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Scene 5:
Daydreams
Ruby Pov
Well, it had been a few weeks since I got accepted into Beacon. The entire time I had stayed with Ms. Goodwitch, since I couldn't exactly stay with my family, what with them trying to kill me and everything.
Ms. Goodwitch has been…surprisingly nice. I mean, I don't trust her much yet, if I ever do.
I mean, I trust her not to try to kill me. She wants to help me, why, I don't know. I don't understand why she's doing what she's doing with me, I don't really understand why she likes me.
But, I know she does.
For now. I don't know how long that'll last. I don't know enough about her to be certain. Given my experiences with my family, I can't help but feel that once she discovers I'm not what she want me to be, or I don't live up to her expectations then she'll discard me.
Then again, she doesn't have an old Ruby to compare me to.
Even still, I can't tell her everything. Ms. Goodwitch and Ozpin have asked what happened to me and my family that caused all this.
"So, Ruby…what…happened." Ms. Goodwitch asked slowly and awkwardly.
At the time I was reading one of the history books she had gotten me. Seeing as how I had been starved for knowledge ever since I had been taken out of school, I was greedily soaking up all the information Ms. Goodwitch sought to give me.
Bu this question was an important question that I needed to handle. So, I tore my eyes from the book, and gazed at her, tilting my head in thought as I both considered what she was really asking, and how to respond.
"You want to know how I got like this, don't you?" I asked back. I wanted her to say it.
"I…yes, I do. I want to know what happened to cause all this…madness…with you and your family. What turned you into a-a...broken doll of a girl?" She answered honestly, yet tentatively. She still felt like she had to walk on eggshells around me, not out of fear, but out of concern for hurting my feelings. I wish she'd just figure out already that she can't hurt my feelings any worse than my father did.
I nodded in understanding, getting why she would ask, and what she wanted to know.
Still…
"Hmm….I'm not telling you." I said, calmly shaking my head, after a moment of thought. I turned my attention back to the book. I had established my position, and I wasn't going to change it no matter what she said.
"What? Why not?" She asked, reeling in shock from my denial of her whims.
"Because, I don't know if I can trust you enough for that yet." I answered truthfully in a bored tone, not even bothering to look up at her.
"Can't trust me?" She said, shocked and hurt I would say that. I could tell, though, there was more than that in there. "Why not? What have I not done to earn your trust?"
"It's not that simple." I responded, mildly annoyed. Though it still came out as more bored then anything. Apparently she still didn't get it.
"What could be so horrible that you don't trust me to know the truth? Do you really think so little of me as to think that I'd betray you like that?" She questioned, hurt by my statements.
And with that, I tore my eyes from my book once more, stared her straight in the eyes with a mildly annoyed, yet bored, look and simply said, "My father did."
And with that, she closed her mouth with an audible click. That one argument had cut through her reasoning, all because it was true.
"If I couldn't trust my own father, my own flesh and blood, the man who was supposed to raise, love, and protect me, the man I knew for years, than why should I trust a woman I just met a few days ago? No matter how nice she is." I explained critically, staring her down with a blank face as I did.
After a moment of silence, a moment where she looked down and realized how she was behaving.
"I…I must apologize Ruby, I didn't think about it like that. I'm sorry for…being presumptuous." She apologized earnestly.
"If it helps, I trust you more than almost anyone else." I added.
"Almost?" She questioned quizzically.
"Yeah, I like Lucifer and Garm more." I explained.
"And who are they?" She asked
I gave her a mildly annoyed look, one that told her, "Didn't we just have this conversation?"
She sighed, realizing that getting me to trust her enough to tell her everything would take a while. She wanted to be mad, or annoyed, at me. She wanted to demand that I tell her everything, but….she knew that wouldn't be very effective. More to the point, she could see where I was coming from.
How could I trust her when I couldn't even trust the ones I loved?
So instead, she took a breath, released her anger, and looked back down at me.
"Okay Ruby, I…understand. I will give you the time to choose when you tell me, I won't push you. Just know, if you ever want to talk, I'm here. Okay?" She said to me sincerely.
"Hmm…we'll see." I answered cryptically, returning my gaze to my book.
So, for now, I can trust her enough to stay with her. Like I said, at this point Ms. Goodwitch is one of the only people I can trust enough to rely on. She's…endeared herself to me. I like her, she's nice.
