Chapter 14

The doorbell rang and Penny walked over to answer it. Weiss stood there, a plastic container filled with cookies in hand. "Hello, I'm Weiss Schnee, a friend of Ruby." Weiss said. "You must be Nurse Polendina."

"Call me Penny." She said.

"Okay, Penny, I heard Ruby was going through a rough patch so I thought I should visit." Weiss explained.

"Ruby, your friend Weiss is here to see you!" Penny called.

"Really?!" Ruby called back. She rushed out of her art studio and into the main room. "Oh, hey Weiss I…" She was about to hug Weiss but froze.

"Uh...hi." Weiss said, a little confused. "I brought cookies." Ruby's eyes teared up but she smiled, stepped forward and embraced Weiss. "What's...what's wrong?"

"My mother and Pyrrha would always make cookies for me." Ruby replied. "Seeing them...hurts...but thank you."

"They look delicious Ms. Schnee." Penny said.

"You can call me Weiss." She said. "And they ought to be. I ordered them from the finest bakery in Vale."

"You didn't make them?" Penny said.

"There are easier ways for me to kill my friends." Weiss laughed.

Ruby released Weiss and took a step back, wiping away the remaining tears. "Come in, come in." She said, gesturing. Weiss walked in and placed the container on the coffee table, taking a seat on the couch beside Ruby and Penny. "I'm surprised you'd come visit me."

"Well...I never had many friends." Weiss admitted. "Just swinging by someone's house for a visit is a bit alien to me. But you've always been nice to me, even when I probably didn't deserve it. It's time I returned the favor."

"Thanks for coming." Ruby said. "It's nice to see you."

"So how are you doing?" Weiss asked.

"Not great." Ruby sighed. "But it could be worse I suppose. My painting is going pretty well at least."

"That's good." Weiss said. "Maybe we could paint together."

"You paint?" Ruby asked.

"Well, I'm not on the same level you are but I try." Weiss shrugged. "I find it calming."

"I usually don't like to have people in my studio with me when I paint, but if you're working on something of your own, I guess it would be okay." Ruby said. "I have an extra stand and some blank canvasses, but I don't have a stool for you."

"I could use one of the kitchen chairs." Weiss suggested.

"If you're careful not to get any paint on it." Penny said.

"I'm a very clean painter." Weiss assured her. "I don't have a dedicated room like you do, and Blake would freak if I got paint on the floor."

"Alright, sounds like a plan." Ruby said. "But let's eat some cookies first."

"Of course." Weiss said. She broke the seal on the package and popped it open. The scent of fresh cookies filled the room.

"They smell great." Penny said.

"They taste even better!" Ruby declared with half a cookie in her mouth.

"How did your visit with Ruby go?" Blake asked when Weiss got home.

"It started off a little shaky but overall it went pretty well." Weiss replied. "We watched some TV, we painted together, her nurse made us lunch, and I got to see a painting right as Ruby completed it. Something about seeing a work while the paint was still wet was really special."

"You painted?" Blake laughed. "I hope it was better than your last effort."

"Not really, but Ruby was encouraging." Weiss admitted. "She said I could do alright if I worked at it."

"Keep dreaming." Blake said.

"So, how was training with Pyrrha?" Weiss asked.

"Well, I'm not in the hospital and I don't have any broken bones, so I'd say pretty good." Blake replied. "We talked for a bit and I think I got through to her. Only time will tell if the message sinks in."

"That's good I guess." Weiss said. "Oh, and I got a call from Ren. He's out of the hospital. He's got a few cracked ribs, needed some stitches and has a mild concussion. He'll be out of training for a month at least, probably more."

"That's a shame." Blake sighed. "Nora must be furious."

"I could hear her yelling in the background." Weiss said.

"We should probably keep her away from Pyrrha." Blake said. "Yang too. We've lost enough fighters already."

"Yang's fight is a week from tomorrow so I don't think we have to worry about her." Weiss said. "She'll be too focused. As for Nora, since Ren won't be at the gym, neither will she."

"Have you noticed anything...off about Yang?" Blake asked.

"I suppose she's been a bit quiet." Weiss replied. "Peach mentioned that she wasn't as quick as usual."

"Yeah, I noticed that too." Blake confirmed.

"She's probably just worried about Ruby." Weiss shrugged. "Or she's hurt and hiding it so she won't get pulled from the fight."

"Yeah, that must be it." Blake said.

