Yang bounced her knee up and down as she slouched over and held her hands together in the waiting room. They'd just defeated Salem a few weeks ago and things haven't been the same.
Jaune died in battle overusing his semblance to boost everyone else's abilities and took a bad hit. Ironwood was also dead, though she couldn't really find it in her heart to be sad about that, nor care how he died. Penny and Oscar had gone missing, but she was too worried about Ruby and Weiss to go look for them. Nora and Ren… They needed time to themselves and just… left. Their family and friends were leaving again...
Just before her mind went into another downward spiral, she looked up when she felt someone place a gentle hand onto her shoulder. She gave a weak smile at seeing Blake offering her some coffee.
"Thanks…" Yang sighed as she took the cup and held it with her real hand to warm herself up.
"You should take it easy… We were just released last week." Blake sat next to Yang and placed a hand onto her prosthetic one.
Yang sighed as she took a sip of the coffee and leaned back into her chair. "We have too much to worry about to relax, Blake. Nora and Ren left. Penny and Oscar's missing. Then there's Ruby and Weiss…"
"I agree, but you know that those two will be fine." Blake squeezed her hand, giving her a loving look.
"I know." Yang gave a weak smile and looked up when she noticed the doctor walking towards them.
"Ms. Yang Xiao Long and Ms. Blake Belladonna of Team RWBY?"
"That's us." Yang stood up with Blake. "Did something happen with Ruby and Weiss?"
"Ms. Weiss Schnee has indeed regained consciousness." She nodded with a small smile, then frowned. "However… We need to run a few more tests. She's…" She struggled to find the words.
"What happened to Weiss?" Yang felt worried for her teammate.
"Yang…" Blake placed a hand onto her shoulder to calm her down as much as she could, but she was also worried.
The doctor sighed. "She's a bit disoriented, but we suspect that she might be experiencing some… memory loss."
"Memory loss…?" Yang didn't like the sound of that and just started walking towards her room.
Blake wanted to stop her, but knew that she couldn't, and decided to get as much information out of the doctor as she could. "How severe is the memory loss?"
The doctor flipped through her notes with a sigh. "She didn't know her own name. We're just hoping that it's because she just regained consciousness and is filled with painkillers, and that the memory loss is temporary. We'll try talking to her again once it wears off, and run some tests to check if she has a concussion as well, but… we should expect the worst just in case."
The cat Faunus nodded, her ears folding as she walked by to check on their white haired teammate. "Thank you, doctor."
Yang forced a smile as she walked into Weiss' room, glad to hear that she's awake now, but was worried about the memory loss. It couldn't be true… right?
"Heya Weiss!" She flinched at seeing her left arm wrapped up in a familiar way. The blonde subconsciously gripped her prosthetic arm as she neared Weiss' bed. Maybe a joke would help lift the mood a bit. "I'm glad to see that you're all right now."
Though what happened next made Yang's heart sink. She saw Weiss slowly turning towards her, eyes glazed over, unsure if it was from the painkillers or from having just woken up, but the words that came out of the ex-heiress' mouth were something she didn't expect even though the doctors had warned her.
"Who are you?"
Yang's heart sank. No! Their Weiss still had to be in there! There was no way that she forgot about them!
"W-Weiss, i-it's me. Yang. Y-Your teammate? Y-Your partner's sister!" Yang shook. Oh Oum… How was Ruby going to react to this?
"Partner…?" Weiss frowned, unsure of what Yang was talking about, then looked towards the door when there was a soft knock. She saw Blake walking in. "Who…?"
Blake's eyes widened before looking at Yang, who looked lost and scared. She cleared her throat and took her place besides Yang. "My name's Blake. We… we're teammates."
"Team… mates…?" Weiss leaned back against the bed and looked out the window. "I don't… remember…"
Yang was about to say something but Blake placed a hand onto her shoulder. Sad and pleading lilac met concerned gold. With a deep sigh, Blake tried to stay calm. For all of them.
"The doctor mentioned that you may have temporary memory loss. We were in a big battle and… both you and your partner, Ruby, took a really bad hit. You've both been here for three weeks now."
Weiss continued to look out the window. Nothing was coming back to her at all.
"Weiss…" Yang's voice wavered. "Please… at least remember Ruby. I… she…" She didn't know what to think. She saw how close they were, but now she was assuming their relationship was the same as herself and Blake. "You two… you were so close. I can't stand to see you two hurt."
"Yang…" Blake frowned. She knew what Yang was getting at. She also saw how Ruby and Weiss were dancing around each other. The former more so than the latter, but still… this wasn't the time nor place to tell Weiss this.
"I'd… like some time alone." Weiss stated tiredly.
"Of course." Blake nodded, pulling a quietly protesting Yang towards the door. "We'll let the doctors know to come by later."
"Thank you." Weiss sighed and sunk into the bed.
Blake and Yang saw how small she looked and were worried. Seeing Weiss like this hurt. Would Ruby be the same?
Yang walked out of the room with Blake holding her arm as support.
No. This wasn't happening. This so was not happening. Everything was going to be fine once Ruby and Weiss woke up! They didn't need any more troubles like this!
Blake gently nudged Yang as they sat down in the cafeteria. "Hey. It'll be ok. Everything always turned out ok, at least for those two."
"I… right… you're right." Yang took a deep breath. She didn't know if that was true this time though. She ran a hand through her hair and sighed deeply, unsure of what to do now. Weiss was awake, but she didn't know any of them. Ruby was still unconscious. How was she going to react to all of this?
Salem was finally defeated. Yang sighed as she remembered that Ruby asked for some love advice, and figured that her sister would finally ask Weiss out once everything was over. She watched over them all this time and silently gave them her blessing, knowing that they were both good for each other.
"Yang, what would you like to- …. Winter?" Blake's ear twitched, seeing the older Schnee walking towards them as she was about to ask her partner what she'd like to eat.
Yang turned and saw Winter nearing them with her arms behind her back. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be back in Mantle, rebuilding everything?"
"I came as soon as I heard that Weiss had woken up. I am part of her emergency contact after all." Winter stated.
"Right…" Yang nodded. She forgot for a moment that aside from teammates, certain family members could be contacted if they couldn't get a hold of their teammates. Wait a second… The blonde narrowed her eyes at Winter. "Weiss woke up not even an hour ago. It takes like six hours to get from Mantle to Vale. You had to be on the way here for something. What is it?"
Winter stared at Yang then sighed. "I was originally coming to see how Weiss was doing. I'm sure you could understand that."
"Yeah." Yang's eyes softened and gave Winter a small, understanding smile. She stood up, giving her a hug. "Big sisters need to look out for their little sisters after all." The blonde knew that if she was off on a mission, she'd do everything she could to visit Ruby as much as she could, just as Winter did to check on Weiss.
The older Schnee stiffened at the contact, then stiffly hugged Yang back for a moment before she looked at Blake. "How is Weiss? Seeing as you two are out here looking dejected instead of being in the same room as she is, either she's busy with the doctors or I should assume the worst."
