Cold As Ice: RWBY

The Promise

The hospital put me in a room on the sixth floor, in the corner, where I'll get plenty of sunlight. Team RWBY and JNPR slowly trickled into my room. I adjusted my bed and sat up. "Hey guys," I said weakly, forcing a smile. They slowly gathered around my bed in a circle. Nora leaned over and whispered in my ear, "Don't order the pancakes. They taste terrible." I laughed and immediately regretted it. "Ow ow ow," I winced. Jaune walked forward and cleared his throat. "What's up?" I asked. "I asked the hospital and this is where they're keeping Ezra and Zayne," he said. I nodded my head. "They're supposed to be released this afternoon," he continued. I nodded, contemplating what he just told me. "Thanks Jaune," I thanked him. I looked over at the door and saw Weiss standing there. "Come on guys," Yang said, "I heard the vending machine food is good here." She shot me a wink and whispered "Good luck." They all left with Jaune asking, "Why are we leaving again?"  

Weiss walked in and sat next to my bed. I twiddled my thumbs uncomfortably. "Sooo....uh.. how you been?" I asked hesitantly. She hugged me and buried her face in my chest. I gulped. "I thought you were going to die," she said. I blushed profusely and pulled her back to look into her beautiful blue eyes. "The doctor still isn't sure if I'll make a full recovery, even with aura," I confessed. She stood up. "What did you say?" she whispered, tears forming in her eyes. "The doctor said the blades may have permanently damaged my tissue and that is very hard to recover from," I said. I saw I was making it worse. "His words not mine," I quickly said. She stood up and stormed towards the door, leaving me speechless. She reached the door and stopped. She turned around and pointed at me. "You better pull through Ryan! Or I'll never forgive you!" she yelled, tears brimming out of her eyes. I grinned and flashed her a thumbs up. "Of course!" I said. She smiled and walked away, leaving me alone once again.

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Night was the worst. It was always about this time the painkillers wore off. I tossed and turned, wincing with every movement. After a few hours, I fell asleep from pure exhaustion, despite the pain. I opened my eyes and found myself at home. I looked around and everything was just as I remembered. All of a sudden, I saw my mother come out of the kitchen, holding a plate of toast and eggs, my favorite. "Ryan!" she called, "Breakfast!" I saw my nine year old self run into the room, still wearing his steel blue pajamas. I chuckled, remembering how hot it could get wearing those, but I never took them off. "Oh boy!" he exclaimed, "My favorite!" He looked at Mother with gleaming eyes, full of innocence. "Thank you Mom! You're the best!" She laughed and tousled his hair. 

The scene changed and I was standing in front of a gravestone; on it was written: Alecia Hasashi. I fell to my knees and felt tears emerging from my eyes. I clenched my hands. "I couldn't save you," I said tears streaming down my face, "Neither could I with my friends." I looked beyond the grave and saw my father walking with my younger self. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but I could tell father was trying comfort him. "No, not comfort," I thought. "He's just trying to get me to move on so I can focus on what's really important, becoming a Huntsman." I stood up and looked at my mother's grave. "I'll make you proud," I said. I put my hand on my heart. "I swear it." 

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I opened my eyes and saw it was still dark. I reached over and moved the curtains aside, revealing the moon, shining and comforting. I clenched my fists and thought back to my mother and her radiant smile. "I swear I'll make you proud," I said. I left the curtain open so the moon's rays would shine on me. Feeling comforted, I fell back to a dreamless sleep.