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Act II

Scene 18:

Return

A/n: That was a pretty awesome response I got for my first Scene of Act II.

I got over 1,000 views in a single day.

For me, that's incredible and I love you guys for it.

Here's a bone you sick twisted fucks.

Never change.

Also, shoutout to TehUnoman for helping me with the scene between Ruby and Lucifer.

And if you want to listen to Sympathy For the Devil by The Rolling Stones while reading that part, that's your prerogative.

I think that Feeling Good by Michael Buble works much better, fits the tone for how I've written Lucifer better, but both kind of work.


Torchwick pov

Several weeks ago

"So Jack" I began.

It was late and Mila had since been switched out with Jack. While Jack wasn't really bad, the blond was kind of an ass on occasion. Still, though, it gave me the opportunity to learn some things about my most frequent jailor.

"Why are the two of you my guards?" I asked.

Jack looked at me and scoffed.

"Since you're such a "highly rated threat", only Watchmen are authorized to guard you. Frankly I don't see what makes you so tough. After all, you got your ass handed to you by a little girl." He responded.

See? Asshole.

Still, that answered a couple of the questions I had.

I already knew Jack was a Watchman, he wore his Watchmen armor all the time. The armored suit wasn't exactly subtle. That said, Mila didn't wear one, she just wore the standard police blues. I thought it was odd that they'd have a Watchman guard me in my sleep, and…Mila…guard me while I was wide awake.

"So Mila's a Watchman? Then why doesn't she wear her armor?" I asked, surprised. She sure as hell didn't show it.

"She's new. Just got certified before you got your ass locked in here. She hasn't gotten her shit yet. Well, that's the official story as for why she hasn't gotten her shit yet. The fact is, a lot of people didn't like how the Faunus girl managed to become a Watchman." He explained.

"Do they think she used 'favors' to get there?" I asked, not so subtly asking who she had to blow to get into the boy's club.

"Makes more sense than anything else. I mean, she just isn't Watchmen material, and the way she got in just seems a little sketchy to me." He answered, a little bit of jealous venom in his voice

"Really?" Now I was curious.

"Yeah. Mila had damn near perfect marks, especially on marksmanship ratings. She's good. Too good, and nobody except some of the higher-up were there to rate her. They say she did well, but I think she just gave'em all a good BJ." He remarked with a grin.

"Because she got perfect marks?" I guessed.

He nodded.

"Yep. It's all a little suspicious. I mean, she just met the tenure requirement to join. She may have technically been here long enough to join, but she's really still a rookie. And no rookie girl, especially an airheaded Faunus is that good." He explained.

"Wait, so is it because she's a girl, an airhead, new, or a Faunus?" I asked, just trying to be difficult.

"Well, it's mostly because she's a Faunus and she's so…her." He began

"So you don't mind that she's a girl?" I questioned. I had thought that sexism played a major part in his reasoning, he didn't exactly seem like the champion of women's rights after all.

"I might have, but then I met Aveline, and she's pretty awesome. Then again, Aveline isn't exactly a girly girl, so…" He trailed off with a shrug.

"But you are worried because she's a Faunus?" I asked, now thoroughly curious about his motives.

It's not like I had much of anything better to do in here.

"I'm just being realistic. We're Watchmen, and right now the biggest threat that would require our help is the White Fang. If we're fighting the White Fang, what guarantee do we have that she won't hesitate to kill her fellow Faunus? Or even worse, turn on us?" He explained.

That…was a surprisingly good point. It seemed that Jack, underneath the dickish asshole that was his exterior, actually thought things through. Still, I had to wonder if her race played any part in this.

"So, it's not just because she's a stupid animal?" I asked, baiting him.

"Nah. I'm smart enough to know that this isn't exactly a job requiring much in the sophistication department. I mean, the things our job entails actually kinda seem perfect for a Faunus like her." He answered.

Well, that's a somewhat…interesting outlook.

Racist and an asshole, but practical when he needed to be. He'd fit in fine in the underworld

"The other problem is that even if she isn't a traitor, which is a big if, then she's still kinda green and…naïve. This job will chew her up and spit her out. She has no idea what she's in for, and she's gonna get us all killed because she won't be able to handle it." He added.

"So you're screwed either way?" I suggested.

"Yup." He agreed. "Either she gets us killed because she's a traitor, or she gets us killed because she's the FNG"

"Well…at least she's pretty." I threw out.

