Location: Patch, Vale
May 14th
[ Learn to Love Again ]

" Hang on- !"

" Mama ?!" Iris' scream cuts through the blackness like lightning. She can't move, her body feels as though she's chained to the bottom of the ocean.

" Mama's okay, little one …" Willow whispers, her voice sounding far away. " She's just sleeping. "

Weiss vaguely hears a whooshing noise and the feeling of arms wrapping around her, she can feel the thudding of a heartbeat. The scent of roses embraces her and her senses shut off, relaxing.

" Ruby! Weiss, Iris, are they okay?! "

Tai.

" Do I need to kick some Schnee ass ?!"

The scratchy, cracked voice belongs to Qrow.

" They're fine. I think… Weiss is out cold. I will talk to you tomorrow in person… I promise ."

There's a buzzing sound formulating at the front of her mind.

Engines roaring around her cause a numbing sensation at the back of her head that gradually pulls her back to her senses. Her eyes blink open, bleary. She can hear whistling beneath her; she recognizes it as the unmistakable sound of Winter's airship gliding through the air.

Hearing a sigh, she turns her head slightly to the right and her heartbeat quickens at the sight of her former partner staring out the airship window, unaware that Weiss has woken up. Judging by the direction of the sunset outside, they were about to touch down in Vale.

Her attention trails down to the small weight pressed against her side, she cracks a smile and lifts her arm to drape it around her daughter pulling her closer and shifting her fingers to caress the five-year-old's ivory hair, tracing her dark roots with her fingertips.

"You're awake."

Weiss looks back at Ruby, whose tired silver eyes meet her light blue pair. She looks relieved, but there's the familiar hint of worry hidden in her expression.

"You're here." Weiss answers gratefully, she can feel tears stinging at the corners of her eyes as affection fluttered through her heart.

The back of the brunette's knuckles glides across Weiss' cheek and down to her chin, leaving a warm trail of electricity in their wake. "Of course, I am, Weiss…"

She's always been here… She's Ruby.

"Thank you," Weiss says with a small smile, leaning into Ruby's touch and causing the woman's eyes to widen in surprise. She inclines forward, resting her front against Ruby's side and tucking her head into the woman's shoulder. Iris grunts in irritation and moves away from her, curling up at the edge of the seat to drift back to sleep. "Thank you for everything …"

"What did I do?" Ruby asks, visibly perplexed.

A light scoff escapes the blue-eyed woman. "You saved my daughter, you saved me," she elaborates, "I've treated you so horribly and you never once held it against me… You took care of Iris in my stead," she lets out a sigh as Ruby's arms drape across her shoulders to hold her, "and you never once complained…"

"Why would I?" Ruby inquiries.

"Most people wouldn't do that, Ruby…" Weiss reminds her reluctantly. "Most people don't have as big of a heart as you do…"

Ruby chuckles, "This hasn't got anything to do with kindness, Weiss…" She says sweetly, "It has to do with family ."

The way she says it nearly causes Weiss' heart to break. She was afraid that Weiss would be leaving her again, yet she was concealing her fear behind a facade of happiness. Of course, she was Ruby after all.

"Hey…" Weiss murmurs, leaning away enough to meet Ruby's eyes. Her hand moves up to touch Ruby's chin with two fingers. "Guess what." She smirks.

Ruby giggles a bit, "What?"

A smile forms on Weiss' lips and she leans in. "I'm not going anywhere, Ruby. I'm here to stay…" The woman's breath hitches audibly. "...With you."

"...With me?" Ruby asks in disbelief as tears of hope mist her eyes. She leans away and clears her throat, shaking her head. "W-Weiss, you don't have to."

"I want to," Weiss answers softly.

Ruby stares at her for a long minute. A choked laugh breaks through as a grateful smile pulls at her lips. The atmosphere becomes considerably lighter; the familiar spark has returned to the younger woman's silver orbs. "Yeah?"

Weiss' lip quirks up in response, her heart warming. "Yeah."

"I'm glad…" Ruby murmurs truthfully, clearing her throat and averting her gaze to fix her attention on their sleeping daughter. She sighs heavily, her eyelids becoming heavy. "Iris thought you wouldn't wake back up…"

"Oh…?"

"I've called to schedule her a therapy session," Ruby explains, changing the subject and causing tension to rise into the air, "she needs it more than anything… I think it'll be good for her."

Weiss' stomach grows cold. She knows Ruby's right, but she can't shake the feeling of guilt gnawing at her heart.

