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Older picture from before we left but, look at my rattatas right now

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Ruby and Company

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Ruby follows her dad and his hired thugs into the dust store, feeling a bit on edge. It's been nearly two weeks since they met that woman, Cinder, and ever since then, they'd been ramping up their heists, stealing more and more dust - but never the lien. Cinder paid them well for all the dust but never told them what it was for. They were just supposed to hand it off to the White Fang of all people. Now, Ruby's got nothing against the faunus, but the White Fang are a bunch of terroristic assholes who used to be so cool and peaceful but now want to wipe every human from Remnant.

She's not sure how she feels giving a terrorist organization all that dust.

“Red, look alive. We're about to enter showtime!” Roman gives her a brief grin before striding confidently into the store, shouting, “Man, do you know how hard it is to find a dust shop open this late?” He slams a briefcase onto the counter top, ignoring the shopkeeper's pleas, and growls, “Burn. Uncut.” He turns to Ruby and the thugs, “Get the dust. Red, make sure these idiots don't grab the wrong kinds.”

“Yes sir.” Ruby nods, following the thugs to the large pre-ground dust tubes. “Hey, we're after burn, wind, and lightning today. Nothing else.” The thugs nod, each heading for a tube to fill their canisters.

Ruby waits for the last canister to fill before calling out, “Alright, lets go.” She turns, heading for the front of the store, where her dad was still getting the shopkeep to fill the briefcase. “We're done, dad.” She says, skipping up to him, and Roman grins,

“Well, well, you were much faster than this old fart was.” He glares at the old man, and Ruby knows he would have taught the man a lesson on time management (via his cane) had Cinder not requested that there be no murder. Roman scowls, closing the case and looking to the hired thugs, “Let's lock and load, before a hunter comes!”

They only just make it to the roof where Cinder was going to meet them with the bullhead, the hired thugs driving off in stolen vans loaded with dust, when a blonde woman jumps from the next roof, landing before them.

“Halt.” The woman says, flicking her riding crop, “Roman Torchwick, you are under arrest. Please come quietly.”

Roman sighs, “See, about that,” He shoots the woman a wink, “I can't do jail time. Who will take care of my daughter if I get arrested?”

The woman blinks, “You have a child?”

Ruby waves, grinning, “Hello! I'm Red. You're Glynda Goodwitch, deputy headmistress of Beacon Academy, aren't you? We don't want to fight, Miss Goodwitch, but we will if we have too!” In fact, Ruby's kind of hoping for a fight. Dealing with Cinder for the past weeks has been running her ragged. The woman was a slave driver and everything about her made Ruby want to shoot her and rip her eyeballs out. But Roman said not to, so she won't.

“I see.” Goodwitch says, eyes narrowing, “In that case, Roman and Red Torchwick, you are both under arrest.”

Ruby looks to Roman, knowing that she needed to stall a little for Cinder to arrive, “I've never gotten this spiel before. What should I say?” Roman rolls his eyes.

“You say no, Red. And then you get the hell out of dodge.”

“Oh, okay.” She looks back to Goodwitch, “Sorry Miss Goodwitch, my dad said I'm not allowed to get arrested.” At that, the sound of a bullhead comes, and said machine rises out of the alleyway below. Roman hops on immediately, shouting into the cockpit,

“We've got a huntress!” He turns back to Ruby, “Lock and load Red! We gotta go!”

“Coming!” Ruby tries to jump onto the ship, but something grabs the back of her shirt, pulling her away from the bullhead. She lands next to Goodwitch, gasping, a purple aura covering her limbs and making her unable to move. “D-Dad!”

“Red!” Her dad looks between her and Goodwitch, but before he can jump back down, the bullhead takes off. “Hey! Take us back, now! Red!” She hears her dad shout something else at Cinder, but the bullhead doors close and the machine flies off. Ruby stares at the retreating machine, eyes wide and betrayed. Cinder had…

She grits her teeth, blinking away tears, “Fucking Cinder… I knew she couldn't be trusted, the bitch!” A hand grabs her arm and tugs her up, and Ruby's grey eyes meet Goodwitch's green.