Blake and Yang looked at each other before looking back at Winter. "She… lost her memories. She didn't know who we were. The doctors told us that she didn't even know who she was. They're hoping that it's because she just woke up and is still a bit disorientated, but yes. We should assume the worst."
Winter's eyes widened as she heard the news. Weiss? With amnesia? Just when they were finally able to talk to each other normally as they did as children, that chance had slipped away once again. But wait… maybe it was a good thing?
Weiss is free. Literally. She didn't have to worry about Jacques. She didn't have to stress out about her past with their family. She can start over again and be happy. Part of her… was jealous, the other part, relieved.
But there was one thing that she wanted to know.
"What is Ruby Rose's condition?" Winter asked as she was pulled to sit down at the table with Yang and Blake.
"She's still unconscious." Yang frowned, looking at the table.
"I see." Winter folded her hands in front of her. The trio were silent until Winter spoke up again. "How will you tell her?"
Yang looked at Winter with a frown and was about to say something, but Winter stopped her, holding a hand up. "For one thing, she needs to know. Secondly…" The elder Schnee sighed deeply. "... I know that Weiss would be wondering about Ruby's condition if their situations were reversed."
"You knew as well?" Blake raised a brow.
"I would be blind if I didn't. I know Weiss, and with how we were raised, it's difficult to understand and accept this feeling." Winter sighed. "She's good at hiding her feelings, but her feelings for Ruby were different."
"They've been dancing around each other for a long time." Yang chuckled weakly and leaned back against her chair. "With pretty much everything over and the chance to finally relax, Blake and I were coming up with ideas to leave them alone together so that they could confess." She sighed deeply. "Now Weiss doesn't remember anything… I don't know how Ruby will react to that. Then there's her own issues…"
Blake reached over and took Yang's hand into her own as a form of comfort.
"One step at a time." Blake gave her hand a loving squeeze.
"Agreed. Now." Winter nodded then stood up, and folded her arms behind her back once again. "I'll go visit Weiss and see what I can do with her."
"Good luck." Blake nodded and looked towards Yang. "Let's get a quick bite to eat before checking in with Ruby."
"Yeah… Ok." Yang looked up. "Tuna sandwich for you, triple cheeseburger for me?"
Blake chuckled. "I don't think they have tuna sandwiches here. I'll be fine with a salad. I have a feeling that Ruby will wake up soon." When Yang gave her a questioning look, Blake tilted her head. "I noticed that whenever Weiss wakes up, Ruby doesn't take that long to follow. And vice versa."
"Guess I should get a bag of chips instead and some fresh chocolate chip cookies for her." Yang chuckled.
"Oh no. No girlfriend of mine is going to starve herself and watch her sister sleep. You're getting a meal and I'll be there to help you when you need it." Blake stated stubbornly.
Yang wiggled her eyebrows. "Girlfriend, huh?"
"Hush." Blake blushed as she got up to grab their orders.
Winter took a deep breath as she was about to knock on the door but saw the doctor walking out. "Good afternoon, doctor. How is my sister doing?"
"Ah, Winter. It's nice to see you." The doctor gave her a kind smile then frowned. "If her teammates haven't told you yet, Weiss may or may not have amnesia."
Winter nodded. "They have informed me of that, and that she doesn't remember anything at all." She closed her eyes and took another deep breath. "Is there anything that I should be informed of before I go in and speak with her?"
"She woke up an hour ago, so she most likely still has some painkillers in her for her to think coherently. If you're expecting her to answer anything besides 'yes', 'no', or 'I don't remember', then I suggest that you wait until at least tomorrow to speak with her." The doctor went through her notes then looked up at Winter. "She is recovering, if you wanted a silver lining."
"Knowing that she's awake after what happened was more than enough. Thank you, doctor." Winter nodded then walked through the door, seeing Weiss looking out the window with a far away look.
The elder Schnee stood there for a moment, preparing herself for the next few seconds that were to come. However, those few seconds came far too soon.
"Who… are you?" Weiss asked as she looked at Winter.
Winter stared at Weiss for a moment, seeing confusion as well as exhaustion clear on her face. Biting her lower lip, she took a few steps forward. "My name is Winter. I am your older sister."
"Older… sister?" Weiss sighed as she looked out the window.
"You don't remember, that's alright." Winter felt her heart clenching. "I… haven't been the best sister to you, or Whitley."
Weiss looked back towards Winter, almost asking her to continue.
"Whitley is our younger brother." Winter gave Weiss a small smile. "Would you like to hear more?"
"Not right now. Maybe later." Weiss leaned back onto her pillows.
"Of course." Winter nodded, then hesitated for a moment before asking. "May I sit next to you?"
Weiss gave Winter a look. "You said that you were my older sister. Why do you need to ask?"
"Because, as I said, I haven't been the greatest sister to you." Winter looked down, feeling guilty for how she had treated her family. "When we were kids, we were close. But then I left to join the Atlas Military, leaving you and Whitley with our parents." She sighed. "I left when you needed me the most."
Weiss didn't say anything and just looked at Winter, trying to understand, but couldn't recall anything. There was one thing that she could tell though. Winter was being sincere with what she said, and something in the back of her mind was telling her to believe her.
"I'm sorry, Weiss. I… if you want me to leave, I will." Winter turned to leave but stopped when she heard the bed shifting a bit.
"I… don't remember you. Or my teammates." Weiss sighed and gave Winter a small smile. "But, if all of you are willing, I will listen to what you have to say."
Winter was shocked but smiled in return. "Tomorrow. Today, get as much rest as you can."
"Was three weeks not enough rest?" Weiss joked weakly.
"You're still terrible with jokes." Winter chuckled weakly and stepped forward, patting her shoulder and kissing her forehead. "I'm truly glad that you're alright, Weiss."
"Thank you, big sis."
Winter sighed as she left the room and walked towards the visitor's room, pulling out her scroll. She stared at it for a moment before calling Whitley. She promised to tell him about Weiss' condition if it changed, after all. Though it still felt awkward to be talking to him about anything.
"How is Weiss doing?" Whitley asked immediately as he answered.
"She's alright." Winter closed her eyes. "Though you won't like what I'm about to tell you."
"You just said that she's alright." Winter could hear Whitley frowning. "What's the bad news?"
"She has amnesia, Whitley." Winter stated curtly. "She doesn't remember her team, her name… us."
The call was silent for a moment before Whitley started talking again. "So what should we do?"
"I talked to her earlier. She's willing to learn more about who we are." Winter sighed as she leaned against the wall. He's taking this surprisingly well... "Obviously, it would be easier if you were here to explain as well."
"I'll be there by the end of the day." Whitley stated, and sounds of shuffling were heard in the background. "I'll just need to find a place nearby to stay."
Winter was about to scold him, reminding him that he had a meeting to attend to, but who is she to talk when she was supposed to be out helping rebuild Mantle, yet here she was checking in with Weiss. She weighed her options before speaking again. "Whitley, I-"
"What? Why don't you two… ok, fine. Winter. Robyn and Mother are asking when you're coming back."
"As soon as I'm sure that Weiss is in capable hands." Winter stated stiffly. In truth, she didn't know herself. She had responsibilities in Mantle, but she wanted to be there for Weiss…
"Basically, you'll be back in a few days." Whitley sighed.
