Chapter Ten: It Kills Me Not to Say This

A week passed by with no word from Weiss. Ruby had been dragging her feet trying to decide what to do about her, and she'd like to spend more time to properly think about it but today was dedicated to someone else. Weiss will just have to wait another day or two. They spent a year apart, what's a couple more days in the grand scheme of things? Plus, Weiss didn't strike her as the type of woman who moved on the moment she hit a small speed bump. Ruby was sure they'd work things out in due time, at least she hoped they would.

Breathing in a steadying breath, Ruby trudged out of her car and entered a small café. It was a more traditional establishment when compared to Fleur-de-lis and with it being so close to Beacon, the café was continuously packed to the brim. A little too packed actually. Ruby had some trouble navigating the congested floor space, but she eventually found Penny sitting at a small table for two near the back nursing a large steaming cup of tea. She was dressed nicely in a breezy deep-green blouse and black jeans shorts, perfect for the sweltering heat outside. Her hair was done up in a simple ponytail with her bangs pushed to the side, held in place by a flower clip Ruby bought her three years ago. Ruby looked down at her shabby, thrown together outfit and felt horribly embarrassed.

Deciding not to dwell on it, Ruby swallowed the lump in her throat and approached her friend. Penny had a serious look on her face that hid the hurt she felt underneath well. She had been so lost in thought she didn't notice Ruby take the opposite seat. Ruby quietly sat down and give her a hopeful smile. When Penny noticed her, however, she didn't smile back.

"Hey," Ruby said meekly, "how've you been?"

"Alright, I suppose," was Penny's clipped response. "You?"

"Pretty alright too, I suppose."

An awkward silence filled the air after the initial pleasantries were exchanged. Ruby flagged down a waitress and ordered a coffee and an assortment of finger sandwiches for her and Penny to share. She ordered her coffee back which surprised Penny a great deal. Ruby was a cream and five sugars kind of girl who blanched at anything bitter.

"Did you hear about the new job?" Ruby asked trying to spark a conversation.

Penny nodded, still trying to figure out what happened to Ruby in the last ten days. "Sun already called me," she said curtly. "I'll be working the site with you guys until school picks up."

"Oh, cool…"

The waitress returned with Ruby's order and asked Penny if she wanted a refill before going back to the kitchen. Penny smiled and nodded, thanking her politely. The genial act was quickly dropped as soon as the waitress turned her back.

"What do you want, Ruby?" Penny asked pointedly, cutting straight to the chase.

Ruby quickly chewed the last of her sandwich and swallowed. She dusted her hands free of crumbs and took a sip of coffee to help wash it all down.

"Well?"

Wiping the edge of her mouth on her napkin, Ruby tried to answer but sputtered when she saw the fury in Penny's eyes. "I wanted to say I was sorry," she said, gulping.

"Sorry for what?"

"Everything," Ruby mumbled, crushing a stray crumb under her finger to give herself something to do while Penny gave her a nasty dressing down. "I shouldn't have said the things I said. I was wrong."

"You really hurt me, Ruby," Penny said, her hands clenched tightly around the mug. Ruby couldn't help but feel it was a replacement for her neck.

Penny was never one to hold a grudge and was always quick to forgive and forget, but Ruby had crossed a serious line this time around. Rubbing the back of her neck anxiously, Ruby nodded. "I know and I'm sorry. I can't take it back, so what can I do to make it better?"

"You can start by treating me like an adult," Penny said. "Don't talk down to me like that ever again."

"I won't, I promise."

Penny eyed her warily but nodded when she saw the sincerity in Ruby's promise. She understood that slipups were bound to happen, but at least she knew they wouldn't be done intentionally. "Okay."

"Okay?" Ruby blinked, slack jawed. "Just like that?"

Penny nodded again. "Just like that," she repeated. "Ruby, you're my best friend. We grew up together. I look up to you, you kind of my hero. It'll honestly take a lot more than some nasty words to come between us. And I missed you, so I'm forgiving you."

"You really are all grown up, Pen," Ruby said with a relieved smile. "And for what it's all worth, I really missed you too."

