Chapter Thirty Eight

Break to Heal

"Blake, you didn't have to—"

"None of that," Blake insisted as she pulled Ruby towards the bathroom. A long, cream parcel wrapped with a red ribbon was tucked under her other arm. "Come on. Mercury, stay there, you're not allowed."

"Aw."

Ruby's face blazed into red tomato levels as she glanced back while Blake tugged at her wrist only to see Mercury wiggle his eyebrows at her. She eeped and scampered into the bathroom while she ignored Mercury's amused chuckle.

When Blake returned from her brief trip to the dorm, it wasn't with Ruby's old Beowolf pajamas like she expected. Instead, she and Mercury were met with a grinning Blake, present under her arm and a small bag loosely clutched in her hand. She wasted no time dragging Ruby from her perch on the cot, and towards the door to the bathroom in the corner.

"Alright, Rubaby," Blake said as she shut the door and placed the parcel on the sink. "Ready for some new PJs?"

"Seriously Blake, you didn't have to!" Ruby said with her hands out. "Don't waste your money on—"

"Ruby, when's your birthday?"

"The 31st…" Ruby trailed off with unfocused eyes. "Oh. My birthday's tomorrow."

"You forgot?"

"Maybe?"

"Well, happy early birthday," Blake said with a good-natured eye roll. "And before you go all 'don't waste money on me' again, you buy me books on a weekly basis, so shush. And your old clothes were falling apart anyway."

Ruby bristled, but then she let out a huff and pouted. Blake was right, they were falling apart. The sleepmask's band was hanging on by a few strings, and the hem of her Beowolf shirt had so many wayward strings. But, well, she loved her Beowolf pajamas. They were her favorite pair, second only to her nice, silky grey set with red polka dots that was back at home.

"Enough of the sad face, team leader. Open it! I guarantee you'll love it."

"Okay, okay!" Ruby unraveled the bow and slid the ribbon from the box. She lifted the lid and placed it on the floor as her silver eyes blew wide at the contents. "Is that a…"

Blake pinched the fabric that made up the shoulders of the garment, pulled it from the box, and held it in front of her body. It was a black onesie with red buttons and extra white fabric around the shoulders and down the arms that were shaped oddly like bone structures. Ruby cocked her head. "Wait. You didn't."

"Ruby, you're the proud owner of a Beowolf onesie, complete with-" Blake flipped the hood up into view, displaying a well-crafted skull plate of a Beowolf. "-a detailed beowulf head. Perfect for staying warm in the middle of winter, and when sleeping over in cold infirmary rooms."

A high pitched squeal escaped Ruby's throat before she could clamp down on it. In her excitement, she jumped at Blake and hugged her tight. "It's so cute!" She felt Blake wrap her arms around her in kind, and she suddenly felt like crying again. Her breathing hiccuped, and she pulled back with a happy grin and teary eyes. "Is- is it bad that I forgot my own birthday?"

Blake laughed through her words. "Oh, Ruby, you can't get upset at yourself over that! A lot's been going on. Come on, pretend to be a weird kid like the rest of us and put this on!"

Ruby giggled as she grabbed the gift. "I am a weird kid."

"Of course, of course. No normal knees to be found here."

"Wait, how did you know I said that?!"

"Yang told me."

Ruby groaned.

"Don't be like that." Blake nudged Ruby's shoulder before she turned her back to Ruby to give her some privacy. "I think you'll like Yang and Weiss's presents for you too."

"You all remembered?"

"We went out shopping for your gifts while you were out with Merc one day." Blake sounded smug. "When you first started dating him you were kind of oblivious to everything."

Ruby stumbled with one leg in the onesie as her entire body lit on fire at the observation. "W-W-Was I?!"

"That's not a bad thing. Mercury was too."

Her fingers fumbled with the buttons. Why was she shaking so much? Ruby looked down at her feet. The onesie also covered her feet, and the fabric was sculpted to look like beowulf paws. She bit her lip. "But, what does that mean? And, um, can you help with these buttons?"

