Who's ready for an info drop! Because that's exactly what you're getting here!
A few people have been thinking and/or speculating as to what's what, and if your here for answers to those questions then you've come to the wrong place! I can't just wait six chapters before spilling my guts all over the floor, I've come a long way since Downed, you know. No, I'm gonna make you work for it!
This is actually one of my favorite, just because it... Well, I'll tell you after the fact. I hope you all enjoy!
The last class of the day for Blake was an Art class, with a rather tall and scrawny teacher, Mr. Torchwick. He had fire-red hair with his bangs hanging down to hide his right eye, a cane with a bowler hat sat behind his desk. Blake pondered if those were strictly for show, but according to her friends he actually used them.
What a strange man.
Luckily for her, she shared this class with her new friends Ruby, Nora and Ren. Though she had met the other two earlier, she never really had a chance to talk and get to know them as she had with Pyrrha and Yang, so this class was a good chance to officially meet them. It was the end of the day with less than twenty minutes left to go and every students' bags were packed and ready as they eagerly awaited the bell. They were all on the cusp of freedom. The last class had gone by in a flash, Torchwick leaving his students to do whatever they desired because 'Monday's sucked'. He admitted he didn't have a plan and didn't really care that day, which was all that his students needed to hear.
Ruby sketched out Nora and Ren, per the Valkyrie girls request. Ren didn't care much to pressure his friend into something like that, but Ruby gladly agreed, giving herself something to do. In less than an hour she handed over her masterpiece, earning a very theatrical thanks from her friend. Blake noted just how different Nora and Ren were from each other; where she, the short redhead with an energetic personality would fire off and go nuts on the world, he, the taller boy with black, smooth and long hair with a purple streak in it was more calm and restrained. It was impossible to figure out just how these polar opposites got along...
Ruby checked the clock, noting that she still had a half hour left until class ended and sighed heavily before excusing herself. Blake carefully watched as she walked out of the room and saw her chance...
"So..." The bow-wearing girl called, "What's up with her?" Her question was sincere, not meant to be taken offensively. Nora and Ren still shot her a quizzical look. "I mean... Something doesn't feel right, you know? It looks like she's on edge about something, but I don't know what..."
"I get what you're trying to say." Ren interrupted, "You notice that Ruby is different when compared to us. Not as boisterous or loud, per say." Blake nodded, thanking the stoic boy for his interruption. "Allow me to explain: We only met her last year when she was sent up two years to our grade . In that year, she's stayed very secluded. We all knew she was hiding something but she was so nervous and that much was evident enough, but none of us wanted to push. She seemed... What's the word?"
"Shy!" Nora cheered.
"Right, she seemed shy. She was obviously freaked out on her first few days here. But that was a year ago. She's still timid, but we've managed to make her open up a little."
Nora slumped as she rested her head on her arms, "Not enough, though..." She muttered dejectedly.
Ren nodded in agreement, "I understand that Yang is determined to change her, but she should be careful where she treads. If she pushes too much then she'll push Ruby away."
"But if she doesn't push enough then no progress will be made..." Blake finished for him, causing him to simply nod. "It's a real catch twenty-two, huh?"
Both of her new friends nodded in agreement. "And Pyrrha's no help either," His voice was honest and steady, "She doesn't seem to understand that some people are just quiet people. But she's too stubborn to let it go, why I don't know."
"Yes you do, Ren." Nora chastised, "It's because of me and Yang-"
"Yang and I."
"Whatever, Ren! The bottom line is Pyrrha is too used to people like Yang and I, loud, fun and crazy!"
"You? Crazy?" Blake quipped with a smile, "I don't believe it."
"Believe it, Missy. Anyway, she was hoping that Ruby would be just like Yang and I when Velvet introduced us to her, but wasn't sure what to make of this small, quiet thing."
"And if I recall, that's using her words exactly. I'm just letting you know," Ren began his closure, "She seems to have taken very kindly to you, which means that you might have a way of breaking this silent streak of hers."
"Are you asking me to help you all and Yang?"
"Yes." Nora easily answered, the most determined look on her face. "Any help would work... We just want her to be more confident in herself, she likes to bring herself down a lot... Any help is welcomed help!"
Blake considered her options as Nora and Ren both finished, all she could think was how these two were two halves of a brain. Nora was the artsy, imaginative half while Ren was the analytical half. All the while, knowing deep down what she had to do... She knew the issue, after all, and she knew why and where this started at, so maybe she could help more...
When Ruby walked back in, her tablemates had ceased their conversation and picked up a new, decoy talking point. They were used to quickly switching, the last they wanted was for Ruby to hear them talking about her. She intently listened to Nora and Ren argue about shifts for tonight and packed her bags, as did the others in the class, and prepared to leave. All Ruby wanted to do after a long day like today was go home, go see Neo. Maybe, if they could, spend some time with Velvet and Coco. Even ask Blake to join. What kind of neighbor would she be if she didn't invite her own classmate and neighbor along for some after school fun?
Blake, the new girl, the enigma, this black haired beauty that Ruby hadn't known for more than a few days already turned her whole world upside down. She was a nice girl who Ruby instantly connected with, someone who she could get along with very well with little trying. In fact, there was something about Blake that Ruby found to be very familiar, but couldn't place exactly how or why... She was sure that they never met... Right?
