TW for cannibalism.
Cinder's Secret Recipe
Ruby arrived at the designated place and smoothed her dress with her hands, making sure she looked presentable. It was the same one she had worn for the Dance a few months back, but this time she had traded those filthy high heels for a pair of boots with which she felt so much more at ease. She wanted to show proper etiquette, but not necessarily look classy. After all, this was not a date.
She stretched her hand to ring the doorbell, but her fingers cowered with anxiety. Right, it was definitely not a date, so she had no reason to feel nervous. She was just sharing a meal with an old enemy, a symbolic breaking of bread to establish their truce. It didn't help that that very same enemy, or maybe friend now, was an older, slender and well-endowed woman prone to wearing low-cut outfits. Just thinking about it was starting to give the small girl an intense blush, so she swallowed her nerves and pushed the button.
The bell rang, and a couple of seconds later the door opened, revealing the host. Cinder was wearing an apron over her usual attire, a seductive red dress that was just a little too short for the huntress' fragile heart. The apron was pink, with red letter that said "Please do nothing to the cook", which seemed familiar, but Ruby couldn't quite place it; and covered a disappointingly large amount of otherwise exposed skin.
"Rose, you're early."
"Oh, am I? Sorry, I forgot my watch, so I came straight here. Didn't want to be late." She laughed nervously.
It was obviously a lie, she had simply tired of staring at the walls of her room. Since graduation, she didn't get to see her teammates very often, so she was left all by her lonesome. Weiss had returned to Atlas to take her rightful place at the helm of the Schnee Dust Corp, Blake had gone dark, busy disassembling the remaining terrorist cells of the White Fang, and Yang... well, she didn't know where her sister was, but that was a common occurrence - Yang did as she pleased and answered to no one. Ruby had been the only one sticking with Vale, taking odd contracts for Beacon as a huntress. It was the life she had always dreamed of, fighting monsters and making the world a better place, but she had just never dreamed it would be so lonely.
"It's okay, come on in." The older woman stepped to the side to allow her passage, and shut the door behind her. "Dinner is not quite done yet, but please, take a seat."
She had half-expected the villain to live in a castle dungeon, walls made of cobblestone and decorated with chains meant to hold prisoners, lighting provided only by torches mounted up high. Instead, she was greeted by the most common and inconspicuous of homes, almost as if Cinder was trying to prove a point. There was a coat hanger by the entrance, where her red cloak would rest had she brought it, and a little hall that led to an ample kitchen.
At the center of said kitchen was a small table with two chairs on opposite ends, and around it was a counter with the electronics that would fit generally in a kitchen, a fridge, a microwave, an oven, all normal stuff.
The scythe-wielder pulled up one of the chairs, and sat down.
"You know, I was pretty surprised when you invited me over." She clumsily attempted to make conversation.
The long-haired woman turned her back on her, facing the counter and resuming the cooking that had been interrupted by her arrival.
"We didn't start on the best foot, I admit that might have been my fault." Understatement of the year, you tried to kill me and my friends. "So now I thought it would be good to bury the hatchet, turn a new page. One where I don't try to kill you, and you don't..."
"Freeze you to the top of Beacon Tower. Fun times." She couldn't see the grimace her host made at those words.
"Yes well, that was a long time ago, and we're not enemies anymore." Cinder smiled as she turned around again, and placed a platter of juicy-looking strawberries down in front of the guest. She had done her research.
Ruby picked one up, and entered a state of bliss as it touched her tongue. How Cinder had found out about her weakness, she did not know, but it she wasn't about to complain.
"Don't spoil your appetite for the main dish. I have a feeling you are going to love it..."
"So, where are Emerald and Mercury? It's strange seeing you without your entourage." Ignoring the warning, the huntress proceeded to eat another strawberry.
"Why are you doing this, Cinder? I did everything you asked, I followed your every command! I adored you!" She heard Emerald's exasperated voice screaming through ragged breaths, even though she could not see her.
"And yet we failed. Beacon is still standing, and you've become a loose end. Just like dear old Mercury." She remained still, glancing over to the body on the floor. Merc too had served her faithfully, but he had become useless to her, and now he lied rigid and lifeless at her feet.
"Please, Cinder... I loved you..." Emerald would have never admit it, but she valued Mercury's friendship. Poking at that wound was sure to force her on the offensive, it was only a matter of time. And Cinder would be waiting.
