Me: complains that I have too many aus already
Also me: starts writing another AU last night instead of sleeping
This is set at the beginning of volume 6. Content warning for mentions of blood. Enjoy!
When the plan goes wrong, Ruby can't even bring herself to be surprised. Annoyed, maybe, tired, for sure, but definitely not surprised. It was silly of her to think that they could get to Argus with only a few minor setbacks.
The train groans loudly as it slips off the tracks and plunges into the surrounding snow. Ruby quickly loses her balance as the train tips precariously, swaying unsteadily as it encounters the snow. Her hands scrabble uselessly at the smooth metal of the train as she unsuccessfully tries to catch herself. With a sharp cry, she finds herself plummeting towards the snow.
And then her head collides with something hard, sending waves of sharp pain through her skull, and her vision tunnels rapidly before fading into blackness.
Yang curses under her breath as she tries to dig Bumblebee out of the snow. She was in a bad mood even before they crashed, watching Weiss and Ruby fall back into their partnership effortlessly while she and Blake awkwardly danced around each other. Blake's constant hovering and apologies are already getting old, even if Yang knows that her partner means well.
It'd be a lot easier to be patient if Weiss and her sister didn't make it look so simple.
Speaking of Ruby, where is she? The rest of their group has gathered in a loose semicircle, halfheartedly trying to come up with a plan for what to do next, but Yang doesn't see her sister anywhere. And it's not like the younger girl is particularly hard to spot, her red cloak standing out sharply against the white snow. She glances around at the faces surrounding her to double check.
Nope, still no Ruby.
Even the old lady that was hiding in the back of the train is standing with them, trying to pretend that she can help them and that she isn't just dead weight that they'll have to drag along. Just great.
"Yang, don't be rude," a voice in the back of her mind scolds. It sounds an awful lot like her little sister.
"Sorry," she mutters under her breath, before turning back to the others. "Has anyone seen Ruby? I can't find her anywhere."
No one answers. Instead, they all exchange nervous glances, before Weiss finally pipes up. "I guess not," the former heiress says, biting her lip worriedly.
"Maybe we should split up to look for her?" Blake suggests, placing a calming hand on Yang's shoulder. She shrugs it off. Blake frowns. "She can't have gotten too far."
So, they split up, scouring the train and the surrounding snow for any sign of their leader. Yang tries not to let herself worry too much as she searches. Ruby can take care of herself. Her sister has proven that over and over, and she's told Yang as much, multiple times, with no shortage of annoyance. But some part of her can't help but see Ruby as the little girl sent to Beacon far too early, no matter how much time passes and how skilled of a fighter her sister becomes.
No matter how strong she gets, she'll always be Yang's little sister.
She hasn't been searching long when she practically stumbles over Ruby, lying facedown in the snow. Her sister doesn't respond at all when Yang calls her name, and as she looks closer, she realizes that the snow around her sister's head is stained pink with blood.
Her heart in her throat, she immediately kneels next to Ruby's prone body and begins to carefully turn her sister over, frantically inspecting her head for any signs of injury. Ruby is utterly still as Yang manhandles her, utterly limp in her arms, but her skin is warm to the touch and her pulse is rhythmic and steady.
Please let her be okay. Please, please, don't let me lose her too.
As soon as she gets a good look at her sister's face, Yang immediately spots the source of all the blood. There's a nasty gash across her sister's forehead, and while it definitely looks painful, and worrying, it doesn't look life-threatening. Head wounds always bleed a lot, she tells herself, unwinding the purple bandana that she keeps wrapped around her leg and pressing it to the cut. The cloth is quickly soaked in blood, but after a few minutes Yang can feel the bleeding starting to slow. Good.
Absently, she realizes that the others are still out there searching for Ruby. She should probably let them know that she found her sister. Cupping a bloody hand over her mouth, she shouts as loudly as she can. "I found her! Ruby's over here!" She replaces her hand on Ruby's forehead, ignoring the traces of blood the gesture left around her mouth.
Under her hands, Ruby groans faintly, mouth twitching as she stirs feebly. "That's it, wake up already," Yang says, voice gentle but firm. "Enough sleeping already. Open your eyes for me, c'mon, you can do it."
Ruby groans again, mumbling something unintelligible, before finally cracking her eyes open and squinting up at Yang. Puzzled silver meets worried lavender. "Wha' happened?"
"Glad to see that you're awake," Yang says, sighing in relief. Ruby's head has stopped bleeding, so Yang carefully wraps the bandana around the top of her head as a makeshift bandage. "It looks like you took a pretty hard hit to the head when the train crashed, enough to rattle even your thick skull. How're you feeling?"
"M' head hurts," Ruby mutters. The words come out slightly slurred. Yang's surprised that she's being so honest about it, but then again, her sister does look pretty rattled, her faced pinched with pain and confusion. "Where're we?"
Yang sighs. "Out stranded in the middle of nowhere, on our way to Argus."
Ruby squints up at her, looking bewildered. "Why're we—"
She trails off at the sound of footsteps in the snow behind them. Yang glances over her shoulder to see Weiss and Blake marching over to them, relief clear on their faces.
"Ruby, where have you been?" Weiss demands, masking her concern with anger. "We've been worried sick looking for you!"
"Is everything okay?" Blake asks more calmly, trailing behind Weiss. "What happened?"
"She must have hit her head when the train crashed," Yang explains. "But it doesn't look too bad. She should be okay."
"Ouch," Blake winces, crouching next to Yang. "How are you feeling?"
Ruby doesn't answer, instead looking up at her teammate with a mixture of terror and bewilderment on her face. "Ruby?" Weiss frowns at her partner. "What's wrong?"
The younger girl stares blankly up at her. Finally, she opens her mouth. "Do I—do I know you?"
Thank you for reading! Please leave a review if you liked it.
Anyone else entirely unprepared for RWBY to start up again? Someone reminded me that we'll be getting new episodes of volume 8 soon and I immediately freaked out, I am so unprepared for whatever they're going to throw at us next lol.
Also I love that I was a neuroscience major and know full well that amnesia doesn't work Like That, but I ignore it because I love that trope.
Just a reminder that I do take requests for fics, so if there's an idea that you'd like to see me write, feel free to message me and if I like it, I might end up writing something for it.