Author's note:
Hey all, I just wanted to apologize for how long it took to update this story. It's not dead or anything, it just took me a while. You can read the full list of excuses under the story, I hope you'll enjoy this update!
Ruby was sitting in the canteen, idly moving the spoon through her cereals. It wasn't really as much of a canteen as it was just a large public kitchen with a table in the middle of it. Not that they needed more, she never saw an underground crypt with more than ten hunters at a time. Humans not only did have their own canteen but had their own sector they lived in. Well, humans without any... Changes to them.
While she tried to distract herself from her current issues by trying out something new, her plan didn't really work out. Using warm milk for her cereals meant nothing when she just sat there and looked at the bowl as it cooled down. Some could ask if she just hated mornings, but that wasn't the case. She was fine with them, it was the afternoon that could turn her into a lazy slob. Although that was all dependant on if she could sleep last night. After all, time of day was subjective when you mostly lived underground.
Sadly, sleep wasn't something she could enjoy much last night. Not for long, at least. Falling asleep was difficult enough, but then waking up randomly and having a single thought catch on inside her brain, like a small snowball which quickly turned itself huge, making it not only difficult to fall back asleep but outright impossible to even lay there in bed. Although admittedly, she had a good streak of this not happening for a while. A streak that broke after her last mission.
"Hey, Ruby." As she heard the voice and noticed Blake on a nearby chair, Ruby had to control herself from reacting anymore than to grow stiff. If only to not give the cat girl any satisfaction.
"Not the best time for your sense of humor." Ruby replied gloomily, her eyes glancing down at her cereal again.
"No idea what you're talking about. But I got what you wanted, it's in your bag like you wanted it to be." Blake leaned forward to rest her arm against the table. "Also, just to be transparent, Yang told me to look out for you when she's gone."
Ruby blinked at that. "When she's gone?"
It was Blake's turn to be confused, as she tilted her head. "Yes, when she's gone on a mission." Blake paused, needing a moment to understand the confused expression on Ruby's face. "She didn't tell you?"
That just added to her already poor mood. "Great." That was all she said as she pushed the bowl away from herself.
Taking a slightly deeper breath, Blake rubbed her neck nervously. "Look, maybe she just didn't want to worry you, with everything else going on." Blake smiled, trying to spin it in a more positive light.
"By not telling me something I'd easily notice?" Ruby answered as she slammed her open hand against the table. This, in return, had to startle the Faunus, as she closed her eyes for a long moment. Good serves her right for all those scares she goes around doing.
Blake let out a sigh, more to calm herself than anything, Ruby assumed. "No matter the circumstances, it's hard to worry others. You could just go and talk with her." Blake finished with a shrug.
Ruby offered her bowl one last glance, before standing up from the chair. "Think I will." As she wanted to reach for the bowl to clean up after her, her arm was stopped by Blake's hand.
"Just go, I'll clean up after you." The catgirl said as she reached for the bowl herself.
Ruby smiled at that. "Thanks Blake. For... This and everything else."
"Mh-hm, just go." The black-haired girl stood up and moved towards the sink with the bowl in hand.
Deciding to do just that, Ruby rushed towards the room where she hoped to find Yang.
oooOOOooo
Ruby never knocked when she entered Yang's room. Not because she wanted to be rude... Well, not exactly. It started somewhere when they were much younger, although who started it, she wasn't sure. Regardless, one of them entered the other room without knocking and the other did the same in revenge and... Well, there it was. It was really hard to pinpoint the exact moment this happened, really. Perhaps seen as an oddity by others, yet it was... It was their thing.
"Whoa, Rubes, what if I was naked or something?!" Yang raised her head and glanced towards the door where Ruby stood. She was packing.
"Take pictures and sell them to Blake?" Ruby smirked as she closed the doors behind her.
At the mention of Blake, Yang's energy visibly left her face. "Blake, right." Without saying anything else, the blonde returned to arranging her stuff inside the bag.
Ruby just sighed. "You two fought again? There goes me being mad at you." Ruby said as she sat on a nearby stool.
"You? Mad? What for?" It was clear that Yang didn't want to talk about the cat girl. Ruby understood and while annoyed, she wasn't petty to just pick at an open wound like that, however small it was. Besides, lack of focus could mean a lot of bad things on a mission.
"For not telling me you're leaving?" Ruby's brow raised, was Yang really not seeing anything bad about this, or was she simply acting dumb?
