Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. Any resemblance or mention to existing properties is part of the fic, a reference, or just something that I thought would be cool to include. Also, this fic is inspired by Chris7221's Divergence/Convergence works, and I would like to say he/she, but probably he, does a fine job.

And on that day, I made a vow

Whispered and true

No matter what, no matter how

I made this promise to you

I will cling, I will clutch

I'll hold onto you, I won't turn away

I won't leave, I won't go

I will stay with you all our days

RWBY Volume 2 Soundtrack - All Our Days


...Recovered remarkably well...

...Lucky to be alive...

...She could possibly not wake for a long time...

I heard voices. To whom they belonged? No idea. In my mind, I swam in a pool of black ink, unfeeling and weightless as a plucked feather.

...The injuries were very severe. The blood loss alone...

...She's my daughter! Isn't there anything you can do?!...

There! A light was emerging from above my void. It shone like a spotlight, and dully, I reached out for it, my ethereal fingers just managing to grasp its warmth. The light began to envelop me, and eventually, all I saw was blinding white.

Abruptly, all my senses came back online. Well, not all of them. I couldn't see a thing- only white. I did hear a soft beeping sound; maybe a metronome? My skin felt light, airy sheets and some sort of paper-thin garb. I smelled chemicals, and a reeking stench of alcohol- not the drinking kind, the rubbing kind. My tongue was positively stuck to the roof of my mouth, and it felt dry as a desert. I tried to move my jaw, but it was immobilized. There was a pressure at my chin. A hand was keeping it there, then.

"Well her eyes look normal enough, so no brain damage here," a voice said. Higher-pitched, and annoyed. Female. I heard a click, and my eye was suddenly free of the strange light. My jaw was relieved, too. "Happy?"

"Fine, but I'm not happy about this," came another voice, this one deeper, equally annoyed, and resigned. Masculine.

My eye focused, and I gazed upon a tiled ceiling. White panels and a dull silver frame. With what felt like titanic effort, I cracked open my other eye. I groaned, and sat up, using my elbows for leverage. My vision was slightly blurred, but I could make out the figures of a blonde man wearing a grey shirt and jeans, and a woman with a long white coat, and one of those heartbeat-hearing things that you see medics and physicians use. A doctor, maybe?

The pair immediately fell silent. Then the blonde man spoke.

"Hey, doc," he said. "Didn't you say it would at least take another few hours for her to wake up from something like that?" What?

"Yes. That's what's supposed to happen, but..." the doctor, as she evidently was one, replied. She turned her attention to me, all professional-like and stuff. "How are you feeling?" she asked me, carefully enunciating the words.

I'm fine, I slurred. At least, that's what I tried to say. It probably sounded something like "Irr Finnn." Dang, my throat was parched. I looked to my left, and spotted an empty glass. I pointed to it with one hand, and gestured to my mouth with the other.

"Oh! You're thirsty!" the blonde remarked, perhaps a little enthusiastically. I could see him reach behind his back for something. "Here," he said. He held out a clear cylinder to me, but seemed to think better of it. He pulled it back, twisting his off hand around the top of it, which seemed to uncap it, and held it out to me. I greedily grabbed it, and gulped down mouthfuls of cool, refreshing water. "Hey! Maybe not so fast, there!"

"Too late, sir, she's drowning in a desert over there," dryly remarked the doctor. I ignored her, and finished off the dregs of water from the plastic bottle. I let out a sigh of relief, and allowed myself to fall back into a more relaxed position in the bed. The doc leaned over me, and quickly moved her heartbeat-thing under my gown, probably to check my pulse. "Easy now, don't want to agitate those stitches, Ruby. Let me know if you feel any pain, and breathe slowly and evenly," she said, nice and professional-like.

"How do you know my name?" I asked.

"Your father over there told me," she replied. She meant the blonde man, I supposed. My eyesight was still poor, but I could make out some features on the man's face. Sure enough, it was my dad, Taiyang. I felt relieved, seeing a familiar face, but how was he in the city with me? The man in question gave me a thumbs up in acknowledgement, and a smile, if the flash of white in the middle of his face was anything to go by. I returned my attention to the doctor, who by now was finished checking my pulse.

"Alright, I'm going to check up on your stitches, okay?" she said.

"Oh! Sure," I replied. Just a harmless little check, right? Sure, the Grimm opened up my chest, but my Aura should have repaired the damage by now. Come to think of it, why did my Aura just let the claw in in the first place? It should have stopped it. Then again, I was super tired from the journey and had nothing to eat that day, but then agai-

I yelped as a breeze hit my chest. My bare chest. My felt my face grow warm and fought down childish panic. Don't worry, Ruby. She's just checking the wounds. How else would she do it anyway? I closed my eyes and waited for the doctor to give a diagnosis, probably in that weird doctor-speak that medical professionals tend to use.

