Chapter 35, just during RWBY Season 4 Trailer hype, amirite?! Ugh, I love this show, even with all its problems and often bad writing, I am so obsessed. Mostly because of you guys, the fans! Sure, there are quite a few problematic fans (like the ones who attack other people for their ships, like wtf), but most of you guys are just wonderful and loving people who say the nicest things, and I just want to say thank you once more! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter...its very slow, but a few little fun moments you may enjoy. :)

"What do you think Ozpin wanted with Rubbles?" Yang asked as she lay back, arms crossed behind her head.

Blake shrugged. "I have no idea. Perhaps he just wanted to welcome her back?"

"Are you sure? What if he upsets her? She could run again if he's not careful!" Weiss exclaimed, her arms waving dramatically.

Blake arched an eyebrow at Weiss. "You realize you look just like Ruby when you do that?"

Weiss' cheeks went pink as she puffed out her cheeks, her eyes narrowing at Blake. "Regardless! It's been nearly twenty minutes! We should check on her, make sure she's ok!"

"I'm fine, Weiss," came the quiet voice from the doorframe. Three heads turned towards the door, seeing Ruby standing in the doorway, leaning heavily against the frame.

"Ruby!" Weiss called out, before rushing to her side. She reached out for her, but paused as she noted Ruby's demeanor. Biting her lip, Weiss began to pull back, but Ruby reached out and put an arm around Weiss waist, pulling her in closely for a hug. Weiss relaxed into her arms, carefully squeezing her back as Ruby let out a long sigh.

"Is everything okay, Rubes?" Yang asked cautiously.

Ruby sighed again, slumping against Weiss' petite frame. Weiss grunted for a moment as she took on more of Ruby's weight, her knees buckling slightly before Ruby noticed. The younger woman straightened up so as to relieve Weiss of her weight, before stumbling over to her bed and flopping down onto it bonelessly. Weiss followed behind her, sitting next to her as Ruby lay on her back, arms akimbo as she stared up at the bed above her.

"I'm…okay. I guess. It's just a lot to take in," Ruby replied after a few moments of silence.

"What is?"

"My continued existence is a factor, I would assume," came the voice from the wall next to Ruby and Weiss' bed. Ruby didn't flinch, but Weiss, Yang, and Blake all jumped, as a tiny beam of light shot out from the wall, projecting Penny's holographic form into the center of the room.

"Penny?!" came three voices in unison.

Ruby sighed. "You could see into the room the entire time?"

Penny's hologram shrugged. "I wasn't watching it when you arrived. I normally stay in low power mode and only keep track of the engines during downtime."

"Wait one dust damned minute! Penny, what the hell?" Yang cried out, leaping to her feet.

"It is a bit of a long story. Ruby, should- "

"Just tell them, Penny," Ruby interrupted.

Penny nodded. "You may wish to sit down."

"You've…been here this entire time and didn't want to say anything? Not even to me?" Blake asked, eyes wide.

"I was afraid Ozpin would shut me down," Penny replied calmly.

"He would never do that!" Blake exclaimed.

"I had full access to all files that General Ironwood and Specialist Schnee had placed within the Reclamation. Many times Ozpin has taken actions that were to the great benefit of all involved. But there were cases, many years past, where Ozpin had taken actions that were detrimental for some individuals. I was unsure what decision he would reach involving my continued existence…therefore, I did not take the risk."

"That doesn't exactly make my decision much easier," Ruby cut in.

"I am sorry, Ruby, but if it helps, it has been many years since he took such an action, and he has not taken any morally ambiguous actions since before you entered Beacon," Penny said, turning to Ruby's prone form.

Ruby made a noncommittal noise, but didn't respond any further. Weiss looked up at Penny's hologram. "Did he mention whether his plans involved the rest of us?"

"He did not, but having seen what he wishes to do, he would gladly accept any and all of you into the force he is arraying against the Grimm within Vale. I believe he wishes to use the acclaim you and team JNPR gathered eight years ago. Based on what communications we receive from Vacuo and Mistral, the populace of those kingdoms fully recognizes you as heroes and would follow you," Penny explained.

"Follow us into the depths of hell, you mean," Ruby replied.

