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April 5th 2002 AA 02:34 PM
Beacon Academy, Vale, North Sanus
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It was a quiet day. Ruby and Penny were doing some data compiling on some old info from some servers. While her expertise was more in hardware, Ruby did enjoy learning programming and Penny, being an AI, embodied it. So they were sitting in the Beacon Library, just relaxing and nerding out.
"So, what's this new project you're working on, Penny?" Ruby asked with an eager smile.
"I am reconstructing data files from November 12th, 1971 AA Calendar, Friend Ruby," Penny said, with her own bright smile.
Ruby nodded as her eyes flashed in realization.
"Oh, the day of that huge electrical storm? Didn't it fry all the primitive computer servers at the time?"
Penny smiled and nodded back.
"It did extensive damage to the city's infrastructure and considerable data was lost... However, several data scientists have been working to reconstruct the damaged files. I have found something unusual for the Old Vale Courthouse security camera footage."
Penny shows Ruby the files on her Scroll. Ruby studied the pictures in particular of a certain vehicle racing through the streets of the old quarter of Vale.
"That's weird... That car doesn't look like it's from this period," she murmured.
"It is not," Penny confirmed, "It is a 2000 Gelorean Motors GM12."
Ruby frowned more deeply, zooming in on the badge on the vehicle's hood.
"What's a car from 2000 doing back thirty years ago?" She murmured.
"This is a most unique conundrum, Friend Ruby!" Penny agreed.
"We need to study this more!" Ruby insisted.
They scanned through more reconstructed footage. Ruby then shook her head and held up her hand.
"Wait... Who's that? That blond guy? He looks... Familiar..."
The blond was tall, a bit lanky, but had broad shoulders. His mop of golden hair was all too familiar.
Penny hummed and shook her head, her eyes glowing softly as she processed the data.
"Unknown. I cannot find any ID records for a person matching this description in Vale at this time."
Ruby leaned forward, as she watched the footage of the blond young man talking with a middle aged man in a labcoat near a car, and a trailer covered in tarps. The object under the tarps resembled the Gelorean.
"Anything in the school records? He looks like he might have been Academy age," Ruby said.
It was a long shot, but... The boy just looked far too familiar.
"Perhaps!" Penny conceded, "The records for Beacon pre-1980 are not digitized yet."
They got up and headed to the old yearbook section, an aisle of books tucked away towards the back. Ruby scanned through the books, finding the one for 1971.
"Let's see... 1971..."
She pulled it out and flipped through the pages. She held in a snort when she saw Glynda Goodwitch.
"Geez, look at that hair!" She snickered.
"It is quite out of date! How humorous to imagine her in something other than her present style!" Penny agreed. "Hahaha! Hahaha! Haha... Ahem," she cleared her throat at all the other people staring at her.
Ruby kept turning the pages until she found a large photograph of many students. Her eyes lit up.
"Oh! Oh, here we go. Dance of Undersea Enchantment. November 12th, 1971..."
Her heart clenched a bit, but she pointed out the face of a young woman only a few years older than her. Reddish-black hair, silver eyes, wearing a red party dress. She was laughing with a much younger but familiar blond man, while a taciturn pair of brunette siblings posed nearby. Both had spiky hair. The girl was sour faced, but the boy was grinning cockily.
"That's my mom... My dad... Uncle Qrow... Aunt Raven..."
Ruby frowned as she locked onto three blonds. One was a nervous but smiling young man: Almost like the boy she'd seen, but not quite. He was a bit broader-shouldered, his face was a little too wide, and his eyes were the wrong color. He stood awkwardly in his suit. The girl next to him looked very happy, shooting a loving smile at the boy. She was in a green dress with her long golden hair in ringlets. The two were holding hands.
The third blond was a boy. Lankier, still tall. He was wearing a hat, and covering his mouth with his hand but...
Ruby's eyes widened.
"That's not possible..."
Penny scanned the photo as well. Her gentle frown deepened.
"Curious. The date for this photo must be wrong. There is no way this is possible."
"I mean... Could those be... Could that be his dad?" Ruby offered. "I-I mean, maybe he has an uncle-?"
"Unlikely," Penny said, appearing anxious, "That is this student's father, right in the photograph. And according to all records, this student had no brothers. This is a remarkable discrepancy."
Ruby's hands trembled in disbelief. It wasn't possible... It couldn't be possible...
Yet here was living proof, right in front of her.
"Penny? Are there... More discrepancies like this in the files?" Ruby asked quietly.
Penny's eyes darted to and fro as the gynoid processed the request.
"... Multiple potential discrepancies have been noted involving this individual, and a few others," she said.
"Please... Don't tell anyone about this, okay?" Ruby asked. "Nobody. It... We don't want to jump to any conclusions, you know?"
Penny hummed and then nodded.
"Of course, Friend Ruby! But how will we solve this conundrum? It is most perplexing!"
"Well," Ruby considered, "There's always the direct approach."
- - -
Ruby found her target easy enough. He was out relaxing in the sunshine, enjoying a comic book on a bench. He looked up when he saw her approach, and smiled at her.
"Hey Ruby. What's up?"
"Uh, hey," Ruby managed nervously, holding the yearbook behind her back, "Um... I have a question for you, Jaune."
Jaune Arc smiled.
"Sure! What is it?"
Ruby took a deep breath. She held out the yearbook, and opened it to the appropriate page with the photo of the Dance of Undersea Enchantment.
"Um... Well... Wh-What were you doing on November 12th, 1971?" Ruby asked shyly.
She expected Jaune to laugh it off. Say it was a prank or something.
Anything other than staring in horror at the photo.
"Oh shit," he mumbled. He took Ruby's hand, and dragged her off. Ruby gasped a bit-She'd never been manhandled like this before!
He dragged her out, out of the campus proper and approaching the wilds. When they reached a tree near some white ruins, he finally let her go and turned around. His face was deadly serious, and his eyes bore into hers.
"How many other people know?" He asked.
"J-Just me and Penny," Ruby said, clutching at the yearbook and holding it between herself and Jaune.
"Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure?" Jaune demanded.
Ruby winced. Jaune started and then pulled back.
"Sorry," he mumbled. "I-I didn't mean to scare you, Ruby."
Ruby stared back at him in disbelief.
"Jaune... What's going on?" She asked. "I-I mean... Is this a joke? A prank? Or-Or something?"
Jaune sucked in a deep breath. He let it out slowly. He smiled wryly.
"No. No, it's not," he said. He sighed again and sat down on a white marble block. Ruby, still a bit nervous, sat down with him.
"Well... W-What is it?" Ruby asked softly.
Jaune shut his eyes.
"... Promise you will never tell anyone else," Jaune said.
"Why would I-?"
"Promise me," Jaune insisted. Ruby nodded.
"I-I promise."
Jaune let out another breath, trembling a bit. He reached into his pocket, and pulled out his wallet. He fished out a small photo, and handed it to Ruby. She took it with a frown, then looked it over.
There was Jaune again, easily identifiable despite the photo being black and white. This time he was in old period dress with a cowboy hat on. Next to him was an older man with wild, swept back white hair, also in period dress, with a broad smile underneath his white Stetson. In between them was the Old Vale City clock, standing on wooden struts and stone blocks.
At the bottom of the photo was written Old Vale, September 22nd 1900 AA.
Ruby's jaw dropped. She stared at the photo, then back up at Jaune, then down at the photo again.
"Wha... How...?"
"I do have one thing I can kind of be proud of for my own achievements, Ruby," Jaune said with a nod, "And that is... I'm the world's first time traveler."
He frowned and then shrugged.
"Well, first human time traveler. There was a dog."
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