Ruby was in her room alone. Her sister had left to train a little, and Weiss and Blake decided to complete homework at the library. On her hand, Ruby had her scroll. After a heavy sight, she dialed the number to call home.
"Hey, how is it going there?"
"Ruby! Hi, all good."
"What about Zwai? Everything good with him?"
"Yes. Only that he really loves sleeping on the couch. Even when it already has its own bed."
Ruby laughed a little at it. But then her father asked, "Everything all right?"
"Yep… No, maybe. I don't know," said Ruby, leaving herself to fall to the nearest bed, which was Weiss's bed.
"What happens? You know you can count on your pops," said Tai Yang, Ruby's father, in the best reassuring voice he could.
"It's just… You always told me the dangers of being a huntress. You told us about your friends and let us know that this is how huntsmen and huntresses had to experience at some point… but," Ruby couldn't continue speaking as she started to cry.
"Ruby, Ruby, can you hear me?"
Ruby sniffed, "I am here, dad."
"What happened?"
"We went to the Forever Fall Forest two days ago to get some samp. Everything was right… until it wasn't. An Ursa Major appeared and attacked some students."
"Oh god. Are you all right? Is Yang all right?"
"We are. But, a classmate… he… he died. He died in front of me. I couldn't do anything," Ruby started to cry again, but with the scroll still on her ear.
"Oh, Ruby. Sorry to hear that," replied the father, fully concerned.
"I know you and uncle told us about the risks of this. I thought I was prepared… I wasn't. But I guess it's like our classmate said. She said that we should devote all our strength to save the lives which can be saved."
"She sounds like a strong person," said Tai Yang after a moment of silence.
Ruby chuckled a little, "I guess she is. I haven't talked to her much, but she is the leader of the strongest team."
Tai Yang smiled on the other side, and trying to cheer up his daughter, he continued that line of talk, "Is that so? Stronger than my two daughters? I doubt that. I trained both of you. I may not be able to go there, but I can always send Qrow if you need training."
"Dad. Let me tell you that the team next door has Pyrrha Nikos, the Champion from Mistral. And even with her, I doubt they could defeat them," said Ruby, falling into the trap of her father.
"What makes them so strong?"
Ruby replied to her father, standing up, "Well, they have this super-strong wolf faunus girl. Then you have a super-fast and skillful girl with her weapons, and she can readjust her body in the air to evade attacks as if it were nothing. Then you have their mysterious girl with an eye patch that looks to be a sniper or something."
Then Ruby jumped on her own bed, "and then their leader. She's always calm but vigilant. She sometimes scares me with her gaze that seems to pierce your soul. But when she is fighting, she looks super cool, like she is calculating every moment. And the best is her weapon, a bow that looked like it was taken from a fantasy book."
Tai Yang laughs a little, "Of course, that's the best part."
"Oh, talking about team NCCL."
"Is that their name?"
"Yep. And talking about them. I want to ask about Uncle Qrow," said Ruby.
"How are both related?" asked Tai Yang.
"I don't know. You tell me. Does Uncle Qrow have a daughter somewhere?" asked Ruby.
"Pfftt, cough cough," Ruby heard his father coughing as it appeared that his father was drinking something when she asked him.
"Are you okay, Dad?"
"I am, just give me a moment to recover," said Taiyang. After a few seconds, he spoke again, "Could you elaborate more?"
"Well. The girl I mentioned can readjust her body in the air to evade attacks. Her name is Clementine Branwen. And she is around the same age as Yang, maybe a bit older," Ruby replied to her dad.
"I... I'll need to check that… Is that girl a friend of yours?"
"More like classmates or acquaintances. I have never talked to her. Want me to ask directly? Because we haven't as we thought, Yang and me, that it would be very rude."
"I see."
"The other theory is that she is Yang's hidden twin," said Ruby while finally laying down on her bed.
"Twin?"
"Yeah. Yang already told me about her mom. And we thought about it because this girl also has blonde hair and red eyes. Just like Yang when she is furious, but unlike Yang, she has short hair."
"I can assure you that Yang was born without any twin. But I'll look into it. I'll make some calls and check."
"Thanks, Dad. We will try to get close to her either way."
"Just… just be careful."
"We will." The door of the room opened, and Weiss and Blake entered the room. "I'll call you later."
"Goodbye, sweety."
"Bye. Oh, and dad?"
"Yes?"
