Hold on to your feels, people.

Monday, September 28

POV: Ruby

Ruby smirked as she watched Yang flail around with a borrowed sword. Apparently, switching to fists and feet from a weapon was easier than going the other way. Ruby taught her sister some of the basics she learned from Uncle Qrow before she decided to switch to her massive scythe. She would have left that kind of teaching to Aaron, but he wasn't exactly reachable at the moment. Maybe Pyrrha would help. Percy could also help too, considering that Riptide is a sword.

Yang finished up a wild swing and nearly tossed the sword across the Dragonhouse. "Remind me why I have to do this again," she complained.

"If I have to learn fist fighting," Ruby began, "you have to learn how to fight with something other than Ember Celica."

Also, Nalia said from the other side of the blonde, all Riders before have fought with a sword. And I don't care how good you are, if you fight a swordsman with your fists, you're asking to get an arm cut off.

Yang shrugged. "My Aura and wards will protect me. It's not like anyone around has the chance of getting through either any time soon."

Nalia growled at Yang. You think that all you opponents will follow your tournament rules? The growl stayed with her mental voice. You should know better just by facing the Nevermores. What will happen when you face someone who has years more experience than you and wants to kill you? You will be lucky if you just lose an arm.

Ruby stared at the dragon, slightly scared. The last time she heard Nalia come close to that tone was when they were chasing the first Nevermore courier. None of the dragons had been the same since the egg was stolen. Nalia was the worst off. It was a toss-up on whether she was angry or extremely depressed. She hadn't so much as smiled since that one time after Ruby unlocked Cerise' Aura. That was two days ago.

Then again, Nalia didn't have her Rider for support. Aaron only left his room once per day for lunch. He didn't go to classes, he didn't show up for the normal magic lessons, and he didn't talk to anyone. Nalia said she couldn't even get a word out of him. Ruby tried everything she could think of to get Aaron out of his room, from pounding on his door to mental communication. Blake was distancing herself at the same time, and even she was worried about Aaron.

Yang shook her head and turned away. She fell into a defensive stance and once again attacked an invisible enemy. Halcyon watched his Rider intently, as did Ruby. Yang was slowly improving, but at the moment she could only take on Jaune. She had a long way to go before she could fight anyone else.

Ruby turned back and faced Cerise. We're falling apart here, she said. We need Aaron and Blake back to their old selves and we need to find that egg.

Cerise hummed sadly. We only have control over one of those at the moment.

Which one? Neither Aaron or Blake will talk to us and we have the entire planet to search for the egg. Ruby shook her head. I should have asked Velvet to help search. She could have covered an area we have no access to. At least someone might be looking for more than a few hours a day.

I have a feeling you are the only one who can get through to Aaron.

Ruby scoffed. The only one? What can I do that Nalia can't?

Cerise hesitated before continuing. You also had a traumatic experience recently. You are more likely than the rest of us to know what he's going through. Nalia's and my experience is second hand. No matter how many memories you share, it will always be your experience.

But how do I get through to him? If he's not talking to Nalia, why would he say anything to me?

He has to leave his room some time.

Corner him at lunch? Ruby shook her head. Too public. This is definitely not something that either of us want a lot of people knowing. She thought it over for a few seconds. I could do what Sun did and jump through Aaron's window.

Remember his reaction to that? It's probably not the best idea.

Ruby sighed. You're right. I'll think of something. She turned back to Yang, who wasn't flailing as much as she used to be with the actually looked like she could take down an Ursa. While most of her strikes were wide and left her open, they were strong, and would leave a defender struggling to hold back the blade. That was just practicing against air though, not a person "Would you like an opponent now?" Ruby called.

Yang finished a particularly vicious swing, then held her borrowed sword by her side. "Might as well," the blonde said. "Still pretty sure you'll still kick the crap out of me."

"Probably." Ruby pulled Crescent Rose out from behind her back. "Sometimes you have to lose to learn."

"Uncle Qrow?" Yang asked while moving her sword into a defensive position.

"Me after losing to Aaron I don't know how many times." Crescent Rose extended to its full length. "Now, your move Yang."

The blonde smirked. "Gladly." Yang ran at Ruby and swung her sword at Ruby's right shoulder. Ruby easily blocked the strike, but felt the strain on her left arm. The haft of her scythe was slowly being forced to the left side. Ruby pushed back with her right arm and hit Yang on the side of the head with the end of Crescent Rose. The older sister staggered a little, but recovered quickly. She smiled maliciously and raised her sword again.

