A small update to tide you all over while I refine the next chapters. To preface, no Ruby or Mercury this chapter. You'll get plenty of them in the next though ;)
Chapter Thirty Six
Aftermath
In Ruby's wake, Yang's room burst into a plethora of frenzied students talking over each other, as well as more than a few trying to run after Ruby. Only to not be able to get past the blockade that was Sun Wukong with his arms spread out.
"Hey, everyone, BACK IT UP!" Sun shouted over the hectic scramble. "Let's sort this out before we overwhelm her again. And if anyone tries to yell at her I will personally kick. Your. ASS."
His threat was met with little surprise, since they all knew of Sun's oddly strong bond with Ruby. To his annoyance, Weiss didn't bother getting up from her seat, and assumed an arms crossed, sourpuss face persona. Yang still looked a bit out of it, so he couldn't blame her completely, and Blake was halfway to the door before Ruby so much as blinked away in a burst of petals.
Blake quickly elbowed past Jaune, who ran to the support of his fellow leader moments before she fled, as well as Nora and Ren, who weren't far behind. She stepped in front of Sun and said to him in a low voice, "Let me find her."
Sun frowned. "Blake, I know you might want to address it-"
"She needs support," Blake cut in with a murmur, amber eyes patient. She always was, when it came to Ruby, he realized. "And it's my fault Weiss is so fired up. I hinted that Ruby saw Torchwick at some point before this, and she's," Blake leaned close so only he would hear. "She's not taking the reveal about Neo and Merc well."
"You're on their side."
Blake managed a smile. "I'm— I don't agree with the Torchwick part of her plan. But I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't support them."
In a way, he supposed she had a point. After all, her past was anything but clean thanks to the White Fang, and she only just escaped that life before she was a part of Team RWBY. Sun nodded, satisfied, and sent a smile her way before he quickly leaned in and pecked her cheek. "Go find her. I got these guys."
With a sudden blush staining her cheeks, Blake slid around him and said on her way out, "Let me know if there's any problems."
He grinned like a bit of an idiot as she left, and when his grey eyes swept back to the room, Neptune shook his head with an equally bright grin. "Smooth, dude."
"Thanks." Sun's smile faded a bit as his attention diverted to the newly revealed Neo that was between him and his best friend. "Uh. Neo. So…"
And just like that, his brain flatlined. Sun had to be honest: he liked Neo. Well, he liked Neo, who was pretending to be Nyx. While Scarlet got hold of her first, Sun was the one to encourage her to stick around his team, and while she was unsure at first, she slipped into their dynamic pretty well. Did it sting a bit, knowing she lied about who she was? Absolutely. But Ruby had Neo's back in spite of that, and he trusted Ruby's judgement, so he'd have Neo's back too. Granted, the dynamic would be off-kilter for quite a while, that is, if the dynamic was ever truly healed, but Sun was willing to try, and that was what mattered. Whether his team thought the same… he wasn't sure. Though he imagined Scarlet would be the one to make the most noise, since he's been not-so-inconspicuously pushing down his attraction to Nyx-turned-Neo. But that was another battle for another day.
Right now, it was just a matter of conveying his intentions properly without Weiss, the ticking time bomb, exploding again.
Luckily, Jaune saved him from thinking of an articulate starter to the conversation. "Hey, uh, Neo." Neo looked at the leader of JNPR with a guarded expression, like she was expecting a punch. Instead, Jaune sighed and said, "Look, I'm not going to lie: I don't trust you. But my team and I don't know you or Nyx Peridot that well. Really, we only heard what Yang told us after the Breach. So, if Ruby says you're with us, then you're with us. I– well, I'll keep an eye on you, I have to, but Ruby hasn't steered us wrong."
Neo blinked with wide eyes.
"I concur," Ren added behind him, with Nora nodding. "I'm sure Pyrrha would say the same."
A flimsy but grateful smile eased across Neo's face. She bowed her head in thanks to the three members of JNPR, and brought her hand to her chin, fingers straight and out, and then brought her hand forward in a practiced, refined movement.
