It was all just… so very strange.
She could only sit there, torn between mutual parts relief and worry, as her Mother busied herself inside the kitchen. Meanwhile, Ruby sat atop a crystalline chair as she patiently waited at the dinner table. Kirakishou sat on the opposite side of her, seeming content to hum a strange tune that she didn't recognise.
Ruby stared down at the table, wondering just how she had found herself in this situation.
"...Hey, Kira?" the doll perked up at her voice. "What… what do you think is going to-"
"-Done!"
Summer Rose's voice echoed throughout the house, bouncing off against the crystalline walls and causing a small vibration to ripple through the building. Ruby turned towards the origin of the sound, to spot her Mother waling out of the kitchen and towards them, holding up a large feast atop a silver platter.
The doll that was her Mother handled the large platter with delicate ease, despite several of the stories Ruby had been told over the years indicating that Summer had been notoriously clumsy whenever Dad felt brave enough to let her back into the kitchen.
"...It's a simple chicken noodle soup, I hope you don't mind," Summer explained as she set the table, allocating servings for the three of them as both Kirakishou and Ruby followed her movements silently. Ruby with a look of surprise on her face, while the small blonde doll seemed faintly amused.
"Wow, Mom… that was, um, pretty fast…"
That had been, what, five minutes at the most? Ruby may not be the best cook in her life, having cooked only maybe a handful of different meals, but even she knew that soups typically required a lot more time than that. Especially soups involving meat.
Summer blushed, confirming that she too was capable of the action just like Ruby's own doll. "Well… you have your little friend in order to thank for that, Ruby," Summer gestured over to Kirakishou as she took a seat at the edge of the table between the two younger girls. "She had an inkling that you would be awakening soon. I got to cooking right away."
The blonde doll smiled, "Your Mother wished to impress you, Master. She said that, ah, she had many years' worth of time to make up for."
Ruby's eyes softened immediately, as she recognised exactly what was going on. "Mom… you didn't have to do this…"
"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure. Besides, I wanted to spoil my little sun and stars. What's so wrong about that?" Summer giggled to herself, before gesturing in Ruby's direction with a spoon. "Now! Enough talk! I want to see how I did. So eat up, missy!"
Laughing to herself, Ruby bid her Mother a smile before digging into the food. Having not eaten anything since… before the final round of the Vytal Festival Tournament began… it was made quickly apparent by her growling stomach that she was in fact quite hungry.
It was, easily, the best soup that she had ever had. The tiny fact that it may in fact be the only soup that she could remember didn't even register in her mind. She was eating a meal with her Mother and the very same doll that had brought her Mother back from the dead in the first place. All was right in this strange, crystalline world. At least in her mind.
Yes, certain… events… had occurred with Yang and her team and she was pretty sure that siding with Kirakishou may have cost Ruby her huntress license due to the doll attacking the headmaster, but all of that felt so tiny in comparison to the sheer experience of being able to speak with Summer Rose after years upon years of clinging to fading memories.
Ruby subtly glanced over towards her doll, feeling a peculiar warmth in her stomach that probably wasn't caused by the chicken noodle soup. Kirakishou, too busy eating the soup with a grace that Ruby couldn't hope to replicate, didn't seem to notice her searching gaze.
With a low internal chuckle of amusement, Ruby returned to her food, thoughts pleasantly circling around the doll. She would forever be in Kirakishou's debt for everything that the Rozen Maiden had sacrificed for her.
"I've been meaning to ask," Summer spoke up after a brief moment, setting down her spoon and looking over at the other doll. "...My baby girl, will she be alright?"
"Yes," Kirakishou responded after gracefully putting her cutlery down, smiling pleasantly at the older woman. "Ruby is well on her way to making a full recovery after absorbing the Fall Maiden powers. She just needs some time to acclimate, is all."
"Good," Summer nodded to herself, sounding relieved at the other doll's words. "...Good. Just, I needed to be sure. I don't know what I would have done if anything would have happened to her."
Ruby blushed as both Kirakishou and Summer looked at her, different emotions circling within their eyes. Or, well, a singular eye in the case of the blonde doll.
But… well... she had daydreamed about one day sitting down and having a meal with Kirakishou and Summer. As a family. It felt so very mystifying to experience that daydream come to life, right in front of her.
Though she had never imagined that they would be spending their time just talking about her! Oum. It was a miracle she hadn't passed out from embarrassment yet!
"M-Mom…" Ruby blushed, mortified beyond all belief. "I'm right here, ya'know. I can hear the both of you."
Both Summer and Kirakishou giggled at her in an odd display of synchronicity, the sight of two wildly differing dolls acting in a sudden perfect unison briefly startling her, before she quickly joined in and laughed alongside them both.
"I-I like this soup, Mom…" Ruby expertly changed the subject away, leading to an amused look from her doll that she absolutely did not glare at her for. Not at all.
Summer, the absolute menace in the kitchen that she was, completely failed to notice her change of subject and grinned delightfully at the praise. "Thank you! Oh, I'm so glad that you like it. It was a rather simple dish, all things considered, but I actually found myself enjoying cooking for once. What about you, Kirakishou? How do you find the soup?"
The smaller doll smiled, looking down at her soup in silence for a moment and giggling a little 'ufufufu' like sound under her breath. "...It is very nice, Summer. A pale rose can only wonder just how well her Master performs in the kitchen as well, if her Mother possesses such talent."
