Chapter Six
Location: Atlas, Schnee Mansion
Monday, June 8th
[Breakaway]
Ever since her accident during the performance, and her father's lecture, Weiss has become more careful regarding her speech and her actions. There were a few times where she'd bite her tongue as an attempt to not snark back at her self-entitled father.
On several occasions where Weiss returned to her room and withdrew her sword, practicing her summoning as an out to her frustration. It was almost as if her temper had increased within the past few weeks, and it became progressively more difficult to keep below the surface.
The day before, she hadn't felt like doing absolutely anything.
Then there were instances, like yesterday, where she felt like all of Remnant was against her.
Sometimes her emotions would flip like a switch, she could be frustrated one second and she'll feel like crying the next. She blamed it on her grief.
Weiss attempted to reach out to her teammates, but was somewhat unsuccessful and the only thing she'd learned was that Yang was seemingly doing better, physically, Blake was still missing, and Ruby? Well, she'd woken up, but her whereabouts remain unknown.
She was grateful that her girlfriend had awoken, although she did feel remorse for the fact she wasn't out there with her. She should be out there with her, searching for Blake, and trying to pull their team together! Her family…
She hates it here.
Whitley became more aggravating than he originally was and he discovered her weak point, mentioning her team and her apparently shattered love life. He often made jokes about her friends' disappearance, which caused discomfort to settle inside of the young heiress, making her sickened and hurt by the mere thought. Strangely enough, her brother showed signs of sorrow and pity afterwards, but never bothered to apologize.
Willow, her mother, noticed Weiss' illness and there was always a distant, unreadable look on her face during their interactions, almost as if she knew something that Weiss didn't. A couple of times, the woman had discreetly suggested that she should leave, but the implication was so brief that Weiss wasn't sure if she understood her right.
Willow was even acting different, she'd willingly made conversation with Weiss regarding names for… Something. She'd never been able to figure that part out.
Her father had become unbearable, requiring that she attend multiple meetings in his place within the span of twenty-four hours. He didn't care if she felt ill, claiming that the world doesn't wait while she's sick; he insisted that her presence at the meetings would be great for the company 'when she takes over', there was always some sort of restrained glint in his eye when he said this.
Since the day she collapsed, he'd been watching her like a hawk, she had to walk a certain way, talk a certain way, and act a certain way in order to please him.
Weiss finally earned a day off when her father was informed of General Ironwood's arrival and he'd dismissed her to her bedroom. Deciding to spend her time resting, she closed her door and approached her bed, fatigue finally overtaking her.
Weiss just barely managed to fall asleep when a quiet knock rapped at her door. She let out a sigh and sat up, swinging her feet to dangle off the side of the bed. "Enter," she says tiredly after making sure her appearance was up to par. The door slides open and a tall woman enters, her white hair tied up into a tight bun.
"Winter?" Weiss askes, surprised by the sight of her sister. Joy spreads through Weiss' chest and she smiles. "What are you doing here?"
"Classified." Winter says briefly, coming towards the younger Schnee with a guarded expression, closing the door behind her and examining her bedroom.
Weiss' heart drops. It was business then, as usual. "I don't know why I asked."
Winter glances down at her younger sister at the sound of her glum voice, a slight bridge in her brow at the foreign tone, "Mother told me to check on you," she tells the younger woman softly, "It seems that it's a good thing I did…" Her voice becomes soft, "You do not sound well Weiss." She says worriedly as she takes a seat, crossing one leg over the other.
Weiss took a breath, meeting her sister's gaze. "I could be better, but I am functional."
"Functional? What has Father done to you?" Winter askes. Weiss huffs out a small laugh, folding her arms over her chest.
"Sickness apparently isn't allowed either anymore," Weiss grumbles before looking away from the judgmental stare of her sister, "Amongst... Other things."
Winter scruinitizes her for a moment, looking her sister up and down. Something flickers through the older woman's darker blue eyes, she lets out an annoyed sigh and rubs her forehead. "Dear Gods, don't let this be true… Have you engaged in sexual activity recently?" Winter asks, voice laced with suspicion.
Every nerve in Weiss' body tensed, her cheeks turning red with humiliation. "I-What?! Isn't that a personal question?! How do you even come to that conclusion?!"
