…Continued from last chapter

…dead. That's what Yang expected Misato to say. She was ready to tear the house apart from top to bottom in grief filled rage. She didn't care anymore. Her sister…no, her soul had just been taken from her. How could she do anything else but rage against the heavens, against any powers that be that wrought this cruel injustice? She kept her teeth and fists clenched; waiting with bated breath for the word that would set off her maniacal frenzy, but the word never came. Instead, the finishing word that emerged from Misato's mouth was: "Okay." Yang immediately dropped her guard. Okay? What on earth did that mean? Fortunately, Blake and Weiss both had the exact same question, and it was Weiss who took the initiative.

"I'm sorry," she said, "…but what does it mean she's 'okay?'"

"It means she's awake," said Misato, "But still very weak. If she continues to improve, she'll be taken out of quarantine within the next few days. However, there is still a chance she'll take a turn for the worse. She's not completely out of the woods yet, but it's a step in the right direction." Yang, Weiss, and Blake all breathed a sigh of relief. "Now," Misato continued, "I couldn't help but notice that Shinji's been uncannily quiet the past few days. I imagine it's because of what's transpired with Ruby. Perhaps one of you can talk to him."

"I will," said Yang.

"Thank you." Yang made her way to Shinji's room, where Shinji had isolated himself with his SDAT cassette player. Yang approached him cautiously. "Hey, Shinji?" she tried to get his attention.

Shinji removed the buds from his ears, "Yeah?" he responded.

"Can we talk?"

"Um…about Ruby?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, she got sick a while ago and you haven't said a thing. I was wondering how you were feeling about it."

"Well, I'm not sure, to be honest. I feel like I barely know any of you, even though you've been with me for weeks, and yet, I still missed her when she was gone. I don't really know why. There's something…about her that you don't forget."

"I know what you mean. I know a lot of people say this, but my sister really is special. I remember my dad saying that she could brighten just about anyone's day just by being herself. I think he might have been exaggerating just a little, but still…Ruby is a unique breed; a person who never gives up no matter what, who you can depend on. There aren't that many people left like that in the world. Did it bother you that she wasn't around?"

"Yeah."

"Then why didn't you say anything?"

"I…didn't know what to say. You all seemed to be so stressed. I didn't want to make things worse."

"Well, I was pretty on edge. I guess everyone else was too, but you can still tell us how you're feeling. I'm sorry if we ever make you feel like you can't come to us. We want to help you and to make you feel welcome."

"Thanks," said Shinji with a faint smile. A few more days passed rather uneventfully. Then, one day Misato got another call from the hospital. She quickly rounded up her wards to deliver some exciting news. "Good news," she reported, "Ruby's getting better. They're giving her fluids for the moment, and they hope to have her eating again soon. She's out of quarantine, which means she can now have visitors." Everyone immediately brightened at the news; especially Yang. "However, there is some bad news," Misato continued. Everyone's face dropped. Misato chuckled slightly, "Don't worry. It's not that bad. The nurses have reported that Ruby's been pretty grumpy lately." Everyone glared at each other.

"I…think we can handle that," said Weiss.

"I thought so. Unfortunately, I have some more bad news. Shinji and Asuka are scheduled for some very special testing today, so they won't be able to come."

"What kind of testing?" asked Blake.

"Honestly, I'm not entirely sure myself. It was something the commander ordered. Anyways, they'll come visit Ruby later, 'K?"

"Sounds good to me," said Yang.

"Good. Now, would you like me to drop you off?"

"That would be a good idea."

"Alright, then get ready." Everyone quickly got ready to leave for the hospital. Misato dropped the rest of team RWBY off at the hospital and drove Shinji and Asuka to NERV. Yang, Weiss, and Blake all made their way to the front entrance of the hospital. Once inside, Yang inquired which room Ruby was being kept in. A nurse quickly pointed them in the right direction, and in a few minutes, the three girls had found Ruby's room. Yang gently knocked on the door, opening it carefully. Ruby was awake, though she appeared to be tired. "Hey, sis; can we come in?" asked Yang.

"Yeah," said Ruby softly. The three entered the room. Ruby looked much better. The breathing mask was no longer strapped to her face; her skin was no longer pale. Aside from her drowsy appearance, it looked like she hadn't been sick at all. "The nurse said you've been grumpy," said Yang.
"I just think it's so dumb," said Ruby.

"What is?" asked Blake.

"That I almost died to a stupid sickness!"

"You should be grateful you're alive," admonished Weiss.

"Yeah," sighed Ruby, "Although, I have been thinking. If we had never come to this place I never would have gotten sick, but then again, if we had never come…we never would have met Shinji or Misato or Rei or Asuka. Since I didn't die, I think it was worth getting sick just to meet them." Yang turned away. "Something on your mind, sis?" asked Ruby.

"Well, maybe it was worth it to you," said Yang, "But I nearly lost my sister. Do you know how worried I've been?"

"Yang, it wasn't Ruby's fault she got sick," said Blake.

"No, but it was her fault for dragging us here," said Yang bitterly.

"Do you want to leave?" asked Ruby.

"I…don't know. Admittedly, I did want to leave when I heard how sick you were. The thought of losing my sister broke my heart, but I thought of all the friends we made and how I'd hate to leave them so soon. If you had died, I would have taken charge and taken Weiss and Blake back home. Since you're not dead and since you're still team leader, what do you think about leaving?"

