The door to Team RWBY's dorm was gently closed, leaving Rutwo and Blake alone in silence. Blake was lying on her bed, reading The Bawdy Bard while the redhead sat on her bed, lost in thought. Was she the real Ruby or was she some sort of remnant of a greater being? Memories of charging at a deathstalker, of starting a food fight, of smuggling Zwei into combat zone danced in her head, a constant reminder of the days before the pen changed everything. Whatever possessed her to act so impulsively? She could have endangered her friends and family! And yet, despite her efforts to behave like an adult, she managed to alienate Blake. She didn't even do anything before everyone assumed she was a maleficent monster. Even Yang liked her clone better than her! Weiss might claim to prefer her, but the enigmatic heiress was unpredictable. No one knew what she was really thinking, so perfect was her mask. "Blake?" She hesitantly began. "May I have a moment of your time?"
Blake folded the edge of the page, wincing as she did, placing the book next to her. Yang would have to pay for taking her bookmark. She looked at her leader's bed, a faint brush of pink bringing color to her pale cheeks. "Yes, Ruby? Or would you prefer Rutwo? What can I help you with?"
The ebony clad clone slipped off the edge of her bed, landing with the grace expected from a huntress, her blackened copy of Crescent Rose attempting to flee from its secured place on her back. Securing the weapon once more, she replied, "You can call me Rutwo, I don't mind." She had to ask someone whom she trusted the question plaguing her, but did Blake trust her? "Am I a real person? Or am I some sort of after image?" She asked, fear and dread coloring her voice.
Blake sighed, then beckoned for Rutwo to join her on the bed. "I don't know what you are, but I know one thing. You are as real as I am. You breathe, you can talk, you can read, and you can eat. You can eat, right?" Rutwo giggled and nodded in response, leaning onto the faunus's shoulder, her canine ears brushing against her cheek. "Human or faunus, natural birth or creation of magic, it doesn't matter how you started. You're here now. We all care for you."
"Then why did Yang choose my rambunctious self over me?" Rutwo muttered into Blake's shoulder.
Blake rested her head on Rutwo's head. "She didn't choose her over you. She trusted you to be better capable of handling yourself. Could you imagine her in Vale without anyone to watch her? It's like she's all impulse, none of your control."
Rutwo looked into golden eyes, and asked the most painful question of the day. "Why do you think I'm evil?" Her mercurial eyes threatened to spill over as she asked the question. That accusation hurt her the most. She had trusted Blake for her entire time in Beacon. When Blake had run away, she led the hunt to find her friend. Yet when she needed someone to lean on, Blake assumed she was a monster.
Gazing into those argent eyes, Blake said, "Rutwo, I'm sorry for upsetting you. We don't know what that pen did to you. I've read stories about this type of thing happening. In every story, one of the clones is evil. I thought the same thing might be happening here. I suppose I thought we were in one of my stories. I am so sorry."
"Thank you. Thank you for being honest with me." Rutwo snaked an arm around her shoulders, giving her a tight squeeze. "I'll let you get back to your book."
"Ru, you don't have to go, but if you want better company, Jaune did invite you to join their team today. It might help to spend the rest of the day with them."
"Ru?"
Flustered, she responded, "Calling you Rutwo feels insulting, and giving you a nickname is what Yang would do. I'm not particularly good with people," she finished lamely.
"Thank you, Blake. I think I will visit Jaune. And I think you are fantastic company." A knocking at the door punctuated her statement. Rutwo sprang from the bed to answer the door. Outside, one of Beacon's deliverymen was holding a cylinder in his hand. Beacon didn't use their delivery system for every package from home a student may receive, but for the more sensitive ones were delivered directly to the dorm. Weiss had arranged for Beacon to hand deliver each package to their dorm after Yang thought it would be funny to order some inappropriate items in the Schnee family name.
The cylinder was solid black, about a foot long and perhaps nine inches in diameter. The top of the cylinder had some ornate lid on it, though the purpose for the specialty lid escaped her for the moment. Rutwo thanked the deliveryman and closed the door. Reading the label on the package, she said, "Huh, Dad sent us a package." She placed the package on the top of the bureau near the door.
