What happens when Team RWBY and friends are forced into an apocalyptic world? Simple: they fight and survive. But will the stress of all the obstacles they face break them? Especially when it comes to someone dear?
Warning: Blood, violence, language and character death
DISCLAIMER: RWBY and all its characters and places belong to Monty Oum, with the exception of Dr. Grey and Dr. Teal. (As far as I'm aware)
Unrequited!WhiteRose, Unrequited!Bumblebee, WhiteGold/Freezerburn, Friendship!BlackRose
Acceptance of Death, Rejection of the Dark
Present: Day 257, Afternoon
"AHHH!"
Hearing her partner's cry, Ruby struck down the zombie nearing her and spun to locate the heiress. The red-cloaked teen found Weiss leaning against a brick wall with a bunch of infected closing in. Before the young teen could make her move, there was the furious shout of her blonde sister, Yang.
The blonde crashed down, fist-first, into the ground between the heiress and the hungry crowd. A wave of fire emitted from her body as she landed. Both the impact and the wave had forced the infected to either retreat or be knocked down. Even from far away, Ruby could see that her sister's eyes had gone red.
"LEAVE HER ALONE, YOU BASTARDS!" Yang angrily shouted as she began knocking down zombies with a speed that almost rivaled Ruby's.
Suddenly, Blake was at Ruby's side, cutting down an infected woman she failed to see approach, "Ruby?"
Snapping out of her stupor, the silver-eyed teen snapped back into leader mode, "We need to get Weiss out of here! Go grab her while Yang and I clear a path for you."
"Right," With a quick nod, the cat Faunus leapt over the infected and lifted the heiress into her arms.
Ruby sped over to them and then twirled Crescent Rose around, "Yang, we're getting out of here!"
"The sooner we do, the better," The blonde sent a worried glance back at Weiss.
-Sometime Later-
Once they got out of that district and back to their underground base, Ruby began barking orders, "Someone clear out that table! Blake, set Weiss down over there! Where's Ren and Velvet? REN! VELVET!"
Jaune popped his head out from his room, "What's with all the yelling? Ruby?"
"Weiss needs help; where are our medics?" The red-cloaked teen rushed over to her friend.
Sadness overtook the blonde's features, "Was she bitten?"
"She..." Ruby looked over to her partner, "Weiss won't let anyone else see. Now, answer me, where are Ren and Velvet?"
"Ren went to check up on the traps topside and Velvet went out with her team to do a supply run in another district." Jaune rubbed the back of his neck, "Pyrrha's here though; she can help Weiss until one of them returns."
Suddenly, the temperature in the room rose as Yang pushed past the two, "PYRRHA!"
The red-haired woman hurried out of the training room, a small towel on her shoulder, "Is everything alright?"
"NO! Nothing is 'alright', Pyrrha!" Yang exploded, eyes burning with unadulterated rage, "Right now...I...we..."
The Spartan looked at her friend in concern, "Yang?"
"Weiss needs your help right now, not me." The fiery blonde's voice was barely above a whisper as she gestured to the table where the heiress lay, "I...I'm sorry, just...just take care of her."
-Later that Evening-
Sitting against the wall, Ruby watched on as Yang cradled Weiss' head in her lap. Pyrrha, Ren and Velvet did everything they could, but Weiss still looks sick. Silver eyes darted away from the scene before them. No, I can't think like that. She'll be fine. Even as she tried to keep optimistic, Ruby couldn't help the feeling of dread in her stomach.
Without warning, someone else plopped down beside her. Ruby looked to see Blake sitting there, a small book in hand. The cat Faunus used her free hand to hold Ruby's. She gave it a reassuring squeeze as she read.
A small smile worked its way to the younger girl's face. Why couldn't I have fallen for Blake? Something trickled down Ruby's face. Quickly wiping it away with her left hand, she focused her attention on the ceiling. Why did Weiss fall for Yang? Mentally kicking herself, the young teen called herself childish.
Sighing, Ruby let go of Blake's hand and made her way over to the ladder. She climbed up without a word of goodbye. I need fresh air. Pushing open the trapdoor, the young leader pulled herself up into the abandoned warehouse they lived under. Ruby then went up to the rooftop.
Now, she cried freely and held her hands to her chest, "Damn it... Stop, stop feeling!"
The red-cloaked girl leaned against the railing as she tried in vain to order her heart around. Stop loving someone you can't have! Stop hurting! Stop feeling! Stop beating! Tears flowed from her eyes. Her breathing was reduced to short desperate gasps as she sobbed. Sniffling, she rested her head on her arm and stifled her sobs. Moaning and groaning served as the only other sounds around her.
Ruby lifted her head and stared at the shuffling zombies below, "How did we get to this point? We were just students. How come we had to say goodbye to our innocence so soon?"
Past: Day 1, Evening
Falling on a nearby bench, Jaune wiped his forehead with the back of his hand, "Man, who knew joint operations would be so tiring?"
"It wasn't that bad, Jaune. Plus," Ruby smiled at her friend as she wrapped an arm around Weiss' shoulders, "Our teams are too awesome to be taken down by a horde of Grimm."
Meanwhile, the heiress struggled to get out of her partner's grasp, "You dolt! You are sweaty and gross; get off me!"
Yang was quick to wrap her arms around the both of them, "Aw, c'mon Princess, Rubes is harmless. A hug doesn't hurt."
"Ugh," Weiss struggled even more, "You both reek! GET OFF!"
Rolling her eyes, Blake looked over to the school, "We should probably report to Professor Goodwitch before we turn in."
"Right," Pyrrha nodded as she stretched her arms, "Everyone has a tusk to show, correct?"
Ruby let go of Weiss and pulled a tusk from her bag, "I have mine!"
"Let's see," Yang wrapped both of her arms around Weiss and casually pulled out her tusk for her, "Princess has hers!"
