[WARNING:
There's a reason for the scent I mean;
the scent of lemons fresh and clean
the loving embrace yet to be seen
please don't read if you're a tween
A poem by Yonderus A. Discord]
Falling Cinders, Chapter 26: Initium Papilio
Fevered hands scrambled across bloodied wood. Pressure, pressure, and a release of light swarmed through the darkness, Yang could see figures hovering above her. Someone leaned over her face as she tensed, she tried to squirm, but something stopped her. The long-eared angel above her touched her forehead, and whispered, she breathed harshly, confusion written over her face as she attempted to remain conscious. But the faces above her played and danced like devils in a fire, she couldn't be sure if they meant her harm or if she were safe. She lashed out to push them away, but her use of force on her lack of strength only delayed her movement, and something grabbed her arm, pushing it down and pinning it beside her.
The voices about her blurred together, as did the light, and swirls of white, brown, and green meshed to form a painting of insincere speculation. Unable to hold on there, a circle of black protruded from the edges of her vision and scaled slowly down the walls to the center, cascading her world into a serene calm of darkness once more.
Just beside her, Velvet bit her lip, placing her hand to Yang's forehead when she finally slipped from consciousness. All about her the room was a flurry of activity as the men worked to save her, the long-eared girl put both of her hands back to the woman's chest, keeping pressure on the bandages over her most grievous wound. They had recovered Jaune's sword from the fiery blonde's body, the split it left had gone all the way through and just barely missed several organs, the largest of the damage dealt to the muscles of her back where the blade had pierced through.
She was lucky, Velvet knew. Anybody else would likely have been dead by now, but the absolute strength that Yang showed in times of peril like these... They couldn't fail her. It just wouldn't be right. Velvet applied more pressure to the bandages, while Weiss and the only remaining medic they had from the White Fang personnel tended to the bullet wound just above her artificial arm. They pulled out the slug, which had wedged itself against her bone, and a topical astringent was applied to help reduce the bleeding as much as possible. She would need every ounce she could get.
Next to Velvet, Weiss stood with worry written all over her features.
"I don't get it... Ruby told me she would signal for me to come when she needed my help, but... It was you all who set off that bomb?" Velvet nodded to her, but she remained busy with her charge on the table. Having arrived to find a critically wounded Yang hadn't settled too well with the Schnee heiress, for some reason she'd believed that Cinder and Ruby had had more of a plan, but once she had seen the state of her leader's sister, it was clear to her that they had been only hoping on a miracle. Wherever the two were now, she wasn't sure, but it was clear to her that the rest of her friends would need her help.
Lie Ren leaned against the window as he had before in his own home; now, though, he remained on look out for Atlas troops once more while Nora did the same on the other side of the building. They had secured a small office building for their use, assuming that Atlas would be searching most residential domiciles first. While this limited their access to sources of food, it was a necessary sacrifice to position themselves somewhere that wouldn't be discovered. They only had one chance for a surprise raid on the main compound within the walls, and while they had Velvet's pictures to help them, it would still take every ounce of caution they could muster.
Across the room, Weiss placed a hand over Yang's, and sighed.
"Just hold on, hothead... Where's that sister of yours...?"
Just outside of the city walls, Ruby stood, holding Penny over one shoulder, standing at the mercy of the cold winds that had picked up as the afternoon settled over them. Cinder by her side, both of them looked up to the top of the walls, before Cinder shot a sidelong glance along them.
"Let's just go around to the east. If we go over the top we risk being seen," Cinder stated, and Ruby frowned. They both knew why that route wasn't exactly ideal; while Cinder wasn't expecting it to happen, it could potentially cause Ruby a moment of emotional turmoil as they passed her mother's grave, and that of course risked the Grimm.
"O-okay. I think I'll be fine," Ruby stated, and the two of them set off, making a slow pace about the wall and angling at the corner into the outskirts of Vale's destroyed areas. It had been awhile since they'd been out here, now, but it didn't make the experience any more pleasant than it had been before.
Treading through the broken streets and among collapsed or burnt buildings, Ruby tried to ignore her emotions as they threatened to draw out the snarling beasts they could hear among the rubble, though the scenes of brutality left behind by the Grimm and Atlas played strongly on her heart.
Cinder came to a halt among the ruins; she had been trailing slightly behind her lover, causing the cloak-clad woman to stop as well and turn around to watch. Cinder poked through the remains of a house, lifting a few beams of burnt wood, rummaging slowly until she stood and looked back to Ruby.
"What is it?" she questioned, but Cinder shook her head, and rejoined her lover, walking carefully over the broken ground. Nothing for them here, she guessed. But it always helped to make sure.
As they walked, the calm seemed palpable enough, a surprising change from the morning they had had.
"Your hair is getting long again," Ruby said softly to Cinder, who took the statement as something to fill the silence more than a comment which needed a response. She shrugged slightly and looked away.
"I like it is all," Ruby assured her, and the Maiden cast a glance her way as they walked.
"You should see your own," she replied, and Ruby rose an eyebrow. Had her hair been growing longer? She reached a hand up to the red-tipped strands and ran her hand through one side. She was right, it was nearly down to her shoulders now. How had she not noticed? Stopping near a puddle of mud, she leaned over it and checked her reflection in a small pool of water; sure enough, she looked a whole lot like her mother. She gave a sad smile for that fact, and looked up passed the edge of the ruins to where the small grove of trees sat, the path running up the middle to her mother's grave seemed undisturbed.
Without waiting for her to make a decision, Cinder wrapped her fingers carefully in between Ruby's and pulled her along toward the path. It was better to just face it, hesitation could cost them.