"I didn't leave yet I just... I didn't want to bother you with that. You have enough on your plate. Wanted to tell you shortly before I had to leave." Yang shrugged and moved the bag with her leg to the side.
"How long?" Ruby lowered her head.
"It's an investigation, but I hope to be done in a few weeks." Yang paused and offered a shrug. "Hard to tell exact time with these." Ruby grimaced at that. "Besides, Rubes, with one of us suspended I have to take whatever they offer." Ruby wasn't sure what she came here to do, scold Yang? Of course not. She was just... Annoyed at her for not telling her as soon as she knew herself.
"I know." What she was sure of was that Yang had to earn for the both of them. That was how things worked, she never liked history, so she wasn't sure when did it evolve to be this way, but nowadays hunters had to earn money. Not that they had to go out and get a job, that would be... Silly if a little bit funny. No, being hunters was their job, as such, they were paid for every mission. Some of it was deducted as a maintenance fee, which was all the resources they got from the crypts, which were the names of their bases. Whatever was left, was then for their disposition. She understood why this was, it was to not let them get too lazy, and in some soft way to force them to work. After all, jobless hunters were illegal. And on this side of the show? Well... The punishment for illegal things was swift.
"Hey! Ruby!" At hearing her name, the younger girl blinked only to see Yang's face close to her own. "You okay?"
"Y-Yeah, just... A lot on my mind, with the girl I rescued and now this." She shook her head and moved a hand across her own face.
"Rubes, there is no "this" alright? I just wasn't sure when to tell you, then me and Blake... Well, we had a misunderstanding and it sort of rolled into this conversation." Yang shrugged. "It's not like anything out of the ordinary happened, I would tell you anyway."
"I guess, still, next time? Just tell me upfront, even if the worst thing possible would be happening in my life or something." Ruby let out a sigh and stood up. In hindsight, she wasn't sure why she was annoyed in the first place. Well, she could find a reason, but it wasn't important anymore. "So what's up with you and Blake?"
"Nothing, I'll be back and we'll talk things out or try and get at each other throats." Yang exclaimed as she kicked the bag that rested on the floor. "Whatever happens, things will settle between us."
Ruby just rolled her eyes, it was always like that. She never understood the tension between the two girls, but she knew she'd rather not choose between them. While one of them was family to her, they both were friends and it would be the worst thing for her to have to choose. "Want me to talk to her while you're away?"
"Send my younger sister to deal with my problems?" Yang asked as she crouched next to the bag and zipped it up.
"Something like that." Ruby shrugged.
"Do whatever you want, I haven't asked you to do anything so." Settling the bag onto her bed, the blonde girl looked around her room. "If that's all, I still have some preparations to do."
"Right." Lately, each time she wanted to help, it turned into this. Ruby was wondering if it was something recent or were things like that more frequently present in her past. "Look..." She paused as her brain clogged. It wasn't that she didn't know what to say, quite the opposite. There were a lot of things she wanted to tell Yang at this exact moment, perhaps too much. "Good luck on your mission." She finally managed to push past her brain freeze and Decided to leave before she could ruin her sister's mood further, she reached for the door handle.
"I won't die on you, sis. Promise I'll be fine. You'll be the one needing luck with your little vampire problem." Yang glanced over her shoulder, a small smile on her face.
Ruby smiled back, glad that they didn't part on bad terms, even if for a week or two. Although you never know when those weeks turn into "forevers". Just part of their job.
oooOOOooo
Entering the kitchen, she didn't take a step before a familiar voice called out to her. "I would ask if something happened, but you look the same as before." Blake stated matter of factly.
"Yeah... Well..." Ruby shrugged. "Can't be mad or even annoyed at her while she's upset. You guys had another fight huh?" Ruby asked as she took a glance at Blake.
"No, we just talked and it ended up as it often ends up. With someone saying the wrong thing at the wrong time." It was Blake's time to shrug.
Ruby stayed still for a moment longer, wondering if there was more to add to that. Not finding anything, she simply moved towards the fridge, opening it and staring at the content. There wasn't anything she wanted from it, she wasn't even focused too much on what was inside in the first place. "You know, I'm not trying to take sides, since you're my friend and she's my sister. I'm just... Concerned about you two." She said and closed the doors of the fridge.
"We won't get into a physical fight if that's what you're concerned about." Hearing that, Ruby just rested her back against the same device she glanced inside of just a moment ago. Slouching forward, she closed her eyes. She didn't need this, not right now. Feeling a hand on her shoulder, she didn't jump, simply opening her eyes to look up at Blake standing next to her. "Whatever happens, nothing will change between us."
