Notice Me, Ruby!

Chapter 16: A Team Broken

The next morning, the WBY woke up earlier than normal, as they needed to see Ruby before classes started. The three girls went through their usual morning routines faster than normal, since they didn't have a lot of time on their hands. Once all three had put on their uniforms, they walked out of the dorm and headed straight to the third-year dorms.

Since it was still early in the morning, there weren't many people walking around, allowing the WBY to reach team LION's dorm without any trouble. As soon as they had walked up to said dorm's door, Yang knocked on it, hoping that one of the people inside would open up.

However, there was no answer at the door, which led to Yang knocking again a bit louder. When no one opened it this time either, the blonde banged on the door with her fist, loud enough to wake up anyone inside the room.

"Would you keep it down over there!? There are people that are trying to sleep over here!" an angered third-year student yelled after opening the door to her dorm. Unfortunately, this didn't come from team LION's dorm, but from the dorm opposite to them instead. "Seriously, what are you three doing here anyways!?"

"S-Sorry about the noise my teammate caused," Weiss apologized. "We came here to see team LION, which is why-"

"Hang on, team LION?" the third-year student asked, getting nods from the WBY as a response. "I'm afraid to tell you that they've gone on a mission or something. One of their members, Isabella, was making some noise that woke me up. When I opened the door, I saw the whole team all geared up and ready to go."

"Was there anyone else with them?" Yang asked with desperation in her voice. "A younger girl with a red cloak?"

"Now that you mention it, they did seem to have an extra person with them," the third-year answered. "She seemed to be unusually young, but I had heard that they were teaming up with a very promising younger student. She was also wearing a red cloak, like you said. Is there a problem with her going along with team LION or something?"

"She's... our team leader and we kind of need to speak with her," the blonde explained.

"Well, you're going to have to wait some time. There's no telling how long she's going to be gone with team LION."

"Any idea of when she might come back? Any idea at all?"

"How the hell should I know? I have no idea what kind of a mission they're going on or where it's going to be. The people who know those things are the teachers and team LION themselves, so you have to ask someone else. All I can say is that they could easily be away for a full week, if not longer."

Seeing as how they wouldn't get a chance to see Ruby, the WBY decided to head back to their dorm for now. It would still take some time before classes started, so they might as well spend some time in the dorm.

Most of the day went normally for the WBY, as they attended their classes and listened to the lectures of their teachers. Once classes were over, the three girls were left with how to spend the rest of the day.

"So, any of you three got any ideas on what to do?" Blake asked. "I'm personally open to any suggestions."

"Actually, I was planning to go and look through my notes for the day, so I won't be doing anything all that exciting," Weiss answered. "You're free to join me, if you want."

"Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll pass. I've had enough schoolwork for the day and I need to do something else," the cat faunus politely declined her teammate's offer, before turning to look at her partner. "What about you, Yang? Are you going to be doing anything special?"

"Nah. I don't really feel like it," the blonde girl answered. "I think I'm just going to hit the gym for a moment. Don't know what I'll do after that, though."

"Okay. I'll be at the library, if either one of you needs me," Blake said.

With all three girls having decided upon what to do for the day, they separated and went their own way each. Unfortunately, none of the three would really get to enjoy their activities, like they thought they would.

Since the weather was good, Weiss had decided to study outside in the front yard. There she found a nice tree to sit under with her books and notes with her. The heiress wasted no time in opening one of her textbooks and getting to work.

However, the white-haired girl was soon facing trouble with her studies. For some reason, she wasn't fully able to put her all into her work. This was strange, as she had always been somewhat of a scholar, finding enjoyment out of learning new things and perfecting her skills. But right now, Weiss couldn't help but feel her enthusiasm die, as she struggled to read the words on the pages.

"Ugh! What's wrong with me!?" the heiress cursed to herself, as she tried her best to do her work. "I used to get so excited over this! Learning about something new used to make me feel so alive, but now this feels more exhausting that listening to Professor Port's stories! Am I missing something!?"