Her Mother blinked, and it took Ruby a moment to figure out what the reaction was about.
Flower phrases.
"She, um, she means that-"
"I know, Ruby, Kirakishou meant having you try your hand at cooking," Summer interjected gently, looking amused at the surprised expression that was no doubt flourishing on her face at the moment. "You don't have to translate for me. I can understand her quite well, actually. It's a rather beautiful take on language, in my mind."
"...Ah... Thank you," Kirakishou responded demurely, momentarily thrown off by the statement, from what Ruby could see. It looked very cute in Ruby's own opinion. Her doll seemed almost just like any other shy little girl when she wasn't throwing crystals around or being confined in her room by mean old men.
She figured it was a nice change. Her doll was finally getting to go out and see the world. Even if the world was forever changed by her powers.
"Oh, um, Kira?" Ruby inquired, her mind briefly recalling a subject that had interested her beforehand. It was only now that she got a chance to really ask the doll about it.
Said doll looked up at her, tilting her head adorably. "Yes, Master?"
"...The… The N-Field, is it going to be, um, different now that it's, well, here?"
As opposed to wherever in Oum's name it had been before. Ruby didn't know much about the metaphysics of Rozen Maiden powers, but she was quickly realising that it was absolute killer in terms of phrasing.
Thankfully, though, her doll seemed to understand what Ruby was talking about, her lone eye seemingly dilating in a rich pleasure that Ruby suspected only the doll could fully interpret herself.
"Ah~ Yes. I am glad you asked, Master. Yes. It did change. Significantly so. My garden has become a kingdom, and it is all because of you."
Tentatively, she smiled, feeling a little unsure of how to feel at the visceral adoration the doll was throwing at her. "Um, you're welcome?" Ruby tried, confused. "But, what does it actually mean?"
"I think what my daughter is trying to say, is that she's uncertain about the ramifications of your Palace of Beginnings manifesting."
Ruby all but gaped in surprise at her Mother's response. That had been exactly what she had meant. But she didn't have the slightest clue how Summer figured all of that out. Oum, she had even used the right terminology for Kirakishou's N-Field. Ruby thought she was the only one that knew about that. Well, barring her teammates after Laplace had tattled on them, of course.
"...How?" she breathed, uncomprehending.
Summer's response was as immediate as it was painfully anticipated through constant sisterly experiences with Yang.
"Women's intuition."
Kirakishou giggled at Ruby's immediate deadpanned expression, shaking in her seat. Ruby merely huffed at her, and gestured for her to get on with it already. When Ruby came to this strange place alongside Kirakishou, she hadn't anticipated all the teasing!
...In hindsight, she could understand that Kirakishou had probably spoken with Summer in the past, while she was still unconscious from receiving the Fall Maiden powers. It made sense, after all, as Summer did say that Kirakishou had informed her of when Ruby was likely to awaken. They must have also spoken about a few other things as well.
"Ah~ So forceful, Master~" Ruby glared with puffed cheeks at the doll, who eventually relented with a gesture of mock surrender. "If you must know, Master, it has fundamentally altered how my abilities as a Rozen Maiden manifest themselves upon the world."
...Fundamentally altered?
Ruby's eyes immediately shot towards Summer Rose, or more specifically her artificial doll body. "I-Is Mom going to be…"
She couldn't finish her words, too scared by the idea to even put it into proper speech.
Kirakishou seemed to realise this, as her expression softened almost immediately. "Do not worry, Master. Summer Rose is stable. I have made sure of that. She is an independent doll, perfectly capable of functioning on her own."
She didn't need to be all that sharp to notice how Summer's posture, which had been tensing quickly through their conversation, relaxed almost immediately as Kirakishou explained that particular part. Ruby herself let out a sigh of relief, slumping in her seat.
"...Good, good. I-I just, had to be sure."
The blonde doll nodded. "Of course. I understand, Master."
Ruby smiled. "S-So, um, getting back on track... what's happened with your abilities?"
Something passed through the room at that moment. Ruby couldn't exactly pinpoint the feeling, but it was almost as if a sudden flare of intensity had fluttered through the surrounding area.
She could feel the tiny hairs on her neck standing on end. The air felt oddly warm to her senses. Humid? It hurt to breathe. Everything was shining-
"My love, I can do anything," Kirakishou declared rapturously, cupping her cheeks with her hands and swaying from side to side in her cheeks.
"A-Anything?"
That was her voice. Hm. Ruby thought it sounded a tad odd. Distant, perhaps?
"Fantasy has been turned into reality, Master. I can remake this world, this area, my Palace of Beginnings, in a single moment. All that is mine, is mine to command."
As if to demonstrate her claim, Kirakishou waved a hand and the world shifted, reality seemingly being overwritten in an instant. They were all standing on the edge of a dense pale forest, at the edge of a vast lake. There was a waterfall flowing in the distance, near what looked to be a series of thick cliffs that stretched high into the sky.
Summer jumped, squeaking at the sudden appearance and stumbling. Widened silver eyes darted around the landscape.
"It's all there," Summer breathed, eyes wide. "I can hear it all. The rustle of jewelled leaves, a cool breeze brushing against my face, the humming of a crystalline lattice… This isn't some kind of illusion. It's all really there."
