-Three Days Later; Mistral-
A short time had passed since teams RNJR and CRMS along with Roman and Neo had arrived at their destination, and they all took this as an opportunity to relax after how long it had taken them all to get where they were now. They all did enjoy that they had the perfect opportunity to collect their thoughts and to gather their energy after the many battles they fought together as one. Some of them had to admit, the road was long, and even tough on them both physically, mentally and even emotionally, but they were able to pull through, because they had each other, and that was all that mattered. Now that they were all here they wanted to savoir their small victory since it had all been worth it in the end, despite the obstacles they had faced.
Currently, Nora, Ren, Rosario and Scout were all playing cards in one of the joined rooms they were currently staying in during their time in Mistral. They all sat around a bed, with Rosario only having one leg since her prosthetic was currently being repaired, and they were playing a game of poker and they were betting with various snacks and or candy they had gotten on their travels and the now little Grimm Griffon was curled up on the other bed and was fast asleep. They were studying the cards in their hands carefully as they looked to each other not knowing who was holding what in their hands.
Rosario smirked at what she had in her hand, "I raise three chocolate bars." Rosario said pushing three chocolate bars in the middle.
"I fold." Scout said gathering the cards in her hand.
"Can't me out of this one." Ren said putting his cards on the bed.
"I raise you three lollipops." Nora said pushing some lollipops into the center.
"Oh, getting bold are we?" Rosario said with a raised eyebrow, "Well we'll see about that…"
With a smirk on her face Rosario laid down the cards she had face up in front of her; there were four cards that had the same number. "Read' em and weep, four of kind." Rosario said triumphantly as she went to take the candy from the middle. Though she stopped when Nora placed the cards that she had in her hand and had put Rosario into shock.
She had a Royal Straight Flush.
"WHAT AND HOW?!" Rosario exclaimed.
"Woohoo!" Nora cheered as she took the candy in the middle, "I win the pot!"
Rosario groaned at this, as she fell back into the bed. "I don't believe it, that's the sixth time she won this round!" Scout said.
"That's not fair!" Rosario said before saying to Nora as she sat back up, "You said you never played before!"
"You're just upset because I beat you at poker!" Nora said sticking her tongue out at her.
"On the bright side, at least we're not playing with real money." Ren said.
"Yeah I would've lost everything I had in my wallet if that were the case." Rosario said as she fell back onto the bed. They heard the door open and Cristal stepped through, though they saw her in a new outfit. Instead of her usual outfit, she was now wearing short a burnt umber jacket with a light brown collar and a black belt just underneath her breast line.
Her right sleeve stopped at her elbow and had a black belt wrapped around her elbow and a fingerless glove on her hand. There was no sleeve on the left side of her jacket, revealing the scar on her left shoulder though underneath her jacket she had on a dark gray shirt that slanted on the left side and had a long sleeve on her left arm, and a purple bracelet around her wrist, with a black buckle belt around her other elbow; sports bandages were seen around her upper arm covering the tip of her scar and around her chest stopping at her neck. She wore green pants along with brown buckles around around her knees and a pair of brown boots and black buckles just around her boots. They were surprised as ever when they saw that her hair was tied back.
Though they were left speechless by her appearance anyway. "Damn!" Rosario said, "Love the new outfit!"
"Oh my goodness, I knew you said you wanted your jacket back, but I didn't think you would modify it like that." Scout said, "It looks really good on you."
"Thanks, I found someone in the city that was an expert on stuff like this." Cristal said, "They did a really good job on it. Thought it was about time I change my look. It actually get's tiring to wear the same outfit, especially if you wear it for two whole years plus a few months."
"I thought knowing you, you would've wanted to cut your hair short." Ren said.
"Yeah well… I decided to keep it like this." She said, "I think I look better with long hair anyway."
Senka perked up and flew from the bed, landing on her shoulders, and wrapping his tail around her neck as if he was a lemur. Cristal couldn't help but giggle as she pat Senka on the beak and scratched him on the head. "You know something, I don't think I've ever seen Senka this attached to you before." Scout pointed out.
"Seems kind of odd, especially for a Grimm, no offense." Nora said.
"None taken." Cristal said Senka started to nuzzle her cheek and did some kind of pur, "And I guess after my near death experience a certain someone here is getting a little protective."
Senka let out a growl to her, talking to her again, and Cristal couldn't help but laugh.
"Oh shut up, you know it's true Sen." Cristal said to him with a smile.
She soon noticed that the bed had a set of cards, "Were you guys playing a game?"
"Yes, we were playing poker." Scout replied, "And Nora ended up winning the candy pot."
"Six candy pots to be precise." Ren added.
"Honestly I don't know how she does it." Rosario said, "And she said, she never played the game before. I'd still say she made up that lie."
"Or maybe it's because I'm very lucky!" Nora said still with a smile.
Cristal couldn't help but laugh at this. "Seems like it's one hell of a game." She said amusingly.
"You try playing poker with this girl and tell me I'm wrong!" She said to her.
Cristal held up her hands at this, "I think I'd rather take your word for it."
"It's best if you do." Ren said with an amused smile.
Cristal soon looked around the room, even taking a peek into one of the other joined rooms. "I take it the others aren't back yet from the hospital?" Cristal asked turning back to them.
"No, not yet." Rosario said, "Ruby did say they had to make a few stops before seeing them."
"And she also said they could be awhile before they came back." Nora said.
Cristal raised an eyebrow at this, "... What about the Huntsman? Qrow was his name right? Did he wake up yet?"
Ren shook his head, "He's still resting. Guess the poison must've done a number on him."
"Well considering that poison was in his blood for sometime, and we didn't notice it sooner, it'll take awhile before he'll wake up again." Scout said, "But, he'll recover nonetheless since we got lucky."
The whole group noticed that the expression on Scout's face when she said this. She had the look of guilt in her face and eyes, and they looked at her with worry. "Scout…" Rosario said, "There's no way you could've known he had the poison in the first place."
"We all didn't know about it until the last second." Nora said to her.
"But I should've known." Scout said to them, "... I was born into a tribe of thieves and murderers. I would've been just like them, my mom and dad if Teacher hadn't found me. Instead of being taught how to take a life and prey on the innocent, I was taught to protect, and save people with the gifts I was born with. And I almost let not one but two people die on my watch, because I didn't see it sooner and I wasn't prepared, and I'm supposed to be a Healer, a doctor, and they're supposed to be prepared for anything."