Unlike the rest of my family, she doesn't have an old Ruby she'll constantly be comparing me to. I won't have to suffer being constantly reminded that I'm not the same, to feel like I'm not good enough for them.
Unlike them, Ms. Goodwitch has been rather nice and understanding.
More importantly, she's been incredibly helpful, teaching me more than I ever knew existed. Most of it has been history, since my knowledge on the history of Remnant is nearly non-existent and it's a somewhat important course at the school. I simply know the barebones basics. I didn't even know how much I didn't know.
She also brought me to the forge at the school, introducing me to the smiths and engineers there.
They were nice too, but that's mainly because Ms. Goodwitch was there, and she scared them.
That being said, regardless of how weird they were, they were helpful in coming up with designs for a new weapon.
I'd never get rid of the Rose, my scythe, but with their help I had plans to make another one. I'm not entirely sure what I'm going to call it, but at this time I'm going with the Rose MK II. Considering I'll actually have access to hunter-grade materials and manufacturing practices, it should be exponentially better than the MK I, especially since I'm considering adding a rife for range.
However, the plans for the Rose MK II are rather complicated, and I'm still working out the kinks. Right now it's mostly just ideas, untapped potential, without any real way to make them work. In the meantime, I still need a ranged weapon, but not too big since I'll still be using the Rose MK I.
So, I came up with the Thorn. It's just a sidearm, a large caliber, fire dust infused, side arm, but a side arm nonetheless. It wasn't too difficult to make, though when I finally made the thing most people looked at it like it was some kind of unholy abomination.
I mean, I guess it was big, firing .65 caliber rounds and being 1.5 feet long, but I thought it was the single most beautiful thing I had ever made. That being said, it was quite simple. It fired big bullets that set people in fire, nothing complicated there. Though due to how expensive the bullets would be thanks to the fire dust infused in each round, I would have to use them sparingly. I had regular bullets for it, but due to the fact they lacked the penetrating power of some rifle rounds, they might not be as effective.
Frankly, I didn't know, I could only guess at how effective it would be. It needed real combat trials to actually determine where I needed to improve. As time went on, I hoped I would learn more about both weapons, work out the kinks, and make them more effective. Trial and error is, honestly, the most effective method for development. Making something, testing it, having it fail, but learning from that failure. Learning, and improving.
In any case, I spent the rest of the week learning more from Ms. Goodwitch, while also taking some time to tinker with the Thorn. Still though, my studies took up most of my time, and I ended up not being able to really field test it like I wanted.
We also came up with a cover story for Lilith Totenrot.
Lilith Totenrot is the niece of Ms. Goodwitch. She lived happily in a village a little ways outside the city walls with her loving family, and helped out a little on their farm.
Then, one day, the Grimm attacked. She watched everyone she knew in the village die to them, and she only barely managed to survive thanks to her surprising skills with a simple farming scythe, and the previous activation of her aura by Ms. Goodwitch when she visited once. When rescuers found her, Lilith was still slicing through a small horde of Grimm, fighting and running for her life.
Ms. Goodwitch is her only living relative now, and that is why Lilith is staying with her. Because of that, and her extensive skill as a potential huntress, Lilith was able to attend Beacon early.
The cover has some holes in it, but it's not supposed to be something I explain to everyone, just something I draw from if anyone gets too curious or pushy. That's why it's so dark and violent.
If anyone asks about how I managed to get into Beacon so early, all I have to say is, "I was the sole survivor of a Grimm attack on my village. I managed to impress the school with how I managed to fight for my life while I watched everyone I knew die in front of me." The second I say that, they'll probably feel extremely awkward and drop the subject.
People are weird like that.
I'd be more curious than ever, but that's just me.
In any case, Ms. Goodwitch introduced me as Lilith Totenrot, her niece, to all the staff, explaining the basics of my cover. How Ms. Goodwitch is supposed to be my only living relative and that I impressed the school.
They accepted it well enough. They had questions, but when the sternest teacher in the school is endorsing my enrollment, what could they say to change Ozpin's mind?
Still though, I could tell when they met me that I made them uneasy. They didn't even know why, something inside them just didn't like my presence. I knew why it happened, but I couldn't do anything about it. It was outside my control.
