Author's note: I've had this idea crossover in mind for a while. Just a little sidenote: the wild cards will be a little bit ooc than how the fandom usually views them as they'll have their own strange quirks and personalities in the fic. Other then that, I'll draw a proper cover for this fic soon instead of the joke chibis. Please tell me your thoughts.

Also, please welcome ShinyKyu as this fic's beta reader! They will be helping me to keep this fic experience as error free possible! Go check them out!

Chapter 1: Once Upon a Time

A shimmering ray of light shot across the dead heavens, igniting a crumbling world of scattered gray and ruined earth. A great power had broken from atop the unmoving emerald tower, and yet just as the gleaming hope had so aggressively eaten away at the blackness, it too was swallowed by the never-ending abyss of darkness.

The ground beneath started to break as large pieces of earth began to be ripped and torn apart by the sheer force of gravity and launched into the chaotic air. Buildings twisted and warped, streets faded and withered, and lands that once flourished with life were now as barren as the arctic wastelands.

And in all this otherworldly carnage, watched a surreal, demonic eye from the fallen moon.

"Gah!"

"M-Minato, are you ok?" A shy voice echoed from the void. He opened up his eyes to strange, forgien surroundings. A cold sweat had slowly started to rolled down his back.

"Y-yeah…." The bluenette murmured groggily, gazing at the worried girl in front of him. Her large silver eyes shook and her thin brows furrowed upwards. He felt her observe him with a mixture of both worry and confusion.

"Are you sure you're not sick? I can call the others for help—" The girl fumbled in her words, scrambling for an appropriate reply, only to confuse the blunette even more.

"Ruby, I don't look that ill, do I?" Minato cocked an eyebrow, feigning an expression of confidence, forming a wide smirk on his face and transitioning from his previously tired-looking figure. Ruby was acting strange today. He had fallen asleep before, but not once had she ever questioned his cover.

"Well… you did seem kind of pale," The young girl reasoned. "Besides, I know you're hiding something behind that smirk. Yang always has one when she's up to no good."

"Oh? You mean like this?" Minato's face only widened more, but this time, it seemed to infect the girl as well. Suddenly, an intense wave of energy swept through the air as the young man pulled out two brightly-colored pieces of paper, which caused his friend to squeal and propel herself into the air. Her silver eyes started to shimmer in the evening sun at the sight of the large, bold letters that were printed onto the small strips of paper.

"A-a-are those tickets to the lastest Vale Weapon's Expo?!" Ruby carefully inspected the tickets in the boy's hands, as if checking if the world at present was nothing but a fleeting dream.

"In case you're wondering, these were the last ones left before they were all sold out." Minato watched the girl pinch both of her cheeks in sheer disbelief before he felt her grip onto his arms.

"Oh my gosh! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Minato, you're the best! I've been wanting to go ever since I was a kid! How did you get these?! They're super expensive!" She started to ruthlessly shake his arms up and down before embracing him in a tight bear hug.

"O-okay! Y-you can let go now!" Despite Ruby's small and frail-looking figure, her embrace had the collapsing force of several bear traps, which tightly locked around and squeezed the bluenette's diaphragm, causing him to struggle and fight for a breath of fresh air.

"Oh! Uh, s-sorry!" Ruby sheepishly backed away, realizing that she was slowly suffocating her friend.

"T-thanks!" Minato took a few breaths to recover, "I thought these would be a nice way to say goodbye. I'll be going to Beacon soon, so I took up a few more part-time jobs." He watched the girl's face mellow at the inevitable news, "We won't hang out like we used to.…" The excitement that had previously occupied her eyes had quietly faded, leaving a gentle sadness behind.

"I'll… miss you guys in Signal when you're gone. Both you and Yang. School won't be the same without you two around." Ruby gave an awkward smile, as memories of time gone by began to flood her mind. "No more lab explosions, random street brawls, or homework answer-swap sessions…." The huntress-in-training listed off, the last one being especially disheartening as Minato would regularly gave her answers to the hardest of questions.

"Come on, cheer up, Ruby," Minato faked the most genuine-looking smile he could, waving the two Expo tickets around. "You'll be in Beacon in no time. Now, how about we go see what amazing new weapons they have on display? Time never waits."

"R-right! I really, really want to see what they'll show in the demonstrations this year! And it'll be in person! I'm so excited!" Ruby, instead of wallowing in despair, chose to drag her friend by the arm and run off into the distance, fueled by a light sense of joy and excitement.