Ruby wasn't entirely certain as to what Summer's semblance actually was, as Tai hadn't really talked about it much, but from the few stories she'd squeezed out of the man, it was some kind of conditional enhanced sensory and physical boost.
Yet, even without that knowledge, she still wouldn't be able to deny her Mother's claim. This was all too real.
"And it's all mine, Master," Kirakishou's voice was close, sounding as if it was right next to her ear despite the girl being several metres away. "Every inch, the air, the ground, the sea, and the stars. My Palace of Beginnings has it all, Master~ Oh, it is just so very overwhelming to have actual physical presence!"
Wide-eyed and more than a little frightened, Ruby stumbled backward, catching herself on a piece of crystal and tripping. Before she could hit the ground, the world jerked and suddenly she was standing upright again, her movement discarded like an idle fantasy.
"Do you see? Do you feel it, Master? The wellspring of energy? The hundreds of thousands of delightful little seedlings, all paving the way for our precious garden? Is it not beautiful? A grove unrivalled? Beyond compare?"
Ruby gulped. "I-I…"
What could she say?! What could she do?! Nothing made any sense anymore! She didn't know!-
"...Master…"
A flick of Kirakishou's hands and they were back inside Summer's crystalline home. Ruby was sitting down again, even, where she had been standing beside the lack mere moments prior.
Her heart was beating violently in her chest. It hurt, hurt hurt hurt, it hurt so much.
Where-
Kirakishou was no longer sitting at the table as she had been before her sudden display. Instead, the blonde-haired doll was right behind Ruby herself, jointed fingers sliding down Ruby's shoulders in some strange reverse hug. She could feel the doll's peach-blonde hair against her skin, sending tingles down her spine. She didn't fully understand the reasoning behind it, but something about Kirakishou's presence seemed to calm down her raging nerves.
"Ah, Master, your doll understands if you have some difficulty in understanding at this moment. Know that it will take time to fully interpret the depth of the powers your doll possesses," the doll leaned forwards and pressed her lips against Ruby's cheek in a gentle peck. "For now, let us simply experience this moment together."
She managed to glance towards Summer, who was frozen and staring at Kirakishou with wide eyes. However, something must have taken her out of it because her Mother jerked all of a sudden and shakily reached a spoon towards her soup. It clanked noisily against the bowl.
"Y-Yes. Kirakishou is right, Ruby. It is best if we refocus on something else for now. You've only just woken up, after all. You must be hungry."
Ruby certainly wasn't hungry after a display like that.
"...I… I-I don't…" Ruby struggled. This was a dust-forsaken world-shattering revelation. She wasn't going to just put it all aside and simply go back to her meal.
Kirakishou pouted, and flicked her hand. The doll was back in her seat on the opposite side of Ruby, smiling as if nothing had just happened. The weight that had suffused Ruby's body vanished almost instantly, but the pain in her heart remained.
"Moh~ Master is so very insistent~" the doll swooned.
"...Kira, please…" Ruby pleaded. "I know that it's a bit hard to explain and I know that, for some reason, you want to just focus on other things right now, but if it's about you then I want to understand. You're my friend, Kira, and more than that… you're my partner. I love you, for oum's sake. Please, tell me what's going on."
Kirakishou was silent.
Summer Rose was silent.
But Ruby didn't let that stop her.
"Please, Kira."
The small blonde doll looked up at her and fidgeted, collapsing in on herself in a display of uncertainty. It reminded Ruby of how Kirakishou had been when she had first stumbled across the girl over in Vale, and not at all like the girl that had just twisted the world on a mere whim.
"...Are you sure, Ruby?"
Ruby, not Master, her mind noticed. It sounded different, in a way. Similar to how the doll spoke of the Alice Game, but of a different tone. Almost intimate. Fragile.
Had she been putting on a show for Ruby? A brave face?
Or was something else going on?
She looked to Summer Rose, who wasn't offering any advice. It felt kind of strange to her. She had almost expected Summer to have at least have said something so far. But she had been silent for pretty much the whole thing, barring a few choice reactions here and there.
Eventually, however, older silver eyes met her own and her Mother gave a sharp nod.
Ruby nodded to herself. Her Mother would support her, regardless of which path she chose.
"Yes, Kira," she affirmed, trying to inject as much strength in her tone as Summer had with her single movement. "I want to know."
"...Very well," the doll gave a shy little smile. She leaned forward and moved her right hand so that the palm was facing upwards. "To borrow a phrase from Summer's memories, your doll has sacrificed her previous powers in order to gain the ability to bend existence around herself to a limited degree."
Ruby watched, fascinated, as a small teal-green crystal grew on the palm of Kirakishou's hand in the shape of a rose. First the stem for support, then the glittering radiance of the flower itself. It was beautiful.
But, the power behind it… Ruby believed that if there was a lottery for semblances, then Kirakishou would most certainly have won the grand prize.
Reality Warping. She could only shake her head in disbelief. It was absolutely insane to imagine that the little doll that she had met on the pier so long ago had grown to be capable of such a thing.
"Although," Kirakishou continued, "such is only possible within my Palace of Beginnings, you see. A rose cannot hope to survive outside her garden, you see. And, even then, it requires a grand amount of aura to manifest, more than one can hope to sustain for too long. My garden can do much, but stability and heath must take precedence."
