Sunder; So Sleep.
"pffff... hffft, ffffsh."
Torpid Silver Eyes gazed drowsily into overhead shadows as there, bathed in the subdued platinum glow of a lonesome reading light, she languished, sprawled spreadeagled atop an unkempt bed in an otherwise darkened dormroom, dry expressionless lips parting and pursing with each dispirited exhalation; thusly immersed in the throes of vagrant lethargy.
"hffft... pfffsh"
Yet. Life was not all flowers and rainbows, least of all out here - for in this dire moment, with her lulling pretence of repose gravely imperilled and her will to resist this foul menace of unsurpassed malevolence ebbing with each feeble, futile counterattack, despair blossomed evermore within her.
"fffsh. Pfff. ffffffs"
Tired, weak and with no backup enroute, the girl lamented her malaises. Had she the will to lift her limp, clammy hands she may yet stand a chance. Alas, her pitiless tormentor had evidently infused its unrelenting assault with some nefarious anti-volitional spirit-sucking sorcery to render her thus; the vile fiend.
"snff...fffffffphh"
Is the battle lost already? Is it okay to surrender? Never. The Red Reaper never surrenders. Nigh helpless in the fell clutches of evil she may be, she would be brave, she shall persevere, she will fight back and vanquish this monster; such is after all her obligation as a professional huntress. So with newfound determination the Red Reaper's gale-force counter-offensive thence commenced.
"hhhhh... Pffffffffffffhhhhhh! Fffff! Pfft! Pppprrrrr!"
To no avail, Not even the full ferocity of her spittle-empowered raspberries could budge the diabolical menace clinging steadfast to the bridge of her nose. Such sadism. Such sticky, itchy resilience! Never had The Red Reaper faced a foe so cunning, so heartless as to ambush her at her most pyjama-clad vulnerable.
"pffffsh; ffffsh"
The A.C unit's quiet humming lent a morbidly soothing familiarity to the life or death struggle in progress, its hypnotic rhythm seeming to chide her resistance and entreaty her submission. Temptation indeed to wallow in defeat in the heat, which but proved the A.C was in cahoots with this fearsome foeman, weakening her with its humid warmth. Such treachery would not be her undoing!
"pfffsh, ffffsh; pffffffffsh"
Her chest ached, mind weary, eyelids heavy. She felt like a comicbook heroine at their limits near falling to an unstoppable villain only then for... The faces of her friends, her family flooded her mind. How could she ever face them again with head held high if she just gave up? The mere notion shamed her team's great name, shamed their friendship. Assuredly they'd forgive her loss to this unbeatable, itchy demon, but she'd never forgive herself for yet again letting them down.
"Weiss, Blake, Yang, Uncle Qrow, Dad, Mum; Jaune Pyhra, Ren, Nora too. Everyone! I can do this! For all of you! I'll win!"
"ahhhhhh...FFFFFFFSSSSSSPPPPPHHHHFFFfffFFFFSssh!"
Finally! the damp lock of hair succumbs to the infallible combination of snot, saliva, and her decidedly bad breath, all imbued with the power of love, friendship and a complete disregard for personal hygiene, obviously; even imagining the villain petulantly whaling "NOOOOOOOO!"
"Yeee-haaaaa. Vic-tor-yyyy hee-hee-eeeeee."
Such was her unenthusiastic post-sneeze declaration. Miraculously mustering sufficient vigour, she raised her sweat slick arms and legs into the air, fingers and toes wriggling in celebration for a few seconds before letting the weighty limbs flop back to the mattress with a subdued, inane giggle.
A hard fought victory, yet the Renegade Lock's patent itchy cling-on attack, though fearsome, was feeble when compared to a true technique of terror like the non-consensual snuggles of the legendary villain known only in hushed whispers as Zwei The Serial Cuddler. Even Team RWBY's united willpower crumbled to those nefarious snuggles.
...Her team
All impetus and her usual energetics had departed with her teammates. One sister, two friends, each cherished deeply. They'd made plans for their paid vacation leave, everyone had; everyone except Saddest Girl Of The Week, Ruby Rose; no envy bore she, none at all...
Utterly fatigued, Ruby relaxed her neck muscles, head tilting back into on her pillow with a death-rattle-like sigh, eyes shifting from the shadowed ceiling to the view port and the real stars, nebular and planets beyond its glass, losing herself in the view, her own idle fancies and the soothing hum of The Beacon 11's many familiar space-stationy sounds. The faint rattle of the ventilation system, the subtle vibrations in the walls; her home away from home.
Laid there in the room's warmth and artificial gravity, bleary eyes closing, opening, closing, only a yawn or two presaged the blurry passage of time, thus uncertain as to her own flickering state of consciousness; an unthinking mind lost among the stars.