The sound of the bell brought her back from her stupor. All students poured into the hall and out the many exits of the school. "Come on, Ruby." Blake called, "We have a long way to go until we get to the parking lot."
"Oh yeah." Ruby muttered. She forgot that she came to school with Blake. She rubbed her arm as she approached, "Um, not that it's a big deal or anything, but can we make a stop before we go?" Blake looked at her quizzically, "I gotta go meet Velvet and Coco at the other side of the school. It won't take long, I promise! But you can still come with, if you want..."
Blake smiled as she gestured for the younger girl to stop before she got too flustered. "I'll tag along, that way whenever you're done we can leave together."
"Great! Like I said, it'll only take a minute!"
Blake lightly laughed, "Lead the way."
The young teen nodded as they exited, Torchwick giving his appreciation to his class for not causing a disruption for him. As Blake followed, all she could think was how this girl was sort of an enigma for her group. Her friends, despite how well they think they do, don't really know the red-clad girl. And yet she seemed to know almost everything about everyone she comes into contact with. She was truly an interesting person; one that Blake wanted to get to know. One thing that she often found herself wondering: What was Ruby's home life really like? Clearly her friends didn't really know about any of it? Did she want them to know?
Was she hiding something?
All relevant questions... All answers to be sought another time. It wasn't that she wanted to know everything about her neighbor, it was that this girl- despite what Blake said earlier- was familiar looking. Blake knew Ruby from somewhere... Deep down, she knew from where.
'But just how and when did she get here?'
The two approached the school's cafe, located just outside of Beacon's Restaurant where Ren and Nora work, providing both an extra area to eat as well as a place to socialize and was considered the original lounge. It had decorative brown and yellow tile floor with matching tabletops and benches. This is where Ruby normally met Velvet and Coco at the end of the day, and from here the two would drive Ruby home, then proceed to stay and 'annoy her' even though she enjoyed the company.
The floor transitioned from a laminated tile to a more intricately designed. thick tile flooring, indicating that they had indeed arrived at their destination. The lighting was also different, far more dimly lit from the normal light bulbs, rather than the florescent lighting that was used to light hallways and classrooms. Across the small space, Ruby found her friends, as they found her. She approached the two after a small wave, but a voice behind her called her attention.
"Hey, Rose!" A feminine voice heavily called, malice laced in its tone. Ruby turned, mild distress on her face as she knew who called her. A girl with a darker toned skin and emerald green hair approached, but behind her was a familiar short teen in high heels with snow-white hair trying to stop her but to no avail. "What in the world are you still doing here? Didn't you get Mercury's memo?" Ruby raised an eyebrow curiously, intent on seeing this out. As she did, Weiss shook her head and walked away, not wanting to do the same as Ruby. The silver eyed teen waved off help from Coco, who appeared to be ready to tear this new challenger in half. Blake also watched intently, but noted the smirk on Ruby's face... Was she enjoying this? Was this funny to her?
... Was she trapping Emerald?
"I'm saying why do you still go to this school? You're way too worthless to be here." A crowd had formed as the girl continued to berate, albeit poorly, the younger teen. "This school is for the best, the gifted and talented. Not people of your standards."
Ruby smiled as she contained her laughter. This girl, her poor attempt at harassment, proved Yang's point earlier. "Are you done?" She asked, "Because I won't shut you down if you're not done, yet. I mean, your backup already left you, so stopping now might be b-""
"Oh-ho-ho! Big talk from a small girl!"
"Well that was rude..." Ruby muttered under her breath, a smirk still plastered on her face.
"What are you going to do, cry to mommy? Is Yang going to come around and save her little friend?" Her tone was condescending to the max, a tone that one would use to taunt a child, "Or is Coco over there going to charge up and tear me in half for talking to you?"
"No, no." Ruby confirmed, "I think I can handle this." Her smile never wavered for a moment, though she and everyone else knew why. Goodwitch was standing right behind Emerald during this whole ordeal, but the instructor refused to intervene. Normally intervention was saved for after an event went physical. Besides, Glynda was interested to see how Ruby was going to handle this. Would she be more mature than Yang, who would probably have knocked this insolent teen's head through the ground? Or would she find her own way to handle it? The crowd around them tried to silently warn this challenger, to great failure.
"I'm done when I say I'm done, and I'll only be done when you and your pathetic friends leave... Or die, whichever works..."
Smile still plastered on her face, Ruby shook her head and scrunched her forehead playfully, "Wow, alright. I guess now's a better time. You think I'm not worthy of being here? I worked my ass off to get to where I am now and I'm proud of it. Sure I don't have all of the money that you or your family has, but I don't care for any of that. I'm happy as I am now." The crowd around her intently listened to her words as Emerald tried her best to maintain her composure, unsure of what to feel. This girl, this broke, worthless girl who had no right to even embrace her, or her friends' graces, was giving her a lesson? In what? "I earned my place here. And what about you? You call me worthless and yet you got here because somebody paid your way for you? You don't even know the value of hard work, do you?"
"You little-"
"Oh, excuse me. I didn't realize I struck a nerve, but I get a little offended when somebody belittles all of the hard work that I did to get here! Now if you'll excuse me, I think Miss Goodwitch would like to have a word with you."
"Miss Goodwi-?" Emerald turned and met the eyes of the schools Health instructor as they pierced through her very soul. "Oh, um... Hi..."