"It means you two really liked each other. Sometimes, in the beginning of relationships, that's called the 'honeymoon' phase. It was cute, honestly." The cat faunus turned around and did up the buttons easily, and went about adjusting how it rested on Ruby's shoulders and waist. She then pulled the hood over Ruby's head. "All set. What do you think?"

Ruby let Blake turn her so she could look at herself in the mirror. She saw her grinning face and raised her hands to feel the skull plate on her head. Her eyes bounced to Blake's in the mirror. "Thanks, Blake, I love it!"

Blake beamed a smile back at her. "You're welcome. I brought a few other things in case you need them. Toothbrush, hairbrush, stuff like that. All in here." She reached forward to pat the bag she placed on the sink. "Anything else you need before you pester Merc some more?"

Ruby watched as her own smile dimmed. She gnawed at her bottom lip as she felt a bundle of nerves start scrambling in her tummy. "Can… Can I tell you something?"

In an instant, Blake turned serious. "Things with Mercury iffy?"

"N-No… I don't know." Ruby brought her hands together and twisted her fingers into a knot. "I– we've been talking and it's like it's normal. Like, before all of that, um, happened. A-And I like it! But, but I'm— I feel confused."

Blake stepped behind Ruby and set her hands on her shoulders. "What're you feeling, and when are you feeling it?"

"W-Well…" Ruby lowered her eyes to her hands as she felt her face go red. "It's whenever I think he might try to kiss me."

"Ah. You're not sure if you want him to."

"I-I do!" Ruby winced at how eager she sounded, but Blake didn't poke fun at her, which she was grateful for. "But, then I get this pit in my stomach, and I start thinking about how he only became friends with me because of Cinder, and I get these doubts about how he might not like me but I love him and I just— I just—"

"Sh, sh, sh, hey hey, you're okay," Blake soothed as she fully wound her arms around Ruby's neck and placed her chin on top of Ruby's head, right between the button beowolf eyes. Ruby sucked in a breath to compose herself. "Have you talked with him about this?"

"No. There's, um, a lot of talking points we haven't covered yet."

"Hm. Well, I guess the most obvious choice would be to just… try it and see how you feel after." Blake kept her expression sympathetic but blank, probably to not influence Ruby's decision in any way. "If you still feel weird, tell him, and go from there."

Ruby nodded slow, felt Blake's chin move against the top of her skull. "Okay. But what's the other choice…?"

She felt Blake's arms squeeze her a little tighter. "It… might help if you went on a break."

Ruby felt the panic seize and writhe in her chest. "But— break up with—"

"No, no no, that's not what I said." Blake clamped down on the panic quick. "A break. Like, you acknowledge you still want to be together, but also think it might be beneficial to make some distance between the two of you. So, still dating, but separated temporarily."

"Oh. Okay. That seems… that might help." Ruby turned around to look at Blake properly, and hastily apologized when the beowulf's snout bumped Blake's face as she whipped around. Blake merely stepped back with a minute smile. "Um. Thanks. I- sorry, I guess I should have talked to Yang about this before, uh, boys."

"I doubt Yang would have kept a level head, considering how she first reacted to the possibility of Mercury and you together," Blake said with a smile. "You can talk to me about these things, I don't mind. You're kind of like a little sister to me anyway. You're just missing the cat ears."

Ruby giggled. "But don't faunus children get random traits?"

"Usually, but both my parents are also cat faunus," Blake pointed out. "So, if I had siblings, they would also be cat faunus."

"Oh." Ruby blinked. "Is it weird to admit that you come across as an orphan?"

Blake barked a surprised laugh. She shielded her mouth with her hand. "That's a first! But, well, I guess I do come across as one. When I was fourteen, I ran away from home to continue fighting with the White Fang while my parents stayed behind in Menagerie."

"Why did they stay and not go after you?"

"I have no doubt my father tried," Blake said with a somber smile. "But my mother was always one to encourage my freedom. And, well, they believed I would be in good hands at the time. I was with Adam. They knew him. Trusted him." Her smile faded away. "Just like I did."

Ruby shifted on her feet. "Maybe, after Cinder is dealt with… we can go meet them?"

