Wow I feel like it's been forever since I updated! Sorry guys! Past 2 weeks I think I took on every known disease in existence and I kind of injured my neck. So there was no more writing done or posting. I'm all good now so expect regular updates!

Also, you guys, great guessing! I won't reveal anything but those are very good guesses haha! I'm impressed. Anyway, hope you enjoy!

Chapter Six

The Ugly Truth

One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Breathe in.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Breathe out.

Repeat.

Spending time alone in the cell felt like an eternity. The silence was the worst. It nearly drove Ruby off the edge into insanity. There wasn't even a brief sound of the outside world, she was completely closed off. Isolated. Her mind wondered back to the thief. How on earth did he manage to survive here?

"Well, he acts insane half the time so maybe he wouldn't be affected," Ruby mumbled to herself.

She shook her head violently. "Stop thinking about him!" Unfortunately, it was easier said than done in forgetting about the frustrating orange haired thief that had left the cell earlier. It felt like hours since he departed with the guard for reasons she did not yet know, but he never answered her question. Where had they taken him? Did Cinder call him to be executed or something?

No.

If Torchwick was still alive all this time then Cinder wouldn't kill him off. Not yet. She obviously had something planned for the two of them else neither would still be breathing. Worse, she still yearned to know this 'secret' Torchwick had discovered making him a liability to Cinder. When he returned, she would drag it out of him.

That's if he comes back.

There was that feeling again. That sickening feeling of her insides being squeezed to a point where she felt like throwing up. A dull ache rose in her chest and she felt as if the ground shook beneath her. The cell walls seemed to close in, getting smaller and darker after every passing second. Ruby curled up on the mattress, having drunk a couple sips of water, remembering this time to conserve some since apparently this was her last 'free meal.' She munched on some of the bread, relishing the taste of food.

She left the nuts and ate the apple last, savouring every bite. She was ravenous. The apple was fresh, juicy and delicious. Strange. She had been expecting it to be rotten to the core. She was still alive too. Interesting. Nice to know she wasn't being poisoned.

After spending a few moments resting, taking in the solitude, Ruby leaned back against the cold wall. Now she had a little more energy to burn though her wounds stung a little. She risked drenching the piece of material from Torchwick's scarf, pushing aside the fact he had actually been thoughtful enough to wrap it around her cut, and sacrificed a few drops of water before dabbing at her wounds.

Unbearable pain seared her crackled skin making her cry out. Her screams echoed through the halls but she was sure no one could hear it, she was alone. But it felt good after. The inflammation and revealed skin on her body seemed to reduce in the swelling.

"Stupid cell." She glared at the Dust laced bars, cursing them.

What would happen now? It was clear that breaking out was impossible. Those bars wouldn't allow her to damage them and the walls seemed to be made from diamond, not to mention it was prone to explosions. So now if she tried to break anything, this entire cell would blow up.

Death was something she wanted to avoid right now.

Ruby sighed dejectedly. What did that leave? Begging? Surrendering? She balled her hands into fists, shaking them. No. I can't give up now. Even if everyone back at the Resistance hated her, even if they didn't want to see her again, she would have to go back.

For Yang. For Ozpin.

She vowed to find him and that she would do. Cinder's head was still placed on her neck which needed to be removed. Her mind flashed to Mercury and Emerald – the traitors. For a fleeting moment she thought she and Mercury had a small understanding. She could see it in his eyes, some sort of guilt. Emerald was harder to decipher.

She sighed again, shrinking down in her spot. She fiddled with her cloak that now bore a few flyaway threads. Nothing major, it always did do well against physical attacks. She had her mother to thank for that.

She hadn't even visited her mother's grave in a while and the thought made her feel sick to the bone. How could she possibly die without visiting her one last time? This would not be something she wanted. But what were the chances of leaving here? Alive that is.

Her eyes scanned the closed off space, the dark corridors and eerie atmosphere. What do I do Mom? She thought, hoping some sort of voice would answer her back.

She pulled in her knees, wrapping her arms around them and rested her head against her legs. The cold forced its way inside her and she was shivering. Her eyes began to droop and soon, everything went black.

"Get in there!"

Ruby jumped up, wide awake. Her heart almost leapt out of her chest, hammering inside so fast that it could power 100 humans. Or Faunus's.

