Revised on: March 26, 2018

Water. Earth. Fire. Air.

I once had a friend who used to tell me stories of ages past, when the peoples of the Water Tribes, the Earth Kingdom, the Fire Nation, and the Air Nomads, coexisted in harmony. Together, they stood against the forces of Grimm, creatures of nightmare hailing from another world.

This friend of mine was the Avatar. Only the Avatar could master all four elements. Only he had the power to banish the Grimm. But when the world needed him most… he vanished.

With the Avatar gone, the people of Remnant learned to truly fear the Grimm. Homes were destroyed; families torn apart. And just as it seemed that things couldn't get any worse…

The Fire Nation attacked.

It's been fifteen years since the Avatar disappeared. People have begun to lose faith, claiming that he is gone forever. But I know better. I know that the Avatar is still alive, waiting for the time to reveal herself once again.

I believe the Avatar can save the world.

Book One: Water

Chapter One: The Girl in the Iceberg

Jaune sighed impatiently, keeping his eyes fixed on his fishing rod. He had been drifting slowly through the freezing ocean of the South Pole for half an hour now, yet not a single fish had taken the bait.

There was no way he could go back home with nothing in hand. It was hard enough to deal with people mocking him for his poor swordsmanship skills, the last thing he needed was to give them one more thing to be remembered for.

Still, he couldn't help but feel bitter about his task. They knew he wasn't the best fisherman. There were plenty of people more capable than him, and this was a matter of life or death, yet they had entrusted him with the job anyway. Maybe everyone deserved to go a little hungry this one time.

The hook got stuck in a piece of floating ice, prompting him to stop his canoe and wiggle his fishing rod furiously.

"Stupid fishes…" he grumbled under his breath. "With stupid fish brains…"

He pulled harder on the rod, and suddenly, his canoe tipped to the side and he fell into the water. Jaune was fully underwater for a good few seconds before emerging, his teeth chattering loudly. There was only so much his thick fur clothing could do to help against the cold.

Jaune struggled to get back onto the canoe, which had miraculously stayed upright. He shook his head to get the water out of his eyes and looked around. In the accident, he had let the rod slip from his hands.

"Oh, no," he gulped. "This is really, really bad."

Panicked, he kept looking around. He couldn't go back without fish and the fishing rod!

At last, he saw it, floating away from the canoe. Jaune grinned in relief and paddled with all his might, quickly making his way towards the tool. Luckily, the rod soon hit a miniature iceberg, making its retrieval even faster.

When he reached it, Jaune picked the rod up and cheered for himself quietly. Then he looked at the iceberg and almost jumped out of the boat. There, encased in ice, was a redhead young girl, clad in some weird black tunic. She hugged a long staff made of metal as if it were very precious to her.

"What the-" Jaune blinked. "I've gotta get her out!"

He retrieved his trusty sword from his belt and struck the iceberg with its pommel. Nothing happened. Jaune tried again, and this time a crack appeared.

"Aha!" He brought his sword down one last time, and the iceberg shattered into hundreds of pieces. Before he could do anything about it, the strange girl sank beyond his reach. Jaune took a deep breath and prepared to dive after her, but he stopped as he looked down.

A bright light shone from the depths of the ocean, piercing the surface and reaching high into the sky, like a beacon. The water burbled loudly, spinning in a whirlpool, and then it shot upward.

A pale hand gripped the edge of the canoe, and the girl's head emerged. Her silver eyes were wide with surprise as she looked at him, taking deep breaths.

Not knowing how to react in such a situation, Jaune did the first thing that came to his mind and screamed at the top of his lungs. Naturally, she screamed right back at him.

Slowly, the absurdity of the moment dawned on them, and they fell silent.

"Uh… C-come on! Get up here, you're freezing!" he urged, feeling agony just looking at the girl.

"Okay!" the girl looked around, as if searching for something. "Wait just a second!"

Before he could protest, she dove back into the water. After a few seconds, she emerged again and jumped into the canoe. The wooden construct wobbled dangerously.

"Sorry," the girl said, smiling widely. She raised her hands, showing him her staff. "I couldn't lose this."

"O-okay," Jaune blinked. "How did you get frozen inside an iceberg?"

"Uh… it's a long story. I was flying and I didn't know exactly where I was going, and then I got sleepy…" her eyes shifted away, then back at him, regaining that weird cheerfulness. "I'm Ruby! Nice to meet you!"

"I'm Jaune."

She looked around curiously, her fingers tapping agitatedly against the canoe.

"So, Jaune… Where are we?"

"Come on! Put some effort on it! Is that all you got?!"

The Fire Nation sailor whimpered as he ducked under a barrage of flames. How he'd gotten into this situation was a mystery to him and everyone else. He wasn't even a soldier! Why would the princess choose him over anyone else?

"Jeez," Yang crossed her arms, glaring at him in disappointment. "Fine. Go do your stuff. It's not like I need training or anything!"

