Chapter 5
Ruby pulled the heavy truck up onto the highway on ramp, opening up the throttle to increase her speed. She revelled in the glorious induction sound the three carburetors sucked gallons upon gallons of air into the huge motor. It was like riding an easy chair passed a tuba quintet. Just noise and comfort. The big truck pulled effortlessly through the snow-coated highway, trundling through the deep white powder. Ruby pushed the accelerator down a little further and enjoyed the sensation of traction the old-fashioned vehicle gave her. Until she was interrupted by her annoyed travelling companion.
"I have no idea how you convinced me we should take your truck, Ruby."
Ruby furrowed her brow and turned in her seat to look at the white-haired ice princess.
"Wasn't it you who suggested we take the truck? Something about safety?"
"I said nothing of the sort! My car would be far superior to this one for a long trip." came the reply.
"Weiss, I'm going to repeat back to you now the reasons you gave me in order to convince me that my truck was the correct choice."
Ruby held up a finger.
"Number one, my truck wears snow tires, number two, my truck has greater ground clearance and a more comfortable ride, and number three, you are scared of driving in the snow."
Ruby turned to glare wickedly at her friend at this comment, much to her annoyance.
"I'm not scared!" Weiss was shaking a little. Ruby raised an eyebrow. "Okay, well, perhaps a small amount. But that's only because my car is a little skittish in slippery conditions."
"Weiss, that car has five hundred and sixty horsepower. No kidding it's a little skittish. Also all of your ridiculous luggage wouldn't have fit in the trunk."
A large gust of blowing snow hit the side of the truck and pushed it out of line. Ruby wrestled the wheel for a moment to get the vintage beast back on the straight and narrow. She knew they weren't going to crash, so she played it up a little with a bit of concerned noises. She was currently enjoying the squirming and shrieking her companion was making on her side of the bench seat.
Weiss harrumphed and crossed her arms, pouting angrily at Ruby.
"I don't see why we didn't borrow father's Range Cruiser."
"Okay, Weiss?"
Ruby turned and poked her in the side.
"Why don't you think about that for a moment. Do you really believe that your father would have agreed to lend you a brand-new luxury SUV for a four day drive across the snowy highways of Atlas? That truck is worth over a hundred thousand lien. And you'd be spending those four days with a girl, cooped up with no contact without any other one of your friends. Not a damn chance, Weiss-Cream."
The pout increased tenfold.
"Yeah, but at least there would have been heated seats."
"Do you have a problem with my heater, ice princess? I'd be happy to set you on fire, you know."
Weiss giggled in her seat, before poking Ruby back.
"Oh please. You'd miss me too much, Rose Petal."
Ruby blushed. Like, crimson fires in an autumn forest filled with firetrucks, stop signs, and red-velvet cupcakes. This was a level of heart-fluttering that could be rivalled only by a whole flock of hummingbirds. It had been probably six years or so since Weiss had called her that, the last time being at the annual Beacon Academy dance, when Weiss Schnee, the coldest of the cold, had asked her if she would like to dance. The memory stirred interesting feelings in Ruby's body.
Damn it , Weiss. Stop making me feel things!
Fingers snapping in front of her face brought Ruby's fantasy to a crushing end.
"Hello Ruby? It's time to drive." Weiss said, annoyed.
Well at least she didn't see me blushing.
"If you had blushed any harder you would have become one with the red seat, you dolt."
Well darn.
Ruby tried to concentrate on driving again. Images of dancing with Weiss flashed momentarily back into her mind, before being quickly extinguished. It was time to change the subject, lest she die of embarrassment.
"Say, Weiss-cream, I noticed you chose to bring your sword on this journey. Care to explain?"
Weiss seemed taken aback by this, as if her ancestors had been offended.
"Of course I'm bringing Myrtenaster. We are travelling far away from my home, across vast barren landscapes that could be infested with the creatures of Grimm!"
Ruby looked perplexed at her partner.
"Barren landscapes? You mean the highways Atlas? The ones patrolled and protected by the army?"
Weiss seemed, for once in her life, at a loss.
"Yeah, but..."
Her mouth hung agape, unable to form a concise argument.
"Are you saying you didn't bring Crescent Rose?"
Touche.
