Weiss's eyes narrowed, and she came to a halt, gripping Ruby's arm tightly as she glared at Blake before them. Team JNPR was behind them, and they also stopped, noticing Blake coming forth to confront Ruby. Weiss started to pull Ruby, "Come on, we're going to be late to lunch." Ignoring Blake was her strategy, especially after their last meeting, but Ruby had other ideas apparently.

"Hello, Blake." She greeted pleasantly, giving the girl a small smile, "Did you need something."

Blake opened her mouth about to say something, and then closed it looking away. She took a deep breath, and then faced Ruby yet again, her face completely neutral, but Weiss could already see cracks in it, noticeably in how she was shaking. "Ruby…" Blake muttered, "I – I…" She paused yet again, "I'm…"

"It's ok," Ruby replied, "I forgive you."

Blake looked startled, her yellow eyes widening almost comically large, and her façade broke away entirely as her eyes started glistening with tears, "Y – You… Really?" Her lips started to tremble, and she looked pointedly away, "U – Uh…" She was at a complete loss for words, and Weiss simply observed as Ruby took a few large strides forward and wrapped her arms around the Faunus girl.

"It's ok," Ruby replied, "You're still my friend."

Blake must have had something rehearsed to say, but Ruby simply derailed it entirely with her actions, and now the black-haired girl was at a complete loss of what to do. Tears were pouring out of her eyes now, and Weiss could hear soft sobs from the girl as she just stared down at Ruby awkwardly.

"We'll be at lunch, see you guys there!" Jaune pushed his team forward, winking an eye at Weiss, who just returned it with a nod of her own.

The halls were fortunately pretty empty, since most of the students were already at lunch, so they got some relative privacy. Blake seemed to lose all of her composure now, since almost everyone was gone, and she wrapped her own arms around Ruby, burying her head in the crook of the girl's neck, "I'm so sorry," She cried.

"It's ok," Ruby answered gently, rubbing the girl's back, "I forgive you."

"Why now?" Weiss asked sharply, not believing the sight before her, "A few days ago you were convinced that she was a monster who killed her own sister," She saw both girls wince at that, and she wished she'd chosen her words better, but she pressed on, "Why the sudden change of heart?"

Blake took a step back from Ruby, wiping her eyes on her arms, and she let out a shaky breath, "I won't lie. What I did was completely out of line." She looked to Ruby, "I was just upset about what happened, and I let my anger take over."

"No kidding." Weiss grumbled, her arms still crossed.

Blake's lips trembled at Weiss's cold words, and she averted her gaze to the floor. Weiss was surprised – she thought the Faunus would lash out at her for saying that, but instead she seemed almost as timid and uncertain as Ruby was a few days ago. "I was wrong… I didn't know how to act or behave, I've never lost someone so close to me before, so I had to blame someone for it…"

"Blaming Ruby was hardly the right thing to do!" Weiss exclaimed, taking a step forward, "Why not blame the Grimm?"

"I know it was wrong!" Blake cried, glancing up at Weiss with tears streaming down her eyes, "I know, I've known it ever since it happened, but my head just refused to think differently. Even when I was yelling at you guys before, I knew it was wrong, but…" She shook her head, "I was upset."

"It's fine," Ruby replied, and then she pointedly looked at Weiss, "Right?"

Weiss rolled her eyes, but decided to do what Ruby was, "I'm still pissed at you," She started, seeing Blake look dejected, "But… You're a friend, and I don't have many of those. It would be stupid of me to alienate you."

Blake looked utterly shocked, "You two… You both still want to be friends?"

"Yes!" Ruby exclaimed, "Once a part of team RWBY, you're always a part of team RWBY, even when things get hard!"

"Thank you…" Blake muttered, unable to stop her tears again.

"So… What brought about this change of heart?" Weiss asked, stepping forward and standing next to Ruby now as she looked at Blake, "A few days ago you were very angry with us."

"I thought about what you said," Blake admitted, "About how Yang was Ruby's sister and your friend as well… It made me think about how it was affecting you two as well, but it wasn't until class earlier today that the implications really hit me." She looked at Ruby, "You're taking this just as hard, if not even harder than I am." She whispered, "I saw you crying and asking for forgiveness, and it just clicked – you were suffering just like I was this whole time."

Weiss's gaze softened at that, "We're all taking this hard."

