Chapter 28
Coming Apart at the Seams
Ruby stared in disbelief and horror at the pitiful girl looking back at her, hardly recognizing the scarred body as her own. Her usual trick of pretending the person in the mirror was someone else wasn't working this time, in part because they were both doubled over from the pain erupting from their stomachs.
As she began setting her mind to the task at hand her knees buckled and she just barely caught herself on the countertop, but not before letting out a loud yelp. She knew the girls outside must've heard it, Blake without a doubt, and although nobody tried breaking down the barricaded door she knew another outburst like that and there wouldn't be a force on Remnant that would be able to stop her sister from coming through.
With her forehead pressed against the mirror she blindly felt around for the faucet hoping to drown out some of the noise and make it sound like she was getting cleaned up. Afterward she gingerly knelt down and finished removing the rest of her bandages, as well as her socks and shoes and the wrappings underneath.
Half-naked and bleeding on the bathroom floor Ruby retrieved from her backpack the emergency first aid kit she had borrowed from the training room, and fished out a nearly empty prescription pill bottle from her ammo belt.
Standing back up proved to be even more challenging than she anticipated, and while Ruby was somehow able to remain silent she left scars on her tongue rivaling those on the rest of her body. Back on her feet she gasped for breath cradling the area under her left breast which was deep red and felt as though it were running a fever. The future bruise burned horribly but Ruby counted herself fortunate that Blake had narrowly missed her countless scars by striking her side instead. Had she thrusted or slashed her front Ruby suspected that she wouldn't be conscious right now, possibly not even alive.
Along with finding herself fortunate she also found comfort that the blood trickling out of her stomach wasn't matching that of her heartbeat, meaning the claw marks weren't too terribly deep, at least for the time being. Although painful they seemed to be mostly superficial, and as a huntress in-training something she had dealt with numerous times before.
Unable to keep her knees from trembling she climbed onto the countertop clutching the white canvas bag and pill bottle. Glancing at the mirror she quickly wished she hadn't. Another scar had opened, this one above her right hip. It was smaller and the pain barely noticeable compared to the five on her stomach, but the fact it hadn't been there just a moment ago made her nauseous.
Opening the bottle was her first priority as the painkillers would help dull her fear and what was quickly becoming unbearable, unrelenting torment. The childproof lock however was proving to be impossible for her shaky hands, and so used her teeth like a vice grip and turned.
*POP*
The sound was music to Ruby's ears but her celebration was short lived as several white capsules spilled out of her hand onto the tile floor below, leaving the bottle empty. She watched them fall in slow motion almost as if her semblance had unintentionally activated, but it wasn't until they hit the ground and scattered that she finished climbing down.
"No-no-no-no-no," she repeated, crawling on her hands and knees to where she'd seen the nearest capsule roll.
*knock, knock*
"Everything alright, Rubes?" Yang asked, sounding as though she might've had an ear against the door.
"Fine!" her voice cracked. "J-just washing my feet!" She froze as the door handle twisted back and forth, the lock keeping the unwelcome intruder out for the time being, but for how long Ruby wasn't sure. Her sister's patience was limited at the best of times and it'd hardly take a sneeze for her to even accidentally break the door down. "I'll be out in just a minute!"
The door's metal hinges began to squeak and Ruby closed her eyes realizing she was about to be found by her sister and friends crawling half-naked in a public bathroom in search of painkillers, all the while bleeding from her stomach. It wasn't exactly her proudest moment, and she was sure Weiss was about to disavow ever having known her...
To her surprise and amazement however the door didn't come flying off its hinges, meaning Weiss and Blake had either talked Yang down or had thrown their bodies in front of the door to stop her from creating a public spectacle. Whichever the case Ruby didn't have time to be grateful as she knew the clock was ticking. Moving as quickly as her body would allow she crawled underneath the stalls and checked behind every toilet for her precious capsules, finding two in the process which she clutched dearly. In the back of her mind she couldn't believe what she was doing, but each and every remaining painkillers was priceless to her, and she had planned on showering later anyway.
