"Ruby!" Yang caught up to her younger sister just outside the restaurant before she ran off too far and held onto her wrist. "What happened? We heard some shouting and glass breaking. Are you ok? Where did Weiss go?"
"I don't know! She looked pale, I wanted to give her some fresh air, then she just… freaked at the glass shattering near us and ran!" Ruby was about to cry, thinking that it was her fault for pushing Weiss into something that she was uncomfortable with and was pulled into Yang's arms.
"Hey, it's ok." Yang tried to calm her down and looked at Blake for help.
Blake frowned, thinking about it. "She got really tense when she heard the drunken shouting. Do you think it has something to do with that?"
"I-I don't know." Ruby whined, worried about Weiss. "We have to find her! Please! Help me find her! I promised that I wouldn't leave her alone!"
"Ruby! Calm down for a moment! I know that you're worried, but you can't help her if you're freaking out like this!" Yang held onto her younger sister closer.
"She's right." Blake placed a hand onto her shoulder. "Take a deep breath. We'll find her before you know it."
Ruby bit her lip and nodded, holding onto Yang for a moment to calm herself down. They were right. She couldn't help Weiss as she was now and used this time to calm down.
After a few moments, she slowly let go of Yang and looked at them. "Thank you."
They both smiled and Yang ruffled the younger woman's hair. "Any time, sis. Now come on. We might have better luck splitting up and looking for her. She couldn't have gotten that far."
"Right. Call or text if you find her!"
They all nodded and went their separate ways.
"Weiss?! Weiss! Where did you go?! Weiss!" Ruby looked around for the older woman. She couldn't have gotten too far after all. Frowning, she pulled out her phone and groaned. She remembered that she still hadn't gotten Weiss' contact number after all this time that they've spent together. She checked to make sure that Yang and Blake didn't send her a message and sighed.
"It'll be ok. I'll be able to find her." She told herself as she slapped her cheeks to snap herself out of it. "Weiss!"
As she ran and turned the corner, she almost ran into someone and quickly apologized. "Oh! I'm sorry! I'm in a hurry! Sorry again!" She made sure that the other person was alright before she turned to leave but stopped and looked at them again to make sure that her mind wasn't just playing tricks on her.
It was as if she were looking at an older Weiss, but more… serious.
"….Weiss?" she blinked. Wait, no. She just saw her, there was no way she could grow that quickly.
The other woman blinked when Ruby called her 'Weiss' then shook her head.
"You are… Ruby, I presume?" She folded her hands behind her back as she looked at Ruby.
"Oh… you're Winter, Weiss' older sister?" Ruby raised a brow. Didn't she say that she'd tell Weiss that she'd contact her before visiting? Weiss hadn't said anything about Winter visiting just yet. Or did she try to contact her earlier and Weiss didn't notice?
Winter nodded and gestured for them to walk. Ruby hesitated for a moment and followed after her. Maybe she would have a clue about where Weiss went or better yet, what their private life was like
"You… are more normal than I thought that you'd be." The older woman spoke first after walking for a few minutes.
"Uhm… thank you?" Ruby didn't know if that was an insult or not but given how little Weiss told her of her family, she expected that they didn't know how to or had a difficult time to complimenting other people.
"I'll get straight to the point, how is my little sister doing?" Winter stopped walking and looked at the younger woman. "I suppose that she is well… but that is what she always tells me. I would like to know what her… friends are thinking when you two are… 'hanging out'.'"
Oh, so that's how it was. Wait, why did she put it like that? She shook that thought out of her head and looked up at Winter.
"Weiss is doing alright. Better than when I first found her. Though the first couple weeks were… rough. We both had a few miscommunications, but that's how all friendship starts." Was it better to be honest here? She hoped that Winter would allow Weiss to stay friends with her. "But she's missing right now and we should be trying to find her."
Missing? Was she making the right choice trusting Ruby then? Shaking her head at the thought, she trusted Weiss enough to know that she at least cared about this person before her.
"I apologize." Ruby looked at her, confusion was clear on her face while Winter continued. "What has she told you?"
"Oh uhm…" She thought about it. "Not really much. Just that… she has to push herself to be 'perfect' for her father's sake. That's about it." She frowned. "Can you tell me what's going on?"
"So she's still scared…" Winter mumbled that under her breath then looked into Ruby's eyes. "She won't forgive me if I told you everything, but I can tell you how it began. It will be up to you to ask her for the full story if you think that you're both ready for it."
Ruby blinked. When they're both ready? What did that mean?