“Red Torchwick, you are under arrest for armed robbery.”

“...fuck.”

Ruby shifts in the hard metal chair, wincing as her hands tug on the cuffs restraining them. Goodwitch stands by the door, looking at something on her scroll, occasionally glancing up as if to make sure Ruby was still there. And if the stupid cuffs on her wrist weren't aura suppression cuffs, she'd have been long gone!

Ruby's eyes narrow, glaring at the table, If I ever see Cinder again, I'm gonna shoot her fucking head off. Then I'll get dad to piss on her dead body and Neo to burn her to ashes. Then we'll dance on her fucking grave and send the video to her employer.

“Red Torchwick.” A man's voice comes, startling Ruby.

“Ack!” She looks up, as a man with tousled silver hair walks into the room, Rose's Promise held in his hands. Ruby's eyes immediately latch onto her weapon, checking it over for any dings and scratches. She lets out a relieved sigh when she notices that it's in the same condition as usual - absolutely flawless.

The man clears his throat, gaining her attention, and says, “Miss Torchwick. I do hope you understand what is happening right now.”

Ruby rolls her eyes, “Yeah, my dad's employer's a fucking bitch who betrayed me and left me to the wolves. I always knew she would. What else is new?” The man looks amused at her quips. He steps up to the table and places Rose's Promise onto it, just out of Ruby's reach.

“This cane is quite finely crafted.” The man says conversationally, “Was it your father who made it?”

“No. I did.” She says, “Dad made the first one and it broke so then I remade it.” Not exactly a lie, but close enough. Her dad had her first cane commissioned, but after that one broke Ruby remade it herself. And she's proud of that fact! Even her dad and Neo let her work on their weapons.

The man hums, “I see. That's a very interesting skill for a child criminal to have.” Brown eyes meet her grey, “Tell me, how old are you, Miss Torchwick?”

“...fifteen.” She mutters, glancing between the man and Goodwitch, “I… just turned fifteen” Well, according to the surprise adoption ID her dad gave her at least. Absolutely wild when you consider that Roman himself is only 29. If she were his real child, that meant she would have been born when he was fourteen. Luckily, no one aside from her and Neo knows exactly how old Roman is.

“How interesting.” The man runs a finger down Rose's Promise, lightly tapping one of the hidden blades “You see, Miss Torchwick, you are quite young.” He looks into her eyes again, “Too young for the prison sentence the police wish to give you.”

“Well…”

“The way I see it,” The man looks to Goodwitch who nods, “you have two options set before you. Either you take your chances with the city being lenient on you for your age, or…”

“...or?” Ruby hedges, already having a feeling about what the man's going to say next. He's quite recognizable, after all.

“Do you know who I am?” He asks instead, and Ruby nods,

“You're Ozpin. Headmaster of Beacon Academy.”

“Indeed. Your other option, Miss Torchwick, is this:” He leans forward, “You attend my school and become a huntress. Upon graduating, your records will be erased. A clean slate.”

“And that's… it?” Ruby asks, looking between Ozpin and Goodwitch, “I go to your school and I'm, what, let off scot free?”

“Yes.”

“And you're not gonna ask about my dad or his plans?”

“If you're willing to share, go ahead. But no, I will not ask for that information.” Ozpin smiles, “It's illegal to interrogate a minor without a parent or guardian present, after all.”

“...alright then. I'll… I'll go to Beacon.”

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the girls ❤️🤍

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Ruby and Company

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

“Happy birthday, Red!” Roman shouts, dropping a small box onto her lap.

“But it's not my birthday, dad.” Ruby says, lifting the lid of the box. Inside sits a set of clothes and several boxes of dust rounds. Ruby lifts a piece of the clothes out, revealing a black shirt with a grinning orange pumpkin reminiscent of her dad's emblem on it. Underneath the clothes is… a scroll? She grabs it, powering it on. The first thing that loads is a surprisingly convincing fake ID.

