Chapter 31

The Sincerest Form of Flattery

The school's courtyard was eerily quiet with the battle over. Evidence of the struggle littered the ground in the form of bullet casings, claw marks, droplets of blood, and long scars formed by Crescent Rose's blade. The tar like substance often left by Grimm could also be seen but it was quickly evaporating leaving black stains on the ground.

Blake closed her eyes as she focused all her aura on closing her wounds. Her ears twitched occasionally, and she could still hear the ringing of gunfire and roars of Grimm in her head. She had a long gash on her back but wasn't troubled. The faunus could already feel the skin mending itself.

Weiss stared off in the distance feeling utterly exhausted with dark shadows under her eyes. Her weapon impaled the ground beside her as a torn, white jacket stained with blood hung on its guard. Occasionally, she'd run her hand across her scar, a nervous habit of her's.

Yang was running a brush through her hair, cursing whenever she came across a knot. Her semblance still hadn't completely burned off as her eyes still had a touch of red to them, and occasionally a flame would spark in her mane. Her wounds had long since closed of course.

Ruby lay on the ground with her arms spread out staring at the heavens above. Her wounds although fewer in number than her teammates hadn't even begun to heal yet. Weiss had the lowest aura pool of the team, but she still had a faster recharge than her partner. The caped-girl was powerful, but she had little in the ways of defensive or supportive aura, unlike her older teammates.

She looked down and bit her lip as she examined her injuries. Although they'd be easily mistaken for shallow claw marks, Ruby knew instantly where she'd gotten them. They burned like red dust and stung like glass.

Her body protested and her head felt light as she sat up. "We should get out of here," her voice cracked. "Most of the Grimm in the city would have heard that battle."

The team glanced at each other, hearing the weakness in her voice and noticing her pale skin.

Weiss shook her head. "We should stay here, Ruby. Even if we leave now, the Beowolves will still track us, and at least here in the courtyard nothing can sneak up on us."

Ruby looked around and realized she was right. They would be able to see any Grimm coming their way, and had plenty of room to fight or retreat if need be.

"Okay," she sighed. "We'll stay here awhile longer."

Everyone relaxed and took a deep breath. They were all exhausted and needed the rest, their leader most of all.

"At least we drew out most of the Grimm in the area. We can call this sector clear for now."

"Until tonight when the Grimm start hunting us," Blake pointed out. "That's when they'll come in full force."

The team swallowed.

"Why don't we head back to the apartment tonight?" Yang inquired, trying to stay jovial for her team. "That's probably the safest place we're gonna find in this city."

Ruby grimaced not liking the sound of that. "Staying in the same place two nights in a row isn't a good idea."

"You'd be able to snipe for miles," Weiss said, hoping to convince her partner. "And we'd always be able to funnel the Grimm through the stairways and hallways."

"It's our best bet," Blake added.

No one dared say it, but they also knew if they were overwhelmed they could retreat to the roof and call for a bullhead to extract them safely. This would mean they'd fail the mission, but they'd get back home in one piece.

The caped-girl hadn't even considered this, and she mentally scolded herself for not keeping an extraction plan in the back of her mind. She been so focused on the mission, she hadn't even planned on worst case scenarios. What if Yang, Weiss, or Blake got hurt? She would never be able to live with herself, but unbeknownst to her, they were thinking the same about her.

"Okay." Ruby flicked a bullet casing. "We'll stay at the apartment tonight. For now, we'll stay here and rest, and kill anything that comes our way. The courtyard will be our fall back position and we'll each take a side of the school to monitor."

The team took another breath knowing they'd be relatively secure tonight in a familiar place, but Blake swiftly turned her head and glared at the school. It had been a waste of time coming here, and now finding the White Fang would be next to impossible with a city full of alert Grimm.

Deep down a part of her wondered if Ruby had already thought of this, or even planned it...

The faunus got up to leave.

"Well I'm glad that's settled then," said the heiress, brushing the dust off her skirt which did absolutely nothing to help her appearance.

She took a seat on the swing and kicked her legs up so they dangled. Soon, she was even smiling despite being covered in the scars of battle.

The sisters glanced at each other in bewilderment, and even Blake paused to take in the foreign scene.

The blonde noticed her partner was trying to leave and frowned. She wouldn't let the faunus disappear again, and she'd get to the bottom of what was bothering her. It also seemed the heiress needed someone to talk to.

"We'll check around the east side of the school," Yang said, jumping up and taking her partner by the arm, giggling as she walked. "Scream if you need us!"

Blake groaned as she was dragged away against her will.

