Bright fluorescent lights flickered gently overhead, filling the room with their soft white light and glistening off large and expressive, pink and brown heterochromatic eyes. She was a petite woman, even sitting elevated on the examination bed she was very blatantly diminutive. She wore dark brown pants with white boots, but her top had been removed, leaving her sitting in her pale pink bra, revealing a long gash running from her upper arm to her shoulder. The young woman smirked as she watched with a pleased and excited look in her eyes while a pair of dainty, pale hands wove thread through through gash on her right arm. Her hands moved so fluidly and confidently, quickly sewing through her petite patient's skin with the precision of a master and the grace of an artist as she stitched the thin black thread in a crisscrossing pattern up the length of her wound.

"Um, it's kinda hard for me to focus with you staring at me like that Neo." The young woman blushed, her cheeks tinting pink as she smiled bashfully, but her hands never wavering even a millimeter as she closed up the relatively fresh wound. Her long black, red tipped hair was tied back in a ponytail behind her head and her stunning silver eyes shined like liquid metal, shimmering in the white, artificial light of her clinic. A white labcoat with the sleeves cut off hung from her shoulders, adorned with rose petals falling down to the long tail of the coat, flowing behind her almost like a cape.

"She likes watching you work." A man said with a huff of laughter, leaning against a nearby counter with one hand stuffed in the pocket of his black pants while the other held onto the curved handle of his cane as he tapped it against the ground, fighting off his nicotine craving by fidgeting. "She's a bit of a freak, I almost think she got cut on purpose just so you could stitch her up."

"Well that would certainly explain how she managed to get hurt. Not many people can do that. Oh well, I don't mind the company and you always pay generously so it works out for me." Ruby giggled, never once missing a beat with her stitching. "Well, I'm sure whatever poor soul did this to you didn't walk away unscathed. I'll give him your regards if he comes in."

"Hey, aren't you bound by confidentiality or something?" Roman joked, bringing his hand and his cane up as he adjusted his black bowler hat on his head. "Well, sorry to deprive you of a customer but the guy who did this didn't end up walking away at all. You know how Neo likes to have her fun."

"Oh. I see." Ruby's voice softened as she worked through the final few stitches. "Well, you could have at least brought me the body to practice on. I need to keep my skills sharp Roman, after all, I'm saving lives here."

"Yeah, you're a real saint Red." Torchwick smirked, shaking his head at her. "Anyway, carrying a body in broad daylight isn't the easiest thing, even in this neighborhood."

"That's too bad, a fresh body would have covered your fee and I could have gotten rid of any evidence too." She shrugged indifferently as she tied off the final stitch, turning her gaze to meet Neo's, the small woman still smiling playfully and smugly Ruby pulled away, placing her tools on the metal tray beside them, reciprocating with a warm and caring smile of her own. "Alright, the cut isn't too deep but you should still take it easy for a while okay? It's a pretty big gash so I'm going to prescribe some antibiotics. Keep it clean and come back to see me in a week so I can follow up got it?"

Neo gave a firm and energetic nod as she hopped down from the bed, her boots clicking against the ground, her grin never fading for a moment. Her big sparkling eyes stared up at her doctor and her smile took on an even more playful and flirtatious tone as she stepped forward, bringing herself only inches away from Ruby, her head only coming up to the doctor's chin. Ruby's blush immediately intensified, blood rushing to her cheeks as Neo stood up on her toes, closing the gap between them, pressing her soft, warm lips against Ruby's, Neo pulling Ruby in by her shoulders, holding her in place until the doctor's body relaxed, giving in to her eccentric patient's whim. It's not like this doesn't feel nice.

"Okay then…" Roman interjected, walking up and pulling Neo off the physician, leaving Ruby blushing deeply, her heart pounding in her chest and her heart aching with disappointment at the abrupt end to their tender kiss, her lips still tingling with excited electricity and her body fluttering with a blissful warmth. "You want your payment in Lien or Dust?"

"Wha? Oh! Right, payment, yeah, he-he." Ruby shook her head, forcing herself back into her senses, but the warmth of the kiss lingering on her lips. "Yeah, I've heard you've been amassing a lot of Dust lately."

"That's right, and with Dust prices on the rise, its resale value will only go higher. I could hook you up with some buyers if you don't already have the connections." Torchwick was a smooth and charming speaker with charisma to spare, Ruby had struggled in negotiating with him, thankfully, after he charmed his way into some unfavorably good deals for her, she wised up.

"Hmm, but the market is unstable and its relying on you to still be in play. I think I'll just stick to Lien, although," A flirtatious smirk brightened her mischievous expression as she walked around the two of them before throwing her arms around Neo from behind, holding her close. "If you leave her with me I'll call it more than even, I'll actually owe you a favor. Come on, I'd love to have such a cute assistant who isn't squeamish about blood!"

