Set in early v7. Enjoy!
"Ruby, check the ice over there for signs of any more Grimm," Harriet commands sharply.
"Sure!" Ruby replies, trying her best to sound upbeat and cheerful. The other huntress sounds annoyed, and impatient, but Ruby tries not to take that personally. It's been a long day spent mostly on what amounts to a wild goose chase, attempting to eliminate some Grimm that were potentially a hazard to the construction site of the new communications tower. Of course, the Grimm weren't in the area they had last been spotted in, which meant that the two of them had been forced to scout out possible locations that the creatures might have retreated to. But every new area they searched had been deserted.
It was almost like someone was warning the Grimm ahead of time about their pursuers.
Anyway, the end result of the day's misadventures was two exhausted, frustrated, freezing huntresses. Ruby's never really had a chance to get used to a cold climate, and her aura is worn out from attempted to keep her warm while spending time out in the snow and wind. All she wants is to head back to the Atlas dorms and hop in a hot shower.
But first, they still have to check this one last area before calling it quits for the day. Even though it seems unlikely, Ruby hopes that by some miracle, they'll actually be able to find and take care of these elusive Grimm, so that the day's efforts won't have been completely pointless. And so they don't have to do the same thing all over again tomorrow.
Unfortunately, so far there doesn't seem to be any evidence of Grimm activity in this particular spot. Ruby squints against the chilly and tries unsuccessfully to brush her bangs out of her face as she continues to trudge forwards, gaze sweeping to side to side for any traces of things that seem out of place. But so far, the only thing she's noticed is that the ice in this are seems to be getting pretty thin.
"Harriet!" she calls back to the older girl, forced to shout to be heard over the howling wind. "Are you sure that it's safe to keep going? The ice doesn't look like it's thick enough over here."
If Harriet is concerned at all about what Ruby is reporting, she doesn't show it. If anything, she just sounds annoyed when she calls back. "It's fine, Ruby, just keep going already. Do you want to be out here all night? Do your job already!"
"Thanks for the support," Ruby mutters under her breath. So much for hoping for any sort of reassurance that it's safe to continue. Well, out of the two of them, Harriet is definitely the one that knows the area better, and she probably knows more about spotting hazards in the icy terrain than Ruby does, so Ruby should probably trust her judgment. Still, she can't help but feel uneasy as she continues to make her way across the ice.
It happens in a split second. There's a loud, ominous crack that even the roaring wind can't drown out, and then the ground suddenly vanishes out from under Ruby's feet. She finds herself suddenly submerged in the icy water. If she'd been at the top of her game, it'd still be an unpleasant experience, but easy enough to get out of between her aura and her semblance. But right now, with the shock of hitting the freezing water and how drained she feels, it takes her much longer than she'd prefer to scramble out of the hole in the ice and collapse in a shivering heap on more solid ground, coughing and sputtering.
Sometime during Ruby's struggles, Harriet must have made her way over to the area that Ruby was searching, but she doesn't seem concerned at all about the younger girl, nor does she offer to help her up as Ruby pushes herself to her feet. Her face remains impassive as Ruby wraps her arms around herself and clenches her jaw to keep her teeth from chattering.
"Take on of the transport ships and head back to Atlas," Harriet says finally, her voice devoid of any sympathy. "You're not going to be any use to me out here. I'm going to call for backup."
Ruby just nods and turns to head back to the shuttle. As much as she hates to be called useless, she's never wanted to be inside in the warmth more than she does right now. She'll worry about the rest later; right now, she just wants to get back to Atlas before she freezes solid and turns into a popsicle.
The slight warmth of the shuttle ride back is more than welcome, but by the time she's almost back to her dorm room, Ruby is ready to just collapse and curl up under the covers of her bed for the next week. Of course, it just so happens that she gets back right when the rest of her friends are returning from their own missions of the day, and she soon finds herself surrounded by her very worried teammates.
"Ruby? What happened to you?"
One long, hot shower later, Ruby finds herself curled up in bed in her warmest clothes with a mug of hot chocolate and pressed as close as possible to her sister, cocooned in her body heat. Yang has always run hot, ever since she unlocked her semblance, and Ruby has never been more grateful for that extra heat than she is right now. Even under every blanket in the room, she still feels a chill deep in her bones, as if she'll never be warm ever again.
"I'm going to kill her," Yang announces furiously. The murderous rage in her voice is in sharp contrast to the tender way she has her arm wrapped around her sister, holding her close.
"No, don't," Ruby protests, her voice hoarse from coughing. She shakes her head weakly. "'S not worth it. She was just doing her job."
"Ruby, she could've gotten you killed," Blake points out, her expression dark and worried. "This is serious." Next to her, Weiss nods fervently.
Ruby is too tired to put up much of a fight. "We can talk to Ironwood about it or something," she relents reluctantly, closing her eyes and ducking into her elbow to sneeze. Yang plucks the mug of hot chocolate out of her hand before she can spill it. "I just don't want to make a big fuss over this. It's really not that big of a deal."
"It is a big deal, Ruby," Weiss says, her sharp tone making Ruby wince. "But we'll discuss it with Ironwood instead of her if that's what you'd prefer."
"It would. Thanks, Weiss," Ruby murmurs sleepily, out a small cough. "I don't know what I would do without you guys."
If they respond it, she doesn't hear it; her body has finally given into her exhaustion from the events of the day and she finds herself dozing off. Nestled up against her sister and surrounded by her teammates, she's finally starting to feel warm again.
Please leave a review if you liked it!
Also please do not treat this fic as a guide for how to treat hypothermia.
