Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. Melancholy of the Wolf contains dark themes and questionable morals. Viewer discretion is advised.
Two weeks after the end of RWBY: Darkfall.
Unknown pathway, Frontier Vale.
Saffeara, Ruby, and Dye walked down the remote, white gravel, pathway that had weeds and underbrush growing on either side of it. Above them the mid-August sun beat down on them with the harshness of Hell itself. Dye panted heavily as his feet thumped on the white rocks; his black fur not helping him in the slightest. Saffeara was to his right visibly distressed. She had removed her black robe and stuffed it into her backpack; which left her in a black, one piece, bra and black panties. This only help to concentrate the heat on other delicate parts of her body. "God I suck at picking out the right underwear." Saffeara thought, sighing inwardly.
While Saffeara slowly boiled, Ruby, was burning to a crisp. Before she left her and Weiss' house she had put on her new battle uniform that Weiss had redesigned for her. Her top was a vest much like her old one yet this one's back was completely open, allowing her wings, and, or tails to emerge and retract freely. The color was also changed so that it was mostly black, and only the zipper was red. Her pants were now red with a belt that kept Lunar Rose in place. Finally her boots were now black with red heels. All this, including her black hair, helped to turn her into the world's first living oven; and the only thing Ruby could do was try to keep her hair off her neck; and unzip her vest just low enough as to air her out. Inwardly she wished she could just take off the damn thing; but Saffeara was next to her and she didn't feel like showing her chest off either.
"Oh my God, why the fuck is it so hot today?!" Ruby complained; her composure being lost.
Saffeara looked over to her and chuckled, "Hey my ass is hot too; but I don't complain about it."
Ruby looked at Saffeara and was met with a mischievous grin.
"That's not what I meant. I just wish it wasn't so hot today." Ruby said; rubbing the back of her neck.
"Aww is Ruby's clothing too hot? She could always take it off right, Dye?" Saffeara asked; wiggling her eyebrows.
Dye looked at Ruby and whined.
"Yeah, um, that's not going to happen." Ruby replied.
Saffeara shrugged, "Then you have no reason to complain."
Saffeara faced forward again; before stopping dead in her tracks. She sniffed the air like she was smelling the world's best cuisine.
"What is it?" Ruby asked, her hand hovering over Lunar Rose.
"I smell…" She sniffed harder. "I smell water!" Saffeara said; breaking to a full sprint.
"Woah, Saffeara wait!" Ruby yelled after her.
It was too late as she jumped over some bushes and landed in an small woodland that surrounded a lake with crystal clear water. Ruby and Dye soon joined her and took in the marvelous sight.
"Do you know what this means Ruby?" Saffeara asked; patting the younger girl's arm.
"Fish for dinner?" Ruby replied.
Saffeara chuckled, "No, it means SWIMMING!"
With that she took off running. She hair bounced as she ran and as she got closer she noticed a wooden dock that appeared to be abandoned. She ran down the dock, the wood thudding underneath her feet. She jumped off the dock and formed a perfect cannonball before disappearing underneath the water with a loud splash. She opened her eyes and found herself immersed in a world of blue and white bubbles. Above her was the sunlight that shone like crystal. Saffeara swam up and broke the surface to see Ruby and Dye standing on the dock looking at her.
"The water's great." Saffeara said; happily waving her hand in the air.
Ruby looked at her with a smirk and rolled her eyes. Sometimes she swore Saffeara was around thirteen years old instead of her actual 22 years of age. She was interrupted by her thoughts as Dye jumped into the water and started to paddle his way over to Saffeara. When he reached her he started to lick her left cheek vigorously. Saffeara wrapped her arms around the large wolf and giggled playfully.
Ruby smiled, "While you two make out. I'm going to go set up camp."
Ruby grabbed Saffeara's backpack and turned away from Saffeara, waving behind her as she did. That was until a black ribbon wrapped itself around her wrist. Ruby stopped in her tracks and turned to see Saffeara looking at her with a devilish grin. The ribbon came off of her neck and from what Ruby could tell now covered her entire body.
"Don't you dare, Saffeara Vain." Ruby said; trying to cover her fear with sternness.
All she got in response was a giggle before Saffeara lifted her into the air, luckily dropping the bags on the dock, and dropped her into the water.
Ruby came back up a sputtering and coughing mess before turning to Saffeara.
"You couldn't wait until I changed could you?" Ruby asked.
"Nope, you change slower than a seven year itch so by then I would have been cold." Saffeara said; as Dye swam over to Ruby.
