"Hey Pup, sorry we made you wait in here so long." The door pushed open letting the fluorescent light flow into the dark room. A small girl sat alone at a round, wooden table, staring outwards through the window into the night sky at the shattered moon, its fragments almost entirely visible as a the full moon drew ever nearer. Even though the girl before him was clearly human, the man that entered could only see a scared, anxious wolf wishing to escape.
"It's okay Uncle Qrow… nothing about this last week has been easy." With a sigh Ruby looked down at her watch, her heartbeat was already rising. "I'm sure it hasn't been much better for you or the other teachers."
"Yeah, it's been pretty crazy. A lot of arguing and boring conversations I barely remember, drank through over half our meetings have the starting getting repetitive. Everyone had their own ideas about how to deal with this." Qrow closed the door behind him and for a moment his crimson eyes were glowing in the darkness before he flicked the light switch, bathing the room in artificial white light that made Ruby flinch.
"You brought cookies and coffee… is that a good thing?" Finally, Ruby turned from the window, those big, glistening pools of silver staring up at him with fear and apprehension along with the most painful hint of hope.
"No. It's not. Still, figured it would help soften you up so-"
"So I don't turn into a wolf." It wasn't even a question, it was her finishing the inevitable conclusion of what he was getting at. She wasn't allowed to be a wolf, she wasn't allowed to turn. Aside from Yang and Oobleck, everyone who knows what I am hates the full moon. That hate seeing me turn, they hate seeing me as myself. Dad tries to understand but he wants me to be human. Qrow worked harder than anyone to see if there was some way to fix me. All the teachers but Oobleck and maybe Ozpin just see me as a liability.
"Well, given what happened last time you can't really blame us." He knew it wasn't what she wanted to hear but he also didn't want to be disingenuous, leading her on with false hope. So, he took a seat across from her, putting the tray of warm chocolate chip cookies between them and her mug of hot coffee beside it.
"I'm sorry I've caused so much trouble for you and the other teachers." Her voice had become so cold and devoid of life and her eyes never left her Uncle's for even a moment as she reached for the sweets.
"It was a lot of back and forth, always has been when it comes to you. Port doesn't think you should be here, Glynda is usually advocating for you, guess she wants to see you succeed, you know good 'ol Oobleck, he's got a soft spot for you so. Ozpin usually just listens until everyone else has talked before coming to his conclusion but I know he doesn't like keeping you out of the meetings." Keeping his eyes on his niece, gauging her reactions and watching her heart rate on her watch Qrow grabbed a cookie from the platter, letting the sweet taste wash out the harsh flavor of his whisky.
"What about you?" Ruby took a sip of her coffee, the hot drink warming her up from within almost bringing a smile her her expressionless face.
"Look, I know you want to be a huntress just like your mom, Tai and me, it runs in your family and I think you could have been great… if you were human." Those last four words hit Ruby like the snapping of teeth into her heart, even as she tried to keep all her emotions on ice, Qrow could see her flinch.
"I care about you kid, but I've known you since you were born and even back then, after that very first full moon after Summer brought you home from the hospital, you've always been more wolf than girl." He finished off his cookie, the stress and bitter memories that forced their way back into the forefront of his mind compelled him to pull his flask from his side and numb them back down with a swig of the good stuff.
"I remember your mom having a hard time feeding you because you would keep turning into a puppy. We had a lot of questions back then, most of them we still don't have any answers to. For a while your mom was afraid you'd have the life expectancy of a wolf considering how fast you grew but here you are, eighteen years old and both versions of you seem just fine. We just learned to live with it, working around with like you would with any kid who had… unusual needs." Even he knew he sounded like an asshole but even so, Ruby was still looking at him with eyes as cold as liquid helium, just listening.