"She does have a nice ass." He considered.

"Shopping?" I asked with a smirk

He frowned, glaring at me.

"No, I'll have you know that I am happily engaged, and I in no way shape or form want to fuck things up with my fiancé." He responded.

My smirk widened.

"Doesn't mean you can't window shop." I commented slyly.

He grew a somewhat dopey grin on his face at that comment.

"Yeah, that's true."

"Is that why you're here, guarding me?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Huh?" He said with a disgusting look.

"Look, man, I don't swing that way. I mean, if you're into guys, more power to you, but that's not how I do." He said, taking it the wrong way.

I sighed loudly in annoyance.

"No, not me dumbass, I was talking about you fiancé." I explained.

"Oh." He said, relaxing now that he knew I wasn't hitting on him.

"So, is your girl the reason you're here?" I asked, taking a guess.

"Yeah, actually. I asked the chief if I could guard your pansy ass. I'd rather not get shot before the wedding." He explained.

I nodded my head, it made sense. Guarding a "dangerous prisoner" was probably a lot safer than conducting a raid on a suspected White Fang hidey hole, or some kind of drug cartel or something.

Then I decided to change the subject into something a little more…productive.

"So, you know anything about Le Livre Noir?" I asked

He jolted with a start, surprised by my question.

"Huh?" He asked suspiciously.

"I heard a couple of detectives talking about him the other day. I don't actually know much of anything about him, so I was hoping you could fill me in." I said.

That was a half lie. Technically, no, I didn't know much about him. But that's mainly because there's not much to know about him.

"I don't know if I should be talking to you about this." He said, narrowing his eyes at me.

"So you do know something." I speculated with a grin.

He frowned, grunting about how I was probably playing him. Still, he relented.

"Okay, look man, all I'm gonna say is that we really don't know much." He said.

"But you know something, right?" I asked.

"Most of what we know is about what we don't know." He began to explain.

I raised an eyebrow questioning, not following.

"Whoever Le Livre Noir is, they're good. Real good. We have almost no idea who he is. We're not even sure 'he's' a 'he'." Jack explain, exasperated.

I raised both brows in surprise at that.

"Really? Don't you have DNA evidence or witness testimony? Something? Hell, even some kind of psychological profile?" I questioned, surprised that they had nothing on him.

If it even was a him.

"No, Le Livre Noir is good. He leaves nothing behind we can actually use to track him down. He's kind of like a ghost, except one that occasionally uses bombs. He doesn't leave anything behind that really tells us that he was there other than the somewhat similar M.O. …" He answered.

"…and his calling card." He added with a frown.

I could guess why. That calling card of Le Livre Noir's was probably the real reason they knew the hits were connected. That was probably the only clue they had, and it was one the thief gave them.

It was like Le Livre Noir was taunting them. The only real sign that he was there, as opposed to anything else, was something he left there on purpose. Something he used to talk back to the cops.

Le livre Noir. It appears you're even better than I thought. I said to myself before frowning.

You better not be dead. I could use someone of your talents.


Yang pov

I was back in the Black Forest, complete with the same Void filled Sky, the same Black Trees, and the same eerily verdant green grass. The Crimson Lake, however, was nowhere in sight.

But most importantly, I could tell my sister was in this forest with me. I couldn't see her, but somehow I knew she was here with me.

Then I heard the Crunch of leaves underfoot, and spun around to see a flash of red disappear behind a Black Tree.

"Ruby!" I cry out to her. "I know you're here!"

But I'm met with silence

After a moment of nothing, I try again.

"Please! Just talk to me!" I shout into the depths of the forest.

"What do you want to say?" a voice behind me responds coolly in a whisper.

I quickly spin around, trying to find her, but all I can see is another flash of red disappearing behind another tree.

I run up to the tree, trying to chase after her, but as soon as I reach the tree, any sign of her presence is gone.

"What could you possibly say to make it better?" She asked again, the feeling of her cold breath on the back of my neck sending a shiver down my spine

Turning around, I find that again, I just miss her as she disappears behind another tree.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry for what's happened to you!" I cried out to her

Then, a large gust of wind travels through the forest, tossing my hair around and forcing me to cover my eyes. In it, I can hear her say, "Sorry? You're sorry for what's happened to me?"

Then, just as soon as the wind appears, it vanishes. Looking around for any other sign or Ruby, all I can see is the Black Forest, and the emerald moss and grass on the forest floor. She's nowhere to be found.

