Chapter IX: Ad Memoriam
Scattered across the black vastness of the night sky, the stars shone brightly in the darkness - eternal, uncaring witnesses of mortal happiness and misery. Beneath, as if being a mirror reflecting the starry firmament overhead, the courtyard in front of the Beacon Tower was littered with a myriad of little lights flickering on the chilly autumn breeze, their warm glow illuminating dozens of faces painted with sorrow and shining in hundreds of teary eyes. People of all nations, occupations and ages gathered in this place, each one of them holding a lit paper lantern in their hands, wishing to pay a tribute to those who had suffered that fateful evening two years ago and in the unseen conflict that had followed. A gray-haired man stood on one of the shores of this living lake of light, in the centre of everyone's attention, delivering a speech for all to hear.
Nothing but the soft murmur of occassional sobs and the quiet wailing of the wind disrupted the profuse silence hanging among the crowd as the old headmaster's voice washed over the people. He spoke beautifully of great loss and suffering, of loved ones taken away too soon and the duty of those who had stayed: to honor the memory of the departed by living on, to learn from past mistakes, and, above everything else, to never forget, as ultimately there was only one thing they could offer to all the poor souls that had died: remembrance.
He turned to his right, towards the massive stone tablet covered with names of the people that were killed during the Fall of Beacon, his saddened, tired eyes tracing the golden letters and the shattered logo of Vytal Festival meticulously carved in white marble. Then, after a short while had passed, he bowed his head in respect and let go of the lantern he held in his hand, releasing it into the sky above.
Soon, the crowd followed Ozpin's example and dozens of little lights slowly floated towards the stars, swaying slightly in the gentle wind that carried them away. Tears trailed down Ruby's face as the girl watched these soaring lanterns, the sight reminding her of the souls that had left this sad world – bright, unburdened, and free of pain, their glow no longer warmed those who stayed behind; still, said glow did not disappear completely, present in memory and twinkling high in the sky. Then, when her glossy eyes wandered to the marble memorial and found two names that were dear to her, the remains of her composure crumbled into dust, destroyed by the finality of the situation, the proof of their loss carved in cold stone. And so, heartbroken, she burst into undignified sobs, then turned towards Jaune and hid her face in his hoodie, seeking comfort in an embrace. The young man accepted her without a word, returning the hug that he believed he needed just as much as she did.
Seeing the two of them like that, Weiss frowned, feeling an unpleasant, confusing emotion swell in her chest, temporarily silencing her sadness. She logically understood why Ruby had approached the boy – even if he hadn't been the person that stood closest to her, he was the one who best understood her current sorrow, and it was likely that Ruby's hug was meant for both of their sakes – but she was still tempted to just shove Jaune aside and then take his place. She simply wanted to be the one her partner relied on, to console Ruby and alleviate her suffering, to wipe the tears away from her face; at this very moment, however, she felt as if she was being denied both her right and her job.
Well aware of the fact that she was being irrational, Weiss turned away and looked at Blake and Yang, only to regret it almost immediately, as seeing the two of them also locked in an embrace only made her feel even more left out and physically cold. With a heavy heart and a clenched throat, the heiress averted her eyes and directed her gaze towards the dark sky, hoping to escape the all too familiar feeling of loneliness that threatened to crush her whole.
Heavens over the city of Vale were littered with countless glowing dots, twinkling like stars but far less distant and uncaring. Thousands upon thousands of little lights, each and every single one of them being a memory of loves lost, a wordless prayer, or a farewell that came too late to be said in person. Despite all their differences, the people of Vale mourned together that night, and the signs of their shared grief that dotted the sky were a sight haunting in its sad beauty.
After some time had passed, a gentle hand touched Weiss' shoulder, bringing her back from her contemplation. When the heiress turned around, she met a pair of bloodshot silver eyes that were looking right back at her, glistening in the darkness. Before she could say anything, to lie and assure Ruby that she was okay, the white-haired girl was pulled in a firm, caring embrace. She smiled weakly, unwanted tears beginning to flow down her cheeks for a reason unknown, and found herself melting in her best friend's arms. Still, something felt amiss, and the thought confused her deeply.
'I got what I wanted... why then does it hurt so damn much?'
