Yang had been blocking out Ruby's muttering and whispering for a moment too long.
"Ruby, what the hell are you doing?" Yang had been listening to the brunette for over thirty minutes rehearsing something with hushed tones and gesturing with over-exaggerated arm waving.
"Practicing." Ruby's voice was serious and low. She didn't break away from staring at herself in the mirror.
"Practicing what? Do we have a speech that I forgot about or something?" That seemed strange though, since Weiss was always on top of team RWBY having all their class work handled. And Yang hadn't been scolded by her today.
"I'm going to ask her out."
"What? Who?" Yang looked up from her magazine and studied her sister. Ruby was now standing in front of the mirror motionless. Although, she could see her sister in the reflection Yang was unable to read her expression. The best that she could tell was that it seemed to be a mix of dread and deer in headlights.
"Weiss…" The brunette said softly as she kept her back facing Yang, remaining as still as a statue. "I want to ask Weiss to… date me?" Even the way the younger girl said this, made it seem like an odd proposition that struggled to escape her lips.
"Um… that's great, Rubes!" The notion that Ruby had feelings for Weiss didn't come as a surprise to Yang. She had endured watching her sister awkwardly gawking at her partner for months and had even caught Ruby staring at Weiss more than once while she was changing in their dorm room. The blonde had also realized that her sister's head was likely too far up in the clouds for her to even comprehend the attraction for what it really was. But the fact that her sister had woken up and realized her feelings and was actually considering doing something about it was entirely shocking news. The brawler put down her "Hair and You" periodical to wait for the inevitable freak out that was pending.
As predicted, Ruby spun around to face her older sister with urgency and panic on her face.
"Oh my gosh, Yang! What am I thinking? I'm… I'm just me and she's, well you know! She's Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company bazillion lien fortune." The tortured girl sounded off her partner's name and title almost like an advertisement.
"Ruby," Yang started cautiously, "Don't be ridiculous, I mean, sure Weiss is Weiss. And she's certainly an acquired taste. But she's also your friend and partner. If anyone has a chance at chipping away at that icy heart it would be you!"
"Oh gawd!" Ruby threw herself onto Weiss's bed burying her face in the blankets. Panic returned to her voice. "I am her friend. I don't want to ruin that! This is a terrible idea."
She turned onto her side and locked her silver eyes with Yang's violet ones. The older girl could see water building up in them.
"I just can't stop thinking of her, sis. And like that. I thought I just wanted to be best friends or something. But then… then she's just so beautiful. And underneath her… her 'Weissness' is a really amazing and caring person. And even that part of her, I-I like it. She's not cold… I don't think she's icy at all actually."
Yang could hear the adoration in her sister's tone and there was a certain reverence that she was wearing on her face. The brawler got up from her position on Blake's bed to sit by Ruby and take her hand.
"Look, Ruby. I'll let you in on a secret." A tear slid down the brunette's cheek as she looked up at Yang's face with hope.
"I don't think she sees you as just "Ruby" either."
"Wha-? What do you mean?"
Yang proceded carefully, "Blake and I have just noticed some…. things that maybe show that she likes you too." She shifted uncomfortably at the memories. Her sister's romantic life was not something that she was super keen on discussing nor was the infatuation that Weiss had been demonstrating for Ruby.
Ruby sat up with astonishment and excitement lighting up her metallic eyes. She gripped Yang's hand tightly.
"Oh, that changes everything! I think… what did you see? What about Blake? And why hasn't Weiss said anything? And why didn't you say something earlier?" The younger girl rattled off the questions in rapid succession.
"Nooope, I'm so not answering any of that. I am not going to be responsible for what happens when Weiss knows that we knew something was up. Nope, nope, nope." The blonde blushed at the memory of how she and Blake had stumbled onto the incriminating evidence.
'Oh, Yang! Please! I can keep a secret." Ruby implored her to continue.
Yang knew that no, keeping secrets was definitely not one of her sister's skills. She could give her an A for effort but the girl had the absolute worst poker face in existence. Still, one look at her sister's eager and hopeful face disintegrated her resolve in an instant.
With a sigh, the brawler caved in. "Fine. I'll tell you what happened… But I swear Ruby, do not repeat this!"
"Yay! Oh, Yang, thank you! You're the best!" Ruby threw her arms around her sister and hugged her tightly.
Yang loved how Ruby could still make her feel like the world's best big sister. It was a role that she relished and coveted intensely. She smirked at the younger girl as she began to tell the story, "Okay. So Blake and I were making out on her bed and-"
"Yaaaang, ew! I don't want to hear that." Ruby responded with dismay.
"Quiet! If I have to hear about you and Weiss..." Yang shuddered a bit at the thought. "Besides this is important to the story!"
Ruby looked entirely skeptical but added no further comment.
"Anyway, I had said something, um, tacky to Blake and she pushed me onto the ground."
"What did you say to Blake?" Ruby said bemusedly.
"Oh no, you don't. Can't pick and choose what to hear, sis," Yang said teasingly and winked at Ruby. "As I keep trying to say, I saw something under Weiss's bed."
She got up and retrieved one of Blake's novels from its place on the shelf. The blonde sat back down by her sister and handled her the crumpled piece of notebook paper. It had inked three lines of elegant cursive lettering that had been scratched out. The words remained legible though distorted.
Ruby
Ruby Rose 3
RR & WS
The last line had gotten the most damaged with the flurry of whatever pen had attacked the page. The initials were barely readable, but Yang could see her sister's face turn utterly crimson as she examined the page.
"Ohhh- uhh," Ruby clutched the paper in her hand and looked at Yang.
The older girl punched her playfully in the arm. "See there, little sis? Nothing to worry about, she likes you too."
