Hello, there! Faster update, this time! Well... faster than last time, at least. Also, it's very late in the night, so I apologize if I sound incoherent. Anyway! I would just like to tell everyone that this story DOES have my own views on the faunus and semblances, so it may be proven wrong in the actual show. This is just what I think. :)
For those who don't know (or have forgotten, for those few that read it), my views on faunus culture are explained just a little in the one-shot 'Way Up North' on my profile page. A certain scene references some facts from that story, which you will know when you read. If you have any questions about something, tell me so in a PM and I'll answer it! Last thing, I promise, I may be getting a Tumblr page so that I can upload some art for RWBY (among other things) and my story. If that happens, I will put a link on my main page and those who want to check it out can check it out. I blame Mikotyzini, you silly person. ^^
Phew! Well, that was a lot of stuff! Thank you for reading, everybody, and I hope you enjoy!
"Ahhhhhhhh-haaaaaaa!"
Blake's eyes drift open, bleary vision slowly adjusting to the darkness of the room as she glances around. It was the fourth time, tonight, that she had heard the sound of Anna's wails from the nursery. Truth be told, the baby hadn't been sleeping very well. And, she was letting her mothers know it. Very loudly. Yang hadn't been kidding when she said that the girl had a pair of lungs on her. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see her girlfriend starting to slowly sit up.
"No."
"Mm?"
"You're going to stay right here and go back to sleep, Yang. I'll go put her back to bed."
"Blke, i's rly not..." Yang mumbles, her voice slightly slurred from her sleepiness. After all, she's insisted on going to take care of Anna the last couple times (and, somehow managing to convince Blake that it was okay).
"Hush." Blake murmurs, giving the blonde a tender kiss on the cheek before starting to sit up. "You've been up more often than necessary. You're not going to get me to agree with you, this time… Get some sleep, love. I can handle her."
"Mn… What if she's hungry, again?"
"I doubt that's the problem, Yang."
"She's just so restless… I don't know how to put her to sleep and have her STAY asleep, y'know? She'll just sleep for an hour or so and wake up… Should we move her back in here?" Yang says quietly, rubbing her eyes and glancing toward the door with tired eyes. The constant interruption of sleep has definitely taken it's toll on the new mother, bags beginning to form under her eyes. "Maybe that would help?"
"I think that being able to hear us sleeping would only keep her awake. It'll take some time for us all to adjust, Yang. Her included. We just have to play around with what works and what doesn't, what makes her most comfortable. What happened to 'no worries', hm?" Blake asks, leaning her head in to brush her lips to Yang's slowly. The blonde sighs appreciatively into her lips as they kiss for a few moments, pulling back afterward and smiling sleepily at the faunus above her.
"It went away after I started getting an hour, tops, of sleep a night."
"You're preaching to the choir, at this point. Try sleeping with MY ears, then you can complain." The dark-haired woman teases, sneaking another kiss in before rolling off the bed. She lands on her feet in a crouch, causing her girlfriend to snicker. "What?"
"So ninja, even when you're just goin' to put your daughter back to sleep..." She yawns in response, stretching and giving her girlfriend an unintentionally good view of her very full, round breasts… It makes Blake aware that they hadn't been intimate in a week or two. They had been a mixture of far too tired and busy to do so, Anna requiring quite a bit more attention to be kept happy than you would expect from a newborn. She really was a nice and quiet baby, but she had a problem with being startled very easily. Not only that, but the problems with sleep were beginning to wear on the entire family, Anna included. But, they were hoping that they would be able to figure out something to help her sleep through the night, eventually.
Anna's disability definitely made things a little harder, in that respect. Both of the mothers were putting their focus completely into adjusting what they had planned for into something more friendly and comfortable for their blind child. They loved every minute of seeing Anna, but it was certainly a taxing experience.
Until they got used to all this, anything else would have to wait.
She makes a mental note of the fact that they hadn't, sure that Yang would appreciate a little... down time when they were both up to it.
"You know me… Have to keep up my skills."
