"Stay with me."
Ruby loved that voice, but the words continued to haunt her each time she awoke without Kirakishou nearby. They haunted her like a discordant lullaby, urging her awake rather than lulling her to sleep. Each time she would feel her heart hammer painfully within the confines of her chest.
But what exactly was it? A repeating dream? A forgotten memory? None of which made sense to her whatsoever. Why would she be dreaming about her girlfriend's voice when she's surrounded by it all the time? It wasn't as if she was missing the doll after some excessively long time spent apart or anything. Nor had she spent nearly enough time with Kirakishou to have forgotten anything important about her.
So, why was the dream occurring?
Worse still, it only occurred when she was away from the doll. On the nights when she was able to sneak away from her teammates and get into Kirakishou's room undetected, on the following morning she would awaken peacefully and without incident. Albeit clutching the doll like a lifeline, usually in some embarrassing manner that had the doll blushing profusely at their closeness and whispering sweet words in her ear.
Ruby both loved and hated those moments for what they did to her body. She wanted the doll. More than she should. More than she's ever wanted anything before. She craved to hear that voice speak her name, to feel the doll's hands greedily pawing at her back and pulling her close.
To feel the doll's lips against her own. To feel the ring of their contract buzz with energy. To feel her body tingle with desire and to share it with the woman who loved her.
Desire was a new experience for Ruby. Physical desire, at least. From what she used to hear from her friends back in Patch and a few of the upper years, they all had spoken about needs like that. Cravings. But she had never felt them. Not in particular. Most of her needs had felt almost muted ever since the time long ago where she had misunderstood the intentions of a certain boy and almost ruined her huntress career before it even started.
Ever since that time, she hadn't felt the need to be close with anyone. What was the point? She was just a silly girl from Patch that didn't understand how people worked. Why would anyone want to get close to her? So, what was the point in even considering the possibility? Why should Ruby open herself up to the hope of finding love, when she'd inevitably just misunderstand everything and lose the people she cared about?
She had resolved to take things as they were. Complete Patch. Complete her upper huntsman academy- whatever it turned out to be. Become a huntress. Slay grimm and kick butt. Perhaps own a dog or something, or like twenty cats.
It had been a simple life that Ruby had been aiming for originally. In honour of her mother's sacrifice she would follow in Summer's footsteps and become a huntress to defend the people of Remnant from the creatures of grimm- even if it meant to live such a life alone.
And then, Kirakishou had arrived and she had fallen for the girl with all the force of a lead scythe blade attachment being pushed off a damnable mountain. Now, Ruby was being forced to reconsider the possibility of feeling desire. Of feeling love.
Of craving another. And it frightened her.
But, oh how she craved that stupid beautiful doll. Every cell inside her knew that they were meant to be together. The golden ring laying on her wedding finger cemented that idea deep within her mind. It was exactly the fairy-tale romance that Ruby had once dreamed about when she was nothing but a naive child from Patch that hadn't experienced the world.
Knock knock knock.
She didn't hesitate. Not anymore. It… it also helped that the guards were mysteriously absent as well. But mostly it was because she was a strong girl.
"Ruby?"
There would have been a time where her resolve would have faltered upon hearing the confusion apparent in the doll's sleepy voice. Despite answering instantly, Kirakishou was clearly unsure as to why she was knocking on her door in the middle of the night.
Likely because in the times that Ruby wanted to sneak in, she would simply open the door and snuggle up with Kirakishou. The doll hadn't ever bothered to lock her door before. Whilst she had wanted to reprimand her for blatantly refusing to do something as simple a lock a door, a part of Ruby had enjoyed the sensation of sneaking into Kirakishou's room and surprising the doll in the morning.
"Can I come in?"
Once situated inside the doll's small dorm room, Ruby took the time to look around. Following her last visit there had been a new addition in the form of an ornate mirror on one side, trimmed with a unique golden bevel that had been stylised with golden roses and vines. It seemed particular old, bordering on an ornate piece that wouldn't seem out of place in a museum rather than a girl's dorm room.
From the bed Kirakishou appeared to be observing her. She was wearing her frilled white pyjamas as Ruby had seen the doll wearing previously, whilst her hair had been returned to its usual loose format.
She sat beside the doll, close enough that their hips were touching.
"...You didn't come to visit me in the infirmary, you know."
