Weiss did buy them Christmas gifts. Ruby was delighted.
She had gotten Ruby a brand spanking new notebook. A leather-bound one no less, with a cool little ribbon for book-marking and everything. She had gotten a few glimpses at Ruby's old notebook, where she'd idly sketch during the boring lectures, or when inspiration struck her at any given moment. She had to admit that yes, she was actually impressed with how well Ruby drew. Ruby was just glad she hadn't seen her sketches of Weiss.
She'd gotten Yang a set of new punching gloves, they were yellow, Yang loved them. She had immediately tried them on and thrown a vicious right hook, flexing her bicep in satisfaction afterwards. Both Blake and Weiss blushed at that, Blake more than Weiss, of course. Ruby was half-way between throwing up in her own mouth a little bit and cooing at them.
She'd gotten Blake books. Like, a bunch of books. Weiss had to guess at which ones Blake hadn't read, but that she would be interested it (it was in vain, Blake was never not happy to read most things). She'd smiled in quiet satisfaction, and Weiss looked satisfied herself with acing the gifts.
So now Ruby was going to give Weiss her gift. It was after Christmas, but the sentiment still remained. Besides, she didn't think Weiss would mind much anyway. January was lounging about, just around the corner. Ruby didn't want to let the new year past by without giving it to Weiss. She had painted it in class, painstakingly making sure it was as perfect as she could get it, no colouring out of the lines or nothing.
The snowflake was put in a little clear plastic box, held up at just the right angle. Ruby wrapped it, and it was... Yeah, the wrapping probably wasn't up to Weiss' standards, but she didn't have much time left after actually making the damn thing, okay? Ruby held it in her hands as she walked out of class. She'd texted Weiss beforehand, asking her to wait for her in the parking lot after class. She walked there nearly on muscle memory alone as she carefully handled the gift.
God, she really hoped Weiss would like it. It probably would be like the worst thing ever if Weiss was disappointed, like even in a little bit. Ruby would melt into a puddle and cry, or like freeze into a solid ice block and get thrown into the ocean. Or both, in that order exactly. And no, she wasn't exaggerating! She really wanted Weiss to like it. It was important, she wanted to see Weiss smile. Always.
"Oh no you don't, not again," a voice came from in front of her as two solid hands place themselves on her shoulders, stopping her dead in her tracks. It startled her, alerting her to exactly how deep in her thoughts she was. That was a bad habit. Ruby looked up, snapping herself out of her reverie. Oh, speak of the devil.
Weiss had a smirk on her face- like one of those honest to God, 'I-know-you're-kind-of-a-klutz-but-not-this-time-doofus' smiles, in the most good-natured way possible. Ruby felt equal parts embarrassed and endeared. Weiss knew her, huh? Though, to be all sorts of fair, this wasn't exactly that hard to call out. It was how they had met, after all.
And look at them now.
"Weiss," Ruby smiled, quickly hiding her hands behind her back. Weiss quirked a brow, crossing her arms.
"That was very clearly a present, Ru-"
"No! Shut up, don't ruin the surprise!"
Weiss rolled her eyes. "Alright, fine. Oh Ruby, whatever could that possibly be behind your back, wrapped in wrapping paper?"
"Excellent question, Watson," Ruby smiled, tapping a finger against her nose.
"Oh I am so not your Watson," Weiss pointed at her, the scowl on her face unable to fight against the smile that rose and bloomed on her face shortly afterwards.
"Watson, focus!" Ruby exclaimed, swiping the hand that Weiss pointed at her with. Weiss rolled her eyes even harder, and Ruby was, just so excited about all of this. That she could make these kinds of jokey-jokes with Weiss, all easy and without hesitation. She was happy that she could say these kinds of things without thinking, and she would be rewarded with Weiss smiling, smiling like the motion belonged to her, all for her.
"So, you gonna tell me what it is?" Weiss cocked a hip and crossed her arms.
Ruby blew a strand of hair out of her face, and cleared her throat. She presented the gift, suddenly very acutely aware of exactly how bad the wrapping job was.
"This is for you," Ruby said, and she had to admit, she sounded braver than she felt. Maybe that's all it was. Just to keep plowing through all the fear and pretend like you were more put together than what you felt like.
Weiss looked stunned. She looked from the present to Ruby, then back to the present again.
"For me?" she repeated, her tone halfway between incredulous and touched. Ruby nodded once.
"I uh- just. Merry Christmas, you know?" Ruby blushed then, handing over the box to Weiss. "You gave us gifts, and I was- I've been working on this for a while. So."