It ought vex her, this lack of drive. It ought, and but for this melancholic languor it might have, such further compounded by the overheated room. Damn. She'd have to adjust the A.C unit, and she will... once she gets up, that is.
Sadly her plan to visit her Uncle fell through when he had received an emergency mission to the Phanta System. Same went for her Dad who'd been called off to... What was he doing again? He did describe the mission via scroll and even laughingly agreed when she said it sounded boring. Maybe that's why she forgot. Regardless, here she was with noting to do but mope around in her pyjamas like a hot, sweaty, lazy, dehydrated lump
"sniff-sniff...ewwgghh."
And a stinky lump at that after all those push ups and sit ups. Damn, she still had to get up and adjust the AC. Should be easy enough, just slide off the top bunk, shuffle to the wall unit and hit the lower temp button. Easy, right? She could do it now, and then get a glass of water.
Alight. She'd do it. Now; step one...
"Step... whaaa?"
Bunk light fading, room swimming and distorting, leaden eyelids dropping, the drowsy daze crept upon the weary girl, lending her aimless murmuring a slurring lilt.
"RWBY, teeeeam rWBY... R-W BY... R WB Y; Ru-b-by, W-eis-ice, B-lake-cake, Y-ang-ang-ang-ga-gang-ga-banga-bang. Toge-ther we aaare weee aaarrre Team RWBY, Team RWBYyyy. Ruby, like muh name. I li-like muh name... R-whu-by. I's ruby. That's muh name, Rub-y, Rubes, RWBYyyy, R-Woooby-wooby-woo, pffffff kukukuku."
Dad once told her that not long after she was born, Yang, still a toddler at that time, always called her Wooby. Apparently hers was the first actual name Yang spoke and memorised, Mama and Papa not withstanding.
Mama - Back when Mum was still...
A less than gentle forearm swiped at her sweat damp cheeks. Ruby rolled onto her side, silver eyes slithering across their dormroom proper, piercing its lonesome gloom as a lackadaisical frown bowed her lips on feeling her perspiration soaked pillow. She should flip it over. Yes, she'd do exactly that, and then she'd adjust the AC; she needs but sit up and...
Yawning, her bunk creaked as she buried her head beneath the pillow, one bunk of four, one below, two more left-afield lining the wall opposite. With their inbuilt lights inactive and outlines shrouded by the room's inky semi-darkness, Ruby could pretend her team were still here, sleeping quietly, sans Yang's snoring, and not vacationing one and two whole systems abroad respectively.
"And who's to blame for that?" Groused the sulky, solitary Huntress "The only dum-dum in this room. Who else."
Star-shaped glow-in-the-dark stickers speckled the ceiling above Yang's bunk, because real stars are lame, according to her, while Blake's bunk hid a veritable library of smut beneath it, much untidier than Ruby own without doubt; mostly. Both were proper bunkbeds however, their improvised predecessors disastrous fate ever the tragically funny reminiscence.
Upon Yang's mattress Ruby spied a glint of gold. Befuddled blinking preceded Ruby's amused guffaw "Oops. Yang's gonna flip when she realises. Bet she's bulling around like a headless Ursa looking for them." Ruby broke into giggles, legs kicking in the air, imagining her sister's meltdown "That'll teach her to double-check her luggage. Or triple-check like Weiss."
Typical Yang, professionally methodical on the job and a disorganised mess off it. Forgetting Ember Celica though? Ouch. Well She'd let her sis stew awhile before in no teasing-free terms scrolling her a photo of her missing babies location, perhaps even ransom them in exchange for cookies.
"It'd serve her right for ditching me without even... No. That's unfair. Yang's suffering too; they all are. If anyone's to blame its me and my disastrous tactical blunder. If Reinforcements hadn't arrived in time... We need this break." She just wanted to sleep. "Stupid brain can't shut up for two lousy humbugging-blngnmyagh..."
Yang will be back real soon. Sisters together again, there for eachother through thick and thin, exactly as family should be.
Family...
With remorseful thoughts of a graveside left too long unvisited, the lonely huntress drifted away, dreams of a lost home far from this one accompanying her. Dreams of her mother. Dreams of happier times when their family was still whole; her own idyllic noetic paradise.
...Paradise Lost...
Had she just been dreaming? Or merely sunken in the mire of her disillusioned and stagnating pathos, cowering amid pitifully fanciful pareidolia?... Where had she learned that word anyway? Weiss? Probably. Ruby liked it, though. Paradolia. Such a dreamy word. Is she dreaming this too?
She rolled over, facing the wall and again dozing off. Or had she? It didn't feel that way; these past forty six hours may gainsay. May.
Snooze. Trance. Spacedream. Whatever it be, a beep stirred her restless mind from its soporific ennui. Rolling onto her back, reaching for and flipping open her scroll, the tappity-tap of fingers on buttons saw the message opened.