"Sensational!" Penny clapped, her voice jumping an octave. "Now tell me everything I've missed out on and don't you dare skimp on the details."

Ruby blinked, running through a quick mental checklist of what went on during her week. Not a lot came to mind except for one thing.

"Sooo… I had sex for the first time," Ruby said bluntly, deciding it was better to dive right in than toe the water. Coincidentally, Penny chose that exact moment to take a sip and promptly choked on her tea. "You okay?!"

Penny vigorously nodded her head, blushing as she tried and failed to clear her throat. "Y-Yeah, that… that just surprised me."

"Sorry, you said not to skimp on the details."

"I deserved that," Penny grumbled. She bit her lip and forced a smile. "What was it like?"

Ruby blushed, her back going ramrod straight. "Uh, it was… nice?"

"Just nice?" Penny asked with mild concern.

Ruby shrugged, not knowing what else to say. She wasn't going to tell her seventeen-year-old best friend how Weiss had rocked her world not once, not twice, but three times in that one night, and that there hasn't been a single day since that Ruby didn't waste countless hours thinking about Weiss' touch and wishing she had the house to herself. The sleepless nights and vivid fantasies were beginning to catch up; she was surviving off of bad coffee and willpower alone. Ruby was starting to feel like an addict, craving for Weiss like she was some sort of drug. Her kisses alone were so addictive their first was still at the forefront of her mind. Weiss had singlehandedly ruined her.

Ruby looked to the side, biting her lip. "I don't have anything else to compare it to so…"

"Well that's disappointing," Penny huffed.

"Oh believe me, was anything but disappointing, Pen! It was, wow. I just… I don't know how to explain it without making things super awkward," Ruby said trying to carefully tiptoe around Penny's feelings. "Like, there was so much more to it than just the physical stuff. Weiss made me feel really special. And it was just so… nice."

Penny's fake smile faltered. "Golly, this is harder than I thought it would be."

"Pen?" Ruby leaned forward and touched the girl's hand, she flinched when Penny recoiled but surrendered to the distance. There was no going back, this was it. "I'm sorry."

"You already apologized." Penny's eyes were practically begging Ruby to stop talking about her unrequited love.

"No, not for this," Ruby said shaking her head, she didn't want this conversation hanging over their heads anymore.

It was the exact same mistake she made with Jaune. They should have both been braver. They should have talked more instead of turtling the moment things got a little too real. They should have been honest from the start. So many "should haves" and yet the only one Ruby thought about was how they never should've dated. Ruby was a coward then but not anymore, Penny deserved better than the half-assed attempts she made with Jaune. Hell, even Jaune deserved better.

"I'm sorry that I never noticed."

"It's not your fault…" Penny looked away, "I never said anything."

"Everyone else knew but me."

Penny shrugged and wrung her hands together doing her best not to cry, but a tear slipped out and Ruby felt her heartbreak.

"You're kind of oblivious," Penny tried to joke, "but... I liked that about you. I really liked that about you."

"I still wish I'd known! I would've given it a shot, Penny." It was the truth. She only dated Jaune because he was the only one who showed any interest in her, the weird kid who skipped two grades and had no friends. "I honestly like you more than I ever liked him."

"You loved him," Penny said even though it hurt just thinking about it. "It's okay to say it."

"No. No, I don't think I ever did…"

Ruby looked down at the table and noticed a small smudge near her hand. She picked at it carefully then rubbed it with the pad of her thumb when it stubbornly refused to vanish. There was a beautiful, poetic metaphor about being unable to erase the past in there somewhere, but Ruby was too busy trying to eradicate it to care.

"I never felt anything for him other than a deep friendship. When we broke up, I wasn't sad or upset he cheated on me. I was angry because I thought I knew him." Ruby's frantic scrubbing intensified but the smudge remained, an ugly blot on an otherwise beautiful table. "We were together for so long and yet nothing ever happened. And whenever something almost did, it'd be extremely awkward. Most of the time I just thought I wasn't ready or I was just saving myself for marriage, but… it wasn't that."

