Remember the Heroes
Chapter 3
Yangst
"So how was your last hunt?" Ruby asked.
"It didn't go very good." Yang said. "A lot of people got hurt."
"I'm sure you did your best." Ruby said.
"I haven't been my best in a long time." Yang said. She sat down on the couch and slid into it. "Truth is I've been in town for a while now."
"How long?" Ruby asked.
"A couple weeks." Yang said.
"Why didn't you say anything?" Ruby asked.
"I've been pretty angry, with myself mostly." Yang said. "If it werent for this..." She pointed to her severed arm. "...maybe I could have made more of a difference."
"Yang, it's been ten years." Ruby said. "Almost."
"So I'm supposed to just get over it?" Yang said. "I'm trying."
"Yang..." Ruby said.
"You were always the true huntress Ruby, I was just the thrill seeker with a temper. Look where that got me." Yang said. "I can't even hate Adam or the White Fang who caused all this because they are probably long dead. Sometimes though, I wish they were here. Someone I can take my frustration out on."
"You're starting to sound like Jaune." Ruby said.
"How is ladykiller?" Yang asked.
"Drunk and laying in his own filth most likely." Ruby said.
"You still paying his rent?" Yang asked.
"Yeah." Ruby said.
"I'll go see him tomorrow." Yang said. "Maybe I can cheer him up."
"Go ahead, nobody has succeeded so far." Ruby said.
"I made Blake go to a dance, I can get Jaune out of an apartment for an afternoon." Yang said. "Trust me, I got this."
"Alright." Ruby said.
"This couch is pretty comfy, mind if I crash here tonight?" Yang asked.
"Go ahead." Ruby said with a smile. "It'll be like old times."
Yang was already snoring. Ruby leaned in front of her. She must have been tired, she went out like a light. Ruby hasn't seen her fall asleep this fast since the old days, after a fight she'd sleep like a baby. Ruby shrugged and went to her room and crawled into her warm bed. She had tomorrow to deal with her killer problem.
"Forensics got back to me." Duffy said. "The grimm masks contained trace evidence of being worn by our victims."
"So as I said earlier, either we are dealing with retired white fang members or they had crummy fashion sense." Ruby said. "That doesn't get us anywhere."
"I guess not." Duffy said. "There were quite a few bodies at the scene. Whoever it was had to have been very good at what they do. I'm thinking a hunstman."
"Hey, it could just have easily been a cop." Ruby said. "With access to a heavy arsenal."
"True." He lowered his voice. "We might have a corrupt cop or two on our hands, but we have no evidence of that so try not to throw that theory around."
"What theory?" A cop with a thick mustache asked.
"Broderick." Duffy said. "Always a pleasure."
"So you two show up at Torchwick's place and it gets shot to hell." Broderick said. "Now you guys are picking apart a crime scene that should have been mine."
"The shooter was going to be there regardless of whether we were there or not." Ruby said. "The only difference is Torchwick is alive."
"Some difference you made." Broderick said. "You saved the life of a scumbag crimelord."
"Easy Broderick, you almost sound upset that he lived." Duffy said.
Broderick shook his head and walked toward the door. He stopped and turned around.
"Stay away from my suspects." Broderick said. "I'm not interfering in your operations now am I?"
"Sorry Broderick, we'll try not to follow the evidence like actual detectives next time." Duffy said. Ruby laughed. Broderick shook his head and stormed out. "Sorry you had to see that stunning display of professionalism Miss Rose."
"No problem, he's kind of a jerk." Ruby said.
"That's not going to be the last we hear of him, that's for sure." Duffy said. "I think he's mad he got passed on this case."
"I can hardly imagine working with anyone else." Ruby said with a playful smile. Duffy smirked.
"I know, because I'm the best." Duffy said.
"Now who has the inflated ego?" Ruby asked. They both laughed.
"So we're dealing with an angry huntsman..." Duffy began.
"Or huntress." Ruby cut him off.
"Or a huntress." Duffy agreed. "One who hates the white fang, who's been in town a few weeks, who's capable of killing an entire room full of thugs with brutal efficiency."
"That's a lot of people right about now." Ruby said. "Half of beacon's graduates want to get revenge for what the white fang did."
"How many of them are in town?" Duffy asked.
