AN: Hey guys! Happy Halloween! I hope you guys are still able to celebrate in some sort of way this weekend! Anyway, here's a little bit of insight into Ruby's past with Weiss!

ooOOoo

It was so chilly the first time they'd met. They'd travelled all the way from Patch just to keep up with family tradition – at least, that's what her mom had told her. Yang was only her half-sister, but she was still excited to come along with them. She was so proud of her baby sister reaching a milestone in life, even if she didn't understand the importance of a Rose getting their first cape made, nor did Yang understand why they had to go to Atlas of all places. Ruby giggled as their mom explained that their family originated from Atlas and tradition was important among Atlesians; that one day, Ruby would stand by someone important's side – whatever that meant.

Ruby had always had questions whenever that had been brought up though. Did that mean that her mom had also been by an important person's side? Did she mean love or that they were famous?... Did that mean that their father was an important person? All that Ruby knew was that this was the second time she had seen the pretty lady with white hair in the last few days and the smile they shared with one another was something very special. However, there was something different this time when they met. There was a little girl hiding behind the strange lady's leg and she was so pretty.

Just like the pretty lady, she had clear blue eyes, milk-white skin, and flowing white hair. When their eyes met, Ruby pepped up and the girl ducked further behind the lady's leg. She peeked back around shyly as if she were scared of Ruby and Ruby sank in her own dejection. Today was supposed to be a special day where nothing could go wrong. Today, she got her cape…

"Weiss," the tall, Atlesian woman chuckled as she pushed her forward. "Say hello to Lady Rose's daughter," the woman flashed a warm smile at her mother that she returned earnestly. "One day, she will be your most loyal confidante!"

"Willow," Ruby's mother said excitedly. "Does that mean?"

"Yes, Summer," the woman called Willow nodded with a smile. "I have chosen Weiss."

"Soooo," Summer grinned mischievously. "Not your son? I heard you had one of those now!"

"Oh, you!" Willow's hair puffed out and she narrowed her eyes at her. "You know his father won't rest until he is just like him! Of cours,e I wouldn't do that to your daughter! I'd rather she not deal with the drama you had to!"

"Haha," Summer laughed lightly at the implication before looking up at her suggestively. "Well, he was right, wasn't he? About us."

"Hmph," Willow crossed her arms with a huff and turned away. "It doesn't matter now! It was a long time ago!"

"Hahaha, it was," Summer's eyes shined playfully as warm breath puffed out into the frigid air. She crouched down to the small girl's height and extended a hand. "I don't believe we've met. My name is Summer Rose." The girl studied her hand for a moment and looked up to her mother.

"Go on," Willow smirked. "It's only polite."

"W-Weiss," the little girl placed her hand in Summer's, though it was all but engulfed when the adult wrapped her fingers around her and gently shook it. "Weiss Schnee."

"Ooo, Weiss! I like it! Did you know that it means white in Valean? Just like your hair!" Summer flashed a knowing look at Willow. "And my cape!"

"Quiet, you!" Willow snapped at Summer, who laughed playfully in return.

"Oh, such terrible manners," Summer placed a hand on her cheek and pouted. "Don't learn such horrible language from your mother! She's really quite uncouth sometimes!"

"Uncou- since when do you read dictionaries?!" Willow growled. "That's a rather large word for you!"

"O-U-T-H," Summer mouthed a few letters to herself and counted out on her fingers. "No, that's only six letters… Discourteous, impertinent… uncultivated! Now those have significantly more letters in them!"

"You know what I meant," Willow flattened her eyes at her and Summer pretended not to notice. The older Rose turned to Ruby and nudged her forward.

"You too!"

"Oh, uh," Ruby looked between everyone and her heart started racing. She grabbed Weiss' hand in both of her own and blurted out the first thing she could think of. "My name is Ruby Rose and I'm e-eight years old!... And I have a puppy named Zwei!"

"Well, that was certainly…" Willow let the words die in her mouth as Summer started to laugh.

"Nostalgic?" Summer's daughter was just as awkward as her the first time they met and Willow rolled her eyes, wondering if her own daughter would look at her with the same disdain she'd shown Summer all those years ago.