"Well obviously I brought my scythe, Weiss. It is always in my truck. I am physically incapable of leaving home without it"
The two girls laughed and continued teasing each other as they trundled through the blizzard. A few hours later, the low fuel light came on and Ruby pulled the heavy truck off the highway into a truck stop. Pulling up to a pump, she shut the motor off and stepped out. Thank the gods fuel is cheap here in Atlas she thought as she put the nozzle into the tank and began filling. There was a sudden presence at her side.
"Hey Weiss. You seem cold" She said to the girl in the white coat who had pushed herself up against her.
"Shut up. You turned the car off. You're warm" came the short responses. Ruby put her arm around the shivering girl and stared strictly at the pump. The huge seventy-five litre tank continued to drink very slowly, as if it was dragging out this comforting moment on purpose. Ruby glanced over at her companion, unsure if the red of her cheeks were from the cold or from blushing. Ruby was banking on the latter. She knew she had to be bold. It was time to make a move. She was going to ask the girl out.
"Hey Ruby?" came a small voice at her right side. Completely distract by her own thoughts, Ruby turned to face Weiss.
"Yeah?"
There was suddenly a very warm feeling on her lips. Her heart stopped.
Chapter 6
HOLY SHIT I JUST KISSED RUBY
Chapter 7
HOLY SHIT WEISS JUST KISSED ME
Chapter 8
The two women stood in the snow, dumbfounded. Neither said a word. Weiss's heart was beating roughly with the same speed and intensity as an industrial power drill. Her eyes made contact with Ruby's. Neither of them wanted to move. But the hitched breathing in her friend's chest sounded to her like an invitation to… do it again?
"I, uh…"
"Weiss, I…"
"Puh…"
They both sort of awkwardly smiled at one another. Weiss tried to compose herself. To no avail, of course. Her cheeks lit up like two very prominent lighthouses in a wash of red. Her mouth refused to comply with her brain, and curled into an embarrassed smile. Luck would have it, as Ruby was smiling too.
"Hey, look, that was totally my fault. I didn't expect your face to be there and I-"
"No apology needed, Weiss. It's cool."
REALLY cool.
Weiss tried not to shiver with delight.
"So are we gonna stand here, or…"
Weiss nodded, looking away.
"Right, of course. My turn to drive, right?"
Ruby nodded eagerly and tossed over the keys. Weiss climbed up into the driver's seat of the old red truck and turned the key. The big eight-cylinder thundered quietly beneath the bonnet as she pulled them back onto the highway, the four-by-four carving a smooth path through the thick white powder.
"Ruby, I'm serious, this truck would be more fuel-efficient if you just set fire to your wallet directly. How big is this engine, anyway?"
"Four hundred and fifty cubic inches of justice, my friend." Ruby beamed from her place in the passenger seat "If the ice princess has a problem with that she can buy a hybrid"
Weiss scoffed at this.
A hybrid? You must be joking! How dare you insinuate that I dislike performance!
"I'll have you know that the Atlas AG Klasse-7 would introduce all of your pathetic displacement to the pain of good mileage and forced induction." Weiss replied, pleased that she could use her car to trump Ruby's. Again.
"Weiss you know that's not fair. Your car was eighty grand. Of course it's better than a forty year old truck." This got Ruby a poke in the ribs. "Quit it, you jerk!"
Time to be bold, the white-haired princess thought.
"So. Anyone you fancy?"
Chapter 9
Thus came the question from the alabaster-skinned girl at the wheel. Yeah, you. Ruby wanted to say, but couldn't. The feeling of Weiss's soft lips still reverberated through her body. It was overwhelming her entire being, flowing through her like a coursing river. She had to think of an answer that wasn't Weiss.
"Uh, well, you know. I live alone, and I don't really get out of the house much. Except for work, of course"
Ruby stumbled over her words like her damn boots were tied together.
"And whenever I'm out on assignment I don't really interact with any other Huntsmen. So I never get the chance to meet any new people."
Curse these stupid nerves.
"I mean, you are like the only person I ever hang out with..."
Ruby could see Weiss's face grow concerned at this revelation. Her friend spoke up.
"Not even your other friends? Not Blake? Or your sister?"
"Well, not really. Since I moved to Atlas I really only see you. Blake's too far away in Menagerie, Yang stayed in Patch, and everyone else got scattered to the wind, I guess."
Ruby tried not to pout. But her bottom lip had betrayed her. The ice princess was quick to notice this.
"C'mon, Rubes. I'll be your friend for all those jerks who abandoned you. And stick your lip back in before I kiss it again"
Ruby's heart thumped against her ribcage so hard it nearly flung her out of her seat.