"Whitley, I don't know when, but I'll be back." Winter didn't like how her younger brother was simply assuming when she'd leave Weiss' side.
"You have a responsibility here in Mantle. Weiss is in capable hands with her team."
"I hope that you're not just saying that so I have to deal with Mother instead of you." Winter narrowed her eyes.
"... I'm worried about Weiss too. But we also need people here."
He did have a point. But surely Robyn can handle things at least for another week…
"I have an airship ready for me now. I'll be there as soon as I can."
"Of course. I'll see you soon and be there to pick you up, Whitley." Maybe in the next few hours, she can figure out what to do with both her duties in Mantle, and her duties as an older sister.
Ruby woke up and groaned in pain. Her body felt numb and she blinked a few times before rubbing the blurriness out of her eye. Wait… eye? She felt someone holding her down and panicked, immediately slapping that hand away and thrashing about. "N-No! S-Stay away!"
"Ruby!" Yang gently grabbed her shoulders. "It's ok! You're safe! You're in a hospital!" The blonde tried to calm her sister down.
Ruby gasped and saw Yang. She tried to control her labored breathing and looked around as best as she could with one eye, seeing that she was in the hospital. "W-Wha... ngh..!" She gripped onto Yang for a moment.
"Easy!" Yang held onto Ruby and rubbed her back. "Easy... it's ok."
"Y-Yang… w-what…?" Ruby whimpered as she tried to relax.
"You've… been asleep for the past three weeks. Nearly a month now." Yang started slowly as Ruby gained her bearings. "Are you ok? Besides drugged up?"
"Ugh… sluggish and like my body's been hit by a herd of Ursa Majors…" Ruby sighed as Yang snickered. "What?"
"You were thrashing about just fine a few seconds ago." Yang teased and ruffled her hair a bit. "But really, no other pain? Or are the drugs still numbing you to pain?"
Ruby sighed and swatted at Yang's hand. "Drugs." She then looked up to see that Yang was the only one in the room. "Where are the others?"
Yang frowned and didn't know how to explain the situation.
"W-Weiss..." Ruby didn't see her partner anywhere. "Weiss... where...?!" Yang frowned and kept her hands on Ruby's shoulders. Ruby could feel her sister shaking. No... No! "Where is she?!"
"She's alright, just busy with the docs but... I... y-you shouldn't see her... in your condition." Yang looked into Ruby's eye.
"Wha...?" Ruby didn't like what Yang meant by that and moved to get off the bed to look for Weiss herself... only to notice that her legs felt... different. A chill ran down her spine as she pulled the covers off her legs and her eye widened in surprise. From her upper thighs down... she had no legs.
"W-When we found you…" Yang hesitated, mentally kicking herself for it. She knows how it feels to lose a limb. She knows how it feels to be useless, but why couldn't she find the words to comfort her sister? To explain?!
Ruby was shocked. She lost her legs, but what about everyone else? Forcing a smile, she turned towards Yang. "W-Well… everyone's safe, right? If they are, it's a small price to pay!" She gripped the bed sheets, trying her best to stay calm. The others had to be alright! Otherwise... why did she risk her life...?
"Ruby…" Yang felt her heart clenching. Her little sister was being strong again. Should she do the same? Or tell her otherwise? Shaking her head, Ruby told her multiple times that she's not a baby anymore. She forced a grin herself. "You did great, Ruby. I'll bet that you can't stand to know where the others are?"
Both visibly flinched at the pun and the room was silent for a minute until Blake walked in. "Ruby! You're alright now!"
"Y-Yeah! I still have my left arm, so I wouldn't say that I'm all right." She joked weakly and shifted in bed.
That got Yang and Blake's attention. "What do you think you're doing?"
"I wanna see the others." Ruby stated stubbornly, but she had no idea how she was going to find the others.
With a sigh, Yang gave a pleading look to Blake before keeping Ruby in bed. "Until the doctor says so, you're staying here!"
"Yang! I need to see if the others are alright! You said about a month had passed since we defeated Salem. I don't know what happened after!" Ruby shouted as she gripped onto Yang's arm. "I-I need to know if Weiss and the others are ok. You said that they were, but I need to see if they are or not myself. Please."
"Ruby." Yang was weak whenever Ruby begged her and struggled to say no. "You can't. I get it. You want to see the others, but you just can't."
"Tell me why then!" Ruby was frustrated.
"Because most of them are gone!" Yang was just as frustrated as her eyes stung.
"Yang!" Blake moved towards them, placing a hand onto Yang's shoulder to help calm her down.
Ruby stared at Yang in shock, not hearing the bumbleby duo talking. It wasn't the first time that Yang yelled at her, they were sisters after all. What shocked her was that nearly everyone was gone. But why? When they fought so hard to get this far. Weiss is at least alive, Yang confirmed that earlier. But the others… What happened to them? Why? How…?
Blake gently shook Ruby out of her stupor. "Ruby, what's the last thing that you remember?"
"What? Oh, I…" Ruby gripped the bedsheets. "I-I was on the ground… Salem was gone… then the building was collapsing." She gripped harder. "Weiss came and… that's all I remember." The brunette looked up at Yang and Blake. "S-She's ok… right? You said that she wasn't dead, s-so she has to be o-ok…. right?"
"She's fine." Blake looked up to see the doctor walking into the room. "Let the doctor do her check on you. We'll see what we can do after, ok?"
"Bu-But, I wanna… I-I need to see Weiss." Ruby whimpered.
"After we know that you'll be ok." Yang nodded.
Ruby was silent as the doctor started her check, and sighed deeply. Everything was over, but their family was scattered again. If anything happened to Weiss… she didn't know what she'd do…
"Everything seems well." The doctor smiled. "You'll feel some numbness still from the painkillers, and I would like to run a few more tests. I'll be back with a wheelchair."
"Thank you." Yang nodded then sighed. This was going to be a long day…
Ruby was exhausted after all the tests and laid back against the wheelchair. Yang was pushing her back to her room.
"How you doing, champ?"
"I wanna sleep…" Ruby sighed deeply then looked up at Yang tiredly. "When can I see Weiss…?"
"You just said that you wanted to sleep." Yang frowned. "Do you want to sleep or do you wanna see Weiss?"
"Yang…" The brunette pouted.
"I-I'll go see if she's ready for visitors." Blake offered as she looked at Yang for permission.
Yang nodded, thankful for her partner. "Check in with Winter too. I don't know how she's doing after…" She trailed off.
"Of course." Blake tapped her forehead with Yang's then gave Ruby a gentle shoulder pat before walking towards Weiss' room.
"Yang…" Ruby looked at her sister seriously. "What's wrong with Weiss. You said that she's ok and busy with the doctors, but you won't let me see her… Tell me. I can take it."
