I promised you fluff, so fluffy as promised~
Chapter 34: Spending is a Luxury
Several days passed with normality slowly returning. Anyone seeing Ruby again after what seemed like so long ago eagerly greeted her. Even the professors who were aware of the situation showed their concern when she entered their classes, from Goodwitch's calm question of how she was feeling to Oobleck's rapid firing what she experienced on her unexpected trip to Port's booming congratulations on their first mission.
Classes continued on where they had left off, though teams RWBY and JNPR panicked as they saw how behind they were given the extended time they spent in Mistral. A veritable and literal mountain of homework had stockpiled.
At least they got extra credit.
Weiss still ran herself ragged. Not with her own work. No, she finished within two days through sheer determination… and dangerous amounts of coffee.
However, Ruby already struggled with classes normally due to her late education and the work nearly overwhelmed her to the point of tears. Late nights were spent in the library with dictionaries opened haphazardly and reams of paper scattered over the large desk.
Weiss had taken one look at her studying methods and immediately scrapped it. Coming up with a strict regiment designed to maximize the amount of information Ruby could absorb in the shortest amount of time, she also stayed up late with her leader to help tutor in any given subject, despite Ruby's protest that Weiss should go to sleep before her.
"What kind of partner would I be if I let you struggle through this on your own?" Weiss asked absent-mindedly as she reviewed over Ruby's latest scores.
They were improving, slowly but steadily. Ruby worked well with facts and immutable data. Memorization wasn't hard for her and basic mathematics were fine as well. Her only issue came to analyzing, interpreting, and extrapolating or manipulating data. Understanding current or historical events were difficult with her isolated childhood that left her mind unable to comprehend certain actions people take.
"What kind of partner am I? Troubling you like this…" Ruby muttered with her ears folded flat. She was thankful for Weiss' help. Truly she was.
But she didn't want to burden Weiss even more than she already did.
"Dolt," Weiss called out and flicked Ruby's forehead, eliciting an eep from the wolf. "It's because we're partners that we can trouble each other like this," she smirked.
"…and …I'm doing this because I want to," she spoke softly as her cheeks pinked somewhat.
Ruby stared and tried to place the expression Weiss was making.
She didn't know why, but being without her team for a week had changed her. Maybe it was from the lack of their comforting presence, but she found herself observing them more and more lately. Almost as if she was afraid that they would be separated again.
And in her observations, she found herself seeing things she's never seen before.
Like the Weiss right in front of her.
Face flushed and avoiding eye contact. Her lips were slightly pursed into a small pout that Ruby found utterly charming. The heiress was usually cold and indifferent to a lot of things, brushing anything troublesome or unworthy aside with callous ease…
…
Though looking back… Ruby realized that Weiss showed plenty of emotions. Happiness. Anger. Concern. She just usually hid it behind a face of indifference; a face that Ruby was happy to note that she can now see through just a bit.
So what kind of face was she making right now?
Ruby couldn't put her finger on it. Red, but not angry. Embarrassed? A little, but Ruby couldn't understand why. Her eyes and ears searched for what could be causing her distress, trying to peer into Weiss' averted eyes to understand her.
"Are you okay?" Ruby asked as she leaned in closer.
"F-fine!" Weiss recoiled back.
But her sudden movement halted the moment she saw the hurt look on Ruby's face. Dejection. Rejection.
"S-sorry!" Weiss quickly apologized. "I didn't mean to…" she started to explain but paused. From Ruby's expression, her intuition told her that words would be ineffective here. After what Ruby went through, Weiss recognized the desire for closeness and so found excuses to stick close to her leader, but her actions just now pushed them apart.
Even if she explained it, it will do little to comfort Ruby.
So while Ruby still looked down in disappointment, Weiss slid over until their shoulders were touching.
The slight brush alerted Ruby and her head snapped up inquisitively.
"Sorry," Weiss murmured again. She still wasn't used to physical displays of closeness. Every time before, she had been the one to initiate contact, whether through hugs to calm the girl down or soft pats on her head to reward her for a job well done.