Ruby squeezes her hand. "Perhaps, you could benefit from it as well?"

Therapy…

That would mean sharing her trauma with someone she has never met, it would require discussing it and trusting someone.

Weiss' nails cut into her palms like shattered claws and her chest constricts as she struggles to breathe. She hasn't had a good experience with kindness and understanding in years, everyone she has trusted in the last six years has turned against her.

Even someone she trusted with her life and had managed to screw her over.

No. She can't. She can't trust someone like that again.

"I'll go with you," Ruby says softly, "that way you're not alone."

Weiss considers the proposition. On one hand, she believes having Ruby present would defeat the purpose of therapy , but it could also help Ruby better understand what has happened, and it could help Weiss move past the invisible wedge she's unintentionally placed between them.

"Please…" Weiss murmurs.

"Consider it done, then… We'll start next week."

The airship touched down in Vale minutes before the sunset, its orange glow remaining barely visible in the night sky. Ruby returned to the train station, ten minutes away, on foot to retrieve her vehicle. Weiss had requested to stay behind with Iris, allowing the child to rest while they waited for the huntress. After thirty minutes, the familiar red vehicle pulls up in front of them and Ruby exits from the driver's side, opening the passenger's side back door.

The silver-eyed woman gently picks Iris up from Weiss' lap and rests her in the backseats, unclasping the cloak from around her neck and draping it across the five-year-old's tiny body.

The ride home remains silent, Weiss dozing off several times and being jolted awake by any little sound around them, such as another car whooshing past them. Thankfully, by the time they reached the house, she had already fallen asleep, and exhaustion had finally taken over.

Ruby pulls into the driveway, placing the vehicle in park. The slight jerk causes Weiss to open her eyes as Ruby grumbles in slight annoyance. She would have to check her vehicle later. Ruby looks over at the woman as she opens the door, tiredly exiting the vehicle and stumbling when her feet hit the grassy ground.

"Are you okay?" Ruby asks worriedly, getting out of the car.

"I'm alright," Weiss reassures her, bracing herself against the front of the car before starting toward the house as Ruby gathers Iris up into a cradle. The woman closes her eyes, resisting the thrumming tiredness that seems to have anchored to her body.

Ruby glides past her, stopping momentarily by Weiss' side and lending a hand to support her. Weiss rejects.

The house is unlocked using Ruby's scroll, Weiss leads her up to the guest bedroom where Ruby lays Iris on the bed, the child groaning in slight aggravation before burying herself into a cocoon in the blankets.

"I'll stay with her for a little while," Weiss says, "then I'll need to get a shower…"

Ruby nods, aware of the awkwardness in the air. "I'll be downstairs…"

Weiss bows her head a little, "Thank you, Ruby…" She murmurs as Ruby approaches the door, "For everything you've done, especially today…"

Ruby scoffs a little. They keep their voices quiet in order not to wake Iris. "Today? Weiss, I didn't do anything."

A small smile pulls at Weiss' lips, her eyes are gentle and affectionate, expressing her gratitude. "Perhaps… But you were there when I needed someone the most."

"That's the bare minimum." Ruby sighs, her heart twisting and turning upside down. "As I said before, Weiss, I love you…"

Weiss' forehead wrinkles slightly, and her voice is laced with worry. "And yet you appear to be carrying a heavier burden than I."

Ruby's heart beats harder and her throat constricts as though a King Taijitu is attempting to strangle her. A muscle in her jaw feathers and a tight smile crosses her lips, she looks back at the white-haired woman and speaks, feigned with exaggerated joy.

"No burden!" A light gesture of her hand brushes through the air, but the atmosphere thickens. "I'm just happy you're alive, really!" She clears her voice when it cracks, causing Weiss' eyes to widen slightly. Ruby looks at the heap of blankets rising and falling at a steady, calm pace. "And I'm happy Iris is safe."

"You're lying to me," Weiss observes with a stern frown. Her expression softens, "What's wrong…?"

"Nothing." Ruby evades. "I'm fine."

" Ruby . Stop lying to me."

Every nerve in her body turns cold and silver eyes flitter over to the woman apologetically, almost sinking beneath indignant eyes. Weiss' tone is earnest, yet unyielding. It was a mother 's voice.

Her pulse thrums in her ears.

"I'm sorry…" Ruby murmurs reluctantly. Weiss bows her head in response. Ruby swallows hard. "I've lied to everyone else for years, they didn't care to notice." She averts her gaze.