With that, she stands back up and begins to walk out the door (though, not without holding a hand to her mouth as she hears Yang mumbling to herself and cuddling closer into the pillows). It's a short walk to the nursery, her eyes soon greeted with the calming lavender of the darkened room. In the crib ahead, she can see the rustling of sheets and tiny fists of a very upset baby. Anna is wailing quite loudly, her tail swaying erratically to voice her irritability. Not that Blake needed any indication to her daughter being upset, but that sight certainly reaffirms it.
"Aww, Anna, what's the problem?" She coos gently, lifting the baby from her crib as she continues crying out. "Is my little Anna having trouble sleeping? Shhh..."
She gently sways her body as she holds Anna close to her, little sniffles and sputters coming from the girl as her little hands hold Blake's kimono as tightly as she can. She definitely seems to calm down a little from the both the reassuring tone and being able to touch the soft fabric on her mother's skin. Anna whines quietly, blonde tail continuing to sway below her (albeit with slightly slower motions than before).
"See? That's not so hard, is it? Shhh..." Blake whispers to her daughter, pressing a small kiss to the small tuft of blonde hair atop her head. Anna's blank eyes stare ever forward, her little cheek pressed to her mother's chest as tiny whimpers quietly slip from her lips. In response, the faunus begins to slowly sway around the room. She tries to think of what to do, what her own maternal instincts were telling her to do…
Almost without thinking, she begins to quietly sing.
She sings in a tongue that many would consider to be long dead, but was still known in the most remote of areas. She doesn't use it often, if ever, for the sole purpose that it made her even more a target to those who hated faunus than she already was with ears and tail. She had only really ever used it for times where she was to do missions in areas where villages of cat faunus who were still clinging desperately to their old ways were located. The first time she had even used it in years was on a mission with Ren and Nora, where it had been necessary in order for the two to make head or tail (no pun intended) of what the panicked faunus were saying.
That was forced, but letting the silky sound out of her mouth feels more natural than it ever has before.
She doesn't remember where she learned this particular song in the language… The only image that comes to mind when she tries to remember is a silhouette holding her small body tight, a beautiful voice filling her ears as it sung this very song. It's a memory that is undoubtedly bittersweet.
She wishes she could remember more of that silhouette, but… Then again, it would probably hurt her more to remember. And, she doesn't want that.
She feels Anna calming down in her arms, the little face of her daughter directing it's attention toward the sound of Blake's singing. Little, blonde ears flick toward the sounds and a small, happy sound comes from her lips. Blake stops singing for a moment, smiling and kissing Anna's head with a pleased smile. "You like that, sweetheart?" She asks, receiving a happy (and, thankfully, sleepy) gurgle in response.
"Well, we'll have to keep that up, won't we?" She murmurs, giving another gentle kiss between fuzzy ears. Another sleepy sound passes through the girl's lips as she presses into her mother, leading into a gentle purring that does everything it can to melt Blake's heart. She starts to slowly sway around the room again, her lullaby once more filling the room. It's a rather… relaxing experience for both involved. The words spill from her mouth softly, Blake's own eyes closing as she sings to her daughter. By the end of the song, she can only hear the soft sounds of Anna sleeping.
"Good… Sleep well, Anna." She whispers, slowly walking over to the crib.
"That really did the trick..."
Blake turns her head slowly around, seeing Yang leaning against the door frame. She has a heartwarming smile on her face, strands of golden blonde hanging down slightly over the features. The faunus blushes a little and bites her lip a little. "How… How long have you been standing there?"
"Not long… I heard a beautiful voice in the nursery and just had to check it out..." Yang replies, lilac eyes meeting amber and holding them there. "Just as I suspected… A beautiful woman was right at the end."
"You should be sleeping, Yang..."
The blonde snorts, pushing herself off the frame and into the room. "We should all be sleepin', babe. Restless runs in the family, it seems."
Yang comes closer, her tanned arms soon wrapping around Blake and moving her closer. Her face nuzzles into Blake's neck, a content sigh coming from her. "Where'd you get that song from? I don't think I've ever heard you sing that..."
"I don't know, it just… came to me." She murmurs, glancing down at Anna as the child sleeps peacefully in her arms. "It felt natural, I guess."
"It must have been… She really brings it out, doesn't she?"