"Miss Sustrai, must we have another talk about harassing students in school?" She latched onto Emeralds wrist, "Miss Rose, I excuse you for your earlier comment and release you for the day." She smirked as she practically dragged Emerald out of the cafe. The crowd of students applauded, some in jest, others actually meant it before dispersing.
Regardless, Ruby did a curtsy and claimed "You just have to play the waiting game, then you don't have to do a thing!"
The crowd dispersed as the students exited. The few who remained waited for traffic to die. Coco, Velvet, Ruby and Blake were doing just that.
When Ruby turned to finally talk to her other friends, she found herself being wrapped up in a massive and familiar hug. "Coco!" She called, "Let me down!"
"I'm so proud of you!" The young woman yelled as she swung the junior around, pride laced in her voice. "You did so well!" Velvet pinched the bridge of her nose as she shook her head during the spectacle, even though she was just as proud. Ruby could be a smart-ass sometimes, but this time she schooled an Elite without using poor comedy. She spoke from the heart and actually sounded like she was sick of having her achievement be belittled, and it was about time for her to grow a backbone, too. Unfortunately now, it would appear that said spine vanished. It only took one cry from Ruby for the faunus to step in and literally pry the red-clad girl off. "Aw, no fun. So what's up?"
"Can I catch my breath, woman?" Ruby playfully chided as she hid behind the rabbit faunus, "Jeez, you just sent me around the world there. Let me have a minute." Coco (im)patiently gave her that minute, allowing the younger girl to do what she requested. "Alright, whew. So, I know you two normally take me home after school, but since I drove here with Blake and we're both going back to the same place, I figured you two shouldn't have to take me home again."
Velvet and Coco nodded as they knew what was going to happen, though they had to have some fun with it. "Wow, alright cool. Thanks, Blake!" Coco called with a smile, "You really saved me some gas!" She held a thumbs up as the new student caught the sarcastic tone in her voice, carefully eyeing the two senior students.
"Yeah," Velvet agreed, "We don't have to worry about her anymore. Let's go home."
"Wait, you'll still come over, right?"
Coco rolled her eyes and shrugged, "I don't know, If we can't take you home now then what's the point?" Ruby's shoulder slumped as her older friend continued to walk on, picking up her backpack from a nearby table, "Besides, you'll probably be working tonight and I don't want to get in the way of that."
"What?"
"You said it yourself, Ruby." Velvet easily chimed.
"You know that's not what I meant."
"Then why did you say it?"
Ruby stopped dead in her tracks as the two seniors walked on ahead towards the door, finally realizing that she was being had. Silver eyes rolled, now it was her turn to shake her head and turn around to walk away. "Alright, bye." She waved behind her back, "No skin off my nose!"
Blake had been following the discussion, but was confused. Wasn't the whole point of this to get the duo to come over anyway? Then, before she could inquire anything, she saw the young teen wink, realizing that she was now playing the players. 'Crafty little girl...' The black themed teen thought.
Ruby walked on, slowly, waiting to hear footsteps behind her. It didn't take long before she felt a fist slug her arm, but as she was expecting it, she was able to jump away and avoid a majority of the impact. "We're still coming over. Just won't be until later." The fashionista declared, equipping a pair of sunglasses. Ruby gave a thumbs up in agreement, they hugged goodbye and departed. This time, however, Ruby had Blake lead the way out of the school to show what she had learned that day.
It took a lot longer than she had hoped, but they still made their way outside within the hour...
The drive home was very quick. As it turned out waiting for traffic to die down was the best strategy as Blake had little resistance exiting the parking lot, which is something she would keep that in mind for later. After driving the long way home, Ruby reluctantly told Blake that they'd meet later that night, inviting her neighbor over with Velvet and Coco. Blake happily agreed, putting her car in park.
She walked into the complex through the front, though her passenger split off, mentioning that she had to check in with Junior and Neo to work for a few hours. As the silver eyed teen walked through the back alley and towards the door, all she could think about was how the night would go. It was an odd day already, not being taken home by Coco and Velvet, and she also kept forgetting that Blake didn't actually know about her... Living situation, but she knew Velvet and Coco would help her out. They had to, right?
She paused just before she walked in the back door, glancing down both sides of the alley. For some reason she felt a presence of someone or something watching, but just a glance offered her solace that nobody was there. Damn imagination running wild. She twisted the doorknob downward and pulled the big, grey door open, the heavy material offering as much resistance as possible, but thanks to Yang and Pyrrha constantly pushing her she was able to open it with ease. Once Ruby was in the room, she quickly closed and locked the back door and turned towards the front counter, finding papers littered across the desk. Curiously examining the room, she noted how everything was so... Messy... Neither Neo nor Junior would stand for this, so what happened?
'Oh no!' Ruby gasped, fearing the worst. This much of a mess meant only one thing that brought a feeling of dread over her, and once she approached the door to Neo and Junior's apartment she could faintly hear yelling... Her fears had been confirmed, causing her muscles to stiffen and her eyes to close over the sheer malice in both of their voices. Familiar adult voices raised to beyond the capacity of the four walls cause the young teen gulped as she slowly opened the door, only to quickly be berated by a deep voice.
"Oh don't you dare yell at her, damnit!" Neo yelled, "She has nothing to do with this!"
