(Actually forgot to transfer this part from Ao3 to )
First things first (my draft of the chapter didn't save this, bad Ao3)
Keep Moving Forward - Monty Oum
June 22, 1981 – February 1, 2015
Thank you for bringing this wonderful show to life, your memory will never be forgotten.
Replying to comments! ((just skip over this if you want))
[Combine117] - Who knows? Jacques may not even be involved!
[IanAlphaAxel] - Thanks!
[Unnamed Stranger] - Seriously, I always look forward to your reviews. Anyway, who says this story is gonna be short~? I can tell you, it's gonna be a wild ride, that's for sure. And yeah! You'll see Neptune and Weiss' dynamic in the next chapter!
First Impressions
-Selena Gomez - Bang a Drum-
Date: Monday, September 12th
[Ruby]
You got me floating ten feet off the ground
It's like "Whoa"
I'm up but I can't come down
My heart's pumping, it's working overtime
I got them crazy butterflies
"Ya see, Ruby, there's this person called a Soulmate, okay?" Ruby nodded and Yang nervously continued, fiddling with her fingers as she spoke, "Uncle Qrow told me that when you meet this person. . . You feel some kinda spark, feels like a brief bolt of electricity. It's your soul tellin' you that this person is your life partner, or somethin' like that. . ."
"Okay?" Ruby tilted her head, gazing up at the eleven-year old, "So what you do when you meet a Soulmate? Where can you find them?"
Yang sighed and shook her head, "It's not multiple people, Ruby, it's one person. Usually. . . Qrow says you fall in love with this person. It's love at first sight, and you're bonded with them forever, and you have an unexplainable attraction towards them. I personally don't believe that. It's just a fairytale."
A small smile came to Ruby's lips, "I wanna meet my soulmate."
"Oooo, what do you think about this one?" Penny asked, drawing Ruby's attention back to the freckled redhead. Penny held a black and green dress skirt to her waist and a beige top to her chest, "I don't want something simple, so do you think this'll be good?"
Ruby smiled, "Yeah, it looks good," she said as she tilted her head, "but what're you shopping for? Didn't your father buy you some new clothes last week" Time flew by for Ruby, she sometimes couldn't remember what day it was, much less the month. She lost track when her sister got the job and her life became hectic; it was August, right? September? The air was getting cold, so she was going to go with September.
"I told you," Penny started as she draped the outfit over the side of the buggy, "Father got invited to a business party next Monday! I'm going, too!" Penny's green eyes lit up, "Oh, he told me I could bring a friend! Would you like to accompany me?" Ruby shrugged and Penny laughed, "Well get over here, we have to find an outfit for you as well!"
Ruby was more of a T-Shirt and blue jeans kind of girl, but Penny seemed enthusiastic about this, the least she could do was humor her and try on some skirts. "How about this red one?" Penny held up a dark red top decorated with white roses and green leaves, the skirt was almost tropical-looking.
"Who'd wear that? No." Ruby muttered, turning away from the outfit and browsing through the rack, making disgusted and confused faces as she flipped through the skirts. Were all of them flashy and ridiculous-looking? 'Is it possible to just go wearing my regular clothes?' Penny wanted her to wear a skirt, though. . .
Well, if it was next Monday she could just make the skirt.
Penny's gasp caught Ruby's attention and she looked up, frowning when she noticed her friend's big grin. "Don't look now," she followed her line of view, "but it's Weiss Schnee!" Alarm bells went off inside of Ruby's head, she frowned when her eyes locked a white-haired woman entering the shop with a very bored looking man behind her, probably her boyfriend by the looks of it.
The woman had her long, white hair tied up into a side-ponytail and light icy blue eyes that caused Ruby's heart to beat faster when they panned over to her. A quick, almost electrical spark coursed through her veins, feeling as though something inside of her had suddenly been let free. It was an icy hottish kind of feeling, and somehow, the world seemed to look brighter. . .
Surprise flickered across the other woman's face, followed by confusion before turning back to look at the man behind her when he muttered something.
'Was that it. . .? Was that the spark. . .?'
Ruby cleared her mind and blinked herself back to reality. "Who?" Ruby asked, wracking her brain for any recognition of the woman. The name sounded familiar, but it stopped there. 'Whoever she is, she's beautiful.' Ruby thought, willing away the blush that came to her cheeks when she realized she said it out loud, she was quick to turn her attention back to Penny when 'Weiss' glanced in their direction again, probably having felt Ruby's eyes on her. 'Fuck, she heard me. Don't be creepy, Ruby.'
