Her eyelids slowly fluttered open.
She could see nothing but pitch black darkness surrounding her.
Her muscles felt like they'd been through a food processor and her head spun in circles, but she couldn't for the life of her remember what she was doing or have any clue as to where she currently was.
Every time she tried, her brain just pounded against her skull, causing her to stagger, wince, and backpedal to the point where she had to bend her legs out to regain balance.
Why...
Am I here...?
Not because she was dead, she hoped.
Not when there's so much more she could do.
Sharp pain lanced through the back of her head as she staggered to get up, which was easier said than done with anything else under her ribs feeling like it was made of absolute jelly.
Every time she thinks she has it, her knees would just buckle and give away, causing her to stumble and fall back down.
Where... am I?
"Hello?!" She cried out loud in order to see if anybody else was stuck in the dark room with her, but her frail voice barely managed to reach her feline ears after a full minute has passed.
Big space.
A... warehouse?
It also didn't make sense that her eyes, which were accustomed to being able to see in the dark, a special feature exclusive to being a faunus, were unable to pick up anything at all, including her own hands that were directly in front of her.
She tossed her hair back and reached out in order to knead out the spot where the sharp pain had caused her nerves to burn earlier, only to find that there wasn't any leaking ichor or protruding bones, but her mind was telling her otherwise.
Which could only mean one thing.
She was knocked unconscious.
Hard.
Am I... being held captive?
Her arms and legs were unbound by any restraints, so that cancels out that theory.
What... happe-?
Tortured screams of agony echoed throughout the vast space around her and reached her ears.
By the time her brain processed who it was, the sound was nothing but a distant echo behind her.
The gruesome images of her being completely helpless as she was incapacitated and left for dead came flooding back to her like a raging tidal wave.
The alarms blared off within her head.
Amber eyes widened.
Adam!
Her feet moved before her mind did, but she managed to pick herself up before she could stumble and fall flat on her face.
Even though she was basically dragging her own body against the floor, she fought through the aches and staggered onward.
Through the darkness, she ran. Ran into the void without an end in sight.
With no light to illuminate her path or any sense of direction to know where she was going, it felt like she could walk off the edge and plunge into the abyss below at any given time.
But that didn't stop her.
I have to...
I have to save him!
She ran and clawed out before her at nothing, grasping thin air as if her life depended on it.
Yet it felt like it was reaching towards something.
It had to.
It must.
I... couldn't die just yet!
I have to protect him.
I made a promise that I'll be there for him!
I must-!
Finally, after hours seemingly passed she seemed to hit an invisible wall in front of her.
In the dark, it could've been made of anything.
But she didn't care.
Blake slammed the back of her hand on it until she could hear light cracking like a sound of wall paint slowly chipping off, before she can hear dust rain down on her feet.
With one final, desperate cry, the back of her heel made contact with the center, causing a spider web crack and flickering light to burst out of the seams in between.
Desperately, she clawed out the dark-colored wall that slowly crumbled and flaked away at her face like dark ashes off of a burning corpse.
Even when her bones rattled and fingers creaked, even when fatigue washed over her and the voice within her head screamed for her to stop, she kept on going until...
Finally...
She barely managed enough space to fit her shoulders through.
She lunged in head first.
Blinding light tore through the slits in her eyes.
"Hnnngh..."
Pain.
Everywhere.
Her muscles strained, throbbed, and burned.
Just like before, it all stemmed from one point.
The back of her neck.
Her entire body was tense and sore while her skull felt like it was close to shattering.
The first thing she noticed was the soggy cardboard she was resting on that was on the verge of falling to pieces.
The next was the layers and layers of lightly damp cloth that were placed on top of her to keep her warm.
"You're... awake."
Blake nearly caught whiplash as her head snapped in his general direction the moment she heard his voice.
She'd never been happier to recognize it.
She'd listened, dreamt of, argued, and agreed with it for almost three years.
She'd thought she'd never hear it again.
"Adam...?"
"Thank Dust. You took a heavy blow." His voice was strained, exhausted. "I thought you would never wake up."
She couldn't help but smile upon hearing it.
It was weak and frail, but she'd never been happier to see him again.
