Beacon Academy, Vale

"Ruby! Ruby? Where are you? I need you to fix something for me!"

A certain white-haired heiress returned to the cavernous room that was Beacon Academy's armory. It was hardly surprising that the premier combat school in the Kingdom of Vale had a workshop rivaling an Atlas military research lab at the students disposal.

What was more surprising, considering the field-stripped sniper scythe lying on a high-tech workbench, was the lack of the owner's hyperactive presence. The proud mother was never known to leave her "baby" unattended. Weiss had more than once had to gently pry the folded weapon from her sleeping partner's grip.

"Ruby Rose! I'm going to get VERY mad if this is some kind of trick! Get out here!"

But she was just in here! I leave that girl for five minutes and she vanishes on me...

Mildly annoyed at her partner's unreliability, Weiss set aside the elaborate case holding her heirloom rapier and took stock of the impressive workshop.

Hmmm….She really can use all these tools can't she? I understand the principles of gunsmithing at least...but what is THAT?

Weiss examined a machine bearing her family crest. Some kind of dust-enhanced fabrication machine...she'd never seen one. Hardly surprising though. For a family whose fortunes were built on modernizing Dust refinement, the Schnee's personal armorer was more of a craftsman than a technician, and looked down on modern "calibrations" or "computerized fabrication" in favor of hand-fitting and field tests.

A strange object on the workbench opposite the abandoned Crescent Rose caught Weiss's attention. She sensed it before she felt it.

It was about the size of a cigar case. Slender and silver, there were no moving parts. So far as she could see, it was just a very ornate paperweight…

But Weiss wasn't looking at it with her vision. The object had a very strong presence that could be felt through the same sixth sense that warned Huntresses of incoming danger. That is, this thing, this lifeless box...It projected Aura like a living thing.

Weiss felt a sudden chill. Not a draft into the room (though it was quite cold in here, now that she thought about it...) but a terrifying memory surfacing. She's seen this, once before. That THING, that hollow armor her father had once set against her, testing her determination at the risk of her life. It had a presence like this, the aura of life emanating from cold steel.

Before she could be lost in her thoughts, Ruby returned.

"Hey Weiss! Coooookies!"

By way of explanation she casually slid a plate of still-steaming chocolate chip cookies and a glass bottle of milk down the workbench towards Weiss.

"Uh...thank you? But really Ruby, we are partners...You need to stop running off like that."

"But I was working down here and I got hungry! It's not like I forgot I promised to fix Myrtenaster!"

"Really?" Weiss cocked her head and pouted. "You forgot didn't you."

"Nope!"

Weiss's stance didn't waver

"Sorry…"

"You know what? It doesn't even matter now...while you ran off for a snack, the free period's wasting away. Class is in ten minutes. It's just jamming up. I'll leave this here with you, but promise just to fix it before dueling practise tonight, OK?

"I promise. No flamethrower mods, no magnum-conversions on the dust chambers. I'll just leave it in your locker when I'm done."

"Thanks. But I swear Ruby! If you modify my family heirloom, or damage the engraving, I'll never forgive you."

"You can count on me Weiss! I'll do it before lunch, so just come down and grab it after you eat. But Weiss?"

"Yes Ruby?"

"Why trust me to fix your...priceless family heirloom? Don't you have some fancy butler to do it or something?"

"Not without sending it off to Winter. You said it. I trust you. And I want my partner to know how my weapon works, just in case…"

"In case?"

"Sorry, nothing, I got distracted. Oh jeez, I'm almost late to class. Bye Ruby!" Without giving her partner a chance to respond, Weiss dashed off towards Oobleck's fascinating lecture on the finer points of Atlas's pre-war mining industry.

Neither Weiss in her rush to class, nor Ruby consumed with her meticulous repairs to Myrtenaster's cylinder catch, noticed the faint glow that began to build from the "engraving" of the mysterious object on Professor Port's workbench.

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