Chapter Text
Ruby Rose, with short black hair, red highlights that shine with the artificial light created by her cheap knock-off LED strips, sits in her room tinkering with this contraption she has put together. "Rubes remind me again of what this... thing does?" In her usual high-pitched tone that burns the ears of her enemies (online Fortnite), "YANG! I've told you a bunch of times it is a jet pack! I'm going to fly!" The tall half-sister rolled her eyes, moving her long blonde mane to the side. "Why don't you just save up for one... Building it must be difficult, no?" Ruby scoffed, "Difficult if you don't know what you are doing! Which I do!"
"Do you really?"
"Yes."
"Then why aren't you building it?"
"Because someone is in my room distracting me."
Yang took the obvious hint that her little scrawny sister dropped. "Okay, shorty," Ruby put her screwdriver down. "Yang. I'm literally only five inches shorter than you..."
"Five inches is a lot, though."
"You are six foot one and a half."
"And don't forget the half!"
"Go away." The older sister left, "I LOVE YOU RURU!" Ruby rolled her eyes and continued tinkering, ignoring her big sister's daily rounds of teasing when she was bored and back from school. Regardless, the 14-year-old continued working on her jet pack up until it was time for supper. Suddenly, her father knocked on her door. "Come in," Ruby said, looking at her father. The man was tall, and Yang was the spitting image of him; it looked as if he had split in half. "Ready for dinner, sprout?" Ruby shot up from her bed, "Stop calling me sprout, Dad. I'm too old for that nickname now." Tai Yang laughed that fatherly laugh that rumbles through their bellies, "Oh, so you enter high school and all of a sudden you think you are old? Talk to me when you pull your back trying to brush your teeth because you bent down to spit your toothpaste out and couldn't get back up! Then you are old!" Ruby laughed that laugh that had a little bit of snorting to it. "You are such a nerd, Dad."
"The apple doesn't fall far from the tree!" Yang walked into her room with another tall man standing next to her, except he looked a bit more like Ruby. He looked scraggly, a bit rugged, at least his voice is. "UNCLE QROW!!!" Ruby ran and tackled her uncle, at least tried to, and failed miserably. No matter his looks, he was pretty strong. "Ruby, long time no see, kid."
"Yeah, because you never visit!" Qrow shrugged his shoulders, "Patch is a long way from Atlas kid, in a busy guy." Tai punched him, "You're a math professor, how busy can you be!" Yang chimed in "YEAH! Next time you come over, we are gonna be adults in college! I'm already 16, uncle!" Qrow scratched the back of his head, feeling a bit awkward, "Yeah, yeah, I'm sorry, girls, I haven't been the best uncle to my little nieces, I'll do better." Tai clapped his hands loudly, "Enough of that! It's dinner time, I made tacos!" Yang burst through the door, and everyone ran after her. They knew how she felt about tacos, and they feared that they might all be gone soon enough.
They all sat through dinner; it was loud, it was chaotic, it was nice. They had a small family, the members being Tai, Qrow, Yang, Ruby, and of course, Yang's mother/Qrow's sister. So getting together like this is always nice. Tai cleared his throat, "Um, Qrow, I believe you have something for the girls..." Qrow sighed, "Yeah, Tai, can you take the dishes?" Tai simply stood up, grabbed the plates, and left. Ruby and Yang looked confused. "Uncle Qrow, what's going on?" Said the younger girl. Qrow stood up and told the girls to follow him outside for some fresh air, and the girls did so obediently. Something was off; the girls knew it. "Uncle Qrow?" He sighed and handed them some letters. The girls took the letters, with their fancy Atlas wax stamp on top.
** HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
HEADMASTER: OZMA OZPIN (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
DEAR RUBY ROSE,
WE ARE PLEASED TO INFORM YOU THAT YOU HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED AT HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY. PLEASE FIND ENCLOSED A LIST OF ALL NECESSARY BOOKS AND EQUIPMENT. TERM BEGINS ON SEPTEMBER 1. WE AWAIT YOUR OWL BY NO LATER THAN JULY 31.
YOURS SINCERELY,
GLYNDA GOODWITCH
Deputy Headmistress **
"Um, what?" Yang stared blankly at her letter, then at Ruby, and then they both looked at their uncle. "Is this a joke?" The younger girl questioned. "You guys have magic in your bloodline, your father is a wizard, and your mothers were witches. Some people of Remnant are born with gifts. The ability to do magic, I know it sounds crazy, but it's true. I am one of them." Yang tried to speak, but Qrow waved his hand, "give me a minute, okay, let me explain before you ask questions, then you can ask anything." The girls nodded, "thank you... Okay, so there is a ""prestigious"" school called Hogwarts in the kingdom of Atlas, it is a secret hidden magic school in which gifted individuals, such as yourselves, go at the age of eleven in order to learn how to control their magic. Basically, you guys will go to Atlas with me, and you will learn how to do magic, how to control it, and you will graduate at 18, and then you will come back to the real world and never show anyone the fact that you can do magic. Or you will go back to Hogwarts and become some sort of instructor, in which you will be able to be one of the very few lucky witches that get to continue to do amazing magic every day." The room was silent. "Any questions?"
"Many." Ruby nodded, agreeing with her big sister. "Is that where my mom is?" Qrow sighed, "No, your mother, Raven, is not a professor at Hogwarts, like me; she started there, but now she is a famous Auror, it's a dangerous job in the Ministry of Magic." Ruby raised her hand, "You can just speak, Ruby."
"So like once you graduate, you can't do magic anymore?"
"No, no, I mean you have to be secretive about it, but there are many jobs that involve using magic and using it freely, but if you are with muggles, you can't show it, or you might get punished."
"Ohhhh," Yang spoke next, "where is my mother at?" Qrow sighed, "Yang, listen... I just can't answer questions about your mother anymore... Raven is a secretive woman; her line of work is secretive, I'm sorry." Yang rolled her eyes.
"What about my mother..." the smaller girl squeaked, "is that where she is..." Qrow didn't think the questions could get worse. "Ruby, um, your mother... Don't get upset, but we lied to you about her... I'll let your father explain why he decided to lie, but your mother, well, she passed away." Ruby looked sad, "Oh, I mean yeah, I know that, but I was secretly hoping she was also some weird witch double agent hidden... but she's actually dead?" Qrow nodded, "Yes, but not in the way you think. I'll let your father tell you that when he is ready." Ruby looked disappointed. "Any more questions?"