With the sunlight cutting through the gaps between curtains, Ruby decided it was time to get up. She had not slept well and still felt exhausted, but knew Penny would be unhappy if she spent too long in bed. Weiss' visit had been a pleasant surprise and solid lift to her spirits, even if she still found her situation intolerable. She headed into the adjacent bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth. Still groggy, she stumbled out of the bedroom and into the too brightly lit main room.

When her eyes adjusted it was all wrong. She was in a narrow tunnel with a blinding light at the far end. Closer, something moving interrupted the stream of light. As it got closer she could just make out a figure, its limbs long and spindly, almost spider-like, but humanoid in shape. Ruby screamed and turned to run back into the bedroom but when the spun around the door was gone, replaced by a solid, featureless wall. "Stay back!" Ruby yelled. She felt around the wall for a few seconds, desperately hoping to find some escape, but there was nothing.

Ruby turned and faced the approaching figure. It was almost upon her now, a lumbering mass of impenetrable darkness silhouetted against the bright light behind it. There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. But there was only one of them. Maybe she could fight. Ruby lunged at the figure but seemed to slip right through it. It hissed and she could feel pressure on her neck. She tried to scream but could not as the pressure increased. She reached up and pulled at the unseen object constricting around her neck, but she could not pull it away. Her vision began to narrow and fade. Finally her world went black.

Ruby woke up in bed. Had it all been a dream? No, she could still taste the toothpaste in her mouth and her neck ached. Something had definitely happened, but the situation did not make sense. A few moments later Penny entered carrying a tray with a bowl of soup on it. "Penny...what happened?" Ruby asked. "I saw...things...and...I don't know what happened."

"You started screaming." Penny replied. "You clawed at the wall for a few seconds and I tried to get you to calm down, but you attacked me."

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry." Ruby gasped. "It must have been another hallucination."

"It's alright." Penny said with a smile, placing the tray across Ruby's lap. "I avoided your attack and put you in a sleeper hold until you passed out. I guess I held on a little too long because you were unconscious for a bit longer than I expected."

"I'm still sorry." Ruby sighed. "I attacked someone again."

"Don't worry about it." Penny said. "You weren't in control. I understand entirely."

"I'm glad you stopped me before I did any damage or hurt you." Ruby said, shaking her head. "This is terrible. How could this have happened again?"

"Ruby, I'm here to take care of you in situations just like this." Penny said. "It's what I'm trained to do. And when you're having a bad day, I'm here to make it a little better."

"Thank you." Ruby said. She fought back the tears she had been about to shed. "I don't know what I'd do without you." She looked down. "And thanks for the soup too. This stuff is great."

"Thank you!" Penny said cheerfully. "My father taught me to make it. It always made me feel better when I was feeling down."

"It sure works." Ruby said after slurping down a spoonfull.

Ruby spent the rest of the day painting. She started another depiction of the shadow figures that often appeared in her hallucinations. This time they were not alone however. In the foreground, a tiny figure stood ready to battle against the spectral monsters. The figure was non-descript, its back to the viewer. A glowing aura of vibrant yellow pierced the darkness of the shadows around the figure. The battle still looked hopeless, but the little guy just might have a chance. After a night of better sleep Ruby went back to working on the painting, and it was nearing completion by the evening but Ruby's shoulder was aching a bit and she took a break to watch some television.

There was a knock at the door. Ruby got up and answered it. "Hey Ruby." Blake said. She was holding a small plastic bag.

"Blake!" Ruby exclaimed. She leapt into an embrace and Blake caught her.

"It's good to see you again." Blake said.

"I've missed you since I haven't been to the gym lately." Ruby said. "How's your tattoo?"

"It's healed nicely." Blake replied. "Weiss loves it."

"I bet she does Kitty Cat." Ruby laughed.

"Quiet you." Blake admonished. "That's confidential information."

"I'm surprised you're not wearing your ears." Ruby teased.

"Weiss thinks you'd make a cute puppy." Blake said. "She probably has some ears you could try on. Maybe even a tail."

"Uh...I think I'll pass." Ruby said, her face turning red. The tables had most definitely been turned.

"So, are we just going to stand in the hallway talking or…" Blake started.

"Oh, sorry, come on in!" Ruby said. She led Blake into the living room and took a seat on the couch.

"Who is this?" Penny asked. "Another one of your friends?"

"Penny, meet Blake, Weiss' girlfriend." Ruby said. "Blake, this is Penny, my nurse."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Penny said with a smile.

"Likewise." Blake said. "Thanks for taking care of Ruby."

"So what brings you here?" Ruby asked.

"Weiss said she had a good time with you the other day." Blake replied. "I figured we could have some fun of our own."