The heiress's face became tinted with pink, "Y-you brute! Keep your hands to yourself!"
"You don't seem to mind all that much when we're cuddling." With a toothy grin, Yang put away the heiress's tusk and then pulled out her own.
"Y-YOU-! Sh-shut up!" Weiss' face was now redder than Ruby's cloak.
Blake watched on with a hint of jealousy in her eyes, then she pulled out her tusk. Ren showed his and Nora's before putting them away. Pyrrha brought hers out as well. Jaune fumbled around with his pack before bringing out his tusk for all to see.
"Onwards to Professor Goodwitch!" Ruby led the two teams inside.
-Faculty Building-
"It's so quiet here." Nora's turquoise eyes scanned over the seemingly endless hall.
"Well," Ren crossed his arms behind his back, "I assume that all the classes are out now, so our instructors must be going over papers."
Yang pursed her lips, "Yeah, but Professor Port's usually blabbing to Professor Oobleck still. Then Professor Goodwitch sometimes storms out of her office to tell them to get back to work."
Everyone sent the fiery blonde a curious glance. The same question was on their minds: 'How would Yang know that'? Sensing her friends' confusion, the brawler went on to elaborate.
"I have to walk through this hallway on my way up to Professor Ozpin's office for detention."
Weiss sighed, "Of course."
Snaking her arm around the white-haired girl, Yang grinned, "You still love me!"
The heiress grumbled something incoherent. This interaction caused almost everyone to laugh. Ruby and Blake watched their teammates quietly. A deep frown on Ruby's face, while a blank expression rested on Blake's.
Noticing their silence, Pyrrha gestured to a nearby door, "Well, there's her office."
Jaune pushed open the door only to jerk back and start gagging, "Oh God..."
"What's w-?" Blake's hands flew to her nose as she backed away from the door.
Putting on a brave face, Ruby peered into the room as the others reacted in their own way to the stench. There's blood everywhere... Resting a hand on Crescent Rose, Ruby cautiously stepped into the room.
The bodies of Team CRDL lay on the ground, tusks in their hands. Another corpse lay on the floor near them, completely unrecognizable. The girl tightened her grip on her scythe and walked towards Professor Goodwitch's desk. She covered her nose and stopped moving.
"Professor Goodwitch? Are you alright?" There was a loud snarl, "P-professor?"
"WHAT THE HELL?!" Ruby looked out the door to see the others gaping at something further down the hall.
She lowered her hand to her side and began walking to the door, "Guys? What's going o-!"
Something wrapped around her ankle and yanked her down. Ruby attempted to scream but it was as if her voice wasn't there. The snarling was even louder than before. Whatever had her smelled of rotten flesh. Trying to kick away the offensive creature, the teen looked at it and gasped in horror.
Frightened silver eyes gazed into dulled, unseeing ones. Broken spectacles hung from the creature's face at an odd angle, while pieces of its skin seemed to fall from its face. Ruby began thrashing around more as its mouth opened and it lunged for her leg. She kicked its head away, but its hands managed to make a few tears through her leggings.
"GET OFF OF HER!" A yellow blur smacked the creature off of Ruby, freeing her.
The girl hurried back to her feet and whipped out Crescent Rose. She slammed the blade into the creature's head and yanked it out. Stumbling back, Ruby found it hard to breathe. What just happened? In the blink of an eye, Yang was kneeling next to her; the older girl was murmuring words of comfort as Blake went to make sure the creature was dead.
The cat Faunus was picking a scroll off of the floor as Yang helped Ruby up, "This might be useful."
"That...that thing..." Ruby felt their eyes on her as she shakily pointed at the body, "It...it looked like Professor Ozpin!"
"It probably was him," Ren spoke from the hallway, looking sadly at the younger teen, "At some point."
"These other bodies are definitely Team CRDL and Professor Goodwitch." Blake's voice wavered, "We should get out of here before we try to figure anything out..."
The red-cloaked girl nodded numbly, feeling her sister support her. They fled from the building, encountering more and more of the undead. Eventually, they ran into Team CFVY. Together, the three teams escaped Beacon and made their way to Vale. They hoped to find help, but found more zombies. Snapping out of her numbness, Ruby took charge and led the teams to shelter.
Present: Day 257, Night
Feeling the ice-cold rain hit her exposed skin, Ruby tilted her head up and shut her eyes. She put her left hand over her aching heart. Her tears started to mix with the raindrops trailing down her cheeks.
"Why does it hurt?"
"Why does what hurt?"
Opening her eyes, Ruby glanced over her shoulder to see Blake standing by the stairs, wearing a tattered sweatshirt, "...Oh, nothing."
"Right," Blake appeared at the younger girl's side, glancing at the hand Ruby kept on her own chest, "I'm sure 'nothing' is what made you come up here. You're going to get a cold."
"I don't mind the rain," The scythe-wielder spoke quietly and then tilted her head towards the sky once again.
Ruby felt Blake put a hand on her shoulder, "Talk to me Ruby. You've become so distant lately. Tell me what hurts."
Allowing a few more tears escape from her eyes, the scythe-wielder looked at her friend sadly. Numbly, Ruby patted her chest with her left hand; it having never moved once since Blake arrived. The older girl looked confused and her amber eyes searched into Ruby's silver eyes for answers.
"Why does love hurt so much?" Ruby turned and leaned against the railing.
Blake remained silent for a moment, before she answered, "We simply fell in love with the wrong people."
"Do you ever wonder if..." The red-cloaked girl trailed off.
"If we ended up with who we wanted to like in fairy tales? Or if I fell for you instead of Yang?"
Nodding, Ruby looked at her hands, curling and uncurling them. I'm starting to really not feel them. Suddenly, Blake led her back downstairs. Together, they sat on top of a crate.