As the sky lanterns flew higher and higher towards the starry firmament, the crowd in front of the Beacon Tower began to slowly dissipate; Ruby, Jaune and all of their teammates were among those who had stayed in the courtyard for a while longer, standing before the memorial of white and gold. Eventually, Ruby pried her eyes away from the letters carved in stone and looked around, noticing that someone was heading their way; visibly shocked, with a face of someone who had just seen a ghost, the girl felt her chest tighten at the sight of painfully familiar green irises and red hair. Though the woman she stared at was most definitely not Pyrrha – the shoulder-length mane was a bit darker, the frame less athletic, the face rounder and more mature – the resemblance to her fallen friend left Ruby speechless, as if a spectral hand had crushed the girl's heart in its ruthless grip. She had never met that person, of that she was sure; she did, however, have a pretty good idea who that woman was.
Meeting with Pyrrha's mother, although quite brief, was one of the most harrowing experiences in Ruby's life, the fact that miss Nikos' eyes and kind smile were the same as her daughter's only making it all the more heartbreaking. The girl had feared that the woman would resent her for failing to save Pyrrha, but soon she was proven wrong beyond any doubt, as miss Nikos pulled her into a warm embrace. Ruby was in a daze, unable to fully process what was happening; looking back at it later on, she would realize that she didn't even catch the woman's name. In fact, she would barely remember anything of what she and her friends talked about with Pyrrha's mother; the whole encounter was a blur, and most of the things that remained in her memory were the tone of the woman's voice, the look in her eyes and on her face, or her sad smiles. Still, there was one sentence that stayed with Ruby: "I'm sure you all did what you could... and after Beacon fell, you certainly have done much more than my little girl could have ever asked for."
Before long, the woman bode them farewell, not wanting to take too much of their time; in the end, she seemed to be happy that she had an opportunity to get to know the friends Pyrrha told her so much about. After she had left, the group headed towards the marquee housing a small banquet for the guests, where they met – among many other more or less familiar faces - their friends from teams SSSN and CFVY, who were apparently awaiting their arrival.
As the rest of the group was taking their seats, Yang and Blake aided Velvet with pouring everyone a bit of alcohol that someone – probably Coco – had brought. Once they were done and all of them were sitting by the table, Ren stood up and raised his glass. "To those who are no longer with us."
This toast echoed among the group as most of them repeated after Ren. Ruby was among the few who remained silent, even though she did open her mouth - the words simply got stuck in her throat, too painful for her to utter them aloud. So, instead of speaking, the silver-eyed girl lifted the hand with her drink before bringing it to her lips and taking a sip, the burning of alcohol doing nothing to soothe her heartache.
Pretty soon the typical sound of casual chatter could be heard by the group's table, as teams RWBY, JNPR, SSSN and CFVY began catching up. "So... seeing that everything is over now, what do you guys plan to do? Take it easy for the next few months, then return to the school?" Velvet asked at one point, directing her question at Ruby.
The girl looked at the Faunus, mustering a weak smile. "Yup. What about you? Back to Beacon for your final year?"
Velvet scratched her cheek awkwardly, her cute rabbit ears drooping a bit. "We, uh... yeah. It won't be our final year, though, because we didn't get to take the exams before the situation in Shade went to hell."
"And, seeing that I'm a tiny bit out of shape," Coco chimed in, sitting in a wheelchair, "our team probably wouldn't be able to pass the exams even if Ozpin allowed us to take them. No need to ruin our spotless record, so we're just gonna chill for the next few months. Yatsu is going to see his family, and Fox will be tagging along. Velvet wants to stay in Vale, at least for now. As for myself... well, it's not like I was planning to go on a hike anytime soon, anyway." Despite turning her own situation into a jest, there was some underlying bitterness hiding beneath her self-deprecating jokes.
Ruby noticed this, giving the young woman a concerned look. "How are you feeling, Coco?"
"Quite useless. Velv helps a lot, though. She's a sweetheart." The humorless smirk that initially danced on Coco's lips turned into a grateful smile when she glanced at Velvet. The other girl, in turn, bashfully averted her eyes after hearing this compliment, unwittingly putting a lock of her long, silky hair behind one of her human ears. "Still, no matter how salty I might be, I am getting better. It might not seem like much, but believe me when I say that this," Coco rolled her wheelchair further away from the table, then, with some difficulty, lifted one of her legs a bit for everyone to see, "is a big improvement over not being able to move my legs at all. That, and the fact that I no longer have to wear those hospital clothes. Gotta find the silver lining."