"I…" Yang sighed. She knew that Ruby was strong, but can she really take her crush not remembering her? It's just as bad as that Hanamaki story (or whatever they're called, she couldn't exactly remember at the moment) she read with Blake once, and her stomach hurt just thinking about it. If this was a story, Weiss would've rather died than forget her love for Ruby, no matter how much she and the others would've begged her to admit that she and Ruby felt the same. That was how stubborn she was. Heck, maybe she'll even ask Blake about those stories. See if they can make a happy ending…
But this wasn't a story. It was real life and she didn't know if Ruby could take it.
"Yang." A small hand fell on top of hers. "Please. She's my partner. I need to know."
"Ok…" Yang deflated. "Ok… but only if you promise that you'll stay in bed." She waited for Ruby's consent before she wheeled Ruby into her room and helped her onto the bed.
"So… Weiss?" Ruby looked at Yang, wondering why the blonde was dancing around this all day.
"Weiss has… some memory loss." Yang sighed. "We don't know if it's temporary or not, but Weiss doesn't know who we are, not even her own name." She looked at Ruby. "I… didn't want to tell you just yet 'cause you just woke up and all, and… I know how you feel about her."
Ruby stared at Yang. That was it? Yang didn't tell her how Weiss was cause she thought that she couldn't handle the fact that she forgot about her? What kind of logic was that?! She wasn't that weak!
"I want to see her."
"Ruby…" Yang frowned and saw how Ruby looked at her. Just before her sister could start protesting, she raised a hand. "Hear me out. When the doc told us that Weiss pretty much forgot everything, I didn't want to believe it. But when Weiss asked who I was… it hurt. I know that you'll say that you can handle it, but Ruby. It felt like I lost a sister. Can you really handle Weiss not knowing who you are? Especially if you have feelings for her?"
Ruby blinked. Yang… did have a point, but she'd have to see and experience it to know how she'd feel for sure. It'll hurt. Yes. But she needed to see Weiss.
"I… can handle it."
She didn't know for sure. When everything happened, she had Weiss there to keep her grounded and safe. Where will she go now that Weiss wasn't there…?
Wait a second. Ruby blushed when she realized that Yang knew. "H-How did you-?"
"You two were obvious. It was cute at first, but then it started to get a little annoying. But with everything happening, we respected that you two probably wanted to wait till everything was over." Yang sighed and sat on the bed. "Tomorrow. We'll take you to see her if they'll allow it."
"Ok… I'm gonna sleep now." Ruby sighed. She wasn't really going to sleep. She wanted to think of how to approach Weiss if she really didn't remember who she was.
"Sleep well, Rubes." Yang tucked her in and kissed her forehead out of habit.
Ruby hummed as she closed her eye, hearing Blake walk into the room.
"Is Ruby ok?" Blake looked at their leader.
"Just tired. She's ok." Yang stood up and walked towards Blake. "I told her about Weiss. She said that she'll be ok with it. Can we see her tomorrow?"
Blake's eyes widened. How can Ruby be ok with Weiss not knowing her? It hurt seeing how lost and confused Weiss was not knowing her earlier. She couldn't imagine how Ruby would feel. But if that's her wish… "We can after her morning check up. Winter's telling her a few things about what happened and how she might've lost her memories."
"Knowing Weiss, a rock or something might've hit her on the head while trying to get Ruby out." Yang laughed weakly, then sighed.
"Yang, if I'm being honest, I'd like to give them a week, so that they're not meeting in their drugged state and can comprehend more of what we tell them." Blake looked at Ruby, then back at her girlfriend.
Yang nodded, understanding what she meant, and sighed again as she thought about Weiss and her sister. "She never took great care of herself. She's always looking out for us. We can never return the favour." Her eyes stung as she continued talking, feeling Blake leaning close to her. "She's always pushing herself so hard and making sure that we're all safe. A-Are we horrible teammates?"
"We can't always look out for each other, as much as we want to." Blake sighed. "It'll be ok. If it's not temporary then… we can start over. She isn't the same person that we saw at Beacon after all."
"Right."
Ruby curled a bit under the covers. Starting over. Yeah. That might be the only option. It'll be ok. She can do this.
Winter was silent as she drove Whitley towards the hospital. It was an awkward night between the two of them, considering she had picked him up from the airship and took him towards the hotel she was staying at instead. Her intention was that he could drop off his luggage before going to see Weiss. He refused at first, wanting to find a place of his own to stay and see Weiss, but he knew that Winter was trying to be nice. By the time they returned to the hospital, Weiss was in an examination and the doctors refused her to see visitors so that she could rest.
Whitley was pouting by the window. He knew that Winter was at fault for not suggesting to simply leave his luggage in her car so that they could see Weiss more quickly, but the doctors told them that Weiss was already undergoing the examination by the time she had left, and was in there the entire time, so going straight to the hospital to try to see Weiss would've been a waste of time.
With a sigh, he shook that thought out of his head. It's a new day now, so no need to dread over what happened last night. Whitley glanced towards Winter, who parked the car and clenched the wheel. "Whitley."
"Winter." Whitley was about to leave the car until he heard Winter's next words.
"I hope that you're prepared to see Weiss."
"I'll be fine. It's not like she forgot that I existed for ten years." He rolled his eyes. In truth, he didn't remember the last time he spoke to Winter alone like this. Though if he had to guess, the last time was most likely Weiss' birthday.
Whitley then left the car, Winter slowly following behind. Once inside the hospital, Winter took the lead towards Weiss' room and knocked on the door. She waited for an answer before walking inside.
"Winter, right? It's nice to see you again." Weiss gave a weak smile, then saw Whitley standing next to her. "You are…?"
"My name's Whitley. I'm your little brother." Whitley frowned as he quickly rushed towards her. "Do you really not remember me? How you were injured? Not even your name?"
Weiss shook her head. "I don't… remember anything. I'm sorry."
"That's fine, you didn't remember me before when you left for Beacon either." Whitley stated curtly as he sat down.
"Whitley!" Winter frowned as he said that, but Weiss stopped her.
"Please. Continue." Weiss looked at both of them. "I'd like to hear more. Of what kind of person I was before…" She looked at her arm. "I wasn't born like this… right?"
"No, you weren't. You lost it in the battle with Salem." Winter sighed. "Though the scar on your face… Father might've had a hand in doing that to you."
Weiss frowned as Whitley handed her a mirror, and she saw the thin scar running down her left eye. "Our Father… did this to me?"
"In a way. You wanted to prove to him that you were capable of leaving and going to a school training young people to become Hunters and Huntresses." Whitley frowned. "You proved it to him alright. But it gave you that scar."
Weiss nodded slowly. "What kind of person was our Father?"
"The worst kind. Though we… I probably learned a few things from him that I wish I hadn't." Winter sighed, full of regrets. "I left you two to fend for yourselves, for one thing."
Whitley merely huffed as he crossed his arms. "And forgot about us..."
"Whitley, I'm sure that she left for a good reason. And…" Weiss sighed. "I would seem that I'm not much better, since I apparently left you alone with him. Considering what little you two have said already, our Father sounded like… a bad man."
"Calling him 'bad' might be the nicest thing to say about him." Whitley huffed. "And… you're not as bad as you think."
