WHITE ROSE

Chapter II – Shopping & Confessions

Rubys mind wandered as she did. Her plan to come to Vale was only to restock on dust, and she would do so, but she enjoyed the break from the monotony of dorm life with these occasional trips into town. She had her favorite store's location down by heart, so she allowed herself to wander in the general direction of it while she processed what happened this morning with Weiss.

She was so soft, and warm. I want to hold her like that again. She came to the realization with a bit of a start. She knew that she liked Weiss and her love had been steadily growing over the years, but it felt like after this morning something had changed between them, the usual banter had become more docile afterward, and they no longer had as much physical distance between them. Ruby made herself a promise, that she would tell Weiss how she felt when she came back today.

Arriving at her favorite dust shop she took a moment to look at the sign. "From Dust Till Dawn" was the store that she had prevented from being robbed when she was 15. That incident had gained her entry to Beacon, and inevitably to her Weiss. She tossed the idea that all of her thoughts seemed to drift back to the girl she was so madly in love with. She cast the thought aside with a giggle as she stepped in the door.

She was greeted heartily by the old man who owned the store " Hey! Ruby, my girl youve come to visit me again! Wait, did something happen? Did you get a girlfriend?" The shopkeeper grilled her quickly, knowing that he would undoubtedly receive a response just as quickly.

"Hi there Mr. Valkury! W-w-what?! No! Why would you think that?" the slender girl flushed a shade that just matched that of the burn crystals that she was looking at currently. Damn, the old man is perceptive. She mused as she recoiled from the question.

"You seem to be glowing from the inside out, but your frown tells me that your troubled. Im here if you need me, and by the way, I have your usual order ready for you."

"Thank you, Mr. Valkury. Actually I do have one question for you. You were right, sort of.." she chuckled at the thought of Weiss and what she would have done if she was in this situation.

"Shoot"

" There's this girl that I have been in love with for a long time, but im scared she doesnt feel the same way about me. How should I tell her how I feel?"

"Hmm, that is definitely a good reason to be glum. My girl, I have found that in all endeavors, all you need do is be honest. With yourself, but also with the people around you. That is the way to true happiness." the old man stroked his beard as he thought about the question and his response, nodding as he finished plying the young woman with his wisdom.

" Thanks! That helps me out a lot... well it would. If wasn't such a chicken when it comes to this girl." Ruby replied, slumping forward like the wind was taken out of her sails.

"You know, when I asked my beautiful wife out on our first date, I brought her a gift. That may serve to ease the tension you feel young one."

"Yeah...maybe I will." Ruby left the shop with less confidence about her promise than she had when she made it with herself, and that wasnt much to begin with.

Weiss was pacing back and forth in the dorm. She could not get her heart to stop racing. How could she tell Ruby that she loved her. She loved just about anything she could play with, or eat. So how in dust was she going to show her that she wasnt just feeling kind. That she wanted Ruby to be at her side. It was at this moment her scroll chirped a reminder.

VOCAL TRAINING – 1315 HOURS. 15 MINUTE REMINDER

That was it. If there was one thing that Ruby enjoyed more than food, it was Weiss singing. This was a VERY closely guarded secret, but as Weiss sat at her desk and pulled a crumpled piece of paper out of her top drawer she knew that this was her answer. It was a song that she had written when she had first made her realization that she was in love with Ruby. It was titled "White Rose". She began to hum the tune that came from her heart all those years ago when she came to the final problem that she would face in her predicament. How would she give Ruby the song?

She practice the song out loud for hours, when she decided that she would record it for Ruby, so she could listen to it whenever she wanted to hear Weiss while she out on missions. But how?

it was 430 and Ruby had decided to go on her way back to Beacon, having spent the last few hours trying to find a gift that Weiss would appreciate. Having failed to do that she sighed and thought to herself, Ive been waiting for 3 years, whats another month or two, right? No sooner had the thought become complete in her mind that something glinted the setting sun into her eyes, and caught her eye. Seemingly put there by fate, in the window of the most prestigious jewelry shop this side of Mistral. Were two necklaces. Ruby rushed into the store to get a closer look. Maybe this was what she had been searching for.