But...
Something was... off.
He had his back facing her and a dirty robe covering the vast majority of his face, leaving the only things visible being everything that was below his nose.
His shaking frame and the misty breath that she could barely see before it dissipated into the air said he'd been enduring the cold for more than just a few hours.
She was sure she could pick up the subtle noise of his teeth either chattering or grinding against each other, even as he buried his face in huddled knees to disguise it.
The moisture in the air and the dampness that surrounded her face told her that they'd been stuck with bad weather for a few days at the very least.
The pitter-pattering of water on the shelter above their heads just confirmed that.
Yet... he refused to sit any closer to her as he always did on their trip together, and instead, kept a good distance apart.
"Are you... unhurt?" His voice, while drowned out by the storm, she heard nevertheless.
"Ugh, my head's still spinning." Blake admitted as she clutched at her faunus appendage. "But other than that, I don't think I..."
Then she remembered what caused her to wake up.
"How about you?" She asked suddenly. "Are you...?"
He drew away as one hand reached out for his hood.
"Adam." She hissed. "Let me-"
"No!" He yelled. "Don't come near me!"
Too late.
As he tried to stand up and evade her grip, she unwittingly ripped the covers off of his face.
"What do you..."
Lightning struck the dried crops nearby with a loud boom, and then she could see it.
The left side of his face had crumbling remains of charred flesh still flaking off of his skin.
The way he hissed in pain the moment water made contact with it told her it was still relatively fresh, and that he was suffering from second and third-degree burns.
His bloodshot eye had a near white pupil, and it didn't take a genius to see that it was no longer capable of perceiving sight.
However... it was still capable of giving out tears, along with the latter, still functional eye.
He threw his hood angrily on the ground as he shot her a defeated yet saddened glare.
"I told you not to do it!" Her traveling companion, close friend, maybe even more... cried. "I don't want you to look!"
It stung.
They've had arguments before, but never one like this.
Adam pointed at the side of his head. "At this!" He gritted his teeth as he looked away. "At me!"
Even when the outlines were blurred with a thousand cuts that were no doubt Adam's attempt to scrape it off or away, the letters imprinted remained clear.
SDC.
The Schnee Dust Company...
"Just... go." He turned his back to her. "You deserve better than... than..." His hands couldn't even make contact with his face without flinching.
"I'm... I'm..." His shoulders shook, and she could tell from his hitching voice that he didn't want to say any more, but forced himself to.
For her sake.
"Damaged." His blade clicked as he unsheathed his weapon and stared at his own reflection through red steel. "Scarred."
Blake didn't say a word.
"Worthless!" Lighting flashed as he angrily stabbed his blade into the ground. "WEAK!"
"..."
"Just... go. Please." He begged, causing her stomach to churn and a lump to rise up in her throat. "Your father was right. You deserve to be... happier."
Adam...
"It's been fun Blake." The smile he shot her was equal parts pained and defeated. "I'm sorry I... " He gulped as he took in a shaky breath.
"I failed you."
Adam's POV
Time seemed to take painstakingly long for the rain to stop.
It splashed against puddles, making a cacophony of tapping that drowned out the sobs he was trying so hard to hold back.
He waited.
Waited as the cold rain caused blistering pain the moment it made contact with the mark.
Waited for the shuffling of her foot against the muddy puddles, the sneer of disgust, a hard shove so that she could get a head start if he decides to go back on his word and turn around and chase her as she ran away forever, never looking back.
Ran away from the disfigured man he was.
He held his breath to at least convince himself that it was for the best.
It wasn't.
His stomach felt like it had a slowly twisting dagger in it and his heart pounded against his ribs.
Both his mind and heart were yelling for him to hold her close.
This was it.
Three years of freeing the faunus.
Three years of training to grow stronger.
Three years... of proving to both Blake and himself that he was worthy of having her by his side, and vise versa.
Who was he kidding.
He was weak.
Blake's father... was right.
The mark on his face proved it.
Yet as he sat there miserably, out in the open rain, his sensitive hearing didn't pick up the pitter-pattering of her feet dragging against mud.
No shouts of anger.
No screams of denial.
Nothing.