Seeing as how she was unable to make any real progress, Weiss closed her book and put it away, thinking that a moment of relaxing might get her spirit back. Just as she was putting away her book, the white-haired girl noticed a piece of paper fall from the book, having been left there between the pages. She wondered what it could have been and picked it up.

Weiss' eyes went wide upon seeing what was written on the paper. They were study notes for one of their classes. However, the reason that this paper was a shock to the heiress was because she had actually made it for Ruby in one of their study sessions. The young redhead had asked her partner for help in one of the more difficult subjects, to which the older girl had agreed. It seemed like she had not only forgotten to give this paper to Ruby, but to also finish writing it.

Seeing the paper caused Weiss to think about her young partner. While the young team leader could often get on her nerves, the truth was that the white-haired girl actually not only cared about her, but she also even respected her. Even though Weiss had originally seen Ruby as nothing but a brat that had been given an unfair opportunity, the scythe-wielder had quickly shown that she was not only worthy of being a student in Beacon, but also a worthy team leader as well. There were only a few people that the heiress honestly respected and Ruby was one of them.

Respect wasn't even the only thing Weiss felt towards her partner. Before she had come to Beacon, the white-haired girl didn't have any actual friends. The only supposed "friends" she had were those that her father had forced her to befriend for the company, and those who were interested in the Schnee fortune. Ruby had been the first actual friend Weiss had ever made in her life, which made actually made her very important.

However, things weren't as good between the two partners as they had used to be. While Weiss had often been telling Yang to not try so hard to "get back the old Ruby", she would be lying if she said that she didn't miss the way her partner used to be. The heiress might have liked studying before she even came to Beacon, but studying with her partner had brought in some of the most fun memories she had ever had. There was just something about Ruby that brought so much life to simple studying that Weiss had to admit that she appreciated.

Now that Ruby was actively avoiding her team and had even gone away with team LION, the white-haired couldn't help but feel that things had taken a turn for the worse for her. Not only had the joy her partner used to bring to their study sessions left, but every time she returned to her team's dorm, she couldn't help but feel that the room was colder. It was almost like Ruby used to bring warmth to the place and had now taken it away with her.

Weiss missed that warmth that was Ruby Rose. The heiress wanted her partner back as much as Yang did. She could only hope that this whole thing Ruby had going on with team LION would end soon, so that things could possibly return to normal.

Meanwhile, Blake had managed to find herself a nice and secluded spot in the library. She placed her books on the table, essentially marking the spot as hers, before taking a seat and picking up one the books she had found. The cat faunus had taken a small collection of reading material that she had been wanting to read for quite some time now, so she was certain that she would have a good time ahead of herself.

However, something caught Blake's attention. From the corner of her eye, she noticed an aisle that had a sign over it that said "Fantasy Books". This made the raven-haired girl think about Ruby, who loved reading such books, even ones aimed towards younger children. Blake had always found this part about her team leader funny and even somewhat cute. She herself preferred stories that were much more mature and dealt with deeper issues.

Despite trying her best, the cat faunus just couldn't stop looking at the fantasy book aisle or thinking about Ruby. For some reason, her mind was drawn towards the books her team leader enjoyed reading so much. Ruby had even given her a few recommendations for books that she should read, although she had never actually really taken up the younger girl's advice.

Seeing as how she couldn't get her mind off the fantasy books close to her, Blake decided to go look through them and pick out something for herself to read. She soon found a story book directed towards much younger readers, but the raven-haired girl remembered Ruby telling her how great the book actually was. Although she doubted that she would get any real enjoyment out of it, Blake decided to give it a quick look. After all, just reading a bit of it wouldn't do any harm, right?

A couple of hours later, Blake was still reading the book Ruby had recommended and she was completely immersed in it. Even if she had her doubts about the book at first, it had proven to be very enjoyable. The characters and story itself were surprisingly deep, and there was a nice mix of humor and seriousness. All in all, the cat faunus was honestly greatly enjoying the book.

Blake was suddenly broken out of her reading by a realization. All this time Ruby had been giving her recommendations she had not taken them seriously at all. In fact, the raven-haired girl had often even thought that her team leader was most likely just being childish, when she spoke so highly about the books she liked to read.