Minato followed Ruby into the sprawling jungle of the city crowd, and yet, unlike the smiling girl dashing forward into the sea of people, he had dropped his facade of a smile. Instead, what remained was a blank and tired face, no longer housing a soul in its broken, hollow shell. He saw Ruby wave to him in the abyss of pedestrians, which he responded back to with another of his comical smirks.

The cheerful girl ran off once again as the boy followed. Unbeknownst to him was the single teardrop and troubled expression that she had witnessed on his slumbering face just a few moments ago.

"Whoa! That plasma sword was so cool, oh my gosh!" Ruby spun around in circles through the city's streets, "Did you see how they used it to slay that Grimm? It went like this! And this, and this!" The bubbly huntress-in-training made several hand gestures, desperately trying to mimic the skilled movements demonstrated by the participants at the crowded Expo.

"Hmmm, I'd have much preferred the gun that shot out an entire picnic table," Minato said seriously. How the creators of that amazing contraption managed to cram an entire day's worth of food into a gun was an impressive mystery.

"What? No way! That sword way more awesome," the girl countered, mildly offended that anyone would choose a picnic gun over a sword manifested out of pure plasma energy.

Minato pulled open a glass door to the chime of an old brass bell, stepping into a local Dust shop in the area. Crystals of red, blue, yellow, and so on glittered in the light of the setting sun. Boxes and shelves were all stocked full of an almost endless variety of Dust. "Hey old man, long time no see," the blunette greeted the lone older man by the front store counter.

"Ah, Minato, Ruby! I still have some of that custom Dust for ya." The graying store keeper brought up a box full of Dust ammo and other assorted colorful crystals. "Here, you two have these free of charge. I heard you were graduating from Signal." The older man gave a kind smile to the boy.

"No, no! Mr. Clayden! We can't take all this!" Ruby tried to push the box of Dust back at the man, "Can we at least pay this at half price? It doesn't seem right to just take this…."

"No, it's alright, kids. You two have always been helping me around the Dust shop. This is the best I can offer to help you out. Save a little of that change for fun, yeah?" The storekeeper stood firmly on his offer.

"How about this?" Minato perked up, drawing the other two's attention. "Since Mr. Clayden insists on this being a gift and refuses a monetary offer, how about we help him around the store?" He turned to Ruby, "We won't be getting this dust completely for free, but instead at the cost of manual labor, so it's a win-win."

"That's a great idea, Minato! Mr. Clayden, can we please help out around your store? Please, please, please?" Ruby's eyes sparkled, displaying the softest of puppy eyes that could win over any human or faunus.

It didn't take long for the old man to cave in to her demands. "Alright, alright… you two can start organizing those boxes of Dust on the back shelf." He gestured to a still unopened, fresh shipment of cargo in the back corner.

Ruby sprinted to the back, gathering as many Dust crystals as she could, and quickly started to stock the shelves. Minato gave the storekeeper a nod before picking up several large shipments on his own. Despite his rather small stature compared to most of the other men in the city, he was still able to rival the strength of their strongest. Back in his days in Signal, he was often compared to the likes of Yang, who was able to easily lift several students up into the air simultaneously and without much effort.

"This goes here, right?" Ruby mumbled to herself, sorting through and organizing the Dust crystals in an ideal order. Minato felt a faint smile run across his face at the warm atmosphere of the humble Dust shop. It was the little things he could do to bring cheer and satisfaction to others that drove his tired soul. It gave him something to look forward to in his days in this foreign land that was not his own. And just as he thought he would bask in another moment of blissful peace, it was quickly shattered by a cold and piercing voice.

"Hand over the Dust, old man!" The sound of a cocked gun and raw steel passed through the tiny storefront. Minato grabbed onto the hilt of his weapon, hiding himself behind a large shelf of crystals. From what he could make out, he saw several black-suited men and what appeared to be their ring leader all aiming their weapons at the defenseless old man.

"Crystals, clean and uncut!" Another demanded, holding a sizeable burlap sack and gesturing to the shaking man. The weak figure of Mr. Clayden was both overshadowed and overpowered by the crude, suited men.

"P-please… you can take all the Dust you want, but leave some for me in the back! Business is tough nowadays—!" A loud bang rang in the distance, shattering a shelf made of wood and glass, only to be followed by a weak gasp.

"Did I say you could make demands, old man? Come on, we're robbing this store of every last drop!" A gleeful yet condescending voice chimed from the counter. Minato could feel a boiling rage start to bubble up from the pit of his stomach. He could see Mr. Clayden nervously gaze back in both his and Ruby's directions.

"Get away from Mr. Clayden, you creeps!" Suddenly, almost from out of nowhere, a crimson blur rushed past several of the criminals and rammed into one of them with the mouth of her rifle, taking several shots at the aggressor's chest that eventually sent him tumbling and crashing into the city streets. Soon, he was followed by another that was equally thrashed and ripped by the blade of a large, crimson scythe.