He licked the new addition on the mouth, bringing a smile to Ruby's lips as she scratched behind his ears. Ruby swam a little ways from Dye before splashing water towards Saffeara; who looked a little too late. The water absolutely drenched Saffeara's already wet hair and caused it to cover her eyes as a smile stretched across her face.
"Oh, so that's how you want it eh?" Saffeara said; turning towards Ruby and plunging both her arms under the water.
She lifted up and sent a wall of water towards Ruby; who lifted her hands up in order to shield her face. The water rained down like a waterfall and covered Ruby better than any shower could dream of. Ruby giggled as she started to splash Saffeara again. The two girls started a splashing war of the ages.
About an hour later the sun started to set and both of them now sat around a fire. Ruby had gone fishing and came back with quite a catch from the abandoned lake. She quickly cooked the fish and served it with a bowl of white rice gracious farmer had rewarded them with after killing a pack of Beowolves near his homestead. Ruby moved her fork to her mouth; but stopped when Saffeara put her plate next to Ruby with a wanting look on her face. Ruby's eyes went wide this was her fifth fish and her third bowl of rice. Luckily they had enough food; but this was apparently the new norm for Saffeara which concerned Ruby. She gently set down her plate and started to refill Saffeara's.
"Hey, Saffeara no offense; but when did you start eating so much?" She asked; trying to make it sound as sincere as possible.
Saffeara poked her cheek with a quizzical look on her face, "I believe it was shortly after the war ended. I went home and ate almost everything from my fridge, much to Dye's dismay." Both of them looked over to the wolf who was now asleep a few feet away from them. "After that I went to see Liz about it and she just told me that it was probably my semblance compensating for my new non-human diet."
"Oh yeah, I forgot you went 'cold turkey' so to speak. Why would your semblance have to compensate for that?" Ruby asked.
Saffeara took her now filled plate back, "One of the main ways my Primal Semblance recharges its power is by devouring people. Of course it's not my choice to eat them it was just one of the things I had to do in order to maintain it; but now I'm trying to see if I can maintain it through other means."
"That's great, I hope it all works out in the end." Ruby said; finally getting to take a bite of her food.
Saffeara smiled before downing her fish at a record pace. The two women continued to make conversation about their lives and their hopes for the next town. However, before long the day's activities started to weigh on them.
Ruby got up and proceeded to take cover behind a clump of bushes while she went to the bathroom for the last time that day. After she did that she changed into a black tank top and a pair of brown panties, before grabbing her clothes and carrying them over to her sleeping bag next to the fire. Saffeara had chosen to do her business near the lake and now was walking towards camp. She was now in a different set of underwear and had her hair pulled into a messy ponytail since she hated how hot it would get when she was inside the sleeping bag. Both of them climbed into their sleeping bags and fell asleep within seconds; the cool night air cradling them gently.
Hours passed and the shattered moon rose above the lake and cast a reflection that could only be described as "mystical". The light shown through the tops of the trees and formed long black shadows on the ground. The light fell on Saffeara who was covered in a cold sweat. Her breathing was ragged and tears were streaming down her face. Inside of her head were flashes of red and black mist as pain ripped through her subconscious and at the very end of it a voice, "Let's reenact what your dad would do to you in the hallway before you went to bed."
Saffeara sat up with stunning speed and instantly covered her mouth with her hand, trying to suppress a loud scream. She then took her hand away from her mouth as after the scream ended and got out of her sleeping bag. Her arms and legs shook as she grabbed her robe and threw it over her head; making sure to zip it up and pull the hood over her head. After that she walked down to the dock and sat on its edge; her hood, and hair, covered her eyes and only left the bottom of her face exposed to the glow of the moon. Her feet dangled off the edge allowing only her big toes to touch the water; which she slowly looked at she she danced them over the surface of the water.
Minutes passed before she heard bare feet softly walking towards her.
Her lips curved into a small smile, "You know the last time a girl came up to me dressed like that she was probably the best one night stand I'd ever had."
Ruby ignored Saffeara's joke and walked next to her; besides the pain in her voice ruined the joke. She sat down next to her and criss-crossed her legs; before reaching over and pulling Saffeara into her. The cold, metal, hand sent a chill down Saffeara's spine; but it was quickly snuffed away by by Ruby's body heat.
"You had another nightmare didn't you?" Ruby asked; already knowing the answer.
Saffeara nodded her head.
"Saffeara, you've been having these nightmares for the last week; and you still won't tell me what's wrong." Ruby said; tightening her grip of on Saffeara.
Saffeara pulled away from her, "I can't Ruby, you probably wouldn't even be able to respond to it anyway."
