Chapter 11

Weiss had been awake for about an hour– she only had her eyes open for about twenty seconds. A "good morning, Snow Angel," made her pretend to go back to sleep. She had expected Ruby to still be curled up beside her, but Weiss woke up alone and tried to swallow her loneliness. It seemed like no one was going to visit.

When the door opened, Weiss kept her eyes closed tight and hoped to hear the sound of Ruby's voice.

"Good morning Jaune. I wanted to see how you're doing."

"Been better."

Risking cracking an eye, Weiss checked who was visiting this idiot. She nearly yelped in surprise– the girl was gorgeous. Red hair, shapely hips, and strong, lean muscles. If it weren't for Ruby, the girl would be getting flirted with that moment. Weiss snapped her eye closed.

"Any news?"

"I'll be able to walk with a crutch if I'm lucky." A deep sigh punched through the air. "Shot in the knee and my adventuring days are over."

"I'm sorry. This is hard to ask– Colonel Ozpin wanted me to double check that your family are farmers."

Another sigh. "Yeah."

"I think they want to start growing food, or at least planning on how to do it. We could really use your help."

The next sound was more whine then sigh. Weiss rolled her eyes, but the motion was still hidden behind closed lids.

"This blows."

"Jaune–,"

"No. I came here because I wanted to be something more. This was my chance to be a hero. I'm sick of being just a joke. Getting bullied. Having people laugh at me. The world ended, and this was my chance to be a main character instead of comic relief. To be a man. Why did it have to be me?"

"Well I'm sorry that you feel that way. If it means anything, I think you're a great man."

'Well she's either dumb or has a crush on him,' Weiss thought.

"Like that means anything. You just don't understand." He released another hybrid whine/sigh. "Just leave me alone."

There was a long pause. Weiss didn't even want to crack her eye open and see how hurt the girl must look. A week ago, her brain might have told her this was a chance to catch a straight girl on the rebound, but right now she just thought of Ruby. 'Maybe I should be nicer to her.'

"If that's what you think is best," the girl said.

After a few moments, the door closed and Weiss opened her eyes.

"Good morning, Snow Angel," Jaune tried again.

Weiss glared at him a moment. She winced a little as she pushed herself off the bed and did her best to straighten out her clothes. She stuck her foot under the bed to slide out her boots. Weiss was pretty sure Ruby hadn't noticed the heel on them and she wasn't about to let the younger girl realize that she was taller. They usually slipped on easily, but it was a struggle with her right arm locked in a very stable splint.

"Heading out?"

Weiss didn't answer at first; she just walked to the door. But her hand froze on the knob.

"We can't all be heroes."

"Huh?"

"That's not the way the world works. There are people who are exceptional, and those who aren't. But it isn't talent, it's not something you're born with, and it certainly isn't fate. It takes work. I was born with a silver spoon– no, I was born with an entire gold set of cutlery in hand, but I worked every day to feel like I've earned the advantages I was given."

She looked over her shoulder at the dumbstruck boy. "I survived a week out there, and I earned every minute of it. I didn't get eaten by a bear because I used to run several miles every morning. I didn't get chased by pumas every night because I developed my critical thinking skills. I could kill a zombie because I trained to be a championship fencer. I only broke my arm because I had to protect someone I care about."

She grew stern. "Ruby can shoot through a needle's eye from a mile away because she went hunting whenever she could. She could always find us food and clean water because she spent every weekend learning to live in the woods instead of having fun like a normal teenager."

She turned around, her brow drawn as she stared him down with full force. "You want to be a hero, but what have you ever done to earn that title? You were probably just a worthless lump hoping glory would fall in your lap. You're just a whiney, weirdly entitled man-child, who's already lucky that he isn't zombie food right now. Not everyone has what it takes to be a main character. Grow up and help your friends you worthless idiot."

She flung the door open and stepped out, taking a deep breath of fresh, morning air. It felt good to be able to just drop truth bombs. There were no rules anymore, no sense of decorum she had to uphold. Weiss was unleashing her inner bitch– and it felt good.

"There you are! I've been looking for you all day," Weiss called out as she approached the little campfire Ruby was sitting beside. There was a fire pit set up beside the infirmary.

"Oh. Sorry, I was out. Their defenses were set up to stop an army, not zombies. I also set up some traps in the woods." Ruby leaned over a steaming pot, giving it a few stirs.

The sun was already falling and she hadn't eaten. Weiss didn't exactly trust food that Ruby hadn't given the okay on. Whatever was cooking smelled heavenly "What's in the pot?"

"Squirrel stew. Should you be out of bed already?"

"The only way I'd lie in a bed all day is if you're in it with me."

Ruby released a little noise that sounded suspiciously like 'meep.' Her pale skin flushed red. "Oh. Heh. Heh." Her eyes glued to the stew, and it seemed like she wanted to pull her head into her neck like a turtle. "That– wow. Um."

Weiss realized what she said, and a hand shot over her mouth. Turning the filter off was fun sometimes and disastrous others.

