A/N: Hey everyone! Blue here. Soooo... Last chapter was... Pretty rough. But we got through it! This chapter will be a bit more fluffy (which I doubt any of you will be opposed to haha).

Again, I can't thank you enough for your support of this story. Honestly, I've been going through a bunch and writing this story has been very cathartic. I hope that it may help you guys too.

Also, I snuck in a little (very little) sneak peak of something to come in the future... Tell me if you find it. ;)

Let me know what y'all think. Enjoy the Roses!

Chapter 8: Together, We Fall

Ruby stayed with Weiss that night, to make sure she would be alright. She gently guided her back into her bedroom and held her in her soft bed.

Seriously, it was incredibly soft.

All the beds back at the orphanage were lumpy at best, full of holes and broken springs at worst. They didn't throw those ones out though, just flipped them over till both sides were worn to bits.

A reeeal great place to raise kids.

When they got into her bed, Weiss immediately clung to Ruby again. Her poor charge was shaking like a leaf, so shook up by what she had almost done. God, if Ruby hadn't come back to check on her, who knows what would have happened. She was glad her intuition was correct this time.

"Ruby." Weiss whimpered, gripping her tighter.

"I'm here, Weiss. It's ok."

Then came a knock at the door. Ruby felt Weiss tense up in her grasp. She rubbed her back and leaned in close to Weiss' ear.

"It's alright, just ask who it is." She told her.

"Who is it?" Weiss repeated.

"It's Klein, ma'am. Your father is home and requests to have a word with you."

"I-I'll be right there." Weiss barely managed to make out, her shaking growing more intense. But so did Ruby's grasp. She held Weiss close and whispered reassuring phrases in her ear.

"Shhh, it'll be fine. Just talk to him. And if it doesn't go well, I'm right here for you." Ruby assured her. The ivory-haired girl lifted herself off of Ruby and looked her in the eyes.

"You'll still be here?" She asked.

"Of course." The red-head replied, tucking a piece of loose hair behind Weiss' ear. There was something about seeing her charge with her hair down. She looked so beautiful, her long ivory strands flowing down her back like a stream.

Weiss seemed to believe her, because the next minute she rose from her bed and left the room without another word. But Ruby would not simply wait in the room for her, not a chance. As soon as Weiss left, Ruby turned invisible and followed her to her father's office. Even though she knew he wouldn't know what Weiss had done that day, the man was still awful.

She wouldn't let him undo the work she had just done.

Weiss knocked on the door and her father called her in. Ruby wanted to hold Weiss' hand, to put an arm around her shoulder, anything to comfort her right now, to let her know things would be ok. The best she could do was lightly touch her shoulder (while invisible) and try to let Weiss know she wasn't alone.

"Hello father, you wished to see me?" Weiss said, not showing her fear in the least. Wow, she was a little too good at that.

"Yes, I received a call from your headmaster." He coldly stated. Ruby knew he wasn't told what really happened, but his tone made her nervous. "Something happened today."

"It... Did."

"I must say I am glad to hear you handled the situation well."

"Huh?" Weiss said, flabbergasted.

"You turned your friend in for breaking the rules. You handled that well. It isn't easy to tattle on a friend, but it's the first step to becoming a great leader."

"I'm sorry, I'm a little confused."

"What is there to be confused about? I am saying you did a good job." Jacques said. "Though it would have been better if you prevented it in the first place."

Wow, this jerk can't even let her have one compliment without picking her apart, can he? The angel behind Weiss wanted to punch his stupid smug face, but she knew she couldn't do that.

Oooooh, but if she could...

"Yes, Sir." Weiss chose to agree.

"That is all, you can go now." He waved her off.

Now that the immediate danger was over, Ruby zipped back to Weiss' room and waited on her bed. When she returned, the ivory-haired girl didn't look as anxious, but very confused. She explained what her father told her and Ruby just shrugged her shoulders.

"Maybe Ironwood was taking sympathy on you." Ruby suggested.

"Headmaster Ironwood." Weiss corrected. "But it just seems odd, don't you think?"

"I wouldn't question it, Weiss. Just enjoy the fact that you got off the hook!" Ruby said, pulling Weiss back towards the bed. "See, good things."

Weiss gave her a small weak smile. Slowly, she situated herself back into her bed, letting out a long yawn.