"You have a puppy?!" Weiss' eyes went large and returned her grasp with a determined look.

"Yes?" It was Ruby's turn for her eyes to go wide.

"Is he here?" Weiss' eyes lit up with excitement and she stepped closer. "Can I meet him?"

"Um," Ruby deflated in the presence of her new sort-of friend. "He's back in Patch…"

"Mommy, can we go to Patch?" Weiss' resolve would not be broken. "She has a puppy and we need to meet him!"

"This is-"

"Not what I was expecting either," Summer finished the statement for her. "Well, at least they have something in common." The white-clad huntress smirked at them and passed a Scroll over to Ruby. "You can show her pictures. Go find Yang and stick with her. Weiss' mom and I have some things to talk about while the tailor finishes up your cape. Maybe after this we'll talk to Lady Willow about meeting Zwei."

Do you often like to reminisce in dreams, Little Rose?

"Do you always have to interrupt the good things in my life?" Ruby watched from afar as her younger self played with an equally young Weiss. She approached the two women who spoke wordlessly with one another – blank emotions on their faces. She'd never heard the conversation back then – only been vaguely aware of where they were.

I still don't know why you insist on recalling this moment, every time. It always ends the same.

Suddenly, the world around them burst into flames and a dark figure waltzed from the flames. It stood before her and tilted its head. A bright light lit up its hollowed out skull and strangely warped teeth. Fearmongers – their faces reminded her so much of wispy, stygian Jack-o-lanterns, if they came attached to equally dark bodies and claws.

"What do you want, Reaper?"

"You are spending too much time living in a past that she does not recall," the Fearmonger sighed, though its mouth did not move. She'd been with him far too long to know that he spoke to her on a telepathic wavelength. He no longer gave her the decency of pretending to talk like he had at first. He just greeted her with the same unchanging grin that had been plastered across its emotionless face since day one. He'd terrified her the first time they'd spoken, but somewhere along the line, she came to see him as little more than a nuisance that provided her with the occasional unwanted commentary. "Why not tell her about us? There is no time like the present."

"She won't understand," Ruby slumped over. "She doesn't remember me and they never got far enough to explain why I'd be important to her. It's better if I keep her in the dark about it. Besides," Ruby motioned to Reaper. "I seriously doubt she'd understand all this. She won't even entertain what I said in class the other day."

"Hmmm…" The creature lifted an arm and the flames around them swirled together, congregating in the palm of its claw, before they extinguished. "It was getting too warm."

"Surprised you could feel it. It's my dream."

"I am a part of you," it answered as their surroundings went dark. "I feel everything that you do. Whether I choose to voice my opinion or not is just that – my own choosing." Two spots of light opened up, each with one of the small girls in their centers. Reaper devolved into a strange ooze that skipped over to the young Weiss in four crooked bounds, reforming at the end and hovering over her. "She belongs to you."

"Go away," Ruby huffed in annoyance. "That's not how this works." Several bars formed around the Fearmonger, caging him in as he chuckled.

"Someone is coming who will take her away," his voice rang out as he faded away. "You've only just reunited… and they will not be happy to see you as close as you are… Be serious about this."

ooOOoo

Blink blink… blink

Blue eyes stared back into her own. Was she still dreaming? She didn't get this close to Weiss and she'd never woken up next to her before… Actually, she'd never dreamed of waking up next to her either, so… why now? Weiss continued to watch her, slowly blinking on occasion, but she said nothing. Birds started tweeting outside and a random snore interrupted her thoughts, though Weiss' eyes didn't break away from hers…

Wait… now she remembered… She stayed in Weiss' bed last night. Crapbaskets! They'd fallen asleep before Blake and Yang got back! Weiss was going to be mad at her for still being here and Yang was going to tease her to no end over it! Ruby shot up with a quick apology and tried to bolt from the bed, but she let out a choked gasp as the collar of her shirt was pulled back.

"I'm so sor-," Weiss planted an arm by the side of Ruby's head and hovered over her, pressing a finger to her own lips in a hushing manner.

"Hush, you dolt," the heiress whispered sharply. "You'll wake them up and then we'll never hear the end of it from your sister."