Penny cocked her head at Ruby. "You do not think that is a good thing?"

Ruby opened her eyes and stared up at the bunk above her. "I don't know what I think anymore. But I'm no hero, no beacon, no leader."

"The people think you are," Penny replied softly.

"The people think wrong!" Ruby replied hotly.

Penny shook her head slowly. "No. The people think you are a hero because you did heroic things. Do you not think Weiss, Blake, and Yang were heroes, during the Fall? Do you think so little of me, you think I was not a hero?"

Ruby gaped at Penny, sitting up instantly. "What? Of course you guys were! Especially you! You gave your life for everyone!"

"I gave my life for you. For Weiss, for Blake, for Yang. For my friends. I did not overload my core to defeat the Drake because I was trying to protect the people. I did it to protect my friends. Does that make my sacrifice less because of it?"

"I didn't say that! Why are you twisting my words!" Ruby shook her head as though to clear it, before looking up at Weiss beseechingly. Weiss shook her head no slowly, the expression on her face making it clear she agreed with Penny. Glancing up at Blake and Yang, she could see the same look mirrored on their faces.

Penny stepped forward, her voice soft but with a core of steel in it as she stared down at Ruby, refusing to break her gaze. "I am not asking you to lead Ozpin's army, to be what he asked of you. What I am doing is pointing out the logical holes in your argument. You, Ruby Rose, performed heroic actions time and time again during the Fall. Based upon the reports coming out of Vacuo about the 'Grimm Reaper', you continued that trend for the past eight years. Ruby, I am your friend. I may not be as I was, but I am still your friend, and will forever be so. You may be hurting, and you may have trouble seeing yourself as I see you, but I see one of the most heroic people I have ever known sitting before me."

Penny's glance swept across the room, locking eyes with each of the women sitting in the room. "The same is true of each of you. You saved thousands, tens of thousands of lives during the Fall. And now…now you have an opportunity. A chance to do something that the people of Remnant have not been able to do in millennia. Reclaiming Atlas was not as difficult as Vale…the number of Grimm in Atlas was not half of what it is in Vale. Even now, with no people to feed off of, the Grimm are still drawn to the lingering despair and fear left in the kingdom, like a miasma of pain. But together, with the armies coming to Atlas to prepare for the assault, Vale can be reclaimed."

"…do you truly think so?" Ruby asked in a whisper, hands gripping the bed tightly as she dropped her gaze to the floor.

Penny nodded. "Yes. I do. I have seen what Ozpin plans. He has no desire to make an attack without every single possibility accounted for. It is why he has left Ren more in charge of the Project for years now…he has been calculating every possible outcome. Every day he is in his office, running scenarios through the Reclamation's computer. I have been assisting in the algorithm's. He has planned out every eventuality he could, but the one he cannot factor is the strength of the soldier's own hearts. It is only with will and determination that the people of Remnant can face down the beasts of Grimm, and for that, they need something to believe in…or someone."

"I…I…I can't…ugh!" Ruby threw her hands up in frustration and leapt to her feet. She stomped over to the wall and slapped it with one hand, leaning her head against it as she breathed in deeply.

"I'm sorry for causing you such distress," Penny began, but Ruby waved her off.

"No, no, you're not…wrong. I guess. I dunno. I know you're telling me how you feel, but…dust, my brain doesn't want to believe you!"

Weiss carefully took Ruby's dangling hand and squeezed it tightly. "I agree with Penny. Trust her. Trust all of us."

"Forget that part of your brain, sis. I believe in you. I always have," Yang said with a soft smile. Blake kept silent, but even with her back to Blake Ruby could feel the weight of her gaze and just knew Blake was silently agreeing with the others.

Ruby sighed, letting the silence fill the room for a while, before Penny decided to break it. "As Ozpin said, now is not the time to decide. Think about it. But perhaps you should rest, it is getting late. I will make certain the room stays at a comfortable temperature for you."

Ruby snorted. "You control the temp too?"

"Of course. I am the Reclamation, and she is me."