Ruby stood gaping as the two disappeared around the corner before turning back to her partner. Seeing Weiss having fun and enjoying herself was rare, and the caped-girl decided she liked it.

Unsure what to do, she took a seat beside her and also kicked her legs up. The rusty chain swings creaked and groaned with every move, and it amazed Ruby they'd held up all these years.

"I never had a swing as a kid," said the heiress, coming to an abrupt halt.

"We had one in Patchwork." Ruby smiled as she remembered. "It was just an old tire swing tied to an oak tree but it was the best. Mom and Yang used to push me while I screamed at the top of my lungs."

"I never had anyone to push me either..."

Ruby came to a halt when she realized what her partner was saying and chided herself for not paying attention.

"Sorry."

"It's alright, dolt." She smiled wide and chuckled despite her dark mood. "I just find it sad that I had to come all the way to the lost city to finally swing ."

Ruby slowly nodded but didn't know what to say. Somehow the swing set seemed to match Weiss' current mood and appearance.

"Have you ever been to a real school, Ruby?"

She shook her head. "Not really. We had a small school house in Patchwork, but it was more like a tin shed. I always hated it. I didn't want to go to a regular school, I wanted to be a huntress." She coughed awkwardly. "But after I moved in with Yang and our dad, I started going to Signal for basics."

"I only had tutors, the finest money can buy." There was a touch of bitterness to her voice, something she normally kept hidden. "The school room was a windowless, bare room with nothing but a desk and a scroll board."

"Trust me, you didn't miss much," Ruby promised.

"Yeah I did..." she whispered back, hanging her head.

Ruby took a look at her partner and could see she was exhausted physically, mentally, but most of all emotionally. Weiss was a fencer and the team's support fighter. She wasn't meant for long term combat against waves of Grimm. And out of everyone on the team, she was the most battered and beaten.

"You did good today, Weiss," Ruby said, trying to cheer her partner up.

"Thanks," she replied absently. "You too."

Ruby kicked a rock under her foot wishing she knew what to do or what to say. It seemed as if after every battle her team would always go their separate ways, and as team leader she was supposed to keep them together. Once again it seemed half her team had run off and Weiss was shutting Ruby out. It frustrated her to no end to be unable to comfort or talk to her older teammates when they were always looking after her when as their leader it was supposed to be the other way around.

The wind blew moving them back and forth making the chains rattle.

Ruby grinned as an idea crossed her mind. She spun out of her seat standing directly behind her partner. Weiss didn't even notice Ruby had moved before her feet were off the ground again.

"What are you doing?" she demanded, wide eyed as her feet went higher and higher.

"What's it look like? Pushing you."

Wind blew through the heiress' hair and she closed her eyes. Her body ached and it'd be days until she would see her pale skin again but she didn't care. For the first time in her very privileged life, she was being pushed on a swing. It had taken coming to a dilapidated city populated by monsters to accomplish this goal, but she was here now with her best friend. She was going to enjoy this for as long as possible. She felt like a kid for the first time since she could remember.

"Higher!" she commanded.

Ruby nodded, both girls giggling at the absurdity of the situation.

"Higher! Higher!"

The caped-girl complied and Weiss soared higher.

At the apex of height and velocity, the heiress let go of the swing, uncrossed her legs and flew out of her seat. She landed gracefully on her toes with her chin up and her hands in the air as if waiting for applause.

"Ten points!" Ruby judged.

Weiss smiled appreciatively, and retrieved her weapon and put her war torn jacket back on. She reminded Ruby of a real veteran huntress, and she couldn't help feeling the slightest bit awestruck as she admired her partner's resolve and elegance.

"I have had my fill of nonsense for the evening," she declared as her usual attitude returned.

The Ice Queen didn't fool Ruby even the slightest. She'd seen how happy the heiress had been even if she wasn't willing to admit it, and her normally cold eyes were now warm as traces of her smile still lingered on her lips.

"What do you say we get back to work?"

"I say that is a splendid idea," Ruby said, mimicking her partner's accent.

Weiss raised a brow and put her hands on her hips. "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery." She chided before winking. "Dolt..."

Ruby giggled girlishly and threw her scythe over her shoulder, still favoring the left. It felt much lighter than it had after the battle. Actually everything felt lighter now. Ruby could honestly say she felt good.

'That's not right,' she thought to herself.

"You take this side of the school and I'll take the north," Weiss said, not knowing her partner was only half hearing. "Blake and Yang can have the east and south."

Ruby nodded and reloaded her weapon to get focused. She dropped her backpack by the swing to retrieve more ammo.

"Don't wander off too far," Weiss said with a frown. "There could still be Grimm hiding around, waiting for us to drop our guard."

