Hey everybody! I'm back with a new chapter! Sorry this one took so long, I've been a bit busy lately. This chapter doesn't really have a place as far as "parts" go. It should probably really be the end of Part 1, as it has very little to do with the mission-oriented adventure quest-y feel of Part 2, but I was already happy with the way Part 1 ended. Consider this a transition of sorts. Also, special thanks to my new editor, Anna! I love her dearly, and she did a great job at polishing up the general roughness of this chapter. Enjoy!
The next morning when Weiss awoke, Ruby had already left for breakfast. Weiss herself showered and dressed, then took it upon herself to awaken her other teammates, ignoring their red-faced stammerings of explanation. She managed a quick "hello" to Pyrrha as she passed JNPR's room in the hallway, and made her way down to the mess hall. Ruby was already there, poking and prodding at a plate of scrambled eggs and sausage.
"Oh, good morning Weiss." Ruby said, barely registering her partner's appearance.
"Good morning, Ruby." Weiss responded tentatively. She half expected Ruby to shamefully explain her embarrassing behaviour the night before, or want to have a "serious discussion" about their relationship, or even to simply burst out in pure emotion, be it one of her trademarked bear hugs or sudden, sobbing tears. Ruby did none of these. Instead, she continued to play with her breakfast, failing to address Weiss at all.
The silence continued until Nora, Blake, and Yang arrived and took their respective seats at the table. Ruby perked up at Yang's arrival, and began to absently chat about their upcoming classes and activities. Weiss took the opportunity to politely converse with Nora, something she didn't normally partake in due to the girl's excitable nature, but an activity she occasionally enjoyed nonetheless. It was, after all, still girl talk.
Ruby continued to evade talking to Weiss on the way to their first class, making only basic conversation and speaking only when spoken to. Weiss had all but given up when they entered the lecture hall.
Professor Port droned on and on about famous battles as Weiss struggled not to fall asleep. She had taken five pages of notes before realizing that most of it wasn't really discernable, and was now resigned to just get through the class without letting on that she wasn't paying much attention anymore. Ruby seemed to be bound to the same fate two seats down, as the motions of her pen showed that she was clearly doodling and not actually writing.
Weiss attempted to look around Yang to see what the drawing was, but to no avail. Even after managing the difficult lean required to peer over the fighter's buxom breasts, what little of the parchment Weiss would have been able to see was skilfully hidden by Ruby's arm. Whatever it was, Ruby didn't want it to be seen. After several more attempts at various angles (which drew concerned glances from both Blake and Pyrrha, who were on either side of her), Weiss gave up on trying to see the drawing and again focussed her attention on staying awake.
Twenty minutes later, Port was perusing the aisles of the classroom, shouting lines from speeches given by well-known generals. He was really fired up now, making it nearly impossible to drift off in his presence. The only person unaffected was Ruby, who was still absently doodling on her "notes". She didn't even seem to notice as the professor slowly made his way to her. That is, until he was directly in front of her.
"Now what is this?" he asked, picking up the scrap of parchment.
Ruby stammered and stuttered frantically, looking extremely flustered, but managing to make no intelligible sentences.
"Oh." The Professor said, "I see." He placed the paper face down inside Ruby's textbook so no one could see it, even going so far as to close the cover, completely concealing what was on the other side. As he laid it down, Weiss had gotten the quickest glimpse of the image. All she could make out in the fraction of a second she saw it were a few red hearts, and possibly the letter "W" in calligraphic script.
"Miss Rose, I would prefer that you save your artistic impulses more appropriate times." Port said kindly, "Am I understood?"
Ruby nodded slowly, looking relieved at the professor's reaction.
"Good." He replied, winking slightly, "Now if you'll remember, General Benjaham Roosenhower won what we now call the Grumble in the Jungle by tricking the enemy forces into thinking their uniforms were two sizes too small through his ingenious use of…"
Weiss tuned out again. Now she really had to know what was on that paper. Not just out of curiosity about the drawing, but because she was sure it had something to do with Ruby's out-of-character behaviour this morning.
As class ended, Weiss grabbed her things quickly in attempt to catch Ruby before she could leave. Apparently, she wasn't the only one who had the idea, as Ruby was practically sprinting out the door. Weiss hurried to catch up to her, pushing past other students as they emerged into one of Beacon's many hallways.
"Ruby!" she called, hoping against hope that she could grab the girl's attention.
The red-hooded girl seemed to give up, and stood still until Weiss could catch up to her.
"What do you want?" she asked agitatedly.
Weiss was taken aback at the sudden rudeness. "Ruby, we need to talk." She submitted.