"This isn't Patch, this isn't Signal. This is Beacon and you're expected to put your life on the line to make the world safer. You can't even handle your emotions, you can't let yourself get hurt or scared or stressed or excited. I know this is going to hurt to hear but… you just don't belong here. Beacon is no place for a wolf." With a sigh Qrow leaned back in his chair, screwing on the cap to his flask as the tension rose in his chest, his gaze flitting between his niece and the door behind her.
"Is that the conclusion the meeting came to?" She asked so simply and monotonously but the dull sadness of depression weighed down every syllable while her heart felt like it was flooding with ice water.
"You lost control and bit someone, broke two ribs and cracked a third. You're lucky she isn't pressing charges and has denied to even make a statement on what happened. If she had… this conversation would be a lot different." He leaned forward towards the wolf in human skin before him, clasping his hands together as he looked deep into her eyes.
"You and your team are suspended from missions for the next two months. You will starting night classes tomorrow for the rest of your time here at Beacon. You won't be attending Professor Port's classes anymore so no more Grimm studies. Your curriculum for combat classes will be one on one with Glynda, be sure to thank her for that, she volunteered for it, she didn't have to. Oobleck also volunteered to fill in your missing Grimm Studies by making you his assistant. Your team will also be starting an in house suspension for the three weeks beginning on the day of the Perigee three days from now, that means you can't leave campus until we've had enough time to evaluate what impact it will have on you." It had taken over a week to come up with all the conditions and stipulations, even with how bad it sounded, the relief in Ruby's eyes broke his heart… knowing that what he had to say next… Will probably hurt so much that she'll turn. If she does though, then it just proves this isn't the place for her.
"I understand… I'll try to do better. I just need to get control and everything will be-"
"Don't." His voice was strained with heartache as he shook his head, his black bangs partially obscuring his crimson eyes that couldn't bare to look at the hopeful and earnest wolf before him.
"There's one last thing and… it's gonna hurt." His hands gripped together tighter, even shaking as he forced himself to look at his niece. I owe her at least that much.
"W-what is it?" Fear… the hardness in her voice finally broke from fear and with that Qrow knew she was a pin drop away from turning.
"Unless a miracle happens… this will be your last year at Beacon. You will be expelled when spring comes, giving us enough time to find someone to fill your place in your team. Switching you to night classes will help give your team time to slowly get accustomed to their new leader before you go so your team doesn't suffer from your expulsion. That was Ozpin's decision and almost all of us agreed. I'm sorry." He never wanted this, he never wanted any of this for her. But she's a wolf… she would be better off being free. Yang, I know you asked us to give her more of a chance after you gave your side of what happened, but even you said that you thought she would better off away from here.
"I understand. Thank you for not letting my team suffer for my failure." There was nothing in her voice, her eyes were dead and her expression as devoid of feeling as her crystalline heart. She hadn't turned into a wolf… she shut down. Her soul snuffed out under her own will. She may not have turned into a wolf… but she wasn't Ruby anymore.
"I have to report this to my team. Excuse me." Without another word or any hint of feeling Ruby gave a respectful nod before standing up… and walking away towards the door.
"Don't tell them about your expulsion yet. We want to have everything in order first." He didn't want to give any reassurance for fear that it might break her fragile state of mind. If she turned into a wolf there and then… She'll be expelled immediately.
"Understood." She never turned back around to face him as she turned the doorknob and left him alone in that room, the sound of the door shutting behind her all the filled the silence until it too faded to nothing.
Everything was gone, she wasn't angry or depressed or even sad, Ruby was simply numb. She had locked everything away and her inner wolf that was clawing to get out earlier was now snuffed out with frost. She was like a ghost, a pale specter that walk down the halls without feeling as she made her way back to her dorm, her mind to jumbled and iced out to even form coherent thoughts and all of her focus going to keeping up the cold so her feelings didn't come back.
She nearly bypassed her own dorm room in her stupor and even when she reached out for the handle… she hesitated. For the first a feeling, many feelings, came to light in her eyes; guilt and fear being the most potent of them all. She looked down at her watch, repeating her breathing and focus exercises to slow it down just a little bit more… before turning her blood to liquid nitrogen, and opening the door.