No, wait. This is a real identification card. Ruby raises a brow as she reads the information displayed. Red Torchwick is the name inscribed. The date of birth was the current day some fifteen years ago, and a picture of her, with her crimson dyed hair, is staring neutrally out at her with grey eyes. She'd kept dyeing her hair all these years because it made her look more like Roman and really sold a relation between them. She didn't need her green contacts anymore, as her eyes finally decided that grey was their preferred colour over silver. Neo had read on the internet that sometimes a kid's eyes change colour, and that it was normal, so they all stopped worrying about the slow change and instead embraced it.

Huh. She actually hadn't noticed how much she looked like her dad until she saw his surname beside a picture of her.

Wait.

Was this Roman adopting her for real?! This is how he springs it on her!? That motherfu-

Roman chuckles, interrupting her inspection of the scroll, “Aw, Red, have you forgotten already? It's been exactly ten years since we met!” He gestures out the door of the warehouse, “Ten years ago today, I caught little five year old you right outside there. Best decade of my life, if I'm being honest.”

“It has?” Ruby blinks, placing the scroll back in the box, “Oh my gosh, I didn't realize!” Roman laughs, reaching forward to ruffle her hair.

“Come on Red, we've got a meeting to get ready for.”

“Ack! My hair!”

Ruby warily eyes the woman who stalks into their warehouse as if she owns it. Her long black hair and glowing amber eyes were surprisingly distinct despite the fact that Ruby could name at least a dozen people who had the same colour combination.

Something about this woman is dangerous. It's making every survival sense Ruby has scream at her to either run or get rid of the threat. Her grip tightens on Rose's Promise as the woman saunters closer. She can sense Neo shifting closer to Roman, the closer the woman gets.

“Roman Torchwick, I presume?” The woman says, her voice sounding like honeyed poison to Ruby's ears. She continues, “I am Cinder Fall, and my employer and I have an offer you can't refuse.”

“Yeah? What kind of offer?” Roman takes a drag from his cigar, ashing it on the floor, “It better be worth my while or else, well, my associates here will deal with you.” Cinder raises a brow and lifts a hand. Ruby feels something in her aura shift unnaturally as a fireball pops out of the outstretched hand.

“Trust me, Roman. This offer is to die for.”

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Ruby and Company

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Ten year old Ruby hobbles into the dust shop, looking suitably pathetic. She's faking a heavy limp and leaning on her weapon as if it is a mobility aid. Her most defining traits are hidden - her red cloak is hanging up back at the base in her room, her hair has been dyed a crimson colour, and her eyes have a pair of green contact lenses in them. Silver was a very distinct colour, after all.

(Although her eyes have been less silver and more grey with every passing day… even Roman and Neo noticed that. They're not sure why it's happening though…)

"How may I help you today, little boy?" The shopkeeper asks, and Ruby feels her eyebrow twitch. Sure, she had short hair and was wearing kinda boyish clothes, but she's still a girl, dammit! She gives the shopkeep a smile, shrugging off her irritation.

"Oh, my dad needs some burn dust! May I have a canister please?" She holds a hand out and the shopkeep gives her the canister with a soft smile.

"If you need any help, just ask!"

"Sure thing!" She hobbles deeper into the store, towards the tubes of pre-ground dust. She glances around as she goes, noting with glee that the shop is empty. She hooks the canister up to the burn dust tube and, as it's filling, fishes out her scroll. She sends a quick confirmation to Roman. Her scroll dings with a message of 'Showtime, red!' With a grin, she tucks the device back into her pocket.

The bell to the front door of the shop rings, and she hears Roman shout into the shop,

"Man, it is hard to find a dust shop open this late!" His voice lowers to a point where she can't hear him anymore. Ruby hums a little tune as she grabs the now full of dust canister. With a beaming smile she skips to the front of the shop, Rose's Promise twirling in her grip.

The shopkeep spies her first, "Kid, get out of here! This guy's dangerous!"

Ruby giggles, "Duh! I know he's dangerous! That's my dad!"

Roman chuckles, glaring at the shopkeep, "Now. Lien and dust - in that order!"

"Chop chop!" Ruby snaps, raising Rose's Promise and pointing it at the shopkeep.

