6Disclaimer: I own no franchise mentioned in this work. RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth.
This muse would not leave me alone, for some reason it became fixed on a story with such a melancholy nature. This is a short oneshot and it will stay that way. Quite simply, there is nowhere for me to go with what little story this has.
For what it's worth, enjoy.
Four young girls observing the sunrise, unaware of the trials that awaited them.
That moment seemed so very long ago, before Team RWBY had truly been dragged into the eternal war between Ozma and Salem. They had been happy as a group, not without issue but always able to come together when it mattered. Even then their burden as aspiring huntresses had seemed large, but it was nothing compared to what they would face as they grew older. The Fall of Beacon had been the end of that, and the catalyst to so much more as the world around them began to shift to a new order.
Sitting on that cliff at Beacon, next to the people that would become her family, was one of the best memories that Ruby still had.
Three young women underneath the morning sky, gazing out into the endless ocean with heavy hearts.
For all that they had faced, across continents and through the fall of kingdoms, Team RWBY had done so together. United after the Fall of Beacon, they and countless others continued the fight against Salem until they finally attained victory. It had been a hard war, devastating the land and crippling humanity in the fight against the Grimm, but the team was finally able to return home.
At least, most of them were.
Yang had stood strong to the end, defending the team against the Grimm as the Queen fell from her throne. Just another casualty of the endless war between Salem and Ozpin, though at least she was the last. Perhaps they should have been mourning all of the other dead as well, but to this day Ruby could not help but feel that only one had truly mattered to her.
She only wished that she could still remember Yang's face after all these years.
Two grown women in the afternoon heat, staring out onto the shifting sands as they mourned.
It was basically inevitable that Blake would be the next to go, focused as she was on those that had killed her partner. As the world rebuilt and moved on from the war that had defined this generation and shaped history, the faunus had been stuck with the demons from her past. Ruby had tried to help, following her teammate on numerous missions before finally being called to other duties.
Any offer from Weiss was kindly rejected, the concept of leaving the life of a huntress juxtaposed against her self-assigned mission against the Grimm. As would happen to every hunter or huntress, she stepped into a fight she could not win and did not return. Even now, Ruby still thought that Blake had decided to continue forward to that fate, to give herself a modicum of hope that her decisions in life were her own.
At least, that's what Weiss had told her, and she didn't have any reason to doubt her wife.
One old huntress bathed by the glow of sunset, watching the clouds drift by as she wept.
The doctors had led her away from the bed holding Weiss, gently reminding her of the cancer that had ended their time together. At least she had been able to say goodbye, something she probably hadn't done for her first two teammates. Ruby glanced over as the nurse left her room, she didn't recognize the man but his name appeared multiple times on the charts at the end of her bed.
That seemed to happen more and more often now. Weiss had always been her anchor, giving her something to rely on. As her wife had always said...what had Weiss told her?
Where was Weiss, usually she would be with her at this point in the day.
Four beacons of strength and spirit, standing guard above the world they had helped create.
The first, leading from the front as her cloak swept back to reveal a scythe of monstrous size. She watched the distant horizon, always on alert for the next threat that would dare to confront them.
The second, standing firm with rapier at the ready as she prepared to utilize her Dust. A piercing stare was directed at an unseen foe, a guarantee that it was about to be cast down into oblivion.
The third, stepping softly to the side with her katana drawn to slice down any foolish enough to lose sight of the threat. Her gaze evaluated everything as she decided on the perfect time to pounce.
The fourth, charging straight ahead with a heart of fire and fists ready to bring death to any that opposed her. Excitement was clear in her eyes as she observed her foe and prepared to test her strength once more.
One Team of stone and hope, inspiring future generations with their eternal watch as the inevitable finally gave the last of them closure.
Ruby's dementia in this fic was frankly a bit of an accident. I just wrote this on a whim, to satisfy a muse that wouldn't bug off, and that plot point just kind of...developed. I have a relative who suffered from it, by the end she was totally incoherent and recognized no one around her.
It sucks, but that's kind of the point of this fic. Everyone will pass on, one way or another.
This fic was originally a muse inspired by my thoughts on how the end of RWBY will look. It's...not what I had first imagined, but I still like how this turned out. Hopefully it captures the tone I was going for, short as it may be.
Thank you for reading,
-evevee