Rouge Rose

"The only ones who should kill...are those prepared to be killed."

- Rouge Rose Rouge Rose is the younger twin brother of Ruby Rose, and the deurotagonist of the story, RWBY: Black Rebellion. Like his sister, he wields a High-Caliber Sniper-Scythe (HCSS) called Wilted Requiem.

He made his first debut in the special bonus chapter of the story Project, "Second Black," where he is suffering from a nightmare, fighting off several machines before being stabbed by a figure wearing a mask a black mask. He later wakes up in his room, remarking that it was quite the surreal sensation before noting the figure was eerily familiar to him.

Appearance
Rouge, being Ruby's twin, has a similar appearance to her, but lacks the red tinge that she and his mother have. He also has hetero-chromatic eyes: his right eye is amethyst, while his left is silver. He typically dresses in a stylized dark purple blazer with golden trims and a dress shirt underneath, complete with black pants and canvas shoes with red laces.

Personality
Unlike Ruby, Rouge is more realistic. Rouge is a highly intelligent individual who is also calm, sophisticated, and arrogant. While at school, Rouge conducts himself as a sociable, likeable, and often easygoing student. However, this is really a mask to hide his true nature. While as Zero his true nature is expressed. His charisma and beliefs in justice gain him the trust and respect of many soldiers and leaders.

Rouge is known for having a very stoic personality. He never cared about schoolwork, seeing the entire thing as trivial, even though his high intelligence would make it easy for him. At one point, Weiss stated that if Rouge applied himself in school, he could get high grades. He enjoys seeking out challenges, often playing chess against wealthy individuals in Vale. In general, Rouge takes most day-to-day affairs with open disinterest, often not even noticing the affection of others.

Many characters have noted that Rouge is quite selfish, as his desire to remake the world into what he wants it to be comes from his desire for Ruby's sake, however in time he realizes that this goal is not just for them, but for the entire world. Despite his cold, calculating demeanor, and ruthlessness in battle, he can be a rather compassionate person to his friends and loved ones. To Yang and Ruby, he is a loving brother, and to Jaune, a valuable best friend.

One notable trait about Rouge is his prominent disgust for the discrimination against Faunus, and by extension, the Schnee Family. He was openly hostile towards Weiss, calling both her and her family "tepid, overprivileged parasites" that deserved to be erased from the world. He does not tolerate discrimination of any sort, such as when he brutally attacked Cardin Winchester when he was bullying Velvet Scarlatina, and were it not for the timely intervention of Jaune, he would have broken the boy's arm. Rouge believes that the world is decrepit and rotten, and wants to create a better, peaceful world, the sort of world Ruby could be happy in. To that end, he creates the organization known as the Black Fang, which comprises of both humans and Faunus, who also have lost faith in the world.

Abilities and Powers
In order to become a Hunter, Rouge trained at Signal Academy, where his skills and abilities far surpassed his peers, and his only rival being his older sister, Ruby. This led Ozpin to accept them into Beacon Academy two years before the usual age of admittance.

While at Beacon, Rouge has shown to be an excellent tactician and strategist, being able to formulate and execute plans with others in order to take down tougher foes, such as the giant Nevermore encountered during initiation.

Like many Hunters before him, Rouge has had his Aura unlocked, coating his body with a shield powered by his soul. As long as that shield remains, he cannot be wounded, although he can still feel pain when struck.

Weapon
While not a weapons enthusiast like Ruby, Rouge has shown to be just as talented in making his personal weapon, as shown in the complex design and craftsmanship of his personal weapon, Wilted Requiem. With Ruby's help, Rouge created the scythe to be a sibling to his sister's personal weapon, Crescent Rose, thus being designed as a High-Caliber Sniper-Scythe. This weapon can transform between a scythe and a sniper rifle, and can fire dust rounds in either form with massive force. Rather than compensate for it, Rouge harnesses the recoil to enhance his mobility in combat, firing shots to propel himself short distances, simultaneously attacking and evading opponent.

Ozpin has noted upon meeting Rouge and Ruby, that he has only ever seen one other scythe wielder as skilled with such a dangerous weapon; that person is none other than Qrow Branwen, their teacher and uncle. According to Rouge, prior to learning under Qrow he was already skilled with a weapon, but was later more inclined to wield a scythe. He stated that his original weapon of choice was a rapier

Despite showing a preference for engaging enemies in close combat, Rouge does posses enough accuracy to land headshots against Grimm, but notably needs to stand still to do so consistently, usually by anchoring his scythe to the ground to act as a monopod.

While acting as Zero, Rouge relies on an alternate weapon, a Multi-Action Dust Gun-Rapier (MADGR). While not as skilled as Weiss, he is shown to be proficient in it's use, and proves to be a master marksman, accurately able to hit his targets.

Semblance
Rouge has stated that he has yet to unlock his Semblance.

Silver Eye
Through his mother, Summer, Rouge and his sister come from a line of legendary warriors who possessed powerful abilities related to their silver eyes, said to be an ultra rare trait. Qrow describes a fairy tale about warriors with silver eyes who are so powerful that even the Grimm fear them.

Weakness
While Rouge is not as reliant on Wilted Requiem, as Ruby is with Crescent Rose, he has shown to have a weak talent for self-defense, and like Weiss, he is incapable of withstanding heavy blows. As a contrast to Ruby, who is energetic and hyper, Rouge is easily exhausted after fighting for a long period of time.

Trivia

 * Rouge bears a heavy resemblance to Lelouch vi Britannia, the protagonist of the series, Code Geass. The two also share many similarities:
 * Both create an organization that is was created for a specific goal and purpose. For Lelouch, it was to destroy Britannia and create a peaceful world for his younger sister, Nunnally. For Rouge, it is to destroy the White Fang and eliminate corrupted political officials and create a peaceful world for his older sister, Ruby.
 * Both assumed the masked identity of Zero, which they refer to as the "Man of Miracles," and one who represents rebellion incarnate.
 * Both are intelligent and cunning strategists.
 * RWBY: Black Rebellion is a crossover story between the two series, thus hinting at a connection between Rouge and Lelouch. This is further made evident when Rouge has a dream of combating large machines (Knightmares), and being stabbed by Zero in an almost eerily similar fashion to the conclusion of Code Geass.
 * Furthermore, Rouge's Emblem is the Geass sigil, further implying a connection between him and Lelouch.
 * Rouge appears to be fluent in French, Italian, Chinese, German, and Japanese, despite not any of those languages existing in Remnant. He has even called Weiss "ein arroganter egozentrisch bengel," which is German for "an arrogant self-centered brat."
 * Similar to many other characters, Rouge is ambidextrous.
 * Like Ruby, Rouge has taken on his mother's maiden name. The reason for this is unknown.
 * Rouge and Adam Taurus appear to share a past with each other, as Adam remarks during their confrontation in "Clashing Fangs" that he hasn't changed a bit. Likewise, Rouge comments that Adam's swordplay is as terrifying as ever.
 * Rouge's favorite food is crapes.
 * In a bonus chapter, Rouge is able to play the guitar, and is also an excellent, having sung "The Humbling River," by Puscifer.