"I'm not them, Ruby. I know you."

She looks away, praying the ground would open and swallow her whole.

"Ruby…"

Weiss steps toward her.

"Y-yeah?"

Ruby's heart almost stops, her mind screeching to a halt as alarms blare throughout her mind. Her head swivels around, her eyes meeting with Weiss' almost instantly. Her pulse jumps to her throat.

"I'm trusting you…" Weiss murmurs. Ruby barely hears her against the thudding in her ears. "Don't shut me out the moment I reciprocate that trust."

Ruby smiles a little, "I trust you…" She turns away, "I'll let you rest. I'll be downstairs…" Ruby whispers, paranoia tugging at her consciousness, "Goodnight." She closes the bedroom door.

Twenty-five minutes later, Ruby showered and changed into her pajamas. She wears loose, baggy sweatpants and an old, faded T-Shirt with an outdated meme displayed on the chest.

"Ruby?"

Silver eyes glance up momentarily from the magazine she has displayed before her, and she makes a small sound of acknowledgment. She faintly registers footsteps approaching her from behind, pausing behind the couch. Ruby's heart beats against her chest like a pounding drum, stuttering as a pair of warm arms languidly wrap around her shoulders.

The sweet smell of blueberry embraces her senses.

She angled her head to meet a gentle, almost playful, pair of blue. She was so close. "...Yeah?" She murmurs, her words barely wanting to escape her throat.

Weiss leans against the brunette, her whisper as delicate as a butterfly's wing against Ruby's ear. "Why don't you put that down and come outside with me?"

The magazine slowly slipped from Ruby's fingers. She nods in response and Weiss retracts, tipping her head invitingly as Ruby rises from the couch to follow her. The younger huntress felt her heart skip a beat again.

Weiss is dressed in one of Ruby's shirts, which hung loosely over her body and drooped across one shoulder. Ruby can just make out the hem of a pair of shorts peeking out from underneath her top.

A pang of sadness pulls at her heart. She was still so thin…

Weiss strides toward the front door and with a soft click, the door slides open and they step outside into the darkness. Ruby's skin is met by the warm, spring aroma still lingering in the air and she can smell the heavy dew in the breeze. The moonlight provides a beautiful, shimmering radiance across the dimly lit green lawn.

Detecting movement next to her, Ruby's gaze trails to the side of the house, spotting Weiss stepping off into the grass. "Weiss?"

"Well," Weiss smiles affectionately, "you know the area, lead the way."

Ruby's eyes widened. A barrage of fireworks bursts through her chest, sending adrenaline soaring throughout her being. The world becomes noticeably brighter, and the dark shadows in her vision are vanquished.

Weiss giggles in amusement, blue eyes twinkling like stars in the midnight blue sky.

Ruby steps off the porch and gently takes Weiss' hand, her calloused fingertips brushing against the small scraps of scars littering her partner's digits. Weiss allows their hands to intertwine, clutching her hand tight. "I know the perfect place," Ruby replies quietly, diverting her gaze and tugging the woman's wrist. Weiss follows without hesitation.

"How long have you lived here?" Weiss asks as they step past the forest line. The moonlight casts dappled shadows across the forest floor. The basil-colored green grass beneath their feet contrasts the illumination and creates various shades of dark blue and purple with a noticeable evergreen hue.

Ruby pauses for a moment, tilting her head back and allowing the familiar smell of the woodland to flow through her senses. It smells of pine straw and floral, with a hint of rotten wood.

"About four years," Ruby answers, her voice quiet so that she does not disturb the serenity, "I lived with Blake and Yang for six months after moving out from Dad's. But then they got engaged, so I felt like I was intruding and found this place."

Weiss lifts a brow, "You didn't build the house?"

"No." Ruby steps over a fallen, rotten log and lifts her arm to help Weiss over. Once her feet are on the other side, the younger huntress continues down the worn trail. "I remember saying that I was going to build a house back at Beacon," she admits with a heavy heart, "but that was going to be for our family …"

Before they had even attempted for a family, Ruby had devised a plan to set into motion after graduation. She'd had an entire floor plan figured out and a location was chosen; she'd even been putting back lien to do so.

Most of that lien had gone into paying off her house's rent.

"Oh. I see…" Weiss murmurs.

"But, I guess it's a good thing I got a two-bedroom house, huh?" Ruby grins over her shoulder.

"Why did you, anyway?" Weiss asks.

