Cracked Gem (Fallen Petals/Cinder X Ruby)

No gem is truly perfect.

3rd Person POV, an alleyway in Vale....

"Aw, no more fight in you? That's too bad, I was having fun~" Ruby crouched on a corpse, knife in hand, blood adorning her face and clothes. She poked the corpse with the knife, getting little droplets of blood to come from her poor victim's face, and when there wasn't any sign of still having fight in him, she stood, a bored expression on her face. "Oh well, guess I'll go find someone else."

With that, Ruby walked off, red droplets dripping from her hands, face and the sleeves of her t-shirt. While she looked for another person to kill her thoughts wandered to her clothes. She'd need to burn these after tonight, since there was no way she could remove this much blood in under 7 hours. Yang came into her mind afterwards, and it almost made the crimson-haired teen stop and go back to Beacon. Almost.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she spotted a woman walking into the alleyway she just left, and smiled. She always did enjoy killing other girls. It gave her more of a rush than killing guys. Jumping down from her perch on the fire escape of the building, she landed without a sound and followed the woman into the alleyway. Though for some reason, Ruby'd felt like she'd seen this woman before. She brushed it off, she had a person to kill.

The woman stopped in front of the body of Ruby's previous victim, a small gasp escaping her mouth. That's when Ruby struck, rushing the woman, knife in hand, slashing at the last moment, waiting for the warm splash of blood that would hit her face.

It never came.

In it's place, Ruby's knife clanged against a sword, materializing from the woman's hand, shards of something forming the blade. The woman's golden eyes glowed bright, recognition flashing across them, just as Ruby's silver irises reflected the moonlight, the same recognition in them. Three words came from the two females at the same time.

"I know you."

Ruby leapt back from the woman when the blade of her sword turned orange, starting to heat her knife's blade. The woman just smiled at Ruby, deforming her sword and picking her bag up from the ground. "Hello, Ruby. It's good to see you. Though, not in this context."

"Cinder." At the mention of her name, Cinder started walking forward. "Tell me, Ruby, do your friends know about this hobby of yours? Or your sister? No? Oh, that's not good. I think they should know that the 'good girl' of your little group is actually a cold-blooded killer, don't you?"

Ruby didn't take too kindly to the thought of her friends finding out about her hobby. At least she told herself it was a hobby. In reality it was an addiction, one she couldn't shake off. They can't know, she thought, her grip on the knife tightening. "Guess I'll just have to kill you, then."

Cinder only smiled, walking forward with the same smug aura as always, nothing in her hands. "Oh, you would like that. But I'd rather not blow either of our covers, for my own sake. So how about a deal, little Rose? You become my personal killer, and I don't reveal your bloody secret to the entirety of Beacon."

"And how do I know you'll keep your word? For all I know, you'll rat me out the first time I kill for you. If it's all the same, I think I'll be fine on my own." Ruby wiped the blood off her knife, starting to head back towards her "hideout" as she called it. "Who said you had a choice?" Ruby heard her own voice coming from Cinder's scroll, turning her blood cold.

"Tell me, Ruby, do your friends know about this hobby of yours? Or your sister? No? Oh, that's not good. I think they should know that the 'good girl' of your little group is actually a cold-blooded killer, don't you?"

"Guess I'll just have to kill you, then."

"Whoops."

"I really hate you, you know that?" Cinder just kept up the smug smile, unaffected by the murderous glare Ruby was giving her. "I know. But I also know that blackmail is a very powerful motivator. So you just keep doing your...'thing', and I'll send you a text when I need your, services. Have a good rest of your night, Ruby." With that, Cinder turned and walked away, Ruby doing the same once the other woman left her view, heading back to her hideout to burn her bloodstained clothes and grab a fresh set before going to back to Beacon.