Ruby watched as the rest of the men pulled out their guns. She was ready to blast another of the suited men into oblivion when the ginger of the group forcefully grabbed the old storekeeper and aimed his cane at his head.

"Move again, kid, and his head goes flying with ya." The ginger's words were as cold as ice.

"M-Mr. Clayden!" The girl froze.

"Ruby! Don't listen to him—"

"Quiet you—!"

"Zio!" As if the single word was enchanted with some sort of magic, all of the lights of the shop cracked and shattered, shrouding the entire building in a cloak of darkness.

"What the—!?" The previous signs of the old man's presence were gone. Instead, it was replaced by a breath of hot steel that ripped into his side, with his head being gripped by a crushing force that slammed his body through the glass and onto the outside pavement. However, the assault wasn't over as his attacker started mercilessly bashing his face into the concrete, again and again in a never ending cycle.

One of the criminals raised their own gun and aimed at the two in the street, but was rushed down and earned himself a roundhouse kick in the head that sent him slamming into two of his comrades. Ruby, fueled by an equally raw anger, sped into a chaotic whirlwind of crimson rose petals, rushing her attackers into the cold air, opening up the blade of her scythe, catching and piling each of their bodies in its deadly grip, and sending a bullet hell into their weakening Auras before forcefully throwing them into the side of a hard, concrete building.

"Threaten someone again, and you won't just leave with a broken Aura…." Minato darkly whispered, his body weight still pressed onto the dying ginger. Cold, silver eyes dug into the helpless man on the ground.

"Tch!" Do you know… who you're messing with, kid…?" Despite earning a deadly blow to his body and head, the criminal on the floor still refused to admit defeat.

"Do you think I care?" The bluenette snapped back, twisting the ginger's arm and causing another yelp to sound.

"Minato, Ruby, you both alright?" Clayden called from his storefront in worry, seeing the pinned ring leader and several suited men nailed into a nearby building. However, instead of a formal reply, all were cut off by a sudden warm breeze filling the air and a raise in temperature of the pavement below.

"Haha, you'll see. You'll see soon enough…." Minato felt a chilling sensation run down his spine, the hairs on the back of his neck rising as the hot wind and choking air began to serve as a dire warning. Something big, something monstrous was coming as the dull clouds in the sky started to shift and dance while sounding out loud claps of thunder.

"What the hell are you going on about?" The enraged bluenette began pressuring the ginger, only to be met with a shrewd smirk and nervous laughter, almost as if the man was in fear himself.

"Ruby, move!" A howl of death shattered the unmoving silence, as a red-hot pillar of spiraling fire headed toward the small girl. Minato twisted around as fast as he could to save her. Ruby transformed into a crimson ball of petals to rush of the out way, but it was too late. Minato boosted himself with a Heat Riser before bolting off into the direction of his friend, using his body as a shield to cover her, crossing his arms and bracing for the blast.

"Minato! No!" Ruby was pushed out of the way of the flaming blast that rocked and rattled the earth beneath them, sending a forceful shockwave below the girl as she watched her friend become engulfed in a ball of fire that ate and ravaged the world around her. Her eyes began to swell, wet with tears, and her legs began to melt into noodles.

"See, Little Red? This is what you get for messing with the wrong crowd!" The broken gringer from before slowly crawled up from the ground, a mad fear in his crazed eyes, "Now that you've seen us, I'm afraid we'll have to end you as well. You know, to not get the word out—"

"Surt!" The scorching wall of flame from before started to swirl and morph, with the ground and earth shifting even more so than it previously did, as a massive pressure began to emerge from the raging fire. What was once an uncontrolled blaze had transformed into a graceful, tamed torrent of calm fire. Minato emerged from his golden cocoon, his silver eyes now glowing a deep red as a colossal humanoid charged the remaining embers in its blackened blade.

"M-Minato!" Ruby screamed in relief, but also in fright as another blast headed their way. She could make out an evil glow in the dark.

Twin tornadoes of embers began to spin and manifest around the bluenette, which soon transformed into a concentrated blast that started to melt his surroundings as they were heated with the energy of several suns.

"Ravage them!" Minato slammed down the ocean of blazing hell, which collided with an equally powerful blast of fire from the dark. The bluenette felt his feet slowly start to form a dent in the melting pavement and he charged even more energy into the blast as it started to push the other flame back. He pressured more and more, being reminded of the threats from earlier, until he had finally had enough of the little charade.