Yang chuckled at that, but her expression pretty soon shifted into a more serious one. "Have you started your physio already?"
"Yeah. My therapist says I should be able to walk on my own pretty soon, and I sure hope she's right. I hate seeing my high heels getting dusty." With that, apparently no longer interested in talking about her own predicament, Coco turned her eyes to look at Neptune, corner of her mouth twitching a bit. "Anyways, what about you, Sleeping Beauty? Still getting used to your shiny, artificial lung?"
Neptune glared at Coco after hearing this nickname, but it had literally no adverse effect on the smug grin present on the girl's face. Seeing that he was only making the matter worse, he gave up. "Not my fault the doctors decided it was better to keep me comatose until I got better," he muttered with resignation.
"Guess they had to shut you up somehow," Sun deadpanned.
Neptune punched his friend in the arm, but, nonetheless, he snickered along. "In any case, yeah. It's not, I dunno, uncomfortable or anything, just... kinda weird. Doctors asked me not to leave Vale for the next two-three months so they can check up on me, so I guess I'll have to stay at my aunt's place. Here's hoping she won't mind two strays."
Blake raised a single eyebrow. "Two?"
"Scarlett and Sage are going home, but Sun is staying in Vale. Fighting with my new lung probably will take some getting used to, and he offered to help me with that."
"And what do you plan to do after the break? Go back to Haven?" Jaune questioned.
All four members of team SSSN glanced at each other. "Actually, we're not sure," Scarlett replied eventually.
Yang knitted her eyebrows. "You mean?"
Sun was the one to answer her. "Well, nothing is really decided yet, but we are considering transferring to Beacon. It would be easier to hang out with our friends that way, y'see," he said, grinning. After a somewhat enthusiastic response of the rest of the group, he turned towards Jaune, Ren and Nora. "What about the three of you?"
"Jaune's mom invited us to stay in their house," Nora said in her typical, cheerful manner, her arm thrown around Ren's shoulder. "His sisters are fun to be around, and it's not like we have anywhere else to go, so we agreed."
Jaune nodded. "Yeah. As for the school, we'll return to Beacon once the break is over..." He paused for a moment, grimacing. "But there's still the issue of, well, us being one person short from the full team." His words were met with uneasy silence, their implication slowly sinking in.
"Do they want to assign you a new teammate?" Velvet asked timidly after a few moments, voicing what everyone had thought.
"Yes, although we won't be forced to accept anyone should we not want to." Ren sighed. "Apparently Ozpin plans to assemble a list of potential candidates to show us later on."
No one questioned the three of them what they thought of the prospect of having a new teammate, seeing no reason to; even if the answer wasn't written all over the trio's faces, everyone more or less knew how Jaune, Nora and Ren felt – although there were some logical merits, it did not change the fact that it was as if they were asked to replace something that replaced could be not.
As time passed, people began changing their seats, walking from one group of familiar faces to the other, chatting and exchanging stories. Weiss, not really in the mood for socializing, was among the few who did not leave their place by the table, even though both Ruby and Yang tried to convince her to tag along as they went to say hello to team FNKY. Blake remained nearby, having moved maybe a feet or two away from the heiress, and was talking with Coco and Velvet; although the heiress could easily join their conversation, she chose not to, and the other girls – after a few failed attempts to get her involved – let her brood in peace, at least for the time being.
Weiss did not understand why, but for some reason she felt hollow and worthless in her own eyes, as if she was not good enough, as if she had failed to win the first place when it actually mattered to her. Lost in thought, she paid virtually no mind to anything that surrounded her; only after someone tapped her on the shoulder did she snap out of her reverie.
Turning around and recognizing the person that was pestering her, Weiss scowled. "Yes, Jaune?"
The boy smiled awkwardly, taking notice of the chilly tone he was greeted with. "Hey, Weiss... Would you mind going for a walk? There's something I want to talk with you about."
For a few moments, the heiress entertained the thought of telling Jaune to leave her alone in some rude, snappy manner, but in the end she did no such thing, knowing that her unreasonable hostility was pretty much baseless. Casting a single glance at her partner before returning her attention to Jaune, she let out a weary sigh, releasing some of her tension. "I suppose not..." Hoping that a stroll would help her clear her mind, she stood up from her seat and gestured with her hand for Jaune to take lead. "After you."
