A few hours had passed, Ruby and the rabbit faunus lay still on the bed in Maia's new bedroom. Maia had suggested to Ruby that the two got some rest before the meeting with Emmett took place amidst the aftermath of the harsh blizzard, but Ruby had only been able to daydream rather than sleep. In fact Ruby found it near impossible to tear her eyes away from the sleeping form of the rabbit faunus, and had resorted to huddling as close to Maia as possible, so that she never looked away for longer than was needed to blink away the dryness forming in Ruby's eyes. As Ruby's strengthening desire to find out how Maia's pristine flesh tasted swept over her again, Ruby was forced to place her hands underneath herself, using her own weight as a restraint against the now borderline irresistible skin of the faunus in front of her.
Ruby knew that she was running out of time and that if she didn't indulge soon, she might risk losing someone precious again. "Not again, not after last time" she whispered to herself softly, painful memories of her past life rushing back to her, "I can't afford to lose what little I have left. She's my only chance now, and I'm not going to lose that chance again."
Ruby was then jolted out from her distant thoughts by the blaring sound of an alarm, the noise angering her as it ripped away her precious attention from Maia. As Ruby began to manoeuvre herself towards the offending device, Maia suddenly shifted beneath Ruby, a hand flying out from under the duvet and silencing the cursed machine in one rehearsed strike.
"Aww damn it", Maia sighed groggily as she slowly heaved herself upright in the bed, "And for a moment there I thought that I could actually get some sleep, but thanks to Emmett and his friends there's still work to do."
"Y'know, you could just go back to sleep" suggested Ruby innocently, "After all you have to deal with those files and reports about the faunus behind the crimes, so it's not like you can come with me to see Emmett. In fact why bother, I think we should both focus on sleeping after what happened, that way you'll be nice and safe, asleep in your bed..." Ruby was interrupted by a short chuckle from the rabbit faunus.
"Red, if you seriously think I'm going back to sleep with you staring at me then you're out of your mind," Maia stated incredulously, "Not to mention that this is the perfect opportunity to get a solid idea of where the safe house of Emmett and the other faunus is located! Besides, it's more fun to investigate than write paperwork." Maia only now noticed just how close Ruby was sat to her. Turning to get a better look at the girl she saw that between her and Ruby was a large indent the size of a person from where Ruby had been huddled so close to the faunus in her sleep, a slight damp patch was visible and coated in what Maia could only assume was drool. Shifting her gaze back to Ruby, Maia noticed how Ruby shifted uncomfortably, moving her weight between the two hands placed beneath her but not enough to free either hand completely.
Curious as to why Ruby had decided to sit on her hands, Maia looked to Ruby's face for an answer. Her gaze was met with a pair of eyes staring intensely back at her, as if she were somehow responsible for Ruby's discomfort. "R-Red?" Maia almost whispered the word, the sound echoing through the house as an eerie silence fell over the pair. "Hello? Red are you okay?" Ruby seemed to pay no attention to the rabbit faunus, a smile begun to creep across her face before widening into a toothy grin. Ruby's expression was now that of a predator that had seen its first prey in weeks, her hunger now clear in her eyes. "Uhh, Red?"
"Red?. What're you...Hey!...Please, stop...Red!" Ruby was once more in a sleepy haze of thoughts, her rest disturbed only by the faint sounds of what Ruby could somewhat make out as someone talking, occasional phrases and words could be made out, the rest nonsensical. Then, the noises began to get louder and louder, a crescendo building up within her mind. "RED!" Ruby's body jolted sharply as she came back to her senses. Slowly taking in her surroundings, Ruby found herself face to face with Maia, straddling her hips with the faunus pinned onto the floor. "Red I will tell you one more time, I don't like you that way."
Ruby practically leaped off of the faunus, but was relieved that her true intentions had not been realized, and that for a while longer she could continue to savour the rabbit faunus' company.
"Sorry about that, Maia, just sometimes I get a little... I don't know, weird I guess", her excuse wasn't even slightly convincing, but Maia accepted it anyway. "Right I need to go before I'm late to the meet up with Emmett, and the others" said Ruby as she hurriedly double checked her disguise and made her way to the door, afraid that if she didn't leave immediately she would be too far gone to stop the next time.
"Red..." began Maia, but the door opened and then slammed shut, "Oh sod it," thought Maia as she dragged herself out of bed, "Best to just get on with it then I guess."
Ruby ran through the snow, her mind clouded by worried thoughts of Maia's safety and excited thoughts about what kind of hunt she would be on today. "Hopefully this will be more fun than the mouse family from last time" thought Ruby, as she made her way through the snow. As Ruby approached the bar she felt a sense of anticipation and anxiety wash over her.
Once inside the bar she would again become Rose, a snake faunus resident of New Haven, someone not haunted by a tragic past. However, after the attack following her previous visit she might still be a target, and hopefully this would not make her be seen by the criminal carnivores as a liability. That would be bad, but whether that was because it would mean Ruby could not hunt or because it would mean letting down Maia was no longer clear.