"Why are we going in so late? You said you went in at the age of what, eleven, twelve? We are fourteen and sixteen." Ruby nodded alongside Yang. "Qrow rubbed his eyes, "yeah, Tai has to explain that one to you too but, it's not anything crazy, he just simply didn't want you to go to that school where it all went down... and Honestly Yang, your mother agreed, I mostly think she just didn't want to raise a child, but bad stuff happened at Hogwarts."
"Like what?" Chirped the pipsqueak "It's best if you don't know... At least until you guys are adults, okay... It's just it's complicated, and it's scary, but you guys are safe now, I mean, I work there so I'll protect you guys, and all the students... Okay?" The girls nodded. And then Tai walked outside, "Qrow, I assume we don't have to send an owl, right? You'll handle the paperwork at Hogwarts?" The rugged man nodded yes. "Girls, say goodbye to your uncle and come inside... It's a cold Winter this year." Qrow laughed, "It's winter every day in Atlas."
"But not in Hogwarts." The girls, confused as ever, hugged their uncle and went inside. "Did you tell them everything?"
"Yes."
"Everything, everything?"
"No."
"Okay, good."
"I will send all the supplies they need. Please tell them something about their mothers."
Tai scoffed and rolled his eyes, "Oh, I'll tell them about their mothers, only if you tell her the truth." Qrow got upset. "Whatever," he chugged the liquid that could only be the strongest Athlesian liquor from his flask and left the porch.
Tai walked into the kitchen, arms crossed, looking stressed. "Dad?" He smiled, "My sun, my little rose, I love you two so much, and I'm sorry for lying to you two for so long... Let me explain, okay..." The girls sat down with their father on the couch, the room silent, the only sound heard was the light snores of their dog Zwei. "I met Qrow and your mother's Summer Rose and Raven Branwen at Hogwarts when I was eleven years old. We were all the best of friends, top of the class, Qrow and Raven being the strongest, and Summer being the smartest and most talented overall. Of course, I was the most attractive member of the group." But he was cut off as Yang and Ruby threw their pillows at him. "Rude, anyways, I was just a good student, I didn't stand out much, as you can see, I'm not working a magical job, I'm just a farmer, but that's by choice! I could have totally been an Auror like Raven or a professor like Qrow. But whatever, anyways. We were just normal teenagers, and I got Raven knocked up when she was 15... Save your remarks, I know, we were young and dumb, she took a year off school, gave birth at 16, and disappeared." The room was silent. "I don't blame her, but I understand if you feel hurt. I'm still hurt, I mean, she was my first love... Anyways, I couldn't take care of a baby, I wanted to graduate with everyone, and I was only 16, so my parents took good care of you for two years until I turned 18 and came back home to Patch, and I've been with you ever since." Ruby cleared her throat, "and me?"
"Well, um... your mother, she passed away at 18... It happened at Hogwarts..."
"I... Um..."
"I'm sorry, sprout, I can't talk about it, the wound, I mean, it's only been a little over a decade, it's fresh, it hurts..."
"I think you are too young still, you are only 14, I'll tell you once you are ready, okay, but just know I loved your mother very much." The smaller girl felt tears begin to form, but she wiped them away. "I'll happily go to Hogwarts, I'm going to find out what happened to my mother." Tai looked nervous, "That's why I didn't want you guys to go, but the Ministry has been bugging me ever since you guys turned eleven, and I'm just so tired of it." Yang stood up, "and why didn't you let me go? Ruby is still pretty young, but me? I'm almost an adult, Dad, I could have been learning magic all this time!"
"I was scared okay, I just didn't want you to I don't know end up like your mother... or maybe... Rube's mother, who, by the way, loved you very much. You were too young to remember, but when you were born, she took care of you until my parents came and got you. She thought you were the cutest little thing she had ever laid eyes on. She planned to take care of you with me after school was over, but then she had Ruby, and then her accident happened." Ruby gasped, "Is she dead because of me!?"
"No, no, the birth went excellently, she has you for a few months before she passed, she loved you very much, Ruby, and once you are an adult, I'll explain everything to you, I promise."
The room was once again silent, but this time Zweis's little nub of a tail wagged, waiting for his nightly treat. "Listen, school isn't until September... You guys are free to keep going to school if you want, but you can drop out of Beacon if you so wish. But it's time you guys go to Hogwarts, I've kept you away far too long."
The girls got up and went to retire for the night; they didn't talk on their walk through their house. Obviously the are shaken up by the circumstances. It was a Friday night just like any other, turned around. Into something far more magical and mysterious.
The girls received their letters back in December, but it was now a few months later, and they had been sent to this weird building full of fireplaces by their father. The young girls entered the store, and after a few minutes, they were finally greeted by the worker behind the counter, who was busy elsewhere earlier. "Ruby, Yang, long time no see, what brings you here!" The girls laughed, "Noodle guy! You work here too... I swear, you run every business in Vale!" The girl in the red hood spoke enthusiastically. "How do you do it, noodle man?" The old man chuckled, well, since you are here, I guess you are about to find out." The girls looked confused since he gestured to them to follow him to the back of the store. The sisters have known the noodle man since they were babies, so they trust him dearly enough to go alone with him. Once they arrived in a locked room, he grabbed a mysterious powder, said a word, and then he walked into the fireplace. "WOAH! WHERE DID HE GO?!" The sisters looked around frantically, and then he appeared once more in another fireplace behind them, "Tada!" The sisters laughed, "No way! Noodle man, you are a wizard too?!" He gave his iconic humph of agreement. "Yes, now, take this powder, throw it into the fireplace, step into the green flames and say Diagon Alley, have fun, girls!" And so they did, when all of a sudden, they appeared in a busy area that looked magical. Hundreds of people walking around, having lunch, talking, shopping, everything. "Whoa," the sisters thought to themselves. Then a nice-looking ginger-haired girl appeared, "SALUTATIONS!"