Ren, who was sitting nearby, looked at his leader knowingly and placed one of his hands at the table, silently asking Jaune whether or not he should go with them, then, seeing the blonde lad shake his head slightly, he settled down, simply watching as Jaune and Weiss went outside.
The two of them walked for a ways before Jaune eventually spoke up, sensing that the silence between them was starting to feel awkward. "So, uh... how are your wounds?"
Although Weiss, in her current state, would have preferred it if the boy simply got straight to the point instead of attempting small talk, she figured there was no harm in humouring him this once. "Surprisingly well, all things considered; I even had my stitches removed two days ago." She looked down and brought her left hand to her stomach, her fingers running along the wound that was hidden under a few layers of clothing. "Most of the time I can just ignore the pain without much of an issue, at least as long as I'm careful not to stretch too much."
"That's good to hear." Jaune fell silent for a while, as if he wondered how to proceed. "Uh, about your team's last visit to the headmaster's office... was it about what I think it was?"
"Joining?" Weiss suggested, getting a nod in response. "Yes."
The man let out a short, mirthless laugh. "Ozpin really can't give you guys a break, huh?" Not expecting an answer, he turned his eyes away from the heiress and let his gaze fall onto the pavement, as if staring at something only he could see. "He wanted us to show up at that meeting, too, but we told him we needed some time."
Weiss laughed softly. "True, it might've been better if he waited for a more appropriate time, instead of asking us when our wounds were still fresh – both figuratively and literally." She applied some pressure to her abdomen with the palm of her hand, wincing a bit when her nerves gave her the exact response she expected. "But then again, is there ever an appropriate time to ask someone if they are willing to dedicate their life to protection of humanity from a powerful enemy that can't even be defeated?"
Not waiting for a response, Weiss continued. "It's not like we were given no time to make up our mind, either. Even if Ozpin didn't touch on the matter in advance, we all already knew how we felt about the Circle; after all, we've been working with them for well over a year. We were members in all but the name – all we had to do was to say whether we were willing to continue; a mere formality, I suppose, but a formality that probably should not wait too long nonetheless. Now we at least know where we stand."
"And what did you answer?"
"We all agreed, though not before Ruby called him out on not being straight with us." A soft smile was present on Weiss' lips when she mentioned her partner, but it did not stay there for long, quickly disappearing. "If there is one thing I'm certain of, it is that I don't want anyone else to go through the same hell we just did. If there is a way not to let the things go as far as they did the last time, then the least I can do is try. As for Ruby, Blake and Yang... I think they feel the same way."
Weiss watched Jaune for a while, waiting for him to speak. When he did not, she assumed that they had already discussed everything that was there to discuss and began walking away, slowly retreating in the same direction they came from. "Well, if that's all you wished to discuss, then I'll excuse myself."
As it soon turned out, she was mistaken, and Jaune, hoping to stop her, spoke up the very moment she started backing away. "It's not. Not entirely, at least. I wanted to talk with you about Ruby."
That certainly gained him Weiss' attention, making her freeze in place almost instantly. "Yes?" she asked, her voice icy cold, giving the man a pointy glare.
"It's just... I'm glad that you are going to spend the break with her. She needs you, Weiss."
Whatever traces of hostility Jaune had seen in Weiss' eyes disappeared almost completely, leaving only sadness. She seemed smaller, somehow, smiling wryly as she walked closer to Jaune and rested her elbows atop a small balustrade.
"For once I believe that you are actually overestimating me; if anything, it's the other way around – I'm the one who needs her." She truly meant what she said, and Ruby's support and positive impact the Dolt had on her life were not the only things she had in mind. She felt physically better when the other girl was around – more awake, more alive; even her wounds seemed to hurt less, something she observed in the past few days. "Sure, I might be her partner and friend, but even if I was not around, she still has Yang and Blake - or you and your team - to take care of her. You're all just as important to her as I am... if not more." Uttering that aloud was simply painful, though Weiss was not quite sure why; after all, despite all of her pride, most of the time being somebody's equal didn't bother her that much. She knew that Ruby cared for her, and it made her glad; still, the thought that there were others that were just as close to her partner caused her an unreasonable amount of grief. "She'd be alright," she muttered quietly, hanging her head, her voice barely above a whisper.
Jaune leaned against the balustrade, chuckling under his breath as he looked at the heiress. "It seems to me that you don't really realize just how important you are to her."
