"What seems to be the matter, my Little Flower? Too much for you to handle by yourself?"
Ruby groaned in annoyance as Tyrian began cackling at her, his maniacal laughter grating on her nerves as she took a moment to rest. The madman seemed to be enjoying the fact that he was the one 'training' Ruby and helping her learn how to better wield the powers of the Fall Maiden, even going as far as making it a sort of game. One where he took pleasure in every chance that Ruby would need to take a break and recuperate at all.
Ruby grit her teeth as she rolled onto her stomach, using her arms to push herself up to stand as a few drops of sweat fell from the side of her cheek and dotted the obsidian floor of the large chamber. Her gaze drifted from the floor and over to the laughing figure of Tyrian as he clutched his chest, dancing like a psychopath as he was stricken with an uncomfortable fit of giggles.
Just burn him, set the freak on fire, Ruby. Salem won't mind; it'd just be a 'training accident.'
Ruby squeezed her eyes shut as she stood up, grabbing the side of her head a moment before she glared at Tyrian.
"Shut up. Both of you, just SHUT UP!" Ruby shouted angrily.
Tyrian went quiet for a moment, making Ruby think that he was actually listening to her for once, only for him to bend over and grin as he looked at her , his face completely upside down.
"Oh, did I strike a nerve?" He teased. "Or is Cinder still smoldering in that pretty head of yours?"
Ruby dropped her hand to her side and flared her nostrils before a huge pillar of fire erupted from the palm of her hand, aiming it at Tyrian and striking the man in the chest.
"I said shut up!" Ruby yelled as she watched Tyrian hit the floor.
The Scorpion Faunus merely laid on the ground for a few seconds before letting out a small cough, then started chuckling again.
"Oh, good show! What a beautiful display of fireworks!"Tyrian cackled. "Oh, Cinder would be embarrassed... to see someone who has only had the power of the Fall Maiden for only a few days, yet be able to use it in ways that I'm sure she could only dream of."
It'd be so easy, Ruby... No one around to watch you burn him to nothing but ash...
Ruby let out a long sigh, clenching her fists tight before turning and leaving Tyrian where he was laying on the floor.
"I'm done for today," Ruby muttered. "Why don't you go mutilate an Ursa or something..."
As Ruby left the room, she forced herself to relax, taking several deep breaths as she heard the echoes of Tyrian's laughter. The only thing that seemed to be a saving grace was the fact that she would be able to be alone with her thoughts in her room. Well... as alone as she could feel when she had a part of someone else's personality stuck in her head. It had been two days since Salem had told her that she was to stay at the fortress to train with Tyrian; and both of them had been filled with several hours of rigorous sparring that Tyrian seemed to relish in as he got to relentlessly beat Ruby until she reached the point of breaking. Add to that the fact that she constantly heard voices in her head that teased and mentally tortured her..? Ruby had had enough. She needed to leave, before she actually did kill Tyrian.
Brushing a bit of hair out from in front of her eyes as she swung the door open to her room, Ruby kicked her boots off unceremoniously and watched as they slammed into the far wall before falling to the floor in a heap,then sighed as she made her way to the small dresser. The ornate mirror that was fixed to the top was bordered in an intricate golden design with several vine-shaped patterns, and as Ruby stared at her reflection she squeezed her eyes shut and tightened her hands into fists.
Look at yourself. Working for her like a loyal, little dog? Look at whatyou're becoming,Ruby...
Ruby snapped her eyes open, readying herself to scream at the voice of Cinder, only for her voice to get lost in her throat as she saw the reflection in the mirror. She'd been expecting to see her own scarred face, but instead she saw Cinder staring back at her, the former Maiden smirking at her as her lone, amber-colored eye glowed faintly.
"Admit it... you enjoy this. Having the power; it's intoxicating, isn't it?"
"Leave me alone," Ruby hissed. "You're not really here..."
Cinder laughed as her image seemed to lean closer to the mirror. "You didn't say no. You can't lie to me; I've been there, I know what it's like. You and I are EXACTLY the same."
"I said LEAVE ME ALONE!" Ruby yelled before she slammed her fist through the mirror.