Ruby gave up on the resilient little smudge and opted to hide it under her palm instead. Slowly, she lifted her head and looked at Penny for who she was, a brave young girl who deserved the world and someone who loved her more than Ruby ever could.

"I said yes to Weiss immediately. Like, no hesitation—okay, maybe just a little, but can you really blame me?" Ruby hid her face behind her free hand, a frustrated groan escaping through her tightly gritted teeth. "You saw what she looked like, my stupid virgin ass didn't know what to do!"

"Yeah... I'm not going to lie, we were all curious what you and Jaune did alone," Penny said from behind her mug, tastefully choosing to ignoring Ruby's spiel about Weiss. "You always looked so uncomfortable when he had his arm around you."

"Oh god, really?!" Ruby blanched in horror. "I always thought it was because I was being shy!"

"Sorry if this is uncomfortable and you don't have to answer if you don't want to, but you were really deep in the closet, why?" Penny asked, putting her mug down to properly face Ruby, she was glad she could finally talk to Ruby about this and it showed on her face. "It can't have been a home thing. Yang was always been super open and welcoming. And me for obvious reasons…"

"I don't know," Ruby mumbled, her brows furrowed in deep thought. "I just always thought it was what I had to do. Find a nice boy, get married, have kids…"

"With Jaune?" Penny let out a loud snorting laugh that she quickly caught, blushing furiously when other patrons looked their way. "Sorry, that was rude."

"No, it's okay. Yang had the exact same reaction when I told her me and Jaune were seriously considering getting married," Ruby said, she still vaguely recalled that conversation with her sister. Yang had laughed so hard she nearly fell off her stool and almost took Blake down with her.

Penny raised a curious brow as she sipped her tea, not saying a word so Ruby could collect her thoughts. This was what they did, they listened to each other without judgement no matter how trivial or embarrassing.

"Nothing ever felt right with him. I didn't like the way he smelled on a hot day or the way his face felt in the morning, and kissing him was kind of gross."

"I almost threw up that one time he kissed you in front of us for the first time," Penny confessed.

Ruby gave her friend a soft smile. "I'm sorry, Pen."

"Stop! Stop that, seriously." Penny crossed her arms and glared at Ruby, but the anger on her face was betrayed by the love in her eyes. "I don't want you feeling sorry for me. I'll get over this silly crush eventually, but until then can you please just treat me like you normally would? You make it so hard to let you go when you do things like this."

"It isn't silly but okay," Ruby acquiesced.

Penny nodded her head, putting and end to that conversation. A lull settled in offering them some respite, but Ruby was never one for long periods of silence. She had a burning question on her mind that she'd been dying to ask and this was the perfect chance.

"So…" Ruby shyly started, "you're gay?"

"I don't know," Penny carefully answered, taking another small sip of tea. "I've never really paid anyone else any attention; girls are too fussy and boys are kind of gross."

"So where do I fall in that spectrum?" Ruby asked curiously. She wasn't your typical girly-girl, a tomboy maybe, but that's as far as she'd go.

"Somewhere in the middle."

Penny's answer didn't really clear the air, but at least she was talking openly about her feelings and that was more than Ruby could ever hope for. Ruby's social circle had an over abundance of acquaintances (most of whom she'd rather avoid if the opportunity arose), but had few she'd willingly call "friend." Penny out ranked everybody except Yang, she was practically her sister based on how close they were.

Frowning at her newfound understanding, Ruby ran a hand through her hair and sighed, "I messed up, Pen. I messed up really bad."

"Oh no, what did you do now?"

"Weiss is still really close to her ex and I kind of made a scene the last time I saw her," she explained, her hands covering her face in shame, speck all but forgotten. "Weiss said they were over, but I was still so crazy jealous. I kind of just up and left even though Coco was being really nice and Velvet was super cool and—ugh, I need to call Weiss and apologize!"

Penny blinked as Ruby's words washed over her. She opened her mouth to say something reprimanding but stopped herself when she saw Ruby pouting.

"Want to tell me the whole story?" she asked with a tense smile. "Because I didn't understand a single word you just said."