"I'll head back down to get you some gloves to warm up your hands. I don't want you falling down the ladder." Before the Faunus could leave, Ruby reached for her hand and awkwardly held it in her own.
"Can you just stay with me instead? I could use a friend."
Blake slowly nodded and let Ruby lean against her.
"Hey Blake?"
"Yes?"
Ruby bit her lip as she looked at the floor, "Do...do you hate Weiss?"
"Well, do you hate Yang?"
Shaking her head, the younger girl looked at her friend, "I could never hate Yang! But, that doesn't answer my question."
Blake shut her eyes and sighed, "Weiss is still my friend, Ruby. I don't hate her."
Day 258, Morning
"W-Weiss isn't g-get-getting any better, Y-Yang..." Velvet stuttered as angry, lilac eyes bore into her, "We m-might h-have to-!"
Gripping the rabbit Faunus by the shoulders, Yang stared hard into her eyes, "NO! Weiss will be fine. She'll be perfectly fine."
"She's looking paler than before, though." Jaune commented, only to back away when the fiery girl got in his face.
Pyrrha got in-between them, a stern look on her features, "There's no need for any of this! Please, we all need to remain calm."
Sitting on top of a rafter, Ruby looked down at the group as they argued. Seemingly bored silver eyes flicked over to the blocked and boarded up doors of the warehouse. We have to get a move on if we want to find those scientists we heard over the radio. She dropped down from her vantage point, idly making sure she had enough magazines for the trip.
"We need to move now if we want to find Dr. Teal and Dr. Grey." Ruby walked over to the door and pushed the crate out of the way, "Plus, we need to find a new hideout. Ren saw two hordes making their way here, remember?"
Jaune nodded and stepped away from Yang, "Right."
Yang went over and lifted Weiss into her arms and nodded at her sister, "Let's get going then."
-Vale Town Square-
"This place looks pretty abandoned," Coco muttered from beside Ruby.
"Looks like we got lucky then," The shorter girl drawled before frowning, "Coco, I need you and your team up on the rooftops to make sure we don't walk right into a horde."
Adjusting her cap, Coco nodded and then motioned for Team CFVY to follow her. Watching them leave, Ruby turned to the others. Pyrrha was keeping her eyes on the surrounding buildings, her shield and spear at the ready. Nora hopped from window to window, peeking inside, while her partner simply sighed and quietly followed after her. Blake and Yang were busy making sure Weiss was comfortable enough as she sat on the ground.
Coughing, the heiress weakly waved them off, "Go help...find those doctors...or something..."
Turning away from them, Ruby bumped into Jaune, "Whoa!"
"You're lucky I'm not carrying some dust, Crater Face!" The blonde knight feigned anger.
"Oh please, Vomit Boy, you're hardly intimidating." Ruby playfully pushed him as she began walking over to a store, "Let's check for supplies."
The two leaders entered the building, checking for any signs of either of the doctors. Jaune was always first, since he had a shield. When he tried to give the honors to Ruby, she reminded him that between the two of them, only he would have any real chance at fighting back. Crescent Rose was too large to use for close quarter combat.
-Hours Later-
"It's getting late, Ruby. We should radio Team CFVY and tell our teams to hide in one of the stores." Jaune pulled out his radio.
"Right, go on and radio Team CFVY." Ruby sped over to the others.
She reached them in time to see Weiss coughing up a substantial amount of blood. Opening her mouth to comment, she was stopped by a shake of the head from Blake. Yang gathered the sick heiress into her arms and looked to her younger sister. Ren knelt next to the couple and did what he could to ease the heiress's pain. Meanwhile, the rest of Team JNPR stood off to the side, unsure of what they could do to help. Ren had more medical knowledge than Pyrrha, and Nora knew her energetic self wouldn't help this situation.
"We need to head inside. The store where Jaune is standing is safe enough for us to rest tonight." Kneeling next to her sister, Ruby carefully put a hand on her shoulder.
Nodding, Yang stood up and made her way over to the other leader. The others were quick to follow, but Blake remained with Ruby. Ruby noticed her friend's bow twitch. She briefly scanned over their surroundings for any signs of danger before turning her attention to the cat Faunus.
"We need to find those doctors. If we don't..." Blake's amber eyes focused on Yang's retreating figure.
Exhaling sharply, the younger girl shut her eyes, "I know, but right now, we need to focus on resting. Go make sure everyone gets settled, hydrated, fed and whatnot. I'm going to go check on one more store."
"I should come with you instead." A hand reached for the black-and-red-clad girl.
Shaking her head, Ruby gestured to the store the others had gathered in, "I gave you orders, Blake. If I don't come back in twenty minutes, then I want you guys to block the door and stay against the far wall."
"But-!"
Ruby smiled weakly at her friend, "I will take care of myself, I promise. Keep the others safe."
Reluctantly, the black-clad girl left her leader alone. Once the girl was alone, she walked over to an old electronics store. Ruby took a look through the window and saw something strange on the floor. Backing away from the window, she walked over to the door.
"Let's hope I don't run into anything inside..." She pushed open the door, a little bell rang overhead, "Crap."
Silver eyes darted around the room. There weren't any growls or moaning. Stepping forward, the girl picked up a broken metal bar. This place is really small; I wouldn't be able to even bring Crescent Rose out. She carefully stepped over some other pieces of metal, making her way over to what she saw through the window.
A man in a tattered sport coat was sprawled out on the floor. His limbs were twisted and bent at odd angles. Dull green eyes stared up at the ceiling; his face contorted in terror. Next to his body was a large duffel bag.
Wincing at the sight of the corpse, Ruby stepped around it. She knelt to investigate the duffel bag's contents. Inside it was a great deal of pill bottles. The red-cloaked girl's eyes widened. She looked to the dead man and then back at the bag. The dead have no use for this. Hefting the bag over her shoulder, Ruby began to make her way out. Before she was one foot away from the corpse, one of its hands latched onto her leg as something else rammed into her side.
