Ruby had mastered the art of sleeping. There was little that bothered her when she was in the realm of endless dreams. Unless something was directly out of place or broke the peace of nature's usual chirps and hoots, which was a lot in downtown Vale, she would remain in the shadows of her own mind.
You know, there is one particular thing that Ruby would soon come to hate and wish never existed. This very thing happened to be what awoke her in the earliest parts of the morning while resting atop the rafters of the ballroom.
An Air Raid siren.
The piercing wail of the alarm tore through the air waking everyone no matter how deeply they slept or what noise canceling equipment they wore. Hundreds of pairs of eyes shot open, human screams soon joining and mixing with the siren as the lights turned on and blinded them. Many of them tried to get up only to trip and end up a mess of tangled limbs and sleeping bags, humorous at any other time but a problem right now.
Ruby didn't wake up screaming, a small yelp maybe but no scream. Instead the very same dagger she had pulled on Yang seemed to materialize in her hand as she sat up. Hands shaking feverishly as the roars and yowls of the grimm joined the endless cacophony in her mind, cracks spreading across the tips of her fingers as she growled softly. Silvery eyes darting side to side, ears flat atop her head with her tail bristling.
Blake, the cat faunus whom Ruby had spoken to the previous day had a similar reaction minus the grimm influence. Amber met silver, silently agreeing that neither was the cause of this noise nor an enemy at this moment. Both girls looked down at the chaos unfolding down below, the students who either were still trying to sleep or the ones standing and trying to figure out what was going on.
Yang was pretty easy to find, the embers floating off her wild glowing hair made it pretty hard to miss. Weiss also stood out… regrettably Ruby had memorized what she looked like already… also no one else wore nothing but white like she did.
The great double doors opened revealing Glynda and her riding crop which was held menacingly in her right hand. Looks like the siren was intentional and thankfully shut off shortly after the woman entered the room.
"We should head down there" Blake said softly, knowing full well that loud noises were not what either of them needed right now. Ruby personally was trying to calm herself down, to rid herself of the caterwall of voices echoing through her skull. It only took a few moments but eventually they were suppressed to incomprehensible whispering. The cracks in her fingers melding back together and removing any evidence of the chaos that tried to break free.
"Agreed" Ruby nodded and the two began the descent from the rafters. It should be noted at this moment that our dearest wolfgirl did not have pajamas on, she didn't own any. Instead she wore the exact same outfit from yesterday, cloak and all. This didn't bother her at all, she was raised in a strange manner after all.
"Ruby, good to see you… guess it's safe to assume this is Blake?" Yang asked once the two got close, yawning shortly after. Her hair was no longer burning and now she just looked really really tired… and mildly pissed.
"Yup, Yang Blake Blake Yang, now what's going on?" Ruby smiled, introducing the two. Blake nodded her head towards Yang who did the same back, respectful greetings for all! Except Weiss. No greetings for Weiss…
None.
"Were gonna find out any minutes, either that or the purge is true" Not fully understanding the reference Ruby elected to ignore that last part and turn her attention to the woman who had managed to grab everyone's attention so early in the morning.
"Good morning students, it is precisely 2:03 AM at this moment and I have been given the great honor of announcement the first assessment of the day" Glynda looked way too happy at the moment, as if all the pain and suffering of being teacher was being repaid by the misery of all the students in the room at this moment. "If you will would kindly follow me I will explain this early exercise to you all"
It took several minutes for the students to make it out of the ballroom, the doors shutting tight behind them. Ruby curiously looked around as they walked, Glynda's voice was hard to pick amongst the endless whispering of those around her so she decided if no one else was paying attention that it probably wasn't worth listening too.
The further they walked into the castle the more it seemed to get… stranger? Weirder? Well it just kept getting older! Eventually it got to the point where nothing looked like it was being maintained and instead was left to rot where it sat, like that decaying wooden bowl of what might have been fruit!