The glass shattered into a dozen or so pieces, with a few of them falling to the surface of the dresser, but when Ruby pulled her hand away, the broken reflection was of her own face again. It was then that she realized that it had all been a hallucination, something that she had conjured up in her head. A few seconds went by as Ruby stared at the broken pieces of glass, but then she let out a short sigh as she walked away, wincing quietly as she pulled a few small slivers of glass out of the back of her hand. A small thump rang out as she dropped down onto her bed as she glared at her hand, dropping the few glass shards onto the bed next to her.
"I am not like her... I'm not..." Ruby mumbled, shaking her head slowly.
"Something the matter, Little Rose?"
Ruby looked up from her hand and froze up a moment as she saw Salem entering her room, the immortal woman looking at her with a concerned expression on her face. Taking a moment to shake a few drops of blood off her hand, Ruby blinked slowly before she shook her head in response.
"I'm fine. I'm sorry if I was being too loud," Ruby apologized as she looked to the side.
"You don't need to apologize to me," Salem replied, walking further into the room, pausing for a moment as she glanced at the shattered mirror. "Though I do wish you would be more honest with me. After all, keeping your emotions bottled up in such a way, only leads to more problems."
Ruby went quiet for a few seconds, looking at the broken mirror again, then back to her hand before she let out a short sigh, biting at her lip slightly.
"...It's Cinder. I keep hearing her more and more. And just now I thought I saw her in the mirror. She keeps telling me to do things, and comparing the two of us," Ruby paused. "It's driving me crazy."
Salem was quiet for a moment as she folded her hands together behind her back, but then she shook her head and hummed.
"I see. I would have hoped that you would have been free from such annoyances by now, but it would seem that that small part of Cinder you managed to attain is being stubborn," Salem brought her hand forward and ran a finger down Ruby's scarred face, frowning slightly. "In any case, I do apologize. Having this problem is something I hoped you wouldn't have to deal with. Cinder experienced much the same issue; I thought it was because she was weak, but it seems to be something brought by the Grimm."
Ruby sat up straighter, waving her hands in front of her several times as she suddenly started stumbling over her words.
"N-no, n-no! Don't apologize, I'm sorry; I shouldn't have said anything. Please don't apologize to me, I'll be fine.
A smirk tugged at the corner of her Salem's lips and she craned her neck to the side before she lifted her hand from Ruby's chin.
"Very well then. If you are sure; in any case, I bring good news," Salem said, turning and looking at Ruby's equipment that was neatly displayed on a small table across the room. "Several of my Seers have been able to locate the Spring Maiden. It seems that Raven Branwen has kept herself relatively close to the vault she is to protect. Her bandit tribe is hiding in the woods near Haven, only a few days walk from the Academy, and in turn, the vault and relic."
Ruby straightened up and shook her head, regaining her composure so she could focus better. It wasn't until Salem mentioned WHERE the bandits were hiding, that she made any signs of movement. Lightly jumping off the edge of the bed and rolling her shoulders, she made her way over towards her equipment, making sure to grab her mask as she passed.
"Then I'll get ready to leave right away," Ruby said, lining her belt with various pouches of Dust.
"Then I will hope to see you return safe." Salem said with a satisfied grin as she left the room.
"So... Yang, can I ask you something about that I think you may have forgotten in your plan?"
Yang pinched the bridge her nose and groaned loudly before looking at Weiss. "Sure... go ahead."
Weiss narrowed her eyes slightly, then crossed her arms as she looked around the vast expanse of Mistral forests.
"When you thought about going after your mother to warn her about Ruby, did you happen to forget about the part where nobody knows where she is?"
The two of them were silent for a couple of seconds before they both heard a gruff sigh from behind them. "That's why I'm here, Snow Queen."
Weiss whipped her head around, shooting a glare at Qrow Branwen, earning a cheeky grin as he reached a hand out and ruffled his hand through Weiss' hair.
"Please, don't call me that," Weiss said in a way that sounded more demanding than it did asking. "And again, if your uncle knows where she is, then why couldn't we take an airship?"
"Raven's kept the location of her tribe secret for years. If she found out that her brother told some pilot the location, I'd be a dead man. I'm crazy enough coming here with the two of you, let alone having the risk of Ozpin finding her."
