A/N: Title comes from We Rise by Aviators
It's been hard to sleep since arriving in Vacuo, but Oscar has been so busy today that he collapses almost as soon as his head hits the pillow.
In his dreams he sees Ruby. That's not anything new. He dreams of her and the others they lost a lot, and they always look at him with such rage, demanding to know why he hadn't saved them. Crying or screaming or snarling at him. Ruby shows up the most, though, so it isn't a surprise to see her tonight.
But it's different. Her eyes aren't full of rage or hatred. She isn't cursing him for failing to save her. She looks like a cornered animal, and she lashes out desperately with her scythe. There's none of her typical technique or skill, just the desperate attempt to keep something at bay… and Crescent Rose digs deep into Oscar's flesh. Ruby looks at him with pure horror. Not the cornered animal from before or the person struggling against the odds he'd come to know over the past year. She just looks… dead. Like there's nothing left inside her. Oscar wants to say something, anything, to try and help her, even if this is just a dream, but all that falls from his lips is, "Ruby?" before he collapses in a puddle of his own blood.
Ruby sinks to her knees, and he wants to force himself to his feet. Hug her, offer her a hand up. Something, anything, he just wants to help her. This isn't her fault. But no matter how much he screams at his body to move, it stays in the puddle of oozing blood. No matter how much he tries to speak, his lips won't move. He-
Ren is gently shaking his shoulder, urging him awake. "Are you okay?" his friend asks, worry evident in his tone. "You were screaming and shaking in your sleep."
"I…" Oscar says. "No, I'm not. I'm sorry if I woke you up, Ren. I was… I was dreaming about Ruby again."
Ren's face softens. "Do you want to talk about it?" his friend asks gently. "Losing them was hard on all of us. And I know losing her hit hardest for you."
Oscar shakes his head. "Not really," he says. "It's not like we can do anything about it now."
"You loved her," Ren says, and Oscar doesn't bother denying it. Even if Ren couldn't see his emotions with his Semblance, the older young man can see through him anyway. He and Jaune were like the older brothers Oscar never had. "It's okay to mourn her."
"I can't even help her in my dreams," Oscar says quietly, and to his slight surprise Ren hugs him. Tears leak from his eyes and soak into Ren's shirt.