Ruby shrugs, facing away from her and tilting her weight back as she descends to the bottom of a small hill. Weiss is right behind her. "Blake and Yang, or JNR would stay over before a mission. Sometimes, Uncle Qrow would crash there."

Weiss smirks a little, "Oh, well aren't you considerate?"

Ruby scoffs, "Well, aren't you happy?" She repeats in the same tone, stopping and fixing her attention on the woman. Her brows pull together, observant. "Not an hour ago, you were closed off," Ruby points out, "what happened?"

A light hum barely reaches her ears, Weiss brushes by her and continues down the trail. Ruby scrambles after her, having expected the woman to stop walking when she did. "Weiss?"

"I suppose it's because…" Weiss finally speaks, her gaze fixing on the dew-covered leaves above her head. "Well, we're finally free…" She angles her attention back down, Ruby stops and follows her line of sight. They had approached the stream. Pebbles whisk and spin below the water as it splashes and sprays over the limestone rocks, parting in a v-shape as it cascades down through the forest.

The smell of dew-covered grass and fresh water explodes through Ruby's senses, she blinks several times in an attempt to regain herself.

Ruby stands a few footsteps behind Weiss, listening. She recognizes the pitch in her voice, she has more to say.

Weiss continues, as she expected she would, "It feels as though the anchor tied to my soul has been released… There is nothing to worry about anymore. Iris is safe. Jacques is no longer a problem. My daughter has a home , and you're here, too." She lets out a sigh, her shoulders deflating to emphasize her point. "I wanted to come to you after Iris was born… Things, unfortunately, did not work out the way I had planned. I understand that I cannot erase all those years of pain and grief that I unnecessarily caused you…"

Ruby's heart turns cold.

"But, I feel lighter …" Weiss murmurs with a smile, "I think I could get used to this feeling again."

"You look lighter…" Ruby says softly. Weiss peers over her shoulder, white brows narrowed as blue eyes pierce daggers into Ruby's silver pair. The brunette scoffs, brushing her dark bangs out of her face as she approaches Weiss to stand next to her. She moves her focus to settle on the fast-moving waters in front of them, "What I mean is that you look as if a burden has been removed from your shoulders… You look emotionally lighter."

Weiss' lip curves upwards. Ruby's chest warms.

Despite the numerous scars littering her pale, moonlit skin, Weiss is the most gorgeous person she's ever known. But, Ruby is aware of what her former partner has gone through all these years, and she is afraid to unknowingly add more weight to Weiss' shoulders, especially when she has just begun to heal.

She loves her so much.

"Ruby…"

Ruby's heart nearly thuds out of its cage. An exquisite ache forms in her chest and her breath hitches. Weiss glides toward her, her flat sandals brushing across the damp ground. She was standing so close. Ruby leans forward, the urge to kiss her boiling within her being.

She stops, closing her eyes and turning her head away from the woman. She can't. The sound of the rushing water becomes louder by the minute.

"Hey…"

A gentle, scarred finger touches Ruby's cheek and trails down to her chin, guiding her attention back to Weiss. The touch sends sparks of fire coursing through her veins, the water eases to a gentle 'whoosh' in her ears.

"Look at me."

Hesitant silver eyes meet with warm blue. The moonlight creates a crescent-like shadow across Weiss' scarred eye.

"I need to go back to bed; Iris will wake up soon to find me gone" Weiss whispers, her voice as gentle as the night's breeze, barely audible, "but, may I do something first? I have to get it off my chest…"

Ruby stares at her for a long moment, her heart pounding in her ears.

"Yeah…" Ruby responds, her throat tightening.

Weiss lifts a finger and taps it against Ruby's chin, tilting her jaw downward ever so slightly. She leans in carefully, blue eyes glazing over and half-closing. Ruby's heart stops.

"I love you…"

A warm pair of lips touch hers in a brief, but delicate kiss, and Ruby's thoughts come to an abrupt halt. Her thrumming nerves relax like she was stepping into a warm bath, spreading throughout her body like waves rolling in the sea.

Behind them, violent water crashes across the rock, connecting once-separated streams into the current.

Weiss pulls away all too soon, turning on her heel and swiftly disappearing into the forest's shadows, heading back to the house.

Ruby doesn't move, watching her fade into the night until she is alone, standing beneath the vast moonlight. The gears turn in her head as quickly as they can move. Her heart nearly bursts as realization nearly electrocutes her.

"Oh."