"But… what if you were to venture outside of the Palace?" Ruby inquired worriedly. If everything that had happened to Beacon had only expanded Kirakishou's confinement from a dorm room to her own sphere of influence, then how could the two of them see the world together?
Would she ever be able to show Kirakishou her hometown? Would they ever be able to go into her favourite ice cream shop on the outskirts of Patch and sample the goods together?
"...Ruby," Summer spoke lowly, having noticed her sudden downtrodden mood.
"It is okay, Master. The N-Field is a part of me," Kirakishou soothed, reaching forwards and setting the crystalline rose next to Ruby. "Where I go, the N-Field shall follow. My abilities will be limited, most likely, until the N-Field gains a sizeable foothold wherever it is that we go, but it is still possible. I have done so before, no?"
She sniffed, reaching out and clutching the rose like a lifeline. Ruby didn't exactly know why, but the idea of never being able to walk the earth of Remnant alongside Kirakishou terrified her to no end.
But that wasn't the case. Not this time. No. Kirakishou wasn't bound. She had to force herself to accept that. She was free to go out, free to be with Ruby. Nobody could stop them.
Nobody would stop them. She wouldn't allow it.
Kirakishou would stay and be hers forever, even if Ruby had to keep an eye out for Kirakishou whenever she was in a weakened state.
They were free. And they were together forever.
She giggled lightly, surprising both Summer and Kirakishou given how both dolls were quick to glance her way at the sound. Summer had a peculiar look on her face, almost as if she had swallowed something really sour or bitter, but Ruby couldn't find herself to care at the moment.
But Ruby just couldn't help it. It was all just so funny. It was like they were married, her and Kirakishou, for real. The idea made her heart flutter with glee.
Ah. Perhaps we should do wedding vows? But, hm, perhaps now is not the time…
"I understand, Kira. I do. I really do," Ruby eventually spoke up, smiling as she stared deep into the crystalline rose that lay in her hands. "We can finally be together. We can see the world. You are no longer confined to that silly dorm room, not anymore."
I'm not alone anymore. I have you, and you have me. That is more than any vow or contract could ever hope to give. Instead, we have each other's hearts. And that is all I could ever want.
Kirakishou giggled. "As you say, we can be together, Master. These powers have freed us all, and I couldn't have done it without all that you did, Ruby. I am glad you understand."
She smiled to herself, blushing bashfully. "...I didn't do that much, Kira. Really."
The younger doll shook her head resolutely, "You did everything, Master. It was your fire to participate, your drive to win in order to honour your Mother, that allowed us to succeed. You did it all, Master," Kirakishou sang the words out with the energising lilt of a child, free to explore. "The reach of your silver eyes has grown far and wide. And, now, you have become the Fall Maiden, all for-"
"Love."
Ruby blinked. Summer blinked. Kirakishou blinked.
They were staring at her.
Oh. She'd spoken. Ruby hadn't even recognised her voice then.
"I did it for love, Kira," she glanced her Mother's way, grimacing at the wide silver eyes staring back at her. This wasn't how she was planning to confess her feelings for Kirakishou to her Mother, but it was too late to stop now. Or had she already said it? Everything was blurry. "I knew what I was getting into when I went into that tower to find Ironwood. I knew what would happen. But, I had to. I wanted to save you. Because, I love you, Kirakishou. And I will do anything to ensure that you love me back."
"And I always shall reciprocate, Master. No matter what happens, no matter how far the world turns for or against us, I will always love you."
Ruby was crying even before the blonde doll had finished speaking. Kira looked like she was about to either stand up or twist the world to appear at her side, but Ruby stopped her before she could. "N-No. It's alright. I'm sorry. I just need some time to process things…"
Hesitantly, the doll nodded, settling back in her seat.
"...Perhaps it's best if we all go back to our food, yes?" Summer spoke up after a moment, smiling at them both pleasantly. "Even if your doll can alter reality, I won't take that as an excuse for not finishing your meal, Ruby!"
Ruby laughed, shaking her head. That didn't even make any sense.
And, yet, it was exactly what she needed to hear. It was far better than the overprotective parent spiel that she would have heard from Dad, had he been here instead of Summer Rose.
"O-Okay."
For a while, that was how they stayed, the two dolls taking little sips out of a soup that Ruby was certain they had finished a long time ago, while she continued to idly sip at her own meal. It was perfect, utterly delicious, and still carrying the same pleasant heat that it had been the whole time. But, despite all of the pleasant sounds, sights, and sensations assaulting her form, something continued to gnaw at her.
Thoughts continued to stir, swirling and circling around in her mind.
But, perhaps, she would be able to bear it all with Kirakishou by her side. Perhaps, then, she wouldn't feel any... any-
"Rubes!"
-pain.
No. What she needed, was something else to focus on.
"S-So, uh," Ruby fiddled with her cutlery, trying and failing to put the utensils down without making a loud sound. "Why are you out here?"
Summer snorted fondly, the sound drawing Ruby's attention as she caught her Mother shaking her head as if the last few minutes hadn't completely thrown them both for a loop. "Oh, you're just the same as you were as a baby…"
"Wha-?! What's that supposed to mean?!" Ruby puffed her cheeks, face reddening in quickly-mounting embarrassed indignation.