"I think she was talking about you," the blue-haired man whispered to the woman, Ruby glanced towards them out of the corner of her eye, "don't pay her any attention. She could be like the last person who tried to hit on you. . ." The woman nodded her silent agreement. Ruby's heart skipped a beat as the woman turned away, and Ruby had to tear her eyes away from her to refocus it on Penny.
"I should probably try these on first," Penny muttered suddenly, "alright, to the dressing room! I'd better get there before Weiss does, she'd for sure hog every one of them."
At the mention of the name, something flashed through her mind far too quickly for her to be able to grasp it and Ruby froze, blinking as she returned to reality when she heard Penny's voice. "Are you okay?" It took a moment for her to shake away the sudden feeling of nostalgia and reply to her friend.
"Yeah, I'm fine. . ." She eyed the skirts again, "Y'know, I was thinking that I could just make mine. . ."
Penny met her eyes and shrugged, "Sure! If you think you can." The redhead dropped another skirt into the cart, Ruby cringed at the sight of the price tag draped over the side of it. She couldn't afford even a small meal, considering her teammates hadn't been paid yet, and her best friend was purchasing countless expensive outfits. When they left this isle, they would make their way to the cosmetics where Penny would spend yet another hour browsing before finally settling on what she wanted to buy.
"Alright!" Ruby sighed as Penny got behind the shopping cart and went to the dressing room, "I'm going to try some of these on. You can browse around, let me know if you want anything! I know you don't get paid much, so I can get it for you!" Ruby wasn't going to take advantage of Penny's money like that, she would rather purchase anything she wanted with her own money.
She'd take food over clothes right now, though. Yang and Blake made just enough to keep the three of them decently fed, but they ran off of adrenaline during ninety-percent of their missions. Ruby fell asleep many nights with an empty stomach; she wasn't underweight, Yang made sure of that, but she didn't feel like her body was receiving the proper nutrients it required.
As Penny grabbed her clothes and stepped into a stall, Ruby leaned against the cart to wait on her and closed her eyes. "Hey, Ruby!" Ruby made a sound in response, "Thank you for accompanying me. Ciel was too busy to come. . ."
Ruby chuckled, "No problem," she said happily, "my sister and her girlfriend are staying over. So I was just happy to get outta the house," wait that probably sounded rude, "and we haven't met up in weeks, of course I wouldn't miss the chance to see you again." Ruby glanced warily around the shop, "Even if you are shopping. . ."
Ruby wasn't too big on fashion, she always wore either her red hoodie and a pair of black jeans, or her leather jacket, a pair of blue jeans, and her old athlete's shirt from high school. If she had to be honest, the shirt was a little small on her, but it's not like she had much else to wear.
The smell of Italian food drifted into her nose and the redhead snapped up, whipping around in the direction of the in-store restaurant across from the clothing store.
"Hey, uh, Penny? I'll be waitin' outside the store! Okay?" She called, ignoring the glares she received from other customers. Penny raised her thumb over the stall and replied with a chipper 'understood', Ruby quickly made her way out of the clothing store after checking the cart
"Move!" She was roughly shoved out of the way by a tall, broad, young man with brown hair combed back. He was followed by three other men, who sent her scowls and all-too familiar flirtatious smirks. She moved to one of the benches screwed into the floor of the mall, seating herself so that she was facing the restaurant that was practically buzzing with people; her stomach rumbled as a portly man took his tray and approached a table, her silver eyes locked on the tray's contents until he sat down, his back facing her.
Gods, she could go for Italian food right now; it smelled absolutely delicious and she could practically taste it! This was torture! Why did she agree to go shopping with Penny? She knew there'd be food she wouldn't be able to buy! Then again, it was better than staying at the house listening to her sister and Blake.
Ruby heard the sounds of heels clacking behind her, but she paid no mind to it. "Excuse me." That voice, she knew that voice! Ruby snapped upright when she heard somebody from behind greeting her, the voice was rather firm and cold, indicating that the person was not in the brightest of moods. Ruby turned around and her heart jumped to her throat when her silver eyes met with an icy pair of light blue, but she quickly regained her composure. "Does this belong to you?"
She glanced down to see the shorter woman holding a cell phone with a faded red case and brief panic rolled through her. Was that her phone? Certainly not. Checking inside of her jacket pocket for the electronic device, Ruby sighed in slight annoyance as her hand reached into a hole she'd repaired just days before.