"I…want to stay," said Ruby hesitantly, "But if we stay, there's no guarantee that any of us will survive. I…could die." Yang struggled to hold back tears. Weiss and Blake both looked at each other. "Look," said Yang, "I trust you, Ruby. I know Professor Ozpin put you in charge of our team for a reason, and I know you only want to stay because you want to help the people we've met." Yang paused to choke back sobs. "…but if anything else happens to you, we're finding that huntsman who's watching us, and we're making him take us back to Beacon. I can't stand watching my own little sister wither and die!" Weiss put a hand on Yang's shoulder, but she drew back. "Yang?" said Ruby, "Have you been crying?"

"She's been crying a lot," said Weiss.

"Well, I think you could cry some more." Ruby extended her arms in invitation. Yang welcomed the solace of Ruby's embrace, allowing her tears to release all the pent up anxiety and anger that had been bottled up inside while Ruby was still in quarantine. Ruby let herself cry as well, and Blake and Weiss shed a few tears of their own. The three girls visited with Ruby for a few hours, chatting about what had been going on while she had been out. Eventually, Misato arrived with Shinji and Asuka in tow. Both children seemed to be their typical selves, but Misato seemed to have something on her mind. "Hey, you OK?" asked Ruby.

"Um…yeah," said Misato, "Look, I'm going to leave Shinji and Asuka here with you for a while. I have…something to take care of."

"O…kaayy…" said Ruby guardedly.

"Yeah well, I'd better get going." With that Misato took off. Ruby turned her attention to Shinji and Asuka. "How was your day?" she asked.

"Eh, not that exciting," said Shinji.

"Not that exciting? We defeated another angel," said Asuka.

"Ritsuko defeated another angel," corrected Shinji, "We just sat in entry-plugs for about a half an hour."

"Yeah well, I still don't see the point of those simulation bodies."

"Ritsuko said it was to develop some new automatic piloting system."

"As if they'll ever need that."

"Well, there may come a time when you won't be able to pilot for a while or at all," said Ruby.

"Yeah, when I'm dead," said Asuka, "I'm serious about piloting. I'm not going to let anyone or anything take that away from me." Everyone else exchanged sad glances. It seemed as if Asuka was still bent on piloting an EVA, no matter the cost. Weiss couldn't help but wonder if that was truly good for Asuka's health. No one except the pilots really knew what piloting an Evangelion was really like. The fact that they constantly had the fate of humanity resting on their shoulders seemed like it would make the task quite daunting. Shinji had seemingly adapted to the responsibility, though. Asuka, on the other hand, seemed to forget that there was a responsibility behind piloting. To her, being the best was more important than actually protecting humanity. That seemed like a dangerous attitude, especially since it would lead her to compare herself to the performance of others. If someone else became better than her, her confidence might dip, causing her performance to suffer, which would in turn cause her confidence to fall even further. Shinji, less concerned with Asuka and more concerned with Ruby, changed the subject. "So, how are you feeling?" he asked Ruby.

"Better," replied the young leader, "I heard the doctor say I should be out in the next few days."

"Let's hope we don't have another incident like last time," said Yang.

"Ooh…I forgot about that," groaned Ruby. She quickly lightened up, "I don't think there will be."

"How can you be so sure?" asked Blake.

"When the commander kidnapped me the first time, he asked me about the incident with unit-01. I don't think that will happen again, unless he wants to ask about my sickness."

"Incident?" repeated Asuka.

"Misato allowed Ruby to sit in an EVA for a while," explained Yang, "But it went berserk. Something strange happened; the EVA's eyes shot these weird beams of light. Apparently, it's never happened before, so the commander wanted to know if Ruby had anything to do with it."

"Could it be because you're alien?" asked Shinji.

"Could be," replied Yang.

Asuka sighed, "Well, you don't seem to be dangerous. It was probably just some random fluke with the EVA. Remember that unit-01 is the prototype. Who knows what kind of quirks it might have?"

"I guess that's true," said Ruby. It was beginning to get late.

"Geez, I'm hungry," said Shinji.

"Well, the hospital doesn't offer food to guests. I guess we'll have to wait until Misato comes back."

Speaking of Misato, she once again found herself at a familiar bar. This time; however, Qrow was nowhere to be found. Instead, Ryoji Kaji was sitting at a table. Misato quickly approached her ex-lover. "Say, you wouldn't have happened to see a middle-aged man with silver-gray hair, would you?" she asked.

"Not since I've been here," replied Kaji.

"How about a bird?"

"A…bird? Misato, have you been doing something I don't know about?"

"N-no! Of course not! I just…it's complicated, OK?"

"Uh-huh. Well, if you're looking for a bird, I suggest looking for it outside."

"Or by a window." Misato quickly walked to the nearest window. No corvids were to be found. Misato sighed and turned to leave. On her way out, she passed by Kaji one last time. "He's not here," she said resignedly, "Sorry to trouble you."

"Hey, no trouble at all," said Kaji, "Although, it would appear as if you could afford to trouble me. I could help ease away that stress that seems to have you seeing birds in strange places."

"It's not like that," retorted Misato, "And anyways, you're a real pig, you know that?"

"Hey, I just call it like I see it, but you take all the time you need." With a disgusted huff, Misato took off. She wondered where Qrow could be, especially considering his own niece had just nearly died. Qrow, as it turns out, was busy informing the headmaster of Beacon academy of team RWBY's progress. "Yes, it's coming along quite well," he spoke to his scroll, "Understood. I'll keep myself out of it unless one or more members of the team are seriously injured or killed."

To be continued…