Roman smirks, "You heard the girl! Hurry up!" The shopkeeper shakes as he fills a case full of uncut dust crystals, some pre-ground packages of dust, and what lien he had in the till. Roman takes his time to count the money, grinning wide once he finishes, "Thank you for your cooperation, good sir!" He turns to Ruby, "Red?"

"Got it!" Ruby quickly shifts the focus of her weapon, firing upwards and blanketing the shop in darkness. She twists on her heel, grabbing Roman and activating her semblance to teleport out of there.

"Woo, you were right, red!" Roman laughs, settling the case full of dust and cash on the table, "Going around the night before Beacon starts is perfect!"

Ruby smiles, "Of course! All those hopefuls buying out entire stocks makes it the best for robbing!"

"Let's see… five uncut burn, two uncut gravity, and an uncut wind… six packs of ground burn, four metal, and four lightning… aaaaand… sixteen thousand three hundred twenty lien!" He chuckles darkly, "This is fantastic!"

Neo chooses that moment to enter, a bright grin on her face, blood splattered across her front. She crosses the warehouse floor and offers Roman a piece of paper with a flourish.

Roman raises a brow, "Oh? Was your mission successful too then?" He eyes her, "Probably more than ours, I'd say!" He shoos her off, "Shoo, shoo, go take a shower! You reek of blood."

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Ruby and Company

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Here's part 2 of my Ruby and Company AU! Sorry it took so long tumblr mobile is being a bitch lmao

"Alright, red, this is my weapon." Roman says, holding out his cane, "Its name is Melodic Cudgel."

Ruby eyes the cane in excitement, "Wow! What can it do? Is it also a gun?!"

"Of course it's also a gun!" He gives Neo a pouting frown, "Unlike Neo, I can appreciate the use of a proper gun!" Neo sticks her tongue out, twirling her parasol.

Ruby looks at Neo's weapon, "Wait, yours isn't a gun? Then what does it do?" Neo smirks, letting a sharp blade pop out of the parasol's tip. Ruby gasps, "Wow!"

"Hush is also bulletproof." Roman adds, leaning on his cane, "But enough about our weapons." He looks at Ruby, "You're, what, eight now? I say that's plenty old enough to have a weapon of your own!"

"Really!"

Roman grins, "Oh, yeah. But now's the hard part - what do you want?"

Ruby freezes, mind racing a mile a minute. What kind of weapon does she want? For the longest time, she wanted a scythe-sword like her uncle, but she's not dumb. She knows how hard such a thing would be to actually use without someone training her.

She looks back at Roman and Neo's weapons. Maybe… maybe something similar to theirs? She's not an umbrella kinda girl, though. So a cane? One that's also a gun - but has a hidden blade like Neo's! That would be cool! Maybe it could telescope out to get longer for bludgeoning but also get shorter to use like a dagger or a sickle! Or, or, the hidden blade could be in the grip of the cane. That way she can remove the telescoping to increase firepower! Yeah!

"I got it!" She smiles. Roman and Neo share a raised eyebrow.

"Lay it on us then, little red."

Her new weapon is delivered within a week, looking just like she'd described. Ruby pulls the cane from the case it was in, giving it an experimental twirl.

The cane is made of lightweight yet durable metals, with a wood-like texture for the grip. The shaft is mostly a metallic silver. Towards the bottom of the cane is a set of expertly disguised mech-shift, looking like a decorative red 'T' set in deep black. Its grip is faux wood painted with a glossy finish, with the very top painted bright red. The gun's trigger blends near perfectly into the black finish. Two hidden buttons are placed on both sides of the grip - one to release the hidden blade in the grip and the other to release the blades hidden along the bottom.

All in all, it's very close to what she had been imagining.

It's perfect.

"So, little red, what's its name?" Roman asks, leaning forward to get a good look. "Also, loving the fact that you based it off mine. Real ego boost there."

"A name…? I'm not sure…" Ruby frowns down at her new weapon. It's a gorgeous weapon, perfect in every way, but a name eludes her. How do people just come up with such cool names? Roman said he named Melodic Cudgel because he liked the screams of his foes when he hit them and Neo named hers Hush because it was perfect for a quiet death. Maybe… maybe something referencing her past? Or… her mother? Yeah. Something like -

A hand waves in front of her face, startling her.

