Nuts and Dolts Week: Day 7
Ruby clutched the piece of Floating Array she had kept from the fall of Beacon, the sword still felt foreign in her hands. She had spent weeks practicing with it as another option for close combat since she still wasnt all that great unarmed. But at least using the sword was going to be another option.
“Are you ready?” Jaune asked as he held his sword and shield up. “You know I’m not going to go easy on you.”
“I am,” Ruby said as her fingers trembled. “I have to be.”
“Then your training starts now!”
Ruby stepped back as she blocked Jaune’s strike, not expecting the power that came from it. Her arms trembled as she made her own strike against him, hitting his shield as he blocked. The sword vibrated in her grip as she took a few more steps back. It was still different from fighting with her scythe, Floating Array vibrated differently, built to be used remotely and not by hand. Still, she looked over Jaune and rushed behind him with her semblance to strike his back.
Her blade was once again met with Jaune’s shield, and then a strike from his blade against her. She struck back over and over only to feel Jaune’s shield against her blade and then a strike of his own hitting her over and over again until her aura broke. Her legs finally gave out as she dropped to the ground panting. She looked up at him as he held a hand out to her.
“Are you sure you’re still okay?” Jaune asked. “You still seemed distracted.”
“I’m fine,” Ruby said as she took his hand. “I just need to practice.”
Jaune shook his head. “I’ve seen when you’re fine. This… this isnt fine.”
Ruby sighed and looked at the blade of Floating Array, swearing she saw Penny’s face in her reflection. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she gripped the hilt again, voice cracking as she spoke. “I… I have… I have to be ready to get my answers. I need to know why our friends had to die, why Penny had to be killed like that.”
“And you’ll get those answers when we head off. You’re still recovering, Yang still needs you-”
“What about what I need?” Ruby half yelled at him. She took a breath and wiped away her tears as she held Floating Array up. “I’m ready again.”
“I’ll be fine. Please, I need to be ready. This is all I have left of Penny and I need to make sure I can use it when I can’t use my scythe.”
Jaune sighed and raised his own sword and shield. “Alright, but if I draw blood, we’re done.”
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Ruby stared at the melted blade in her hands, her breathing starting to feel panicked. Everything on the bridge had gone wrong, Cinder had melted the only piece of Floating Array she had been allowed to keep as a wish from Penny, as an offering of her love. And now, it was damaged beyond repair and she still wasnt sure if Penny had survived.
“Ruby!” Weiss called out. “There you are!”
Ruby quickly sheathed her melted blade and looked over at Weiss, surprised to see her. “Weiss. What are you doing here?”
“I fell too. Just like you did.”
Weiss looked away. “Let's find Yang and Blake first.”
Ruby felt her heart stop when she saw the look Weiss tried to hide, the sorrow in her eyes and the crack in her voice as she spoke. It was the silent answer that gave her enough of an answer about Penny’s fate, once again losing the woman she tried to save, the woman that she vowed to keep alive no matter what. Her fingers trembled as she reached for the last reminder she had, wrapping them around the hilt. “She… she died, didnt she?”
Weiss stopped in her tracks, pausing before she spoke. “I-I’m sorry Ruby. Jaune tried to save her, but Cinder… we really should find Yang and Blake first. I dont want to explain this more than once.”
“We did everything right,” Ruby said through a few tears. “We used the scepter to save her, gave her soul a new body, made sure she would live… and I still couldnt save her!”
“And it wasnt enough this time-”
“She has to be alive! She has to be here!”
“Wait Ruby-”
Ruby rushed off deeper into the forest of the Ever After, her semblance carrying her as far as she could go. The scars on her arms burned as she pushed herself to use every last drop of aura she had, finally dropping out of her semblance and crashing on the ground. Her eyes widened as she watched what remained of Floating Array drop into the water in front of her, sinking until it was out of sight. Her body went limp as she lost the strength to keep going. Beyond her memory, Penny was gone. Forever.
