Chapter 8: Troubles In Paradise
Hit it, The Draigg! Resonate it, The Draigg! Crush it, the Draigg! He's that Neo-Human writer to entertain us all! Ha, try to get THAT reference! Anyway, I'm here to bring you a fresh chapter from my brain parts! Now, before you take a chunk out of it and savor it's tasty grammar, remember that Monty Oum owns RWBY, not I. So, let's do this now!
xxx
Saturday had gone less than great for the charity workgroup. Between Ruby putting her and Weiss' relationship on hold until things improved, the horrid script and costumes, and the low enthusiasm shared among all the members of Team RWBY, the good vibes among the condo inhabitants was at an early low. Well, except for a certain Ms. Jade Han that Sunday.
"What I think is that we need to get our blood flowing. You know, to work that squishy, pink thing we call our brains into an awesome acting machine!" she encouraged, bounding up and down in front of Team RWBY, who were sitting on the couch.
An incredibly awkward aura was surrounding the team at the moment. Weiss and Ruby were trying not to look at each other, and Yang and Blake were mortified that they were caught in the middle. As in they were literally between the middle of the two. Weiss and Ruby refused to sit next to each other, so Blake and Yang sat in the center of the couch. Honestly, this 'positive' pep-talk from Ms. Han wasn't helping at all.
"Think of the costumes as superhero suits! Like Biclops or Honey Badger! You'll be the hero to all those kids in the audience!" Ms. Han continued to gush. Blake's eyes rolled so much that the secret to perpetual motion could have been discovered by looking at her.
"I'm just not up to it today…" grumbled Ruby. She was still emotionally exhausted from the weight of yesterday's decision.
Weiss silently agreed with Ruby's sentiment. To her, her heart was too bruised to do anything today. All she really wanted to do was wrap herself in a warm blanket and lie down. Any comfort would be a blessing right about now. But, she couldn't reach out to others. If she did, then that would risk exposing her and Ruby's relationship to Mr. Brass and Ms. Han.
"Come on! I'll buy us ice cream afterwards!" Ms. Han said, trying to convince them to get to practice. To her, it was the perfect bribe. Who didn't like ice cream at all times of the day?
"I don't want any," Weiss said, before abruptly standing up and walking towards the team room. Ms. Han was aghast at her statement. Not wanting ice cream?! What was wrong with this girl? Worried that something was wrong, Ms. Han began to follow her. However, she was stopped by Mr. Brass' voice.
"Let her go. She isn't your problem. She's mine," he said, getting up from his armchair. Passing by Ms. Han, he walked down the hallway and to the closed door of the room.
Noticing it was closed, Mr. Brass knocked on the door. "Are you alright in there?" he asked. He didn't get a reply from the Schnee girl. "Can I come in?" he tried asking. That got a reply.
"No! I want to be alone!" Weiss yelled from behind the door.
Taking the hint, Mr. Brass walked away from the door and back into the living room. Ms. Han looked at him expectantly. He simply shrugged and said, "She needs her space,". He understood that well. Even with his daughter, he knew he couldn't be there or solve everything.
He just hoped that the heiress would find her comfort zone soon.
xxx
Weiss flopped down on her cot, feeling absolutely drained. Ever since Ruby suggested that they should stop romancing each other for the time being, Weiss just couldn't help but feel that she could have avoided all this. If she didn't make that bet, if she hadn't insulted Ruby all those times, if she… if she…
That's all that was on her mind. She was concerned with what could have been, and how it all went wrong. Maybe she was just born unlucky. That seemed pretty likely, since the Schnee name had done nothing but bring her feelings and dreams down. She never asked to be an heiress, she never asked to have a lot of her family members killed, and she never asked to have the remaining ones to be so cold and distant.
She couldn't even tell her mother or father! Weiss was afraid of the people that other girls her age trusted so much! Hell, she couldn't even talk to her sister without her secrets being revealed! Weiss genuinely hated the life she was born into. But, more than that, she hated herself.
Weiss hated herself for putting Ruby in a position to make that decision. Weiss always thought that being in love would fix all her flaws, just like in the movies and stories she liked. But, in hindsight, all she did was hurt Ruby more with her selfish demands. How many times did she always put her needs before Ruby's? It was certainly more times than she could count.
That voice in her mind from yesterday was absolutely right. There was no point in blaming others for your personal shortcomings. Weiss could have stopped at any point to get help for her issues. But no, she trudged on, and ended up hurting the person she loved the most. Weiss despised that part of her. But yet, that was the part of her that was mostly displayed to the world.
There was an old story that she remembered that of a farmer and a snake. As the story went, as the farmer was tending his field one day, a large, venomous serpent wormed its way towards him. The snake asked, "Why have you let me go so far? I could have easily poisoned you, or a piece of your livestock,". The farmer replied, "But you haven't, and since you haven't, I trust that you won't. You have no real reason to, after all,". The snake eventually passed by the farmer, towards the distance. However, later that day, as the farmer was ready to finish hoeing his field, the same snake came back, and bit him on the ankle. As the farmer writhed in pain, he couldn't help but ask, "Why have you bitten me, even after I let you pass safely?". All the snake had to say was, "It's simply in my nature,".
Weiss hated that story. It implied that being stuck up was a part that she just couldn't change, and was doomed to act for the rest of her life.