"Ugh. Why Yang? Whyyyyy?" Ruby's wine bespoke a long recurring exasperation, its origin the time Yang swiped and registered her scroll to a Pun Of The Day subscription. Naturally Ruby promptly cancelled it, but Yang, already subscribed, set her own scroll to automatically forward each Daily Pun to Ruby's inbox and today's dose of big sis themed torture had arrived.
Ruby once asserted that pun addiction is a mental illness hereditary to bearers of the Xao Long name, and the price of expressing such was a two year and counting subjugation to this inhumane prank.
Groggily Ruby contemplated calling Yang right now and giving her another of many tonguelashings but abstained when a pounding headache flared with her vexation. Besides, they had spoken only yesterday and the reception sucked "C.G.T corpos screwing Menagerie as usual... Ugh, Blake's morbid streak must be catching; better watch that."
No matter, it'd only be... How long again? Replacing her scroll on the headboard, Ruby for the umpteenth time mumbling to herself, recited "Yang and Blake are visiting Blake's family for the week, give or take detours yonder; wonder if Yang and Ghira had their rematch."
When Blake first introduced Yang, Ghira did the - Nobody is good enough for my baby girl! - protective Dad act and Yang being Yang, well, things escalated, leading to the pair staging a duel. Apparently it was a legendary bare knuckle brawl that bizarrely ended in the bruised, bloodied duo becoming best buds and, much to Blake's chagrin, united in their overprotectiveness of her.
"As for Weiss. She is catching up with Winter. Weiss did mention they planned to join forces and squeeze some empathy from their father for his employees or something. She didn't sound hopeful; talk about squeezing blood from a stone... Whatever, they will be back. Just five more standard galactic days. Five days to get myself together."
Ruby's bleary mutterings drifted into the darkness beyond her bunk light, the background noises of space travel her only companion.
Idly, quietly she chanted "One week. One week. One week" Head bobbing, hands tapping and heels lazily kicking the mattress, bouncing in tempo "One week. One week. One week..."
Kicking heels fell still, chanting lips freezing, downturned with some grimm-bait emotion, the solitude finally getting to her, But her team need this vacation; She would not let them down again.
Maybe now was a good time to change the AC. It would be a worthy first step back to action; surely better than vegetating here, killing time
Killing time. Killing time. Killing...
...Time...
Eyes fluttering groggily into focus, Ruby again rejoined the waking galaxy, evermore uncertain if she'd even departed it at all, having again neglected to track times ceaseless passage "Not like it matters, yyawhhhh right now." That yawn then graced her with an unwelcome encore, her newfound headache little more pleased than she.
Ruby wiped a pyjama sleeve across her damp forehead. Aura can negate extreme temperatures, yet mild warmth thwarts it "Miracle of the soul my butt." Her apathetic gripe rang hollow when she need only rise and adjust the AC. Which she would, now... now is good... or, now?...
...Now...
"Gloomy girl. Gloomy girl, Rubes is a gloomy-y, g-girl." This in warbly, lilting singsong that trailed off into a self-mocking growl. Suddenly Ruby grabbed her pillow and screeched into it, eyes and fists squeezing tight shut as she began rolling back and forth on her mattress, feet kicking about until her scream fizzled out as she lay breathless face-up, posed like a starfish, chest heaving.
Flipping the brutalised pillow off her face and disentangling herself from the odorous, sweaty soaked mess of sheets, Ruby pouted her cheeks puffing up like a chipmunk's. Said pout then died an abrupt violent death when she made of it the centre of a two-handed Slap Sandwich, the wet fleshy THWAP seemingly distorting the room's oppressive gloom.
"Rrrgghh I can't take it anymore!" Ruby spun on the mattress, snapped up her legs and kicked herself off the bed "No more Gloomies!" That determined midair declaration reignited her spirits and smote those gloomies before her bare feet even impacted the carpet.
One glance at her scroll's clock decided it. Scooping up her Huntress garb, garb kindly laundered by Beacon hospital staff during her recovery, she padded into their room's private washroom for a dearly needed shower.
Automated door shutting behind her, Ruby undressed and made to deposit her smelly pyjamas in the washer. Opening it she groaned, headache throbbing with her rising irritation. Her beloved teammates had thrown the eveningwear they'd worn to a planet side pub the night before departing on that disastrous mission. Nobody had remembered to start the wash cycle, nevermind transferring everything to the dryer afterwards.
"Nyaa. Let's leave the laundry to Ruby. She loves doing laundry. Nyaa... Jerks." She sneered in falsetto without rancor. It was partly her fault anyway for not changing the - last to toss their clothes in starts the wash cycle - rule to something better "Some team leader I am."