Ruby's eyes looked down, "Fine, I'll learn to respond."
Saffeara's face turned to one of confusion as Ruby stood up; and pulled her to her feet.
"Through the war I found out that when you fight with someone you learn their characteristics. So I want you to spar with me." Ruby said; putting her hands on her hips.
Saffeara cocked her head to the side, "I don't want to, Ru-"
She was silenced by Ruby putting her finger on her lips.
"Enough, you haven't been getting a good night's sleep and I, at the very least, need you sharp to save my life if I need you to." She said.
Saffeara looked to the side before conceding to the reaper. Both of them turned back towards their camp and started to walk back.
"Hey, try to go easy on me will ya?" Ruby asked.
"You forced me to do this. You'll suffer the consequences."Saffeara shrugged.
"Oh, okay." Ruby replied.
Both of them returned to camp and quickly put their gear on and returned to the dock shortly thereafter.
"So where is it you wanted to do this?" Saffeara asked; looking around.
Ruby pulled out a vial of Ice Dust from a pouch on her belt, "I have a place very special in mind."
She walked down to the edge of the dock and poured it into the lake. It took around half of the vial, but when she was finished the entire lake was covered in a thick coat of blue ice. Saffeara blinked a few times in response to what Ruby had just done.
"You know it's still much to warm for ice, right?" Saffeara asked.
"Yep, that's why we better make this fast." Ruby said; jumping down and onto the slippery surface.
Saffeara jumped down and walked to the opposite end of the frozen lake. She flexed her hands as she watched Ruby put her mask on.
"Ruby, are you sure you still want to do this?" Saffeara asked; somewhat shakily.
Ruby squinted her eyes in confusion; before she nodded yes. "Is she scared?" Ruby asked; herself.
"Alright." Saffeara mumbled; pulling the new Evercaster off her back.
After the war she had Liz make some modifications to Evercaster so that it would fit her fighting style better. First thing that was changed was the katana blade was replaced by a wider, heavier blade that just barely tipped its balance to the front. She also did some more internal improvements and added a heat shield for her hand. However, it was still colored purple and had Magenta's name carved into the bottom of it. Saffeara pointed it at Ruby and watched as Ruby unfolded Lunar Rose into its scythe form. Both of them stared at each other until Ruby vanished in a flurry of rose petals. Saffeara's expression contorted as she bent backwards as Lunar Rose's blade cut off some small strands of her hair. She then fell onto her back and slid behind Ruby; spinning she swept Ruby's feet out from under her.
Ruby fell to the ice; before back flipping onto her feet. She cracked her neck and shook out her arms.
"Not bad, Saffeara." Ruby said; grabbing Lunar Rose with both hands.
Saffeara smirked, "Scared, Ruby?"
"No, I'm just starting to have fun." She replied; pointing Lunar Rose at her and firing.
The round sailed passed Saffeara who dodged out of the way and fired Evercaster at Ruby.
The large ball of lightning burst forth from the sword and travled towards Ruby; who spun Lunar Rose in her hands, knocking the energy ball off course and into the bank of the lake. It exploded and destabilized the melting ice causing it to start cracking. Seeing that was Saffeara was more or less distracted by the cracking ice, Ruby, seized the opportunity and shot in front of Saffeara. Metal clashed in a flurry of sparks as Lunar Rose lost most of its momentum when Saffeara attempted to block it with Evercaster. However, the larger weapon one out sending sliding onto her butt. Ruby quickly turned back towards her only to see a black piece of ribbon wrap itself around Lunar Rose and pull it forward along with Ruby. Saffeara stood up, her left hand covered in black ribbon that her claws pierced though. She sent a bolt of lightning through the ribbon and into Lunar Rose which shocked Ruby and tore a mouth sized hole in her mask. The ribbon let go as Ruby fell to one knee; holding her mouth.
While she had only used blue lightning, Saffeara still felt a stab of guilt in her heart for what she had done. She slowly walked over to Ruby and held her hand out.
"Shall we stop?" Saffeara asked.
Ruby grabbed her hand and pulled herself up; most of her wounds already healed.
"Nope, I still don't know what's wrong with you." Ruby said; walking from her a ways.
The ice started to break apart around them.
"Okay." Saffeara half sighed.
She covered her entire body , underneath her cloak, with the black ribbon; and commanded four strands to go after Ruby. However, her eyes went wide as the ribbon was diced to pieces in front of her. Ruby's two Deathstalker tails had emerged from her back and now sat at arm's length with Ruby.
"I have a Primal Semblance too. What do you say we finish this?" Ruby asked her; a swarm of molten rose petals flowing around her.