The group looked to her still with concern as Scout's ears go down. They couldn't imagine how hard it was on her; to have the weight of someone else's life on your shoulders. They could tell it had taken a toll on her, mentally and emotionally speaking. They could tell that she was blaming herself for what could've happened, what could've been, if Mistral's patrol hadn't found them in time, and if Senka didn't act in time to save Cristal's life. They all could see it in her face, despite everything turning out alright in the end, she still couldn't help but feel guilty.
Finally, Cristal let out a sigh as she said, "Listen Scout… We may not know exactly how it feels what your going through… And… I think it's safe to say that we know what it's like to doubt yourself, and feel like you've let someone down. It's awful to feel that way, but you know something… Mistakes are always bound to happen. Even people like doctors make them. And there's a benefit to making them, despite how bad it can get. You can learn from them."
"Even so…" Scout said, "Even so, I should've come more prepared. I should've had more pain medication to at least help with you and Qrow."
"Scout…" Rosario said, putting her hand on her shoulder, "... You can't just see into the future and know what's going to happen. I know you won't let this happen the next time a problem like this comes our way, because the next time you'll be prepared."
"But what if I'm not?" The Fox Fanus asked, "What if it happens again, and I'm not able to help you?"
"Than you'll just do what doctors and healers do best." Ren said with a smile, "... You'll improvise."
"Hey, I was going to say that!" Rosario said to Ren.
Cristal, Nora, Ren and Rosario couldn't help but laugh and Scout started to laugh only after a few moments. Soon after they stopped laughing and they all heaved out a sigh. Cristal said to her, "Though just a little thing you gotta remember, you're still a kid, in fact we all are, so, we're still learning, even a person like me, and I've technically lived longer than anyone else."
"... I guess so." Scout said, "Though it couldn't hurt to actually have help to know what exactly I'm going to go up against."
"Than it wouldn't be a surprise, I think that's the fun with not knowing what comes next." Rosario said with a smile.
They heard Nora let out a gasp of realization and they couldn't help but turn to her. They saw the expression on her face, and they were confused by it, but only slightly. Nora said pointing over to Cristal, "You've lived longer than us?! So than… How old are you?"
They all turned to Cristal and they raised their eyebrows to her, actually wondering the same thing she was. Cristal gave Nora a simple smirk. She placed a finger to her lips as she replied, "That's a little secret."
-Meanwhile; Mistral Hospital-
Ruby had never seen the hospital so packed in the waiting room; occasionally at times she would visit the hospital with Melody to see Qrow when he barely made it on one of his mission, and even to see her mom before she passed away, though she had never seen so many people in one place. Most of the people looked like they were family or friends or even lovers waiting to hear something from whoever had been hospitalized. Ruby couldn't imagine what they were going through, as she watched some of the people that were waiting in tears, but she had hoped whoever it was they were waiting for were alright.
Ruby, along Jaune, and Neo had approached the front desk with a couple of bags in the hands of Ruby and Neo, and got the room numbers that they needed. The room numbers to both Melody and Roman's room. Shortly after arriving in Mistral both of them had been admitted to hospital, due to what they had both endured. Roman receive proper treatment after having opened it at least twice during their fight with the Nuckelavee, so he had to get the proper stitches, but needed to stay in the hospital until his wound had fully healed. As for Melody, Ruby had explained to the doctors that she had been hit in the head hard and was put into some sort of shock. When they checked on her, they had told Ruby and the others that the impact she had endured should've killed her, but they were all surprised when the doctor had told them she had only had a mild concussion.
They couldn't help but wonder, if it had anything to do with the Creature they had seen Melody turn into. Though they wouldn't know for sure until they asked.
The three made their way on the third floor where they both were, and luckily they had been staying in the same room. They made their way down the hall though it seemed like the hall was getting longer at least in Jaune's perspective anyway. Ruby noticed how tense Jaune was, "... You okay?" She asked.
"I'm just a little nervous about what Melody might say…" Jaune said, "I don't even know if she's still mad after what I said."
"You can't honestly think that after all we've been through." Neo said.
"... I can't help it." Jaune said to Neo, "It's all I've been thinking about for the past couple of days. I want to apologize to her sure, but… I just don't know what she'll say."
"It'll be okay Jaune." Ruby reassured him with a smile, "She'll listen to whatever you have to say. She always listen."
"How do you know that?"
"Because I grew up with her, remember? She always listens to whatever anyone has to say, and I'll bet you anything she'll make an acception for you too."
"You really think so?"
"... Of course I do."
They had gotten to room 385 where Roman and Melody were, and the three of them entered without a second thought. Though they were all a bit surprised when they only found Roman sitting in the room by the window with the chair provided wearing a plain white short sleeved shirt and long pants and a pair gray of slippers. Roman noticed that they entered the room. "Hey there. It's nice of you guys to finally see you drop by." Roman said.
"Nice to see that you've missed us." Neo said amusingly.
"How are you feeling?" Ruby asked him.
"Better than I was two days ago." Roman replied, patting his side gently, "Doctors here really worked wonders. They told me, with plenty of rest in the next couple of days I'll be out of here."
"That's good." Jaune said, "At least we don't have to worry now."
Ruby looked around the room a bit worriedly when she didn't see her cousin anywhere. "Where's Melody?" Ruby asked Roman.
Roman didn't say anything but pointed to his left over where a balcony was, and they saw Melody out their, sitting in a chair with her feet on the table and wearing a robe gray robe and had bandages wrapped around her skull; she had on the same kind of white shirt and pants that Roman did and she appeared to be writing in a book and had her back turned, not even realizing that they were in the room. "She woke up awhile ago Red." He explained, "Doctor explained that her concussion wasn't anything too serious, and wouldn't worry about any brain damage. But just to be on the safe side, they're going to perform some tests and an MRI later in the afternoon."
"... Did… She say anything to you?" Jaune asked a bit hesitantly.
"Well, after the Doctor left I tried to make conversation, but she said she wanted some time to herself. She's been out there writing ever since." Roman replied, before turning over to Ruby, "But… I think she needs someone she's more comfortable with to talk to. You know, considering what happened…"
Ruby looked over to Melody her face, looking concerned. She let out a sigh, "I'll go and talk to her." Ruby said, "I'll be right back."
"Take your time." Neo said.