"Thank you, Ruby," Weiss handled the present like it was fragile, like she couldn't believe it was a physical entity presently in her hands, in reality right at that moment. She ran her thumb over it, her gaze soft.
"Open it," Ruby told her. Weiss quirked a brow. Ruby shrugged, blushing again. God, she had wrapped it so badly. "Sorry the wrapping's so bad."
Weiss smiled, and it was honest and happy. "I don't mind."
She opened it with precision, unsticking the taped parts carefully and unfolding the crumpled paper. She slipped the wrapping paper in her bag, then examined the sculpture contained in the box.
Ruby bit her lip, actively suppressing the need to say something, to open her big dumb mouth and speak big dumb words at Weiss.
She didn't need to.
"Ruby, this is amazing," she peered at it, turning the box around and examining it from different angles. Her eyes were bright, consuming every inch of detail that Ruby had crafted into it. "You made this? How long have you been working on this?"
Ruby rocked on her heels, grabbing the straps of her bag and looking somewhere over Weiss' head.
"Like a month," she mumbled. Weiss' eyes widened. Ruby cringed. Of course she'd said it, the one thing that she was adamant about not wanting her to know about. God, Ruby was such a teenager.
"Since we first met?" Weiss asked. Ruby chewed on her bottom lip, still not meeting her gaze as she nodded. Weiss' mouth was agape.
"I... got mad at you. And I shouted at you," Weiss said. Ruby looked at her then. She looked more surprised, in more disbelief than she'd ever been before. "And you just... help me out. And make me this," she held up the box. "This amazing thing. What- Ruby Rose, you are..."
Weiss stood silent for a moment, searching her mind for the words.
"Hey, Weiss it's-"
Weiss rushed forward in one quick motion and hugged Ruby. A brief thing, she barely could even wrap her arms around Weiss before she pulled herself away, her ears red.
"Thank you, Ruby," Weiss said.
"You're welcome, Weiss," Ruby replied after a short pause. Despite it all, Ruby understood what Weiss couldn't convey. Somehow, with Weiss, Ruby didn't need the words. Didn't have to hear them to understand them. She knew, she just knew. All just to put a smile on her face. Ruby could stand do it more. She wanted to.
Weiss held the box up once again, looking at the sculpture.
"Come on. Do you want to come over?" Weiss carefully put the box in her bag. She motioned out towards the street. Ruby smiled.
"Yeah. I'd like to."
It was the first time Ruby'd been to Weiss' place just to hang out. No crying Weiss, no 'I-need-to-apologise-to-Blake' Weiss. Just Weiss Schnee, Ruby Rose, and the infinite expanse of their friendship that had yet to be explored.
And the infinite expanse of Weiss' room. Yeesh.
"You know Weiss, your room is kind of..." she glanced over to Weiss, who quirked a brow. Ruby deposited her bag on the couch. "Empty."
Weiss pursed her lips, looking around the room. "I suppose it could use a bit more flair?"
"Mm yeah, but I wasn't really talking about that. It just doesn't really feel like, you," Ruby explained, brushing some hair from her eyes.
"This was how my room was in Atlas," Weiss offered up. Ruby narrowed her gaze at the other girl.
"So you definitely need a makeover then."
Weiss thought for a while, then nodded. "I think so."
Ruby threw her arms up. "I can totally help!"
Weiss thought for a little while longer, then shrugged. "I suppose you can't do any worse."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Ruby complained. Weiss motioned first at herself, her general aesthetic, then to Ruby.
Right. Chanel vs Gap Kids.
"Just not much aesthetic overlap between the two of us, Ruby," Weiss informed her sadly. Ruby Scoffed, with a capital S, because Atlas aesthetics were dumb and her comparative home-town, girl-next-door, oil-and-grease-and-cookies aesthetic were perfectly fine, thank you very much.
"Yeah, well. Some Christmas decorations or something, at least," Ruby made a frame with her hands, pointing at the corner. "See? That spot is perfect for a Christmas tree."
"Christmas is over," Weiss said, and Ruby whipped her head around to scowl at Weiss.
"Christmas season lasts from November to when the snow clears, and you're a heretic if you claim otherwise!"
"You're too excited for Christmas and that is problematic. Let Thanksgiving and New Years breathe."
Ruby sighed. "I do love me some Christmas," she said, staring out the window at the snow like a wistful wife waiting for her lover to come home.