Yang folded her hands together behind her head. "Sounds like Ruby isn't the only one who's hiding from Professor Ozpin. Wait, two of us? Why would she have a problem with Weiss and I? What about Blake?"
Qrow turned his head and looked at Blake, who had, until now, been reading a book as the four of them walked. "Blake would be fine; Raven doesn't have an issue with Faunus usually. But Weiss is a Schnee. Schnee means ransom to most of Raven's people, so don't let your guard down."
"And me?" Yang asked, arching an eyebrow.
"She's your mother. I know you're always wondering about her and want to talk to her. And I also know that you probably will want to hit Raven the instant you meet her. And I..." The Huntsman paused to pulling his silver flask from his back pocket, twisting the lid off before he took a long drink, sighing afterwards and wiping his lips. "...do not want to have to try keep an entire bandit tribe from trying to kill us all."
"Wha-Hey! I'm not going to hit her! Why would I hit her, what would make you think that would be the first thing I do?" Yang asked, dropping her hands to her hips as she started walking backwards.
Everyone was quiet for a few minutes, with Blake squinting at Yang like the blonde had done something stupid. "I'm not answering that."
"Same." Qrow muttered before walking ahead of the three teammates.
"Yang, you punch everything? That's kinda your thing. And I actually agree with Qrow, funnily enough. I can actually see you punching your mother because you got angry," Weiss said, patting Yang's shoulder. "Just do us all a favor, and don't." And with that, she walked ahead to catch up to Qrow.
"Oh come on! I don't always hit things; like sometimes I head-butt them, or kick!"
"Not really helping your case," Blake teased as she walked up so that her and Yang were side-by-side. "If it's any consolation, I don't think you'd hit your mom..."
Yang blinked and looked at her partner with a grin. "Aw, thanks Blake. At least you're-"
"You'd probably shoot her," Blake finished as she joined the others
"OH COME ON!"
When Qrow and the three remaining members of Team RWBY finally arrived at hidden bandit tribe's front gate, they were met with the very hostility and distrust that Qrow had warned them of. Which was expected, considering the secrecy of the camp's location was something people were exiled for. When Qrow showed up, someone who had already made it a point to leave the tribe for the outside world, as well as three outsiders; everyone was... less than pleased.
"Hey pal, what do you mean I can't come in? I'm a Branwen for crying out loud, Rsven's my sister. Now let me in!" Qrow sjlhouted at one of the two guards, a muscular man who looked as if he could bench-press Qrow.
"Get lost, Raven don't want to see you Qrow, especially not when you got three kids running around with you."
"Excuse ME?" Yang said from behind Qrow, prompting Blake to drag her partner back a few feet. "Who are you calling children?"
Qrow rubbed his forehead, hanging his head for a moment as he let out a long, aggravated sigh. "Listen... it's important. I need to talk to her, please?"
The guard stared at Qrow for several seconds, then crossed his arms. "No, I have orders to keep the gate closed, and you left anyways. You don't need anything, now get out of here."
By now, Yang had broken free of Blake's grip and tore ahead so that she could grab the guard by the collar of his dark green, leather jacket.
"Listen, Buster! We have walked to many days through the woods to get here! I'm tired, I'm hungry, and my sister is currently out on a suicidal mission given to her by evil incarnate! My mom is the leader of the tribe, and if I have to, I will punch you through that gate of yours. Now, are you going to let us in or not?!"
Everyone was quiet for a couple of minutes, with Qrow staring at Yang like she were a volcano about to erupt. The guard on the other hand, who had been smirking slightly, was now quite a bit paler than before, but he rolled his eyes and let out a sharp whistle. A moment later, and a loud thud could be heard before one of the two massive wooden doors were opened, the guard gesturing inside with one hand.
"There you go..."
Yang squinted at the guard a moment, let let go of his jacket, giving him a light shove as she did so, then turned and trudged her way inside with Weiss and Blake quickly following. Qrow, meanwhile, let out a slow exhale, then looked at the guard.
"Like Mother, like Daughter, huh?" He chuckled before heading inside himself.
"Alright you three, when we see Raven, let me do the talking. She's not exactly a... 'people' person;" Qrow whispered as the four of them approached the largest tent in the camp.