"I know." Kirakishou moved to rest her head against Ruby's shoulder, "I was not allowed. Following the incident with Laplace-no-ma I was-"
Ruby interrupted with a low voice. "Taken back to your room, I know." the doll flinched at her hard tone, causing a degree of grief to briefly flow through her. "But you could have come using your vine thing, like you did when we all were setting up for the dance."
"Would you have wanted that at such a time, dear rose?" a hand touched hers, soft and
cold. The hand of a doll. An artificial being. "You were surrounded by the people you love." The answer came without pause.
"I love you, Kira. Of course I would have wanted you there."
Ruby slumped back on the bed, resting her back against the soft mattress in the hopes of it pushing away all of her horrible feelings. Her mind had been a mess ever since Laplace had showed its face- the actions of her teammates had only added fuel to the fire, so to speak. She didn't know what to think anymore.
The doll followed her movements, laying down next to her and snuggling up next to Ruby's shoulder. Their position was a little awkward with their legs hanging loosely off the bed itself.
"You have me now, love." Kirakishou shook her head, a giggle escaping her. "Besides, my appearance during your talk with your friends would have served only to escalate the conflict in their hearts. Neither you nor I wish for such a thing to occur, my love."
"...So you know what we all talked about in the hospital. About you and the ring you gave me."
It didn't come as much of a surprise to Ruby that Kirakishou had somehow overheard what Ruby had confessed to hear teammates about the entire situation with the doll. A large part of her had been secretly hoping that the doll would suddenly appear through the speech to refute Weiss and Yang's declarations before reassuring her own troubled self with a kiss.
But Kirakishou had never came.
"Of course, my love. They do not trust me. They fear for you, and what your potential involvement in the Alice Game may bring- even if they know not of the game itself. They choose to fear what they do not understand, because they understand you. They are true friends. So I did what was necessary to view and hear. Nothing more."
Ruby supposed that Kirakishou's words should have been reassuring, but they sounded so empty. So devoid, as if the doll was only repeating the right words without any inflection.
"A-And, would that mean that you know about my talk with Ironwood too? After he interrupted us dancing?"
The doll was giggling even whilst she spoke, her artificial body shaking on the bed seemingly at the very notion of her question itself. A breath of relief escaped her at the sound. She never wanted to see the doll appear so cold again.
"Darling reaper, I've known every word that you've spoken ever since we bonded. You needn't concern yourself with relaying information to a pure white rose- she will always be growing underneath your silver light."
Tentatively, she grabbed Kirakishou's hand of her own volition.
"I'm scared, Kira." Ruby confessed, turning to her side to stare at the doll's face. "No, not just scared. Frightened. Laplace wasn't just trying to hurt me. It was trying to kill me. I've never had someone trying to kill me before."
"You shouldn't have been forced to deal with such an event, my love." Kirakishou muttered lowly, staring up at the ceiling. "Had I the power I would remake the world in your image, so you would never have to experience Laplace and its mad desire to complete a man's foolish dream."
Ruby laughed. If only things were so simple.
"I was mad at it, Kira. It killed my mom. I realised that when you told me how it manipulated things before dad came in to tell me what had happened. You knew what happened to mom and you tried to warn me in your own way. I-I thought I understand your phrases, but as the time I needed it most, I failed. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. When the time came I just… I snapped."
Kirakishou remained silent, so she opted to continue speaking.
"Laplace tried to take you away from me too, Kira. I was so mad. So angry. I've never felt so upset before. I-I mean I've had times when I've been really upset at Yang, especially for all the ways she acts around you, but when it came to Laplace I could barely control myself."
When Kirakishou did opt to speak, her voice was small, enough where she had to strain her ears to even hear the words even during the relative silence of the night. "You sound frightened. Are you still scared, Ruby?"
The question was a simple one, coming from a simple girl that just wanted to help her. A small part of her wondered about what Kirakishou was asking that she was even feeling scared about in the first place. Laplace? Herself? Yang? Her feelings? It was hard to tell exactly how she even felt anymore.
"I-I don't know." the idea scared her more than she ever thought to imagine. "There are some days where I can't even recognise myself anymore. Events are spiralling out of control. Torchwick, Laplace, even Ironwood and this Vytal festival. I can't recognise how even I'm feeling sometimes. Everything is just so… so different. So wrong. All I really know is that when I'm with you… I feel…"
Kirakishou turned to her. There was no smile on her face for the first time in a long time- only idle curiosity. "What do you feel?"