"Oh sh-!" Toppling over, Ruby fell hard onto her elbows.
Her arms ached as she scrambled to turn herself over. The infected on top of her never relented its scratching hands. Kneeing the offending creature away, Ruby crawled backwards and tried to locate the metal bar or her compact Crescent Rose. Both had been knocked away from her when the second zombie had rammed into her. Before she could get a good look at her surroundings, an infected person was right on top of her once again.
Struggling against the zombie on her and avoiding its vicious bites, Ruby blindly reached out for something to strike its head. Her hand found something that felt like some kind of bar and she used it to hit the monster repeatedly. One good strike through its skull had it collapse fully onto Ruby, weighing down on the hand that held her weapon. Meanwhile, the first zombie that the girl had seen was crawling over to her.
It snarled and growled, occasionally making futile sweeps with one of its arms as it moved. But Ruby knew at the rate it was going, calling its attempts 'futile' would soon be proved otherwise. She needed to get this other zombie off. Attempting to push the corpse lying on top of her, the girl came to the realization that it was a rather fat zombie. There didn't seem to be a way for her to escape. Sure, she could swing around a huge scythe, but a dead, overweight man was another thing.
The other zombie had finally made its way to her exposed left arm. It put one of its decayed hands over her balled up fist and moved to take a bite. This is it... I don't want to die like this... Ruby briefly wondered if screaming at the top of her lungs would save her, but recalled that her friends would have blocked their door by now.
Tears welled up in her eyes as the monster's teeth dug into her forearm. The gross squelching sound it made pushed her over the edge. It made her furious. Was she really going to go down because of some dead guy? NO, NOT LIKE THIS! I am NOT leaving my friends like this! Ruby cried out, ripped her arm free from the zombie's jaws, and forced the dead, fat zombie on top of her off with a strength she didn't have earlier. Once her right arm was free, Ruby began hitting the infected man in the head.
SMACK!
Narrowing her eyes in anger, Ruby kept hitting the corpse, "I WON'T FALL-"
SMACK!
"BY-"
SMACK!
"YOUR-"
SMACK!
"HAND!"
SMACK!
The metal bar became lodged into the zombie's head. Taking long shuddering breaths, Ruby let her weapon fall and grasped her bitten arm. She stared at the appendage for a long time. As she looked at her arm, the girl failed to notice the person entering the room. The gasp following the person's arrival snapped her out of her trance.
"Another survivor?" A woman in a lab coat cautiously walked out from the store's maintenance room, raising a crowbar.
Ruby hid her arm from sight and looked over the woman, "Uh...yeah. I'm Ruby Rose."
The bespectacled redhead lowered her crowbar and hurried over to the girl, "I woke up to hear fighting and some shouting. I see you've found Dr. Teal."
Blinking, silver eyes flicked from the woman to the zombie she had just beat, "If that's-! You're Dr. Grey!"
"Let's get settled in the maintenance room before we start talking." Dr. Grey spun around on her heel and strode over to the room she emerged from.
-A few minutes later...-
Leaning back in her seat, Dr. Grey watched Ruby with a sad expression, "Unfortunately, the last two pills for the cure are in that bottle. Both are needed in order for someone to be cured."
"Why didn't you guys make a bunch of these? I mean, starting out with twelve won't save all the survivors out there." Ruby finished her can of beans and set it aside.
"Every member of our team was given six pills each after the cure was created. The plan was to make more after it was used on the field, but the government bombed our facility after things started getting worse. Our team got separated, so I recommend against getting your hopes up to find them."
Sighing, Ruby brought her knees in. She shut her eyes and rubbed at her bandaged arm. Dr. Grey's eyes were focused intently on her. The cloaked girl reopened her eyes and looked tiredly up at the woman. For once, can things be easy?
"What if my group helped you find another workplace? Could you possibly create more of this cure?"
Shaking her head, the redhead sighed, "Unfortunately not. We had an entire team working on this cure and without a team's help, I can't recreate these pills. Plus, it's more likely than not that the government has bombed all the science facilities."
"So, I have to make a decision between my saving friend's life or saving my own." Ruby spat bitterly. Of course things can't be easy.
"I'm terribly sorry, Ruby," Dr. Grey folded her hands in her lap, "A young girl shouldn't have to play the part of a leader. So many difficult decisions, so much to gain and lose..."
Sniffling, the red-cloaked girl looked at her left arm, "Even if I shouldn't be one, I am a leader. Nothing can change that, stress or not. My team and my friends' needs come before mine."
With a heavy sigh, Dr. Grey slouched in her chair.
"Don't give up hope." Ruby smiled at the doctor, "You should still go ahead and travel with my friends. Who knows what other kinds of people you'll meet? Maybe there'll be other people with the skills you need to make more of the cure!"
"Ruby..." The redhead's eyes looked watery.
"Nope! Don't fight me on this, Dr. Grey. In the morning, you're going to meet my friends!"
Sighing, the doctor looked up at the ceiling, "Very well."
Day 259, Morning
Walking out of the electronics store with the cure in-hand, Ruby turned to face Dr. Grey, "Please, this is for their own good."
"You've been bitten, Ruby." The doctor argued, "We can't simply leave them in the dark. When you turn-!"
"I know..." Ruby's shoulders drooped, "I know, so once they've found a hideout, I'm leaving."
Dr. Grey made a noise out of frustration, "That won't help anyone!"
Shrugging, Ruby began walking over to the store where her friends were last seen. She had to stop halfway to avoid tipping over. I already feel exhausted... Narrowing her eyes in determination, the girl continued forward. Her mind was set; she simply had to carry out her plan. She just hoped that she had enough time to do so.