"Sorry isn't good enough." She says from behind me.

I spin around, and standing behind me in the forest is my little sister. She's exactly the same way I saw her last. Wrapped in her mother's crimson cloak, wearing a black turtleneck sweater and black skirt.

Her hood is down, unveiling her crimson-black hair, unkempt and at shoulder length. Her dark hair and attire truly made her unnaturally pale skin stand out that much more.

Then there were her damnable hollow silver eyes staring up at me, gazing into my very being. They judged me, judging if I was worthy of her.

And you're not a little voice in the back of my head said.

"Ruby I-" I began, but I didn't know what to say. What could I say? After what had happened to her, after what I had done to her, what could I possibly say to make it all better?

"Ruby, I am so so sorry. If I can do anything to make it up to you, anything to help you, I will." I proclaimed to her.

"You say that, and yet...you've done anything but." She responded to me in an even voice.

"I-" I tried to say before she cut me off.

"You have never been there for me, not once in my entire life, when I really needed it." She interrupted me.

"When I was young, sure, you were nice enough. You were my big sis who was supposed to love and protect me." She said, looking out into the depth of the forest.

Then I blinked, and she was gone.

"Wha-" I sputtered, surprised by her disappearance.

"But that was all just a lie, wasn't it." She said behind me.

I turned once more, and behind me was the shore of the Crimson Lake, with Ruby standing on the beach.

"The first chance you got, you did this to me." She said, staring at the red waves battering the black sand.

"No! I didn't mean for this to happen!" I protested, running to her.

"So it was carelessness then?" She mused again.

"I was just a kid, I made a mistake!" I argued, reaching her.

It was an accident! I didn't know what I was doing!

"Then you have made oh so many mistakes." She said as I reached out to her, trying to grasp her shoulder and turn around back toward me.

The second I touched her, however, she disappeared in a massive cloud of liquid shadows that obstructed my vision, keeping me from seeing. I waved my arms, trying to bat the smoke away from me, but it did no good.

"But, do you know the worst part about them?" She asked from out of the darkness.

And with that, the darkness fell from my sight, revealing that I was back in the Black Forest, though the Crimson Lake was still visible in the distance, its red surface standing out against the Emerald Grass and the Black Trees.

"Do you know the worst part of your mistakes?" She reiterated, walking around the small clearing we were in.

Then, as I was rendered speechless from her inquiry, she turned to me, gazing at me with those hollow silver eyes again.

"You never really suffer from them." She said, answering her own question.

"That's not true!" I protested again.

"Isn't it?" She began, cocking her head to the side questioningly.

"Throughout your life, so many people have gotten hurt from your 'mistakes'. So many hurt, so many lives ruined, so much suffering." She continued.

"Except yours." She said, narrowing her eyes.

"I have suffered for my mistakes!" I argued

But you haven't suffered nearly enough. That little voice said.

"People all around you have suffered for your mistakes. People all around you have gotten hurt, or even killed, but you? You always manage to walk away scot-free with barely even a scratch on you." She elaborated icily, boring into my eyes with her own hollow silver pair.

"I-I…" I tried to say, trying to find some way to refute her claims.

But I couldn't.

She was right.

I looked away from her, unable to stand her piercing gaze. As I looked down at the softly glowing green grass beneath me, I thought.

How do I always manage to escape punishment? How do I always manage to escape what I rightfully deserve? What makes me so special? Why do I get to go on, unpunished, while those around me suffer?

Then, I felt a pressure on my chest. Looking back up, I saw Ruby laying a hand on my breast, right above my heart.

"Then perhaps it's time that changed?" She suggested with those hollow silver eyes.

Then she blinked, and they were replaced with solid silver white ones.

When she did, the pressure on my chest slowly increased as she pushed her hand forward. I tried to let her push me back, but my body was rooted in place. I looked around and saw black, shadowy tendrils wrapped around me, holding me in place.

I could feel them constricting around me, the cold feel of them on my skin a paradoxical mixture of both airy, and a thick liquid.

I choked out a painful gasp as she plunged her hand into my chest.

"I think it's about time…" She began.

"S-stop." I choked out, feeling her hand dive through body, passing through skin, blood, muscle, and bone.

Her hand curled around my still-beating heart as she said, "…That you undergo the penance..."

Then she SQUEEZED

"…That you so rightly deserve." She finished, staring at me with those blank soulless eyes.