"Bull. Fucking. Shit. This whole thing is about her! Stop lying to yourself and to her, you're not helping anyone, you're hurting all of us!"
"What's going on?"
"How am I hurting us? We're making more money than we know what to do with! Where's the problem? How are we hurt?"
"Money isn't the issue, it's-"
"If money isn't the problem, then maybe it's just you!"
"Guys?"
"Don't you dare talk to me like that, damnit!"
"Or what?!"
Finally, both combatants paused, either to think this out or to catch their breaths. Regardless of their reasoning, Ruby only saw one thing to stopping this...
"Mom, Dad, please stop fighting..."
Junior shook his head in annoyance as he walked out of the apartment, "Oh shut the hell up, girl. I'm going to work!"
Before he closed the door, Neo gave him one more piece of her mind, "Oh yeah, go do absolutely nothing while I fix this whole God damned building!" The door shut with a resounding slam, rattling the apartment and caused Neo to finally break down.
The Dichromatic haired woman slammed her fists into the kitchen table in rage and sadness and confusion while Ruby ran to comfort her, to no avail. "Neo, please..." Ruby soothed, "Have a seat... Talk to me about it..."
"There's nothing to talk about, hun..." The woman said through her tears and short, raspy breaths, "I don't want you to get involved with this..." Still, she allowed herself to be seated at the table since Ruby pulled up a chair for her. "This doesn't involve you."
"It does now..." Red-streaked bangs hung in front of her face as Ruby shook her head, maneuvering around behind Neo. The woman tried to keep her tenant within eyeshot, but Ruby was too good for her. Neo felt two soft hands firmly plant on her shoulders as Ruby began to slowly apply pressure for a message, rubbing the seated woman's shoulders slowly and carefully, trying her best to relax the adult.
In almost an instant, all of Neo's concerns died under the circular pressure. Despite what anyone said, Ruby had absolutely magical hands, and the woman known that since day one...
Neo sat down at the table, papers sprawled about. She rubbed her temples fervently in an attempt to understand what was happening right now.
Before her lied papers of many origins. One was a plan to purchase necessities for the Maintenance crews, the other was multiple bank statements giving Neo the budget she had to work with. Somewhere along the lines someone misplaced a few zeroes and Neo didn't have enough money to buy what they needed.
What was weird was that everyone paid rent on time, and even those who didn't weren't a great enough amount to cause a deficit... Something was up.
"Miss Neo...?" A young voice called from the couch in the other room, "Is everything alright?"
The multi-color haired woman sighed as she sat back, "Nah, it's just all these funds don't add up..." She shook her head as she blankly stared at the papers before her, "I don't know what happened..."
She blankly thought about where someone or something could have gone wrong, when a new force attached itself to her shoulders. Without warning, this same force began to apply pressure and rub in a circular motion.
And it was majestic.
"Ruby..." Neo called, her voice mildly strained, "What are you-?"
"You seem stressed..." Was all the woman heard. When the force stopped, all Neo could think was 'please do that again...' But she wasn't about to ask for it. Ruby took a seat next to her and began to examine the papers. "So... Where's the problem? And don't tell me not to get involved because I'm involved."
Neo gave her a chiding look, "Damnit, Ruby, you've been here for less than two weeks, take it easy for once."
"I'll take it easy when I die." The young teen happily replied, "Now what's up?"
"Budget issue. I need to buy a few things and I can't find the money..."
Ruby began to examine the buildings bank statements, eventually finding an issue. "Neo... You have four building accounts, right?" Neo nodded, "And you allocate funds accordingly... You didn't put enough money down into the right account. Whoever put the money in the bank put the funds in the wrong account somewhere... I just don't know where... I guess it doesn't matter."
Neo almost ripped the paper out of the teens hand and saw exactly what Ruby was talking about. "Uhg..." She sighed, "The one time Junior does the bank thing is the one time it gets messed up..." She turned to her newfound friend and stood up, "Thanks... Sorry you got pulled into that..."
Ruby also rose from her seat and shook her head, "It was nothing. I thought there was just this big money loss thing. I did notice that, despite the amount of money you would normally have, you still would be too low after buying everything. I think you may be buying too many things at once, or just multiples of one item, so watch for that."
Once again, Neo examined the list. "I'll be damned..." She whispered. Ruby was right, Neo was buying multiples of only one thing that they needed... She turned back and watched as the child walked back to the couch, "Hey, Ruby..." She called, "How would you... How are you so good at math?"
The teen shrugged, not knowing how to answer, "It's just... Really easy to me, is all... I've always been good at it."
"How would you like to help me run the Maintenance crew?" The question was genuine and honest, which actually surprised the silver-eyed teen. Most of the time, in Ruby's experience, people wouldn't be so serious about that, but this woman... Did she have that much trust in her...? "I'll work everything out with Junior and maybe we can work something out; do a deal soon so you can get off of our couch and into a room, if you help enough?"
Ruby didn't have to think about this, she knew what it meant and it was the best long-term play she could make. Another bonus was that she would finally stop mooching off of the complex owners. It was an easy decision. "I'd love to."
"Great, we'll start tomorrow!" With that, Neo left the room, leaving Ruby to herself, the couch which she had been sleeping on since she arrived at the building, and the TV that Junior and Neo were gracious enough to let her use.
"Alright Thank you!"
