AUTHOR'S NOTE: I thought I'd written some fluffy shit before, but this might take the cake as the sappiest thing I've ever written. God damn, I love writing White Rose.
I wrote this piece as a tribute to one of my favorite songs from the show. I hope you all enjoy!
"So, uh, how much farther?" Ruby asked, giggling as Weiss used her hands to cover her eyes and led her to a destination only she knew. With as tall as Ruby had grown over the years, Weiss struggled to keep her hands in place as she both tried to lead her wife, and keep her balance. "And you know you could've just asked me to close my eyes, right?"
"Just a little farther," Weiss replied. "And I thought this would be more romantic."
"So you admit you're a total sap?" Ruby chuckled, still walking forward as her wife guided her.
"Just don't tell anyone," Weiss whispered. Ruby suppressed the urge to bounce at the admission, but for the sake of not accidentally lifting her partner in the air, she did her best to hold back.
"Still not gonna tell me what the big surprise is?" Ruby asked, her impatience adorable to Weiss.
"You'll just have to wait and see, my love." Ruby's hearing was even more hyper-sensitive than usual thanks to her deprived sense of sight, but she could tell just from the specific sounds of creaking in the floor that they were heading towards their home's study. When they were outside the room, Ruby reached her hand out to the doorknob but stopped before turning it.
"Through here?" she asked.
"Just through the door." Ruby could hear the smile in Weiss's voice. She turned the doorknob and opened the door, and it was two steps in when Weiss let her hands fall.
Ruby's eyes widened at the sight of the large, dark piano that now sat in the middle of their study. "Is that…?"
"My old piano from Schnee Manor," Weiss answered. "Winter and I found it mostly intact when we visited what was left of Atlas. One of the only things in that damn place that didn't get destroyed when it all fell." Ruby remembered the day they had all flown out to what little remained of the former kingdom. When Weiss said she was going to the Manor, Ruby had offered to go with her, but that was something Weiss and Winter had needed to do on their own. Ruby could understand needing that closure.
Weiss continued, "We've spent the last few months restoring it." She stepped in front of Ruby and walked to the piano, caressing it with her hand. "I used to play this all the time. Winter would sit next to me and we would just… relax. Sometimes Whitley would show up to listen, too.
"Not even my father could truly ruin this for us." The thought of him made her cringe. She'd never wanted him to die, but she could never bring herself to mourn for him either. Not for one second.
Ruby walked up next to her and clasped one of her hands. "How did you even get this thing out? Or fix it up? It had to have been super waterlogged."
"We got it out of the rubble using my Knight summon and a couple of Winter's Beowolves. As for it being waterlogged, well… it was," Weiss shrugged. "Getting all the moisture out was a nightmare and getting some of the bits and bobs back in place was painstaking, not to mention needing to reshape all the warped wood. Plus, we needed Yang to help us repaint it. But now…" She pressed a few of the keys, producing a lovely and finely-tuned sound. "Now it's as good as new."
"That's amazing, Weiss." Ruby kissed her wife's cheek and grinned when she saw her blush.
"Yeah," Weiss smiled.
"Wait," Ruby's face contorted in sudden realization, pieces beginning to click into place. "Is this why Jaune, Ren and Nora kept coming up with new excuses for the four of us to stay at the arcade today?"
Weiss grinned and shrugged. "I… may have asked them to prolong things to keep you distracted. I wanted enough time to move this in and practice a bit. Get back in the groove."
"Speaking of grooves," Ruby laughed, "never let those three challenge you to Dance Dance Revolution. I'm pretty sure in just one session they got the highest score in all of Remnant. The whole arcade was watching in awe by the end."
"After the dance at Beacon, I'm not surprised," Weiss giggled. Even as a warm smile graced her face, she muttered, "But just remember I willingly gave Nora ammunition to tease me with so I could have time to get this ready."
"Wow, you really do love me, huh?" Ruby grinned and put her hands on Weiss's waist.
"Obviously," Weiss smiled, placed her hands on Ruby's shoulders and gave her wife a gentle kiss. Then she reluctantly left Ruby's embrace to turn and sit down on the piano's bench. Her mouth thinned into a straight line and Ruby noticed how she seemed to be lightly chewing on her lip. "But I… the main reason I wanted to fix this up was because I… sit with me."
Ruby sat next to Weiss on the bench and nuzzled into her, reaching an arm around to hold her wife's side. She said nothing as Weiss closed her eyes and took a deep breath, with Ruby opting to give her quiet emotional support instead. Weiss focused on the feeling of Ruby's body pressed against hers, and let the comforting warmth wash over her and give her the courage she needed for what was about to come. Weiss opened her eyes and looked down at the piano.
