The Beringel

"It's been a couple of days since the Titanic." Jared said, walking down a dirt road with one of his friends. "I don't know if I can do anything after Astrid. And at this point…"

He is wearing his usual outfit of a hoodie and jeans, with a nice pair of converse, as he looked down at a pair of booted feet and a red cloak that's frayed along the edges of the road.

"Tosh and Owen are dead." Ruby said, her read hood still up, as she and Jared walked on a road between trees and grass. "You told me before. I'm sorry, I really am."

From above, tree branches frame the two friends as they move forward.

"Ruby, I never told you, but I love your new look." Jared said, looking at the silver broach on the lower front corner of Ruby's hood is barely visible until a profile angle shows the detailed emblem. "That broach suits you."

"Thanks." Ruby said, as her hair and face is partially obscured by the hood. "Come on, let's have a look."

"Yeah." Jared said, as the two move to the edge of a rock precipice. "A village?"

"It's on fire." Ruby said, sadly. "Grimm?"

Within view far below is a settlement of buildings that are burning, three large pillars of smoke rising into the air. Beyond the village are mountains, and above it all the broken moon shines fully.

"Um, think I should go with a bow and arrow." Jared said, pressing a button on his nanotechnology super suit for a bow to appear in his hands.

"All those people dying." Ruby said, grabbing Jared's hand. "We should save them."

"We'll watch each other's backs. But when it comes to Grimm, Crescent Rose needs room."

Screams can be heard coming from the village, even from where Ruby and Jared stand.

In the village two people run down a cobbled road as a building next to them crumbles.

"They need help." Ruby said, looking at three people running between burning buildings and two Beowolves chasing after them.

"Yeah." Jared said, looking back at Ruby, as he is as determined as her. "Let's go, Little Red."

The two look up at the sound of a Nevermore's cry.

"Nevermore?" Ruby asked, as two Nevermores fly over her and Jared, heading toward the besieged village.

"Allons-y!" Jared said, as he watched Ruby turns around on the rocky precipice, her left arm raising Crescent Rose.

Crescent Rose expands itself upward. Ruby releases her grip on a lever in the handle and the blade from the bottom of the shaft extends out as the scythe in the main body of the weapon fully unfolds, "Try and keep up."

"You bet I will." Jared said, and Ruby leaps straight up into the air by several feet, leaving a column of falling rose petals.

Jared leaped straight into the air too with his bow in the air, and he looked over at Ruby Rose, seeing what she is doing.

Ruby turns as she descends and brings Crescent Rose down so that the scythe hooks into another Nevermore passing just beneath her.

Jared launched an arrow towards the same Nevermore Ruby is on, and he hopped onto it, so he can be on the same Grimm as the silver eyed girl.

The Nevermore cries out, but continues it's path toward the village, leaving rose petals mixed with water in its wake.

Grimm in the village move about, a Beowolf raising its head up to the sky and growling. Black smoke unfurls from around its head as it turns to watch the flight path of Ruby, Jared, and the Nevermore.

Ruby watches for the right moment, and then pulls the trigger on Crescent Rose, "Time to save the day. As always."

The Nevermore screams as its wing is cut off. Ruby and Jared descend toward the village while the bisected Nevermore drifts apart. The two land on a statue of a hooded woman, demolishing it.

"Sorry." Jared said, as Ruby hood falls back as she straightens. "There's a lot of them. Killing innocent people, destroying people's homes…"

Eyes closed, Ruby and Jared hold still where the statue once stood.

"Um, you don't like it as much as me." Ruby said, as a Beowolf approaches her and Jared while they are focused inwardly.

It licks its teeth and moves closer, attracting the attention of other Beowolves.

"I don't." Jared said, hearing the Beowolves all move to surround them, their red eyes leaving glowing trails. "We can take them."

Ruby and Jared remain posed, Crescent Rose in the silver-eyed girl's left hand, while the bow is in the fanboy's left hand.

Abruptly, Ruby's and Jared's eyes narrow and there's a beat before they open, a dangerous look in them.

"Let's go." Ruby said, her head moves forward and she crouches. Her cloaks arches upward toward her body and Ruby transforms into a swirl of rose petals. The swirl propels itself forward through the air. As it reaches the first Beowolf, Ruby is seen in slow motion, petals behind her, swinging her scythe at the Grimm.