"You and Yang?"
"No, I mean the entire team. I think we'll open it when we all get home. I'll see you later Blake!" Rutwo waved at her friend and left the room.
The silence Blake had craved all day was finally hers. She could spend the entire day reading her books without anyone interrupting her. There are days the constant antics of her team could drive her towards villainy, and yet a part of her craved for her team to return. Solitude had lost a bit of its luster after spending what felt like an eternity with her obnoxious team.
She was pulled from her thoughts by an infuriating, rattling sound. Her feline ears subconsciously pointed her towards the door, where she noticed the package was shaking. Did their father send them that monster again? Whirring sound of gears and machinations signaled the lid slowly opening. The shaking of the package grew more violent the longer the lid slowly opened, until it finally fell from the bureau. A small corgi pulled himself from the package and bounded towards the room's lone inhabitant. "Ahhh, Z..Zwei! Stay away!"
Rutwo gently knocked on the door to JNPR's room. The conversation with Blake had given her the strength to deal with people for the rest of the day, but any group including Nora would present a particularly unique challenge.
The door swung open, revealing Team JNPR in their full glory. Jaune was lying on his bed, reading the newest X-Ray comic. Nora was bouncing on her bed, shouting for pancakes, Ren was out of sight, presumably making the aforementioned pancakes. Pyrrha opened door and greeted Rutwo, "Hello Ruby. How are you today?" Her eyes dance over Ruby, standing in the doorway. They lingered for a brief moment on Rutwo's ears, but then returned to those irresistible silver eyes.
"Good afternoon, Pyrrha. I'm well, and how are you?"
"Spectacular. We're going to the city to watch a movie after lunch. Would you like to join us?" Pyrrha stepped to one side, allowing Rutwo to enter the room. "Please come in."
Rutwo entered the room, answering, "Thank you. I'd like that."
The two members of the team in the dorm room stopped what they were doing, Jaune awkwardly attempting to slip his comic under his mattress and Nora executing a perfect backflip. "Hi, Ruby! I like what you did with your hair! Do you have wolf ears? How'd you get them? Do you think Ren should have faunus ears? He's making pancakes, then we're watching the feature on the tournament," Nora proclaimed, with all the solemn grace of a queen in the sanctity of her castle, if the queen had caffeine instead of blood.
While Rutwo had expected this type of greeting from Nora, it still startled her. The one thing she had forgotten to prepare was an excuse for her wolf ears. What would Blake or Weiss do? "Um, hi Nora. Weiss experimented on us with something new. My entire team possesses faunus traits today so they decided to attend the faunus rally today. I thought I take Jaune up on his offer."
"Weiss? Is that what she was doing when I stopped by the dorm earlier today?" Jaune questioned Rutwo, not noticing Pyrrha silently glaring at him over her shoulder.
"I... um, ah, I'm not sure. I was paying attention to Blake's friend." She fidgeted with the inside of her sleeve while talking to Jaune, trying redirect the questions away from her.
"Ruby, are you sure you wouldn't like to spend time with her? We can spend time together later." Pyrrha rested her hand on Rutwo's shoulder, causing her to flinch away. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. They are attending the faunus rally in Vale, and crowds aren't my thing." Rutwo replied, softly. She wrapped her cloak tightly around herself, as if to ward herself, or perhaps to offer comfort. She couldn't shake the feeling that Team JNPR were just as suspicious of her as her own family. Why was it so difficult for people to just trust her? Had she ever given anyone a reason to suspect her? "And we spent all morning together."
Rutwo was saved from further questions by the heavenly aroma of freshly baked pancakes. The air carried the barest hint of strawberries and blueberries to farthest reaches of the dorm, yet the chef extraordinaire had still not made an appearance. Much like a starving dog in front of a steak, Nora quivered in place on her bed, all attention directed to the door. Pyrrha said, "I think I'll see if I can help Ren set the table," while walking into the dorm kitchen.
