Happy early Halloween!

REAPER IN RED

Chapter 53

The Emerald Forest sparkled with morning dew drops giving it a light, almost reflectively shining glow. Perfect morning weather all things considered. Aside from the occasional grimm which wandered around -as well as zombies, but they were even less of an issue to deal with- it was a picture perfect place to have a calm and relaxing conversation.

I was sitting on a rock. More of a boulder really; leaning back on my hands and letting my feet dangle. Blake was standing in front of me, pacing. Her hands rapidly switched between holding her chin, her temples and her hips in succession, clearly unsure of what to say. What to ask.

Not that I was helping much. I was just watching her have her moment.

"Would it help if I promised not to lie to you?" The words felt hollow coming out of my mouth. Not that wanted to lie to her in any way. Just that the simple question felt too basic. Too ordinary. Too… small, for what I meant.

Blake waved it away, still continuing her pacing. "No, you already promised to tell the truth."

"When?"

"Back before I ran," Blake said. She paused her march and turn to me. "Are you really a hundred and fifteen?"

I nodded.

"How?"

I shrugged. "I just lived that many years. If you're asking how I came to be -how I was born- then you'd have to ask someone else. Apparently, I was 'too young to know' those types of things." I said that last bit with air quotes.

"How old do you get?"

Again, all I could do was shrug. "No idea. I know we can't live forever, and we do age. But more than that? I'm not too sure. My mom was a few thousand years old. But she still should have had plenty of years left."

Blake scowled. "If your species is so much older than us and so much more powerful, then why aren't you in control?"

"What do you mean?"

Blake huffed. Undoing the bow on the top of her head, she let her feline ears free, giving them a little wiggle. I'd have giggled if not for the super serious face Blake was making.

"I mean, look at yourself. You hide in plain sight. You're at the top of Goodwitch's class, likely even better than that. If you're very young, you're probably going to get that much stronger over time. You could single handily take over a kingdom and rule it for centuries. Maybe longer if you get rid of the Reaper Hunters like Qrow."

I flinched at the name. But, hearing the fearful urgency in Blake's speech, I shook off the distraction as best as I could. "Why would I take over a kingdom?"

No, that wasn't the best way to start.

"It doesn't make any sense to take over a kingdom. Too many people. And our territories don't extend that far-"

"-Territories?" Blake interrupted. Shutting her eyes and clenching her fists, she took a deep breath. "No, finish your thought first. One issue at a time."

"Ya, our territories wouldn't be big enough for a whole kingdom. Maybe a small town or something, but that's it. And on top of that, we aren't very good leaders. Well, I like to think I'm an okay team leader for Team RWBY, but that's just you and Weiss and Yang. I know you. We're friends- er, friendly with each other. There's so many people at Beacon, let alone Vale as a whole. No thank you. And besides, a territory that size, with such a good amount of people? Prime real estate for other, stronger Reapers to try and take over. I like to create and keep my territory, thank you very much."

"Okay, and territories? Is that a… a you, thing? Or a higher order thing? A monster thing?"

"An every thing." I said with a little smile. "Every creature has its own territory. Humans just call them kingdoms and villages and towns. Chimera have their burrows or lands. Witches, Reapers, and some Grimm have caves. Even skin-crawlers have their host bodies as their territories. Oh! Necromancers tend to consider their territory the zombies they control. So ya, everything has a territory. For us, sorta similar to humans, it's a much more formal thing. You humans use walls and fences, we use magic."

Blake's ear twitched. "I feel like everything you answer leads to fifty more questions…" She dd not look amused in the slightest.

A thought popped up in my head. "Oh! Do you remember the books we found in the restricted section of the library? When we went all super-spy?"

I smiled, thinking back on that memory. Even though it happened after probably scarring all my teammates -not fun- it really was a bonding moment between me and Blake. At least I thought so. Judging by Blake's own faint grin, maybe she did too. Her hands were no longer in fists at least, so I took that as a good sign.

She also wasn't pacing as much. She still was; giving me side-eyed glances as well, but I thought she was relaxing a little.

"I do," she said slowly. "You were adamant about finding something from the restricted section of the library, only to walk out with two children's folk tales."