They walked together between the trees, the gentle winds rustling the leaves and confusing both of their hearts with the serene nature of the place despite what they had been dealing with lately. When they reached the end of the path, at the hill overlooking the plains to the east of Vale, for a moment Ruby released Cinder's hand and stepped forward, looking out over the scene, and then to the south, where the gleaming lake spread low below the cliffside.
She set Penny down against the tree nearest the lone stone that sat atop the hill, finding it oddly fitting that she rest here with the other one Ruby had lost. Ruby decided it was best to leave her here for now. She looked around once more.
She could see from here the damage that the blast they'd heard from before had caused. Their friends were fighting, out there somewhere. Her pained face was only aided by the hand that found her shoulder, and to keep herself stable, the only thing Ruby could do was turn into the touch, and push herself up against Cinder's body, squeezing her tightly.
The bewildered Maiden let it happen, though, and settled her arms around her little Rose, comforting her.
"I hate it when you're right," Ruby said, and Cinder's noise of confusion prompted her to continue.
"About that whole thing you said... You solve one problem, and there's nothing to stop another from coming along."
Cinder smiled weakly for that. At least she'd learned to expect it, right? But the watering eyes that her single one became met with spelled out a different truth. Why would Ruby ever expect it? Despite all that had happened, she was still naive enough to just want peace in her life. But, for once, Cinder's own heart reflected that. They could use a bit of peace, couldn't they?
It seemed so far away now, when they had had a life together. A home. But now they were vagrants, wanted "criminals", they had nowhere to settle down, to rest their heads... Cinder squeezed Ruby tightly, placing a hand to the back of her head and holding her against her shoulder. The smaller woman took a breath to keep from crying, controlling her emotions as she cast her eyes to her mother's grave. At least some things were still okay... If only Summer were here, she thought, maybe her mother would know what to do?
Cinder parted from her lover, releasing her and stepping forward until her feet were just before the stone on the hill, and the sun with its setting light cast a glow about her that accentuated her curving body, illuminating her strong, long legs, her forceful shoulders... Ruby gazed at her back, where the top of her tattoo poked out from underneath the fabric of her jacket, slung low on her shoulders uncaringly. She stepped forward and her fingers found it, touching Cinder's skin suddenly and causing her to bristle and tense ever so slightly. She turned, and Ruby's fingers slipped under her clothing, her hand gently rubbing at Cinder's back, the warmth it afforded her causing her to sigh gently.
"Cinder?" Ruby questioned, and the woman cocked her head to the side, not saying anything, but listening none the less.
"You said before... You don't have any family anymore, right?" The Maiden searched that silver gaze, but then nodded slowly.
"Mmm. Sorry... It's nothing," Ruby added, and turned her eyes to the side, but Cinder was quick to grasp her chin and return her to a position where they could see each other.
"Not nothing. What?" she questioned briefly, her voice offset by her previous injuries at the volume she was using, causing it to crack slightly, though neither of them cared.
"Well, it's just that..." Ruby trailed her fingertips along Cinder's shoulders, under her jacket. The gentle touch calmed Cinder and for a moment she closed her eye, and tried to pretend like they hadn't just been running to save their lives. It was a wishful thought to begin with and the calm didn't last long, so she looked back down to Ruby as she waited for her to continue.
Instead, the Huntress removed her hand and pulled away, moving to crouch before her mother's gravestone, touching the surface of it.
"I know I have Yang, and my dad. But neither of them are a Rose. I have no one else, there was only my mother. Between you and I? Well... We're the only survivors of our family names, aren't we?" She looked over her shoulder, back up at Cinder where she had crossed her arms and stood watching.
"I guess you're right," she whispered, but she wasn't following. For a moment, a silence settled over them, and the sound of the wind became the only thing that played across their ears. Cinder hung on Ruby's words, wondering to herself what it was that floated through Ruby's head.
"I want to show you something," she said suddenly, and Cinder's eyebrow rose as Ruby did too, standing to turn back toward her.
"Ruby... We have to get into the city before dark. It's dangerous..."
The eyes she received in response to that statement, however, had her second guessing her ability to resist. Ruby really wanted this.
"Will it take long?" she asked, and the Huntress shook her head.
"Fine," Cinder sighed, and the excited girl grasped her hand and pulled her from the spot on the hill, to the side of it where the path had continued and wrapped around. They followed it down, to the base of the hill opposite the trees, where the start of the rolling fields began. But much to Cinder's surprise, what she'd thought of as simple grass and fields turned out to be much more than that. At the base of the hill began a scattered field of tall grasses, and while it was scarred in places from obvious fighting in the area, likely because of the Grimm, there still grew a fair amount of nature all around them. Flowers sat beneath the grasses, not as tall but just as tenacious. Their dull colors were given new life in the dying sunlight.
The Grimm, she'd noticed, tended not to destroy nature like this on their own. Instead, they usually existed within it, like true animals might, but it was still a wonder to her how this place hadn't been destroyed among it all. This hill, pristine as it was, stood as a testament to the will of survival.
And Ruby, smiling to her lover as she ran on ahead, stirred her hands through the plant life and watched about her as a swarm of insects filled the air. Watching them as they fluttered into the sky, she smiled to herself as the butterflies and moths scattered around her just like they always had when she was a little girl.
"Mom used to bring Yang and I here when we were children. It's why we put her gravestone just up the hill," she said, her eyes dancing in the dying light of the afternoon, watching with a childlike wonder at the colorful swarm that raced about her. Even Cinder could appreciate the beauty of so much life among the chaos, just over the horizon from where devastation seemed the norm.
Ruby fished about in the grass, until a small exclamation of triumph issued from her bent-over body, and she stood, and turned, cupping something in her hands.