"Yeah," Ruby nodded, "But we're in this together," She smiled at Blake, "Come here!" She wrapped her arms around Blake again, hugging her tightly, "I'm not going to let you go anywhere!"

"I can't believe I tried to leave you guys," Blake muttered, leaning into Ruby's hug and returning it earnestly, "After you learned about my secret, you two still remained my friends… Not many people would do that for me."

"Yeah well, it's good that you're realizing this now." Weiss replied with a smirk – it felt nice to fall back into their usual roles again, "The real question however, is whether you are going to join back up with us or not."

"Of course I am," Blake replied with a smile of her own to match Ruby's, "It's like she said, once a part of team RWBY, always a part of team RWBY."

Ruby's answering squeal of happiness was worth it, despite the fact that Weiss feared that she might go deaf.

XxXxXxX

The rest of the day went impressively well, if Weiss had to say so herself. Ruby seemed to recover significantly since Blake started being with them now, and it almost felt like old times, with the obvious exception of Yang. When would this feeling of loss go away? When would the memories of Yang stop being painful? When would she be able to hang out with her team and not have to be painfully reminded that Yang would never be there with them again?

"Weiss?" Blake waved a hand in the girl's face, and she snapped out of it, "I swear, you space off more than Ruby does now."

"Do not!" Weiss exclaimed, taking stock of her surroundings. They were in their room now, and it was just pass eight. Weiss was already wearing her night gown after a nice long shower, and Blake was now waiting for Ruby to get out of the bathroom so she could take her shower as well. It honestly felt very nice to have Blake back in the room, especially a Blake who wasn't so cold and hateful.

"I'm out!" Ruby called, leaving the bathroom, stretching her hands above her head. She wore her typical tank top and pajama pants, and she made her way over to her teammates, "What are you guys talking about?"

"About how you space out all the time," Weiss replied immediately, trying her best to hide her smile at how indignant Ruby got.

"What?! I never space out!" She cried.

"Ruby…" Blake's voice was soft, and had a weird edge to it, so both Weiss and Ruby looked towards her. They noticed her gaze looking down towards Ruby's wrists, which were wrapped up in bandages. Ruby realized what it was immediately, and tried to hide them behind her back, but the damage was already done. "Is that what I think it is?" She asked.

"No," Ruby shook her head, "It's just a new fashion statement," She replied, "All the girls are doing it nowadays!"

Weiss smacked her forehead, "Ruby, you'd have been more convincing if you literally said anything else. Your sense of fashion is abysmal."

Ruby frowned, and finally revealed her wrists, "It's… It's not as bad as it looks," She tried again.

"When did you do this?" Blake asked, gently holding Ruby's writs looking at the bandages intently, as if she could somehow see through them.

"It was a while ago," Ruby answered vaguely, "It's not that big of a deal."

"IT IS!" Blake shouted, "Ruby… Were you seriously suffering this much?" She asked, "And I was just being angry at you the entire time, I'm so sorry…"

"We already went over this," Ruby yanked her hand out of Blake's, "It's seriously not a problem, I forgive you, you don't need to say sorry anymore!"

"But…" Blake looked distraught, "You didn't have those when I was still in here, so this must have happened after I left the team…"

Weiss had to give Blake points for being so perceptive, even if it meant that she realized exactly what the catalyst was for Ruby cutting herself. "There's no point in hiding it Ruby, she already knows." She saw Ruby give her a betrayed look, but Weiss looked away, "There's no point in avoiding the truth."

"Blake…" Ruby turned back to the Faunus, "This is not your fault."

"It is," Blake denied.

"When I did this, it was because I kept seeing Yang, and I just wanted it to stop… I wasn't in my right mind." Ruby tried fruitlessly to explain.

"But if I hadn't have said all of those awful things to you, it never would have happened." Blake muttered, covering her eyes, "I can't believe I caused you to try something like that…"

"It's not your fault!" Ruby exclaimed, "Please believe me!"

Weiss watched the exchange, and couldn't help but want to laugh. The exchange was almost verbatim what she and Ruby argued about over the last week, except now the roles were reversed – it was Ruby telling Blake to forgive herself, and not Ruby being told to forgive herself. Weiss just watched the fruitless exchange between the two a little longer, but she finally interrupted.

"Both of you stop!" She shouted, "Blake, yes, your actions may have led to this, but even if that's the case, Ruby forgives you! If you really want to make it up to her, then be the best friend and teammate she'd ever had!"

