Disclaimer: RWBY and all affiliated characters/titles belong to Rooster Teeth, those wonderful geniuses.
The smooth breeze coming off the ocean hit Yang as the most refreshing thing she had felt in a long while. The combined stress of the end of the year at Beacon alongside all the preparations for the Vytal Festival and now being in the singles rounds had piled up on her lately. It had started to become a little much for usually carefree and complacent girl to handle which is why Nora suggested they take a walk down to the beach to help clear her head. Nora didn't even want Yang to take her bike tonight so they didn't have to worry about parking it or if it rained or anything like that. She had even remembered to mention that the airbuses ran much later than usual because of the Vytal Festival matches and all the ongoing festivities around the city. Yang and Nora could stay out basically as long as they liked and not worry about how they would get back to their dorm.
"You know I've seen you do that while swinging your hammer around right? Kinda loses the impressive factor if we're just walking." Yang looked up at Nora who was hopping from one foot to the other as she made her way along the thing handrail that separated the beach and the walkway. Yang had been worried about losing the sleep so close to her finals matches, there were some very impressive competitors for her to go up against, the boy they had seen win tonight with the robot eye looked incredible, or maybe she would have to fight Sun whose gunchucks she still hadn't figured out a way to track, and there was always the possibility that she would go up against the invincible girl. Yang was honestly extremely worried about the upcoming fight.
"Boop," Nora chimed and pulled Yang out of her thoughts with a poke on the nose, "Whatcha thinkin' about?" Nora cocked her head to one side and regarded Yang with warm, caring eyes the color of calm lake water in the middle of summer. Yang felt her worries fade under her gaze and reached up to grab Nora by the waist and ease her down to the ground in front of her.
"I love you so much Nora." Yang leaned forward and gave her a slow kiss.
"That is not what you were thinking about," Nora scolded playfully after they had separated, "You had your worried, concerned look on. Like when we talk about Ruby and Weiss, or when your bike is out in the rain." Yang couldn't help but giggle, Nora knew her too well.
"I was thinking about the fights." Yang said slowly and Nora's smile softened from playful to caring, "I don't wanna hurt Pyrrha ya know? She just looks so fragile." Yang laughed and Nora pushed at her shoulders playfully.
"Oh yeah, I'm sure that's what you're worried about." Nora jumped over the railing in a single leap and rolled into the sand, "Come play with me Yang." Yang looked out over the ocean at the lights of the Amity Colosseum playing about in the crashing waves and then leapt to join her lover. She glanced down as she plummeted towards the sand and was startled to see Nora face down in the sand immediately beneath her. Yang spread her legs to the sides and landed with one foot either side of Nora's head. Nora rolled over and giggled.
"This is a view I could get used to." Nora grabbed Yang's ankles and pulled just hard enough to put her on her butt. Yang fell into a seated position, legs resting over Nora's.
"We stay like this, people might think we're doing something indecent down here." Yang joked just to hear the ringing laughter that never failed to brighten her day.
"Well what are they gonna do? Fight us? That would just make our night even better." Nora pulled her legs out from under Yang and fell forward onto all fours over Yang's torso. "Who knows, they might ask for your autograph afterwards. Getting beat up by a Vytal Festival champion doesn't happen everyday." Yang reached forward and gently placed a single finger against Nora's lips to stop her advance and silence her.
"I'm not champ yet. Can't go letting me get a big head." Yang laughed and Nora opened her mouth just wide enough to nibble at Yang's finger.
"You're a champ to me." Nora slid her mouth back and placed a small, light kiss right at the tip of Yang's index finger.
"So you think you could handle dating me? Even if I lose?" Yang leaned back on her arms, feeling the soft sand cling to her newly moistened finger.
"I don't think I could handle not being with you." Nora lowered herself down and kissed Yang gently on the lips, holding their lips together but not pressing forward.
Yang held herself up with her core and swung both arms out to knock Nora's hands out from under her. The redhead fell on top of Yang, her face going directly into Yang's cleavage. Yang laughed when Nora made no attempt to free herself.
"You know, I would be upset. But, I just can't for some reason." Nora burrowed her head a little deeper into Yang's ample bosom and hummed happily. Yang laughed again and hugged Nora closer to her, falling backwards into the sand and bringing her lover down with her. She was content to lie there in the sand, staring up at the sky, void of all stars thanks to the intense light put out by the colosseum and clutching Nora to her chest like a child with stuffed ursa.
"It's really beautiful isn't it?" Yang asked in a softer voice.