I nodded. "Two very important tales! You read them too. They were so similar. I think mine was an older version of yours though, but I don't think I could have got what I had to, unless I looked at both."

Blake made a 'continue' motion.

"Well, I needed to know how to claim a territory. It's a little hard to do things looking like this." I gestured to myself. "I had to figure out first what to do to actually claim a territory -sidenote, it is a long process and it's making me incredibly sleepy- and then I had to see if I could even do it without going all spooky Reaper, bleh."

I didn't think she enjoyed me putting on my hood and wiggling my fingers at her. Did it make me look like a Reaper? I didn't think so. Maybe it was me having copper contacts in my eyes instead of my usual, natural silver ones. Or maybe she just remembered me changing forms. She took a step back from me.

"What happens when you claim a territory?" Blake's apprehension was obvious.

"I don't know," I shrugged. "I know mom had a territory, well a few territories when we moved place to place. And I know it's safer to have your own territory to not have one. But other than that?"

I shrugged again.

"I don't know. Seemed like the thing to have. And I was already at Beacon, so it was the place to do it." I flinched as an earlier thought popped back into my head. "Sorry about the Docks, by the way. I know you and Weiss and Yang were scared and I'm really, really sorry."

Blake hugged herself. "Was… was that… what was that?"

"I didn't know about Penny and the skin-crawler. That was a hundred percent my fault. I should have realized. I should have figured out what she was. I didn't mean to put you in danger like that."

"Screw the skin-crawler! A Reaper attacked us! I thought we were all going to die. It killed so many people that night. Just because they were White Fang, doesn't mean they weren't living."

"Hey!" I shouted back. No one was allowed to say I killed people. "It wasn't my fault they died. They were already dying. All I did was Reap them."

"That was you?"

"What other Reaper could it have been?" I paused, remembering Cinder. "That you know of at least."

"You traumatized us! I feared for you life!" Blake shouted.

"And I feared for yours!" I shouted back with equal fervor. She just didn't understand! "That skin-crawler could have killed you if I didn't show up like I did. I didn't mean to scare you. Any of you. Honest. I just- I just didn't want to lose you because of my mistake. I stopped the skin-crawler and I Reaped those White Fang people who were dying. That's it."

"You Reaped them. You Killed them."

"Yes. I Reaped them. I plucked their souls from their bodies and helped them go to the afterlife. What, do you want me to not help them?"

"HELP THEM?!"

Great, this was descending into a screaming match.

"Yes!" My hands were running through my hair now, rubbing against my scalp. How could I get this through to her? I thought Blake was smart about these kinds of things! It was like she didn't even know that…

She didn't even know…

Oh.

"You do know that when humans die, the soul breaking free from their bodies is an incredibly painful process, right?"

"… What."

"And that Reapers use our magic to gently pluck out souls? Humans get a peaceful transition, and Reapers get some of their life energy?"

"… What?"

"Ya, it's why Reapers live near human settlements in the first place."

"Umm…"

"I came to Beacon cuz there were lots of humans, and also Yang was going and I didn't know what to do in Patch."

"I still don't understand!" Blake all but screamed, throwing her hands up into the air. "You're telling me all this… this… stuff. But none of it sounds anything like a plan! You're just bumbling your way through things, and telling me all this information about humans and life energy and how Reapers aren't killing, but Reaping, and I still don't understand the difference. Dead is dead. And holy crap I think I'm rambling on as bad as you do, please help me stop, I think I'm going to have a panic attack-"

In an instant, I was over to her, holding her shoulders as she curled into a ball. Her breathing was quick and raspy. Unsure of what to do, I gently passaged her back. Large strokes up and down her spine, while my other hand gripped her bicep in support.

"I-I d-don't un-under-understand," she gasped out between muffled sobs.

With my help, she shifted from a crouched position to a seated one. The ground wasn't the cleanest -being dirt and undergrowth- but it was soft. I let her get everything out of her system, doing my best ot just stay quiet as she mumbled to herself.

I didn't know how to help her.

It was like the Docks situation all over again. I could remember all those nights helping them go to sleep after seeing everything. The silent horror that filled their dreams and nightmares. The sobbing and crying and tears from the shear memory of it all.