"Ragnarok…"

Roman Torchwick gaped, his mouth slightly ajar, and his eyes filled with a deep dread comparable to only those who had come close to the most gruesome of deaths. He watched the world slowly crawl to a halt as the river of flames from the bluenette doubled in size and overpowered the one from the darkness. For a second, he felt heat start to eat away at his clothes, and his field of view start to go red. However, just as he thought fate had made him meet his end, a flash of blue engulfed his form until there was no trace of his presence left on the battlefield.

Minato dropped to his knees, clutching his head in a searing pain, as a mixture of dead exhaustion and mounting stress forced its way into his system and spread like a deadly venom rushing through his veins that shut down most of his bodily functions and melted his mind. His previously calm state became a panicked one and his breaths quickened as the air around him became thinner and thinner and harder to take in. His body felt light and his vision began to morph and twist, distorting the burning world around him.

"Minato! What's wrong?! Please, Minato!" The boy failed to listen, the embers around him starting to fade.

Ruby tried supporting the boy, tears streaming down her cheeks as panic laced her eyes. Shock and astonishment drowned her in a sea of disbelief and fear— there was no way any of that just occurred. There was no way her friend was capable of what he just did. There was no way that ginger's comrade had that much destructive power.

In the small girl's attempts to revive the bluenette, she barely noticed a new figure approaching her. A blonde, bespectacled woman began to stroll closer, leveling herself with the young huntress-in-training.

"Are you feeling better now, Ms. Rose?" A kind man in green came to the girl, sitting down in the waiting room of a small clinic, holding two cups of coffee in his hands.

"Y-yeah. But is he okay? He looked like he was having a panic attack and—" She desperately pleaded with the man for answers, her face a tired mess from the battle before.

"Please calm yourself, Ms. Rose. Mr. Arisato is pulling through. In fact, they have just determined him to be fit for release." He offered a cup to the huntress-in-training, who gladly accepted the drink along with the pleasant news.

"T-thank you, Mr. Ozpin. I-if you and Ms. Glynda weren't there to help us, then I dunno what we would've done.…" Ruby said shyly, still processing the chaotic events of the day.

"There is no need to thank us. It was the right thing to do, after all."

"Hey, Mr. Ozpin…" The girl gazed at the man, her hands balling into weak fists.

"Yes?"

"You train huntsmen and huntresses at Beacon Academy, right?" He nodded at her bizarre question. He noticed her entire body shaking.

"Of all the people that trained at Beacon…" She took some time to think, "... i-is there anyone with a power… like that? I-I mean are there Semblances that are that… destructive?" Ruby felt an invisible weight weigh over her heart. Not only had her long time friend survived and fired off a blast that could annihilate an entire fleet sent by Atlas, but their attacker had almost pulverized the both of them into charred cinders on the cold city floor.

"No. I must apologize, but there are no such fantastical Semblances at my academy," Ozpin admitted in honesty.

"Then, do you have any idea what they were?" That otherworldly summon by Minato, the mysterious figure in the dark; it all felt so foreign to her. It was almost as if they were powers belonging to a different reality.

"Magic."

"M-magic?" Although she had arrived at a similar conclusion earlier, she had denied such outlandish thoughts.

"Yes, Magic. Powers manifested without the aid of Dust. What you just witnessed tonight, Ms. Rose, is something that needs to be hidden from the public eye." Ozpin's tone grew darker as he finished his last words. The vibe he gave off was no longer that of a simple man. He observed the young huntress-in-training, knowing her face and expression signaled the lost question of 'why.'

"B-but wouldn't that type of power help the people? It can wipe away entire colonies of Grimm. Wouldn't that make the world a safer place?" She thought back to the death of her mother and the general bloodshed huntsmen had to endure to keep the country safe. A pinch of silent anger started to form in the back of her mind. Would her mother still be alive if such powers existed?

"Yes, I won't deny that such powers, when used in the right way, would do plenty of good. However, what do you think would happen if such destructive abilities were to fall into the wrong hands?" Ozpin explained softly, the wisps of steam from his drink disappearing into the cold air.

"The opposite would happen and… the attack from today," Ruby mumbled in realization.

"Precisely. The news of such unreal power would only induce mass unrest and panic. It would also go against most of human culture and countless religions," the headmaster added, sipping some of the last of his coffee.

"Then, what about Minato? He used magic right? Are you going to still admit him to Beacon?"

She watched him with a questioning eye, which amused the headmaster.

"Yes? Why wouldn't I admit him?"

"You won't do anything weird, right?" The gaze she held toward the man became increasingly uncomfortable for him.

"Weird? Pardon me, but can you please elaborate?" Ozpin returned an equally peculiar eye. Her next reply would both stun and frighten him with her dark imagination.

