If Weiss Schnee could use a single word to describe her current situation, it would be pleasure.
Here before her stood her greatest headache to date; Jaune Arc. The boy she had so carelessly let slip away only a day prior, the boy she had been unfortunately paired with, the boy who had ignored her calls and texts for well over 24 hours, the boy who…looked slightly worse for wear than she had previously seen.
He looked horrid. Disgusting dark rings hung under his eyes, his hair a complete hazard to any comb who dared come near, and the dull eyes that stared back at her with what appeared to be regret and annoyance. By the Brothers, he looked like a walking corpse. No matter, it was none of her concern. She would gain pleasure humiliating the boy in public.
"Well? I am waiting for your excuse!" Weiss glared.
Jaune was bewildered. This was quite honestly the last thing on his list he expected to be confronted with today. He could feel his mouth want to form some sort of coherent sentence, however all that escaped was the nervous breaths he let out. Jaune's hands started shaking again, he wasn't ready for a confrontation so soon. Especially not from Weiss of all people. He looked past her shoulder at Ruby who had suddenly appeared, a nervous smile graced her face as she waved shyly.
"It's…it's complicated." Jaune relented.
He sighed slightly in relief after feeling himself speak. The relief slowly turning to confusion after he watched the heiress close her eyes and breathing in a breath so deep he could swear the oxygen around him left Jaune in a vacuum. Weiss began to release the air in a slow and controlled manner, her eyes opening the breath left her lungs.
"Jaune," Weiss began, "do you realize what is at stake here? Even the tiniest thought of what failure means? It means a stain on my academic record."
His hands stopped shaking.
"…Are you fucking kidding me?" Jaune deadpanned.
Ruby squeaked in surprise from behind Weiss. She'd heard swears before of course, mainly from her dad and uncle. Sometimes from Yang if she thought she was alone, even Ruby had to admit she found herself letting one slip from time to time. But here and now, her best (male) friend had just sworn out loud. In public no less! But that wasn't what surprised her so much. No, it was the fact that she had never heard Jaune swear.
Jaune never swore.
"Is that seriously the most important thing right now? A stupid grade? What makes you think I give a fuck about your grades?" Jaune demanded.
Weiss widened her eyes slightly in surprise. The nerve of him! What gave him the right to stand here and embarrass her with such crude remarks? She was Weiss Schnee! If anything, he owed her an apol-
"Well? I'm waiting for your excuse." Jaune retorted.
Weiss's silence gave Jaune his opportunity to continue.
"I'm so fucking sick of your bullshit. Look, I'm sorry that you didn't get the partner you wanted for this presentation but me not being there to help is in no way my fault. There's more going on here than you realize." Jaune raised his voice.
"How dare you?! This is most definitely your fault! We have less than 24 hours to gather your content for our presentation and I will not let myself be drag-" Weiss was interrupted.
"Holy shit! FUCK THE PRESENTATION! I COULD CARE LESS ABOUT OOBLECK'S CLASS RIGHT NOW!" Jaune boomed.
Ruby lowered slightly, Jaune never talked like this. It terrified her. People began staring at the argument being displayed outside. The patrons inside the building stole glances.
"Must be trouble in paradise." A bystander laughed.
Ruby turned and glared at the offender before he averted his eyes and quickened his pace out of the area, many others taking notice and behaving the same. Ruby reddened slightly at the action and clutched at her cloak.
"FIRST OF ALL, FUCK YOU! I DIDN'T ASK TO BE PAIRED WITH YOU, ALRIGHT!" Jaune continued.
Weiss furrowed her eyebrows before stepping back slightly. Her mouth refused to convey words right now. She glanced around, Jaune's outburst had turned more than a few heads.
"If we're being completely honest with each other now, I didn't want to be paired with you. I knew you would have a problem with it, but I tried! I tried so fucking hard to impress you, so you'd hopefully forget how much of a dead weight I was!" Jaune admitted.
Now that was something Weiss had not expected from the Arc. Of course, she had her problems with Jaune, but never in a thousand years would she describe him as dead weight. He had above average combat skills, his leadership qualities outshined Ruby, his academics were quite honestly average at best but dead weight? She could see the tears begin to stream down his cheeks. Her mouth floundered slightly before finding its' voice.
"Jaune…you're not dead weight." Weiss spoke softly.
"Don't fucking lie to me! I know what I am, and so do you! If it wasn't for Saphron I'd be completely fucking useless but now she's gone! Without her…without her I'm just going to get you all killed." Jaune relayed.
The mention of his sister gained Ruby's undivided attention. She heard her name before during the many leader workshops Ozpin had insisted every team leader attend. The late-night rendezvous for all team leaders had led to everyone sharing about their lives. Jaune's stories about growing up in Argus had been one of the most interesting, second only to Cardin's upbringing.
"Jaune, what do you mean your sister is gone?" Ruby spoke up.
Weiss quickly shifted her gaze between the two, her own eyes widening in realization.
Death had caused him to distance himself.
"Jaune…" Weiss began.
He let his gaze fall to the ground, a silent sigh escaping his lips. His feet began moving his body towards a nearby table belonging to The Café before slowly sliding out the chair. Jaune lowered himself down into the chair before leaning over and taking his head in his hands. Weiss stood awkwardly to the side, unsure of herself in the environment. Ruby, on the other hand, knelt down in front of the boy. She let her hands rest on his knee before shaking him slightly.
"There was an accident, Saph…she's gone." Jaune mumbled.
"Jaune, are you okay?" Ruby asked.
"…No." Jaune admitted.