"Tired?" Ruby asked.

"Yes. I suppose I should get some rest." Weiss said, slipping under her covers. This was Ruby's cue to leave. She thought about erasing Weiss' memory of her being here at all and leaving only the comforting feeling, but something in her wanted Weiss to remember she was there for her.

A selfish side.

Ruby got up from the bed and started to walk off. When she was only a step away, however, a hand grabbed hers.

"Wait!" Weiss exclaimed, panic infiltrating her voice. "C-can you stay here for the night? Th-that is if it's alright with your family."

"Uh, sure!" She told her. "Let me just call them."

Ruby walked away from Weiss, pulled out her phone and pretended to call someone.

"Hey mom!" She told no one. "Yeah I know it's late. I was wondering if I could stay over at a friend's place... Weiss... You know, I've talked about her before... Yup, the really cool one."

Ruby didn't have to say that, but she thought about how it would make Weiss feel good and that made the angel happy.

"Yeah I know. I'm sorry about what I did." She added, just so it wouldn't seem suspicious that she wasn't being scolded. "Yup! Uh huh... Yeah... Ok! Thanks mom. Love you."

Ruby ended the fake phone call and thought about the last time she actually said I love you to her mom. She was so little when her parents died, but she remembered hugging her tightly just before, the scent of roses infiltrating her nose.

"All good." Ruby beamed.

"Did you get in trouble?"

"Eh, a little. Gotta clean the dishes for two weeks."

That was one of the punishments Goodwitch implemented in the Orphanage.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be, it was my fault we got into that mess." Ruby said. "Now you should really sleep, Weiss."

"You should too." She replied, scooting over to make room for Ruby. "My bed is big enough."

"Are you sure?" Ruby said, fiddling with her hands. Why was she all of a sudden nervous? She wanted to keep Weiss safe and this was how. The other angels wouldn't get mad, would they?

"I'm not gonna make you sleep on the floor, Ruby." Weiss said with a roll of her eyes. "Just get over here."

"Alright!" She agreed, clambering into the soft bed. She situated herself in the most comfortable position she could and looked over to Weiss. "You gonna be ok?"

"Yeah." Her charge answered with a smile. Her hand under the covers found Ruby's and squeezed it. "Yeah I will. Thank you."

"Y-yeah of course." Ruby said. Her face was doing that thing again, where it would get really hot around her cheeks? What was that? "Night, Weiss."

"Good night, Ruby."

She closed her eyes and slipped off into a deep slumber. Ruby didn't know exactly what to do though, she physically couldn't sleep. It wasn't possible. So she just had to lay there for hours, doing nothing.

The concept of sleep felt weird to Ruby after all these years. Just... resting and letting your subconscious take over? It was odd. Not being awake was just an alien concept at this point.

But she kind of wished she could. Weiss looked so peaceful, it looked nice. It was nice to see her so relaxed. She was stressed so much, Ruby was glad she was at least calm when she was asleep.

Somewhere along the night however, Weiss stirred in her sleep. That peaceful look started to turn more painful and disturbed. She was mumbling, her brow knitted together.

"Weiss." Ruby whispered. "It's ok, Weiss. You're ok."

Slowly, her face melted back to it's restful state. She didn't know why, but Ruby had the urge to caress Weiss' cheek. She stopped herself before she did, but she really wanted to.

That was very strange.

What was worse was that Weiss shifted again, except this time she wrapped an arm around Ruby, holding her tight. The warmth in her cheeks started to spread to the rest of her face. She hugged Weiss before, but this was sooo different. She was never in bed with the girl, she never was held like this by anyone before.

And it was... Nice.

When morning rolled around, Ruby told Weiss she should probably get back home before school. So she gave her a smile and prepared to climb down the drainpipe by Weiss' windows. Normally she would just fly down, but her charge was watching.

That and she wanted to give a plausible reason for how she could have gotten onto the roof with her.

While she was climbing out, Weiss placed a hand on hers. Ruby's silver eyes flicked to Weiss' sapphire ones. The angel never recalled seeing a warm blue, but there it was before her. Weiss just woke up, her ivory hair was a bit tangled, and sleep was still evident in her eyes. And yet, Ruby couldn't peel her eyes away.

Weiss had captivated her with a single touch, a single look.