And snuffed me out.

And with that final stroke, I woke up with a gasp, a pain in my chest and my heart pounding thunderously in my chest. I sucked in breath after breath of fresh air, my lungs hungering for it desperately. I was drenched in sweat, my mind racing.

I picked up my scroll, looking at the time. It read 12:00 am.

About 2 hours after I had gone to bed.

It's going to be a long night.


Ruby pov

I was back in Purgatory. I was back in the impossible place between two giants of existence, between a brilliant forge of creation, and an ancient end to everything. Between the Light of all things, a power and fury unimaginable, creating new life, new existence with every breath, and the Void, an eternal emptiness, so dark, empty, and ancient that it had actually developed some form of sentience.

It was a place where the rules of reality fell away, where the limits and constraints of the mortal flesh died, and where the depths of madness took hold into your very soul.

For me, however, it was home. And I had returned.

But I wasn't alone.

"Lucifer." I greeted quietly

He responded to me with a pleased smile.

"My my, what gave me away?" He said, amused, his elegant, refined, entrancing voice echoing out in the vastness of Purgatory.

"You weren't exactly subtle." I flatly replied, gesturing to my surroundings.

"Fair enough." He conceded with a nod.

Then he turned to me again, looking at me with a wide, predatory smirk.

"Congratulations, you put on quite the show down there." He remarked, his shaded glasses becoming transparent for a moment and allowing me to see his eyes, though I already knew what I would find.

His eyes were…inverted…in a way. The whites of his eyes were as dark, empty, and vast as the Void we stood amidst. The pupil of his eye, on the other hand, was a brilliant blazing white like the Light before us. They were two tiny, ancient, and powerful stars in a vast ocean of darkness.

In response to his gaze, I couldn't help but look away in an effort to hide my small blush, embarrassed by what I had done to myself.

"It worked." I argued.

"Oh, yes. Yes it did, it worked marvelously." He agreed, grinning widely at me, showing off his impossibly white teeth.

"That said, you might want to work on not killing yourself in the process." He teased

"I'm not dead." I stubbornly argued.

"Really now?" He questioned with a knowing grin.

"I'm just…mostly dead." I argued.

"And if it wasn't for your team, you would be completely dead." He pointed out.

I pouted, realizing he had a point. I didn't like to admit it, but he was right. I was a bit…reckless…with my abilities. If I wasn't careful, I could have actually died there. That said…

"It's your fault." I pouted.

"Oh really?" He responded, amused.

"Yes, it is. What happened to your non-interference policy?" I questioned.

"Nothing, never had one. I just try not to interfere too much. It's no fun if I do everything myself. I prefer to just sit back and watch the madness I have subtly sown unfold before me, rather than meticulously micro-manage everything." He elucidated.

"And causing a massive, destructive, tornado, is being subtle?" I questioned skeptically.

"The storm was already going to happen. It was just going to go unnoticed and do nothing of tremendous note. So, instead I decided to….nudge it into a more productive time and place." He vindicated, gazing at the Light before us.

Then he glanced at me again, grinning once more.

"Besides, you did most of the work, I just gave a little extra extravagance. And I must thank you for that, for if you didn't, then your Initiation would have been decidedly more boring." He added.

"Boring?" I questioned.

"Indeed." He began with a serious nod, one which was quickly ruined by his accompanying grin.

"Sure, some of you might have had a fight or two, but nothing truly interesting would have happened. Nobody would have perished or suffered evisceration. There wouldn't be any delectable drama, any marvelous madness." He explained.

"Speaking of people dying…is Yang…did she?" I tried to say, but I couldn't finish it.

Despite all she had done to me, despite how much she had abandoned me, I couldn't help but love her, and that love is what hurt so bad. Because of that love, I couldn't help but worry about someone who probably wants me dead.

Just thinking about the very real possibility of Yang dying in the forest to the storm or the Grimm made my heart still.

Fortunately, Lucifer knew me well enough to figure it out.

"You needn't fret, your dearest sister is quite fine. She actually got on the first transport out. Didn't even get to see the traumatizing terror of having her classmates brutally torn apart in front of her, of seeing her teachers valiantly give their lives for her." He comforted me in his own special way.

With that weight off my heart, I could let out a breath of relief.

"Did anything else important happen?" I asked.

"Well, a large number of your classmates and teachers perished…" He began

"And?" I wondered, not seeing the part that mattered.