Instead of replying verbally, she pushed forward with as much force as she could manage with the brief stranglehold over her emotions at the time. Lips met in a frenzied kiss as Ruby attempted to push forth all the feelings that she had been struggling to come to terms with over the past few months.
An arm slid around her frame, shifting Ruby closer to the Rozen Maiden. In turn, she too pulled the doll as close to her body as it would allow in this position.
Hunger flooded her very bones. A deep, primordial part of her being that would not leave her be in peace. Ruby was so, utterly, hungry. She needed the attentions of this doll- the
one thing in her life that remained even remotely stable in the face of monsters and betrayers.
She pulled back, not out of some delusional need for oxygen but a great desire to speak.
"They are scared of you, Kira." she found herself purring the words, even as she shifted her position to crawl atop Kirakishou's small frame. "They are scared of your potential. They are scared of your past. They all are. But I'm not scared of you. Not at all." she giggled. It sounded remarkably similar to the bell-like giggles that she would hear from Kirakishou, albeit distorted by her own scratchy voice. "Y-You know, you're probably the only thing in the world that doesn't scare me right now. I should be worried about that, but I'm not."
"R-Ruby…" Kirakishou muttered, there were tears escaping from her single working eye, sliding down her cheek and onto the bed below. The vines that grew from the rose occupying her right eye socket were shifting in random movements, seemingly in response to Kirakishou's emotions.
The sheer fact that Kirakishou's right eye socket contained a flower with functioning, living vines should have been concerning to Ruby. It should have prompted about a million questions about her anatomy and how Rozen Maidens operate.
But not a single question dared escape her.
"It's true." deftly, she darted down and pecked her lips against the doll's before pulling up and grinning at the dazed look on the woman below her. "You're the one. The only person that makes me feel this way. I had shut myself off from the world before you and, somehow, you still found a way through to me. Even if I have to watch my entire life crumble down around me for loving you, it is still without a doubt the best thing that's ever happened to me. You and only you."
"Do you really mean that?" Kirakishou asked. She looked vulnerable, almost. Uncharacteristically shy in the face of her intensity, trapped beneath Ruby's body and captured by her arms. "Is a little doll the only one you feel for?"
"You are." she ground her hips, a low-pitched keening sound escaping her throat at the pleasant sensation that ran through her lower half. "I look around and I see other people. Heroes, those who try to fight for the world. You know, my type. But there's nothing. No reaction at all. But when I see you… I need you. I feel like I'm burning up inside and all that I want is you."
Kirakishou gasped a little, her cheeks darkening as she went to move her head away from Ruby is a display of embarrassment. But she wouldn't give the doll the opportunity to retreat, instead opting to firmly grasp the doll's chin before darting forward into a kiss before the doll could think to stop her.
When she retreated Kirakishou was still blushing, but she wasn't looking away.
No. Instead the doll's lone slit amber eye was focused on her- her and her alone. Nobody else. Ruby wouldn't deny that the experience was empowering to a degree, the little girl from Patch seemingly captivating a beautiful doll who held enough strength to probably throw her around like it was nothing.
And for all her strength, Kirakishou was held under her body. It was beautiful.
"I'm changing, Kira." Ruby admitted after a moment, her voice low. "I can feel it. I don't know whether it's your doing or whether it's the Rozen Maiden contract or Laplace or even something else… all I know is that I want it. I want to change, even if it frightens me. I want to be the person I'm becoming, if it means that I get to be with you."
The doll opted not to reply verbally. Instead, Ruby noticed that her eye seemed a tad wide and her mouth was agape. She was surprised. Ruby doubted that she had ever seen the doll downright surprised by her actions. Startled, maybe, but never confused in such an utter manner before.
"Laplace wasn't the first to cause this, in case you're wondering." she continued when the blonde doll remained silent. If only to assuage any concerns that Kirakishou may be having about her potential wellbeing. "I-It was a frightening experience, yes, but I was already a bit like this when I was young. I was… a bit possessive. I wanted someone that would stay with me forever."
"Forever." Kirakishou repeated, lowly. There was an odd lilt in her voice that most certainly should have put Ruby on edge, but instead served only to heighten the fire in her heart.