"It started about ten years ago when everything fell apart. Perhaps longer than that, but we didn't really notice the signs until it was too late. It was Weiss' tenth birthday and we were celebrating it. Back then, she was smiles and sunshine… just like how you are now." Winter chuckled as Ruby stared at her in disbelief.
When Winter frowned, that's when Ruby knew that this is where everything went badly. "Father was late as he had a phone call from the company. He was furious about a trade going wrong and… mother asked him to calm down and to enjoy the day with the family. He didn't listen. He never listened. He then angrily told her to shut up, know her place, and that he only married her for our family's name." Winter paused for a moment so that Ruby could process everything that was going on before she continued.
"Weiss was heartbroken that day and ran to her room when mother and father began to argue with each other. I went to comfort her… but I left for the military a couple years later." Winter closed her eyes regretfully as she folded her hands together. "I kept in contact with her when I wasn't busy and I knew. She has a horrible habit of keeping what she's feeling inside."
"Yeah, you got that right." Ruby frowned.
"It wasn't until I visited her a few years ago that I saw what happened. I found Weiss on the way home. She was… heavily injured... I took her home, treated her wounds, after which she told me what happened, and begged me not to tell anyone." Winter sighed deeply. "I couldn't refuse. We were both powerless, and we can't do anything against our father."
Ruby looked shocked at Winter, taking a step forward and placed a hand onto her arm. "What… happened?"
Winter looked at Ruby then sighed again. "Father… He was beating Weiss."
"…What?" The younger woman was shocked. So everything that she thought of... Now she had the confirmation from her sister of all people, basically telling her that she was right.
Weiss was being abused at home by her father.
"I'm afraid that if you want to know more, you have to gain Weiss' trust." Winter looked at Ruby seriously. "I'm sure that you can do it. After all… she seems to trust you already to be around your presence. I'll leave my sister in your hands." She placed a hand onto Ruby's shoulder.
"Leave it to me. I'll make sure that nothing bad happens to her." Ruby nodded then blinked when her phone gave a notification. She looked at Winter for a moment then looked at the message.
[Blake: I found Weiss in the park. Hurry.]
"My roommate found Weiss! Come on, I'm sure that she'd be happy to see you."
Few minutes earlier:
Weiss ran towards the park, panting heavily. This was the only place besides her other home where she felt safe.
"Mother… do you still hate me…?" she mumbled, stumbling towards the bench and sat down, pulling her legs towards her chest and resting her head onto her knees.
She knew that she was safe with Ruby and that they were just going to have lunch, but the alcohol, the shouting, the words that were shouted. Weiss couldn't help but remember her time back at the main house and felt that she couldn't breathe.
"Weiss?" Blake sighed in relief when she found Weiss sitting in the park alone. Now how was she going to convince her to go back with everyone?
The white haired woman looked up to see who called her name and was about to get up and run. Blake wouldn't allow that, and quickly ran over and grabbed her wrist gently, making sure that she wasn't being too forceful.
"Hey, are you ok?"
"I'm perfectly fine, Belladonna. Please let me go." Her voice wavered as she struggled to free herself from the other woman.
Blake narrowed her eyes and didn't let her go. "Weiss, listen." She waited for her to stop struggling. "You're not alone. We care about you, especially Ruby. It's not your fault. You don't deserve what's happening."
"You don't understand." She bit her lip, knowing that they all cared. Knowing that Ruby cared, but she was scared. She was her first true friend after all and she didn't want to lose her because of her past. "She… couldn't understand…"
Sighing deeply, Blake slowly loosened her grip. "A long time ago, I was like you. Scared to trust people. Until Yang came and helped me."
Weiss blinked. Blake was like her? She couldn't mean-
"I… think I understand a little… I had… an abusive friend before." Blake bit her lip as she finally let go of Weiss' wrist and held onto her arm, looking away from her. "Yang helped me through it… and I'll never forgive myself, because she was injured trying to help me."
"…What?" Weiss was confused, staring at Blake dumbfoundedly.
Blake nodded as she looked down on the floor. "We were in middle school. One of my childhood friends was… clingy. I didn't think that… he was that possessive, and I lost a lot of friends because of him. But then I met Yang." She frowned at the memory of how much she lost but gave a small smile when talking about the blonde. "She didn't care about my past, all she cared about was helping me feel comfortable. And after a few months, I was comfortable around her." Blake gave a weak smile at Weiss.
"I didn't notice until you started to hang around Ruby and what she said. Weiss… I know that it's hard to tell someone about it but… if they notice, you can't run away." Blake looked at her seriously. "There are people that wants to help. I would like to help you, same with Yang and especially Ruby. She thinks of you as a close friend with the little time you've spent together."