For some reason, a spark of apprehension entered Blake's eyes. She also looked touched though, and eventually nodded. "I'd… I think I'd like that. Yeah. One day I'll take you to Kua Kuana. It's the capital, and where my parents live. I think mom would like you. But no more stalling." Blake clapped her hands together. "Anything else you need?"

Ruby shook her head.

"Alright. Come on, I think you and Merc would benefit from a night of talking things out," Blake encouraged as she opened the door and tugged Ruby back into the dimming outside light. Ruby peeked around Blake as the faunus spoke in surprise, "Oh. Hi Neo."

Neo, complete in her regular cream, pink and brown attire and parasol resting on one shoulder like it belonged there, had somehow snuck past Penny's careful vigil and was currently waving Mercury's wrist with her free hand. Her mismatched eyes glittered as she latched onto Ruby, a laugh on her face as she took in her attire. Mercury, who was now sat up with his legs hanging off the cot with his back facing Ruby and Blake, twisted around to see what caught Neo's attention. He, too, locked in on Ruby and her beowulf hood with an amused grin.

"I guess the wolf ended up eating Little Red."

While Blake sighed and Ruby groaned, Neo smacked the back of his head.

"Ey! I'm injured!"

Neo's response was to stick out her tongue.

Ruby mumbled under her breath as she padded to the cot and pulled herself up onto it. She smiled sheepishly at Neo as she leaned against Mercury's back with her chin hooked over his shoulder. "Blake got me a present."

{It looks cute. And comfy. I like it}

"I agree," Mercury said as he twisted his arm back to pat Ruby's head. "Though you look cute in almost everything."

He laughed as she whined and hid her head in his neck.

"What're you doing here? Besides checking on Sleeping Beauty," Blake asked with a sly grin when she spotted Merc's narrowed glare at her.

{Well, nearly strangled Merc in a hug when I saw he was awake. Now? It's about time Amethyst and I head to the edges of the city}

Mercury suddenly went stiff. "Amethyst?"

Ruby hugged him from behind and talked with her chin still settled on his shoulder. "Yeah, the Summer Maiden. I - I know you broke into her room. She's taking Neo out to the outskirts of Vale so she can look for White Fang camps and also so Amethyst can trim down the Grimm loitering around the city walls."

Blake walked around the cot and leant against it with crossed arms. She stared at Neo seriously. "People are still confused and scared because of Cinder's stunt at Amity, so the Grimm must feel eager. Be careful."

Neo nodded with a slight smirk and a thumbs up.

"I think we have to be more worried about Ruby than Neo," Mercury said with a darker tone. Ruby lifted herself away from him so she could see his face properly.

"Why me?"

With a sigh, Mercury reached for a thick bracelet with a thick red latch and something that looked like a small, black chip. He displayed the items in his palm. "I bought this for you a couple weeks ago. Hid it in my room, didn't really know what to do with it. Neo ended up finding it right before Cinder and Emerald cleared out of the dorm, but when I asked her… she found it under the false bottom of the drawer in the nightstand."

"And?"

"I didn't hide it in the nightstand."

Blake stood ramrod straight. It looked like she knew exactly what Mercury implied. "What did Cinder put in it?"

He pinched the small chip between his fingers. "Tracking device."

Ruby felt her blood chill. "T-Tracking? Cinder… wanted to track me? To… to do what?"

Mercury looked hesitant to make any inferences, and Neo looked just as awkward. Blake plucked the device from Mercury's fingers. "Nothing that we have to consider. Good thinking, both of you. I can get rid of this."

Before Blake could leave the room, Neo grabbed at her wrist with a calculated look. She showed her scroll to the group.

{Or I could take it}

Ruby already felt herself shaking her head. "No, that's too danger-"

Neo held up a finger and showed her scroll yet again.

{For the next couple days, I'll have a full fledged Maiden with seven years of experience at my side. Cinder wouldn't stand a damn chance if she took the bait}

"Can we trust her?" Mercury asked with a deep scowl. "I know Blake and Ruby don't know this, but Amethyst kind of wants me dead. And you dead, since she tried to kill you not long ago."

"Ruby convinced Torchwick to make a deal," Blake stepped in, a meaningful look cast in Ruby's direction. "Information, in exchange for you, Neo, and his protection."

