Author's Note: So with the recent reduction of my writer's block to a mere nothingness, I was able to crank out this chapter. Bless. So this Wednesday is my birthday, and so I'm happy. I'm needing a Beta Reader now. So if anyone wants to be that for me, PM me, and I will get back to you. I'm willing to have multiple, so it won't be a first come first serve kind of thing. I will be awaiting things. Enjoy!

The sight awaiting me upon getting back to the dorm was not what I was expecting. Not necessarily out of the ordinary, but certainly not what I was expecting. Yang and Blake were sitting in the middle of the room, surrounded by a bunch of playing cards. Yang was just sitting there looking defeated and staring off into space. Blake was in the process of picking the cards up. Weiss was nowhere to be seen.

"Playing 52 card pickup again, sis?" I ask, walking into the room.

"I wish," Blake responded. "Weiss stormed in while we were playing go fish and scattered our cards everywhere. Then she grabbed some stuff and stormed out. She was pretty pissed." My heart sank in my chest. She's only trashed the place when she got extremely mad. "I don't know what happened to get her that mad, though."

I chuckle nervously.

"Th-that would be… me…" I say awkwardly, poking my index fingers together.

"And what did you do to make her that pissed?" Blake asks with a questioning eyebrow raised.

"I kinda… sorta… told her that… I wasn't going to be here for the dance that she and Yang are planning…" I trail off. Yang looks up from her stuper at me.

"Wait, you're not gonna be here?" she asks.

"No, I'm not." I say. Why is my heart beating so fast by telling them this? Am I that nervous? "I'm going to be on a mission with Professor Port and a few other students in two weeks for another two weeks. I don't know what it's about, but I'm going."

"Well now I get it." Yang says, standing up and helping Blake with the cards.

"Well, could you explain it to me? Because I don't," I say.

"She was raised by an asshat that cared about nothing but his business," Yang starts. "I don't think Weiss got a whole lot of approval growing up. I think it was just apathy. Her dad didn't care about what she did. And now here she is, designing something huge for the school, and her closest friend isn't going to be there for it? I can see why she's upset. She's justified in her anger. Maybe not to the level that she was, but still justified."

"I never thought of that…" I say. Deafening silence permeates the dorm room as Blake and Yang continue to clean up their cards. After a minute or so, a voice pierces the silence.

"I don't think you should worry too much about it." Two sets of eyes fell upon the noirette as soon as she finished the sentence.

"Blake, what do you mean that she shouldn't worry about it?" Yang asks. Blake closes her eyes, breathes slowly, and then open her eyes again.

"Yang, this school is to teach us how to be huntresses. That means going out on missions and killing Grimm. I think that Ruby is completely capable of making decisions that fall under the mission, like she did today."

"I understand that, Blake. But-"

"Guys, please don't fight over this," I interrupt. "I've made my decision, and I've given my word to Professor Port." The silence returned, this time for much longer. A good ten minutes of awkward silence passed, save for the sounds of footsteps and object interaction.

"I'm…" I start, interrupting the silence. "I'm going to go look for Weiss. I'll… I'll see you guys later, okay?" Silence. Blake, I can expect to be quiet. But Yang? For ten minutes? Jeez, I never thought I 'd say this, but Yang needs to talk more. I walk out of the dorm, turning around one last time and looking into it before I left in search of Weiss. Still no words…


Whew, this campus is so big. I think to myself, after jogging for a majority of the campus. Out of breath, I raise my hands behind my head and breathe deep breaths. And I still can't find Weiss. Where in Dust's name is she? I turn my head around, looking every direction to see if she was anywhere near me. That's when I hear it. Laughter. Weiss's laughter. Heading towards the sound of her laughing, I get to the point where I can hear her talking.

"Thank you for that, Neptune. I really needed a laugh after what happened today." My heart sinks for the second time today. Maybe it should just stay down there so it doesn't have to keep sinking. Neptune. Why does it have to be him? Out of all the people on this campus, she goes to him.

"Oh? And what happened today that makes you need a laugh?" I peek around the corner to see Neptune with his arm around Weiss' shoulders. That sight in and of itself is like daggers to my sunken heart. My eyes water, and I stifle a sob as I turn back around the corner. My foot catches and makes a sound. I hope they don't notice.

"Did you hear that?" Weiss' voice echoes through the area. They noticed.

"Yeah, but that's not important. Why did you need a laugh today?" Weiss sighs.

"It's Ruby. She told me today that she's not going to be here for the dance that Yang and I have been planning." Weiss explains.

"Why is she not going to be here?"

"She's going on a stupid mission with Professor Port and some other students. And the dance is right in the middle of the mission…" She trails off.

"And you're upset because she's going on the mission and you're not?" Neptune asks.

"No! Well, yes… but no! Sure I want to go on this trip, but I understand why they asked Ruby. She's the leader. She's great at combat, and a strong choice for any team. What I'm upset about is that Yang and I have been working on this dance for weeks now. And she's… she's not going to be there…" Her voice hitches, almost like she's crying or about to start crying. I turn to start walking away.

"She means a lot to me, and I just wanted her to see something that I was a part of. That I'm not just some obnoxious rich girl; that I'm able to get things done. That I can accomplish something without my dad paying for it. That I'm worth having on her team." She cries. Actually crying. I strengthen my resolve and walk away before things get worse, and I start crying myself.

She cares about me… But she's self-conscious about what I think about her? How could someone as amazing as Weiss feel that way? Let alone that way with me?

I let my thoughts trail off as I walk back to the dorm. The fact that Weiss feels that way haunts me the entire way back. Outside the dorm room, I hear talking. Almost arguing.

"I'm not saying she shouldn't go, I'm just saying that I understand why Weiss got upset." Yang's voice could be heard outside the door.

"You're siding with Weiss instead of your sister?" Blake asks.

"No, I'm not siding with Weiss over my sister! I don't know why you would ever think that!" Yang retorts.

At this point, I open the door and walk into the room. The argument stops immediately. Yang is standing facing Blake in the center if the room. Tears begin to fill my eyes.

"I told you guys to not fight over this! Just… stop…" Tears start falling from my face. I turn around and walk out if the room again. To where? I have no idea. I'm just walking as tears stream down my face.

Maybe I shouldn't have agreed to go on the trip so soon...