"He's right. Out of us three, you were always stronger, and… to be frank, we needed you to help us become a family again." Winter added. "If it wasn't for you, we'd still be distant and refusing to say a word to each other. You… keep us together. Preventing us from regretting our choices. If we make a mistake, you were there to fix it. At least that's what Yang told me before, and I have to agree with her."
Weiss nodded slowly, absorbing what Winter just said. She was important? To her team? They were worried about her when she first saw them. She felt a stabbing pain in her heart just thinking about them being in pain, and clenched the bed sheets. First things first...
Learning more about herself and who she was before.
"So…" Whitley decided to lighten the mood after everything they'd told Weiss about their family. "You don't remember your crush on your partner?"
Weiss blinked. "Who…?"
Both Winter and Whitley smiled at her. "You'll know when you see her."
Ruby woke up early and looked at her legs. She couldn't believe that they were gone. It felt so… weird not having her legs.
A week had passed, and she could finally move around a bit, not feeling quite as tired as she was before, and shifted as she looked for her wheelchair. Ruby smiled, seeing that it was at the other side of the room.
Step… er, crawl one. Ok, scratch that, it just sounded weird. Accurate, but sounded weird. Anyways! Time to get to the wheelchair and go be with Weiss.
Ruby could have easily waited for Yang and Blake, but she needed to see Weiss. She was denied that privilege for the past week since she'd woken up, after all.
The brunette panted heavily as she crawled onto the wheel chair, and wheeled out of her room to look for Weiss' room. It couldn't be that far. She looked at all the room names and stopped when she didn't have to wheel herself anymore. She looked up to see Weiss stumbling with a walker and a nurse helping her walk.
"Wei-" Ruby was about to call out to her, but saw the far away look within Weiss' eyes. She swallowed the lump in her throat and wheeled close, stopping when Weiss glanced at her and continued walking away.
Ruby sat there in shock. Weiss really didn't know who she was. She didn't even acknowledge her existence. Biting her lip, she quickly wheeled back into her room and crawled back into her bed.
She thought that she'd be fine. Turns out that she was wrong. So very wrong. Her eye stung with tears threatening to fall and she forced herself to stay calm.
"It's fine. We can start over. E-Everything is fine." She told herself as she looked up at the ceiling. Her plan was to befriend her again. Maybe they could be BFFs or even closer. But not being recognized and just passed by like she was merely a stranger…? Her heart felt like it shattered into a million pieces.
The place where she goes whenever she feels like breaking down. Her light to help guide her way… was gone.
"Hey, Ruby?" Yang's voice snapped her out of her thoughts and forced a smile when she saw the blonde entering the room. "Ready to see Weiss?"
"Y-Yeah!" Ruby tried to be happy. Maybe with Yang by her side, it'll be easier.
It wasn't.
Yang waited for Blake so that the whole team visited Weiss together. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to overwhelm Weiss with this many people shortly after recovering, but it was her team. Her family. It should've been ok, right?
"You were… Blake and Yang, correct?" Weiss looked at the bumbleby duo as they walked in, then looked at Ruby in confusion. "Who…?"
Ruby felt her heart being squeezed. No. She can do this. "My name's Ruby Rose! I'm your partner! Er, partner as in teammate, we weren't dating or anything." She heard her heart cracking as she spoke, trying to get even a tiny hint of recognition within Weiss' eyes. "Ok.. this is awkward…"
"I'm sorry, I don't recall…" Weiss spoke solemnly.
Ruby's eye stung, but she had to be strong! At least strong enough until she was alone.
"Th-That's ok! You took a hard hit protecting me!" In truth, she didn't remember much aside from Weiss rushing towards her, panic and fear clear within her eyes, then darkness.
"Protecting you…?" Weiss blinked, having a strange feeling within her chest when she saw the look in Ruby's pleading eye.
"You were in a battle alongside Ruby. Though, you two were off on your own so no one knows what happened… or so the reports say." Winter explained, then looked at Yang and Blake.
Blake nodded. "Ruby went after Salem, then Weiss went after her. We were busy with the relics and Grimm. We're sorry…"
Winter shook her head. "As long as you all are safe." She sighed then glanced at Weiss who nodded.
"I may not remember all of you, but Winter told me a few things yesterday. That you three were my second family. I am glad to see that the three of you are safe and alive." Weiss nodded.
The room was silent, unsure of what to really say until Yang spoke up. "Maybe some stories from Beacon will help jog your memory?" She suggested, just wanting something to fill the silence, and wondered why Ruby wasn't really saying much since they came to see Weiss. Wasn't she excited to see her partner again? Why was she being uncharacteristically quiet?
Winter and Blake gave her a dubious look. The blonde merely shrugged.
"Maybe one…" Weiss nodded, feeling her heart strings being pulled whenever she looked at Ruby. She wanted to ask her what was wrong, but she had a feeling that she was the cause of her pain.
"Alright! Let's see… what's a good one to tell?" Yang hummed, trying to think of a positive memory they had while at Beacon.
"Most of them involved her helping us study, training, or trying to keep Team JNPR in check." Blake shook her head.
"There was that one time in training where she and Ruby beat us in seconds. I still want a rematch for that." Yang huffed as she crossed her arms.
Ruby chuckled at the memory. But it wasn't a Beacon memory. It was when they were in Atlas, practicing a new move. She felt horrible that she hadn't spoken to Weiss in such a long time, but was surprised to see that she nailed their new move on the third try.
They usually had to practice for a week to get a move down, but to get it down after the first day? Ruby smiled remembering how Weiss promised to be the best teammate she'll ever have.
"I helped you three study?" Weiss asked, looking at Winter for confirmation, then at Ruby.
"I got into Beacon early. You helped me catch up and made the lessons easy to remember." Ruby smiled warmly at the memory. "You helped me so much. I… don't know what I would've done without you."
"Most likely being questioned by the rest of the students about why you were at Beacon." Yang teased as she ruffled her sister's hair gently.
"If she got into Beacon early, then it's safe to assume that her own skills were more than sufficient enough to be there, not her academics." Weiss stated then blinked when everyone looked at her. "What is it?"
"You… do you remember our time at Beacon?" Yang stared at Weiss.
"No?" Weiss blinked, unsure of why she defended Ruby like that as well.
Blake watched Weiss carefully, then looked at Ruby. Maybe… "She is young, seeing as she got into Beacon two years early. Maybe too early, seeing as how on move-in day, she got into an explosion with someone."
Ruby looked at Blake in shock. Why was she telling her that now?
"Perhaps it wasn't just her fault." Weiss defended Ruby again. "That other person most likely wasn't looking where they were going as well."
Blake smirked at that, leaving Ruby, Yang, and Winter confused. Ruby never really talked to Weiss about their meeting aside from the once in a while jokes of how explosive it was.
"Did I say something wrong, again?" Weiss gripped the bed sheets with her hand.
"N-No. It was my fault that I bumped into you." Ruby shook, touched that Weiss was unconsciously apologizing about that day. "I was so nervous, Yang left me alone to hang out with her old friends. Th-Then I bumped into you. Your suitcases opened up and a bunch of Dust flew out. You scolded me about how dangerous it was and I sneezed, creating a crater where we stood."