As she neared, the door opened. Out poured her fellow survivors, stretching out and yawning. They didn't take notice of her yet. Once she saw Yang walking out with a bundle in her arms, Ruby sped over to her. Behind her, Dr. Grey scolded her.
"Hey guys, you'll never guess what I found!" Ruby waved the pill bottle in her right hand happily, making sure her left arm was covered by her cloak.
Yang's eyes widened at the sight of her sister, "RUBY!"
Before Yang could fully register Ruby's presence, Nora had tackled the young girl down. The air left Ruby's lungs in an instant and she immediately panicked. Oh no! I can't breathe! Am...am I turning?! Please, no! However, hearing Ren reprimand Nora and seeing Pyrrha and Jaune attempt to pry the bubbly redhead away calmed the young leader. Standing beside Yang, Blake simply stared at her in shock.
"I tried contacting you on your walkie-talkie but got no response! We thought you died!" Yang gently set Weiss down, rushing to engulf her sister in a hug.
Returning the hug with one arm, Ruby sighed into her sister's shoulder, "I'm alright, Sis. I didn't go off and die." Liar.
By then, Dr. Grey had caught up with the red-cloaked teen, "You should have warned me your semblance was speed, Ruby."
"Sorry, Doc," The young teen forced a smile, "I just...really missed my friends."
"Who's this, Ruby?" Jaune questioned, his smile genuine.
"This is Dr. Grey! And guess what? She has the cure!" Ruby waved the pill bottle once again.
Dr. Grey shook her head, "Actually, Ruby has it in her hand right there."
Stopping herself, Ruby smiled sheepishly and handed the pill bottle to Yang, "Weiss will be cured, Sis!"
Lilac eyes scanned over the bespectacled redhead, "Thank you, Doc."
Frowning, the woman briefly eyed Ruby and then met the fiery blonde's gaze, speaking ominously, "Oh, don't thank me."
"Uh, is there something you guys-?"
Avoiding her sister's curious gaze, Ruby put down the duffel bag she was carrying, "And in exchange for letting her come with us, Dr. Grey has given us her medicine to add to our own!"
"Give me a moment to give Weiss the cure before we all head out then," Ren took the pill bottle from Yang and knelt down next to the heiress.
-Four Hours Later-
Walking at the back of the group with Dr. Grey, Ruby pulled her bandaged arm out from under her cloak, "I...I don't feel so great, Doc."
"I would imagine you wouldn't." The redhead eyed the appendage, "Sooner or later, they're going to have to know."
"I'm not talking about this." Ruby sighed and hid her arm once more, "Four of my friends are gone...they strayed too far from the square and then when they dropped down to ground level..."
Dr. Grey remained silent, staring at the ground. The red-cloaked girl trudged along beside her. They followed the group through a multitude of twisting and turning alleyways. Over time, Dr. Grey and the group seemed to be walking faster and faster compared to Ruby. Even the very thought of moving made Ruby want to stop. I need to take a break...
"Hey, Sis!" Yang called out from the group, "Keep up! Or do you need me to carry you around now?"
Meeting her sister's eyes, Ruby scowled, "I can walk, Yang."
Upon realizing that his friend was trailing behind, Jaune slowed down to walk beside her. He offered her a hand, but the girl declined. She kept pushing on with determination gleaming in her eyes. But, Jaune felt that there was something else in her eyes other than the will to push on. He wondered if it was some sort of resignation. But why would Ruby be resigned? Could something have happened while she was out last night?
Once the group had stopped to take a break, Jaune turned to face Ruby, "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm feeling fine." The scythe-wielder sounded too tired for that to be true.
"You don't sound fine, Ruby." Jaune frowned, "You can tell me what's wrong, you know. Are you hurt?"
Ruby patted her friend on the shoulder reassuringly, "Thanks for your concern Jaune, but I'm fine. Don't worry about me so much."
-Later that Evening-
Ruby leaned against a wall and slid down. They've found a safe place; I should leave soon. Running a hand through her hair, the young girl watched from afar as her friends moved things around their hideout. They needed to barricade the doors before they settled underground again.
"I never thought I'd be happy to call a basement 'home'." Blake spoke as she neared the sitting girl.
"Me neither," Ruby stared into the distance, "But, it's safer in the sewers or a basement. Especially when there's an entrance from inside a warehouse."
Blake scoffed, "We must be pretty lucky then. Two hideouts in a row, both of them warehouses with a convenient entrance to the underground inside."
"We're just that awesome, Blake. Count it as a blessing."
Crossing her arms, the cat Faunus looked down at her leader, "So, I heard something interesting while we were walking."
Ruby shut her eyes and rested her head back against the wall, "What was it?"
"Your conversation with Dr. Grey."
Keep your cool, Ruby. Blake's still in the dark. Although...with her enhanced hearing, she might not be in the dark much longer. I have to be more careful. Keeping her voice level, Ruby asked, "What about our conversation?"
"Well, what is it that we're going to have to find out about sooner or later?" The older girl's was staring intently at her.
"Blake..." Ruby whined, hoping to weasel her way out of this with sad eyes.
"Don't give Ruby such a hard time, Blake!" Yang strolled over to the two, "Sheesh, one night away from the group and you sound like some suspicious housewife. Are you two dating or something?"
Simultaneously, the two subjects of Yang's teasing hissed, "Yang!"
Laughing, the blonde affectionately tousled her sister's hair and wrapped an arm around Blake's shoulders, "Now, if that doesn't scream 'We-have-a-thing', I don't know what does."
"We don't have a 'thing', Yang!" Ruby yelled, opening her eyes.
Weiss made her way over to them, limping as she did, "Honestly, Yang, you're giving both your sister and your partner a hard time with your teasing."
"I'm still awesome though, right Weiss?" Yang wrapped her heiress up in a hug and lifted her off the ground.