When someone else initiated, her first reaction is to push them away.
And right now… this was all she dared to do.
But to Ruby, no other words were needed. The wolf child smiled a soft smile and leaned slightly into the offered shoulder. She knew Weiss didn't like physical contact much and kept everyone out with a cold exterior, but it was moments like these when the heiress tried her hardest to reach back to the warmth that Ruby was happy to offer.
Her ears twitched as she picked up Weiss' heartbeats. They were thumping slightly faster than normal and her breathing was a bit harder, though her eyes were glued on Ruby's homework held in one hand.
Her other hand… Ruby's eyes drifted downwards and found it carefully resting on the table.
Pale. White. Smooth.
The wolf within felt an urge…
Dainty fingers so callused from battle-
to… just…
- yet promised of tenderness.
reach… out…
Ruby stopped, her fingers just centimeters away from Weiss'. So close that she could feel the heat radiating off the cool skin. The slight sheen from the luster of her pale skin beckoned her closer.
She cautiously looked up at Weiss to see her tutor still focused on the answers written before her, unaware of what she was doing.
...Just... a little more!
Her fingertips were close. So close! The warmth grew to be a blazing fire.
"Good work," Weiss' voice rang like a bell and snapped Ruby out of her trance. Ruby's hand jerked back as if she had touched a hot plate.
"Even by my strictest standards, you'll have no less than an A-," Weiss smiled.
"R-really?" Ruby stuttered as she tried to control her breathing. Her hand was clutched to her chest, trying to bring that burning heat as close to her heart as possible. Her hand still felt warm, but the heat was quickly fleeting.
She wanted more...
…If Weiss's hand was near her heart… ...touching her skin...
Ruby quickly looked away as the thought tormented her. Now that it was in her head, she couldn't stop imagining how it would feel.
"You don't have to be so surprised," Weiss giggled unexpectedly.
So unexpectedly that when she caught herself, she quickly blushed as well.
"Ahem!" she cleared her throat and regained Ruby's attention. "For your good work this week I was thinking…" Weiss' voice trembled slightly. "We should go into Vale this weekend!"
"Vale?" Ruby tilted her head. Last time…
"Yes, last time, we got separated and couldn't enjoy it," Weiss muttered. "So… I was hoping to look around… with you."
Just you….
Weiss' mind buzzed with contradictory thoughts, asking her just what was she thinking? To be honest… she didn't really know either.
Her conversation with Blake when they were in Mistral… she still needed to sort herself out. That still held true. But the idea of spending time with Ruby…
"Okay," came Ruby's soft voice and Weiss felt the sudden and unexpected flush of relief wash over her. "Let's enjoy Vale together this weekend."
With that, they set to return everything back to their proper places. Every book and dictionary returned to the return cart, papers stacked neatly and filed in their folders, and chairs firmly pushed flushed against the table.
And as they headed back, Weiss heard a cheer from deep within herself.
This weekend, she and Ruby will be able to enjoy themselves without worries, without hesitations, and best of all, with each other.
The best laid plans of Weiss and men oft go astray.
Why?
"We're heading into Vale this weekend!" Yang cheerfully announced as they returned.
"W-what?!" Weiss nearly shrieked. Her plans!
"Well, I told Blake that we should all go to Vale because we didn't get a chance to last time," Yang explained.
Ruby laughed gaily as she hopped onto her bed, eager to sleep and get ready for tomorrow. "Weiss said the same thing a few minutes ago!"
"But! But!" was what Weiss wanted to say, but couldn't without bringing up… reasons.
Instead she just sighed and told them all to go to sleep. Her plans weren't sunk just yet.
Things were still salvageable!
As she turned off the lights, she missed the wary glance that Blake shot her.
…
Morning greeted Weiss still going over her plans one final time, looking up a few notable places that she might need. Yang may have thrown a wrench into the gear system, but Weiss was nothing if undeterred.
