It's funny how the world works, how bad things happen to good people, how the good try to shed their light upon the world and are always snuffed out by the evil. And it's funny how, regardless of the never-ending struggle between good and evil, there is always someone that would take the torch of their past brethren, and start the cycle anew. But that view is on a much larger and broader scale, on a personal scale this cycle is manifested in different ways. Some are themselves evil, and avidly hunt the good to snuff out their light, like a bird would hunt a bunny. Others are good and wish to share their light with the world, like the sun that tries to illuminate the shadows. Yet some are somewhere in between, one day they may push someone down, and the next help someone up, they are impressionable, thirsty for knowledge, and above all, lost.
On an even more personal scale, this cycle is the driving force for everything that makes Ruby Rose who she is. Somewhere deep down she knows the brutal truth, she knows that sometime in the future, she will die. And with the line of work she is pursuing, that event could come at any time, for herself and her teammates. That's the harsh truth the young leader refuses to give attention, that one day her friends will die, and they may die before her, and at the very worst, she may watch them die. This reality is what sometimes keeps her up at night, yet this same reality is what drives her forward, it's why she skipped grades,why she spends most of her time training to fight, and why she cherishes all of her friendships dearly.
Watching Pyrrha die in front of her, watching her strongest friend dissipate into ash and the wind blow her away made Ruby realize that truth. Before that they were all invincible, Torchwick, the White Fang, they fought them all and won, youthful exuberance drove them onward, and their skill only served to accentuate the feeling of invincibility. Yet watching her friend be scattered by the wind, like rose petals over a garden, made her remember that they aren't immortal, that one day they will die, and that if things keep going the way they are, that day may be sooner as opposed to later. This made Ruby re-evaluate her friendships, and led to a stunning realization.
That realization led Ruby to where she is now, walking out of her home, leaving her family behind to pursue something she wasn't entirely sure of herself. She was about to leave a father who nearly lost his daughters, whom are all he had left, a sister who lost not only her arm, but yet again lost her partner, and an uncle who...well, an uncle who always leaves anyway. She was about to leave that all because of a feeling in her gut, and a feeling in her heart. She was wrestling with the emotion for the better part of her time at Beacon academy, but never had a reason to act on it and was always distracted by some other task, like weapon maintenance or school work.
Yet even with neglect and distractions, the feeling was always lurking behind her, nipping at her heels and unconsciously driving all of her decision. So off she went, on a journey that could easily destroy the one friendship she cherishes above the rest, or could one day be the best decision of her life. Today Ruby Rose set off to save her one friend from her cold, icy tower. Today was the day that Ruby Rose began to bloom.
Today had to be the day she left, and she had to leave now, because today is the day of the week, tuesday to be specific, when Yang was too sad about Blake to see anything out of her tear-filled eyes, and when her father was too busy comforting her to keep an eye on Ruby. She didn't have to worry about her uncle Qrow, he wouldn't try to stop her, she was sure of that. But she was worried about the remnants of team JNPR, or Junip as they should be called, who knew one letter was worth so much? She knew they would be coming to take her away on their own journey, one of probably worldly importance, but she could care less right now, because she had her own world to go save. So today was the day when she put the note telling her father she was leaving on her bed, and it was the day when she actually left.
At the first caw of the raven she left home, left the note on her bed, and left behind some of the few people close to her that are still alive. She traveled lightly, she knew she'd be doing a lot of walking so she didn't want to pack heavy. Only necessities and Crescent Rose were with her on this voyage, although in her eyes Crescent Rose was a necessity. After a visit to her mother's grave Ruby was on the first airship to Atlas, her first step towards her goal, towards Weiss. Ah yes, that was the reason for this quest, it was the same reason every protagonist went on a journey, it was for love, her love for Weiss.
The airship gave her time to reflect on just how stupid of a thing she was doing. She was leaving her emotionally, physically, and now most likely even mentally broken sister, and her father who almost lost everything he had left in his life. Her friends who lost someone who was less of a teammate and more of a sister or lover in one case. But most importantly poor little Ruby Rose felt like she was leaving the world behind. She understood that with her 'Silver Eyes' and with the current state of the world she could've played an intrinsic part in the fight against whatever the hell they were fighting against. Yet despite all of this, Ruby knew what she was doing had to be done, because if she was going to save the world, she needed that person by her side. So off she went to the cold, militaristic land of Atlas. Off she went, away from home and hearth, from friends and family. Off she went, to Weiss
The thought of seeing Weiss again was all Ruby needed to reinvigorate herself. So she lost herself in the memories of Weiss, from their fiery meeting all the way through to their icy divulgence. Somewhere along that line, sometime in the chapters of her life since meeting Weiss, Ruby fell in love with her not-so-cold-hearted friend, but pinpointing when was a much different story. Was it when she first saw her fighting style, it was the pinnacle of elegance and perfection, just like Weiss herself. Or maybe it was when Weiss was fighting and seemed to be losing, thus Ruby got to see her at her lowest, even though she thought Weiss was still beautiful. When she really gave it thought, Ruby didn't realise her feelings for Weiss until it was too late, and how cliché of her. How cliché of Ruby to not see what was standing before her, or sleeping under her, and no, not like how you're thinking.