"You say you love me," she started, walking up to Cinder, her smile beaming with what she knew. The Maiden was confused, but nodded.
"But do you trust me?" Ruby asked her, and it brought pause to Cinder's thoughts. While Cinder could honestly say it was hard to earn her trust, she thought back to everything that had happened to the two of them, and then nodded curtly.
"With my life."
The bubbly girl chuckled at her, and nodded a few times. Whatever she was hiding seemed to be a mystery.
"Then after all of this is over..."
She unfolded her hands, and inside of it sat a lone butterfly, gingerly held so as not to be harmed, and when it was released, it remained on her hand, and unfolded its wings, then folded them back again, repeating the motion a few times. The pair were angled, edged with a deep black, and pointed at the ends. Inside their membrane was laced with more of that black, like a spider's web, and filling in the gaps the brightest crimson she had ever seen flooded the little thing with color. She didn't quite understand where Ruby was going with this, but she lifted her hand and let the butterfly flutter away. When it moved, she caught sight of something familiar along its form, and she blinked suddenly in understanding.
"When we're finally safe again... Let's make it official. You and me..." Ruby drew closer, and slipped her hands along Cinder's arms, then up over her shoulders. One dipped into her jacket again, pressing her palm flat against that tattoo back there...
"We'll make our own family. No more being alone."
Her small body slipped up against Cinder's, and the Maiden couldn't help but rest her hands on Ruby's hips as she was kissed deeply, the shorter girl standing slightly on her toes. In that moment, there was no fear, or pain, or exhaustion... The Grimm were not going to come for them, and she knew it when that love blossomed in her heart, that in this very moment they were safe and together. When the lovers parted their lips, they held one another's gaze, and Ruby's smile, so beautiful among the sunset, sank deep into Cinder's mind. Together.
"Forever," Ruby said softly, and Cinder matched her smile slowly, nodding gently in acceptance.
"Okay," she said to Ruby, and nodded once more.
"I'll even get the tattoo too, if you change yours..." The prospect sounded wonderful. The two of them, forming their own family together, combining everything, sharing it. Ruby wanted her to change her symbol, she wanted to put hers with it.
"It would be like a butterfly," Ruby said, unable to contain her excitement as her fingers toyed with the flesh of Cinder's back. All she had to do was add the rose motif in the middle, and certainly, it would.
"I like it," Cinder said, and the light that spread through Ruby's eyes again warned her of the incoming kiss as they once more coupled, Ruby's hands fisted her jacket and pulled her in, so very enthusiastic with the moment despite their shortening window of time. Together they stood, lips pressed to one another's among the flowers and the grass, the butterflies like falling leaves settling back among their kind and joining the landscape once more. They stayed, holding hands, long enough to watch the sun set behind the lines of trees in the distance. With the sky still awash with color, they turned back toward the city, and the devastation there in. Despite the dire circumstances, the calm of that moment they'd just shared had filled both of their hearts with the love and determination they both needed to continue on.
Once the morning's fog had dissipated, it had left a clear sky that began to shine with stars by the time they reached Vale's wall again. As they had expected, the entrance into the wall had been all but abandoned with the attack on the southern cliff; the two guards that watched their post seemed more concerned with turning their eyes inward to the danger of the rebels that had breached the city perimeter than they were with the outskirts. Sneaking by them was as simple as waiting for the right moment, and within the hour they were back inside Vale, for the first time in what seemed to them to be ages. However as they wound their way between the alleys and hid among the buildings, Cinder felt as though they were being watched.
She chose the first abandoned-looking building she could find and broke in with a quick use of force to jar a door, then barricaded the other side with the dusty furniture of some poor sap's unused living room. She took Ruby and hid them both away in the master bedroom of the home, where a bed waited, even if it was just as coated in a layer of dust from being left to fend for itself since the initial invasion. While Ruby went about searching for and replacing the linens with clean ones, Cinder still got the feeling that something wasn't quite right... Her paranoia grew enough that she began peeking out of windows, but still on the street she saw nothing. With her guard lowered again, she returned to the bedroom, but just as she entered the doorway, she was prompted to turn around when something made a noise along the floor. No sooner had she wheeled about, though, than a heavy force picked her up by her collar and threw her back, slamming her into the wall as she was pinned there by the man holding her aloft, off of her feet.
"Uncle Qrow! W-What...?" Ruby started as Qrow glared right into Cinder's eye, just an inch away from her face.
"Who the hell do you think you are?!" he yelled at her, the disgusting smell of his alcoholic breath threatening to burn Cinder's nose.
"Let go of her!" his niece cried, and ran over to attempt to pull him away, but her lack of strength meant that this accomplished next to nothing, and the Hunstman doubled his stance with a hard shove, Cinder's anxiety had already shot through the roof and the increase in air temperature hadn't gone unnoticed by either of the others.
"What's your problem?!" Ruby shouted, and Qrow's eyes narrowed.
"This dumb bitch just ruined everything, that's my problem!" he shouted, more of that pungent odor leaking from his lips and making Cinder's face wind up as she tried to turn her head.
"I spent days following Neopolitan and her crew. DAYS! And here you two come flying in like a bunch of rookies, you ruined everything! And like hell I'm going to stand around letting this... Amazing example of outstanding citizenship continue to put my family in danger. You could've been killed, Ruby! What, do you think that huge lug's arms don't look like they're capable of strangling you with just his pinky finger?!" While he spat his anger at them, he spat, too, upon Cinder's face with the force of his words, but she was too weak now, her Aura drained, to really stop him. Still, she caught note of his own drainage, he'd expended much of his energy to fight off Neopolitan it would seem, a testament to her and her crew's abilities.