She could only wonder if this was how Weiss felt whenever people teased her.
"Nothing, sweetling… Just, you always liked to be incredibly forward whenever you got curious. It seems like that hasn't changed."
"It really hasn't," Kirakishou supplied helpfully, flashing a coy smile her way as she expertly dissected the meal almost absentmindedly.
Ruby narrowed her eyes in a fit of playful mock anger at the doll, before turning back to her Mom. "But, um, seriously. Why are you this far away from the citad-ahhh, I mean, Kira's palace?"
...The Citadel sounded far cooler to her. But names were a thing. Stupid names, ruining her fun.
"Oh! Well…" Summer trailed off, glancing between Kirakishou and Ruby and looking more than a little uncomfortable, "I wanted to give you both some privacy when you woke up. Just in case something... happened."
The ensuing blush and the wringing of Summer's hands as she looked away, along with the suggestive tone she had used, made Ruby immediately realise what her Mother had been implying.
She felt her cheeks burn fiercely, as the ensuing shout of "Mom!" was met with a peal of harmonious tinkling laughter from the two dolls.
Summer wiped a tear from her eye, sighing happily. "Glad to see that my little sun and stars hasn't changed…" Summer turned to Kirakishou and Ruby immediately felt a sense of unease crawl up her spine. "You should have seen how she was like back then, she'd always get so embarrassed when I sang her lullabies, but she'd cry whenever I didn't."
Kirakishou looked intrigued, "Really? Please do continu-"
Ruby had never moved as fast as she did in that one moment, her semblance flaring to life as she all but launched herself over the table and put a hand over Kirakishou's mouth. How she managed to avoid all of the cutlery was anyone's guess. Perhaps some reality-warping nonsense on Kira's side. She didn't particularly care at the moment. Instead, she was focused on a far greater concern.
"Y-You don't need to finish that!"
The two dolls merely stared at her, one looking highly amused at her immediate reaction while the other was pouting at the lost opportunity.
"Fine," Summer gave an exaggerated put-upon sigh, giggling. "Now, please, return to your seat, Ruby. You haven't even finished your soup yet."
With an untrustworthy glare at her Mother, Ruby quickly flared back to her chair.
"Perhaps it is best if we change the subject?" Kirakishou suggested helpfully, smiling at the scene. Ruby was certain that, while the doll would have enjoyed continuing teasing Ruby alongside Summer, she was willing to stop for Ruby's sake.
She smiled thankfully, for all of about half a second, before immediately pouncing at the opportunity before Summer could think to deny her.
"...So, what are we gonna do now?"
Ruby figured that it was an easy enough question, but the sentence alone brought with it a heavy air to the dinner table.
Her Mother was the first to respond.
"As much as I would love to stay and settle in this house for a while, we can't stay here for long. The other governments will not take the situation with Vale lightly. It will be perceived in the same sense as one would a threat of war. There will likely be a full-blown invasion of Vale in the coming weeks, if not days. Doubt they'll fare well against Kira's field, but still. It won't be safe here for the three of us."
Kirakishou nodded. "Yes, I agree."
"B-But that's not what happened!" Ruby shouted in dismay, shocked and feeling more than a little betrayed. "It wasn't like that! It was… all just a big misunderstanding, caused by Cinder setting off the bomb…"
It occurred to Ruby that she wasn't entirely certain just how much of the situation that Summer had been made aware of, but given the lack of confusion present on her face, Ruby figured that Kirakishou had probably filled her in.
"Regardless, little jewel, the world will not see it that way," Summer shook her head, sighing. "Cinder is an easy target to place the blame on, yes, but a great many people will still be able to connect the crystals with Kirakishou. Once they make such knowledge public, she will be vilified as some sort of monster, worse than the grimm. It will be all the world will be able to do in order to establish stability."
Ruby stared at the younger doll as Kirakishou looked down, seemingly morose at the news. Her heart clenched painfully in her chest at the sight. It just… it wasn't right.
She'd been too overjoyed at finally getting to spend some time with her Mother, that she hadn't realised the sacrifices that had been done in order to reach this moment.
"… T-Then where do we go?"
Once again, Summer responded. The answer came swiftly, frigidly, with no sense of the warmth that had been present just before.
"Haven. Or, well, Haven will be our final destination. There will be a few stops we'll have to make on the way."
She blinked. The huntsmen academy? She looked over at Kirakishou for support, but the doll seemed to be avoiding eye contact with her, seemingly content to focus her attention on the other doll. She could make out the ghost of an expression on Kirakishou's face, and it wasn't a smile.
"Um, why?"
Once again, Summer and Kirakishou exchanged glances, looking all the more uncomfortable at what should have been a simple question. She would be lying if she said that it didn't concern her.
"Well," Summer tentatively began her explanation with a quaking breath, trailing off until Kirakishou nodded at her. "Little bloom, have you ever wondered how exactly I died?"
Ruby felt her blood run cold. Those words had haunted her for years. To hear them, in her Mother's voice no less, was nothing short of terrifying.
"How..?"
"…It was during what would become my final mission," Summer stated, looking down into her empty soup bowl with a melancholic expression. "I was told that it would be a simple extermination assignment. Typical everyday stuff for a huntress."