She was still there.
Behind him.
By his side.
Unmoving.
His good eye widened when he felt her arms slowly snaking their way around his chest, linking in front of his dark blazers that were caked in mud.
For the longest time, they stayed there.
Stayed as they basked in each other's embrace.
Each other's warmth.
Then he heard it.
A soft sniffling, not his, made its way to his ears before it turned into a heartwrenching sob.
"I'm... sorry..." She wept upon his back. "I couldn't do anything. I'd promised that I'd be there to protect you and... I... " Her voice cracked.
"And... I-"
"Blake-"
Her lips crashed down upon his.
His body was pinned down and his clothing splashed against the mud, caking him in dirt from head to toe.
Her face was only inches apart from his own, and he stared into beautiful amber eyes.
She...
She's looking...
...At me.
...
She doesn't think any less of me.
Even with this ugly bruise that's blemishing my face.
Her clothes didn't stay on for long.
The black, risque lace that she wore underneath left little to the imagination, he got to see that she was always prepared to do this.
It was him who wanted to take the long route and go back to Menagerie before he thought he could date a daughter of a chieftain.
He just regretted never giving her the chance earlier.
Did he really want to do this?
Time had made his partner... more enticing.
Softer
Curvier.
Fuller.
If he went and do this now...
There would be no takebacks, no coming home.
No running away.
She had him ensnared with those pleading amber eyes that requested that he make that decision there and now.
Without requesting any further permission, he pounced.
Screw Ghira.
He didn't need his approval.
He had chosen to be with his daughter the moment they met, and his daughter had chosen him.
They were doing fine just by themselves.
They didn't care if their clothes got caked in dirt.
Neither cared that they had to wear it until they made their next stop where clean water was.
They didn't care if the gravel beneath them was coarse or sharp as they took turns laying on each other's backs.
They didn't stop as the heavy rain turned into a light drizzle, and then halted completely.
All they cared about was that they had each other, and that they'll spend every moment they can get their hands on to be together from now and forevermore.
This... was a moment they both would never forget.
The cold didn't bother them that night as they found a way to farm each other up without the need for a campfire.
Louis's POV
"And that day I..." She gulped and licked her lips at the memory. "I lost myself to him."
Her eyes seemed lidded, and for a moment I thought she would decide to pounce on me to reenact what had happened on that faithful day.
Luckily, she seemed to hold herself back, and settled on rubbing her thighs together.
Hearing that much... She really was holding a lot to herself with nobody to vent out to.
Considering what happened, it made sense why she had trust issues against her own team.
Keeping that all pent up must've been painful.
It was locked in the deepest, darkest part of the mind.
And I just forced it out.
And it didn't take a genius to question why she didn't want to tell this story to RWBY.
It was too brutal for Ruby and too much for Weiss to handle.
And Yang...
Probably because there was no reason to.
She never expected Adam to chase her everywhere she went.
"Did I..." Her breath hitched in my arms. "Looking back, it was all so sudden... so... selfish so... passionate." Her head tilted back. "Tell me... did I... " Her ears flattened against her head as she took in a shaky breath. "Did I make a mistake?"
"Now that I've heard the entire thing..." I sighed, causing her feline ears to flick. "It really did seemed like both of you deserved one another."
She looked up my way.
"I guess I should thank him for having your back countless times. Without him, I doubt you'll ever be here... enrolling in Beacon, being in Team RWBY." I closed my eyes. "In my arms."
"Yeah..." She sighed and leaned back.
I wanted her to stay there forever.
But all good things have to come to an end.
Slowly and gently, I wrapped my arms around her hips and lifted us both up.
The moment she slid off my lap, I immediately missed the warmth of her softness rubbing through the cloth of my trousers.
With the way she looked at me, so did she.
People aren't born bad...
But this is an entirely different level.
"I'll bring him back Blake."
I can feel Blake's eyes boring into the back of my neck as I stopped with one arm on the doorway. "This, I swear."
"You... don't have to force yourself." Her voice drew down to a choked whisper. "Evans told me of... Of what I did or... " I glanced over my shoulder to meet frightened eyes. "What I would've done had you guys not interfered."
