A little project I was thinking of working on the side. Tell me what you think!
The last thing Ruby remembered was the crack of a gunshot and feeling her body nearly fold in two. Immediately, there was searing pain, far worse than anything she had ever felt before, like tendrils of pure fire squeezing the life out of her and just getting hotter for the sake of it. She tried to scream, but her throat clenched. All that came out with squeaks and gasps pushed through a fleshy strainer. Everything went from bright white to black in seconds and the next thing she heard was the beeping of a heart monitor.
Ruby's eyes fluttered open, then shut tightly again, the sudden light stinging her eyes. Where was she? Did the enemy capture her? Was she in a cell? Huntsman's instincts took hold, trying to absorb every sound, smell, and even taste, to get a better feel of wherever she was. Anything to dumb down the initial panic. There was the smell of alcohol and a mild smell of medicine, and from the cushion under her, she was lying in a bed.
Everything ached and she was stiff as a board. Everything tasted like sludge and metal, but with any luck, she was alive. There was at least that blessing to count. She took an experimental deep breath and instantly regretted it, groaning in pain as her injured ribs pressed against her flesh.
"Ruby?" A boisterously loud and peppy voice choked out. It didn't sound right for that kind of voice to be quiet or sound like a choked-out sob. "You awake, sis?"
"I think?" She mumbled out her first words. Her throat was drier than a bone and fragile like glass. Even speaking hurt. Her voice was raspy and almost inaudible, but it was there. Remember, Ruby, count every single blessing. "Yang? Is that you?" She refused to open her eyes and check. Better ask first than be flashbanged by sunlight.
"Yeah, I'm right here, sis," She sighed. Ruby felt Yang's strong hand hold hers tightly. "How're you holding up?"
"I dunno yet," Ruby answered honestly. "Should be fine- I should be, anyway. Gimme a second." She flexed her fingers, all of them popping like rock candy, curled them into fists, and relaxed them again. She did the same with her toes. Good signs all around. She tried to sit up but cried out as a sharp pain in her back put her back down on the bed. "Okay, too soon, too soon, God… Ow," She mumbled, blinking tears out of her eyes.
"Don't rush it, Sis, that bullet was pretty nasty," Yang said. "Just relax and let me call the doctor for you."
The doctor? Who now? "Am I- am I in a hospital?" Ruby managed, shocked.
"Yeah, that's right," Yang answered, her tone shaky. "First time in your career, right? What is that, five years without going to a hospital? Told you it would happen eventually if you push your luck, b-but you don't listen to me." She tried to make that sound like a joke. She did. It came out much like scolding though and like she was holding back tears. "Just wait here, and don't move."
"Roger roger." As if she could move anyway.
About five minutes later of figuring out what hurt to move and what didn't, the door creaked open and she heard several footsteps, some heavy, some light as a feather, walk in. She stuck her tongue out in thought. Let's see, there must three people in the room now, the doctor, counting the heavy footsteps, Yang, and someone else wearing heels. Maybe Weiss?
Why was she thinking about that? Because thinking about anything else aside from the hospital bed and not even being able to open her eyes kept her from panicking and shrieking. This was terrifying, being stuck in a hospital bed and only remembering being in torturous pain before passing out. She needed something, anything to keep her head in the game.
"G-Good morning, Miss Rose," A soft, gentle man's voice greeted nervously. It sounded a bit too polite and stiff. Maybe he was new. "How're you feeling today?"
"Like an Ursa's chew toy," Ruby answered honestly. "What about you? You doing okay?" Ruby bit her lip, wondering why she even asked that. She was in a hospital bed, she could afford to be selfish for two minutes. Maybe it was a bit refreshing to hear someone just as nervous as her around new people.
"Oh, me? I'm doing great, thank you," The nervous man said with a bit more energy. She heard the scribbling of a pen against paper. "Though I'm not the one stuck in a hospital bed. Could you tell me your name, age, and rank, Miss Rose?"
What was all this Miss Rose crap? Was she some kind of granny? Wait, was she a granny now? How long was she out? Oh, God! "Uh, uh, Ruby Rose. Age… twenty-four? I think. And I'm a Huntsman Second Class."