She nodded slowly. Extermination missions were a common enough job. So much so that even students would participate in them. Albeit as a four-man team rather than on their lonesome like a typical huntsman for huntress.
How did it all go so wrong?
"…I was deceived."
Ruby's eyes widened in alarm. There was a lot of emotion in her mother's voice. Pain. Anguish. Neigh-incandescent rage. It was all readily abundant to her. And it terrified her to witness such a sight on her Mother.
The room twisted and Kirakishou was suddenly standing beside Summer's chair, placing a comforting hand on the woman's shoulder. Ruby smiled at the action, eliciting a tiny smile back from Kirakishou. Her doll was trying to be supportive, even if it meant twisting reality.
Summer flinched at the activation of Kirakishou's semblance, though she didn't at the gentle touch. Odd.
However, it seemed to be enough to snap her Mother out of her seething trance.
"...Thank you," Summer responded appreciatively, shuffling in her chair and pulling away from the other doll.
Kirakishou seemed to notice this and retracted her hand. "You're welcome," the other doll smiled and glanced at Ruby, before the world twisted once more and Kirakishou was sitting back in her seat as if nothing had ever happened.
Although, this time, her lone eye was staring directly at Ruby.
"As I was saying," Summer paused a moment to let loose a shaking breath, before continuing again. "My handler, the one who would send missions to the team, discovered that I had found out some critical information. They couldn't stand the idea of someone thinking differently than them and tried to have me killed," Summer let out a bitter laugh looking down at her jointed hands. "Looks like they succeeded."
"...Mom…" Ruby choked out with tears in her eyes. She couldn't have imagined how it felt, to be betrayed and left for dead in such a manner, by the very person that assigned missions in the first place. Her Mother had died because of this person, all because she learned something that she shouldn't have.
What could possibly have been so important to justify killing a first-time Mother and famous huntress? What kind of twisted monster would ever be able to justify ending someone's life over something as trivial as knowledge?!
How could someone let her Mom die..?
"I was sent into what amounted to little more than a killing field," Summer continued, sounding almost lost in the memories as she recounted them in a monotonous voice. "The mission had been to exterminate a small number of grimm living in a cave on the outskirts of a farming village. Instead, I discovered thousands of subterranean grimm. When I went to flee, the entrance had been blocked by a semblance. I recognised the aura signature of the semblance used to block it. They were waiting for me. I was trapped in there. I fought as hard as I could, but, eventually…"
Summer broke down in tears. Ruby was beside her in an instant, clutching her Mother tightly. Summer pushed the chair out, wrapping her arms around Ruby and crying against her. Ruby did all she could, rubbing consoling circles against her Mother's back and letting the older huntress vent out her emotions.
"…That is why we need to go to Haven. To get back at the one who left me for dead and buried me in that cave. And I'll use the information I found out to do it. To do that, we first need to visit a contact in Mistral, one who will undoubtedly still be operating, even after all these years."
Ruby nodded. Talking. Talking was better than tears. She never wanted to see her Mother cry again.
"Ask her, Master."
Wide eyes stared up at Kirakishou, who was staring right back at her. How had she known?
No. She already knew the answer to that question. Kirakishou would always understand her. Now, it was time for Ruby to ask her own question. This one, directed at her Mother.
It was a simple question, really.
"Who did it?"
And the answer was, still, somehow, anything but simple.
"...Ozpin."
"M-Mom…"
Yang couldn't believe it. Raven was here. She was there alongside her own biological Mother and she could feel nothing but wonder at the feeling.
Her Mother was, or at least was in a situation similar to being, the leader of a well-established bandit clan.
She knew that she should have been feeling revulsion at the thought. Bandits were nothing but remorseless cut-throat career criminals who didn't give a damn who they hurt in the endless quest the get a single damn lien. She should have hated them.
But, her Mother, their leader, had saved her from the madness at Beacon Academy. Afterwards, a complete stranger, while a little snarky, had heard her out and given her the information she wanted.
There wasn't anything wrong in just listening to them, for Oum's sake.
"Yang," Raven nodded at her respectfully, gesturing to a small table with a couple of chairs, where she reluctantly sat down. Her Mother moved to sit down as well. "I see that Vernal treated your wounds. Good. Any stiffness? Fatigue? Nausea?"
She shook her head, hiding the painful sensation she experienced from the movement behind a mask of neutrality. "Um, no. Nothing like that. Not at the moment, at least."
"Good. Good," Raven nodded. She trailed off a moment, just enough for Yang to notice before the woman continued. "You were pretty banged up when I found you out there. Had to use the aura boosters to get you back up to pace. Expensive tech, that, but undoubtedly useful."
Somehow, Yang doubted that they had gotten the aura boosters through any of the more reputable sources.
Though, they had been used to heal her injuries. So she couldn't really complain about it.
After everything that had happened, she would take all the help she could get.
"Thanks," she responded, awkwardly grabbing her arm. She wasn't good with things like this. "I, well, I can only imagine what I'd be like if you weren't there and… Well, yeah," she finished lamely.
Raven seemed to wince a little bit, though Yang felt the strangest sensation that the wince was more social discomfort than anything. She would know, given that Ruby was about the same when she was younger. Still, it was beyond weird to get the feeling from her Mother, who seemed to be leading an entire damn tribe of bandits. But to each their own, she supposed.