He nodded appreciatively and hurried away, not casting a single glance back at her. The princess rolled her eyes and went to lean her back against the front railings of the battleship. Their little session hadn't been very productive, but it had left her sweating and panting in exhaustion.

She heard footsteps approaching and looked to the side, rolling her eyes in the process. "Yes, dad? Here to helpfully lecture me on my many failures in that, ahem, duel?"

At forty years of age and middling height, General Taiyang was not the most fearsome sight, especially for a Fire Nation man. The fact that he had a constant smile on his face did not help the matter at all.

"I wasn't going to say anything," he shrugged his shoulders innocently. "Certainly nothing about conserving your energy for calculated blows, instead of dishing out the flashiest moves you keep daydreaming about."

"I don't daydream," Yang lifted her chin proudly. "…much. Anyway, it's not like I'm going to actually fight anybody of my level. Mother doesn't want us fighting people, just… protecting them," she noted. "And if things get rough, I've always got you by my side."

"As much as I appreciate your trust in me… You should still try and train more effectively," Taiyang said. "I'm telling you, a time will come when you'll be put against foes you can't…"

He cut his speech short, his eyes narrowing on something over his daughter's shoulder. Puzzled, Yang turned around and saw a huge beam of light rising into the sky, far in the horizon.

"Dad? What's that?" she asked in awe.

"That, my dear… is the Avatar," he tilted his head slightly. "It seems like he's in the South Pole."

"The Avatar?" Yang muttered, her heart beating fast in her chest. A smile appeared on her lips. "Score."

She turned and ran to the interior of the ship, yelling for her men to make a course for the South Pole at maximum speed. Taiyang stayed behind, his eyes fixed on the light that now faded in the sky, wondering how and why the Avatar was back.

If there was one thing Jaune had learned in the thirty minutes he had known Ruby for, it's that she liked to talk. A lot. He didn't mind it that much, but she hardly left him any time to reply. She asked about where he lived, how many people were there, what food they ate, if they had any cute animals…

It was a bit too much for a sane person to follow.

For that reason, Jaune felt very relieved when they finally arrived at his village. He docked the canoe on the icy shore and jumped from it. Ruby followed, now examining the unfamiliar sight in front of her in silent awe.

He entered the village with his new companion in tow. A bunch of children were playing in the snow outside their houses, and as soon as they saw the strange red-haired visitor, they flocked around her, jumping and poking her excitedly.

"Oh – Oh!" Ruby giggled. "It's like a swarm of cute… little… cuties! You're so adorable!"

A little boy stepped back and crossed his arms. "I'm not adorable!"

"Yes, you are!" she insisted, pinching his cheek. "So cute!"

Jaune lowered his shoulders in preparation as he saw the adults leaving their houses after hearing the commotion outside. His mother walked to him, shaking her head slowly.

"Jaune," she sighed. "Did you bring a stranger in?"

"Yeah?" he answered hesitantly. "She was freezing out there! Literally. She was inside an iceberg," examining her face, it was painfully clear she didn't believe him. "I couldn't leave her to die…"

"Jaune, sweetie… Okay. I understand," she clucked her tongue. "But the princess won't be happy about it."

"Happy about what?"

A high-pitched voice cut through the children's laughter. Ruby looked at the little ones in puzzlement as they quieted down and scattered, as if they were guilty of something.

The redhead turned around and saw a girl about her age marching towards her. While everyone else in the village wore dark blue clothing, hers was considerably brighter. Her hood was down, revealing long locks of white hair fashioned into a ponytail. A small scar crossed over her left eye.

"Who exactly are you?" she asked haughtily.

"I'm, uh, Ruby," the redhead answered slowly, then smiled and offered her hand. "Nice to meet you!"

"Weiss Schnee," the other girl introduced herself, shaking Ruby's hand for a brief moment. "What are you doing here?"

Ruby tilted her head confusedly. Now how was she supposed to answer that? It's not like she had a clear purpose for being in the village. It was just coincidence.

"I was in an iceberg, but Jaune rescued me," she explained. "He brought me here, to… I don't know, just stay a little while?"

"I see. An iceberg," Weiss's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "And you wouldn't happen to have anything to do with that beacon of light we saw not an hour ago?"

Ruby gulped and looked at Jaune. He seemed more confused than anything else. He had been so close to the beacon she had made, and yet had asked nothing about it.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Ruby shrugged. "Sorry. Hey, you have penguins here in the South Pole, right?"

Weiss stared at her as if she had just said the most absurd thing she had ever heard in her entire life. Ruby shifted her weight between her feet, feeling awkward and silly next to this royal-looking girl.

Slowly, Weiss lifted a hand, pointing to the fields outside the village. "Sure. Go look for some over there," she suggested, then looked at Jaune critically. "Since you're such good friends, maybe you'd like to accompany her."