"Sorry Red, Neo's mine." Roman forced his arm between them, grabbing Neo by her waist and pulling her in close to him against his side. "I'll just make the usual payment to your account."

"Aww, you're no fun." Ruby pouted. "Fine, just make sure she follows my instructions. I'll go get the antibiotics for you, hold on one second."

"Will do Doc, don't worry, I'll make sure she takes it easy." He laughed, holding onto Neo tight, being careful to not pull at her stitches while Ruby wandered over to a door leading deeper into her clinic. It was a sizable facility capable of handling just about any scenario and she was a capable doctor, one of the best who has single handedly saved more lives in her the last few years than most doctors do their careers, earning her quite the reputation.

Ruby Rose walked down the wide facility divided into five sections; in the front was the waiting room and exam rooms, behind that was the recovery room and pharmacy, behind that was her OR and ER, behind that was her comprehensive lab and behind that was her small morgue. The floors were tiled with ceramic and the sections were divided by metal and glass walls, opaque at the bottom and clear at the top and the walls were painted a calming blue. This was her clinic, her domain, all sorts of people came through and because of the nature of her practice, she attracted dangerous elements, people most would rather not associate with, Roman Torchwick being a prime example. However, she worked well outside the system, answered to no one, had no red tape and all the autonomy, that was just how she liked it.

Hmm, I should put her on low dose Amoxicillin. That wound was several hours old and didn't look like it had been cleaned, better to be on the safe side. Ruby rested her chin between her thumb and index finger as she walked into her pharmacy, everything nearly organized and right where it needed to be. Taking a plain brown paper bag from the cabinet behind the counter she reached for a large bottle of antibiotics, putting the appropriate amount into a smaller, unmarked black bottle. With a satisfied smile she spun on her heel and in a fluid motion pulled a large, yellow sticky pad off a stack atop the counter and pulled out a pen from her pocket, writing down warnings and instructions before sticking it and the bottle inside the brown bag.

"That should do it." Ruby gave a happy, affirming nod to herself as she walked through the the small, waist high gate with no lock between the recovery room and the pharmacy. No one had tried to steal drugs from her yet so she didn't bother, it's not like they could get away with it anyway. With a pleasant spring in her step she made her way back to her patient with her prescription in hand. Most of her work came from people like Roman and Neo, though most of her business wasn't from drop ins like them, she liked the company of familiar faces though so she liked it when they came around. She was essentially their family doctor, taking care of them through everything from colds and general health maintenance to serious injuries from their dangerous lifestyle. There were few people who she was close to but Roman and Neo were practically family with how long she worked with them.

"Here you go." Ruby chimed in a silvery voice as she entered the exam room through the very modern looking opaque glass door. "Take it once a day in the morning and try to stay out of the sun okay?"

"I'll make sure she follows your orders Doc." Roman took the brown paper bag from her with a grateful smile.

"Good, you two get going and do take it easy Neo, as much as I love seeing you, I don't like you getting hurt." Ruby took Neo's hand in hers, holding it gently as she tenderly rubbed the side her of hand with her thumb. "Be careful okay?"

Neo's eyes grew wide, sparkling with happiness and gratitude as her smile became softer and more genuine. With a soft sigh she stepped forward, putting one arm around Ruby in a loving hug, making sure not to move her freshly stitched arm as per her friend and doctor's orders. The young doctor was warm and soft, both to the touch and as a person, Neo's eyes fluttering closed as she felt Ruby return her Embrace, the physician being careful and minding the work she had just done on her friend's arm as she held her close.

"Stay safe okay?" Ruby pulled away, her eyes drawn to the length wound on Neo's right side. Seeing the concern in her eyes Neo brought her hand gently under Ruby's chin, lifting her head up until their eyes met, a reassuring smile on the patient's lips as she gave a small but affirming nod.

"Thanks for the excellent work and as always, it's been a pleasure getting to see you again." Roman gave a suave bow, putting his hat to his chest as he lowered his head to the doctor before standing back up and putting his hat back on his head. For some reason, Ruby couldn't help but think he just didn't look right without it.

"Drive home safe!" Ruby beamed amiably, waving her goodbyes as Neo and Roman walked out the front door, Neo almost waving back before the tug of her stitches reminded her she was using the wrong arm.

She's not going to take it easy is she? Ruby shook her head, smiling as she put her hands in her labcoat pockets before following her patients out.