######
The journey back to Beacon was rough, Weiss would be the first to admit that. Sitting on her bed, Weiss embraced Ruby in a side hug. Neither one dared speak a word on the matter. Yang and Blake had left earlier, they slipped the pair a text to say something about a book shop. She didn't care, not really. She was grateful they weren't around to witness their collective mood.
"I gotta go over my notes before tomorrow, I don't wanna mess up. But we'll go see him tomorrow after class, right?" Ruby asked
Weiss nodded silently before Ruby slipped from her grasp to collect her notes. She stuffed them into a binder that most definitely belonged to her partner before waving farewell. Stepping into the hall and shutting the door, Ruby could only sigh in defeat. Of course she was feeling terrible after today, but Weiss had taken it extra hard. Dispelling her thoughts, she trudged off towards the library hoping to get a couple hours of revision in before dinner. Weiss on the other hand…
'What is wrong with me?' Weiss questioned.
She thought back to the events of the previous few hours. Her rather…unnecessary outburst at the café had really ruined the day. She and Ruby had helped Jaune back to Vale General after he relayed that his sister-in-law Terra was currently admitted. The sight of her hooked up to the machines had scared Ruby and made Weiss's stomach flip. He spent a few minutes apologizing for blowing up at her, saying he didn't mean to throw all of that at Weiss. She didn't care, she deserved it.
Ruby had inquired about his nephew Adrian; a boy Weiss was unfamiliar with. Jaune's silent tears had answered her question before Ruby embraced him from behind. She stood silently behind the pair for several minutes before the two broke apart. Ruby urged the boy to come back to Beacon for the night, or at least come back to shower and change. He refused of course; Weiss knew he would.
Weiss awkwardly stepped forward and hugged Jaune from behind. A small gesture, but one that he appreciated. He reiterated he wasn't going to come back, not yet at least. Until he knew what was happening with Terra, he wasn't going to leave her side. He wiped his eyes before saying he needed to be alone. Weiss could understand that, she whispered a quiet apology before leading Ruby out of the room and back towards Beacon.
Weiss swung her legs up onto her bed before laying down and closing her eyes. Her brow furrowing in the process.
'All of this over a presentation. Could I be anymore heartless?' Weiss questioned.
She did not want to know the answer to that question, not now nor ever. Her mind drifted towards the presentation due tomorrow. Of course, it was going to be done early the next morning, 9 AM sharp. Doctor Oobleck would not appreciate tardiness.
Weiss would like to change her word now; pleasure was not what she was going to be feeling for a while.
######
Weiss awoke the next morning to her fourth…no, fifth alarm on her scroll.
'6:45? I must have been exhausted.' Weiss thought.
She sat up in confusion, she didn't remember falling asleep at all, as if the very action had snuck up on her. Weiss sighed, moving her hands to her eyes to remove whatever gunk had hardened overnight before roaming her hands through her hair.
Strange, she hadn't removed her tiara the previous night either. Glancing down towards her body, she realized she was still dressed in her combat uniform. Myrtenaster was leant against the bed frame, the carpet beneath the blade slit. Straining her ears, she could hear the sound of the dorm bathroom being used. Probably Yang in the shower, most likely not finished. That woman had a mane like no other.
Looking across the room, Weiss locked onto the prone form of Blake still fast asleep. She could surmise her partner was not yet awake either. Sighing, Weiss quickly moved to exterminate the blaring alarm from her scroll before standing from the bed. The heiress sighed in relief as her feet met carpet. She at least had the decency to remove her combat heels, thank the brothers.
The sound of running water suddenly stopped before a towel clad Yang stepped out of the steaming bathroom.
"Gooood morning, sleepy head." Yang chirped, quietly.
"Hello." Weiss replied, glumly.
Yang faltered before quirking a single eyebrow up. Her big sister senses were tingling, and she'd be damned if she didn't make better. She grabbed a sports bra hanging off the edge of her bunk before readjusting her towel around her waist. The fabric dampened on contact and itched lightly; she couldn't care less.
"Hey, are you okay? Are you stressed about the presentation? Oobleck might be able to reschedule it if you can't do it today?" Yang said.
Weiss felt her jaw tremble before she was quickly embraced by the blonde. The sudden contact startled her before she closed her eyes and silently wept into Yang's shoulder.
"I'm sorry, I don't mean to burden you with this." Weiss whimpered.
"Shhh, it's okay," Yang reassured, "tell me what happened."
Weiss used the hem of her sleeve to dry her eyes, attempting recompose herself. Yang guided Weiss back towards her bed and sat down next to her. She felt warmth radiate through her chest as Yang lovingly stroked her back, attempting to calm the girl down slightly.
Ruby used to cry a lot as a kid. Whether it be nightmares, small Grimm near their home, mean kids or just missing their mom. Yang made it her mission to always be there for her, pretty much becoming a second mom in her eyes. Back rubs always calmed the speedster down. When she stopped crying, Yang would guide her head onto her shoulder to stroke her hair. When Yang made the same motions to Weiss, she didn't resist.
"I'm such an idiot." Weiss admitted.
Yang said nothing, allowing her hands to guide slowly through Weiss's white strands.
"Jaune, he…his sister…I think I just made things worse between us. Why do I keep doing this?" Weiss asked.
Yang didn't say a word, instead she wrapped her arms around the girl again before she reciprocated the action.
"Hey, why don't we sit like this for a while? At least until you want to let go. Then go take a shower and get back into bed, I'll talk to the good doctor for you and the goofball." Yang smiled.
Weiss felt tears begin to spill again, the prickly sensation in her nose returning.
"Thank you." She cried.