"We'll just be in here waiting." Jaune said.
Ruby approached the door and was hesitant to open it; she took a deep breath and reached for the handle, turning it. She slide the door open slightly not wanting to startle her as she continued writing. Ruby took a closer look one the paper and saw that it was musical notes. Ruby shut the door behind her, as quietly as possible. "Is that a new song your writing?" Ruby asked making Melody flinched slightly.
Melody turned and her expression brightened slightly when she saw her. She but the book down on the chair as she stood up, "Ruby." She said as she hugged her and Ruby hugged her back, "It's so good to see you."
"It's great to see you too." Ruby said, as they both broke out of the hug, "How are you?"
"About as good as can be expected." Melody replied, "It doesn't help that I have a slight ache in my head, but other than that everything checks out."
"I heard from Roman, what the doctor said." Ruby had said, "I'm glad to hear that nothing's wrong."
"Me too, who knows, they might let me out of here earlier than expected." Her cousin said with a smile. Though the smile disappeared when she asked, "Is my dad okay?"
Ruby nodded, "Uncle Qrow is going to be fine. He's resting over by where we're going to be staying."
Ruby saw her sigh with relief, "Thank God, I was so worried." She said, almost tearing up, "I thought I was going to lose him."
"You know how he is. He's too stubborn to let something like poison stop him." Ruby said with a smile, "Reminds me of a certain someone I know." Melody and Ruby both exchanged in a giggle at this, though it wasn't long till they heard rustling in the bag Ruby was carrying. "Oh whoops, I almost forgot." Ruby said putting the bag down, "I bought a friend with me to see you."
Melody raised an eyebrow, but saw a familiar little white fox pop out of the bag, with his ears perking up. "Frosty!" Melody said bending down to pick him up. Frosty jumped in her hands slight and immediately started to lick her cheek when she bought him close to her, "Aw, I'm happy to see you too buddy!"
"I know they don't usually allow animals in hospitals, but… Frosty really wanted to see you. He wouldn't stop whining after they bought you here when we landed." Ruby said.
"Well I appreciate you taking care of him Ruby. Sorry Frosty for making you worry about me." Melody said, as she felt Frosty rest on her shoulder. The minute Melody looked into the eyes of her cousin, and noticed a certain look on her face that had her concerned. "Ruby?" Melody asked, "... What is it?"
"... Why…?" Was all Ruby asked.
Melody looked at her with confusion, "Huh?"
"... We all saw what you turned into when we were fighting the Grimm after we thought it…" Ruby said stopping herself for a moment before continuing, "… When you snapped at Jaune I get why you looked so scared… I just want to know, why? Why couldn't you just tell us? Tell me about it?"
Melody turned away from Ruby and didn't say anything, and Frosty whimpered slightly worried about his friend. Melody sat down in her seat, as she buried her face in her hands. Ruby kneeled in front of her, "Please Melody. I want to know why. Why would you keep something like this from your own friends, your own family? After everything we've gone through, I don't want any more secrets between any of us… So please… I need you to tell me Melody, why keep something like that a secret?"
Melody turned to her slightly before replying, "... To be honest… I thought it would be obvious…"
Ruby looked to her cousin with confusion, "... Huh? Obvious? What do you mean?"
"... You saw the Creature for yourself." Melody said, "You saw how it came after you and the others, after you tried to stop it to get through to me."
Ruby's eyes widened slightly, "... You mean you actually saw what was happening? Even after you turned into-"
"The Creature?" Melody finished before replying, "... Unfortunately I do. It's cruel, but I do remember every single thing, and most of the things the Creature does whenever it's out is horrible and gruesome. Trust me, you haven't seen it at its worst, and I hope you don't."
Ruby took a seat beside her and placed her hand over hers, "Please Melody… You have to tell me more."
Melody took a deep breath and allowed Frosty to go onto her lap. Finally after brief moments of hesitation she looked over to Ruby, "... Do you remember when we were kids when I first got my semblance?"
"Of course I do." Ruby replied, "You would always use your semblance to beat us in tag or hide and seek."
Melody chuckled slightly at this and sat back in her seat, "... Yeah well, those were the days."
Ruby laughed a little too at the memories, "I remember how you used to scare me and Yang. You were always able to find really good hiding places in almost any animal, and how fast you were able to catch us when we played tag… But than, you just kind of stopped using them. I remember, Yang and I asked why you stopped, but you never gave your answer."
"... That's because by than, I started to hate the semblance I got." Melody said to Ruby surprising her, "And I still do. You didn't know this Ruby, but at a time I thought having a semblance was a gift to the lucky few, and most of them are in a way. You can do amazing things with them, whether it would be handy in tricky situations, or help you or friends in battle, or even hide yourself in plain sight with them. So when I got my shape-shifting semblance… Boy was I happy as a kid would be on Christmas. I could be anything I could think of. I could take to the skies and soar above the clouds, run as fast as any animal on the planet, climb great heights to even the tallest trees, or even breath underwater. But… That all changed the day when we went to the park in Patch."
Ruby recalled that memory from when they were children. She remembered, she, Yang and Melody herself were spending their whole day at the park, just playing games. Either tag, hide and seek or a game that they made up at the top of their heads. She even remembered the bullies that were picking on a fanus girl that was about her age at the time, and how Melody stood up to them. It was strange to her though; she didn't remember seeing Melody until a few days later when she noticed she had seemed different to her. Even as a child Ruby could tell than that Melody wasn't her usual cheerful self, in fact… She just seemed to grow timid suddenly as if she had always been that way. Ruby back than found it odd, but didn't feel the need to ask, but she had to know now.
"Melody…" Ruby said to her, "... Please, tell me what happened…"
Melody turned away from Ruby avoiding to make eye contact once again, but she had replied with slight hesitation, "... Those older kids, after they pushed you and I saw you start to cry… That's when the Creature first showed itself. Before I knew what was happening, I was sinking my teeth into the poor kids neck, and my nails- its claws went deep within his stomach. I would've killed him hadn't not been for his protective mother. I was terrified with what I did, so horrified in fact I just ended up running without even saying a word to him or his parents."
Ruby silently gasped at this, and prevented herself from thinking to the image, the scenario which Melody had described. She had no idea that her cousin had to go through such an ordeal, sure she and Yang remembered hearing children screaming, but she had no idea Melody, no this Creature was the cause of it. It must've been traumatic for her, is what Ruby thought.