"Second class? Well now, that's very high for your rank," The doctor complimented. Ruby stuck her chest out a bit with pride.
"How long was that nap?" Ruby rasped, feeling jumpy and crazy enough to jump right out of that bed.
"That 'nap' was nearly three weeks," The doctor answered.
Ruby blinked as much as she could with shut eyes. Three weeks. Three freaking weeks have just gone out of her life like magic. She went quiet, just trying to process all of that, but her mind went frozen. She heard a sigh in the back of the room, as well as the impatient tapping of heels.
"You could have been a little more subtle, you oaf," A melodious, rather dainty voice demanded. "Look at her. She's beside herself."
"S-Sorry, ma'am, I just saw it f-fit to answer her question right away. I wasn't thinking…" The doctor stammered, hastily scribbling something down on what sounded like a clipboard. "Er, anyway, how do you feel right now- oh damn, I already asked that. Um… how would you rate your comfort levels?"
Comfort levels? In all honesty, she couldn't decide whether to be happy that a trained professional of his craft was as much of a nervous wreck around strangers as herself was endearing and welcoming, or terrifying. "I'd feel a lot better if I could see."
"You can't open your eyes?"
"No, no, I can, it just hurts. A lot. And whenever I do, everything's all blurry and blotchy."
"Really? Hm." The doctor went quiet and Ruby could just about make out papers being flicked through and dragged. "Have you ever had trouble with your eyes before?"
You don't know the half of it. "Not exactly, no. Not traditionally anyway."
"Ms. Schnee, did any doctors look at them yet?" He asked.
"As far as I know, the most they did was check her eyes with a light to see if she was still alive," Weiss answered, sounding suspicious. "What? Do you think it's something else?"
"It… might be."
How very ominous. Although they could talk about all this scary, forboding crap when Ruby isn't two feet away from them. Ruby clenched her jaw, feeling her heart pound in her chest, which the heart monitor graciously reminded her with the constant beeping. The Doctor probably noticed too because she heard the distinct clicking sound of a finger-tapping glass, maybe trying to see if the monitor was malfunctioning.
"Please calm down, Miss Rose," He pleaded. "There's nothing to worry about, just let me do my test and make sure it isn't what I think it is. Please don't move your head." She felt latex-gloved fingers pry her eyes open, making her squeal a bit from the bright beams of light burning holes in her sockets. "Roll your eye around for me, please."
"Can I not?" Ruby whined.
"Do as the doctor says, Ruby," Weiss scolded.
"Try saying that with fingers in your eyes…" Ruby mumbled but did as she asked and painfully rolled her around, wincing. After five seconds of the sun jackhammering her eyes mercilessly and the Doctor's incessant humming, he relented and let go. "What do you think, doc?"
"I think I'm glad I took a look," The doctor said in a tense tone. "Could one of you grab a case from that drawer for me? The one to the left, covered in dust."
After a bit of rustling and complaining from Weiss about Yang not knowing the difference between right and left, something heavy dropped on the bed next to her. She reached out curiously for it and felt its grainy, plastic edge, arching a brow curiously. He flicked a switch, making it hum and vibrate. This whole deal was frustrating for Ruby, especially when everyone in the room decided to get cryptic.
"Okay, seriously Doc. Could you just tell me what's going on?" Ruby asked impatiently.
"Do you remember anything about what happened before you blacked out?" He asked.
Ruby sucked in air sharply through her nose, trying to contain her frustration, wanting to mouth off and demand some answers, but stopped when she realized she could barely remember anything. Bits and pieces were there, but they were scattered and hazy. She could remember what she had for breakfast that morning, remembered yelling at an old vet huntsman picking on a fourth-year student that was shadowing them, and some of the more benign details of their mission rather than the mission itself.
"I remember… I remember we were going out to scope out a village where a rogue huntsman was hiding. He was, er…" She drummed her fingers on the bed, struggling for every detail. "No, she was responsible for the murder of two other Huntsman, including his partner. After that, something hit me in the back really hard, and…" She blinked, jaw slacked. "Did I get shot?"
"Yes, unfortunately, you did," The doctor answered, sounding concerned. "There was some nerve damage, but apart from that, you should be able to walk and run just fine." Thank God. Ruby heaved a sigh of relief. "Do you remember anything else after the bullet?"