This time, Ruby launched the attack. She swung her scythe around herself and at Yang's midsection. The older sister blocked it clumsily, and the attack continued to hit its mark. Yang lost her grip on her sword and she ended up flying across the floor of the Dragonhouse. Halcyon whimpered a little, but made no move toward his Rider. Ruby smiled and held her scythe loosely by her side. "Ruby: one, Yang: zero," she said confidently.

"If we're looking at the year as a whole," Yang started as she picked up her sword, "it's more like Ruby: nineteen, Yang: twenty-five."

"Technicalities." Ruby once again raised Crescent Rose. "You ready to go on?"

Yang dramatically swung her sword in front of her. "If that's the best you've got, I'm surprised a Grimm hasn't gotten you by now." Yang charged and Ruby smirked. That kind of banter stretched back before either of them attended Signal. Way back then, it was over board games or the occasional video game. Now they took verbal jabs at each other every time they sparred. The whole experience was nice for Ruby to take her mind off all the bad things that were going on.

Yang once again swung at Ruby. The younger sister easily caught the strike near the scope on her weapon. Yang could be stronger than an Ursa when determined or angry, and she was using that to her full advantage. Ruby pushed herself away and swung her scythe at her sister's hands. The blonde pulled away slightly, but not far enough to keep her weapon from being struck out of her hands.

Ruby stuck the business end of Crescent Rose about a foot away from Yang's face and smirked. The weapon wasn't loaded and the safety was on, otherwise she wouldn't do anything like that to anyone, Aura or not. "Another one for me!" She lowered her scythe and put a hand on her hip. "What happened? I thought you were a good fighter."

"Lucky shot," Yang scoffed as she retrieved her sword. "If I'm remembering right, you struggled when you first fought Aaron."

"True, but I got in more than one strike before being disarmed." Ruby chuckled a little bit, then turned semi serious. "You don't need a death grip on the hilt, but you need a stronger grip than that. Having either too strong of a grip or too loose and the hilt could cause some serious damage to your hands."

"Yeah, yeah." Yang shook her head like she was tired of hearing the same thing over and over. She raised her sword in front of her. "Your move airhead."

Ruby shrugged. "Just remember hothead, you asked for this." The sisters exchanged physical and verbal strikes for a while. Ruby won all their sparring matches, and Yang gradually increased the length of time she could last against her sister. Somewhere along the line, their dragons decided to have their own sparring matches. The Dragonhouse was filled with the sounds of growling dragons and clashing metal. If there was no soundproofing in the building, the occupants would find out soon.

Nalia silently watched over it all. From the small glances Ruby got of the green dragon during and in between bouts, she was slipping back into her light depression. She held her head high to keep an eye on both fights, but her eyes weren't focused and were half lidded. Her wings drooped to the point of creating a large green carpet around her.

As Ruby and Yang were setting up for a fifteenth match, Nalia's head shot to the side and she made a noise that sounded somewhere between a whimper and a hum. All fighting in the building halted as the large dragon left the Dragonhouse.

Yang walked over to her sister's side. "Think something's happened with Aaron?" she asked.

"Probably. Cerise made the same type of noise a few times when I was recovering." Ruby looked back at her dragon for confirmation.

Cerise hummed and blinked slowly. I believe Nalia finally got through to him. You might be able to do the same.

Ruby nodded, then folded up Crescent Rose. "I'm going to go see if I can finally talk to Aaron," she told Yang.

"What, I have to practice with a sword, but you don't have to practice without a weapon?" Yang put her hands on her hips.

"I would but," Ruby raised her bionic arm, "this thing gave me too much of an advantage already. I'm sure I could put you through a wall by accident."

"You have a point there. You'll need to get a punching bag or something."

"Or find out how to decrease the strength in these things myself. Weiss said I'm going to have to have them powered down for the tournament. It would be nice to know how it's done before then." Ruby looked at the small control panel on the inside of her arm. None of the buttons were labeled except for the power and eject buttons. She did not feel like experimenting on herself to find out that all the other buttons did. "Anyway, wish me luck. I'll need it."

Yang gave Ruby a thumbs up. "I'm seen what you can do for people. You'll do fine." Ruby nodded then left the Dragonhouse. For the first time since Cerise returned from her angry rampage, she wasn't glued to her Rider's side. Even though Ruby felt her dragon in her mind, she wished she had the extra support for the rest of the walk.

Ruby thought over what could actually be on Aaron's mind. Of course, all evidence pointed to him killing those four White Fang soldiers. He apparently told the rest of the team not to kill anyone when they rescued Ruby. If Aaron did kill them, he was forced to. Still, he said Alagaësia used the death penalty for more than just treason. If he came from a place like that, why was he so adverse to it?