"But…" Blake wanted to continue, but Weiss shook her head.

"No buts!" She turned to Ruby now, "And you, stop skirting around the issue. This is very serious, and not something to be taken lightly. Blake and I would really appreciate it if you didn't treat it like a joke, got it?"

Ruby looked away guiltily, "Yeah… ok."

"Good." Weiss sighed, "Now Blake, don't you have to take a shower?"

"Yeah," Blake muttered, looking back to Ruby, "I'm sorry…"

Ruby didn't speak in words this time, and she reached over and hugged Blake, "I forgive you, I forgive you, I forgive you!" She exclaimed over and over, "Do what Weiss says, if you want to make this up to me, stay my friend forever, ok?"

That seemed to finally get through to Blake, and she nodded, "Yeah, ok." She smiled lightly, "Thank you, Ruby."

They parted, and Blake went to take a shower, leaving Weiss and Ruby alone, in the room. Once the shower started, Ruby seemed to finally relax, and went to sit beside Weiss on her bed.

"Man, she's stubborn." Ruby sighed.

Weiss glanced over at her, "She's stubborn?" She muttered, causing Ruby to look towards her.

"Yeah, that's what I said!" Ruby replied.

"Ruby – you!" Weiss refrained from pulling out her hair, and let out a soft sigh, "Ruby. Do you not even realize the hypocrisy of what you're saying?" She asked, causing Ruby to tilt her head in confusion, "I've been telling you everything you told Blake for over a week now, and you stubbornly refuse to forgive yourself!"

"But…" Ruby looked to the floor, and started to twiddle her thumbs, "This is different."

"Hardly!" Weiss exclaimed, "You both need to learn to forgive yourselves, and realize that it wasn't your fault! It was never your fault!" She repeated the words over and over, hoping that Ruby would understand. Now that the silver-eyes girl seemed to be lucid, now was perhaps the best time to drive this home. "Forgive yourself!"

Ruby was silent, and looked away, "How?"

"I – I don't know." Weiss replied, "But, you have to do it if you want to move on from this. I know it's hard, but please, for my sake, do it."

Ruby looked up at her in surprise, "For your sake?"

Weiss blushed red, "I mean… I want to stay your partner you know, and while you've recovered a lot today, you still need to be able to fight!"

"Oh, I see." Ruby nodded, "I'll try."

"That's all I ask."

XxXxXxX

Making sure to get out of bed without Weiss waking up was incredibly difficult, but Ruby managed to pull it off after a few minutes. She tip-toed her way pass her sleeping form, and then pass Blake, and she entered the bathroom, shutting the door behind her with a soft click. She went to the sink, and started to wash her hands, since there was so much blood all over them.

It's not real, Ruby.

She paused in washing her hands, remembering Weiss's words, and she stopped, lifting them out of the water. It certainly looked real though, but why would Weiss lie to her about something like this? No, Weiss wasn't lying. She closed her eyes, and opened them, seeing the blood disappear the moment her eyes opened, "I…" She paused, "It's all not real, but…" She felt tears coming on as she recalled Yang's death again, and she looked down, seeing blood once more.

"It's all my fault," She mumbled.

It's not your fault.

Again Weiss's words went through her mind, and she paused. Why wasn't it her fault? She was the one who froze and allowed the Grimm to get in a superior position to kill her, after all. If she never came into that position, then the Grimm never would have tried to kill her, and her sister consequently would have never died. However… She wasn't the one who threw her sister in front of the Grimm. That was Yang's actions and her actions alone. She decided to do that on her own, without any sort of prompt from Ruby.

Again, another deep breath, and she closed her eyes. Opening them revealed no blood once more.

Forgive yourself.

"How?" She mumbled, "How do I do it?"

"It's easy!"

Ruby spun around so quickly upon hearing the voice that she tripped, collapsing to the floor, but that was hardly an issue. That was Yang's voice! It came from right behind her, and she couldn't help but stare wide-eyed at her sister standing before her, giving her the typical wide smile and her arms were cross under her chest, her eyes alight with mirth and joy.

"Yang!" Ruby cried, tears spilling from her eyes, "You – You're alive!" She got up from the floor, and shakily took a step forward, a smile forming across her face as she reached forth and hugged her sister…

… Only to again collapse to the floor, as the image of her sister just disappeared, leaving nothing but thin air. Confusion marred Ruby's face as she looked around the room, glancing all over the bathroom, "Yang?" She called, "Yang, where are you?"