Checking her disguise one last time in her reflection in the glass bar windows, and was comforted when the reflection showed the faint silhouette of a rabbit faunus stealthily positioning herself on a nearby roof, "At least she's nearby, somewhere that I can still protect her." Ruby slowly exhaled, curiously watching as the warm breath disappeared into the cold night air, almost amused by her own numbness to the cold. Shaking her head slightly Ruby opened the door to the bar, and stepped inside.
The bar was alive with the hum of conversations, occasional shouts of excitement from the numerous bar games could be heard clearly above the rest of the noise.
"Rose" a voice called out her name, Ruby turned to see Emmett, his arm raised as he waved Ruby over to the table he was sat at. The faunus was sat at a table by himself, his yellow eyes fixed on Ruby as she approached. "Where's everyone else?" Ruby enquired.
"Already waiting for us outside" answered Emmett. The jaguar faunus ran a hand through his black hair as he stood up and nodded towards the door, "C'mon let's go, before people start to think we're together or something" he said laughing softly. As the pair walked outside, Emmett looked over his shoulder at Ruby and said "Oh yeah, Cedric's not gonna be with us tonight, he said he had to see someone about something. To be honest he still hasn't gotten over your little performance." As the pair briskly walked along the street Ruby took a brief glance over her shoulder, straining her uncovered eye to see whether Maia was managing to keep up. "Maybe bringing Maia along was a bad idea" thought Ruby anxiously, "Sure, if it helps Maia get these guys busted then Vincent might just let me in. But she might also find out what I've done and then I'm fucked." Ruby bit her lip as she walked, lost in thought as she weighed up her options.
As they neared the street corner Emmett suddenly stopped in front of Ruby, turning round to face her with a confused expression.
"Rose, what's wrong?"
"Hmm? What do you mean?" She responded.
"You looked like you were lost in thought or something. You're not feeling bad about our last hunt are you?", Ruby shook her head in response, "Good, for a moment there I you were done already. After all, watching you in action was some good evening entertainment." Ruby grinned, she had to admit it was pretty good entertainment, even if she was the one doing the entertaining.
At that moment Hari and Keith appeared in front of the pair.
"You are slow" said Hari.
"Very slow" agreed Keith, the cheetah faunus nodding his head slightly.
"You guys ready to head out?" Asked Emmett, to which the cheetah faunus agreed in unison, "Great then let's get going." Emmett and the other two carnivores then swiftly crossed the road and entered a dimly-lit, narrow alley between two shops, Ruby followed them but wasn't sure where they were headed. Even though she couldn't remember the exact route to the safe house, she could at least tell that the group was headed in a different direction.
As if anticipating Ruby's thoughts, Keith briefly turned his head towards Ruby and said "No need to wait today, these grass-eaters like to sleep early, lets them avoid hearing things they don't like. Like Grimm."
Now Hari turned to Ruby, a sly grin spreading across her face, her teeth glistening brightly in the dark, "This is good, when they sleep it is easier for us."
Curious, Ruby cocked her head.
"So exactly what kind of faunus are we after this time?" Again Ruby was met with a glance over a shoulder, only this time by Emmett, "It's one you have some experience with already Rose." With that the group walked silently to their destination, each passing minute making Ruby more anxious. "What did he mean by experience?" She wondered silently, "I can't think of any faunus that fit the description."
It had been fifteen minutes since any one had spoken, and the group now sat on the edge of a neighbourhood, this was the place they were looking for. As the realisation began to dawn on Ruby that she would soon be feeding again, she shuddered with delight, the excitement running through her system like electricity. Ruby felt a hand on her shoulder, it was Emmett, "We're going" he whispered. "You ready?" Ruby nodded eagerly.
Now the jaguar faunus turned towards the two cheetah faunus, and after making sure the coast was clear one last time, the four advanced upon the house holding their prey. Keith and Hari each looked one way down the street, whilst Emmett walked up to the door. "Rose, help to keep an eye out will you?" Emmett bluntly sighed, glancing over to Ruby with an eyebrow raised as he reached into his pocket and producing a thin piece of metal. Ruby blankly stared at Emmett, taking a moment to process his request, "Uhh yeah sure." She mumbled, before turning to look back across the street they had crossed. R
uby's eyes scanned every rooftop, alley and street corner, anxiously trying to see if Maia had managed to keep up with the group. Either Maia was good at hiding or she had lost track of the group because Ruby did not see any sign of being followed, nor any signs of life for that matter. A soft metallic click came from behind Ruby, as the lock to the door of the house slid open. They were in.
Unbeknownst to the group, a lone rabbit faunus sat absolutely dead still upon a rooftop directly across the street. Her ears were pinned down by the sides of her head, as she carefully peered between two chimneys. A hand was clasped to her mouth, her eyes wide in fear and anticipation. Maia's other hand was balled tightly into a fist as she watched the group slip silently into the house.
This was not something she had expected to happen, and now she was torn. She was faced with two options, face off with the predators and risk blowing Red's cover, or sit-by and let the family inside the house face them alone.
What made it harder for the rabbit faunus was that Mai knew exactly who lived inside of that house, and that if she didn't help them there was no way she could call herself a police officer, nor could she look any of the victims in the eye ever again.