Mercury looked at Ruby with a half-open mouth with an expression between shock, awe, and pure adoration. She felt his hand smooth over her cheek and stay there. She managed an awkward wave while she bit at her lower lip. He chuckled.

"If Amethyst agrees, I'd say go for it," Blake suggested. Ruby, though still uneasy about the idea, nodded.

{Don't worry. I'll be okay. I have to go though, the Bullhead is waiting}

Neo closed her parasol and leaned it against the chair before she stepped forward and wound her arms around both Ruby and Mercury. With a smile, Ruby hugged her back, as did Mercury. Neo stepped back, regarded Blake for a moment, then stepped forward and hugged her as well. Blake looked visibly surprised, but managed a slight smile as she pat Neo's back.

"Good luck, and be careful," Ruby called as Neo sauntered to the door. She flipped her ice cream colored hair, flashed a toothy grin and a wink, then twirled and vanished from existence with a wipe of pink light.

"I should get going too." Blake squeezed Ruby with one arm and smiled Mercury's way. "Goodnight, you two. I'll check in in the morning, okay?"

Ruby and Mercury said their goodbyes to Blake, and after the door shut behind her, Mercury shifted so he properly faced Ruby. She shifted back to give him enough room to swing his legs up onto the cot, and he did. He thumbed the bracelet in his hand, then held it out to her. "Well, a certain bow-wearing girl told me tomorrow is your birthday. I was hoping I could wrap it, but… for you."

She smiled, felt her fingers tremble as she took the bracelet from him, and examined it. It wasn't too flashy, but it was detailed and the splash of red brought it together. She pushed back the sleeve on her right arm and clasped it around her wrist.

"Th-Thank you." With a sudden bout of courage, she lurched forward and pecked his cheek, so quick she wasn't sure he would notice. But he did, and he briefly touched his cheek before a smile beamed on his face.

"You're welcome, Gemstone."

As much as Blake hid it from her peers, the paranoia from before brewed deep in her gut.

She pushed this down throughout the week, especially with two good friends stuck in the infirmary and Ruby constantly teetering on the edge of hysterics, but she wondered when her friends would start to notice the dark rings under her eyes. She dutifully applied foundation to make them near invisible, but she was positive that, if Weiss and Ruby were in a better mental state, and if Yang wasn't dealing with the aftermath of the attack, she'd be under scrutiny yet again.

Of course, she didn't blame them. Blake liked that she could dote on them, relieve their worries with kind words and reassuring smiles. She surprised herself, if she were honest, because the tunnel vision she once had when pursuing the White Fang and Roman Torchwick hadn't blared into focus when Ruby admitted to helping him.

Before she had a chance to swipe her keycard for her dorm, it swung open before her. Neptune stormed out, staggered in his step as he noticed Blake, and turned to face her as the door swung shut again.

"What were you-"

"Trying to talk some sense into Snow Angel," Neptune said without the regular lilt of affection to the nickname. "Like a damn brick wall."

Blake arched a brow.

"She refused to even come out of the bathroom to talk face to face! Just 'shut it, Nep,' 'I don't care, Nep,' 'that doesn't excuse the fact that they lied to my face, Nep.' Um. Anyway." Neptune looked sheepish suddenly as he realized he ranted to Weiss's teammate about Weiss herself. "Sorry. Goodnight, Blake."

With an amused grin, Blake laid a hand on Neptune's arm to stop him from walking away and said, "I'll talk to her."

Neptune nodded, grateful, and walked down the hall as Blake turned to the door yet again. As she swiped her keycard, she admitted one thing: she hated that Torchwick was getting a pass because of Ruby. She wouldn't mind if he rotted in that jail cell for the rest of time. But, well, she refused to throw anger at Ruby. She was her team leader, and while she had no doubt Ruby's large heart had found a reason to care for Torchwick, in the end, Blake knew that Torchwick was Mercury and Neo's best bet to separate from Cinder's plans with a semblance of security. She didn't like it, but it was logical.

She let herself into the dorm to see Weiss scrubbing at her hair with a towel, already in her nightclothes. Her glacier eyes snapped to Blake's amber ones before she huffed and collapsed on her bed.