"Oh no you don't." Jared said, knocking the Grimm out, when he shot it down, and Ruby lands on her feet. "You do one, I'll handle the other."

"Right. And, thanks for the save." Ruby said, taking out one Grimm and Jared took out the other.

"Eight against two." Jared said, transforming his bow and arrow into a sword. "That's totally fair."

Moving into the circle of beowolves behind the two of them, Ruby and Jared slash at them, taking out a total of eight before running to attack the ninth.

"Um, why a bow and sword combo?" Ruby asked, when Jared took out the ninth Beowulf.

"Because I love to snipe and go in head on." Jared said, while two more Beowolves put themselves in front of him and Ruby. "I've changed ever since I started traveling with you."

"Let's focus." Ruby said, while the one in the foreground roars at her, but she is unfazed. "We can talk later. I know we can."

As it leaps on her, she takes out it, the other one to its left, and yet two more who approach her from behind in different directions.

When that one is gone, Ruby turns and is hit in the face with stoneworks, which sends her backward.

Ruby looks up and dodges out of the way as a Beowolf on the roof hurls pieces of broken buildings at her, but Jared cuts the pieces with his sword, "You know, you are kinda helpful."

The silver-eyed girl moves swiftly between three different spots on the ground. She then propels herself into the air toward the Beowolf in rose petal form. She splits into three streams around it until coming together just above its head. She aims Crescent Rose and fires a Dust round into it.

"I'll let you handle this." Jared said, sitting on the floor. "Don't want to steal more of the spotlight."

"You didn't steal any of it." Ruby said, as the recoil sends her up into the sky, where she bounces off a Nevermore and lands in the middle of the village with enough force to damage the cobblestone road and send up a cloud of dirt. "I can't see anything."

Jared and Ruby can hear heavy footsteps and looks around, but doesn't see anything through the cloud.

A black fist punches through the cloud and into Ruby, sending her flying towards Jared, and the two landed into the wooden door of the church they originally landed next to.

Ruby looked down at Jared and felt his pulse to see that he died from the blow to his head, but he gasped for air.

Jared came back to life for the first time, "Ah, that hurt. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Ruby said, standing up, and she held her shoulder, and looks up with frightened cry as she catches sight of what hit her and Jared. "That's what hit us."

"Yup." Jared said, while a Beringel postures, beating its chest before roaring and charging forward toward him and Ruby.

"How are you still alive?" Ruby asked, at the top of the church steps. "You died. You just died!"

"Must have been Rose." Jared said, watching Ruby flips over the Beringel's head and lands back in the town center, sliding around in a circle on her feet until she faces the Beringel again and propels herself toward it. "A long time ago. She must have, um, known that I would have died against that."

Ruby sinks the tip of Crescent Rose into its hip, but doesn't get it any further through the Grimm's body, "You died and then came back to life. Let me handle this Grimm, okay?"

The Beringel turns to look at her and Ruby backs up with a gasp. It grabs her and lifts her off the ground, her entire head fitting in its fist and her legs dangling in the air. The Grimm uses its other hand to punch her and Ruby is launched across the village center.

"I have faith in you, I have faith in you." Jared said, when Ruby lands on the broken wooden canopy of a building opposite and easily gains her footing. "Always have, always will, and I will always save you."

"Thanks." Ruby said, switching Crescent Rose to rifle mode and leaps onto the roof of another building. "You're, um, actually listening to me."

"Go, Ruby, go!" Jared said, watching Ruby run across rooftops then she fired down at the Beringel. "Go, Ruby! Show that thing how it's done!"

It is unhurt and when it is joined by two Beowolves, the gorilla Grimm grabs one and throws it at Ruby.

Ruby gives a squeak of alarm as she sees it coming. It tries to take a swipe at her, but she quickly destroys it with her scythe. The Beringel takes advantage of the distractions and lands on the roof as soon as the Beowolf is killed.

"I think that cheerleading didn't help." Ruby said, getting out of the way in time.

"Sorry." Jared said, as Ruby and the Beringel face off briefly before rushing each other. "But you said to stay out of the way."

Ruby positions herself to be a target, and when the Beringel lifts its arm to bring its fist down on her she leaps above it. Its fist lands on the roof while she shoots at its back. It stands up, unhurt while Ruby lands on another part of the roof.

Ruby rushes the Beringel, dodging its fist again and swinging her scythe into the back of its leg, "That was after I found out you were immortal."