Ruby was excited as always and nearly pulled Weiss' arm out of its socket in her rush. Breakfast was the only thing capable of slowing her down, and only so she could munch on a piece of buttered toast while watching as the seconds ticked by on the giant clock face on the wall.
Immediately after everyone was done with their plates, she grabbed them and dashed to the cleaning station, dropping them with a quick thanks before rushing back and ready to go.
Thankfully, they arrived in Vale none too worse for the wear.
"We're here!" Ruby cheered and danced in a circle around her friends. Even with her shorter legs, her excitement and speed allowed her to easily keep pace even while they were walking.
"Well this is a familiar scene," Yang laughed, closing her eyes and reminiscing of the last time. "Better hold onto my hand before you get lost again," she offered her hand out.
But she frowned when Ruby didn't take it.
"Um…uh…" Ruby fretted and Yang turned around to find that Blake and Weiss were on either side of the short leader, their hands firmly enclosed around hers.
"…What are you doing?" Yang asked deadpanned.
"Making sure she doesn't get lost," the monochrome pair answered in unison. They both looked at each other for a moment and then adamantly looked away.
But they're hands were still locked around Ruby's.
"D-don't worry Yang!" Ruby tried to smile. She could feel the discontent rising from Yang, though she wasn't exactly quite sure why. "I definitely won't get lost now!"
Yang could only pout and sulk. Blake and Weiss played dirty. When faced with that kind of face, that charming innocence, who could get upset?!
"Let's get going," Yang muttered.
She occasionally glanced back at the trio and saw Ruby happily walking along, exaggerating the swings of her arms like a little kid.
That should have been her hand swinging back and forth!
But Yang forced herself to look away from the cheery group, mostly because she felt left out. Instead, she chanced upon a poster plastered to a wall.
"Girls! We're going there!" Yang pointed excitedly.
"Oooh," Ruby awed, her eyes wide at the spectacle she had never seen before. "What is it?" she asked, because she had never seen it before.
Posters aligned side by side like colorful wallpaper, each bursting with sharp contrast and eye-catching titles.
"You want to watch a movie?" Blake raised an eyebrow.
"Yep!" Yang grinned. "Ruby hasn't ever seen one right?"
They all knew that Ruby has watched small clips of funny videos online through her scroll, a moment where they all cooed at her adorable face when her eyes lit up and her laugh rang through the dorm. But of course, a full feature length film in the dark auditorium was a different experience entirely.
"Might as well," Weiss acquiesced. "Let's see if there's anything worthwhile." This was still well within her plans.
As they browsed through the posters, it soon became apparent their differences in tastes.
Yang wanted some blood-pumping adrenaline rush while Weiss wanted a sophisticated romance and drama. Blake didn't see anything that popped out to her, though when asked she expressed interest in intrigue and mysteries, mostly so she could solve them before the protagonists and reflect on how their subterfuge could use work. Basically, she approached movies the same way she approached books.
"Where's Ruby? What does she want to watch?" Weiss asked. They had let go of each others' hands once inside, reasoning that Ruby shouldn't be able to get lost in a small room where the only way out was where they came in and that people may start staring and ask questions.
"Over there- you've got to be kidding me," Blake pointed to the red-clad girl tilting her head at a large lit poster.
"You want to watch this?" Yang asked as she walked up.
"W-well… if everyone else thinks it's okay," Ruby asked softly, hands held behind her back and looking up demurely at them like a child asking for a toy.
"It's a cartoon," Weiss pointed out. Not exactly something she considered highly.
"It's actually an anime!" Ruby pointed out proudly. Her little reading sessions with Jaune and Nora helped her to distinguish between the two genres, despite their close similarities and roots.
"Come on, Weiss, who knows? We might enjoy it," Blake tried to persuade her. "It's got romantic-comedy for you and plenty of explosions for Yang. And… I might like the protagonist?" She wasn't really sure about the last part, but she didn't mind. Movies, like comic books, took away from what she felt was the essence of storytelling: to invigorate the mind and spark the imagination.