Looking over Blake's face and seeing a rarely seen smile, made the corner of her mouth involuntarily raise, even if just slightly. "Thanks, I just wish..." Ruby started but shook her head, perhaps it wasn't the time to bring Blake's and Yang's issues. Then again, was there ever a time to bring those up? "Can I ask you for help again?"
At that Blake's ears moved up, something that Ruby learned was a sign of curiosity, although she always tried to not react to that too much, in case Blake grows self-aware of her body betraying her at times. "You can always ask me for help, although I might refuse. You know the rules."
Ruby just rolled her eyes at that, while it worked at first and gave Blake this... What? Mysterious vibe? Cool vibe? Ruby wasn't exactly sure, but when she first met Blake she felt impressed by how she acted. Nowadays? She got used to it and saw it as an odd, empty quirk the Faunus girl had. "I need to find a book." Ruby said and cleared her throat. "I don't mean some weird, old or illegal book just... You know I'm not often around the library and you seem to have that place a bit better memorized than I do."
"A book?" Blake tilted her head a bit to the side.
"Yeah, one that might help me with my vampire problem."
oooOOOooo
Here she was, once more delaying the inevitable that was entering the room where the young vampire girl was. This time it was for a different reason. She grew accustomed to the hostility that the girl sported towards her. This time she simply wasn't sure if she was... Well, ready. Not mentally, far from it. But actually prepared for what she wanted to do once she was inside, which was to convince the girl about her current... Status? Yeah, that was a neutral enough term.
While Ruby hated to study, she knew that she had to learn a few things or remind herself of a few things she learned in the past, obviously things concerning vampirism. It wasn't a big surprise that she didn't know these things. They weren't related to things that could help you stop a vampire... At least not in any obvious way, as such Ruby didn't really care to remember these things or learn them.
Right now she was prepared for a full-out, basic lesson about vampirism. And hey, she even prepared a short movie to make the class more entertaining. That thought just made Ruby chuckle, was this how teachers felt? At least those that just started? Perhaps. Regardless there was no reason to stall anymore.
She inserted a key and quickly turned it, pushing down on the door handle. It wasn't a surprise that Weiss' head sprung up at the sudden action that Ruby did. The redhead wasn't sure herself why she did that in such a way, but here she was, once more putting herself in the spot like that. "Oh, it's you." Weiss announced in a bored, slightly disappointed tone as her head went back onto the pillow.
"Heh, yep! It's me." Ruby said, all her hopes for any kind of non-passive-aggressive interaction melting away. "So uh..." Ruby paused as she caught herself before she said what she was about to say.
"Were you about to ask me about my day just now?" Weiss asked, a bit amused, which in any other situation Ruby would read as a good thing, but right now? That wasn't the case.
"Maybe?" Ruby responded, hoping the topic would be dropped.
Like with anything when it came to Weiss, it wasn't. The girl knew very well how to make the situation worse and Ruby had a hunch that it was deliberate. "You understand how ridiculous that is, right? Because it's not hard to imagine that I was just sitting in this room alone all this time doing nothing. It's also not difficult to understand how a victim of abduction can feel, especially if the people or just one person responsible for it is a crazy lunatic."
Ruby let out a small sigh as she placed a bag she came with onto the floor. At least the girl got it all off of her chest, right? "You seemed disappointed when it was me that came in." Ruby stated as she glanced at the white-haired girl. "Were you expecting someone else to come in?"
"Each time someone, and that someone is you, opens that door, I hope it's finally the police, here to rescue me." Weiss explained and Ruby couldn't help but smile at that. It would take the military to be even able to enter this complex.
"Speaking of which, I got that promised thing." Ruby announced as she unzipped her bag.
"Promised thing?" Weiss asked and raised herself, which meant that Ruby got her curiosity, which was a good sign.
"Evidence that what I said about your... Current status is true." It felt awkward to talk about it like that, to have to avoid the vampire word since she knew it would set her attempts at least a step back.
"I won't lie, I'm curious about what ridiculous things you had prepared to try and convince me about this absurd idea of yours." Weiss chuckled, Ruby wondered how much of it was genuine and how much it was just her finding anything funny after... Well, being locked in here with little to nothing to do like that.
"Well, there will be a boring part with some files, practical part and... Well, a movie at the end." Ruby took a deep breath. "Look, I know you don't believe me but... You know, for the sake of uh... Argument? I think that's the right way to say it, could you at least hear me out?"