"Oh," Ruby laughed nervously. "She'll sleep through anything…"

"Not Blake."

"…I'll try to be more quiet, and um, go back to my-."

"No," Weiss' eyes softened. "I didn't say you had to leave."

"Aaaah," Ruby grinned up at her slyly. "All you had to do was say you wanted me to sta- oof!" A pillow to Ruby's face ended her attempt at teasing the heiress early. She pulled it away with a playful smile in just enough time to witness Weiss roll over with a huff. "Who's being loud now?" There was no response and Ruby lifted herself up and leaned over her, closing her in with her arm. "I need my blanket though. It's cold."

"…" Weiss glanced back at her and blushed at the closeness between them. "Th- there's… more than enough here!"

"Eh?!" Ruby's brain froze as she processed what Weiss had just said. As if to hammer it in further, the heiress lifted the blanket partially and Ruby realized that she'd turned redder than her cape. There was no way she was being serious. Weiss Schnee didn't share her bed or her blanket with her friends – especially not Ruby. They were only partners and Ruby was still working on the friend part.

"I'm not going to hold it up forever," Weiss snapped at her without turning around and Ruby quickly slid under in an effort to avoid being scolded again. This was so awkward, but she wasn't sure if it was because it was Weiss or because she wasn't used to being in someone else's bed. Ruby curled in on herself and sighed. It was still so early in the morning and the sun had barely started to light the sky. She had enough time to go back to sleep if she wanted, but she didn't think that would happen – not like this.

"Do you have bad dreams often?"

"Huh?" Ruby straightened up a bit at the question.

"You were making sounds," Weiss said softly. "You seemed upset… I've never heard you before."

"Oh, um," Ruby rubbed the back of her neck. "Sometimes. I'm sorry, Weiss. I didn't mean to wake you up."

"You didn't," Weiss turned over to look at her with her soft baby blues. "I was already wa-aking… up!" O…kay? Why did she look like she'd been caught doing something she wasn't supposed to? Weiss could be really flustered over the silliest things sometimes.

"Do you?" Ruby returned the question, but Weiss seemed confused. They'd gotten a bit distracted and it was still early, so she didn't blame her. "Have bad dreams, I mean."

"Oh… yeah," Weiss settled down and her eyes returned to the way they were when Ruby had first woken up. It was a curious thing. She didn't feel uncomfortable, but if it had been anyone else, it probably would have unnerved Ruby. Just thinking about it made her shiver… but she'd never seen Weiss watch someone this way before, nor had Weiss started small-talk with her like this before. It was usually pretty heavy subjects between them. Maybe this was a Morning-Weiss thing? Ruby'd never talked to Morning-Weiss before her coffee– she was usually super grumpy. "I have them."

"…I hear you sometimes," Ruby blushed as Weiss blinked slowly again and Ruby started to feel a little nervous under her gaze. "I-in the morning."

"…you've never said anything…" Maybe this strange behavior was the medicine they gave her and Weiss was going to be mad when it wore off. Ruby started to look away, but Weiss placed a hand on her cheek to stop her. "Don't… look away, I mean…" Oh. She was doing it on purpose.

"I figured you'd talk about it when you were ready," Ruby relented and her eyes started to drift toward the hand Weiss left on her cheek, but the heiress applied pressure and Ruby met her eyes once more.

"Eyes on me," Weiss demanded in a quiet whisper that greatly contrasted how aggressively she had ordered Ruby to be quiet earlier. "Please." This felt more like something that she was asking, rather than forcing. However, Ruby had a sinking feeling that Weiss' feelings would be hurt if she denied her. "It's always the dream I told you about last night…"

"About your friend?"

"Yes…" A glossy sheen wet Weiss' eyes, but she blinked the liquid away and somehow still maintained eye contact. She was normally so stoic with her emotions that Ruby almost felt guilty seeing this side of her. "What about yours?"

"I…" What was she supposed to tell her? Oh, you know! We got blown up together in Atlas seven years ago! There is no time like the present. She recalled Reaper's suggestion and mentally sighed. Ugh, why did she have to remember him right now? She definitely couldn't tell her that much. "Also… lost a friend!" That was vague enough!