"And, you must think of the big picture, the long game, the cause and effect. That will have a large impact on the general moral and mindset of the students attending right now. There are many seeds this day has sown." He answered.

"I won't tell you all of them, though, that would ruin the fun." He added with an amused smile as he took another sip from his mug.

"Not sure I get this 'fun' you speak of so much yet." I commented.

"Oh, you will. One day you'll understand." He said with a sly grin.

Then his face straightened up once more as he gave me an odd look with a raised brow.

"On that note, however, your sister. I'm still not certain why you care for her so dearly. It's not like she's really done much of anything beneficial to you." He wondered out loud.

"She's still my big sister. I still remember when we were happier, when we felt like a family. I can't just throw those memories away, I'll always love her, even if she doesn't love me back." I tried to explain.

"You wouldn't understand." I added with sigh.

He shook his head, saying, "No, I wouldn't. But, that's what's so interesting about you and your kind, when you do these unpredictable, illogical, things."

Then, he gave me a side glance and a grin.

"For example, what you did with the nightmares? That was inspired." He praised.

And I couldn't help but blush slightly under it.

"I just needed some information. I figured it was the best way to do it." I explained, purposefully looking away from him.

In response, he chuckled, saying, "So in order to get that information, you gave every single one of your classmates a horrifying nightmare in which they were tested, and ultimately killed. All because you're a little shy."

"It wasn't that bad. Nobody felt any actual pain." I pouted, not seeing the problem.

"True, on its own it might have simply stayed what it seemed to be, a harmless little nightmare, a small little fright that would have simply fallen away after their glorious and easily won success in the Emerald Forest." He began with a consolatory nod

"But, it was more than that." He said, a grin growing on his face.

"That nightmare you gave them was a primer, something that set your classmates up for something truly glorious. Something that the harsh realities of truth ruthlessly detonated in a blaze of beauty and brutality." He added, with each word his grin grew wider, his teeth grew sharper, more predatory, and the twilight madness within him slowly spilled forth from his form.

"And still, the madness rages. Today marks a change in the fate of this world, a change in the path limited mortals call destiny. Today, fate has been torn asunder, and forever devastated by the two of us." He continued, reaching his controlled crescendo.

Then he paused, taking a deep breath of the Purgatory, and closing his eyes as he tilted his head up to the "ceiling". A small smile graced his face as he let it out.

"And I'm not sorry." He finished, opening his starry void eyes. And with that, he grew quiet.

In a moment of comfortable silence, we turned to look at the Light in front of us. We could see its energy churning and roiling violently. It was beautiful and hypnotizing, but at the same time, filled with dangerous fury. It...pulsed, like a heartbeat, and with each pulse it sent streams of new realities, sparks of new possibilities, into the vast existence around us.

"So Lucifer." I said, turning to him.

"Hmm?" He hummed in acknowledgement, looking back to me from the sun in front of us.

"Why him?" I asked, gesturing to the body he held here.

Catching my meaning, he gave me another smirk.

"I like him. I find him thoroughly entertaining." He replied, taking a sip from his mug.

"You didn't kill him, did you?" I inquired, wary of the response.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He teased with a smirk.

I sighed again, realizing that I shouldn't have expected an answer.

After another moment of comfortable silence, he broke it with a question of his own.

"So, my young disciple." He began fondly

In response I just turned back to him again.

"Why do you like to call me Lucifer? I'm known by so many names, and this one isn't generally considered my most benevolent."

"Oh, well…" I began, trying to find the right words for it.

Finally, after a moment of his unblinking stare, I found them.

"Where you're from, the name's a stigma, a mark of evil, right?" I asked

"Yes?" He answered cautiously with a raised brow, not sure where I was going with this.

"But, it also means something else." I continued.

"It means 'Morning Star', 'Light-Bearer', and that's what you are to me. You're my Morning Star, my bearer of Light. Without you, I wouldn't have this chance. I would be gone, nothing, lost to the void." I continued as I turned to the Light in front of me.

Glancing back towards Lucifer, I finished by saying. "That's why I call you Lucifer, because I owe everything to you."

He snorted in amusement, chuckling lightly and shaking his head. He released his mug, which simply melted from its paltry existence in Purgatory rather than fall to the ground. Then he dropped his free hand on my head, ruffling my hair fondly.