My eyes widened.
"If... " Another, frail breath. "If I couldn't convince him to stand down, I will do... " She choked. "Whatever it takes, to keep our team safe."
Damnit Ev...
That wasn't necessary.
"Don't be me." She rasped before gasping as she hugged her shoulders. "Don't make a promise you can't keep. Don't..." I saw her visibly swallow the lump in her throat. "Don't force me into a situation where I'll have to do something I don't want to earlier than I'm prepared for."
I couldn't help but smirk.
"Hey, the whole come to my room thing was your idea." I raised both my hands. "Why are you putting this on me?"
She shot me an unamused glare.
"Un...believable." Her murderous frown would've intimidated me had Gambol Shroud been nearby. "Do you always have to ruin every moment there is at any given time?" I found her adorable face next to mine. "There's this thing called reading a room."
"Then consider the room read." I replied carefreely. "Point is, you'll never be prepared to end a life." I stared at my trembling hand. "Nobody is."
Her eyes widened.
"You'll tell yourself it's all fine and good, that you'll be able to do it... then the regret kicks in afterward. It's what happens after that's the problem."
"Will it eat away at you? Burden you with guilt until the day you die?" My eyes strayed to the ceiling. "Or will you get over that hurdle and think of it as normal? Give yourself an excuse that it's self-defense or that it was necessary? And continue killing as if lives don't even matter anymore?" My eyes drew to a close.
"Or... will you lock it in the back of your head, throw the key away to the bottom of the ocean and act as if nothing happened?"
"Louis..."
"I'd worry about yourself first before you even start thinking to get worried about me kitten." I turned on my heel. "Besides, as long as I'm here breathing, might as well try things my way."
"..."
"It's worked out so far." I gave her a thumbs up. "Trust in me a little... " I winked. "won't you?"
I heard her sigh behind me.
Not in a bad way.
"You're just like him..." She sniffled. "A stubborn idiot till the end..."
Before I knew what was happening I felt her presence creeping directly beside me as she tiptoed to deliver a peck across the cheek.
It was then that I noticed a lone tear streaking down the side of her face.
"Just... no more crazy stunts that'll get yourself killed... " She grasped my injured hand, holding it up to her face as I felt the warmth of her flawless cheeks. "Promise?"
She didn't even wait for a reply as she turned around, knowing for a fact that she'd get none.
Tonight sure was something else... I thought as I saw her sashay away with... a suggestively wide sway in her hips that told me that I wasn't going to ruin what she was planning next time rolls around.
Guess that's for listening to her all the way through.
It must've not been easy to have separated from him...
But she'd made her choice.
I'll bring him back...
Not so that they could get back together...
And not because it's easy.
It was anything but.
But because we need to keep casualties to a minimum for what's about to happen.
And if one man is capable of doing that.
It's him.
...
"Wait a minute..."
I looked over at the two beds behind me.
I'm not supposed to have a room.
I was supposed to be sleeping on the couch.
Shit...
No wonder there were strewn pillow casings and the stench of alcohol everywhere.
Ruby's POV
The door slowly creaked open.
"What is it Yang?" Her muffled voice barely made it through as she barely managed to lift her clothes above her head. "If you could help me grab Cresent Rose before I run into it and cut myself, that'd be g-"
The door slammed back shut.
Huh...
Weird.
...
...
That wasn't Yang...
Was it?
Louis's POV
I held my face over my hands as blood ran to my cheeks.
And elsewhere.
For someone who used to be undeveloped...
It's only been about a year since Beacon.
Yet, she wasn't as small or... lean as she used to be.
Her growth spurt didn't just affect her height, but also caused her to grow plump and filled her out in some places.
She wasn't a kid anymore.
Said places include her ch-
What am I saying?!
Bad Louis!
I'd been with the boys for so long that I'd fallen into old habits.
At least she was still wearing the undergarments you bought for her...
That doesn't make it any better!
Stop making excuses!
Ugh... Yang and Qrow are gonna kill me.
"Uh... " A muffled yet meek voice called out. "Louis?"
Damnit...
"Sorry Rubes I... " I dragged my back against the wall as my rear touched the ground. "Forgot to knock."
