Ruby had almost missed it amongst the dark greens, blues, and reds of this odd forest they found themselves in.
She had been unspeakably relieved when she had found Blake not far from where she had awoken. She was banged up, but she was alive, and that's what mattered. They embraced each other fiercely, both incredibly grateful to whatever gods were out there that the other was okay.
After their reunion, they had both quickly deduced that if they were alive, that must have meant that it was very well possible that Yang had survived the fall as well.
They both could only hope that they didn't need to search for Weiss or anyone else.
They quickly made a game plan and set off into the forest to look both for Yang and hopefully their weapons. The dense shrubbery and forestation made travelling more difficult than they both would have liked, but it was worth it if it meant finding the person closest to both of them. They both had been walking for some time, calling out Yang's name in the hope of a response.
And that's when Ruby saw it. A flash of a ginger color hidden amongst the trees.
"Hold on a second, Blake. I think I see something." She said quietly, gently gripping Blake's wrist to stop her.
Blake followed Ruby's line of sight until she saw it too. It was a curly mop of orange hair partially hidden behind a tree. Her spirits both raised and dropped like a stone at the same time. It seemed Ruby had the same sensation, as her eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open. She let go of Blake to quickly jog over to their objective.
What Ruby found made her stop in her tracks.
Splayed out on her back was Penny. One hand laid near her head, the other stretched horizontally to her side. Her green eyes were closed, and her skin was deathly pale. She was still in the grass.
Ruby stopped breathing when she found five circular wounds in Penny's torso, as if a set of claws had dug into the flesh beneath her clothes. A thin, bloody penetration also revealed itself in the center of the girl's chest, as if she had been stabbed.
"P-Penny..?" Ruby whispered.
She silently prayed. Begged. Pleaded.
Penny couldn't be gone. They had just gotten her back. She had just become a real girl. She had so much life ahead of her to experience. With her friends. With her family.
With Ruby.
She wasn't gone. Ruby would feel her skin and she would be warm. She would check her pulse and feel the thumps against her finger. She would hear air leaving her nose. She would wake up soon enough and they would embrace and cry and relish in each other's presence.
She stumbled forward and dropped to her knees at Penny's side. She only barely heard Blake approach from behind.
Shakily, Ruby reached out a gloved hand touched Penny.
She was cold.
Ruby pressed two fingers to Penny's wrist.
Nothing.
She craned her ear towards Penny's face.
Silent.
Ruby could feel her vision tunneling as everything around her disappeared, all except for Penny's disturbingly peaceful expression. All she could hear now was a dull ringing. Blake could have been speaking right next to her ear and she wouldn't have heard a thing.
Blake could only watch as it settled into Ruby the reality of the picture in front of her. Not hesitating for a moment, the older girl knelt down behind Ruby and crossed one arm over her stomach. The other she moved under one armpit and across her chest to grip the opposite shoulder. She held Ruby tightly against her as she pressed her forehead against Ruby's back. Tears began leaking from the corners of her amber eyes.
She clenched her teeth and her cat ears flattened against her head as an ear-splitting, anguish-laced shriek tore itself from Ruby's throat.
The redhead raised her head to the sky and screamed as long as her lungs would allow her. Tears cascaded down her cheeks, dripping down her chin and onto the skin of the dead girl before her. She didn't know how long she sat there, the sound of her voice piercing the forest air. In that scream she cursed Cinder, cursed Salem, cursed the gods, cursed Ozpin.
Cursed herself for not being good enough.
Eventually, however, her breath gave out and all she could do was sob, curling her fists around the fabric of Penny's shirt. She pressed her face into Penny's stomach, barely muffling the cries that just wouldn't stop.
Blake held Ruby closer as a wet cry of her own escaped her lips.
The two of them sat there, their heartache and hurt laid bare in the isolation of the forest.
For now, all they had was each other and the despair that enveloped their hearts.