She nodded enthusiastically, mimicking Kirakishou's tone as best as possible. "Forever. I wanted someone that would love me. They wouldn't just see me as a little girl with a big scythe, but as an actual person with hopes and dreams. They would be there for me when I cried and they would laugh with me whenever we did something silly. I-I have spent far too much of my life believing that I'd never be able to find someone like that. But just look at me now. You came and you made me love you, Kira."
"I made you love me." Kirakishou repeated. She paused a little, looking almost surprised with herself before giggling. It sounded wonderful to her ears. "I made you love me because I loved you. You, the girl that would seek to selflessly bond herself to a broken little doll that had once believed that she had lost the one person who could fix her." she moved to grasp Ruby's hand, her left hand that held the contract ring. "You taught me of the strength of huntsmen and huntresses- the strength of their aura. You taught me that, above all else, Ruby Rose is the one who can fix me."
Ruby sniffled. She didn't want to in fear of ruining the moment, but she couldn't stop it. Her eyes were getting blurry and she felt like her throat was going to tense up with all the emotion clogging through her at the moment.
"Y-You stupid little doll…" she muttered, wiping her tears away. "You were never broken in the first place. Whoever told you that is a liar. You were just… just lonely. All you needed was someone to be there for you."
In an instant the doll had pulled her down, into a fiery kiss. She found herself humming in appreciation as she felt Kirakishou's artificial jointed hands running up her pyjama shirt to cradle her blushing cheeks. When the moment seized and their lips parted, there was an intensity held within Kirakishou's singular eye that took even Ruby by surprise.
"Ruby." Kirakishou whispered, her lips tantalisingly close to Ruby's own. "I wish to show
you something important. Close your eyes."
Shivering in anticipation, the young huntress-in-training obeyed without hesitation. When a certain touch she had been desiring did not arrive Ruby went to open her eyes but found herself seemingly unable to move a single muscle. Alarm gripped her body in an instant.
In the direction of the mirror that Ruby had spotted earlier, her ears could vaguely identify the sound of Kirakishou's twisting vines moving about and stretching before a sudden silence overwhelmed her senses entirely. She found herself instantly made aware of the sharp breaths she was taking and the pounding of her heartbeat.
"Open your eyes."
A gasp tore itself from her lungs as control over her body was seemingly returned to her as quickly as it had left in the first place. Her eyes widened in surprise as a seemingly complex net of vines encompassing a featureless black backdrop greeted her, instead of the warm and inviting dorm room that she had previously been situated in. There were no walls covered in Beacon's particularly bland plaster, no windows overlooking a starry night, no carpeted floors.
It was completely empty at first viewing, sans the white rose vines. Almost as if she had never opened her eyes at all.
"Welcome, my precious rose, welcome to my little reading room. I do so hope you enjoy this place, for none have ever set foot inside excluding my pure self."
Despite Kirakishou's proclamation there was something familiar about this place to Ruby. It was almost as if she had been here before, even though she had no memory of this place whatsoever. It reminded her of some long forgotten sensation, desperately trying to scrape itself into the forefront of her mind with all the gracefulness of a high-velocity dust round in a pottery shop.
She glanced over to the side in search of the doll's voice. Kirakishou was laying beside her in a position similar to how they had been together before, albeit without her legs dangling over the side of the bed this time. They both seemed to be laying on a web of some kind, crafted from multiple white rose vines conjoined together in an erratic pattern that stretched on for as far as her eyes could see.
Unbidden, a memory assaulted her mind. It had been the time she had awoken in Kirakishou's room after falling asleep with the doll atop one of Beacon's dormitory balconies. The doll had been muttering something in her sleep that Ruby had dismissed at the time as part of an errant dream.
...I'm sure you must be weary, soaring up so high…
What shall I do, to prove the warm affection I've always felt for you?
The words had seemed so innocent at the time. A dream belonging to the girl she had been rapidly falling in love with. Now, that Ruby was beginning to realise everything that Kirakishou had done for her, the words took on a new meaning.
Proving your warm affection…
How far had the doll gone, to prove how much she cares for Ruby? How far would she continue to go, in order to show how much she cares? The idea warmed her heart nearly as much as it concerned her mind.
After all, the world had not reacted positively to Kirakishou's little displays in the past. The sheer thought alone shouldn't excite her body as much as it does.