Back when Weiss was the team's most pedantic member, her endless nagging prevented such disarrangement. Since graduation however, Weiss had become quite the slob; even rivalling Yang in some areas, thus creating a responsibility vacuum that nobody else would or could fill.
Some of Weiss' rich girl sass and delinquent sharp-tongued wit lingered. But the rest? unrecognisable. Who is that lithe, elegantly wild she-beast, all hair down, inhibitions unbound and prowling around, eyes alive with passion and cold fire. Not the Ice Queen of yesteryear, no sir. The ice had thawed, becoming strong, cool, smooth flowing water. A disowned heiress turned lethal huntress. With graduation she'd tasted true freedom, and in it she revels, like Yang, only shrewder and better-spoken. All up a fun new Weiss... or she would be if she'd just pick up after herself!
Huffing, a pouting Ruby tossed in her jammies along with some washing powder, closed the lid, hit the casual-wear and start buttons in one fluid motion then moments later occupied the shower, thoroughly soaping, scrubbing and shampooing her B.O away. Rarely had she neglected personal hygiene this much, but since returning she'd grown lax. Oh well, Yang isn't here to scold her, and she's showering now so no harm no foul.
Satisfactorily cleansed, Ruby spent several heavenly minutes stood there, aura repressed, face tilted up into the steaming deluge, feeling it patter upon her forehead and between her closed eyes, the water at exactly her favourite temperature of just scolding enough to where her skin felt itchy and the urge to scratch almost irresistible. Thus, pure, bliss. her mind empty, her smile serene, all bodily stress melted away, her headache vanquished. All is well.
All is well.
Not soon after Ruby was towelling off with a contented sigh, sparkling clean, mentally decompressed and energetically donning her beloved huntress garb. Minutes later she stood by her bunk thumbing through The Beacon 11's newsletters on her scroll, seeking a specific notice she'd only skimmed during her earlier torpor, a plan of action already hatching in her mind.
"Iron-iron Iro... Iro-nope too far. Back... There!" Her excitement swelled.
Apparently General Ironwood has been visiting The Beacon 11 for the past two days but is due to depart later today. She'd really lost touch with life outside this room, hadn't she. No matter. Since she planned on asking Ozpin for some unofficial solo work, she could inquire likewise with General Ironwood should Ozpin come up dry. Anything would suffice, even boring tasks beat moping around here feeling useless. Besides, this way she'd fill a few empty days making some extra lien doing respectable work that'd help repair both her shaky self-confidence and their team rep a little.
Pocketing her scroll, Ruby grabbed and sheathed Crescent Rose and made tracks. Halting before the door however, her eyes slid left to glower at the AC controls, hissing "But first. My nemesis." Pressing the off button yielded an easier than anticipated victory "Boss felled. That's two down. I'm on a roll baby!"
Turning a wistful last look at the four empty bunks obscured in the dormroom's semi-darkness. three separate metallic glints meeting her eye preceded a wave of lightheaded nausea under which Ruby tottered, head pounding as the poorly lit room spun, warped and blurred. Leaning bodily against the door in aid of her buckling legs, Ruby focused past her thundering heartbeat on one thing.
Breathe...
Breathe...
And just like that, it passed like nothing had happened.
Ruby blinked, snorted, righted herself, feeling mildly put upon. To think, nerves, at this stage in her career. Though given recent events its understandable, she supposed. But if she didn't start digging herself out of this rut soon, she'd start getting rusty. Hell even her memory was dulling.
"Stupid Ruby." Ruby sighed, exasperated with herself "Yang didn't forget Emba Salica. They all left their weapons behind... on their beds. They... They wanted to spend their vacation as... as normal people, and not... and not as, huntresses... They need this..."
I need this
Their last mission, the collateral, it hit them all hard. Ruby herself might have contemplated leaving Crescent Rose behind had her own plans not fallen through; contemplated.
"But its okay. They will be back. They will. We'll be okay... Team RWBY will be okay. Okay?... Okay." Ruby declared to an empty dormroom with a firm nod because indeed they would be back to proudly don the mantle of huntresses once more. They just need a break. They just needed, need... Time.
...Time...
Ruby clapped her hands once, hard, the fleshy thwack resounding sharply in the romm's silence, then turned, jabbed the open door button and marched stalwartly out.
Time to go.
Time to go.
"Right... Let's do this."
"…!"
In the wake of The Red Reaper's determined exit, the one active light on Ruby Rose's bunk, its sensor determining the room and adjacent washroom to be unoccupied, winked out, leaving only darkness, silence and misplaced memories...
...
...
...
This little oneshot fic is just an experiment to see if I could successfully pull off subtext... aaaand I failed spectacularly. Made the truth too obvious. Everyone probably figured it out by mid chapter. XD.
Thanks for reading anyways.