No answer.

Ruby's eyes started to widen in horror, and her lips started to tremble as she began to come to a startling realization – "Please… Let that have been real… Yang…" She called, a sob escaping her lips as she called for her sister, "Yang…"

"Don't leave me…"

"Come back."

"Please…"

She wasn't coming back. Ruby already knew that – she bore witness to her death, saw her bloodied body lying face first in the ground, a hole torn right through her. Of course she wasn't coming back…

Ruby sat against the bathroom wall, bringing her knees forth and she buried her head in her knees as she wrapped her arms around them. She knew Weiss and Blake were asleep, and that she shouldn't disturb them, so she tried her best to keep her sniffling and cries as quiet as possible, but it was so hard to do that when she just saw Yang… Was it just a hallucination? Was that all it really was?

"How can I forgive myself?" She wondered aloud, "Please… Give me an answer Yang."

Yet again, no response. The only thing that she felt was again the urge to die – to end it all. She looked up towards the sink, knowing that there were some razors she could use… It would all be over, and then she wouldn't have to feel this torment – this unforgiving pain and self-hatred. She got up, and took the few steps towards the sink, absently glancing down at her wrists, and she started to undo the bandages.

Death… It was preferable to this.

So what if she had her friends? They didn't understand her pain – they weren't the ones who lost their loved ones. None of them knew the pain of losing family, let alone having it happen to them twice. When her mother died, Yang was there for her, and now that Yang was gone, there was no one there for her.

What about Weiss?

There was that stupid voice in her subconscious. She frowned though – what about Weiss? Weiss wanted to stay with her, she wanted to help her, she's the reason Ruby even managed to live this long… None of that was genuine though, was it? Weiss was an heiress to one the largest Dust Company on the planet, and Ruby knew that she could act. It was all just a lie – a worthless fucking lie.

What about Weiss? What about her? Who cares!

And her other friends? Nora, Jaune, Pyrrha, and Ren? They were just being with her out of pity, nothing more. They didn't really care about her, not really. They were probably just like everyone else, whispering behind her back, and they probably were among those in the crowd who likely laughed at her when she messed up against Jaune.

Ruby was dimly aware that she was self-justifying things to herself, but that part of her mind was squashed under the onslaught of despair. She finished undoing the bandages, staring at the many cuts on her wrists absently. Earlier they looked ugly to her – a horrible mark that would last her for the rest of her life. Now?

They looked like salvation.

Opening the medicine cabinet above the sink, she pulled out a shaving razor, and she smashed it against the sink, pulling out only the blade. She examined it in her hand, her eyes dulled as she lined it up against her left wrist, aligning it parallel to the others around it, and she sunk the blade into her skin. She shuddered as she felt the pain initially, but she didn't hesitate as she started to drag it across her wrist, watching as blood started to sprout out of the thin cut.

She finished the cut, and examined her wrist, watching it shake as she hardly registered the pain. She was unsatisfied though – while it hurt, she knew it wouldn't be enough to kill her… Wasn't there a main artery she could cut? She could cut that and then just allow the blissful darkness to take her away again like it had last time, only this time, she hoped that she wouldn't wake back up into this nightmare.

Aligning the blade yet again, she was about to press down when there was suddenly a knock on the bathroom door.

"Ruby?" Weiss's voice called, "Are you ok?"

Ruby scowled at the door, "I'm fine." She called weakly, "I'm just going to the bathroom."

There was a pause, and Ruby thought she'd left, but then her voice picked up again, "Then why did you avoid waking me up?" There was a hint of suspicion to her voice, Ruby noted by the intonation.

"I'm fine." Ruby replied.

"No…" Ruby saw the doorknob twist, "You're talking like you did before." Now there was a hint of fear, Ruby noted, by how Weiss's pitch went a little higher, "Ruby, if you're –."

She was exposed – Weiss was staring at her holding the razor to her wrist, and no doubt the white-haired girl saw the blood dripping down. Ruby didn't have anything to say, she just stared at Weiss. She looked back down at the razor, now not even caring about the girl's presence. If she could just cut this one last time, maybe it would all end.

The chance never presented itself, as Ruby felt a weight slam into her, and her wrist holding the razor was roughly grabbed. Her back then slammed against the wall, and she was staring into Weiss's piercing blue eyes. "RUBY!" Weiss screamed, "HOW COULD YOU?"