Of course, they were getting several looks from those they passed, with Weiss earning the most, seeing as she could easily be identified as a Schnee from the color of her hair and the way she carried herself. It was clear almost immediately that the people in the tribe would have no problem trying to capture Weiss and sell her off for some huge amount of money. Blake ended up pulling Weiss a bit closer to her and wrapping an arm around her shoulder after a couple of people wandered too close, earning a stern glare from the raven-haired girl. But the four of them managed to get to Raven's tent without any trouble, with Qrow lightly clearing his throat before he pulled the flap aside and entered.
"Raven, we need to talk-"
Qrow was cut off when he saw that Raven was currently standing in the middle of the tent, weapon drawn and her eyes squinting at Qrow.
"Get out."
Qrow raised his hands in a placative gesture. "Good to see you, too. Long time, no see and all that."
Raven frowned and raised an eyebrow slightly. "Are you deaf? I said get out."
"Raven, we're not leaving. We need to talk. It's important."
"About what? What could possibly be so important that you come running back here?" Raven paused and looked at WBY, her eyes lingering on Weiss for a moment. "And with a Schnee, no less?"
"Leave her out of this. It's about the Maidens and Relics. Something's happened," Qrow elaborated.
"I heard... Ozpin lost one of the relics. Taken right from under his nose, I heard," Raven smirked, putting her sword back in it's scabbard. "Like I said, why do I care?"
"Because, the one who stole it just so happens to be Ruby," Qrow said coldly.
"Ruby? Since when was she one of the four?" Raven asked as she took a seat on a wooden chair, propping her feet up on top of a nearby table.
"Only recently. Somehow she must have found Cinder and taken her out of the picture. She's the Fall Maiden now, and the first thing she did was steal the Relic from Beacon."
"And I'm supposed to care... why?"
Yang growled before she shoved her way past Qrow, glaring at Raven. "Because, she's coming after all of the Maidens and Relics. She's gathering them for Salem."
Everyone went quiet for a moment at that, with Raven looking at Yang with a look of regret, and uncertainty as she didn't know how to react.
"We came to warn you. We're afraid she might be coming after you next," Qrow said with a sigh.
"I can handle myself, Qrow. It's not like she can just waltz in here and take the power from me. I have an entire clan of bandits between me and her, if she comes after me, I will be fine."
"Raven, don't be stupid."
"Qrow, stop. Don't worry about me. I already went and retrieved the relic from Haven. I did it shortly after I found out Beacon's was taken. I have it hidden, and the only way Ruby will get it is if I tell her; and I'm not going to."
"Are you stupid? The relic was safe in the vault! You're basically giving it to her on a platter," Qrow protested.
"Well after what happened at Beacon, I'm not entirely sure that Lionheart would be able to protect it, so I took it and hid the damn thing," Raven said as she stood up again. "Now unless you have anything else to talk about, I suggest you leave."
Qrow went quiet again, shoving his hands into his pockets as he groaned and hung his head.
"Can we stay a the night? We've been walking for days, and we're tired and hungry..." Yang asked, crossing her arms.
Raven turned her head, looking at Yang a moment before she sighed and closed her eyes. "Fine. One night, but you leave tomorrow.
Author's Note:
So here's chapter 7; I know this and chapter 6 aren't as fun or exciting as chapters 4 and 5, but that's mostly because chapter 8 is going to be a bigger one. It's gonna have a big thing happen in it, and I want to make sure that I have a bit of build up to it.
So, a question was brought up after chapter 5. Someone asked if Ruby is doing this of her own free will, or if she's being controlled/possessed. So, I wanted to clarify; she IS doing all of this on her own free will. She's not being controlled. As it said in chapter 6, the Beetle Grimm is only affecting her mentally. Making her hear and see things due to having acquired a bit of Cinder's personality. When Ruby's eye went red in chapter 5, that was merely that small part of Cinder kicking in momentarily while Ruby had been knocked out temporarily. It's something that will probably show up again, so that's why I'm clarifying it here.
Anyways, hope you liked chapter 7, gonna have chapter 8 up soon, now that I'm feeling better.
As Always,
SR