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The Rose Family Grimoire was a book of great power, sought after by many for various reasons.
For Ruby however? It was the gateway, a portal into a life outside the woods she grew up in, a vision into far away places.
Places, dreams, and landscapes she could experience even as sickly as she was.
A rival family had cursed her mother’s line. Likely as not she’d have never tried for a child had she not already been pregnant at the time. As it was, the curse had taken root, making her body weak, and sickly, but her mind was sharp, and her spirit indomitable.
She’d heard all the reasons before about why she shouldn’t play around with the tome until she’d reached a proper age, or when she was stronger, and at first she’d been content to listen. After all she had plenty to learn, and she did still tire quickly, only having a pair of powerful mothers kept her illness in check. That, and the host of medicines that were brewed for her.
It was only when she’d finally asked her parents how they’d actually met that her interest in the book had been reignited.
Soulmates? The idea was highly romantic, and to her, a young woman trapped in a cabin, even as spacious as it was, was highly suffocating sometimes.
She did a good job of pretending to find the story cute, which wasn’t hard since it really was, but she didn’t do anything more than that…outwardly.
Internally she began her plotting. Having nothing better to do she was already an exceedingly accomplished witch, and while her parents' protections were strong they weren’t expecting her to really attempt to read the book, and thus weren’t as powerful as they could be.
The first night after she’d bypassed the protections, because removing them would only serve to alert them of what she’d done, she’d celebrated, but hadn’t touched it.
She wanted to see if they noticed, or talked to her about it. When they hadn’t, she’d moved onto touching, opening, and then reading bits of the book just to see if any punishment came her way.
After nearly two weeks of them not appearing to notice anything amiss, she’d read in earnest with a small ball of magic as her light. She’d claimed to be tired, and taken a nap earlier to ready herself for this. She had some small bits of food ready to keep her sated, and began her search.
Finding the specific spell she was looking for was remarkably easy thanks to the self updating index, but the required components would be more difficult.
There wasn’t even a ritual circle required, but she needed to sleep with a small block of wood for a week. When she did, her mind would instinctively carve out a token from the wood that the other party would be attracted to, and would represent them.
The wood blocks wouldn’t be an issue as her family had many in the basement. They were used in all manner of charms, or wards, and she’d helped make the base blocks before.
While she wasn’t fond of it, bleeding on the block at each corner was also doable. It was more the fact that she wasn’t sure what she could realistically offer said soulmate, if they existed.
She was sick all the time, only kept upright by the constant efforts of her parents, and her uncle who would go out to find the rare ingredients required for her.
She was already a burden on her parents, would she want to be that for someone else too? A soulmate?
The idea was tantalizing. Meeting someone who could complete her, who could understand her in ways she would never guess, and yet what if she held them back? What if they were already happy? Already had a relationship? Someone they loved? Never wanted to meet her?
The idea tormented her daily. She did the first few parts of the preparation since she could always stop, and she wanted to see what the token might be, if only to give her potential insight into her soulmate.
The block of wood went unmissed, and for the first few nights it was whittled away as she slumbered with her having no clue what the result was going to be.
It was on the fourth night that it started to take shape, and the sixth before she realized it was a sort of snowflake emblem.
Even with the stained blood on the corners it was breathtaking. On the seventh night the blood had seeped from the corners, and into the design itself giving her a small wooden brooch with red highlights.
Despite the rather simple design Ruby was mesmerized by it. Her soulmate must be so pretty, and elegant. There was also a sense of restlessness, of palpable loneliness despite it all.
She spent almost another full week studying the brooch when she had the time, and had finished her studies. It was her family all leaving on a quick ‘job’ that had her decide it was the perfect time to try the ritual.
She made sure she had enough food, and water packed for a few days in her magically expanded pouch, reagents for simple ritual magics, and other items of use on her person.
She’d long past memorized the words needed, and with the deceptively simple chant began the spell as she clutched the token.
For a moment nothing happened, before a strange portal opened in the center of her room. She was about to close her eyes, and look at the magics surrounding it before she was pulled like a magnet end toward the portal so quickly she didn’t even have a chance to fight against it.
She fell what seemed to be forever, and yet no time at all, the token glowing almost a blinding red. No matter what Ruby refused to lose her grip on it, only bad things would happen if she did, the book had been specific that it was imperative she not let go unless giving it to her soulmate. The portal hadn’t been mentioned though, odd that.
Finally, she mercifully stumbled onto solid ground.