Melody continued on, "You see… The Creature has this crazy need for blood, it doesn't just lust for it, it craves for it. With every chance it gets whenever it comes out, it'll attack the nearest living thing in sight, and it won't care who it hurts and the lives it ruins. It won't even matter if it's my own friends and family. It especially likes to attack anyone close to me… When it does start to show up, it makes me aggressive and violent, to the point where I could kill someone, even before it fully takes control…"
Ruby noticed Melody's hand start to shake, and soon felt something wet hit her hand. Ruby soon realized that Melody had started to cry; Frosty noticed this to, and started to lick her fingers in an attempt to comfort her. Melody continued but this time she was struggling to get her words out.
"... Do you wanna know… The worst part about what the Creature does to me…?" Melody asked, though she didn't expect Ruby to answer as she had just stayed silent, "... The blood lust it feels… It's craving for its endless hunger of it… It makes me want it too… It makes me think, that I should kill those I see… It makes me want to rid of people that hurt you and Yang… It makes me think that those that insult me, that piss me off, that say hurtful things about our family… It makes me think that they deserve to be killed… And I've always hated myself for letting that temptation get to me…"
Ruby felt Melody's hand tighten around hers as she buried her face in her other hand, in an attempt to stop her tears, though, she had no such luck in trying. They just kept falling from her eyes, and rolled down her cheeks before finally hitting her hand and the fabric of her shirt. Ruby looked to her cousin with worry as she sniffled and sobbed. Never before had she seen her cousin like this, just right at this moment her tough girl persona just seemed to fly right out the window. Seeing her this way, it was hard on Ruby and even Melody herself in general. The tough girl who would always stand up for others, that would defend anyone who was being picked on, who would go with the flow with everything, even smile in situations when battling with Grimm, now looked, broken apart. All because of a Creature that she had no control over. Ruby put her arms around Melody and pulled her close as she cried.
"... I was scared to tell you both about it…" Melody said through her sobs, "... I was scared to tell Uncle Tai… I didn't just leave to find Yang's mom… I left because I thought I would be protecting you all… I didn't want it to one day come out, and than have it hurt one of you or worse… I would never forgive myself if I had just let it-"
Melody just stopped herself, not wanting to say anything more, as Ruby patted her on the back as her way to comfort her, and they both sat like this for awhile, with Melody now leaning into Ruby's embrace and Frosty just nuzzled into her stomach in a comforting way. After what had seemed like hours Melody had finally broke the silence, "... I heard what you said…"
"Huh?" Ruby said a little confused.
"... When the Creature was out… When I was trapped in my own head…" Melody said, "... I heard you… There's something I want to know… I just want this one question answered…"
"Y-yeah sure…" Ruby said with a bit of hesitation.
Melody turned her head slightly to look at the red hooded girl, slowing getting herself out of Ruby's arms, "... When you said you weren't scared of me… That I wasn't a monster like the Creature… Did you… Did you really mean it…?"
Ruby looked a bit surprised to hear that, but soon replied, "Of course I did. I know who you are Melody, and I know that your not the monster that you think you are. Like I told you, you're amazing like Yang is, and I can tell that you take a lot after Uncle Qrow. The Creature is not you and it never will be, and I'll always love you no matter what."
Melody couldn't help but smile and her tears were not were of sadness but were of joy. She pulled Ruby back into the hug, surprising her, but Ruby had ultimately returned it shortly after she snapped back into reality.
"... You have no idea…" Melody said, through her tears, "... No idea how much what you said means to me Ruby…"
"Oh don't worry…" Ruby said patting her on the back, "... I think I have a pretty good idea…"
Ruby and her pushed out of the hug; Melody was finally able to wipe away her tears, from her face, and Frosty climbed back up onto her shoulder licking her cheek.
"Frosty's not scared of you either." Ruby said with a small smile, "He knows that your not the Creature too."
"Go figure." Melody said scratching the back of Frosty's ear, and Frosty leaned in for her touch.
"... Just out of curiosity…" Ruby said getting her attention before asking, "... Are you going to be able to tell the others? Like you know, explain the Creature to them?"
Melody nodded her head in reply, "... When I'm out of this hospital I'll tell them. After what they've seen and after what we've been through, they have a right to know… But before all that… Jaune didn't come with you by any chance?"
"Yeah, he's just inside along with Neo." Ruby replied, "... Why?"
Melody didn't say anything, instead she just stood up taking her notebook with her, and went back into the room with Ruby following behind her. When they stepped inside, Jaune seemed to have tensed up when he saw Melody as she placed her notebook on the table nearby. She stepped forward just standing in front of Jaune, and all he did was gulp; for a moment he turned over to Roman, Neo, and Ruby who was now standing beside them.
"Go on Arky." Roman said as he motioned him to talk, "Say what you want to say."
"Your a big boy, you can do it." Neo encouraged.
"R-right." Jaune stammered before taking a deep breath; he than turned back to Melody as he started to say, "Listen Melody… About what I said to you before, when your dad told us about, why all of this is happening in the first place… I know I upset you with what I said, and I just want to say that-"
"I'm sorry." Melody suddenly said cutting him off.
"Huh?" Jaune, Roman, Neo, and Ruby said at the same time, just confused as to why she would apologize.
Melody continued as she rubbed her elbow, "... I'm sorry for the way I acted, and for hitting you on the head. It's just… What you said about me, about not going back home after what happened to Beacon to see if Ruby and Yang were alright… I didn't want to listen because most of what you said was true and just denied it. Trust me, I was concerned after I saw the news, before the CCT was destroyed, and I wanted to go back to see them but… To be honest, I've been away from home for two whole years. I was scared… Of what Yang, my uncle and at the time Ruby… I was scared of what they would think of me. All I did to keep in touch with them was either texts or video chats, and I didn't even attempt to make a home visit. I was scared that they would hate me, and resent for leaving the way I did, but I did what I thought was the right thing… Don't get me wrong, I didn't like what you said about me… But that's no excuse for the way I acted… So… I'm sorry Jaune, and I hope you find in your heart to forgive me."