"I... it's okay!"
"No," I countered. "No, it's not."
"N-no, it really is!" She insisted. "I meant that you and Kevin did warn me about locking the doors in shared housing and all." Her voice grew louder as I felt wind rush against my hair. "I got careless."
I felt soft hands reach out and fingers gripped around my forearm to slowly remove my hand from covering my face.
Ruby stood there while craning her neck and flushed cheeks.
She really needs to get new pajamas... I noted mentally. With the tight fit that it is right now... She's going to outgrow that soon enough.
And the way she is bending over really isn't hel-
BAD.
LOUIS!
"D-did you uhh... " Her eyes flicked to the left and right, and saw no one present at the corridors that lead to the stairs leading downwards. "What'cha here for?"
"Just here to check up on the team..." I sighed, before the sound of a bomb going off rang in my ears and an unmistakable 'NORA!' could be heard. "I... didn't know they've all gone down to prepare dinner in the kitchen."
"Well, you didn't really give us much of a chance to eat." She pouted cutely. "Our stomachs are the last thing on our mind when you're on your literal deathbed!"
"I get it." I held out both hands defeatedly. "I guess I just... expected you all to go downstairs... " My eyes narrowed. "Together."
"W-well... " She laughed nervously.
...
...
"It's the scar..." I stared at her naval that she immediately scrambled to cover with both hands. "Isn't it?"
"I... take longer showers than most."
"Ruby..."
"The soap keeps slipping!"
"Rub-"
"I got some soot all over my hair from the StarDust that you set off... " She tried weakly. "Yeah..."
"Ruby."
After a moment of darting around, she finally found the courage to meet my eyes.
The small reaper let out a strained breath.
"Okay, fine." Ruby kicked her boots on the wooden floorboards. "It was the scar, so what?"
"I saw it... just now. Accidentally." I added quickly before this all goes downhill with Harbinger rammed up where the sun doesn't shine.
It didn't look good.
"Did you take a nasty hit in the raid?"
"A little..." She shuffled in place uncomfortably. "To be fair it wasn't my fault! I didn't know he was a gorilla faunus with the strength of a Beringel!"
"How has your Aura not healed that completely by now?" I raised my brow. "Last I remembered you were doing great after taking worse."
"I... " She inhaled sharply and held up her hands to her chest.
She stared at them hard and long.
"I don't know." The small reaper admitted.
...
...
"I'll change your bandages."
Silver eyes widened.
"No."
"Ruby..."
"I can change it myself, thank you very much! I drink milk."
"Ru-"
"I. Drink. Milk!"
I pinched the space between my eyes and let out an annoyed sigh.
"Fine, but at least let me help you clean it." I glared her way before she could open her mouth to refuse. "Other than the fact that it was partly my fault that you have that in the first place, it looked to me that you just wrapped a cloth around without disinfecting it first."
"Bu-"
"Inside." I stated. "Now."
"But!"
"Now Ruby." I shot up so that I could have both the height advantage and the pressuring intimidation, and was right when her back pressed against the doorway. "I won't repeat myself."
She grumbled under a muttered breath and peeked under my shoulder to see if she could burst into rose petals and escape, but the moment I grabbed her wrist, she thought the better of it and zipped back in before I shatter her Aura and render her Semblance useless.
With the way she stomped on the floorboards, she did not go in happily.
Aside from the bunk beds and posters... my team's room didn't look any different from what it once was.
Three beds rested side by side with their hobbies were strewn on top of the covers, and I couldn't help but roll my eyes once I saw Blake's signature Ninja's of Love part four being flipped flat on top of the bed as a way to mark where she last left off.
Outside of the White Fang and Huntsmen business, she was just a normal teenage girl.
I had to remind myself that they all are.
"Eh ehm."
Ruby had impatiently crossed her arms on top of her own mattress, which was placed directly in front of a restroom with a tall mirror that was conveniently placed right at the small space leading to the corner so that all the width in between were filled with maximum efficiency.
"Right... Uh..."
Rummaging through the restroom, I was surprised to find an actual first aid kit similar to our own.
Considering this is a normal villa and not a villa specifically meant for Huntsmen, I guess Mistral people get into fights very often.