"Uh, I'm sorry, I'm not sure what that means…" Jaune said.
Neptune cut in. "She just signed 'thank you.'"
Sun's lips twitched up, just a bit. Nyx- er, Neo's constant presence around him and his team had caused them to pick up a few of the basics of sign language. While Scarlet had difficulty grasping it, and Sun himself was a bit too scatterbrained to retain most, Neptune's near perfect (Sun suspected it was photographic) memory served him well.
"Oh! You're welcome." Jaune smiled at the short woman, then glanced at Sun. "I think Weiss and Yang need some time, uh, alone, to cool off. So, we're going back to our dorm. Are you good?"
Sun nodded. "We should be. And… you're cool with everything else Ruby said?"
Jaune grinned and shook his head. "I'm just glad she talked to someone about it. No one deserves to be weighed down by all that." He lowered his voice then. "Especially Ruby. I know she doesn't like to be babied, but that much on her shoulders… she needs support."
While Sun agreed, he chanced a look at Weiss, who grew more and more irritated as Neo lingered, and he ushered JNR out quickly. He then clamped a hand on Neo's shoulder, gestured with two fingers for Scarlet and Sage to join them, and said to Weiss and Yang, "Alright, we're leaving. Yang, you need anything?"
Yang's mouth opened, but Weiss cut in. "What are you doing with her?"
Neptune and Sun shared a look, then looked at the normally spunky woman between them. She stood, hands clasped in front of her, completely docile. It was unnerving. At Neptune and Sun's sudden loss for words, Sage turned around and said, "She's going to do whatever she needs to."
"If 'what she needs to' doesn't mean go to the nearest jail cell, I'll be seriously disappointed."
Sage's fist clenched as his gold eyes narrowed. "Do you not trust in the judgement of not only your team leader, but the Headmaster of Beacon and the General of the strongest military force on Remnant?"
Sun wasn't sure how, but Weiss's face flushed to a shade of red that rivalled Ruby's namesake. "How dare you! You have no idea the amount of effort my team has put into capturing the likes of her-"
"Get out, Weiss."
Weiss blinked, then turned to Yang. The brawler's eyes were still blank, but trained on her teammate. "Yang?"
"Did I stutter? Get out." Yang's eyes eased to SSSN and Neo. "You all, too. I-I need to think."
"B-But Doctor Delphine said you can return to the dorm today-"
"I'm staying here for the night, away from your guilt-trip, now get out!"
With a horrid clacking noise, Weiss's mouth snapped shut and she wordlessly slipped off her chair and steamrolled through the cluster of SSSN at the door. Wordlessly, SSSN and Neo followed as Yang slumped in her cot and stared at the ceiling.
"I-I am not guilt-tripping anyone!" Weiss objected to SSSN. While defiant, her eyes told Sun Weiss didn't quite believe what she said. "I just- Ruby shouldn't be running to you all for advice, no offense. Her team should be her first thought! And meeting with prolific criminals?! Does she have any idea how dangerous that is? I can't even-"
"Weiss, you really have to figure out if you're mad at her, or if you're so worried that you're shifting that worry into anger," Neptune said with crossed arms and a stern look.
Her jaw worked, but she couldn't find a retort, so she huffed and dropped the subject. Her glacier eyes turned to Neo. "Fine. As for you, Shortcake, I don't care how many times you claim to be 'reformed,' I don't like liars. I don't like thieves. I don't like double agents. I've had to deal with the aftermath of them since I learned the alphabet, and I will not see a knife buried in the back of my teammates."
Neo, to her credit, kept a neutral expression. She didn't even flinch at the nickname.
{I don't intend to hurt Ruby in any way. I want to help}
A sneer ripped across the Ice Queen's face. She was anything but convinced. "Right. And my father's a saint."
"Weiss!" Neptune barked. "This isn't an SDC versus White Fang executioner deal, this is a woman trying to get away from some psycho that can shoot fireballs from her hands."