"Red? You there?" Roman asks, snapping his fingers.

"Uh, yeah. Um, just thinking." She grips her weapon tighter, "I think I've got it." She takes a deep breath, "Rose's Promise."

Roman blinks, "Ah. Cool name. Uh, I'm assuming that's a personal thing then?"

"Y-Yeah. Um… my mom, you know?"

"Ah." Roman nods, "Well, awkward air aside, how about we start training!" He flicks her forehead with a smirk, "Gotta get you up to task 'fore you can do anything with us!"

--

This is how I picture Ruby's new weapon:

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Here's the first part of one of my many, many RWBY AUs. I've lovingly called this one:

Ruby and Company

This AU is based very loosely off the movie Oliver and Company (one of my favourite movies lol). I disregards quite a bit of the book Roman Holiday and I make up a bit of lore on Silver Eyed Warriors as well.

If I were to post this to AO3, here's the summary I'd come up with:

Ruby's five years old. Her mother's just vanished, her sister nearly got her killed, her uncle's never home, and her dad can't even look at her.

One day, her dad bundles her and her sister up in their nicest clothes and takes them into Vale to meet someone really important.

She hadn't meant to wander off. She just saw something really cool in a shop window and lingered behind to stare.

And that's all it takes to alter fate forever, when Ruby meets a smarmy young man and his mute companion;

"Why should we worry, little red?"

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Ruby hadn't meant to wander off. Really! It's just, there was a cool looking toy in one of the shop windows, and surely her dad and sister would notice she wasn't with them, right?

But they hadn't.

Ruby's hands clench tight to her red hood, as she glances around, trying and failing to spot her family. A few people walking past frown worryingly down at her, but none stop and ask her why she's alone.

A man shouts, "Hey, kid!" startling Ruby. Her newly activated semblance flares to life, and suddenly she's in some darker area of the city, filled with warehouses.

"Uh oh…" Ruby mumbles, looking around. Now she's double lost! She throws her hood over her head, tugging it down low over her eyes. Now what does she do?

"Gotcha!" A hand grabs her hood, yanking her up off the ground. She shrieks, hands scrabbling at the air as whoever has her turns her. Green eyes meet her silver, and the young man holding her up frowns, "Wait, you're not Neo." He drops her. Ruby squeaks as she hits the ground with a muted thump.

She glares up at the young man, "What was that for you… y-you pumpkin head!"

The man sputters out a laugh, "Was that the best insult you could think of little red? Really? Pumpkin head!" His laughs fade into chuckles, "Ooh, man, I haven't laughed like that in forever!" Ruby stands, scowling, as the man wipes a tear from his eye. He rubs his chest with a wince, "Oh, oof, my ribs!" He glances down at her and snickers.

"Stop laughing at me you meanie head!"

His laughter returns full force, "M-Meanie head! Oh, little red, you're a riot!" He crouches before her, "So, what's a pipsqueak like you doing in Vale's infamous warehouse district?"

She crosses her arms, "None of your business!" He flicks her forehead with a roll of his eyes.

"You're lost, ain't cha?"

"I am not!"

He rubs the back of his neck, "Sheesh… I can't exactly just walk into a police station. But I can't let some little kid just walk around this sort of place…" He looks her up and down, "Guess that means you're stuck with me for now. Well, me and Neo - speak of the devil!" Ruby nearly screams as a girl maybe ten or so years older than her suddenly appears out of nowhere beside the man. The girl looks her over, an eyebrow raised. She gestures vaguely at Ruby, and the man shrugs, "I dunno. Some street rat, I guess." He stands, "What's your name anyway, little red? I'm Roman, this is Neo, say hi Neo!" The girl gives a wave.

Ruby glances between him and Neo, "I… I'm Ruby."

Ruby's not sure how it happened, but now she's in some converted warehouse, sitting on a ratty couch, a mug of hot cocoa in her hands. She blows gently on the steam coming from her mug before taking a sip. Not the best cocoa she's had, but still really delicious!

