I don't own RWBY
Content warning for mentions of transphobia and mentions of alcoholism
Weiss couldn't help but think of how amazing Blake looked as they rode in the back seats of Yang's car. She wore a white long sleeved, cropped v neck shirt, with black jeans. Several dark bracelets adorned her wrists, and she sported a black bow on her head. Weiss, on the other hand, had gone out of her way to procure a ivory white jacket adorned with eight black buttons going down the center; four on each side. Her collar was popped, and the jacket was complete with a skirt a matching white, with a black trim. She wore the high heeled boots Ruby had picked out for her. Her makeup had been done with immaculate detail, having taken several hours of preparation.
In the shotgun seat, Ruby wore a black and grey top with her signature red jacket, and wore black boots with red laces and soles, with dark leggings. Finally, Yang wore a black and light tan leather jacket, decorated with a belt and her iconic short shorts.
Weiss had been having several firsts lately. Her first true friends, her first (and hopefully last) relationship, her first nondescript winter holiday.
And now came her first new years party. Neon had thrown it together, and just about everyone Weiss was friends with had agreed to be there. The only thing worrying Weiss was the occasion. She knew it was considered normal to kiss your partner when the countdown hit zero. The very thought overwhelmed her nerves. As far as she had known, Blake had been comfortable, just as she was, with moving at a comfortable pace.
It's not that I don't want to kiss her. I just don't know if I'm there yet, Weiss thought to herself. After all, we haven't told each other we love each other yet. Is that supposed to come first? This feels too soon. It's moving much faster than I anticipated, and I can't exactly slow down. To not kiss at midnight, she would absolutely see it as an insult. I've never kissed anyone before, how am I supposed to do it right, for the first time, here? She's had experience, with Illia, she'll be expecting something skilled, not something awkward.
Weiss nervously fidgeted in her seat, trying not to show her worry to Blake.
"So, is this your first big party?" Blake asked, snapping her out of her internal monologue.
"Yes, actually. Father never let me attend anything like this. He said that time could be used on study and practice for skills that were 'more practical'."
"Well, if it helps, it's mine, too. Unless you count protests," Blake said. "But I don't think those count."
"Don't worry, you two. I've been to a million of these," Yang said. "They're more relaxed than you'd think. They're not like those crazy high school movie parties."
"But this one was organized by Neon," Ruby said. "There's no way of knowing what she planned."
"Fair point," Yang said. "Just a few pointers. One, the pizza always shows up way later than it should. Fill up on snacks for a while. Two, the punch may or may not be regular punch. And it's hard to taste if it's mixed, so if you're not wanting to get wasted, stick to water or soda. And third, stay hydrated. The music's always loud, and you wanna fight the headache. Got it?"
"And you said this wasn't like a cliché movie party?" Blake scoffed.
"Polar opposites, practically," Yang said.
"Really?" Blake asked. "How?"
"Atmosphere. If it wasn't organized by Neon, I'd say differently, but Neon's friends are decent people. So that uncomfortable peer-pressurey garbage won't be likely here. And if someone tries to make any of you do anything you're not comfortable with, find me. I'll feed 'em their teeth," Yang grinned, as she pulled up to Neon's house. Weiss took a deep breath, as they all stepped out.
"Hey, blondie," Mercury said, walking up the driveway. Emerald followed right behind. "Heard you and Neo hit it off."
"You know it. She's already here, so I'm gonna meet up with her," Yang said. "If anyone needs me, just say something that can be interpreted as an innuendo. It's like a 6th sense. I can't help but make a dumb joke."
She headed inside, Ruby not far behind.
"First party?" Mercury asked. Weiss and Blake both nodded.
"If anyone can set one up, it's her," Emerald said. They headed towards the door.
"Weiss, Blake!" Coco said from the doorway, letting them in. "Never got a chance to congratulate you two. You're honestly perfect together."
"Thank you," Weiss politely said. Blake blushed giving a brief nod of thanks.
"Told you," Emerald said, holding out her hand.
"Damn," Mercury said, giving her ten dollars.