There was silence in the room they were standing in, and Jaune took in the words that Melody had said. Although-
"No." Jaune said, making Melody look up, "... If anything I'm the one who should be sorry for what I said to you… The night that Qrow told us everything, I was just so angry. I… We lost a lot when Beacon fell, including someone very dear to us. I didn't realize that Pyrrha had gone through so much with the responsibility she chose to take… And I blamed it on him because I thought it was his fault about what happened to her, that he forced her to become a Maiden. But you were right about what you said. No one ever said she was forced to do it, and she was given a choice… I realize now, that no one was at fault for what happened to her, and maybe I was just angry at myself and felt the need to take it out on Qrow, and even you too. Your personal life and your dad's is none of my business, and I should've been more careful of what I said about him and you. I didn't mean to say all those things, I didn't know what I was thinking… So, I'm really sorry Melody… And I hope you can forgive me."
Melody's eyes widened slightly by what Jaune said, and she couldn't help but chuckle which had caught him off guard. "Guess we both have something to be sorry about." Melody said with a smile, before holding her hand out to him, "...So than, yeah, I'm sorry and I forgive you… We can still be friends, right?"
Jaune looked to Melody and smiled at her, before taking her hand and shaking it, "I wouldn't have it any other way."
"Welp." Roman said, "I'm glad that problem solved itself."
"It's about time you two made up, thought it was gonna be a contest of who chickened out first." Neo said to Jaune and Melody, making the two of them, turn to her. "Neo!" Melody said, her face turning red slightly with embarrassment.
"You completely killed the moment!" Jaune said to her.
"Hey, I was criminal remember?" Neo said with an innocent look, "I'm supposed to do things like kill the moment."
The three of them started to argue amongst each other and Roman couldn't help but laugh at the sight and Ruby just shook her head and smiled, just glad that everyone was able to make up with each other. It wasn't long before she remembered something. "Oh wait, I almost forgot! Again!" Ruby said as she started to go through her skirt pocket, and Roman gave a quizzical look in her direction. It wasn't long before she took out a familiar lighter and held it to him.
"Here." Ruby said, "You can have your lighter back. It's your good luck charm after all, and I already have one of my own."
Roman looked to Ruby before looking to his lighter that laid in the palm of her hand. He reached out to take the lighter, though… Ruby was surprised as ever as instead of taking the lighter, he placed his hand over her fingers, and let them curled back around the small lighter. This only left Ruby perplexed at this and she looked up to him.
"Change of plans Red." Roman said to her patting her hand, "I'll let you hold onto it a little longer. You can give it back to me, when this is all over."
"You…" Ruby said, "... You would really trust me to hold onto this?"
"Look…" Roman said, adjusting his seat, "... It took me a long while to get used to traveling with you and your friends, and… It was pretty difficult I'll admit. But, like you said… We're friends now. And if I can trust you with my life, than I sure as hell can trust you with my lighter, at least, now that we're used to one another."
Ruby looked even more shocked, but she eventually smiled and looked to the lighter before, giving Roman a hug, once again surprising him. Roman let out a sigh as he went to return the hug, "Geez Red. You're just secretly a hugger, aren't you?" He said jokingly.
"I thought you'd be used to it by now." Ruby replied, making Roman chuckle a bit.
-Sometime Ago-
The very next morning the whole group took the trouble of burying the body they had found in the old abandoned house they had stayed in to avoid the rain. All of them were still equally horrified to what they had seen and what they discovered in the house that belonged to a known doctor. They dressed in their normal attire after giving the night to dry, and were all preparing themselves to move onto the next town or village to get where they needed to go. Nora and Scout stretched her arms and took in the fresh air.
"This feels so nice." Scout said, "Never thought that rain would let up."
"The sun feels so nice on my skin!" Nora said.
Jaune looked on the map along with Rosario. "Looks like we're not to far from another town." Rosario said.
"How far is it?" Cristal asked.
"Based on the distance from where we are to the town, it should be just an hour walk." Jaune said.
"That's good." Neo said stretching, "Maybe we can restock on our supplies…"
"Maybe you can get yourself an upgrade on your armor Arky." Roman suggested as he took a puff from his cigar.
Jaune scratched the back of his neck, "Well… Now that you mention it, I've been wanting to give my weapons an upgrade, so, I guess I could go for it."
"Alright, so looks to me that we've got a plan than!" Melody said.
"Looks that way to me." Ren said.
"Than what are we waiting for?" Nora said, "Last one to the village is an old stale pancake!"
Before anyone could even say anything, Nora just sprinted in some random direction, with Ren running behind her to tell her to wait up, and Melody, Rosario, Jaune and Scout running after her as well, trying to tell her that she was running in the wrong direction. Roman and Neo looked to one another and simply shrugged before they started walking. Cristal was about to follow when she noticed Ruby still holding the doctor's journal in her hand and looking back to the old house.
"Ruby?" Cristal said getting her attention, "What's the matter?"
Ruby looked up to Cristal before replying, "... What we found in there… He was trying to turn people into Grimm, trying to make them like Destiny, before she was even born… Why would he would do it? He was such a nice doctor based on his entries and photos… So how could he do that to innocent lives?"
Cristal and Senka looked to one another before Cristal had replied, "There are a lot of things that we don't know in the world Ruby…" She patted Senka on the beak, "Many scientists have tried to uncover the secret to Grimm, how they work on the inside and out, but… Because their bodies disappear after they're killed, it had forever remained a mystery to mankind. We may never know why he did what he did, or even who his victims were, or even how many… Sometimes, it's better for things just to stay buried, for the sake of those that knew the doctor for what he was. A kind and honest soul."
"... But you heard what Roman said." Ruby said to her, "... The photograph we saw in that lab… He said that was Quinta, Trinity's step-mom. He told me that she left her family, ran away from home because of her… Doesn't that get you thinking about why she was in the photo or as to why she was involved in… Whatever Forrest did?"
"It does Ruby." Cristal said, "It raises a lot of questions sure but… We have more important things to worry about right now. Getting to Mistral, finding answers, and finding Destiny and get her back home to the only family she has left in the world."
"... But we don't even know why she was taken in the first place."
"That's true, we don't know. Hell even I don't know, what she wants with her. But maybe if we continue forward, that answer will come to us. It might not be right away, but it'll come if you give it time. All we have to do is be patient and do what we can now and focus on the path we've taken."