Saffeara's eyes started to glow red as she threw her cloak onto the ice; her body covered in black ribbon that started to glow red as well. Ruby stuck her human finger in her mouth and bit it; blood started dripping from her mask.
In the course of a second Saffeara shot forward leaving a red trail behind her that broke the ice. From inside her charge she saw Ruby standing in front of her; the rose petals swarming around her. "Oh please move. Let me miss you; because if I don't this will kill you." Saffeara pleaded in her mind. However, this was not meant to be.
Ruby lined up the rose petals in front of her and shot them forward; but she made sure to miss. Saffeara's mouth opened as wide as her eyes when she saw this. She hit the brakes and lowered Evercaster; but she could only slow down enough to remove the red aura, which was the killing part of her charge. She impacted Ruby with a smack and carried them both onto dry land as the final pieces of ice disappeared. Saffeara sat up and noticed that she was straddling Ruby's waist; and it was also the waist of the woman who almost made her kill her.
Saffeara grit her teeth and growled as she grabbed the younger girl's collar; Ruby's silver eyes filled with surprise.
"You damned idiotic, MORON! I could have killed you! If you wanted to throw the match why didn't you say so instead of having me almost eviscerate you?!" Saffeara yelled; tears starting to run down her nose.
Ruby just looked at her before asking a question of her own, "Saffeara, do you love me?"
Saffeara froze and dropped Ruby back to the ground. She stood up and slowly backed away from Ruby; her eyes wide and breath somewhat fast. Saffeara felt sick like she would throw up at any moment.
"Saffeara?" Ruby asked.
She looked up and found the girl looking at her with a concerned expression. Saffeara grit her teeth again.
"Fine, I do; but I'd rather you forget about it, because I can't have you and it would take a miracle for me to get you." Saffeara replied.
"Saffeara…" Ruby said; touching her robotic hand to Saffeara's left shoulder.
However, when she did this the ribbon started to unravel and disintegrate. Saffeara covered her chest and southern region in advance before it all fell off.
She was now even more pissed, "This 'ribbon form' only lasts for a short time and then it needs to recharge. So if you want me tell you what I've been having nightmares about then you better get your ass down to the water and fish my robe out of that goddamn lake." She produced a single claw out of her index finger. "If you don't I'm going to stick this where you really don't want it; and I don't mean in the pleasurable way."
Ruby gulped before running down to the lake; pulling Lunar Rose of her back. It took Ruby around thirty minutes to find the robe and over an hour to get it out of the lake. While she did this, Saffeara, hid herself behind a tree and shot Ruby dirty looks.
Ruby grabbed the soaked piece of cloth and walked over to Saffeara.
"Here you go." Ruby said; handing the sopping wet article of clothing.
Saffeara took the robed in the index and thumb of her left hand and just looked at it, before looking at Ruby.
"Strip." She ordered.
"What?!" Ruby asked.
"I can't wear this; so you are going to take responsibility and give me your clothes to wear." Saffeara said.
"B-But I'm not wearing a bra underneath this, Saffeara." Ruby whined.
"Then you better turn around. Now strip." Saffeara commanded; pointing at her.
Ruby squeaked as she turned around and started to take her vest off. She took it off to reveal her bare back; and then threw it over her shoulder. Saffeara caught it and quickly put it on; and watched as Ruby took her pants off. She used the time to silently admire the view before the pants were tossed her way. She quickly slipped them on and made note of how much bigger Ruby was.
The younger girl turned around clutching her chest and watched as Saffeara walked passed her. She followed her towards camp where she grabbed a bra from her bag; and sat by the fire Saffeara had just made. There, Saffeara told her about the torture she suffered at the hands of Winter. Ever since that day Ruby; and Saffeara have made sure to never let one another out of their sight.
One Month Later
Harmony, Capital of the Sequoia Tree
Saffeara brushed dead leaves from the name on the statue of Magenta Magnolia. She was back in Harmony after what seemed like ages; and now stood inside of the Cemetery of Heroes. The cemetery was the place where the bodies of the soldiers who died in the Atlysian war were buried and forever held in honor.
She placed her hand on Magenta's tombstone and said a silent prayer that was meant for
only her to know. When she finished she heard two sets of footsteps behind her and turned towards them. There she saw Ruby and Weiss looking at her with soft smiles on their faces.
"You ready to go?" Ruby asked.
"Yeah, and I can't wait for dinner." Saffeara said; getting up and walking with them.
As they left the wind blew and sent a piece of black ribbon flying off of Saffeara and it landed neatly on top of the stone slab that Magenta's statue stood on.