"Come, little Ruby. Let me hold you between the petals of my rose. It is beautiful, is it not?" Kirakishou giggled into her ear, adjusting on the vine-like web with a gracefulness that indicated the doll had been in this room a great many times to be so confident. "...will you rest upon my little nest? Will you lay with your doll? Play with her on this little bed of webs?"
"I-I-It's very beautiful…" Ruby stammered in as placating a tone as she could manage at the given time, "But… Kirakishou… what is this place? Where are we? What happened? I-I don't understand..."
A soft tinkling laughter escaped the peach-blonde doll. She pulled Ruby flush against her body, ignoring Ruby's squeak of surprise as her body deftly struggled not to fall. Ruby was most certainly not a fan of heights. Especially not without her Crescent Rose to limit her velocity were she to fall.
"You may think of this as the N-Field, little Ruby. Or, in the very least a small part of it. Tonight it shall be a treat for us to gorge upon together."
That title. She had heard that title before. The N-Field. Vague mentions and recollections dating back to a few random interactions with Kirakishou and others concerning her doll.
...Now, I was lenient with your branching of the N-Field, but your recent actions have gone too far for even me to allow...
Laplace had spoken those words to Kirakishou when the doll had found Ruby fighting against the depraved creature outside of the transmit tower in Vale. The concept had been described as branching. Growing, in other words. Did it meant that there were other places in the N-Field? Were they all like this? Pitch black, yet covered in white vines?
"Rozen Maiden are able to pull their mediums into the N-Field." Kirakishou went on to explain, her voice sounding distant as if reciting some long-forgotten words. "The N-Field is a unique metaphysical plane of existence closely tied to the psyche of human minds. An intermingling of dream and memory."
"T-That…" Ruby was at a loss for words. It was so utterly beyond anything she had ever heard of before in her life. Had Kirakishou truly possessed such a wild ability all along? Considering that she mentioned Rozen Maiden as a whole it implied that all of her sisters were able to pull their contracted mediums inside the N-Field as well.
How had the world not heard of this?!
"You seem overwhelmed…" Kirakishou muttered, poking her cheek curiously. "...I hope this isn't too alarming for you, master. It is a part of your pale white rose that she has long since wished to share with her beloved reaper."
"N-No! It's fine! Really!" Ruby answered as she tried to smooth the waters in response to the doll's worried expression, "It's just a little bit surprising for me. I didn't know you were capable of all of this, ya'know? I mean, you have your vines and Rosary and the thing you did with mom…"
"They are all extracts from the same power, little Ruby." Kirakishou gazed up into the empty sky, looking off into the distance. "All Rozen Maiden possess but a single power. In some degree of similarity to the semblances of hunters and huntresses, one would suppose. Much like how a semblance of rose petals can be used to both evade and land strikes in battle, a Rozen Maiden's power can become equally versatile."
"So it's all just part of your N-Field? That's what you mean? Your power is the N-Field?"
Kirakishou let out a low delicate murmur, before faintly shaking her head. "Close. The N-Field is a complete concept for most- to claim dominion over a concept would be rather vain, would it not? The power of the seventh Rozen Maiden is to materialise the N-Field. My control over the N-Field extends to both the immaterial and the material planes. Through my white rose vines, two worlds may blend together."
Ruby squirmed in embarrassment, wringing her arms. "Um… I'm a little lost…"
"Then follow my gaze and look up, little Rose. You will see."
Reflexively her eyes followed Kirakishou's direction and she found herself looking up not at a pool of blackness overgrown with vines, but a large white cloud that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. She was certain that it had not been there mere moments ago.
"W-What… where did they-"
"Come from?" Kirakishou finished for her, mewling softly as she snuggled against Ruby's trembling frame. "They were always there, my love- you needed only open your mind to the possibility of their existence." she answered.
That… didn't help in the slightest.
"Wait. They?" Ruby parroted, blinking. "There's only one cloud."
Kirakishou grabbed one of her hands. The action alone felt startling enough to almost make Ruby let out a gasp. Even in this dark void, her doll's hands were so cold.
"As your familiarity with the N-Field continues to expand, you may perceive multiple clouds. In this instance, however, your heart has led you to a singular moment in time. A singular reflection of the world. But first, little Ruby, tell your doll what your eyes divine when you gaze upon the… cloud. What is held within? What does your heart desire to view?"
Squinting, she tried to focus on the cloud. It was awfully far away. "White… it's, um, fluffy? B-But, there's something… something inside…" her voice trailed off as words seemingly failed her.