"Listen Weiss," Ruby began, her voice barely loud enough to break through the ambient chatter, "I don't really feel like talking right now. I'd appreciate it if you could just leave me alone." She left the heiress behind her, rooted to the spot as she headed to their next class. Weiss felt a sharp stinging in her chest as she watched the younger girl's cape billow in her wake, each step putting more distance between them.
Feeling a deadness inside that was all too familiar, Weiss grudgingly plodded her way to class, arriving just as the bell rang. She took a seat in the back, away from any of her teammates or close friends, and waited for class to end. It was a long period.
Lunch passed without incident, however an unnatural silence enveloped Team RWBY's table. It slowly crept its way over and infected JNPR's table as well, and eventually the entire hall was silent save for the sound of clattering silverware on plates.
It was safe to say that Weiss was not having a good day.
The next few classes were also exercises in torture, and generally uneventful. Weiss found that she simply couldn't keep a clear head and pay attention to any of the lectures. Her mental fog of confusion and hurt kept her all too busy to even think of trying to process new information.
They had a free period that afternoon, and Ruby had made it fairly clear that she would not be leaving her bed during the time. Weiss couldn't bear to stay in the room any longer than she had to, and immediately vacated to Team JNPR's dorm.
Weiss had lived across the hall long enough that she needn't knock to enter any longer. Team JNPR's door was always open to members of Team RWBY if ever they needed the help. What she didn't realize, however, was that Pyrrha was also turning the knob on the other side. The unexpected ease of the swing launched Weiss over the threshold- and straight into the other girl's arms. Losing all control of herself, Weiss abandoned any pretence and began to sob onto Pyrrha's shoulder.
Stunned, the red haired girl slowly backed into her room and closed the door. The other members of her team looked on in stunned silence as the two girls stood in the middle of the room. Pyrrha held Weiss for a long time, letting her loose all her emotions.
"Shhh… let it all out, sweetie." She said soothingly, stroking the heiress's off-centre ponytail as she continued to sob violently.
Eventually, they were able to sit down on Nora's bed as Weiss began to calm down and regain her composure.
"Weiss, you need to tell us what happened. We want to help you." Pyrrha said imperatively, patting Weiss's hand.
Weiss took a deep breath and explained the events of the last two day, pausing intermittently to choke back dry, racking sobs. She went into great detail, retelling the story of the necklace and the training room incident, all the way to her confession the night before. Her breathing became more erratic and her sentences more frantic as she recounted today's events and Ruby's apparent refusal to acknowledge her. Finally, she was done, and stopped to dry her bleary eyes, which were still streaming tears.
It was Nora who broke the silence.
"That big meanie! I'll show her what happens to people who mess with my friends!" she shouted as she raced for the door.
Ren pinned her back by extending an arm in front of her chest. "Stop," he said calmly, "we can't rush into decisions like this. It could rock the whole school if we're no careful. Ruby obviously needs some time to be alone with her thoughts."
Pyrrha's head snapped to meet his gaze, her comforting arm still around Weiss. "We can't just not talk to her!" she said angrily, "She obviously needs to be set straight. And I wouldn't mind giving her a piece of my mind." She stood up, fists clenched.
The three began to bicker amongst each other, each accusing the other of mishandling the situation.
"Everbody SHUT UP!" Jaune barked.
All heads turned to him, even Nora's, which was impressive because she was in the process of climbing Ren like a jungle gym.
"I'll talk to her." He said, a serious tone in his voice that no one in the room had heard before.
"Are you sure, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked sceptically.
"Yes, I'm sure. Ruby was the first person here to talk to me. She was my first real friend, and I was hers. This is something that I need to do." He strode to the door and reached for the handle. "And it's something I need to do alone." He added as he turned the knob and exited the room.
"Wow." Said Weiss, breaking the stunned silence that filled the air.
"Jaune finally grew a pair." Pyrrha said in awe.
Ruby barely registered the click of the door as Jaune entered the room. Yang and Blake had left just after Weiss, obviously looking to escape the awkward tension that she carried with her. Or a place to make out. Maybe both. All the lights were out and the curtains were drawn, leaving only the dim light of a few stray sunbeams to illuminate the room. She was curled in the fetal position, facing the wall.
"Ruby?" Jaune asked quietly, half hoping that she would be asleep.
"What do you want?" she responded moodily, picking at her sheets absently.
"I want to talk." He answered as he made his way across the room and to her bedside.
"I don't want to talk to anyone. Go away." She replied.
"Ruby, you're going to talk to me whether you like it or not, so you might as well haul your sorry ass out of bed and face me like a man –er woman." Jaune commanded.