"I'll be fine." Ruby waved her off. "Y'all worry too much."

Weiss looked at her dumbstruck.

"What?" The caped-girl turned around to make sure her sister wasn't sneaking up behind to goose her.

"It's nothing." She shook her head trying not to laugh and be a hypocrite.

'Y'all,' She thought trying not to smile, eventually giving up.

The caped-girl sighed realizing what she'd just said. "I'm tired okay?"

Weiss chuckled looking down at herself. "I know the feeling."

"Just please don't tell Yang. I'll never hear the end of it."

The heiress rested her hand on her chin and looked thoughtful for a moment. "No promises."

She turned to leave and Ruby groaned as she kicked a rock across the courtyard.

With her partner's back turned to her, Weiss glanced down at her wrist scroll and her heart beat against her chest. Ruby's aura was in the red.

She glanced back to the caped-girl who was still kicking rocks and muttering under her breath. Rose petals scattered after every kick and her cape blew against the wind.

She shook her head not believing her partner could even be on her feet and her semblance active with such low aura.

'What is going on with you, Ruby?'

Ruby paroled the western part of the school grounds but everything remained quiet. The caped-girl couldn't help but feel nervous however, knowing that the only Grimm left in the area were more patient and cunning than their juvenile counterparts. More than likely they'd wait for nightfall, but she kept vigilant nonetheless.

Although she kept this in mind, Ruby could help but catching the slide out of the corner of her eye from time to time. Finally, when the temptation became too great, she glanced over her shoulder to make sure no one was watching.

She rubbed her hands together and climbed to the top grinning ear to ear. It looked mundane compared to her sometimes daredevil like feats, but it would do. If nothing else it reminded her of Signal, and she sat down and let go.

Unfortunately, she failed to see the error of sliding down a rusted slide that was decades old and practically had to scoot to the bottom while her cape kept getting snagged.

"Still counts," she muttered, rubbing her backside and making sure she didn't tear a hole in her leggings.

She then took a deep breath and stretched out her arms. The playground felt wrong without kids running around. She couldn't bare walking the halls of the now empty school, so she as much distance from it as possible. She wasn't sure how Oobleck could stand to be in there. How many hundreds of kids had lost their lives here? How many kids had hidden from the Grimm only to be found?

Ruby couldn't help but stare down at the cape that had once carried that great burden under a bed in a village far away in the mountains. She shook her head to get rid of the memories of Patchwork. It wouldn't do her good to dwell on such things now. Knowing her luck, it would only attract more Grimm, which didn't necessarily concern her.

That was their mission after all.

"Help me..."

"Huh?" Ruby looked around uncertain whose voice that'd been.

Listening carefully, all she heard was the wind rustling the trees and a few birds chirping.

"Yang, if that's you quit it," she commanded hotly. "That isn't funny."

So help Yang if her sister was playing a joke on her, especially one in such bad taste and in her current mood.

No response.

She shook her head. "Get it together, Ruby. You can't start losing it now."

The caped-girl threw Crescent Rose over her shoulder ready to be done with the courtyard. Maybe she'd patrol a little further out away from the school. Weiss might not like it, but she obviously needed to get away.

"Help me…" cried a little girl's weak voice.

Ruby's head spun. "Who said that?"

Unbelievable. A little girl in the lost city. How was that even possible?

"Over here…" The voice sounded close, just outside the courtyard down a nearby alley.

"Don't worry! I'm coming!" Ruby's semblance activated as she darted down the dark alley following the voice.

The little girl needed help, and the caped-girl had to find her before it was too late.

She came to a stop just outside a shopping strip. A probably after school hang out decades ago.

"Where?" She looked around puzzled and out of breath.

"I'm over here. Please help me…"The voice said again just down the road.

"I'm coming!" Ruby shouted.

Petals blew off her cape as she sped down the street, cutting through several parking lots and away from the school. Which along with her teammates disappeared in the distance.

"Where are you?" She wiped her brow. "Where-"

"I'm over here…"

Ruby spun as she realized the voice was coming from inside an old dust shop and came to a stop outside.

The windows were shattered and the entire building was pitch black. A strange smell resonated from the shop, but Ruby paid it little mind.

For some reason the birds had stopped chirping.

"It's okay, little girl." Ruby crouched down smiling. "I'm here now."

She heard a piece of glass being crushed and a sharp hiss.

"It's okay, little girl," her voice repeated back from the darkness. "I'm here now..."

Her eyes went wide. "Oh no," she whispered, hoping and praying she'd misheard.

The color in Ruby's face drained and her heart felt as though it was going to burst out of her chest. A chill went up her spine hearing her own voice coming from the dark, and knowing what it was coming from.