Her hands, that same massage... Her god damn skills with her hands, made all of Neo's troubles disappear. Ruby knew how to make people relax, be it her charm or her skills of persuasion, both Neo and Junior underestimated the young girl constantly.
Neo rose from her seat and quickly snatched Ruby up in a hug, burying her face into the young girls' shoulder. Somewhere down the line, Ruby grew to be barely taller than her... And at some point Neo knew she'd have to kick her tenants ass for it. "Thanks, hun..." Neo whispered, "You're the best."
"I try." The red-haired girl cheerily replied as she reciprocated, despite her body tone being more solemn. "What do you need me to do, now?"
Neo shook her head with a soft smile, "Nothing, absolutely nothing. You've done enough for me already. Besides, the crew did everything earlier, I did all of the banking and stuff already, so just... Go home and do whatever homework you have, alright?"
Reluctantly, the teen complied. She didn't want to leave but her friend's words persuaded her otherwise. It took a few minutes but Neo finally convinced her that she was fine and pushed Ruby out the door, locking it behind her.
Ruby, still confused and concerned, left with more questions rather than answers. She picked up her backpack, which she discarded at the door before jumping into the earlier frey, and began to walk up the stairs to her floor.
When she made it, she saw some of her neighbors talking. One such was Miss O'Riley, an older lady who lived two doors down from Ruby. "Ah, there she is!" The older woman responded, "We've been waiting for you!"
"Me? Why?"
One of her other neighbors, a slightly balding, slightly graying business man who went by the name of Luto spoke up, "Junior came by earlier. We don't know why, but he was examining your door and looked angry. He asked us about you, our opinions and such. Again, we don't know why, but we're concerned."
"He's saying a lot of bad things about you, honey," Miss O'Riley said, lightly putting her hand on Ruby's right shoulder her free arm staying firmly on her cane, "He might try to pull some shenanigans soon. If he does, he'll hear it from us, but be warned. He might work his way around us to get to you..."
Ruby chuckled as she shook her head, "Thanks... Both of you... But I'm fine. I've got Neo still. A-and even if that doesn't end well, he still won't be able to take me that easily. What he doesn't realize is that I'm ready to fight him over this just as much as both of you."
"Try all." Luto said with determination, "The whole floor is behind you. You've got way too much going for you to be thrown out just yet."
A tear came to her eyes as Ruby nodded in thanks. She departed from the group and walked into her apartment. When she closed her door, all she could do was drop her bags and slide down the wooden entrance. She stared into her kitchen blankly, then to her ceiling. All the while unable to think.
Her first words came after ten long minutes: "What in the world is happening, today?"
Schoolwork was sprawled about on the counter as she finished her dinner. One of the boxes of Mac and Cheese lay next to the stove as the pot lay in the sink. Ruby sighed as she patiently waited.
Her whole day had been quite eventful. First off was Blake's first day of classes. She liked to think that her neighbor got off to a very good start with Yang, Pyrrha and Nora, as well as some of the teachers. Also, Ruby was sure that her neighbor had been well acquainted with the school's layout, if not then all Ruby had to do was give it a week, Blake will get the hang of it. Now it was just getting Coco and Velvet to accept her, which was a task equitable to world peace levels of impossible. But Ruby was still willing to try.
Velvet already seemed open to the idea, but Coco was a bit more protective than that. Sometimes Ruby wondered who was worse in that department; Coco or Yang.
Second was the whole debacle with Mercury and the 'Elites', especially Emerald's gutsy confrontation at the end of school, which made her wonder why Emerald of all people in that group decided to do what she did? Did Merc finally convince her to fully turn towards the dark side? And what was with Weiss? She wasn't one to just abandon someone in her group like that, maybe Emerald crossed a line? Perhaps Weiss was trying to stop the altercation before it began, which would fit her usual non-interventionist M.O. and chose to abandon a lost cause. Either way, Ruby's actions might ultimately come back to bite the other students of Beacon, not just her friends. She could only hope she and the others could control Yang for a time so as there wouldn't be a murder at school.
The third, and biggest issue, that plagued the young teens mind for the past few hours was the issue with Junior and Neo. The couple had been fighting more and more recently, growing from small arguments to all out verbal brawls. Junior appeared to be getting more and more daring, as well, scaring Ruby. Him being as... Well, as huge as he is, meant that if he were to impose his will upon somebody, in this case Ruby seemed to be his intended target, there wouldn't be much to stop him, and the young teen had witnessed firsthand this man's capabilities. He was not to be trifled with.
She filled the bowl with water and began cleaning her few dishes, peering over towards the clock on the stove, which read 'Six-Ten'. Ruby knew it was only a matter of time before the 'Wonder Twins' arrived, giggling at Yang's proclaimed nickname for Coco and Velvet. It fit more than anything else anyone could think of.
As she finished with the small bowl, she set it aside and moved to clean the freshly used pot as a knock alerted her towards the door, stopping her from her chore. "Oh, uh, coming!" She called, "Just a sec!" She left the sponge where it was and turned the water off, just in case she would be a few minutes, quickly drying her hands on a nearby towel. Worrying for a moment that it was one of her neighbors coming to talk to her again, she mentally readied herself for a good old fashioned deviation tactic. What she got when she opened the door was far less than expected.
Standing in front of the door was a familiar Dichromatic eyed woman staring softly at her door. "Hey..." Neo greeted calmly, "How are you doing?"