"Wait," Blake asked. "You bet on us?"
"I did," Emerald said. "Mercury thought you'd get with Yang."
"I-" Blake began, before Coco spoke up again.
"Velvet wanted to say hi, if you get a chance," she said. "And if it helps, you two still aren't the biggest news in couples that got together over the holidays."
"Really? Who else?" Weiss asked, eager to move the attention off of her and Blake. Blake shared a look of gratitude, equally uncomfortable with the spotlight. Coco grinned.
"I knew it was gonna happen, so far made 70 bucks off of it. That's just cause Nora hasn't paid up yet, though," Coco said, pointing into the living room, where Jaune and Pyrrha sat on a couch, Jaune's arm going over Pyrrha's shoulders.
"It's about time," Blake said.
"To be fair, people said that about us," Weiss said.
"Really?" Blake asked. "I didn't know it was that obvious. I thought I was more subtle."
"You were plenty subtle," Coco said. "But Weiss would trip on her words every two seconds when you were around."
"Oh, hush!" Weiss blushed. "I wasn't that obvious!"
"Yeah, sure," Coco said. "And my name's Ashley. Weiss, you've never been one for subtlety."
Weiss scoffed.
"Weiss!" Neon chirped, from behind. "Your hair's been looking super amazing."
"Thank you," Weiss smiled.
"I'm so glad you made it! If you're hungry, we've got chips, cookies, crackers, and a sandwich platter in the dining room! And we've got soda in the cooler," Neon said. Blake hurried over to the dining room to take advantage of said snacks.
"Thank you," Weiss said. "How did your nondescript winter holiday go?"
"It was awesome! I got a new pair of roller blades from my dad, and my mom gave me gift cards for a lot of my favorite stores! How about you?" she asked.
"It was actually very enjoyable," Weiss said. "I don't really have any previous years' worth of experience to compare it to, but I had a splendid time."
"And how about Blake? Did you two do something fun?" Neon asked.
"Does everyone already know about us?" Weiss asked, surprised.
"Just about," Neon said.
"Well," Weiss said. "We did spend some time together. Most of it was going for wintertime walks, which we've both become rather fond of."
"Excited for tonight?" Neon grinned, as they took a seat off to the side of the living room.
"What do you mean?" Weiss asked.
"You know, midnight. The countdown. You and Blake," she teased. Weiss' cheeks turned pink and she looked down, nervous.
"Right," she said. "I've just never done anything like that before."
"Nervous?" Neon asked, opening a soda.
"You could say that," Weiss said, unsure of how to word her specific concerns. "Let's just say I'm new to everything relationship-oriented."
"Well, a lot of people are," Neon said. "Only way to get that experience is with practice."
"I guess," Weiss said. "I just don't know if I'm ready."
"I mean, no one ever feels ready," Neon said. "It's more of a blind leap, kinda."
"If you say so," Weiss sighed. "I guess I'll give it a try."
"Hey, guys," Blake cut in, hurrying over to their seats. She took a seat on Weiss' other side, offering her a soda.
"Thank you," Weiss smiled, accepting.
"I'll leave you two to it," Neon grinned, hopping up. "If anyone needs me, I'll be annoying Mercury. He's so irritable!"
Neon scurried off, leaving Weiss and Blake.
"So, this party," Blake said, awkwardly.
"It's... entertaining," Weiss said.
"It's definitely entertaining," Blake said. The two of them sat for a moment, a nervous air filling the space between them. "So you feel really out of your element, too?"
"God, yes," Weiss immediately replied. She longingly wished she could be having the levels of fun Yang was, who at the moment was arm wrestling Nora, both wearing wide grins. "Parties have never been exactly my event of leisure."
"There is a silver lining, though," Blake said. "There's no one I'd rather be here with."
Weiss smiled, her cheeks turning red.
"I could say the same," she said. "About you, that is. I'd not have anyone else I'd rather be here with-"
Weiss sighed, tripping over her words, cursing herself. Even after they'd started dating, Blake still somehow had the ability to tear Weiss' usual formal elegance away, leaving uncoordinated stumbling for the proper sentences in its wake.