"GAAAH," they yelled in unison, "My name's Penny Polendina! It is my pleasure to be of service to you! You might be wondering who I am. Well, let me tell you! Your uncle Qrow sent me to aid you guys on your journey of getting your school supplies at Diagon Alley! I assume he sent you the currency?" The girls took a second to process the girl who is somehow more enthusiastic than Ruby, the enthusiastic queen Rose, in front of them. "Um, well." But Yang was cut off by Ruby, "It's nice to meet you, Penny! I'm Ruby, and this is my big sister, Yang! But Well... Um, you already know that, huh..." She felt awkward. Yang let out a fake cough, "So! Where to first?" Penny smiled and gestured for them to follow her. "This way, friends, first you will get your wands!" The three girls walked for a little while until they reached a cramped shop called Olivanders. "Wow, look at all the wands!" the young sister exclaimed. "Are we supposed to just pick one?" Penny nodded her head enthusiastically, "Yes, yes, the wand you pick is your wand!" The sisters walked forward, every wall full of wands piled onto each other. "You're coming home with me!" Yang picked a Dogwood wood wand with a phoenix feather core. "Oooh, why that one?" Asked the little red rose. "Cool shape." The younger sister giggled at the older one's antics. "Well then, I suppose I'll just pick this one, I like how straight it is." Penny looked at Ruby's wand, "Ah! Ash wood with a dragon heartstring core! I also have a dragon heartstring wand!" Ruby smiled, "Guess that makes us besties, huh!" The three girls smiled and left with their wands. They spent a long time getting their books at Florish and Blotts, since they had already gotten their schedules sent to them by their uncle Qrow. "Are there any other things we need?" The fiery-haired sister spoke. "Mainly just your robes and any other clothes you might want, other than that, you guys are free to shop in any of the stores, just don't go into the dark alleyway." The sisters looked at each other and nodded, alright lets go get the clothes then." After a while, they arrived at Madam Malkins, where they picked out some robes and other articles of clothing that Penny recommended. "So are you guys into sports?" Yang flexed her bicep muscles, "That's a yes! Well, that's perfect because Hogwarts has a very cool sport that I think you'd like! What about you, Ruby?" Ruby and Yang looked at each other and then burst out laughing, "Me doing a sport? Penny, look at my arms, look at them, do I look sport-ready to you?" Penny giggled, as much as I do." Yang once again flexed her muscles, "it's only because you guys are fourteen, trust me, start eating more and hitting the weight room, and you guys will be as jacked as me!" The two looked at Yang, then at each other, "I don't think that's possible, sister, you are only that buff because you are Dad's mini me and he's huge." Yang shrugged her shoulders, "Whatever! Just wanted to encourage you two is all... So I take it you wont be participating in the sport?" Penny cut in, "well, you cant just ""participate in the sport"" You have to go to try outs and then get accepted and everyone wants to be on the team but youll find out more about that later im sure." Ruby backed away, "yeah, try outs give me anxiety, not happening." Penny sighed, "thats a shame, I was gonna try out this year, I cant wait to fly on my broomstick competitively!" Ruby paused. "Fly? Broomstick?" Penny nodded her head. "Yes, that's where we are walking towards right now, the shop Broomsicks sells many kinds that you can use to fly with in flying areas after you are trained, of course." Ruby sprinted towards the store, "I'm glad you didn't mention that earlier. Ruby is infatuated with flying; she was even trying to build a jet pack last winter, in which she did succeed, but it only brings her three feet into the air and lasts for about ten seconds." Penny gasped, "Wow, Ruby sure is talented! She tinkers often?" Yang looked ahead and saw Ruby through the shop's glass window, admiring the flying broomsticks. "Yeah, ever since she found out her mother loved tinkering, she started tinkering as well!" The ginger-haired girl smiled, "Ah! Is her mother a famous wizard?" Yang awkwardly laughed, "um, no, she passed away, but I probably said too much, I'm sure if you become good friends with Ruby shell tell you more." Penny nodded in agreement. After a long time of looking at brooms, Ruby and Yang picked their brooms, but they would be mailed to Hogwarts as they arent ofcially on any of the books; they can't just buy a broom, they have to be trained first. "Alright, friends, we are just about ready to wrap this adventure up now! How about we go get some butter beers!" Ruby gasped, "Penny, we are minors!" Penny waved her hands, "No, no, it's a non alcoholic drink! At least for us, anyway, let's go to the Leaky Cauldron and get some drinks, and then I'll show you guys how to get home, yeah?" The sisters trotted along behind Penny and eventually had a seat at the Leaky Cauldron, where they ordered three butterbeers. "So, Penny, how old are you?"
"I'm fifteen! So I am a fifth year at Hogwarts!"
"I'm sixteen, does that mean I'll be a sixth year?" Spoke the Blonde, "Yes, you are correct, and Ruby, you mentioned you are fourteen? Then you should be a fourth year. But I'm a bit confused."
"About what?"
"Why are you guys burly entering Hogwarts? This doesn't happen often. Are you half Muggle or something?" The girls didn't really know how to answer that. "We don't know much about our mothers, but according to our father, he is a pure-blooded wizard from a long line of famous professors. We've never met them, though. But why are we starting so late? It's a long story, but basically our father just didn't want us to go to Hogwarts, so he hid it from us!" The curly-haired girl gasped. "That's terrible! Hogwarts is the most magical, wonderful place ever! I'm so glad you guys are finally coming!"
"Is it really that cool there?"
"Hogwarts isn't just a school, it's a place where everything feels bigger and a little unreal! It's a giant castle full of moving staircases, talking paintings, hidden passages, and rooms that appear when you need them! You have your own wand that you use to learn spells, fly on broomsticks, and go anywhere you want! There are feasts and forests full of things you couldn't even imagine. More importantly, it's a place where being different isn't something to hide! It's the reason you are there! Hogwarts is just the absolute best!" Ruby and Yang stood in awe. "You really like Hogwarts." Ruby punched Yang's arm. "It sounds super cool, Penny. I can't wait to go in a couple of months!" Penny smiled, they finished up their drinks, said their goodbyes to Penny, and headed back home to Patch.
The girls arrived at their house promptly, but when they got home, they saw their father installing a new fireplace. "Hey girls, how was Diagon Alley?" They each gave their father a hug. "It was so cool... I can't believe magic exists!" Yang nodded in agreement, "Yeah, and our guide sent by Qrow was a real sweetie and taught us a lot today!" Tai squinted his eyes, "damn that dusty Qrow, he was supposed to go with you guys, and he sent someone else!? Were they at least useful?" Ruby nodded her head happily, "Yes! Her name is Penny, she was so cool, a bit quirky though!"