And waited. And waited. I cracked open an eye to find both my dad and the doc stiff as a pair of reeds. I think their mouths were hanging open, speechless. I couldn't comprehend why, though, as when I looked down at myself, everything had healed up, just as normal.

"Bu-but that's not possible..." the doctor was a stuttering mess. My father was just a statue in the corner of the room.

Finally, he collected himself enough to move over to the doctor. He whispered a few things in her ear and the two left my room.

"Maybe you should get some rest," I heard Taiyang say, then in a voice he probably thought was too small for me to hear, a voice filled with disbelief and world-weariness, "Maybe we all need some rest..."


Hours later, I still laid there on the stark white mattress in a stark white room. It had grown dark, so there was no more natural light dripping in from the shut blinds, and the hospital appeared to have gone after-hours and dimmed the lights so that the patients could sleep. I'd bet that they were all slumbering soundly, engrossed in whatever peaceful dreams their idle brains could conjure. But not me.

I was still awake tonight; I was still trying to figure out why everyone was acting so weird. Dad sounded way too stressed out and tired, but I kinda expected that at this point anyway. No, what had me up was the way the doc had frozen up when she examined me. Why did she do that? Aura healing a purely physical wound within a day or two wasn't unheard of, so why did she look so surprised?

I sighed and placed my hands beneath my head as a makeshift pillow. Worrying about it all night wasn't going to do me any good, and neither would losing sleep about it help. My teammate, Blake Belladonna, had done the same thing back at Beacon in our second semester, and she couldn't get anything done until we'd managed to talk her out of her routine. I closed my eyes and tried to get some sleep in while I still could. Maybe my refreshed mind could figure out some answers in the morning...

I'd barely closed my eyes when three knocks on my room's door signaled someone's approach.

"It's open, I think," I called irritably. The heavy wood door creaked open at a snail's pace before a figure walked in. It was a girl. From the blurry colors, I guessed that she had a pair of jeans and a simple, black t-shirt with some weird design on it. However, what caught my eye was the shade of gold her hair took on, as well as its ridiculous length. Only one person I knew of could be associated with me and have that kind of hair.

Yang.

She rushed to my bedside, placing a hand over my forehead. "You feeling alright? The doctor said you'd just be waking up by the time I got here." Satisfied with my temperature, she removed her hand from my head and pulled up a skeletal metal chair. It made a harsh scrape as it slid across the hard floor. "Dad told me that you woke up when he was here, about three hours ago. He seemed really spooked by something."

"I'm fine, well except for my eyes," I replied as nonchalantly as I could.

"Wait, what is it about your eyes?!" Yang demanded, jostling my bed in her excitement, concern flowing like water over her words.

"It's just that they're kinda blurry," I answered, flinching at her forcefulness. I guess my nerves were still shot from my fight with the Alpha Beowolf. "Maybe it's a reaction from the drugs for the surgery and my aura?" Cases like that were unheard of, but not wholly impossible. I think Dad talked about how a Huntsman he knew was once shot in the stomach by a gangster and forgot how to say "thank you" for about an entire day.

"Aura?" Yang said, sounding... puzzled? "You into that new age spiritualism or something, sis?"

"What are you talking about?" I was confused and about to ask what Yang meant, but she pressed a finger to my lips.

"I know how much of a free spirit you are, so I won't tell Dad. This'll be our little secret, ok?" I nodded. "Now I'm gonna get a snack from the vending machine down the hall. You want anything?"

"See if they have any cookies," I said. She gave me a quick thumbs-up, and retreated through the door, making sure to close it quietly. I laid down on my mattress and fixed my gaze upon the bumpy, whitewashed ceiling of my room. What did Yang mean? New age spearo- what?

Whatever. I could wait to ask Yang when she got back.


I waited. And waited. It felt like hours, but the rational part of my mind told me it was probably something like 30 minutes or so. Eventually, I just gave up on waiting. With a grunt of effort, I pushed myself off my bed and planted my underused feet onto the cold marble ground. With shaky steps, I made my way to the door. Surely getting something from the vending machine couldn't be taking this long, could it? I dunno, maybe Yang got turned around somewhere.

I'll pop my head out into the hall. Maybe she'll hear me, and-

"AAAAAAAAHHHH!"

Holy crap, was that Yang? I had to get out there, now! She could be in danger!

I grasped the doorknob in my trembling hand, and twisted, yet it didn't budge an inch. I growled in frustration, but quickly collected myself. An angry Ruby wouldn't be very useful. I took a few steps backwards and took a few deep breaths before I drew deep into my very being- my soul, if you will- and activated my Semblance.

See, Semblances are the abilities caused by the presence of our Auras, which are manifestations of our souls. Naturally, many young Huntsmen learn very early on to use their Semblances in a way that reaches deep down into their souls as the most effective method of using their abilities.

My mind and sight instantly cleared as the world seemed to slow. I charged forward, quick as lightning, and shoulder charged the locked door. It gave way with a rending screech and several metallic snaps as the lock and a hinge were destroyed. The door itself, now sporting a Ruby-shaped dent, swung loudly into the plaster wall to its right. The wall was chipped now, and pieces of it littered the ground near the door. The racket it made was sure to wake even the dead.