Winter looks at her, disappointment clear in her eyes. "I'll take that as a yes. How long ago?"
"I didn't say that!" Weiss yelped again. "That's not a question you use to break the ice, Winter!"
"No, but the look on your face did." Winter answers, "Okay. How do you feel?" Winter sounded exasperated.
Weiss' brows crease upon noticing the stressed expression on her sister's face. "I'm... I'm fine. What do you mean?"
The woman glances up at her and stands to her feet, stepping around behind the chair to approach the younger Schnee. "Are you ill?" She asks, "Nauseated? How tired do you feel?"
Weiss suppressed a roll of her eyes. "I'm fine, Winter," she repeats, the other woman didn't look convinced, "Raye tried to spike my drink," Winter's eyes widen, "so I would not be surprised if he's done something to my food recently to make me sick."
Fury flashes through Winter's eyes, "We'll come back to that…" Winter grabs her shoulders tight. "Raye Graham? Has he touched you?"
Weiss frowns again, "N-no, he hasn't," she mutters as Winter releases her and she moves away from the specialist, "what's wrong with you?"
Winter's next question causes Weiss' veins to turn to ice. "Is there any chance you could be pregnant?" How long had it been? Beacon fell a few weeks before the end of their last semester, and a month has passed since then.
She couldn't be, right?
"Weiss. Answer me." Winter's voice is strict.
She stiffly turns back towards her sister. "Possibly…"
Winter's brow twitches and she brushes her bangs back out of her eye, seemingly processing Weiss' response. "Who would the father be?" She asks with a calm, but stoic tone. It was almost frightening. "I'll have him hung by his testicles."
Weiss winces at the thought and lets out a nervous chuckle "I'm afraid that won't be biologically possible…" Confusion flickers through her sister's eyes. "Metaphorically, maybe."
The air in the room grew cold. "Weiss!" Winter scolds her sharply. "Stop side-stepping the question and tell me who the father is." Her tone became soft, she was worried. "I can help you."
Weiss' stomach became heavy. "It's… Complicated." She answers, averting her eyes and grasping at her arm nervously.
"What's so complicated about a name?" Winter asks again, becoming aggravated. "State his first name, and then his last. It's not so hard. Now, tell me. Who is he?"
Her chest tightens and she reluctantly looks at her sister, dread forming inside of her chest, Weiss bites her lip momentarily in hesitation, her answer comes out as a barely audible whisper. "Ruby…" She never told the older woman about her relationship as she feared her sister's reaction. "Ruby Rose."
She didn't seem to believe her and rage crossed through Winter's eyes. "Weiss, I'm serious!" Weiss stands firm as her voice rises in volume. "Ruby is a woman. You need to stop joking with me, Weiss, do you know what Father would do if you are expecting some strange man's-"
Weiss interrupts her, startling the specialist. "I'm not joking, Winter!" She tells her sharply, her voice cracking. "If I am pregnant, then I can promise you that the baby is Ruby's…"
Winter waits patiently for an explanation.
"She's my-" Weiss pauses, correcting herself. "She was my girlfriend. We were planning for a family, and we discovered a way to have a child of our own, it was still in the experimental stage, but we accepted the risks…"
"Oh for the Brothers' sake, Weiss! "
Winter rubs at her forehead in distress and she begins pacing the room, her knuckles raised to her mouth and her hand grasping her elbow. "You're positive that Raye hasn't taken advantage of you?" She asks in suspicion, "You said he spiked your drink."
"I didn't touch it," Weiss answers, "that was only about a week ago."
Winter lets out a hum and clears her throat, folding her hands behind her back and formally approaching Weiss. "Then we need to make sure you're expecting before we calculate the risks…" She hands Weiss' scroll to her, "We'll need help, request Klein's presence immediately, this is urgent."
"We don't even know-" Weiss begins.
"You need to be prepared." Her sister interrupts, her voice cold, "Call him."
Weiss reluctantly does as she was told and grabs her scroll, giving the butler a call and asking for him to come to her room, Winter watches her with careful eyes and the man gives an affirmative response. Weiss shuts her scroll and folds her arms across her chest, avoiding eye contact with Winter. "Why do we need his help?" Weiss asks curiously.