"I have to say, my disciple, you are just full of surprises. Why, I think you just might be one of the only beings in existence actually fond of me." He said, grinning.

And with that, we continued to stare at the massive, churning Light in front of us, all while my body slept and healed itself. We would be here for a while, but time didn't exactly pass normally in the world.

And I wasn't looking forward to returning.


Goodwitch pov

What now? I thought groggily.

Apparently I had fallen asleep at my desk, still working to organize the chaos caused by the slaughter earlier.

My scroll, which lay beside my head, was vibrating quite loudly.

BZZT BZZT

Groaning as I forced myself to awaken, I attempted to regain some sense of order about myself. I reached for the Scroll, looked at the I.D., and couldn't recall seeing it before. Though, that isn't exactly unusual for someone in my position.

So, in my best attempt to resemble my normal calm and controlled self, I answered the call with a tired, "Hello?"

"Is Ms. Goodwitch there?" The voice on the other end inquired.

The voice, though unfamiliar, was of a young woman's, potentially in the age range of the student body.

"This is she speaking." I responded, blinking back sleep.

There was a split second pause.

"Ms. Goodwitch, this is Blake Belladonna, I'm one of the incoming Initiates." She began.

Blake Belladonna? I thought, the name sounding familiar.

As I worked through my sleep addled mind, I struggled to remember how and why. Then, I did.

"I was one of the Initiates in the first wave of Initiation. Me, my partner, and another pair of Initiates were unable to get to the evac site in time, but we found shelter in a cave to weather out the storm." She explained.

Right, Ms. Belladonna. One of the many we left behind in the forest. I remembered

"Who all is with you and what is their condition?" I inquired, my mind quickly becoming alert at the influx of this new, and finally good, information.

"I have minor lacerations and burns on my arms and hands, but am otherwise combat capable. Jaune Arc has some minor bruising and perhaps a few internal injuries, but appears to be combat capable as well. Pyrrha Nikos has a broken arm and a potential concussion, though she is still ambulatory. Lilith Totenrot is…alive, but unconscious, possibly in a coma." She explained

At the mention of Lilith Totenrot, my heart skipped a beat.

She's…alive? She's actually still alive? I…I can't believe it. I thought, relief flooding me, threatening to overwhelm my calm exterior.

Nevertheless, I shoved it down and pushed it to the side, refusing to let it show. That said, one thing did stand out.

"A coma?" I reiterated, concerned by what she meant.

There was silent, tense, pause that lasted for a second or two, yet seemed to stretch on for minutes.

"I'm not entirely sure what happened. She did…something…before passing out, bleeding out from her eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. She's been unconscious, though stable, ever since the tornado touched down yesterday." She explained.

I narrowed my eyes at her description of what happened. It sounded suspiciously similar to what happened when I first met the young girl, though, even then, it was simply from the nose. This sounded several degrees worse.

Still, she was alive. Ruby was still alive after all. I hadn't failed her completely.

Not yet. I thought darkly

"Send me your location from your scroll. I'll work on scrambling a rescue team to your position right away." I said, my mind racing as I was already at work figuring out what I would need to do in order to organize this rescue party.

"Yes Ms. Goodwitch." She responded.

"In the meantime, stay safe and don't go anywhere. If your current location is safe and defensible, than the best thing you can do is stay there until we arrive." I added.

"I understand." She acknowledged.

"Good, we'll be there shortly." I finished, ending the call.

Immediately afterward I got to work, calling the right people and figuring out how to allocate resources towards search and rescue operations for today. The fury of the wind and lightning from the storm knocked out most of the surveillance system in the forest, another issue we would need to address.

But, despite how much work I had ahead of me now, I couldn't help but feel better. I finally received some good news, after nothing but more and more depressing information kept making its way to me.

I finally had a tiny little ray of hope.


A little over an hour and a half later, I was in a medivac Bullhead with two others as escorts, on my way to the forest.

And Ruby That little voice in the back of my mind said. As much as I tried to be impartial, with this young girl I found it quite hard. I kept feeling like I was responsible for her.

After all, I'm the one who brought her here thinking I could give her a better life.

In an attempt to direct my thoughts away from those of guilt, I looked out the window into the forest below me. The Emerald Forest had been ravaged by the tornado. It had cut a large swath through the forest, leaving a giant scar in the form of debris and ruined trees. Many trees had in fact been uprooted from the severity of the winds the forest was subjected to.

