RUBY ROSE

Chapter 8 - Feelings Laid Bare

Shira charges at me with his large buster sword, slamming it into the ground where I was standing just a second ago. I fired off a round from Crescent Rose, propelling myself out of the way just in time to avoid the attack. I then quickly spin myself back around and launch myself toward him, attempting to get a quick hit in while he was still yanking his sword out of the dirt. He notices me however and before I can reach him he lets out a roar that feels like a sonic blast, sending me flying back. That must be his semblance, not bad, I'd be impressed if he wasn't trying to kill us.

I quickly change the clip in Crescent Rose and plant her firmly in the ground, firing off a few rounds towards Shira. Each of which he blocks with relative ease, looks like I'm not gonna get him with any head on shots, and close range combat isn't really preferable right now. I look around at everyone else, Yang and Inu are dealing with a ton of Grimm. Alan is busy dealing with the other Fang soldiers and Weiss has her hands full with Jussuf. I can't expect any of them to back me up right now, I have to deal with this.

I fire off a round and launch myself into the air and then back toward a stand. I aim and fire at Shira, hoping the added elevation will make it harder for him to deflect my rounds. It sort of works, he blocks most of them again but one does manage to graze his shoulder. It's not much but it shows I can chip away at his aura if nothing else.

Frustrated, he charges at me and jumps into the air. I barely manage to get out of the way as he brings his blade down on top of the stand, completely demolishing it. If he had hit me there I would've been done, top priority is just avoiding that sword.

He is now coming at me full force, I barely have time to breathe before he is on top of me again. This time he swings the sword horizontally. I jump in an attempt to dodge and actually manage to stand on top of the blade, letting him inadvertently launch me away with his swing. Surprising him and myself, I had no idea I'd actually pull that off.

In midair I quickly turn and aim again firing off multiple rounds and this time two manage to graze him chipping away at his aura even more. This is working for now but how long can I keep this up? I look over toward Weiss and see that she is actually finishing things up with Jussuf, I should've known he'd be no match for her. One less thing to worry about.

I land on top of another stand and as I am loading another clip into Crescent Rose I hear him roar again, this time the sonic blast knocks down the stand I am on as well as several others. I fall to the ground with wooden debris landing on top of me. I shake off the fatigue and start pushing several pieces of wood off of me but before I can unbury myself I feel Shira's huge foot on my chest.

"Enough playing around little girl, you put up more of a fight than I expected but it's over." he raises his sword into the air and begins to swing it down on top of me. I panic and try desperately to free myself from his hold. Seconds pass and I don't feel his sword crashing down on top of me. I slowly look up and see that I am still laying on the ground but a couple feet away and between Shira and I there are fluttering rose petals. He has a shocked expression on his face, same as me probably.

"How did I-?" I start to ask, looking at my hands and arms. How did I get away, was...was that my semblance?! If it was then what is my semblance?! How did it get me from over there, buried under wood and a massive Tiger faunus foot, to over here. I decide to stop questioning it and get to my feet.

Shira finally wipes the shocked look off of his face and snarls in frustration. He grips the hilt of his sword and charges at me again. I close my eyes and try to focus on just getting past him, moving myself from here to where Crescent Rose is and when I open my eyes again I am now standing on top of the debris. The same trail of rose petals fluttering between Shira and I, I still don't fully understand what I'm doing but at least I kind of get how it works now.

I quickly grab Crescent Rose out of the debris and get into a battle ready stance, trying to get him to charge at me again. He attempts to send me flying with another sonic blast but I plant Crescent Rose in the ground and hold on tight. This one was weaker than the last one meaning he must be running on low.

"Is that all you got Shira!?" I taunt him, still trying to get him to charge at me. "I thought you were supposed to be Grey's right hand man, guess he is just as big a loser huh?"

That does the trick, he full on bares his teeth and grips his hilt so hard his knuckles turn white. He charges at me with what I can only imagine is bloodlust dripping from his eyes. I close my eyes and focus just like before, thinking desperately about going forward and up through him.

For a second I worry that it's not going to work as I feel him almost right on top of me. In an instant though that feeling is gone, I open my eyes and see that I am in the air behind him. I move as quickly as my reflexes will allow and before he can respond I fire off multiple rounds towards him, the first two chip away at what is left of his aura and the third hits him in the leg causing him to let out a pained yell and take a knee. While he is distracted by the pain in his leg I fire a round from behind and launch myself toward him and with a spinning kick straight to his head I knock him out cold.