"I'm so sorry," Weiss' eyes filled with worry and Ruby smiled gently.

"Don't be," Ruby said with a warm laugh. She hesitated at first, but she gradually slid her arm over Weiss' side and let the weight of her prosthetic sit when she didn't react. "She's still alive and I know where she is. She just doesn't remember me anymore and that's okay."

"I don't know what's worse…" Weiss frowned at the thought. "Aren't they similar?"

"I'll always have a chance to get her back…" The warm look in Ruby's eyes made Weiss' heart wrench, especially when she squeezed her side gently. There was something behind her eyes that made the snowy girl's heart race. "If I want to..."

"Why wouldn't you?" Weiss furrowed her eyes as she became upset. "If I had the chance to have my friend back, I would take it in a heartbeat. He deserved everything in the world, especially his life."

"And if you knew that things would just go back to the way they were before?" Ruby started lift herself up as she got more emotional. "That you'd both get hurt, probably even worse. That people would start coming after them to get at you? What if letting them keep going without those memories was the best way to protect them? Would you still do it then, Weiss?"

This time, Weiss didn't force her to look back when she broke eye contact. There was a brief silence between them as she tried to find the words. She hadn't realized that Ruby was holding so much in. It was true, Ruby did have a lot of darkness in her past – much of which Weiss had yet to learn. Truth be told, she was hoping to uncover some of that, no matter has small it was. Unfortunately, it seemed she hit a very sensitive topic buried under that darkness, but what was it that made Ruby feel she was a danger to this friend? She and Ruby were both similar enough. If this friend was from around the time Ruby lost her arm, then that meant Ruby was also much stronger than she'd been before. Swallowing hard, Weiss decided to answer her.

"… I would…" Ruby's eyes darted back to her and Weiss met her with a determined look. "As I am now, I could change things. I'm stronger and I could have protected him, if I'd had the power I have now."

"Heh," Ruby gave a dark laugh and looked down. "It's enough to be a stranger that protects her. We can never be how we were, but at least, I know she's safe."

"She'd be lucky," Weiss yawned. "To have you, again."

"She'll always have me, Weiss," Ruby smiled gently, with another squeeze to Weiss' side that went unnoticed. The heiress blinked again and relaxed as it registered that Ruby was no longer upset. Her eyes started to grow heavy, and eventually, sleep claimed her. Ruby sighed and rolled over to look up at the bottom of her own bunk.

Weiss had certainly been acting strange through that entire conversation… and what was up with the way she had been looking at her. It was like she was… looking into her soul? She'd never felt so naked before and shuddered at the thought. If Weiss saw the things that Ruby was holding in, she'd definitely run away from her… but maybe that was fine too. Ruby closed her eyes and tried to let sleep take over her but it wasn't happening.

"You're still awake?" Ruby's eyes shot open. Of course, Blake had been awake.

"Yeah… How much of that were you listening to?"

"Did I hear something I wasn't supposed to?" Ruby's silence was enough to answer her. "Let's talk… somewhere else."

Lifting Weiss' hand carefully, Ruby set it on the bed gently and made sure that she was comfortable before she followed Blake out the door. They walked in silence for bit, observing the dawn sky as the morning sun rose. Beacon's courtyard was so quiet this early, save for the random student getting in an early morning run.

"Does Weiss know you like her?"

"What?!" Ruby almost fell over at the question. "I-it's not like that!"

"Right…" Blake gave her a skeptical look, accompanied by a complimentary eye roll. "And I'm not a Faunus."

"Really? I was like 90% sure you were!"

"Of course, I'm- wait, you thought there was a chance you were wrong?"

"Psh," Ruby waved her off. "No way! I was so certain!"

"90% certain."

"It's a turn of phrase, Blake! Like if I said that I was 99% sure!"

"So then you were 1% unsure."

"Oh my Dust, you already need to stop hanging out with Yang," Ruby mumbled more to herself and Blake smirked at her win. No wonder Yang enjoyed this kind of torture so much. "But seriously, I don't see Weiss like that."

"You will, though," Blake spoke more seriously. "It just hasn't hit you yet… Don't let it be when someone else finally gets her."