"Stop it, Qrow!" Ruby demanded once more, "She didn't make me do anything! I'd have done it without her!" While that much was probably true, Cinder thought, it still didn't help her situation. But her eye flicked briefly to where Ruby's scythe lay resting by the door to the room, she'd set it down upon entry, and she held her gaze on it long enough for Qrow to glance at it himself, then back to Ruby.
"Is that your scythe?" he questioned, and she nodded at him. Relaxing his grip, he lowered Cinder until her feet touched the floor, but he didn't let go, keeping her back to the wall.
"You're lucky this time, Fall," he reminded her, and with a rough shove he knocked the wind out of her before finally letting go. Cinder gasped for breath and clutched her chest, Ruby helped her to the bed and she lay down to regain her composure while the drunk paced the floor swearing at himself.
"You don't get it, Ruby," Qrow said in agitation when she tried to question what he was doing here.
"I was this close to stopping Neopolitan myself. And lo and behold, Miss Flaming Fucking Wonder here managed to screw it up just like she did before dragging you into her fights. If they had found out you were there in the state you're in...!" Ruby stopped him by raising her hand.
"But they didn't. And that was because of you... Thanks, Uncle Qrow. I'm happy you were looking out for me."
Cinder breathed softly and placed a hand to her own forehead. She'd had enough of this punishment for a day. But still, she noticed the well-played words her lover gave to the agitated Huntsman, and he sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I can't keep cleaning up after your girlfriend, Ruby," he stated, and she frowned.
"It's not her fault," she tried in defense, but when her Uncle clenched his teeth at her and drew a breath through them, hissing, she looked to her feet.
"If she screws up like that again, there's no guarantee I'll be around to save your sorry asses next time. She needs to watch it. And stay away from Neopolitan. This isn't some game. Neopolitan has been up to something, she's never in one place long, and I'll be damned if I manage to find them again now that they know I was spying on them." He flopped against the wall and slid until his bottom rested on the floor, and hung his head in his hands. Ruby's empathetic nature got the best of her and she walked over to place a hand on his shoulder.
"Hey, hey... For what it's worth, I've never doubted you before," Ruby tried, and offered him a smile when he looked up, "just ask Cinder. I always assume you're out there somewhere, helping out. We're sorry we ruined your investigation."
When she said this, she stood, and looked over at Cinder, prompting her with a flick of her eyes and a roll of her shoulder to do the same and appologize. Cinder groaned internally, but sat up, and sighed softly.
"Sorry," she stated simply, but Ruby knew that it was about as much as she'd ever get from the Maiden. Close enough, anyway. Cinder slumped back down on the bed.
"I just wish sorry saved lives," Qrow stated, and bumped his head backward against the wall, the noise not loud enough to echo through the building but still enough to make his point.
"Don't worry," Ruby said, "I'm sure we'll figure something out. Neopolitan hasn't shown her hand yet, right? So we still have a chance to find out what she's up to before she does."
Cinder particularly didn't care for Vale's residents, save for Ruby and maybe her sister, by association. But they did have a common goal here, and the elimination of Neopolitan before she could wrap her greedy little claws around what was left of Vale, or the Atlas organization, that was still her priority. Qrow's little temper tantrum wasn't helping.
The man stood up, evidently done feeling sorry for himself.
"Yang and the others are somewhere nearby. I can almost feel it... I'm going to look for them, Ruby. You two stay here, and stay quiet. Atlas are probably crawling all over this city by now."
He turned to leave, but Ruby stopped him with a light touch on his arm.
"Uncle Qrow? Thanks. For saving us, I mean. I know you didn't have to." Qrow gave her an affectionate look, patting her on the shoulder, and nodded once.
"Just stay safe. I'll be back for you two in the morning." With that, he left, and closed the door behind him. The silence that pervaded the room settled in, and from beyond it they could hear the sounds of a city stirring. Atlas certainly was on guard, but she hoped they were hidden deep enough in this place for now. She looked back to the bed where Cinder lay with her hands over her eyes, palm up. Poor thing, she thought, Cinder was always the target of everyone's ire. It wasn't like they had known they'd end up spying on Neopolitan of all people... And she'd recovered Crescent Rose the Second because of it.
She moved to the bed, and leaned over it, placing one hand by Cinder's head as she did so, looking down at her.
Ruby couldn't help but smile at the little bit of an eye that peeked out at her after that. She knew Cinder would probably hate her for it, but she thought it was adorable. As if waiting in expectation, though, Cinder watched her and Ruby pushed her hair back out of her face, stroking the top of her head a few times lovingly.
"Get some rest. I'll take first watch," she stated, then placed a light kiss to Cinder's forehead, and stood upright, heading to the door. For Cinder, the words warmed her heart, for it was exactly what she'd needed to hear. When the sound of the door opening could be heard, she sat up again.
"Ruby...?" she whispered, and the Huntress turned back around to her.
"I love you," she said softly, and the girl in the red cloak smiled, before stepping out and shutting the door behind her. Cinder was left in that eerie quiet, but, her head heavy with her lack of Aura and her physical exhaustion, she quickly fell asleep in the dusty room, thankful to have a proper bed this time.
For awhile, she slept soundly, and all was well. However, her first indicator of something off came when she felt something touching her inner thigh, and she shifted twice, but it was still there. Opening her eye slowly as she felt hands, she watched with a curiosity in the darkness as something moved about below her blankets. Throwing them back, she was greeted with a smiling Ruby, who seemed to currently be indulging herself with stroking Cinder's legs, an expression on her face that Cinder didn't quite appreciate at the moment.