I stand there panting and leaning on Crescent Rose. It takes a moment for the sheer adrenaline to wear off but eventually the realization washes over me. I beat him, I took him down, all on my own. I beat my first real opponent!

"Ruby!?" I turn to see Alan running up to me, he must have gotten his situation mostly under control and came to check on me. "Are you okay...damn I guess I shouldn't have worried."

"Yeah...it was rough but I actually managed to beat him." I say finding it hard to not be a little proud of myself before I return to the matter at hand. "What about everyone else, I lost track of them in the fight, are they all okay?"

"Yang and Inu are okay, last I saw of Weiss she had beaten that Jussuf guy but I lost track of her."

"I don't like the sound of that." I start to dart off in the direction I last remember seeing her when all of a sudden I am cut off by a man wearing a black cloak and a Grimm mask, similar to the White Fang masks but much more elaborate. The only part of his face I can see are burning red eyes almost shining through the mask. He is wearing a pair of massive clawed gauntlets on his hands and he has an intense threatening feel. "Wh-Who the heck are you…"

He doesn't say anything, he just takes a step toward me. I get ready to fight him despite really wanting to go find Weiss but Alan puts his arm in front of me, signalling me to stop. I look at him confused, he has a look of near hatred on his face as he stares down this mysterious man.

"Ruby you need to run, this guy is on another level from Grey and his douche friends, you won't stand a chance." he says in the most serious tone I have ever heard him use.

"Alan who is this guy, how do you know him?" I ask, genuinely confused as to what in the heck is going on.

"I'll tell you later, just go!" he shouts. Suddenly the man charges at me at a speed that is nearly impossible to track. Alan moves to block him, utilizing the same crazy speed and sparks fly as their blades clash. They are pressing against each other so hard that the metal from their blades continue to create sparks.

"Alan…" I have a million questions right now. Is Alan really who he says, how can he move that fast and how is he that strong.

"Seriously pipsqueak you need to just go help your friend, I'll be okay." he says, his tone much calmer this time in an attempt to reassure me I'm sure.

Without speaking another word and just choosing to put my trust in him for now, I get to my feet and bolt away as fast as I can. I hear the clashing of metal on metal behind me over and over again but I keep running, determined to find Weiss. The last thing I think I hear before I am finally out of earshot is a single word. "Traitor!"

I dart around the fairgrounds looking for Weiss. I spot Yang and Inu along the way but they are more than holding their own so I decide to just trust that they can handle things. Eventually I spot an unconscious Jussuf, frozen in place. Alan wasn't kidding, seems like Weiss completely decimated him. In that case where is she? Shouldn't she have joined the others...now that I think about it where is Grey?

In the distance I hear several gunshots and I hear Weiss let out a pained scream, causing my heart to sink. I dart in the direction of the sound, hoping with all I have in me that I won't be to late. As I burst through a line of bushes I see Weiss on her knees, her weapon knocked clear away from her and Grey with his gun pressed against her forehead, preparing to pull the trigger.

I feel a gut wrenching fear begin to take over my body. I can't think of anyway to stop him, there is no way I can move fast enough to stop him from pulling the trigger. What can I do? I have to do something. If I don't I'll lose Weiss….No...NO!

"NO!" I shout before I feel the most powerful headache I have ever experienced and my vision goes completely White. I briefly feel dizzy and nauseous before I collapse on the ground, my vision fading to black. "Weiss…"

Weiss Schnee

Everything turns completely white for a brief moment, almost like a flashbang but without the loud deafening noise. I cover my eyes with my hand until the light slowly fades. As my vision quickly returns I look where Grey was once standing over me and see that he is collapsed on the ground, holding his head and screaming in pain.

"What the hell did she do to me, it feels like I'm being torn apart!" he shouts.

I look behind him and see Ruby, collapsed on the ground. I want to rush to her immediately, but I have to deal with this trash first. I slowly walk over and grab Myrtenaster off the ground, not that I think I'll need it but just in case. I walk back over to him and just stand over him as he continues to scream and growl in great pain.

If this was any other person I would probably feel some pity but he deserves some pain for everything he has done. That said I'm not inhumane like him, so I decide to show some mercy and deliver a swift kick to his face, knocking him out cold. With that taken care of I turn to deal with the soldier he had hiding in the bushes but I guess he ran off when Grey went down, smart move. Cowardly, but smart.