"Not gonna' happen," Ruby completely dismissed the idea of a mutual interest between them. "Weiss can like whoever she wants. I'm not interested in that kind of thing. What about you and Yang?"

"I'm…" Blake flushed completely red as she recalled the night before. "Interested…"

"Saw that coming a mile away."

"Hush!" Blake crossed her arms with a huff. "I'm trying to get along with you and maybe not be weirded out by you."

"I weird you out?" Ruby said from behind a mischievous grin.

"Yes, but I'd like to get to know your sister better and I realize I need to be comfortable with you for that."

"Oooooh, so what you're saying is: you need me to help you get something you want! Well, that's gonna' cost ya'!" Blake shot an offended look at her and Ruby stuck her tongue out at her. "Some cookies!"

"It can't be that easy…"

"Well, I could always go for one of Nora's Pancake Surprise Platters…"

"No, no!" The feline paled at the thought the sugary devastation the two of them might leave behind in their conquest for the perfect game of Pancake Jenga. Fluffy pancakes were not a suitable substitute for small wooden blocks!... For some reason, Weiss, Pyrrha, and Ren were always the ones left cleaning up after them and Blake did not want to be on the receiving end of Weiss' wrath when she inevitably learned that Blake contributed to the mess. "Cookies are fine!"

"So, what?" Ruby smirked. "You just want to know about Yang or something?"

"Um, not just that," Blake blushed and tucked some hair behind her ear. "But I guess… I'm curious about your sister's tattoo."

"Tattoo?" Ruby's smile fell and Blake swallowed. Hopefully, she hadn't just gotten the blonde in trouble, but that did explain why it was out of sight.

"Oh, uh, forget I said anything."

"No," Ruby's voice lost its bubbliness and it felt like Blake was being analyzed. "Where did you see it? What does it look like?"

"On… her back?" Blake was almost asking at this point. "I didn't get a good look at it. I lifted her hair and her top covered most of it."

"Ah, that," the tension sapped away from Ruby and she relaxed. "It's not a tattoo."

"Is it a strange birthmark then?"

"No, um," Ruby fidgeted uneasily as she debated on whether or not to give her an honest answer. "What's Yang told you about us?"

"Um," Blake looked up in thought. "She mentioned the fire in Atlas and people in a lab and that you… knew… about me… and that she feels like she's to blame for whatever happened to you."

"Oh… well," Ruby sighed and swished the air around in her mouth. "Yang Semblance can be super problematic and it makes it easier for her to work with." Ruby pressed a hand to her chest and took a breath. "Back in the day, my family was renowned as Dust Weavers. I never finished my training in it though."

"Dust Weavers?..." Blake frowned at the thought, recalling how Ruby literally exploded into Weiss' life. "Isn't that the process of machinery weaving Dust into clothing?"

"Haha, close!" Ruby smiled brightly. "That's like intermediate level stuff. Basic levels are actually common for Hunters, since we apply Dust to our weapons and Semblances, but Master Dust Weavers are significantly different. You've heard about people who force Dust into their bodies for temporary boosts, right?"

"That's incredibly dangerous though," Blake's voice reached a higher pitch as she spoke. "Don't tell me that-"

"No, no," Ruby waved her hands defensively. "I'm not skilled enough to put Dust inside a person and even then, a real Dust Weaver wouldn't do that to someone else. It's more difficult to adjust Dust levels in someone else's body than in your own. At least, you can manipulate your own Aura. You'd have to mess with their's too and I don't trust myself enough for that, though I could probably ask someone older… but I'm not ready to see any of them yet…"

"Them?" Ruby didn't reply to that and Blake sighed. "Forget I asked… but what does that have to do with Yang's tattoo?"

"Oh, um, it's a Dust seal," Ruby shrugged. "It helps her manage her Semblance a little bit better. Mom put it on her before she died and showed me how to maintain it. I'm just making sure it never wears off."

"So that's why she said she needed you?" Ruby nodded and watched Blake as she digested this information. "Is it something I could learn?"

"It's really difficult to do and you have to get it just right, otherwise it could hurt her," Ruby extended her arm a bit as she spoke, then placed it behind herself to bear her weight. "You have some leeway using Dust with a Semblance, but weaving it into skin like a tattoo is different. It has to be deep enough that it won't just come out, but shallow enough that it seeps into the Aura when a Semblance is activated."