"Yeah, it does. Thank you. . ." Weiss simply stared at her in mild confusion as Ruby quietly took the phone back. Ruby stared at her for a moment, replaying the woman's name in her head multiple times. Nothing came up. . . Why was it so familiar?
"It might be best to invest in a new jacket," the white-haired woman muttered, eyeing her old coat with disdain and disgust that she didn't bother hiding, "you're lucky your phone wasn't stolen." Ruby glanced up to her and muttered an apology again. Her gaze drifted from the icy blue eyes that seemed to be crafted from snowflakes towards a fresh, jagged scar across her left eye. The single imperfection only caused Ruby's heart rate to pick up, she watched as Weiss moved away from her to sit on a bench a little ways away.
Ruby jerked her attention to the floor, drawing in a deep breath before lifting her gaze to look at Weiss again. "I like your scar," she whispered, Weiss' head snapped in her direction and the shorter woman frowned, Ruby panicked, "I mean, it's really pretty! I mean not that you ain't pretty because you're very beautiful I just think that the scar makes you look even more pretty so I love it, and I should probably stop talking now."
A few moments of silence passed between them.
"I like your eyes. I've never seen the color silver before. . ."
Ruby's head whipped back towards the woman, her eyes widening in surprise as the words sunk in. Did Weiss just compliment her. . .? "Tha- thank you," she said with a small smile, "my name's Ruby."
Weiss offered a kind smile in return, "It's nice to meet you, Ruby."
Before Ruby could even think of a response, Weiss' phone buzzed and the white-haired woman sighed, Ruby's face fell as the smile faded from the woman's lips. 'No, smile again. . . Please?' Without a word, Weiss stood and stalked back into the store, whispering a few incoherent swears under her breath as she disappeared.
"Well she didn't seem to be too happy."
Ruby shrieked and spun around, finding Penny standing behind her with two bags of clothes in her hands, "Penny, where did you come from?!"
"I came out behind Weiss," Penny muttered, examining her friend with a confused expression, "Ruby, are you okay? Your face is all red and flustered." When Ruby didn't respond, the redhead stepped towards her and pressed her spare hand to the woman's chest, "Your heart is racing. Should I call an ambulance?!"
Ruby stepped away from her friend and nudged her hand off of her, "I'm fine, Penny," she smiled, "you just scared me." Her silver eyes glanced towards the Italian restaurant and her stomach rumbled, "Y'know, since we're already here, maybe we can get some food?"
"I do feel a little hungry. . ." Penny mused out loud, "It has been exactly three hours since I've eaten something today. Sure, I'll pay."
Ruby glanced to the clothing store as Penny walked away.
'Weiss. . .?'
[Later]
"This is delicious!" Penny grinned as she took another big bite of her chicken cacciatore, taking no time to savour the taste and devouring the food. Ruby briefly wondered if she could even taste it, "Are you going to eat?" The redhead asked, gesturing to the plate Ruby had nudged to the edge of the table. "Are you feeling okay? Is it something to do with-"
Ruby's attention turned to her friend and she cut her off, waving her hand nonchalantly, "I've eaten my fill," it was a lie, "I'm savin' the rest for my sister and her girlfriend." Oh how badly she wanted to dig into the food and satisfy the starving pain in her stomach. . . Blake and Yang were probably just as hungry as she was, so she would leave the food untouched. "It'd be rude of me not to save them any when they always bring me something." Ruby smiled, "Thank you for paying for the meal, though! I'll pay you back someday."
Penny shook her head, "You do not need to pay me back, Ruby! You are my friend! That's payment enough!" Really, she was too sweet for her own good. Ruby often wondered if her friend even knew how cruel the world was, or how quickly any sliver of happiness could be stolen and crushed. Although, having spent two years surrounded by chaos and crime, Ruby found it relaxing to be around her chipper, energetic, and somewhat strange best friend.
"If you say so," Ruby replied with a small smile, her eyes glancing past Penny, "I'll still wanna pay you back, though."
"Hey Ruby?"
"Hm?"
"Why do you keep glancing at the clothing store? Do you want to go back in?"
Ruby's eyes widened and she shook her head, "N-no! I just. . . I'm just watching-. . ." She fell silent when her friend began to laugh and her face started to heat up, her attention immediately snapped back over to the clothing store when somebody walked out and she could practically feel Penny smirking at her.