The first, and the one that had originally caught her attention, was a platinum necklace with a pendant dangling from the end. But this was no ordinary pendant, it seemed to have a hidden storage compartment for dust in the back. But the dust inside was unlike any she had seen before. Not only that but the pendant was in the shape of a rose, and in the face were rich, dark, clear rubies, accenting the platinum casing. Just as she was about to grab the necklace, she was approached by a jeweler working in the store. The second, was made in a similar fashion, but the pendant was that of a snowflake and the tines of the flake were embedded with brilliant diamonds.

"Hello, and welcome to 'Dust & Diamonds'! I see your looking at our newest additions to our romance collections. Have you heard about them before?"

"GAH!" Ruby jumped, having been yanked out of her thoughts " Um, no I haven't, is there something that makes these special?"

the jeweler seemed genuinely surprised that she had not heard about the devices, and replied " There is, do you you see the hidden dust port? It never needs refilling and on activation will record any length of message you deem fit."

" Really?! Thats soo cool! How do you listen to the message once it is recorded?" Rubys mind jumped to light speed as she thought of the possibilities that this presented her with. Picking up the the rose necklace, the jeweler directed her attention to an oval shape near the dust port and proceeded to instruct the young girl on its activation and recording functions.

10 minutes later, Ruby skippped out of the store with a small bag containing two boxes, and boarded the air shuttle that would take her back to Beacon Academy and to the most nerve wracking night in her entire life.

Weiss had all but perfected her song almost an hour ago, but had thrown herself into her pillow and felt like crying as she had not come up with a way to record or deliver the song to her love. Feeling like a failure, she flipped over and checked the time. 4:55 PM. Ruby would be back soon. Can I really do this? Can I tell her how I feel? Her mind reeled at the idea of Ruby feeling even remotely the same way she did. She decided to clean Myrtnatter while she waited for her leader to return.

No sooner had she put Myrtenatter back together, did Ruby walk through the door.

"Hiya Weiss! Im starved! Are you hungry?" Rubys silver eyes probed her partner, looking for any sign that she wanted Ruby in the same way that she wanted Weiss.

" Absolutely ravenous, lets go," she hesitated, "Ruby? H-h-h-hold my h-h-hand?" oh god what am I doing?! Dolt! Idiot! Dun-

"Uh, o-o-okay. I guess." At this point if you looked at them you would have a hard time telling which one was blushing harder, but Ruby grabbed Weiss' hand gently and led them both out of the room toward the cafeteria. Weiss was relieved when Ruby said yes, but wondered why she had been so bold as to ask her that so directly. Then again, it wasnt like her to go about things in a roundabout way. Together they walked quietly, simply enjoying each others company. They ate their dinner quietly, but they seemed to sit just a hair closer together than they had in the past. On the way back to the dorm it was Weiss who broke the silence.

" Did you find what you were looking for while you were out today?" she asked sweetly of her partner.

Blushing a deep shade of vermillion, Ruby took a moment to respond. " I was just going into town for some dust, but yes I think so." Weiss couldnt help but wonder about her careful choice of words. She had noticed her usual bag of dust, but also a smaller more decorative bag this time around. Oh well, She thought if I needed to know, she would tell me. Ruby had only just skirted disaster this time around. " what about you, did you find what you were looking for?" Ruby cast a sidelong glance at her partner as she felt the heat in her hand rise with its respective owner.

" I b-b-believe so. It felt good to relax today and clear my head." even though thats the last thing I did today. Weiss finished her thought in her head. They had come to the door of the dorm and let go of each others hands. Ruby paused, losing confidence in herself at the last minute. Then she she strode to the small bag that Weiss had been looking at since entering the room and pulled to two boxes out.

Returning to Weiss, she meekly asked, "can you sit down for a second, I need to tell you something." no turning back now, Ruby. Suck it up and deal with whatever comes from this. Thoroughly confused, but not ignorant enough to simply ignore the obviously nervous girl in front of her, Weiss' heart raced. Ruby held out one of the boxes to her, which she silently accepted.

