Here is another thrilling installment of:

REAPER IN RED

Interlude 12: After

It was with an all too sudden crack of the whip that brought the fight to an uneasy halt. Cardin was mid-swing of his mace and barely had the time to stop. Yang shrieked when the weapon barely clipped Ruby's forehead as she fell to the ground in a disorganized heap. Dropping like a brick; her prized weapon falling uselessly beside her.

She was out like a light. The screen above still showed her aura as completely full, having not once been harmed by Cardin Winchester of all people. But there she was, laying unconscious on the ground of that arena, the eyes of dozens upon dozens of students witnessing her state.

Yang was up and almost literally climbing over students and desks to get to her sister by the time Weiss even noticed that the fight had ended. Cardin just stood there lamely, his head as empty as always, unsure whether to smirk at his victory or remain utterly confused that he could beat the as-of-yet undefeated Ruby Rose.

"Pause your attack," Professor Goodwitch ordered, even though nobody was moving. At once she was onstage and kneeling down beside Ruby.

With expertise from years of practice, she stretched out the unconscious girl, loosening her crossed limbs, and lay her out onto her back. An ear to the mouth and eyes watching her chest rise and fall with each albeit slow, breath.

"Ruby!" Yang exclaimed, hopping up beside the professor, and placing her sister's head into her lap. She pet back her hair.

"She's breathing. Her aura is completely intact. No muscle spasms, nor knotted joints. The fall may have given her a concussion, but we won't know until she wakes up." Goodwitch spoke methodically and loudly so that all could hear her.

Weiss leaned over to Blake, "is she still teaching while Ruby's in trouble?"

"I think she's doing both." Black replied.

There was a snort from behind her. "Guess this Vytal Festival is going to be easier than we thought."

Weiss spun around at hearing his friend's derisive response of, "I heard she's one of Beacon's best."

"She is," Weiss scowled.

Both were wearing Atlas Academy uniforms, though in very non-conformist ways. The guy was carrying his trumpet in his free hand, using it to tip back his hat. The girl was playing with a much to colourful pigtail and rolling her eyes.

"What's the princess doing here and wearing that uniform?"

"Don't call me princess," Weiss growled.

The girl mockingly giggled into her fingers, "seems like kitty's got claws. Meow!"

"You jigging with the pipsqueak?" He pointed his trumpet at the stage where Goodwitch was helping Yang pick up Ruby, carrying her like an overgrown baby. If Ruby wasn't passed out and Yang didn't look so worried, it would have been pretty cute.

"No I am not 'jigging' with her." Weiss fumed "I don't even know what that means. Ruby Rose is my partner and team leader. We are Team RWBY and you guys won't even make it to the semi-finals."

"Them's fighting words." He nodded with lidded eyes. "Groovy. I've always wanted to crush a Schnee."

"Not my name," Weiss said, while angrily shoving her books into her bag. "My name is Weiss. Not Schee. Not princess. Weiss. And don't forget it. And now I need to be a good teammate. I don't have time for lowlifes."

With a huff, Weiss was up and out of her seat, Black following closely behind her.

They were in the hallway before Weiss was clearheaded enough to catch her breath. Blake bumped her shoulder. "You were pretty heated back there."

Weiss placed a hand over her heart. It was beating madly in her chest. A few slow breaths calmed it slightly, but she could still feel the beats in her ears.

"I just really hate Atlesians."

Blake snorted. "You should have opened with that when we first met. We would have become friends so much quicker."

Weiss smiled. "I'll know for next time."

"Any particular reason? You know mine." Blake wiggled her ears.

She leaned back against the wall, sliding down onto her bottom. "My father. Like usual. The great Jacques Schnee, mighty leader of the SDC, wealthiest man in Remnant and likely largest property owner in Atlas, just behind the Atlesian government and military itself. And when you own everything, you get jealous when anybody has anything. It's easier to buy up entire neighbourhoods of low-income housing, bulldoze it, pay off the government to convert it from a residential to an industrial district, and then use the land for whatever project is on his mind, than it is to just buy land in the industrial districts."

"And people don't like losing their homes."

"And people don't like losing their homes," Weiss agreed. "They lose their homes and their local jobs, and all that is left is the Schnee Dust Company. If you're lucky enough to work in the headquarters in the city centre, then your life can improve. I bet you've seen the commercials on the holonet. Down on their luck families which received new jobs from the SDC and now are living it up. For every one person in that position is a hundred who need to work in the factories. Woe to any faunus. It's backbreaking labour in the mines, or dangerous work in the mines deep into Grimm territory."

"And here I thought you were going to say that he was a little greyer than I'd believe."

"He is. It's just that his starting colour is pitch black."

The two sat in silence. Not that Weiss minded it. It was a pleasant silence. Like the ones she enjoyed with Sun. In a way.