Blake, fortunately, didn't mind. She took Weiss' hand in hers, and scooted closer.
"I'm thinking next year, we celebrate in a quieter setting," Blake offered.
"I'd love that. Neon is wonderful, and she did well in setting this up. I just don't think that it's my favorite venue," Weiss said.
Weiss had migrated around the party, chatting with various guests. Eventually, Ruby, Mercury, Coco, and Neptune had gathered in the dining room, and Weiss had joined them.
"All I'm saying is, the whole concept is dumb," Neptune said. "The entire concept of forbidding sleepovers with the opposite sex just plays into the annoying idea that guys and girls can't be friends."
"And it's completely heteronormative," Coco added. "My parents forbade me from having guys over. They sure felt dumb when I got caught making out with a cheerleader later that year."
"Yeah, well, don't even get me started on how dysphoric it can feel to be forced to only be able to really be friends with girls," Mercury sighed. "There's a lot of reasons Em and I go so far back."
"Hey, any chance Neon got anything a bit harder?" Neptune asked, rolling his eyes at the soda.
"Neon's held a lot of parties, and she always made it clear," Coco said. "No alcohol."
"I mean, that's kinda lame," Neptune sighed.
"I actually prefer it that way," Ruby said.
"Yeah," Mercury agreed. "I need a break from being around that shit."
"I would have to agree," Weiss joined. Neptune cocked his head slightly, confused.
"Really?" Coco asked.
"What?" Neptune asked.
"My old man's a drunk," Mercury said. "So is her mom, and her uncle." He pointed to Weiss and Ruby respectively. Neptune looked down, embarrassed.
"Gotcha... sorry," he said. "Maybe it's for the best that it's not here."
"Let's not get wrapped up on that," Ruby said. "So, Coco, I hear you and Weiss are thinking about starting up a business."
"Adel & Schnee," Coco said. "Weiss is kind of my fashionista apprentice at the moment."
"We were thinking of creating a market for the LGBT community. So, beyond fashion, we'd also be designing binders, padded bras, and our clothing would be more LGBT-friendly," Weiss said.
"That sounds awesome!" Ruby said. "But how would you make your clothes LGBT-friendly?"
"Well, for one, a wider array of sizes," Coco said. "The trans community has a lot of trouble when it comes to trying to use clothes only designed with cis customers in mind. We'd like to accommodate other body types. We'd also have a lot of clothes with designs made for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and pansexual communities. In short, catchphrases and flag designs, that sort of thing."
"We'd also do designs for the asexual community," Weiss said. "Pretty much anyone who falls under the LGBT umbrella."
"It's about time we had a business like that," Mercury said. "Maybe then I'd go somewhere other than Hot Topic or Spencers at the mall."
"I've always wanted to make a difference," Weiss said. "That was my biggest problem with taking over my father's company. There's not very much room to help out my own community, aside from donations. And I can also make those donations in this line of work."
"Well," Neptune said. "You got my support. If you guys are trying to get off the ground, I'd be happy to spread the word."
"That would be wonderful," Weiss said. She didn't get a chance to say more before Yang and Neo entered the room, grabbing more drinks.
"What's up?" Yang asked, pulling over a chair.
"Weiss and Coco are telling us about the fashion company they're gonna start," Ruby chirped.
"Gotcha," Yang said. "Well, it's 11:30, so you all might wanna find your partners soon."
"Right!" Coco perked up, getting to her feet. "Any clue where Velvet is?"
"Last I saw, her and Blake were chatting in the office room," Yang said, cracking open a root beer, which immediately foamed up. "Shit!"
"So, who'se the unlucky girl?" Mercury sighed to Neptune.
"I'm here solo," Neptune said.
"Well, at least there's that," Mercury said. "Can't say I've had better luck either, though."
"Ugh, you make it sound like there's nothing worse than being single," Ruby said.
"Yeah, well, not everyone's a fan of the idea," Yang said. "Weiss, you'd better go find Blake. I think she's still in the office."