"She really does..." Blake replies, finding a smile coming to her face as she hears the affection in her girlfriend's voice. The blonde certainly wasn't lacking in affection for either of 'her girls' (as Yang had started refering to Blake and Anna as), her tone completely full of love. "I don't think I've used that language that freely in years..."
"Well, I recall you cryin' out somethin' in that tongue the first time MY tongue did it's magic..."
"Oh, hush." Blake replies with a smirk, smacking Yang's thigh with her tail as the blonde giggles behind her. "That's not what I meant, and you know it."
"I know." Yang says, making sure to give her girlfriend a light kiss on the neck. "It's fun to think about, though."
"Well, there goes the moment..."
"Nah, it's still here. You just gotta pay attention, is all. To me, it's not surprisin' that you'd know just what to sing… Always thought you'd be a really calmin' presence for her, Blake. Ya always manage to calm ME down when I'm upset, after all… If ya can do that with me, you can really easily do it with an overall calm baby… Plus, ya got a great voice. Don't tell Ruby I said so, but you've totally got a better singin' voice than Weiss~" Yang chuckles, winking and earning a small laugh from Blake.
"Oh, definitely not. Ruby will fight you tooth and nail on that."
"Yeah, if the great 'Nora v. Ruby' war was anythin' to go by. Who won that one, by the way?"
"Neither. Both got dragged off with their respective spouses by their ear."
"Oh, right. Heh, the look on Weiss' face was hilarious~"
Looking back down at Anna, Blake's ears flick a few times before she directs a glance back at Yang. "We should get her back in bed. Maybe she'll sleep through the night, this time..."
"I wouldn't doubt it. You should sing her to sleep more often, Blake. She really seemed to like that…" Yang replies with a grin, directing Blake's attention to the contented look on Anna's face as she coos in her sleep. "It should be our nightly ritual or somethin'..."
"I'd be happy to… Won't we?" She coos to her daughter, smiling gently as she walks a little closer to the crib. She sets little Anna slowly into it, covering her with one of the blankets and stepping back. Yang's arms, once more, find themselves snaking around Blake's waist. Though, this time, the tug backwards is a little more forceful. Another kiss is gently pressed to her neck to contrast the tug.
"I love you." Yang murmurs, resting her chin atop Blake's shoulder. "You know that, right?"
Blake tilts her head to lean in and kiss at Yang's lips, a small purr coming from the faunus. "Of course I do, Yang..." She murmurs, giving another few kisses before pausing a hair's width away from another.
She can practically feel the blonde shiver in response to her breath brushing her lips, lilac eyes shimmering as she tries to lean in closer. "I was just… I know we haven't really had… time for each other, lately..."
"Well, with a new baby in the house, I wouldn't doubt it."
"I didn't want ya to think I wasn't because I didn't want to-"
"Yang, don't say that. I know… We're not always going to be able to have time for each other. Especially not when Anna is getting used to everything. That doesn't mean we're avoiding each other purposely… unless you really are..." Blake says, directing a smirk and a playful nip to her lover's lip.
"Yeah, like I could ever ignore the most amazing woman ever… I'd have to be an idiot to do that. Biggest idiot of all time, Yang Xiao Long." The blonde chuckles, Blake smiling in response and leaning in to let another few kisses touch to her girlfriend's lips. "Biggest… idiot... ever..."
When the small kisses are ended by Blake, Yang doesn't seem to quite be ready to stop. Her breaths are coming out in small, light pants, her body pressing closer to the faunus… clear signs that Blake has picked up on over the years. "Blake..."
"Yes, Yang?"
"I, um..." She can hear the blonde gulp quietly, something that only Blake knew that she often did. Unbeknownst to the public eye, who saw her as an unstoppable juggernaut badass, Yang definitely had moments that anyone would classify as absolutely adorable. "You wanna…?"
"Do what, Yang? Read a book? Have a midnight snack?" Blake asks with a smirk, her tail swishing up to gently trace the blonde's thigh. "I thought you were tired..."
"Well, I'm… really awake, right now. Might need a little… somethin' to tucker me out."
"Mm. Very well… Bedroom. I'm going to make sure Anna's comfortable. Clothes off by the time I get there or I'll roll right over and go to sleep. I don't think either of us really want to waste time messing around."