Weiss blinked then frowned. "Are… were you alright?"
"Of course!" Ruby smiled, then saw the look on Weiss' face. "Ok, well. I was kinda sad, and we didn't really get along. But here we are now! BFFs!"
"BFF?" Weiss raised a brow.
"Best Friends Forever!" Ruby grinned.
"I think she means BGF." Yang snickered as Ruby's face started to heat up. Before Weiss could question it, the blonde pulled Ruby's wheelchair back a bit. "Alright, we should get going now. Too much information in one day will explode your brain."
Winter raised a brow. She thought that her team would have wanted to stay with Weiss all day. She sent Yang a questioning glance and Yang looked down at Ruby for a second before looking back. Winter nodded understandingly and placed a hand onto Weiss' shoulder.
"Take things slow. You're all recovering."
"Thank you. I hope to see you three again." Weiss nodded as she looked at her former teammates and her gaze lingered when she looked at Ruby.
Ruby wanted to say more but bit her lip and nodded. "I'll see you again soon."
Yang wheeled Ruby out of the room with Blake, and once they were out of earshot, the blonde frowned. "Ok, Rubes. The hell was that?"
Ruby looked up questioningly and looked away. "She needs rest. I don't want to overwhelm her."
Blake frowned at that, sensing something was wrong. Just before she could question Ruby about it, Yang continued.
"Yeah, sure. Normally you'd fling yourself into her arms and start crying, happy that she was alive, memories or not." Yang shook her head and moved in front of Ruby, kneeling down and looking into her eye. "Yet here you are. Quiet and still most of the time in the room. Only talking when Weiss talked to you. So spill it. What's going on?"
"Yang. We've been partners for a long time. I know when to and when not to overwhelm her." Ruby rolled her eye and looked away. "We're both tired and confused. It's been like, what? A week since we woke up? Give us some time to recover before things can go back to normal."
Blake moved towards Yang, placing a hand onto her shoulder before she could say anything else. "I understand. Let's take you back into your room. We can talk later if you like."
"Thank you, Blake." Ruby sighed.
Once the bumbleby duo tucked Ruby in, they thought about buying her some burgers, weapon magazines, or books to read. Ruby declined the offer and just wanted to sleep.
With a sigh, they left Ruby alone after making sure that she'd be alright, then walked towards the cafeteria.
"They'll be ok." Blake took Yang's hand.
"I hope you're right." Yang sighed.
Things weren't going back to normal.
Yang's been watching Ruby the last few days. She's always cutting her time with Weiss short and refuses to stay in the same room alone with her. It doesn't help that Weiss doesn't fight for her to stay either.
"I swear these two are driving me insane! It's worse than when we saw them at Beacon and they were acting out like one of those Hanabaki stories you read!" Yang growled in frustration.
"First of all, it's Hanahaki. Secondly, what makes you think of that story of all things?" Blake raised a brow.
"I mean that one story you showed me was kinda cute when there was a happy ending, but come on. Isn't there one version where they surgically remove the flower then bam! All emotions gone?" Yang crossed her arms.
Blake blinked then gave a small chuckle. "Yes and no. Yes, in some stories they had the flower surgically removed, but it usually didn't get rid of all emotions. Just feelings of love for that person."
"Either way, it reminds of me of those stories, so tell me a way to make this a happy ending for them." Yang sighed, knowing she was asking for the impossible.
It's not a story. This is real life. She hated how she had to remind herself of this again and again, and that it was their lives. Maybe they would be happier not knowing each other…?
Blake placed a hand onto Yang's with a frown. "Usually… the one with the Hanahaki disease has to confess. There's no other way to make this into a happy ending." She sighed. "And this isn't a story. Ruby and Weiss don't have the Hanahaki disease. This is real life. They're both injured and need time to heal. There isn't much else we can do."
Yang hated this. She knew that Blake was right, and yet… she couldn't help but hope that they could somehow find a way to help Ruby and Weiss find happiness again.
"Is that all we can do? Just watch them like we did before?" Yang sighed as she looked at her girlfriend, almost pleading that there was more that they could do.
"They were fine before. But they need to heal before they can deal with each other. Ruby especially." Blake frowned, unsure of how to help the young leader.
She hated to admit it, but she understood why Yang was anxious about Ruby and Weiss' relationship. Seeing two close friends suddenly distant from each other? Blake wanted to talk to both of them back at Atlas, but everyone was so busy, there was no time to really talk.
They just… never had any time for themselves to sit down and be… normal teenagers again.
"Yang… please. Don't push them too far. You should know that more than any of us…" Blake's eyes glanced towards her girlfriend's prosthetic arm before looking into her eyes. "We don't know if we can pick up the pieces again if they break."
Yang sighed deeply into her hands. Blake was right. Again. She couldn't remember the last time Ruby was like this, and Ruby was usually the one that comforted her whenever she was down. Maybe she should stay on the sidelines for once… or maybe…
"We need to leave Ruby and Weiss alone in the room."
"Yang. What did I just say?" Blake was shocked that Yang was still trying.
"Not to push them. But Ruby's hiding something, and Weiss is the only one that can make her talk." Yang stated stubbornly, then gave a small, sad smile. "This… will be the last time. Then I'll give them time. Remember, they need a little push. It helped back at Beacon."
Blake gave an exasperated sigh and Yang continued. "Old habits die hard. We're not in Beacon, but maybe… they still have their habits? I mean, we saw how readily Weiss defended Ruby, despite basically not knowing her like she used to."
"Ok… ok, but I'm not responsible for what happens after." Blake relented, having a bad feeling of what could happen between Ruby and Weiss.
"Alright. We'll leave Weiss in Ruby's room. That way Ruby can't just wheel her way out of talking with Weiss." Yang nodded. "Or we could lock Ruby's wheelchair and keep her inside Weiss' room."
"You'll have to convince Winter to do this as well. Weiss seems uncomfortable being close to Ruby as much as Ruby is uncomfortable being around her." Blake stated, thinking of ways to help Ruby in case this plan fails.
"Winter will understand." Yang stood straight. "It's obvious that something is going on between the two."
Blake sighed. "Ok… ok."
The duo walked towards Weiss' room, knowing that Winter would likely be there at this time, and was surprised to see Whitley there instead of Winter. They stood by the doorway, seeing how sad and apologetic Whitley sounded when he talked to Weiss, and she merely shook or nodded her head to what he was saying.
Whitley sighed and looked towards the door, then back at Weiss. "Weiss, you have visitors."
Weiss looked up and saw Blake and Yang standing by the door. She smiled at seeing them, but her expression soon changed when she didn't see Ruby with them. She cleared her throat so it didn't seem she was upset about it. "Blake. Yang. It's good to see you two again."
"Heya, Weiss. How are you feeling?" Yang greeted as she waved and Blake nodded, still keeping her distance from Whitley. She was unsure of how he felt about Faunus after everything that happened.
"I'm doing well. Thank you for asking." Weiss nodded as Whitley shifted closer to her and motioned for both of them to walk closer.
Yang grinned and wrapped an arm around Blake's shoulders, walking into the room. "You look like you're getting better every day."