"You were only a tool for my plans, open your eyes already. You are worthless." The green-haired girl was still hiding behind her semblance, but her aura was nearly depleted and she wouldn't be able to keep it up for much longer.
There was a sound behind her, but she didn't even turn knowing full well it was a decoy. She knew Em too deeply, her tricks and strategies, how her powers worked. The poor girl didn't even stand a chance.
Waiting for the right moment, she grappled the air in front of her, grabbing hold of Emerald's shoulders. The green-haired trickster became visible, panic in her eyes.
"I'm begging you..."
She had no time nor patience for begging. A flick of her wrist, and a blade of glass formed in her hand. She raised it up high, and
sliced the onion into tiny little pieces, throwing them inside the pan. The olive oil hissed and bubbled, soaking and cooking the shards of the bulb.
"They're... not with me anymore."
"Oh, I didn't know that. I'm sorry." They had been her companions for so long, it had to be harsh on the flame caster to have been abandoned by the ones she trusted the most.
Cinder didn't answer, retrieving a couple of raw pieces of meat and placing them on the cutting board. She then moved across the room, and opened a cupboard, from which she got a large knife. The huntress watched as the older woman shook her head while inspecting the dull blade, proceeded by getting a whetstone and grinding the edge on it.
"You weren't kidding when you said dinner wasn't quite ready, huh?"
"I told you to show up at 8. It's 6:45." Cinder glared disapprovingly at her with those flaming amber eyes, her gaze just above the butcher's knife in a very threatening pose.
"Oh, oops." The girl rubbed the back of her neck embarrassedly, not knowing how to excuse her actions. "Sooo, what have you been up to, now that you're not evil?"
"You are terrible at making conversation, aren't you?" Was that a chuckle in her voice, or was it merely the sarcastic tone she so frequently used?
"Weiss used to say the same..."
"Weiss, was that the one you fancied?"
"I... No, that's... I didn't..." She knew the woman was just pulling at her strings, but that didn't stop her from blushing profusely and babbling like a fool.
"Right, I got my answer. And as for yours, I haven't been up to much..."
"Is that all the Schnee name is worth?"
The ivory heiress reacted to her taunt by raising from her knees, supporting her weight on her rapier which looked about to break. Her icy blue eye was filled with contempt, the one she still had that is, blood dripping down from the new cut in her face to match the old one.
The girl spat on the floor, creating a red spot in the marble tiles covered in shards of glass, remnants of the fight. "You lost, Cinder. We defeated you and your plans. Nothing you do now will change that."
"Still got some fight left within you, I see. Get up and face me then, we'll see who loses this time." She stretched her arms out as if inviting her to have the first hit for free. Together, team RWBY had been a force to be reckoned with, but apart... they were no match for the likes of Cinder Fall.
Weiss screamed wordlessly, channeling her rage into one final glyph. A pale-blue Boarbatusk materialized above it, and a second later the grimm charged at her.
She focused on the glass scattered across the floor, and like a magnet summoned all of it to one place, a mine of immense power waiting to be detonated. When the tamed creature approached, she set off the explosions, and a thousand bits went flying through the room, piercing through the beast from below and turning into dust.
Casually, she walked up to Weiss, grinning at the girl with depleted aura. She kicked the rapier away, forcing the Ice Queen on the floor, and placed the heel of her shoe on top of the loser's head.
"Guess I won." With one swift movement, she
crushed an egg against the counter, spilling its insides into a separate bowl, which was then mixed with salt and battered.
"Just cutting ties with some last despicable peoples from my past." The meat already chopped up and grinded, she threw it inside the pan with some aromatic herbs, reveling in that delicious sound of the grease fusing with the meat.
"Well, I'm glad you're leaving it all behind." Ruby smiled proudly. When everyone had told her it was war, and that Cinder had to be taken out, she had argued it was still possible to save the woman, to help her. And despite being called naive and innocent, she was now staring at proof that she was right, a reformed and recovered criminal, with no desire to kill again.
The host moved to the fridge and opened it, taking out from inside two containers. The first one, a small transparent box filled with tomato sauce, she emptied inside the boiling pan, then mixing for a bit. The second, a large bowl covered with a rag, she unwrapped, revealing the pre-prepared flour mix. She took a few small forms from one of the cupboard, and started spreading the mix in them, laying down the skeleton for a meat pie.
