It took me a while, but I finally finished this chapter! That said, I know a lot of people wanted more from this story, but I can only really see one more chapter left after this. I'm hoping to get to it sooner rather than later, but we'll have to see. Either way, I hope you enjoy so far!
Ruby lay in bed, covered in slowly drying sweat, her breath escaping her in small puffs as her right arm lay across her eyes, blotting out her vision. The other, stretched to the side, a solid, warm weight upon it reminding her of what she'd spent the past few hours doing. With a sigh, she lowered the arm over her eyes, blinking rapidly as the dim sunlight coming in from behind the closed curtains forced her to adjust. Tentatively, she looked over to her left, locking mercurial eyes with deep, wintry blue ones.
Weiss Schnee lay there, on her side, hands clasped beneath her chin in a manner that struck Ruby as something she'd never once thought before in her life…cute. With a small, satisfied smirk crossing her face for the briefest of moments, Weiss rolled over onto her back, her head and neck still cushioned by Ruby's left arm. Ruby rolled her head back to face the ceiling as well, silence filling the room as she felt a gentle breeze pass through the room, chilling her skin.
"So…that happened," Ruby ventured into the silence, not being one to keep quiet in awkward moments.
"It certainly did," Weiss responded, her normal monotone back. A change from the tones she had been making a moment before, Ruby thought to herself, barely holding a chuckle in.
"...fuck it. I'm not great at uh, subtlety, which I'm pretty sure you know by now."
"Subtle is not something I would accuse you of, no."
Ruby rolled her head back over to glance over at the white-haired woman next to her. "So…what's this mean?"
Weiss was silent for a moment, staring up at the ceiling. When she spoke, it was careful and deliberate, as though she was choosing her words with the utmost caution. "In truth, I…I find myself unsure. You have been a thorn in my side for years. One of the few people to ever make me vexed. Yet today's events tell me perhaps…perhaps I misunderstood what it was I was feeling."
Ruby arched an eyebrow at the woman beside her. "No offense, but do you even know what feelings are?"
Weiss slowly shook her head. "I believe that is part of the issue at play here. But would you say you understand your own? I was led to believe you are nothing but feelings."
Ruby flinched for a moment at Weiss' blunt words, ignoring the instinctual anger rising within her at the thought of someone else speaking for her. She let out a heavy sigh, her breath washing over Weiss' shoulder and causing the other woman to look over at her.
"Well…ya ain't wrong. Though it sucks to admit it. I've always felt so much, so goddamn much, I never could control it. Hells…I drank men three times my size under the table, I popped more pills than a fucking psych ward, got into shootouts with cops just to use some of that energy, and still…still, everythings always been too slow. Even Yang…she doesn't get it. It's close. She gets the drive, the burn, but she can burn it all away. She can just light some fires, burn out with her bike, and she's fine. But I can't. I can't do that."
Ruby paused for a moment, her eyes refocusing on the woman beside her, meeting the gaze once more. "Well…I couldn't, at least. For some reason, and it's fucking stupid to admit this but since this whole day has been an exercise in stupidity, I'll just say it. It feels…okay, here."
Weiss' gaze never left Ruby's as she spoke, no expression crossing her face at first. Yet once Ruby finished speaking, she blinked slowly, a small frown crossing her face. "Perhaps we are both fools then, for I feel…well…I feel. This is not something I am used to. And though it may sound odd, I do not believe it has anything to do with our prior activities. You…are warm, Ruby Rose. Warmer than I've felt before. And I find myself…appreciating that warmth."
Ruby rolled onto her side to look over the pale, naked woman beside her, letting her right arm rest between the two of them. She let her gaze slowly sweep across Weiss, her gaze not filled with lust, but more introspective, noting the scars, the bruises, the marks of blade and bullet that covered the crime lord before her. As silver met blue once more, she spoke softly into the quiet. "Then I ask you this again, Weiss. What does this mean?"
Weiss rolled over to mirror Ruby, their faces barely a foot apart. With one hand, she reached out slowly, placing her hand over Ruby's. "I want…I want this. This…I enjoy. I do not know what any of this means, though, and yet…I find the uncertainty enjoyable, for once in my life. I am alright not knowing what lies ahead."
Ruby rolled her hand over beneath Weiss', intertwining their fingers. "Okay. I'm okay with this too, then."
For a long minute, neither woman spoke further, unwilling to break the silence as they simply looked at one another in the slowly dimming light of day. As the room dipped ever cooler, Weiss let out a soft sigh as she inched closer to Ruby.
"We should likely return to our respective businesses. They will be wondering where we are."
"Yeah, probably should," Ruby replied, her grip tightening around Weiss' hand as she made no move to get up.
Weiss' lips gave the tiniest quirk upwards as she returned the grip, her heartbeat rising ever so slightly. "Do you know what the best part of being your own boss is?"
Ruby smirked, climbing overtop of Weiss and straddling her waist. She leaned down, her breath washing over Weiss' face, her unruly and jagged hair framing her face in the light with a strange glow. "No one can fire you for being late." Weiss reached her arms up behind Ruby's neck, tangling themselves in her hair as she pulled the taller woman down onto her.