The other woman looks at her and she sighs again. "We need to get you out of here, if you are pregnant…" Weiss stays quiet, waiting for her sister to continue. "Father has his… Ways. If word gets out to him that you're expecting a child outside of marriage, there are various things that he could do to you."
A chill races up Weiss' spine. "Like… Like what?"
Winter's voice cracks, "He could take your child from you when they're born, he has connections all over Remnant." She clears her throat, "Unless he chooses to allow you to keep your child…" A spark of hope forms in Weiss' chest, but it is quickly drowned by realization. "He would break you, manipulate your baby into depending entirely on him and painting you as the bad guy."
Weiss' eyes go downcast. "Just like he did with Mother…"
"Yeah." Winter agrees, looking in the younger woman's direction. "I know it sounds dangerous, Weiss… But please, you really need to leave here. Staying would be even worse."
Quietly, Weiss forms a pros and cons list inside of her head; fluttering through them as she acknowledges the desperation in Winter's voice. She lets out a breath. "Okay. I trust you." Weiss murmurs in acceptance.
The two sisters remain silent as they await his arrival, Weiss put distance between herself and her sister. She removes a single suitcase and opens it, the amount of personal belongings she could bring was severely limited; she would have to pack lightly.
"Weiss, focus." Winter tells her suddenly, breaking the woman from her thoughts. She hands her a gown to put in her suitcase, the former heiress takes it and carelessly drops it into the suitcase. Winter sighs, "You'll need sleepwear and at least two outfits until you can purchase more." Weiss glares at her, but the military specialist brushes it off. "Once we meet up again, ditch everything you own and use the lien to restock."
She resists a roll of her eyes and gently picks up a picture frame from her vanity, blue eyes scanned over the image and a small smile comes to her lips. Weiss' thumb slid over the smiling form of Ruby and a cold wave courses through her body. Feeling rather empty, she looks towards Winter again as she sets the picture into her suitcase, she moves from her bed to her dresser to fetch an old red cloak. "Can't we just wait and see if-"
Weiss turns around as the photo is removed from her suitcase and Winter sets it back on her dresser, "You can't take this." She said to her sternly, dismissing Weiss' annoyed glare. "I said to pack the essentials, this isn't essential." She glances inside of the suitcase, "Neither is the cloak."
"It's essential to me," Weiss growls as her temper rises slowly, annoyance pooling inside her chest, "put it back."
Winter sighs in exasperation, "Weiss, please, don't do this."
A quiet rapping noise interrupts them and Winter moves towards the door, handing Weiss her picture as she passes her. "Fine, take it." She mutters to her in defeat, "but keep in mind that you'll have to leave everything behind soon enough…" Winter opens the door and Klein smiles kindly at them, the look in his eyes shows that he was aware of the tension in the room, but chose not to acknowledge it.
"It's good to see you, Winter," he greets and Winter replies, she turns to look at Weiss with a blank look on her face. "How can I help?"
The older woman lets out a hefty breath, her shoulders loosen a bit. She hands him a small slip of paper that seems to have appeared out of thin air, "We need you to fetch these items, do not let anybody see what you're purchasing and watch your back…"
He takes the paper from her, "It's important." His eyes scan over the list and he looks up with a concealed shock expression, glancing between the two sisters for an answer to which Winter provided with a quiet gesture in Weiss' direction.
Catching sight of the gesture, Weiss silently growls at her sister and her fists clench together, her body trembling with rage. She glares daggers into her sister's back and flips her off; Klein's eyes widen and Winter looks over shoulder, finding Weiss sitting innocently on her bed.
The man clears his throat, straightens his posture and folds the list neatly in his hands, "I will return as soon as I can." He informs them, Winter thanks him and closes the door as Klein walks away.
Winter turns back to Weiss and her brows narrow, Weiss offers her a matching glare. "Now that we have this situation under control."
Weiss feels a shiver race up her spine, but she stands and holds her ground.
"What were you thinking, Weiss?! A baby before marriage? A baby before engagement?!"
"I'm not apologizing," Weiss says bluntly, "it's not a requirement to be married or engaged to have a family with the person you love."