The white-haired girl tried to free herself from the brawler's arms, "You're still a brute! Now put me down!"
"Fine, fine," Obliging to the heiress's request, Yang set her down but still kept the girl in her arms, "You two lazy bums better help us out now and chat later."
Sighing, Ruby slowly stood up and nodded, "Alright, I'm going."
"We're not done talking, Ruby." Blake followed her with Yang and Weiss at her heels.
-Underground-
Fidgeting with her cloak, the young teen sat across from Blake, "It isn't a big deal, Blake. I'm fine."
"Why aren't you using your left hand? Isn't that your dominant hand?" The cat Faunus' amber eyes were bearing into Ruby's forehead.
"I didn't break it, if that's your concern." Ruby looked across the room to see the others paying close attention to their chat, "My arm's just really sore."
Blake frowned, "Sore?"
"I tripped and fell on some glass with it. Dr. Grey patched me up though, so no worries." The young girl hoped her friend wouldn't see through the lie.
Leaning back in her makeshift chair, the black-haired teen rolled her eyes, "Ruby, you've been smacked around by Beowolves and Ursai before and never let soreness get you down. I don't believe that glass would cause your arm to be unusable."
Meeting Dr. Grey's imploring gaze from the other side of the room, Ruby looked at their makeshift table and nodded, "Okay, you want the truth. You can have the truth."
She shifted her cloak around to show her left arm, though the bandaged portion was still blocked from sight. Ruby reached behind her and unclipped Crescent Rose from her belt. The cloaked girl sighed and set the weapon on the table and then rested her arm on the table as well. There was a loud gasp from her sister, while Blake's suspicious stare became a concerned one instead.
"Let's just say, I ran into trouble the other night. Big trouble. And because of that, I can't use my left arm as well as I could before without it...aching. I'm no good with Crescent Rose now..." It isn't the truth, but it isn't a complete lie either.
Everyone's eyes turned to Dr. Grey for confirmation, to which she reluctantly spoke, "Ruby will have to get used to her right hand from here on out."
"You dolt," Weiss scowled at her partner, "What made you think that keeping this information from us was a good thing?"
Scratching the back of her head, Ruby shrugged and laughed sheepishly, "I was hoping to...figure out how I would tell you guys before Blake started interrogating me. Plus, I had to adjust too. I mean, it isn't easy going from Grimm killer, to zombie slayer, to cripple!"
The heiress crossed her arms, huffing as she leaned back on the tattered couch they somehow brought down, "Dunce."
Love you too, Weiss. The cloaked girl sighed and rested her left arm at her side. Standing up, Ruby walked to the 'bedroom'. There were bunches of old sheets strewn all over the floor. Ruby trudged over to a corner of the room and pushed aside the sheets. She laid down on the cold stone floor on her side. Curling up into a ball, the girl wrapped her cloak around her. I just need to wait until everyone else is asleep...or at least leave early.
Day 260, Early Morning
Opening her eyes to the sound of snoring, mainly Yang's, Ruby slowly unwrapped herself from her cloak. Once freed from her red cloak, the girl took in the sight of everyone sleeping.
Nora was curled up next to Ren, their hands intertwined. Jaune and Pyrrha were sitting against the wall. The Spartan's head resting on the blonde knight's shoulder. Blake was stretched out on some sheets not too far from Ruby. Dr. Grey had settled in a corner of her own, seemingly nothing but a lump over there if Ruby's eyes didn't catch sight of her red hair. Yang was sprawled haphazardly on the middle of the floor.
Tears threaten to spill out of her eyes when she unclasped her cloak from her shoulders. Ruby made her way over to Blake and draped the item over the sleeping Faunus. I'm sorry, friend. Once that task was done, Ruby went over to Yang and let a few tears fall from her eyes. She knelt down and gave Yang a hug, albeit an awkward one. Hugs aren't easy when one person is kneeling and the other is laying down and sleeping. I love you, Sis. Take good care of everyone, especially Weiss. Standing up, Ruby's eyes swept over the room one more time.
"I'm going to miss this," Carefully inching her way out into the other room, Ruby noticed that Weiss was sleeping on the couch.
Ruby stopped and gazed over the sleeping heiress. Quietly making her way to the sleeping teen's side, the cloaked girl smiled sadly. Figures the only chance I have to do this would be before I go off and die. She stooped down and kissed Weiss' forehead, unwilling to try for her lips. Straightening up, Ruby removed her rose brooch from her belt and placed it on a nearby crate.
She walked over to the staircase, eyes shimmering with unshed tears and determination. Ruby sent one last look back to the heiress. Thankfully, it seemed that Weiss wasn't stirred from her slumber with that one kiss. The young leader climbed up the stairs, her heart sinking into her stomach.
-An Hour Later-
Opening her eyes, Blake yawned and sat up. She felt her cover fall down to her lap. The girl rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand and looked at the object. It was red, like Ruby's cloak. Wait, I didn't wear a cover last night... Raising the 'sheet' to eye-level, Blake confirmed that it was Ruby's cloak.
"Ruby?" Looking over to where her friend had slept, the Faunus found nothing.
She's probably having breakfast right now. Pushing herself up, the black-clad girl listened for the sound of someone eating in the adjacent room. There was nothing but Yang's snoring and the others' breathing. A frown made its way onto Blake's features.
Walking over to the other room, the cat Faunus was greeted by the sight of Weiss sitting up on the couch, "Good morning, Blake."
"Good morning," Amber eyes scanned the room for any clue of the young leader of Team RWBY.
"Why do you have Ruby's cloak?" The heiress got up from the couch and stretched her arms.
"I woke up and found it draped over me. In fact, I'm looking for Ruby. Have you seen her?"
Weiss shook her head, "Not yet. Maybe she went up top? Honestly, I think she should be resting too. Who knows what kind of trouble she ran into..."