"Let me go!" Ruby cried, "Just let me go!" She struggled to regain control of her hand with the razor, but Weiss's grip was strong – very strong – and she squeezed her wrist, forcing her to drop the razor to the ground. Ruby wanted to fight back with her remaining arm, but Weiss saw it coming, and she gripped her arm, causing Ruby to hiss out in pain as Weiss's hand clasped over her bloodied wrist. "Let go!" Ruby yelled again, "LET ME GO!"

"RUBY!" Weiss shouted yet again, "Get a hold of yourself!"

"No!" Ruby struggled to kick Weiss, but the heiress pressed her body against Ruby's, forcing her legs to lock Ruby's in place. They were a tangled mess, but Weiss effectively had Ruby pinned against the wall, and there was nothing that she could do to break out of it.

"Ruby, please." Weiss's voice softened significantly, "Please… Stop…"

Ruby glared at the girl, but her anger slowly started to dissolve as she noticed tears beginning to roll down Weiss's cheeks. Color seemed to be returning to her world, and the hazy mist of despair seemed to lift along with it. Her anger started to cool, and she stopped struggling, just staring straight at Weiss. "I…" Ruby muttered, "Weiss?"

"Are you feeling better?" Weiss asked, ignoring her tears for now, "If I let you go, you're not going to do anything stupid, are you?"

"I…" Ruby paused, and she grit her teeth, incapable of saying anything else.

What was she doing? Why was she fighting Weiss? Weiss – the only one who stuck with her when things were rough? Why did she believe Weiss was lying to her?

Fresh tears sprung to Ruby's eyes, and she opened her mouth to say something, but she couldn't form words. It just came out as an incoherent mess. Her eyes glanced over to the throbbing pain in her left hand, and she couldn't help but cry more.

Was today all for nothing? All of those happy moments with her friends, getting Blake back – was it all meaningless? She was seriously going to go through with suicide? How could she have been so selfish?

"I – I'm sorry…" Ruby cried out, lowering her head to try and hide her face in shame, "I'm so sorry… I'm sorry…"

"Here, Weiss, we need to clean that wound." Ruby didn't even know Blake was in the bathroom, and judging from the surprised look on Weiss's face, the heiress didn't realize either. Still, Weiss reluctantly let go of Ruby, glancing down at her bloodied hand for a moment, before pulling Ruby forward gently towards the sink.

Silently, Weiss began to clean the wound, and Ruby just cried the entire time, feeling like a child. "I'm sorry…" She couldn't help but repeat over and over, even as Weiss cleaned the wound with water, and Blake started to apply the Hydrogen Peroxide. It may have stung – Ruby didn't know – she was too busy dealing with her grief of what she had nearly done to her friends, and to what she did again to Weiss.

"Ruby," Weiss's stern voice cut clean through her thoughts, and Ruby glanced up, "Why did you do this?"

"I…" Ruby wanted to just start to cry again, but she took as deep a breath as she could, which was quite difficult with her constant tears, "I saw Yang…"

Blake's eyebrow shot up, "Yang?"

"I thought I did," Ruby corrected herself, "She was right behind me, but when I turned around, she was gone… And then all I felt was nothing… I felt hollow inside." She pressed her free hands where her heart was, "It – It was like losing her a second time."

Weiss didn't say a single word, nor did she acknowledge she even heard Ruby, but when she finished wrapping the bandages, she let go of Ruby's hand, and stared at her. If Ruby thought her silence was distressing, nothing compared to seeing her eyes. She could see the immense amount of pain and fear in them, and the tears rippling around the edges of her lashes as she struggled not to cry. "How could you?"

Immense regret filled Ruby, "Weiss… I'm sorry."

Weiss didn't say another word, and she walked out of the bathroom without looking back. Ruby reached out for her, tried to call for her, but nothing came to her mouth. She felt like she let Weiss down – no, she didn't feel like she let her down, she did let her down. Weiss spent so much time helping her, and as repayment, Ruby just went ahead and tried to do that again.

"Ruby," Blake whispered, "I… I think we should get you some help."

"B – But I'll have to leave the academy if I do that," Ruby muttered, "I – I don't want to go, I don't want to leave you guys."

"You're saying that now, but just ten minutes ago you were trying to cut yourself," She pointed to her freshly wrapped bandages, "I don't think things will get better with time."

"No," Ruby shook her head, "I can get better, and I'll do my best! Please… Believe in me."