"Thank you for listening." Ruby then hung up the phone. She then jumped out of her bed, looking out the window.
As Weiss stepped into RWBY's room. Ruby stood by the window, her back to the door; the silence stretched between them. Finally, Ruby turned around and met Weiss' gaze, her own eyes glistening with tears held at bay. Weiss approached slowly, her hand resting gently on her waist. "What was that about?" she asked.
"Oh, nothing," Ruby insisted, attempting to brush off the heaviness in the air. "Just a little homesickness, I guess."
Ruby attempted to leave the room, but Weiss caught her shoulder, halting her retreat. "Are you okay?" she asked, her voice soft and caring. Ruby sighed heavily, nodding reluctantly. "I am. And you?" she responded, avoiding eye contact.
Weiss took a deep breath, her own voice faltering. "One of the things White Fang has given my family is the bad experiences with death. The loss of friends, relatives, acquaintances… At this point, I am afraid I am getting used to it."
Blake, having heard part of the exchange, flinched slightly. Ruby nodded, understanding Weiss' pain implicitly, though hers was more recent and raw. "Sorry to hear that, Weiss," she murmured. "And sorry to bring that up."
Weiss smiled sadly, acknowledging the unspoken apology. "Right now isn't about me... and please don't apologize for bringing it up. It's just that this reminds me..." She trailed off, her voice fading into thoughtful silence.
Ruby reached out, placing a hand on Weiss' arm. "Come on, let's go. Yang said she'll meet us at the Amphitheater for the memorial service," she said, trying to lighten the mood. Weiss nodded in agreement, and together with Blake, they made their way out of the dormitory.
Outside, Ruby knocked on Team JNPR's door, hoping to find Jaune ready to attend the memorial. After a brief pause, Pyrrha opened the door, revealing Jaune lying in bed.
"Hi, Pyrrha. Is Jaune still…?" asked Ruby, looking inside the room again.
Pyrrha stepped outside, closing the door behind her. "Yeah. He is still blaming himself. I have tried to talk to him, but..."
Ruby turned and saw Weiss and Blake both looking at her, too, "can I try to talk to him?"
Pyrrha nodded and opened the door.
Weiss and Blake remained outside. Weiss leaned to the wall, "is no one's fall. That girl, Clementine, did the right thing while protecting Jaune. If she hadn't stopped him, he might have ended up the same".
Blake did not meet Weiss's eyes. Instead, she looked away while replying, "Sometimes, it is not about what you could do, but what you wish you could do. I know it's not fair, but that's how it feels."
"I know, it just..." Weiss couldn't find a way to finish her sentence.
After some moments of uncomfortable quiet inside the room, Pyrrha spoke, "Jaune. Come on, we need to go."
"You go without me".
Ruby spoke up, her voice firm yet gentle. "Jaune, come on, we need to go. All together," she urged him. He replied with a bitter retort, unable to shake the weight of self-recrimination. "How could I? I killed him!" he declared, still facing away from them.
Both girls were taken aback by his confession as if hearing his inner turmoil for the first time. Pyrrha intervened quickly, shaking her head in disagreement, "You did no such a thing."
"Jaune, you know that's not true," Ruby said firmly.
"It is. I threw him the jar with samp. When the Grimm saw me in front, he avoided me to go against Cardin. If I hadn't thrown that jar, Cardin wouldn't have died!" Jaune told them while he was facing away.
"But if you hadn't, that Grimm would have attacked Lupusregina..." Ruby began, but Jaune cut her off, standing up abruptly, his agitation palpable and his frustration clear in his voice. "But I could have thrown the jar anywhere else!" Jaune yelled.
Pyrrha and Ruby shared a glance, each seeing the depth of Jaune's despair. "Jaune," said Ruby after a moment. "Yes, you could have done differently, just as Cardin could have been a better person with you and the others. But right now, it is about what we can do better. Just like the leader of team NCCL said, 'We should devote all our strength to save the lives that can be saved.' There are a ton of people out there that need help. That's why we choose to become huntsmen and huntresses. We knew the risks that our friends' lives could end even if a plan goes perfectly".
Ruby moved closer to him, grasping his shoulders firmly. "Jaune," she began, "nobody is blaming you." Pyrrha added, "Even Cardin's teammates already said that they don't blame you for it."
Jaune continued to stare ahead, refusing to look at either girl. The red-cloaked girl sighed, and he released him, "We will be in the memorial. It would be nice if you could join us". Ruby stood, leaving the room without another word, followed closely by Pyrrha. Outside, Weiss and Blake watched them silently, sensing the gravity of the situation.