"Ruby!" Yang hopped down from her bed, her fretful look turning to hope only to be quashed in the next instant by the frigid and broken visage of her sister as she walked into their room.
"So? How badly did you manage to screw up this time?" Weiss glared at her, leaning against a wall meters away with her arms over her chest.
"You don't look well… was it that bad?" Blake big amber eyes looked up to her leader as she stood in her pajamas like the rest of the team minus Ruby.
"We've been suspended from missions for two months. We are also under in house suspension for the next three weeks. Lastly, I will be moved to night classes with Yang effective tomorrow." She felt nothing, not even as she watched Weiss start walking towards her from her periphery.
"What you're saying is that because you and you alone ruined the easiest possible mission, the rest of us are getting punished for your ineptitude!?" Weiss was barely holding her voice below screaming as her rage overcame both her reason and instincts to be weary of the wolf.
"Yes. I am sorry Weiss. The responsibility should fall on me and me alone." Weiss was less than arm's length away now and her burning blue eyes started with pure disdain into Ruby's dull silvers.
"And yet here we are. You don't belong here, you never try to put any effort into anything! You're lazy, you're weak, you're-"
"Back off!" A powerful and sudden very hot hand grabbed Weiss' shoulder from behind as a wave of heat radiated through the room powered by an intense yellow glow. With nearly zero effort Yang spun the heiress around away from their leader and towards her.
"L-let go of me!" Weiss took a defiant step forward, pushing Yang as hard as she could but entirely failing to make her move even a millimeter. They were both formidable in combat and Weiss definitely had more skill but without their weapons, she didn't stand a chance against Yang.
"Yang, that's enough." Ruby's emotionless command made the two girls instantly freeze, Yang looking to her alpha with surprise and anger.
"But she-"
"I said enough. I won't have my pa- my team, fighting each other like this." A hard glare from Ruby was all it took to force Yang's crimson eyes to lilac, the authority of her leader compelling the blonde to let Weiss go despite her own feelings.
"Thank you." For just a fraction of a second, and only in the instant Yang and Ruby's eyes met when no one else could see… Ruby gave a small but genuine smile.
"Yeah… guess it wouldn't help anyway." With one more sigh Yang let go of the last of her anger while Weiss got a safe distance from the sisters.
"I'm going to go for a walk, the in-house suspension doesn't start until three days from now, the day of the lunar Perigee." Ruby glanced around the room, gauging their reactions. Yang looked far more worried than she did before, Blake seemed to want to say something but held her tongue, meanwhile, Weiss scowled and glared, her hatred for the seemingly incompetent leader only growing more intense.
"You shouldn't be alone right now." As protective as ever the elder sister stepped forward, offering her company to her obviously hurting little sister… but Ruby just shook her head in response.
"You have classes tonight. I'll be okay. The rest of you should get some sleep, I won't be seeing you in class tomorrow but we should all still do our best despite this. I'll try to do better… I'm sorry I let you all down." She could feel herself breaking, the ice was beginning to give under the force of the sea of emotions she was suppressing.
"'You sure?" With a frown, Yang resigned to her leader, knowing full well that her skipping out on classes would only make things worse for their entire team, especially Ruby who was responsible for her.
"I'm sure. I'll be back later, maybe in the morning." Ruby's eyes lingered in her sister's for a moment as the real meaning of her words was known only to them in that moment. She would turn into a wolf. It wasn't a question, it was inevitable even she couldn't contain all the things she was feeling much longer. "Good night."
With a soft release of breath that let out just the most minuscule fraction of her sorrow she turned around, pulling open a drawer on the dresser against the wall where she grabbed her hoodie before shakily opening the door… and running out again, never once feeling Weiss' hate let up. She's not wrong… her anger isn't unjustified. This is all my fault. I can't protect my pack… what good am I?!