The woman's brow twitches and she walks towards her younger sister, coming to stop in front of her with an eerily calm expression. "Do tell me," she says with a brow raised, "where is your lover now? Why hasn't she even attempted to check up on you?" Winter holds up her hand before Weiss can say anything. "If you two were planning for a family, if she knew there was a chance you could be pregnant, she would be trying to find you."
"She…" Weiss looks away as her heart tightens, her emotions taking a turn. "She could be busy, and she's probably got a lot on her mind…"
"Weiss!" Winter hollers again and Weiss flinches. The military specialist sighs and rubs her forehead, her shoulders loosening again as she relaxes herself, "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to shout. Please, tell me, why haven't I heard that she was your girlfriend until now…? Did she make you keep it a secret?" Weiss shakes her head and seats herself on the bed again, avoiding eye contact with her older sister. "Did she make you feel like you couldn't tell me?"
Weiss shakes her head once.
Winter's eyes became sad, "Have you ever made excuses for her…?"
"No," Weiss answers instantly, "I mean, sometimes she would do reckless things where I had to clean up afterwards, but she never meant any harm by it."
"Did she ever make you feel…" Winter hesitates, "Small?" Weiss opens her mouth to retort in response, ready to jump to her girlfriend's defense, when something flashes through her mind. Their last conversation at Beacon… Noticing the look in her eyes, Winter continues with a soft voice. "How often?"
She sighs, remembering how sore she'd been after the tournament, yet she'd still insisted on training against Ruby's concerns. "Not very often, she was only worried about me getting hurt…"
Her sister's brows knit together, "So, she didn't believe in you to protect yourself…? She controlled you?"
Weiss sends her a weird look and there's an unreadable look in Winter's eyes. "No- no, not at all." Sure, there were a few times where Ruby wouldn't listen to her and would do reckless things on a whim, but she'd never made her feel like she was useless and fragile. Hell, Ruby trusted her with her life, she believed in her during her darkest times. Ruby was just… Worried.
Right?
"She loved me, Winter." Weiss hears herself say confidently, storing away her pessimistic thoughts and locking them below. She grabs at the bracelet she was wearing as if to seek some sort of comfort from it. "She loved me for me, not for my name, not for my status…"
Winter closes her eyes and she remains silent for a long moment. She lets out a long, quiet breath. "For your sake, I hope that's true." She stands up and places a hand on her hip, "You need to get a shower. Who knows how long it'll be until you have another."
"What do you mean?"
The atmosphere became tense.
"You need to keep your identity a secret, Weiss… The more people who know, the more likely you are to be found." She sounds sad. "I know the law, the very moment you go missing, they'll be trying to track you down and will not leave one stone unturned."
Weiss looks down, understanding Winter's concerns. She let out a quiet breath. "So I have to lay low… Fly beneath their radar? I can't even tell my team…?"
Winter's answer was hesitant, but soft. "Yes…"
"For how long…?"
"I'll let you know when it's safe."
Lukewarm water rained down upon Weiss' skin, causing a sense of relief to cast over her as though the weight of the day was being washed down the drain. She closes her eyes and sags against the shower wall next to her, feeling an overwhelming numbness spread through her body. Although she felt empty, she knew that just outside the room her sister was awaiting Klein's return with their requested items.
Dread pools in the pit of her stomach and she hugs herself tight, one of those items would change her life indefinitely, depending on the result. Somewhere deep inside of her, there was a twinge of excitement and hope, thankful that the experiment probably worked and that she would have a family, but there was also fear.
This wasn't even supposed to happen. Ruby was supposed to be with her when they learned they were going to have a family, not on the other side of Remnant Gods knows where. Sure, she could track her down and tell her everything that has happened, but Winter was right in this case. She couldn't.
"Weiss?" She opens her eyes and looks in the direction of the door, hearing it slowly click open. She hears the heels of her sister's boots entering the bathroom. Something is set down on the porcelain, marbled sink across from the shower. "Klein has returned." Weiss only hums, "It'll be best if you get this over with as soon as possible, prolonging it will not change the situation."
Weiss waits until the bathroom door has closed before she slides the shower curtain open, she reluctantly strolls over to the counter and her shaky fingers grasped at the small pink and white object. Her thumb runs over the screen both wistfully and fearfully, she turns and steps back into the shower and quietly prepares herself for the inevitable. Nervousness pooled in her chest and she carefully flips it over, searching for the much-needed instructions. Her heart fell when she found that the back was blank.