"What is?" Nora's voice was still muffled by the breasts she had yet to extract herself from.
"The stadium. I mean. It's just crazy. That's the work of an entire generation floating up there. It just glows and sparkles and hangs out like it doesn't care at all." Yang spoke slowly, her voice full of wonderment. Nora rolled off to her side and propped her head up on her elbow.
"You know it's a stadium right? I don't think it can care Yang" Nora laughed playfully and rested her free hand on Yang's stomach.
"Yeah, I know, but I mean. It just seems so separate from everything else. Like it could just fly away and leave all of this behind." Yang moved her arms out to her sides and put one on the holding Nora up.
"Oh okay…" Nora looked down at Yang's stomach and started drawing random little shapes on her belly, "Yang, you're not talking about the stadium anymore are you?" Yang sighed quietly and closed her eyes.
"I don't know Nora."
"What's up?" Nora leaned up and slid her hand from Yang's stomach to her cheek, "Are you worried about something?"
"Worried? Not really. Okay maybe. I feel like it's not that intense though. Just nervous I guess." Yang opened her eyes just to see those cool azure orbs staring back at her, the ones that always calmed her. "When Ruby decided to become a huntress like me, it was pretty much a given. I mean both of our Moms and our Dad were hunters, plus uncle Qrow and basically everyone we knew because all of their friends were hunters too. I knew it was dangerous, I mean look what happened to Summer. But I guess I figured Ruby would always be safe. Then Qrow trained her and I knew she would be because she got so good so fast. I never really worried about her getting hurt. I never worried about myself getting hurt either because I mean, I'm me right?" A goofy grin broke through her stoic composure for just a moment before fading back into the background. "I never worried about anything. I'm just here because I love a good fight and it gives me an excuse to work out all the time and I would be way too bored doing anything else."
"What about finding your Mom?" Nora asked gently.
"Yeah, I wanna find her too but I don't need to be a huntress to do that. I mean, I could search like a normal person, put out things over the CCT, ask around, that kind of thing." Yang leaned up and kissed Nora on the forehead, "But the biggest difference now is I have something to worry about." Nora cocked her head to the side for a moment and then the spark of realization hit her.
"Me? You're worried about me?" Nora laughed and put her hand on Yang's shoulder, "You don't have to be worried about me Yang. You've seen me fight and besides, I've always got you there to back me up." Nora smiled and leaned down to give Yang a kiss but Yang pulled away after just a moment of contact.
"But I do worry Nora. I'm not always there with you. I know you have Pyrrha and Ren and even Jaune on missions but things happen, Grimm are dangerous." Yang turned her head away, "I don't know what I'd do if they came back without you. Or what if I didn't come back?" Nora grabbed Yang's cheek and turned her back to stare at her again.
"Nothing is gonna happen, you're my little dragon right?" Nora asked sternly.
"Yeah, but Nora-"
"And I'm you're beautiful firecracker?"
"Nora, that's not-"
"So we'll be fine." Nora kissed Yang again and they both maintained the contact, "Besides, we're still just in training. Nothing bad is ever gonna happen while we're here and once we leave we can go on every single mission together. Right?" Yang's grimace faltered and a small smile pushed her lips upwards.
"Right." Yang darted forward and gave Nora another quick kiss before jumping to her feet, "Wanna keep walking?" she extended her hand down towards her lover, still lying in the sand.
"I dunno, my legs are kinda tired. I spent all day jumping up and down cheering for this really cute blonde girl fighting in the tournament?" Nora gave Yang a coy smile.
"Oh well in that case," Yang swept down and scooped Nora up out of the sand. The little redhead giggled furiously as Yang swung her up and over her head and put her on her shoulders, one leg on either side of her neck. "I will just have to carry you." Yang bucked her shoulders slightly to get Nora into a better position and headed off down the sand.
"Weeeeee!" Nora squealed in joy from atop her girlfriend's strong shoulders, "Oh I haven't done this in…. Well ever!" Nora was still yelling.
"Really? You've never ridden on someone's shoulders?" Yang tried to crane her head to look up at Nora but found that it proved quite impossible.
"Well yeah I mean, this isn't exactly something Ren would do for me and I was always the stronger one we were little. Well I still am but at least now he could lift me." Nora laughed and let her hands fall down to Yang's cheeks and linked her fingers beneath the blonde's chin.
"Well then I am so incredibly glad to take your shoulder riding virginity." Yang laughed and reached up to poke Nora in the belly, eliciting another giggle of delight.