"Tomorrow morning, we'll go tell Ozpin." Blake replied, ignoring Ruby's plea, "You need help, and I'm not going to let my friend die because I want her to stay in the same grade as me."

"No… Please…" Renewed tears, "Don't do that, please…"

"Come on," Blake reached forward and gently grabbed her arm, "Go to sleep. We'll talk about it again in the morning."

"No!" Ruby yanked her hand away, "I'm not leaving!"

"Ruby…"

"NO!" Ruby shouted, "You're not taking me away!"

Anger, sadness, fear, and despair welled up in Ruby's heart, and she felt her aura around her as she used her semblance to get away. She'd successfully alienated her only two friends, and now they wanted her to go away! She couldn't take it, and she forced herself to run – she didn't care where she went, she just wanted to get away. She slammed the door opened and close so quickly that she doubted Weiss even noticed the blur that ran pass her.

She wasn't going to leave! She – She had to stay! She wanted to be with her friends!

Only one thought rolled through her mind: why did Yang have to die?

XxXxXxX

Weiss jumped to her feet immediately, noticing Ruby rushing pass her. "Ruby!" She screamed, but her voice was lost on the girl as she rushed out of the room so quickly that her eyes could barely keep focus on her. She looked towards the bathroom, and she saw Blake running into their room, looking wide-eyed and afraid. "What happened?!"

"I told her that we should get her help," Blake replied.

Weiss felt anger explode within her, "What?!" She cried, "Why?!"

"Because she needs it!" Blake argued back, "Weiss, she just tried to kill herself, and this isn't even the first time! Do you honestly think it's a good idea to keep her here?"

"I…" Weiss paused.

No. It wasn't a good idea at all. Ruby was clearly exhibiting signs of severe depression, and she did need help, but Weiss didn't want her to go away despite knowing all of that. Ruby was her friend, her partner, the person she cared about the most in the entire world, there was no way that she could let her go away!

"Never mind that for now," Blake cut in, "We have to find her. Do you know where she could have gone?"

"I don't know," Weiss answered, racking her brain for any possible spots, "This place is huge!"

"Damn," Blake muttered, "Alright, I'll get Jaune's team to help us out, you go look for her."

Weiss gave the girl a curt nod, and she rushed out of the room, looking down the dimly lit hallway. Whenever Ruby used her semblance, there were usually rose petals around – whether it was an added flair, or an actual effect of her semblance, Weiss really never knew the answer to. That was until now – it appeared to simply be a flair she added. There were no signs of rose petals in either direction, so she pulled her hair in frustration, and then she just picked a random way to run.

Internally she was cursing Ruby the entire time, berating her for being so stubborn and idiotic, but another part of her was also incredibly worried, fearing that while alone, Ruby may consider giving in and going through with suicide. Her heart beat faster at the terrifying thoughts, and she tried her best to suppress her tears, but she knew they were coming.

What if she found Ruby in a puddle of blood, her wrists all jagged and shredded by razors she managed to find? What if Ruby decided to just run away, and no one could ever find her? The scenarios just grew worse and worse by the second in her mind, and soon her brisk run turned into a frantic stride. She was easily running faster than she could ever recall running in her life, and her breath was coming out ragged, her face turning redder as she exerted more force than she thought she was capable of.

Her mind started to grow dizzy however, as she was unable to keep up with the pace, and soon she had to stop and catch a breath. She came to a stop in the hallway leading to the many classrooms, and she leaned against the wall. She wished dearly for a water bottle, and she also realized that she was going to have to wash the night gown she was wearing thoroughly to get the stench of sweat off of it. She shook her head of such frivolous thoughts, and she continued running.

The night turned into a blur for her, at least an hour passed as she searched, and she ran into Blake and the members of team JNPR along the way as well, giving each other updates and status reports on where they've been. It was amazing that they couldn't find a trace of her anywhere, and it worsen Weiss's panic each time she learned that Ruby wasn't in another location each time, and her heart grew heavier and heavier as the fear grew worse and worse.

"Where are you?" Weiss asked herself during a brief break. Her legs were throbbing in pain from the exertion, but she forced them to keep moving despite it.

It was early in the morning, a little pass three, when Weiss's scroll started to vibrate. She snatched it out of her pocket, and brought it up, and her heart leap as she read a single message from Pyrrha: I found her. Her fingers acted before she even thought to ask where Ruby was, and then she got another reply with the location, her eyes widening as she read Beacon Cliffs.