"I'll see you at school, Ruby." Weiss said in a soft tone. She released Ruby's hand to let her climb down. "Please be safe."

"Don't worry, I will." Ruby told her. Her hanging off of the window like that, Weiss bidding her goodbye. It sounded like something out of Romeo and Juliet.

No, no it wasn't. They were friends. Just friends. Even if Ruby's face heated up every time Weiss was too close. Even if the way she smiled, so subtle and unique, made her feel all warm and fuzzy. Even if-

Oh.

Oh god.

XxXxX

A month passed since Weiss'... Ahem, little meltdown. She felt much better than before, but it didn't just go away. No, life wasn't simple like that. She had moments where life got too hard, where it was all so much, that didn't just stop. What did change was how Weiss reacted to this. She now reached out, asked or help.

It was painful and such a challenge for her, but it got easier each time she did it. Ruby was the easier one to go to.

The girl went above and beyond to help Weiss, she felt so lucky to have her. On her bad nights, she would call Ruby and spend an hour or two just talking. On her worse nights, Ruby would come over and spend the night. She took comfort in just having her near. She used to question why the girl made her so comfortable, but she didn't feel like it anymore. It was just a fact she had accepted.

Ruby was quite acrobatic apparently, how she managed to climb that drain pipe each time, Weiss had no idea. They didn't want to risk letting her father know that Ruby was there (at night, not during her study sessions) so she would sneak in. Most of the time she didn't even hear her climbing.

Silent and quick, Ruby was more like a ninja.

Well, except when she tripped and fell into the room... Which happened a lot.

Weiss snickered at the thought.

"What?" Blake asked. Her friend took a bite of her tuna sandwich and placed her book down. She must be pretty invested in that particular novel, Blake didn't risk eating and reading unless it was a good one.

"Oh, nothing." Weiss brushed her off. "What are you reading?"

"This really cool book called Bound By Shadows." Blake said, grinning from ear to ear. Weiss smiled at her friend's excitement, taking a sip from her milk.

"Oooh!" Ruby said, placing her tray at the table and sitting down. "That sounds super cool!"

"You can borrow it when I'm done." Blake offered. That was a rare sight to see, Blake letting others borrow her books. Her books were like her children. She protected them, held them close. Weiss liked to imagine that she gave them each a little kiss before she tucked them into the bookshelf.

She didn't know why she was surprised though, trusting Ruby was easy. If she could get as close as she did to Weiss, getting close to Blake wasn't that far out of the question.

"Hmm, maybe." Ruby answered. "What's it about?"

The pair talked for a while about the book and it's contents and Weiss watched. Blake was very adept at summarizing the plot of a book without giving away important parts or twists. Weiss supposed it came with years of practice. The redhead she was explaining it to was completely enamored by her spiel, hanging onto every word. Ruby had her chin propped up with her knuckles and spouted off a million questions when Blake had finished.

"You'll have to read and see! I'm not gonna give away the juicy bits."

"Juicy bits, eh?" Ruby said, wiggling her eyebrows. The heiress bit back her laughter, Blake's face turned bright red.

"What? No! This isn't that kind of book!" The avid reader defended.

"But you've read that kind of book before?" Weiss interjected. She took another sip of her milk. "Hmm, Belladonna?"

It shouldn't have been possible, but Blake's face somehow flushed even more.

"I-I... N-no, I haven't."

"Ha!" Ruby shouted, pointing an accusing finger. "You so have!"

"Sh-shut up!" Blake finally relented. This elicited a giggle fit from both Ruby and Weiss. "You two suck!"

"Aw, come on Blake." Ruby said, sliding over to put an arm around Blake's shoulder. And though it was merely a friendly gesture, Weiss felt another twinge of jealousy. "We looove you."

"Yes, we do." Weiss added, brushing aside her desires to be in Blake's position.

"I love you guys too." Blake said with a sigh.

"Well." Ruby announced, rising from her seat. "I gotta use the bathroom."

"We'll alert the media." The book worm cheekily replied, book in hand once again. Ruby stuck her tongue out and Blake matched her.

"I'll see you in class, Weiss."

"Yeah, see you there." The ivory-haired girl replied. She watched her bubbly friend practically skip away. She was just going to the bathroom and yet she still had a bounce in her step.

That girl always made her laugh.