"Right," Weiss sighed. She stood and hurried to the office.
"So, new years," Blake said, fidgetting nervously while everyone watched the clock tick to 11:52.
"Yeah," Weiss said. "Is this your first new years with someone?"
"I mean, not really," Blake said. "But Illia had the flu that year and I was buried under homework I put off through the holiday, so we didn't really spend it together."
"I see," Weiss anxiously drummed her finger on the armrest of her chair. "So, you've never... kissed anyone?"
"Oh, Illia and I kissed all the time," Blake said. Weiss shifted uncomfortably.
"Right," Weiss said. "I'm sorry, I realize this is an odd topic."
"It's fine," Blake said. "What about you, have you kissed anyone?"
"I..." Weiss stammered.
"Right," Blake nervously said. "I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking."
"I guess I'm just really nervous," Weiss sighed. "I've never done anything like this."
"If it helps, I'm nervous, too. I really want things to stay good between us, and I'm not exactly an expert at any of this," Blake said.
"Wait," Weiss asked. "You're also nervous?"
"Absolutely," Blake said. "Just because I've been in a relationship before doesn't mean I know what I'm doing. I had one relationship that went about five months, and then ended with us both deciding that we were better off as friends. Then Illia grew more and more distant. And I'm really worried that'll happen with you. I don't want to lose you, too."
"If it helps, I'm not going anywhere," Weiss weakly smiled. "I just... we started dating a few weeks ago, and this just feels..."
"Way too soon?" Blake asked. Weiss nodded. "I've been thinking that, too. Don't get me wrong, I want to get there with you, Weiss. But I don't want to rush it or force it. I want it to feel like the time is right, and this just..."
"It feels like we'd be doing it for everyone else," Weiss said, looking out to the room full of people. The clock hit 11:56. "It feels like we wouldn't be doing it for us."
"Then let's wait," Blake said. "And for now, I'd love to hug you at midnight instead."
Weiss let out a relieved breath.
"You have no idea how much better that sounds. I've been trying to get myself ready to take this step and it's just been... terrifying," Weiss said.
"Same," Blake smiled. "I've been unable to relax this whole party."
"I thought I was the only one," Weiss said.
The clock hit 11:58.
"Weiss Schnee?" Blake grinned. "Will you not kiss me at midnight?"
"I'd love to," Weiss smiled back as they stood. She took Blake's hands as the countdown started at 90 seconds. Weiss glanced around the room. Neo was unfolding a small stepladder to match Yang's height. An incredibly anxious Jaune was blushing as Pyrrha stood with him, entranced in his eyes. Flynt and his boyfriend stood towards the center of the room, leading the countdown. 60. Weiss looked over to the quieter section of the room, where Mercury, Ruby, Neptune, Sun, and several others sat, most chatting about various movies or games. 50. She looked further, noticing Illia, who appeared to be with Robyn Hill on a whim. Illia looked back, giving Weiss comforting look that seemed to state that there weren't any hard feelings. 40. Her attention swerved back to Blake, staring into her eyes. Weiss felt time seem to stretch, collapse, and distort as she lost herself in those golden eyes. She only realized how long she had zoned off at 14. 13. 12. 11.
Every couple around the room seemed to ready themselves.
10
Weiss sighed in comfort, her mind at ease.
9
Even so, she couldn't help but feel butterflies in her stomach.
8
Someday, at least hopefully, she and Blake would take this step.
7
And Weiss had no clue if she would be ready.
6
She'd hoped for that future for months.
5
So much that the idea of said future actually happening sounded incredibly nerve-wracking.
4
Like some kind of perfect dream.
3
Some kind of utopia.
2
Weiss snapped out of her thoughts, knowing that as long as she and Blake were together, everything would work out.
1
"Happy New Year!" everyone shouted. Weiss and Blake pulled each other in for a warm embrace as most of the room leaned in to kiss.