To Ruby, Weiss was perfect. The way she fought, her grades, how she dressed, her manners, and all the way to her flawless alabaster skin. Yet Ruby also knew that Weiss wasn't perfect, that she wasn't the best fighter, there was someone smarter than her out there in the vast world, that her manners were born of a cold, loveless childhood, and that even her skin was marred by a simple scar over one eye. Yet all of this didn't matter to Ruby, she believed that all which made Weiss imperfect made her more Weiss, everything 'wrong' with her made her who she is and made Ruby love her more. Slowly Ruby let sleep embrace her, and as it did so she couldn't help but imagine Weiss standing before her, gently chiding her for falling asleep on this mission of hers.
It was cold outside today, much like it was yesterday, and the day before that, and it will be cold tomorrow too. 'It will be cold every day in this dust forsaken place', thought Weiss. And she was not wrong at all, in fact she couldn't have been any more right. Atlas was cold, is cold, and will always be cold. The weather is cold, the people are cold, and even the food is cold. The only hot things in Atlas are fire dust, actual fire, and 'No no no no, not that, she's not even in Atlas anyways'. You see, Weiss is what we would call an absolute idiot, she may be the smartest idiot around, but she's still an idiot. Her cold heart turned away almost everyone at Atlas and that carried over into Beacon, it was so cold she didn't need to use ice dust until several months after initiation, after meeting her partner. Because she hadn't noticed it before, but her heart began to thaw, words meant to hurt were soon used for endearment, studying sessions became private time where they could talk, and all she saw was red.
At first Weiss thought it was because she had never made a friend before and this is what having a friend was like, right? Weren't you supposed to always think about your best friend, weren't they always supposed to be on your mind? Are you not supposed to have day and night dreams about them and be want to be around them all the time? Weiss knew now that she had been foolish, she had even tried to get Neptune to dye his hair red at the tips. That didn't work so well, and neither did trying to ignore the problem because the more she ignored the problem the worse it became. The more she ignored the problem the more she was hit with soft puppy eyes and a small pout, and the more she would lie awake at night and stare at the bunk above her. How cliche of Weiss to not see what was right in front of her, or rather sleeping above her, and no, would you stop thinking like that?
As Weiss lie in bed that day, that day being Wednesday and Wednesday being Dad-is-too-busy-to-even-say-good-morning-day, she looked out of her window and watched the airships fly by, always hoping to catch a glimpse of red. Turning onto her other shoulder and facing away from her window, Weiss was met with a mirror and was forced to stare at herself. She was acutely aware of her imperfections, her cold, icy blue eyes, her pale porcelain skin, and her ever prominent scar. The more she looked the more she was reminded of how much of a failure she was, to her family, her friends, and to herself. She was almost forced to reflect on her past actions, staring at herself like this allowed her to do naught but think about herself, and seldom was it positive. Every Wednesday was like this, it started with a meal of baseless hope, a side of self loathing, and a tall, cool glass of logic that Weiss never touched. But this day, she decided, this day was going to be different, today was the day that Weiss was going to get out of bed, drink that glass of logic, and go do something. Today was the last day her heart would remain frozen, today was the last day Weiss Schnee was going to be lonely.
So she got out of bed, dressed, and left without a word. She knew what she was doing was wrong, she should at least have told her butler to not wait on her, but she didn't care, she needed to go. She got outside and was met by the cold she had grown so accustomed to, but she felt oddly warm nonetheless. Weiss calmly walked away from her estate, not caring if anyone saw her, and knowing that if anyone did they wouldn't try to stop her. She walked towards the airship port, luckily for her it wasn't too far away, and her trip was graced with several ships flying overhead, some returning and some leaving. 'Soon', Weiss thought, 'Soon I'll be leaving too'.
Ruby awoke from her nap feeling rested and warm, despite the chill the airship had taken on. She would have remained sleeping if not for the announcement made by the captain, stating that they would arrive at Atlas in around 30 minutes. 30 minutes was too long for Ruby, too much time to herself to think of all the bad decisions she had made. Like how she had left everyone behind, could have possibly forsaken the world, and how she didn't have a single idea of what she was going to say to Weiss once she saw her...if she saw her. That was another oversight on Ruby's part, she didn't have the slightest idea on where she could find Weiss. All she could do is stare at the airships heading in the opposite direction and gentle snowfall that had just started, and improvise when she landed.
To say Weiss was annoyed was an understatement, halfway to the port it started to snow, and her heels were not made to walk in the snow, and on top of that she started to think about what she would be leaving behind. Her family's enterprise, which she could have turned into a paragon for justice and equality when she took over...if she took over...her father had always preferred Whitley. She was leaving behind her wealth, but was also leaving behind a loveless family. She was leaving her childhood home, her kingdom. 'I'm also leaving behind a workaholic father and an alcoholic mother, all for the sake of a cookieholic,' thought Weiss, 'You know, the more I think about this the better it seems', Yet even with the good seemingly outweighing the bad, Weiss' head was still swarming with questions. Was Ruby gay? Did this make her gay, or was she just attracted to Ruby? Is Rubysexual even a thing? What if Ruby turned her down? Where could she go after? But the most prominent question was 'What the hell am I going to say to Ruby when I see her? Luckily for Weiss, the airship she was leaving on called for boarding before she could start thinking and she distracted her mind by looking out the window and watching the other airships. 'Fools', she thought, 'Why would you ever want to come here?'