"Mmn... Ruby, stop it," she whispered in protest, but with an evil sort of smile, the girl didn't do as she was asked. Her fingers pressed down harder into Cinder's flesh, and one hand traveled upward...
"Ahh... S-stop..." she tried again, but what was the use? She closed her eye slowly, but the moment it clenched shut, there came a laugh. Her eye shot open immediately, for the laughter was far too familiar... and it wasn't Ruby's.
The girl between her legs laughed again, and as she did so, a bright patch of pink blossomed in her dark hair... Her eyes shifted color, and she laughed yet again, that sinister, wicked laugh. Ruby's entire body morphed in front of her, transforming into a woman in a white, elegant outfit, her dual colored eyes sharp and humored, and Neopolitan sat right before her.
"Wha...?! Ruby...?" she called, and pulled her legs away from the woman. As she crawled closer, and laughed yet again, Cinder backed away, terrified. Her frantic breathing and her pumping heart became all she could really hear other than that laugh.
Something clouded the evil woman's eyes. Within two seconds, the inky blotch spread outward and turned her irises black, then her sclera, her eye sockets looking somewhat akin to deep holes in her head. And yet again, Neopolitan laughed, and from her mouth, and her eyes as well, there dripped a thick, black sludge, pouring over her clothing and splattering all over the blankets.
"No... No, get away from me!" Cinder shouted, and immediately began to scramble away as the flooding darkness touched her feet, its cold, slimy texture worming its way between her toes as she screamed... And suddenly awoke with a start.
Panting heavily, and sweating profusely, Cinder looked around herself, finding that she was safe and alone... Neither Ruby nor Neopolitan seemed to be here. She placed a hand to her forehead, trying to slow her breathing enough that she could reach to replace the bits of clothing she'd removed to sleep and return them to her cold, drenched frame.
She took one of the blankets from the bed and wrapped it about herself, and went for the door.
She found Ruby leaned against a wall, looking forlorn and clutching her scythe as she gazed blankly out a window that overlooked the nearby street. Without saying anything, Cinder walked over and joined her, huddling against her side and leaning her head onto Ruby's shoulder suddenly. It was unexpected, and broke her ambedo, Ruby became suddenly confused at her appearance, but she didn't stop her. Ruby knew she'd speak when she was ready, and so for a moment they sat together in silence, until Cinder broke it.
"I had a nightmare," she breathed, and Ruby's look of concern made her feel bad for saying so. It wasn't like it had been the worst dream she'd ever had or something... But still, Ruby reached over to lean her scythe away from them and turned her attention to the other woman, pulling the blanket open and sidling up to her lover.
"You okay?" she questioned, and Cinder nodded to her, but looked away. Ruby's hand searched about underneath the blanket blindly until she found Cinder's and held it, her digits toying with each of Cinder's one by one, exploring the shapes of her hand slowly. It calmed her, and she wiggled until her head rested in Ruby's lap, where her other hand was free to play with her hair.
"I was just counting the fireflies," she said quietly to Cinder, "but I lost my place. There weren't many, though, I was probably just counting the same ones." Even though she wasn't really saying anything important, just hearing her voice did wonders for the Maiden. Ruby couldn't be Neopolitan with a voice that sweet. Ruby brought Cinder's hand up to her mouth and kissed it, then placed her other hand around it as well, rubbing her Maiden's fingers and palm. Cinder, with her single eye, lay there and looked up at Ruby, who offered her a small smile in return.
"Feel better yet?" she asked, and Cinder nodded again, still keeping quiet. How could she not? The Huntress coiled their fingers together, and moved one hand back to her hair, toying with it gently as Cinder closed her eye once more.
"I bet your mum would've been proud to see how beautiful you'd grow up to be," Ruby said, just enjoying the moment. Despite the movement of troops around the city, it had been mostly quiet, the lack of gunfire leading her to believe that they likely hadn't found the others yet. It was this peace that she had been coveting, even if it was more akin to a calm before a storm than an actual lull of hostilities.
"Are you still tired?" Ruby asked Cinder, and when she got a nod in response, the Huntress sighed softly.
"Then I guess it can't be helped," she said and reached over to her weapon, grabbing the long shaft again and using it to prop herself upright, and stand. This dislodged Cinder, who moved to sit up, and watched her lover as she rose to her feet. She offered her hand down to the Maiden, who took it, letting herself be led back into the bedroom. Ruby set her scythe by the door, leaving it open, just in case she needed it. Cinder took the moment to return to the bed, and she lay across it, giving a soft sigh as her blanket settled about her. Ruby removed her shoes, and her corset, her cloak, and her stockings. She piled them all neatly on the chair that sat alone in the corner, uncaring of the dust as she moved to join Cinder on the bed.
"I forgot how warm you are, it's cold tonight," she sighed as she worked her way under the covers, sliding her body up against Cinder's, letting their legs naturally coil together and coming to rest one of her hands and her forehead on Cinder's chest. The Maiden wrapped her arms around, and pulled her in, letting her natural warmth envelop the girl and cause her to purr in pleasure. When her nose prodded up under Cinder's chin, she smiled, letting Ruby nuzzle into her. She liked it when Ruby did that, it always made her feel warm, too, an affectionate little gesture that tugged at her heart strings.
"And I forgot how soft..." Cinder's voice trailed off as her hand went wandering, Ruby's pale flesh yielding to her touch as her hand found the small of the girl's back, just underneath her loose shirt, enjoying the feel as she stroked along her spine. Ruby's breath caught slightly in her throat, and her body carefully arched with the touch, her toes stretching out and her lips parting ever so slightly. Cinder nudged her with her cheek until Ruby turned away slightly, just enough for her to place a kiss underneath her ear, and then another along her neck. Ahhh... Her neck, so venerable, so beautiful, her downy flesh just begging to be bitten.