Ruby chuckled sadly. "Okay Penny. Thank you." Penny nodded, before her light flickered out, the projection disappearing from the center of the room. Ruby let out a contemplative noise, before shoving herself back up from the wall she had been leaning on. Squeezing Weiss' hand before letting it go, she turned to look at the other two. Blake kept her eyes steady on Ruby's, her expression not betraying how she felt, as Yang bit her lip. "Well…what do you guys think?"

"I'm…a bit in shock, honestly," Blake began. "I didn't know that was his plan, at all. I was not expecting that."

Yang wrapped one arm around Blake's waist, leaning against her. "It's a nice idea. I just don't know how he plans on doing it. Vale was…pretty infested when we left. I doubt it's much better now."

"It's not. We've run missions into Vale. I lost count of how many different types of Grimm were in the main city. And the worst part…there is at least one more Drake."

Ruby perked up, eyes going wide as they bored into Blake's. "Another Drake?"

Blake nodded solemnly. "At least. We could see its silhouette against the remains of the CCT, but we made sure to stay under the radar so it didn't notice us. But when we were leaving, Ren spotted something flying into the kingdom. It was too far to get a good look, but it did not look like a Griffon or a Nevermore. It was massive."

Ruby paused for a moment before groaning, slamming her hands into her face. With a sigh, she let her knees buckle, collapsing onto the ground in an undignified heap. Weiss let out an 'eep' noise as Ruby suddenly fell, instantly dropping to her knees to check on her. Ruby batted away Weiss' hands gently. "I'm fine. I'm just…so tired. It's too much to think about. Can we just go to bed and make out and forget things?"

Weiss blinked, pink creeping into her cheeks at Ruby's bluntness. A cough sounded from the bed across the way, with Yang arching an eyebrow. "Ehem, little sis, I'm still in this room, and I have no desire to see you swapping spit with the Ice Queen."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Fine! Weiss, come with me, we're going to make out and get all hot and heavy and I'll probably cop a feel or ten, we'll just do it somewhere else! How's that, Yang?!"

Yang's eye twitched as Blake's jaw dropped. Weiss turned her head slowly to look at Ruby, her own eye twitch pronounced. "Don't I get a say in this?"

Ruby arched an eyebrow at Weiss. "Are you saying no?" Weiss sputtered, her pink cheeks going darker as Ruby put her on the spot. She slid her eyes away from Ruby, refusing to meet her gaze as she mumbled something indecipherable under her breath. Ruby smirked. "Sorry, didn't quite catch that?"

"I said yes, you dolt!" Weiss snapped at Ruby, the blush on her face at odds with her angry tone. Ruby chuckled to herself.

"Ok that is way too much, Rubes! I don't want to hear about what kinky crap you and princess get up to!" Yang exclaimed, waving her hands in the air wildly.

Ruby leapt to her feet, grabbing Weiss hand and sniffing at the air haughtily. "And you won't! C'mon Weiss, let's go to the library, it'll be quiet there."

"Hey wait a second, not the library! That's my room!" Blake interjected, glaring at Ruby. As the two matched stares, Blake hopped to her feet, reaching down and grabbing Yang's hand. "You two stay here, Yang is coming with me to the library!"

"I'm what? When was this decided?" Yang asked.

A slow smile spread over Blake's face as her eyes went half-lidded. With a purr in her voice, she leaned in close to Yang and spoke, her lips just barely touching Yang's ear. "Right now. Is there a problem, Miss Xiao Long?"

Yang didn't even hesitate, leaping to her feet with the tiniest flickers of flame leaping around in her golden hair. Ignoring her flushing state, Yang saluted Blake with her free hand and began marching out of the room. "No ma'am! To the library!" Blake turned her head back just as she was being pulled through the door, smirking at the other two women and giving a wink just before the door slid shut behind her.

Ruby blinked, raising both eyebrows. "Was it just me, or was that kinda hot?" A moment of silence passed, before Ruby turned to look at Weiss. "Weiss?"

Weiss was biting her lip, eyes glazed over slightly as she stared in the direction of the door the other two women had just exited from. Ruby's jaw dropped, before she slapped Weiss' shoulder, startling the pale girl. Weiss turned to Ruby, flabbergasted, as Ruby frowned at her. "What was that for?" Weiss demanded.