"More than you?"
"Way more than her dad... way more," Yang butted in. Ruby rolled her eyes. They spent all day shopping, and the sun was starting to set, so they went their separate ways and organized the stuff they bought. A couple days passed and Yang went back to Beacon to settle her affairs at school, Ruby decided that since was burly at Beacon for a few months that she was just going to stop showing up and stay home all day tinkering, but yang had been there already for over two years, she has many friends who are going to be very confused as to why she is all of the sudden going to drop out of high school in her junior year. "Wait, you are dropping out... to work on your farm... with your father?" The boy spoke, "Haha... yeah, my dad takes his farming life seriously, and he wants me to take the farm over, and he said he's getting old and he needs me to learn already."
"But isn't he only like 16 years older than you? Had you young? Knocked up your mom? She left?" Yang looked upset, "You jerk! I knew I shouldn't have told your bitch ass that!"
"Sorry, sorry."
"Anyways, yes, so what, it doesn't matter, I'm still a minor, and I live under his roof, I'm legally allowed to drop out, and he wants me to, so I'm going to do it. Once I have time, I'll go back to school and graduate, but my dad needs me right now, okay? Please, no more questions." Her friends looked at each other. Her girlfriend spoke. "Baby, but what about your little sister?"
"Oh, Ruby, don't worry about her, babe. She's going to be homeschooled; she's not a very social girl. Dad said she's too young and weak, he doesn't want her working the farm, she'll finish school and work in an office or something. But I'm big and strong, I gotta make him proud." Her friends nodded, "Well, we wish you luck, Yang. We will miss you, but I'm sure we can hang out on weekends!"
"Yeah, maybe, farm life is hard work, but I'll try to make time for my pals!"
"And your lady right?" Yang looked nervous, "Uhm, yeah, haha... anyways, you wanna go on a walk with me?" The girlfriend smiled, "Sure!" So the two walked, they walked where they always walk, sat under the tree they've sat by for two years together. "There's no easy way to say this, so I'm just gonna do it." Yang cleared her throat, "I am breaking up with you."
"What? Why? Did I do something wrong?"
"No... no... It's just, you know, I'm going to be a farm worker in Patch, and you live here in the Beacon dorms, and after high school, you are going to college in Mistral... You want to move to the big city, and I'm just not a city gal, you know that we know that we always have. I thought we could have more time together, but I'm always gonna be on my farm now, and it's just not gonna work out, and you know it. I already travel far to get to Beacon just to see you, I just don't wanna make your life hard when you go to Mistral, I don't want to hold you back, you know." Her girlfriend nodded; she understood from the beginning that their relationship wasn't going to work out, they were just too different. "Yeah, I get it... can we stay friends?" Yang smiled, "yeah, of course, I mean we were best friends before we got together romantically anyway, I'll see you around, okay, I don't think I'm gonna be back at school anymore, I'm gonna start working, I already informed the principal." They hugged goodbye, and Yang got on her motorcycle and left. Time went by quick, it was March, then it was May, then July, and all of a sudden, it was September 1st, and Ruby and Yang found themselves on a little train station in Atlas. The girls did a lot of prepping during those 6 or 7 months. They went back to Diagon Alley to do some more shopping, met a few people, learned some stuff about Hogwarts, and about magic. They even got some pets to keep them company at Hogwarts. They had to choose between an owl, a cat, or a toad so they could send letters. But Ruby wanted a rat. "Why a rat..."
"Why a toad?"
"Point taken."
"Your name will be Little. My little rat, Little, you are such a cutie!" Yang put her toad away, "I'll name you Bartholomule."
"Whatever yang..." They got a message from their uncle that a nice family of half-muggles would help them get into Hogwarts. The daughter was one of his favorite students, so he asked her and her parents to aid his nieces and explained to them the situation. The sisters got to the train station early to make sure they wouldn't miss the family, and Ruby said she really needed to use the restroom, so she took off running. Then she collided with someone. "YOU DOLT!" Ruby was dizzy, and she bumped into a beam of blinding light. "Ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch," she said while rubbing her head. "WATCH WHERE YOU ARE GOING, YOU DUNCE!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I really need to pee."
"So just because you need to pee, you decided you were going to become a fighter jet!?"
"No, no, I'm sorry, I'm really sorry I didn't mean to bump into you." Suddenly, Yang appeared, "Hey, hey, why so hostile? What's going on here?" Weiss rolled her eyes. "YOU! You know this damn cheetah over here? She bumped into me so hard and nearly hurt my poor snowball." The white owl hoo'd sadly. "Hoo"
"Sorry about her snowball here, meet Bartholomew."
"EWWW, get your nasty frog away from my owl."
"Hey, you can be mean to Ruby, but don't you dare talk bad about Bartholomul also, he's a toad. Not a frog." Ruby punched her sister, "I'm so sorry, um."
"You don't know who I am?"
"No," she winced. "Ugh, you are unbelievable!" Suddenly, a black figure showed up. "Her name is Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Department of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures."
"Finally, some recognition." Blake rolled her eyes, "The same company rumored to be involved. In sketchy activity concerning selling poor magical creatures to the black market." Weiss audibly gasped, "How, how dare you! I, ugh, whatever, get out of my way freaks!" Yang looked at the beam of light storming away, "I don't know what any of that meant, but I assume that was a major burn, and slap to her ego, and that's what she gets for being mean to Bartholomul Xiao-Long." Ruby groaned, "What a terrible start, and I still need to pee, where is little?" Ruby looked around and saw this random girl holding him. "I assume he's yours?" The older girl said calmly. "Yes, haha, that's Little... anyways, um... thank you for standing up for us, my name is Ruby Rose, and this is my big sister Yang." But she was cut off, "Xiao-Long, I assume?" Yang smirked, "How'd you know?"
"That's your toad's last name."
"Right," suddenly two more figures showed up, "Blake, honey, did you find the girls? You ran off so suddenly." A tall, muscular man spoke; next to him stood a smaller, older lady, roughly around the age of her own father. "Mom, Dad, this is Ruby and Yang, the ones Qrow told you about." The sisters looked at each other, "Hi!" Said the shorter girl. "Why hello, we are the Belladonnas, I played quidditch with your father and uncle back in the days, and your uncle knew I'd bring my daughter here, Blake to the station and asked me to show you guys how to as well." The girls looked confused, "are we not just boarding a train?" The older one looked confused. Blake's mother smiled softly, "honey, this is Hogwarts, from here on out you'll start to see that nothing is as it seems." Blake brushed her short black bangs out of her eyes, gave her parents some goodbye hugs and kisses, grabbed her things, and all of a sudden, she ran through a wall. "Whoa."