Why there were passages like these in such a fancy technology filled castle, Ruby had no idea. She could only speculate that the newer things had been built atop or extended from an original building, expanding upon an existing structure without removing it entirely.
It was certainly creepy looking to say the least/
The halls they passed were different from the ones she had seen earlier, stone instead of wood and paints. The bricks looked ancient, from another time. Their edges were chipped and the cracks seemed to tell stories, especially the ones that had large obvious claw marks and faded stains.
Now that was particularly interesting to Ruby, she actually stopped near them as the others continued past to inspect the marks further. They were deeply etched into the stone, probably something with powerful forearms and sharp claws. An alpha beowulf maybe?
If it was a beowulf what was a grimm doing roaming the halls of an institute of learning… oh wait… they were learning how to fight grimm… ok it made sense now. The only real question Ruby had was… why were they in this decaying part of the castle right now? At 2 am in the morning?
Orientation? No, that was yesterday… aptitude test? Identification? Actual sleeping chambers? Ooooooh… maybe there was a nest with Grimm pelts…
That answer was soon answered when Ruby eventually caught up with the rest of the group, which had stopped at a pair of large open oak doors. The surface was marred with scratches and claw marks, human and grimm alike. Glynda had stopped, waiting for everyone to settle down. Once silence had fallen she cleared her throat like she always did and began speaking.
"Just outside these doors you will find a forest, inside that forest is a temple, and within the temple are several intricate artifacts that you must retrieve. This is your first assessment for the placing of your permanent groups." Glynda said, pausing for only a moment to allow her words to sink in. It might take a bit due to the fact that these are young adults (plus one Ruby) that were abruptly woken up early after a welcome party.
"It doesn't matter what artifact you bring back, nor how you get the artifact. The most important thing is to return to these doors by precisely noon at the latest. Those that fail to return before the doors close will be penalized for the remaining assessments. You may begin" With her last words the daunting scarred doors creaked open behind her, a rush of cold air flooded the room and blasted past Ruby's face.
It smelled sweet, the air. Everything about it was refreshing on the skin of the wolf girl. Her large silver eyes closed just for a moment as people brushed past her in an attempt to run out the door, many of which got squished in the door frame as it was not built for so many people going through at once.
By the time that Ruby opened her eyes again she was alone with Glynda who watched her silently. With a friendly wave she walked outside into the starlit night, her eyes filled with the boundless colors that seemed to be draped amongst the dark canvas above her.
There were no artificial lights up here, far enough from the city to actually see nature's beauty. The castle's lights were dim enough for Ruby to enjoy this moment, especially since it was something she had genuinely missed after arriving in Vale.
Ruby could faintly hear the other students running through the forest, they were rather loud but getting further and further away. It wasn't too far to guess that the majority was using their aura to enhance their physical capabilities and cover more ground. It was a good strategy… but Ruby was pretty sure the screaming would start soon.
You see, here's a fun thing that Glynda had forgotten to mention. This forest? This particularly lush looking forest right outside the castle? Was grimm infested. And none of the students had weapons, bar a few knives like the one Ruby had.
What drew grimm like a moth to the flame? Well negative emotions for one… but also powerful auras, just like the ones flaring to life in these woods. All of these men and women had trained for years to hone their bodies and minds, their skills developing with experience and their aura's shaping along the way.
No way in the icy cold depths of hell would there not be some big ol fluffy grimm visiting this lovely super early morning. Climbing up a tree Ruby began traversing above the forest floor, ears flicking about as they caught the smallest of noises.
There were clear signs of human travel, broken sticks and crushed underbrush scattered everywhere. There was also the soft hint of copper, somebody had probably scraped themselves on a rock or thorn bush.
Being left behind by the larger hoard was… a relief. At home Ruby didn't have to suppress her grimm side and was allowed to release all the emotions that fluttered about all day. Here alone amongst the trees? Ruby actually could feel herself unwind a little, her steel-like grip over her emotions letting up.