"…What in the world happened over there, Yang? One moment the tournament was going on, and the next it's complete chaos."
"Wait- You were watching the tournament?"
Her Mother blinked, looking taken aback. Eventually, she nodded curtly.
"Yes. Of course. The men find it a nice way to relax. To kick back and place a few bets on the tournament. Helps soothe any wild tempers."
Her Mother had been watching the game. Possibly watching her.
"Is that how you knew to save me?"
Raven paused, before shaking her head. "No. That was achieved with my semblance," she looked surprised at Yang's clueless expression. "Huh. And here I thought that oaf you call a Father would have told you about it by now."
"Um, no," she declared awkwardly, fidgeting in place. "He never really liked to tell that many stories. About the team, about his time as a student, about anything around that time. It took a ton of badgering to get anything out of him."
Raven sighed, shaking her head and glancing away. "...Smart man," she muttered, frowning. "Anyway, getting back on track. You were telling me what happened."
She really didn't want to talk about it, but at this point, she figured it may be better if she told someone outside her team about the whole spiel.
"…It was all because of this one girl, Kirakishou. We met her a couple of weeks into the school term and she grew really close with Rube-ah, my sister."
"Summer's daughter?" Raven questioned. She nodded.
"Yeah. Ruby Rose. I, um, I dunno if you could tell during the Vytal Festival transmission, but I swear she's a dead ringer for Summer herself," she laughed awkwardly, trying and failing to reduce the discomfort she was feeling.
"I did. Continue."
"Right, well, this new girl, Kira, we… found out that she's, um… that she's not a real person."
"...As in a faunus, or do you mean something like whatever that ginger girl turned out the be?"
"Penny? Oh, yeah, more the latter, though less mechanical and more… weird. We discovered that she's some type of animated doll. Like… though a semblance or something? I dunno. Apparently, she and her sisters are fighting in this big competition called the Alice Game and she was able to manipulate Ruby into joining her."
"...I see," Raven said after a moment, nodding slowly. "And how does this play into the event that happened at the end of the Vytal Festival Tournament?"
"Well, Kirakishou's powers are a little janky. Supposedly, she makes use of this thing called an N-Field in order to power her abilities. It uses the aura of others in order to sustain itself."
"Aura draining?" Raven mused, scratching her chin in thought. "Rare semblance to possess. Requires a certain mindset not commonly seen these days, you see. Disastrous amongst large groups of people. And how did you learn all of this?"
She grimaced. "There's this, um, thing. Not human, or faunus, or doll… To be frank I don't know what it is. It can possess people and pilot them around. Calls itself Laplace's Demon, or Laplace-no-ma, though everyone just calls it Laplace for short. When everything started going tits up at the end of the tournament, it showed up and told us all about her."
There was something about the way her Mother's eyes sharpened at the mention of Laplace that set her on edge. Had she recognised the name somewhere? Admittedly she remembered Blake mentioning that the name referred to some scientific concept, but she doubted that a bandit leader would have heard of such a thing.
"And what did it tell you?"
She responded immediately, lost in the memory as it seemingly played out right in front of her eyes.
"Laplace said that Kirakishou manipulated somebody into destroying the anchor to the N-Field, which released it into the world. That was what caused everything."
"And what exactly happened after this anchor was destroyed and the field released?"
Crystals. Pain. Death. Agony. Thousands upon thousands of Grimm. The White Fang. Murderous plots.
Betrayal. A bullet to the back and a long fall. Darkness.
Where could she even begin? It was all such a mess that Yang had trouble making heads or tails of it. Though she supposed she had to at least try, in order to get it off her chest.
"…I'm not entirely sure what Laplace meant, but it was the one to explain that Kirakishou's N-Field uses aura to sustain itself. That it needed to, that Kirakishou manipulated someone into releasing the N-Field. That explosion, just before the broadcast with the strange woman's voice? Right after the woman cut off, all of these tears in the sky started appearing all over the place."
"Tears? Interesting," Raven hummed. "Go on."
"Right, well, Kirakishou had used a similar ability in a training spar against some other students, but it was different that time. Someone… I remember someone falling into the tear. A student, I think? I don't know for sure. But soon after that, these crystals started appearing all over the place."
Raven blinked. "Crystals? Can you describe them for me?"
"Um, some kind of pale green colour, almost like a really mucky pool, but a bit lighter in tone. Oh! Teal! Yes. That colour."
She was only just now realising that there were far too many names for all the different shades of colour. Why couldn't people just keep things simple? Ugh.
"And the size and shape?"
She grimaced in remembrance. "That… well that varied a lot. At first, it was just small clusters, barely the size of a baseball bat and shaped like those unrefined dust crystals you see in the Schnee mines. But they soon started warping everything around them."
"How so?"
She paused, trying to find the right words to describe the incident.
"… Well, they would infect the ground around them, turning it crystalline as well. Then more crystals would grow on that and it would just repeat from there. I saw entire buildings covered in the stuff nearing the end. But the worst part of it was when they would trap someone."
"Trap someone?"
"Yeah. We figured out pretty early on that the crystals were actively growing towards large clusters of people. Probably for their aura, now that I think about it. When they'd manage to confine someone, it'd speed up the growth of nearby crystals, plus they'd grow much larger."
"…I see. A dangerous semblance indeed."
