#emercury week

stupid emercury OMEN comic i made in like 20 minutes, featuring my naturally curly haired emerald propaganda

wanted to scribble this out real quick for @emercuryweek !! :D

day 3: raising children, feat. my emerc rwbaby Opal :) they’re taking a family photo !!!

Chapters: 2/7 Fandom: RWBY Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Mercury Black/Emerald Sustrai Characters: Mercury Black, Emerald Sustrai Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Pre-Relationship, Prompt Fic, Emercury Week (RWBY), Other Additional Tags to Be Added Summary:

Fairytales don’t exist. An obvious fact, yet some people seemed to forget it or never learned it in the first place. Emerald, she was given that fact since the day she was born. It may have plagued her mind and actions in unspeakable ways known and unknown. Emerald hated this fact, but she never denied its power; its truth in showing just how cold Remnant could be. That truth forced her to grow up strong, keen to the world’s problems. Fairytales had no room or place in a heart raised by the streets.

Or so Emerald hoped. Maybe it was the optimistic light of those she believed to be naive that surrounded her? Perhaps she had finally reached a new understanding of life that persuaded her, or maybe it was something much simpler? Like a smile, a boy’s smile. She didn’t know when it started but that smile had meant many things to her. After all, Mercury saw life the same way she did yet managed to take things in much stronger strides. It was amazing in Emerald’s eyes, for a time... Now she found herself wishing Mercury was just a little weaker like she thought herself to be. If he was, then maybe today would different. Maybe they could stand beside one another again instead of at gun and blade point battered and bruised. Fairytales don’t exist, but Emerald found herself clinging to the idea with shaky hands just this once. Reunions sneak up on people. You never know if it’ll happen in a random store, or over sword inside a vault.

Mercury:Put, the guns, down.

Emerald:You....you know I can’t do that.

Mercury:Emerald, I’m not asking.

Emerald:......

Mercury:Damnit Em- DROP YOUR GUNS!

Emerald:Drop the sword! And then walk away.

Mercury:Tsk, do you think Salem-

Emerald:Not just from the sword, from her. From all of this, just walk away.

Mercury:And what, paint a target on my back!?

Emerald:Wouldn’t be the first time.

Mercury:Yeah but in case you haven’t noticed, I’m winning. I didn’t stumble into this like you and then proceed to devote myself to a nobody! So how long are you gonna ride this wave before bailing, again.

Emerald:Shut up.

Mercury:Why? Because I’m right? All you ever do is paint targets on your back. You just lucky and found a group dumb enough to overlook it.

Emerald:They’d overlook yours too.

Mercury:...Oh you cannot be trying to-

Emerald: I’m saying you have to, but we both know it’s not the worst decision.

Mercury:Having Salem against you sounds as bad as a decision can get!

Emerald:Worse than proving your own use to avoid death!? Having the law constantly breathing down your neck and sharing the same space as that freak of serial killer!? Mercury, for once there’s a choice that isn’t just survive and sleeping with an eye open. Team RWBY-

Mercury:Died in Atlas. What, you didn’t think Cinder was parading that achievement around?

Emerald:....

Mercury:Sigh, face it Emerald. You keep backing the wrong horse and it’s to anybody who gives a fake smile and tells you “I care.” It’s-

Emerald:They’re not dead.

Mercury:...What?

Emerald:They’re. Not. Dead. The two of us should know better than anybody those four in particular comeback like a headache. *smiles* So don’t count them out yet, just like how I’m not gonna count you out either. Salem is terrifying, I know that first hand and honestly I feel like kicking myself every day I realize who I’m defying; but I gotta tell ya being scared and fighting is a lot more manageable than being scared and feeling trapped.

Mercury:Who says I’m scared?

Emerald:Don’t pull that crap with me. I know you. You hide it better than me but you’ve always been on the fence about this. You wouldn’t be so focused on doing what your told if you weren’t.