"Alright, I think this has gone on long enough." Said Blake. For a moment, Weiss believed that she was just talking about something happening in her book. "Don't you think, Weiss?"

"Huh?" She asked, turning around. "I beg your pardon?"

"Come on, admit it?"

"Admit what?" Weiss asked.

What was she going on about?

"I have watched you two dance around each other for a couple months now." Blake said, setting her book down once again. "Just ask her out."

What?

WHAT?

"I-I don't know what you're talking about, Blake."

"Seriously? You're still denying it?"

"Denying what?"

"You and Ruby. The chemistry between you."

"We study chemistry together, if that's what you're asking."

"Weiss, you know it's not." Blake said, dead serious. "You. Like. Ruby."

"What? N-no! Ruby is just a f-friend of mine!" Weiss poorly defended.

But she was telling the truth! Ruby was honestly just a friend!

"That's bullshit and you know it." She called out. "You haven't seen the way you look at her, but I have. You... Linger. You are softer with her. You have been more affectionate as a result of being around her."

"I..." Weiss begin, but struggled to continue. "She's just-"

"She's not just a friend." Interrupted Blake. "Ok, I want you to do something for me. Close your eyes."

"What?"

"Just do it."

Weiss complied, shutting her eyelids. She sighed at Blake's antics. This was just ridiculous. She didn't have any deeper feelings for the girl.

"Now, think about Ruby. The first time you met, when you hug her, when she laughs. Just keep thinking about that."

Well, that was easy. Weiss found her mind drifting to Ruby often these days. In a very friendly, completely platonic way. Thinking about her smile, her giggles, how special she felt whenever she had that silver-eyed gaze upon her. How Ruby would hold her when she cried, how the girl had gotten Weiss to be more open about her feelings.

Yes, she thought about Ruby a LOT.

Click!

Weiss heard the shutter of Blake's camera phone and her eyes snapped open. A frown formed on her face from her friend's antics.

"Why did you take a picture of me?" The ivory-haired girl asked. She reached over to try and grab her phone. Blake shrank away to protect the picture, holding it away from Weiss while it loaded.

"I'm proving a point." Blake said. She then thrust the phone in Weiss' view. "See? You're smiling."

Indeed she was. This is what she looked like when she was thinking about Ruby? She looked so happy and peaceful. Well that did make sense, Ruby made her relax. The girl made her happy. Being around her made her happy, hugging her did too. Just seeing the girl, seeing her smile. Everything about Ruby just made her... Happy!

Oh.

"Shit." Weiss swore, the realization dawned on her. "I like her. I really like her."

"Yeah, I know." Blake said. She moved over to the seat next to Weiss and put a hand on her shoulder.

How could this happen? She didn't mean for it to happen. In fact, she was against having her as a friend, let alone a girlfriend.

Ruby as her girlfriend though, the thought made her cheeks flare up and sparked a giddiness in her. Stomach flips, head over heels, out of the park feelings; This was the only way Weiss could describe her current emotions.

"Do you think she knows?" Weiss asked, fear infiltrating her voice.

"I doubt it. You two have both been oblivious."

"So... Do you think she um... Feels the same way?" She asked. Nerves shot through her body. Did she really want the answer to that? What if Ruby didn't like her like that? What would she do then? God, why did she have to like someone! It just made things more challenging.

"Hmmm, I'm not completely sure... But I think you have a shot."

"Y-yeah?"

"Yeah." Blake confirmed with a laugh.

Weiss finished her meal very gleefully after hearing that. She had a shot with Ruby! She could be with Ruby.

She may be the heiress of a major energy company, but for the first time in a while, she felt like a million bucks.

XxXxX

Ruby left school that day a little concerned and confused. During lunch, the angels started talking to her. She excused herself from the table and went somewhere secure to talk with them, pulling out her phone just in case someone saw her.

They were warning her about getting close. They said that some of her actions were a bit concerning and asked if she knew that this was only a job.

If she were honest, most time she forgot she was on a case. She genuinely enjoyed Weiss' company and she hoped the heiress liked hers as well. Was there something wrong with that?

But it was only a job, she would leave Weiss as soon as she was done. The thought sat like a rock in the pit of her stomach. No more late night talks and sleepovers. No more subtle smiles and hugs.

No more seeing Weiss.