"What are you smiling at?" Ruby asked as I took out some alcohol.
"Oh nothing." I waved off. "Just reminds me of home, that's all."
"Oh..."
Her shoulders were stiff and her cute pout died an ugly death.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
I raised my brow.
"Just..." She sighed. "Let's just get this over with."
What's her problem?
"Right... Uh..." Heats crept up my neck when I realize what this meant.
Still, it was too late to take it back, after how persistent I was.
"I-I'm gonna need you to uh..."
"Huh?" Ruby glanced back with a puzzled expression, before she too blushed.
"Just a l-little." I managed to say without sounding too unconfident. "You don't have to go beyond the ribs."
"R-right..." She slowly lifted her nightwear, which thankfully, wasn't as complicated as her corset, otherwise, her top would've been all bare by now.
...
...
"W-well?"
"Hmm?"
"D-don't just stare at it!" She yelped. "It's weird!"
"Sorry." I shook myself out of my thoughts as I stared at the red stain of layered bandages. "Tell me when it hurts, so that I'll stop."
"O...okay."
Scissors.
Bandages were not an issue when the blade was sharp and efficient, and with how hastily they were put together, left loose spaces for the edge to snugly slip through.
"You okay?" I asked when I heard her whimper.
"Y-yeah..." I saw her face sour as she bit her bottom lip. "It's just... the tip was cold, that's all."
Like the complete opposite of a kid unwrapping their Christmas present, I dread to see what was lying underneath those layers of white straps holding her body together.
It wasn't as big as I imagined, but the gash was obvious.
"I'm gonna clean it now..." I warned. "If you think the blade was cold before... "
"This isn't the first time I've scrapped myself." She grumbled. "I know what alcohol does."
"And yet you refused to use it." I deadpanned.
"Because I also know that it hurts!"
I rolled my eyes and shook my head as I started to prepare the cotton in my hand.
"On three." I hefted it to her wound.
"Oka-"
"Three!"
I heard her yelp, whine and hiss like a kicked puppy, then looked over her shoulder to glare at me.
"What was that?!"
"Hey, the first pain is usually the worst." I carefully stroked the disinfectant over the clear line that could've been bloating or jutting out. "It's just all cold now, and not much of the pain."
"Ugh." She rolled her eyes as she stared at the mirror.
"Almost done..." I nodded at the copious amounts of blood I wiped off. "You want to do the front or should I?"
"I'll handle it!"
"Okay," I shot up. "Maybe it's time for me to-"
"Your turn!"
"What?" I gaped.
"It's only fair I get payback for that!" She cried and yanked her clothes down. "You have bandages too!"
"Yeah but Evans-"
"Abububu. No buts!"
"B-"
"No. Buts!"
I sighed.
There was no talking her out of it was there?
"Fine..."
"Sit!"
"I know how to-"
"Sit!"
I rolled my eyes, and made my way to the foot of the bed before she could cut in any further.
"Which one?"
"Hm? What do you mean which one?" She asked back as the alcohol basically dampened the tiny cotton in her hand to the point where it's completely soaked and pouring off the edges of the bed.
"I meant which wound are you going to try to clean?" I unbuttoned my shirt.
Then she saw what I meant.
"Oh..." Was all she could say.
"You might want to screw a cap on that before-"
"I know what I'm doing!"
So persistent...
"Fine..." I raised both hands, and blanched when I felt my entire back has gone cold.
"The... fuck?!" I spun around. "You're not supposed to dump all the alcohol like that!"
"Well what am I supposed to do?!" She flung both hands up in the air. "Your entire body is covered with scars!"
"That's why I said Evans has it handled!" I looked down at my torso. "You didn't even take off the bandages yet!"
She fumbled with her scissors, and for a moment I feared the worst.
"I'll take it off!" I announced before she could add any more scars to my skin.
Or worse.
Use Cresent Rose.
"But-"
My bandages hit the floor a second later.
"Ugh..."
Through the mirror, I could see that she looked...
Disappointed.
"What's wrong?"
I can feel her body shaking from the bed that was practically vibrating.