Darkness encroached the centre of the cloud, flickering and distorting before a series of colours began growing out before forming into a single image-
"T-That's Uncle Qrow!" Ruby gasped, eyes widening in alarm. She could see Qrow, confined to a hospital bed. It had been the same hospital she was in- the Beacon Academy infirmary. Qrow must have been transferred there shortly after she had departed, or she hadn't realised that he had been in a separate room all along. There was a heart monitor attached to his body, pulsing in a steady rhythm.
...Wait… pulsing…? It's moving?
"T-This isn't just an image, is it?"
Kirakishou shook her head. "It is much more than a simple image." she idly flicked a hand and the cloud hurdled closer to them. Where once Ruby had been forced to squint to get a good look at the small little cloud, suddenly she was practically pressed up against it and viewing it almost like a mirror. "Reflective objects are easily linked to the N-Field. A mirror, the surface of a pool of water, someone's closed eyes."
Her mind quickly put two and two together and realised that they were viewing Qrow's hospital room through a glass partition- similar to the one that Kirakishou had crawled out of following Ruby's fight with Emerald and Mercury.
...Is this how she did it? Ruby wondered distantly. Did she have to come here, then somehow pierce through the cloud? Could I do it too?
"B-But, nothing reflects when your eyes are closed..."
Putting a hand to the cloud, she felt that it was quite solid- resisting her prodding entirely. Kirakishou giggled at her movements.
"Your eyes need to be closed, in order to reflect dreams." the doll answered, a faraway tone in her voice. "But dreams are not what we seek in this singular instance- we seek only to view this small section of Remnant. Your Uncle Qrow is to be expecting visitors, you see. We are not the only ones who aim to see Qrow Branwen this night."
"Visitors?" Ruby asked, confused. "Who? Yang?"
"Hmmm…" Kirakishou smiled lowly, nuzzling against her body. "If my little reaper is curious, why doesn't she continue to watch..?"
He's so still… It's like he's hardly there.
The first thing that Ruby noticed upon seeing her Uncle's downtrodden form was the stillness of his body. Were it not for the heart monitor constantly ticking away in the background, she would have assumed the worst. It would have been fitting for a monster like Laplace to not only take away one family member- but to leave behind a second corpse in its wake.
Witnessing Qrow alive, if only unconscious, was a blessing that she would forever treasure in her heart. Following her release from the infirmary in the dead of night, Ruby had all but
raced towards Kirakishou's room in the hopes of speaking with the doll and confronting her about her feelings about Laplace and what Ruby's friends thought about her. And Ironwood.
It pained her heart to admit she hadn't even thought of Uncle Qrow until Kirakishou had almost casually reminded her about him during their conversation.
What's happening to me, where I would forget about the Uncle who taught me practically everything I know about my scythe? Who taught me how to be a huntress?
N-No! She shook her head in a vain effort to sweep the bad thoughts away. I'm not going to let it bother me. Just like I told Kirakishou... As long as whatever I'm becoming means that I'll be with her, then I'm happy. All I can do is strive to be a better person and look out for those I care about.
Unbidden, she found herself glancing off to the side to catch a glimpse of Kirakishou's face. The doll had her single amber eye closed- a peaceful smile etched on her lips as she nuzzled into Ruby's side.
Thank you, Kira. I won't let this opportunity go unbidden. If I can support Qrow, even from afar with this strange ability, then that's what I'll do. Thank you, for reminding me about him. Even though I'm sure you didn't really want to.
"I do not like this, James. Qrow was not due back for weeks."
Ruby faltered, tearing her gaze away from the cloud to stare at Kirakishou in the hopes that the doll would bother to explain what was happening. She knew that voice. How could she not? It was the voice of the headmaster after all.
The man that had allowed her into Beacon Academy.
The man that had listened to Kirakishou and her as the doll explained her backstory.
The man that had willingly bargained with both Kirakishou and Ruby in exchange for the doll's attendance at the Vytal Festival Dance.
Headmaster Ozpin of Beacon Academy.
What was he doing here?
And why was General Ironwood there with him?
"Yes." Ironwood nodded gruffly, stroking his chin as he stared down at the unconscious form of Ruby's uncle. "His sudden appearance atop the transmit tower took us both by surprise. Thankfully, it would seem that Ruby was capable of detecting his possession by the creature known as Laplace-no-ma. The name likely an obscure deviation of the Laplace's Demon analogy."