"Sorry…"

Ruby explained the whole thing from start to finish with alarming clarity and added hindsight, though she did go off on a few tangents here and there to describe how perfect and interesting and amazing Weiss was. The time she'd spent away from the bewitching foreigner had given her a lot of much needed perspective. Weiss was right, she was being a petulant child. Weiss' past had no footholds in their budding relationship, Ruby should have trusted her and given Coco the chance she deserved. And she was sure Weiss would give Penny or even Jaune, though with some mild reservations about him, the same consideration. It was never about other people, it was about them and how they could fit their lives together.

"Wow, that's really something else."

Nodding her head in agreement, Ruby said, "I feel like such an idiot."

Penny pursed her lips, actively avoiding Ruby's offended gaze.

"This is the part where you say 'No, Ruby, you're totally not lame.' "

"'No, Ruby, you're totally not lame,' " Penny parroted robotically.

"Real funny, Pen. Real funny," Ruby grumbled.

Another lull fell, this time with a heavy silence that friendly banter wouldn't be able to dissipate. Ruby slowly spun her mug around, watching the handle turn in minute fractions like the hour hands of a grandfather clock. She sent a few flitting glances Penny's way bit the girl never looked up, too engrossed in her thoughts just like she'd been before Ruby sat down.

Ruby had never really taken the time to properly look at her friend, they'd been together for so long everything sort of blended together in a giant mosaic of colour. The Penny she knows today isn't the same girl she met way back when, but it's so impossibly hard to feel that way when they felt like they'd always known each other.

Squaring her jaw, Ruby swore to pay closer attention starting now.

Penny was a beautiful young girl, both inside and out. Ruby can confirm this without a doubt and can pull references from a list a mile long. She was humble, friendly, and so easy talk to time always flies. Penny was also fearless, nothing hardly ever phased her. Blood, insects, spiders, you name it and she's fine with it, but that didn't mean she didn't have her sore spots. Her irrational fear of magnets and puppets always made Ruby laugh—as long as the girl was just hamming it up and not having an actual anxiety attack. She wasn't prone to them though they did happen on the rare occasion, but she'd power through them like a champ. Penny's fearlessness didn't stop there though. Because unlike Ruby, Penny didn't shy away from her quirks and embraced them as simple character builders.

Fiddling with her teabag impatiently, Penny furrowed her brows together and finally broke the silence. "I think you've wasted enough time, Ruby. You said a week passed since you two last spoke, correct?"

"Yeah…"

"You should call her right now," Penny suggested, her eyes steeled by determination. "She told you to call her but you didn't, that gives off a really bad message. If I was her, I'd be really upset with you."

"But I needed some time to think!" Ruby argued, trying to defend her decision even though she could see the fallacy in it.

"Needing time and shutting off communication completely are two different things," Penny pointed out. "When we fought, I made it abundantly clear that I needed space. Weiss didn't. She probably thinks you're ghosting her."

"Ghosting?" Ruby blinked. That was a new term.

Raising her brow, Penny explained, "It means ignoring someone completely. Like a ghost. And it really, really, really sucks."

"Is a week really that long? I mean, she's probably super busy preparing for Beacon, not to mention she helps around Fleur-de-lis."

"Now you're just listing off excuses. If she likes you, she'll make time for you," Penny said, rolling her eyes at Ruby as if she'd just said the most obvious thing ever then muttered "I know I do" under her breath.

"Wait, were you busy today?" Ruby balked.

"Mhm, I had a shift at the bookstore but I worked something out with Tukson."

"Oh…"

Ruby picked up her coffee and sipped on it, still mildly paranoid it'll scald her if she isn't too careful. The bitter liquid filled her mouth and washed down her parched throat, it didn't taste anywhere near as good as the coffee Weiss gave her but it would have to do. Unfortunately, to add more to her growing list of disappointments, the coffee had cooled a little too much during their conversation and was lukewarm at best. But never one to be deterred, Ruby saw the bright side of things and shrugged it off because now she can drink it in big gulps. The sooner she finishes this cup, the sooner she can get a fresh one. Easy.

"God this coffee sucks," she muttered to Penny after downing more than half. "Next time we're going to Fleur-de-lis. I don't care how awkward it is for me, we're getting better coffee."