She flopped down onto one of the tree stumps around the fire. For a brief moment she questioned how they got there, but getting furniture from a forest was probably in Ruby's skill set. Ruby eventually calmed down. There was a silent minute of nervous fidgeting before it seemed like she had to find something to do with her hands. She pulled a rabbit from her bag and skin it.

Weiss watched curiously for a moment, then noticed the sad look on Ruby's face. In the corner of her eyes, she could see the other survivors looking on with horror.

"Hey, no negative thoughts. I can tell you're down, so how about we nip that feeling in the bud." Weiss dug into her bag and extended a little brown bottle with a white and red label.

Ruby chuckled and took it. "You've spent to much time with Yang." The young girl rolled it back and forth between her hands a few times, then used her knife to pry the cap off.

Weiss took the knife from Ruby, wiped the blood off on the grass, and then popped the cap of her beer. She had to grip it between her legs, but she wasn't going to ask Ruby for help.

Ruby held the bottle a few inches from her lips. "My hunting buddies did always say that nothing went with squirrel like warm beer." She took a sip and released a happy sigh.

"Well, thanks for that little nugget of appalachian wisdom." Weiss drank a mouthful of hers. "So, what's eating you?"

"Why do you keep phrasing it like that?" Ruby asked. With a blood and dirt caked fingernail, she began to pick at the label.

"I'm adapting my language for the situation. It'll catch on, you'll see."

Ruby laughed a little, then nodded. Her eyes drifted out over the compound, where other people were mulling about without much to do. "You know, it's funny. I always thought that if the world ended– if, even I wasn't crazy enough to think that it really would– everyone would be fighting to have me around. Don't get me wrong, I learned all these skills because I thought it was fun but…"

Ruby took another sip.

"… no one ever liked me. They thought I was weird. I thought maybe I could be a leader or at least reliable and begrudgingly liked, but I'm just that weird loner redneck." She shrugged. "I guess I should have seen that coming when I was eating squirrel and rabbits, but I didn't."

"We should leave."

"Huh?"

"If they don't appreciate what you can do, then we should leave. The four of us are better off staying mobile anyway."

"No. They need my help, so I'll help. Even if they think I'm strange and don't talk to me. Their supplies will only last so long and they'll need me."

Weiss put her bottle down and leaned over to lay a deep kiss on Ruby. As they separated Ruby couldn't help but laugh when Weiss flipped the bird and stuck her tongue out a passerby who must have been offended.

"I'm only going to say this once. You're a very good person."

Ruby smiled and leaned forward to check the pot again. "Um. You don't mind squirrel stew do you?"

"Are you kidding? Fresh, warm meat? I'm excited." Weiss released a sigh. "It's too bad the world ended. I would have loved to take you somewhere nice. Maybe a French place by the bay."

"I'm a burger and fries kinda girl, but that would have been nice." Ruby suddenly looked down again. "If the world hadn't ended, you wouldn't have even given me a second glance on the street."

Weiss stood up and nudged Ruby with her hip to get her to slide over. She sat beside her, the little stump barely big enough for the two of them. Her eyelids dropped like heavy curtains because she couldn't bear to look at Ruby while she spoke. "I guess not. But things have changed. I may be the only person who is happy that the world ended. Because– well, maybe I'm glad I got to meet you. Maybe."

"Oh Weiss," Ruby said, resting her head in the crook of the older girl's neck. "I'm so happy we could be together too."

"Shut up, that's not what I meant." Weiss hesitated a moment, then let her neck relax and her nose get lost in Ruby's sweet smelling hair. Without thinking, she gave the crown of Ruby's head a soft kiss and let the world melt away around them.

"Oh hey, you see that?"

Yang squinted her eyes, then lifted the binoculars up from around her neck. Big, ugly brown mass headed in their direction? Yeah, she saw it. "We got a bear incoming."

Nora nodded, then released a little whoop. "I finally get to use this," she said, picking her grenade launcher up from where it rested next to her chair.

The two of them were seated on a hunting platform set up outside the camp. There was a nice little perimeter where all the soldiers could watch from. But soldier was a loose term– they were all national guard trainees, and boot camp had just started when the zombies came. None of them had more than a few days of training, although there were some standouts who came with some skills, like Pyrrha and Ren.

Nora stood tall and shot from the hip, letting a grenade fly with a loud pop. There was a bang, and then a pink mist of bear parts in the distance.

Yang whistled. "Well, that makes things much easier."

"Did you guys have to deal with one of them?"

"Yup. Doused it in kerosene and lit on fire," Yang answered as Nora flopped back down in the chair beside her.

"Oh. Sounds exciting." The two sat silently for a moment. "Is it okay to leave Blake in the camp?"

"Yeah. Why would you ask that?"

Nora shrugged. "You two are dating right?"

Yang glanced at her for a moment. "I guess all I can say is no."

"But you're fighting."

"Friends fight."

"So what happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Just tell me."

"No," Yang growled out.