"Right. And the moment I let my guard down, my head's on a pike? No, thank you." Weiss whipped around and walked away with an aggressive sway of her hips. "I won't let that happen to my friends, my family. You've been warned, Neo."
Sun, as well as his team and Neo, watched as the enraged Ice Queen marched down the hall and around the bend. He tried his hardest to not lay into Weiss right then, especially since he knew Neptune knew her best. If he wasn't ripping her apart, then it had to be for a good reason because of his childhood friend status, but also because, out of all of SSSN, Neptune was by far the most protective of Ruby thanks to his relationship with Yang.
"So. That went well," Sun said while he slapped his palms to his thighs. His eyes suddenly locked onto Scarlet, who hadn't said a word the entire time. "Um. You good, Scar?"
Scarlet's unfocused green eyes zoned in on Sun. "Hm? Oh. Lovely. Bloody brilliant. Just… brilliant."
Neptune rubbed at his forehead, careful to not justle his goggles. "Look, I'll talk to her. Um, it's nothing personal against you, Neo, Weiss has just dealt with a lot of stuff she shouldn't have had to when she was younger. Her father was… difficult, especially when SDC suffered through board member executions with the help of corporate spies."
With mention of her name, Sun's eyes jumped to Neo's for a brief moment, both to hint at Scarlet to say something to her and to get an idea of how Neo was doing. She looked worn and nervous. Scarlet made no move to elaborate. "Scarlet, do you have any input for our resident ice cream critic?"
He honestly didn't know how Scarlet would react. Scarlet was a pretty chill person overall, and not much phased him. Well, to be more accurate, a lot of things phased him, but Scarlet was someone that could be thrown off kilter one moment and just go with it the next, like he needed a minute to process. That's why he melded with Nyx's- well, Neo's personality so well. She was wild, unpredictable, and perfect for Scar. But now, she looked different, was called something different, and claimed to be something different…
It was very, very out there compared to what Neo threw at them when she was Nyx. It was still weird to look over and not see her with big jade eyes and black hair in cute ponytails. But, Sun had to admit, she still looked adorable in neapolitan colors.
"Well, er… Neo. This is a bit of a mindfuck, to put it bluntly." Scarlet eventually settled on a lackluster, but honest response. Sun could tell he was pushing down a world of hurt and betrayal, and by the look in his eyes, Sun knew Scarlet was a lot more angry than he let show. "I don't… really know what to say. I don't even know if you consider us friends."
Neo shook her head, a solemn little smile on her face and a large weight shone in her eyes, and meekly held out two envelopes. One was labeled SSSN, the other, Scarlet. Sun tried not to react as Scarlet refused to raise his hand to take the envelopes.
With a sigh, Sun reached forward and took the envelopes. "What's in these?"
Neo thumbed a response on her scroll, and turned it in his direction.
{An explanation. One addressed to the team, the other, to Scarlet. I figured Scarlet deserved a more detailed explanation, considering}
When the four boys didn't make any move to respond, or react beyond an unsure stare or a blank glare of distrust (for Scarlet's case, that is, though calling it a glare was pushing it), Neo's shoulders slumped and, with a blink that switched her eye color, she typed another message.
{I'll leave you all alone. I'm not asking for forgiveness or anything, but you deserve to know my motives}
With that, Neo bowed her head yet again, carefully and diligently stepped around the still unfocused Scarlet, and walked calmly down the hall with the sound of her clacking high heels echoing off the sterile walls. Sun wondered that, if she wasn't trying her best to earn back their good graces, she'd be sprinting away from the tension.
Sun flapped the envelopes in between his fingers with a contemplative look. Then, he offered Scarlet's envelope to him with a raised brow.
Scarlet resisted a frown, but his lips twitched downward for a second. "Sun, I don't-"
"As team leader, I order you to read this," Sun exclaimed with a leveled glare. Was this an abuse of power? He didn't care, authority was something he regularly defied but would exploit if it suited his goal. "You don't gotta like it, don't gotta interact with her at all after. But just read it."
