Mother's Day
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY, it is the property of RoosterTeeth.
It was hot. So very hot. She knew the fire had to reach, but she still felt like she was burning. She could barely breath. The cloth she used to cover her nose and mouth provided little protection from the smoke. Her eyes were shut, yet she still felt blinded by the orange light of the flames surrounding her. Another coughing fit. Her lungs were burning. Yet it was nothing compared to the pain in her abdomen. She placed her hand on the bulge of her stomache, feeling clear movement.
Why? Why did it have to end like this? All I wanted was a normal life away from prejudice and hate? I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I failed you already.
Just as she was about to give in to unconsciousness, a loud crack made her eyes shoot open. There, right in front of her, stood a person covered in red. For a moment, it looked like they were on fire. But it wasn't fire. It was a cloak. A red cloak.
Suddenly, she felt something cool envelop her. Somehow, in the blink of an eye, the person had run over to her and wrapped their cloak around her. It was wet. Then she felt a firm grip as they picked her up and started running.
She could feel the blazing heat as they ran through the flames. She felt a strong draft. They seemed to be going an incredibly fast pace. Then she heard a crash and all of a sudden the light was gone. She welcomed the cool darkness that followed.
The person carrying her slowed down the pace before stopping completely. She then felt herself being lowered to the ground. She cherished the coolness of the sidewalk as she lay there.
"Are you alright?" She hears a clearly female voice ask.
"I'm..." Sudden pain elicits a sharp scream. She clutches her stomache.
"Miss!" The female voice speaks, clearly alarmed. "What's wrong?"
"Ah! Ahh! My baby!"
"What?! Oh crap! Medic! Over here! I think she's having a baby!"
Footsteps. Quick. Alarmed. Someone kneels next to her. Strange hands on her. "Good lord." Another voice. This one male. "She must've gone into labor before the fire started. She'll be having. Miss, can you hear me?"
"Gah, yes!"
"Alright, just do as I say!"
He gives clear instructions, but he's nervous. It's clear he's never done this before. More pain. She feels like she's gonna black out any second. Until...
A warm feeling in her hand. Not hot. Not like the flames. Soft, comforting. She looks down to see a nimble feminine hand grasping her own. She looks up and catches her breath. Silver eyes surrounded by crimson black frame, illuminated by the silver light of the moon. And just like that, she found the strength to endure. The pain seemed bearable and she could breath clearly now. She endured. And just like that, it was over. The cries of a newborn child filled her ear.
She felt someone prop her up. She looked up to see the silver-eyed girl smiling at her. "You did it."
She then noticed someone else approaching. A young man in a paramedics uniform knelt next to her a bundle. She took it. It squirmed in her hands. "It's a girl," he said. She looked down. The baby girl was wrapped in a blanket, a little head of black hair sticking out, crying like mad. Little kitten ears twitching wildly. She smiled. She turned to the medic. "Thank you." The to the silver-eyes woman. "Thank you so much."
"Hey, I'm a huntress. It's what I do."
She felt weak. Her heartbeat was slowing. Probably calming down after all the "excitement".
The huntress looked down at the baby. "What are you gonna name her?"
She looked down. She had been debating on a name for months. Now, as she stared into the little girl's golden eyes, she could only think of one name. "Amber. I...Her name...is Amber." She felt cold.
"A nice name," the huntress stated. She looked up. This woman was huntress. A noble warrior dedicated to protecting the people. A human, who had risked their life to save a faunus. She didn't want Amber to grow up in a slum, didn't want her exposed to blind hatred. She wanted a better life. Better than she'd had. Better than she could have given.
"What is you're name?"
"Huh? Oh, it's Ruby. Ruby Bellarosa."
She was tired. "Ruby, please, take care of her for me."
"Huh? E-excuse me?"
"Please," darkness closing in, the slow heartbeat lulling her to sleep, "she...deserves...more." Her eyes close and she smiles contently.
(**)
Her body had been placed upon a gurney. Ruby looked down on it, little Amber squirming in her hands.
"This wasn't your fault." She looks up at the medic. "She had been malnourished for weeks. Honestly, it's a miracle that she survived this long. You should be glad that we were at least able to save the baby."
"I am. But still..."
"I know."
"Besides," she looked back down at the woman, "she looks like my wife." The medic didn't say anything. Ruby looked down at Amber. "What'll become of her?"
"We couldn't get an I.D. on the mother. I could try to find something once I'm back at the hospital, but something tells me I won't find anything. Black-haired cat faunus with amber eyes isn't exactly rare, as you obviously know." Ruby nodded. "So, without any immediate relatives, I guess that just leaves you."
Ruby's eyes widened in surprise. "Excuse me?"
"She did say she wanted you to take care of her."
"Well, yeah, but I didn't think I could just take her."
"You can't. The adoption process will take a while, during which she will be given into the hospital's care, but with my testimony that it was, in fact, the mother's explicit wish that you take care of her, I don't see why it shouldn't be permitted. Unless you simply don't want to take care of her."
Again, Ruby's eyes widened and she looked down at Amber.
"I would understand if that was the case. Having a baby suddenly forced upon you can be a difficult thing."
Ruby pondered that. It did seem pretty ridiculous getting a baby for simply doing your job. Still, as she looked down at little Amber, she couldn't help but feel a certain kind familiarity. Despite, probably, having no direct relations, she looked exactly like Blake. And she was just a baby. The idea of simply abandoning her felt wrong. Still, she knew what she had to do.
"I need to talk to my wife."
(**)
The sun felt warm on her skin. It was a beautiful spring day and Ruby had decided to spend lazing about in the afternoon sun.
The sound of tiny feet running through the grass made her open her eyes. A small figure was running towards her, waving their arms frantically. "Mommy, mommy! I caught a fish!"
"Really?" Ruby asked as she took Amber into her arms. Hard to believe it was almost four years since she and her wave adopted her.
"Mmh, mama took me to the creek and we saw this big fish and I jumped in and I grabbed it."
"With your bare hands?"
"Yeah," she said proudly.
Ruby then looked her up and down. "Where is it?"
"I put it back. I wanted to keep it, but mama said I was taking it from it's home. I didn't want that, so I put it back."
"Smart choice."
Amber beamed. "Besides," she looked down at the bulge of Ruby's stomache and hugged it, "I already have a sister waiting for me. I don't need a fish."
Ruby smiled at the little girl, then looked up at Blake who was walking up to them.
"She tell you the story?" Blake asked she leaned down to kiss Ruby.
"Yeah, she did. I'm proud of her."
"So am I. After dinner, she's an extra cookie."
This made Amber beam brightly and bounce in excitement.
"Oh, speaking of cookies," Ruby spoke up. "Did you remember to buy me those triple chocolate chip cookies."
"Yes, darling. I bought pretty much every type of chocolate chip cookie the store had."
"You're the best."
"C'mon, sweetie." Blake picked up Amber. "Let's go make dinner. We don't want mommy to go hungry."
As they walked away, Ruby leaned back, closed her eyes and smiled into the afternoon sun.