Weiss eyed her for a long moment and shrugged. "I'm not promising anything, but I'll try. It all depends on how ludicrous the things you'll show me are." Raising, she sat on the edge of the bed. "Not like I have a choice anyway."
That was a loaded statement since Ruby didn't know what ludicrous meant... She knew what the word meant! Just not what kind of things would Weiss consider ludicrous. Which in the end meant nothing. Or maybe it did. A tiny glimmer of hope in regards to cooperation? Yes, that was it. Ruby had to start thinking more positively about these things. "We'll start with your personal and medical report." She explained, reaching towards her bag and extracting a thick file out of it. "Can I?" Approaching the white-haired girl, she glanced at the spot next to her.
Weiss grimaced but nodded with a sigh. "Of course, it's not like I own this place." Something had to catch Weiss' eye as she squinted both of them, her gaze lower than before. "Aren't those bracelets... Or bracers? a bit too tight?"
Sitting next to her, although keeping her distance as much as it was possible, Ruby handed the girl the file and glanced at her forearms. There, a bit above the wrist were two metal bracers embracing her flesh. Just as Weiss noticed, they left little to no room between the metallic material and skin. "Those huh? They're shackles." Ruby said before even thinking, as it was just natural to explain something that wasn't any kind of secret knowledge. Not in the context of everything else related to her current life. Seeing the other girl's confused face, Ruby shook her head. "Not like literal shackles. They were just... They're just called that. I'm sure you'll learn more about them once... Well, a bit later." Ruby chuckled, even if things were a bit grim at the moment, the prospect of a new huntress in this place still filled her with a little bit of excitement.
"Hopefully I'll be rescued before I can learn any more than I should know." She said unemotionally. "So what about this thick file?"
Luckily for her, this Schnee girl always knew how to ground her whenever Ruby got a bit too optimistic. "I uh... I marked the important stuff, but feel free to read through it all if you want to. Although I'm afraid you'll have to do it in one sitting since I'll have to take this back."
Weiss' brow raised at that as she opened the file and started to glance through it. Her eyes went wide at the first page alone. "This is... All my information. All of it." She said as the first few pages were a catalog of her entire life up to this day. Her weight, height, all her medical information, schools she attended, all the praises from these schools, all the awards, and all the official positions she had so far in her short life. It was all in a compact format of course, mostly to point them out and everything. Ruby was sure that there was some database with exact, perfect, and precise information about each and every one of the things from that short file.
Ruby glanced at what the other girl was looking at the moment, rubbing her neck at the observation. "Well, our organization is well informed. Besides, your family, while not exactly at the top, was pretty much heading that way." In a way, Ruby was impressed when she was checking it herself. Truly a perfect daughter to have. Which wasn't even something sarcastic to say in this situation.
Weiss glared at her but didn't say anything. After a moment she went back to the documents on her lap, slowly browsing through them. "I'm not a doctor, so this doesn't exactly explain anything." She commented after glancing through a few more pages.
"Right, I actually had to learn what's inside of it since I knew you'd be as confused as I was when I first saw this file. First of all, everything in there uses human terminology, but it's not exactly working as it would in human cases, hence why it's graded D in your case since you're a va... I mean, since you're current physical status." Ruby cursed at herself for letting it slip, she was doing so good.
"Vampire, I don't understand why can't you just say the damn word." Weiss huffed at that. "And why is it D? Because Dracula?" Weiss smirked as she spoke in a mocking tone of voice.
Ruby just let out a sigh at that, deciding to ignore the sarcasm in Weiss' voice. "No, it's a grade reserved for people affected by your type of affliction. Vampirism, there I said it, happy?." She rolled her eyes before continuing. "Grade A is reserved for normal, pure humans. B to C is for people who become affected by... Aura, magic, whatever you wish to call it, in some specific, non-invasive ways. Like getting into pacts, being short-term possessed, and other uh... Unique ways." Ruby paused, but seeing as she had Weiss' attention, she decided to continue. "Then you have D, which is your type like I said before. Now, the further down the alphabet we get with this grading stuff, the more invasive and aggressive all these various symptoms and illnesses and affliction and whatever you wanna call them, become. That's uh... Unnatural of course, hence why some people call it that, unnatural or if you prefer supernatural.
"Are there lower grades than the D one?" Weiss asked and Ruby had to stop herself from smiling, she had her full attention and the girl's curiosity.
"Yes, but those are cases of meta-humans on a more severe level, and in most of these cases, they are related to people who had it since birth." Ruby explained slowly, more to give herself time to think carefully about each and every word she would say. It wasn't what she was used to when talking, but she knew she had to do her best not to mess this up.