"Speaking of, how was your Christmas?" Weiss asked.
It was as innocent a question as any. Hell, it was just small talk. Ruby should have expected it. But it still hit like a punch to the gut. Ruby immediately seized up, a palpable action that Weiss took notice of. She quirked her brow, then let the joking demeanour come down once she saw that this wasn't just the usual Ruby quirk.
She cast her eyes down, clenching her fists and digging her nails into her palm. She shook her head, clearing her throat and looking back up at Weiss.
"It was fine. It was good," Ruby said, about as normal as she could muster up the will to be. Unfortunately for her, Weiss had a pretty good bullshit detector when people weren't being genuine. Years of hanging around people that were schmoozing off her family's name and fortune would probably do that to someone.
"That doesn't like a fine, good Christmas. Ruby, did something happen?" Weiss looked at Ruby, and she could see the concern in her eyes.
"No!" Ruby cleared her throat, her cheeks flushed. She bit her bottom lip and shook her head. "No," she said, this time with a more even tone. Weiss stood up, walking closer to Ruby. Half of her wanted to flinch and move backwards instinctively. The other half looked at the older girl and calmed. Weiss was still water. Ruby was a torrential downpour. One had to win out over the other.
"You know, you can tell me, right?" Weiss didn't look away from Ruby. Solid as a rock. Ruby sighed.
She caved. She always caved.
"I'm sorry, Christmas is just... a hard time. I, uh- Yang and I lost our mom around this time," Ruby finally admitted. She didn't know why she had such a hard time with it this year. Maybe it was because she was finally turning 16, and she was upset that her mother wasn't around to see it. She was, by most accounts, a fully grown woman. Or at least on the highway to something like that. And Summer Rose would never get to see that. She would always see the child that Ruby used to be, that needed. Not the woman that gave. Tried to give. "It's a little... I don't know, sensitive?"
"Ruby, I'm sorry. I had no idea," Weiss placed a hand on her arm, and through her sweater, she could feel the warmth. She was warm. Of course she was.
"It's okay, Weiss. You couldn't have known," Ruby smiled at her, tight-lipped. She didn't like to think about all of it for too long. Not really, most of the time. But Christmas in their household tended to bring nothing but long stretches of isolation and silence, and that tended to bring about the space and time to think about it. Briefly, she wondered how Yang and her father were faring, if they were any better than her.
"Her name was Summer Rose," Ruby said, after a stretch of silence. She took Weiss' hand from her arm, holding it in her own. She swiped a thumb across Weiss' knuckles. She really was warm. "And she was the best. And I was nine when she died. Went out one day, got into a car crash- the other guy was drunk. She died on the scene."
Ah, here came the tears. Ruby wished she could just be indignant, be irritated, be snide and cruel and make fun of herself and make it all go away. Treat it like some strange inside joke that she shared with herself. No dice. More often than not, this was what it ended up being like, only she was usually alone. She sniffled, wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and looked up at Weiss.
"I miss her. She used to wear this cool white coat. I have the same colour eyes as her. She didn't take shit from anybody, and she used to bring me and Yang to the movies and sneak a bunch of candy in."
"Hey," Weiss said, and she squeezed her hand tight. "She sounds amazing. I'm willing to bet she would be really proud of you. You're the kindest, most compassionate, most pure person I've ever met. You're a child prodigy, not to mention really talented. She did a good job. And if there is a somewhere after here, I think she'd be really happy to see what you're doing."
Weiss, with shaking hands, wiped a few tears away from Ruby's face. Half of her wanted to just keep the hand there. Ruby smiled.
"Thanks, Weiss."
"Come on," Weiss said after a while, standing up and offering a hand that Ruby took without hesitation. "I know a good distraction, if you're up for it."
A distraction sounded like the perfect thing to Ruby.
"Klein did tell me you used to ice-skate," Ruby said, holding up her pair of ice skates at eye level. Weiss had taken them to the local ice skating rink. Ruby had almost forgotten its existence, but Vale was home to many a dark secrets. Sinister ice skating rinks and malicious bowling alleys and such.
Strange, rich, pretty girls that took you by the hand and led you to them. Vale.
It was empty, and the owner seemed to know Weiss. Or at least knew of her, when she mentioned her name. He had nodded vigorously and produced a pair of white-gold skates, pristine and shiny. Weiss had thanked him and gotten another pair of skates for Ruby. Not as fancy, of course, but hey, what did she know about ice skates? Ruby could barely walk without tripping on her own laces half the time.