The realization of how badly she thought about her dear friend and teammate brought a feeling of guilt in the pit of Blake's stomach. Not only had she judged the things her friend liked to read without giving them a fair chance, but there was also the fact of how the cat faunus honestly felt about the younger girl. If Blake was being completely honest, Ruby was someone she actually admired greatly. In her entire life, the raven-haired girl had admired only a few people, starting with her parents when they were leading the White Fang during it's peaceful times. After they stepped down, Blake's admiration had shifted to Sienna and Adam, the current leaders of the terrorist group. But once she saw their true colors, her admiration for them vanished. In all honesty, Ruby was currently the only person in the world that Blake admired, for her strong will and drive to fight for what was good.

Not only did the cat faunus admire her young team leader, but she also felt she was an irreplaceable friend. The two of them often talked about the books they had read, all the great details and hidden messages they held. Blake had no other friend to share her passion towards books with, except Ruby, who held at least the same amount of love towards reading, if not more. Weiss had read some books, but was more interested in study books than stories. Yang read only comic books. And Sun? Blake would be surprised if he had ever opened a book in the first place.

Thinking about how much Ruby truly meant to her made Blake feel very saddened by how distant the redhead had become with her. She thought about how badly Ruby had tried to befriend her in the beginning and had done her best to be a great friend for the cat faunus. Now that the young team leader was busy hanging out with her new friends of team LION, would she have time for Blake as well? The raven-haired girl at least hoped so. She missed her good friend dearly.

Blake decided to head back to the dorm, not feeling like reading after all. But not before grabbing a couple of the books Ruby had recommended to her.

Meanwhile, Yang had gone to her team's dorm to gather her gym clothes. The blonde was feeling frustrated over the whole situation with Ruby and needed to let off some steam really badly. It was the one thing she knew could get her mind off things, when it was necessary.

Yang quickly found the clothes she needed and was ready to hit the gym. However, before she left, the brawler took a look around the room. By doing this, she found all sorts of things that reminded her of Ruby and the things they used to do together. She noticed some of the redhead's books, which brought Yang memories of reading stories to the younger girl when they were little. The comics reminded her of all the times she and Ruby had spent time either reading them together or the times they discussed which characters were best. The video game console reminded her of all their gaming time together etc.

There were countless memories all around the dorm that should have brought happiness to Yang. Instead, they brought her sadness, as she couldn't help but compare the good old times to the way things were now. It almost brought tears to the blonde's eyes, as she couldn't help but think how things were now completely different from the way they used to be.

Shaking the sad thoughts out of her head, Yang started to make her way to the gym. Being sad about this whole thing with Ruby wasn't going to do anything. She just needed to wait until the scythe-wielder came back from her assignment and then things would start returning to normal.

Some time later, Yang was done with her workout and was walking back to the dorm. No matter how much she had tried, the brawler couldn't help but think about Ruby as she had been working out. She knew that there was something going on that had put distance between herself and the younger girl. If Yang only knew what it was, she could probably go and fix this whole mess. Unfortunately, the blonde had no idea what it was, so she was left frustrated and helpless.

There was also one other thing that was bothering Yang. Whenever she thought about Ruby with that Elaine girl, she couldn't help but feel angry for some reason. It was like a fire was lit inside her every time she saw the older student even touch the little redhead. The blonde just wanted to push Elaine away and keep Ruby away from her, like the older redhead was some sort of a threat.

Yang knew that it was ridiculous of her to feel like that. It was honestly childish and made no sense. After all, Ruby was allowed to have friends other than her teammates. That's something the brawler was supposed to want for the younger girl, yet she was acting like it was the worst thing ever. It was wrong and hypocritical of her to feel like this.

Yet no matter how much she tried to reason with herself, Yang couldn't help but feel not only anger towards Elaine, as well as a strange pain every time she thought about Ruby hanging out with the third-year student.

"Hey, have you heard about team LION?" the blonde suddenly heard some girl ask from around a corner. She pressed herself against the wall and peeked to see two third-year girls talking among themselves. "They apparently have a fifth member now."