"Look Weiss, we've been through a lot together in the last 3 years, and I know I talk to much, and im really annoying most of the time, and I eat too much, and I snore too much, but ever since the last Grimm invasion, these feelings have been growing inside me, and I have been pushing them down because I wasnt sure how you would react, but between last night and this morning I promised myself that no matter the outcome would be I would tell you whats been on my mind the last little while. But im a chicken so... here!" the words came so fast that a normal human would not have been able to catch them, but this was Weiss, and she had years of experience that allowed her to hear every word.

In fact, as her silver haired crush had continued to speak, it seemed as though she slowed down. Weiss couldnt believe it. Is this what I think it is? Is she letting me down easy? Wow, I am such a loser. I cant believe I wasted all of today with that stupid song. This morning was her being maternal. I should have known. All of these things raced through her mind raced, and she slowly opened her consolation prize. But it wasn't just a consolation prize. She slowly lifted the pristine necklace from its felt home, and brought it to eye level. She examined the "Ruby Rose", an ironic name, given the circumstances. As she felt her spirits plummet she waited for the inevitable rejection to come from Ruby. Instead, a slender finger activated the recorded message that had been saved to the necklace.

"Weiss Schnee, I am so madly in love with you that when I see your smile it catches my breath. When you sing my heart skips a beat. Your beauty is dazzling in the most fantastic way, and I want to share my life with you and give my life to you for the rest of eternity. So Weiss, I love you. And im never going to leave you. So please just for me, im asking that you love me too."

Tears began to stream down Weiss face as she clutched the pendant to her chest. Ruby had confessed her love to Weiss in the most honest way she could, and it was so beautiful that Weiss could not contain her emotion, silent tears streaming down her face. But how could she tell Ruby that she felt the same way?

It was when Weiss began to cry that Rubys nerves began to crack, her own fears coming to the surface. Oh my god, shes crying because she doesnt feel the same way. Ive put her on the spot. Im so dumb. Stupid Ruby. You know better than to do that to Weiss. You should leave. Take the other necklace back. Ruby stood to pick up her own necklace and leave when Weiss grabbed the cuff of her hood. Stopping her in her tracks.

"You said you'd never leave me... whats in the other box." Weiss' pathetic attempt to keep her lover in the room while she regained her composure worked. Ruby didnt bother to take it out, but she opened the box to reveal the snowflake necklace.

"This was for me to remind myself of you when we were seperated on missions. I thought it would be nice to have for the lonely times..." she choked back her own tears now.

" does that one have a recording device as well?"

"Yes, why?"

" Ill be right back!" Weiss snatched the necklace and ran across the hall to ask Pyrrha and Nora if they could keep Ruby in Their dorm for exactly two minutes and 39 seconds. When they agreed. She ran back to lead Ruby by the hand, tears still streaming down her face, confused and worried now that Weiss would do something dangerous. This is how I can show her! Weiss' mind raced as she prepared to give her inner most feelings to Ruby.

The door slammed behind Ruby, as Pyrrha lead her to her own bed, and asked " Whats happening with you two tonight?" After Ruby explained the events of the day and the night before, a look of understanding swept across the female members of team JNPR. Followed by devilish smiles.

With the time up. Pyyrha scooped up the leader of team RWBY, brought her back to her soon to be lover, and gently sat her down on Weiss' bed, promptly leaving them to their own devices with a wink aimed at the white haired huntress.

Ruby turned her attention to her teammate. She noticed that the "Ruby Rose" hung perfectly around her neck, and she was thumbing it nervously. With a great sigh and a determined look Weiss knelt in front of her lover and dangled the "Winters Fall" pendant. As Ruby accepted it. An understanding came over her like a wave. Weiss tapped the activation button on the back and Ruby immediately burst into tears. She could tell that Weiss had written it herself, and it was for her own ears only. The yearning, the love, and desperate need to have that love reciprocated hung with every word that came from the lilting tune.

When it finished Weiss gently grabbed the necklace from Ruby and put it around her neck. As she did, Ruby grabbed her chin.

"Weiss...never leave me okay?" she was feeling incredibly vulnerable, but her lover responded in just the right way.

"You will always have my hand at your side, my love." and with that, Ruby pulled her into their last first kiss.