Yang makes a happy sound against Blake, already excited despite her slight sleepiness. It was totally worth a little less sleep to spend some much-needed time with the love of her life. "Thanks, babe… Love you so much~ You're the most awesome girlfriend ever!"
"I try."
Yang moves from behind Blake to lean into the crib and press a gentle kiss to Anna's forehead. "Night, Anna. Let's hope you get a good night's sleep, sweetie… You're probably as exhausted as us, huh? Well, mama's lullaby should help you out… She's got a beautiful voice, doesn't she? I think so, too."
Blake smiles at Yang's words, the woman then turning around and winking at her before walking toward the door slowly. "I'll be ready~"
A light slap to her behind sends her from the room with a happy laugh, Blake shaking her head in amusement. She walks closer to the crib, amber eyes glancing over the tiny form sleeping away. "Your mother's silly, isn't she? She loves you so much, Anna… We both do. Sleep well, my beautiful child." She murmurs, leaning down to kiss Anna's head in the same place that Yang had.
She pulls the soft blankets gently over the sleeping child, smiling warmly when she hears the girl coo happily in response to the touch. For the rest of the night, at least, she seems to have found a good sleep. She's peaceful and so comfortable… It was something she had been wanting for her daughter since she arrived. With a final smile at the sleeping baby, she takes a few silent steps out of the door.
She was promptly tackled by Yang as soon as she entered their room.
"And, so, I would like to thank you all for coming to support this important and crucial cause. For too long, we have turned a blind eye to the cruelty and lack of equality given to the faunus communities. You all are taking the first step to a new world. A world of peace and acceptance, free from the hatred of our forefathers… We will be different than them! Better in every way! With your help, we can bring the change that is so desperately needed." Weiss says with a determined voice, pacing slowly around with the microphone in her hand. She glances back out to the audience, her icy eyes glinting as she looks back down just a bit.
"With your assistance, we will give the White Fang the funds to aid faunus families. Laws for equality, scholarships for the brilliant minds held down by societal stigmas that they say they cannot do it, aid programs that give those in need the help they deserve instead of being ignored… Rose Dust will lead the charge of this movement, with a donation of one million lien!"
Silence is her response, her eyes glancing back out at her audience before a small, awkward cough comes from the pale woman. "*Ahem* You have to imagine that a rather large check is brought up right next to me..."
"Da!"
"Thank you, Anna, that is very helpful feedback. I shall have to work on that, won't I?" Weiss replies, her audience laughing a little bit.
Her audience consists of her wife, Yang, Blake, and her niece. Quite an important audience, if she did say so, herself. Yang smiles, shifting the blonde girl on her lap just slightly and tussling her blonde hair a bit. Anna giggles in response, leaning into the touch. Ruby, somehow managing to contain her desire to scoop up the child from her sister's hands and squeeze the heck out of her, casts her eye back to her wife and nods. "I don't think you need to change anything, sweetie! It was good! Very inspiring!"
"I don't know… I think it still needs work, perhaps more revising. I'm talking to both important officials and to faunus. It has to be perfect. This is the speech that starts off the the event. It has to do everything to convince everyone of the changes we want to make. Ugh..." Weiss sighs, running her hand through her white hair. "So much is riding on this event… It may have the fun things on the outside, but on the inside is so much political maneuvering… We need to get more companies and politicians backing us, if we want to bring about these changes."
"Well, with you throwin' your weight around, that's definitely gonna turn heads. Ain't it? I mean, Rose Dust is one of the biggest companies out there. You doin' just about anythin' is gonna have people watchin' closely..."
"I realize that, Yang. And, that makes it all the more crucial-"
"And, I think you're doin' just fine."
Blake nods in agreement, her tail swaying gently behind her. "I agree. Your words are quite inspiring. And, while it may seem to you that you're not doing enough… That large sum of money will definitely kick-start the White Fang's campaign. But, it's more than just throwing money at a cause for the publicity of it. You really believe in this cause. You're passionate about it. And, that shows. Those who don't give pause and think on your words weren't really the best to help out, anyway."