"I feel fine. Winter said that Dr. Polendina will be giving me my prosthetic arm soon." Weiss shrugged and looked at her legs. "Ruby should be getting her prosthetic legs at the same time too."
Whitley placed a hand onto her shoulder. "Should we ask the doctor if you two can attend rehabilitation together?"
"I… don't think that will be necessary." Weiss sighed, surprising the trio in the room at this choice. She looked at her missing arm for a moment, then clenched the bedsheet with her hand. "She… Being near her, she looks like she's in pain. I don't like that."
Whitley frowned. He didn't really notice anything different and looked at the bumbleby duo for confirmation, who just shrugged in response. If no one else had noticed, was Weiss just making excuses to not see Ruby? If so, why was that?
"Weiss, she looked fine to us. Do you not want to see Ruby?" Whitley questioned.
"I want to see her. But not when she's unhappy." Weiss sighed in frustration as she ran her hand through her hair. "When she looks at me… she looks like she's going to cry. I… don't like it."
Blake looked at Yang, almost asking if she really wanted to go through with her plan, and let out a sigh of relief when her girlfriend shook her head.
"You always knew what was best for Ruby." Yang gave a weak smile. "You still care for her even though you don't remember her."
"That is what everyone has been saying." Weiss looked up at Yang. Was she really that close with Ruby? It would explain the warmth within her heart whenever she sees and thinks of the younger woman, but at the same time, it felt as if it was breaking every time she thought of Ruby being upset and sad.
"I should call Winter. Let her know how you're doing and check with how Mantle is doing. Mother would like to know how you're doing as well, Weiss." Whitley gave her a small smile. "Everything… is slowly going back to normal. You should find your own happiness while you're recovering."
Weiss looked at him, wondering what he was talking about, and watched him leave the room. The trio sat in silence until Blake spoke up.
"I'll go get us some food. Do you want anything specific?" The Faunus looked between her two teammates.
"The usual for me." Yang nodded then looked at Weiss. "Can you eat?"
"I can, but…" Weiss bit her lip. "Has Ruby eaten yet?"
Yang grinned at Weiss' concern, but it was quickly replaced with a frown. "Not yet. She doesn't really want to eat. I kinda get why, but…" When she lost her arm, she didn't feel like doing anything. But Ruby lost more than her legs. She lost her best friend. The one person that she could trust in the world with her problems.
"She needs to recover her strength." Weiss sighed as she leaned back against her pillow.
"Do you want to eat with her? To make sure that she eats?" Yang offered without thinking.
Blake didn't even mind that Yang was trying to set up Weiss and Ruby to be alone, as she was thinking the same thing, remembering the time when they were at Beacon. Whenever Ruby was upset or lost thinking up strategies or tuning up Crescent Rose, Weiss was the one that got her to eat and sleep.
"If… she doesn't mind." Weiss nodded slowly. "How is she?"
"You just saw her yesterday." Yang snickered, then sat down on the bed. "She's the same as always, trying to be cheerful when she's actually hurting. I want to talk her out of that habit, but…"
"She won't listen to just anyone." Weiss finished, looking at Yang for confirmation.
Yang chuckled as she placed a hand onto Weiss' shoulder. "Are you sure that you don't remember much?"
"It's just a feeling." Weiss blushed.
Yang laughed and looked up at Blake who smiled as well. "I'll be back with a double-double for Yang and chicken salad for you, Weiss."
"Thank you, Blake." Weiss gave her a grateful smile.
"You're the best, Blakey." Yang gave her girlfriend a thumbs up and watched her leave. She waited for a few minutes before turning back towards Weiss. "You're doing alright… right? Not hiding anything?"
Weiss frowned. "I'm sure that it would be obvious if I was, considering that we were teammates before. And there is no need for drugs to numb the pain anymore." She then sighed. "Though this would also mean that the me from before hides her feelings."
"Yeah. You always had that bad habit. Both you and Ruby." Yang sighed. "Though if you saw one of us suffering, you'd do your best to help us. You should be a therapist." She chuckled at the thought.
"Maybe I'll think about that becoming a future career choice if I can't become a Huntress again." Weiss teased, then looked at Yang. Something was telling her that the blonde wanted to ask her something, but didn't know how to ask. "What is this about? Do you need advice?"
"In a way." Yang folded her hands together. "It's more of a favour."
Weiss nodded slowly, waiting for Yang to continue.
"I'd like you to talk to Ruby. Please." Yang looked at Weiss with a pleading look. "I know that you said that you don't want to see her because she looks like she's in pain around you, but you're the only one that could really talk to her and get her to admit how she really feels. It's… frustrating for me, considering I'm her sister, but she really loves you. And I think you did too."
"Ruby… loves me?" Weiss blushed a bit, feeling butterflies within her stomach. Why did that make her happy? "And… I did too?"
"I'm pretty sure that you two did." Yang gave her a small smile. "You two always had this look on your faces and did practically everything together." She sighed. "I'll be honest. I didn't trust you with her at first. Considering how you called her a stupid, incompetent leader, and wanted nothing to do with her for the first few months after our team was formed, but…" The blonde looked at Weiss. "You two somehow made it work. You've protected her, helped her, saved her multiple times. More times than I can count. So, thank you."
"I don't…" Weiss was confused. Was she a horrible person before? "I'm… sorry."
Yang shook her head. "You don't remember and that's ok." She sighed as she placed a hand onto Weiss' head and ruffled her hair a bit, then chuckled. "I was actually waiting for you two to confess to each other, and I'd give you a talk about taking care of yourself 'cause I know you wouldn't do anything to hurt Ruby. I knew that you'd hurt yourself more than anything I did when it comes to that."
Weiss listened to Yang, listening to how much she had loved Ruby before. But did she still love her now? She'd have to talk to the brunette to know for sure.
"I'll try to talk to her. I can't promise that it'll go well though." Weiss sighed.
"That's more than I can ask for." Yang smiled and hugged Weiss. "Thank you."
Ruby stared out the window, unsure of what to do or think anymore. It's been nearly a month now since she saw Weiss for the first time after everything that had happened, and now… she felt lost.
She watched the sun going down and closed her eye. Maybe a nap would help? No, she's been sleeping this entire time. She needed to move or do something.
Ruby opened her eye again and turned in bed, waiting for her nightly check up.
Maybe… talking to her mother would help her.
Weiss slowly moved off the bed, wanting to take a short walk, and didn't want to stay in bed all day. The doctors had considered therapy appointments for her, but she declined them until she knew that Ruby would be attending as well.
For now, short walks were all that she could manage.
Just as she was about to leave the room, she saw nurses rushing about the halls. With a frown, she stumbled up to one. "What's going on?"
"Ruby Rose is missing from her room." A nurse frowned. "We're looking for her right now."
Weiss' eyes widened and she nodded. "I'll help."
"But in your condition…" The nurse started.
"Please." Weiss pleaded, wanting to know that Ruby will be alright.
"Alright…" The nurse relented. "But, you only have an hour before we force you back into your room."
Weiss nodded. She didn't know if that would be enough time, but it was something.