Whenever she began crawling back to the countertop thinking she'd found them all she'd spot another on the other side of the bathroom, causing her to backtrack what felt like the length of Beacon's airship hangar. It was as heartbreaking as it was a relief to have found another priceless capsule, but once the threat of passing out on the floor became more than just a possibility she had to abandon her search and pretend all had been found.
Climbing back onto the countertop she sat breathing heavily and covered in a mixture of sweat and blood. Out of breath but without time to waste her hands absently went to work refilling the bottle of painkillers, after washing them off. She kept two in her palm however, and once Ruby was sure that she wasn't going to have a coughing fit she popped them into her mouth and swallowed with water cupped from her hands.
Dizzy and feeling more tired that she had ever felt in her entire life Ruby then began raiding the first aid kit for supplies. Her first priority was to clean any and all open wounds which she would've done anyway but especially after crawling on the floor of a public bathroom. After wiping down with a damp towel that more than anything was to get rid of the sweat, blood, and general iciness on her body, Ruby closed her eyes and bit down on a rag before applying rubbing alcohol to her opened scars. When rational thought finally returned to her mind she found herself pleasantly surprised that she didn't pass out, and that nobody had broken the door down to investigate her muffled screaming.
Afterward she dressed the wounds just as she'd been trained using gauze and adhesive which she then hid underneath ordinary bandages.
"Everything alright, Rubes?"
"Fine!" she shouted back, ripping a length of bandages with her teeth. "Just getting my pants on! I'll be out in a minute!"
Once her stomach and chest were completely covered Ruby didn't allow herself even a moment to catch her breath. Instead she finished getting undressed and into fresh clothes, bending as little as possible as if afraid of opening stitches.
She crawled into a large red pullover which she wore as an extra precaution over her usual baggy shirt and undershirt, which she then pinned her cloak to. Dressed so warmly she found herself grateful for the window in the dorm room always being open and for her partner's chilly aura which had become her go-to excuse lately for whenever she was asked about her multiple layers of clothing.
After tying her boots back on she hurriedly began shoving bloodstained clothes and bandages to the bottom of her backpack and wiping any blood she found on the floor. She also took whatever supplies she thought she'd need from the first aid kit as the stockpile in their bathroom as well as her own private store were running dangerously low.
Inside the white canvas bag had also been some mild painkillers not much stronger than aspirin or over the counter pain relief but she wasn't about to pass them up. If one of her combat instructors asked why she had taken the emergency first aid kit out of the training room and emptied it she could honestly say she needed it as the footage from her match spoke for itself, and by the time another team requested that particular room another first aid kit would be provided. At worst Professor Goodwitch might ask for the canvas bag back but her finding it mostly empty didn't worry Ruby nearly as much as her teammates finding it.
"Alright, Rubes! Time's up! Ready or not here I-"
Just as the door was about to be broken off its hinges Ruby emerged attaching Crescent Rose to her ammo belt, a bemused smile on her face.
"Something wrong?" she asked innocently, pretending to be puzzled by her teammates' surprise. She got the distinct impression that her sister hadn't been the only one who'd been on the verge of breaking the door down, and figured if they'd been back at the dorm and not in public the door would've come down a long time ago.
"Uhhh-" Yang glanced at Blake and Weiss who were both doubled over seemingly from holding their breath the entire time the door had been closed. A moment later however their eyes instinctively drifted into the bathroom searching for anything amiss, and not wanting to test Blake's keen senses Ruby closed the door and began walking toward their dressing room, figuring they weren't about to abandon her now.
"Hey!" Before she could get out of arm's reach Yang grabbed hold of her hood. Walking around her sister and acting as an immovable object she studied Ruby closely with her arms crossed over her chest. "You sure you're alright?"
Ruby managed the most convincing smile that she could given the circumstances and nodded. "Not yet, but I will be," she answered honestly, her smile appearing more genuine as she glanced back at their teammates.