It's one of the reasons I liked Ms. Goodwitch. She's the only person I've ever met who hasn't thought I was creepy, or at least, was able to push past without resentment or fear. It was…nice…having someone who wasn't scared of me.
Well, having someone else not scared of me.
She was also one of the few people I could actually hold a conversation with without them trying to run away.
It's for these reasons that I was considering taking her up on her offer.
Ms. Goodwitch explained to me that when during initiation, we would be assigned teams and partners. Normally, after teams were assigned, we would stay with our team in a dorm. Ms. Goodwitch, however, offered to let me continue to stay with her as she continued to educate me. I would still go to classes with my team, but I just wouldn't be sleeping in the same dorm as them.
I think she did this because of her knowledge of both my trust issues and my antisocial personality. That, and the fact that I'll probably creep out anybody I room with, and the last thing I need is to be stuck in a room filled with three people afraid of me.
Ozpin, after thinking it over, allowed it. As much as he wanted me to bond with my team, he could understand the logic of not having me stay with them, especially considering what my own father did to me. It would be best if I could stay with someone I could trust, and while I didn't trust Ms. Goodwitch completely, I trusted her enough.
But, I'd have to see who my teammates were before I decided to follow through on that. If they were too annoying, or too nosy, I would definitely follow through. Then again, considering human nature, they probably would be.
I sighed.
Why did people have to be so complicated?
Speaking of teams, that's what I was doing right now.
It was the day before initiation, the day when everyone got here, and I was waiting for the first Bullhead to arrive. I was scouting out who I wanted to be on my team, judging them for who was the best and most compatible with me.
Ms. Goodwitch didn't tell me how they would be picking teams, but she did say that the first two people to meet eyes would become partners for the rest of their time in beacon.
I think Ozpin wanted to leave this stuff to fate or destiny. That, or he just wanted to see what would happen if he left everything to chance, hoping something amusing would come up.
In any case, it would be most prudent for me to pick someone I can get along with, or would synergize most effectively with.
The only problem…was how.
I had terrible social skills, even with Ms. Goodwitch's help. I would probably scare anyone off if I tried to confront them upfront, or not get the relevant data. I mean, I could try to talk to them, fail miserably, and end up with an idea about their personality, but no idea how they fought.
I groaned again, frowning slightly from my position.
Why did this have to be so hard?
So, until I came up with a better plan, I would just watch them from the shadows, staying out of it completely.
Finally the first Bullhead arrived and began to unload people. And right at the head of the pack was her.
Yang.
My sister.
She felt…happier, than I ever recalled seeing her when I was around.
Once again I felt that pang in my chest, I felt that hurt.
She didn't seem like she missed me, in fact she seemed happier without me.
Would she be better off if I died? I wondered sadly.
Then I felt a surge of anger, of frustration, rise in me.
After all I did for them?! After all I did to come back? For them?!
My frown deepened as my thoughts turned to rage. I glared at her with all my heart, jealous that she could have what I could not, and she didn't even need to work for it, not like I did.
Soon, however, she ran off to join her…friends.
I sighed, letting out a hot breath of anger. I let the anger flow out of me, refusing to let it control me.
Soon, it had simmered down. It was still there, it would always be there, so long as I knew those traitors I thought were my family were there, but it wasn't nearly as present.
I loved my family with all my heart, I did, but I had given them chance after chance to prove themselves to me. There was only so much betrayal I could take from them, only so much the could make me hurt before I pushed back. I would give them one last chance. I would give them each one last chance to turn this around, to prove that they were worthy of my love, my sacrifice, before I would leave them forever.
I quickly lost track of her, though I could have stalked her easily if I wanted to. I didn't though. The last thing I wanted to do was watch the subject of my hurt walk around, having fun I had been deprived of. Yang's chance to prove herself to me would come one day, but not now.
So absorbed I was in the thoughts of my sister, that I lost track of my surroundings.
"Uh, hey. Are you alright?" A young male voice asked from behind me.
Surprised, I whirled around as fast as I could, backing up so my back was against the cold, stone, pillar.
In response to my abrupt reaction, he backed off and held his hands up in a surrendering position, trying to show he didn't mean any harm.
He had pale, lightly tanned skin. Well, lightly tanned compared to my alabaster white skin. He had blond hair, blue eyes, and was wearing a black hoodie and jeans. Over the hoodie he wore a white set of armor.