Weiss closed her eyes, letting her head rest on Blake's shoulder. She knew immediately that this had been the right call. She felt safe, calm, and at peace here. She could tell by the way Blake's shoulders dropped their tension that Blake was in agreement. They took several seconds to enjoy their moment together, before finally pulling away.
"So... you two... didn't kiss?" Yang asked, sitting at the Xiao Long dining table with Tai, Ruby, and Weiss. "All of that, and you two just hugged?"
"Yang, listen," Tai sighed. "You've always been headstrong, had a tendency to charge headfirst into a situation. Not everyone does that. And that's okay."
Yang nodded, looking down.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to judge," Yang said. "I'm just not used to the thought of going slow with something like this."
"Wait, so how quickly did you and Neo kiss?" Ruby asked.
"About two minutes into our first date, at Red Robin," Yang said. "Why?"
"Wait, that soon?" Ruby asked.
"I mean, I've started relationships faster," Yang said. "But yeah."
"And that's also okay," Weiss said, before Ruby could object. "I just don't like the idea of going into something that quickly. I like Blake. I really like her, and I really hope everything between us goes well, but neither of us felt ready. And that's okay."
"Hell yeah!" Yang said, startling Weiss.
"Wait... you're... happy about that?" Weiss asked.
"If it's what's best for you two, absolutely. Plus, it's nice to see you this confident. A month ago, you wouldn't have been able to stand up for yourself like that," Yang said.
"Hey, guys?" Ruby asked. "I've been thinking, and I'd like to tell you all something."
"Alright," Yang said. Everyone turned to face Ruby.
"You all get super excited over relationships, and because of that, I've been wondering if I'll ever feel that way, and after a lot of thinking, I've realized that I'm... asexual," Ruby said.
Ruby sat, waiting for everyone's responses, nervously.
"Ruby, I've watched you grow from a zany, hyper child into a zany, hyper teenager," Taiyang said. "I'm incredibly proud of the woman you're growing up to be. Your sexuality won't have any impact on that. I promise. I want you to know I'll always accept you."
"Same," Yang grinned. "And also, called it."
"Wait, you figured it out?" Ruby asked.
"Duh," Yang said. "Ruby, you're the ace-est person I've ever met."
"I may not be family like them, but I want you to know I'll always accept you, too," Weiss said.
"Shut up, you're family too," Ruby corrected. "You've got a nondescript winter holiday mug and everything, that means you're family."
Weiss smiled.
"Family or not, I'll always accept you for who you are," Weiss said.
"Thank you," Ruby said. "It means a lot that you're all still here for me after that."
"Now, out of curiosity," Yang said. "And if you aren't ready to answer this, or just straight up don't want to, that's okay. But out of curiosity, are you also aromantic?"
"I don't think so," Ruby said. "I'm not against the thought of eventually having a relationship. I'd just want to keep things... well, romantic, if that makes sense?"
"It does," Yang said. "I'm always here for you, and I need you to know that'll never change, okay?"
Ruby smiled, slightly teary-eyed.
"Thank you," Ruby said.
"Don't thank me," Yang said. "I'm not doing something special. This is how people should treat each other."
Weiss watched Yang comfort her sister, and immediately felt herself wrestling with an inner feeling of spite and envy. She remembered telling her father who she really was, and the response she had gotten.
She faked a yawn, looking for an excuse to leave the room.
"This has been lovely," she said. "But after a night of partying, I'm exhausted, and I'm going to get some sleep."
"Night," Yang said. "We'll keep it down in here."
"Honestly, I'm pretty tired, too," Ruby said as Weiss stood, heading to the bathroom to remove her makeup.
"Alright, night," Yang said, stretching. "I'm still a bit hyped, but I'll crash at some point."
"Don't stay up too late," Tai said. "School starts back up in a few days."
The school was buzzing with the news of Blake and Weiss' relationship when they returned after the break. Thankfully, Jaune and Pyrrha's newly formed relationship took up about half of the gossip, keeping the wave of attention from being too overwhelming.