Next were a bunch of pictures, and before Weiss could say anything, Ruby jumped in to explain. "Those are from your medical examination. Before you uh... Regained consciousness and after the neutering process." Ruby leaned in slightly, waited if the other girl would have something harsh to say about that, and since there was silence, she moved a finger to point at each picture as she explained them. "This is your eye before the neutering, red since you were still... Well, it's complicated. But that was before the neutering. They turned blue afterward, which was... Good, but I guess not good enough since you're still... Since you weren't fully healed. Those are your fangs and this here is your bite mark."
"Why neck? I mean, what's the magical explanation for that hm?" It was clear to Ruby that Weiss had more questions, why start with such a trivial one? Maybe to get it out of the way? She still wasn't sure what made Weiss tick.
"No reason, they can bite you anywhere, although from what I understand you... I mean, they prefer places around arteries. The neck thing is most likely an... An intimate thing." There was more, but Ruby decided to not dwell on anything too distracting for the topic at hand.
"Intimate." Weiss repeated and her hand slowly raised to touch her neck. Before it could happen though, the girl had to come back to her senses and shake her head. "What does neutering mean? I know what the word means, don't try and be funny about it. What exactly did you people do to me?" Weiss frowned angrily, although Ruby knew it was partially to distract herself from whatever happened just a moment ago.
"Vampires operate on hierarchy, and it's settled by blood... If that makes sense. Obviously, you start under whoever bit you. The higher you are, the more vampires from your... Let's call it family, will listen to you. Not just listen, but will be forced to obey you. You can get higher in the tree if you're allowed to drink the blood of the vampire above you, after which it works as if he was the one who bit you." Ruby took a deep breath after her explanation, hoping that for one it made sense and two, that she didn't screw something up or outright forget about something.
"Sounds awfully political, but that doesn't answer my question." Weiss grimaced.
Ruby let out a small sigh at that. "Neutering is a process that... When we try to heal someone who was bit by a vampire, there are... Certain outcomes. Three, to be specific. One is that you're completely healed, I was hoping that would happen to you, but sadly the second thing happened. Neutering is what occurred in your case. That meant that you were cut off from whatever vampire family you were part of and, as the name suggests it, makes it impossible for you to turn anyone else into a vampire."
"What's the third? The outcome, I mean." The white-haired girl asked, her voice quieter than normal.
"Death." Ruby answered calmly.
The Schnee simply nodded and shuffled the papers to find the next bookmarked page. "What's this about?" She asked after a moment of glancing through various, different documents. As Ruby glanced, she remembered some of them, and just like Weiss right now, she didn't really find anything interesting in them. Weiss' attention was stopped at the first marked piece of paper that Ruby prepared.
"The rest of the pages are about the various conditions that are connected to your predicament." Ruby pointed at the first page.
"Look, just call it how it is, alright? You were the one to go out and tell me I'm a vampire, so you might as well say it instead of trying to find ways around it." Weiss shook her head. "It's tiring, especially since I can tell you're having issues with it alone."
"Ah, I'm... I'm sorry, I just didn't mean to distract you with it." Ruby glanced to the side briefly.
"Distracted from what? All of this is apparently proof that I am this vampire creature, so not saying the name won't really change much." The Schnee let out a tired sigh. "So what's this first thing. It's blood-related, this I can tell at a first glance."
"Anemia, caused by... Uh..." Ruby leaned in, even before she could understand what she was doing, and as it was too late for regrets she simply continued to look for the word or rather the phrase she wanted to find, hoping that Weiss wouldn't mind. "There it is." She moved back and pointed at one of the paragraphs. "Pure red cell aplasia, you're not making your own blood cells, is what it means. That's the physical part of having to drink blood. There's also a... Well, supernatural reason, but that's hardly explained, and even old vampires can only give a romanticized explanation of why they need to do it." Ruby shrugged. "The second part, this here." Ruby pointed at another part in the document. "Is your blood type shifting to AB, since the red cell production isn't immediately stopped, but instead it first changes and then gradually stops."
"I admit, that sounds... Scientific enough. More so than you'd be capable of coming up by yourself, from what I managed to gather about you." Weiss shrugged and Ruby winced slightly at how blunt and honest the girl was. "Yet I have no means to check if what you're saying is true, for all I know it can be all just smart-sounding words and terms or while true on paper, this doesn't have to apply to me."