"We should go check on Ruby and Yang." Blake said softly.

"Ya," Weiss replied with equal fervour. She nodded, "ya."

With a bit of assistance from one another, they were up on their feet and heading towards the infirmary.

As they opened the door, they could see Ruby laying down on the nurse's table. Only her head was visible, and she was in a clear sweat. The rest of her was blocked by Goodwitch, Yang, the nurse, and surprisingly headmaster Ozpin.

"Her heart is beating off-rhythm." The nurse moved the stethoscope down towards her stomach. "Bowels sounds normal."

"How is she?" Weiss whispered to Yang, who was gripping Ruby's hand tightly.

"Her lungs are failing," the nurse's voice picked up speed. "Everybody out!"

With a shove much stronger than expected, the nurse pushed Yang and Weiss both away from the table, using her other arm to flip Ruby onto her side. She placed her stethoscope on her spine and two fingers on the softest part of Ruby's neck. Weiss had learned that skill ages ago. She was checking for Ruby's heart.

"Oz, grab the electric dust and the thinnest needle you can find. You're on standby. Glynda, when I say go, we're moving her to surgery." She turned her head. "Why do I still see kids here? Get them out!"

Her attention was back on Ruby, and the headmaster helped shuffle Weiss and the rest of Ruby's team out of the room. "Please return to your studies, students. Miss Rose would not want you to put them off for her."

Yang was breathing heavily. "Is she going to be okay?"

"She will be fine. You have my word."

"I-I can't… lose her." Yang was panicking now, her words coming out between heaving gasps for air which weren't reaching her lungs.

Black forced Yang into a crouch.

"She will be fine," Ozpin repeated. "Miss Schnee, can you please find Miss Fall for me? She has some medical experience which will be important at this juncture."

"Miss Fall?"

"Hurry along, Miss Schnee." Weiss could tell an order when she heard one. Nodding, she was off towards Professor Oobleck's classroom where Miss Fall was sure to be.

Opening the door quietly, and very grateful that Beacon's doors were free from the incessant squeaking that plagued the dorms, Weiss caught the tail end of a joint Miss Fall, Professor Ozpin lecture.

"Expanding on the professor's experience in Callahan, my own was remarkably similar. The bones of the beast were cracked and covered in tar, but they were incredibly well preserved. I- and my team, worked to continue the excavation process of hundreds of teams prior. We removed about a foot of tar from the skull structure before Grimm became too much of an issue to continue working safely. From what we could guess, we thought it to be the remains of a very old- Miss Schnee?"

Her attention was suddenly on Weiss, leaving the girl with a light blush.

"Erm- Miss Fall, Headmaster Ozpin wants you in the infirmary."

The teacher frowned, "can this wait thirty minutes for once class ends?"

Weiss shook her head, "no, it's Ruby, she-"

Before Weiss could even explain to the woman what was wrong, Miss Fall had already grabbed her things and was halfway to the door. She had moved almost as fast of professor Oobleck did during the height of his history rants.

"Why are you wasting time? Miss Rose is in trouble."

Weiss followed behind the distraught teacher at a quick pace. A small jog every few steps to keep up with her long stride, but they were making good time. Ruby really needed it.

"Ruby just collapsed during a fight. She wasn't even hit. She just… fell. Like-"

"-like all energy left her body at once?" Cinder interrupted, not breaking stride.

"Exactly," nodded Weiss.

"I believe I know exactly what is going on."

Weiss frowned in confusion. "How do you know her?"

"Let's just say that Miss Rose's family and I have some history that has left me well in debt to her."

That made Weiss misstep, almost tripping on the sleek, linoleum floor. Miss Fall knew Ruby? Or maybe not Ruby, but her family?

"You know Mr. Xiao Long? Taiyang?"

"Who? Oh, sure. Sure." Cinder said, brushing off the question. They had arrived at the infirmary and Miss Fall was through the door in the blink of an eye and at Ruby's side as if she knew exactly where the girl had been.

Finally her attention was back on Weiss. She smiled softly. "It will all be fine. Please take the rest of your team back to class. Or your dormitory. You all look like you could use a break after this fright."

With that, Weiss was left outside, staring through the small rectangle of a window into the infirmary as Ruby was being wheeled off into a deeper section of the building. She shuddered to think of what was going to happen to her.

And what did happen to her?

"She was so strong." Weiss turned to see Yang, crouched with her back against the wall, curled into herself to hide from the world. Weiss had not noticed her there for much too long.

"What happened to her?" Yang repeated the question that was bouncing through Weiss's brain.

"It could be anything," Blake said, startling Weiss yet again, bringing back a few bottles of fruit juice which contained no more real fruit than what was painted into the wrappings.

"Thanks," Weiss said, reaching for one of them.