She proceeds to swirl in a circle around it, attacking with the scythe repeatedly, but doing no damage. The Grimm tries to hit her, but she moves too quickly. It adapts to her speed and Ruby is forced to stop moving in order to use Crescent Rose to block the hits.

Ruby turns into rose petals again and sails into the air above, gaining momentum on her descent. With a cry she attacks the Beringel again, delivering small hits around its body and transforming whenever it tries to hit her. After another failed attempt to make contact has the Beringel's fist landing on the roof, it jumps forward in that direction, driving Ruby back. It slams both its fists deliberately against the roof, causing it to collapse under her. Ruby falls with a cry.

"Ruby!" Jared said, his eyes glowing yellow, when the Beringel jumps from the roof back to the village center. "Don't die here, please…"

The Beringel beats its chest and roars triumphantly. As it grunts, it senses something is off and turns toward the church. The front door is still broken and all is unusually quiet. It moves closer, grunting and sniffing.

"Yes…" Jared said, watching rose petals drift down and out the open door. "I thought you were gone, Little Red."

The rose petals float around the Beringel's head and it grunts and turns its head, watching them. Then it postures at the church and roars, unhappy. Through the open door and windows of the front steeple, Jared sees a stream of rose petals rise and swirl.

The topmost window is an artistic circular design. Three concentric circles are encircled with outwardly extended beams that overlay with interwoven lines at the outermost circle's edge.

There's just long enough to register the image before Ruby bursts through the glass, Crescent Rose at the ready and rose petals behind her, "That's for making Jared worry about me. Time to finish this."

"I spent so long running." Jared said, while the Beringel stands upright and attempts to swat at Ruby, but misses. "Now it's time to stop running."

Crescent Rose lands on the ground and Ruby fires a shot to propel herself toward her opponent. She goes above its head and lands on her feet, the two of them back to back. Ruby turns, hooks the scythe around its legs and pulls as she fires, using the recoil to give her blade more force to damage the Grimm. It rears and starts to fall forward, but Ruby transforms to swirl around its body, her Semblance creating a tornado-like force that lifts it into the air.

"It's been a long few years." Jared said, taking out some custard filled donuts to eat them. "But now that it's over. Having people who actually care about me, it's time to rest for now."

Aloft, Ruby transforms again and sinks the pointed end of her scythe into the Beringel's body, driving it toward the ground. The force of the descent allows the blade to pierce it. Once landed, Ruby in a victory stance on the Grimm's body, her long, swirling cloak retreats back toward her and regains its usual size.

"I don't need any help to finish this off." Ruby said, while the Beringel lifts its head and roars at her, but she drives the blade in further to silence it. "And it's dead. Time to come to me."

Ruby cocks the rifle to slide the next Dust bullet into place and then finishes the creature off with a point-blank headshot. Its body jerks once and then dissolves around her. She slowly sinks onto the street, with Jared running up to Ruby for a hug.

"One of my BFFs!" Jared said, laughing a lot. "Nice work out there, Little Red."

Ruby stabs the base of Crescent Rose into the ground and reaches behind her for her Scroll. It slides open in her hand with two motions instead of the customary single one. Across the top it reads: BROADCASTING/RECEIVING. In the middle are profile pictures of Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie, and Lie Ren. Across the bottom it reads: LOCAL AREA ONLY.

Below each profile image is an icon of a circle containing the side view of an old technology handheld phone with ear and mouth piece and three rows of signal coming out of it.

Jaune's is lit up along with the border of his profile, "Ruby! Jared! We saw smoke!"

Ren's icon and profile light up next, "Heading your way."

The light moves to Nora's icon and profile, "Don't start without us!"

Ruby looks up from her Scroll, "You better hurry."

"Because now it's time for us all to shine." Jared said, as there are five Beowolves crawling in front of him and Ruby as well as three Nevermore flying towards them. "Come on, you four."

Ruby puts Crescent Rose and Jared took out his bow at the ready and runs toward the Grimm.

The moon continues to shine down on the village, full were it not broken. Weiss Schnee looks at it through a window over her shoulder, before lowering her head to gaze down at the floor. Blake Belladonna stares at the setting sun, standing on the edge of a dock on a large body of water. She turns and looks over her shoulder, unhappy. Yang Xiao Long sits on a stump outside her home on Patch, looking at her left hand before lifting her head to gaze straight on.