Despite being caught off guard by her friend/landlord's surprise visit, "U-uh, hey Neo!" She swiftly greeted back, "Come on in! I'm just finishing din-"
A lone right hand was raised by the shorter woman as she smiled. "No, no." Her voice was truly defeated and low which broke Ruby's heart, "I'm not here for any of that. I just wanted to see how you were doing after... That thing earlier..." She blushed a little in clear embarrassment after quietly continuing on, "I understand if you're feeling anything negative towards us and I'm going to do the best that I can to make things better, but know that sometimes I can't control Junior... He may come up and do some weird or stupid stuff or say something. Just please, He doesn't mean it and I know I shouldn't have to ask this of you, but it's come to that point: Bare with us until he and I can work this out." Ruby nodded as the woman explained further, making many promises she knew deep down she couldn't keep, "Once we find a way out of this rough patch, everything should smooth out for everyone, including you."
Once again, Ruby nodded. "I understand." Neo smiled lightly as she turned to walk away, doing what she had to do in her mind she figured that she shouldn't keep Ruby busy anymore. "W-wait! Do you... You know? Wanna stay for a while? I'm sure the others won't mind you hanging around..."
Solemnly, Neo shook her head while tucking her hands into her pants pockets. "No, but thank you. I have to work some things out with my... ahem, Husband." She walked away without another word, leaving Ruby behind in mild disappointment. Today had been such an odd day and only proceeded to get worse. As the woman lumbered towards the elevator down the hall, she noticed two figures walk out of the shaft as a ding announced the arrival of her ride, the two young woman who had been riding up and exited the elevator gave a small wave to the smaller woman. Instantly Ruby recognized the bunny ears of the first one and the beret on top of the second one.
-"Well it's about time!" Ruby joked as the duo waltzed down the hall, "I was starting to think you two were going to stand me up!"
Coco chuckled, "Us do that to you? Nah. Miss Bunny here took too long getting ready."
"I was eating dinner when you pushed me out the door!"
"I told you to eat it in the car-"
"Hey!" Ruby clapped, "Not that I don't love seeing you two fight like an old married couple, but can we do this inside my apartment so my neighbors don't get upset?" Both older teens agreed with a nod, not able to make eye contact with their hostess after their chastising and entered the abode. "Get comfy, I'm gonna go fetch Blake. Please play nice while I'm gone?"
Velvet looked to Coco who shook her head as Ruby finally left, "If I mess something up in her place I'm a dead woman, and I'd like to see myself graduate thank you very much."
Velvet smirked as she carefully walked around the apartment, examining everything she could with a careful eye. "That's probably the best course of action you've taken all month. I'm proud of you."
Coco stuck her tongue out playfully as she approached the counter in the kitchen, "Geez, look at all of this." She examined the piles of organized mess, "She's got papers here dating back to the start of the year... She looking for notes? How in the hell does she find anything?"
"She doesn't mess up her system, unlike what you're doing now." Velvet teased, "Honestly, you should leave all of that where it is. She probably wasn't expecting us just yet and might need those for later."
Her sister obliged and left everything where it was before going to sit at the table in the next room where Velvet had also just sat down, the former leaning back in her chair. She looked around the apartment and examined the familiar space. Both Velvet and Coco took Ruby home almost all the time, especially in the colder months, and would stay at her apartment generally late into the night.
Coco anxiously sat in her chair as her adopted sibling waited patiently, the former decided that she should check out Ruby's bedroom, when the front door opened and two figures emerged. The senior immediately sat back down in her spot as Blake was first to walk in, followed by the apartment owner. "Well, well, well!" She teased, "About time you came back! Don't you know it's rude to leave your guests like that?"
Despite the look Velvet was currently giving her, Ruby still managed to shoot back in retaliation, "Wait, who are the guests, here? You two practically live here! I should start charging you both for rent!"
The fashionista threw her beret onto the table and clapped, "Welp, we're never coming back!"
"Speak for yourself." Velvet chuckled, followed immediately by a running start-smiling hug from Ruby. "Blake, always a pleasure. Even though we just met less than twelve hours ago." The new tenant playfully curtsied as she walked towards the table, planting down a few of her books that she had brought. Both seniors figured that this was homework and their underclass counterparts were probably going to work on it together. "Uh, Rubes..." Velvet pointed at the messy countertop in yonder kitchen, causing the owner of said mess to blush.
"Sorry, I uh... Lost something..." Ruby excused, quickly doing away with the stack of papers. "Notes are hard to find when you don't put them in the right spot..."
Again, Coco clapped, "And that's why I don't do notes."
"She's right. She uses mine."
"Hey! That's the trade off! I provide the home while you provide the school!"
Clearly finding annoyance with Coco's words, the rabbit faunus stopped and turned around. Ruby, anticipating the oncoming storm, moved out of the way, but was still in a position to break up their inevitable play fight. "Alright, first off," she harshly began, "Mom and Dad provide the home. You and I partake. Secondly, that was a bullshit comment because you obviously don't look at my notes anyway."