"And besides, what's a kiss among friends, right?"
NO. Not just a kiss. You don't know how much I like you, you ass-hat. It's not FAIR.
Ruby pushed her lip out further and waved it at Weiss, who giggled and pushed her back onto her side of the seat.
"I will take you up on that, Weiss-cream"
The two girls giggled at each other, before the unholy roar of a beast silenced the pair. Ruby looked at Weiss, eyes wide. Weiss returned the horrified stare.
"Hungry, are we?" Ruby asked.
"You can shut up now" The horribly embarrassed girl responded.
Ruby laughed at her friend's discomfort.
"Hey, don't worry friend, I packed us lunches for today!"
Ruby reached behind the seat and procured a blue and white drinks cooler. Upon opening it, Ruby grabbed two thick sandwiches, each in its own zip-lock bag and handed one to Weiss. She watched carefully as the alabaster-skinned driver deftly balanced the sandwich on the bottom of the fake-wood steering wheel as she opened the bag. Weiss brought the sandwich up to her mouth and took a bite.
Please like it, I made it just for you her mind screamed at her. Ruby's heart stopped when Weiss stopped chewing for a moment. She would need the hospital soon with the amount of time her heart spent not beating.
"Ruby?"
Oh shit she hates it
"...what sort of sandwich is this? It's very good but I cannot identify what kind of meat this is."
Ruby let out the breath she had been holding, and released her nervous and crushing grip on her own sandwich.
"Uh, it's just ham and cheese"
Ruby watched as Weiss placed the sandwich onto the top of the steering wheel, before leafing through the thick blankets of meat that had been carefully stacked between the soft pieces of bread. Her eyebrow raised at Ruby, a smirk coming to her mouth.
"I hardly think this is just one sort of meat, Rose-Petal."
You-ouu need to cut that out.
"Well, I did add some turkey..."
Weiss's eyebrow went higher
"and a little prosciutto, some smoked meat, and braised beef."
Weiss laughed and put her sandwich back together before taking another bite, still smiling.
"Look I didn't know what you liked and I was gonna make one sandwich of each kind but I ran out of bread, okay?"
Ruby gave an exasperated sigh and looked away, not wanting to make eye contact with her crush.
This is worse than not fair.
"Ruby..."
A voice came from the driver's seat. A warm hand had appeared on her shoulder. Ruby turned to see Weiss smiling softly at her
"I would have been happy if you had fed me cookies, you dunce. The notion that you put effort into making me a sandwich warms my heart greatly. Plus, it's actually a really good sandwich."
Weiss had finished her food rather quickly, Ruby guessed, and had returned her gaze through the windscreen. The white snow whipped by, the harsh blizzard not likely to give up any time soon. Ruby had an idea. She had sort of guessed that maybe her feelings were being returned, but now she needed to know. She put a plan into action.
"Want to talk about cute boys?"
Weiss laughed.
"Isn't that what your radio show is about? I mean I'd be glad to of course, Rubes. It has been a while since we got to have a little girl-on-girl talk."
I'll show you girl-on-girl.
"You listen to my show?" Ruby asked, blushing and a little dumbfounded.
"Of course! I take my lunch break at three-thirty every day so I can hear it live! I haven't missed an episode since it first aired, you dolt!"
The reply had sounded almost overly excited.
"So what sort of cute boys did you want to talk about?"
Ruby pondered, hand on chin.
"You remember Neptune?"
She watched as Weiss shuddered in her seat at the memory.
"Of course I remember him. What a vile and despicable person he was. 'Look at me, I'm Neptune, I can stand girls up on dates because I'm sooooo pretty. My hair extensions are worth more than your life. I'm afraid of water, whaa whaa!' Ugh, his childish attitude made me want to strangle him! Sure, he may have been cute but he has absolutely no character at all! Just all brawn and smiles! And to think i liked him at one point!"
Ruby tested the waters of Hurricane Weiss.
"You know him, Sun, Sage, and Scarlet run a racing team back in Vale, right?"
"And another thing! He absolutely couldn't dance to save his life!"
Perfect.
"I may have danced with Jaune that one time as well, and that boy had two left feet, for sure, but it was like Neptune had no feet at all! I had to drag him to the dance after he stood me up and force him to have some semblance of fun, and he went and ruined my best shoes with his stupid boots!"
Ruby mumbled something to gauge Weiss's level of attention.
"Once, while practising my 'sexy face' in the mirror, I accidentally seduced myself."