The job isn't over yet, stop thinking about it. Ruby chided herself. Yet the thoughts still persisted. She would have to leave Weiss eventually, and Ruby was certain that it would hurt.

Did Yang ever get attached to any of her charges? She wanted to ask her, but was afraid of the answer. That and what Yang would think of her.

Ruby was just trying to do her job! She didn't mean to get attached like this.

Oh man.

"Hey, little sis." Yang greeted as Ruby touched down on the clouds. Her silver-tipped wings folded in and vanished. "Welcome back."

"Hey Yang." Ruby answered. It was odd, she didn't seem to enjoy her time on the clouds as much as she did before. The longer she was away from earth, the more her heart seemed to ache.

Oh gosh, maybe they were right.

"You doing alright? You seem a bit off." Yang asked, concerned laced in her voice. Perceptive as ever, she hit the nail on the head.

"I'm alright, just a little... Jumbly?" The younger girl attempted to explain.

"Jumbly? Wumbly jumbly?" Yang clarified.

"Yeah." She answered back with a little laugh.

"Ah. It's the gig." The blonde angel said. "Being on earth for a while messes with you. Makes you want to live down there again."

Oh thank goodness. She wasn't going crazy! Other angels felt this way too, it was ok! It would aaaall be ok. As long as she didn't act on it! As long as she didn't try to stay on earth... With Weiss.

"Yang?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you remember what you said when we first died?"

"Um, I dunno. It's been a while." Yang said, sitting down on the clouds and leaning back. "Why?"

"You said that it wasn't fair." The younger sister answered. She also took a seat next to Yang and picked some clouds apart. Something wasn't as satisfying about it. She liked to imagine she was picking grass out of the ground. "Do you still think that?"

"Hmm, no." She answered honestly. "Maybe at first, but not after everything we went through. We got a second chance to help people, that's enough for me."

"But," Ruby protested, looking for something, anything to make her feel a little better about her desires. "Aren't you upset you never got... Um... Uh, nevermind."

"What?"

"It's dumb."

"Aw, come on, Rubes! You can tell me!"

"I mean I... I mean, you never got to um..." Ruby stammered. Why was this so hard to say? "Fall in love."

"Oh. Yeah, that." Yang said, nodding in understanding.

"Yeah... That." Repeated Ruby.

"I guess... I don't think about it much." The blonde replied, looking off into the distance. "Just wasn't in my fate, and you can't change that too easily."

"Right. Yeah, you're right."

Yang was right all those years ago though. It wasn't fair, they died so young, they didn't get to experience it all. Although, living any longer in the great depression might have been rough, if they could even live at all.

"Hey, you'll be fine, Ruby. This case will be over and you'll feel back to your normal self in no time!" Yang was trying to be reassuring, but did she really want to go back to what it was before? "Oh, by the way I did take a sneak peak at ya while you were working a while ago."

"Yaaaaang." Ruby moaned. "Come on! I gotta do this on my own!"

"I know, I know." Chuckled Yang. "But I wanted to make sure my baby sister was doing a good job."

Yang pinched her cheek, causing Ruby to frown and move away.

"Yaaaang, stooooop."

"Sorry! You're just so cute and squishy." Yang cooed at her sister. "I did have a note for you."

"O-oh?" Ruby asked. As much as she wanted Yang to let her do her thing, she valued her opinion. Especially on these field cases. So if her sister could give her some valuable advice, she was eager to hear it.

"Something I told you to do a while ago?" Yang sang.

"Huh?"

"The angelic charm? You gotta lower it, Ruby." She advised. "That Schnee girl is falling head over heels for you and it will only get worse if you keep it going."

"Falling? For me?" Ruby asked.

"Oh yeah! Hard!" She said. The blonde angel rose from her seated position and began to walk away, but she called back to Ruby as she left. "I wouldn't worry about it, just turn it off and she'll be over it within a few days!"

"Right." Ruby answered, turning pale. She was glad her sister didn't look back to see her, cause she would see the panic in her face.

What she didn't tell her was that she turned her angelic charm off after the second day. That she hadn't even touched it since, hadn't raised it in the least. It had remained at zero all this time, Weiss had just... Genuinely fallen for her.

And Ruby began to think.

"Have I fallen for her?" Ruby whispered to herself.