"Cool, huh, huh? Go ahead, girls, don't worry, it won't hurt you. I'm sure Blake is waiting for you on the other side. Have a good semester at Hogwarts!" The girls carefully walked towards the wall, "platform nine and three quarters.... So weird..." and then they ran through, and there it was, a giant magical train and hundreds of students boarding it. Ruby and Yang walked to Blake, who was waiting patiently for them. "Any slower?" "Sorry, kitty cat, held up talking to the folks, you know how it is." Ruby rolled her eyes. They sat down in the train, and then Ruby saw Penny sitting next to them, "PENNY!"
"RUBY! YANG! Blake? Hi Blake, how was your break? How do you know the sisters?" Blake waved at Penny, "Professor Branwen asked me to show them how to get into the train." Penny laughed, "That's so funny, I took them a few months back to Olivanders to get their wands!" The girls laughed, "Hey, what's the big idea?"
"Yang, why are you talking like this right now?"
"Quiet now, Rubes." Penny smiled, "It's just funny because we learned all of this when we were eleven years old, and you guys are coming into Hogwarts late and don't have a clue about what's going on." The girls looked embarrassed. "We're just joking, Qrow told us how that you didn't know about the school, it's not your fault, but you are in good hands, Penny is a great gal." Yang looked confused, "Penny? Sooo, you aren't going to stick around, Blakey?" Blake froze up a bit, "um, don't call me that, and no, I'm not a very social person, I just did this as a favor to Qrow since he's like the best professor, although he's always drunk, he's very funny and trustworthy." Yang shrugged her shoulders. "Suit yourself, kitty cat, but just know, I am a very social person, and I am ready to be social with you if you wanna be social with me." Ruby looked dumbfounded, "Yang, shut up. Anyway, thank you for your help, Blake. See you around?" Blake stood up, "Sure, I'm gonna go sit over there now and read my book, bye girls, have a good first day." Yang yawned and looked at Penny, "Hey, so why are you wearing yellow and Blakey Boo was wearing blue, and we are wearing all black?" Ruby nodded in agreement, "Yeah, and that uh.... What was her name, the girl with the owl?"
"Weiss"
"Yes, thank you, Yang, Weiss was wearing green."
Penny pulled out a whiteboard, "It's pretty simple, there are four houses at Hogwarts, each house has dormitories where you will stay for the rest of your stay at Hogwarts, and each house competes throughout the year to see who is the best. The houses are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Slytherin, and Hufflepuff. I am in the house Hufflepuff, so I wear yellow stuff to represent my house! You don't have to, but in school, you do have to have a uniform on."
"And which house is Blake?"
"Ravenclaw! And Weiss Schnee is Slytherin." Yang smirked, "Well, I'm choosing Ravenclaw then, I'm tryna roommate with Blake Belladonna!" Ruby rolled her eyes, and Penny laughed. "It doesn't work like that, you'll see when we get there, but basically the hat picks for you! It knows which house you belong in based on who you are as a person."
"Lame"
"Shut up, Yang. That is so exciting, wowwww I mean I read so many fantasy novels growing up with heroes and villains, and I'm just like wow I'm really living in one right now!" Penny nodded, "Yeah, it's so cool, I hope you get into Hufflepuff with me, Ruby. I can tell we will have a friendship for the ages!"
"Yessss, and we can stay up at night and paint our nails and talk about cute boys!" Yang sighed and bought some snacks from a lady passing by with a cart, and didn't offer any to her sister and her sister's ginger friend. And after what seemed to be forever, they arrived.
"Wow, this is crazy..." Ruby looked at the giant castle, "Your description did it a disservice, Penny....this is amazing!" Penny beamed, "I know, right, it's the coolest, I've been coming here since I was eleven, so you know I have so many fond memories here, the only bad ones involving every time I interact with a Slytherin, which is pretty rare because they tend to just hang out with each other and talk bad about others."
"What's up with that anyway? Why do you make the Slytherin seem so mean?"
"Um, because that's exactly what they are, they think they are the best just because the headmaster is a Slytherin." Ruby looked confused, "Why would him being in a Slytherin be such an important thing? Are the houses not all equal?"
"Oh, they are all equal, we all have our strengths and weaknesses, honestly, I've never been a fan of the house sorting. It feels like we are forced to be different and to fight with each other! But headmaster Ozpin is different, he is well... immortal... he seems to be part phoenix, and every time he dies, he just like comes back... and well, nobody knows why, and there is nobody who is more knowledgeable than him since he's lived so long, so he just continues to be the headmaster. So, because he is an immortal Slytherin, they seem to think they are the elite and always in charge, like he is. But in reality, they are just elitist rich kids who think they can treat everyone like garbage."
"So that's why Weiss was like that."
"Oh, you personally met Weiss..."
"I literally bumped into her, and she cursed at me." Penny winced, "You managed to run into the head bitch at this school..."
"What's so special about her anyway?" said Yang while eating some snacks. "Rich, famous, beautiful, smart, talented, the list goes on..."
"How long have you known her?" Penny looked at Ruby, contemplating how much she could say. "Well... since we were children... I don't want to say too much, but I guess you could say we used to be best friends growing up! I'm actually from Atlas, and my father worked with her father on countless occasions, and we were inseparable... but then we got into our houses, and well, let's just say a Hufflepuff isn't worthy to stand next to a Slytherin according to her."
"That's so weird... she honestly didn't seem that bad when we met. She was upset because I hurt her, and then she was insulted by Blake, so honestly, I think I would be upset as well if I were her." Yang grabbed Ruby's shoulder, "Yeah, Blake took the heat off of you. Imagine if she weren't there? Maybe she would have tried suing you or something." Penny sighed, "Yeah... that sounds like something Weiss would do."
"Um, what did Blake tell Weiss anyway that got her so rattled up?" Ruby thought to herself for a moment, "Well, I don't quite remember too much, but I think it had to do with her family's company and a conspiracy of some sort regarding the company's actions?"
"Ah, yes, that was very funny of Blake to do!"
