This is ridiculously self indulgent, I'm sorry. Set in an AU post v8 where team RWBY made it safely to Vacuo and Penny lives. Content warning for bad coping mechanisms, alcohol, and mentions of vomit. Enjoy!
This is a bad idea.
Ruby isn't stupid. She grew up watching her uncle try to drown his problems in the contents of his flask, and how well that worked out for him, and how his drinking impacted the rest of their family. She knows that this isn't going to make things better—in the long run, it'll probably just make everything worse. And she doesn't even like the taste of alcohol.
But she's so tired. And desperate times call for desperate measures.
She's hardly been able to sleep since they arrived in Vacuo, battered and exhausted and barely escaping Cinder's clutches. And when she finally does manage to fall asleep, most nights she doesn't sleep for long, awoken soon after she drifts off by horrific nightmares that leave her gasping in terror. Between the lack of sleep and the work they've been doing, she's utterly exhausted.
It just would be nice to stop thinking for a little while, that's all. Her thoughts are a swirling mess that she can't seem to untangle no matter how hard she tries—and believe her, she's tried. She doesn't know why she's so anxious, anyway. She and her team made it here in one piece. They managed to save Penny from self-destructing. The citizens of Atlas and Mantle made it to Vacuo—almost all of them, anyway. Even if that has meant they've been busy trying to settle the refugees in Vacuo, finding food and shelter for them. And they're not sure where her uncle is, or Pietro and Maria. They escaped from Atlas mostly unscathed. Even if Cinder has returned to Salem with both the Lamp and the Staff in her clutches. Who knows what they're planning now, or where they'll strike next. And—
The point is, she just needs to stop thinking. She just needs one night to sleep without and nightmares and actually rest for once. She just needs the one night and then she'll be fine. She has responsibilities to fulfill as a huntress, and a team that she needs to be the leader of.
She can't have everyone thinking that she's falling apart at the seams. (Even if she is.)
That's how she finds herself at the counter of a tiny, hole-in-the-wall bar near Shade Academy. It's not as if Vacuo is super strict with making sure that underage people can't drink, and Ruby is seventeen anyways. Plus, she has her huntress license, which tends to be enough for most people.
Not that she's put a lot of thought into this or anything.
The bartender sets a small glass of amber liquid in front of her. Ruby doesn't remember the name of the drink—she'd just ended up picking one that sounded vaguely familiar. She takes a small sip and tries not to grimace.
It tastes absolutely disgusting, and leaves a burning sensation in her throat as she swallows it down. But she grew up eating Yang's cooking, and she has a strong stomach, so she doesn't let the nasty flavor deter her as she takes another swig
A couple of drinks later and she's ready to go. She's not completely irresponsible, after all. They do have work to do tomorrow. And she's seen Yang drink way more without having any issues, so she should be fine.
The walk back is far more pleasant than the trip to the bar was. Obviously she still tries to stick to the shadows, not wanting to be seen or to get in trouble, but she can't help but marvel at the pleasant stillness of the night and the stars glittering overhead. The desert sky allows the stars to stand out far more brilliantly than at home in Vale.
Wow. Sometimes Ruby forgets just how long it's been since she left to go to Haven. How long it's been since she's seen her father or Zwei.
She manages to make it back to their room without incident, clumsily tugging off her boots and collapsing onto her bed. She doesn't even bother to change into her pajamas, just tugs the covers around her as best she can and immediately drifts off to sleep.
For once, she doesn't dream. Perhaps her illicit outing wasn't such a bad idea after all.
Far too soon, morning rolls around and Ruby finds herself feeling far less optimistic.
She stirs awake to the sound of her team getting ready and resists the urge to groan, tugging her pillow over her head. It's way too early, and her head is pounding, her mouth is dry, and her stomach feels uneasy. The pleasant calm and warmth of the night before are long gone, and she's left feeling like crap. All she wants to do is go back to bed and sleep until she feels better, but that's not an option. They've got work to do today. And she can't just abandon her responsibilities like that—
"Ruby, get up already!" Weiss' voice is far too shrill this early in the day. Ruby just groans in response, wincing as her partner tugs the pillow away from her face. "Are you just planning to lay around all day? You're going to make us late!"
Weiss punctuates her words by yanking the blankets away from Ruby. This movement proves to be too much for her aching head and upset stomach, and she barely has time to lean over the side of the bed before she's puking—
Apparently all over Weiss' feet. The other girl shrieks in disgust. Ruby doesn't even have enough energy to apologize, just collapses back onto the bed and curls in on herself once she's down throwing up. If possible, she feels even worse than before. She squeezes her eyes shut as the room seems to spin around her and frantically tries to come up with an excuse to explain why she's such a mess.
It's hard to hear anything over the ringing in her ears, but she can vaguely make out the sound of someone approaching her before the bed shifts and she cracks her eyes open just enough to see her sister sitting next to her. "Geez, Ruby," Yang says, her face pinched in a worried frown.
She's always hated making her sister worry.
"'M fine," she insists weakly, wincing at how raspy her voice sounds. She forces herself to sit up slightly, even as her head throbs in protest. "I just—"
Yang cuts her off, which is good because even Ruby herself has no idea where that sentence was going. "Yeah, right, because you always puke your guts up and look like death when you're totally fine." Her sister rolls her eyes."Now do us all a favor and lay back down before you fall over."
So Ruby does, feeling a little trapped and more than a little ashamed of herself. She has no idea what excuse she can make that won't make everyone worried. All she's done is make everything worse. She squeezes her eyes shut, hoping in vain that maybe she'll fall asleep and somehow wake up to find that this was all just another nightmare.
Something cool presses against her forehead, startling her. Ruby opens her eyes to find Blake pressing a cool wet washcloth against her face. "I thought it might help your headache," the other girl says quietly.
"Thanks," Ruby murmurs gratefully. The cold does help ease the pain in her head a bit, and she lets her eyes fall shut again, thoughts drifting as she dozes off.
Far too soon, she's snapped out of her trance by a hand resting on her shoulder. She squints to see Yang seated once more beside her on the bed. Blake and Weiss are standing next to her. All three of them have very serious expressions. Ruby swallows hard, once again feeling trapped.
"Ruby, we need to have a talk."
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