Despite having eaten earlier in the afternoon, the scent of delicious strawberry pancakes was enough to spark a rumbling in Rutwo's stomach. Jaune smirked at the rumbling and asked, "Would you like to join us? Ren always makes far too much for one meal. Apparently, he thinks Nora can eat a hundred of them in one sitting. We'll just save the leftovers for snacks if you don't."
Touched by the gesture, she answered, "Thank you, I'd love to join you." Ren poked his head out of the kitchen, the apparent signal for the pancakes being done. Nora sprang into action with the power and grace of a cat pouncing on a mouse. She lunged from her bed to the kitchen door in a single stride, only to stop before the door to carefully walk into the kitchen. "Is this the usual occurrence?" Rutwo asked Jaune, as the two of them walked into the kitchen.
"Have you ever had Ren's cooking? She's completely justified in being a bit crazy for his cooking. He managed to make those rations they gave us for our last mission taste like the food Weiss ordered for the last dance. He's amazing." Huntsmen and huntresses were given military rations for extended missions, though Weiss often complained Beacon was attempting to poison her. The rations tasted little better than cardboard, which had prompted Ruby to order her team to smuggle real food on missions in order to delay eating the rations as long as possible. If Ren could make them palatable, he must be a gourmet chef.
JNPR's kitchen was arranged similar to her own dorm's kitchen. The most striking difference was the floating utensils and pans dancing around the kitchen. In the center of the room was Pyrrha directing the dance as if she was a conductor, guiding a metal spatula filled with pancakes to add to the growing mountains on the table. The banquet style folding table was set up with three separate stacks of pancakes. The first stack had a tinge of purple coloring, hinting to the fresh blueberries hidden within them. The second held a faint blush, revealing the strawberries waiting for someone to devour them. The third stack was the smallest of the three, though Pyrrha was in the process of adding to the stack. These pancakes possessed a scattering of chocolate chips.
"I wasn't sure what type of pancakes you liked, so I made a variety," Ren greeted Ruby, not even acknowledging the newest appendages resting on Rutwo's head.
The divine aroma of the three varieties overwhelmed Rutwo, though she managed to suppress her reaction. "Thank you, Ren. You weren't required to do this for me."
Ren waved the remark off. "You're our guest. It's the least I can do for you."
Rutwo offered a silent thanks to Blake for making the suggestion for joining Team JNPR for the rest of the day. These tiny gestures, while a simple courtesy, served as a reminder that regardless of her team's reaction to her appearance, she still possessed friends she could lean on. Here, she wasn't playing second fiddle to an energetic clone. She wasn't an aberration wearing the skin of a beloved team leader and friend. The person Yang had dubbed 'Ruby' could easily be confused for the original Ruby. She couldn't. To these four, Rutwo was a beloved friend. She softly replied, "Thank you," though those two words failed to convey the depth of emotions behind them.
A steel plate found itself floating in front of Rutwo. "If you would like any, you should get some soon." Pyrrha pointed to Nora standing in the corner of the kitchen. "Ren won't let her have any pancakes until everyone else has gotten a share."
"Thanks, Pyrrha." Rutwo snatched a pair of strawberry pancakes and stepped back from the table. A pink whirlwind descended on the trio of monuments to baked deliciousness, claiming about half the pancakes for the self-appointed queen of JNPR. Rutwo bit into a strawberry pancake, discovering Jaune may have underestimated Ren's talent. The exterior of the pancake was crisp, balanced by a light airy center with decadent chunks of fresh strawberries baked in the heart of the pancake. The flavor exploded on her tongue, just a bit on the sweet side. She was convinced this was the best pancake she had ever had, even including Yang's pancakes.
Her reaction must have been evident on her face, as Jaune asked, "Good, aren't they? He still won't share his secret with us."
"If I told you, it wouldn't be a secret anymore," Ren matter-of-factly stated.
"The secret is love! And burn dust!" Nora yelled between bites of the divine gifts. Her mountain had somehow evaporated, leaving with her with a lonely chocolate delicacy.