"Ms. Rose." A soft and deeply compassionate voice took her from her thoughts just as her eyes began to cloud. She looked up to see the empathetic face and green hair that she had come to associate with her best friend.
"Doctor Oobleck. I- I didn't see you there." She tried, she fought with every ounce of will she had to force bad her feelings and freeze her tears. It was hard, it hurt more than any physical pain she could recall… but she did it.
"I'm so sorry Ruby. I know that was never what you wanted and you were only acting as a good Alpha given what you and your sister told us. I don't know if it's fair or the right decision, but it is what was decided." Oobleck shook his head sorrowfully, his thermos in one hand and his other resting at his side. "Come, we should speak elsewhere so your team can get some rest."
"Yeah…" With a nod, Ruby followed, giving a quick glance back at her door, smelling the air where she could still detect their unique scents. When a pack lives together, our scents are supposed to change, it becomes closer just by being a unit. Team RWBY… doesn't have that. Is it because they're human and faunus instead of wolf… or is it my fault?
"It must be taking immense restraint to stay as you are. It's admirable but are you really allowing yourself to process what has transpired?" He already knew that she wasn't, if she was, she wouldn't be human anymore.
"I understand the decision. I'm just sorry my team had to suffer because of what I did." Ruby knew she was evading the real question but she wasn't ready to confront her feelings yet, even ignoring the fact that she would turn into a giant wolf… I just can't believe it's over. Just like that.
"You know that no one blames you or has any resentment towards you for being the way you are. No one gets to choose how they're born. Not man nor faunus nor wolf, or anything in between." Oobleck couldn't begin to imagine how to comfort someone who had just lost the most important thing to them, a dream that pushed a little girl to beat herself into a perfect state of suppression and control at the cost of who she was.
"I know." Her voice was so soft and light, her entire visage was like the most fragile snowflake imaginable, cold and could fall to pieces at any moment, even as her dull eyes stared forward while the pair descended the stairs. She looked like a doll in the dim, artificial light, with an expressionless face painted.
"I know your dream was to become a Huntress like your mother, but Summer loved you very much. As a human and a wolf. She wanted you to be happy, that's all that mattered to her." He stepped out in front, opening up the door the led outside the dorms to the campus grounds outside, a rush of cool night air flowing in from outside.
"I know…" That drew out something. It wasn't much, but the weak strain of pain and sadness stressed her breathy words as her jaw clenched down tight, biting back the anguish in her heart.
"Are you happy here? Would Summer be happy to see what being here does to you? These are questions you must ask yourself and honestly decide if you truly want to make yourself go through this for the rest of the year. I would recommend contemplating such things as a wolf where you don't need to fear holding back your emotions." The two walked outside under the clear sky, the light pollution from the city however obscured all but the moon and brightest star.
"You think I should drop out too?" She looked up at him, her eyes softened ever so slightly, an emotion so subtle in them that he couldn't be sure what it was elevated her expression from the ice she had wore. First Yang and now Oobleck. I would be lying if I said I haven't thought about it… honestly, I've been thinking about it a lot. Still, if I leave, then what? What would I do? Who would I be? What direction would my life have? This is all I've had since Mom died, I lose this then- then what really be living for? I'll lose the only things I have left. I can't be alone, I can't be without a pack, but without my team… who would be in a pack with a wolf like me?
"I think it's an option you should consider with an open mind." They came to a stop as the night breeze washed over them, Ruby looked to the perfectly maintained grass at her feet while Oobleck stood beside her, staring forward, his hand coming gently and reassuringly to rest on her shoulder, knowing that she was going through so much in that moment.
"The only way to find out is to keep moving forward. I have confidence that you will find the right path." He gripped her shoulder just a little tighter and smiled, feeling in his heart that she would be okay. After all, she is without a doubt one of the strongest people I know.
"In the meantime, I believe you have a visitor Ms. Rose." Instantly her sounded back to his energetic self with a hint of playful amusement thrown in. The sudden shift jarring Ruby from her downward spiral as she looked up with an eyebrow raised in confusion, following his forward gaze until her jaw dropped.