I'll deal with this. She typed out, Please, I'll give you guys an update after I talk with her.

She waited with baited breath for a few minutes, and smiled when she saw all of them give confirmations. I'll be close by, so just say something if you need help. Was Blake's reply, and Weiss was sure the others wouldn't be going to their room until they knew the situation was under control.

Getting off of her sore legs, Weiss pushed forward, and ran towards where she knew Ruby was.

The Beacon Cliffs was a beautiful spot, Weiss had to concede, as she finally made it there. It didn't quite match up with her home at Atlas, but most things didn't. She could see a massive view of the Emerald Forest, and the Cliffside itself had no benches or manmade structures, except for the launch pads she knew were somewhere further off. Instead, it was as if nature itself claimed this land, and she found Ruby sitting dangerously close to the edge, staring up into the star filled sky.

She walked slowly at first, afraid that if Ruby saw her, she would run, but then she gained more confidence the closer she got, until she was almost directly behind the girl.

"Ruby." She spoke up, causing Ruby to jump in surprise, "It's nice to finally find you."

Ruby spun around, and looked up at Weiss, "Oh… Hi."

"Hello," Weiss greeted back, and she just took a seat right next to the girl, where she could look over the Emerald Forest from Ruby's side. "Nice view."

"Yeah," Ruby muttered, "But I like the stars better."

Weiss looked up, and she had to admit that the stars did look incredible that night. There were hundreds of them in the sky, some brighter than others, but all of them were equally as beautiful as the rest. She just stared up, getting lost in the sight, but then she heard sniffling from Ruby, and turned to look at her. "What's wrong?"

"I'm… I'm not a very good person, am I?" Ruby asked.

Weiss wasn't sure why Ruby would ask such a ridiculous question, but she humored the girl anyway, "I think you're a wonderful person, Ruby."

For some reason, that seemed to be the wrong answer, and Ruby lowered her head, covering it with her hands as she started to cry, "You're too nice to me…"

Weiss looked away from Ruby, and instead admired the stars yet again, "You're my partner, Ruby."

"But… Why does that mean I deserve your kindness?" Ruby asked, looking towards Weiss with a nigh desperate look in her eye, "After everything I did to you now – after I just went against your wishes, and tried to k – kill myself…"

"That…" Weiss paused, "That did upset me, Ruby. I'm not going to lie about that."

"And now you probably hate me," Ruby muttered, now looking away from Weiss, out towards the Emerald Forest, "I'm just an idiot who keeps screwing up. I can never do anything right."

"You're just sick…" Weiss muttered, the words feeling like ash on her tongue, "You… You might need help."

Ruby didn't say a single word, but she just kept on staring at the forest. Finally, she let out a sigh and started to speak, "You know, when I lost my mother, this happened to me before…"

Weiss glanced towards Ruby, but the younger girl didn't look back. This was one of the few times Ruby had mentioned her mom, so she just nodded and asked, "What happened to her?"

"One day, she left to go do a mission with her team." Ruby replied, "I don't know the details – I doubt I'll ever learn all of the details – but something went very wrong. Their team got separated. My mom was by herself, and was ambushed by the Grimm in the forest."

"Oh…" Weiss muttered.

"I always hear about how she fought bravely, that she died like a Huntress is supposed to. I heard that she gave her life so her team could live, but like I said, I don't know the details of the mission itself. The only part I remember perfectly is staying awake at home, wondering when mom will come home."

"Ruby…"

"I stayed up so late that I fell asleep the next morning and had to skip school," She chuckled lightly, "And then when I woke up, I waited even more. 'She's supposed to be home by now', that's what I remember thinking to myself. The thought that she was dead never crossed my mind, because I always heard stories of how amazing she was."

"And then you got the news?" Weiss asked, already knowing the answer.

"It wasn't until a week later when uncle Qrow walked in through the front door… He and my dad went into the kitchen to talk. I don't remember hearing very much, since I was told to go play while they talked, but I knew that if uncle Qrow was home, then mom must be too! So I went around trying to find her." Ruby took a small breath, "I remember my dad taking me aside, and I remember him crying a lot when he told me that mom was not going to be coming home. I thought he was kidding at first – mom was invincible! She couldn't die to the Grimm!" She shook her head, "It wasn't until uncle Qrow told me that I realized they weren't kidding."

"That... Must have been hard." Weiss conceded.