"Mm, not much else though. Everything kinda got super bright though before I passed out," She answered.
"As I thought. You were struck with a flashbang grenade, coated with dust particles. It reacts to sunlight, hence probably why it hurt that much just to keep them open," He said as if that wasn't a huge freaking deal. "I'm really glad I caught this, otherwise you probably would have gone blind."
"Blind?" Weiss shouted. "How the hell did no one else catch this? What am I paying them for?"
"I-It's not their fault, ma'am. They probably just weren't looking for it." He reassured.
"Why would those half-wits not look for something as dangerous as dust poisoning?" She demanded.
"Most likely because this kind of poisoning is considered a war crime and has been banned for about a century," Tobias answered. "The effects dust poisoning can have on the body is horrific. Horrific enough that despite both sides hating each other so much, they signed a treaty to stop using it because of how inhumane it was. Which is why it shocks me that she was struck with one. Someone must have wanted her dead."
Ruby went quiet for a moment, letting that all sink in. "I got war-crimed?"
The doctor stifled a laugh. "Yes, Miss Rose. I think you got war-crimed."
"... That's so cool."
The doctor laughed, easing the tension in the air a bit. "At least you're in high spirits. Hold still while I work please."
What followed was possibly the most uncomfortable five minutes of her life. Nothing really too painful or even too annoying, but very invasive and uncomfortable. The doctor put something over her face that felt like plastic goggles and a thick liquid filled it to the top. It laid like heavy cream and smelled very salty, and possibly the worst part, it made every part of her eyes itch. The worst part? She had to keep her eyes open through the whole thing. It was like looking through a jar of vaseline.
Five minutes of this itchy, scratchy torture later, a vacuum tube inside the goggles drained out the vast majority of the gooey sludge out of her eyes. The disgusting thing was taken off her face after that the slimy excess was scooped off her skin. Her eyes were washed out with water and she was left to lay there quietly for a bit, feeling like she'd just been through the wash. A strong hand touched her shoulder, making her head snap in that direction.
"Please tell me we're done with the eye baths," Ruby pleaded, wanting no more of that mess.
"No, no more eye baths," The doctor chuckled. "The procedures are done, though. Try and open your eyes. Go on, you can do it."
That sounded like the craziest thing he ever could've asked her to do. Wasn't she still at risk to go blind? She bit her lip nervously, hesitating. Thankfully they were being patient with her. Ruby swallowed and eased her eyes open slowly, like peeling off a bandaid.
Everything was still a blurry bright blob of shapes and flickers but at least it didn't feel like the sun wasn't trying to poke her eyes out. The shapes merged into even more terrifying things- dreaded people. She could make out the IV bag first, dangling out of the corner of her eye, then the vibrant-colored flowers on the table next to her. She blinked several times to clear up her vision. It was nearly a full minute before she could see again properly.
The hospital room wasn't very big, but it was exclusive and singular. Stark white walls were dotted along with stickers of clouds and sky-blue hues, with some splashed on stars for good measure, and medical equipment she couldn't hope to name took up all the space between her and the window. No sharing with anyone, which she secretly appreciated. She was in a light blue hospital and much to her relief, Crescent Rose, her baby, was propped up against the wall in front of her cot.
"Okay, okay, I think it's working," Ruby said excitedly, raising her hand and wiggling her fingers, getting some satisfaction at watching them.
Yang heaved a sigh of relief. It was nice to see her, although Yang probably wouldn't say the same. Her eyes were red and puffy, and from the scratches on her biceps, she must have been out of her mind with worry. Ruby rolled her head to the side to get a good look at her doctor.
The first thing she saw was some of the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen. Glittery, soft, blue eyes that glinted similar to a diamond in the light. Standing at the side of her stark white cot was one of the most handsome men she had ever seen and dressed to impress. Fair-skinned, smelling like he just came straight out of the pool, with short blue hair and a gentle smile. Her jaw dropped- this was the guy taking care of her? She stifled a giggle that sounded more like someone squeezing a broken bagpipe.