"Verna!?" Ruby blurted out, her surprise overwhelming everything else as she looked up at that bright smile and paint stained top as the artist waved happily at her.
"Hey Ruby, been a while!" Verna was giggling unapologetically at the stunned and bemused look on her 'friend's' face as she walked up to them.
"We found Ms. Tranquous sneaking onto campus. When caught she told us who she was and that she wanted to talk to you." Even as Oobleck spoke Ruby just stood there dumbstruck, entirely unsure of what to say or how to react.
"Hey, mind if I talk to Ruby alone for a bit?" With a big, pleading grin Verna turned her big apricot eyes to the teacher, making herself look as innocent as possible.
"Would you be comfortable with that Ms. Rose, or would you rather I stay?" He was at least happy to see Ruby's icy facade broken by the unexpected visitor and even he had to admit that the look on her face was rather amusing.
"Um… I guess I don't mind?" Ruby shook her head slightly, trying to get it to catch up with the weird reality. "I'll talk to you later Dr. Oobleck."
"Very well then Ms. Rose! I look forward to seeing you in class tomorrow evening!" With a satisfied smile, Oobleck turned around to take his leave, feeling that closure on the incident that lead to the end of Ruby's dream would help her be able to think about the future more clearly.
"Thanks bunches teach!" Verna called out exuberantly, waving goodbye to him with exaggerated movements of her arm before a wince of pain radiating from her wounded side abruptly ended that. Still, even that it only made her giggle more.
"Doctor…" Oobleck growled under his breath before walking away back to the dorms.
"He seems weird, didn't think there would be cool teachers here. Kinda figured they'd all be boring. Well, just another reason I'm glad I came." She tenderly held her injured side while her other arm rested comfortably down.
"Verna what are you doing here? How did you get here? Didn't we send you to jail? Shouldn't you be in the hospital at least?!" Her thoughts were still a jumble but now instead of the raging storm of pain and fear it was just bewilderment and surprise.
"Hah-hah! Nice of you to worry about me, yeah, I probably should still be in the hospital but there's just no creative energy there so I left to find my spark." That last word seemed to have far more meaning that Ruby knew as Verna tilted her head back slightly, taking a long look at the girl before her with an almost devious smirk.
"W-well what about the police?" Ruby somehow felt like even though she was getting answers, she was still talking to a brick wall.
"I told you I would walk, don't tell anyone but I've been sitting on a get-out-of-jail-free card for a while, someone owed me one so I got out. I think they had me in cuffs for maybe five hours? Seriously though, don't tell anyone, they're a friend of mine and they're a really good guy so please don't tell anyone!" Her smile was instantly replaced with a begging look as she held her side just a little tighter.
"I won't, I promise." Ruby had no way of finding out who that person was and didn't have any interest in outing them but for some reason her voice was earnest and true, trying her best to reassure the eccentric young woman.
"Thanks, sorry but you know who I am, anonymity is really important to me and a lot of other people. Some secrets are supposed to be kept and only shared by those who are at the center of them." Verna slowly pulled her hand away from her side, showing the punctures in her top and the bandages underneath where Ruby had bit.
"I feel like I was accidentally let in on one of those secrets last time we met." Her expression was soft and subtle, a wistful kind of remorse that was concentrated in her shimmering eyes, beaming her sincerest apology just with a long look into the wolf girl's silver gaze.
"Turning into a wolf… that was more than just a Semblance wasn't it? I'm not trying to pry… okay, I kinda am but I'm really curious so you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. Anyway, why else would your sister and uncle try to hide you from your teammates and the cops before they came and got me?" Verna understood the value of secrets better than most. Anonymity is powerful and invaluable… but it's also hard and isolating if it's how you always have to live.