"After Beacon fell, I was… the most alone I've ever been." She pressed a few random keys, creating white noise for her to focus. "For the first time, I'd experienced what having an actual, loving family was like, and then in one moment it was all just… taken away." She felt Ruby's hand on her waist lightly squeeze, showing that she was still there. Weiss leaned her head to rest on Ruby's shoulder.
"Some days I would just stay in my room and cry. Some days I would leave and… well, play this for a bit to calm down." The random key tapping stopped, replaced with more deliberate strokes. "I told myself that one day, I would see you all again. Especially you." Her hands paused and she turned her head to look into Ruby's eyes.
"I… when I first started writing this… song, I was trying to figure out my own feelings. Then, over time, it was on this bench, playing this piano that I realized what I felt for you was deeper than I'd ever felt for anyone."
Ruby's mouth was slightly agape. An adorable face she always made when she was both surprised and flustered. It was something that Weiss had grown both used to and extremely fond of. Ruby whispered, "I had no idea."
"Well, it's not like I ever mentioned it before now," Weiss shrugged. "But I had hoped… some day, when I got to be with you again, maybe I could…" Weiss sighed and took a deep breath. "Maybe if I ever worked up the courage, then I could play that song for you. Especially on here," she said as she patted the piano. "When Winter and I found out it was salvageable, I…"
Weiss looked down for a moment, then brought her gaze back to Ruby. She whispered, "Would you like to hear it, my love?"
Ruby smiled, "Yes."
Weiss took another deep breath and began to play a beautiful harmony unlike any Ruby had heard before. She opened her mouth and began to sing. "Hush your cries. Close your eyes. Stay with me.
"Let's just dream. Quietly. Of what might be." Tears slowly began to fall from Weiss's eyes. "Calm your fear, I'll be near. To you, I'll cling." A quick, shaky breath. "Rest, my friend. Time can mend, many things."
Her eyes closed, memory guiding her through the rest of the melody. "I don't know the answers. Tomorrow's still unknown. But I can make this promise: You won't be alone."
Ruby gently ran her hand up and down Weiss's waist, providing her wife support as she listened on, completely and utterly awestruck. "I don't know where we should go, just feeling farther from our goal. I don't know what path we will be shown, but I know that when I'm with you I'm at home."
Weiss looked at Ruby, the small tears increasing in frequency. "Yes, I know that when I'm with you I'm at home."
She turned back to the piano, her fingers gliding along the keys in a familiar routine. With each note, years of longing to share this part of herself were put to rest. "There's a quiet place, in my embrace. A haven of safety where, I'll dry your tears. Shelter here, in my care."
She leaned her head to rest on Ruby's shoulder. "But even when we stumble, and someday when we fall, what I will remember: That I had you through it all.
"I don't know where we should go, just feeling farther from our goal. I don't know what path we will be shown, but I know that when I'm with you I'm at home. Yes, I know that when I'm with you I'm at home."
She hummed, and rejoiced when she felt Ruby kiss the top of her head. "Yes, I know that when I'm with you I'm at home."
They sat together in peaceful silence long after the song had ended, content to relax in the comfort of each other's arms. Eventually, it was Ruby that broke the silence. "That was beautiful, Weiss. You're beautiful."
"I love you," Weiss whispered. Ruby cupped her wife's cheek in her hand and wiped tears from her lover's eyes.
"I love you, too, Weiss Rose." They leaned forward and pressed themselves into a deep kiss and Weiss ran a hand through her wife's hair, pulling her closer. Their hands moved along each other's bodies, no particular goal in mind except to feel each other's presence.
One of Ruby's hands lowered to hold Weiss's legs, the other on her back as she lifted Weiss into a bridal carry. All the while their lips remained locked as Ruby picked Weiss up and held her in her arms.
Panting, Weiss whispered, "Gods, you are strong. You're not even breaking a sweat, are you?"
"Nope," Ruby smirked. "And I know you love it."
"I do," Weiss admitted and pulled Ruby back into another deep kiss. Still cradling Weiss in her arms, Ruby carried her out of the study, down a hall and up a flight of stairs towards their bedroom.
Once they entered, she lifted a leg to kick the door shut behind them, leaving them in a darkened room illuminated only by pale moonlight streaming through the window. Locked in a passionate embrace, she carried Weiss to the bed and gently lowered her onto it. Their arms still wrapped around each other, Ruby rested on top of Weiss.
"I love you," Ruby whispered. "More than words could ever describe."