"I hope that's a good sign," The Doctor mused, writing something down on his worn clipboard. Ruby fought off the urge to bop herself in the head. Of course, she malfunctioned in front of someone new. "Oh, damn, I forgot to introduce myself again, didn't I? Doctor Tobias Darnell, at your service ma'am."
Ruby blinked. "You're a doctor?" With how gentle and young the man looked, she could've mistaken him for a student fresh out of Beacon.
"Well, that's a long story, but yes ma'am, I'm a doctor. At my… relatively young age," He mumbled, uncomfortably scratching his chin.
Ruby cringed. Can this guy not talk to her like she's an old hag? That scare still wasn't gone just yet. "Could you cut it out with that ma'am stuff? It's weird."
Much to her horror, the young man's face fell. "S-sorry, ma'- Ruby! Sorry, Ruby. It's… just difficult. Ma'am is normally just my go-to for this kind of thing, and I sometimes forget to well… I'll shut up now."
"No no no no, it's perfectly fine, I didn't mean it like… Oh jeez," Ruby sighed.
The room went silent until Weiss cleared her throat loudly. "Fantastic, they're both as bad as each other," She groaned. "This is all well and good, and I've very thankful for your attention to detail, but if you could finish your check-up, that would be greatly appreciated."
"Yes, ma- Weiss. Schnee. I am just terrible today, I am so sorry."
The process after that was by the numbers doctor shenanigans, as Ruby would put it. A lot of poking and prodding, peeking in her ears, looking down her throat, checking her temperature with that weird finger-clamp thing, and the basic checkup among other things. At this point, the incident was straying farther out of her mind as the boredom set in. She just wanted to get out of that bed and stretch her muscles, but the doctor's orders after all.
"Can I go home yet, doc?"
"Not just yet," Tobias answered, scribbling more medical jargon into his clipboard. "There are still a few more tests to run. You did just get shot in the back after all. There are still some tests to be done for nerve damage, the effects of shrapnel, so on, so forth. You'll be home before you know it." He assured.
Handsome and reassuring as that smile was, the word patience was dead to the impish huntress a long time ago. There were answers to find and rogues to be brought down. Lying in bed all day just wasn't going to cut it. Whatever damage she had could be solved with a healthy dose of aura. She closed her eyes and focused, reaching deep inside for that spark to keep her alive.
The first time, there was nothing. It happened like that sometimes after long lapses in combat, like starting up an old car. Ruby took a deep breath and focused again, trying to light that proverbial fire in her chest, and eventually, her aura sprang back to life and formed around her. She grinned in satisfaction, which quickly faded when she saw Tobias' shocked and panicked expression.
"Ruby, turn that off right now!" He shouted, grabbing her by her shoulders.
"What? What're you talking about?" Ruby demanded, taken aback by the sudden contact. "What's so bad that I can't even keep my aura up?"
It took a few seconds later to tell her why.
There was a burning feeling in her chest. Not something akin to heartburn or the natural burning warmth of her aura, it was as though someone sadistically lit a match in the middle of her chest. She winced, holding a hand over her chest, expecting that pain to fizzle out, but that match turned into a house fire. Her body seized up, her legs spasming out of control, that searing heat crawling up her throat and scorching everything in there.
She couldn't breathe. She couldn't scream. She clawed helplessly at her throat, tears streaming down her face, just begging for it to be over. It felt as though this lasted for hours. Days. She croaked and squealed, racking her screaming brain for a solution until it finally complied with a few choice words.
Shut it down.
The veil of her aura came down and instantly, the pain stopped spreading. The heat died down until there was nothing left but the residual pain to go away. Her legs relaxed as well. She should've been overjoyed, but she was a shaking, stuttering, sweating mess.
"Oh God, no," Tobias moaned into his hand, hanging his head. "No, I was afraid of this."
"Afraid of what?" Weiss cut in.
Tobias bit his lip. "Please just wait here," He requested, hastily gathering up his papers and rushing out the door.
"Afraid of what?" Weiss demanded, chasing him out the door. "Tobias Darnell, afraid of what? Answer me!"
Their argument continued down the hall, too fair for the siblings to hear. Ruby and Yang exchanged glances, with equal amounts of terror in their eyes. Ruby swallowed and spoke first.
"What… was that?"