The good news was that this would mean that there would be plenty of places to land the Bullhead. The bad news was that this, combined with the ruined surveillance system, the stirred up horde of Grimm down there, and a half dozen other factors, meant that we wouldn't be sending in the second wave of Initiates any time soon.

If we did it at all this year.

In any case, the pilots soon arrived at the location sent to us from Ms. Belladonna.

As we began to touch down on the ground, I looked out the window and saw Ms. Belladonna standing outside the cave entrance waiting for us. She had a bandages wrapped around her head, arms, and hands, a torn up shirt with minor cuts and bruises visible underneath the tears.

After we land I disembark from the craft, along with the medical personnel.

One goes to attend to Ms. Belladonna, but she waves him off, telling him she's fine.

She comes up to me, and I can tell she's about to tell me some kind of accounting of what happened, but right now, I don't want to hear it. So instead I use what self-control I have left to calmly tell her to wait until she's safe and rested back at the hospital. She thanks me, nodding as a sign of gratitude, before heading off to one of the Bullheads.

I turn back to the cave entrance, and it takes every bit of composure I have not to run in there. Instead I attempt to calmly walk up to the entrance.

Once inside, I see Pyrrha Nikos in a curious state of dress, with her left arm wrapped in bandages. She greets us with a relieved smile before leading us down the winding caverns towards where Jaune and Ruby lay.

As soon as I see her unconscious form, everything else around me seems to fade away. I can still hear the distant voices of the other's talking around me, it's all still there, but compared to her well-being, it's all irrelevant.

I kneel down next her, observing her still body.

She almost looks dead I think, laying down here like this.

She looks…peaceful…though. I notice.

Looking at her like this, I can't help but remember the events surrounding our first meeting.

Soon, the medical personnel pick her up and carry her to the medivac Bullhead. Soon everyone is on board a Bullhead, and we're all heading back to Beacon. Using my position as head-mistress and my cover as her aunt, I ride along with Ruby in the medivac. As promised, I don't interfere with their work, but the whole way there I can't help but wonder.

Have I truly saved her?


A/n:

Holy

Fucking

Shitbuckets

We're finally out of the goddamn forest.

Some of you may have thought I enjoyed staying in the forest.

This is a false.

I wanted to get the fuck out of there and get on with the goddamn story as much as the rest of you.

I just don't generally feel comfortable rushing through things, or throwing away time I could use, like the 20 or so hours between Team ANBL getting stuck in the cave, and the them getting out.

I even felt a little uncomfortable with how I got them out. Felt like I was rushing things there. It's kind of a personal writing problem I have. Taking the slow as fuck route

Still though, I also kinda just wanted to get them the fuck out without taking half an arc to do it.

But regardless, they're finally out, and they're not going back anytime soon.

And with the forest out of the way, I want to go onto more important topics.

Like Lucifer.

I hope that answers some of your questions about Lucifer.

I also hope it raises about ten more.

Durmanstainer also mentioned something about me being vague regarding the tornado.

If I'm being vague, there's a good chance that's on purpose. I like to leave some things a little open ended rather than explicitly tell you all the things. I feel like it's better if I allow you to put the pieces together to come up with the answer, be all implicit and shit, as opposed to shoving all the fact sin your face and holding your hand the whole way there. That's why this is a mystery story, because I'm being mysterious.

Still, though, sometimes I fuck that up, so it's not entirely a bad idea to ask if you're unclear about something

Also

Surprise

Ruby caused the nightmares.

And she's not sorry.

It probably wasn't much of a surprise since I hinted the shit out of it throughout the story.

I might have actually tipped my hand a bit there, but what's done is done.

I mean, I can go back and change it to be more subtle, but regardless, you guys already know the truth.

In case you couldn't tell, Ruby and Lucifer have a pretty close relationship.

Oh, and we got to see some more of Yang's nightmares.

Yeah, that's going to be a thing now.

Why?

You'll find out, if you haven't already.

Also it's fun.

Oh, and if you didn't get enough Lucifer, you're getting some more next Scene. Then I'm probably going to chill on the whole Lucifer thing. Don't want to indulge you too much on him.

More importantly, next scene teams are officially formed, and someone has to make an important choice.

Said scene should be coming out Friday, unless something changes. I want to give you a little time to stew over this steaming shit I just dropped on you.

Plus we're finally out of the fucking goddamn forest, so that's not hanging over my head anymore.