Ruby just wheeled down the halls, unsure of where she was going. All she knew was that she wanted out.
Before she knew it, she found herself in an elevator going to the roof and wheeled out into the fresh air.
Ruby took a deep breath and looked up at the sky.
"Hey, mom… how are you? I mean, after what happened with Salem and everything, I know... but…" Ruby sighed, trying to figure out her words. "I know that you told me to trust my team and everything, and we won in the end, but at what cost?"
Tears fell from her eyes as she felt a gentle wind blowing as if it were caressing her face.
"I-I know I'm being childish, but I wanna be with her again. I-It hurts, but I dunno how to be near her again without crying." Ruby sniffed. "W-What should I do…?"
Again, the wind blew and Ruby sighed as she looked at the moon.
"She's still the same? Are you sure about that? She always supported me, but will she still support me now that I'm… broken?"
It's been almost an hour since the nurses and Weiss went looking for Ruby, and there was still no sign of the brunette anywhere.
"The roof." Weiss thought to herself, it was the last place to look, and considering that Ruby was in a wheelchair, it would normally be impossible to go up there, but maybe...
Weiss walked up towards the roof and sighed in relief at seeing Ruby there, looking up at the night sky with… tears in her eye? She stood by the door, unsure if she had the right to come close to her.
"Ruby…" She called gently, worried that she may be crossing a line that she shouldn't with the brunette.
Ruby snapped her head around and saw Weiss by the door. She quickly wiped the tears from her eye. "W-Weiss! What are you doing up here?"
"We… I was looking for you." Weiss took a step forward, slowly approaching Ruby to see if she was invading her space.
"Looking for me? Why?" Ruby didn't mean for her voice to crack when she questioned Weiss' motives, but she wanted so badly to be close to her partner again that it hurt.
"I'm… worried about you." Weiss stopped until she was a few feet away from Ruby. "You… always look as if you're in pain whenever you're around me. I'm… sorry. For hurting you."
"What?" Ruby's eye widened as she shook her head. "You didn't do anything wrong! I just… I…" She whimpered, unsure of how to explain how she felt.
She wanted to be close to Weiss again, but it hurt when she saw that Weiss looked at her as if she were a stranger. Ruby did notice that Weiss was trying to keep her distance, but she didn't know why, and it hurt.
Weiss moved close to Ruby and knelt in front of her, taking a hand into her own. "I don't remember you, and I can't imagine what kind of pain that would cause. But seeing you like this? It hurts." She frowned and gave Ruby's hand a squeeze. "If there's anything that I can do, please. Allow me to help."
"Weiss…" Tears fell from Ruby's eye as she lunged into the older woman's arms.
They both fell back with a soft thud. Weiss winced a bit and rubbed the back of her head, quickly ignoring the pain as she heard Ruby's soft sniffling.
"Ruby?" Weiss blinked as she forced herself to sit up and held onto Ruby closely.
Ruby wrapped her arms around Weiss' neck and sobbed into her shoulder. "You're always so nice to me, taking care of me. I-I never did anything for you in return." She whimpered as she clutched onto Weiss' shirt. "E-Every time I felt horrible, lost, and alone… you were always there to help me. With all my dumb ideas, on and off the battlefield, y-you were always, always there to support me."
Weiss ran a hand through Ruby's hair, letting her cry it out.
"Since Beacon… after that… everything… you were there, by my s-side." Ruby sobbed. "Y-Yet once we got to Atlas… I practically abandoned you. I-I thought that you'd hate me, but you didn't. You were always there to support me like always." The brunette sniffed and held onto Weiss closely. "I-I don't deserve a great partner like you…"
"Ruby." Weiss felt her heart clenching as Ruby talked about herself like this and kept her as close as she could. With a sigh, she kissed her head and closed her eyes. "I can't… really tell you for certain about the past, but this is what I think now. I always supported you because you are someone worth supporting."
"But I-" Ruby pulled back a bit and stopped talking when Weiss shushed her.
"But nothing, Ruby. You may be a little inexperienced, but that doesn't change who you are." Weiss tried to find her words. "You're young, but you lead a team of Hunters and Huntresses. You've helped people. If anything, I'm the one that doesn't deserve you." She sighed.
Ruby whimpered as she looked into Weiss' eyes. "Weiss…"
"Yes?" Weiss looked back into Ruby's eye. She saw uncertainty and need within that silver eye and shifted a bit, holding her close with her right arm. "What is it, Ruby?"
Ruby didn't say anything and gripped onto Weiss' shirt. She thought about how Weiss always helped her and that maybe, maybe, she's still the same. Biting her lip, she buried her face onto the crook of her neck, and let a few tears slip out. More started to fall when she felt Weiss holding her closely, as if she were saying 'It's ok.'
The brunette sobbed and held onto Weiss closer, starting to let it all out now. Weiss was worried about Ruby and felt her heart clenching hearing her former partner's sobs. She held onto the younger woman closer and kissed her temple to assure her that everything is alright.
After a long while, Ruby's sobs started to quiet down and Weiss gently pushed her back, wiping her tears away with her thumb. "Are you alright now?"
"Y-Yeah..." Ruby nodded and leaned onto Weiss' hand. "I-I'm sorry..."
"Why are you sorry?" Weiss frowned.
"I-I just... It's been so long and I... You're my partner... I'm pushing our partnership onto you when you don't remember m-" Ruby stammered then was shushed by the older woman.
Weiss quickly kissed her on the forehead to stop that train of thought and pulled back. "It's true. I don't remember you. But." She looked into Ruby's eye. "You're not pushing your feelings onto me. I do… care for you. Seeing you sad and in pain these past few weeks, it hurt. I mean it." Weiss sighed as she held onto the younger woman. "It felt like my heart was being stabbed, seeing you sad. And… I'm sure that it's because I had some feelings for you."
Ruby flinched when Weiss used the past tense and was about to pull away, but felt Weiss pull her back.
"I don't know how I really feel now. I will admit that you are attractive, and I feel like I want to be closer to you than the others." Weiss blushed as she admitted that. "If… you're willing to be friends again and… maybe see how it goes. Would you be willing to wait?"
Tears fell from Ruby's eye again as she wrapped her arms around Weiss. "I've waited for a long time. I think I can wait a little longer." She gave the Schnee a teary smile.
"I don't want to promise something that I may or may not be able to give in the future though." Weiss frowned.
"When it comes to that time, we'll worry about it. For now…" Ruby sighed as she rested her head onto Weiss' shoulder. "I'd like to enjoy this moment."
Weiss nodded as she held onto Ruby closely. The brunette finally seemed to be happy, and Weiss didn't want to disturb her, but they'd have to go back to their rooms soon. She glanced towards the door, then back at Ruby on her lap.
Taking Ruby's earlier advice, she'll worry about it when the time comes. Holding onto Ruby felt right, and she wanted to enjoy the feeling as much as she could.
A/N: Hello again, gonna admit... this took way longer to write than I originally planned. In case you haven't noticed, this is based off my mini one shot for White Rose Weekend. Hoped that y'all enjoyed. See ya next time!