What Remains ~ RWBY

Part 8

Oscar's P.O.V.

I have never seen Ruby cry. Not until now. It hurts so much I think I might explode. I want to hold her close and keep her safe and warm until she's happy again. I want to take away her pain. But I can't. So I just watch as she cries, drowning in memories from before I even knew her. Eventually, she seems to come back, and the time between sobs becomes longer and longer. I'm taken by surprise when she rests her head on my shoulder. She's so peaceful, so broken. Sometimes it's like looking at an angel, sometimes it's like looking in the mirror.

I slip my arm around her waist. For a moment I question whether I went too far and made her uncomfortable. I don't really know what I am to her. But I know I want to keep her safe. To my relief, she melts into me, her breaths slowing until I assume she's faded off to sleep. I smile, tucking her now shoulder length black and red hair behind her ear. As the hours pass by, and she sleeps undisturbed by the nightmares that I've seen plague her in the nights before, I wonder if maybe I've helped her in some way. I had no idea how much pain she was holding onto over the death of Pyrrha, how much guilt. If I hadn't have woken up, would my screams have haunted her dreams too? My skin crawls at the idea of causing her pain like that, and I am once again racked with shame for leaving her.

Ruby stirs quietly, still fast asleep, and the peace on her face is unfamiliar to me. Ever since I met her she's been fighting. I hear that she used to be innocent and naïve, before Beacon fell, before they lost Pyrrha. But I never knew that version of her. Just like she never knew the version of me before Ozpin. And now here we are, reset to how we perhaps were always meant to be, the war over but both still fighting.

But the silence in my head feels more bearable when she's around. Being with Ozpin for so long means I'm not exactly used to being alone, and it's as if she knows that. Visiting me in the hospital everyday, showing me Oz's old office, pulling me out of my own thoughts tonight when I thought they were going to consume me. She had seen the pain and the loneliness in my eyes, because that hurt might as well been her own.

"Thank you." I whisper, pressing my lips against her forehead gently, careful not to wake her. And then I rest my head on hers and close my eyes.

Yang's P.O.V.

I had pretended not to notice them when they snuck out onto the balcony. I had pretended not to notice the way she held his hand, leading him to spot no one else knows about. No one else but me.

I look at my clock on the bedside table and sigh. It's been hours and neither of them have come back yet. What the hell did that little shit think he was doing?

I roll over, trying my best not to wake Blake as I pry her arms from around my waist.

"Where are you going?" She mumbles sleepily.

I kiss her forehead and slip out of bed.

"Nowhere, I'll be back soon."

She reaches out and grabs my hand groggily.

"They're kids Yang."

"Exactly! They're just kids! And I'm her older sister. It's my job to keep her safe."

Blake pulls me back down towards her and kisses me softly.

"You've been protecting her for as long as I've known you both," she whispers, resting her forehead against mine. "So I know its hard for you to let that part of you go. But there's no danger anymore. She's safe."

I shake my head and pull away, slipping on my gauntlets.

"She might be safe from Salem, but she's not safe from a broken heart."