"I was wondering where you were. Ruby close behind?"

Blake sighed, kicked off her ankle boots, and undid her bow to allow her cat ears to breathe. "She's sleeping in Mercury's infirmary room."

She watched Weiss carefully as her face spasmed into raw hurt and confusion before the expression hardened into frustration. "Unbelievable."

"And why is that?" Blake asked patiently as she pulled out her pajamas and began to change while Weiss respectfully turned her head.

"She's already forgiven him," Weiss said with crossed arms. "You saw her. She's near hysterical. Stressed beyond all measure. And it's because of them. Because of him."

"You exploding at her certainly helped manners."

"I didn't-" Weiss snapped her mouth shut as Blake stepped in her sight, clad in her short nightgown with her cat ears twisted to lay low and flat, a silent warning to not start again. "I didn't mean to."

"But you did. I expect outbursts from Yang, not from you," Blake said with a disappointing air. "You want to talk about why this is upsetting you so much? And don't give me any bs about how you're not upset. Anger is just one form of defense against that."

Weiss narrowed her eyes and petulantly replied, "When did you become an expert in psychology?"

"Don't." Blake's eyes narrowed as her voice went low and dangerous. "Tell me what's going through your head. Honestly."

Weiss sighed, rolled her head to the side, and closed her eyes tiredly. "Mercury, Emerald, Neo. All three smiled at us, and after that disaster at Amity, one of them walked away while spitting in our faces. How am I supposed to react?"

Blake loosened her stance. "Anger is a reasonable response. But anger as the dominant response isn't."

"But on top of that, Ruby kept it from us-"

"In case you didn't notice, Weiss, but right now the only one acting to solve this is the youngest on the team, and she's going crazy with the weight of it all. We need to step up and support her. You're upset she didn't tell you, you're her partner, I know. I get it. But shouting at her isn't going to solve anything. I agree, I'm hurt Ruby didn't come to us, but obviously she regrets it. She wanted to come to us." Blake aggressively pulled back her sheets and fluffed her pillows. "I mean, seriously, did you not learn from the beginning of the semester where you gave her grief every five seconds?"

"I- that's- I didn't want to… come across that way." Weiss deflated like a hot air balloon that just gained a large hole. "I just feel like Ruby is setting herself up for disappointment."

"How?"

"Putting all her eggs in Merc and Neo's basket. I mean, they were hanging around us for information, right? How much did they gain? How much is being used against us? How much did they relay to Cinder?" Weiss glared at her lap. "They used us. And they think they can just turn around and say they're good now?"

Blake ceased her assault on her pillow. Weiss… had a point. Even though Blake didn't think it likely.

"I'll admit, that didn't cross my mind because, well, I figured Adam had everything on me anyway. But I can see why that would upset you." Blake strode over and sat in front of Weiss on her bed. "Look, Weiss, I'm not trying to discredit how you feel about this. It's weird, and all of us are unsure to an extent. But I just think your reaction is more intense than anyone would have thought, especially since, out of all of us, you didn't seem as close to Neo and Mercury."

"I- well, I admit I wasn't. I hardly talked to Neo when she was Nyx." Weiss fiddled with the hem of her gown. "And, well, I… okay, fine, I may like Mercury more than I portray. I wasn't sure of him at first… but I appreciated that he never made snide comments about my heritage, even though he identified it right off the bat and I have no doubt he thought of some."

Blake managed a slight smirk. "I imagine he had snide comments for almost everyone. That's how he is."

Weiss rolled her eyes, but her expression was infinitely more fond. "Yes, he is. But… well. Aside from Ruby, he's the only other person that met Winter."

Ah. It was starting to make sense. "Your sister."

"Y-Yes. She, um. She approved." Weiss squeezed her eyes shut. "Winter's approval means so much to me, and while I nearly died when Mercury cracked those jokes and Winter pointed her sword at him, afterward? She looked at me and said, 'keep those two around, Weiss.' A-And, now that… she probably knows Mercury's under protection now, a-and that I was unwittingly being spied on before he switched sides, and I'm just so confused because on one hand I still want Winter to approve of him b-but also whenever I think about what he and Neo did I get so angry-"

Blake placed a hand on Weiss's knee. She spoke quietly, but with conviction. "I'm not going to pretend I know your family situation. I imagine it's very different from mine. But from how you described Winter to me, she has your best interests in mind, and supports you unconditionally. I imagine, if you stick with Mercury and Neo, Winter will find no issue with them. As for your anger toward him, though… Neptune told me a little bit."