Ruby reluctantly sat up and lowered herself from the top bunk. She took one look at the stern expression on Jaune's face and lost her steely resolve. She began to cry softly.
"Oh, great. Another crying girl." The boy sighed wearily.
"Wa-Wah?" Ruby asked in a watery voice.
"Weiss was just in my room, bawling like a baby over the way you treated her today. I hope you're proud of yourself, Miss Rose." Jaune reprimanded, sounding more like his father than he would have cared to.
"I… I made Weiss cry?" Ruby asked in disbelief. That pushed her over the edge. She was full on bawling now, burying her face in Jaune's shoulder.
Jaune awkwardly patted the back of Ruby's head in what he hoped was a comforting fashion. "There, there?"
Ruby giggled a little through her sobs. "You always know just what to say." She sniffed sarcastically.
"Ruby, I need to know what's going on in that little head of yours. I need to know what's happening between you and Weiss."
Ruby's watery smile faded. "I… I don't know Jaune. Everything about yesterday was perfect. And I had wanted her secretly for so long… Somehow, it just seemed too good to be true. It was all happening to fast. And I was just… scared." She practically whimpered the last sentence.
"Scared?" Jaune asked, a little confused.
"I don't know why, I just was. Sometimes I have trouble with relationships. I can sometimes… push people away." Ruby admitted.
Jaune understood. He could see the connection. Weiss had said something about Ruby having trouble coping with loss.
"Listen, Ruby. I don't know a whole lot about making friends or forming lasting relationships. I didn't really have either before I came here," he began, "But I can tell you that there's a lot to be afraid of. People get hurt in relationships. I won't lie to you, it happens all the time." He paused to brush a strand of hair out of the younger girl's face. "But the hurt means that it was real. No great love ever comes without a great risk. Do you really love Weiss?"
Ruby nodded. "More than anyone in the world."
"Then you need to give her a chance. Happy endings do exist, Ruby. If you can't let your love grow, you'll miss out on a chance to get yours."
Jaune moved towards the door to leave.
"I'm going to go back to Weiss now. Please consider what I've said." He started to walk out the door and into the hallway.
"Jaune?" Ruby called as he left.
"Yes?" he popped his head back in.
"Thank you." She said.
Jaune smiled. "Anytime, Ruby." And with that, he was gone.
Some time later, Weiss entered dim the room. She winced at the click as she softly closed the door behind her. Taking a deep breath, she turned to face the room. She spotted Ruby waiting for her on the bottom bunk.
"What are you doing on my bed?" she asked, almost reflexively. Immediately, she mentally kicked herself for that. This was not off to a great start.
"I'm sorry," she corrected, "What I meant was… what I meant was that we need to talk, Ruby."
Ruby stood up to meet her in the middle of the room.
"Weiss, I'm sorry," she began, "I'm sorry for treating you so horribly all day. I'm sorry I completely shut you out, and I totally understand if you're upset with me. I was just scared, really, really, scared, and I think I have a commitment problem, and I don't really know why because you're not really a scary person, and I actually really like you a lot, like love-like, and I-"
"Ruby," Weiss interrupted, "You're rambling."
"Sorry." Ruby said, "I guess what I'm trying to say here is… I love you, Weiss. And I want to give… us a chance."
Weiss smiled. For the first time since she was a little girl, Weiss truly, fully smiled. She was experiencing more joy in this one moment than she thought anyone should be allowed in a lifetime. She pressed her forehead against the younger huntress's, arms wrapped around her neck.
"Nothing would make me happier." She said.
Two pairs of soft lips met each other in a long, impassioned kiss. It seemed to last a lifetime, and if either girl could have their way, it would have.
Pulling back for breath, a thought occurred to Weiss.
"Ruby, what were you drawing in Professor Port's class today?" she asked.
"Oh," Ruby blushed and pulled a folded square of paper out of her pocket, handing it to Weiss shyly. "It's nothing, really. Just a doodle. Yang has always been the artist of the family."
Weiss unfolded the drawing to reveal a rather detailed sketch of her face in profile, surrounded by tiny little hearts and her name in an elegant, calligraphic script.
"It's beautiful," she said, gazing deep into those stormy grey eyes, "Just like you."
Team RWBY sat at their table, quietly eating dinner. Team JNPR kept casting sideways glances at the two girls seated next to each other, Ruby and Weiss. Ruby looked up at her sister. Yang gave a knowing wink coupled with her trademark grin, then returned to her food. Ruby smiled as well, as her hand subtly moved to hold Weiss's.
Maybe this would work out after all.