The fight left Scarlet's eyes as he stared hard into Sun's eyes. He sighed, swiped the envelope with a rough yank, and shouldered past Sage. "Fine. But I'll open it in the dorm. Away from your influence."
"Sure thing, buddy!" Sun yelled over his shoulder with a forced chipper tone. He already dreaded the cranky face Sage was sporting, and his confidence wavered with Neptune's unsure half-frown. He waved the SSSN envelope in front of his two remaining teammates. "Well? Should I crack this baby open?"
"I'm surprised you're so chipper," Sage stated. His golden eyes narrowed. "What are you thinking?"
Sun shrugged his shoulders. "Honestly? I don't know. Nyx is Neo, Neo is Nyx. According to Ruby and Neo, we already know Snickers, we just know her with a different name and color scheme."
Neptune crossed his arms. "I think it's a bit more complicated than that."
With an exasperated look, Sun slumped his torso and threw out his arms. "'Course it's more complicated. I'm just thinkin' that, if we can skip over the incredulous anger bit, we can make better progress."
"Easier said than done."
"C'mon, Sage, I know you're not leaning towards shunning her. You threw sarcasm at Weiss. You never do that unless you're protecting someone you care about."
Sage lowered his eyes to his feet, mouth screwed up in contemplation. "Weiss's reaction was extreme. Unnecessary. I… could tell Neo was uncomfortable, but was willing to take the abuse."
"Motherly instincts can never truly fade," Neptune joked before Sage socked his arm, to which he yelped and rubbed where Sage punched him. "But… yeah. I could tell too. And trust me, Weiss just needs time to cool off. Just, uh, don't take everything she says to heart."
"You really think you can make her see reason." Sage staged it as a statement.
Neptune laughed nervously. "Well. I can certainly try. Blake could help."
While Sage and Neptune bantered, Sun tore open the envelope before the other two could protest. He unfolded the paper and immediately took note at the amount of eraser markings. He handed it over to Neptune to read aloud. Parts were scribbled out, parts were erased so aggressively the paper started to wear away, and… why was Neptune laughing?
"Yeah, Nyx-turned-Neo definitely wrote this."
"Why?"
"It starts with a pun."
Sun couldn't stop the snort from escaping. Sage rolled his eyes, then him and Sun edged around Neptune to peer over his shoulders. They read through its contents together.
::
To my SSSN-ny boys,
My name is Neo. All that Ruby has told you is correct. I am Roman Torchwick's right hand, and am one of the people Team RWBY has been hunting ever since they first realized this operation extended beyond Roman's grasp. Nyx Peridot is just a name made up to match this appearance I create through my illusions.
I'm sorry I had to deceive you like this. I came into Beacon with the mindset that this was just another job, and soon enough I wouldn't have to deal with Cinder Fall. But I was wrong. I grew close with people I never thought I would. Ruby, Mercury… and you four. I know my word doesn't mean much to you now, but please believe me when I say you all genuinely make me happy, and I think of you as friends.
When I began to spend more time with you all, it was after Roman was imprisoned. I was alone. While my relationship with Mercury and Emerald improved, they had other duties, and Mercury recently started dating Ruby, and I felt I had no one. You four gave me a way out of that isolation, and in doing so, steered me away from a dark path. I've been alone before, way before I met Roman, and I never want to be again. You saved me from that.
I've come to enjoy all of your quirks. I like the chaotic energy Sun and I share. I like how I can needle Sage about his mom instincts, while I still appreciate his moming (it's a word, I promise). I like scaring Neptune (KIDDING! Your insistence on intellectual vs nerd is adorable though). And, well, I like Scarlet. Am I admitting this through a note? Absolutely. Airing out my laundry, folks. ;)
But really, what I'm trying to say is… I've come to realize that I didn't want to continue on with a false identity. That wasn't fair to you guys. And I know it's not much, but know that I never tried to deceive you with ulterior motives. You knew me as Nyx because who else could I be? There were times where I wanted to lower the illusion, to show my true self, but I never did. I should have. And for that, I'm sorry.