A shiver ran up her spine, eyes widening as the shadows of the night vanished and were replaced with the stark clarity of almost daylight. To other people her eyes would have been that of nightmares, especially Ozpin's nightmares… not that Ruby knew Ozpin's nightmares. Anyways, the sclera of her eyes, the white that made up a large percentage of her eyes, had become black.
A feature of which obviously came from her grimm heritage, enhancing her night vision and perception even during the day. It was one of many transformations wriggling beneath her skin, just waiting to break through and release itself into the cool air.
Leaping to the next tree, Ruby grabbed one of the branches and propelled herself into the sky, the leaves and branches giving way for her as she burst through the canopy. For the briefest moment, everything was let loose.
Her skin blackened, fur spreading across the surface of her arms and legs, bone shards extending from her back and limbs threatening to tear through the resilient materials of her clothing. Ruby became the thing she had been holding within so tightly, it exploded from her body like a flower springing into bloom and unfurling its petals.
As all things rise, they must fall also. Ruby plummeted back into the trees, her body reverting back to its almost human state until only her eyes remained as the last clear sign that she wasn't normal. Pulling in her more wild side was like trying to suck a clump of boba through a straw only for it to hit the back of your throat at light speed, unpleasant.
It had been nice while it lasted, Ruby had felt free for a moment but now she needed to return to the reality of her situation. Finding one of these "artifacts" and keeping her secrets from… well everyone.
Ruby stopped on another branch, pausing for a moment and taking in a rather interesting sight. Weiss Schnee and an Ursa dancing around each other like chickens with their heads cut off. The pale woman was wielding a stick as if it were a sword, doing her best to stay out of the Ursa's long reach.
She was quick, Ruby had to give her that. Weiss's slim, almost unhealthily skinny body was concealing some rather surprising muscle mass and abilities, especially since it seemed like she had been "dueling" this grimm for a bit. Given the state of her pajamas, very dirty and torn, she had been through a bit to get this far, even if it had only been a few minutes.
Wait… how exactly had she gotten this far in such a short amount of time? Special powers? Maybe another grimm person? Propulsion via large amounts of dust perhaps? The last one sounded pretty fun.
Deciding that maybe this would be a good chance in which to apologize for her earlier… sucking of the finger, Ruby jumped off the branch and onto the Ursa's back. Her eyes reverted to their normal white and silver state and her knife slid into the soft squishy part of the grimm's head that was right below the ear and just to the side of the jaw. Kinda the side of the neck.
Digging the blade into its flesh Ruby was almost thrown off of the creature as it struggled and thrashed beneath her. Pulling the knife out she slammed it into the back of its neck, angling upwards before ripping it out again and repeating the process of stabbing.
Black blood sprayed from the Grimms wounds, coating Ruby's face as the Ursa finally collapsed onto the ground. A gurgling wine sounded deep in its throat as she slid off its back and crouched in front of it. It pained Ruby to kill it, to hurt any of them, but it was part of her cover and mission.
If no one else had been here Ruby would have tried comforting the grimm in its final moments, her head resting against its, but Weiss is here, she had appearances to keep up. The knife vanished into her sleeve as she turned and waved towards the confuzzled woman, black goo dripping down Ruby's cheeks.
"Hellooooooooo Snowberry!" Cheerful as always with ears shooting straight up the bloody victor of the battle greeted the damsel in distress only to receive a rather hateful glare from such malice filled eyes. It was shocking, Ruby could hardly believe that Cinder's stories about rescuing people were wrong! They were supposed to shower her in praise and call her the bestest girl!
Well… this was Weiss after all.
The norms did not apply to someone whose heart was as cold as hers.
"I could have handled it on my own, there was no need for you to intervene" Anger seemed to fill every word, angled towards Ruby or herself no one would be able to figure out. Still being saved by the Faunus was a definite hit against her pride.
