RWBY V9 C7

## Plot

This episode also has a warning, but it's for distressing themes this time. The girls seem to have finally gotten some sleep for the first time since volume 7… except for Ruby, who is staring at Crescent Rose, which is still in its box. Jaune suddenly wakes up and bolts outside because he's late. A fire has started in town. He just tells the girls to meet him there because there's no time to explain. Blake asks Ruby where her weapon is, and she claims that she forgot it because she's still waking up. Weiss tells her to hurry because people are counting on them. The whole town is made out of paper, and so are the inhabitants. They're paper stars, and their purpose is to serve others. They have their hero, Jaune, to take care of disasters like the fire, and he stops them from getting close to the residual water, because they'll dissolve otherwise. It's been ages since he missed the first fire. He reveals to the girls that this happens every single day. The inhabitants are called the Paper Pleasers. When Alyx poisoned him and left him to die, Juniper brought him to them, and they helped him get back on his feet. He named them after people he cares about, which is creepy. They're basically his surrogates for the friends he had in Remnant, which does not sound like a healthy way to cope with being alone for so long. He has a still incomplete map of the Ever After and all its acres. He's been looking for anyone or anything that could take them back home, without needing to go to the tree. He apologizes for not solving all their problems by himself, but he can't just run off and let the Paper Pleasers die. He has a schedule of things that happen in the village everyday. If the girls follow it, he can go out and keep searching without any interruptions, since he's the most familiar with the Ever After. He mutters that he's not crazy, and this isn't crazy. After he leaves, Yang says it's a to do list, not a plan, but Blake points out that he's obviously been through a lot. They can be frustrated later. Right now, their friend needs them. And so does Ruby, but only Little seems to notice. They still need Jaune, but they can't count on him at the moment. Weiss says they need someone to guide them, or they could end up going back in time, getting killed by the tree, or worse. Before Ruby can say something, she's interrupted by a Paper Pleaser, who reveals that the "Great Tree" does not kill. They've been trying to tell Jaune that, but he won't listen. They completed their purpose a long time ago. The land is beautiful, but also delicate, like them. They want to make something pleasing, but also resilient. They're ready to merge with the tree and ascend, but Jaune won't let them. The tree resurrects and rebuilds. They don't want to disappoint their hero or the girls, but they just want to return to the tree already; to return home. They've been causing the disasters so they can ascend. That's weird, but sad. It means Jaune might not be right about the tree. It's not death, it's rebirth. Jaune wasn't there to see what happened to Lewis, and neither was the cat. No one has the full story, and they'll never learn anything if they just stay here and babysit the villagers. They need to convince Jaune to let them go, even though he's clearly not all there. It turns out that he overheard them. Maybe the cat was telling the truth about the tree. The girls are just listening to the Afterans. Jaune tells them that Afterans are either too clever, stupid, or crazy to trust. If that's the way he feels though, then why does he care about the village so much? He yells that he can actually protect people here. They're interrupted by the Jabberwalkers suddenly attacking. If they eat the Paper Pleasers, they won't ascend, so the girls refuse to run away this time. Weiss, Blake, and Yang fight them with Jaune, while a new song called "Trapdoor" plays. Ruby is too traumatized to fight, which results in her almost getting eaten, or at least killed, by one of the Jabberwalkers, until her teammates save her. She also experienced hallucinations of Cinder, a virus infected Penny, and Salem during it. That Jabberwalker painfully contorts into an illusion of Neo, who makes a gun gesture at Ruby, and then shatters. Neo's Semblance is more powerful than ever before. The illusions of the Jabberwalker act just like the real thing. They can eat, grow, speak, etc. Jaune snaps at Ruby for not helping them. When he tries to hand Crescent Rose to her, she freaks out and backs away. Before Yang can even finish asking her if she's okay, the pebble tower topples and breaks the dam, which floods the town. This devastates Jaune. He was supposed to save them, and now they're dead. The girls try to assure him that the Afterans aren't dead. They'll be back. This is what they wanted. When they look to Ruby though, she asks them why they're asking her. Is it because she's the leader? Because she should have something heroic or inspirational to say? She doesn't. Not this time. Why does she even have to be the leader anyway? Why does she always have to be the one to pick people up? What about herself? There's just no time for that, right? Because they have to get home, help Jaune, sort out their romantic feelings for each other, etc. I feel like Ruby has some implied self-loathing towards herself when she mentions "Gotta find *someone* who isn't just going to screw everything up!" As someone who also has some suppressed self-loathing issues, this is somehow both hurtful and yet therapeutic for me at the same time. While she has every right to be upset and angry and let her feelings out whenever she's ready to, in my mind, she crosses the line when she refers to the Paper Pleasers as Jaune's make-believe friends. That sounds like something Alyx would say. They weren't imaginary, they were real, and the loss of them is weighing heavily on Jaune. However, he blames Ruby for what happened to them. The Jabberwalkers came here and attacked because of her, because Neo hates her, and the only reason any of this is happening is because her plan failed and got them stuck here. It's *all* about her. He does apologize though, at least for the outburst, and not actually to Ruby herself. He knows he's not okay, but he doesn't know what he's supposed to be. He's been alone for so long. Not just here, but also on the bridge. He was the only one who could do it, and now, whether here or in Remnant, he has to live with it for the rest of his life. Blake tries to reassure them, but Ruby outright tells her to shut up. Just… don't do that. She picks up her weapon and flies off with her Semblance. Miles' and Lindsay's performances were perfect throughout the whole episode. Ruby barely spoke, but when she finally did, Lindsay made every line count, just like how the animators made every expression on her face count. That being said, throughout the volume, the other girls have, in my opinion, just been… really terrible friends and teammates to Ruby, and just because it's unintentional on their part doesn't mean that it's okay. They have ignored her, snapped at her, downplayed her issues and problems in favor of their own and Jaune's, etc., and in my opinion, they don't make up for it by the end of the volume just because they talk back to the cat about what kind of person their leader is. Ruby needs and deserves not just a hug, but a sincere and genuine apology, as well as a promise to do better next time. In fact, Weiss, Blake, and Yang? Here's a rough template: "Ruby, we are so sorry that we ignored you and snapped at you when you were clearly hurting. We are sorry that we never checked in with you and left you alone so many times, not just physically, but also emotionally. If you don't forgive us, that's okay, we just want you to know that we'll be there for you next time. We will always be there for you, if you ever need a hug, or want to talk, or need anything at all. Your health and well being is and should have always been our topmost priority. We want you to feel like you can always be open and honest with us, even when it's hard." For crying out loud, if Ruby Rose is unwilling to even *touch* her weapon, then *of course* she's not okay!