Ruby looked to Cristal before taking a moment to look at the journal she held. Cristal did make a good point. She wanted to find answers about all the questions she had at the top of her mind. Why was the school's attacked? Who is the person that placed the Contract on Cristal and these other Shadows? Why was Destiny taken? Who was Trinity? And what was Quinta involved in. Ruby wanted them answered, she wanted it all answered, though… She knew she couldn't rush things. They had to focus on the task at hand, and that was getting to Mistral. Maybe all of the questions she had would be answered once she and her friends got there, maybe it won't, who knows? She certainly wouldn't know just by standing around and not doing anything, or even just calling it quits and going back home to Patch.
With a determined look on her face, she placed the journal in her bag before throwing it over her back and Cristal couldn't help but smile at this.
"HEY! WHAT ARE YOU TWO STILL DOING BACK THERE!?" They heard Roman shout, "ARE YOU COMING OR WHAT!?"
"Well than Ruby Rose?" Cristal said as she motioned Ruby to go ahead first, "Shall we get going?"
Ruby simply smiled and nodded to her, "Of course, let's get going!"
With that Ruby went ahead first and Cristal and Senka soon followed. Ruby heard Senka growling at Cristal indicating that he was talking to her. "Really? I sounded cliche?" Cristal said to him as she walked next to Ruby, "It was the best thing I could come up at the moment. Man everybody's a critic."
Both girls exchanged a look to one another, before they started to laugh with one another as they joined back up with the group, as they couldn't help but wonder what they were laughing about.
-Present-
Ruby, Jaune and Neo had soon returned to their place they called home for now, after the visiting hours were over in the hospital. They had said their goodbyes and get wells to Roman and Melody and headed back to the others to tell them the good news about Roman and Melody's condition. Of course when they told them, they were relieved to hear that they were going to be alright and decided to make plans to go and visit them later in the day just to talk to them. They saw Cristal's new look and were pretty much shocked that she had decided to change her look entirely, though they couldn't help but admire it. Rosario, Neo, Scout and Cristal herself decided to sight see in Mistral and offered RNJR to come with them. Though they respectfully denied as they decided to stick around the apartment for a bit longer before going out.
Ruby stepped into her room, where her Uncle had rested, with Frosty on her shoulder and Senka flying into the room (Since he couldn't exactly go out with Cristal and she had told him to stay with Ruby), and he immediately made himself comfortable on Ruby's bed; her pillow specifically, and instantly went to sleep once he was comfy. Ruby couldn't help but smile as she shook her head to the little Griffon, and paid him no mind. She went by her uncle's bedside, and brushed his hair from his face just to let him know that she had come back. He only seemed to have responded by turning over laying on his side, and it seemed to have given Ruby some reassurance as she sighed with relief.
She went over to the desk that was provided in the room, and Frosty jumped off her shoulder and sat on the desk; she placed Roman's lighter on the side and it sat just next to the little white fox. Ruby picked up the pen provided and brought a single notepad closer to her. After heaving a deep sigh, she started to write that of a letter.
Hey there Sis,
I hope that my letters have been reaching both you and dad. Handwritten stuff's never been super reliable, but… I guess it's all that we can count on these days. Anyway, in case you haven't been getting them…
I just want to say, that I'm sorry for leaving the way I did. I know you told me it was a reckless idea, and… After everything I've been through… I can definitely say that you were right.
And I'm not just talking about the monsters we fought out here...
-Atlas, Docking Bay-
After the girls had snuck out of the mansion, they quickly and quietly made their way to the docking bay that had been nearby, and they were lucky enough to find a single pilot just getting ready to leave. In an effort to get to where they needed to go, Weiss had struck a deal with the lone pilot. She had handed an Atlesian pilot a handful of lien, and almost without hesitation the pilot took it from her hand. He counted the lien that he had given her, before turning to her.
"So?" Weiss asked, "Do we have a deal?"
The pilot looked to the lien he had in his hand before heaving a sigh, "...Okay. You guys can hide in the cargo hold. I'll take you as far as I can, but if we get caught, you're on your own. Understand?"
Weiss simply nodded to the pilot in understanding and the pilot went to prepare for take off. She approached to the twins who had been patiently waiting for their eldest sister. "We're going to be staying in the cargo hold for now, so you're gonna have to stay quiet." She said, "Think you both can do that?"
"As long as we get to see Winter and get far from Atlas, than we'll endure whatever we have to go through." Nilla said.
"Don't worry Weiss, we'll be as quiet as mice." Van reassured her.
"Good. Now go in, get onto the ship." Weiss said before she noticed that someone was missing. "Hey, wait a second." She said, making the twins stop in their tracks, "Where's Azure?"
"I think she's over by the crates over there." Van said pointing to where Azure had went.
Just when Weiss was about to go get her, Azure soon emerged from just behind a couple of crates nearby startling her slightly. "Goodness you scared me!" Weiss said to her, "What were going back there?"
"Just checking something." Azure replied, "... Are we good?"
"Yes. We better go, before he leaves without us." Weiss said.
"Than let's not waste time." She said, as she walked past Weiss proceeding to the ship. Weiss and the twins Van and Nilla soon followed behind; walking side by side with one another they boarded the ship just as the door started close. As the ship started to leave the docking bay, no one had seemed to notice that an black and white barn owl, had flown from where Azure was, with it's eyes glowing red and going just ahead of them with as fast as its wings could carry it.
It disappeared into the clouds as it let out a screech that echoed through the wind.
Every step we made took us further and further away from the things we knew. Every morning we would wake up wondering if just over the next hill would lead us to something good, or to something terrible.
It's scary, not knowing what's going to happen next. And the things we don't know-just how bad it can get-it almost makes it worse.
-Menagerie-
In the office which had belonged to Ghira, both siblings Blake and Kobi stood before his desk, looking for something. They rummaged through the various things on their father's desk before they had found what they were looking for. "Got it sis!" Kobi said, as he took a chest that had sat under the desk. He placed it on the desk and Blake stood in front of it.
"Care to do the honors?" He asked her.
Blake turned to her younger brother, "With pleasure."
She reached for the locks and turned the keys that was provided on the chest. She had let it yawn open and in the chest it was revealed to be stuff from the White Fang, including two flags, a spiral notebook and a single book. She picked up the flag looking at its current logo, while Kobi picked up that of its previous logo.
Instead of the black and red colors that the world had become familiar with, the flag was of a blue and white colors. The claws marks just over its head was replaced with a circle that had been around the head, and it looked more peaceful than that of the current.
"... So… We're really going to do this…?" Kobi had asked Blake.