"I…" Ruby froze, staring at the artist, the first person in the world who knew her secret besides her family and the Beacon faculty. In a moment that seemed to stretch for eternity, Ruby felt like she was standing at a threshold to something… but she didn't know what.
Should I tell her? I've been keeping this secret all my life. I've been so careful every moment for as long as I can remember, only letting myself be free during a full moon… until last week. Still, I- I…
"If you- if you really want to know, would you come into the forest with me first. There's some things that I- I want to say, if you'll listen…" Her heart was beating faster and faster, her mind was playing out every way things could go wrong as she stared at Verna waiting for her to answer.
"I'd love to listen and if it makes it easier, we can exchange stories, might be awkward to have only one of us pouring our hearts out. If not I don't mind, not trying to steal the stage from you." A shrug and a giggling grin, that's how she crushed Ruby's fear and nervousness without even knowing it.
"I can try but I don't know how much I'll be able to listen once I… you know…" Ruby was feeling something she never expected, something she hadn't really felt in a long time… Why do I feel so embarrassed right now?
"Well, whatever makes it easier for you, I don't mind either way. Come on, let's get going to the forest." Once again Verna's disregard for things that should have been a big deal left Ruby feeling floored. She expected fear, especially after what happened but she treated it like it was something merely interesting she wanted to know more about. No judgement or nervousness, just an undertone of playful enthusiasm and hidden conviction that seemed to permeate through everything Verna did.
"It's a bit of a walk but I know the way." Ruby didn't even notice but she was smiling, however slight, she was happy despite everything else. Yang's right… this girl is crazy, but she's also nice. I think I can vent, just this once, after the night I've had, I really need that.
Ruby and her strange companion walked down the long path to the Emerald Forest. The wolf girl trying to keep her emotions on ice but the nature and random bouts of conversation from Verna kept pulling her back. She didn't actually mind, most of the time when Yang brought her down to the forest she was already a wolf so this was a change of pace and she wasn't hating it.
"Oh, and by the way, after I broke out of the hospital-"
"Wait, you broke out? Why?" Ruby looked to her side to see Verna stifling a snort of laughter.
"Nah, I was just seeing if you were still paying attention. I mean, I kinda ran away without doing any paperwork but that stuff can't be too important right?" A wide grin pulled at her lips showing rows of perfect white teeth.
"So the police let you walk free and clear and the next thing you do is run away from the hospital and trespass on Beacon in the middle of the night?" It sounded crazy to Ruby but the artist just hummed a bobbed her head back and forth for a moment.
"I'm not confessing to anything!" She did her best to force her face into a look of defensive mistrust but the whole time Ruby could see her lips fighting not to be pulled back up. "No, but seriously, before I forget there was something I saw and I wanted to show you."
"What's that?" The young wolf already had the suspicion that her new companion would always leave her guessing. Maybe she's just so hard to figure out because she's the exact opposite of me. Completely unrestrained.
"Have you ever been to the zoo here in Vale? Once I left the hospital a flyer caught my eye, apparently they have a wolf there that's the last of his kind. I was going to go see him on my own if I couldn't find you but since I did find you I was thinking we could go together tomorrow." Verna put her hands in her the pockets of her daisy-dukes, her spray paint cans right behind her holstered to her belt.
"The last of his kind…" Ruby's expression was still subdued but a deeply painful empathy washed over her and bled out into her soft voice. Locked in a cage. I don't know if I could handle seeing that. Then again, maybe he's happier there? Maybe he could give me the strength I need to keep going despite being locked in a cage of my own.
"Ruby? You okay?" No matter how cold she looked on the exterior it wasn't hard to see that something was weighing heavily on her heart.
"Did you know that wolves were hunted to extinction here in Vale to protect the farmers? Even on Patch, the island I grew up on, there's not a single wolf left. So I've never seen one outside of pictures and videos." Ruby looked up to the moon, its cool, gentle glow shining off of her pure silver eyes, giving them a depth and luster that Verna couldn't help but lose herself in.
