. You know how he is. It's funny, the more I get to know him, the more he's starting to sound like Uncle Qrow. Oh yeah, I got a boyfriend while I've been at Beacon! I know you'd like him. His name is Heath Slater, the leader of team HAVC. And guess what; he got into Beacon early—just like me!

A bark alerted her to the ever-adorable Zwei and the sight of her father, Taiyang Xiao Long, in the trees behind her.

Ruby: Oh! Looks like Dad's back! I gotta go! He's dropping me off at Beacon for the tournament match before he goes on his next mission. Wish me luck! (

She put her hood back on and started to walk away, but turned and delivered one final message to her mother.

Ruby: (With a sad smile) It was good to talk...

With that said, Ruby jogged back to her father as crows flew off in the distance. As the father and daughter walked through the forest, they had a chat of their own.

Taiyang: (teasingly) So what's this I hear about you dating someone?

Ruby: (nervously scratching her head) Well, Dad— you see— Um... (doing jazz hands) Surprise?

Mr. Xiao Long's stern facade quickly dissolved into fits of laughter at his youngest daughter's floundering.

Taiyang: Relax, Ruby, you're not in any trouble. But I am curious about the young man who's dating my daughter.

Ruby: (Back to her energetic self) Where do I even start? Oh, I know! There was this time when we were fighting Roman Torchwick and his goons at the docks, and Heath jumped in front of an exploding Dust round to save me—even though he didn't have time to activate his own aura! I was terrified when he didn't wake up right away. I don't know what I would have done if he didn't... come... b-back...

She trailed off at the end of her rambling, becoming quiet and stopping in place. That's when Taiyang knew something was wrong.

Taiyang: Is everything alright, kiddo? You seem a little worried about something.

Ruby didn't answer, instead she just shook her head and pulled her cloak further over her eyes.

Taiyang: Do you want to talk about it?

Ruby: (trying to compose herself) Dad, you remember when Mom didn't come back from her mission?

Her father nodded in affirmation, unaware of how that had anything to do with why his daughter was sad.