Ruby and Blake watched the display, unsure of which side to pick. The former knew what was going to come from this, though her neighbor was interested to see the outcome of whatever confrontation this was: Play or serious. Very quickly, however, she found her answer as the accented young woman turned to her with a calm and collected expression, "See what I have to deal with?" The bow-wearing teen shrugged, seeing but her face held an expression that said she not understanding just what was going on. Velvet however was able to notice this and wanted to explain, "I was adopted by Coco's family when I was little. Her parents felt that their daughter needed a playmate to keep her out of trouble but they couldn't slow down to have another baby, so they came and got me."
"What can I say?" The young woman replied with a shrug, sitting back in her chair while holding on to one signature pair of sunglasses, "I was a lonely kid..."
A small, meek voice rose shortly after a burst of silence, "We all were..." The voice belonged to none other than the apartments owner, earning her a stare from both of the senior students beside her while Blake held her head low, internally recoiling from how disappointed her neighbor sounded. Ruby, however, shrugged off the looks and went back towards the kitchen, specifically the sink. "Let me clean up from dinner and I'll be right over."
Velvet waved the suggestion off and sat at the tall table, "Oh, forget it. Dishes can wait until company leaves. Besides, it's not like it's a feast or something."
"Well maybe I'd just like to do it and get it out of the way, otherwise I'll never get it done." All of the guests smiled, the fashionista chuckling as a hint of attitude came from their hostess.
"Wow, the gem is sharp tonight."
"Are you kidding?" Blake added, "Did you hear what she said earlier? She's been as sharp as a blade all day!" Silver eyes rolled as Ruby shrugged it off, knowing that this would be a talking point tonight, and regretting every minute of it.
After a short time of small talk and jokes, Ruby finally finished her chore. As she worked, all of her guests had a very quiet conversation about her earlier comment, though the faunus of the group waved both of the teens off and said that she'll talk to Ruby about it later. This wasn't the first time that the red-themed teen had made such a comment and it won't be the last, but it had been less frequent which was the main point.
Admittedly, the aforementioned teen was still hungry, her meal not all too filling for a growing body, but there wasn't much she could really do about it. She only had so much in her home at one time, and she would never stand for Coco or Velvet to buy her any more meals. She would work to earn it through Neo and Junior.
The time that Coco and Velvet would spend at Ruby's place were mainly to make sure that she was safe at the apartment while making sure that she had been eating right. Her diet was worrying, just based on how little she ate at school, so their job was to help her eat more. It was working in a way, to say the least, but this wasn't their only duty. They also sought to tutor her with any schoolwork that she had. Though now, with the arrival of Blake, the second half may no longer be relevant, thankfully.
The group had worked in relative silence, only speaking when a question needed to be asked. Ruby hated such silence in her apartment but didn't know what to say or do to alleviate it without alienating her new neighbor. However, her oldest friend knew just what to do five minutes into the work session. "So, Blake." Velvet called, placing her pencil down from her science work. Amber eyes blinked as the new girl peered up towards the faunus, "Tell me something about yourself?"
"Don't interrogate her, Vel..."
"Now, now, Buoy." Coco admonished, using one of many of her pet names for her hostess, "It's her or me." Ruby sighed and rolled her eyes at her irony of the nickname she had, keeping to her own work, but her attention was all towards the discussion at hand...
"Well..." Blake began, "What do you want to know?"
The accented faunus shrugged lightly, never taking her gaze off of the other guest, "You know, the basics! Where you're from, how long you're going to be here...?"
"What you plan on doing with Ruby?"
"COCO!" The aforementioned teen cried, pounding her fist into the table.
"What? I'm genuinely curious!"
Blake drowned out the argument between the two and kept her attention towards Velvet. "Well, I can say I don't have any plans with her-" She pointed towards Ruby, "But I'm sure we'd hang out a few times, considering we're neighbors and, to be honest, I think we're pretty good friends now."
"Never you mind them." Velvet called through the increasing volume, "Coco's just paranoid and ultra defensive, you'll warm up to her, though!"
Blake nodded and continued answering the questions, "I don't know how long I'll be here, but I kinda hope it's for a while. I come from the east side of the country and I actually like it here."
Coco began to chuckle, now ending her unwinnable argument, and shook her head, "You won't be saying that in the winter. You think you east sider's get it? Ha! Us coastal's get nailed by the snow!"
"It's not as bad as she makes it out to be, Blake. Don't worry."
"Ruby, you don't have to drive in it!"
"No, I have to walk in it sometimes! So I think I know just how bad it can be!"
"Holy shit, Coco, you're getting destroyed." Velvet quipped, only to have her adoptive sister pointer a lone index finger into her face. "And thank you for answering those questions Blake."
The clock struck eight as all four girls returned to their schoolwork even though they really didn't have much. Coco began packing up her supplies and looked to Ruby, "Have they stocked the vending machines, yet?" The questioned slowly nodded, knowing full well they did that every three days at six in the morning on every floor, and she found it odd that Coco, the one person who would watch what she ate for 'her form' would inquire about that? "Come on then! Take me there!" Without warning Coco began to drag the young teen away by the hood of her famous red jacket.
The fashionista known as Coco Adel quickly closed the door to the apartment, leaving Blake and Velvet alone and accomplishing her job. Amber eyes looked up after feeling Velvet's glare throughout the entirety of Ruby's absence. The bow-wearing girl chuckled lightly, immediately knowing what was going on, "Wow, did you two come up with that one your own?"