"Couldn't have said it better, myself!" Ruby says, nodding and shooting up to move over to her wife. She gives the woman a kiss, giggling when Weiss blushes and rolls her eyes (though, she can't help leaning in to kiss Ruby back a little). Anna, who has a petal on her nose from Ruby's semblance being used, sneezes quietly and sniffles.
That certainly lightens the mood by quite a bit, everybody laughing lightly in response to the tiny girl. Though, Weiss covers her mouth to cover her embarrassingly girly laugh… not going at all unnoticed by her wife, who leans over to give a kiss to the pale woman's hand. "Honey, you've got an amazing laugh, don't hide it~!"
"Honey?" Yang snorts in laughter. "Oh my god, you're totally turnin' into THAT couple."
"What couple?"
"That couple that comes up with cutesy ways to refer to each other..." The blond replies, smirking before Blake cuts in with a smirk of her own.
"Who are you to say that, Yang? How many different things have you called me, over the years?"
"I… Well, um..."
"Let's remember some of them, shall we? Blake-y, sweetie, sweet-ums, love, lovie, babe, bae, baby," That particular bout of alliteration makes Ruby giggle, Yang putting her hand on her face. "Sexy, Blake-alicious, sex kitten (get it?)… Oh, and, my favorite, the Queen of Oral-"
"Hey! My sister AND our baby in the vicinity!"
"Better she hear it from me and not from the streets."
"Anna?"
"No, Ruby."
"Oh, you are bein' SO bad."
"Does she have a crown?" Ruby asks suddenly, causing both Blake and Yang to look over at her. "You said she was a queen? Queens have crowns. Duh..."
Weiss stares at her wife for a moment, not quite sure if Ruby actually thinks there's a crown involved or if she was simply playing along and teasing them. But, the way she just looks so innocently between the two of them… She… She had to be joking, right? "Erm… Ruby, you DO know that it was merely a figure of speech, correct?"
"Well, yeah! I was just asking if Blake wears a crown while she dines out."
Weiss falls right over.
Yang is covering her mouth with her hands, snorts and giggles forcing their way through them despite it all. Anna has moved her head toward Yang with a smile, little giggles of her own coming out whenever her mother shakes a little with laughter. It was official. Ruby had lost absolutely none of her cuteness. And, Yang thought that Ruby pretty much knew how cute she was, at this point of her life. Or, at least how cute Weiss found her. "You okay over there, princess? Can't go faintin' on stage, can ya?"
"The people I surround myself with..."
"Are absolutely delightful, right?" Yang interrupts with a grin, causing Weiss to groan. "Hey, you hafta admit that we're a lot better company than those mooks with suits that are always paying visits to your place all the time."
"On that, we can definitely agree."
"Maybe you could use a little more time with someone who knows how to talk about more than stocks an' bonds. We should all go out, somewhere!" Yang says, standing to her feet and resting Anna in her arms. The girl whines slightly at the sudden displacement, though quiets down when her little hand touches Yang's hair. The blonde smiles down at her and gives her a kiss before looking back up at Weiss. "Somewhere nice, I dunno. Just to hang out."
"That actually sounds quite nice..." Weiss admits with a nod. "Perhaps a park of some sort?"
"I believe that Oum Park is fairly close by." Blake says from her spot on the couch, stretching a bit as she stands to join Yang. "I think it would be nice to walk around… I know for a fact that Anna would enjoy the sounds. Especially birds."
"Ohhh, yeah, she DOES love her bird sounds. You know that stuffed blue bird you got way back when, Weiss? She loves that thing to death. She'll just squeeze it and listen to it make sounds, then laugh and laugh and laugh~"
"Glad that what I bought could be put to some use… You know, there WERE a few more things I wanted to get her. I saw a rather brilliant toy with a good amount of texture-" She stops when she sees Yang put her hand to her mouth, holding back laughter. "Oh, what is it, now?"
"Oh, nothing, Weiss~ Go ahead an' tell us all about the textured toy you wanted so much. I really wanna know about it!"
Weiss pouts at her in response, especially when Blake begins to snicker a little bit. "Oh, you two are AWFUL!"
"I prefer… brilliant."