"Their coffee really is the best," Penny concurred. "Have you tried their tea? Their house blend is amazing. Tukson's addicted to it, sends me over at least once a day."

"No, but I'll have to try it some time it's just I'm kind of going through a coffee kick right now. Weiss gave me a cup and now I'm kind of hooked," Ruby said giddily as she put the near empty mug down. "I'd go over there right now, but, uh, I don't want to deal with Coco yet."

"You're going to have to if you want to be with Weiss," Penny said, dunking her teabag to give her restless hands something to do. "So when are you going to call her?"

"After I drop you off at home," Ruby answered with a smile, happy to have her friend back. "But until then I want to hear all about your week. I've really missed you, Penny."

Smiling back at her, Penny said, "I've really missed you too, Ruby."

The two friends spent the next hour and a half catching up while they enjoyed a fresh refill and more finger snacks. Penny had a rather eventful week as well and Ruby loved hearing all about it. The girl's enthusiasm was infectious, Ruby could hardly control herself when Penny told her about a woman looking to buy a series called Ninjas of Love without directly referring to it. The customer had prattled off a long list of outlandish euphemisms Penny completely understood but pretended to not to until she got fed up and just shouted the title. Penny used her childlike innocence to avoid getting yelled at for subpar service and even got Tukson to come defend her when the woman kept huffing about unqualified employees.

"Oh wow, look at the time!" Penny exclaimed with a gasp when she looked down at her watch. "My dad's going to kill me if I don't get home soon."

"Alright, let's go," Ruby said, downing the last of her coffee and getting up. She paid for the both of them as a peace offering and followed Penny to her car. When they climbed in, Ruby asked, "On a scale from one to ten, how pissed off is your dad at me?"

"Uhh…" Penny buckled her seatbelt and said, "Four."

"Four?"

"Four. He's upset we fought but understands it happens," Penny explained when they pulled out of the parking space. "He's also kind of bummed you found someone."

Ruby quickly glanced over with a frown. "Penny…"

"No, no feeling sorry for me! But I do need to be able to openly talk to you about this," Penny said. "I've been keeping this in for years, and the only person I'd ever be comfortable talking about it with is you, but I can't do that because it's you."

"Can I ask how long?"

"Since ninth grade," Penny revealed, her eyes downcast and sad. "I transferred midway through the semester and I had no friends so I spent all my free time at the public library, do you remember that?"

Nodding her head, Ruby said, "Of course I do! How could I forget? You were sitting all by yourself with a bunch of the books I was looking for."

"You sat down next to me and asked if you could flip through some of them," Penny continued for her. "You were the first person who willingly talked to me."

"I remember how thick your accent was. Not going to lie, I kind of miss it," Ruby grinned.

"Oh no, please no!" Penny exclaimed in embarrassment. "I was still learning the language and everyone kept making fun of me… but you didn't. You never laughed at me, not even once. You were always patient and helped me when I got a word mixed up or didn't understand something. I never thanked you for that."

"You didn't have to," Ruby said bashfully. "It was kind of nice, I felt like I had a little sister. And Yang thought you were the cutest thing ever! I still remember the day I introduced you two, I thought you were gunna faint."

"I almost did!" Penny huffed indignantly. "You never told me your sister was the Yang Xiao Long! You can't just throw someone's idol on them and expect them to be okay, that was totally unfair, Ruby!"

"Sorry, I thought it'd be funny," Ruby confessed. "And plus, Yang was only going to be around for a couple more days before she left for her next shoot. I didn't want you to miss out on your chance."

"A warning would've still been appreciated," Penny grumbled.

"Look on the bright side," Ruby said cheerfully, "you and Yang are like BFFs now."

"Yeah," Penny rolled her eyes, "through our mutual concern over you."

Scoffing at Penny, Ruby muttered, "And what is that supposed to mean, Ms. Polendina?"

"Exactly what it sounds like," Penny muttered back.

They narrowed their eyes at each other, their argument stalled in a heated statement. A beat passed and both girl broke out laughing. Playful jibes and quips were thrown back and forth between full bellied laughs all the way to Penny's house out un the suburbs. When they stopped at the end of her driveway, they took a moment to catch their breathes and revelled in the comfortable silence.