"Yeah, if it's Rube's first movie, let's let her choose," Yang agreed.
"Oh fine," Weiss relented and walked over to the counter. "Four adult tickets please."
When she came back and handed them the tickets, Yang joked, "You could have passed Ruby off for a child's ticket."
"I'm not a kid!" Ruby complained cutely, earning more laughter from Yang.
"She's not a child," Weiss argued back. Her face heating up a bit, she muttered, "…and she's over 12… maybe 15… probably…" She cast a glance to Ruby who beamed back brightly upon meeting her eyes in thanks for siding with her.
"You actually know the age limits?" Blake smirked. "What did you do, spent the morning looking it up?" she guessed correctly, knowing exactly what Weiss was doing as she was the second person wakened.
Weiss' face grew pinker with every word.
"And I'm starting to think that she's far more mature than you two are!" Weiss huffed, grabbing Ruby's hand and dragging her away towards the concession stands.
"Ouch! That kinda hurts," Yang easily took it in stride, showing that she understood and enjoyed bantering with the heiress.
The bumblebee duo glanced at each other for a moment, both their arms folded across their chest with a smug smirk crossing their lips. It lasted only for a moment before they both burst out laughing and made their way to follow.
Of course, Weiss managed to get her revenge.
When Yang saw her chance to treat Ruby, to make up for that day in Mistral, Weiss quickly cut in and offered to treat all of them, magnanimous in her wealth.
"What good is Lien if you don't spend it? And no Lien is better spent than on friends," she stated with confidence.
"Awww," Ruby squealed as she hugged Weiss tightly around her midsection.
"H-hey! Let go!" the heiress tried vainly to push away her clingy leader. She looked at the displays full of treats from small hard candies to the obligatory popcorn with far too much butter and tried to entice Ruby to buy something.
"Okay, okay," Ruby relaxed her arms slightly. "But one last squeeze!" she made sure to pull Weiss in as close as possible. So close that she could feel Weiss' heartbeat right next to her ear.
Quickly letting go, she bounced over to the counter, her tail wagging back and forth.
Watching the exchange left a bad taste in Yang's mouth. Like a sugary syrup ruined by its own sweetness.
As happy as she was for Ruby and Weiss to be so cheerful… she wanted to mess around too!
"I'll take two jumbos of everything," Yang ordered, flustering the attendant at the sheer amount.
If Weiss was offering, Yang will milk it for all it's worth.
"You're going to get fat," Blake warned. She understood partially why Yang was acting as such. Even Blake felt the urges to protect and dote on the little wolf. And after being denied so many times…
"I'm going to eat my sorrows away," Yang melodramatically complained and walked off with two arms laden with enough food to feed a small brigade.
Blake just rolled her eyes and hurried after. Honestly… Weiss wasn't entirely wrong, but Blake swore that sometimes she felt as if she was the oldest one in the group and had to look after all of them.
After catching up with Ruby and Weiss in the auditorium, finding the best seats was easy. They didn't have much competition, that is to say, they didn't have any competition.
The movie had been out for a while apparently so no one really came to watch. The theater probably placed it up because it needed to fill a time-slot.
Sitting down next to Yang, Blake reached over and grabbed a handful of popcorn, picking off pieces one by one to toss into her mouth.
Yang just stared at her.
"Why didn- ! GACK!"
The moment Yang opened her mouth, Blake flicked a piece of buttery puff into her mouth. She hadn't meant to choke the blond brawler, but watching her pound her chest to dislodge the unwelcome treat was a bit amusing.
"Sorry," Blake apologized with a small smirk as Yang glared at her. "You look like you wanted someone to share that with."
"Yeah, well…" Yang looked away. Blake did help take her mind off of things and recognize the rash decision she just made. Looking at the mountain of unhealthy treats made her gulp, worrying about how to possibly finish. She knew how to burn calories efficiently but…. even this much saturated and trans fat is going to clog her down.