She lifted her head up to survey the room, and found it surprisingly empty save for a few robed figures who had their heads bowed in supplication.
Feeling a bit stronger than usual, Ruby stood up, and basked in the lack of pain she felt.
“She has the brooch!” one of the hooded figures whispered excitedly before the man in front, the only one who wasn’t cloaked held up a hand for silence.
Ruby’s first impression of him was that he was a kindly older gentlemen, but one who was still strong, and capable of enforcing his will should he need to. She liked his red cape though, but she had to admit that this was not the sort of person she’d consider her soulmate. She didn’t care much for boys that much, or men she supposed.
“Greetings honored Messenger,” the man began as Ruby listened politely to him. It seemed only right to do that.
“I am Sir Nicholas Schnee, the current head of the Schnee Empire.”
“Oh, I’m Ruby Rose, wild witch in training,” Ruby introduced herself after the silence had gone on for a second too long.
“Surely she jests,” one of the cloaked figures responded as Ruby looked toward them.
“Jest?”
“We can feel the power rolling off of you. The amount of magic you wield outstrips the entire royal court put together. In training? A jok-” the woman, if the voice was right, was cut off by the other figure next to her slapping a hand across her mouth.
“Be silent, Weiss. Do not interrupt, or insult God's messenger!”
“Messenger?”
“Yes. We apologize for this most uncouth method of summoning you, or for my granddaughter's interruption. She is most spirited.”
“No, that’s fine. I thought I was the one who opened a portal here though,” Ruby murmured.
“You did,” Nicholas assured her. “We have been waiting on you to do so as was prophesied, and once we felt it we merely opened it from out side.”
“Ah,” Ruby said, a small redirection of the portal magic then. Fascinating. “Gotcha. I’m assuming we’re here for different reasons?”
“You had business with us?” the man said, sounding confused.
“Yeah. In my family there’s a book that takes you to your soulmate with a token. I was curious, and well, here I am.”
“So you’re not here to help us?” the woman who’d spoken earlier, Weiss, if she remembered correctly, asked waspishly.
“I didn’t even know you existed until five minutes ago, sorry. What do you need help with?”
“Our kingdom is beset by horrible monsters, undead, dragons, demons, and corrupt members of the court. The common man has begun speaking of the end of days. I refuse to let it happen on my watch,” Nicholas stated firmly.
“Well I mean, I’m not sure how much I can help before I have to go back, but-”
“Go back?”
“Uh, yeah. My moms, and uncle would be super mad when I don’t come back in time for dinner.”
“There…it was a one way portal.”
“You’re joking,” Ruby stated seriously, her voice crackling with power as the man shuddered under its might.
Ruby turned around, and sure enough no trace of the portal could be seen. She stared in shock for a handful of seconds before she summoned up her magic, and flicked her wrist trying to tear a portal open. Several attempts with more, and more magic each resulted in a failure as she turned to the ones who brought her here.
“SEND ME BACK!”
“I can not,” the man stated, his tone firm.
“Pax,” the second hooded figure who had yet to speak interrupted with a set of raised hands palms toward Ruby to show they weren’t a threat. “A bargain?”
“Send me back,” Ruby repeated, the power in her words crashing down around them making it harder to breathe.
“We will get every magical user in our kingdom working on a way to reverse the portal, and send you back, and in the meantime you help us make sure they can do so, by helping the kingdom.”
Rather than appear appeased, Ruby instead glared even harder. “So my reward for fixing your messes is that you’ll try, with no guarantee to fix one on your own?”
“W-what could we possibly offer you?”
“You mean you had nothing ready for me? You were going to summon God’s messenger, and just beg them to help for nothing?” Ruby asked. Not that she’d planned on asking for anything, but really it seemed like there was no real planning going on here.
“I told you not to do this grandfather!”
“Be silent, Weiss!” the unnamed figured rebuked Weiss who shrugged off the hand, and pulled her hood back.
All at once the world around them seemed to cease to exist, the token in Ruby’s hand grew almost burning to the touch, and Weiss felt her eyes widen as she looked at Ruby in the eyes for the first time.
“You…” Ruby said, unable to say any more as Weiss nodded dumbly, her hand reaching out on instinct.
Ruby gently took the token from her hand, and placed it into Weiss’ and blinked as it slowly turned from wood into a necklace made of the finest materials, and appeared around both of their necks.
“I…feel you,” Weiss mumbled as feelings, and images flashes across her vision. “Light, your magic is powerful.”