Cinder held her thought away, for now, though, and instead gave Ruby a nice little nuzzle back.
"If you die, I'll kill you," Cinder thought aloud, prompting Ruby to laugh and give her a little nudge.
"That so? Maybe I will just to spite you," she retorted, and Cinder gazed at her, her eyebrow rising with amusement, even if her expression questioned the validity of Ruby's statement. Ruby's eyes shone with some hidden light somewhere in the darkness, sparkling with her emotions as they shared a moment of pause. It was Ruby who closed the gap, as it had often been lately, and she moved close and pressed her lips square against Cinder's. The Maiden could feel a small hand tugging her closer by the neck, wrapped around the back of it, fingers dancing slowly. They both closed their eyes and enjoyed the feeling of one another's presence, the deep settling rightness of their place at each other's side, the surge of dedication that came when they parted. Cinder thought back to her life before Ruby, and wondered how she'd ever managed without real love.
It was like having an endless basket of pick-me-ups to draw from whenever she needed one. She truly was no longer alone in her emotions, for Ruby was there to set them right again, to offer that caring hand, the will to change what she could for the better. If that wasn't just the pinnacle of Ruby's personality... Their foreheads touched, and Ruby's eyes cast downward, looking over Cinder's body, her hand trailing from the back of her neck and over her shoulder, down between her breasts, lower, and then back up under her clothing. It danced along her stomach, wrapped firmly against her hip, and pulled her close, pressing their lower bodies together and making Ruby bite her lip.
"Dangerous," Cinder whispered, but Ruby's eyes flicked to hers, and she said nothing. Her legs squeezed one of Cinder's thighs, and the Maiden sighed softly, running one of her hands through her lover's hair.
"I'll be quiet," she promised, and Cinder slowly grinned in her humor. Would she, now? There was something exciting about the prospect of holding her to that, trying to force her to test her convictions, remain silent... And while the thought aroused Cinder, she knew to try something like that would be foolish. A golden opportunity, maybe, but that would just be asking for it.
Still, the moment wasn't lost on Cinder entirely, and with a small deal of courage, she moved her hands, one finding the curve of Ruby's backside, and the other pressed two fingers to her navel. She emulated legs, "walking" her fingers up Ruby's stomach and carefully letting her hand slide over one of the girl's breasts, prompting a low escape of air from those rosy lips as she reacted, wiggling up against Cinder's body, a slow, rolling motion that spelled out her pleasure.
Cinder's lips found her neck, but they gave way to her teeth, and she bit harshly against her lover's throat. Ruby had to cover her mouth, or risk breaking her vow of silence. Her other hand had settled to Cinder's thigh, squeezing it in return for the feelings she was given. Cinder decided to be sly, and ever so slightly parted her legs, affording Ruby a perfect opportunity to attack... But the Huntress' fingers played slowly along her leg, as if debating the prospect, and Cinder chuckled internally. Then they would take this slow.
The Maiden pushed her body against Ruby's and rolled them off their sides so that Ruby was below her, she arched her back in a predatory manner as one of her hands slid up Ruby's arm to capture her hand, draping her head low for a gentle kiss, which Ruby returned with enthusiasm. There was no room for anything more than a deep romantic urge, even Cinder's sadism had been put to the side for this moment, and they both felt it, a strange electricity that filled the air and made Cinder feel as though there were no amount of grinding she'd be able to accomplish in order to feel her body was close enough to Ruby's. The small amount of distance that hung between them as Cinder crawled over her eventually became too much to bear, and she lowered her hips against Ruby's, pushing them together as her back arched and her chest rose upward. She held herself there with both hands by Ruby's head, and looked down at her with that one predatory, sexy eye, her mussed, waving raven locks spilling over the other half of her face and the paleness of her shoulder where her shirt hung low about it.
Ruby admired the curves of her breasts from her vantage below, but Cinder was pinning her hands underneath her own, and she couldn't touch... Being denied the pleasure somehow made it more sensual when Cinder's thigh wound between her own, and she pressed it between them, catching the lump in Ruby's throat as she swallowed hard to avoid moaning.
Perhaps this would be a more difficult task than she'd expected... Cinder's eye showed the signs that she'd detected that hint of weakness, and her gaze trailed lower, he hands running smoothly along the flesh of Ruby's arms, and then to her sides, trailing down to her waist where Cinder pushed her shirt up and eventually over her head. Discarding it to the side, she was treated to a scene of her lover bare before her, her arms over her head, the light blush that had spread over her body lending a rosy tint to all the right places, her slightly lengthened hair splayed about the white sheets and soaked them with the splash of red from their tips; once more Cinder felt overcome with the urge to paint, the beauty of her body... So instead, she took the fingers of her painting hand, and brushed them carefully against Ruby's flesh. A stroke here, and a stroke there, and Ruby's soft reactions, her light sounds as those fingers slipped over one of her nipples... She bit her lip again to quiet herself, and Cinder continued her masterpiece, painting with Ruby's emotions as her hand gingerly touched the girl's stomach. She slid her palm flat, moving upward and cupping the curve of Ruby's rib-cage, her thumb trailing ahead and prodding gently to the underside of her breast when she reached it.