"Sorry, sorry, sorry! I didn't mean to startle you! I just…I don't know, you looked…upset. You looked lonely over here, I just wanted to know if I could help." He apologized, explaining his actions. He was being honest, and was very much sorry for startling me. More importantly, he didn't seem to be…unsettled by me.
I stared into his blue eyes, filled with hope, life, and…doubt. Doubt and loneliness.
Interesting. No fear of me, specifically, just fear of…something else.
I thought, intrigued, as I continued to stare at him, my head cocked to the side in thought.
As I continued to stare at him, however, I began to sense some unease in him.
"Um…so…are you okay?" He asked awkwardly.
It was at this time that I remembered what Ms. Goodwitch said about staring.
Realizing that I was now probably creeping him out, what, with my silent, unblinking stare, I decided to break my silence.
"Sorry." I muttered
"Sorry? Why are you sorry?" He asked, confused
"I was staring, staring's rude." I answered calmly
"Oh…okay." He said, slightly caught off guard by that, but in the end rolling with it.
"I'm not…great…with people." I explained, frowning ever so slightly at being forced to acknowledge my deficiencies.
"Yeah, me neither. Never really had many friends." He explained. Though I doubted he truly understood my struggle, it was still interesting to find someone else socially awkward.
He then perked up, and held out his hand to me.
"Anyway, my name's Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, ladies love it!" He introduced cheerfully.
I stared at his hand for a second, then at him, then at the hand again.
When I noticed that his smile began to falter I finally decided to take his hand.
He was…weird…but that wasn't a bad thing.
"My name's Lilith Totenrot." I answered, shaking his hand softly.
At that, his smile returned, twice as wide and bright. I had to put a stop to that.
"But, why would ladies love your name?" I asked curiously, tilting my head again as I did so.
His smile vanished and he visibly deflated. He let out a sigh of defeat.
"I don't know, they probably don't. My dad just said all I needed to get girls was confidence." He explained dejectedly
I raised a brow at that.
"Are you saying you were trying to "get" me?" I asked innocently, not understanding what he meant by "get girls"
When I said this, his face basically turned into what I can best describe as an "OH GOD NO." expression of horror.
"No! No no no, no. Just…no. Just, no. Okay? I wasn't hitting on you, I was just trying to be nice." He exclaimed in panic, then he lent down to my level.
"Please don't tell anyone I said that. I don't want to be known as a pedophile." He pleaded
"Pedophile?" I questioned. I felt like I had heard it before, but I don't remember what it meant. I think it meant he liked feet, but I don't know what that had to do with anything.
"Please, please, please, don't tell anyone about that! I'll do anything you want!" He continued, getting on his hands and knees as he ignored my question.
Wait, anything? I thought in surprise. Anything had uses, anything had potential.
I could use anything.
"Anything?" I asked, wanting to make sure.
"Yes! Yes! Anything, just don't let people know I tried to hit on a little girl! I'm too pretty for jail!" He proclaimed to me.
I smiled, a small, yet sweetly sinister smile.
"Okay, then be my servant." I answered, a small measure of joy in my voice.
"…What?" He asked, stunned by my request.
Yes, know I remember what a pedophile is. Jaune probably isn't a pedophile, as they are creepy but easy to manipulate. That being said, most people think pedophiles are the worst, most disgusting people on Remnant. I disagree, but most people are weird. I thought.
"You heard me, be my servant, pledge your loyalty to me." I answered.
He then gave a nervous chuckle.
"He, he, I don't know, that seems like…a lot." He said nervously, trying to back out
But I wouldn't let him get away.
"Oh, so you're saying you want me to tell Ms. Goodwitch that you tried to seduce her young niece?" I asked, a small sweet smile still on my face.
I had him trapped.
He gulped loudly, just now realizing how much he messed up.
"Y-your Ms. Goodwitch's niece?" He questioned in horror.
"Yep!" I cheerfully responded, joy filling me at my success.
At that he paled considerably, almost reaching my porcelain-like skin. He broke out into a cold sweat and his eyes widened into small, blue, moons.
"I'm staying with her here at Beacon." I continued, throwing his heart further and further into the pit, gleeful all the way.
"I-I…okay, I'll do it. What do I have to do?" He submitted finally, hanging his head in defeat.