Weiss and Blake gathered around a moment later, hovering around the caped-girl, and once her inspection turned up negative Yang gently took her sister by the side so she had something to lean against. "Here, let me carry that."
Without asking for permission she relieved Ruby of her heavy backpack, which even if she was reluctant to give up she didn't exactly have the strength to argue, much less carry it all the way back to the room.
"Thanks," she said breathlessly, looking over the bag making sure everything was properly zipped and hidden away from prying eyes.
Unsurprisingly Yang didn't seem to notice the backpack's extra weight even while partially carrying her sister, but soon enough Ruby found herself walking half a step ahead of her teammates wishing that they'd hurry. It was a familiar sight to all their fellow students, but for those more perceptive they couldn't help noticing she seemed to be even more in a hurry than usual.
Ruby knew her clock was ticking, that sometime within the next thirty minutes her painkillers would kick in and she'd need to be in bed if she wanted to hide the effects from her roommates. She would've preferred going back to the dorm alone with her backpack, but after the incident in the training room and everyone still feeling uneasy Ruby knew she had no choice but to go with them while they got dressed. With any luck they'd hurry to get her back upstairs, but if not she could always ask what the bathing arrangements were as it was a sure way of getting everyone racing back.
As they continued walking Ruby slowed in front of the girls locker room feeling suddenly dizzy.
"You okay, Rubes?" Yang asked, watching her sister wince and hold the side of her head. "Weiss' migraines getting contagious?"
"Yeah, fine," she said through clenched teeth. The peculiar sensation soon passed and she shook her head. Glancing toward the locker room's entry way she could've sworn she briefly saw movement through the opaque window that most school doors seemed to have, but as she turned around about to say something the words died on the lips and she forgot how to breathe.
"What's wrong, sis?" asked the shadow with piercing red eyes.
Razor sharp claws dripping with blood stretched toward Ruby causing her to back away and draw her weapon. Two smaller Beowolves flanking the larger also stretched out their claws but they froze when suddenly facing down the barrel of her sniper-scythe. Their momentary indecision gave Ruby enough time to assess the situation, and she found herself in the middle of a snowy field surrounded by dozens of juvenile Beowolves.
Without any time to reload Crescent Rose she instinctively swung at what she presumed was the pack leader but its large claw grabbed hold of the blade not even flinching.
"RUBY!? THE HELL IS GOING ON!?"
She tried yanking her only salvation out of the monster's grasp but her legs gave out from under her and the Beowolves pounced all wanting their fair share.
Ruby screamed as the pack leader pressed a claw down on her stomach, pinning her to the snowy ground and causing a fountain of scarlet to erupt. It's jaws opened inches from her face, a preview of the ripping and tearing that immediately followed.
Through a gap in the Beowolves she saw a white hooded figure step out of a familiar cottage atop of a nearby hill, and Ruby screamed with all of her might for mommy to save her.
"RUBY!"
(A/N: Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. My deepest apologies for yet another cliffhanger, friends, especially one so intense. In my original outline Chapters 26-29 were all one chapter but while writing they got split into two and later four. They flow better this way in my opinion, and the cliffhangers/continuations felt more natural to me as well. If you're anxious about what happens next you'll be happy to know that I've already started editing Chapter 29, which is about the length of this chapter, and it's my hope to have it posted within the next week or so. I hope you enjoy.
As for this chapter, Ruby crawling on the floor for her painkillers is an idea I had a LONG time ago and something that I actually cut from Chapter 18 in order to do it justice. There's just something very disturbing and pitiful about Ruby crawling on her hands and knees in a public bathroom desperately searching for her painkillers that really gets to me, especially after she's unable to open the bottle's child protective lock by conventional means. I wanted the scene to feel real and as an "undignified" low point in Ruby's life, and I hope I accomplished that without going too far. As for what happened at the end of the chapter, you all can probably make pretty good guesses of what's going on but we'll see what happens in the next chapter. I hope you enjoy, and thank you again, friends.
All credit goes to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who has blessed me with this story and with all of you wonderful readers. God bless)