Ruby ran her finger over the heart beside her name and gently touched the deep pen marks that tried to obscure it.
"Why would she cross it out like this, Yang?" Her tone was somber now.
Yang wasn't sure why. She and Blake had discussed their own theories of course. There was a lot in play for Weiss. After all, she was an heiress to one of the most influential companies out there. Yang couldn't imagine that her family would support a relationship with Ruby. Below her class, no rich relatives, and a female to boot, it seemed like disapproval would almost be a requirement. But Yang took a glance at her sister's face and decided that she wasn't going to tell Ruby how the deck would be stacked against them. How many unexpected moments were going to be challenges at best and trials at worst for their relationship? And she really hoped that Weiss wasn't going to tell her those things either. But the blonde didn't know how Weiss felt about Ruby for sure, but if it was how she suspected, she imagined that the heiress wasn't going to be too happy about it. Yang took the angry ink work as evidence of that.
"Well, I think that maybe she is afraid of ruining your friendship too. And she's Weiss. You know, she doesn't like feelings."
Ruby giggled a bit and nodded. "You're right, she really doesn't."
"Seriously, though, Ruby. You are great as you are. Weiss would be lucky to have you, you know? So, I say work up your nerve and do something about it!" It had hurt Yang's heart to hear that her sister didn't think she was worthy. Ruby would be a godsend of positivity and love into anyone's life. And the way Yang saw it, Weiss needed a person in her life that could show her that the world wasn't as hostile as she thought it was.
Ruby saluted Yang with a cheesy grin. "You're right, I mean the worst thing that could happen is that she'll yell at me, and she would have done that anyway."
The blonde smiled as she watched her sister minimize the risks of such a bold action. They were a little similar in that regard as they made light of many particularly stressful situations.
"Yup, ten lien says that she yells at you, but accepts your offer "to date her."
"Oh, gosh, I really do need to think of how to say that better… And you're on! It's a bet I wanna lose!"
And then she was gone in a flurry of rose petals.
With a smile on her face and hope in her heart, Yang picked up her tablet to message Blake.
Ruby couldn't believe that this was happening. She found herself racing around to find Weiss. Her partner had not responded to her tablet message asking for her location, but in all fairness Ruby had been moving at warp speed searching Beacon for Weiss, not leaving much time for the heiress to even send a response.
Rose petals littered the grounds of the academy as Ruby darted from building to building looking for her partner.
"Ohh!" Ruby tried to decelerate but crashed into a mostly white object as she rounded the corner behind the cafeteria. She landed with a solid thunk onto it and smacked the side of her face on the sidewalk.
"Ruby! You idiot!" The voice was harsh and annoyed. And completely welcome.
"Weiss!" The brunette had succeeded in knocking the smaller girl square onto her backside. Ruby found herself sprawled across her partner's lap, face still firmly planted on the concrete. She sprang to her feet and extended her hand to Weiss.
The heiress rolled her eyes at the offer and stood without any help.
"Seriously, Ruby, you need to watch what you are doing. You're going to hurt someone. More." Weiss dusted off her skirt.
"Uh, yeah. Sorry, Weiss. I didn't mean to knock you down. But I-I,well, I was looking for you." The words fought to come out of Ruby's mouth as her brain realized what she was trying to say.
"Looking for me for what?" Weiss met her eyes and waited for an explanation.
Ruby felt her face getting hot as her blood boiled in her veins. Her heart was pounding in her chest, faster and faster, as she stared into the icy blue eyes of her partner. She felt both nauseatingly dizzy and swimmingly mesmerized . What was happening to her?
"Ruby! Why are you looking at me like that? And what's… what's that in your hand?" Weiss's voice sparked with harshness and an edge of panic.
Ruby snapped out of her frozen state and looked down at her hand. She still had the notebook paper that Yang had found.
"Weiss, I, um, I came across this paper… I think it's yours." With a terribly guilty look, Ruby held out the sheet to her partner.
At first, Weiss didn't move to take the page. The two girls just stared at each other. Weiss's face began to flush and she broke the intense eye contact. She snatched paper out of Ruby's hand, crumpling it tightly in her own.
Weiss looked at the ground beside Ruby and quietly said, "Can you please just forget you saw that? I-I don't want things weird between us, Ruby. You're my partner, my best -friend." Her voice caught on the last word.
Ruby had expected the heiress to get upset and angry at the invasion of privacy or maybe that she had been caught with an embarrassing secret. But this was unexpected. Weiss was clearly brimming with shame and insecurity. And a certain softness.
"Weiss, I was looking for you because I needed to tell you something. Really, really badly." A nervous "heh" sprang out of Ruby. She cleared her throat and tried to silently convince herself to relax.
Ruby took a step towards her partner and she took her hand that still was clutching the incriminating paper. The note that was making this all possible. She half expected Weiss to jerk away from the contact, but was encouraged when the girl just stood with eyes wide with astonishment instead.
Weiss responded almost in a whisper, "What did you need to tell me..?" Her face seemed to be getting more crimson by the moment.
"I needed to tell you, 'I want… I want you to date me.'"
Ruby could see a smile starting to form on her partner's face. Weiss's eyes seemed to sparkle as they hooked onto Ruby's grey ones. Impulsively, Ruby pulled the heiress to her by her hand and wrapped her other arm around her waist. She pressed her lips against Weiss's clumsily and eagerly. After a moment of surprise, Weiss returned the kiss, her lips were soft and gentle, countering the younger girl's awkwardness. After a few blissful moments, the pair just stood quietly looking at each other, trying to absorb the shock of what just happened. And the that beautiful smile emerged again. Ruby felt completely at ease as she looked into her partner's face.
Weiss took Ruby's other hand as a hint of playfulness entered her voice as she smirked, "You know what, Ruby… I want to date you too."