Every child of Remnant had heard the tales before bedtime, and every student had read about them in their textbooks. No one had ever seen one though...

"Y-you're a Mimic," she stuttered, taking a step back. "You're a Grimm that can mimic a human voice."

"Y-you're a mimic," Ruby's voice repeated back, her stutter perfectly intact. "You're a Grimm..."

'It lured me here!' Her mind screamed. 'It actually set a trap!'

Large glowing red eyes opened in the darkness nearly as large as the caped-girl, and a wide ivory smile appeared.

The creature let out a high pitched cackle that sent shivers down her spine and locked her legs in place. She put Crescent Rose between her and the darkness with shaking hands. All that energy she'd been feeling before had faded.

She was trembling at the nightmare in the darkness. Slowly, Ruby reached for the trigger hoping the recoil would create enough distance to get away. Her finger pressed down...

As the muzzle flashed orange, enormous claws shot out and grabbed the blade of Crescent Rose. They were nearly as long as her baby and could bend like fingers.

She fired again but the creature didn't even flinch as the bullet hit its face, and it licked its lips with a long tongue.

The Mimic had a hold on Crescent Rose's blade as if it were a dull training sword. Even her aura seemed to have no effect. Ruby noticed how it's arms were pure white and Oobleck's lesson came back to her.

This Grimm was ancient, a true creature of Grimm...

Two more arms snaked out of the abyss and Ruby could only watch as the claws sliced through the concrete just by skimming the ground.

"No!" she yelled as the claws grabbed her around the waist and the enormous mouth opened.

They dug into her soft skin and she screamed.

Her semblance flared and the beast hissed. Just for a second, the Mimic's grip faltered around her weapon and that was all Ruby needed.

She swung Crescent Rose at the claws around her waist, and the monster howled again. She fired straight into the creature's face, causing a cloud of orange smoke and sending her backwards.

She had just taken her fifth step when her head whipped back. The beast's had a hold of her cape, and sounded as though it were laughing.

Ruby hadn't even scratched the creature. It was just playing a game with her to amuse itself.

The beast grabbed her weapon again and patiently drummed its claws on the metal, and she gritted her teeth in rage.

She flared her semblance again but this time the Mimic didn't even flinch. Roses scattered everywhere and the caped-girl's silver eyes, the windows to the soul, began to glow. She refused to lay down and die. Her mother hadn't laid down, and she refused to let her or her teammates down.

Her semblance was fully active and she seemed to disappear and reappear in clouds of red. The monster's grip on the scythe never faltered however.

The Grimm frowned still fully covered by shadows. It was growing bored with this game, and it was hungry. It hadn't eaten in so long...

The concrete began to crack at the power the girl was emitting, and the Grimm's arms recoiled as Crescent Rose finally cut through the armor. This time the Mimic's howl was genuine. This time Ruby could tell she had actually hurt the beast, if only a little and if only for a moment.

Sweat poured off her pale face and her knees began to tremble. Her semblance faded as did the glow in her eyes.

A claw shot out of the darkness and Ruby barely had enough time to block with her blade. Her knees trembling even more before buckling. Her head being pushed down however, she realized it wasn't her legs that were shaking, it was the ground. The concrete was crumbling, and the caped-girl was going with it.

As her body fell she swung her scythe with all her might, catching the lip of the hole.

Ruby breathed a sigh of relief hanging from her baby before looking down into the abyss below, unable to see the bottom in the darkness.

Her arms burned hanging there, and she began positioning her body to climb back up when massive, finger-like claws appeared over the edge.

A slender blade brushed up against her cheek, leaving a thin scar as blood trickled down the side. Her body shook and her breath caught as it rested under her eye, and she whimpered as a long tongue licked the crimson away.

Slowly, the Mimic's face came over the lip of the hole and the caped-girl screamed in terror.

She let go of her baby, letting gravity pull her into the darkness.

The Mimic cackled, watching her fall and didn't even try to catch her. It merely licked its lips and watched in anticipation.

Ruby fell into the abyss seeing the face of her nightmares staring back at her.

She closed her eyes but it didn't matter. In seconds she was enveloped by the darkness.

Then nothing...

She was gone...

(A/N: Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. I hope you enjoyed the Mimic as I wanted to try something new with Grimm, and thought this would be interesting. Also Ruby running off to help someone in danger not thinking of the consequences sounds about right to me. Don't worry about Ruby's aura, we'll get to that... eventually. I honestly haven't meant to tease you guys so much with it. Once again thank you for reading and all of the support you all have given me. It means a lot, it really does. All credit goes to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ who has made this story possible. God bless)