Hours later, the two women were hunting down what remained of their clothing throughout the house. Ruby picked up her jacket, snickering as it fell apart in her hands, rips torn throughout it. She turned to look at Weiss, the other woman examining her button up critically. "Bit excited, huh?" Ruby asked, gesturing to her destroyed jacket hanging limply in her arms. Weiss arched an eyebrow, holding her shirt up for Ruby to note the lack of any button left on it, all of them torn off in Ruby's haste to get Weiss' shirt off.
Ruby coughed, her cheeks going pink as she turned away, striding over to the closet and ripping it open. She peered inside to see what she had left, feeling the surprisingly comforting cool presence of Weiss over her shoulder as the other woman peeked in as well. Weiss casually reached past Ruby to grab a pullover, pulling it on without a second thought.
Ruby barely managed to hold back a chuckle as Weiss stared at the sleeves in consternation, her arms too short to fully escape the sleeves. Weiss rolled them up, giving Ruby a deadpan stare as she did. Ruby snickered to herself as she began to dress herself as well.
"Blake is going to be insufferable," Weiss commented dryly as she began to tie her hair back with practiced motions, looking in the small mirror the safehouse had in the bathroom.
Ruby snorted. "Yang's gonna be just as bad if not worse. Once she's done bitching at me for taking so long to contact her, she's gonna flip if she realizes what we uh…are…I guess," she trailed off with a small blush.
Weiss coughed into her hand. "Yes, Blake will…have many questions, I'm certain."
Ruby hummed to herself as she ran her hand through her hair, only managing to muss it more. She paused for a moment, thinking, turning back to Weiss a second later. "What if we turn it around on them?"
Weiss arched an eyebrow at Ruby, arms crossed over her chest. "You have a plan, Red Queen?"
For the first time in hours, Ruby's grin widened further, the insanity creeping back into her eyes as she straightened her shoulders, the Red Queen coming to the forefront once more. "Oh yeah, White Queen. I think we can have a little bit of fun with them."
Weiss calmly marched over to the garage door, opening it with and gesturing to Ruby. "Well then, shall we?"
"Where the fuck are they?" Yang growled as she paced back and forth, arms crossed behind her back. Blake wisely said nothing, casually filing her nails as she sat on the couch, her calm demeanor betrayed by the incessant tapping of her toe against the concrete beneath. Yang paused before the door, her shoulders slumped for a moment. Blake barely flinched as Yang slammed her fist into the door, the metal denting inward as the hinges nearly broke from the strain.
"We'd know if something went wrong. If Ironwood had caught them, he'd be crowing about it on the evening news," Blake added softly, placing the file back into her pocket.
"Yeah, but not if they fucking killed each other!" Yang shot back, refusing to turn away from the door. Her fist slid down it, the blood from her now torn open knuckles staining the dull gray. Blake rose from her seat and silently stepped to Yang's side, a hand gently laying on her shoulder.
"They aren't fools, Yang. They would understand the value in working together until they had returned to us."
"My sister's a nutcase, Blake. And that's saying something, coming from me. She has no sense of self-preservation. She dove off a fucking bridge into the river in the snow! She once strapped herself to a goddamned racecar roof and went fucking skiing! I lost count of how much product she's set on fire when she's bored or shoved into her fucking arm! I can't trust her to do anything remotely rational! And somehow, someway, her fucking insanity got into the Ice Bitch's head too!" Yang whirled on Blake, eyes flaring with a deep, crimson red. As she paced past, she threw her arms up in the air as she began to pace.
Blake lifted a hand to interrupt Yang, but Yang began to wave her hands wildly as she continued to pace, eyes lifted to the sky.
"You saw her, Blake! I know you did! She fucking smiled at my sister. Smiled! Weiss smiled! Don't tell me that it didn't shock you, I know every expression you can possibly make and I saw how confused and concerned you were." The door quietly opened behind Blake, who turned for a moment, eyes widening.
"Yang, dear, um-" Blake began, but Yang's ever more unhinged voice cut her off.
"This insanity is some sort of fucking disease, Blake. It's something else. I know I'm fucking crazy as shit, but at least it's a normal crazy, right? I mean, I just like fire okay? Fire is good, fire is warm, it keeps us alive, not like base jumping into a volcano! That's just asking for death! And I can't have that, no no, I need that nutcase, she's my sister!"
"My beloved Dragon, perhaps you-"
"And she's gone and fucking infected the White Queen! She's just up and turned her, next thing we know they'll both be dead from a million bullet holes or stab wounds or some shit! They are probably beating the shit out of each other right now, and all I'll ever find is Ruby's broken, bleeding corpse somewhere in a ditch and won't even be able to bury her because Ironwood'll find her somehow and sent her off to some rat bastard of a scientists lab to be studied and dissected! Blake, we have to find them…-" Yang's voice trailed off as she spun about, eyes going wide and fading to lavender at the sight of her smirking sister and the stone-faced Weiss in the doorway, Blake rolling her eyes with a smile at her.
"...how long were you standing there?" Yang asked quietly.