"What do you mean?" Asked Yang. "Well... You know how sometimes it's completely obvious that a company is corrupt and there is substantial evidence to prove that it is corrupt, but somehow the company has so much money that they can cover it up and get away with their dirty deeds?" The sisters nod their heads. "Well, that's exactly what's happening. Anyone who reads the news knows that the Schnees are not good people, but for some reason Weiss refuses to believe that."
"Has anyone ever thought to... I don't know, maybe sit her down and talk to her about it calmly and genuinely?" Penny was about to speak when Blake showed up, "genuine with Weiss? Yeah, right." Yang beamed, "Haiya, Blake, missed you on the train ride!" Blake ignored her, "I sat down with Weiss when we were 15, I told her everything, tried explaining it carefully. But of course, I was a liar and deceiver, and ever since, I have become a target of hers. Everyone can clearly see how much of a target I am, so nobody else tries to anymore. I mean, Weiss is already terrible to everyone in general, but after you attack her family name, yeah, dead." The three shivered. "Wow... okay then, so Weiss is bad." The blonde spoke. "No, I don't think she's bad, okay... she's misunderstood! I bet if she really learned about her family and had evidence, she would change!" Blake shrugged her shoulders, "I like your optimism, Ruby. You can try if you want to learn the hard way about what kind of person Weiss is, and trust me, it's not pretty." Blake left to Yang's disappointment, and Penny quickly waved over some people, "Ruby, Yang, this is my friend Jaune! Jaune, Ruby, Yang!" The blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy was tall and lean, but his energy was not giving off the same energy that his body was at all. "Heyyyyyy, the names Jaune Arc, short, sweet, rolls off the tongue, the ladies love it."
"Do they?" The red rose asked sarcastically. "They, they do! I swear, I actually have a girlfriend now!" Penny gasped, "You sly dog, you actually asked her out!!!"
"No"
"How do you mean?"
"She asked me out."
"Oh..."
"Guess the ladies loved it?" Yang butted in. Everyone laughed except Ruby, who looked confused. Penny looked at her watch, and her eyes widened. "JAUNE, I'm so sorry to ask you this, but could you possibly give the sisters a tour? I'm sure you are aware of their situation as Qrow made that announcement in class last semester; they don't know ANYTHING!"
"Wait... our uncle told everyone about us..."
"Well," Jaune hesitated, and Penny swiftly left. "Well... I don't think so, I think he told them your years and to not judge you guys because you were never told about the school, and you are just starting." Ruby sighed, "So much for not standing out..."
"Well, I'm glad he did that!" Said Yang, "I was hoping to be popular, this school will know my name!" Ruby rolled her eyes, "sister... just be careful."
"Don't worry about me, rubes!" Jaune laughed,
"Well, you'll have to compete with my girlfriend then."
"What do you mean, Jauney boy?" Jaune hummed triumphantly, "My girlfriend is the most popular girl at this school, and she's only a sixth year!"
"And how did you manage to get her to fall for you?" Jaune looked at Ruby, offended, "I told you! I am a handsome devil!" She giggled, "Sorry for not believing you." Yang thought to herself for a moment, "She bad?"
"Ignore her."
"Oh, I am." They all laughed and then started following Jaune on their tour. Jaune clapped his hands together a little too excited for someone who looked like he was kind of winging it. "Alright, welcome to Hogwarts, the most confusing place you'll ever be in. If you get lost, don't worry, everyone does."
"Great," Yang said, "love that for us." Ruby wasn't even listening; she was just staring up at the huge castle like her brain had stopped working. "This place is insane!" They were standing in a huge stone courtyard, the castle towering over them with tall spires and glowing windows. "Okay, this is the courtyard!" Jaune said point around. "You'll be here a lot. Sometimes people duel out here, which is not allowed, but like, it happens, you know." Ruby's eyes lit up, "People fight out here?"
"Duel," Blake corrected, arms crossed. "Still sounds fun," Yang said, cracking her knuckles. "Moving on, haha..." Jaune said quickly before something actually started, " before one of you gets expelled on day one..." They walked through the giant doors, and Ruby immediately grabbed Yang's arm. "THE STAIRS ARE MOVING."
"Yeah," Jaune said, "they do that."
"Why?"
"No idea..." They started going up, and the stairs shifted slightly, and Ruby froze for a second before continuing. "Okay, these are the grand staircases?" Jaune said, they lead everywhere, but not always where you want. Sometimes, they just decide to go somewhere else."
"That sounds stupid," Ruby said. "It is," Blake replied. "I thought you weren't a social person. Why are you here?"
"Bored, also Jaune is a bad guide."
"Hey!" Ruby kept looking around, ignoring whatever was happening behind her. She looked at a painting on the wall, and it looked back at her and waved. "Wow, Ruru, you are making friends already!" Ruby muttered, "Shut up yang," They turned a corner, and Jaune pushed open some big doors. "Alright, this is the great hall." Yang stopped. "Okay, yeah, this wins." The hall was huge, with long tables everywhere, floating candles above them, and the ceiling looked like the actual night sky. "It's enchanted," Jaune said, "that's so cool!" And Ruby nodded in agreement, "Okay, yeah, this place is kinda insane."
"Each table is a house, you eat here every day with your house, hang out here, all that."
"And what if we don't like our house?" Yang asked, "Too bad."
"Lame!" They kept waking. "Common rooms are where you sleep. Gryffindor and Ravenclaw are in the towers, and Slytherin is in the dungeons." The girls shivered, "spooky."
"Hufflepuff is near the kitchens." Ruby perked up, "kitchens?" Jaune grinned, "Yup, best house ever, you can sneak food if you figure it out."
"Very important information, thank you, Jaune."
They walked past classrooms, and Ruby called down when she saw something moving in a jar. "What is that?"
"Nope," Jaune said, leaning forward, "you'll find out later." They went outside, and Ruby stopped again. The grounds were huge, hills everywhere, a giant lake, and in the distance a dark forest. "What's that!?" Yang pointed her mechanical arm. "Forbidden forest,"
"Why is it forbidden?"
"Because it's dangerous." Yang smiled, "cool,"
"No," Blake said immediately. Ruby walked closer to the edge, "This place is bigger than I thought. I can't believe we are in Atlas right now."