The rabbit faunus shrugged, "I think we learned a lot of it from TV." Once again, she began staring at Blake, her normal look now replaced with a more serious expression. "East side of the country, huh?"
"Uh... Yeah..."
"Good cover, but for not."
Amber eyes glared as Blake squinted at the young woman in the seat across from her, "What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb with me." The black-haired girl physically tensed up at her adversaries tone of voice, "Ruby may not be able to remember right off the bat, but I do. You were there, at the foster home on Patch long before either Ruby or I got there. And now you're here..."
Closing her eyes, Blake sighed knowing that her cover had been blown. "Yes... I was there... I remember you, too... How easy was it?"
"Eh," The accented young woman shrugged, "Easy enough. You know how it works, people have the same scent to them no matter what."
"Y-yeah... That wasn't how I was able to figure you out, though... Was that how you had to for me?"
"Yes, that bow is good cover."
"Thank you."
"Have you told Ruby, yet?"
Blake shook her head, "No... I don't even know if she'll remember me..."
Velvet chuckled as she sat back in her seat. Soon, her chuckled turned into full-out laughter. Blake glared at her suspiciously as the faunus composed herself, "Believe me, Blake, she'll remember. She remembered me after, oh, four years. Trust me, if you approach her looking like what you did back then, you'll be fine..." As Blake let the words sink in, Velvet began to examine the bow on top of her familiar friends head. "Seriously, what's with that?"
Instantly, Blake knew what the young adult was referring to and touched the bow on top of her head. "It's... A long story... And, if I can help it, I'd rather nobody know... If you couldn't recognize me right off the bat because of it then it's doing its job."
"Alright, Blake, I hear ya. We all have our secrets."
"Clearly." The black haired teen turned back towards the door, her bow twitching as she strained to hear anything on the other side, but found nothing. "Including her, huh?"
"Now that's a long story."
"I believe it."
"Listen, Blake, I know what you are, and sooner or later, she'll know, too. You can't hide forever and she's a lot brighter than we give her credit for... You know that just as much as I do."
"I don't intend on hiding forever, Velvet." Blake replied, cryptically, her eyes closing to accompany her deep, defeated sigh, "I only intend on hiding until I'm ready, and when I know she's ready, too..."
Eventually, Ruby would break free of her captor's hold and made it back to her apartment. When she did, she would find Velvet packed and ready to go, her backpack around her right shoulder single strap, far earlier than expected. Despite her disappointment, the silver eyed teen said her goodbyes to her friends and they would depart, leaving her and Blake alone.
"So..." The red-streaked brunette awkwardly said, "Would you like to stay a while longer? Get to know each other a bit more?"
The black haired teen thought about the offer for a moment, noting a rather early time to go with it. However, since her talk with Velvet, her mind was... Elsewhere. As much as she despised the notion of leaving so soon, Blake figured that she could probably find an easy excuse with a school night to leave and do some thinking.
"I'm sorry." She inevitably shook her head, causing the shorter teen's shoulders to slump, "I'm kinda tired. Gotta get some rest before school tomorrow, right?"
Ruby respected the decision and nodded in agreement, "I understand. I'll show you out." She led the way after Blake picked up her backpack, walking out the door with her guest and into the hall. "Did you have fun tonight?" Ruby inquired, her door kept open as the duo faced each other. "I know Velvet and Coco aren't the best in the world to deal with, but..."
"No, it's okay." The bow-wearing teen admonished, "They're just looking out for you. I can understand the sentiment." Silver eyes blinked as Blake continued, "Besides, I did have fun tonight. I also got a lot of my work done. Now I'm excited to see my classes tomorrow."
Ruby chuckled lightly, "Hold on to that excitement, because it goes away awfully fast."
'You'd know more than anyone, huh?'- "I'll keep that in mind." She offered a smile, despite her thoughts. It was at this point where they said their goodbyes and walked back into their respective apartments. As Ruby's door closed, Blake realized one fatal error: She meant to inquire about her neighbor's parents face to face. Kicking herself internally, the black haired teen figured that there was nothing she could do now, and retired to her apartment, where the resounding and familiar sound of a closing door caused her to sigh heavily. 'And Ruby thinks she's had a weird day?'
Well... This one was all over the place, wasn't it? So, let me tell you why it's my favorite: I gives you a quick look into Ruby's home life past the weekend. Usually how it works is she works with Neo all weekend, or until she's no longer needed. But this one explained more of the week... Well, it's going to be abnormal, but I'll show you what happens in an average day after school.
Other than that, it's also my favorite because it throws off the perception I made of Ruby early on. Clearly, she's not to be trifled with after Emerald's encounter, right? Well, there's a few people to thank for that. We'll see more encounters of the Elite kind in the future, don't worry.
Next chapter is going to set up a long day at school, starting with some Gym time. Next chapter is also looking like either a 12k+ chapter buster, or a 2-parter. Still not sure about that.
So what did you all think of this one? Answer any questions? Raise any more? Make you wonder just where the hell I'm going with this? Don't worry, I know what I'm doing... How I'm gonna steer this ship on the other hand is still up in the air. That being said, tell me what you think and give me an idea of what you'd like to see, or some thoughts on what the future of this story is! I want to hear your opinions!
Next chapter is in the works and will be up as soon as possible, it'll be a game time decision on whether or not it's a two parter. So, I'll leave you all to work on whatever's next on my list.
Until Next Time.