Weiss clenched her hands into fists. "I won't go through it again. Blake, I- I'm sorry, I know we talked about this, but all those executions, I saw the blood and imagining- imagining Ruby going through that, I just can't-"

"And you won't." Blake clasped Weiss's hands in hers as she stared into Weiss's eyes with absolute certainty. "We won't suffer from a cloak and dagger. All our enemies are in the open. Look, I'm not asking you to accept Mercury's word, nor Neo's. By all means, be suspicious. Dissect every word. But the only way to uncover the answer as to whether they are trustworthy is to give them some rope. It's up to them whether they pull themselves up, or hang themselves with it."

Her expression went stony, but a softness edged around her eyes. "A turncoat is still a turncoat."

"Dealing in absolutes isn't a good idea."

"Well, maybe not, but it stops the potential of a backstab."

Blake bit her lip. There was… one more thing she could try. She tested it out with hesitance, "Adam Taurus deals in absolutes."

Weiss snapped her eyes to Blake's, a sudden fire in her eyes. "Are you comparing me to-"

"He has a brand." Blake closed her left eye, ran her pointer finger over the lid. "Right here. It was the last straw. It pushed him over the edge, and everyone associated with that brand… he wishes them death. I didn't see it until I saw the same letters glaring back at me." She murmured the next words, "You want to know what that brand was?"

Weiss looked unsure, but nodded.

"SDC."

The color drained from Weiss's face until she was as pale as her namesake. Her mouth worked but no sound came. Blake huffed a tired breath.

"He was liberating a mine of overworked faunus. The guards caught him. The foreman, a human, ended up doing it. They… they left him in a ditch to die. When I found him, his injuries were infected." Blake looked out the window, at the starry night with saddened eyes. "Nearly lost the eye. If he met you, he wouldn't hesitate. Schnee's are bad. It's an absolute."

"I never knew that my father's people would…" Weiss trailed off with a hoarse voice.

"I'm not saying this to absolve Adam of his sins, nor am I saying this to guilt you. Just… be careful with that way of thinking." Blake stood and ventured to her own bed. "Think about it."

Blake welcomed the feel of her bedsheets around her, her muscles tired and her mental state exhausted. She settled her head against her pillow, closed her eyes. She heard Weiss settle in her own bed and reach for the lamp.

"Blake?"

She peeked one eye open to see Weiss's face set in determination, a tight line for a mouth.

"I'm going to make it better. All of it."

Blake smiled at the double meaning, and nodded her head against her pillow. "I know you will, Weiss."

Ruby yawned as she spied the last streams of sunlight duck under the edge of the cityscape. It was nowhere near her usual bedtime, but lounging on a cot in a fuzzy onesie with a human space heater beside her was a recipe for sleepiness.

Not to say she and Mercury haven't been talking the entire time since Blake left. With the veil now lifted between them, Mercury told her about Cinder's recruitment of him, as well as her tactics to sway Roman, Adam Taurus, and the White Fang to her side. He also told her about Amber Kale, and how he and Emerald nearly died at the hands of Amethyst Grendel before she even met him.

It hurt, knowing Ozpin kept a part of the Maidens secret from her. The fact that Cinder was a half-Maiden and not a full one seemed like crucial information to Ruby. It also worried Ruby about Amethyst. Ozpin told her that, in the unlikely event that Mercury and Neo were jeopardized, Amethyst was one of the first people to call. Then again, Ozpin seemed to do a lot of things Amethyst didn't like, such as telling Ruby anything about the Maidens at all, so she supposed Amethyst would protect them regardless as to whether or not she liked the people she was meant to protect. But she still came back to the Maiden, Amber Kale, with only half her soul. Maybe, if she had known, if she had told a few more of her friends to go up there and fend off Lynae…

No, there wasn't any time for hindsight. The here and now was demanding and she couldn't wallow.

