"Grandma Ruby, can I ask you a question?"
Ruby glanced up from her book and looked at the girl sitting across from her.
Black hair with red highlights, fair skin that exuded youthfulness, and silver eyes that radiated with unbridled brilliance — it was like she was looking at a reflection of her younger self — minus the fact that the girl was easily a couple inches taller than she was at that age.
Cookies and tea were laid out on the small living room table — surprisingly untouched. For the past hour, the two girls sat in relative silence, only the sounds of page turning and feet shuffling interrupting the void, which made Ruby worry whether or not there was something troubling the girl, or worse, if she was growing bored of her company, but the fear immediately subsided once the girl spoke.
Marking the last page she was on and setting the book aside, Ruby answered back with a smile. "Why, of course you can, Chloe. What's on your mind?"
Ruby loved answering Chloe's questions, especially when it was about the newest catalog of weapons or stories from her huntress days.
There was a certain feeling only a grandmother could experience from entertaining the curious notions of their grandchild's questions — a feeling Ruby never thought she would ever look forward to in her entire life.
I wonder what kind of questions will Chloe ask today? Will she ask what to upgrade next on her weapon? Where to order customized ammunition? or will she finally ask me how to make my world famous triple-chocolate chip strawberry swirl deluxe cocoa!? I hope she asks... Ruby thought as she sipped her tea.
"What was Grandma Weiss like when you were at Beacon?"
Ruby almost spewed out her tea.
"Cough— cough, H-huh? W-why do you ask?" Ruby stammered, wiping her mouth.
Chloe nonchalantly sipped her tea, oblivious to her grandmother's flustered state.
"Just curious," she answered. "Whenever I ask Grandma Weiss about it, she would always say that she forgot something at work, then immediately leave. Since she seems to be busy all the time, I was hoping you can tell me instead."
"H-haha, I-I see..." Ruby carefully looked around. "Hold on a sec—"
ZOOM~
When Chloe blinked, her grandmother suddenly disappeared, leaving behind a small trail of petals. She felt hair sway around as a strong wind passed by her. Peering from across the room, Chloe could see a red blur dash up and down the hallways, make a quick pass through the kitchen, and zig-zag between the bedrooms.
When Chloe blinked again, she was surprised to see her grandmother back in her seat, but with her hair a bit ruffled, and slightly out of breath.
The younger brunette frowned. "Grandma! Don't you remember what the doctor said about using your semblance?"
Ruby waved her hand. "Ha-ha— It's fine, these old bones need to do move around every now and then, or else I'll really become a fossil. I just needed to make sure..."
Chloe raised an eyebrow. "Needed to make sure of what?"
"Nothing, nothing, hahaha..." Ruby laughed, wiping away a nervous sweat.
Phew, looks like the coast is clear.
If memories served her right — which Ruby was sure it still did — Weiss said that she had an early company meeting this morning and wouldn't be back until dinner. Usually, Weiss would never deviate from her work schedule, but if there was anything that Ruby had learned over the years, it was that people loved making sudden appearances at the worst times.
Chloe raised an eyebrow. "Right... Soooo, about Grandma Weiss..."
"Huh? Oh right! Um— let's see..." Ruby rubbed her chin. "I guess you can say that while we were in Beacon, she was a very... studious person?"
"Uh— studious?" Chloe questioned.
"Driven, ambitious, determined?"
Chloe raised another eyebrow. "Why do you sound so unsure?"
"Well, there's not much I can say," Ruby said, scratching her head. "Back then, Weiss was incredibly focused on maintaining her top scores, so she constantly studied. In order to make sure our team was the highest rank in our first year, she dragged us to the library for study sessions, and when it came to missions and team-training, she always made sure we met our quota on time."
"Wow, Grandma Weiss sounds like she was quite a serious person back then, huh?" Chloe asked.
Ruby nodded. "Indeed."
Ruby closed her eyes, letting a wave of nostalgia wash over her as she took another sip of her tea — the sweet memories of Weiss swinging Myrtenaster by her side with precision and elegance, those fierce blue eyes that sent a electrifying thrill through her body whenever she glared at her, and the late frantic evenings spent studying together for exams.
"I can still remember the times whenever my sister and I would wait until the very last minute to do our homework. We would beg Weiss to help us finish it, or in Yang's case, copy it," Ruby laughed. "Weiss would lecture us for hours about not doing our assignments and how we were dolts... ah, those were some good times."