"Share?" she offered one of the enormous popcorn bag to her partner with a sheepish smile.
"Heh~" Blake smirked and accepted graciously.
As the trailers for new movies played, she shifted her focus down to where Ruby and Weiss sat, one row below them. The movie didn't really interest her at all, she had a vague suspicion that she could predict everything before it happened.
Instead, she kept her head straight as if to view the big screen, but peered at the antics below.
Ruby happily slurped on her soft drink and when she saw Weiss' irate face at her lack of manners, offered the straw to Weiss.
Even in the dimming lights, Blake could see the tell-tale pink on her face.
This was much more interesting. Especially when Weiss didn't refuse and tentatively took a small sip.
A sharp poke to her side nearly made her jump and she looked over to the offender, ready to question who dare ruin her show.
Yang just cheekily grinned and pointed at the screen.
Focusing her attention, she saw the opening card:
The heartwarming story of a boy and his cat…
… and a major military equipment manufacturer…
...
...
They all walked out in silence.
"Well… that was a thing," Yang commented.
To be fair, they all had to admit that they got exactly what was advertised. A cheesy romantic comedy with plenty of explosions.
Not that Blake could follow much of it. Were all anime so over the top?
"What did you think of it?" she directed the question to the group.
Yang just shrugged while Weiss folded her arms and huffed. "The plot made no sense, there was a severe lack of character development, even with the semi-dramatic moments, and the arbitrary goals of the antagonist and lack of cohesion in their plans undermined their role as the villains."
"Didn't like it much, huh?" Yang chuckled. It wasn't anything special to her either, the explosions were too unrealistic and the scenarios didn't make her adrenaline rush like she had hoped. Still…
"What about you Ruby?" she asked the quiet girl.
Ruby had walked out with her head down, her entire body trembling.
"Ruby?" Yang asked again, a bit worried.
"That… was soooooo cool!" Ruby exclaimed happily, her eyes seemed to literally sparkle with stars. "Like how she jumped with a 'whoosh!' and caught all the missiles," Ruby mimed the action, striking the pose she saw.
"And another thing!" Weiss cut in. "Why did they turn the cat into a robot?!" Suspension of disbelief aside, her inner justice demanded she file a lawsuit for false advertisement.
"Because robots are cool too!" Ruby defended.
Weiss opened her mouth to say something, but Ruby quickly dashed off, shouting "Ruby Punch!" like how one of the protagonists attacked.
"Come on, you," Weiss huffed and reached out grab Ruby's hand before she could dash off and get lost again.
Ruby twisted and spun about until it took the combined efforts of both Yang and Weiss to pincer her, her hands once again both in their grips.
"Geez that candy made you hyper," Yang laughed.
"Come on! Come on!" Ruby cheered. "We still have more we can do before we have to go back!"
"Alright, alright," Weiss struggled to keep up. "Just slow down a bit you dolt!"
Watching them from behind, Blake smirked without anyone seeing.
As Ruby merrily walked forward, arms swinging back and forth, her childish fingers gently intertwined with delicate fingers.
Extra:
It had been a tiring day. By the time they returned, Ruby and Yang immediately collapsed on their beds and instantly went to sleep.
Blake couldn't blame them. After the movie, they decided to grab a quick lunch and continue looking around. One way or another, they arrived at a small park and Yang had the bright idea to play Color Walk, a game Blake had never heard of.
Still, the two of them jumped around and even roped in a few kids playing. Laughter echoed throughout the park loudly that day and Blake suspected many of the children now looked up to Ruby since she won with a near gravity defying leap to the top of the tallest slide when someone shouted, "Something shiny!"
She and Weiss had contented to sit out on the game, and for a good reason. By the time the sun started to go down, they nearly had to carry their partners back.
Not that Blake was complaining, but she was pretty sure Weiss got the lighter load.
Now that said partners were asleep, Blake turned to Weiss.
"Just what are you planning?" she questioned.
"I certainly have no idea what you're talking about," Weiss answered back.