"Maybe, but that was an Ursa, big thing, kinda looks like a bear? And you had a stick!" Ruby said, pointing at the stick in question… it was a lovely stick, 10/10 would fetch if thrown.
"I wasn't fighting it, I was looking for a chance to escape. That's what this test is about" Grumbling Weiss explained, dusting herself off to the best of her abilities, 99% of the dirt remaining despite that.
"I thought it was getting artifacts, and maybe taking out a grimm or two, I mean there are tons of them in here"
"We were not given any weapons or gear and sent to traverse an infested forest in the dark to find objects for our placement… This is obviously set up so they can weed out the weaker ones. Why am I even explaining this to you?" The woman sighed, tossing the stick to the side and flaring her aura ever so slightly, enough to mend the cuts and bruises which dotted her limbs.
"It's mostly for the readers, plus the author isn't the best at dialogue yet"
"What?"
"What!?"
There was a moment of silence as the two stared at each other, the world standing still alongside them. Once time resumed Ruby wiped the black blood from her face and turned towards south. The wind had shifted carrying new scents with it.
Bloody scents.
Someone had perished, or was at least near death. The smell of that much blood was almost intoxicating, spurning on the guttural howls of the grimm outside and inside Ruby's head. Hand twitching ever so slightly the wolf girl tried to focus on the area directly around her, centering her body and mind so as to not lose it all.
Weiss during this time had decided to take another look at the Faunus, at Ruby. She would be lying if she didn't admit that her taking down an Ursa in such a quick manner wasn't impressive. With only a knife the frosty maiden could probably take down a Beowolf, maybe two, definitely not an alpha. An Ursa was out of the question though without her Myrtenaster, the beloved and custom built rapier that she had chosen for her partner.
Upon closer inspection Weiss found that Ruby appeared to be wearing the exact outfit from the day before. Reinforced leather with thin steel plating that allowed Ruby to maintain mobility while keeping some defense, although a heavy enough attack would cut through that like a hot knife through butter.
The dress was more of a combat skirt, which the icy princess nodded in agreement with, she herself wore a similarly styled one, no armor on hers, only skirt.
Getting this far into the forest had been easy for Weiss, her semblance and use of aura were perfect for amplifying one's mobility. The fight with the Ursa had been the result of her own arrogance, stopping to take a breather in an environment hostile to any human.
Despite her own pride trying to get into the way she had to admit, Ruby had probably saved her from a much longer and painful confrontation with the grimm. Still the wolf girl was intellectually inferior to one such as herself, and nothing would make Weiss say otherwise.
"Ruby, I have a proposition for you" The pair of fluffy ears swiveled in Weiss's direction, silvery eyes meeting her own blue ones. They stood out like the moon, filled with almost ethereal light. It was hard to take her gaze from them, mostly because she could see her fabulous self in their reflection. "How about we team up for this test, you clearly have the strength to dispatch grimm, and I have the superior intellect to make sure we don't fail"
"I don't know what you mean or said but ok! That's fine by me! Now let's go do normal human things!" Ruby grinned and agreed, this would be a great way to boost her cover, and besides… She wasn't the best at searching for things that weren't organic… or super smelly.
The two turned one last time to look at the dead Ursa, its shadowy body blending in so well with the dark forest. The trees seemed to bend around it almost, Ruby's heart aching ever so slightly. There was no doubt that she would continue to dispatch her kin, all for the sake of the mission, for her mother.
It has been awhile hasn't it.
The last chapter being the special was posted back in October, so about five months without any "Wolf and the Rose"... it felt like torture! I hope to return to a more consistent schedule but regrettably I am still a full time college student and thankfully nearing the end of my degree. A few more quarters remain! just gotta... hang... in... there...
Anyways for those that follow me I'm sure you've noticed the other story I posted "Grimm Walkers", that story will be updated when I can just like this one. Hopefully I'll get the first chapter out for it along with Chapter Eight of this one soon.
Anyways thanks for reading and lets all hope for another great chapter soon! Have fun and stay safe out there.