"Short Fuse." Roman said with a mocking tone as he stepped up from the short stairs, opening the door and crossing the threshold into the unassuming, graffiti riddled alley, tipping his hat at a small woman almost as short as Neo with shoulder length apple red hair tied into a brain on one side. She wore a white denim vest over a strip of purple cloth matching her eyes that barely managed to cover her chest, leaving her stomach bare all the way down to her white, tattered shorts secured to her waist with a steel chain belt. Wrapped around her her wrists and forearms were matching chains leading into her pockets.

"Roman." Thistle barely held back an annoyed growl in her voice as she took a drag off her cigarette, puffing a cloud of white, fragrant smoke deliberately in his direction. "I see you're not dead in a gutter somewhere. Oh well, tomorrow's another day."

"Well aren't you just as delightful as ever." Torchwick smirked as he walked past her with Neo close behind, sticking her tongue out at the young woman.

"Thistle, you need to stop butting heads with the customers." Ruby laughed flippantly as she closed and locked the door behind her.

"It's just Roman I can't stand, and his pet sociopathic mute." Thistle huffed, biting down on the filter of her still smoldering cigarette, stuffing her hands into her pockets, the chains around her wrists clanging together.

"I think you just don't like Neo because she has a thing for me." Ruby smile playfully nudged her associate with her elbow, her eyebrows bouncing up and down mockingly.

"Hey, it's my job to keep you safe and with all the crap that those two are into I don't like how close you are to them." Thistle closed her eyes, trying to ignore her boss' taunts as she took another deep breath of the nerve calming smoke.

"Most of my clients are dangerous but Roman and Neo are special, they've been coming to me for years. They're like family so I want you all to get along." Ruby's voice was sincere and sad, almost pleading as she pressed her warm shoulder against Thistle's and despite having her eyes closed, Thistle could just imagine the adorable pout on her face.

"Fine, whatever, I'll try to be nicer, but I'm not letting my guard down around them for a minute. You're too trusting and too good natured, I have to be suspicious enough for the both of us." Thistle sighed, knowing she was always in a losing battle with her boss. Her soft purple eyes fluttered open, finding her cigarette burned down to the filter, much to her displeasure.

"That's fine, after all, that's what I pay you for." Ruby giggled as she twirled around, coming to a grinning stop in front of her bodyguard with her arms behind her back as she leaned forward.

"You don't pay me Ruby…" Thistle took one last breath through her cigarette before spitting it onto the pavement, snuffing it out with her sneaker.

"And yet you stick around anyway." Her unstoppably bubbly personality shined through her smile and her eyes as she started walking down the alley with Thistle following by her side.

"Yeah well, it's not like I have anything better to do." She shrugged, digging in her pocket for pack of cigarettes, giving it a shake, her annoyance growing at the realization that she was nearly out.

"You know those will kill you right?" Ruby hummed with a teasing grin, her bright eyes flickering between Thistle's and the pack in her hand.

"Oh well, I know a good doctor. You want one?" Thistle held up the pack, flipping it open revealing only three cigarettes left with shreds of tobacco littering the bottom.

"I didn't realize you only had a few left, I'll buy you some more after we eat dinner, I'm starving!" With a thankful nod of her head she took on from the pack as Thistle took hers, leaving just one left that she jammed haphazardly into her pocket as she dug around for the lighter.

"It's a little early for dinner isn't it?" Thistle asked only half paying attention to herself as she pulled out her lighter, holding it up in front of her boss' face as they walked.

"Mhm," Ruby hummed as Thistle ignited the small, warm flame, burning the paper and tobacco as Ruby took a long deep breath with a satisfied sigh of relief. "Dinner, lunch, whatever, I'm thinking pizza."

"That sounds good any time." Thistle giggled, lighting up her cigarette, holding it between her fingers as she sucked in the addictive smoke. The pair stepped out of the dirty alley into the two way street that cut through the town, sparse traffic zooming by, not caring about the speed limit in the area where even cops tended to stay away from.

"Yeah! I thought so too!" Ruby was glowing with happiness as she always was after a job, her smile practically unending as she took in a deep breath of the inner city air, the ember in her cigarette glowing red as smoke wafted up from it. She gave a long and satisfying stretched while she bathed in the warm light of the sun as it shined down onto her pale skin, her heels clicking against the pavement as she walked with the spring in her step.

"So, the rest of the day should be quiet, what do you want to do when we get back? It's been a bit since we got a chance to relax." Thistle pulled her cigarette from her lips, blowing out a puff of white as she looked to her boss.

"That's a good question, wanna cuddle and watch movies?" She beamed, the purity of her smile and the warmth in her voice drawing out a blush from the normally tough as nails bodyguard.

"Th- that sounds nice… I guess." Thistle muttered as she focused on her tobacco, her eyes looking anywhere but those shining silvers.