Nothing. Good.
"And now where on the topic of Jaune, I'd just like to point out that he was the most colossally stupid boy I had ever met. No matter how many times I turned him down, he kept coming back to ask me for a date! What does it take for men to realize that a girl isn't interested!?"
Ruby flinched subconsciously at the mention of his name, but she soldiered on.
"While reading Macdeath in high school, I actually beheaded one of my classmates. I got an A-minus."
"Like that one time he came to the door with a guitar and sang that horrible song! Who writes music to get a date? Like you say on the show, men write music to get girls back, but this blond idiot tried to woo me with it! Who brings a guitar to a school for fighting monsters?"
"I am colour blind. But only to fictional colours."
"Ugh, let me tell you about that boy Sun. He was so weird! Like, who goes out of there way to climb to the fifth floor dormitory window to spy on some girls? And he always had his shirt undone! Do it up, you colossal idiot! Nobody wants to see your abs, no matter how chiseled they might be!"
Ruby sprung her trap.
"Weiss I love you"
"I love you too, Ruby. But that's not my point! His abs were so...gross looking! Like c'mon he was only seventeen! Who looks like that at that age? I can understand a guy like Yatsu, he was much older than us and he spent every waking hour at the gym, but Sun? No way. Ew."
Whoa, hang on, what? What did she just say?
"And while I'm still pissed at Jaune, can I just say that it's a little insulting that the instant Ren brought his little black-haired girlfriend back from Mistral, Jaune suddenly ignored me? That girl was clearly a bitch, leading him on with her staggering good looks, they way her hips swayed, and...those breasts..."
Ruby was now keenly watching Weiss, who had reddened up at the image of the raven-haired vixen that had been suddenly dumped into beacon, not but a week before the Vytal Festival in fourth year. Weiss couldn't stop herself from licking her lips. Ruby jabbed her in the ribs.
"Got a crush, eh?"
Ruby jived, feeling a tiny twinge of jealousy.
"Don't be ridiculous. I dont' crush on girls!"
Okay, now the jealousy was sadness. Ruby couldn't help but pout at this, real sadness had creeped onto her visage. Not even me?
"Okay well that's not fully true. There is one girl..."
Ruby's heart stopped again. Any more and she would need a transplant. Was it the cookies that had done in her arteries?
Please let that girl be me!
"Did you ever have any crushes, Ruby?"
Yes, and I'm trapped in this torture chamber with her.
"Oh, you know, the usual high school stuff, cute boys and such. I had a thing for Sun for a while!"
The look on Weiss's face demonstrated her displeasure at this.
"And, uh, if I'm honest I kinda also thought that Miss Goodwitch was pretty."
"You had a thing for Glynda?" Weiss asked, wide eyed.
"I didn't have a thing, Weiss! Just a harmless crush!" Ruby squealed, and desperate to change the subject, added "Hey you know, Blake taught me how to kiss."
There was no response from the ice princess.
Chapter 10
Blake did what now?
Weiss's brain had stopped working. The automatic system that was in place to keep her driving on the road remained fully functional, but the part that dealt with ideas, responses, and feelings had completely crashed. Weiss dot exe had failed.
"You..." was the only thing she could muster for the moment. Her poor damaged brain was still rebooting. Blake had been the quiet, reserved faunus girl that she, Ruby, and Yang shared a room with during their time at Beacon.
"...Kissed..." She was back home in Menagerie, wasn't she? With her father, her mother, and Sun, if should recall correctly. Wasn't she with him romantically? Like as in dating? Wasn't Blake straight?
"...Blake?" the words finally poured from her mouth, an odd sensation rolling off her tongue. Ruby and Blake? But...they all lived in the same room! She would have noticed!
"Yeah, it wasn't like we dated or anything! I just admitted to her one day that I needed to know how to kiss! She helpfully obliged! And, if I'm being honest here..."
Weiss could tell Ruby wasn't being honest, here.
"Her cat-like tongue does wonders to you neck. It's a surprise I even went on my date at all after that session."
Weiss frowned "What do you mean, 'went on your date'? Weren't you dating Blake?"
"Holy cow, Weiss, it's like you weren't even listening. Blake just taught me how to kiss...passionately..." Weiss could see the girl next to her start burning up. "So I could impress my uh... real date. She, uh, may have given me refresher courses every so often as well."
That's hot.