Her eyes were basically gleaming with tears as she stared into the first aid box.
"Hey hey." I glanced over my shoulder. "What's got you all worked up?"
"Yang used to do this... on a smaller scale of course." The small reaper added as she wiped her eyes with the back of her palm. "Or dad. They'll use band-aids when I scrape my knees while learning to ride a bike, cut myself while I was learning to craft my first weapon, or even when I fell into a batch of roses one day while learning how to use my Semblance. Don't make a bad pun out of that one please..."
I just raised my brow.
"I feel so... " She sniffled. "So useless."
"I can't even do anything right." Ruby grit her teeth. "You had to deal with everything because I failed as leader of Team RWBY. Because I failed my team on the Fall of Beacon, caused them to be separated, only to get back together and find out Salem can't be defeated, and failed them yet again there."
"Now Weiss was taken away from us, and it falls in your hands again to reunite us. The least I could do is repay you by doing small stuff yet..." She stared at the bottle of alcohol in her hands before staring at my torso. "I can't even do that..."
Her hands balled up into fists in her lap.
"I'm the worst."
"And?"
"H-huh?" She stared at me with her nose all clogged up. "What do you mean?"
"None of that matters now, does it?"
She shot me a puzzled look.
"I changed the timeline." I pointed out, "For better or for worse, I changed everything that happened the moment I set foot here. The moment I entered your team by Ozpin's word, I threw away the idea to do things incognito, to work with Evans from the shadows. Like it or not, I'll have to get involved. And I chose to."
"I could've sat still and let things roll out. I could've not used the armor that could've possibly killed me and wouldn't have gotten all these scars, I could've not stopped the White Fang raid, I could've just let it all play out and see how you all develop on your own."
She just stared long and hard into my eyes.
"Maybe you'd be the leader you've always strived to be." One shoulder rose and fell. "Maybe not. Who am I to say?"
"I just don't get why you have to get involved in a way that'll cause self-harm!" Ruby shrieked.
Silence fell around the room as her chest heaved up and down.
"Both Blake and I, maybe Yang, probably even Weiss too! We're all tired of seeing you get hurt!" She swiped a hand across the air. "I know you're doing this for us! But you matter too! Just because you didn't originate from our show doesn't mean that you're a disposable character to be taken lightly!"
"You keep saying you want us to get involved, but you never do! You take us wherever you go but it seems like we're always on opposite ends of Remnant whenever danger lurks around the corner! And I know it's to keep us out of harm's way but that's what Huntresses do!"
"Ruby I-"
"I DON'T WANT YOU TO END UP LIKE MOM!"
Her whole frame was basically shaking as her chest rose and fell.
Tears were streaming down the sides of her cheeks as she shot me a cold glare.
"I don't want you to end up like mom..." She was bawling as the small reaper broke down on her knees before falling forward and burying her face onto my shoulders. "I don't want you to go... I don't want you to leave us..."
...
"I had to..." I stated, and felt her shoulders stiffen. "There was no other option."
"Is it that thing within you... " The tables rapidly turned with my muscles tensing up. "That made you do this?"
"..."
"Is it the whispering voices in your head?" She asked and I stared at her.
She... seems to know this well.
"How do you... control it?" She questioned. "The voices, the will to destroy," She shivered. "To kill?"
A bit too well...
My eyes narrowed to the top of her head, but shook it off.
Evans probably told her some of it...
Still, it's unnerving.
"I don't."
She looked up to see the sympathetic look I'm giving her.
Flashback
"I could torture you to no end, maybe see if your skin could react the same way detached to your body," I emphasized my point as I traced Lightning Lash on the length of her arm. "Maybe even cause you to end up as a rug, or take your skull as my trophy."
She held in her breath, scrunching her eyes shut, and prepared for the worst.
"Do it! End her..."
"She deserves to die for hurting you like they did!"
"But I won't."
Blue eyes snapped open.
As I suddenly felt dizzy and staggered lightly, but kept my hold on her firm even as a wave of fatigue washed over me.
As I stared at her face that was looking back, I savored the look she was giving me.