Blake sat down cross-legged next to Yang, who could barely look at the bottle in her hand. Her thumb was fiddling with the paper wrapping and starting to rip at the edges.

"She's a strong one," Blake continued. "It's probably something small. Maybe lack of sleep. Or a cold, or something. There's plenty of people around, she probably picked something up."

"Ruby…sick," Yang mumbled.

"Pardon?" Weiss asked.

"Ruby. Doesn't get sick!" Yang said, throwing the bottle across the hall and into a wall. Its contents exploded, leaving a pile of sticky orange fruit juice in its wake. "Ruby stays healthy. Always. I have no memories of her getting sick. None of her breaking bones. No sniffles. No sneezes. And definitely no collapses leading to emergency surgery. Not since Beacon."

"Yang, you're smoking." Blake warned her partner.

Yang shut her eyes and took in a deep breath. It was forced and did not seem to quell the rage boiling inside of her, but it calmed her semblance down enough to have a rational conversation.

"Ruby is the strongest person I know. Maybe to Qrow's level, even. Just… I've never even seen her get a scratch. I have no memories of that. Not even after mom died and I needed to look out for her."

Yang frowned, her eyes narrowed. "There has to have been at least one."

Her hand began to twitch.

"There has to have been at least one."

"Yang?" Weiss said, leaning towards her, as Blake put a hand on her shoulder.

"There has to have been at least one. Least one. Least one. Least one."

"Yang."

"L-least one. L…least one. Least one. Least-Least o-one."

"Yang!" Blake shouted, shaking the girl hard. Weiss flew to her other side, brushing back her hair and looking into her eyes. They were blank and unblinking.

"Least one. Least one. Least one."

"Get help," Weiss ordered. Blake dashed into the infirmary, calling for a nurse.

"Yang?" She turned back to her stuttering friend. "It's me, Weiss. Just calm down. Breath. Blake's going to get you some help. Something's wrong but don't worry. We will fix it. I promise."

The door slammed open to Miss Fall following behind Blake.

"Where is she?" Miss Fall ordered, before dropping to her knees in front of her.

"When did this start?" All serious and without pause.

"Just a moment ago. We were talking about Ruby and Yang was telling us that she has no memories of Ruby getting any cuts or scratches."

Miss Fall placed her hands on Yang's temples, glancing from one side to the other. "Damn that girl," she grumbled under her breath. "Salem help me when I'm through with her…"

Weiss flinched as the Vacuan Professor's eyes shifted from green to red.

"I thought your eyes were silver-"

"Shut up, I need to concentrate," the teacher interrupted Weiss, not even bothering to glance away from what she was doing. After a moment, she continued. "I'm using my semblance to straighten out her mind. She was in shock from her sister's collapse. It happens. This will likely not happen again. I'll make sure of it."

"What… what exactly are you doing?" Blake asked nervously, almost humbly as if she were unsure if she was allowed to speak in the professor's presence. To this question, Miss Fall deigned to glance over at the Faunus. Just for a moment before her focus returned to Yang.

"My semblance can be used to fortify the mind and strengthen past recall. It is useful for improving memory, calming down shock, and even bringing back memories when human brains try to hide them. Trauma and whatnot. Of course, it lets me peer into their emotional state as well. And from what I'm seeing, Yang most definitely blocked out some memories of Ruby getting injured."

After a few more moments of silence, Miss Fall's eyes returned to their plasticky green and she stood up, letting Yang slump against the wall.

"She will be fine in the morning. She just needs to rest. When she wakes up, there is a chance that she will not remember the issues she's been having. At least for the next few days, I would advise not bringing it up until her subconscious mind can process everything. There is a good chance she will have some strange or unpleasant dreams, so be wary. It's a normal part of the process, even if it may seem scary in the short-term."

Weiss and Blake both sighed in relief Yang was okay. Blake looked quite a bit paler than she was earlier, but they were okay.

"And Ruby? Is she okay?"

Miss Fall smiled, just the slight uptick at the corners of her lips. "She is. She will likely sleep for a little while and will wake with a headache, but she is fine. I would refrain from asking Ruby too much too soon. Just like Yang, there may be some trauma that her brain is hiding. It will come back with time. Now, excuse me, I will be going now. I have some papers to grade."

Weiss looked at Blake. "I'm glad that's over. What was that?"

Blake's eyes couldn't meet Weiss's. "I… I don't know. I mean, I'm not sure. We should-we should bring Yang back to our room, ya?"

Weiss frowned but followed Blake, as the two lifted their friend and made their way back to the dorms.

Yuuki - Something DID happen to Yang! :D And I'm so glad that you've been enjoying Reaper. Thank you for sticking it out, despite everything.

Shadow Walker - Thank you! To more chapters in the future!