"Come on. What's eating you?"

"Why does everyone phrase it like that?"

"Because Weiss Schnee says it."

"And why does everyone keep saying her whole name?"

"Because she's Weiss Schnee. Weiss freaking Schnee!"

"Whatever."

"Yang. When I said I wanted to stay friends, I meant it. It kinda hurt that you stopped talking to me."

Yang sighed. She hadn't even recognized Nora beneath all of the military garb. The grenade launcher pointed at her didn't help– although if there was someone crazy enough to use a grenade launcher in a hostage standoff, it would be Nora.

"Now tell me what happened."

"Well, a couple nights ago…"

The dining facility of Fort Beacon was exactly the same as the one in Camp Signal. Down to the same picnic style tables and benches arranged in the exact same way. The other survivors were already seated, pushing around canned, nasty looking food on little plastic trays.

Yang and Blake approached the buffet line. Blake stared at the boy in the ridiculous hairnet serving the food.

"You ladies are new. Name's Cardin. Cardin Winchester."

Blake stared over the selection– it was hardly recognizable by sight or smell. "What doesn't have meat?"

His eyes narrowed. "You aren't one of those of those vegans, are ya?"

Yang stepped in front of Blake, standing tall. "No. But we've been out there a week. Seeing zombies eat a man like a pack of wild dogs fighting over a ham kind of puts you off meat for a while."

Cardin nodded. "How colorful. But I guess I can get that. Potatoes and vegetables are down the line. The meat is all shit anyway. The fridges and freezers had been broken for weeks before all this went down. I've had nothing but canned shit for a month."

"I think my sister has some fresh squirrel."

His face stayed passive. "I'll give it another week before I start eating that shit."

Yang shrugged and they left to get a more suitable dinner. Suitable and just barely edible. She found a quiet corner for them to eat in peace, at least for a few moments. They were side by side and jumped when a tray smacked down on the other side of the table.

Two boys sat down across from them, earning a glare from the black-haired girl.

"Hello there," the boy with the blue dyed coif said. "Name's Neptune."

"Yang, and this is Blake."

The blond boy across from her smiled and speared a carrot from off of Blake's plate. "I'm Sun. You a vegan too?"

"No."

"Nah, you totally are, I can tell. Can you believe what those White Fang crazies are doing?"

Blake sighed and started to pushed her food around. She looked unsure if she wanted to eat it but still slapped Sun's hand as he tried to poach another bite. There was a scowl on her face and she looked wearily at the boys.

Sun said, "Jeez, you need to relax. You aren't out there anymore. You're safe."

"Safe? This place isn't safe. No where is safe."

"Whoa, I thought your name was Blake, not Debbie."

"Huh?"

"As in Debbie Downer."

Yang laughed a little, then put her hand on Blake's back and started to rub a soft circle. She could feel the tension ease out of her. "Safety in numbers. They've got guards and watchtowers and all sorts of good things."

"Their rescue party didn't inspire confidence."

"Well don't worry about them. I'm here, and I've always got your back." Yang turned back and started to dig into her food. Cardin seemed dumb, but he wasn't a complete idiot. The food they found in gas stations was better than the hot garbage on her plate. Still, she kept eating. Yang began to softly hum the song she heard Weiss singing the night before.

"Yeah, well, look where that got Velvet," Blake said as she scooped a piece of nondescript vegetable into her into mouth and winced with revulsion.

Yang dropped her fork. She could feel it– she knew she had a minor anger problem. She knew that Blake liked to lash out when she was scared or uncomfortable. But Yang wasn't sure what she would do if she stuck around.

"Who's–," Neptune started to ask.

"I'm going to go," Yang said, practically leaping from the bench.

"Yang?"

The blonde girl stuck a hand up and silenced Blake. "No, don't want to talk to you, I'm just going to go. Enjoy your dinner, have fun with these guys, I'm leaving."

"What about your food–,"

"Lost my appetite," Yang called over he shoulder as she marched out of the building and into the cold night air.

"Now Blake refuses to talk to me. Says I was 'being rude,' when she was the one who was a jerk."

"So who is Velvet?"

"A friend who was with us."

"And she– stupid question. She isn't here."

"Nope."

"And were you dating her?"

Yang glanced over to Nora, who had put a hand on her shoulder. "No. Why all the interest in my love life?"

Nora pulled her hand away and turned her eyes back to the forest. There was an awkward moment of silence. "Things don't seem like they're going to work out with Ren."

"Sorry to hear that."

"I was shocked to see you again."

Yang grunted in agreement. Nora was a nice enough girl– she had the energy to match Yang. Well, that was an understatement. Even Yang couldn't keep up with her. They went into it knowing it was just experimentation on both ends, but it still hurt a little when Nora decided dating women wasn't for her.

"Ruby said she could get me milk and eggs. You remember your pancake recipe, right?"

"Yeah. I do."

"Good. I miss your pancakes."

A joke was on the tip of Yang's tongue– but it didn't seem like a good time to actually say it.