"Yes…No sense in backing out now…" Blake said, "... Are you scared with going through with it?"
"Well, considering how I pissed off our mentor, and turned traitor…" Kobi said, "... I won't lie, I'm terrified with facing them."
"Come on, don't chicken out on us scaredy cat!" They heard Sun say who had sat in one of the chairs provided in a relaxed position.
"Your really going to pull that one on me Monkey Boy?" Kobi asked with an amused look.
Sun chuckled slightly before saying, "Hey, if it makes you feel better I'm scared too, but just be glad that we're going to do the right thing."
Blake smiled at this, and looked to beaded bracelet around her hand, thinking back to a familiar face for a moment.
"Yes." She said, before looking back up to Sun with a smile holding onto to her wrist that had that bracelet, "That we are."
You once told me that bad things just happen. You were angry when you said it… And I didn't want to listen.
But you were right.
Bad things do happen… All the time… Everyday…
Which is why I'm out here, to do whatever I can, wherever and whenever I can, to hopefully do some good. We all lost something; something precious to us, and I've seen what loss can do to people. But if we gave up everytime we lost…
Than we would never be able to move forward…
We would never have the chance to see the beautiful things the future has waiting for us. We'd never have the strength to change; whether it's with ourselves…
Or the world around us.
"APPROACHING CITY OF MISTRAL"
Oscar sat in the dining car area with his bag sitting beside him, and barely no one was seen in the area he was in. He was looking to a poster that was of the cities academy Haven; On the poster it had read "Haven Academy: Be A Hero". He let out a sigh as once again thought about everything he was told, and what exactly he had gotten himself into. Though it was too late to turn back now; he had already made up his mind on what he wanted to do, and there was no stopping him. He was busy thinking about this that he didn't pay attention to the view outside, until a certain someone had gotten his attention. Of course, the voice had belonged to Destiny, who was in the body of his Aunts doll, that had been sitting by the window on the table.
"Hey Oscar!" She said getting his attention, "I see it! I see the city!"
Oscar finally looked outside of the window, and was in awe by the view. They saw a beautiful scenery and of the mountains, trees and architecture and they were both hypnotized by it. "... It's… It's beautiful." Destiny said still amazed.
"Yeah, it is…" Oscar said just as amazed as she was.
"... I wonder what we're going to find there…"
"... Don't know. We won't know until we start looking around."
Destiny looked to her wooden hands, and looked over to Oscar, "... Do you really think I'll find clues to where my body is…?"
Oscar looked to her before replying, "Honestly I don't know… But, we won't know unless we try, so don't worry. I'm sure we'll find the answers."
Destiny nodded to him, "... I hope so."
She looked back to the view and she couldn't help but have a few certain people in her thoughts. She thought about her friends and her dad, as she still know the whereabouts of most of them. She was worried for them sure, but, she wouldn't let her worries and fears stop her. Despite her worries and fears for them, she knew they were able to take care of themselves. Her father and Neo were able to handle themselves on several jobs, and Ruby and the others were trained for their entire lives, so they were able to handle themselves against anything that came there way.
She heaved a sigh as she thought to herself in an attempt to comfort her mind, "... Daddy… Everyone… Wherever you are… Please be safe…"
We would never be there for others who might one day be lost without us. This is what we were training for Yang. To become the Huntresses we were meant to be. To be the ones who would stand up and do something to fend off all the bad that is out there in the world. Because they're plenty of people out there who are still lost and even more who will try to gain everything they can from their sorrow.
Believe me when I say…
I know it can feel impossible, like every single day is a struggle against some unstoppable monster that we can never hope to beat.
-Somewhere in Remnant-
In a familiar room lit only by candles, six people stood around the room surrounded by now disintegrating Grimm; these people being, Cinder, Emerald, Mercury, Salem, and even Diamond and Elise. Salem, Diamond and Elise had watched from the sidelines watching as Cinder used her abilities to kill any Grimm that stood went to attack her as did Mercury and Emerald. Elise who stood with a cast supporting her had to learn more about the abilities of a Maiden, and Salem had stated to her, that she had to learn by watching another this being the Fall Maiden, Cinder herself. She was a bit hesitant at first but wanting the voices and images to go away, she had ultimately agreed to it, and Diamond had stood beside her, in case she had opened or aggravated one of the wounds she had received.
Now she stood beside her Mistress as watched Cinder use her abilities to her advantage to fend herself from the Grimm to make herself stronger.
With the snap of Cinder's fingers Emerald had stepped forward; placing her fingers to her head and her semblance had activated, causing a slight irritation to Diamond and Elise when she did. Before the Shadows very eyes, there appeared the familiar Silver Eyed girl, Ruby Rose, though is but an hallucination, through of the eyes of Cinder and them. The hallucination of Ruby Rose reached out to Cinder, as if she was begging for mercy, so that she could live. In response all Cinder did was glare at the young girl. Her eye glowed as stream of fire emerged from her right hand, burning the hallucination of Ruby and she cried out in pain and agony as if she were the real thing, and the two Shadows watched as Cinder destroyed the hallucination before her, and Salem looked pleased at this.
As Elise watched as Emerald made more hallucinations appear before Cinder, and burn away each one, she suddenly felt a familiar painful ring in her head, and images went by so fast she could hardly make them out. She saw images of the Silver Eyed girl, more of the one named Jaune and of the young girl who had given her and her sister's life. Diamond noticed her in pain, and quickly supported her before she could fall to the ground; Salem took notice of this, and looked to her calmly, though she had said nothing.
Elise took deep breaths as she picked up her head, as everything around just seemed to muffle. Her eyes widened slightly, when in the fires that Cinder had made she saw just across the room a familiar girl with red crimson hair, having the same face as her, standing across the room staring right at her, and Elise couldn't help but tense up at the sight of the girl. She heard the girl say something familiar to her as she tilted her head slightly.
"... Do you believe in destiny…?"
Finally she heard Diamond's voice.
"Elise?" She said, "Elise? Can you hear me? Are you alright?"
The minute Elise had blinked, the girl with red crimson hair was just gone, and her body seemed to relax but was still a bit alert. She turned to Diamond and simply shook her head in reply before she started to look around the room, wondering where the girl had gone to.
"Elise." Salem said getting her attention, "... Is something wrong?"