"What makes you think so?" the white-haired girl questioned; despite the skeptically raised eyebrow and doubt in the tone she spoke, something stirred deep down inside of her after hearing these words, making her pulse quicken. "I get that she was worried about me when I almost got killed, but what of it? She's the best partner I could've ever asked for, even if it took me a while to recognize that fact – of course she would be worried. But that's Ruby for you – even if you were the one who was wounded in my place, she would be just as distressed."
Jaune snorted at that, not taking Weiss' 'even if' personally. "Worried? Hah." He shook his head incredulously. "She was worried sick when Yang lost her arm, or when we had no idea whether Qrow would survive after Tyrian had poisoned him. When Penny and Pyrrha died... she was devastated. Still, even though she saw Cinder killing Pyrrha with her own eyes, it did not make her want to tear that damned woman into shreds, despite the fact it would be well-deserved. But after you got wounded and her initial shock had passed... she was out for blood," he said, putting a strong emphasis on the last three words. He stared the heiress in the eye, making sure that this information sunk in, then raised his finger an pointed it at Weiss. "And no matter what you tell me, I don't think she'd wipe the floor with a bloody Goliath if I were the one who almost got killed, not you."
Weiss blinked a few times, slightly taken aback. "...a figure of speech, I assume?"
The blonde snickered at the sight of the look on the heiress' face. "Actually, no; she rammed scythe-first right into the poor bastard's side, full Semblance speed, and toppled it over, making it crush a bunch of smaller Grimm in the process. That girl is scary when she's pissed off." Slowly, his grin dissipated, expression darkening as his gaze fell to the ground. "It's not the part that terrified me, though..."
He stayed silent for a few seconds, thinking how to properly explain what was on his mind; in the meanwhile, Weiss waited patiently, not rushing him to speak despite the fact that his last remark left her a bit concerned.
"Ruby is the strongest person I know. No matter how far south the things had gone, she always had the strength to keep moving forwards... though every once in a while you could see through the cracks just how hard it was for her. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has noticed it." He glanced at Weiss, who simply bobbed her head. She was not sure where he was going with this roundabout explanation, but opted not to comment on it just yet. "There was this one situation after her uncle got wounded by Tyrian. We were searching for help, but it was not going all too well... Truth be told, we had no idea what to do, and Qrow was getting worse. When we took a moment to rest and look around, she started apologising to me, saying that she shouldn't have dragged us along. I appreciated the sentiment... but she was factually wrong."
He paused briefly, taking a deep breath before proceeding further. "Like us, she had lost Pyrrha. She had also lost Penny. She had lost her team and, in a sense, even her sister. Still, despite all of that, she decided not to lose hope, to believe that she could make a difference in a world gone mad. She didn't drag us along; she gave us the strength to follow. Even in the moments of weakness, when things looked especially grim, she was always able to quickly pull herself together for our sake." Weiss' whole body tensed anxiously when Jaune turned his face towards the heiress, as if seeing the look in his eyes she finally realized just how serious he had been when he said he was worried. "But, when I saw her return to our base, cradling you in her arms... I thought she had finally snapped."
Author's Note:
Ha! I bet you didn't expect to see me again so soon, were ya?!
Well, to be perfectly honest, me neither. A pleasant surprise for both parties, I hope. Either way, it seems that listening to "Cold" from RWBY's soundtrack while I was writing the first half of this chapter was not the worst idea I've ever had.
Had fun writing this one, I'll tell you that much. A pleasant change of pace after the two last chapters. I sure hope that you enjoyed reading this update as much as I enjoyed writing it.
I'm not sure whether or not I managed to deliver the feels, so I definitely would be happy to know what you think about this chapter. Please, consider dropping a review should you have some time to spare, and, even if you don't, thanks for reading!
ComonDayCritic: As I mentioned in my PM to you, I also had some mixed feeling about that aspect. I tried to address this issue in this chapter; now all that's left for me to do is to hope that I did not screw up.
Also, a big thank you to all those who wrote a review after the previous chapter!
Oh, right, I almost forgot: I have set up a Discord server. Should anyone be interested, here's the important part of the invite link: (slash) NyfaacQ
Not much to see there right now, but I'll be working on it. Feel free to drop in, whether you want to check on the progress on the next chapter, chat with me about the story, or to simply talk my ear off! c: