Roses and Thorns: Prologue

"This will be the day we've waited for! This will be the day we open up the doors! Don't wanna' hear your absolutions, I hope ready for a revolution! Welcome to a world of new solutions! Welcome to a world of bloody evolu-..."

"What the- uuuhg!"

"Did your phone die?"

"Yeah."

"About time," Summer cracked a smile, "now I can finally talk to my daughter."

Ruby sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck. "Sorry mom… I just really enjoy this music."

Summer let out a light chuckle. "It's alright kiddo. It just gets lonely after being in a car for over three hours without saying anything… and this darn rain isn't helping."

"Do you think it will stop?" Ruby asked while putting her headphones away.

"Oh, I hope. The windshield wipers aren't helping at all."

"...You think dad and Yang are out playing in it?"

Summer chuckled again. "Probably; they're such children at hearts... you remember when we went to the beach house last year?"

"How could I not!" Ruby smiled, "It rained the whole time so we couldn't do anything, then Dad and Yang decided to see who could stand out in it the longest and they both got colds!"

"Then they dragged us out there and we had a huge water fight… we all ended up getting really sick!" They both laughed at the memory.

"Yeah, but it was worth it!" Ruby gleamed.

"It sure was." Summer sighed happily.

"I can't wait to see them again… I really miss them."

"I do too Ruby... but we're only another half hour away, so it won't be long." Summer reassured.

"I just wish we weren't a long distance family…" Ruby sighed.

"So do I Ruby, but June is really the only time we get the chance to meet up. We're just lucky I convinced my boss to let me have this week off of work."

Ruby stared out of the window with a dull expression. "...Why did Dad and Yang cancel this year again?"

"Because Yang caught a virus and didn't want to give it to us, remember?"

"Oh yeah," Ruby sighed, "...but why did we have to wait three whole months?"

Summer's eyebrow twitched slightly in annoyance. "Because that's how long it took me to convince my boss." She sighed.

Ruby sighed back, then made a silly face at her Mom. "Ya' know your boss is a jerk." She said in a silly voice.

"Are you trying to mock her?" Summer chuckled, then raised the pitch of her voice to sound like a witch, "because if so she sounds more like this."

"No I think it's more like this," Ruby replied, then proceeded to squabble like a chicken.

Summer and Ruby looked at each other for a moment, then barked out laughing.

"Okay, okay, stop making fun of my boss, I'm gonna get fired!" Summer giggled.

"Only if she finds out!" Ruby chuckled.

Eventually, their laughter died down and it was peacefully quiet. "...You know, you and I are children at hearts too." Ruby smiled.

"I guess it runs in the family," Summer replied, "although, you are a child."

"I'm fifteen Mom," Ruby countered, then pointed her thumb at herself confidently, "I'm full teenage material!"

"Hm." Summer smiled. "Maybe to you, but to your sister, Dad, and I, you'll always be the baby in the family."

Ruby threw her head back and groaned in embarrassment, causing Summer to laugh again.

"I'm just messing with you, honey."

"I know." Ruby deadpanned. She tilted her head slightly so she could see outside the window. The rain was pouring down harder than earlier, so much so that outside looked like a fuzzy blur of gray. "Mom, can you even see in this?" She asked.

"I got used to it." Summer replied.

Ruby sighed. "How much longer 'till we get there?"

"About half an hour, hopefully."

Ruby groaned again, but not as dramatically as before. "You said that, like, ten minutes ago."

"I know Ruby. The rain is just making things difficult… we'll have to be a little more patient."

"We've been patient for over a year now." Ruby frowned.

Summer took a moment to think. "...You remember what I used to tell you when you were little?"

"Of course," Ruby smiled slightly, "you still tell it to me."

Summer returned a warm smile. "And I'll never stop. Every rose has its thorn, and it may hurt. But if you take good care of it, and treat it right,"

"It'll bloom into something beautiful." Ruby finished.

"Yep, so whenever you're you're feeling down, let your flowers grow."

Ruby smiled at her Mom's old motto. "Somehow that never ceases to work for me."

"Good," Summer leaned over and quickly kissed Ruby on the head, "then never forget it."

Ruby smirked, "Of course I won't. Who do you think I am?"

"Your father's daughter." Summer smirked.

"Hahah! Good point Mom, but I'm also your daughter so…."

"Oh, hush." Summer laughed.

Ruby laughed as well, but she was suddenly interrupted by a loud, nerve-racking horn.

"RUBY!" Summer pulled Ruby towered her into a protective position. Before Ruby could register what was happening, a car from the opposite side of the road skid and crashed into them, causing their car to lose control and spin off of the road. Ruby's head jerked sideways from the impact and crashed into the window beside her, causing her to lose all consciousness.

...To be continued