"As long as it doesn't involve nudity, I'm game." Ruby laughed.

"Nothing so adventurous." Blake said. She reached into her bag and pulled out a box of chocolates. "I just thought we could eat some candy and watch a few movies."

"Like a slumber party?" Ruby gasped.

"Yeah, I guess it's a bit like that." Blake shrugged. "Except I'm not 12 years old."

"I've never had a slumber party before." Penny said. "I'm so excited!"

"You poor, deprived girl." Ruby sighed. She turned back to Blake. "So, what kind of movie did you want to watch?"

"Your choice." Blake answered. "I would normally go with something more action-oriented, but I'm guessing you're the romantic comedy type."

"Well, each of us can pick a movie." Ruby suggested.

"That's a wonderful idea!" Penny exclaimed. "I already have my pick!"

"Penny, I really didn't think I'd enjoy watching some nerdy sci-fi flick, but it was actually pretty good." Blake admitted. With Penny's choice the trio of movies had concluded. The chocolates Blake provided had long been consumed, along with a bowl of popcorn Penny had microwaved.

"Your spy movie was quite enjoyable was well." Penny said.

"You seemed to particularly enjoy the scenes where the hero was shirtless." Blake teased.

"I can't help that he had incredible abs." Penny defended herself.

"You have a thing for abs huh?" Ruby said. "I know just the guy for you. Blake, is Sun dating anyone?"

"Not that I know of." Blake replied. "This probably isn't the best time for him though, not after what Pyrrha did to his face."

"What happened?" Ruby gasped.

"Pyrrha broke his nose while they were sparring." Blake explained. "And Coach's arm. And Ren's ribs. She really messed up Ren. I mean, she absolutely lost her mind."

"It's probably my fault." Ruby sighed as tears welled in her eyes.

"No, no!" Blake said. "She's just going through some stuff…"

"Stuff because of me." Ruby cut her off. The tears began to flow. "I miss her so much."

"She misses you too." Blake said. She leaned over and put an arm around Ruby. "I think she's starting to realize what a mistake she made by leaving. When she's not training she just sits in her room in the dark. It's like some kind of self-imposed imprisonment."

"It's all my fault." Ruby sobbed.

"No, it's her fault." Blake encouraged. "She screwed up and she realized that she screwed up. At some point she'll come to her senses and come back to you."

"Do you really think so?" Ruby asked, choking back the tears.

"I'm sure of it." Blake said.

Ruby kept painting. In two days she completed the painting she had already started and finished another. It did help her feel a little better. Her latest was not the happiest, but it was not a total representation of hopelessness and despair either. Meanwhile Pyrrha kept training with Blake. When she was not training she remained in her room alone. Yang, well, no one saw much of Yang. She trained with Peach in the back of the gym but went straight home at the end of the day. Even Coco did not spent time with her. Her fight was only days away so it was understandable, but still somewhat out of character.

Ren called and asked if Ruby would like for he and Nora to come over for dinner. Ruby agreed on the condition that he do the cooking, but that was always his plan anyway. Ren decided to cook dumplings. He went to work with a little assistance from Penny while Ruby and Nora chatted. "How have you been?" Ren asked.

"Quite well." Penny replied. "How about you and Nora?"

"Pretty good." Ren answered. "She's very happy. I got beat up at the gym the other day but I'm on the mend."

Penny looked at Ren's hand. "You're married now?" Penny asked.

"Oh...yeah." Ren replied. "I'm sorry we didn't invite you to the wedding. I wanted to but Nora…"

"I'm sure she just didn't want to think about how things were back then." Penny cut him off. "I understand. It was probably the lowest point in her life."

"You still helped us so much." Ren said. "You deserved to be there."

"It's fine." Penny said with a smile. "I'm just glad I was able to help the two of you."

"Speaking of which, how are things with Ruby?" Ren asked.

"Ruby's doing much better than when I first got here." Penny explained. "She went through a very low stretch but she's on the upswing. I think she's coming to terms with her condition. The only thing to help now would be her sister and girlfriend coming back into her life."

"Yeah, that's rough." Ren sighed. "Pyrrha's the one who beat me up. She's taking this really hard. And something's up with Yang. I just can't put my finger on it."

"Ruby's condition has been hard on all of you." Penny said.

"You have no...no, you know exactly what it's like." Ren said. "Maybe better than anyone. Thanks for helping her out."

"I still want that tattoo on my other boob." Nora persisted.

Ren and Penny walked up with the finished dumplings, setting them and some drinks on the table before taking their seats. "Enjoy." Ren said.