I'm sorry I ruined your trust in me before I ever had the chance to properly earn it. I won't ask for another chance. Say the word… and I won't ever bother you again.
~Neo
PS. I imagine Scarlet might take this the worst… if he doesn't read this note, please give him the personal one I addressed specifically to him? I'm sorry I put so much stress on your team.
::
"...Did she seriously admit she liked Scarlet in her confessional note?" Neptune eventually said.
Sun swore that he heard Sage's eyebrow twitched. "Really? That's what you settle on?"
"Hey, she's weird. We knew what we were signing up for when we let her in as an honorary member," Sun objected with a slight smile. "And, well, teams stick together, thick or thin. We're in the thick right now. Or, or is it thin? Whatever, we're in the bad part now, so… if you guys agree, I say we give her a chance."
Neptune went quiet. Then, he said, "Well. We wouldn't be her SSSN-y boys if we didn't."
"That is true." Sage concurred.
"And I suppose we're also extending the olive branch to Merc, if his lazy ass ever wakes up."
"He was shot in the chest, Neptune."
"Details."
Sun chuckled. "Considering he nearly died saving Yang, he deserves a chance too." The smile faded. "Let's hope Scar thinks the same."
Sage crossed his arms. "He'll come around."
"Oh yeah?"
"He's hurt right now. But he's also a lovesick puppy when it comes to Ny- Neo. He just needs time, like he said."
"Well." Sun folded up the letter, tucked it into the inner pocket of his shirt, and clenched his fist in front of him. "Let's figure out how we can help ruin the Fire Lady's day some more!"
"Please, just call her Cinder."
Sun blanched. "What? By this point, Fire Lady is like a codename."
Sage scowled. "With Ruby, it's endearing. You're just annoying."
"Rude."
As SSSN dispersed, Yang thought over all she heard through the admittedly thin walls. She felt so empty, drained of life, and the dull ache she felt from her wound was a mere afterthought.
Ruby withheld so much from them. Ruby helped a criminal, Roman Torchwick, concoct a deal that would benefit himself and his criminal friends. What happened to her baby sister? When was she replaced by this grown woman with the weight of the world on her shoulders?
Yang felt herself burrow deeper into a depression. How on Remnant did she not notice? She was Ruby's big sister, it was her job to look after her, help her, comfort her, and she struck out on all three! She felt tears well in her eyes before she snapped them shut. Everything was wrong and it made her blood boil. And she was part of the reason Ruby just ran away! Ruby poured out all her worries and pleaded with them and she just - just stared!
She found herself fumbling for her scroll, which sat on her bedside table. She peeked one eye open and nearly dropped the scroll because of the strain on her injured arm the reach caused, and quickly switched hands. Thumbing through her contacts with her left hand was a bit weird, but she managed, and she found herself staring at two particular contacts.
Mercury's and Blake's.
While she hesitated at Mercury's contact, she pressed the call button on Blake's. She bit her lip as the call began to buzz. She wished Blake had hung back for a second, but she was glad her partner was so supportive of Ruby. While she was loath to admit it, a part of her admitted Blake had a better perspective on Ruby than Yang herself did sometimes. She didn't have that protective streak that went to sometimes unreasonable levels.
Blake's face blinked onto her scroll. The angle was odd, with the bottom of her chin prominent, but Blake looked to be fast-walking, so Yang couldn't blame her. "What's wrong, Yang?"
"How is Ruby?"
"I'm still looking for her," Blake chided gently. "I'm looking for Mercury's room. Odds are she ran there."
"And not the dorm?"
"Weiss could be there."
"Oh."
Yang gnawed harder at her lower lip. The team was splintering. Weiss was just so angry, Blake stoic, Ruby running around with secrets to the brim, and she was… blank.
"I should have reacted," Yang stated hollowly. Blake's eyes snapped to the screen.
"Don't go down that road."
"Why not?"