Wow, that was surprisingly easy. One teammate down, two to go. I thought, pleased at my current development.
I would have Jaune as my partner, he was…fun…and nice. I could get a lot of entertainment out of this poor boy if he continued to act like this.
Though, if I push him too far…hmm.
When I thought about that I realized I couldn't be too zealous about this. If I pushed Juane too hard, and was too harsh to him I'd end up pushing away someone else I might be able to trust. I had to find the perfect balance. Otherwise he could betray me.
And with that thought I decided to lay off the poor boy.
"Okay, you have to…" I began, pausing as I considered my options.
He braced himself for my judgement, waiting for some silly, emasculating, embarrassing request like, "go get me cookies." Or "give me a ride.". He was fully prepared to have his reputation ruined as he was forced to lower himself to being this little girl's servant, along with all the embarrassing things that likely came with it.
What he wasn't expecting, was my request.
"Be my friend here." I answered finally. People were faithful to their friends. They cared about them, trusted them, and didn't betray them.
While I didn't really care about Juane too much, he had endeared himself to me. He was interesting, and nice to me. Plus, like Ms. Goodwitch, he wasn't put off by my creepiness.
When I asked him to be my friend, his head shot up in surprise. In response I gave him a small, weak, smile, trying to portray my sincerity.
When he saw that his own face lit up in shock.
"I think I can do that." He answered, a small, soft, and fond smile melting its way onto his face.
He got up from his position on the ground, patted his jeans to shake the dirt off them.
"So, Lilith, can I do anything else for you?" he asked
I thought about it. I didn't really need him for anything else right now. That being said, I was curious…
"You're a new student right?" I asked
"Uh, yeah." He answered, though there was something…lurking…behind it. I think it was….guilt, mixed with doubt and fear.
Disregarding it, sensing no real negative emotions coming from him directed at anyone other than himself, I continued.
"So what are your weapons?" I asked.
I wanted to know if my gamble actually paid off. It would be best if his fighting style complimented mine. It wasn't necessary, I wouldn't abandon him if he didn't. I wouldn't be like my family, and abandon him just because he wasn't exactly what I wanted. That being said, it would still be nice to know.
"Oh!" He said, perking up. "I have this."
He pulled out a sword and scabbard from his side.
With a push of the button his scabbard opened up into a shield.
"I have this sword and shield. It's been in my family for generations." He explained with a small degree of pride.
Not too proud, though. Not arrogant. That's good, though all that doubt will be a problem. I thought.
More importantly, he used a sword and shield. After a cursory look at his weapons, I could tell that they appeared to be relatively well made. They should be able to withstand all but the strongest attacks, which is good news for the both of us.
Sword and shield. I can definitely work with that. I thought as I nodded approvingly at his gear.
"I know they're not as fancy as some other people's stuff, but-" He began, once again sinking into doubt.
I cut him off before he could put himself down too much, though.
"No, it's okay. The shield and sword are the basics for a reason, never doubt them. Simplicity doesn't mean weakness, after all. I mean, look at mine." I cut him off, drawing Rose from behind me.
With a simple flick of the wrist, Rose extended. The pole telescoped out and the blade unfolded.
"Whoa." He said, surprised that I had a scythe.
"See, mine's simple too, it's just a scythe, nothing really fancy about it. And yet, it's been my faithful weapon for years." I explained with a small smile as I thought about making the Rose, and how much I've used it for all these years.
"Cool." He said approvingly
Then he looked down at his own weapons in thought for a minute before looking back up at me.
"I guess I never thought about it like that. I always just saw how every other hunter had a fancy weapon that could turn into different things. Like a sword cannon or something." He answered.
At the mention of a sword cannon I had a small daydream about how that could work, as well as how effective that would be.
The barrel could be hidden in the center of the sword, making up its core. Then again, that would probably cause problems with the barrel overheating. I suppose you could solve that with properly placed vents, but then you might compromise the structural integrity of the sword. I guess you could put a cooling system inside the sword, but that would severely limit how much usable space you had in the sword. Conversely you could just make it so you could only fire every once in a while. That would certainly fit in with the whole "cannon" theme.
It didn't take Jaune to notice that I was lost in my own little world.
"Uh, Lily? Hello?" He asked, waving his hand in front of my face.
While that did get my attention, it's not how he would have liked.