"Winter," she calls, hoping her older sister would hear her over the running water, "I don't know how to use this!" Weiss shuts the shower off and reaches out of the curtain to grab her robe, quickly slipping it on so that she could exit the bathroom. The door opens as she approaches and she lifts her head to look at a slightly annoyed Winter.
"Did you not take health class?" Winter mutters to her and Weiss sends her a matching scowl, irked by the woman's sudden attitude.
"Yes, I did," Weiss tells her aggressively, practically shoving the object into her sibling's hands, "but they don't teach or tell you how to use a pregnancy test, so excuse my lack of knowledge in that department!"
Winter lets out a quiet sigh and the annoyance in her eyes fades, she faces away from her to approach the box. "Alright, well, let's see." She picks it up and turns it over to read the instructions, her expression remains neutral as she reads. "It says for you to collect urine in a cup-"
Weiss cuts her off without missing a beat. "Collect what in a what?"
Winter continues, ignoring Weiss' interruption. "Collect urine in a cup and dip the object in," Weiss felt the color drain from her face and she clutches at the side of her robe nervously, "keep it there for ten seconds and then lay it flat on a surface for three to five minutes." She drops the box on Weiss' bed and she looks at the younger Schnee.
"No, absolutely not. I am not doing that." Weiss protests.
"Well, it's best to get it over with as soon as possible, don't you think?" Winter asks.
The young woman grumbles at her sister and snatches the object back from her, "I hate you so much."
Winter rolls her eyes. "You got yourself into this, Sister."
A few minutes later, "Winter?" Weiss shakily enters her bedroom, carrying the pink and white object in hand. Her sister looks up from her scroll as she approaches and her eyes become sad, the younger Schnee quietly hands the test over to the specialist, trembling.
"It's-" She felt as though her whole world was crumbling, "It's positive…" There was a little, small voice inside of her head whispering to her, overjoyed that the experiment was successful, but her despair overruled that emotion.
It wasn't because she didn't want her baby, because she knew she would love them more than words could say, but she was scared. Nothing had gone as planned…
Ruby wasn't here, she wasn't a Beacon graduate with her huntress license, she wasn't starting a new life with her friends. She and Ruby won't be celebrating together, the baby shower Yang joked about will never happen, there wouldn't be any name discussions.
She would never head out shopping with her girlfriend to find baby furniture and toys and get into a disagreement about what they should buy. They will never move into the house they were looking at and begin preparing the room, there will never be a gender reveal party like they'd discussed, there would never be baby pictures hung everywhere on the walls…
She didn't even know if Ruby would ever meet their child.
"Weiss." She lifts her head to see Winter standing over her, causing her to realize that she'd sunk to the floor, hugging herself. Winter sighs and kneels down in front of her, placing a gentle hand on the younger woman's shoulder. "Come on, we have to confirm everything, and get you out of here."
Why? What would she have out there? At least here she would have a safe place for her baby to stay… It's not a very nice place to grow up, but she would give her baby the best life they could possibly have. But, if she stayed, there was a good chance her father would begin manipulating her child to turn against her; he would use her baby's safety to keep her in line, he wasn't above harming a kid for his own personal gain. She can't have her baby thinking she doesn't love them.
"Yeah." She whispers, reaching to take Winter's outstretched hand and pulling herself up. Winter goes to pull her hand away and faces away from Weiss, but the former heiress steps close and wraps her arms around her older sister, seeking the comfort and solace she so desperately needed.
She feels the woman briefly tense up before carefully returning the embrace with one arm. "I'm scared…" Weiss murmurs, her voice soft and timid.
"I know." Winter answers as gently as she could, awkwardly rubbing the younger Schnee's back. "We have just one more test, okay?"
Weiss swallows, lifting her eyes to look at Winter and stepping away from her. "What is it…?" It requires all of her willpower not to break down.
The older woman gestures for her to follow. "Klein is waiting for you in my old room. Just in case, there's a pilot waiting for your arrival. I need to go now, but I'll help you as much as I can, I promise."
She nods and robotically follows her sister out of the bedroom, departing from her as Winter descends the staircase to leave.