When Elise saw that there was no one in the room but themselves, she took a deep breath to calm herself and allowed Diamond to help stand up. She than turned to Salem before she replied, reassuring both her and herself, "... No Mistress. Everything's fine… Everything's fine…"
...But we have to try.
If not for us, than for the people we've already-Than for the people that are still standing with us.
I miss you so much… I miss Weiss, Blake and Destiny too…
But I think you'd all be happy to know… I think, Destiny wherever she is, would be happy to know this as well, that we made it to Mistral. We all did. We even ran into Uncle Qrow along the way. And guess who else?
We found our cousin Melody all the way out we found her, she wasn't alone, she was with others, her own team. They call themselves CRMS, and we found out they were going to Mistral like we were for the same reasons, so they had decided to travel with us.
We wouldn't have made as far as we did without them.
I think you would like their leader Cristal; she's the one that bought them all together in the first place. She's able to talk to the Grimm like Destiny is, though… her face, is a actually a bit shocking when you first see it. Let's just say when you meet her, if you ever do, her face rings, so many bells like you wouldn't believe.
Ruby had stopped writing for a moment as she felt tears trail down her face and fall onto the paper smudging it a little and she couldn't help but sniffle. She wiped away her tears, and tried to get herself to stop by rubbing her eyes though, she couldn't. They just kept coming like the rain. She soon felt a tingling sensation, and was soon quick to realize that it was Frosty who had started lick her affectionately as a way to comfort her. Ruby smiled a little and started to pet Frosty, as a sign of gratitude to the little fox and he leaned in for the touch.
Her attention was drawn to a groan from the man who slept in the same room as her. She stood up from the chair and quickly went over to Qrow's side with Frosty once again hopping onto her shoulder. Kneeling beside him, she waited for any kind of response as she placed her hand on his shoulder. Hearing a slight cough, she saw his eyes finally open, seeing the familiar shade of red and she felt a wave of relief wash over her.
He smiled to her, "... Hey… Aren't I normally the one saving you…?"
Ruby laughed at this as tears of happiness were seen flowing down her cheek. She wiped away her tears and smiled back at Qrow, before she had put her arms around him as the tears continued to fall. Qrow didn't hesitate as he put his arm around his niece, and they both stayed like this for sometime, both of them not wanting to let the other go. Frosty climbed off of Ruby's shoulder and jumped to the other bed where Senka was asleep; he curled himself up in the middle of the bed, and shut his eyes, going to sleep as well.
He's going to take us to see the headmaster of Haven Academy. Professor Lionheart. And, both him and Cristal told us a lot of things that you're going to want to hear. Things that I can't trust can make it to you in this letter.
But… Maybe… If you join us, they can tell you themselves. With Beacon gone they'll need dad at Signal more than ever, and I know you need to focus on yourself before I can expect you to come out here with me.
But it sure would be great to get team RWBY back together again.
-Somewhere in Anima-
Hours had passed since the boat had arrived in Anima, and both Yang and Angel were prepared for the path ahead. Yang had made her decision on where she wanted to go, and Angel was more than happy to tag along with her, and it gave him a great excuse for him to take a break from flying for awhile since Yang brought along her bike, the Bumblebee. She in her new outfit and her hair undone and with Angel sitting on the backseat of her bike drove along the dirt road soon after they had gotten off the boat and for a good long while they had sat in silence as they felt the wind hit against their faces.
"Fork-road ahead!" Angel yelled through the wind.
Yang turned down to her engine a little, and the bike slowly stopped in front a pair of signs. One sign had read Mistral and the other read Kuroyuri; though the sign had a red X over it and had also read Bandits. Angel jumped off from the bike and took a closer look at the signs.
"Well, at least we know we're close now." Angel said to Yang as he stretched his legs a little.
Yang looked to the beaded bracelet that was just around her robotic wrist; it wasn't long before she let out a sigh before smiling, "...They are in so much trouble when I find them." She turned over to Angel, "You ready to go, or are you going to throw up again?"
Angel turned over to Yang, "Hey, just because I got sick on the boat, doesn't mean that the same thing will happen on your bike!"
Yang chuckled, "Just get on."
"Yes, mom." Angel said with sarcasm, and the teens couldn't help but laugh.
With Angel hopping back on the backseat, Yang started up the engine and drove down the path to Mistral.
Until next time, your loving sister, Ruby Rose.
Oh! P.S, I'll be sure to give you the address to where we're going to be staying in Mistral! I'd love to hear back from you and dad! And I can't wait to fill you in on whatever is going to happen next!
Now that we finally made it across Anima, I really think things are finally gonna start going our way.
-Haven Academy; Headmaster's Office-
The office of the headmaster was large and spacious, having its own bookcase and even a ladder to reach the books on the higher shelves. Papers were stacked loosely on a mahogany desk nearby and a golden plaque sat on the desk, which had a carved engraving; it had read, Professor Lionheart. On a coffee table nearby there sat a tea set colored in gray and green; three cups were sitting at the table, two filled up, and one empty.
The cup didn't stay empty for long as Lionheart poured the tea into the small cup before handing it to someone. A young girl with shoulder length magenta hair, having a single orange eye, took the cup from him. She had on a brown eyepatch covering her right eye, and wore a suit that was colored in red and black and underneath her jacket she had a gray collared shirt, with a familiar gray choker around her neck; with the suit she wore black dress shoes. What had stood by her side in the seat she sat opposite of the Professor was a creature of Grimm, a Beringel to be exact and it seemed to have growled softly in Lionhearts direction.
The girl… Sinn took a sip from the tea, and licked her lips as she pulled the cup away.
"This is pretty good." Sinn said to Lionheart with a simple smile, "Don't get me wrong, I've had better, but yours definitely comes close as to perfection."
Lionheart had said nothing to this, and refused to make eye contact. Another person, this being a man took the second teacup from the coffee table. This man had short black and gray hair, with a black mustache and a pair of green eyes and his skin was of light brown. He wore a gray overcoat with yellow linings and a yellow dress shirt with a black necktie, and had an undercoat with a shade of indian red and had yellow buttons and fingerless gloves to match.
This man was revealed to be, Arthur Watts.
"Thank you for your generosity Professor." Watts said, putting his feet on the table revealing his cordovan shoes.
He took a sip from his cup of tea as he made himself comfortable.
"Salem always did say you were… Quite hospitable."
(Opening Theme: Let's Just Live Performed By Casey Lee Williams)