"Lily?" I questioned. My voice was as cold as the empty void of death, and my glare colder.
Realizing his mistake, Jaune chuckled nervously.
"Right, sorry, not Lily. That's a stupid name, your name's Lilith. Got it." He said, trying to backpedal into my good graces.
As usual, my anger almost instantly bled off into mild annoyance. I wasn't really mad at him, but I wanted him to think I was, at least for a moment.
"So long as you remember that." I answered dismissively.
I paused, thinking for a second more, before I decided to make a suggestion to him.
"Jaune, you need a gun." I suggested.
"Huh? I thought you said simplicity was good?" He questioned, now confused.
"Yes, but you need range." I explained.
"You don't need to add anything to your sword, just a little something to give you options, like I did." I continued as I pulled out the Thorn.
"OH GOD WHAT IS THAT!?" He exclaimed in surprise.
"Why does everyone ask that?" I muttered in annoyance and confusion.
"It's the size of your arm!" He shouted.
I looked at the Thorn again, realizing that, while it wasn't technically as big as my arm, it was close.
"Huh." I said simply at the realization.
"You want me to have something like that?" He questioned incredulously.
I pondered that question for a moment before responding, tilting my head in thought.
"Maybe. It can be anything you want. You could have a small shotgun, hand cannon, machine pistol, anything." I answered.
"I don't think I'll be using that monster." He responded, pointing at the Thorn.
I glared silently at him again, making him back down.
"It's not a monster." I seethed coldly, "It's a beauty" I continued, looking fondly at the Thorn.
He looked down at the Thorn skeptically. "Right." He said sardonically.
Despite his sarcastic comment, he wisely held his tongue and neglected to say anything else about my beautiful hand cannon.
Well, at least he's learning. I thought to myself.
We continued to talk for a bit when he realized something.
"Wait, aren't we supposed to go somewhere?" He questioned.
"Yep, the auditorium. Ozpin's giving a speech." I answered calmly,
"Crap! I forgot! I have no idea where that is either!" He panicked.
I sighed, realizing I would have to help him like he was a child.
I grabbed his hand and began to lead him along.
"Come on, follow me." I said, heading toward the auditorium.
"Oh, thank god you know your way around here." He said, merciful that he had happened to befriend someone who had been here for a month already.
"Yeah, sure, thank god, not the person taking you there." I muttered bitterly, mildly annoyed at his misplaced thanks, though apparently he heard it.
"Er, thanks to you too Lilith, I'd have never gotten there in time if it wasn't for you." He apologized.
I sighed again.
While he could be quite nice, he was also somewhat chatty. It wasn't an entirely bad trait with him, it's not like he talked about himself all the time or anything, but it could be…annoying.
Whatever, it didn't matter too much.
We got there, listened to Ozpin's speech about Wasted Potential, which apparently unnerved everyone else. I don't know why, I liked it. Thought it made a great deal of sense.
Afterwards, I talked with Jaune some more. Well, it's more like he talked and I responded with short sentences and various looks. He was oddly nice company despite how…chatty…he could be. I suppose that's because I knew he didn't mean anything by it. We eventually parted ways when it was time for everyone to go to the ballroom to sleep.
It was at that point that I realized that I had wasted most of the day talking to Jaune, instead of finding other teammates and studying my fellow students.
I groaned at how easily I got distracted.
Then I thought about it again.
I shouldn't say I "wasted" the day with Jaune, I learned a lot about him. So far he seems trustworthy. At least, trustworthy enough not to stab me in the back immediately, so I'll keep being his "friend". He's definitely going to be my teammate, hopefully my partner too, but I'll have to figure out a way to ensure that.
But still, that left me in the position of being effectively blind about nearly everyone else going into the initiation.
All except Yang, and that…that wasn't going to happen.
Not if I could do anything to stop it.
So, what to do to get information on my fellow students?
I didn't have much time left, everyone would be going to sleep soon, and then tomorrow we would be going out into the forest and it would be too late. There was a small window of opportunity during breakfast, but I really didn't want to talk to people.
What could I do?
Oh. I realized in surprise.
That's…actually brilliant. I mean, it'll be a little hard, but I think I can do it. I thought.
It doesn't really matter how much it tires me out, though. I absolutely refuse to allow myself to go into tomorrow blind. I need information. I thought resolutely, committing to the course ahead of me.