"You were having totally inappropriate thoughts about my sister and Blake!" Ruby exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air.

Weiss scoffed, not letting the heat in her cheeks deter her. "Didn't you just say that was hot?"

"Well, yes, but…you know what, shut up!" Ruby pouted, crossing her arms over her chest and sitting on the edge of the bed.

Weiss let the silence continue for a moment, before sitting next to her, noting how Ruby's expression had gone to a more neutral one. Carefully, she reached over and placed her hand on Ruby's shoulder, stroking her hair lightly with her fingertips. Ruby leaned slightly into Weiss' hand, sighing.

"Is everything okay?" Weiss asked, her worried eyes focused on Ruby.

"No, it's really not. But I meant what I said earlier, I don't want to talk right now. I just want to forget for a little bit. And to be honest, I do actually want to make out with you. You're gorgeous," Ruby breathed out the last word, relaxing her arms.

Weiss flushed at Ruby's comment, but kept her blue eyes steady on Ruby's silver ones. She turned to fully face Ruby, reaching up with her free hand to wrap around Ruby's neck, clasping her hands behind Ruby's form. "That sounds like an excellent idea," Weiss whispered.

Ruby clambered onto her hands and knees, before straightening up to loom over Weiss slightly. Gently, she pushed Weiss back onto the bed, going down slowly with her so Weiss' grip on the back of her neck never released. She found herself straddling Weiss' waist, her arms holding her up on either side of Weiss' head. Gazing down, she couldn't help but take a moment to feel lost in those ice blue eyes, filled with nothing but trust. Trust for her.

"Weiss…thank you," Ruby whispered.

"For what?" came Weiss' reply, just as quiet.

"For trusting me. For believing in me. For just…coming back to me, even after I was such a jerk."

"Dummy. I've always believed in you, Ruby Rose, and I always will. Now just kiss me alre- "Weiss' demand was cut off by a sudden pressure on her lips, Ruby fusing her lips to Weiss' with enthusiasm. Weiss let out a pleased, muffled noise, as she gripped Ruby's hair between her fingers, carefully parting the strands and running her fingers through Ruby's hair. Tugging insistently on Ruby's form, she tried to get Ruby to lay down but the younger woman stubbornly stayed above her, their skin not quite touching. Breaking the kiss, Weiss opened her eyes to glare at Ruby. "What are you doing?"

Ruby flushed slightly. "Weiss, I…you know, I'm kind of a bit bigger than you. You're still really, umm…"

Weiss narrowed her eyes. "Skinny? Short?" she asked archly.

Ruby shook her head no frantically. "No, no! I mean, umm…petite! Yeah, you're petite! I don't want to crush you or anything."

Weiss rolled her eyes, before yanking on Ruby's neck. The younger woman, unprepared for the pull, yelped as she found herself crashing down on top of the older woman. Ruby immediately tried to push herself off, but Weiss let out a tiny snarl, making Ruby freeze. Lifting her eyes, Ruby met Weiss' narrowed eyes once more. "I am still a huntress, Ruby. I'm quite capable of handling your weight. Now, if I recall correctly, not only did you promise to make out with me, but you also mentioned something about copping a feel, hmm?"

Ruby's jaw dropped as her eye twitched. "Is…is that…an invitation?"

Weiss smirked up at Ruby, her eyes going half-lidded. Ruby bit back a gasp as Weiss foot slowly brushed against the inside of her thigh, trailing down her legs, before she quickly wrapped it around the back of Ruby's leg, locking them closer together. One of her hands began gently tickling Ruby's neck, sending shivers up Ruby's spine as the other hand crept down her shoulder and began to trail down Ruby's side slowly. As Weiss' hand barely brushed the swell of Ruby's breast, Ruby hissed out a breath, feeling sparks shooting through her at the tiniest touch of Weiss' hand.

When Weiss stopped just at her hip, Ruby could only stare down, wide-eyed, at the smirking woman beneath her. Weiss lifted her head up just enough to whisper into Ruby's ear "Why don't you try and find out?"

It took all of three seconds for Ruby to come to a decision. With the tiniest of growls, Ruby pounced.