Ahh so many people are infatuated with these two and I just wanted to try writing them.
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.
Fallen Angels
They'd asked her many times, that is, why she took such a keen interest in the girl called Ruby Rose.
Now, Cinder was hearing the very same question from the girl herself.
And she was going to give the very same answers.
Ruby was tied to a chair in Cinder's lair – a bit unconventional, but it would have to do for now. She writhed and struggled like a young fawn in a snare, skittish, but still trying to act tough despite the evident fear in her eyes.
Cinder lived for that. She drank it up, savored it like a rare elixir. It was that kind of fear that let her rest easy tonight with these images burned onto the backs of her eyelids.
But night was still far.
She had time to kill before then.
She stalked around her prey like the huntress she was, observing her from all angles, all the while the smirk never leaving her lips. She heard every one of Ruby's little whimpers and every strained swallow down her trembling throat, saw every flinch and defiant glare.
Cinder liked that, the bit of spunk she still had in her. But the fear was still palpable, and she could taste it on the roof of her mouth. She licked her lips, dragging her tongue along red lipstick, wondering idly how the red before her would taste.
Perhaps it was the plumpness of her florid cheeks, or the resplendent blood that pumped through her veins to give her such a sickeningly sweet personality, but something told her it was strawberry.
And Cinder couldn't wait to turn that sweetness sour.
Rotten.
She would transform the innocent little fruit before her into a forbidden apple, ridden with poison, corrupted and beyond saving.
All in good time.
She wasn't about to rush things.
After all, this was only step one, only the very beginning stages of the wonders she had planned for this girl.
She must have circled her victim a dozen times already, and it took a bit of conscious reminder not to reach out and spoil herself unabashedly by running fingers through her brown hair and nails down her white throat. It was a bit difficult, but Cinder managed to restrain herself.
Her hips swayed hypnotically as she prowled like a wolf, making certain her prey was cognizant of the situation.
The girl alternated between pleas and questions.
"Why are you doing this...?"
The silver glare did little to hide her apprehension.
Cinder bit back a chuckle; the amusing display of attempted bravado made her believe the girl deserved an answer.
Complacently, she sauntered forward, chin high as incandescent amber orbs bore downward, giving the girl no other option than to look up, as one would gaze upon a god.
Then, she leaned down, ghosting painted nails up from the hollow of her throat. Ruby tried to shy away, a mixture of overriding disgust and panic clear on her expression, but it was a futile effort.
Cinder dug her claws into the side of her jaw and forced her to look forward. She moved closer until she could feel her breath, short and meek and undeniably delectable.
"Because..."
She drawled the word, dragging it out for anticipation's sake. Her fingers curled up one by one, scratching roughly beneath the girl's chin, making her wince.
Cinder released a toxic breath against her lips, predatory eyes scanning shaken silver before she leaned forward again. Her fingers left the girl's chin, traveled instead to her cheek and the back of her jaw, petting through her hair to tuck it back into place. Cinder settled her lips against the shell of her ear and gave her answer in a husky voice.
"Because I want to watch you fall."
It couldn't be anyone else.
The girl's teammates and friends were already too damaged. There'd be no fun in toying with them.
It had to be Ruby Rose. She was still so young, so pure and innocent. Untainted.
And Cinder would take the liberty upon herself to stain her.
Deeply.
Even deeper than her sugary blood ran red.
She felt the girl shudder against her, and the little tremor in her wavering voice was to die for.
"W-Why me...?"
Cinder's lips curled even further up as she pulled away, though her fingers lingered, trailing back over her cheeks, hooking a tear in the dipped underside of her nail. Cinder retracted her hand, slipping her middle finger between her lips to taste the bit of salt.
"Because..." Again, she dragged it out, and for a brief instance, the smile faded, though not for long. "Because you are like me."
Cinder.
What an appropriate name.
The acrid, broken remnants of the lively, bright fire she'd once been. Her hair had turned ashen, though her eyes never lost that spark.
Only they now sparkled for a different reason.
It had used to be for the main purpose of any fire. To keep those she loved warm, safe.
But now... things were different.
Her purpose and interests had been drastically altered. Protection and warmth were no longer her objectives, nor would they ever be again.
No, it was fire's other purpose.
To destroy.
And she intended to start with Ruby Rose.
But again, she reminded herself there was no need to rush things. She wanted to take her time and savor it.
Her heels clicked on the cold, tiled floor, and she watched Ruby stiffen again. The girl closed her eyes and sucked in a sharp breath.
But Cinder had done what she needed to. For now, anyway.
She glided behind the chair and with a swift pull of her nails, the ropes came undone. When Ruby felt the pressure on her wrists disappear, she gasped, pulling her hands to her lap before jumping to her feet.
"What are you doing?" Her voice rose in confusion, as though she were clearly expecting a new form of torment to be waiting for her now.
But Cinder was still in the stages of her plan where she could afford to be merciful.
Her eyes met Ruby's again and Cinder pulled her fingers through her own hair, guiding it down over her right shoulder.
"You're free to go," she declared. "For now." A flick of her wrist directed Ruby's attention toward the door, but her voice brought the girl's gaze back to her. "Just remember, Little Red..."
She waked forward and grabbed the girl's wrists tightly enough to make her whimper again. Cinder leaned down until she was sure the girl could feel her breath. Her voice was low and sultry with a tinge of deadly sweetness, thick and addictive like toxic honey.
"This won't be the last time we see each other. Far from it."
One hand moved to the girl's cheek once more, nails making little red marks like crescent moons.
"You and I will meet again. Of that, you can be certain, my dear."
With that, she peeled herself away, releasing her prized fawn, though without a doubt that she'd stumble into her traps in the future, again and again.
Their gazes held for a moment before she inclined her head once more toward the door.
Warily, Ruby took a step in that direction, expecting to be stopped, but Cinder didn't move. The woman blinked, and then all that was before her were a dozen swirling rose petals.
She brought her fingers to her lips, tracing them over her smile; the girl's scent still clung to them, and she breathed it in for all it was worth.
She had Ruby Rose exactly where she wanted her.
And she would continue to chase her, capture her, hold her in darkness and toy with her before releasing her to run another day, only to repeat the process.
It was the perfect way to drive someone mad, to make them lose all sense of security-
-to make them paranoid and scared, to make them doubt every corner, every shadow, every person they once loved.
It was the perfect way to turn such a loving, caring child into a bitter, terrified, girl who trusted no one.
But Cinder had means of gaining her trust, twisting her morals until they coincided with her own. The fear Ruby would feel when she was free would be intensified with frequency, until freedom was no longer a relief, but something she would come to dread.
Cinder would make sure there would come a time when Ruby Rose didn't want to go back to Beacon.
Of course, this would take time, but the results were something Cinder was more than willing to be patient for.
She had lost her wings.
She was alone.
She had fallen.
And she wouldn't rest until she'd dragged someone else down along with her.
A/N: I'm weak. I don't think I can write for them very much.. But this is basically how I believe Cinder views Ruby.
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