"You… I…" she took a step back. She knew. She knew and… understood? No… Every time she gave a little hint, people thought she was lying and disregarded her, so she just kept to herself every time. Blake couldn't possibly understand!
But what would that make Ruby…? Ruby saw the scars and didn't ask questions like she asked… She was always there like she promised. She was always trying her best to make her comfortable and happy… What is she to Weiss?
"Weiss." Blake was being gentle, sending a quick text to Yang and Ruby about where she was while the other woman was confused. Now she just had to stall some time. "You don't have to believe me… but I think I can understand what you're going through. What it's like to be fearful. To be scared that no one will help you."
"Stop!" Tears threatened to fall when Blake was by the door she kept closed so tightly.
Blake frowned as she kept her distance, hands up to show that she's not going to hurt her while thinking of what to say to help her calm down. "I'm not going to hurt you. None of us will. We're all worried about you, especially Ruby. You've noticed how careful she is around you, haven't you?"
"I…" She knew. She knew that Ruby was trying her best to make her happy, to keep her promise. However, she was making it difficult for her. She was scared. She didn't know how to deal with friendships and was scared that it was just an act. That Ruby was faking it even though she knew in her heart that the younger woman wasn't able to do something like that.
Tears fell from her eyes as she hastily rubbed them away, not wanting to feel weak, but her heart hurt when she thought about how much she hurt Ruby by keeping her distance like this. By lying to her and never being honest with her past, with her family.
"I don't… know what to do, Blake…" Weiss stumbled back, feeling weak and vulnerable and she hated every second of it. "What… am I supposed to do?"
"Talk to us. It's not easy, I know… but you can't just keep it all to yourself. Take all the time that you need to talk to us about what you're going through. We'll understand." Blake glanced around to see if Yang or Ruby was coming or not then focused back on Weiss.
"I… it's too late…" Weiss shook her head. "I can't…"
Blake frowned and moved closer. "Weiss. It's never too late. We're always here to talk, to help you whenever you need it." What did Yang do to help her? She felt like she was in the same exact position. "You can."
Weiss looked at her, still confused.
"It's never too late. We can still help you. If you allow us, we can help you through whatever you're going through. You're not alone." Blake rushed forward to catch Weiss as her legs gave out, but felt a familiar gust rushing past her and stopped when she saw Ruby holding onto Weiss closely.
"Weiss…!" Ruby held onto her, scared to let her go.
"R-Ruby…?" Weiss was confused. One moment she was talking to Blake, the next… she felt her legs giving out. "W-What are you… doing here…?" Her arms awkwardly wrapped themselves around the younger woman's shoulders.
"She was looking for you."
Weiss snapped her head up to look towards the direction of the familiar voice. "Winter…?"
"It's nice to see you again, Weiss." She nodded, keeping her distance from everyone. "I tried to contact you, but you weren't answering." Winter frowned. "As I was walking, I bumped into Ruby, then I heard from her that… that you were missing. Did you have another at—"
"That's enough!" Weiss shook as she held onto Ruby closer, scared of her sister continuing that sentence.
Winter merely sighed, shaking her head then looked at Blake and Ruby. "I suppose that it'll be easier to talk and explain when we're not out in the open like this. Let's go home."
"Home…?" Weiss sounded scared but Ruby gave her a comforting squeeze.
"Home where I've been visiting you, Weiss. It's ok." Ruby cooed, nuzzling against her head gently. "You're not going anywhere near that other house without me." She promised, even though she wasn't sure if she could keep that promise. She looked at Winter for help, who merely nodded.
"Let's get out of here. I'm sure that you two have a lot to talk about." Blake suggested, giving a soft smile when Yang came running. "And Weiss… that story I started about Yang and I in middle school… if you're willing to listen, I'll be happy to continue it if it'll help you." She looked at Yang who looked back at her then nodded.
Weiss looked up, confused and refusing to let go of Ruby, then nodded. "Alright…" She was scared, but maybe it was time to tell Ruby at least about everything.
Ruby helped Weiss up, holding onto her closely and started their way towards her home. After they were halfway there, Weiss stopped walking, hesitating for a moment. "Weiss?"
"Can… we go to your place instead?"
Ruby looked at the others who shrugged then nodded. "Alright, let's go there."
A/N: Alright, thank you for reading so far~ Thanks Sojamanic for reviewing. Next chapter will have a bit of backstory~ See you all soon!