"Oh, you're making meat pies? That sounds nice." The invitation hadn't mentioned a menu, so up until that point Ruby had no idea what they'd be eating.
"Yes, I figured we could go for something less than classy. You don't mind getting your hands dirty, right?"
"Nah, I'm used to making a mess. My sister used to scold me about eating cookie dough out of my fingers." She laughed, far more at ease than she should be.
"Good." Cinder turned off the stove, and picked up the pan with her bare hands, clearly unfazed by the intense heat. She poured the meat inside the bases, and covered it all up with some more dough. She then put them all in a platter and shoved it inside the oven.
"So is it like a Fall family recipe? Is the sauce a top-secret ingredient that if you told me you'd have to kill me?"
The older woman chuckled at her antics. "No, I came up with this one. And the sauce is from the supermarket, it's the meat that is special."
"Oh, cool. What's in the meat?"
"HOW? HOW ARE YOU STILL ALIVE?" Yang's eyes were red with fury.
"You can protect the faunus girl as much as you want, Xiao Long, but I will get you both soon enough."
"Yang, please go... Just run, you can still save yourself..." Blake pleaded with a weakening voice, her wounds draining all life from her body.
"Shut up! I'm not abandoning you! You're my partner!" The brawler stared at the girl fading in her arms, and gently placed her down on the floor, her resolve hardened like steel.
"How noble of you. In that case, you can die together, how sweet." The scorn in her words was almost palpable, as she slowly walked towards the blonde huntress.
Yang didn't offer a response, but took off running at her while screaming wordlessly, the fire within her spreading until she was engulfed in flames. With her fist cocked back, she threw a punch with all her weight put into it. Cinder stepped to the side, avoiding the very obvious and telegraphed attack, but the scattered blast of the shotgun gauntlets grazed her, drawing blood from her left cheek.
Surprised to have been hit, she clenched her fists, tasting once again the defeat that those meddling kids had brought upon her. She would not go through it again, she would not lose. She would have her revenge.
As Yang was turning back, she materialized her glass bow and shot two arrows in quick succession. One of them was punched right out the air, but the second managed to sneak through the girl's defenses, and lodge itself in her leg. The huntress collapsed on one knee, but she was still far from done, unloading all the rounds still in her gauntlets towards the villain.
She covered the air in front of her with a thin layer of glass, which shattered, the impact causing a blast that forced her to take a few steps back to retain balance.
"Looks like you're out now." She smiled wickedly, approaching Yang.
"Fuck you!"
"How rude, do you kiss your mother with that... Oh wait." She chuckled madly, and stretched her open hand forward.
Fire spewed from her palm, assaulting the blonde girl. She grinned, as she watched the heat
roast the pies inside the oven. They were slowly beginning to turn a healthy golden shade, so it wouldn't be long now until they were ready.
"Oh, you know. Love and care."
Ruby snorted loudly, nearly falling off her chair laughing. It took a few moments before she regained composure, holding her aching sides. When she turned to look back, she saw the host staring at her with a very convincing offended look.
"I'm sorry, I just... That was adorable! Like straight out of a children's cartoon."
The raven-haired woman puffed out indignant, and opened the door of the oven. She gripped the tray with her hands, and brought it near her face, taking in the smell. She then threw a base on top of the table, and placed the tray above it.
"Careful, they're hot." She took off her apron and tossed it over the counter, joining the girl at the table.
Ruby immediately ignored the warning and reached for one, but her fingers recoiled at the touch of the smoldering surface. "Ah! You weren't kidding, how can you even grab these?"
"I'm somewhat immune to fire and heat, it comes with the semblance. Cold, though, that really screws me over." The woman peeled one of the pies off the form, and handed it to her. "Here, have this one."
The scythe-wielder accepted the gift, and took a bite out of it. Her mouth imploded with flavor, the juices of the meat running down her tongue, mixed with the sauce, the whole experience had her close her eyes in ecstasy.
"Wow, this is, like, super amazing good! What did you put in it?" She filled her mouth with to the brim, enjoying that divine taste to the maximum.
Cinder wasn't eating, but instead simply staring at her with a satisfied smile on her face.
"Schnee."
"What." She stopped chewing.
"Weiss Schnne, that's what I put in that pie."