"You two wouldn't know brilliant if it hit you right in the face. Here I am, trying to help you out, and you're making crude jokes. Some thanks I get."
"Are we going to the park, sometime?" Ruby asks from her position leaning on the wall, Anna somehow having gotten into her arms while everyone was talking. Yang stares at Ruby for a moment, wondering exactly how the redhead had done that before just letting it go. Ruby was good at things like that. "Cus, you old ladies are doing a WHOLE lotta talkin' and arguing~"
"Ruby Rose, what did you just call me?"
"Nothing, the love of my life and wife who is, OH, so beautiful~!" Ruby replies, batting her eyelashes and holding Anna up like a cute, baby shield against annoyance. "It was just an expression, right? Y'know, you guys are bickerin' and stuff…."
Yang laughs and shakes her hands, resting her hands on her hips and looking over at Ruby. "Ya dug yourself in a hole, Rubes. Now ya gotta dig yourself out~ Anyway, uh, Rubes?"
"Yeah?"
"Would you mind holdin' Anna for a bit? I gotta go change my shirt. I'd rather not go out in a shirt that's covered in spit-up spots. Blake, can ya get the baby bag ready?"
Blake nods, Ruby giving an enthusiastic 'of course I doooon't~', and the couple moves off to get everything ready. Ruby looks down at Anna, cooing at her with about the biggest smile Weiss has ever seen (well, maybe aside from their wedding day). "Gonna hang out with aunt Ruby, now, right? Aren't you excited?"
Anna's ears flick in response, her face directing toward the sound of Ruby's voice. Her hands reach up, finding a bit of Ruby's (about shoulder-length, at this moment) hair and curling her fingers around it. She doesn't tug it, instead just sort of shifting it between her fingers and making happy gurgles. Weiss, who has moved back toward the couch, catches a bit of the interaction out of the corner of her eye, soon finding herself staring as Ruby talks to the child. Anna seems to be enjoying herself, as Ruby just seems to have a way with children… But, it's not that that draws a soft blush to the pale woman's cheeks.
It's how natural it looks, time seeming to slow as Ruby casts her eye back towards her. It looks down at the baby for a moment, then looking back to Weiss as a sort of serene smile comes to her face.
"Right?"
Weiss shakes her head, snapping herself out of whatever trance she had been in to stare dumbly at her wife. "I-I'm sorry, what was that, Ruby?"
"I said, she sure likes hair, doesn't she?" Ruby replies with a smile, bobbing Anna a bit as the girl squeals happily . "She touches Yang's hair a lot, I know that..."
"Perhaps it has to do with touch. Yang does take extraordinary care of her hair… I don't think I've ever had someone own as many hair-care products as I do, and then some." Weiss murmurs, still trying to get control over the blush on her face. What exactly had that been all about? "I imagine it would be quite pleasant to the touch, for a child."
"Oh! She should touch your hair, then!"
"W-What?"
"Your hair is always SUPER soft! Plus… wouldn't you want a chance to hold her?"
"Ruby, I don't know… Kids don't always..."
"Weiss, c'mon… She's gonna love you, just talk to her! She reacts to you, even if she can't exactly talk yet. And, she's such a sweetie-pie! Aren't you~?" Ruby coos as she walks a little closer to Weiss, who sighs quietly and holds her arms out. "Let's go visit auntie Weiss, now!"
Anna is gently passed to Weiss, who intakes a deep breath in worry when she thinks she's holding her wrong (relaxing a bit when Ruby reassures her that everything is just fine). However, the pale woman is completely stiff, looking down at the faunus nervously. The baby stares blankly forward, not doing much other than letting her tail sway lightly behind her. Then, she starts to whimper and whine, the sound shooting a look of distress to Weiss' features. "I, um… What am I doing wrong? I knew this was a bad idea, just take her back, Ruby-"
"Weiss, you're bein' all stiff… If you're uncomfortable, she's gonna be uncomfortable, too. Just relax. And, talk to her, too. Remember, she can't see you. So, you have to let her know who you are... You're her auntie Weiss and you love her, right?" Ruby says gently, her voice doing a great deal to dispel Weiss' worries.
"Y-Yes."