And now I was telling things to Blake which probably made no sense to her. This school taught nothing about us. There was so much that was wrong, and here I was, just telling her things that I'd known for decades, but was brand new to her.

"Why haven't you killed us all?" Her words were hoarse and scratchy. Even with the dark question, her hands were still wrapped around herself. Nowhere near the weapon hanging on her hip.

"Reapers don't kill. I definitely don't kill. Why would I want to hurt my friends?"

"All Reapers do is kill!" Blake was getting angry again, her voice rising slowly.

"No we don't." I replied as gently as I could. "We Reap. Reapers pluck the souls of the dying in the moments before their death, so that they don't feel any pain. It's our Salem-sworn duty. I would never kill a human."

"What about a Faunus?"

"Human, Faunus, Vampire. They're all the same. Just different kinds of humans. I try to call you all 'people', because it seems like you prefer that word, but after so long of just saying humans, it's a quirk that I'm still trying to re-learn. Good thing I'm in a school, right?"

Blake didn't find my joke all that funny.

"Do you eat our… souls?"

"No." I had to shut down that line of thought immediately. "Reapers do not kill. And Salem-forbid that we even think about eating souls, let alone doing it. Just… please don't bring that up again. I don't like thinking about it."

We stayed there for a moment of silence. Blake slowing her breathing, while I massaged her back. Her eyes were closed, inhaling through her nose and exhaling through her mouth. While she settled herself, I looked around.

The Emerald Forest was clear and oh, so green. I wasn't quite sure how long we had been there, but the sun was a little higher between the trees than it was before. The ground and the leaves were starting to dry, so it must have been longer than I'd originally thought. Still, it wasn't like we were missing that much.

I guessed that I should probably introduce Blake to Cinder at some point. Maybe it would be best to introduce the two of them with Headmaster Ozpin present too. Would that help calm Blake down a little? Everyone knew how strong and smart the headmaster was. Also, it would probably be better than having two Reapers in a room and just one human. Two humans and two Reapers. Nice and even and fair.

"Ruby?"

"Huh? Yes, Blake?"

"Why are you here?"

Why was I there?

That seemed to stump me for a moment. I continued to massage Blake's back as I thought over her question.

Why was I really at Beacon Academy of all places? Sure, I was claiming territory and all that. Learning more about myself and my kind through the eyes of humanity. Maybe even learning more about humanity myself. But I could have done that anywhere. Maybe not as fast, or with people as great as the ones I met here, but definitely anywhere.

I said it was Yang coming here a moment ago. I could have stayed in Patch. It probably would have been easier there. It wasn't that hard to add myself to their lives… Which now that I'm thinking about it a little more, after spending so long with humans, was probably a pretty rude thing to do.

Mr. Torchwick has only brought me to Patch, because that was where his next stop was. There was no real reason for it, nor for me being there.

"I don't know." I whispered out.

Blake turned to look at me. I stared back.

"I don't know," I repeated. "I don't really have a plan or anything. I just… who knows. I lost my mom, you know? I'm not quite sure how long ago. It couldn't have been too long ago. I was in Atlas for a bit-" I shivered at the thought, clutching my side. "-But I'm not too sure how long. Lost count of the days after a while. But mom always liked travelling and exploring, and Yang was saying how excited she was to go to Beacon. And Tai -Dad- was saying how proud he was that she was going. And then, all of a sudden, I wanted to go too. I don't know what to say, Blake. My mom's dead and I'm only a hundred and fifteen."

Was I tearing up? Oh, I was.

"Suddenly I'm here, and everything I know about Reapers is painted as evil and wrong. And I knew you were all scared of me -of us- but I didn't realize how scared. But by that point, I was already here, and I like to make the most of things."

I stopped massaging Blake. Taking a small, crouched step back, I fell on my butt next to her.