"Hey, Weiss," May called, that morning, as Weiss sat down in the cafeteria. Weiss looked over to see a happier looking May, makeup and all, heading her way. She sat down by her, leaning onto her palm. "How'd your nondescript winter holiday go?"
"It went wonderful, actually," Weiss said. "I hope yours wasn't too awful."
"It was what it was," May sighed. "On the bright side, Robyn got me a ton of makeup so that I could stop hiding. But, from the looks of it, I may be seeing her a lot more often. Things... aren't well at home."
Weiss thought back to her envy of Ruby's accepting family, then to her bitter resentment of her own.
"I know how that feels," Weiss sighed. "I'm here to help."
"Thanks, but I can figure it out," May said. "Anyway, I heard about you and Blake."
"From the sound of things, everyone's heard about me and Blake," Weiss said.
"Hey," a voice interjected, and Weiss looked over to see Robyn Hill take a seat across from May. Following Robyn were two other women, the first being the tall, green-haired Joanna Greenleaf, and the second being the short, shy Fiona Thyme. "Are you doing alright?"
"I'm trying to be," May said.
"We're all here for you," Joanna said.
"Always," Fiona chimed in.
"Thanks," May sighed. "I hate to say it, but I may need to take you up on that offer. Things have been getting worse."
"Just say the word," Robyn said. "I'll get the guest bedroom cleared up."
"Has Henry been a big part of it?" Weiss asked, worried.
"Unfortunately," May said. "He kept to his word. My entire family knew before two days had passed."
"Bastard," Robyn said. "He's always been an entitled prick."
"I'm sorry you're related to him," Weiss said. "I know exactly how he thinks."
"I mean, it was pretty great watching him react when you came out," May said. "He got so mad when you stopped talking to him. He practically had an existential crisis. Then you came out and he was actually befuddled."
"Befuddled wasn't exactly how I'd put it," Weiss said.
"Yeah, in school he was more accurately a constant jackass," Joanna sighed.
As if on cue, they watched Henry walk past, giving them an irritated look.
"I still can't believe I willingly associated with him," Weiss said.
"Why did you?" Robyn asked. "Before you came out, you acted like a polar opposite of who you are now."
"I know," Weiss sighed. "I just... I didn't want anyone figuring it out. My family has very intolerant views of our community, and I was scared."
Weiss felt as if she would never be truly free of who she had pretended to be throughout her entire childhood. She had finally started to feel as though it had been truly left behind, and just like that, it was back.
"Robyn," May said. "Back off a little, okay? I'm pretty sure she would change it all if she could. I doubt she's exactly proud. Besides, Henry gave her a concussion for standing up for me. I think that should earn her some trust."
Robyn nodded, sighing.
"Alright," she said. The bell rang, signaling everyone to get to their lockers, and then begin the school day. Weiss stood, trying to shake the idea that her past would pester her throughout the entire day.
It wasn't until she was in Qrow's office, at the end of the day, that she realized how right she truly was.
"He did what?" Weiss asked incredulously.
"This isn't possible!" Yang protested.
"It can't be legal!" Blake snapped.
"Alright, calm down, will you? You're all giving me a headache," Qrow sighed. "Look, I've been looking over the documents for an hour. They're legal."
"But it was supposed to take place practically at the start of summer!" Yang said. "How the hell did he change that?"
"Money and power," Qrow said. "The court date got moved to tomorrow. I honestly should have seen this coming, it's a tactic used all the time. He got his team to come up with the perfect case, then pulled the right strings to move the case to leave the opposition dead in the water."
"Okay, well, let's focus on what matters," Ruby said. "What do we do now?"
"We be damn grateful that he's suing the school district first," Qrow said. "We have a few days to get a defense together. I need all of you to stay calm and not freak out. I'm going to see what kind of lawyer we can get."
"But there's no lawyer you could find on such short notice that could make a decent case against him!" Weiss objected.
"Weiss," Blake said, putting her hand on Weiss' shoulder. "We'll figure this out."
"I don't think we will," Weiss said, her voice shaking. "Blake... I don't know what to do."
Thank you all for reading chapter 26! Chapter 27 is now in production!