"Haul him off into a wacko lab somewhere and experiment on his body to see how he uses magic." Her tone was flat, dead, and devoid of any signs of life.

"P-please don't say such outlandish things, Ms. Rose. I assure you, he will be treated just as normally as any other student entering Beacon," the headmaster coughed, choking on the very last of his drink.

"Hey, Mr. Ozpin?"

"Yes?"

"May I have a request?"

"What of?" 'What could this small girl possibly ask for?' the headmaster wondered.

"I know this may sound rude but… can I attend Beacon along with Minato?" Ruby stood up from her seat with determined eyes, glittering silver meeting dark brown. "I-it's not that I want a free pass into Beacon…. l'll even go through the entrance exam if you want, but—" she straightened up and carefully picked her words, "I don't want something like this to ever happen to anyone ever again. And since I'm the only one who knows about his abilities, I want to help Minato, too."

What Ozpin had thought was a mere young girl minutes ago, had suddenly vanished before him as he noticed the soft light radiating from her silver-colored eyes. She no longer held the presence of a child. Rather, it was that of a grown and experienced huntress of many years. The fire from the young girl's eyes was enough to momentarily shock the headmaster, as it had been many years since he had experienced someone who was so passionate in stopping the evils of the world.

"And what if I refused? What will you do then?" He asked flatly. Will she start to throw the temper tantrum of a child? Or will she prevail and find another option?

"Then I can't assure what you told me today won't get out." Ruby continued her firm stance. Seconds ticked by, minutes passed, and all activity in the world seemed to halt. Then it happened.

"Fine. As of today, Ms. Rose, you shall be known as one of my students."

"R-really Mr—! I mean, Professor Ozpin?!"

"Yes, speaking as headmaster of Beacon Academy, I hereby admit you to my school."

"T-Thank you so much!" Ruby cheered, "I'll make sure to do my best! I won't let you or anyone down!"

"But, before we officially register you, I want to lay down a few special ground rules. First, you must honor your promise of protecting Minato," the man started to list off. "Second, you must study diligently and fulfill your duties as a huntress in training. And third and finally…" Ruby waited excitedly for the headmaster to finish, "don't forget to have fun. Despite your dreams, you are still a student. Your youth won't last forever."

Minato put a headphone to his ear, a small smile on his face. He could hear the chatter of an enthusiastic girl and an older man from the other side of the hall.

He was happy for his friend.

"Was it really wise to inform her about the existence of magic?" Glynda's face creased in annoyance, letting her frustrations be known by the headmaster.

"Well, it was for the best outcome. Withholding such information from Ms. Rose would have only damaged her in the future. Besides, I trust her to uphold her promise." Ozpin shut the door to the ship.

"And Mr. Arisato?"

Ozpin reached into his bag, pulling out a thick stack of neatly-stapled papers and went over several key sections. "I had the clinic run a few tests. It seems like Mr. Arisato's magical capabilities are completely detached from his Semblance and Aura."

"So his magic works on a completely different set of laws…" the woman concluded, narrowing her eyes. From the several years of research Altas had on Aura and the magic from the previous Fall Maiden, it was implied that one's Semblance, magic, and so on were all tied with one's Aura, and yet the lab results of the bluenette came up negative despite what all of their years of effort said.

"I would assume as well. But either way, I think we may have just found two possible counters to her…."

"Two silver-eyed students. One of them being destructive enough to even overshadow the current Fall Maiden." Glynda's eyes drooped, feeling sorry for the boy. "Such chaotic power will only bring misfortune to him in the long run."

"Yes, and that's why we must play our part, Glynda. We cannot let him fall to the same fate as Amber." Ozpin gestured to the craft for take off, commanding it to lift off from the earth and fly off into the empty sky. There was no celebration, no relief, and no cheer in finding a potential solution to a never-ending problem. Ozpin sighed in tired contemplation, staring out into the cold, starless heavens. Did his weapons of this silent war really have to be… two innocent youth?

A faint glow shone across the calm, black waters, reflecting specks of the shattered crescent moon. Creatures of Grimm scavenged and clawed through high rugged mountains and dead earth, gnawing and dragging behind the remains of what was once alive. Bleached bones and withered fabric littered the land, leaving behind only faded remnants of a fleeting past.

In this bleak and barren world lived a woman. She stood silently in the grand hall of a large castle, with skin as pale as death and eyes of glowing crimson that illuminated her in the peaceful darkness. She directed her blank gaze toward the two smaller figures before her, a young dark-haired female and a fair ginger-haired man.

And in the pale palm of her hand floated a small, blue pixie.