Other than that, Ruby couldn't think of anything else that could crush Aaron so much. He was out of it before the egg was stolen, so that couldn't be the main cause. Just seeing the bodies wouldn't cause him to go off the deep end for three days either. He didn't act out at all when they freed those Faunus from that warehouse in the city. The one dead girl in there was innocent, and couldn't have hurt anyone. Even Blake could admit that some people in the White Fang could only be stopped by being killed. Take lives to save lives, but that couldn't make it any better.

Ruby entered her residence hall and walked straight for Aaron's room. As she got closer, she saw his door was slightly open. Still, she knocked lightly before pushing it open. "Aaron, you in here?" she asked. She looked around the room and saw no one inside. Ruby closed the door completely and walked three doors down to her own room. She opened the door, but only saw Weiss inside.

The heiress looked up from her textbook and took out one of her earbuds. "Need something?" she asked.

"Has Aaron stopped by here?" Ruby asked after a second's hesitation.

Weiss stared at her partner for a few seconds before answering. "He's out of his room?" Ruby simply nodded. "I haven't seen him, but Nalia did walk by a few minutes ago." Weiss gestured with her thumb

Ruby nodded. "What about Blake? She still in the library?"

"Yes." Weiss sighed. "We need to get our team back to full strength. Both of them are dragging us down."

"I'm working on it. Thanks for the help, Weiss." Ruby closed the door and walked in the direction her partner suggested. Aaron was out of his room somewhere, but he could be anywhere on campus. Ruby thought about searching for him with her mind, but she didn't want to scare him off.

Ruby walked up to the fourth floor and angled toward the balcony. She wanted to get a decent view at the campus, hopefully spotting Nalia and maybe Aaron. What she didn't expect was Aaron leaning on the balcony railing. He hadn't noticed Ruby but that could change. She walked over to the balcony herself and called out, "There you are. You've been hard to get a hold of the past few days."

Aaron turned to look at Ruby as she leaned against the railing. "I needed some fresh air and a change of scenery." He sounded like he hadn't slept in days.

"I take it you wanted to see her too?" Ruby looked down at the ground, where Nalia was curled up next to the building.

The other Rider locked eyes with his dragon, then sighed. "In case you haven't noticed Ruby, I'd rather be alone right now."

"You've been alone for three days. The only time anyone's seen you is during lunch. You haven't been to class during that time. Blake's being more sociable than you, and she's getting worse by the day."

Aaron finally looked Ruby in the eyes. Genuine concern hid behind layers of regret. "What's wrong with Blake?"

"This is what I'm talking about! You don't even know what's going on in your own team. Aaron, what's going on?"

He turned away. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"It physically hurt to talk about my imprisonment," Ruby looked back down at the ground, "but I'm glad I did. It's a weight off my shoulders, and it let everyone know what was going on and what I went through. I don't have to carry it alone." She turned back to Aaron. "I will swear not to tell anyone if you want me to."

Aaron sighed. "That won't be necessary." He started speaking in the Ancient Language. Ruby didn't know all of what he was saying, but she caught a few words regarding silence and distance. He stopped speaking, and suddenly a nearly invisible bubble formed around the two Riders. The only reason Ruby saw it was the small ripples in the air that formed after Aaron finished casting the spell.

"Have you ever killed anyone, Ruby?" he asked solemnly.

Ruby's heart fell into her stomach. "Those White Fang soldiers?"

Aaron nodded. "More than them." He took his arms out of his jacket and it fell to the ground. Then he rolled up the left sleeve of his shirt. Ruby tried to suppress a gasp, but failed. Several scars lined the upper part of Aaron's arm. Most were parallel, but two made a large ragged V. "Almost all of these scars represent one life I've stolen. Whether by blade, arrow, or some other action, I've killed them. I called my sword Redemption as if I could redeem myself from my crimes as a child. Now I realize the irony in the name."

Ruby couldn't speak for several seconds. Those weren't his first kills? He was only fifteen, and he already killed more people than most soldiers, police, and Huntsmen ever will. "Th-they all had to be justified," she eventually got out.

The other Rider shook his head, then looked down at the ground. "The first five. Four slavers I caught just outside the city of Dras-Leona. The fifth…" tears ran down Aaron's cheeks, "the fifth was a woman they kidnapped from her home. They slit her throat because I didn't act, because I didn't want to fight."

Utterly shocked, Ruby covered her mouth with a hand and fought back tears. "Three of the next four were soldiers that were assigned to back me up that got killed. Slain by another magician that I couldn't stop because I couldn't assault his mind. I ended up getting him the old fashioned way, but it was too late."