"Hmm...I'll go check up top then." Blake moved to the stairs, but stopped when she heard the heiress gasp.
"Blake..."
Turning to face her friend once again, the Faunus saw her holding Ruby's silver rose brooch, "Ruby would never leave that behind."
Someone walked in from the sleeping area, "Good morning!"
The two girls shared a look before looking at the newest arrival. Before the apocalypse, Yang wasn't one to wake up early in the morning; everyone knew that. The only times she had gotten up early was if she had a strange dream the previous night or if she was extremely worried about something. But, now, it seemed she always woke up in the morning to make sure everyone was fine.
"Have you guys seen Ruby this morning?" Yang's bright lilac eyes flicked from Blake to Weiss and back.
Blake ushered the fiery blonde over to the couch, "You might want to sit down, Yang."
The brawler's brow became furrowed in suspicion, "Why would I need to sit down?"
Pulling the blonde down to sit next to her, Weiss took a deep breath, "We just don't want you to panic. Just listen to us, okay?"
"Alright, what is it?" Yang's voice was quiet as she crossed her arms.
"This morning, I woke up and found Ruby's cloak over me. I came in here looking for her and then Weiss, well..."
Weiss held the brooch in front of Yang, "I found Ruby's brooch on a crate."
-Yang's P.O.V.-
Taking the brooch out of Weiss' hands, the fiery blonde felt her heart drop. She stood up, grasped tightly onto the brooch, and marched over to the staircase. Blake and Weiss tried stopping her, tried to talk her into calming down. Ignoring them, Yang brushed them off and marched up the stairs.
Throwing open the door to the warehouse, she rushed out into the center of the room, "Ruby?!"
Behind her, she could hear Blake and Weiss making their way up the stairs, "Yang, wait a minute!"
"RUBY?!" Yang took off towards the rooftop.
"You idiot! You're going to attract the zombies here!" Weiss shouted behind her.
"You're not helping, you know..."
Yang couldn't hear the rest of their conversation once she threw open the rooftop door. She ran around, trying to find her sister. Where is she?! Rushing over to the railing, the blonde tried to see if Ruby was somewhere outside.
Cupping her hands around her mouth, she took a deep breath and yelled, "RUBY?!"
She dropped her arms to her side and felt tears prick her eyes. Sis, where are you? Clenching her hands into fists, the brawler angrily threw a few punches in the air and then walked back down the stairs. Bumping into Blake along the way, Yang gazed sadly at her friend and then continued on. She furiously wiped away her tears and glared at the floor. I'm going to go out and find her, and when I do...I'm going to kick her ass for making me worry!
Arms wrapped around her, white filled her vision, "Yang..."
"I can't...Weiss, I can't find her..." The brawler returned the hug and buried her face into the heiress's shoulder.
There was an awkward cough behind them, "Um, I'm sorry guys...but have you noticed something strange?"
"What do you mean?" Weiss' voice was soft.
"There's no moaning outside and when I looked from the rooftop, I didn't see any zombies near us."
Yang lifted her head up and turned to face Blake, "What?"
The Faunus crossed her arms, "I think something attracted the zombies away from us."
-With Ruby-
"I CAN DO THIS ALL DAY!" Yelling at the top of her lungs, Ruby ran through the streets.
A large horde of zombies was following close behind her. Ruby could feel her body aching now. Her head throbbed with each step she took. I'm so tired... Shaking her head, the young teen pushed on. I've attracted a ton of these guys away from the hideout. Keep running!
Vaulting over an abandoned car, the teen ducked into an alleyway. She dodged a zombie that lunged from its position against a dumpster. Tripping over an infected on the ground, Ruby spared a glance behind her. She got a good look at the horde closing in on her. Decaying hands reached out for her. Other zombies simply growled and shuffled closer.
Scrambling back onto her feet, Ruby did her best to run further down the alleyway, "Crap!"
-The Group-
"SHE WAS WHAT?!" Yang lifted Dr. Grey off of the ground by the collar.
The bespectacled woman struggled in her grasp, "She insisted that...you were to...never find out!"
Blake rubbed her temples, "Yang, put her down."
"NO!" The brawler sent a glare in the black-clad girl's direction before looking up at the doctor, "My sister was bitten and you didn't think to tell any of us?!"
"I tried..." Dr. Grey attempted to pry Yang's hands from her neck, "She...didn't want..."
"Look, this really isn't necessary, Yang. Weiss lasted a long time before she was given the cure, so we should still be able to find Ruby." Jaune set a hand on the angered brawler's shoulder.
Yang let the doctor drop onto the floor. She frowned, crossed her arms, and glared intensely at the gasping woman on the ground. Slowly, with Blake's help, the woman got back onto her feet. Furrowing her brow, Yang turned away from them.
"Then let's get going! Someone has to stay with Dr. Grey and Weiss." Yang cracked her knuckles as she brushed past Jaune.
Weiss huffed indignantly, "Why must I stay behind?"
"You're still recovering, Weiss." Pyrrha looked at her friend apologetically, "You'll be back on the field with us with enough rest."
Blake sent the heiress a smile, "We'll all come back with Ruby and have her cured."
"If only things were that simple..." Dr. Grey muttered beside her.
Ren was also close enough to her to hear, "What do you mean?"
The woman glanced at the people around her and sighed heavily, "The pills that were given to Weiss were last two I had."
"I took the last two pills?" Weiss covered her mouth with her hands in shock.
Moving towards the woman with a fire in her eyes, Yang moved to choke Dr. Grey once again. Thankfully, Pyrrha, Ren, and Jaune were able to hold her back. Nora was too busy cheering for Yang to break the woman's legs. Blake simply stepped aside and let the doctor lean against a nearby crate.