'Oh my dust,' thought Ruby, 'Why have I never come here before?' As Ruby's airship began to duck underneath the clouds and near its destination, she finally got to see Atlas. Although it was an amalgamation of a school, military base, and a city, it was still stunningly beautiful. White buildings with hints of gray or black to add contrast, towers resembling castle keeps rose from amongst the city to keep an ever watchful eye out for intruders. And last but not least, Ruby knew for a fact that the most beautiful thing was somewhere in that place, all she had to do was find her. The pilot's voice was projected over the intercom again, exclaiming that there was approximately 15 minutes until they landed.
Weiss felt the airship lurch underneath her as it took off and she knew with that there was no turning back now, she would have to sort out her issues when they came up. She continued watching the other airships and noticed one that just ducked underneath the clouds, 'Who would come to Atlas at midday?' she thought to herself, unaware that people were asking 'Who would leave Atlas at midday?' As she looked out of the window she found herself drawn to the airship and decided to use it as a way to distract herself from thoughts Ruby. Instead she made up false life stories of who she thought was in the ship, what they were doing here, and why they came at noon. As it travelled closer to her own, Weiss tried to look into it to give her fake stories faces.
"5 minutes until we touch down in Atlas, I hope everyone enjoyed the flight and thank you for flying air express" echoed the voice of the captain. Ruby once again was hit with the full weight of what she was doing, and instead of having another existential crisis, she decided to just look out the window more. Instead of actually coming up with solutions to her problems, Ruby instead asked herself who would be leaving Atlas at midday? She was also unaware that someone was asking Who would come to Atlas at midday? She decided to do what she always did when she was bored on an airship, make up fake stories for the people on her airship, but since she was alone (because who in their right minds would come to Atlas at midday?) she had decided to make up fake stories for people on the airship that was leaving. Ruby had felt that maybe it was a spy on a mission of worldly importance, maybe they were going to whisper to the leader of another kingdom and coordinate an attack on the Grimm HQ, or maybe they left the oven on at home, 'Everyone makes mistakes' she thought. So as the ship got closer to her own she peered into it and tried to look for anyone that could pass as a spy.
It was at this point that Ruby and Weiss saw the other, and it was at this same point Ruby did the first thing that came into her mind, jump. Ruby ran to the nearest emergency exit and lept out of it, hoping that somehow Weiss wouldn't have seen her and that she could instead follow her to wherever she was going so she didn't interrupt her, she knew how much Weiss hated being interrupted. At the same moment Ruby jumped, Weiss did too, she hoped that she could launch herself with a glyph or two to Ruby's ship and at least hug her, because she didn't trust her mouth to speak and she knew how much Ruby loved hugs.
Because of these coincidences, Ruby and Weiss saw each other again. But instead of launching herself to the other airship, Weiss instead flung herself at Ruby, hugging her in midair, and landed both of them safely on the ground trying her hardest not to cry on Ruby's shoulder. Ruby, on the other hand, did not try to stop the waterworks, when Weiss hug-tackled her out of the air, Ruby understood what it meant. Weiss wasn't a spy going to save the world or turn off their oven, Weiss was a confused young girl on a journey that had something to do with love. Ruby could guess that last part because all she could understand of what Weiss was saying between sobs was "Ruby" and "Love". Ruby, not being one for holding back, burst into tears, this made Weiss also start crying, and after a few minutes of crying together in the middle of the snowy field the fell into, their tears subsided.
Weiss started to open her mouth to speak, but Ruby put a finger to her lips before she could say anything. "It's okay," she said still sobbing, "I think I know what you're gonna say, so let's save it for when we're both sure, but for now let's go get the gang back together." Weiss, in shock of Ruby's mature answer decided that if she agreed or offered her own opinion then there wouldn't have been enough actual emoting. "Hold on a second," Weiss said after wiping her tears on her sleeves, "I'm sorry but I need to say this Ruby...I think I'm in love with you...actually, after running away from home and jumping out of an airship, I know I'm in love with you." This was all it took to send poor Ruby Rose into what she would always remember as the happiest cry of her life. Seeing Ruby breakdown into tears and leap into her arms put Weiss into a similar condition as her friend. And so they sat there in the snow, too busy crying and hugging each other to realize it was cold, until at last Weiss stood up and said with tears still running down her face,"Let's go." Ruby didn't ask where they were going, she knew that no matter what happened, as long as Weiss was with her, things couldn't be that bad. Weiss didn't know where they were going, but she was sure that anywhere was better than the middle of a field, covered in snow, and above a surprisingly busy airship path.
AN: It sucks I know