"Well, let's hear it, then~"
Weiss looks back down at the child before relaxing herself just a little bit, letting her hand gently rub her back. "Um… Hello, little one..."
Anna's ears twitch at the slightly familiar tone of voice, having heard it before. Her face directs up toward Weiss, milky eyes looking just past her. Weiss glances over to Ruby, who gives her a smile and a thumbs up in response. Weiss takes a breath and looks back down at the little faunus with her own smile. By now, the girl has a very happy expression on her face and gurgles toward Weiss as she reaches her little hand toward the woman's hair. After giving it a small pat, her fingers curl around the white locks to slowly shift it around between them.
That certainly seems to entertain Anna quite a bit, a giggle spilling from her lips as her ears twitch for any more sounds that may come up.
That's about all it takes for Weiss' heart to melt. Pretty soon, she's cooing and talking about as much as Ruby was. Though, she stops when she realizes Ruby is looking at her with a wise smile. She blushes a great deal and looks slightly away. "W-What?"
"It's just nice to see you so happy around kids, Weiss. See, Anna's havin' a blast, too!" Ruby replies, though (out of the corner of her eye) she can see the redhead's cheeks begin to sport the lightest of blushes. She's just about to ask why when her scroll suddenly hums in her pocket.
"Hm? Ruby, can you hold Anna a minute?"
"Yeah, sure, Weiss! What's the call for?"
"I haven't the faintest idea." Weiss says, though the pale woman knows it must be important for her to be called at this time. Ruby, while not knowing what the call is about, knows about Weiss' preferences. Most of her staff knew that she liked spending time with her family and did NOT like to called about business affairs unless they were essential. When it was something she felt that the her employees could handle without her, she would be especially annoyed.
Weiss flicks her scroll on, going to the messages and glancing over them. The one right at the top made her eyes widen a bit.
Semblance petal analysis is finished, Mrs. Rose. When you have the time to come in, I need to discuss the findings with you. They were… quite unexpected and troubling. I would suggest sooner rather than later. -Anderson
Weiss sighs quietly and rubs her temple, though her face holds quite a bit of worry to it from the message. What could be troubling about them? This was not helping her previous fears in the slightest. She had already been on edge enough in the last few weeks as the analysis was being done, but this recent news was serving to steadily give her nerves a swift kick right in the most sensitive spots. If this was going to put Ruby into danger, she wanted to know what it was. She wanted to know what it was and destroy it.
Ruby can practically see the slight darkening of Weiss' face, spreading worry through her own. "Weiss? What is it?"
"Analysis of the petals we found at the hospital. Anderson said it was troubling. You probably still haven't told them about the person stalking you, have you?"
"I was going to do it, eventually..."
"Ruby, this isn't a joke. If the lab results are troubling, that can only mean danger for you."
"I know that, Weiss. But, they're just so happy, lately… Have you seen Yang? Or, Blake? If I told them that, it would just worry them. I'll do it, eventually. When things aren't as hectic." Ruby says, slowly walking toward Weiss.
"Well, I'm not going to brush this off! The last time I brushed off reason, you lost your eye!" Weiss says in a tone louder than she meant to speak in, Ruby's eye widening. Anna starts whimpering, her ears hugging tight to her head. Anna is promptly tended to by Ruby, who looks up at Weiss slowly.
"Weiss… You know I don't blame you for that. I thought we'd gotten past that..."
"Yes, well, when you're thrown into danger again, these thoughts just so happen to come back. Surprisingly enough, I worry about you. The fact that you don't seem to care is, quite frankly, troubling."
"I DO care, okay? Maybe I just want my sister to have some normal in her life, for once! She's happy, Weiss! She's got a girlfriend who loves her, an adorable kid, and nothing that involves being shot with a sniper rifle… So, excuse me if I just want her to stay that way for a while. I can look after myself, this time!"
Weiss looks back, her eyes looking right toward Ruby causing the redhead to look away. She hadn't appeared to have meant to say that. "You aren't going to tell her. You never were."
"...No."
"Ruby..."
