Bloody Rose

Chapter 7 Weapons

Merely a week later, Ruby rose from her bed while sweating profusely. 'I'm still here...' She thought, letting her train of thought trail off. Wiping her brow of its sweat, she slid her legs off the small bed and took a glance at her other teammates, all of which were still sleeping. 'At least I didn't wake any of them.'

Standing up, the young girl moved over toward the window and took a peek at the dawn sky, where the sun was rising over the horizon. Closing the curtains, Ruby strolled over to the dorm's bathroom and opened the door.

"You're up already?" One of Ruby's teammates groaned, sitting up in their own bed. Turning around, Ruby saw that it was Blake who she woke with her actions.

"I had a bad dream and couldn't go back to sleep," Ruby explained in a rush, only to see Blake getting up from her bed. "I'm fine, just go back to sleep."

Instead of backing off, Blake grabbed one of Ruby's shoulders and pushed the frail girl against the wall, causing a plethora of ideas to spring up in Blake's mind, but she suppressed all of them. With a deep sigh, Blake glanced over to Yang and Weiss, both of which were still sleeping comfortably in their beds.

"Ruby, as your teammate, I'm worried for you," the black-haired girl began while keeping eye contact with Ruby the entire time. "Ever since we were made a team, you've been distant and off on your own. If we're going to be a team, you need to tell us what's on your mind so we can help you. So, please, tell me what you've been hiding." She begged, letting her voice crack during her last plea.

Ruby's eyes dropped when Blake finished speaking, but instead of answering the girl, Ruby shoved Blake's hand off her shoulder. Then, she slipped into the bathroom and shut the door behind her with a soft click.

Pressing a hand against the door, Blake tried to listen for any sort of movement within the bathroom and heard a thump against the door. "Ruby?" She called, pressing the top of her head against the door.

"Some secrets are meant to be kept, Blake," she answered softly.

'Damn it! Why are you being so difficult, Ruby?' Blake shouted within the depths of her mind as she stepped away from the door. "Fine... just know, we're still here for you." The older girl mumbled before retreating back to her bed and reaching for a book to read.

'Not today and not ever. My Queen demands it.'

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"Are there any volunteers for today's first sparring match?" Professor Goodwitch asked, holding her tablet close to her chest and gazing over the cluster of students that were dressed for combat already. Unsurprisingly, a brunette young man in silver armor that was trimmed with gold paint raised his hand. "Cardin Winchester," the blonde professor paused to bring up the man's profile, "who would you like to spar with?"

Without even glancing over his potential opponents, Cardin answered, "Jaune Arc!"

Glancing toward the named blonde, Glynda could already see him shivering in his seat. "Mr. Arc, will you spar with Mr. Winchester?" The older blonde asked with her finger already hovering over Jaune's profile.

Facing his desired opponent, Cardin gave a stern glare to Jaune, to which everyone noticed but didn't comment on. "Yeah," Jaune stuttered out, barely able to stand without shaking in his boots.

Turning her back to the two young men, Glynda swiped both of their profiles upward on her tablet, bringing the men's faces and aura gauge up on the jumbotrons. Once those were up, the two fighters went around the stage and stood on opposite ends, where one nervously held up his shield and the other swung his mace around without a care in the world.