"NORA!" Ren grabbed the pink human shaped locust swarm, before she descended on the unsuspecting remaining pancakes. "Chew and breathe. Would anyone else like any?" The trio quickly shook their heads in denial. Rutwo was in a bit of awe at the spectacle on display. Nora was picking up whole pancakes and making them disappear. There was no visible evidence of her opening her mouth or chewing, but they were being eaten nonetheless. She supposed it was a bit like watching herself eating cookies.
Once the pancakes were gone, JNPR and Rutwo cleaned up the dishes and began the journey to the shuttle. Nora and Ren skipped down to the shuttle to save the team a seat, leaving Pyrrha, Jaune, and Rutwo walking in silence. Pyrrha held Jaune's hand as they walked down the corridor, much to the redhead's surprise. "How long have you been dating?" She asked, breaking the silence. She wasn't normally the person to break the silence, but this development was so wonderful! Pyrrha had been chasing Jaune for the better part of two years!
Jaune let go of Pyrrha's hand, clearly startled by the question. "Dating? We, uh, aren't dating. Her hands just get cold easily." Pyrrha turned the color of her hair and quickly looked away from her partner.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I just inferred since you were holding hands, you were together." Rutwo's cheeks burned at their reactions. Clearly Pyrrha wasn't as interested in Jaune as Yang had thought.
"It's fine, Ruby. We're friends," Pyrrha replied, a flicker of emotions dancing across her stony face. "Let's go to the shuttle. We shouldn't make Nora and Ren wait for too long."
The remainder of the journey to the shuttle was wrapped in an awkward silence. Neither Jaune nor Pyrrha were able to look at each other without blushing furiously, while Rutwo was unwilling to break the silence once more after her earlier faux pas. The shuttle was waiting for the final passengers to board the rapidly filling ship. The trio climbed on board the shuttle, only to be pulled aside by Nora through the crowd. Ren had managed to save a single seat next to him despite the massive crowd, though the implied threat of Nora holding her hammer likely helped in this feat. The ginger woman pushed Pyrrha into the seat then took her seat on Ren's lap. Rutwo grabbed onto the railings alongside Jaune. Upon takeoff, the ship banked sharply to the left, causing the crowd to tilt as well. A mischievous grin on her face, Nora subtly slipped her foot under Jaune's causing him to fall. Thankfully, Pyrrha was quick enough to catch him, pulling him back to his feet. "Jaune, why don't you sit with Pyrrha? She can help with your motion sickness and you won't fall as readily," Nora asked him.
"That isn't how it works. Moving - OOF!" Jaune's response was cut off by Nora pushing him onto his partner's lap.
Jaune froze on her lap, not knowing what to do in this situation. His father's wisdom seemed to have forgotten to mention how to deal with sitting in a beautiful woman's lap. "Nora! What are you doing?" Jaune attempted to stand up, just in time for turbulence to threaten sending Jaune to the floor.
Pyrrha wrapped her arms around Jaune, saving him from falling, and whispered, "Maybe we should wait until we land." Both Jaune and Pyrrha were brilliant red but accepted the forced sitting arrangements without further complaint. The rest of the journey was uneventful, save Nora's occasional laughter slipping past her best efforts. Any further conversation was lost to the din of the crowd.
The group left the shuttle, and began the journey to the theater near the local Merlot Hotel, a brief ten minute walk from the platform. As the team approached the theater, they heard a melodic voice scolding someone. "Ruby, until we fix this, you can't use your semblance whenever you want. I won't see you hurt over this foolish experiment."
Pyrrha caught sight of a group of five women leaving the hotel, four faunus and a woman wearing a pink bow in the back of her orange hair. One person in this group, a woman clad in a very familiar red cape, stood out in particular. "Ruby? But you're here and with them? What's happening?" Pyrrha finished, demanding an answer from the redhead trying to hide in her ebony cloak.
A/N: Hello everyone! I wanted to let you know the next chapter, Consequences, will not be released as soon as I would like. I wanted to introduce one of my favorite characters into the story, but after the most recent episode, I found it too painful to write her. I'm still hoping for a midweek release, but I have some work to do before it's ready for release.