"Because, even though Ruby was distressed, it's a hard pill to swallow," Blake insisted. "Should Weiss have reacted that way? No. Should Ruby have come to us sooner? Yes. Was Ruby likely hoping for more reaction from you? Probably. But this situation isn't normal. We aren't perfect. First impressions of the amount of information Ruby just gave us can vary and, well, make us illogical. You can't blame yourself for not reacting perfectly to everything, Yang."
Yang felt herself wither. "I don't react well to a lot of things."
"If you feel that way, work to improve it. But Yang." Blake stopped walking to devote all her attention to Yang. "Regardless of whether you want to admit it… you went through a traumatic experience. Like I said before, you're allowed to freeze. You don't need to be perfect."
Yang brought her right hand to her face to pinch the bridge of her nose. With a mild shake of her head, she sighed out, "So what do we do?"
"Well, I've got to calm Ruby down. Then I plan to give Weiss the dressing down of her life." Blake's eyes went a shade darker than usual when she said this, but shook away the look. "Hopefully I'll be able to talk with Neo. See how Mercury is doing too. I'd like to get to know the sides they hid from us. That aside, want me to come grab you before I head to the dorm?"
"I… think I should stay here for one more night."
"Okay. I'll get you a fresh pair of clothes then. I have the feeling Ruby might be doing something similar…" Blake murmured as her walk slowed. "Oh. Think I found her. Are you going to be okay if I hang up?"
"Oh, um. Yeah." Gods, she felt pathetic. "If, uh, if you don't mind could you… tell Ruby I love her? That I'll always love her?"
Blake smiled warmly. "Of course. Rest well, okay?"
"Okay. Bye Blake."
Yang slumped back in her cot as the call ended. Her scroll contacts were staring back at her again. She never used Mercury's number, though she insisted she have his number just in case. She remembered the moment when she forced him to punch in his number. He had glared lightly, made a snarky remark about how he'd just ignore her calls, but handed it over with little complaint. Now, Yang felt an urge to use it, but she didn't even know if Mercury was awake, or if he fully recovered yet. Her thumb hovered over his name. He hurt Ruby, hurt all of them in some way, but he saved her life and nearly killed himself in the process. He was a terrorist, or ex-terrorist, and he was conspiring against Vale, but he stood against all he and Cinder worked for out on the arena floor. He was so confusing.
Though… she knew, since Ruby and Mercury started dating, he was somehow associated with those assassins. He never hid that. He told Ruby more, but Ruby was so tight lipped about it Yang hadn't a clue what else he admitted. If that didn't sound like a man trying to mend a burning bridge…
With an unsure tap of her finger, she opened Mercury's contact. Now was not the time for her temper. Yang wasn't even sure if the fire was burning within, but she's felt weird ever since Lynae's bullet pounded its way into her arm. So she swirled her thumbs, felt her mouth twitch, and typed a message that she sent before she could second guess herself.
Yang: {Thanks for the save, Pretty Boy}
Apparently Sun is canonically unable to read? So, that's why Sun handed the letter to Neptune. That aside, I think it's time Merc and Ruby have a talk...
AngelGodess4000: Welcome back!
Antex-The Legendary Zoroark: Don't worry, we'll see more of Ruby next chapter! I promise!
Astray-Tech: The weight of being the main protagonist is always crazy! And yeah... Ruby hasn't found out about Merc's leg yet, has she? ;)
The Archivist of Nyx: Too true. Ruby's age can both be a blessing and a curse, since she's underestimated by her enemies, but also her allies at times. As for ScarletxNeo... Ah, if only relationships were that simple.
Dragon Lord Draco: Ruby USED TO see in black and white. Exposure to the likes of Merc and Neo helped her grow out of that mindset, since it's admittedly a bit childish.
Servos New Head: OH! That makes sense. You didn't insult me at all, I was just confused! I must say though, Yuri Lowenthal is perfect as Merc's VA and I highly recommend reading his line in Lowenthal's voice! I'm biased, of course, but still!
thedrugedghoul: Thank you! Glad you liked it :)
The Night Whisperer: Ruby deserves all the hugs! I feel so cruel, putting Ruby through this strife... *cries*
Thanks for reading! Lonessa out.