"It was." Ruby replied curtly, pulling up some grass as she recalled her memories, trying to keep her tears at bay, "I was only seven at the time, but I still remember being sad, and I remember being lost and not knowing what to do. I thought my mom would always be there for me, but then she wasn't. If it wasn't for Yang, I don't know what I would have done."

"Yang's like that," Weiss replied with a soft smile.

"Yeah… She is." She replied, "She would hold me for hours while I just cried, and she never left my side for even a minute." Ruby stopped, reaching up and wiping her eyes, "My mom was the most important person in the world to me, and then she vanished. Dad got distant after that – he was never mean or abusive, but he sort of just… Stopped." She shrugged helplessly, "So that left Yang to care for me. She was awkward at first, and she'd beat up people who made me cry, but she sort of became like a second mother to me. And now… Now she's gone too…"

Weiss could see Ruby's shoulders shake, so she reached over and took hold, "It'll be alright."

"I wish I could believe you," Ruby muttered through her tears, "But we both know that's not true."

"Ruby…" Weiss didn't hesitate as she got onto her knees, and leaned over to hug Ruby. The silver-eyed girl's head whipped over, and she blinked her eyes a few time. "It's ok, Ruby, we'll get through this together…"

"But I think Blake was right…" Ruby whispered, "I need help, I – I can't trust myself."

"I don't want you to go…" Weiss stubbornly gripped Ruby tighter, "I'll be there for you, so please don't go!"

It was selfish of her – she knew that Ruby should seek professional help, but Weiss didn't want to be alone. Ruby was the most important person in her life, and she'd be damned if she let her go… But why? What was it about Ruby that made her feel this way? How did she come to accept her as someone this important to her? Sure, she was the first person to actually treat her as a normal human being, but even then, wasn't this going too far for someone who she only considered a friend?

"You…" Whatever she was about to say, Ruby reconsidered it, and instead she leaned into Weiss's side, "If y – you stay with me, then I'll try to do the same for you." She gripped Weiss's gown, "Please help me…"

"Whatever you need, I'll help you with it." Weiss promised. She was shaking – but she really couldn't help it. The adrenaline that was still coursing through her veins, and the fear that she may lose Ruby was nearly overwhelming, so much so that she could barely think straight. She knew Blake was nearby, and she was positive that the girl was probably listening, perhaps unapprovingly since Weiss refused to let Ruby go, but honestly, Weiss didn't care right now.

The two of them just sat there, along the edge of the Cliffside holding each other, ignoring the sights around them as they just focused on each other. Time passed, but they didn't knew how much passed, and nor did they care. It wasn't until there was a slight vibration from Weiss's pocket that she opened her eyes and pulled out her scroll.

"Blake says we should go back to our room." Weiss muttered, her eyes wandering down to the time, "It's already four."

Ruby let go of Weiss, and separated from her, a small smile on her face, "Then I guess we should go to bed, huh? We don't want to miss any class."

"You're worried about classes?" Weiss asked. Classes were the farthest thing from her mind right now, especially after Ruby's suicide attempt. She shook her head, and reached up to flick Ruby on the forehead, "You… You're something else sometimes."

Just like that, things returned to normal, Ruby rubbed her forehead and pouted cutely, but Weiss just ignored it, and held out her hand. Ruby accepted it, and they both began to walk back towards Beacon. Unfortunately, this time Weiss walked back with the knowledge that even though Ruby looked fine, even though she seemed to be recovering again, that it could all come crumbling down just as fast.

She'd grown sloppy, she'd stopped bothering to watch Ruby as closely, and it was only luck that she even woke up – she blushed as to why she woke up – since it was purely due to the lack of warmth next to her which she'd started growing quite used to these past few days. Would she wake up in time to stop it if it happened a third time though?

She didn't know, and she was absolutely terrified.

XxXxXxX

Notes: So... Here we are again.

Got a good review telling me that the ending didn't fit with the theme of the rest of the story, and you know what? He was right.

So I'm rewriting the ending to make it fit. Things aren't just going to magically get better, and while I enjoyed writing Yang's character, I felt that the entire scene with her wasn't very good, since - as he put it - it just amounts to a Dues Ex Machina. I want Ruby to get through this on her own with the help of Weiss, and consequently, this means that the story's going to be longer than I intended. It hopefully should only be another 6-7k chapter longer at this rate, but I'm not going to put a cap on it.

Anyway, thanks for reading!