"That I know of." Ruby said. "Myself, Jaune, Velvet, my sister Yang."
"Did any of them lose people during the attack?" Duffy asked.
"I don't like where this is going." Ruby said. "I know them very well."
"Do you have an alibi for any of them during the attack?" Duffy asked.
"Are you implying one of my friends is our killer?" Ruby asked. Her eyes narrowed. "Consider your answer carefully."
Duffy hesitated. Then sighed. "Ruby, we have to consider the possibility."
"It's out of the question." Ruby said.
"Do you have an alibi for any of them?" Duffy asked.
"No." Ruby said.
"Did they lose anyone in the attack." Duffy asked.
"All of them." Ruby said.
"Have any of them shown hostility or anger towards the white fang, faunus, or Torchwick recently?" Duffy asked
I can't even hate Adam or the White Fang who caused all this because they are probably long dead. Sometimes though, I wish they were here. Someone I can take my frustration out on. Ruby thought. Yang said it. No that was just her being her, she thought. Just Yang's anger and frustration getting the better of her. She's hotheaded, not ruthless. Even ten years dealing with a missing arm wouldn't drive her to execute people and hang them from meathooks.
It couldn't possibly be her.
"No." Ruby said. "I haven't seen Velvet, I just know she's been doing photography for VNN the last few weeks. Jaune and Yang hate themselves more than they hate the White Fang."
"Alright, we had to be thorough Ruby, I hope you understand that." Duffy said.
"I understand." Ruby said, colder than usual. He seemed to get it and backed off. He turned back to the board. He stuck a picture of Adam Taurus on the board and connected him to the faunus victims.
"So other than the students at Beacon, and it's faculty, what other hunstmen are in town?" Duffy asked to no one in particular. He was the kind of person who regularly thought out loud.
"The Martyr was at the crime scene." Ruby said.
"The who?" Duffy asked.
"The Martyr, wears a mask?" Ruby asked. "Doesn't ring a bell?"
"Never heard of him." Duffy said. "Wait, he was at the crime scene?"
"He gave me the info that our suspect was wearing dark clothes, had a small arsenal, remember?" Ruby asked.
"You failed to mention that we have another suspect." Duffy said.
"The Martyr? No way. That guy is the real deal." Ruby said. "Does only the dangerous suicide missions."
"So what's he doing here?" Duffy asked.
"He said he's trying to stop this before the anniversary." Ruby said. "Like me."
"To me this guy sounds unhinged." Duffy said.
"He's a hero!" Ruby said.
"Would you rather defend the masked man you don't know or your sister right now?" Duffy asked. "Because both are potential suspects."
"Hey!" Ruby said glaring. Duffy raised his hands.
"I said potential." Duffy replied. "No need to get upset."
A few hours of dead ends and Ruby left the station. They were gaining suspects but none concrete. Duffy said he'd go to Beacon and talk to Glynda Goodwitch tomorrow and try to narrow down the Beacon suspects. Ruby agreed to go with him, to serve as a liaison between the two. As for now, she wanted to go home but decided to check in on Jaune and Yang.
She passed through the reconstruction zones and stopped at the usual police checkpoints. It didn't delay her too much. She just needed to flash her scroll and they'd let her through. Besides, they recognised her at this point.
She arrived at Jaunes apartment building. She knocked on door 311. No response. She opened it with her key and stepped in. She saw two messy manes of blonde on the couch. Jaune and Yang were both lounging in front of the monitor watching the news. Neither even reacted to Ruby entering the room.
"Ahem!" Ruby cleared her throat. They glanced up at her.
"Hey Rubes." Yang said. "Whats up."
"What's going on?" Ruby said. "I thought you guys were going outside today?"
"Right." Yang said. "I got a little preoccupied."
Ruby noticed a hipflask in her hand. She rolled her eyes. Now she has two drunks to deal with. She sighed. They were watching the same thing most people were watching. VNN documentaries on the Battle of Beacon.
"How was work?" Yang asked.
"Lousy, we're going nowhere on this killer." Ruby said.
"That sucks." Yang said. Her eyes still transfixed on the monitor.
"You two can't keep living in the past like this." Ruby said. "It's unhealthy."
"Why not, the present isn't much better." Jaune said. "Why bother."
"What would Pyrrha think if she saw you right now?" Ruby asked.