"That's fine, after we're done with the theory, we'll get some practical evidence." Ruby shrugged with a small smile. "The next part is about the dermal changes. First is jewelry allergy, which usually means someone is allergic to nickel but in case of vampires." Ruby paused and took a sharp inhale. "it's about silver. Like I mentioned before, it's graded D, which means it's far more severe than that of a normal human."
"Silver, of course, I guess the next is the sun? Then what? Garlic? Crosses? Moving water?"
Ruby chuckled at that. "Sun yes, but everything else isn't true. Although some of those have popular unproven theories as to why they seem to be a thing. The cross thing is basically a sign for vampires that they should avoid that place, but it holds no power aside from being common sense. Garlic was probably due to someone being allergic to it even before turning, and... Well, they might have been affected by it. The second reason might be because people thought that illnesses were bad spirits or something and garlic is just healthy, so they thought it had power over evil spirits." Ruby shrugged. "Moving water was something in the medieval ages, where people weren't exactly known for their swimming capabilities. It's the same as the witch test, really." Taking a deep breath, Ruby nodded at her own words. "But those are rumors as to why these and a few more things are believed to stop vampires. Or evil spirits in general."
"I'd say it's an interesting topic in any other circumstances. I'd still consider you weird in those normal circumstances for knowing so much about such an obscure topic. Sadly, I'm being held against my will, so it's slightly less intriguing and a bit more disturbing." Weiss glanced at the document. "So the sun part."
"Right, the sun part is caused by... Oh, there it is." Ruby once more pointed at one of the paragraphs, although this time she precisely wanted to show a specific word. "Some form of Vitiligo, which means that you no longer have any... Uh... Melanin! That's the word. Still, for whatever reason, the skin of a vampire is even more sensitive to UV radiation... That's uh when then sun..."
"I know what UV means." Weiss interrupted her sharply.
"R-Right, so you'll more pale than usual. Just so you know." The redhead rubbed her neck at that. If she was being honest, ever since she met the girl, she was the same kind of pale, and that part doesn't happen so abruptly. The lack of melanin thing in your skin. "There's probably more in there, but those are the uh... Bigger things? I guess."
"This still can just be nonsense that doesn't affect me by a bit." Weiss shrugged and closed the file, placing it on Ruby's lap.
"That was just some information, theory, and such." It was Ruby's turn to shrug. "It would be hard to prove some of these, but there are at least two I can try to prove to you without needing much."
Weiss visibly leaned away, frowning. She was scared, Ruby knew that. Sadly it was a more... Primal fear. She was afraid of simple things, like pain. Weiss must have thought that she was about to do something horrible to her, maybe she remembered the pain of the medical procedures? Perhaps. "By doing what?"
"No, no! Don't worry, nothing bad." Ruby shook her head and raised her hands a bit. Weiss seemed to calm down a tiny bit, but Ruby still saw that the other girl was on the edge. Deciding that it was best to just show what she had in mind, Ruby stood up and moved towards her bag. She put the file back inside, and instead rummaged inside for a good bit, finally finding what she was looking for. A flashlight and a coin. "This is a UV light, and this is a silver coin. I think you understand where I'm going with this, right?"
As Weiss was looking at the two seemingly harmless objects, Ruby could see her fear being replaced. Not by something else, well, technically speaking not. No, her fear was just changing form. From the primitive form into a more... Advanced? How exactly did one classify types of fears? "Let's say I'll believe this is true. Even if I just think this is another trick. But let's just say I'll believe this weird test and all those odd pieces of information I just heard from you." Weiss took a deep breath. "What exactly will happen to me?"
"Ah... Well... " Ruby glanced to the side. "You'll be recruited to work with us. You know, become a huntress."
"I assume it's one of those deals I cannot refuse?" Weiss asked, lowering her head a bit to glance at the floor with a thoughtful expression.
"Y-Yeah, that's... That's how it is. I'm sorry." Ruby had to grasp the edges of her skirt. In a way, whenever she felt bad, there was always some form of physical contact from someone, mainly her sister. Hug in most cases. Yet she couldn't even muster as much as an offer to hug the other girl. Which didn't sit well with her, considering how miserable she always looked. Maybe once she accepts her new reality? Hopefully.
"So what, should I just take that coin into my hand?" Weiss asked as she moved her open palm towards Ruby.
"No, no! Anything but that. I mean, you could, but I'd rather do it in a way so you're... Uh, affected by it in the least way." Ruby shook her head grabbing the coin tighter as if afraid just the sight of it could harm the other girl.