Weiss scoffed, lacing up her own skates. "Did he tell you that I was amazing at it?"
Ruby giggled. "Well I hope you're good enough to teach me, I don't know if I have the grace for it."
"You'll be fine," Weiss rolled her eyes. "Put your skates on."
Ruby grumbled, sitting herself on the bench and slipping her sneakers off.
"How do you even know about this place?" Ruby asked. Weiss gave a little half-shrug.
"In my relocation to Vale, my family may have... booked this place for me," Weiss told her. She seemed vaguely embarrassed.
"Wait, like, the whole thing?" Ruby gaped at her. Weiss tucked some hair behind her ear and nodded.
"Well, it wasn't...!" she ducked her head down and spoke in a lower tone. "It wasn't like this place was getting a lot of business, and we paid the owner handsomely. My sister, Winter, thought it would be nice for me to practice here. I haven't much been in the mood to do it until now."
"Wow, so you were like, serious about ice skating back in Atlas?" Ruby tied off one lace.
"Well. There wasn't much that I wasn't serious about back then. But I liked it, at one point in time. It was nice. Relaxing, I suppose," Weiss considered with a far-off look. "Anyway, I told the owner, Mr Greene, to keep this place open to whomever wanted to skate. I would call ahead if I intended to use it."
Ruby tied off the other lace, then with a grim look towards the death-knives strapped to the bottom of her feet, she tried to stand up. God. What kind of kooky invention was this? Here, put these metal blades on your feet. All balanced? Sick. Now go slide on some ice, and do some flips and all that junk. Absolutely insane. Ruby waved her arms all about as she tried to balance on her feet.
Two swift hands steadied themselves on her shoulders, giving her support. Ruby breathed out a sigh of relief while Weiss looked at her in amusement.
"I've got you," she said, taking steady steps backwards as Ruby struggled to put one foot in front of the other and walk. "Just focus and walk forwards. You'll balance it out. One foot in front of the other."
Ruby blew a breath out as she walked, still unsteady. "One front in front of the other, got it."
Slowly, slowly, they made their way to the ice, Weiss's grip solid and steady and Ruby hung on for dear life. She looked like she was perpetually a quick second away from laughing at Ruby, but as much as she wanted to be petulant and annoyed about it, she didn't mind it at all.
Weiss slowly let go of Ruby's hands as they both stood on the ice. Ruby stuck both her hands out to balance. Weiss, meanwhile, was gracefully skating backwards, hands behind her back. Ruby stuck her tongue out, and Weiss did actually laugh at that, and it was light and airy and Ruby liked the sound of it.
"Be back in a minute," Weiss told her, her smile a crooked half-slant. She picked up speed as she skated backwards.
And she glided. She flew across the ice, and Ruby could barely keep track of her, and she couldn't tear her eyes away from her.
Her ivory hair halo'd around her as she leapt off the ice and spun, her hands clutched close to her chest. She landed smoothly, still moving in wide arcs around the ice. She looked serene as she skated, spinning and leaping and gliding all around. It was mesmerizing. She was beautiful. After a quick minute of this, Weiss slowed herself and slid towards Ruby.
"Woah," was all Ruby managed to say. Weiss froze up, blushing. She smiled, an explosive thing crashing on her face. Weiss tucked her hair behind both her ears. She cleared her throat, and offered her hands to Ruby.
She took them, and let Weiss guide her. She couldn't keep her eyes off Weiss the rest of the time they were there. It was like, she always had this perpetual glow, a small smile that always followed her around. Her eyes were wide and when she smiled, they grew smaller and the corners of it crinkled up.
Ruby didn't manage much more than just learning how to move. A great success, if you asked her. A couple of hours after, they sat at the bench, behind the plastic screen that divided the rink from the seats.
"I know you know, but I feel like I have to say it too: you're amazing at this," Ruby gestured at the ice rink. Weiss smiled.
"I think you'll find, Ruby Rose, that I am amazing at a lot of things," Weiss said, and Ruby laughed.
"I hope I'll figure out the whole list of things you're amazing at."
Weiss shrugged, smiling. Then she bit her bottom lip. "I hope I made your Christmas a little bit better. Despite everything with Blake and-"
"Hey," Ruby said, and Weiss turned to look at her. "Meeting you has been the best Christmas I could ever ask for, Weiss."
Weiss didn't speak for a while, and Ruby didn't feel the need to either. Eventually, Ruby's hand found her way into Weiss', and they just sat there for a while.