"So…" Roman starts, as he flops down next to her, "Why were you in the warehouse district, kid?" Neo sits primly beside him, eyes curious. Ruby quickly learnt that the other girl couldn't talk, after a few minutes of awkward fumbling.

"Uh, well… err, I was lost?" She stutters out, eyes darting between the two. Roman shoots Neo an exasperated look.

"Not… exactly what I meant, little red." He runs a hand through his orange hair, "Why were you alone?"

"I…" Something about his genuine concern makes all the bubbling emotions building in her over the past month to explode out, "My mom never came home from her mission and my uncle's always gone and my sister nearly got me and her killed by the grimm and my dad can't even look at me!" She slams her cocoa down onto the worn table, spilling it, "I hate them! All of them!" She buries her head in her hands, crying.

"Yeesh…" Roman mutters, giving Neo a knowing look, "...and here I thought I was done picking up strays…" He drops a hand onto her back, rubbing gentle circles, "There, there, red. Crying ain't gonna change shit." Ruby looks up at him, confused, and he continues, "All that's gonna do is make you feel worse. Don't get sad, get mad. Get even!"

"...how?"

Roman blinks, "Well, those jerks clearly don't care about your feelings, so why care about theirs? No one said you have to leave, little red. You… can stay with us."

Ruby's eyes widen, "W-What? Stay… here?"

"We're criminals red. But we take care of our own, ya hear?" Criminals? But Roman and Neo were so… normal.

"I…"

"Hey, if you need a minute to think about it, go ahead." He shrugs, "But do you really wanna go back to a family that ignores you one second only to nearly kill you the next?"

"...no. No I don't." Ruby gives a determined nod, "Please, let me stay here!"

Roman chuckles, "First rule, little red - never say please. You're one of us now. You don't have to be so polite!"

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Ghost rider yang

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Speedpaint

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RWBY Villains could be scarier

I'm not a writer, like at all. I have no idea how to write a show and CRWBY gets a lot flack they dont deserve. I just wanted to give my opinion on the villains in RWBY. I've had this idea keeping me up at night, I just wanna get it out. Don't worry I haven't seen the newest volume so no spoilers here.

Cool? Cool. Alright down the rabbit hole.

We have our big bad in RWBY, Salem (also the Gods suck too but that's just me.) And we have seen some really creepy Grimm.

I mean the nuckelavee

The apathy

Horrifying. Grimm can and should be scary. They are monsters who are basically immortal who can learn as they get older. How smart can they get?

They can learn when to attack humans.

They can apparently use magic.

When I first saw Salem I assumed she was some subspecies of grimm who looked like human. Maybe to trick dumb humans. Like I can't shoot this grimm it looks like a girl. And then she kills them. I imagined she was like a queen bee who could lead her armies to destroy mankind and all their creations. So what if the members of her roundtable were all grimm too. Grimm who have lived long enough to be intelligent.

It would make the Grimm more than a horde you have to get through. But a force of nature that truly wants to end your entire species.

We have a wicked witch so why not other antagonists from other Fairy Tales. Since we already have Tyrian in Canon, I'm thinking a Grimm modeled after the Scorpion from Aesop's fable. Tyrian normal, creepy. Grimm Tyrian with six red eyes, giant pincers and a stinger, nightmare fuel.

And that's not all, we could have the Big Bad wolf, the jabberwocky, the Queen of Hearts, Wendigos, any story we tell our children to make them behave. It would make those grimm extra creepy. What have they done to survive all these years. How strong must they be to never be purified by huntsman of the past. They aren't just mindless, soulless beings but an organized force. All working together with the efficiency of a ant hive. Have you seen that video of a colony of ants working together to steal eggs from a wasp hive? Like that but bigger. Without ego or any human emotions.

Just trying over and over again, learning from each failure until they succeed. Mankind's worst enemy. And if the protagonists don't get it together, Mankind's end. But that's just me.

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Rin of the Mist . Loosely based on Adrift

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in another, another universe

im gonna call this arcane no angst universe

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Im right

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~Orianna, maybe~ ARCANE s2e09 - "The Dirt Under Your Nails"

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does he need a reason to do science crimes, really?

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a fathers love

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piltovers finest: hr hates them