Yang snorted. If only that was all of it.
"It's far worse than that, apparently. You know how I said she was a doll?" Raven nodded, narrowing her eyes. "She can make others-"
In an instant Raven had swung a fist down onto the table. Yang jumped at the sound and the sudden action, while Raven snarled hatefully.
"So it was her! Damn it. That piece of shit."
"What are you-" Yang tried, only to be cut off again.
"Summer Rose," in two words, Raven turned the tables on her and Yang's eyes were widening in surprise. Raven knew about the Summer doll. "I encountered a walking, talking, human-sized doll version of Summer Rose and… you know about her."
Raven had trailed off, staring at her accusingly. Yang flinched at the expression on her face, feeling all of a sudden like a little girl being caught with her hands in the cookie jar.
"I-y-yes… Yes, I do. I did. But, how do you know about her?"
The bandit leader that was her Mother stared at her a moment, tense, before relaxing. "A legendary figure like Summer Rose cannot remain hidden forever. News of her appearance in Patch reached my ears practically overnight. Anyway, you were saying?"
Intrigued and more than a little suspicious, Yang forced herself to continue. The two were on the same team together, so she figured that news of Summer's appearance would have thrown Raven for a loop. Understandable. Probably.
"Right, well, somehow Kirakishou made a doll that has some of M-er, Summer's memories. She convinced Ruby and everyone that it was actually Summer, but I didn't think so. I still don't believe it. Mom would never be that violent. It had to be a copy. It couldn't be her."
"Violent?" Raven curiously raised a brow. "How so?"
"She, well, when the team and I were chasing after Rubes, Summer's doll attacked the bullhead that we were riding on. S-She said that it was to get to Laplace, but then she attacked me as well…"
"...And this all occurred right after the transmission cut out for the Vytal Festival Tournament?" Raven clarified.
Yang blinked. "Yeah? Why?
"Nothing. Just making sure. Continue."
That was… a little odd to her, but sure, whatever. She could only guess that Raven was just making sure she was following correctly, but the wording and choice of question struck her as odd.
Plus… she hadn't said anything about Summer attacking her. Yang shivered. She could still hear the sound of Null Value cutting through the air as the blades were sent towards her. If it hadn't been for Laplace's intervention, she'd be dead.
It was a scary thought to imagine. Worse, still, to know that her life had been saved by the same creature possessing her Dad.
Oum. She hoped that Dad was okay…
"Laplace stopped her from killing me. Told me to go and find Ruby, who had gone after Kirakishou."
"And did you catch up to her in time?"
Yang frowned, a phantom pain flaring in her shoulder. "...I did. And I wish I didn't. She'd known, Mom. All of it. Kirakishou being a doll, her N-Field eating people, the Alice Game, everything. I-I was fighting Kirakishou at the time and Ruby… she…"
Everything hurt. Why was everything hurting now? She was fine!
"Continue."
She looked up towards Raven. Her eyes stung with fresh tears. "She shot me. That's why you found me down in the Emerald Forest. Ruby shot me, and Kirakishou used the opportunity to throw me into the forest. They were working together. For how long, I wouldn't even know… But… I just… I can't… I don't…"
"...Would you like some time to calm down?" Raven asked after a moment, sounding almost hesitant to her ears.
Yang shook her head petulantly. She needed to get it all out. It was the only way she could heal.
"I-I thought that, if I made Ruby listen, that she'd believe me. But, she didn't. All she cares about is that accursed doll. So much so that she'd burn the world just to be with her…"
And so, that was how the rest of Yang's day went. Retelling her experiences to Raven, while her biological Mother watched with impassive crimson eyes.
Everything hurt.
A/N:
Ozpin.
You've no idea how long I've waited to drop this chapter. Ever since Summer was first brought into the story, I've been waiting to reveal Ozpin's involvement. I'd hinted at little bits of it here and there, with how Ozpin acted around the Summer doll the first time, but this chapter goes into a bit more detail into how he was involved. Certainly casts a darker shade on previous scenes involving the man, no?
Writing the little 'food at Mom's place' scene with Ruby and Kirakishou alongside Summer was... an experience. I had a billion other things to cover, but each time I diverted it felt like I was spoiling the scene, so instead I settled for an extended bit of fluff with some spicy plot development sprinkled on top. Writing it from Ruby's perspective was an interesting little insight into the mind of a girl being thrown from one direction to another. You may notice just how different her perspective is in this chapter, to scenes with her from previous chapters. She's an anxiety-ridden ball of emotion, but she's also savouring every interaction with Summer and Kirakishou. It's oddly sweet, in a twisted sort of way.
The same can be said for Yang with Raven. Yang is wounded, emotionally, and the only person she can latch on to is Raven Branwen of all people. There are scenes where she tries, above all else, to connect with Raven- only to be pushed back into explaining everything she can in excruciating detail. Until it gets to the point where, finally, she speaks about Ruby. She's just so confused, so hurt by Ruby's actions. It's an interesting parallel to Ruby, who feels wounded by the actions of others.
Meanwhile, the Alice Game continues to press on. Ever forward.
It's been fun writing and releasing these chapters! Please, be sure to let me know how you felt about this one. What did you think about Kirakishou's power? I touch over it a little bit in this chapter, but there will certainly be more information in future chapters.
Until next time!~