Shift
I felt two pairs of eyes, one of Torchwick's and the other, Neo's, confusedly boring into the back of my head, as if waiting for me to take him up on that favor and say this was some sort of sick joke, a cocky remark to fall back on later.
I didn't look back.
"Watch these footsteps but never follow," I called over my shoulder. "That is... If you still want to live tomorrow."
"Steal a soul for a second chance..." A deep voice purred from the back of my head. "But you will never become a man."
Louis's POV
"You just... have to get used to it..." I shrugged. "I guess."
"But how?"
The moment she left my shoulders, my eyes widened.
Her eyes...
Were black.
And not just the pupils.
But the entirety of both eyeballs were painted dark like the pools of Grimm.
"When it's all so tempting... to follow..." Her lips were tugged up to a sinister smile while her eyes were blank like the void, empty.
It was like staring into a doll with both eyes gouged out.
"Ruby!" I shook her shoulders while the plastic smile remained on her face.
Then I realized something.
It wasn't Ruby at all.
"Stop this!" I yelled at nobody in particular. "Why would you make me see something like this?! It's so petty!"
"Oh?" I felt something stir inside as a deep, dark voice, similar to that of a cackling hyena with it's pitched toned down stirred its way into my head. "Finally acknowledging my presence? I was starting to feel a little lonely."
"Give me back my eyes."
"And what do we have here...?"
A dark cloud manifested in front of me as glowing, red eyes formed before a snout slithered its way onto Ruby's forearms, before travelling onto her shoulders and finally, wrap it's way around her head.
Even though I lived with it since birth and knew for a fact that it wasn't real, it was still unsettling to see it swirl around Ruby.
Molesting her.
"Oh Louis..." Ruby's blank stare pierced through me. "What big eyes you have."
"Better to see you with, my dear." It was basically directly in front of her face, cackling like a madman as it opened its maw to run its tongue down her cheek.
She then proceeded to cup both of her hands on the sides of my face, before she tugged my lips up. "What big teeth you have..."
"Stop this!" I yelled. "Out of all the stupid visions you've given me, this one's the fakest of all!"
The dark cloud swirled and stirred on the edges of my vision, cackling the entire way as it playfully left trails of mist around the room.
"Oh, this is lovely. Wonderful even!" It stated proudly. "To see you suffering so much because of one stupid girl who's in over her head. If only I knew this was how you'd react-"
"You know how this is going to end." I threatened. "With you in a box in the back of my head and the key thrown into the bottom of an ocean."
The mist froze and the cackling stopped.
"The only reason that you're here right now is that I allowed it." My eyes narrowed into slits. "So get rid of it. Now."
"It's fun to see you getting so worked up over a girl you barely know."
"Your point?" I glared impatiently at the apparition that was inches away from my face.
"As much as I would like to take credit, my dear Louis..."
No...
Impossible.
My eyes bulged out of its sockets.
It smirked devilishly.
"This isn't me."
A/N
There's way too much to do irl, so I'd thought I'd release this chapter earlier than I intended to.
Writing a backstory for Adam had been fun, but it's about time I picked up the pace and get back to the main story I guess.
Hopefully, there isn't much dilly dallying.
Cheers!
Pa treon . com (/) R26
Reviewer Sessions
lilbigstoryteller: Have you seen the character design? Pretty sure it's almost intended for him to strip down to be topless everytime he fights. He has a brawler's build. No wonder Blake is into Yang like Kali is into Ghira. Also, good luck getting rid of his black panther in your head.
paradox0.5white: Not sure yet, so far I hadn't thought of anything like that, but we'll see how it goes.
Kage-kitsune9001: Not sure which part of the last chapter is 'twisted' by any means, but maybe I missed something. Again these are teens in love, can't argue with hormones.
XxxMBDDXXX A.T.F.R: I hope this chapter clears up some flaws that you pointed out, though I have mad respect for you to read stuff all the way through even if you didn't like it. In 3 days no less. If you stick with it, cool, but if you decide to leave, it's fine as well. The 1st to 3rd person change in the middle was a personal taste to let the story flow better, after going back I read that it's janky and I couldn't differentiate who was the main focus of the story. Either way, thank you for your honest opinion, and I hope that nobody following this fic took your comment as a personal attack.