Ozpin turned to the Atlesian headmaster, curiosity flaring behind his spectacles. "An interesting name for a creature. Named for one of the key debates of scientific determinism, I believe. Rather unsettling. If I recall correctly, an Atlesian man was responsible for that discussion quite recently. Made quite a few journal articles."
"Yes. However, there is more to report." Ironwood agreed with a gruff nod, before continuing immediately. "Following the incident at the transmit tower, a full-sweep of the communications systems discovered a virus had been implanted in the central system just prior to our encounter with the Laplace creature."
"A virus, you say?"
"Indeed. From what I was able to discover, the main intent of the virus was to glean information from multiple systems and interact with data whilst avoiding detection. Thankfully, I was able to remove the virus before it was able to send out any data packets."
Had that been why Laplace was there? Ruby supposed it made some degree of sense to assume hunting her down wasn't the creature's only goal, but it didn't seem right to her. A being like Laplace didn't strike her as one to be particularly subtle, or care about communications systems at all.
"Were you able to discern who planted the virus in the first place? Was it this Laplace individual?"
"There is no way of being certain. The virus was incredibly complex and security recordings that night were completely erased- likely a first response from the virus. However, even if it had managed to send out a packet, I doubt that I would have been able to track it. Were it not for Miss Rose occupying Laplace at the time, I may never have found the virus in the first place."
"Hm. That does remind me. Rather odd that this creature would see fit to target Ruby specifically. Did it have some prior knowledge of her, perhaps?"
"Possibly. Ruby Rose mentioned the creature prior to the altercation. She believes it is behind the demise of the Summer doll."
The Summer doll… Ruby's mind repeated the phrase. It had been passed around a great many times in recent memory and it was beginning to become agitating. However, it served as a reminder that despite the general's recent support alongside her and his kind words, he still did not believe everything that she had said.
All that James Ironwood had cared about was that she had stayed with Kirakishou. For some reason, the man had gotten it into his head that the only reason that Ruby had stayed with the doll had been out of some misplaced desire to resurrect her mother using Kirakishou's powers.
She did not understand this man. Not at all. Perhaps that had been what had sparked Kirakishou's curiosity in him during the Vytal Festival Dance, or it'd merely acted as a contributing factor. Regardless, witnessing such casual disregard for her impassioned plea regarding Summer's humanity being discussed over her Uncle's unconscious body was a new low for Ruby Rose.
Had this been what Kirakishou had wanted her to see? Or, if Kirakishou's explanation was to believed, was this the moment in time that her heart had desired to witness?
"How curious…" Ozpin spoke up again, sounding vaguely curious. "How, in the world, does a girl presume to believe a creature like this Laplace fellow being involved in Summer's death? It seems like a rather sudden leap of logic for her."
Instead of answering immediately, Ironwood responded with a question of his own. "Do you really believe that thing is really Summer Rose?"
"How can I not?" Ozpin countered. "The heart of a child is not one easily swayed, despite what most would leave you to believe. Moreso, Miss Rose is a smart girl. She would not believe her mother's resurrection with such absolute certainty without a degree of belief. Surely you must understand this. Are you not fond of the girl?"
Ironwood? Fond of her? What?
"Whilst her skill as a huntress is without question in my eyes, she is stilljust a child. Her word is unreliable." Ironwood deflected with a sigh, moving over to stand next to Qrow's hospital bed and peering down at the man. "She has not been forced to deal with the horrors in this world. Not like you and I, Ozpin."
"Let us pray that she never has to." Ozpin sighed heavily, before shaking his head. "...How goes the autopsy? Have you learnt anything of import?"
Autopsy?
"Nothing." Ironwood frowned immediately following the question, pacing back and forth with a frustrated sort of air around him. "Nothing at all. She's an empty shell inside. No strings, no organic material, nothing- despite what initial scans suggested. Analysis of the external material indicate an unknown derivative composite vaguely similar to unglazed white porcelain. The material itself was soft to touch at first, but has since hardened. Current analysis predicts that any further testing may cause a complete structural failure."
"Nothing that may indicate as to how she was able to remain undetected?"
Ironwood shook his head. "It would seem as that whatever ability that kept Summer Rose, or the doll duplicate of her, disguised as a human- has since passed with her… failing."