"You like Ruby," she stated flatly. Anyone with half an eye could see that.
"You say it like you don't," Weiss shot back. "Like anybody doesn't…" was her unspoken statement.
"Oh I'm thinking it's more than that," Blake smirked. "For instance… your hands," she brought up her own and wove her fingers together.
Weiss simply sniffed disdainfully and looked away.
"I don't have anything against it," Blake reassured her. "I just wanted to make sure I'm not imagining things."
"Well you are!" Weiss spoke hotly. "One, despite what I said, she's still too young. Two, she doesn't even know what love and like is." She took a breath to calm down and spoke in a much softer, almost melancholy, tone, "Three, she's a free spirit, unbound by anything... and I'm a rich kid with issues."
At Blake's unconvinced raised eyebrow, she continued, "Lots of issues." As if that explained everything.
Blake sighed. "Denial doesn't really suit you Weiss. I know you had plans to take Ruby out to Vale, just the two of you, and I'm sorry Yang interrupted." She managed to get a quick glimpse of Weiss' scroll before they left and saw that Weiss was checking popular date spots. Weiss can try to argue that she was just looking for fun ideas, but...
"Not exactly something you should be sorry about," Weiss muttered. She closed her eyes and massaged her temples. "I don't know what I'm doing anymore… when she went missing, I was worried… but then… more than that… I really started to miss her…"
"We all did," Blake reminded her. "We were willing to do anything to get her back. And we did."
"…But then when we got back and she started avoiding me…"
Even if it was only for a few hours, Weiss had fretted in that time. She didn't know what she had said, the last thing in their conversation was how their first spar had ended up with her injured more than when she was shot. In hindsight, it wasn't her most brilliant move, but she just wanted to console Ruby that she wasn't that injured!
"And I still have to sort myself out," Weiss repeated softly as she went to turn off the lights. "So I wanted to show her a good time and bring back the closeness we had before this weirdness started."
Blake laid in her bed silently, not really knowing what to say.
To put it plainly… she didn't really know what Weiss should do. She wasn't exactly experienced in the matters of the heart herself.
Weiss' feelings were conflicted, shackled by issues that Blake couldn't begin to understand. And what Weiss said wasn't incorrect either. Ruby liked everyone equally. Blake doubted there was a distinction between 'like' and 'love' for Ruby.
Yet.
Blake wasn't blind to the other half of the equation. She had seen some closeness between the two that Ruby reserved for Weiss and Weiss alone. Whether Ruby was aware of it, or even doing it unconsciously was another issue altogether.
But that was fine.
If there was one thing Blake knew, rushing headfirst was the quickest route to burning out. And if Weiss felt comfortable slowly stepping forward, then Blake will be there for every step.
Trying to take her mind off the issue, Blake decided to ask about something she had been thinking all day. "You said no Lien is better spent than on friends," Blake reminded her of her earlier words. "What about charities?"
And in Weiss' answer, Blake realized something fundamental about the heiress.
"Charities are a good cause," Weiss admitted. But in a smaller voice Blake almost couldn't hear, "…but charities don't offer warmth and comfort on cold lonely nights…."
Weiss was lonely. Her childhood must have been near friendless, and yet she was the kind of person who would go out of her way to help any whom she would call friend. She truly valued her friends...valued them, team RWBY... because they were all she's had.
In a way, Blake could see the classical struggle and fear of trying not to ruin the friendship that was already there with Ruby.
And the thought made her truly value the friendship that they shared in turn, that Weiss would allow Blake to see and hear this side of her.
"..thanks..." Blake whispered in the dark.
Weiss was silent for a moment.
"...Doting and spending on friends is not a luxury and blessing many get to have... so I should be thanking you three..."
And you can bet Weiss was blushing when she said that last line!
Spending really is a luxury, for both money and time.
That one week really helped Weiss put things into perspective with half the team gone.
But she's still a bit hesitant and unsure regarding what she wants with Ruby. So look forward to more White Rose moments as she clumsily tries to find out. :D