The Amphitheater was full of students. All in their uniforms. But unlike other occasions, there was no loud buzzing. The environment was gloomy, and the photo of Cardin Winchester was displayed at the top of the stage.
Under the photo were the rest of the Cardin team, who were regretting their cowardliness. But they were brave enough to face their fault and show their faces.
Surprisingly, one of the people was crying. The bunny faunus that was bullied by Cardin, Velvet Scarlatina, who, although never liked Cardin, she'd never wanted him to die.
When Ruby and the others arrived, they found Yang almost right away, and they realized that she was with Ren and Nora.
Ren and Nora, before going to the memorial, decided to have a little walk, just the two of them. They have lost many people in their lives, and they thought walking and talking between thesmselves about it was a good idea.
"And Jaune," asked Nora, and Pyrrha only shook her head.
Jaune was still inside his room, but he was already standing up dressed in the school uniform. He opened the door and saw the hall. Suddenly, the hall seemed infinite.
"Are you okay?"
A voice sounded and broke the illusion in Jaune's head. He then turned and saw the person who spoke. In front of him was Neia Baraja, with those small eyes that seemed to be looking at your soul.
"Ye-yes, I'm okay," said Jaune, a little scared of the girl's face.
"Are you sure? You look a little pale. But I guess it's to be expected", said Neia, and Jaune did not understand why it was expected. "You are going to the memorial, right? Mind if I tag along?"
"No, it's okay-" "Very well, let's go," said Neia, not understanding that Jaune was about to turn her down to enter his room again.
They started to walk down the hall in silence for a few minutes until Neia broke the silence. "it was very brave of you. What you tried to do there", said Neia breaking the ice.
"Sorry?"
"Trying to fight the Grimm".
"Yes, well. I wouldn't call it brave..."
"Bravery is fighting what made us afraid." Jaune turned to see Neia, who was still speaking, "Trying to fight against a Grimm stronger than you to protect your tormentor. That's what I would call brave".
Jaune stopped trying to look at Neia, but he looked at the floor instead, ashamed of himself. Neia realized that and continued, "It was not your responsibility, but you still tried. That's more of what others would do."
"You are over-exaggerating. I just tried to do what I was supposed to", said Jaune.
Neia smiled. "I'll tell you a story of the Supreme One. He confessed his discomfort at the thought of being honored with earthly structures. His followers, driven by zealous passion, sought to immortalize His glory with colossal sculptures. The Supreme One accepted their fervor with grace, but His concern lay beyond the ephemeral. His thoughts were about the consequences of a mere shadow of that construction. When queried on why He, an eternal deity, would concern Himself with the transient matters of mortals, he answered, 'This much is normal, isn't it?'"
Neia then turned to see Jaune, "I am not saying that you should try to be like the Supreme One, that much is impossible. But you should recognize that your thoughts and actions are in the right direction".
Jaune stopped walking for a moment and saw the girl walking in front of him. He had never heard about this Supreme One, so he didn't know which religion she was talking about, but the pain in his chest alleviated when he heard the story, his heart feeling lighter at that moment. "The Supreme One. He sounds like a pretty cool person", said Jaune, and then continued walking.
The two arrived at the Amphitheater. Neia left Jaune and walked to one side to be close to her own team. Jaune stood there for a moment. Suddenly, Headmaster Ozpin walked to the stage, "Would you please take a seat."
The students started to grab a seat. Team RWBY sat next to team Ren, Nora, and Pyrrha in that order. Suddenly, Jaune appeared, "is that seat taken?" He asked for the seat next to Pyrrha.
The redhead shook her head with a small smile. Jaune then sat next to Pyrrha and looked at the stage.
In the corner of the Amphitheater, team NCCL was sitting. Neia had a straight face, just like CZ2128. Neia tried to be as polite as possible, while Chizu did not care about the whole protocol. Meanwhile, Lupusregina was leaning back with her arms crossed, fighting not to fall asleep and losing. And in the very corner was Clementine with a straight face, fighting not to smile too much, enjoying the sad faces around her.
Headmaster Ozpin was in front of the microphone, and Professor Goodwitch, who looked to be through hell, was standing with all the dignity she could muster, next to the rest of the team CRDL, under the photo Cardin.
"We are here to honor the life of Cardin Winchester..." Professor started.