"Do you have any idea how much work the first one was?" Ruby asked. "I don't think I could handle tattooing your other breast."

"Other breast?" Penny said.

"Yeah, look!" Nora exclaimed. She lifted her shirt and bra, revealing a complex tattoo consisting of runic and geometric symbols that started as a full sleeve and continued to cover her left breast and part of her back. "Isn't it awesome?!"

Penny did a spit-take. "Oh...uh...yeah." She managed to say.

"Nora, keep your shirt on." Ren said. "We're guests."

"Sorry." Nora said, readjusting her attire. "So Penny, do you have any tattoos?"

"Heavens no!" Penny gasped.

"You should really get one." Nora suggested. "Ruby's a great artist."

"Your skin tone's not too different from Nora's." Ruby said. "Maybe I could...could…" Her constant headache spiked and her vision blurred. When she looked up her eyes were unfocused. She gasped in fear and recoiled in her chair.

"Ruby, what's wrong?" Penny asked.

Ruby looked as if she were about to scream but said nothing. Nora waved her hand in front of Ruby but she did not react. Nora tilted her head. "Oh...I get it." She said. "This is like what happened to me before I took my medicine!" Ren and Penny stared at Nora as she shifted her chair closer to Ruby. "I know exactly what to do." Ruby tried to push her chair away but Nora grabbed her by the shoulders and held her still.

"Nora, you shouldn't…" Penny started.

"Ruby, listen to me." Nora said at nearly a shout. "Look at me. Tell me what you see." He speech was loud and slow, and she kept her eyes locked on Ruby's the whole time, even as Ruby tried to pull away, shaking with fear.

"I see a huge flower…" Ruby said, pointing at Penny.

"That's Penny!" Nora exclaimed.

"And a bear is grabbing me…" Ruby said, her eyes wide with terror.

"That's just me." Nora said.

"And there's a man on fire." Ruby finished.

"I guess that's Ren." Nora said. "Okay, what are you feeling?"

"I'm...I'm really scared." Ruby said. "The bear is really scary."

"Okay, close your eyes and imagine the bear is a sloth." Nora commanded.

"I...I...I don't know…" Ruby stammered.

"Just do it!" Nora ordered.

"O...Okay." Ruby said. She closed her eyes.

"Now open!" Nora said.

Ruby opened her eyes and locked onto Nora. "Oh my God, the bear is a sloth now." Ruby gasped.

"Good, but you're still shaking." Nora said.

"The man on fire is scaring me too." Ruby said.

"Okay, do the same thing with him." Nora suggested. "Imagine he's a sloth too."

Ruby closed her eyes and opened them again. "Now...now there's two sloths!" Ruby exclaimed. "They're so cute!"

"I always wanted to be a sloth." Ren mused.

"And that's why I love you." Nora said.

"I thought you loved me for my…" Ren started.

"That too, but I'm not done here." Nora cut him off. "Ruby, is it still scary?"

"Not really." Ruby replied. "It's just really weird."

"Good!" Nora cheered. "Just say if anything changes."

"Okay." Ruby said. She stopped shaking. "I can handle this."

"This is a very good thing." Nora said with a satisfied smile.

"Why am I a flower?" Penny asked.

"Flowers are cute, pretty and smell nice, just like you!" Nora answered.

"What kind am I?" Penny asked. "Am I pretty?"

"You're a...pink carnation." Ruby said. "The prettiest!"

"Aw...thank you!" Penny said with a big smile.

Ruby blinked rapidly for a few seconds and her eyes briefly became unfocused again. "Everything's...back to normal." She said.

"See, not so bad." Nora said.

"Wow, that was...Nora, how did you do that?" Ruby asked.

"Well, I've been there before." Nora replied with a shrug. "I just did what was helpful for me. It might not work every time, but it's worth a shot."

"Nora, that was incredible." Penny said. "It's like you cut straight through her hallucination."

"I just remember Ren talking me through a hallucination once." Nora said. "It didn't fix everything but it helped a lot."

"This is really good." Penny said. "This is something we can use for Ruby."

"Yeah, it was much better than what normally happens." Ruby said. "Your voice was all distorted, but I could just barely understand what you were saying. Once I tried to take control I was able to change it, even if I couldn't stop it." Ruby hugged Nora tightly. "Thank you so much!"

"Aw, this makes me so happy!" Nora exclaimed.

"I am a little hungry though." Ruby said.

"You too?" Nora asked. "I always got the munchies after I saw stuff. Good thing master chef Ren is here!"