Penny unbuckled her seatbelt and stretched over to hug Ruby. She gave her best friend a tight squeeze and said, "I love you, Ruby, thank you for being my friend."

"I love you too, Penny," Ruby replied, giving Penny a one armed squeeze back. "I'll call you later."

Pulling back, Penny flashed Ruby a devilish smile, "After you call Weiss right?"

"Yeah," Ruby blushed. "Now go before your dad comes looking for you!"

Ruby waited for her friend go inside before restarting her car. Ruby drove out of the area with no clear destination in mind, enjoying the scenery pass her by while a pretty song played on the radio. She didn't know the name of the song, the language, or even who the singer was, and she often told herself to look it up every time it came on but she never did which was a shame. The song actually made her think of Weiss now that she thought of it. The singer's tone was clear like a crystal bell, but there was a power behind it that sent shivers running up Ruby's spine every time the song hit its crescendo.

A crazy idea popped into Ruby's head when the song ended. She parked in the closest spot she could find and immediately pulled out her scroll. She fumbled with the lock screen but eventually got in. Ruby began searching for Weiss' name in her contacts list, bouncing between either texting her or calling her. Texting Weiss could either be the best way to get in touch with her or the worst depending on the situation. But a text could easily be ignored or missed entirely.

Making up her mind, Ruby bit her lip and tapped the call option. She put her scroll to her ear and listened to the dial tone, her free hand clenched nervously around the steering wheel. The first ring was quickly followed by a second and by the third, Ruby was positively nerve wracked. By the fourth a painful scenario of Weiss looking at her scroll and ignoring it played out in Ruby's head. And by the fifth…

"Hello?"

"H-Hey, Weiss! It's… it's Ruby," Ruby said, smacking herself for stuttering. "Are you busy?"

Weiss didn't answer immediately but the sound of many happy patrons singing Happy Birthday could be heard faintly in the background. "Not particularly, no," Weiss said, her voice reticent. "Is there something you need?"

Ruby bit her lip, eyeing the time on her centre console. It was a forty-eight minutes past 5 p.m., too late for lunch but too early for dinner, she'd suggest linner but Weiss would probably hang-up right then and there. "You up for some—"

"Oh my, how bold of you," Weiss interjected, sounding terribly amused with herself. "Had me once and already hooked. Was it that good?"

"Ugh, you're an ass. Are you up for some coffee: yes or no?" Ruby pushed through, rolling her eyes at Weiss' blatant teasing, though she wasn't wrong. It was that good. Amazing even. Honestly, it was just nice to hear Weiss' voice even if she was being insufferable.

"I'm not hearing a 'no' to my question, Ms. Rose," Weiss continued teasing, her gentle laugh filtering in through the receiver sending violent tingles running up and down Ruby's spine. She could practically feel Weiss' hot breath tickling her ear; it was haunting. Ruby gulped, what she wouldn't give to feel Weiss' touch on her skin again. "Though to answer yours, yes. I am due for another cup anyway, so no harm in waiting for you to get it. But before anything else, can I ask why the sudden need to see me? I mean, a week is a little much for a call back if you ask me."

"I'm sorry, I just needed some time and space to think," Ruby answered truthfully. "I know I should have called or at least texted you, but I just…"

"And what exactly did you decide?" Weiss asked, her voice dropping an octave.

"I decided that my jealousy isn't worth losing you," Ruby answered boldly. "Weiss, I really, really, really like you. I've never felt like this before and I don't want it to stop."

"I've said this before, but your issues with Coco cannot continue if you decide to pursue a relationship with me, I hope you understand this," Weiss said leaving nothing to interpretation. "I've been with her since childhood and we were married for over five years. I can't cut such a large piece of my life out just for you—even if she can be annoying as all hell. Coco's...s She's my best friend, Ruby, and I'd really like it if you two could get along."