Aaron clenched his teary eyes and tightened his grip on the stone railing. "Then Galbatorix betrayed us. Him and thirteen other pairs killed hundreds of us, because we were too arrogant to see it coming." He paused and wiped some of the tears off his face. "All eggs but the three I brought were shattered. Only two dragons survived outside of the Forsworn, Nalia being one of them. The other, one of our former teachers, Glaedr, but he can't fight anymore."

Ruby found herself fighting between rage and sadness like Nalia the past few days. Her little Cerise was one of less than twenty left alive, and the only egg left was missing. Dragons were in extreme danger of going extinct. Only one friendly dragon on the other side could possibly help. She looked at the scars on Aaron's arm. Three more were still unaccounted for.

"Then one of my old friends hurt me even more while Nalia and I were hiding," Aaron whispered as he curled a hand into a fist. "We were the only pair unaccounted for after the battle. Once Galbatorix took over, he ordered that my family to be killed if we didn't turn ourselves in. Three months later…" his voice cracked and stayed silent for a few seconds, "three months later an elf courier came to me and swore to me that my parents and my three year old sister were killed by Kialandí, one of my closest friends before he joined Galbatorix. Their heads were hung on spikes in the center of Teirm. From then on, we had no contact with anyone from Alagaësia."

Ruby stood silent for several seconds. Aaron never said anything before about a sister. Dying that way so young...tears now ran unabated down Ruby's face. She hesitantly approached Aaron and threw her arms around him. He tensed up for a few seconds. He eventually loosened, but he didn't return the hug. "I got off easy," Ruby said softly. "I won't even pretend to know what you're going through, or have been through. I am so sorry."

"All that is why I haven't instructed you or Yang how to commune with nature." Ruby pulled away and looked at Aaron with confusion. "The elves and Riders can communicate with animals and plants. I'm not sure if you've noticed, but all animals have their own thoughts and urges. It's a wonderful thing to experience, but it makes our job ten times harder. It is utter agony when you're in the head of someone as they die, human, animal, or plant. Everything and everyone has their own hopes and dreams. Once you feel that, it's hard to fight, even harder to kill."

Aaron paused again. "It's all taken its toll. After I took the lives of the first five, I tried to take my own." Ruby gasped and froze in place. She couldn't even cover her mouth. Nalia hummed sadly from the ground. "I couldn't take it. I was in the woman's mind as she died. I could only get one word out of her: why? I couldn't take it. I didn't think I deserved to live. I was about to run myself through when Nalia knocked my sword out of my hand. She grabbed me in her claws and flew me to the coast. She kept me pinned to the ground for over a day before a search party came for us.

"After my family was killed, neither Nalia nor I felt we had anything to live for. I was in the worst shape though. Before I drew my sword, Nalia asked me to kill her first. I swear it was a strategy. She knew I couldn't do it, and if I could, I wouldn't be far behind."

Ruby took in a big breath, after forgetting to breathe through Aaron's explanation. As she was figuring out what to say, Aaron drew a long knife out of his jacket. "This is the only blade to taste my blood. Never during training, never on the streets of Teirm. It makes sure I remember their faces. I hate this thing, but I have to carry it."

Resolve took over Ruby and she pointed her natural hand at the blade. "Jierda," she said, and the knife obediently shattered. Aaron looked over at Ruby, an uncertain look in his eyes. "You won't be needing that anymore."

Aaron sighed. "I'll just find another one. They aren't hard to-"

"No, you won't," Ruby said confidently in the Ancient Language. "You weren't killing just for the heck of it. You were saving lives. Stop focusing on those who you actually killed. Focus on the lives you saved. Think about those lives you've made better just by being you."

"What about those who died because of my inaction or inability to act?" Aaron was growing angry, and at the moment, that was better than depressed.

"You didn't kill that woman, those slavers did. I'm sure those monsters would have done the same thing to many more people if you didn't step in."

Aaron shook his head. "She was still my responsibility, and I let her and her family down."

"You can't win everything. There will be times when everything is stacked against you, but you still have to keep fighting." As Ruby talked, she realized she might as well be speaking to herself.

"My decisions get people hurt. They always have. The two times I've lead a mission, people got killed and seriously injured." Aaron looked sadly at Ruby. "Every time I look at you, it's a reminder of how I've failed. You, and so many others who were killed or injured when I was supposed to protect them. I'm a failure as a leader."