Her world slowed to a crawl in a split second. At first, she had believed hoped that Ironwood was speaking about one of the guard corpses they had found during the fiasco at the transmit tower. But, the reality was far worse.
Summer Rose. They're talking about Summer Rose. Ironwood has been trying to figure out her Rozen Maiden physiology… He's had her body this whole time. Probably ever since Laplace killed her in the first place. All of this… and I didn't even have a clue…
"...I'm looking at it with my own two eyes and I cannot even believe what I'm seeing." Ruby muttered, shaking in rage. "He had mom's body the whole damn time and had the gall to speak to me like he even cared about her. What kind of monster does that!?"
No wonder why Kirakishou hasn't done anything with Summer… she can't… not whilst Ironwood has the body. If anything happened, he'd immediately figure out it was her.
To think she had been beginning to trust that man. They had worked together, side by side. She had confided in him about her mother. She had, of her own volition, taken time away from her date with Kirakishou at the Vytal Festival to speak with him about some dubious request that she still had no idea about.
Worse, she had enjoyed working with him. He possessed a skill and efficiency that Ruby admired in a huntsman. Something that she had strived for ever since she decided to become a huntress in the first place.
"Not many would bother to remember that she would come up with the worst jokes and somehow always managed to find herself in the most bizarre situations. How Tai could handle her and her antics for more then ten seconds, I'll never know. But there was no denying that she was special."
Ironwood had known her mother- that much was certain. To a point where when speaking about Summer, he'd been noticeably reminiscent of the sheer memory of her existence.
Was operating on her corpse how such a man honours the memory of Summer Rose?
"James Ironwood is a paradoxical creature to our ilk, my love. He believes his way of handling Summer Rose's body is just- because he does not believe such a body to be that of your beloved mother, only a duplicate wearing her face. To a man like James Ironwood, assessing the intricacies of a Rozen Maiden body is the only way of uncovering the mystery behind Summer's death. Both first and second."
"First?" Ruby squeaked.
"Yes. He is most curious as to the cause behind the tragedy of Summer Rose's first death and seeks to uncover the truth behind her first death by learning the truth behind her second. Likely out of some belief that her original killer was of some relation to the one behind her second death. It is a foolish notion- the two are not connected in any way that he would understand. But it is just in his eyes and thus he will follow it through until the end. That is the nature of the man who would capture your mother's body and believe it just and true."
"But why?" Ruby pressed further, "Why would he go that far? He has to know that he's wrong, especially after what we told Ozpin about mom… he said that he was informed about it… he has to at least consider the possibility that mom was real…"
"That is something that you shall need to ask him yourself, master."
Ruby blinked, tearing her gaze away from the images playing out in the floating cloud to focus on the small Rozen Maiden snuggled up against her.
"What do you mean?"
"Did you forget? General Ironwood went to you with a purpose during the night of the Vytal Festival Dance. A purpose that, due to Laplace's influence, went unspoken at the time. Now that Laplace has been banished, things may return to normal."
"I-I… so he'll talk to me again…" Ruby muttered, her fists clenching involuntarily at the mere notion. "After what I just heard… about what he's doing to mom… I don't know if I'll ever be able to speak to him again without doing something that I'll regret."
Kirakishou gave a low giggle. "That is a significant possibility. However, it is out of our control now. Tomorrow, Ironwood will summon you again. He will explain."
A/N:
This chapter fought to get out, oh my. From formatting difficulties to real-life shenanigans, it has proven a dangerous foe. But in the end, we got there. If there's any formatting issues still in there, please let me know- either through a PM or through a review. Last time I ever use a certain document editor again. Ouch.
On a more positive note, thank you all for the recent reviews and comments on my story. To all those that have joined us on this bandwagon, a big welcome to you all! Writing a crossover for RWBY with Rozen Maiden has been a wonderful journey that just keeps on giving.
And, as for the question I posed in the last chapter, my favourite Rozen Maiden is Kirakishou- without a doubt. Although, Hinaichigo and Kanaria would be close seconds and thirds, respectively. After that would be Suigintou, followed by Shinku, Souseiski and Suiseiseki. Although it's all in general a rather close list. If I were to include Barasuishou from the 2005/2006 anime, she'd be about mid-length on the list. Though where exactly I'm not certain.
Please, feel free to write a review or send a message about the story. Always eager to see what everyone's thinking about the story!
Until next time!~