Ruby returned to the house with a lightness in her step, her chest fluttering as butterflies swell within her heart, so much so that it causes a silly smile to grace her lips when she opens the door. A childlike giggle escapes as she closes the door with a soft click, leaning her back against the wood and closing her eyes.

Weiss had kissed her.

She still loves her.

She pushes up off the door, making toward her bedroom. Ruby ascends the staircase swiftly, adrenaline pumping through her body and making her wonder if she would even be able to sleep tonight.

"Mama?"

Ruby pauses outside the guest bedroom door, noticing that it was just barely cracked open. She knows she should keep walking and ignoring, but the curiosity tugging at her heart refuses to cooperate.

"Yes, sweetheart…?"

Ruby catches a glimpse of the white-haired woman walking by the door, followed by the sound of the bed creaking.

"Are we gonna stay here?"

Ruby's heart stops, her throat tightening with anticipation.

A light chuckle echoes through the room.

"Of course, my little Flower… This is home."

With some time, everything was going to be okay. She wasn't going to leave again, they were going to be a family ! Ruby could get to know her daughter.

Oh, her heart could burst…

Acceptance rolls through her, gently washing away the adrenaline that once shot electricity through her being. Exhaustion begins to settle. Allowing a soft smile to form on her lips, Ruby continues to her bedroom and closes the door behind her.

She practically collapses on the bed.

Weiss is right. She cannot ignore what she had gone through these past six years, grieving for someone she wholeheartedly loved, but they can begin with a fresh start. Weiss seems happier already… She'd kissed her… She said she loves her…

With luck, that would continue to grow.

Ruby's numbing thoughts are broken by the sound of the door creaking open, sending her senses on high alert. She listens as tentative footsteps approach her bed.

A gentle weight shifts the bed slightly and Ruby detects the familiar aroma of blueberries enveloping her. She hears faint, almost imperceptible exhales near her. There's a pause in the air, thick with hesitancy. Ruby's heartbeat quickens when her partner inclines forward, indicated by the weight change and the warm breath against her brow.

It takes every muscle in her body to refrain from reacting; she doesn't want Weiss to know she's awake.

Ruby's heart pounds against her chest as a delicate kiss is placed on the middle of her forehead, her mind racing as thoughts crash through her brain incoherently.

She feels the bed move again as Weiss lies down, expelling a tired sigh as she relaxes. Ruby can calculate the woman's distance from her, and her fingers quiver as if she wants to reach out and touch her. She, however, cannot. She fears that if Weiss learns she is awake, their progress would be significantly delayed.

She cannot afford to have that happen again. Her heart simply couldn't take it.

After a minute or two, her mind settles as drowsiness slips back in, obscuring her screeching thoughts and silencing them again. Her tension begins to subside, and reality gradually begins to fade away from her. She was exhausted, as Weiss was.

The sound of the bedroom door being flung open, the handle crashing against the wall, followed by thunderous footsteps rushing toward the bed, sends Ruby's senses into overdrive. Panic runs through her body, electrifying every nerve inside her with dread. Ruby's eyes snap open as a weight lands on the mattress between her and Weiss. She swiftly jumps upright to protect herself, a snarl-like noise escaping her.

"Mom?"

The red in her vision fades.

Iris lies by her mother's side, snuggled up as close as she could be with a perplexed expression on her face. Weiss has her arm over the child in a partial hug, keeping her near while weary eyes watch the young girl's movements.

Ruby clears her throat before grasping at the edges of the blankets and pulling them over the other two. She was too exhausted to get up and close the door, let alone check to see whether or not the force of the door being thrown open had punctured a hole in the wall.

Giggling, Iris rolls away from Weiss and curls between her mothers. Bright, cheerful silver eyes flickered between the women.

She was happy to have a family. She was happy to have a home .

Ruby responds with a smile of her own and the ivory-haired girl laughs. Ruby's brow furrows as Iris tug sat her hand, pulling it up and laying it across her with a smile on her face. When Ruby's fingers brush against Weiss', her pulse quickens and she nearly yanks her arm back to her side, but the gentle intertwining of their fingers causes her to second-guess her initial reaction.

Her gaze is drawn to Weiss', and her heart leaps to her throat. Blue eyes, tired but endearing, watch her with a familiar gleam so full of energy that Ruby hasn't seen in years.

She was home .

Sun goes down, and we are here together
Fireflies, glow like a thousand charms
Stay with me, and you can dream forever,
right here in my arms

It's magic when you are here beside me
Close your eyes,
and let me hold you tight…
Everything that I could ever need
is right here in my arms
Tonight…