"How did you deal with her? It sounded like Grandma Weiss was—"
"— Cold, strict, overbearing?" Ruby interrupted.
"— hard to handle... but yeah, those work too," Chloe giggled.
"That's what everyone thought of Weiss at first, but I guess they couldn't see that she just needed someone to open up to."
"Hmmm..." Chloe hummed.
"It wasn't easy for Weiss to start opening up to us, especially to me," Ruby said, smiling at the memory of their first meeting.
"Why you?"
Ruby got up and poured herself another cup of tea, "I blew up our first meeting."
Chloe looked at her questioningly, "How so? Did you say something to offend her?"
Ruby laughed, amused by the Chloe's confused expression. "No no no, I mean I actually blew us up! Like as in, explosion! Weiss definitely did not want to see me again after that, but as fate would have it, we ended up bumping into each other again during initiation. Things really started to heat up when I got appointed team leader, a job Weiss really wanted."
"Wow, that is a rough start," Chloe stared wide-eyed.
"Yeah, we didn't along for awhile, but that didn't stop me from trying the whole time. Eventually, we managed to sort things out...she even promised to become the best teammate I'll ever have..."
Slighting tugging her cloak up to cover her face, Ruby tried hiding the pink tinge that warmed her cheeks. Reminiscing about Weiss made Ruby recall all the embarrassing moments they experienced — their arguments, their stumbles, their inexperience- these were the moments that her instantly blush.
Wiggling around and cupping her face, Ruby continued. "I don't think people realize how nice Weiss actually was back then. Sure, she can come off as cold or mean, but underneath it all, she was always willing to help.
It was quite the sight to see for Chloe, seeing her grandma blush while talking about her lover — she found it really cute.
"Since then, Weiss's been kinder and extra sweet. Oh! That reminds me! Just the other day, she brought home a bundle of roses and wrote to me this romantic poem—"
"U-um, Grandma Ruby?"
"— even when she's glaring at you, I always found that there's this certain charm to it—"
"... Grandma..."
"— and there was this one time she kept refusing to put on this sailor uniform on for me, but I think she actually wanted to wear it—"
"— AHEM!"
A sudden chill ran through the entire living room, instantly freezing over the tea on the table. Ruby had felt this familiar sensation before. She slowly turned around to see her very, very, angry wife.
"H-hey, Weiss...sweetie..." Ruby nervously smiled.
Weiss smiled back, but it was absent of any mirth. "What do you think you're telling our granddaughter?"
"W-well, you see, Chloe asked about how you were back in Beacon and—"
"Chloe, it's getting late, I think you should probably start heading home before your parents starts worrying, okay?" Weiss said, tightly gripping Chloe's shoulder.
"R-right! Bye Grandma Weiss, good luck Grandma Ruby! See ya' tomorrow, love ya'!" Chloe waved, before speeding out the house. Time seemed to slow down for Ruby as she watched the door ever-so-slowly close.
SLAM
"So dear—"
Ruby watched as Weiss's smile deflate, transforming into an expression that terrified her to the very bone.
"— where were we?"
GULP
Chloe's house
Click-Slam
"Mom, I'm home!" Chloe yelled.
"Welcome home honey, did you have fun with Grandma Ruby today?" her mom asked.
"Yes~" Chloe replied.
"Great, now go wash up and get ready for dinner."
"Alright."
"Oh! Did you tell grandma Ruby about the news?"
"Not yet, I'm waiting for the perfect time to tell her. I want it be a surprise."
"Well, you better tell her soon, I have let the movers know when to come and pick up your things."
"I know, I know. I'll tell her tomorrow," Chloe said.
"You better, I want to hear how she reacts to her granddaughter getting accepted into Beacon two years early, just like her!"
A small smile grew on Chloe's face. "Me too," she whispered.
Before Chloe could go wash up, her mom called out to her again.
"So, did you learn anything new from Grandma Ruby today?"
"Hmmm," Chloe rubbed her chin, "I learned that Grandma Weiss likes putting on sailor uniforms."
"... WHAT!?"
A/N - I hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter of this new story.
I thought it would be interesting to write a story where Ruby gets in trouble with Weiss for telling embarrassing stories to their grandchild.
Let me know what you guys think, and cya guys around.
Give thanks to Storystratos for proofreading.