"Did you regret ever working for Cinder? In the beginning, I mean."

Mercury frowned as he repositioned his arm behind his head. "Not really. The day I killed my father… I didn't really think ahead. At first, I thought I would just burn to death in that shack. Then my dad came in screaming, and I just went at it. If Cinder didn't show up…" He gnawed on his lip, an uncertain gleam in his eye. "I might've walked back into the shack." He sighed as she grabbed at the hand not propping up his head and wound her fingers through his. "I know that isn't what you want to hear."

"Of course I don't like hearing that you were considering-" Ruby didn't even want to say the word. She huffed and shouldered past it. "I dunno. I want to be more bothered by what you did, willingly, while working for her. But I don't feel bothered, and it's weird."

He turned his head to look at her properly. She was laying down on her side beside him, bangs brushed behind her ears. Her free hand traced the engravings of her bracelet through her sleeve. He said tentatively, "What if I told you I don't regret what happened with the original Fall Maiden?"

Ruby swallowed hard. "You mean you don't care that Cinder has the powers?"

"I care about that. I don't want her to have that kind of power, because that's going to cause more problems for us unless we can take her down fast," Mercury clarified with a nervous tremor in his voice. "I mean Amber. When we attacked her, I didn't feel guilty. Still don't. It was a me or her situation. I regret helping Cinder attack her for the specific purpose of siphoning her power, but not the actual attack."

Ruby shook her head as she tried to wrap her head around the logic. "But… you probably killed her."

"I… I know. Ruby, I'm not like you. You see people around you, and you want to help them, no matter what." Mercury gestured with his hand as he said this. "It takes a lot more for me to, well, care."

"Oh. Um. And… you came to care about me."

Mercury's mouth twitched into a lopsided smile. "Yeah. And, hah, turns out caring can be infectious."

Ruby squeezed his hand. "Infectious? This isn't another 'mercury' pun is it?"

He snorted. "No no. I mean, when I started spending more time with you, I started seeing other sides of people that I never really took into consideration. Heck, even though Weiss annoys me half the time, I care about her, and that's not - ahem, not exactly normal for me."

"Did you care about Emerald and Neo before?"

"Emerald? Yes. Neo… I couldn't stand her." Mercury laughed at his admittance. "Isn't it funny? You knew her less than I did, and somehow, you brought us closer than ever. You're like a friendship guru."

Ruby laughed at the title he gave her. In a way, she wasn't surprised by what he was telling her. The more she searched all he's told her, the more she realized how much truth he managed to leak to her. She knew of his grey morality since the Breach. When she asked why he wanted to learn to be a huntsmen, while a lie in itself, he told the truth when he told her he wanted to fight so he could defend himself.

Maybe she was overthinking this. The more she kept searching, the more of the same Mercury kept popping up. But she was curious…

"Mercury?" She poked his side. "Um. When was the last time you k-killed someone?"

Like lightning struck him, his entire body went rigid. After a long pause, he closed his eyes and said, "Five minutes before I met you."

"O-Oh." She felt like someone just punched her in the chest. Five minutes? She knew he used to be an assassin, but when he told her before, that part of his life felt so far away, but - but five minutes?! He was in a literal bookstore five minutes before she met him, how could he possibly - and then it hit her. Tukson was dead. Nothing was stolen from his store. "I… I never met Tukson, did I? That- that was Emerald's semblance. A-Am I ri-right?" She watched as his jaw flexed and clenched. "W-Why did you…"

"He was defecting," Mercury said quietly. He refused to look at her. "When Adam started working for Cinder, White Fang defections spiked. Increased violence and taking orders from humans pushed many over the edge. Normally Torchwick would handle them, talk to them, make them stay. With some… they were a leak waiting to happen." He cracked open an eye and mustered the courage to look at her. "Cinder didn't want to take any chances. And Emerald found the name one day."

Ruby felt her hands go cold and clammy, felt her spine rattle with shivers. The only reason she met Mercury that day was because she went out to do a good deed, and he set out to do a bad one. And… he had looked her in the eye, smiled and helped her, and kept seeking her out after.