"It's just like I said, I just want her to be able to be normal… She's… always looked out for me. She sacrificed her own happiness just to keep me happy. After Summer died… she never got her own time to grieve. She had a little girl who had just lost her mother to take care of while her father kept the family afloat… not even taking into account that Summer was the second she'd lost. She did it all so I might grow up with some sort of normal." Ruby looks down at Anna, her fingers brushing along the fluffy blonde of her hair. "This is what she should be doing, Weiss. Worrying about soiled diapers and crying babies, not about me. Is that too much to ask?"
Weiss is still looking at Ruby, her arms folded across her chest. She sighs quietly, leaning back against a wall. "I understand your intentions. I just hope you know what you're doing, Ruby. You must promise me something, however."
"Yeah?"
"If this turns out to be as bad as I'm feeling, you must tell her what's going on. Regardless of what your feelings are, she would want to know if you were in heavy danger." Weiss says, then kicking off the wall and walking closer. "I'll find out what the analysis on the semblance petals revealed, then we'll meet and decide what our next move is. This person will not be able to evade us forever and… I will do my best to keep Yang out of it."
"You're the best, Weiss."
"I try." Weiss replies, leaning in to kiss Ruby on the cheek. "Tell Yang and Blake that something came up. Work related. Too bad… A walk through the park really did sound relaxing."
"We'll just get a rain check. Sure ya don't want me to come with?"
"No, that's fine. I'll see you tonight."
"What do you have for me, Anderson?" Weiss asks as she comes down into the lab, her face once again becoming quite determined. Only this time, Anderson notes, she looks quite a bit more grave. "You said the results were troubling. Show me. Now."
"Right away, Mrs. Rose. Jennings has the findings right on this console over here." He replies, leading his boss over to the deer faunus quickly. "When you asked us to find the energies of this semblance, we thought it was going to be a bit difficult. As you know, semblances are specific to a person, with very few duplicates. Just getting into the records and finding a duplicate of Ruby's semblance was going to be difficult. Even with the energies, we needed to find another signature that matched."
"Get to the point, Anderson, I don't have time for a lengthy explanation. Who is endangering my wife?"
"Sorry. Jennings?"
The faunus nods and clacks her fingers onto the keypad of the console, bringing up information on a large screen. "Semblance duplicates, while being the same power as another, have different signatures that are unique to the person using it. Like… Like fingerprints. Twins, for instance, may look the same, but have completely different fingerprints. Duplicate semblances are like twins, essentially."
"I think I get it. But, this doesn't tell me anything." Weiss says with a small sigh, rubbing her temple.
"I-I'm sorry, Mrs. Rose. I just wanted you to know exactly what we were talking about, so that… you could understand what an odd thing this is." Jennings mumbles, blushing a little.
"What is?"
Jennings looks to the screen, tapping a few more buttons. A small window comes up, holding data about Ruby's semblance petals. Weiss glances over the energy signature, slowly nodding as another window comes up. "That was the energy signature to Ruby Rose's semblance petals. Here are the stats to her ability. Ruby Rose's semblance is a greatly enhanced speed, the spent energy being formed into petals that pour off her body in a mass that depends on how fast she is going. The energy signature within her petals is unique to only her."
"Correct."
"Now… Here are the petals you gave us from the hospital scene."
Another window comes up, lining Ruby's energy signature up with a new energy signature labeled 'unknown'. Weiss eyes scan over the data for only a moment before her eyes widen a bit. "That's not possible… The signatures are exactly the same."
"That's exactly what makes this so weird, Mrs. Rose. These petals are an exact copy of Ruby Rose's petals. There are no flaws, no other genetic differences… For all intents and purposes, these ARE Ruby Rose's semblance petals."
Weiss takes a slow step back, watching the data on the screen for a good minute in silence. This made no sense to her. She knew for a fact that Ruby had not used her semblance in the hospital room they found them in. This was, as Anderson said, most troubling. What could it have possibly meant? More so, what would Ruby's reaction be? A complete match to her wife. How was it possible?
"Keep running tests. I want every bit of this energy signature studied. There has to be a difference, somewhere." Weiss eventually says, looking to Anderson and Jennings. "Anything we can use to find this person. Anything."
"Of course, Mrs. Rose."
As Weiss walks away from the area, she can't help but know that things are going to be as bad as she thought.