One of Ruby's hands finally reached out to stop hers, and instead the Huntress pulled her in, reaching around behind Cinder, low, first to squeeze half of her backside but then as her hand moved upward, she helped Cinder out of her own garment, leaving her in nothing more than her bra and underwear, the pair of her luscious breasts threatening to pop out from the small thing. Ruby eyed her hungrily as she usually did, and Cinder smirked, sitting up, giving her a better view. One of her hands disappeared behind her back, and Ruby watched with glittering eyes as she unlatched her bra, letting her breasts themselves do the rest, they spilled forth enough that the piece of cloth fell around her waist, and Ruby plucked it from its placed and tossed it to join the growing pile of clothing they seemed intent to continue adding to. This left them both in nothing more than their panties, and Cinder took immediate advantage.
She leaned lower over Ruby, and placed one hand back to her chest, her fingers spread, her hand sliding over her shoulder as she carefully pressed their chests together. The little noise Ruby made filled her heart with affection, her adorable partner shut her silver eyes tight and moaned softly as the warmth of her silky skin poured all about her smaller body. Cinder pressed closer, and wiggled until Ruby's legs spread to her sides. She wrapped them about Cinder's waist, and pulled her in, practically forcing Cinder to do what she'd already planned to and shove her body up against Ruby's core, pressing her hips against the girl's sex and letting her feel the anticipation of something more.
Light beads of sweat began to appear on Ruby's body, so Cinder decided to get on with it, and rolled her hips hard into Ruby's body, using both hands now to toy with her breasts as the Huntress bit down on a knuckle to keep herself from making too much noise. Really, they were inside, so something small wouldn't be too much, but Cinder enjoyed her lover's conviction anyway. Besides... The noises that did escape, small mousey things... They were cute, she thought, and leaned down to drag her tongue slowly over the perky end of one of Ruby's breasts, the hand it had replaced instead playing along her cleavage, to her shoulder where it rested. Ruby's own hands, once Cinder had moved in close, began to wander over her shoulders and neck, toying intermittently with her wavy locks, or gently rubbing the back of her neck.
Cinder sucked softly at her lover's breast for a moment, until she let it out of her mouth with an audible pop, and slowly made her way northward until her lips could meet Ruby's again. This embrace quickly became special, the Huntress squeezed her thighs to Cinder's hips and wrapped her arms all about her shoulders, pulling her into a loving embrace, all at once Cinder felt as if Ruby surrounded her. Her heart throbbed with want, and their kiss deepened as Ruby's tongue suddenly slid into her mouth, dancing with her own and complimenting the warmth that grew between them.
For Ruby, having her Maiden over her like this, the heat, the intensity... She was dripping wet with her need, now, and they could both feel it, Cinder aware of a light scent that hadn't been there a few minutes ago. She gave a small chuckle into the kiss, and doubled her efforts into it, taking control as her tongue slid deftly about Ruby's, coiling with it. She placed her nails along Ruby's side and dragged them downward, leaving tiny strips of red where she'd scratched.
"Mmmn!" Ruby's moan vibrated their mouths and she squirmed, Cinder repeated the motion but this time more lightly, gingerly scraping her with the barest of scratches, more teasing her flesh than anything.
The effect was enough, Ruby was easily melting into her hands, and before long she thought it the right moment to dip one of them between Ruby's legs, pressing carefully up against her crotch, slipping over the cloth of her undergarments, as damp as they were.
"Cinder..." Ruby whispered, finally breaking the kiss and turning her head to gasp sharply for breath. It didn't stop Cinder's mouth at all, though, and in the absence of lips they found instead the corner of her jaw, nibbling along it and going for more of that lovely plane of porcelain just below it, biting once more at the flesh of Ruby's neck. She shuddered, feelings coursing through her mind, her absolute adoration for everything Cinder was giving her now, and more over, her love for everything she'd done for her. Her hands clutched her Maiden tight against her body, but she struggled not to let out a string of louder noises when something pierced her body, penetrating deeply into her womanhood, two fingers, searching and rubbing at her. Cinder's eye was nearly closed, the barest hint of that golden gaze catching what little light drifted in from the window, and Ruby wrapped one arm about her head, resting her hand on the back of Cinder's neck as she pulled her closer.
"Yes... Please..." she pleaded, and Cinder could only oblige, working her fingers in and out of her lover's ever tightening body, she clenched over those digits as her thighs crossed, making it a little harder for Cinder to move but she couldn't stop the reaction. Ruby's toes curled, and Cinder grinned in triumph, not letting up, determined.
Evidently, though, as the pressure grew and grew in Ruby's belly, she became increasingly more hungry, more desperate... It wasn't enough. She wanted more. She wanted Cinder to feel it too. She reached down between them and grasped Cinder's wrist, gasping softly just as her fingers finally found that most sensitive spot within her. But she stopped her lover, and pushed her hand away, causing Cinder a pause of confusion and she leaned back to give Ruby more room to move. The Huntress growled at her playfully as she rolled them again, and Cinder, now on her back, propped herself up as Ruby positioned herself so their legs were woven together again. But this time, the aim seemed clear, and Ruby pressed her cute panties square up against Cinder's own, rubbing their folds together through their thin clothes. She sat roughly in Cinder's lap, though their bodies couldn't get too close without ruining the angle.
Experimentally, Ruby pumped her hips a few times, and watched as Cinder's face froze in that stoic way of hers, eye closed, she knew she was feeling it. Another motion as she humped slowly against her lover, and a sharp puff of breath came from Cinder's nose, another sign she was enjoying it. Ruby's hands reached out and carefully draped over her lover's shoulders, she rolled her hips once, twice more, and watched with pleasure as Cinder's lips barely parted. The Maiden was holding herself up with both hands behind her, but her legs squeezed tighter about Ruby's thigh as she fluidly moved against her lover's body. Their mutual wetness was obvious, their fluids seeped through their garments and mingled between them, a sticky dampness that wasn't all unpleasant... However Ruby stopped for a moment, parting from her lover. She removed her panties, unwilling to soil them further, and took the opportunity to help Cinder with her own.
