Yang laid on one of the lawns around Beacon, arms folded under her head, staring up at the clouds overhead, her mind full of everything but the thing she really needed to think about. A shadow fell over her and she turned her head to see Professor Goodwitch standing there, scowling down at her. "Miss Xiao Long, if I'm not mistaken, you're supposed to be in class right now."

"Yeah, not really feeling it right now, Professor. I got something I need to work through, deep thoughts, right?" Yang gave Goodwitch the most convincing smile she could conjure up at the moment.

"I see. Something personal, and rather distracting, I take it?" Goodwitch's expression softened slightly. "Miss Xiao Long, it probably doesn't surprise you to hear that you are far from the first student to blatantly skip class in order to ponder something weighing heavily on their soul. Just… don't make a habit of it, and if you need someone to talk to, both I and the school counselor are available. And don't stay out here all day; the weather forecast calls for rain later this afternoon."

After Goodwitch left, Yang settled back into a doze, still trying to work through the thing her mind was so desperate to avoid. Eventually, someone laid down next to her, not saying a word. The blonde didn't need to look to know who it was; she knew their presence instinctively. "Hey, Ruby."

"Hey, sis. You okay? You weren't in class."

"Just thinking. Heavy thoughts, okay?"

"Got it." And with that, the two of them settled into a comfortable silence for a while. They'd sat like this often during their childhood whenever one of them was troubled. They just sat there, being there for each other until the troubled one either worked it out or felt like sharing.

The blonde sighed. She really didn't want to have this conversation with her little sister of all people, but if there was anyone she could trust to keep it to themselves, it was probably Ruby. She'd tease Yang mercilessly about it later, but Yang was pretty sure she'd listen to what was troubling her sister without judging. "Hey, Ruby?"

"Yeah?"

"How'd you know you were gay?"

Ruby's eyes had started to drift closed, lulled by the warm day, but now they shot wide open. "Well, uh, there was this girl at Signal, and we were friends, and then we got closer and closer and then one day, there we were, kinda dating. It wasn't any one thing, really, it was just one moment after another. Why do you-wait, you know?"

"Yeah, I caught you and, what was her name, Threnody? I caught the two of you sneaking a kiss one day. I didn't say anything, figured it was your business, and you'd tell people when you were ready."

"Thanks, sis."

"So, you two still a thing?"

"We keep in touch, but we're not 'together' anymore. We're so far apart, she met someone new, I met someone new, you get the idea."

"Right." The sisters fell back into a companionable silence, Ruby feeling that her sister had more to say, but waiting for Yang to be ready to say it. "I got asked out this morning, just before classes."

"Cool."

''The thing is, I hadn't thought of-that person in that way before. I mean, we're friends and all, but I'm not sure I think of them like that, got it?"

"Got it. And you're not sure what to do?"

"Not a clue." Yang stretched, working her arms for a moment before to get the kinks out before turning on her side to look at her sister. "So, met somebody new, eh? When do I get to meet this person? I gotta give them the good old 'If you hurt my sister' speech. It's a big sister's right and responsibility."

Ruby opened her mouth, but before she could answer, her scroll made an odd chime. The silver-eyed girl fished it out of her pocket, tapped out a quick message, then put it away, a blush rising on her cheeks. "That her?" Yang asked, a teasing tone in her voice.

"Yes, and no, you don't get to know who she is just yet," Ruby answered, flustered. "She's a really private person, and she's not comfortable with people knowing about us, yet. But I'll let her know you're the first person I want to tell, okay?"

"Okay."

"And aren't we here to troubleshoot your love life, not mine?" They shared a chuckle for a moment, then Ruby started counting off points on her fingers. "Okay, so you got asked out, by a friend, a female friend I'm guessing from what you've said, and now you're not sure what to do."

"That's it. Any advice?"

"Nope. This you've really got to decide for yourself. But if they're a friend of yours, even if you just want to stay friends, you owe them an answer, I think."

"Yeah." Yang grimaced and flopped back down on the lawn. "Here's the thing, Rubes: I like guys. But when she asked me, I… I wasn't offended, or disgusted, or anything like that. It was more like… like somebody offered you a different brand of soda than you normally drink. Not a similar flavor, but something really different, something you hadn't tried before. Which sounds terrible and really doesn't explain it at all."

"I think I've got it. Not what you're usually into, but something you hadn't tried before."

"Right. And the thing is..." Yang's voice trailed off as the blonde tried to put her thoughts into words. "The thing is, I kinda wanted to say yes, and I'm not sure what I think about that."

"Sounds like you might be into them after all."

"Yeah, but… does that make me gay?"

Ruby laughed. Her sister was so flustered it was cute. "No, no it doesn't, not if you don't want it to. It could be that you like guys and girls, or maybe just them. It's not an on-off kind of thing; it's more of a spectrum, with lots and lots of options."

"So… her asking me out, it's just another option?"

"Yep," Ruby answered, popping the 'p' as her scroll made that wonky chime again and she pulled it out to answer it. "Act fast, though. Relationships are usually a limited-time offer."

Yang sat up, wrapping her arms around her knees. "Sooo, maybe telling her 'We need to talk about this' is my best option?"

"If that's what you want to do."

Yang gave her sister an exasperated look. "You're not much help, you know."

Ruby stuck her tongue out at her sister. "Hey, I passed on a quiet lunch alone with my girlfriend to help you sort this out."

"Oh, shit, I didn't realize-you're not in trouble with her, are you?"

"Nah, I told her I was helping my sister work something out. And don't worry, I won't tell her what you needed help with. I don't even know who asked you out, and I don't really want to know, not until the two of you are ready to tell me."

"Thanks, Ruby." Yang leaned over and gave her sister a hug.

"Hey, isn't this what sisters are for?" Ruby muttered into Yang's shoulder.

Pulling back from the hug, Yang jumped to her feet. "Okay, I'm going to go talk to my mystery lady, while you scurry off to hopefully salvage a lunchtime rendezvous with yours. Catch you later, sis."