"My mom once said that maybe I'm the result of that, the land that lost its wolves trying to reclaim them, or that I'm a reincarnation of those wolves trying to survive in a human world. My uncle Qrow thinks that maybe my soul is just accidentally that of a wolf, like an aura mutation. Doctor Oobleck hypothesized that I may very well be the first of my kind…" It was always a guessing game, everyone close to her had their own ideas. All she knew was that for whatever reason… This is how I am.
"So you really are… that, what you were in the alley. It wasn't just a Semblance but you really are a wolf?" As in awe as Verna was, she still couldn't help but feel a slight pang of disbelief, even having seen it with her own eyes, having felt its fangs in her own flesh, having touched its fur with her own hand, it was all so ephemeral and surreal at the time.
"It's complicated but before I go any further," Ruby stopped at the threshold to the expansive forest, just one step away from her refuge, her bastion of freedom. She could feel her nerves tingling as the trees called to her from every direction, her body brimming with anticipation while her heart was near bursting with the painful emotions she had been holding back.
"I'm sorry for biting you." She turned her cold silver eyes to Verna who stood with her at the entrance to the forest, looking back to Ruby with patience and compassion as she waited for the wolf to say what she needed to say.
"My fangs can bite through aura and I don't really know my own strength. You were threatening Yang, she's a member of my team, my pack, and she's my sister. I've held it together my entire life, only letting myself turn on full moons when I couldn't resist. I'm sorry I hurt you." She could tell that Verna was in pain, even after a week Ruby could smell the wound at her side as it healed. Even after a week, the smell of her blood was still so fresh in her mind.
"I'm not." She said it so simply, her smile soft and light as she walked up to Ruby, standing less than an arm's length away, gently putting her hand on her injured side. "I've been having… I don't know, I guess artist's block. None of my works feel right, they don't feel like me, I feel like I'm losing my passion and that scares me. Then, when we were in that alley and when you transformed, I felt it, I felt the spark of inspiration. When you attacked me, when you bit me and wouldn't let go, it was raw, primal power, pure and natural and uncompromising, instinct and action that I was helpless against. Then, when I asked you to let me touch your fur and you allowed me to, I felt warmth and tenderness, something soft that took nothing away from the power just underneath but added depth and texture, added something more, something I don't have a word to describe. Everything you had was what I wanted for my art and I felt my spark. I felt creatively reinvigorated!"
Verna was beaming, taking a long, deep breath of the forest air with outstretched arms, basking in the unparalleled feeling of pure creativity flowing through her veins recalling every moment she could of her first encounter with Ruby. Even the pain in her side drove her mind to conceptualize so many ideas, so many things she wanted to try, she felt a creative flow now like the mightiest river when before she struggled to salvage a few drops.
"So in reality Ruby, I'm should say; thank you for biting me." A soft blush tinted her cheeks as she grinned, rubbing the back of her head with one hand while her other went back to holding her side. All while Ruby just stared at her in awe.
"I- I don't know what to say honestly… I've been so scared this entire time and you just show up thanking me?" A smile broke on her face and just once, a snort of laughter escaped her… before she reflexively iced herself over, and the smile faded away.
"Heh-heh, no need to hold yourself back, I think it's pretty funny too!" A soft and jovial giggle filled the autumn air, imagining just how strange she must seem. And I was scared she'd think I was weird or creepy coming all the way out here to see her.
"It's not that… I just- okay, so can I tell you the things I wanted to tell you? Things I haven't really been able to say before because of what I am?" It was something she'd given up on wishing for. Her dream came first, it came before venting, it came before dealing with her stress, it came before friendship and even her freedom, she had just the full moon, and every other moment was dedicated to her dream. But now… I'm getting expelled anyway. My dream has come to an end. Maybe… I can let myself express my feelings on that.
"Well, you listened to me so it's only fair, besides, this seems like something you really wanna get off your chest so I'm all ears." She blinked with a smile, keeping quiet from there, giving Ruby however long she needed to gather her nerve.