"Approximately since you began your rant with 'My sister's a nutcase'," Weiss replied.
"I am somewhat encouraged you have some care for my mental health, but do not be alarmed. Ruby has not 'infected' me in any fashion."
"Yeah, she's already batshit insane, don't need me for that," Ruby cut in with a chipper tone. Yang blinked, already confused beyond measure but moreso by the strange camaraderie that seemed to exist there. "Oh, right. Forgot. Weiss, shall we?"
Weiss nodded. "Yes. Let's."
Blake took a step back, her shoulders tensing slightly as her eyes narrowed at the two women in the door. "Do what?"
Ruby stepped inside, her ever present smile wide as Weiss stepped past her, softly shutting the door behind her. Ruby gave a low, sweeping, mocking bow to Weiss, one arm bent over her waist, the other out to the side as Weiss regally strode beyond her, coming to attention at her side.
"The Red Queen and I have come to an arrangement. You should be happy, Blake. You have gotten what you desired."
"What kind of arrangement?" Blake asked with narrowed eyes, Yang still blinking in confusion.
"Right! This kind!" Ruby replied cheerfully as she straightened up. With one long arm, she snatched Weiss up around the waist and pulled the very willing white-haired woman into her arms, their lips fusing together without hesitation. Weiss' hands flew up to tangle in Ruby's short, wild hair, pulling tightly on it as Ruby's grip around her waist tightened almost to the point of pain.
Though the initial intent had been to only do this for a moment, Weiss found herself not caring about their original plan. She slid one hand down Ruby's shoulder, taking a tight grip of her suit jacket just about her heart and trying to pull her even closer, impossible though it was. She felt one of Ruby's hands slide off her waist and down her back, gripping her behind with a tight grasp that sent a shiver down her spine, her kiss becoming more intense by the second. At least, until the disbelieving cry came from behind them, the two panting women breaking apart to look in askance as the now gaping Yang.
"You…she…but…I…wha…fuck…" Yang blurted out random, nonsense words as she tried to comprehend this.
"Yes, fuck. We did that too," Ruby replied cheerfully, her hand still casually on Weiss' ass without either of them seeming to react.
"...you were right, Yang. The insanity is an infectious disease. We've all caught it. That's it. Clearly I've finally snapped. Years of torturing people for my own amusement have caught up to me, and I'm being punished by the gods for my hubris. Well. That's that I suppose. Yang, it's time. Kill me so I may save what's left of my mind," Blake sighed, turning to Yang.
"Stop being so overdramatic, Belladonna," Weiss scolded. "Ruby and I merely have come to an agreeable solution to our current woes. This is what you wanted, was it not?"
"I didn't think this would end with you getting laid, Weiss! I didn't even think you could get off with how cold you are!" Blake hissed back.
"Actually, she's really quite warm. Cuddly too," Ruby remarked offhandedly.
Weiss patted Ruby's collar gently, pausing a moment later before reaching up and straightening her tie. "Thank you my dear. Now, shall we move on to more pressing matters? I believe your sister is malfunctioning and needs to be reset."
Ruby nodded, letting go of her grip on Weiss as she strode over to her desk. Opening a cabinet, she pulled out a bottle of bourbon. Snatching four shot glasses up, she laid them out over her desk and poured into them quickly, not bothering to avoid splashing the desk beneath. Nodding at her work, she walked back to the group, bottle in hand. Gripping the neck of the bottle tightly with one hand, and holding the bottom with the other, she grunted as her muscles strained for a moment, the neck of the bottle snapping off in her hand and slicing it open.
Ignoring the blood, she tossed the neck of the bottle into the corner, the glass cracking as it hit the concrete, before tossing the remaining liquid in the broken bottle into Yang's face. Yang, still just staring in bewilderment, sputtered in shock and confusion as the bourbon smashed into her face. Swiftly wiping at her eyes, she glared at Ruby only to see a single shot glass being held in her face. Glancing beyond Ruby's form, Yang witnessed Weiss casually handing Blake a shot glass as she held one in her own hand.
Ruby grinned widely. "Let's toast, to a new age of viciousness and villainy. Blake and you got what you wanted. More than you know. We're gonna burn the city down, Yang. And the world with it. Until nothing stands atop the broken, bleeding corpse of civilization…save the four of us."
Yang, alcohol dripping from her bands, blood trailing from her knuckles, just sighed as she took the now bloody shot glass from Ruby's own bleeding hand. Stepping over, the four women stood as a single unit, raising their glasses and clinking them together, draining the shots all as one.
"Ah, that hits the spot!" Ruby said with a loud, happy sigh. "You know, ladies, I think that I'm gonna remember this as a very, very lovely day."
"Before or after the assault by Ironwood?" Blake muttered ruefully.
Ruby snicked. "That's a good point there, Blake! In fact, I'm thinking, he did such a nice thing today, you know…keeping me and Weiss from brutally murdering each other, we should repay him in kind, dontcha think?"
Weiss arced an eyebrow. "What do you have in mind?"
Ruby's smile spread across her face, eyes narrowing, her brilliant silver eyes tarnished in this light. "I'm thinking it's time we paid him a visit."
