[attr="class","rubyw"]
As the votes came in, Ruby felt herself... not exactly relax, but her tension stopped being borderline painful, at least. She still had her doubts about Littleroot, but at least it wasn't Mossdeep.
[break][break]
Isaac Merlo also knew that, whether they liked it or not, Rocket were the bad guys. He had another good point, too: Sure, they could force some respect into people if they screwed up, but it'd be easier to show they were capable in the first place. Ugh, why did Isaac have to be right about this? He was supposed to be that overly dramatic clown that Ruby could laugh at, not someone actually competent and reliable.
[break][break]
"You say that like we're gonna go in so half-cocked that the League will just wipe the floor with us," Ruby said, grabbing at something to contradict him on.
"No way in hell we'd let that happen."[break][break]
ana fell's statement that they were purging the old bloodthirsty Rockets made her want to laugh. Ruby knew she wasn't the only one willing to get blood on her hands around here. Though maybe Isaac's girlfriend (Ruby still couldn't wrap her head around that) meant those who just wanted violence for the sake of violence. Not even Ruby understood people like that. Force was meant to be used for a purpose, not just for the hell of it.
[break][break]And then
Eris Halla suddenly shouted with the fury of someone who had lost everything. Ruby's eyes widened for a moment, but even when they relaxed, the shock was evident on her face. She didn't know anything about this kid, but she could make a few guesses. Her heart broke for this child.
Martín del Mar called for her to be "respectful" and "do better," and Ruby's fist trembled at her side. She was a child. She was a
fucking child, so why was she here in this hellhole?
[break][break]Probably for the same reason Ruby was. And that made her sick to her stomach.
[break][break]
mint frost actually had a lot of really reasonable things to say about the Littleroot invasion. The contrast between Mint's carefree, social-media-addict personality and this more analytical side made Ruby dizzy. Though his next question—whose side this literal child was on—snapped her back into coherence. She glared.
[break][break]She whipped her head toward
kepler brueshaber when he started to laugh.
"What the hell's so funny?!" she snapped, nerves raw. She had the decency to feel a little bit bad when it turned out they agreed that, in his words, "people are allowed to be bothered by war crimes."
"No shit," she decided on saying as she turned her glare back to Mint.
[break][break]What the role of a Beast is... Ruby had set her sights on Rocket Beasthood shortly after she'd joined. She wasn't smart enough for the administrative and planning sides, so being among the most powerful of the organization was the best she could strive for. But now she was hearing
bryan delarosa threatening cruel punishment for a child's words and saying that was a Beast's role. Her fist was clenched so tight that her knuckles had gone pale.
[break][break]
Isaac Merlo's next words came in muffled. He was suggesting some grand plan, but only a few words breached the surface of her river-rushing mind. The only clear thing to her was that he was voting for Mossdeep, and goddamn, did she want to punch him for that. And @elio for calling the kid a dumbass while sounding like a pompous prick. Fuck, she wished she'd brought her smokes, too. She needed one right now.
[break][break]
Eris Halla's next words broke through the glass separating Ruby's head from the meeting itself. Ruby wanted to tell her to stop, to not draw the wrath of the Beasts, no matter how right she might have been.
Cillian Quinn's voice cut through the air like a red-hot knife. Eris was to be ejected from the meeting. But Underboss
Killian Decker offered to do it himself, offering the girl his hand. Ruby released a breath she didn't even realize she'd been holding. The Beasts' talents wouldn't be wasted on her. Still, her protective-big-sister instinct told her to check on her after the meeting, just in case.
[break][break]She didn't even realize that Eris, too, had voted for Mossdeep.
[break][break]
onyx straub voiced his taciturn agreement that Velmos couldn't be trusted, and Ruby was silently grateful that
somebody was on her side. He still voted for Littleroot, though, which earned him an annoyed glance. Sure, he didn't have many other options, but still.
[break][break]If Ruby was counting right, Mossdeep had less than half the votes that Littleroot did. In a perfect world, neither of them would have any votes, and Rocket would focus fully on the meteor mining (which Ruby still thought was insane) and the Mt. Pyre Primal Point (which Ruby still hated the idea of being part of). But at least with Littleroot, she wouldn't have to worry about keeping Jade safe. She still didn't cast her vote, though, not wanting to contradict her voiced distrust.
[attr="class","rubytag"]@top3
[attr="class","rubynotes"]
notes.
- mostly a lot of inner thoughts, disgusted anger, and questioning of her goals
- tells Isaac Merlo that rocket wouldn't let the league sweep them
- clearly upset with the whole Eris Halla situation; might look for her after the meeting to make sure she's okay
- glares at mint frost for questioning eris's loyalties, then snaps at kepler brueshaber before agreeing with what he says
- glad that onyx straub also thinks velmos shouldn't be trusted but a bit miffed that he voted littleroot, anyway
- not voting this round because all the options suck, tbh