"Is it really that bad?" Weiss grimaced at that.
"In a way? I'll just move the edge of the coin across your skin." Ruby grabbed the coin into her fingers. "Ready?"
"Wait! Wait... Will it... I mean..." Weiss paused before looking straight into Ruby's eyes. "Is it going to hurt?" Weiss visibly clenched her jaw and frowned as she asked that.
Ruby had to control herself not to show too much from her own expression. On the few occasions, they saw each other so far, it was rare for Weiss to look directly at her, especially like this. "It shouldn't." She shook her head. "But if anything appears on your skin, please don't touch it. I got some stuff for that, just in case."
Before Ruby could do anything further, Weiss had a request. "Touch yourself with it. The coin I mean. Your arm, hand, and even face. I want to make sure, as much as I can, that this isn't a trick." The white-haired girl was losing her composure for the first time... Well, not counting the time Ruby discovered her in that mansion. But this was the first time the stone facade has begun to crumble ever since she came to their crypt.
"Alright." Ruby took the coin and would move it across the back of her hand. First with the edge, then each side of the coin. She was slow and careful, she made sure that Weiss saw what she was doing and that she knew how much pressure she applied against the silver object. She repeated that with her arm after folding up her sleeve and finally against her own cheek. "Nothing, see?"
"I-I do. It's my turn, right?" Weiss asked, nervously glancing at the coin.
"Just fold your sleeve a bit. It won't take much. Just a smudge." Ruby said, for some reason feeling anxious herself. As if she expected for this to not work, as if the girl wasn't a vampire and it was all a misunderstanding. Was she anxious because of being hopeful that was the truth? Or was she afraid that the girl would be let go? An odd question to arise inside her head at a moment like that, yet it was still there, growing as Ruby waited for the girl to comply with her request.
"This is just a trick, a lie." Weiss muttered to herself as if to convince herself. Still, she did fold her sleeve a bit, revealing her wrist and part of her forearm.
"Here I go." Ruby warned Weiss before moving the coin closer to her skin. The other girl had to keep herself from moving her arm away. As the coin got closer, Ruby quickly moved the edge of the coin against the girl's skin. Weiss gasped at that and took her arm away, hugging it to herself. Still, even as all this happened, Ruby could see it. The red smudge that the coin left. "Don't touch it, you'll make it worse." Ruby warned the other girl.
Weiss slowly moved her arm away from her chest and glanced at it, so did Ruby. It was clear, it left a visible red mark on top of her skin. A clear skin irritation. "It's itching a bit." Weiss commented quietly.
Ruby smiled sheepishly at that. "That's fine, like I said I have a lotion for that and..."
"No, the light. I want to see what the light will do." Weiss said in a tone of voice that made Ruby worried. It sounded so... Dead. Unemotional.
Still, she followed with the request. She took the light, which had a purple color to it, and just like with the coin before, tried it on herself. On her hand, forearm and finally flashing it across her face. It was a tiny light, the smallest Ruby could find. Even before she was done with the presentation, Weiss exposed her other arm for the testing. The white-haired girl's expression turning to a blank one, which concerned Ruby even more than if the other girl decided to throw a tantrum or something similar. Just like before, she got the light source closer to her arm. "Here I go." She warned and turned the light on.
It didn't take more than a few seconds before the first signs could be seen, and Ruby decided to turn off the light as soon as that appeared. A red mark on the skin. Perhaps a different type, but Ruby wasn't a doctor to determine how much it differed from the previous one. What was important, was that it was proof enough. It had to be. "Anyway, as I said, those irritations on your skin are probably annoying you right now, so I got this lotion that can help with that." Ruby said, wanting to get a conversation going, more to hear the other girl's voice, as she just sat there looking like a statue.
"Leave it and go. Please." Weiss said in an empty voice.
"Ah, but..." Ruby began, but as Weiss raised her head to look at her, the redhead couldn't dare to finish her sentence. Weiss' eyes looked so dead at the moment. "Alright." She nodded and took the file from the other girl's lap. For a moment she wondered if she should ask if the girl wanted to check it out for something else, but... Well, she had a hunch that Weiss wasn't interested in her own medical history. As Ruby packed the things she came with, she placed the small glass bottle on the edge of the bed. "This is the lotion, just rub a little bit of it on the red marks." As there was no response from the other girl, Ruby took her bag and with a sigh, moved towards the door.
"Wait!" Weiss called out to her, and it startled Ruby. Not the voice itself, but the tone of her voice. It wasn't lifeless anymore, this time it felt urgent, afraid. "You have books here right? Could you... Bring a book? For me?"