"I have heard about that. I think I've seen that girl walking with members of LION once," the other girl answered. "Do you have any idea who she is?"

"Oh, I know who she is. She's apparently Ruby Rose, the one we have heard so much about!"

"What!? Are you serious!? That girl's practically a legend among us!"

"I couldn't be more serious about this! I actually confirmed it from Professor Oobleck himself! He told me that she's joining up with them on their history assignment as part of some sort of an experiment."

"Woah. Wonder what kind of an experiment is that? I mean, I guess it's cool that she gets to test her abilities and all, but shouldn't there be something for Ruby to gain by doing this, considering the risks she's taking?"

"I have actually heard a theory about that. Apparently, this is going to greatly help her school life. I mean, have you heard about the way she's treated by other students in the same year as her? I hear people are constantly talking badly of her and are even bullying her. They're most likely jealous of her being accepted to Beacon so early."

Hearing about what kind of treatment Ruby had been going through came as a shock for Yang. She had always assumed that everyone loved the little redhead, since she was so skilled. The idea of bullying had never even come to her. The blonde felt guilty for not finding out about what Ruby had been going through.

"Hmph! First and second-year students can be such brats!" the second third-year girl said in a slightly angry tone. "Once you grow up a bit, you'll realize that it doesn't matter how old your comrades are. What matters are their skills and how trustworthy they are. A Huntress' age won't matter to you, when a Grimm is coming to tear you apart."

"I know, right!? They're so immature to treat her so badly!" the first girl said in agreement. "However, that's kind of what's leading up to the theory I mentioned earlier. From what I've heard, Ruby's doing so well that the teachers want to see how well she would do with third-year level work. Team LION was chosen as part of this experiment, since they're the ones who most likely wouldn't look down on her due to her age."

"By that I'm guessing you're talking about their youngest team member, Nilo, right? I guess that makes sense, but I'm pretty sure any third-year team would have been fitting."

"I agree. However, I have heard that the reason this whole experiment was started was in order to see if Ruby could be moved straight to the third-year! In other words, she would skip another two years!"

Hearing that Ruby could possibly become a third-year student and leave team RWBY caused Yang to turn pale. The idea of the younger girl actually leaving their team struck the blonde right down to her soul. She just couldn't stand the idea at all.

"Are you serious!?" the second girl exclaimed in surprise. "I mean, I get that she's skilled and everything, but that's quite a leap. Not to mention, she already skipped two years before coming here, right? Wouldn't another skip like that be a bit too much?"

"Not when you really think about it!" the first girl answered excitedly. "If she is skilled enough to go with us third-years, why not have her join us completely? From what I've heard, the first-year classes she's taking are not really a challenge for her. She's practically wasting her time there. Having her join us third-years would not only put her on a place more suited for her level of skill, but she could also avoid the prejudice that she's currently facing. The way I see it, they should just make her a third-year already!"

"I guess that makes sense. However, what team would she join? Last time I checked, all the third-year teams were full. Would she be a fifth member on another team?"

"Most likely. A lot of people are saying that she would most likely join team LION full time, but I hope we others get a chance to have her on our team! I know I could use someone as skilled as her!"

"Same here. Someone like Ruby would be great to have on your team."

Yang didn't hear the rest of the conversation, as she started to run to her team's dorm. While earlier she had felt like she would start crying, the tears were now freely falling from her eyes. The thought of losing Ruby to another team was just too much for the blonde.

As soon as she made it to the dorm, Yang got to her bed, curled up and started to weep. While doing this, she just kept praying in her head that what she had just heard wasn't true. That Ruby wasn't really going to leave their team. The blonde needed the younger girl and couldn't stand the idea of losing her at all.

She could only hope that Ruby would soon come back from her assignment, so she could find out the truth.

Author's notes: I tried to show how much Ruby's absence affects not only Yang, but Blake and Weiss as well. Hope I did a good enough job on that.

The next chapter will follow Ruby with team LION again, as they go to fulfill their assignment. I'll try to get to work on it as soon as possible.

Also, I got new cover art for this story! Hope you guys like it.

Until next time.

RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth.