RWBY: The Blue Behind the Red

Chapter 1: The Silver Lining

It was a day like any other, the wind was howling... A girl in blue was walking alone, her name was Ruby Rose. A lonely girl ever since the Fall of Beacon Academy, where she lost her friends and older sister. Ever since the Fall of Beacon, Remnant's been spiraling down, cities left in chaos, academies left in ruin, even innocent lives lost. All the despair that was left of the tragedy has caused the Grimm to become stronger, not only in numbers, but in strength as well. With a lack of Huntsmen and Huntresses, they haven't been as easily contained. There were still a handful left, but their numbers were dwindling. Many have even said that this spelled the end of Remnant. The White Fang had forced every Fauness in Remnant to join their cause and war, causing even more chaos amongst humans and fauness, which only pushed Remnant further into despair. The only safe haven was Atlas at this point, but even that was a stretch.

Ruby, wearing her ocean blue outfit that was created using the Staff of Creation, walked along a lone sidewalk outside the city limits of Atlas, as she had sunk into depression which attracted the Grimm like mosquitos to light. While her blue clothing concealed not only her identity, but most of her negativity, staying in one place for too long was still dangerous as the negativity builds up over time and soon draws Grimm in; She was always afraid that she would draw the Grimm to the city, which was why she stayed away. The reason she was here now was because she was to receive supplies from Atlas... Although, the fact that the Grimm were attracted to Ruby didn't stop Ironwood from wanting to help her as much as he could, which admittedly helped relieve some of her stress. Ruby leaned against a tree, waiting for Ironwood to arrive as she stared at the sky. It was warm, but to her, it felt cold... As she was waiting, she started getting a call on her scroll. She pulled it out and looked at who it was. It was Ironwood, which she expected. She pressed the answer button and began talking. "I'm at the rendezvous point, Ironwood..." She said, staring back up at the sky for a moment while she waited for him to speak. "Good, I'll be there in a moment, Ruby." He said. "Alright, try to be quick. I'd rather not accidentally bring any Grimm to Atlas again..." She said, frowning at the thought of attracting any Grimm here. Ironwood soon walked out with a bag of supplies, handing them to Ruby, "Thanks, Mr. Ironwood... I still can't even begin to tell you how much I appreciate this..." Ruby said, "Anytime Ruby, I'm always available when you need me." Ironwood responded. Ruby simply nodded as she began to leave. As she started walking though, Ironwood put a hand on her shoulder. "You know, we could still use your help, Ruby. You're a very capable fighter after all, and we could use a huntress with your fighting prowess." Ironwood said. Ruby looked down, not wanting to put him in danger as well, "I... Can't, Mr. Ironwood... You know I gave up being a huntress after... that night..." Ruby said, holding back tears as she sighed. Ironwood narrowed his eyes, but nodded in understanding. "I understand. However, the offer still stands if you change your mind." He said, giving her a soft smile. "Yeah... Okay." Ruby replied as she began to walk away. "I'll be back again in two weeks." She said. Once she was out of sight, she let out another sigh. "What am I going to do now...?" She asked herself. She really didn't feel like doing much today. "I guess I'll just head back to the camp..." She said as she began to walk back.

As she walked, she heard the sound of something she didn't wanna hear... Grimm... She started scanning the area frantically, gritting her teeth. Soon, she was surrounded by Grimm, Ruby groaned in annoyance. "Dammit Ruby, you stayed in one place for too long...!" She whispered to herself. Instinctively, she reached for Crescent Rose, but then her eyes widened when she remembered she didn't have it. "Why do I keep forgetting that I don't have it...?" Ruby said, mentally hitting herself for making that mistake again... Having no other option, she used her semblance and made a hasty retreat, trying to get away from the Grimm as she went for higher ground. "Man, that was close..." Ruby said, oblivious to the fact that there were Griffon Grimm flying straight for her, as Ruby looked up it was too late, the Griffon swiped at Ruby, knocking her out of the air. Ruby hit the ground with a loud thud as she slid into a tree, causing her aura to fade, the Griffon landing in front of her. Ruby, trying desperately to find a weapon, throws a rock at the Griffon, "Stay away!!" She screamed, the Griffon wasn't phased by the rock and was about to kill Ruby then and there, Ruby closed her eyes and screamed again, but the sound of a crow cawing caught her attention, she opened her eyes up and saw a crow swooping in, before turning into a person, and this was someone Ruby knew all too well; It was her Uncle Qrow. As quickly as he appeared, he killed the Griffon. It happened so fast, Ruby wasn't even able to process it as Qrow turned towards her. "Still needing help I see..." Qrow said to Ruby as he offered a hand to help her up.

Ruby ignored him as she got up on her own. "What? I don't even get a thank you?" Qrow asked in a slightly snarky tone. Ruby shot a glare at him in response. "I told you to stay away, Uncle Qrow..." She said coldly. "Is that how we do hellos now, kid?" He said "I can handle things on my own..." Ruby said, Qrow raised an eyebrow and shook his head, having heard that more times than he could count. "Yeah, like earlier clearly showed." He replied, Ruby got furious at that comment. He knew why she wanted him to leave her alone, why she kept pushing him away. Yet he kept on ignoring her requests and continued to watch over her. "Just leave me alone!!!" She yelled before running home. Ruby ran back to her base camp, it was a camp that was led by Raven. She still couldn't believe that she was allowed to stay there given her current position, but she was grateful regardless.