If she was to change, it was way too late right now. Maybe the story was right. Maybe Weiss just couldn't change at all. As the weight of this thought rested over her mind, Weiss covered her face with her blanket.
She needed to drown out the world right now.
xxx
Ruby was feeling an equal amount of anxiety and worry, albeit for a different reason. As she drummed her fingers on the kitchen table, she couldn't eat the plate of cookies placed in front of her. She just didn't have the appetite for them right now.
Why couldn't she help Weiss the way she needed it? Was some higher power conspiring against them? Sure, Weiss was a misguided girl, and had plenty of issues. But who didn't? Ruby firmly believed that any issue could be overcome, given the right amount of work and dedication. But, for the past several weeks, the world was just bearing down on her hard.
The musical work was balanced out by falling in love with Weiss. But, the stress of that one bet, and now this charity tour was getting to be too much for her. What she needed right now was a break. And, since Weiss was involved in all of the events mentioned, that meant taking a break from her as well.
Now, Ruby knew that Weiss wouldn't take it well. That girl had some severe emotional issues in her. But, seeing Weiss internally shut down was almost too much for her to bear. If it wasn't for everyone's sake, then Ruby would have just left with Weiss as soon as the reality of this trip came to light.
Ruby felt that she had failed Weiss not only as a team leader, but as a friend and lover as well. She just couldn't summon the strength to keep them together. All of it was a tragedy of limits.
She lowered her head on the table, her mind getting overwhelmed by these thoughts. Ruby wanted to do something, anything, to make all of this right again.
xxx
Coincidentally, Yang and Blake were thinking the same thing, as they sat together in the upstairs work space. It was nicely furbished, actually. There were large bookshelves filled with a bunch of boring legal books, and a desk that had a view out of the window. Currently, Yang was pacing back and forth, while Blake watched her from the armchair shoved in the corner.
"Just what in the hell is happening between those two? Did they have a falling out?" Yang asked herself as she kept on pacing.
Blake answered that question with, "No, if they did, things would be WAY worse than they are now. Knowing Weiss, she would probably start screaming insults to everyone if Ruby broke up with her. No, this is something different,".
Yang stopped her rhythmic walking and looked at Blake. "Yeah, I suppose you have a point there," she agreed. But, she continued, "What do you think it is, then?".
Blake tapped at her chin in thought. Honestly, it could be plenty of things. Weiss had the parental equivalent of storming a castle armed with a spoon. That meant that any part of her under-developed upbringing could be at fault. If Blake had to make an observation, she had to guess it had to do with Weiss' sense of entitlement. She always rushed into situations thinking only of herself, and never regarded the consequences that affected everyone else.
"I think Ruby might just be burnt out. I mean, you know what Weiss put her through before," finally decided Blake. Yang sat on the arm of Blake's chair and nodded at what she said.
It made plenty of sense to Yang. She could tell that the love was there, that was for certain. But, knowing her sister, Yang knew that Ruby had a tendency to throw herself into a problem completely to try and fix it. Unfortunately, the problem she had embroiled herself in was Weiss' psychological shortcomings. And, given that a whole bunch of other stuff happened around the same time, it made sense that Ruby had tired herself out.
"Okay, say that it is what you're saying. What can we do?" Yang asked.
"Why should we do anything?" Blake asked back. That got her an odd look from Yang. Sighing, Blake remembered that she already knew the answer to that question. Her girlfriend's maternal instincts were kicking in hard right now. Sighing, Blake now suggested, "We should talk to Ruby first. She's more honest with her feelings, so we can get a better view from her,".
Yang smiled at Blake and ruffled her hair. As her hand brushed against her ribbon-covered cat ears, Blake involuntarily purred. Realizing what she did, Blake's face grew red with embarrassment. Yang smiled and said, "Now that's the Blake I know,".
"Damn you, Yang Xiao Long…" mumbled Blake. It annoyed her how quickly Yang could make her purr. Those darn cat ears were just too sensitive for her own good. "I'll have you know, I—eep!" Blake started to protest, before Yang rubbed a cat ear between her index finger and thumb. Wow, that felt GREAT!
Yang was clearly having a good time doing the teasing for once. It was only fair, considering all the times Blake teased her, only not to keep on going. So, Yang decided to pull out the ace up her sleeve. She began to gently nibble at one of the cat ears. Naturally, this drove Blake wild.
"Yang…" Blake breezily moaned as she melted in her seat. If this kept up, then she just wouldn't be able to control herself. But, just as Blake was starting to feel a heat pool in her chest, Yang stopped, a stupid grin splayed on her face.
"Huh? Seriously?!" complained Blake. She wanted more, damn it! It wasn't fun when Yang was being the predator this time around! Instead of going back to pleasing her, Yang walked towards the door that led to the stairs.
"Come on, let's talk to Ruby," she said, before leaving the workspace.
Blake fumed in her chair. Ohh, what a tease Yang was! Great, what was she going to do now? She would just have to take care of herself during her private time. Her sexual frustration flaring, Blake stood up and exited the room.
She had a friend in need to help.
xxx
Ohhh, where could this be headed? Well, I guess you'll just have to read the next chapter to find out! Also, remember to either message me or leave a review on the story! I love hearing all of you guy's feedback! This is The Draigg, signing off for now.