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Rain patters on the pavement. Ruby shivers. According to a forecast on her scroll, the weather’s only going to get worse. Everyone who can has already departed Mantle’s streets, and those who have no place to go huddle in groups around the heating grid or overturned dumpsters they set on fire.
Ruby sniffles. She needs to get indoors somewhere or risk catching a bad cold. She pulls her cloak tighter around her shoulders. Although it’s more of a heavy, wet blanket now than actual protection against the miserable cold. Even with the weather resistant upgrades Pietro made to it.
Ruby takes a breath. She’s not giving up. Not yet. She stops at yet another alleyway and checks her scroll. According to the trajectory she calculated before she started her search, she hasn’t gone out of the zone where Penny could have potentially crashed after the fight. Ruby turns on her scroll’s flashlight and steps into the alley.
“Penny? Are you here?” Ruby tries not to think about the possibility that Penny’s too hurt to reply to her.
They’d been fighting a giant nevermore. Winning against it, of course. The mission hadn’t been a particularly hard one, but one they’d enjoyed being able to do together. Then the nevermore had gotten a successful slash in against Penny. Ruby hadn’t seen exactly what happened, just the aftermath. One of Penny’s rocket thrusters stopped working. Her ability to fly was compromised. She’d fallen.
Now, it’s up to Ruby to find out where.
“Penny?” Ruby repeats. She receives no answer. She’s about to turn and leave the alleyway when she hears a (familiar) sniffle. Ruby turns back. “Penny?”
The barely audible “Not here,” is quickly followed by a telling hiccup.
Ruby allows herself a relieved, little smile. She’s found Penny. Finally. Ruby steps further into the alleyway. Her eyes sweep over it until they find a shadow deep enough to conceal a person. She approaches. “Penny, come on, we need to get back to the pharmacy before the rain really starts coming down.” It occurs to Ruby that rain could have a particularly negative effect on a robot. New worry twists Ruby’s gut up into knots.
“You go on ahead. I’ll catch up.”
“No.” Ruby kneels down. One of her knees sinks into a puddle. She tries her best not to react to the freezing temperature. “I’m not leaving you here.”
“I’m fine.” Penny hiccups again.
“You’re hiding in an alleyway.” Ruby inhales a deep breath, holds it, and then exhales. “What’s wrong? Penny, please, tell me.”
“I…I was damaged,” Penny murmurs. “I fell. But not to worry! My father can repair me! Easily! I’m fine!”
Ruby squints deeper into the shadow. Is Penny…hiding her face behind her hair? She reaches a hand forward. Penny recoils away from her, presses herself up against the building wall behind her. Ruby hesitates. She bites her bottom lip. Then, she gently pulls Penny’s hair back so she can see her face.
“Oh,” Ruby whispers.
“I didn’t want you to see me like this,” Penny’s functioning eye turns downcast. “I know…I know this isn’t the first time you’ve…seen me…uncovered, but…it’s usually different. When it’s the face…”
‘When I’m less human-looking’ goes unstated, but the words weighs over them regardless.
Ruby reaches out to Penny. Yes, it’s taking her brain a bit to process the fact that half Penny’s face is scraped off, revealing a robotic chassis beneath. And yes, this is significantly different from looking down at her friend’s hands and seeing metal artificial skin no longer conceals. But, Penny is still Penny.
“Nothing is wrong with you,” Ruby says before she can stop herself. She winces. “Okay, you’re hurt and we need to go get you patched up, but other than that. Nothing is wrong with you.”
“But I’m…” Penny looks at Ruby. Her good eye brightly stands out next to the cracked lens of the other. “I’m freakish.”
“No.” Ruby takes off her cloak and wraps it around Penny’s shoulders. It’s not much protection, but Penny needs to stay as dry as possible more than she does right now. Ruby pulls her hood up over Penny’s head. Ruby cups Penny’s cheek, her revealed one, in her hand. She tenderly strokes her thumb across the metal. “No, you’re not.”
Penny gazes at her. Not saying a word.
Ruby holds out a hand. “Come on. Let’s get you back to the pharmacy.”
She supports Penny as they walk. And glares at anyone they pass who stares or cringes at Penny’s appearance. Her robotic nature may be common knowlege now, but that doesn’t mean people have adjusted to it. Not when they’re thrust into seeing clear evidence of it.
Ruby holds Penny tight. She hopes her presence, her support, is enough to wash away any negativity Penny feels at the others’ reactions. She knows it’s probably not, but Ruby is determined to always be there. To comfort.