She lowered her gaze to their joined hands. Her vision went blurry but her hold grew tighter when she felt Mercury try to pull his hand away. "Okay. Okay."

She heard Mercury shift so he was on his side, facing her. "Ruby, you don't have to pretend to be okay with this."

Her face scrunched then smoothed out. Ruby inhaled sharp through her nose and cleared her throat. "I-I'm not okay with it."

"Okay." He was holding back from asking questions. She could hear it in his voice. Ruby lifted her gaze to meet his.

"Ask me what you want. I know you want to say something."

His lips twitched, but stayed a neutral line. "I just want to know what you're thinking."

Ruby didn't even know what she was thinking. Well. That was a lie. She was thinking that her old self must be screaming at her because she was willingly laying in bed next to an honest murderer. She felt her heart both break and mend with every truth he told her, and all the contradictions in her soul kept bubbling up to stop any words from escaping her.

She thought back to Blake's advice. Before she thought it through, she pushed her forehead against his and stared into his eyes. Her nose brushed against his, and his breath brushed against her skin in puffs. Time froze and she suddenly couldn't move. Her eyes darted to Mercury's free hand, which hovered over her cheek. Wisps of white smoke curled around his fingers.

"Are you sure this is what you're thinking?" Mercury asked as he held her in a stasis with his semblance. "I don't want you to force yourself to do anything because you think I want you to do something."

Ruby felt her lip tremor. "Please."

Mercury sighed, closed his eyes, and let his hand fall to caress her cheek. Ruby tried to move her head, but his semblance was still active, making time around her sluggish and cruel. With a defeated tone, he said, "Ruby, these walls are thin."

Her silver eyes blew wide. Oh, Gods, he heard. She felt water drip from her eyes and onto the cot. "I-I, Mercury, I'm s-sorry-"

He shushed her. "You don't have to apologize, Gem. I get it. And if you want a break-" Mercury's voice broke a bit. "-then let's take a break."

"But- But do you want to?" Ruby asked with a few hiccuped sobs. "Do, um, do you even want to still be togeth-"

"I'd be an idiot if I didn't," Mercury interrupted with a bittersweet smile. "Ruby, you're my girl. And if I need to wait for you, I'll wait."

Ruby pressed her lips together and, after a pause, nodded her head with a whimpering mhm. "Can - Can I still stay here? For the night?"

"Mhm. I'll take the chair." Mercury went to untangle himself from Ruby, but she latched onto his arms with surprising strength. He eyed her with a confused frown. "Ruby?"

"Can we, um-" Ruby directed his arms to wrap around her, and she pressed her head to lay against his chest. "I just want to stay close to you - just tonight. Please?"

Ruby felt herself warm as he shifted to lay on his back and wind his arms tight around her. One hand ran up and down her back while the other held Ruby's hand that she had laid on his chest. She felt him drop a kiss onto the top of her head, and the butterflies in her stomach stirred. "Goodnight, Ruby."

She closed her eyes, let herself burrow into his warmth and descend into dreams. Dreams that smelled of gunmetal and peppermint, but shifted to fire-filled eyes, flickering light, and the taste of ash.

These two. Look at 'em. And seems like they got a plan! I wonder if it'll work...

Servos New Head: Lol! Being the youngest of the friend group can be both a blessing and a curse.

Heavyarms150: Intelligence in relation to the canon story or this one?

PoofyOhio: Aw thank you! If you want to try it, you should give it a shot! The only way to go is up. You should have seen some of the romance stories I used to write. Yikes...

The Night Whisperer: When I saw your review I thought "Damn! They've cracked the code!"

Astray-Tech: I'll be honest, I forgot about Qrow XD. I'm trying to incorporate him somehow in the future chapters, but they're getting a bit long...

jaffa3: Back when I started they were a crack ship, though rare pair works too. Thank you, I'm glad you like it so far!

So far, chapters 39 to 43 have been drafted and are in varying levels of editing, folks. Some of y'all have expressed interest in my writing process, so I put how I deal with Wilted in particular on my profile.

Ch39: Set Up For Armageddon

Happy writing! Lonessa out.