Mercury:Final warning, move.

Emerald:.... Fine. You wanna be stubborn then we guess I’ll be too.

Mercury:Don’t say I didn’t warn-

She dropped her guns, effortlessly. Confused, Mercury watched his former partner stand with open arms in front of him. The resolve inside her was clear in her worried, emotional red eyes.

Emerald:If you really believe you’re right where you need to be, then kill me. Right here right now, because that is the only way you’re gonna get back to Salem. Should be easy, right?

Mercury:.....

Emerald:It’s kinda funny ya know? *tearing up* Hehe, I knew sooner or later I’d have to bump into you. I can’t count how many times since we met that I wanted to do nothing more than punch that smug face of yours. But I’ll be honest *crying* this is the one fight I don’t want to have. So I’m not going to. Your move Merc.

She steps closer, allowing the tip of the blade to barley pierce her chest. There she could feel the weight of it, and the slight unsteadiness of how it was with by uncertainty. Mercury tried to pull it back but Emerald took hold of the sword by the blade, keeping it near her heart. She wasn’t gonna let Mercury have an out on his terms. He was only leaving with it over a dead body.

Mercury:Let go.

Emerald:Make me. Just lean forward.

Mercury:Em-

Emerald:What!? Getting cold feet!? I thought I was supposed to be the one constantly second guessing!? Cut me down! Throw me away like life did! You say I foolishly follow those who tell me they care then punishment me for it! Be the one doesn’t care.

Mercury:Shut up.

Emerald:Be just like Cinder! Like Tyrian! Like your father!

Mercury:I’M NOTHING LIKE HIM!!!!

His voice echoed like thunder and his body shook like an earthquake. That calm and smug smile Emerald had grown fond of was nowhere to be seen. Replaced with a scowl fueled with frustration and eyes conflicted by his own logic colliding with his feelings. Emerald slowly traced down the blade, her finger tips barely reaching his,

Emerald:Then stop sinking to their level. Stop pretending you don’t care about anything more than you, or how great you feel. Be scared, regretful, doubtful even; be weak Mercury. Allow yourself to be weak for once in your life, and I’ll take the lead. Because that’s what partners do. They protect each other.

Mercury:H-Happy endings don’t exist for people like us, you know that.

Emerald:Yeah well, I’m a thief. I’ll take one with my own hands, for the both of us. Besides if I learned one thing recently, what’s the harm in hoping for one, a miracle? Mercury...please, stand by me again?

His grip on the hilt tightened. How was there? How could a person’s gaze disarm him so much. They way Emerald stared, her pleading eyes looking at something in him that Mercury himself wasn’t sure he had. It was enough to make anybody waver. Overwhelmed, he shut his eyes to avoid it then gritted his teeth. With one final shout, Mercury let the sword go. His fist balled up in anger and his head faced the floor. He dared not open his eyes. He knew if he did that then there would be no concealing the tears he held back.

Mercury:You’re cruel, asking so much of me all the time. You know that right?

Emerald:Yeah well, what can I say? I’m greedy like that.

Mercury:....

Mercury:I thought you died in Atlas.

Just like that, Emerald felt something in her snap. Tears flowed freely and she dropped the sword, instinctively pulling Mercury into her embrace; receiving one back just as quickly. The way his arms wrapped around her body. It was as if he was holding on for dear life. The sound of strained breath from his lips only made her squeeze tighter. She dared not let him go or mention his confined cries. Emerald just kept hugging him. Her partner, her fairytale in this cold world.

(Written for @emercuryweek but also sticking it in as backstory for Team Gremlins. Because why not >:3.)

Prompt Used: Nightmares

Trapped in Evernight with a bunch of crazies and a raging Queen of Grimm, good sleep is hard to come by. But the nightmares that haunt them are not from their current fears, but old scars made a long time ago. Sharing scars is a weakness, but if it's their partner ... then maybe it's okay to be weak. Just a little.