But I didn't care. I sprinted at full tilt towards the source of the scream, leaving behind what was sure to be a whirlwind of crimson rose petals in my wake.


I ran, and ran, and ran, until finally my search rounded a corner and I saw, in the dim illumination from the vending machine's lightbulb, a man, dressed in black and wearing a ski mask towering over my sister, who appeared to be cowering in the corner, staring at a small, black object gripped in the man's right fist. I skidded to a halt to stop my forward momentum, and charged.

"YAAAARRGH!" I yelled as I slammed my shoulder into the unknown man.

"OOOUUFF!" he grunted as I could hear bones creak and snap and joints pop painfully. He flew backwards into the vending machine, shattering the glass window into a shower of clear shrapnel. The lightbulb went out with the pop! of a blown fuse, and the machine's frame bent inwards. That guy was gonna be feeling that in the morning. I gave a cursory glance at the floor, and found the man's object. As I expected, it was a small black pistol, something intended to spring a surprise.

I scrambled to the ground for it, and clenched it tight in my own fist. Quickly, I dropped the magazine and counted the bullets. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven rounds, each less than .40 caliber in size and hollow-pointed. I slammed the mag back into the gun and pulled the slide back a small amount. There was already a gleaming bronze-colored bullet already loaded.

I let the slide fly forward and transferred it to my left hand, training it upon the man's form, and I reached my right hand out to Yang. She gave me a look of confusion, bewilderment, and... fear? After a moment's deliberation, she hauled herself up with what I could see appeared to be two completely flesh-and-blood arms and retreated behind me.

...Wait, two arms? I gave a quick glance behind me to check if I wasn't seeing things. Sure enough, there was an extra limb on her person that I distinctly remembered seeing missing the last time I saw my sister.

"Yang, your arm!" I whisper-shouted to her.

"What about my arm?!" she whisper-shouted back. "Whatever, worry about that later. For now, just focus on that guy!"

"Yeah, OK!" I replied, "Also, could you call the police?"

Yang blinked, before pulling a small, flat rectangular box from her pants, which I could now see were blue jean shorts. As I focused my appropriated firearm on the man's still form, I could see Yang dial a short number and ask someone on the other end for help. It would now just be a matter of time until the authorities arrived.


A few minutes later, I heard someone shouting from far away. The voices were muffled and urgent, but grew louder. The owners were approaching, then.

"Dude, don't just charge in like that! What if there are..." a masculine voice said.

"What if there are what?" asked another, this one more irritated with the other.

"I dunno, man! Like, demons, or aliens, or zombies; shit like that?!" the former replied, "Everything bad starts to happen in hospitals! Haven't you watched The Walking Dead, or something?"

"Shut your trap! My daughters are in here! What if they're in danger?!" Wait, what? Was that Dad?

"Ruby," Yang whispered from behind me, "I think that's the cops. Our dad's probably with them."

Meanwhile, the man I'd knocked into next month still looked like he wasn't going to budge any time soon, so finally, after several minutes of waiting, I slowly lowered the pistol, allowing myself to relax a bit. I heard the clop-clop-clopping of hard rubber boots smacking the ground until two men rounded the corner. One pointed the harsh glare of a really bright flashlight in my face, and I reflexively shielded my eyes with my left forearm.

"HANDS UP! DROP YOUR WEAPON!" one of the gruff voices ordered. I complied. The pistol made a harsh smack against the tile floor as gravity took hold of the object.

"Wait up, Dex," the other voice said. "Dex, get that damn thing out of her face!" The harsh glare removed itself, and I was left blinking as my eyes readjusted to the lack of light in the dark hallway. I saw a blonde mop of hair and a familiar face.

"Dad? Is that you?" I asked.

"Hey, Ruby," he answered. "It's alright. It's ok. It's all over now; you're safe."

"Dad, Rubes kicked his ass. I think you should be reassuring him."

"...Is that true?" Oh, right. He was talking to me. I nodded, and he gave me a look before saying, "Sit tight. This will all be over in a minute."

Yang put a hand on my shoulder and gently pushed me to a wall. She sat me down at the base as Dad's friend, Dex, I presumed, draped a heavy blanket over me. Dimly, I felt Yang set herself down next to me, a blanket draped over her body as well. I couldn't think of anything to do- my mind was racing with questions. Things like "why does Yang have two arms?", "why is Dad acting so confused?" and, of course, the usual, "what the heck is going on?!"


AN: Yeah, and that's a wrap, for now. Anyway, Read, Review, Favorite Follow, Yadda, Yadda, you know the damn drill. Thanks. Oh, and I'll try to get my lazy ass in shape later. For now, I've got a shit ton of things that I'll be away from my computer for all this month, and they're not gonna postpone themselves, now are they?