Ruby blinked at that request. "Uh, sure?" She said as she turned around. "What kind?"
Weiss remained quiet for a long moment. "Something... Something about me."
Ruby's eyebrow rose at that, but she understood after a moment. "I will, I'll head to the library and bring it to you as soon as I can."
"Thank you." Weiss said quietly.
Reaching for the door handle, Ruby couldn't help but glance one more time over her shoulder. "Weiss? I'm... I'm sorry. For everything." Before she could hear any kind of response, she quickly left the room and closed it behind herself.
oooOOOooo
Leaving Weiss' room, Ruby let out a tired sigh as she began to walk down the corridor. "You know you don't have to take it like that from her." Once more, she was greeted by Blake's voice, who quickly caught up to walk beside her.
"It's not her fault. I know you're not too keen on the type of girl like her, but she's a victim. It's not her fault, she didn't choose to be born into her family, nor did she choose to become as she is." Ruby shook her head.
Blake didn't seem to be bothered by any of that, at least she didn't show it. "Why didn't you tease her about the blood? Make her feel the thirst for it or something? You know she'll have to drink sooner or later, right?" Blake's eyebrow raised at that.
"Because I don't want to scare her. I just... I don't know anymore, Blake." Ruby paused her walk and rested her back against one of the walls. "I'm tired, I'm not sure what to do or say, and the worst part?" She raised her eyes to focus them on the cat girl. "I have those... Short moments where I start wondering if it wouldn't be better to just... " She paused as her jaw clenched, her head lowering.
"Hey, none of that." Blake stepped closer and to Ruby's surprise, she pulled her into her embrace. "She might be a victim like you say, but none of it is your fault. You're trying to help."
Since it was rare for Blake to get touchy, Ruby decided to just enjoy the moment of closeness with her, as she hugged herself into the girl's embrace. Especially since Yang was most likely away already. "Still..."
"Ruby." Blake leaned away and Ruby could feel the other girl's hands on her cheeks, as she was forced to look into Blake's eyes. "I know it's hard, and it will be. It's also normal to have those moments of weakness. There isn't anyone who's always strong. Everyone has to have a moment of respite. You're doing great so far, and there's nothing more you could do to help this situation."
Ruby smiled at those words. While it didn't convince her that what she did was actually the correct thing, the fact that someone believed in her did make her feel better, even if a tiny bit. "Thanks, Blake, I guess I needed that from someone." She said and took a step back. She promised a book to someone.
"I'm not saying this to cheer you up. I'm saying this because it's the truth." Blake said, and Ruby couldn't help but chuckle at that. She believed that Blake only said what was on her mind. That's mostly how she and Yang got into their endless arguments over this or that.
"I know, Blake. Anyway, I'll make one more trip to the library. Thanks again, for everything." Ruby said and began to walk.
"Do you need any more help with that?" Blake called after her, which made the redhead stop.
"No... I'll deal with this myself." She answered. Perhaps it will take more time, but this is what Ruby needed right now. Some time alone.
Author's note 2:
So that happened. Anyway, the reason it took me so long to write this chapter, is mostly related to the uh... pseudoscience content of this story. Some research, and by research I mean spending hours on Wikipedia and Google, but most importantly wondering which parts of all that knowledge I got to insert into the story and which to keep out, at least temporarily. There was also the part that made me feel anxious about it. It's hard to make a mistake when you're trying to use terms you never used before and without anyone to explain it to you more than a Wikipedia article. Still, I tried and I decided it was good enough to keep. I just hope there isn't anyone educated in these things who would read this and feel offended. I did my best! I think.
In reality, there are a few other reasons, more personal, but I pushed through them. Let's just sum it up as laziness or something.
As for the shackles that I mentioned here, that was cut out from the first chapter. As in, I had them explained there, but decided it felt a bit... I don't know. The first chapter was supposed to be done in a specific way, to build up to something. Suddenly throwing buckets of odd exposition felt odd. I also couldn't find a way to place it in the second chapter, and since this here, the third chapter, is somehow made solely to explain a few things, I could finally put in that element.
LONG NOTE again because I ramble. While I don't think this was an exciting chapter, and while I know some people dislike "Supernatural science" and will turn this story down, I hope that some of you, good people reading this story, enjoyed this chapter. While I was and am extremely worried about the content of this here chapter, I had fun working on it.
Tell me what you thought about it, I'm curious to read it all.