After a silent farewell, Weiss continues down the corridor towards her sister's old bedroom; she hears the manor's large entrance creak shut as she approaches the charcoal door. Breathing in deeply and placing her hand on the handle, she steps inside and lets it shut silently behind her.
"Miss Schnee." Klein greets her warmly.
Her eyes travel towards equipment the man had set up next to Winter's bed, "What's going on?" She asks tentatively, frowning when worry crosses through the man's kind face. "Winter said there was one last test..."
"There is," he answers with a sigh, "your sister informed me of the situation." The short man approaches Weiss to rest a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I do not want you going out there based on that one test. Sometimes, they can give a false reading…"
There was no judgement in his eyes, only concern.
"How do you feel about an ultrasound?"
"I've never had one," Weiss responds, "but, I suppose it wouldn't hurt."
Klein nods his agreement and motions for her to lay down, she reluctantly obliges. He returns to the equipment and she hears the machine whirring to life.
"Can you lift your shirt, Miss Schnee?" Weiss' brow twitches with confusion and she carefully lifts her shirt to expose her stomach. "This will be a little warm, alright?" She nods, perplexed, as he applies a liquid-like gel to the transducer
Weiss lifts her head towards the sonogram's screen almost instinctively as he presses it against her abdomen, her brows pull together as the grey cloud-like figure slowly comes into sight. Klein pauses as a black bubble appears amongst the grey, he moves the transducer slowly towards it. "What's that?"
He is quiet for a moment. "It appears that this will be your baby."
Weiss' heart skips a beat and her eyes focus on the screen, a warmth spreads through her chest and a smile tugs at her lips. She swears that her soul has ascended towards the heavens.
"But you have to be careful, Miss Schnee. The first few weeks of pregnancy are… tedious." He doesn't sound mad, but there's more tension in his voice than there is thrill. Klein puts the scanner away and Weiss sits up.
A spiral of emotions rushes through her. Denial, fear. Then, acceptance and glee.
There's something else. She couldn't place it. She liked it, but she couldn't describe it. Actually, she couldn't explain it because there was nothing to compare it to as an example; it was strong, unwavering. "What is this feeling…?" Weiss murmurs.
Klein smiles at her with sadness in his eyes. "That, my dear, is called a Mother's love."
'Mother.' The word echoes in her head sweetly, 'I'm going to be a Mother.'
"Sir, did you take a look at both record files?" Doctor Meadows asked, entering the office upon receiving the man's permission. He approached with a manilla folder in hand, offering it to the confused CEO. "We ran one on her blood tests, which is the record that indicated that she'd had too much drugs in her system," he explained, opening another document, "this one shows different results, informing us that her hormone levels-"
Jacques interrupted, his voice harsh with annoyance. "What does it mean?" His cold eyes locked with the doctor's hazel pair and the older man swallowed hard, carefully shutting the folder and straightening his posture under Jacques' menacing glare.
Doctor Meadows cleared his throat. "It means she is pregnant, Sir."
Blue eyes stared at the aged man for several moments, Jacques let out a scoff of feigned amusement. "I'm afraid your results are wrong," he said slowly, clearly unsure of his own words, "there is no way that my daughter could be expecting a child. She is not even married!"
The doctor smiled nervously, "We've already ran several tests to be sure that it was not a false alarm, Sir," he tried to reason, "otherwise I would not have informed you… Every test we performed came back positive."
Jacques' hand clenched into a tight fist, yet his expression remained stoic. "I see." He clears his throat, "Well, she has an appointment tomorrow, correct?"
The doctor swallows hard and taps his pen against the folder he held tight in his hands. "Well, um, yes sir. She does. Would you like me to reschedule-"
He is interrupted instantly, Jacques' voice is cold and menacing. He stands to his full height. "See to it that this abomination is taken care of." He says threateningly as he approaches the door, the doctor nods and gives an affirmative answer. "Excellent." The CEO smiles, placing his hand on the door knob. "Inform your employees of the procedure while I speak with our 'soon-to-be mother'." He gives the door a push-
The door swings back shut instantly.
He frowns in confusion and attempts to push it open again, but the knob is immovable, the door isn't opening. It was like something was holding the other end in place… Realization clicks and rage boils inside of him when he hears faint footsteps racing down the hall.
"Weiss!"