"Well, we aren't in Atlas, nothing magical is in remnant, we travel via floo network, and it's sort of like different dimensions, I guess, is the easiest way to put it." She nodded, "What's that?" A giant tentacle was waving around in the lake. "Giant squid, but that's not important right now. Over there is the Quidditch pitch." He said, pointing. "Ooooh, that's what Penny mentioned in Diagon Alley!"
"Yeah, we got some fast-ass brooms!" Blake sighed, "You didn't know about magic until now, and you bought fast brooms to play a very dangerous magical flying sport? You can't at least a year?"
"Nope!"
"We are trying out, flying can't be too hard." Jaune laughed, "Unfortunately, I don't think Ms. Goodwitch will let you guys fly without proper flying classes." Jaune was gonna speak again, but was interrupted, "Move vomit boy." They turned, and there was Weiss standing on the steps, arms crossed, looking annoyed. "Oh uh, hey Weiss!" Jaune said she ignored him and looked straight at Ruby. "You!" Ruby shrank, "You are the one who ran into me."
"I said I was sorry..." Yang stepped in front of Ruby, "Okay, hold on." But was cut off, "and you, you're acting as if you belong." Blake scoffed, "Go away, Weiss, we were having a good time until you showed up." Weiss turns to face Blake, "speaking of not belonging, mind your business, mudblood, and go back where you belong." Jaune tried to speak but didn't get a chance, "At least my father doesn't sell poor creatures to bad people for bad purposes!" Weiss's brow furrowed. "Watch your tone."
"Or what, you gonna go cry to daddy, daddy can't protect you here princess, Ozpin controls the school, not the Schnees." Weiss looked irritated. "You know, I thought Hogwarts was lowering its standards when it let a half-breed mistakes like you in, but it turns out it could stoop as low as letting nobody in late." She muttered before walking away. Yang crossed her arms. "I don't like her." Ruby stepped forward and yelled, "I do belong here!" Weiss didn't even turn around.
"Prove it!"
"What a bitch."
"She's not completely in the wrong, though!" Blake sighed, "What? I mean, I did hurt her..." Jaune frowned, "Ruby, please, just because you bumped into her doesn't mean she can talk to you and your sister like that. Also, I don't know if you noticed, but she said incredibly rude things to Blake. Racist things." Yang looked confused, "What? The mudblood comment" Jaune hushed her, "hey, don't say that... um... Blake?" Blake cleared her throat. "I am half Muggle, meaning I am half just a normal non-magical human. Some elitists are obsessed with being pure of blood, so they call us ""mudbloods."" It's an insult, but honestly, I don't even care. She's always called me that since we met." Ruby frowned, "sorry for still trying to justify her being bad then, I had no clue she was that bad..." Blake waved her hand, "don't worry about it, I'm glad you've come to your senses, just try to stay away from here and I'm sure you'll enjoy your stay at hogwarts." Jaune groaned, "well, this tour was almost perfect, but still let's end on a good note yeah? Pretty soon, everyone will be summoned into the great hall again for the sorting hat ceremony." So then the group walked towards the great hall, where everyone was going to gather to hear some words from the headmaster. Blake and Jaune quickly went in, but Penny stopped to say hi. Ruby kept fidgeting with her sleeves, and Yang stood confidently. "So this is where we get sorted?" Ruby whispered, tugging at her sleeve while staring at the giant doors in front of her. Penny clasped her hands together, basically vibrating. "Yes! This is the Sorting Ceremony! It is one of the most important traditions at Hogwarts!" Yang leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "Alright, break it down for us, Penny. What happens?" Penny nodded quickly and excitedly. "Okay, so first, all the new students gather here, and then a professor, usually Professor Goodwitch, comes to get them and leads them inside. Everyone else is already sitting at their house tables, so when you walk in, everyone is looking at you!" Ruby stiffened. "Everyone?" Penny smiled. "Yes! But do not worry, it is only a little bit terrifying!" Yang snorted. "Great." Penny kept going, completely serious. "Once you walk in, you'll stand at the front of the hall in a line, facing the Headmaster and all the students. Then the Headmaster gives a speech. He welcomes everyone back, says something wise, sometimes confusing, and reminds everyone of the rules. Although sometimes he gets distracted." Ruby blinked. "Distracted?" Penny nodded. "Yes, one time he talked about cookies for a very long time." Ruby smiled a little. "Okay, I like him."
"Yeah! He's like the best headmaster ever! Anyways!" she cleared her throat, "After that, Professor Goodwitch brings out the Sorting Hat. It is a magical hat that decides which house you belong to based on who you are as a person. Your personality, your values, things like that." Yang raised an eyebrow. "A hat decides that?"
"Yes!" Penny said happily. "You sit on a stool, they put the hat on your head, and it speaks to you. Then it announces your house out loud, and everyone at that table cheers for you!" Ruby slowly turned her head. "It speaks... to you?"