"I don't have a big, grandiose plan, Blake. I never did. I think all I wanted was to get over mom's death and not feel so alone. It's… it's easy to hide my feelings. My Reaper guise can't show any real, strong emotions and I can't speak. And my human guise feels more human, so it's easier to hide behind the pretend-ness of it. Pretend it's all just make believe. That Tai is my dad, and Yang is my sister and we're all just one big, happy family. Even though I know I'm the odd one out. And… I don't know what else to tell you, Blake. I promise I'll answer anything, but I'm SO sorry. I'm sorry I lied to you about what I was. I'm sorry that I scared you so much. And I'm so, so sorry that I'm not your friend anymore."

I felt Blake's hand on my shoulder.

"I don't think that things can be the same between us."

"Oh."

"But. You believed in me after finding out that I was ex-White Fang. Not to compare the two. You're not even the same species."

"To be fair, humans think Faunus are a different species too." I said in my own scratchy sounding voice.

"Hm, yeah, I guess that's true. But, there is still a lot I need to understand about you and about R…Reapers to fully trust you. You confuse the hell out of me. Even now, sitting beside you, I can't seem to reconcile what my brain is telling me. On one hand, I see you as Ruby Rose, my adorkable team leader who has been with me through everything since starting at Beacon. On the other, you are literally the stuff of nightmares, that full blown expert huntsmen and huntresses warn us against."

Blake sucked in a breath, letting it out nice and slow.

"I don't think that things can be the same, and I'm not sure yet if I can fully adapt to my new understanding of you. But… I want to try. Gods, I might be the first person to ever ask this of a freaking Grim Reaper, but… friends?"

She held out a hand.

Carefully, I reached out to shake it.

"Friends."

"No lies? No hiding things? Even if it scares me to death?"

"No lies or hiding things, even if it scares you to death."

"Good." Blake rolled herself forward into standing. She dusted herself off, removing a twig that was stuck to her pants. Now, I think we should head back. Class will be starting soon. I'm going to need you to sit next to me and tell me what's actually going on with everything. Find out where us… humans… are wrong."

I gave her a little smile, standing up myself. "Sound good."

As we walked back to campus and to our first class of the day, I was feeling so much better. Things were cleared up with Blake -well, mostly- and I was no longer scared of fully losing her as a friend.

And then she had to ask me that darned question.

"So, what's with you and Qrow?"

I'm so happy I divided this into its own chapter. The original version of this was maybe half the length at most. Hopefully nothing feels too rushed. Obviously Ruby's and Blake's relationship isn't perfect just yet, nor is it completely back to normal. But, it's a good starting spot for them and a nice little intro for Blake into the zany world of Reaperdom.

Dragon Lord Draco - No she was not. Oz knowing was always a fun little twist to this story. And now Blake's in on it too!

Cun - I love Blake and Ruby interactions. I find that the two characters have nice viewpoints against each other.

Nekojules - Woo indeed!

Haley Earthstone - I like to think that I can make things both better and worse for Ruby simultaneously!

firewyrm2 - I didn't really see the point to Raven. She doesn't show up in canon until Yang goes looking for her, so it's not like her appearing at Beacon would likely happen. I felt that her being alive doesn't add much to the story. Neither with her being dead, honestly.

ecoolasice - Definitely a thing that shall be happening

JackTheSpades - Very happy it didn't fit too. There's definitely some weight to their conversation and things get explained between the both of them. It's definitely not the end of their talks, but it leaves the two of them with a workable new starting place.

Ninguem248 - Can't forget about those bits of comedy! And sometimes my attempts at horror. It is really hard to write horror. Hmm... Maybe I can work on that in the next few days. Tis the season after all.

TM Calypso - It is always a possibility. I have a few chapters planned out for further into the story from some different perspectives, but that's a ways off. As for now, maybe I can slip in some other perspectives here or there.

Sm0key Panda - Never fear, another cliffhanger is here!

Darknight2124 - Always those dastardly cliffhangers. I can honestly say that I don't mean to always be writing them.

So, next week is November. Which means 2 important things. The first is NaNoWriMo. I'll be attempting to write every day. Be it writing this, or my original story (not posted anywhere). The second is that I'll be getting a hell of a lot busier during the day. So, what do both of these things mean for this story? Probably nothing. If I can get my stuff together, this possibly an extra chapter here or there. NO PROMISES. Anyways, I hope everybody has a happy Halloween!