I rush as much as I can over to Ruby's side, sitting beside her. I check her pulse and she is breathing at least which is a relief. I have no idea how she did what she did just now but that doesn't really matter right now. What matters is that Ruby saved my life, again. I smile and with tears forming in my eyes, I lean down and gently kiss her on the forehead.

I stroke her hair and then go to stand, so I can help the others with what's left of the attacking forces. Right as I get to my feet though, I feel all the pain and fatigue hit me all at once and I begin to fall backward. Before I hit the ground I feel myself being caught by someone.

"Weiss, I'm so sorry it took us so long to get here!" I drowsily look up and see Klein.

"Klein?..." I look around and see not only Klein but Ruby's Uncle Qrow, her dad Taiyang who is picking her up off the ground and several teachers from the school who stop only for a moment to make sure we are okay before heading for the fairgrounds.

I smile, now secure in the fact that it's over and allow myself to drift off as the fatigue completely overtakes me.

I slowly open my eyes and instead of a burning fairground I see my room. I pain all over but particularly over my left eye. I reach up to touch it and feel a massive bandage covering it. I slowly sit up as I realize that Klein must have taken me home, he has medical training after all and with how busy the hospital would probably be after last night he probably figured it better to bring me home.

I check myself over and see that I am covered in bandages. My hair is still a sloppily chopped mess as well, though that's the least important right now. I feel a slight rustling next to me and I look over to see Ruby laying in the bed next to me. My initial reaction is to blush like crazy and almost jump out of the bed. Then I see that she is also covered in bandages and I realize they probably just put her here so she could get some sleep while Klein checked her out to make sure she was okay.

I smile and slowly reach over to her, gently stroking her hair and moving it out of her face. She was my hero all over again, it's not every day that the same person saves your life twice. I feel the tears start to well up again, in my good eye anyway, but I just wipe them away.

I sit there and smile at her sleeping face, my cheeks warm. I think I realized something last night, something I have known for a long time but was afraid to admit to myself. I'm not afraid anymore. I lean over very carefully, trying not to wake her up. I place a gentle kiss on her cheek and softly whisper "I love you Ruby Rose."

"Ahem." I hear a familiar voice and I quickly look up to see Yang leaning against the door frame, more than a few bandages on her face and arms but otherwise mostly okay. Which would normally be a relief but based on the look on her face, a cheeky grin, I realize she heard what I just said and I'm sure my face is officially completely red.

"Y-Yang, how much did you hear?"

"I heard enough." she chuckles. "Just so you know, I've suspected for awhile but I wanted you to be the one to figure it out for yourself, oh and I approve."

"Yang...thank you." is all I can think to say.

"For my approval?" she asks.

"No, well that too but more importantly, thank you for letting me figure it out on my own it made it feel...more real I guess?" I smile at her. "You're a good friend."

"Yeah Yeah, you too." she sits beside my bed, her face a tiny bit red as well. "So now you just gotta tell her."

"You really think I should?"

"I do, for both of your sakes, you won't forgive yourself if you don't and she she deserves to know."

"What if...what if she doesn't feel the same way?" I ask. "I almost would rather just love her in secret and remain her friend than risk telling her how I feel and ruining everything."

"Weiss I get it, but that wouldn't be fair, to you or to her."

"Yeah...you're right, I'll tell her...soon."

"Great, so all that lovey dovey stuff aside, how are you feeling?" she changes the subject.

"I'll live, I'm just in quite a bit of pain, especially with my eye."

"Yeah that did look pretty gnarly, Klein says it'll be awhile before you can take off the bandage..he also said there is likely to be a scar."

"Yeah..I was afraid of that." I reach up and touch my eye, letting out a sigh. "Enough about me though, how is everyone else?"

"Inu is fine, Klein patched her up and then her parents came and got her, Alan…" she trails off and looks somber.

"What about Alan?"

"No one has seen him, I remember him running off to check on Ruby and I haven't seen him since."

"Do you think he was…?" I hesitate to ask.

"I don't know...there wasn't a body if he was, it's more like he just vanished." she sighs. "It gets worse too, the entire island is basically in chaos right now, the fairground wasn't the only place they attacked."

"What do you mean?"

"They attacked the market, the park, and even Signal." she looks down at her feet. "No one still knows why but it was a large coordinated attack across several key points of the island, they even attacked the sub-tower that connects us to the main CCT tower in Vale so communication is spotty at best."

"What about Grey and his goons?" I ask.

"They are all in custody but they aren't talking, Grey in particular hasn't said a word, whatever you did really messed him up."

"Not me, that was all Ruby."