Lovely (Ruby x Dyrroth)

nineteen

Ruby hardly had any idea what she was doing. She sprinted through countless corridors, relentlessly trying to remember which direction Dyrroth had taken her when they'd gone to visit her friends.

She could recall seeing some of the corridors before, a couple of funny-looking cracks in the walls here and there, stuff like that. But those little things did nothing to reassure her that she wasn't going to get lost and be caught by someone. She had a growing feeling of dread in her gut, stronger than ever before, and she didn't like it. Not one bit.

Ruby had to turn countless corners frantically when she finally spotted several floor patterns that she recognized. A surge of confidence rushed through her as she rounded two more corners - and saw a familiar-looking drab door.

Found it.

Not forgetting to double-check her surroundings before opening the door, she cautiously turned the doorknob with a nearly inaudible click, and then stuck her head into the dimly lit room.

For a moment, she could the faintest sound of hushed whispers from the room, which quickly died down when the occupants of the room seemed to notice her. Ruby leaned further through the open door so that they could see her more clearly, and seconds later, she heard her friends' familiar voices.

'Ruby, what're you doing here again?' Kagura said, sounding surprised.

Wordlessly, she entered the room and shut the door behind her. 'I've found out some stuff for our plan,' she said, brushing a few locks of golden hair away from her face as she walked towards her friends and squatted down.

Harley, who'd only acknowledged her presence with a brief glance earlier, now leaned closer, looking interested. 'Really?' he asked. 'What did you find out?'

Kagura shot the boy a swift glare. 'No, wait. First things first. Why're you here alone, Ruby? Where's Dyrroth?'

Ruby still couldn't help feeling a pang of sadness at the sound of his name. 'Um...long story. Beside, it's something y'all probably wouldn't be interested to know.' She repositioned herself, leaning against Kagura's cage and tucking her knees in against her chest. 'So, back to the topic. I've asked Moskov when the next time the demons are going to invade a big city is.'

'And?'

'He said in two weeks.'

Harley's jaw dropped dramatically. 'Two weeks? Shit,' he said with an air of exaggerated dread, earning a warning look from Kagura, who obviously didn't like hearing him swear. 'That's gonna come so quickly.'

'Nah, trust me, it's gonna seem like two years as long as we're stuck in this hellhole,' said Ruby matter-of-factly, rolling her eyes.

'True,' agreed Kagura. 'Alright, so back to the point.' Ruby almost giggled - she was really getting used to hearing Kagura remind her and Harley not to stray from the original topic. 'Did he say anything else that's important? Wait. Who exactly did you ask?'

'Moskov,' answered Ruby slowly, not really knowing what her friend was getting at. 'In case you're thinking he can't be trusted, I'm...certain he can. Fairly certain.'

Kagura quirked an eyebrow. 'Sorry, I don't trust you,' she said, a wry smile pulling at her lips. 'But then again...I know you don't trust others easily, so the fact that you trust him probably means a lot. I don't know.'

Harley cast Ruby a look of alarm which momentarily startled her. 'You're cheating on Dyrroth?' he gasped.

The hunter girl sucked in a breath, knowing better than to give Harley a response that would add to his satisfaction. Then she said, slowly and calmly, 'No.'