"Ruby…" Blake studied her carefully before she spoke. "You know a lot more than you let on… Why aren't you in an advanced department? You could already have your license."

"…Buying time," Ruby shifted and looked away.

"In regard to Winter wanting to hire you?"

"You know about that?" Her silver eyes went wide and she seemed jarred. "Did Yang tell you that? Does Weiss know?"

"Wh-why would that matter?" The Faunus stepped back in surprise. "Nora and Ren mentioned it yesterday."

"What did they say?" Ruby stepped toward her with a desperate look. It actually scared Blake to see her so visibly shaken. "What does Weiss know? Is that why she was so mad?"

"They just said that Winter offered you a job and you wouldn't take it," Blake met Ruby's eyes with a concerned look and Ruby breathed out a sigh.

"S-sorry Blake," Ruby looked down. "I didn't mean to scare to you. I just… She can't know about me…"

"When you said that you were keeping your friend safe from a distance," Blake hesitated but reached out to touch her shoulder and Ruby away with a fearful look. It was clear that Blake held all the power now – enough that it put them on equal ground. "You didn't mean physical distance, did you?" Ruby's head dropped and she focused on Blake's collar. Eventually, she nodded, though the movement was subtle enough that the feline barely caught it. "The friend that can't remember you… Is that why Yang doesn't like Weiss? Because it's her?"

"She is Weiss, but that's not why Yang doesn't like her," Ruby sniffled and looked up at Blake. As surprising as it was to see Ruby so open emotionally, it made her seem a lot more relatable than she'd been the whole time. She hated to think it, but it was a… pleasant… change. "It's because Weiss is a Schnee… and her dad funded a lab that did horrible things to kids and disguised it as a testing site for Dust. It made it so easy to run a cover up because of Dust's volatile nature."

"What were they really doing?"

"They want to change the nature of Aura and see if they could control Grimm," Ruby said quietly. "They thought maybe Faunus DNA would help, so they planted it some kids. Then they started putting Dust in some, but they didn't know how much they could handle… But what does that matter when you have an endless supply of stolen kids coming in?"

"And you and Yang," Blake swallowed thickly as anger built up in her stomach. She felt angry for the sisters, she felt angry that the Schnee funded this, and she felt angry that they'd persecuted her people and tried to mutate children in their DNA. Was there no end to what they were willing to do? "What did they do to you?"

"When they figured out who I was… they just… I was handled differently because I was different…"

"And Yang?" The younger girl started to shut down in front of her, likely reliving some of the things they went through. It made sense to use Aura to control Grimm, but how would they do that? Grimm couldn't sustain Aura due to the fact they had no soul, which meant that Aura would have an adverse reaction to… Wait… "Yang said something weird the other day in class… Did they do something to her?"

"…Yang will need me for the rest of her life," Ruby wrapped her arms around herself. "Because I can't fix what happened to her, no matter how much I try… If I'd been more serious about learning, then maybe… but Yang deserves to have a normal life!"

"… So your transcripts and even the scholarship," Blake put things together as she spoke. "All of this is to stay at the same level as Yang, so she can have a normal life… but Ruby, don't you see how that makes you stand out?"

"Huh?" Ruby tilted her head in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"You appeared to be very talented, so you got moved up to what was assumed to be on par for you," Blake explained carefully. "But you make mistakes that seem intentional or like you're not trying, which calls attention to you, and then you talk about things with a knowledge outside what you should know and then approach things with an 'as long as I know the textbook answer, it's okay' mindset."

"Oh… yeah… I guess I can see how that would be suspicious."

"You gue-," Blake sighed and gave her an annoyed look. "You're not very good at this whole disguised as a normal student thing…"

"That's okay," Ruby genuinely laughed. "I like things the way they are, right now. It feels… good."

"So what about that strange creature?" Blake cocked an eyebrow at her. "The one Weiss met. I know there's more to it than what you let on."

"Eh, they're a bad omen of things to come and I'm sticking to that."