? pov
"So, doctor, do you think she'll hold together?" I asked, concerned.
"The treatments have done a lot of good, she's very far along." He answered.
"But will she hold?" I insisted.
He sighed, knowing the answer wasn't as simple as that.
"She'll probably hold." He answered finally.
"Probably?" I criticized.
"Psychology and hypnotherapy aren't exactly exact sciences." He responded, exasperated.
He sighed again
"But, if I had to guess, I'd say that unless she's pushed to the brink, she'll hold." He answered tiredly, not liking to have to make such a guess about this.
"Pushed to the brink?" I questioned.
"Yes. I think she'll hold unless she's put under life-or-death level stress. If she is pushed to the point where she has to try to do anything to survive, then I believe the stress will start to undo what we've done" He explained.
"Life-or-death stress? She's going to Beacon, a hunter academy, where they fight Grimm!" I said incredulously.
She's going to fall apart I thought fearfully.
"Please, Beacon may be an intense hunter academy, but it's probably one of the safest, at least mentally. In addition, your girl is hardly weak. I bet she'd be able to take on anything without breaking a sweat. I mean, when I said life-or-death level stress, I meant she had to be staring death in the face. She has to undergo a tremendous amount of stress in order for the treatment to break." He explained, dismissing my concerns.
I sighed, realizing he was right.
I just hoped that she would be happy, that she would finally find peace. Considering her life, it's the least she deserved.
My little Kokkinos was more than skilled enough to survive Beacon. After all, what could possibly beat the life of a slave?
A/n:
EDIT: Google translate's a stupid asshole and a bitch, and thanks to it I have to change Vyssini to Kokkinos for reasons. Thanks google translate, for fucking me.
I'm back with the first Beacon chapter.
And it's a lighter scene.
I need to keep the light and dark balanced, in my opinion.
If it's all darkness or light, then some of the high points start to lose their meaning.
If I balance it properly, than I feel that the darkness feels darker, and the light feels brighter.
I'll also try to make sure that, like with my other story, I keep mini arcs or episodes in 4 chapter segments.
TRY
It won't always work, especially since RWBY is a webisode series, so it's episodes aren't standard length, nor do they consist of a normal amount of content.
Just know, each mini-arc should be about 4 scenes.
In any case, Ruby doesn't have Crescent Rose yet, she just has Rose, which is just a scythe.
She's working on how to make something approaching Crescent Rose, but she hasn't had the training, help, or resources to even know how to make it yet.
I've seen stories were Ruby still has the Crescent Rose despite having been on the run or in the wild since she was a child or something, not that said stories are bad.
While I do think it's an important part of her character, I do think they're underestimating the weapon.
The Crescent Rose is complex as fuck, and it's not something you can just make with grit, talent, and scrap. No, you need training, an excellent grasp of physics, math, and the science of murder. You also need access to high end resources and manufacturing methods. Things she didn't have access to when her family barred her from attending Signal
That being said, she does have incredible talent with weapon construction, which is why Rose, despite being literally made of garbage and scrap, is actually a pretty damn good scythe. It's also how she made a decent hand cannon from scratch in a few weeks.
So instead she's still working on it.
She might have a...version...of it later now that she has access to those things she lacked, but not right now.
So, in lea of the ultra complex Crescent Rose, she has the simple Rose and Thorn combo. A giant hand cannon, and a scythe.
I figured that if Ruby's supposed to be strong enough to wield the behemoth that is Crescent Rose, than a 12 year old version can handle a giant hand cannon.
That being said, she hasn't had much practice with it yet, seeing as she just made it a week ago. I mean, she'll be able to shoot things and kill them, just don't expect sharpshooter Ruby to be a thing.
Also, Ruby met Jaune!
And Lilith has a cover story!
Kinda!
It's almost as dark as the truth!
And more mystery girl!
And it turns out this is my longest chapter!
Next one will probably be longer.
It will likely be huge, and as such take a long ass time to write, so don't expect it too soon.
Anyway, hopefully by the time this arc is over, initiation will be done.
If that means I have to make absurdly long scenes to do it, I will.
And don't forget, I am happy to answer questions, if you have them. That being said, if the answer is a spoiler I'll try to be cryptic, yet, informative.
And if you have any thoughts about my writing I'd love to hear them.