"My name is Ruby Rose and I am a wolf." Her identity was always a complicated and confusing thing, or at least it seemed like it. She never told her family or the teachers or anyone else, but now, just once, talking to Verna, she could admit that what she felt. I am a wolf!
"I look like a human most of the time, but I'm really a wolf. On full moons I stop looking like a girl and start looking like myself. However, if I let myself, I would look like a wolf most of the time. Excitement, happiness, fear, anger, pain, stress, frustration, sadness, depression, loneliness, any strong feeling will turn me into a wolf so ever since I was little I've kept myself under perfect control. This, this isn't me, I'm not this cold person who feels nothing, but if I don't keep myself like this then I turn and- and a wolf can't be Huntress… I can't- I just wanted to be like my mom… but- but-"
Just as she was about to crumble… a warmth enveloped her. Something tight and caring, something that wrapped around her from her front, pulling her in close with all its strength as the scent of paint hung in the air. Ruby didn't even realize it in the first moment, her eyes were too blurred by tears, but as she looked down to see a head of pale pink hair and tanned skin that absorbed a fraction of the moonlight that fell on it, she realized that the warmth and pressure she was feeling, was the tight embrace of Verna whose head rested on her shoulder.
"I'm so sorry, Ruby." Verna held right just a little closer, her own voice sounding as though she were on the brink of tears herself. "I couldn't do it, I couldn't be caged like that all the time. I couldn't handle it when others were doing it to me, I can't even imagine what it's like doing it to yourself. Still, I know what it's like, not being allowed to be who you are and I am so, so sorry that you had to live that way."
"Verna…" Ruby's eyes were struck wide by the gesture of kindness and compassion, and embrace so warm… that it melted the ice holding her together.
"I- I need to change into a wolf now. Can you turn around? I don't want to destroy my clothes again." She hated that they had to part… but she couldn't even receive such a comforting touch as a human. No, only as a wolf could she feel anything intense.
"Oh! Right, probably a good idea." Her blush deepened as she pulled away, spinning on her heel until she was facing away from the wolf, hearing a soft giggle at her flustered look that Ruby didn't seem to miss. She could hear Ruby disrobing, carelessly discarding her clothes to the ground one by one.
Finally, Ruby stood naked in the forest, looking at the wilderness around her and feeling the cool wind wrapping around the contours of her body. She closed her eyes as tears began streaming down her cheeks, the wolf in human skin took in a long, deep breath and then…
"Aawoooooooooooo!" The entire forest shook and even the wind came to cease as her howling voice washed over the woods and split the air. Verna could feel the howl rumbling through her body and ringing in her ears, the power and the dominance of the wolf's call sending chills of fear and reverence though her skin before she even turned around.
"You are a wolf…" Verna was holding her breath, she was frozen, staring into the forest while feeling the wolf's eyes on her back. Her heart was pounding and she felt the power of nature ring in that cry.
Then… a soft, cold and wet nose prodded her hand, nestling itself in her palm before a hot tongue gently licked at her salty skin while a sad and pitiful whine emanated from Ruby's throat.
When Verna turned to face Ruby, she found those still stunning silver eyes shimmering with tears, the ears atop her head were dropped and her tail rested limply on the ground, weakly trying to wag before giving up and lying motionless. Everything about the large wolf's posture said only one thing… She's hurting.
"If living as a human is so painful for you… why don't you run away? It's what I did." The artist cautiously sat herself down against a tree and Ruby followed, laying head down in Verna's lap, all the while, she whined and cried as her friend gently petted her.
Run away? I have my pack… but they would all be better off without me. After all… a wolf can never be a Huntress.
Wolf and girl sat there, at the edge of the forest, Verna stroking Ruby's soft but warm fur while the wolf cried for hours more. Her heart ached and for once she embraced it, all the hurt and sorrow, taking it all in... and letting it all out.