"That's the thing I needed time to think about," Ruby explained, trying desperately to keep her voice even. "I know my issue with Coco isn't with Coco herself. She's really cool and apparently my sister's hero, small world, huh? But anyway, I… I was feeling self-conscious and I—"

"Hold that thought, Ruby," Weiss cut in abruptly. She muffled the receiver cutting off most of the sound, but Ruby could still hear bits and pieces so when Weiss came back and said she'd have to end the call Ruby wasn't surprised. "I'm really sorry for cutting this short."

"No, it's okay," Ruby said.

"Coffee. Can you make it to Fleur-de-lis within the hour?"

Ruby nodded even though Weiss couldn't see her. "Yeah, your usual table?"

"Yes, just tell the person in front where to seat you," Weiss instructed. "I'll see you soon—yes, I know. Just hold on, I'll be right there! I have to go, Ruby, I'm sorry."

"No—" the call cut out, "worries… huh, that went better than expected," Ruby said in surprise as she pocketed her phone and restarted her car. She took her surroundings in and nearly smacked her forehead when she saw Fleur-de-lis five buildings down.

Ruby shut her engine down, got out of her car and double-checked the locks before making her way down to the trendy café. She ran through her mental checklist of things to say to Weiss, quickly adding apologize to Coco personally at the bottom with "eventually" in parentheses. Nothing was going to stop her from making things work with Weiss, she decided. Feelings like these were meant to be cherished and a woman like Weiss Schnee deserved to be fought for.

"You can do this, Ruby, you can—Professor Ozpin?"

Ruby couldn't believe her eyes because sitting in front of Weiss was the man she personally looked up to. They were engrossed in deep conversation, about what Ruby could only imagine. It looked important judging by Weiss' hard expression and Ozpin's beckoning smile, the one Ruby was all too familiar with. He had convinced her to do so much during her time in Beacon because of that smile; he must've been a wizard in his past life. That was when it hit her. Weiss was a Professor at Beacon. Professor Ozpin was its headmaster. Ruby was dating a teacher. An honest to god teacher.

"Yikes," Ruby winced.

Picking up her pace, Ruby slipped past her acquaintances undetected. She opened the door and was greeted by the sight of Jeana's big smile and a friendly "Hi, welcome to Fleur-de-lis!" Ruby strode up to her and smiled, recognition flashing in Jeana's eyes.

"Hey, I'm hear to see Weiss," Ruby said trying to come off calm and collected.

Jeana nodded her but bit her lip as her eyes flicked to the dining area. "Um, she's currently—"

"There's no need for that, Jeana," Weiss stepped in, she flashed Ruby a smile and offered her hand which Ruby eagerly took. "Not that I'm not happy to see you," she said, leading Ruby to her table, "but you're here a lot sooner than I expected."

Ruby gave Weiss' hand a small squeeze and said, "I was in the area. So, uh…"

Ozpin turned to them and smiled, his knowing gaze falling on Ruby. "Ms. Rose, a pleasure to see you again."

"Yeah, good to see you again, Professor Ozpin."

"You two know each other?" Weiss asked as she took her seat.

"Yup," Ruby confirmed, stealing a chair from an empty table and dropping it next to Weiss. Weiss gave her a withering look but Ruby shrugged it off. "Before I dropped out, Professor Ozpin was my biggest supporter."

"You're a bright young girl, I'm happy to have you back," he said.

"Glad to be back," Ruby grinned. "That engineering degree has been haunting me for years."

"Oh I can imagine," Ozpin smiled back. "You were so close."

"Too close." Ruby rubbed the of her neck, contemplating whether or not it was okay to drape her arm around the back of Weiss' chair. Throwing caution to the wind, Ruby risked it and was reward by Weiss leaning in to her touch. "Anyway, I just figured it was high time I finished what I started."

Weiss tilted her chin up, appraising Ruby with something akin to pride in her eyes. "I see," she said. "It's a good thing you're here early then."

"Why?" Ruby asked, blinking.

Ozpin hummed in amusement. "Why in did."

"But before that," Weiss raised her hand and flagged down the nearest waiter.

Fleur-de-lis wasn't to capacity but it was starting to get there with the early dinner rush approaching. Ruby could see four servers flitting between the many occupied tables. Hamilton wasn't among them so he was either scheduled for later or had the day off.