"…Nothing else?" Ruby shook her head and Blake frowned at her silence. "And the person you're looking for?"

"It's not you, if that's what you mean," Ruby grinned knowingly. "Haha, did you think it was?" The Faunus narrowed her golden eyes at Ruby and the crimson-coalette laughed. "Oh my Dust, you did! That's great! No way! I'm not worried about you, like that! You're awesome and all, Blake, but Winter's not interested in anything to do with you. I didn't tell her about you, either, and I don't have any intention to. You can relax around me."

"Then why have me on this team?... I thought you picked us all for a purpose. We were all involved in that bombing…"

"Were we?" Ruby smirked with a shrug and picked at her. "I don't remember. That's all kinda' hazy to me!" She was playing dumb on purpose and Blake leered at her once more.

"I'll take that as something I'll have to figure out on my own."

"Maybe. Maybe not."

"Well, which is it?"

"I dunno' yet," Ruby smirked. "We'll have to wait and find out!"

"So you picked me… randomly… for no special reason… I just happened to be there?"

"Oh, I didn't say that!" The scythe-wielder gave her a mischievous look.

"So why?!"

"Your Semblance!" The younger girl grinned smugly.

"What?!" Was that a jab at her? Shadow was something that Blake was ashamed of. It paid homage to everything she represented – cowardice, fear, running away. Its very essence was everything that made her despicable and its only purpose was to be a decoy so she could do just that – run. "…so you wanted a coward…"

"Is that how you see yourself?" Ruby smiled happily and chirped at her. "Welp, I guess we're just gonna' have to change that!... So let's start with breakfast for everyone! Just think how happy Weiss and Yang will be with breakfast in bed! I know I'd like it!"…Seriously, how was she so night and day about everything? "Hey, Blake?"

"Yeah?" It was almost blinding how bright the smile she flashed her was.

"I just want you to know that I trust you."

ooOOoo

AN: Welp, that wraps up the Partners arc! So we started off showing that Weiss and Ruby did indeed meet as kids and that Summer and Willow were… friends… As for what Weiss was doing in this chapter, I didn't write it from her POV, but she was basically trying to do better understanding thing. There was an experiment done where a bunch of people were told to ask each other questions and keep looking into each other's eyes the whole time. It makes you feel really bare, but you develop a more intimate connection. That's basically what she was doing. There's just no way she'd admit something like that. Also, Blake is being more proactive and trying to learn about the sisters! At least, now she knows she's not the one Ruby is looking for!

The next arc is a rather short one called Hardships, where RWBY will go on its first mission and Blake and Weiss start getting dragged into the mess of Ruby's world. Weiss gets a lot of develop in this next arc. Ruby gets hurt and Weiss feels guilty, Weiss learns that Blake is a Faunus, then Ruby activates someone's gaydar and it's not Weiss'… which isn't received well by our resident care-giving Ice Queen. Blake tries to break through to Yang and Yang tries to distance herself. Then we have the Guilt arc and that one is… Well, just the way it sounds.

Anyway, I might wind up taking a small break here soon. I'm getting ready to move, so my update schedule might be off for a week or two. I'll give you guys a heads up when that happens!

Reviewer Response:

Hewhoislost: So basically, Ruby can apply her Aura to things that she touches, like her clothes and other people. If I explain entirely why the cape comment matters, it while actually spoil something about her prosthetic, but I'll see what I can try. When she fought Cardin, she applied an excess amount of Aura to herself for increased speed, leaving the excess behind as petals. The reason her Aura went down is because Ruby is literally leaking out Aura and leaving in on the ground. She is capable of reabsorbing it into herself, but Yang set the petals on fire and used them for that inferno attack – again, an enhancement. In a couple chapters, the exact specs of the prosthetic and how it works will be explained. At that time, I'll do an AN with a full explanation of Aura Core and how it works for Ruby specifically. =) I will be introducing other characters that possess it. Your comparison to Thor's arm is sort of accurate. Not entirely the same, but yes. The fact that it is removable is actually something that will become important in the upcoming chapters. Let's just say, you guys find out why exactly she needs the prosthetic. It's not as simple as "I removed my arm."

FoxyFoxation: Always happy to see you here!