"I would make more!" Dr. Grey looked sadly at the group, "But I don't have the resources, the staff, or the time! I'm sorry, but even if you did find Ruby, you would only be able to say goodbye. Besides, transformation times differ between people. For all we know, she's already turned."
-Sometime Later-
Leaning against a ruined building, Ruby took a deep breath. She did the best she could to help her friends. Ruby's head ached and something in her head kept telling her to feed. But she resisted it, and knew that was a very good thing. Slumping over to the side, the young girl began coughing up blood. She also knew that losing blood, especially in her state, was a very bad thing.
Fixing herself into an upright position, Ruby released a shaky breath. The teen shut her eyes and embraced the comfort that darkness provided. Ruby felt the darkness begin to wraps its arms around her, but it was suddenly taken away. She felt something on her shoulder. Ignoring the feeling, Ruby figured it was her imagination. The feeling returned with more pressure than before.
"Ruby, is that you?" Opening her eyes, the young leader was greeted by the sight of a monkey-tailed boy.
Silver eyes widening into saucers, the girl offered her friend a weak smile, "Sun!"
"Dude, we have to go!" A blue-haired teen appeared in Ruby's line of sight beside Sun.
"We can't leave Ruby behind like this, Neptune!" The monkey Faunus grasped one of Ruby's arms.
"Sun, she's sick, I can tell!" Neptune argued, pulling his friend away from the younger teen, "We have to keep moving."
Sun glared at his teammate, letting go of Ruby's arm, "Hey, you said you'd be cool when I asked to check this place!"
"I did, but now's not a time to 'be cool', Sun. Ruby's bitten! Look, she's pale, haggard, and her eyes are dulling."
Ruby groaned as the two argued over her. The young girl shut her eyes once more and slumped over. The voice in her head screamed at her. Ruby refused to listen to it. She wasn't going to give in. Even if that meant she had to give up getting the comfort that the darkness offered. But, maybe there was another way to silence the voice and be comforted from the pain without falling into the dark. Besides, when a person dies, aren't they supposed to head to a light? She needed a way to avoid the darkness. Reopening her eyes, Ruby blearily looked up at the two boys in front of her.
"See! She's probably turning as we speak!" Neptune unhooked his gun and took aim, "I'm sorry, Sun, but your friend isn't your friend anymore."
Growling, the blonde Faunus smacked the gun away, "Her eyes aren't completely dulled yet!"
The blue-haired boy rolled his eyes, "They're going to be dulled soon."
"I'm not going to stand by and let this happen!" Sun whipped out his staff and knocked Neptune's weapon out of his hands.
Straightening up, Ruby tried to refocus her eyes, "Guys..."
"Look man, friend or not, she's going to turn and we have to deal with it!"
"Guys, please..." Her voice was weak and her throat burned.
Finally, the boys' eyes returned to her. Sun sent Neptune a warning glance before he knelt down to Ruby's level. Ruby knew what was coming and hoped that Sun would agree with her solution. It wasn't going to be pretty, but her solution would benefit everyone. The darkness wouldn't be there to 'comfort' her and she wouldn't reanimate and have to be put down. She put a hand on Sun's outstretched hand and gave it a feeble, yet reassuring, squeeze.
"Neptune's right, Sun." The monkey Faunus tightened his grip on Ruby's hand as she spoke, "I am sick. I'm really sick. You...you have to..."
Sun cut her off, "Ruby, no more of this dumb 'heroic leader' thing or whatever. I'm not going to-!"
"Then let Neptune do it..." Wincing, Ruby closed her eyes, "Better to die still 'me' than one of those monsters, right?"
"There's gotta be another way..." The Faunus removed his hand from hers.
Ruby opened her eyes and tried to blink away the blurriness, "I...I wish there...was..." But I'm scared of the dark; this way is the best for everyone.
-The Group-
"I heard voices from over there," Blake radioed as she hopped from car to car.
"Right behind you," Jaune replied, sounding a little out of breath.
Coming to a stop, Blake looked around the corner to see Sun. The monkey-tailed boy's back was to her, his shoulders slumped. He seemed to be looking at something important. Jumping off of the car she stood on, Blake slowly approached him. Upon hearing her, the other teen spun around.
"Blake?" Smiling, Sun met her halfway.
"Hey," The girl returned the smile, "It's good to see you're still around."
Nodding, the monkey-tailed boy seemed to be blocking her from seeing behind him, "Same here. Man, everything's become pretty crappy huh?"
Blake frowned and tried to look past him, "Yeah. So, are you here alone?"
"Nah, Neptune's with me." Sun moved in her way, "He's just busy right now."
"Busy doing what?"
"Nothing."
"Sun."
"It's nothing!"
"You're a terrible liar." Blake pushed past him and looked for Neptune, "Wha-?"
She gaped at the sight of Neptune standing before Ruby's still form. The girl was propped up against the wall of a broken down building. Ruby was still conscious as far as Blake could tell. Before she could call out to the younger girl, Neptune began charging up his gun.
"DON'T YOU DARE!" Yang appeared out of nowhere and rushed towards the blue-haired boy.
Bang!
The ending is open to interpretation. Maybe Yang made it to Ruby in time or something, maybe not. Remember what Ruby said: "Don't give up hope."
Honestly, this was a test of sorts for me. Both the genre and the characters (And the WhiteGold pairing). I'm writing a few other things for RWBY and my first submission was this. The characters are OOC, I know and I hope to fix that in the future (Ex: Neptune being uncool). But to be fair, the circumstances would have changed people in some ways.
Also, WhiteGold/Freezerburn isn't really that high on my list of pairings. I prefer WhiteRose and Bumblebee, but I'll try to keep open-minded in my writings and let you guys see what pairings you want (I'll still put up the pairings I intended for the story, though). However, Enabler is a NO. Just no, okay?
Constructive feedback is appreciated.