Ruby raised her bionic arm, quickly removed the glove and rolled up her sleeve. At the moment, she didn't care who saw. "This is not your fault. None of these things are your fault. You aren't the only one to lose people on a mission either, and any commander worth anything hates losing anybody. Even General Ironwood isn't that cold. There are some situations where you don't make any mistakes and still lose." She paused. "I am terrified every time the team leaves Beacon, mission or otherwise, that one or more of us won't come back, whether it's my mistake or not. You wouldn't know anything before, but it's only gotten worse since I was kidnapped."

Aaron shook his head. "How didn't I kill my family though? If I turned myself in, they would still be alive."

"And you and Nalia wouldn't be. Cerise, Halcyon, and the last egg would be in the hands of a madman. You didn't kill them. Kialandí and Galbatorix did. You aren't the only one on the team to lose family either. Yang's mom left her early on, and we both lost mine. We at least have some idea about what you're dealing with."

"Still, they're gone. You practically confirmed that they're dead because of me."

Ruby reached up and touched one of the pins on her hood. "They're in a better place now, away from Galbatorix."

Aaron stared at Ruby skeptically. She could practically see the gears turning behind the other Rider's eyes. "So that's where you and Yang disappear to every Sunday." Aaron shook his head. "How can you think any of that is real after what's been done to you and everything else in the world?"

"I don't think, I know." Ruby temporarily switched to the Ancient Language. Aaron blinked his eyes in surprise. "I can't remember everything that happened when I was captured, but I know it helped me carry on until you came for me."

Aaron sighed and shook his head again. "You believe what you will. I'll choose to remain neutral on the subject."

Once again, Ruby hugged Aaron. This time, there was no tension. "Aaron, you aren't a bad guy. From what you've said, you only fight when you have to. It's not a bad thing to feel guilty about it. I'd be worried if you didn't. You don't have to fight this alone. We're all here for you." She pulled away. "When you're ready to rejoin society, come find us."

Ruby turned around and started walking away from the balcony. As she was about to put the one glove back on, she saw several students standing in the doorway. All of them stared at Ruby's bionic arm. She really didn't know any of them, but they still knew, and would most likely talk.

For a second, Ruby froze in fear. She looked down at the fake hand and the empty glove. She wasn't trying to hide the limb itself, but what made the arm, leg, and eye necessary. It had been a decent time since she was kidnapped and very few would be able to connect the dots. Still, a few people would, and she would be known as someone who couldn't stop a few kidnappers. She didn't care about her image like Weiss or Yang, but she did care if people trusted her in the field. That would fall off once word got out.

Ruby quickly put her glove back on and rolled down her sleeve. She walked past the small group without looking at any of them. Still, she felt their eyes on her back all the way down the hall. She felt good for finally being able to talk with Aaron, but for the first time in a while, Ruby felt vulnerable.

POV: Aaron

Aaron watched Ruby walk through the door back into the residence hall. The students just inside watched the young girl too. They whispered amongst themselves and pointed fingers down the hall. The Rider frowned, picked up his jacket, and walked over to the doorway. "Figured I should let you know," he said in a friendly voice, "if you tell anyone what you saw, you will have three very angry dragons after you, as well as her sister." Aaron walked past the group and into the building himself.

That wasn't very nice, Nalia teased. They might not have talked.

I couldn't take that chance. Aaron paused. It's good to hear your voice again.

Nalia mentally hummed. I missed yours as well. Please don't shut me out like that again.

I owe you at least one scale cleaning after that. Aaron looked down in the direction Nalia lay. I left you alone when you needed support.

Neither spoke for a few seconds. Losing the egg wasn't your fault either. Like Ruby said, sometimes you can make no mistakes and still lose.

But there I did. No magical protection? Aaron shook his head. I should have known that the locks on the doors weren't enough. Even though I don't understand them doesn't mean others don't.

Whoever it was, they knew what they were doing. Nalia let a growl slip into her voice. They left no scent, and no tracks.

You thinking Black Queen?

Nalia hesitated. It's possible, but it's too early to say. On the same subject, have you thought about Ironwood's offer yet?

Aaron sighed and shook his head. I think we have to. We can do so much more than normal Atlas forces. If the Black Queen is in Vale, we have the best chance of catching her. He walked by the main team RWBY dorm and heard Ruby laughing at something inside. Aaron smiled and kept on walking. There's a lot more to her than she lets on.

I knew she was capable. Nalia sent her approval. She didn't say anything wrong, and you needed all of it.

Maybe I did. Aaron opened the door to his room and walked in. He retrieved the scroll that Ironwood gave him for direct contact. Well, let's get this over with.

Well, there's the energy dagger to the heart, now time to remove it and apply bio-foam.