"I love you, too." Weiss caressed Ruby's cheek in her hand, fully absorbed in her wife's striking silver eyes.
"I love you," Ruby whispered again, over and over. She could never say it too much. She started to pepper Weiss's neck with kisses, lightly nibbling and causing Weiss to giggle at the tickling sensation.
"I-love you-too," Weiss laughed as Ruby increased the pace, delighting in every giggle that came from her partner's mouth. From the moment she'd first heard it, Weiss's laugh had been Ruby's favorite sound in the whole world.
"You're cute," Ruby chuckled between kisses.
"And y-you're gonna cover m-me in hickeys!" Weiss cackled, squirming under the tickling sensation.
"Are you complaining?" Ruby asked, stopping to let Weiss catch her breath and answer.
"N-not…" Weiss panted, "not in the slightest." Still catching her breath, she patted Ruby's cheek. "I'm all yours."
"And I am yours," Ruby beamed. They looked into each other's eyes, smiling as they caught their breath. Then Weiss flipped Ruby over and put herself on top, mischievous smugness written all over her face.
"But you're gonna pay for tickling me like that, Mrs. Rose," Weiss smirked. "I will have my revenge." Before Ruby could say anything, Weiss leaned down and kissed Ruby's collarbone.
Despite her declarations, she waited to gauge Ruby's reaction to the first kiss. The last thing she wanted to do was accidentally stimulate the wrong place and give her wife a sensory overload. When she heard Ruby giggle and felt her run a hand through her hair, Weiss took that as an all-clear and started to plant kisses all along her lover's collarbone and up to her neck.
"You're my hero," Weiss whispered. She rubbed a hand up and down Ruby's side, warmth spreading through her body as Ruby giggled and held her closer. Being locked in an embrace and sharing an obscene amount of kisses had become a nightly routine for the pair, but its luster never wore off. Weiss spoke, "I love you."
"I love you, too." It was true. They really couldn't say it enough. It wasn't long before things had naturally slowed down, exhaustion from a long day combined with the comfort of each other's presence letting the tempo slow to a calmer pace, before finally stopping altogether.
Weiss's head lay on Ruby's chest as she listened to the sound of her wife's heartbeat. The sound grounded her, reminding her that this was not a mere joyous fantasy. This was real.
"My love, I am so grateful to have you in my life," Weiss beamed and reached her hand up to caress Ruby's cheek.
"And I know that when I'm with you, I'm at home," Ruby grinned softly as she held Weiss's hand. She gently exhaled, letting the feeling of bliss wash over her.
Weiss felt tears of joy start to stream down her face. She shifted her body to bring her lips to Ruby's, feeling jubilation in every kiss. "I love you so much."
"I love you, too." Before long, they'd both shifted into their usual nightly positions, cuddled together as they felt the necessity of sleep start to overtake them. Weiss watched as Ruby's eyes closed, and waited to hear her gentle snores.
When Ruby had fully fallen asleep, Weiss lightly kissed her forehead. After all the battles she'd fought and the millions she'd saved in the end, she deserved to be happy. And Weiss was happy, too.
She held onto her wife and closed her eyes, feeling her heart rate and breathing slow. She pressed her forehead to Ruby's, and with a smile on her face, fell fast asleep.
She dreamt of a young woman in a cold, cruel manor, lost and alone and confused as she embarked on a journey of self-discovery. As she sat at a piano and pined for someone she worried she might never see again. But here they were, happy, safe, and many years married. The best years of her life.
And as she did every night, she dreamt of her wife. A guardian angel with the most beautiful silver eyes the world had ever seen. She dreamt of times past—their first meeting, their reunion, their confession, and later their engagement and marriage. And she dreamed of days yet to come. Of the places they'd travel, the experiences they'd share, the lives they'd save, and of a long life of peace and happiness.
In her sleep, she reached out and clasped Ruby's hand, taking comfort in the contact, even unconscious as she was. Their auras flared and their souls melted together, and both felt the love in their hearts wash over them. And as one, they dreamed together of the beautiful things that lay ahead.
Yes, I know that when I'm with you I'm at home.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I just finished binging the whole series for the first time in years and like… once upon a time this show was my favorite thing in the whole world. Having it be that again is honestly just soul-healing.
Being an autistic person stuck in a world that clearly wasn't made with people like me in mind, the only solace I could ever find was in stories, and none so much as RWBY.
I don't know why I've been rambling about this in these author's notes (and I probably won't be doing so after this), but idk. I just love this hopepunk masterpiece!
Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed the fic, and as always any feedback is appreciated.