She reached over where Cinder lay, now holding herself up on her elbows, watching coyly as Ruby slowly wiggled her panties down her legs. The proximity allowed for her lips to come into play, and she placed them gingerly against Cinder's thigh, kissing down to her knee, then nibbling back up. When she neared the woman's sex, she licked her lips, and then pressed a kiss right to her core... Having already explored here before, she knew just where to go, and flicked her tongue slowly out against the sensitive button just above Cinder's entrance, prompting a heavy sigh from the Maiden as she lay back on the bed, a hand falling over her forehead as her other one wound its way into Ruby's lovely hair.
The Huntress lapped enthusiastically at her Maiden's blushing folds, savoring the taste on her tongue and closing her eyes slowly. Cinder was stroking her hair now, making breathy noises of love for her, an orchestra of affection just for her. In this moment, they were the only two on this planet, together, the outside world was gone, and they swam in the sea of sheets and chemical emotion, a constant undulation of small movements and sudden jerks in time with the pleasures they received. Ruby's attentions weren't without their effect, and slowly that tension built within Cinder, while Ruby's tongue tasted her juices as they flowed freely. What a needy little Maiden, she thought, and decided to be a little mean... She slipped one of her fingers inside of Cinder and tested her waters, rubbing the tip of her digit along the sensitive inner walls of her lover's sex. Her tongue wound against it, as well, and between the two there was no real resistance she could mount. Cinder's body went tense suddenly, and she wriggled involuntarily as her first orgasm came to her, the light moan that Ruby received for this more than enough reward as she hummed happily while Cinder tugged at her hair.
The Maiden panted slowly as Ruby finished cleaning her up with her tongue, and then came up to join her again, the afterglow evident on Cinder's face while Ruby smiled brightly. Cinder brought one hand up to her own hair as she caught her breath, eye closed, the feeling of one of Ruby's fingers trailing over her chest as the girl drew invisible patterns on her skin.
Once she had caught her breath, Cinder's eye opened and looked over Ruby's face, she seemed to be wearing that little warm smile she always had when she was truly happy. As fleeting as the feeling would ultimately be, Cinder hoped she held onto it, for it was a precious relief, an island in the sea of their turmoils.
When she finally felt rested enough, after just a couple minutes, Cinder turned back to Ruby and sat up. She pulled the girl's legs toward herself, causing Ruby to roll onto her stomach and press her thighs together. Her cute bottom was irresistible, and Cinder found herself squeezing it, even as she moved behind Ruby. She slid that hand lower, and lifted Ruby's leg, then higher, playing into her flexibility while Cinder slid up behind her. She pushed their folds together again, holding Ruby's leg up over her shoulder, pressing against her from behind.
Ruby lifted herself onto her elbows and looked over her shoulder at the busty Maiden while she humped slowly at her hips. She gasped, the hot feeling of their naked folds sliding together causing the ache to build inside of her. Her hands pulled at the sheets, curling into fists as Cinder picked up her pace, crushing their cores together with a pressure indescribable, thrusting their hips together and causing the bed to begin creaking lightly with the force of her movements.
Ruby kept looking back at her, that powerful woman, her breasts bouncing lightly as she worked her hips hard, forcing Ruby to moan and choke it back to keep from adding to their already dangerous level of volume.
It was only a few more forceful shoves until Ruby felt herself slipping, and she shuddered into her own orgasm, a quiet but high-pitched squeal issuing from her lips, drawn out by the fact that Cinder wasn't stopping. She kept going, kept pounding their ports together, pressing her favorably toward another peak. One of Cinder's hands, the one helping stabilize her leg, raised as it was, slid along her flesh as though Cinder were playing a string instrument; her other hand was locked firmly over one of Ruby's buttocks, but the surprise came when her thumb ever so carefully started to slide between her legs. The added stimulation, coupled with the renewed pressure of Cinder's own sex against hers, forced her into submission as she shuddered harshly into a second orgasm, joined only a moment later by Cinder's own as the two of them moaned together in their mutual pleasures. Cinder shoved herself hard against Ruby and held it there, letting that sticky sweetness build between them until they were both slick with the stuff. She slid against her a few more times, enjoying the feeling of those fluids between them, before she finally parted, and fell to Ruby's side, exhausted once more.
The Huntress pulled herself over and rested her head against Cinder's shoulder. The two of them lay there, breathing slowly normalizing, fingers laced with one another's, Ruby smiling that gentle smile.
"Will that help you sleep?" Ruby whispered softly into her ear, and Cinder chuckled lightly.
"You always do," she answered, and then pulled Ruby into her arms, resting her Huntress' head on her chest, and her own chin on top of Ruby's hair. She closed her eye, and it wasn't long before she drifted to sleep, her dreams of nothing far more preferable to the alternative.
[Author's Note: Fweeee~ I always love chapters like this. It's like, now back to your regularly scheduled Cinder/Ruby guilty pleasure romance. XD so cute~ waaahh... ~3~ so, now we know why the picture for this fic is a red butterfly. If I was a little better at art by now, I would draw the scene of Penny's partially destroyed body leaning against a tree near Summer's gravestone at sunset. In my head it's a very interesting picture. Anyway, this chapter originally wasn't meant to be a lemon, but it kind of evolved out of the deeper romantic connotations that this chapter had. I ended up liking it a lot. A looot~ So I hope you do to. I was thinking about it, and I'm unsure if I can classify this chapter as smut, because to me while it is sexual there's very little that's dirty about it at all. So clean, so nice~ That one's for you Kharaki XD]