"Yes!" Penny said again. "It can read your thoughts, too." Ruby froze. "Oh no." Yang smirked. "Just don't think about anything embarrassing." Ruby panicked immediately. "That makes it worse!" Penny tilted her head. "I thought it was a very pleasant experience." Yang laughed. Before Ruby could respond, the big doors opened, and Professor Goodwitch in all her glory stepped out. She was tantalizing, her bright blonde hair and purple accessories went well together. She stared at the students, looking as strict as ever. "First years and transfer students, follow me." Penny lit up and started to run inside to sit with the house Hufflepuff. "That's you guys!" The group started moving, Ruby and Yang following behind her as they walked into the Great Hall. Ruby's brain immediately shut off. The ceiling looked like the actual night sky, candles floating everywhere, and rows of students sitting at long tables, all turning to look at them. "Oh my god," Ruby whispered. "Yeah," Yang said quietly, "they are definitely looking." Ruby stared straight ahead and at the floor, trying not to trip over her own feet. At the front of the hall was a small stool with an old, worn hat sitting on top of it. Ruby stared at it. "That is the hat?" she whispered. "It looks like it has seen things." Yang snorted. They lined up, and the room slowly went quiet. Then the Headmaster stood up. Ozpin was tall, his hair as white as snow, but no signs of wrinkles; he was rumored to be over one hundred years old. He adjusted his glasses and looked out at everyone with a small smile. "Welcome back to Hogwarts." His voice carried easily through the room. "To our returning students, I trust you all had a restful break. To our new students and our late arrivals, welcome. You are about to begin a very important part of your journey." Ruby swallowed tightly. "Hogwarts is not just a place to learn magic," he continued, calm and steady, "it is a place where you will learn about yourselves. You will be challenged, you will make mistakes, and hopefully, you will grow." Yang crossed her arms, listening. Ruby nodded slightly. "The houses you are about to be sorted into will become your home while you are here. They will guide you, support you, and occasionally compete with each other very aggressively." A few students laughed. "But remember this. Your house does not define everything that you are. It is only the beginning." He paused for a moment. "Now then, let us begin." Professor Goodwitch stepped forward with a list. The hat twitched, then suddenly opened and started singing in a rough voice about the four houses, talking about bravery, intelligence, ambition, and loyalty. Ruby stared at it in shock. "It sings too?" she whispered. "This is sick!" Yang whispered back, just as excited. When the song ended, the room clapped, and Ruby felt her heart start to beat faster. Professor Goodwitch called the first name, and a small student walked forward, sat down, and had the hat placed on their head. "SLYTHERIN!" the hat shouted. The green table exploded with cheering. Ruby flinched. "That is so loud." Yang grinned. "This is gonna be fun." One by one, names were called. Each student sat, waited, and then got shouted into a house. Cheers followed every time. The line slowly got shorter. Ruby's hands were starting to shake a little. Then "Rose, Ruby." Ruby froze. She slowly walked to the stand. The headmaster spoke, "Ah, Ms. Rose, we are so glad you are finally here with us." She sensed a bit of teasing in his voice, "better late than never!" He smiled, "Hmm, you have silver eyes. Just like your mother." Ruby was about to say what, but Professor Goodwitch motioned for her to have a seat and keep the ceremony moving. So had a seat she did, and Goodwitch placed the hat on her head. "Hmmm, you! Wow, you are different, so true to who you are, loyal, compassionate, kind, fair... Yes, I know, HUFFLEPUFF!" The yellow table erupted in cheers and screams. Ruby looked to the table and saw familiar faces, Jaune and Penny, clapping frantically while standing up. Ruby smiled, full of joy. She got up and headed to her new home. Yang's last name, alphabetically being almost last, was finally up. She confidently strided to the stool, and the voice of a very loud boy could be heard from the red table. "THAT'S A GRIFFYNDOR IF I'VE EVER SEEN ONE! HEY, HAT, GIVE HER TO US!" The great hall erupted into laughter until Glynda shot them a look to quiet down. The hat huffed, "Do you agree with him? Are you a Griffyndor?" Yang shrugged her shoulders, "I don't care what I am." The hat thought, "Let me ask you this: if a giant monster burst through this wall right now, what would you do?" Yang didn't hesitate, "First, I would go and get my sister and lead her to safety! She's the most important person in the world, and after that id come right back and fight it."
"But you don't know any magic."
"That doesn't matter! There are children in here; they must be protected at all costs." Three seconds passed, "GRIFFYNDOR!" Whistles blew, the claps vibrated off the walls, "OH YEAH WE ARE GETTING THE HOUSE CUP THIS YEAR! WOOOO!" Yang ignored her housemates' antics and walked to her table. She looked over at Blake, who was slowly clapping at the Ravenclaw table, "I was hoping to be your roommate, what a shame, feel free to come over to Gryffindor house anytime though," and she gave her a wink. Blake rolled her eyes and smiled, "In your dreams, Yang Xiao-Long." Yang shrugged, "Oh, you'll definitely be in my dreams." The rest of the ceremony finished rather quickly as the eleven-year-olds got their houses, names were called, cheers followed, and eventually the list ran out. Professor Goodwitch rolled up her parchment and stepped back. The Headmaster stood once more, adjusting his glasses as the room slowly quieted down again. "Another year, another group of bright young minds," he said calmly. "Congratulations to all of you on your sorting. I trust you will make your houses proud." He paused for a moment, glancing across the hall. "A few reminders before we begin the feast. The Forbidden Forest is, as the name suggests, forbidden. Any student found wandering within it will be dealt with accordingly." A few students shifted in their seats. Yang smirked a little. "Additionally, magic in the corridors between classes is not permitted unless supervised by a professor. And finally..." he folded his hands behind his back, "please refrain from attempting to outsmart the staircases. You will lose." A small wave of laughter moved through the hall. He gave a small nod. "Now then... let the feast begin." Almost instantly, plates and goblets that had been empty seconds ago filled with food. Ruby's eyes went wide. "WOAH!" She grabbed Penny's arm from across the table. "Did you see that!?" Penny blinked, staring at the food in front of her. "Okay, yeah, isn't it awesome?" She smiled, "It refills too! You can eat as much as you like!" Ruby didn't need to be told twice. "This is the best school ever." At the Slytherin table, Weiss sat stiffly, barely touching her food, clearly still annoyed. Every now and then, her eyes flicked toward the Hufflepuff table before she looked away again. At Ravenclaw, Blake ate quietly, flipping through a book she had, though she glanced up briefly when Yang laughed too loudly. Their eyes met for a second before Blake looked back down, a small, almost invisible smile on her face. Back at Hufflepuff, Ruby was already halfway through her plate, talking with her mouth full. "Penny, this is amazing, oh my gods, I'm never leaving." Penny laughed. "You say that now, but wait until exams!" Ruby paused. "There are exams?" Jaune leaned in, grinning. "Oh yeah. You're gonna love those." Ruby stared at him. "I changed my mind." The night went on with laughter, chatter, and way too much food. Eventually, the plates cleared themselves, and the room settled down once more. A Hufflepuff prefect stood up and called out, "First years and new students, follow me!" Penny motioned to Ruby quickly. "That's you!" Ruby wiped her mouth and jumped up. "Okay, okay, I'm going!" Across the hall, a Gryffindor prefect gathered Yang and the others. Yang stretched her arms and looked back toward Ruby. "Hey, Rubes!" Ruby turned. "Yeah?" Yang grinned. "Try not to get lost on your first night." Ruby rolled her eyes. "Try not to burn the castle down."
"Not promising anything!" Yang shot back. The Griffyndor prefect winced. The groups split off, following their prefects out of the Great Hall and into the winding halls of the castle. Ruby glanced back one last time, taking in the floating candles, the enchanted ceiling, the noise, the magic of it all. Then she turned and followed her house toward whatever came next.