"Ruby," the other girl said carefully, "do you have a crush?" Ruby glanced to her friend and heaved a sigh when she noticed the smug smile on Penny's face. It was a little humiliating to know that the redhead could read her like an open book, and a bit unsettling. If she was that easy to read, Penny would easily figure out that Ruby was lying to her about her job, and she couldn't risk that.
"No," Ruby denied, "I was just thinking that I need to, um, expand my wardrobe!" Yeah, that would do, "After all, I basically wear the same clothes everyday." Well, it wasn't a total lie. . . She did need to buy more clothes, and Penny did offer to pay for them, right?
Penny stared at the other woman for long second, as though she was slowly uncovering all of Ruby's secrets. Penny squinted. "Is this because Weiss suggested you buy a new jacket?"
Ruby hesitated, "Maybe."
Her friend grinned and shot up from the table, "Allow me to take everything to the vehicle, okay? That way we don't have to carry so much stuff! You go on in there!" Penny smirked at her as she gathered everything up, "If you run into Weiss, try not to flirt with her this time."
"I didn't flirt!"
Penny just laughed and swung her bag over her shoulder, carrying the two to-go boxes with her other arm, "I'll be back in a couple of minutes." Ruby nodded and rose from her chair, clutching the hem of her jacket as Penny walked off and Ruby began to approach the store. She ignored the questioning glances she received as she entered again, Ruby's eyes immediately scanned her surroundings for the white-haired woman before shaking her head and muttering a 'no' to herself.
'What did you tell yourself earlier?' Ruby scolded herself, 'Don't be a creep!'
Admittedly, it would be difficult for her to refrain from tracking the woman down. Although she meant no harm, her name caused alarm bells to go off inside of Ruby's head and the training she'd been forced to endure kicked in, it'd become an instinct for her: follow the soon-to-be victim around until she had all of the required information. She knew how to keep herself from seeming suspicious as Blake had trained her in stealth and secrecy, and her sister had taught her how to pry the information out of someone without getting caught.
Maybe she should find out why Weiss' name was so familiar?
Ruby shook her head again, "No!" She growled quietly, "What've they done to you? You're better than this." If she succumbed to their ways, she would never be released from the program. 'But Blake and Yang need more money, you said you would work harder- no, you can't!' Ruby was losing herself, her first instinct had become to fall back on her training to get her out of her problems. She couldn't do that!
"Ruby?" Ruby was pulled from her internal conflict when she heard her friend's voice behind her and she turned around, slowly regaining her senses and relaxing her breathing. She must've looked so stupid having a silent war with herself. . . "Are you sure you're okay?" Penny asked worriedly and Ruby closed her eyes, sighing and nodding her head.
"I'm fine," Ruby smiled, "let's find me some clothes real quick so you can go obsess over your lipstick."
"Lipgloss. And it's not for me, it's for my boss."
"There's a difference?"
"Yes! There's a vibrant red, orange tangerine, bawse, brick red-"
Ruby's face twisted in confusion, "Wait," she cut her friend off and Penny glanced at her, "why're there so many different shades of red? Isn't red just red?" Were all of the shades even necessary?
"What about 'ruby red'?" Penny smirked and Ruby rolled her eyes, "Wait, 'rose red'?"
"I get it," Ruby muttered as Penny continued down the aisle, glancing around and shaking her head in disapproval, "and what's 'bawse'?" She asked again, knowing she would probably regret it.
Her friend hummed, "My boss says that it's a deep brick red color often found in liquid lipstick."
"Why is there such things as liquid lipsticks?!"
Clarifications since my editors have asked me these questions. Hopefully they'll help you all out, too!
-In this AU, I imagine Penny to be a little bit of a fashion-girl. Ruby doesn't mind it, but she would much rather wear an old sweater and sweatpants over skirts and dresses.
-The spark: It's like accidentally, very briefly, electrocuting yourself, except when it happens, you feel like an empty space you never knew was there has been filled.
-Remember, this is a modern day AU. Solitas still pretty cold, but not below freezing. They have their warm days.
-Atlas and Mantle are two different cities, but still very close together. Ruby lives in Mantle, Penny and Weiss live in Atlas.
-Due to the fact most of the money goes to their Boss, RBY are left with very little. Ruby is not starving, she eats regularly, but they are small portions that don't contain much nutrients, but it's enough to keep her strong and healthy.
Next up is Weiss' perspective! How does she feel about Ruby?
If this fanfic is not updated monthly, it is because I haven't had time to continue writing. I want to be 3-4 chapters ahead before posting a new chapter.
So have patience!