She spat out the entire contents of her mouth. "This is a joke, right?"
"That one over there had Blake Belladonna" She pointed at one of the pies in the tray, her lips twisted into a sick grin. "I wonder if you'll like cat meat."
The woman cackled madly, and when Ruby tried to move she found that her arms and legs were bound to the chair by thin ropes made of fire. Every time she struggled against them she felt her skin being scorched, forcing her to bite her tongue to endure the pain.
"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?"
"With me? I'm not the one eating my teammates." Cinder chuckled and grabbed another pie, proceeding to push it closer and closer to the girl's lips. "Now be a good girl and finish up your plate."
"What. The. Fuck." Yang's voice broke the silence inside the room.
"You are officially uninvited from any of team RWBY's slumber parties."
"What, I thought you wanted horror stories!" Nora whined audibly, failing to grasp why Weiss was scolding her.
"We did, just not... that!"
"Oh come on, it was romantic!"
"Romantic? She was eating me!"
"I bet you wish she was eating something else of yours, heh?" The blonde elbowed her partner, who was sitting next to her on the bunk bed.
"Oh, no, I'm staying out of this one."
"You're not helping, Yang!" The heiress' face was red and uncouth, completely enraged from the story she had just been forced to hear. "At least you're on my side, right, Ruby?"
"...I thought it was a nice story..." Ruby spoke timidly, intimidated by the girl beside her at the bunk.
"A nice story? You were practically drooling all over Cinder!"
The youngster didn't answer, shrugging her shoulders in a very self-incriminating manner.
"Oh, damn, good for you, sis! A tad out of your league, but sure, shoot for the stars!" Yang threw a pillow at her sibling, leaving Weiss with no words and her mouth hanging open in complete and utter disbelief.
Pyrrha, who was lying down in her sleeping bag next to Nora, decided to take pity on the ice queen. "You went a little too far with this one, Nora."
"Thank you, Pyrrha! Someone understands!"
The invincible girl mouthed a silent "I'm sorry" at the ginger, who was pounting at her with puppy eyes.
"I'm curious, though. Why did you keep insisting on calling Cinder an older woman?" Blake perked her ears, bringing up a question now that the storm seemed to have mostly passed.
"Oh, come on, I can't be the only noticing she's like 40!"
"Fourty? Are you serious? I admit she's an early bloomer, but Ozpin would've never let someone that old into Beacon..." Weiss countered Nora's preposterous ideas with absolute certainty, just like a proper Schnee would.
"An early bloomer? She's larger than Yang." Blake pointed out with a coy expression.
"How dare you! I am never letting you touch them again!" Yang punched her partner in the arm, donning an utter offended expression in her lilac eyes.
"Yaaaaaang!"
"Oh, sorry sis, forgot you were in the room."
Pyrrha cleared her throat. "Also, you insist that she is an evil person, I don't get why..."
"Oh please, those looks she makes are so creepy. She's definitely planning something." Nora ominously waggled her fingers in the air to emphasize the point, but only managed to look all the more ridiculous.
"Nora has always had a very vivid imagination."
"I do not! And why are you even here? This is a girls-only slumber party!"
Ren shrugged, hiding his hurt pride, and resumed his work, sitting by the left bunk. "I'm doing Weiss' nails, because she can appreciate pretty things without wanting to smash them."
"And he's clearly more in touch with his feminine side than you are." The heiress continued the slander, teaming up with the ninja to talk trash about her.
"Emerald's part about making illusions was pretty cool, though. Don't know where you got that either, but still." Yang gave a thumbs-up for the storyteller.
"Yeah, that one was just flavor, I mean an illusion-based semblance sounds awesome!"
"You seriously make no sense."
"Maybe we should just try someone else. Anyone has stories that aren't completely freaking disturbing?"
Emerald opened the door to the room, and was met by the sight of her mentor sitting down on the floor, next to the window, hugging her knees with an utterly desolate expression in her eyes.
"What happened?" She turned to Mercury, who was leaning on a nearby wall, looking quite distressed as well.
"I don't know, she was spying on those kids, and she got like that all of a sudden!"
The green-haired girl walked over to Cinder and kneeled near her, stretching a hand out tenderly. "What's wrong?"
The elder woman looked up, her eyes clouded in darkness.
"We failed… the ginger, she… knows everything."
The things I do for reddit's MonCon. I'm sorry.