There was a lot of very poorly hidden anxiety in Ruby's voice. It sounded almost like she didn't want to talk about it. Like she wanted to avoid this topic at all costs. Weiss stupidly pressed on.
"A real date with whom?" Weiss tried to pry.
"I don't think you want to know, Weiss."
Of course I want to know! I only will want to kill them a little! "As long as it isn't Jaune, I'll be fine, Rubes"
Ruby looked away out the passenger window. Her face was visibly pained.
Uh oh.
"It was Jaune."
Scratch that. I want to kill him a lot.
"YOU DATED JAUNE?" Weiss nearly shouted Ruby through the door.
"Calm down, you crazy person, it was only for six months!" came the reply from the scared girl. Her defensive tone had an air of fear to it. But not fear of the shouting.
Oh, this was not good. Six months meant at least three dates. And three dates means...
"Weiss, seriously! Jaune was... sweet to me! He was kind, and observant, and he… uh... took me on dates, and he listened to me, and he played me his guitar! I don't know w-why you hate him!"
Because he violated MY Ruby
"I don't hate him, Ruby, I just don't see what you saw in him, that's all!" Weiss lied, hoping that Ruby would bite.
"He was... gentle...he actually... cared about me."
Gentle? No. No no. NONONONONO.
"The first thing I remember about you is you shouting at me and then us blowing up! Jaune was kind enough to help me when I was in need, Weiss." The brunette shot at her, a deadly glare in her eye.
The atmosphere in the car had gone from awkward to playful to volatile very quickly. The two girls sat in silence for the next two hours until the low fuel light came back on. Weiss pulled the truck off at a little town and pulled up at a gas station, shutting the truck off next to one of the pumps. She decided there was something she had to ask, no matter how much she knew it would hurt to hear it.
"Ruby, I..." she trailed off. The girl next to her finally made eye contact again. "I just wanted to know if you guys ever..." she couldn't finish the question. She saw Ruby's eyes flare.
"Yes."
The answer was curt, short, and to the point. It sounded… distressed? Her brain raced to come up with some form of explanation. None came. Weiss had started to cry. Ruby's words cut through her like a thousand falling axes. She understood that when two people entered a romantic relationship, there was bound to be an element of sexuality eventually. She just wanted that element to be with Ruby. But why had there been such hesitation? Why did Ruby sound so… disconnected to it?
Oh my god I'm a terrible person.
Weiss slumped her shoulders and leaned against the wheel, not wanting Ruby to see her cry. Pain flooded through her. Before, it was because she knew she wouldn't get to be her friend's first. Now it was because she thought she would never get her at all. Ruined it. Fucking ruined it, you dumb idiot.
"I'm sorry" were the only words she could push out past the tears and the soft silk of her coat's sleeves, which were now plastered in makeup. There was a sudden warmth around her shoulders. Ruby had slid across the seat and laid her arms around the weeping heap, gently brushing her hair with her hand.
"No, Weiss, don't cry. It's just..."
Weiss could feel Ruby's chest fall in a heavy sigh while she tried for the right thing to say. Her voice was shaking. Uncertain.
"You seemed so angry at me over my... choice. Like you were j...jealous. I thought you were going to hate me and I would lose you. I lashed out. I'm sorry."
Through her sodden face she could see that Ruby had begun to cry as well. "Lose...me...?" Weiss asked, shaking.
"Weiss..." there was a pause, one that felt to the alabaster-skinned girl like an eternity. "I love you."
Now, there had been many instances in the past where Ruby and Weiss's lips had come to meet. Each time it was one hundred percent accidental. One such time, Ruby had been tired and was napping on Weiss's bed, when the latter had burst into the room to flop down onto what she thought would be an empty mattress. Another had been a time when Weiss and Blake had been practising a Gymnastic routine where Blake was stood upon the other girl's shoulders. Weiss had lost her balance and Ruby, who had been observing, tried to stabilize the falling girl and had received a face-full of best friend. And even earlier that day at the fuel pump, Weiss had tried to ask to borrow Ruby's scarf, but because of their almost cuddling proximity, had accidentally pushed her lips against Ruby's. Any casual observer might have accused the two of being characters in a sappy romance movie. Truth was, they were just very unlucky.
But now, after hearing the words 'I', 'love', and 'you' come from the face of the woman she was so desperate for, Weiss realized that all of her bad luck had paid off. Their eyes closed, and their lips came together.
And for the first time in eight years, Ruby and Weiss kissed on purpose.