"Did I ever tell you how adorable you are when you're flustered?" Ruby snorted out a laugh at her friend's expense. She had known the redhead for the better part of two years and they were about as close as could be, she trusted Thistle with her life, and had routinely put that to the test and Thistle never once let her down. A fiercely loyal and devoted friend that meant the world to Ruby.

"Ruby." Thistle's voice suddenly became very cold and low like a warning growl as she came to a dead stop, her eyes soft lavender eyes cold and narrow as she stared across the street into an adjacent alley.

"Oh…" Ruby words were soft and somber as she watched the scene play out. Five men, all faunus, stood in a small swarm around a limp body lying on the ground. She could practically feel the rage and malice from them as they kicked whoever had earned their hatred, beating them though they were already beyond the point of being able to defend themselves.

"She we do something?" Thistle turned to Ruby, a fire burning behind her eyes, a lust for action combined with a desire to help. Ruby's gaze was steady and cool as she met Thistle's and for a long moment, she stood in stoic silence.

"Do it." Ruby made up her mind to help, watching them murder a helpless person right before her made her sick to her stomach with anger, tainting the wonderful day she had been having. "Stop them but don't kill anyone."

"Got it!" A wild and excited grin pulled at her lips as she reached into her pockets, wrapping the chains once more around her wrists before pulling them back up in a flourish, two razor sharp curved karambit knives dangled from the chains glinting in the sunlight. She didn't even notice Ruby shaking her head with a resigned smile as she turned around, her weapons draw and bolted across the street.

"Aaaaaaah!" Thistle screamed belligerently as she threw herself into the fray, taking all five large men by surprise!

Before any of them knew what was going on, the little redhead exploded into a action, jumping up and slamming her chain wrapped elbow as hard as she could into the nearest one's face, sending him crumpling to the ground as his face gushed blood and the bones in his nose shattered! With a swing of her arm she lengthened the chain connecting to her knife, spinning it rapidly as she stared down the remaining four.

With their teeth bared and their rage and adrenaline still high from their lynching they all faced down the little girl without fear as three of them pulled out small pocket knives, one grabbed a steel pipe leaning against the alley wall and the fifth stuck with his fists. Thistle's wild and savage excitement burning like a raging fire through her veins as she grinned, the thrill of battle giving her the high she loved.

"You little bitch!" One roared, his animal like fangs bared as he ran towards Thistle, slashing his knife at her… but he was far too slow.

In blur of glinting steel Thistle sidestepped his blade while simultaneously wrapping her chain around his arm holding the knife. She dominated, the moment he tried to cut at her she redirected his hand, his blade gliding only millimeters away from her, but still her grin never faltered. The other men charged at her but she was ready, moving with the momentum of the entangled man's slashes she used him as both a human shield and a weapon, redirecting his cuts towards his friends, slashing one across the thigh and cutting another's chest.

With his rage blinding him the entangled faunus threw all his weight into a punch aimed at the much Smaller girl's head… but it was futile. Thistle weaved through his slow, predictable punch, pulling his other hand with her, stabbing his knife into his arm before she tangled her leg with his and grabbed on to his large upper arm. With her surprising strength and his weight and momentum she effortlessly threw him to the ground, his arm bleeding and his knife surrendered to the ground as she stepped on his back.

Booom!

An explosion rang out, a powerful gust of air expanded out nearly toppling them all and sheering a the skin off of the back of the man she stood on as the concussive pressure wave exploded from her foot. This was her Semblance, a truly powerful and dominating ability that made her a fighter stronger than many Huntsman.

The men stared at her in horror, Thistle's lavender eyes burning with defiant fury, daring any of them to attack. With two men down and most of them injured by the deceptively powerful tiny girl, they staggered away from her, clinging tight to their weapons as they backed away before running away, some literally, with their tails between their legs.

"Pathetic." Thistle huffed with contempt as she stepped off the unconscious man.

"They made the right choice, I certainly wouldn't want to fight you." Ruby said in her normal cheerful tone as she stepped up beside her friend.

"Yeah well, with the people you know, I'd never want to fight you either." Thistle sighed, letting her body relax as her excitement and adrenaline wore off.

"She's in bad shape." Ruby muttered to herself as she knelt down beside the young woman with long jet black hair and cat ears protruding from the top of her head. She was covered in dirt and blood, laying unconscious with her broken and bruised face in the pavement. Placing her fingers on her neck Ruby focused, feeling for her pulse, counting the moments between beats… and then her eyes grew wide and her own heart started racing.

"Thistle we need to get her to the clinic immediately!" Ruby shouted with a frantic desperation in her voice as she carefully rolled the girl onto her side, her eyes looking down her black and white clothes until she found a hole in her lower abdomen, oozing deep crimson blood. Her breaths were weak and shallow and her pulse was nearly gone. The young faunus woman was dying.