The gruff voice was from a guard and she heard the creak of the cell door being opened. She looked up to see the silhouette of someone coming inside, walking at an odd stance. When the light flickered, allowing her vision to improve, Ruby blinked with her mouth wide open.

There, walking through the cell door - was Torchwick. But, he's hurt...

More than before. That much was evident.

Appalled at the sight of him, she watched as he hissed, clutching one arm over his chest across one shoulder as he dragged himself in and collapsed to his knees. Something red stained his mouth.

Ruby froze, staring. It's blood.

The cell door rammed shut then was locked. Ruby followed the guard who had a smug grin on his lips as he grunted and turned his back on them and sauntered back out leaving them alone.

How long had she been out?

Throwing off the blanket and standing up, Ruby walked over slowly to the crouched figure on the ground. He was breathing deeply, hissing when he tried to move. Her eyes inspected his body. Those bare arms that were covered in burns and scratches seemed to have a few more fresh bruises. There was even a small cut that looked like it was done by a dagger.

The dagger!

"What happened?" her voice squeaked, still terrified. "Where did they take you?" she sounded eager now, desperate.

He didn't reply, only coughed violently, droplets of blood flew out. It was utterly gruesome but she could tell he was in no mood to joke around. For once she may just get a serious answer. But this... this was atrocious. Just what did they do to him? Would the same happen to her?

She glanced back at the bruised figure and recoiled. What in Dust's name was happening here?

She took a step forward but stopped when she heard footsteps.

Clink. Clink. Clink.

Her heart stopped. Turning towards the bars, she could see the glowing eyes of fire and the markings floating in the shadows, closing in on them.

Clink.

Cinder stepped into the light, revealing herself fully. The smile on her lips meant bad news. Ruby found herself on guard, a little more energy to spare. But that wasn't what had Ruby's attention because her eyes trailed down to Cinder's hand where a familiar silver dagger was gripped between her fingers.

"What did you do to him?" she spat with venom.

Cinder looked amused. "My my, don't tell me you actually care?" her voice was singing with delight as she laughed.

Ruby hesitated, sneaking a glance to see Torchwick still looking down and silent. She turned back to Cinder.

"I'm wondering if I should be aware of what's coming for me."

"Ruby, Ruby, Ruby," Cinder sighed out her name, shoulders dropping as she stepped closer. Ruby felt herself flinch. "I liked you Ruby, you showed great potential. It's a shame you chose to side with the wrong team."

Ruby snorted. "I can't believe you just said that," she narrowed her eyes and leaned her head forwards. "After everything you did."

Cinder's fiery eyes lit up with her face. She seemed to glow and was unaffected by anything. Ruby wished she could throw her into the fiery pits of hell where she belonged. But instead of responding to Ruby, Cinder turned her attention to the thief now groaning as he tried to sit up and lean against the wall. Ruby winced at the sight.

"Nice work Roman, and of course..." Cinder trailed off as she motioned to someone behind her to come forth.

Ruby stared with questioning eyes to see a guard come forth with a similar tray with a water bottle. He opened the small door from before and slid it through, landing just beside Torchwick's legs.

There was a new bottle of water but it was only filled quarter way. Hardly much if it was supposed to last a day. Cruel. But worse still, he had an even smaller portion of stale bread... and that was it. Ruby felt her mouth open in disgust. Did Cinder seriously think this would be enough? Clearly she was going to starve them to death at this rate.

Her eyes were glued to Torchwick, pitying him. As much as she hated the thief, no human should succumb to this kind of torture. This was far worse than the Resistance camp... even if there was an apocalypse.

"I can't wait to get out of here and take you down myself," Ruby murmured under her breath, locks of her hair shadowed her eyes.

"One can dream," was Cinder's brash reply. "I look forward to round two." The markings on her arms lit up with her eyes and Ruby could see the little flame sparked inside those devil irises.

She gave one last look of content at Torchwick before turning on her heel and walking back into the shadows. When Ruby was sure she heard the last of her glass shoes echoing, she turned to Torchwick, biting her bottom lip. Just what was she supposed to do now?

She watched him wipe his mouth with his wrist. If he had sleeves, the blood would have gone, instead his skin was stained with the red liquid. This wasn't a sight you see every day. Just what the hell happened to him? Dare she ask?

"Ack... You'd think I'd be used to it by now..."