"Not much, Adam Taurus killed her remember?" Jaune said. "I got front row seats for that."
"Right after he cut my arm off." Yang said. "I remember that."
"Guys help me out here." Ruby said. "I'm just trying to help."
"I don't want your help." Jaune said. "I'm not your damsel to save."
"I'm doing fine on my own Ruby." Yang said. "I don't need help or pity."
"I'm not trying to pity you Yang, I'm trying to help you move on with your life." Ruby said. She was beginning to feel like their mother.
"How am I supposed to do that?" Yang asked. She turned and looked visibly annoyed now. Her typical anger getting in her way. "Tell me how, and don't say move forward. Be straight with me!"
"I don't know." Ruby said. "I've never lost an arm, I can't tell you how to recover from it."
"Exactly." Yang said. "Let me deal with it my way."
"Ditto." Jaune said.
"Pyrrha was my friend to Jaune." Ruby said. "I do know what it's like to lose a friend."
Jaune grabbed a bottle and threw it at his wall. It shattered in a loud crash. "She wasn't just a friend Ruby." Jaune said. "Everyone knew that but me, silly Jaune never picked up on it until it was too late." He tossed another bottle at the wall. It shattered and glass shards littered the floor below.
"Jaune, your landlord's not going to appreciate the racket." Ruby said.
"No! You wanted to talk to me about my problems didn't you? Well these are my problems! I lost everyone! My team! My friends!" He tossed another bottle. "Pyrrha!" He threw another bottle. It exploded and stained whisky across his wall."I watched her die, it was my fault! I have to live with that!" He stood up and glared at Ruby. "You still have your team, you still have your friends."
"I lost Blake." Ruby said. The air became a lot thicker. Jaune was panting. He stopped throwing bottles at least. Ruby felt tears welling up in her eyes. "Does that make you happy Jaune?"
"No." Jaune said. He buried his face in his hands. He started to sob. "I'm sorry. I'm just. I'm just angry."
"Blakes really gone isn't she?" Yang asked. A lot quieter too. She practically whispered it.
"It's been ten years." Ruby said. She sniffled quietly. "It's time I faced the facts." She echoed Weiss's words.
"I'm sorry Ruby." Jaune said. "I'm holding you back. You could have been twice the huntress you are today if you didn't spend every moment trying to drag me out of my house. I get that."
"You're my friend Jaune, as you made it abundantly clear we don't have a lot of those left." Ruby said. "We have to look out for one another."
"How did we end up like this?" Jaune asked.
"I don't know Jaune." Ruby said.
"I'm sorry Ruby." Yang said, she got up and hugged her sister. "I know you're trying to help, just give me time. I'll figure things out."
"Alright sis, I'll hold you to that." Ruby said. "Need a lift?"
"No, I gotta run an errand." Yang said. "Can I crash at your place tonight?"
"Sure." Ruby said. Yang nodded. She stretched and stood up. Ruby didn't want to ask but was now curious. "What kind of errand."
"Oh the usual boring errand. Don't worry about it." Yang said.
"Alright." Ruby said. Yang stepped out the door and slammed it shut behind her. Ruby glanced over at Jaune. "You feeling better?"
"Kind of." Jaune said. "I think I just needed to get that off my chest."
"I'm going to step out, you sure you're good?" Ruby asked.
"I'm fine Ruby." Jaune said. "Thank you for listening."
"Try not to throw anymore bottles." Ruby said. Jaune smiled and nodded. It was the first time she saw him smile in quite some time.
"I'll try not to do that." Jaune said. He let out a weary sigh. He climbed off the couch and began gathering up all the glass shards.
Ruby stepped outside and locked the door behind her. She leaned against it and took a deep breath. Blake was gone. She wasn't coming back. She took another deep breath and fought back the tears. Time to move on Ruby, she thought. Take your own advice. She shook her head and headed downstairs.
She drove home, it was relatively uneventful. She parked outside her apartment and entered room 516. Inside she found the place empty, and quiet. Save for that ticking clock. She collapsed on her couch. She lounged for about an hour. She was tired, it was a stressful day. She just wanted to sleep. Her scroll started to ring.
"Miss Rose." Duffy said.
"What is it now Duff?" Ruby asked.
"There's been another murder." Duffy said.
The clock continued to tick.