“And I you,” Ruby muttered. “I don’t understand. I wasn’t this strong back at home.”
“Your mother’s line was cursed, you were weakened, but here the curse holds no such power so it was broken. This is you with your potential unshackled,” Weiss theorized as Ruby’s memory became her own, and vice versa.
“Your family is…in deep trouble,” Ruby said simply as Weiss grunted in agreement. “The prophecy…”
“Yes,” Weiss said simply.
“ When work is done, and time for rest is near, the Messenger and her consort show no fear as they leave to continue on far from here .”
“That’s something my uncle would make up while drunk,” Ruby argued.
“Our seer was drunk when he made the prediction,” Weiss confided as she rubbed at her head which was buzzing with new information, and a massive headache, at least until she felt a few fingers on her forehead, and it vanished. “Thank you.”
Ruby gave her a blinding smile in response to that.
“What now?” Weiss asked.
“I guess…well I’d be a pretty bad partner if I didn’t help you right?” Ruby joked.
Weiss scoffed, and brushed imaginary lint from her robe. “You have to earn that right, soulmate, or not.”
“Oh, I’m gonna earn it so hard!” Ruby promised.
“I look forward to seeing you try,” Weiss teased as she crossed her arms. “I’ll be by your side at every step of the way.”
“Right. We can do this.”
Two hundred years later
Ruby sighed as she let herself rest in the throne she now resided on. Despite people claiming she was a god in human form Ruby always deferred to Weiss when it came to running the kingdom.
Even if her skin was wrinkly, and her sight was starting to go, Weiss was never anything less than resplendent even as she aged.
Long ago things had settled down. The kingdom was more prosperous than ever before. Weiss had set things up for their eventual passing, and a simple transfer of power was ready to be done. Weiss always had a letter on her person that carried updated instructions to be carried out upon her death.
The uprisings had been quelled, and order restored, her family’s name was once more revered, and praised, and likely would be for many, many years to come.
The corrupt were slowly weeded out, including Weiss’s father who had been trying to subtly poison her grandfather. That had been a dark day for all involved.
Still, here they were now in the last days of their rule as the golden glow of fall washed over the flooring. Weiss was by her side idly rubbing her fingers over her thumb as they watched the sunset together.
Over a century of marriage to her soulmate had helped Ruby immensely lighten the load on her soul.
She looked over at her wife, and grinned, tired lips curving up in her attempt at a roguish smile.
“You’re incorrigible,” Weiss complained, although her smile belief her words.
“Not dead yet, right?” Ruby joked.
“You might be after that.”
“What a way to go though. Shame we’d mortify the others,” Ruby mused as Weiss snorted behind her hand.
They were both startled when a portal opened in the throne room. Ruby, with the assistance of magic, moved far faster than her age should allow as she stood in front of her wife.
“Kid you are in so much trouble when you get…the shit?” Raven asked as she looked at her daughter who rather than a young teen was now a super centurion.
“Mama Raven?” Ruby asked in disbelief, her voice scratchy.
“Yeah kid. I just…we told you not to mess with that book. We needed to get the stuff ready to pull you back. Your mom is so mad. You're so grounded when you get back.”
“And Uncle Qrow?”
“Crying in a corner,” Raven deadpanned before she looked past her daughter. “This the one?”
“This is Weiss. Queen of the kingdom.”
“You sure aim high. Regardless, let's get you home. The portal should be stable enough for both of you.”
“My kingdom,” Weiss muttered as Ruby looked at her with love, and compassion in her eyes.
“Whatever you decide we’ll do.”
“I don’t know if I see the point in abandoning it when we’re a few seasons at most away from our eternal rest,” Weiss admitted.
“Not on this side,” Raven cut in. “You’ve only been gone a couple days this side so you’d be about the same age when you met according to the spell calculations we ran.”
“It would be fitting, I suppose,” Weiss mused. “To simply vanish into the ether. Very awe inspiring as a story.”
“And we could visit once every couple of weeks to check in on them once I learn how to open this portal! It’ll only be a few days for us, but ages for them.”
“That does sound appealing,” Weiss admitted as she took the letter from her robes, and laid it on her throne.
“What do you say? Want to do it all over with me again?” Ruby asked excitedly.
“You idiot. Of course I do,” Weiss said as she grabbed Ruby’s hand tightly, and followed Raven through the portal, and back into another life of adventure that awaited them in Ruby’s world.