"What?" Ruby jerked her head up, hearing him mumble something. To her surprise, he seemed to be a little more relaxed now, leaning back and brushing his bangs into place. There was a small bruise on his jaw, a blotchy purple-yellow mark that looked like it needed some ice.

Torchwick began to rotate his shoulders, stretching them and groaning in resentment. It didn't seem like he was going to talk to her anytime soon. His hands reached for the bottle of water on his tray, fingers outstretched as he tried not to move his legs. You could see the struggle.

Ruby stepped forwards to help but was stopped by a flat palm raised up.

Torchwick's green eyes were glazed over with darkness, guarded and bitter that it made her blood run cold. What happened to his cocky attitude? He looks incredibly hostile. He glowered for a moment, grinding his teeth together as if he were chewing granite.

"I can look after myself, stay away," he hissed, voice brittle and cracked. The acidic tone behind it made Ruby grimace as she tore her eyes away.

He was angry.

"Sorry for trying to help," she retorted, suddenly growing irritated at how much of an ingrate he was.

"I didn't ask for it."

She snapped her head back, suddenly flabbergasted by his change in attitude. He hasn't changed. Her eyes narrowed and she found it hard to restrain herself from strangling him. He managed to grab the water bottle and took a few sips, glaring at her from under the curtain of his eyelashes as he did.

The atmosphere between them was tense and too quiet. When he finally wiped his mouth, she kept note of the amount of water he had left. Mere drops but she supposed he needed it. His orange hair was more unkempt than before and she felt the need to brush it into place again.

What am I thinking? She shook the thoughts away and squared her shoulders.

"Tell me what happened. Where did they take you? What did Cinder mean? What did you do Torchwick?" the questions flew out of her mouth before she could stop herself.

He made that same sound of frustration, growling inwardly as he forced his gaze away from her.

"Tell me!" she cried out.

The bottle in his hand was crushed in an instant as he tossed it aside, eyes fired up and glaring at her scornfully.

"I don't need to tell you anything! Tch, just because we exchanged a few words before Red, it does not make us friends." He all but stabbed those words at her, mustering up all his anger as he spat the last word out.

It struck at Ruby more than she thought. She knew that, she knew they weren't friends - that would be a joke. So why did she feel the dreary ache in her chest as soon he said it? Perhaps because now she knew for certain that they could never become allies, even in a helpless situation like they were in now. Torchwick didn't change, what did she expect? He was still the selfish and heartless thief he had always been.

All events up to now faded away in a flash. Her eyes dropped to the shred of his scarf in her possession, suddenly wanting to burn it.

She grabbed at it, yanking it out so hard she hoped it would rip. Then she crushed it in her palm though it did nothing but create creases in the fabric. Bundling it up into an uneven sphere, she then threw it like a javelin at his feet. His eyes immediately caught the motion.

"You're a cold hearted scumbag Torchwick. You're selfish and ungrateful. Doesn't surprise me that no one bothered to rescue you all this time! Ugh, I hate you!"

She turned away, charging back to her spot on the thin mattress and curled up under the blanket and her cloak. She pulled the hood up and kept her back to Torchwick. Deep inside, her heart was pounding painfully against her chest and she wished it could stop. Feelings of anguish and hurt trickled into her heart.

Her hands were tucked under her face as she stared into the wall.

As if things couldn't be worse. She thought it would be ok, even with Torchwick there. He helped her forget the real world for brief moments even if their conversations weren't exactly civil. Sure he was irritating as hell... but for an ounce of a second, she had believed that maybe Torchwick could be a potential ally.

She was wrong.

So. Very. Wrong.

He would never mend his ways no matter what was thrown at him. Whatever made him the brutal thief he was today, she cursed it. She cursed him too.

'...just because we exchanged a few words before Red, it does not make us friends.'

We could never be friends.

And that was the ugly truth.

Sorry it wasn't as long as the last chapter. I'm trying!

Let me know what you think! I'll update as soon as I can, it's all getting quite exciting now!

Caught up with the actual RWBY episodes and I'm so excited! New ep today and we FINALLY see Roman again - WITH RUBY. *screams*

Anyway, huge thanks for the reviews! They made me so happy :D

Thank you Mr Ruffles, frik1000, Foxtrot Agent 21, bowow0708, rwbybomb21, AmutoSakuran1621 and onegracefulqueen. Means a lot!