"If you're looking for Hamilton, he'll be here later tonight," Weiss informed her, hand still raised in the air. "Ugh, what am I paying these idiots for?"

"Patience, Ms. Schnee," Ozpin chuckled.

A young man with sleek black hair and stunning blue eyes approached them soon after with a suave smile plastered on his face as he winked at Ruby. "Hi, my name's Jet, what can I do for you?" he said to Ruby specifically.

"Uh…" Ruby glanced over to Weiss and gulped. She did not look happy. "I think you should run."

"Why?" he asked, clearly amused by her.

"Because you're hitting on your boss' girlfriend," Weiss said in a low threatening tone, her eyes narrowed in a chilling glare. "Now if you want to keep your job, I suggest you begin doing it properly. Because I can assure you, it won't be hard to find a replacement."

Jet gulped and straightened his tie. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't know you two were together. I—"

"Just take our orders before I lose my patience," Weiss said, putting an immediate stop to Jet's pathetic attempt at an apology. "Rosewood blend. Black."

"I'll take the same but with cream and one sugar," Ozpin said, offering the terrified young man a half-hearted smile.

"Um…" Ruby glanced over at Weiss when Jet's pleading gaze fell on her. "What was that coffee you made me? I really liked that one."

"That would be the Rosewood blend," Weiss informed her, proud that she'd converted Ruby.

"Yeah, I'll take that. Black, please and thank you," Ruby said.

"Right away."

Jet practically ran to the bar's POS just to get away from them. He looked about ready to cry by the time he reached it and refused to make eye contact with any of his curious coworkers.

Weiss crossed her arms and shook her head disapprovingly. "Of all the nerve," she grumbled, "I should have him fired."

"It wasn't that bad, was it?" Ruby grinned weakly. Weiss gave her a dry look that told her everything she needed to know. "Okay, it was pretty bad but girlfriend? When did that happen?"

"When you decided to pull your head out of your ass, you dolt," Weiss answered bluntly. "But I've done some thinking as well. Don't make me regret this."

Smiling, Ruby settled deeper into her seat and tugged Weiss closer. "You probably will."

"Oh, I have no doubt about that," Weiss chuckled, leaning in.

This would have been the perfect time for a kiss, but their third wheel cleared his throat, breaking whatever spell they were under.

"Anyway, Professor Ozpin, what are you doing here?" Ruby asked changing the subject, a blush gracing her cheeks when she felt Weiss' hand on her thigh. She and Weiss were going to have a long talk later this evening, but for now she wanted to simply enjoy this.

"I was just catching up with an old friend," he said smiling fondly at Weiss.

I'm really sorry for the long absence. I don't really have an excuse, I just needed to take some time for myself but that doesn't mean I haven't been working on content. I've got a few things in my queue that I'm excited to get out, but the most important thing is I'll be going over my previous work and writing some times to fit my new writing style. My update schedule is still a toss up since I'm juggling artwork and writing simultaneously, and if you aren't already following me on Tumblr (for those of you who are, I'm sorry about the Supercorp spam), I suggest going and giving it a look. I have somethings I'm working on that I'm excited to share soon, here's hoping it goes over well.

To anyone that has sent me a private message through , I'm sorry for not replying. I wasn't purposely ignoring your message, I just didn't see it. I don't get notifications for them, which is really unfortunate because I love responding to comments. Once again, I'm really sorry.

To everyone waiting patiently for other story updates, I have the next chapter of The Rose Amidst the Snow finished, but Nature's Wrath is going to take some time. I'm trying to decide whether or not I want to focus on the next installment or dig into the rewrite. I'm leaning towards new content, but I'd really like to go back and fix things.

Lastly, I've got a dedicated WhiteRose discord server open for anyone who wants to join. All you have to do is send me a message tumblr (just search for TheGreatWeissShark and you'll find me) or send me a request through here, but I highly recommend going through tumblr or asking through a review, I at least get notifications for those.

Thank you for all the patience, love, and understanding. I look forward to picking up where we left off.

- Sharky