Jaune groaned inward, but he knew better than to complain in front of Weiss. She had decided how worthy he was a long time ago, but she was always willing to lower that assessment even more. And who knows, maybe going with Ruby would be fun.

Ruby smiled gratefully to Weiss and ran out of the village. Jaune took hold his pants and went after her, struggling to catch up.

Weiss shook her head slowly, an idea forming inside her head. The girl had an Air Nomad staff with her, and a tunic to match it. She had been stuck inside an iceberg and survived. And there was something about her eyes…

"Right," she smiled to herself. "As if that could ever happen."

A girl like that couldn't hold such power. At least, that was what Weiss wanted to believe in. Needed to believe in.

Either way, things were about to change in the South Pole.

Jaune quickly regretted not standing up to Weiss. Ruby was quite eager to see the penguins, and they were now in the process of sliding down a steep snowy hill in search of the animals. He didn't know why she wanted that so much, but the smile on her face made him not ask the question out loud. The girl might have been frozen for weeks, for all he knew; the last thing he wanted to do was ruin her fun.

He lost his balance quite often, almost tumbling down the hill like a ball many, many times. Ruby, on the other hand, seemed to be in complete control, sliding down the snow so gracefully it was like she been born for it. Jaune was beginning to suspect this wasn't the first time she'd done something like this.

Finally, the terror came to an end when they reached even ground. Ruby stepped out into the vast snowy field, looking around curiously. Her brow furrowed as she saw nothing but a handful of slightly larger mounds of snow, but no penguins.

"Hey! Did Weiss lie to me?" Ruby asked. "Why would she lie to me? I didn't do anything wrong to her!"

"No, I'm pretty sure she wasn't lying. Weiss might be a little arrogant, but she's a pretty honest person overall," Jaune scratched his head, facing the same dilemma as his companion. "There are supposed to be penguins here. I know because I used to play with them all the time when I was a kid. Except on Grimm season, of course, because-"

"Jaune, watch out!"

His eyes widened, and suddenly he was knocked to the ground by a rush of wind. He looked up and saw Ruby jump over him, swinging her staff with a mighty yell. She connected with a large white wolf right in its face, knocking it back a long distance.

Jaune got up and looked around. More wolves approached from every direction. Their claws and fangs were sharp enough to rend metal, and their eyes gave off a primal sense of hunger.

"What was that about Grimm?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, I just remembered it's the season! Oops!" Jaune grimaced. "Ruby, we should run!"

"Don't worry," Ruby grinned. "I got this."

Before he could ask what she could possibly do against so many Grimm, Ruby pressed a button on her staff. Much to his fright, a large crescent blade came out from the top of it, turning the non-lethal weapon into a… scythe?

She ran so fast, Jaune had trouble keeping his eyes on her. Ruby jumped and spun in the air, cutting a wolf in half. It dissolved into shadowy clouds, and she sped through them and to the next Grimm.

She delivered death upon the beasts with such ease, Jaune found it disturbing to watch. His eyes widened as she faced the last one from a distance and, instead of approaching it, swung upwards with her scythe. Air surged beneath the wolf's feet, throwing it high in the air. Ruby swung again, this time over her head, and the monster was sent spiraling back down, crashing to the floor mercilessly.

A moment of silence passed as Ruby pressed the button on her scythe again, and it turned back into a simple staff. Jaune stared at her in confusion and awe.

"Ruby, did you just… airbend?"

"Yeah," she smiled, leaning her staff on her shoulders. "Pretty neat, huh?"

A horn rang through the air, deafening every other sound for a while. Ruby frowned and walked back to Jaune.

"What was that?" She asked.

"I think…" he gulped. "I think that was a Fire Nation battleship."

Ruby stared at him, but she seemed to be looking through him. Judging by her silence, his words were bad news to her.

"Jaune," her eyes narrowed. "We need to go back to the village."

Woo! Welcome, welcome, to Avatar: The Legend of Remnant! Yupeee!

I've been wanting to do this crossover for a LONG LONG LONG time. I love AtLA and RWBY so much, I just couldn't resist trying to write this. But this went through so many variations as I searched for the perfect setting... From Jaune being the Avatar, Weiss being Zuko, Summer being Roku... But I believe I've hit the proverbial jackpot.

I want to make one thing clear. This is NOT the Avatar plotline with the cast being substituted by RWBY characters. That's boring. That's lazy. That's many, many things, and I don't want any of it. Of course, there will be many similarities, but as we move forward and away from the opening bits, I hope you'll understand that it is a story of its own.

Mainly, don't worry about Yang = Zuko. I know I can't match something as wonderfully written as Zuko's arc, so Yang is something else, but with plot traits from him. She's neat, I promise.

Also, you'll know who's narrating the intro next chapter. If you figured it out already (and that's probably because you know my RWBY stuff already and I'm predictable), major props to you. Go buy yourself a cookie.

I hope you'll stay with me on this long, hopefully amazing journey.

-Zeroan