"Are you excited to go to dinner with everyone tomorrow?" Nora voice was quieter and Yang figured she was looking up at the sky now.
"Oh yeah, it's gonna be great. I hope Sun gets to stay after the festival is over too. I would hate for the dinner to be the last time he and Blake see each other." Yang really did worry about the fact that her usually reclusive teammate had put herself in a relationship with a preset expiration date.
"I wouldn't worry about that. Sun doesn't seem like the type to let something silly like a whole continent of separation get between him and his girl." Nora arched down quickly over Yang's head so her upside down face appeared suddenly in Yang's vision. "Oh my Oum Yang hide us!"
"What?" Yang asked in shock but Nora didn't hesitate. She pulled hard and threw her body back towards the walkway, keeping her legs firmly around Yang's shoulders.
"Hurry, we gotta hide." Nora hit the sand and disentangled from Yang's shoulders. She scrambled quickly behind a large rock near the walkway and beckoned for Yang to hurry over. Yang didn't ask any more questions instead decided it would just be easier to follow suit and quickly scrambled after her. Once her back was firmly against the same rock as her girlfriend she spoke in a hushed voice.
"What are we hiding from?"
"Fate I think. Destiny… do you believe in destiny?" Nora cocked her head to the side.
"What are you talking about?" Yang was completely lost now. Nora held a single finger over her lips to shush Yang.
"Just look, up on the walkway." Nora whispered and jerked her thumb over her shoulder towards the raised pathway that ran alongside the sand. Yang obeyed silently and slowly lifted her eyes up over the edge of the rock. She was incredibly surprised to see Ruby and Weiss standing together, staring right at one another.
"Oh my Oum. I thought they were going out to eat with Jaune and Pyrrha?" Yang whispered back as she hit the ground next to Nora again.
"I know right, they were supposed to be. Maybe they finished and came out here?" Nora voice was growing louder as she got excited about what that possibility might imply.
"Shhh, we gotta see if we can hear them." Both girls fell silent and strained their ears. They could make out the noise of conversation but the low rumble of the waves blurred any actual discernable words beyond recognition.
"I can't hear them Yang." Nora whimpered quietly.
"Okay, uhhhh… I'm gonna go sneak to right under the path and see if I can hear them. Stay here, I don't want them to see us." Yang looked Nora in the eye to ensure she understood what she meant. The redhead nodded quickly and Yang scampered off on all fours. She stuck close to the rocks, trying to stay in the shadows as much as she could. That's what Blake did when she was being sneaky, right? She rolled to a stop and pressed her back against the base of the path and tried to restrain her excited breathing and listen in.
"Weiss, you know I'm still gonna be the best partner and leader I can be right? What I said the other day. It doesn't change anything about us as a team." Ruby's voice was quiet. Yang figured Weiss had brought up the subject and made Ruby uncomfortable. Sounded like something the Ice Queen would do.
"That's not what I was going to-" Weiss was obviously irritated, Yang could vividly picture the nose pinching fury the heiress must be trying to restrain. "Would you not interrupt me you dolt?"
"Sorry, sorry. I just. I wanted to say that before you started. Sorry" Ruby apologized hurriedly. Trying to back pedal as quickly as possible.
"Okay," Weiss took an audibly deep breath, "Ruby. You know I grew up extremely sheltered right?" Weiss was silent for a moment before continuing. Ruby must have nodded in agreement or some such non-verbal affirmation. "Well, I actually never even dated anyone at all. I can't say I ever even had a crush of any kind. I went to an all girl's business school in Atlas, attended company meetings with Father and Winter and saw my private combat tutor as often as I was allowed. I was kept so busy I didn't really have time for anything like that. So, I have absolutely no idea how you feel about any of this."
"But Weiss-"
"Ah pup-up." Again Yang could imagine the heiress waving her finger impatiently in the air. "Let me finish." The irritation was significantly less in Weiss's voice now. "I also never had many friends. In Atlas my father's company has even more esteem and power than it does here. So, no one ever really talked to me at school. Even though they were all the rich and elite of Atlas, I was still seen as a separate entity. So when I came here. That's why I was so harsh when we met. All I never knew was to push people away. I had come to prefer isolation because I was used to it."
"Weiss I'm so sorry. I didn't know." Ruby's voice was faltering, of course she was emotional. Just because Weiss hadn't reciprocated her feelings didn't mean hers had vanished and that was a rather heart jerking story.
"So, when we started to become friends I didn't know what to do. I was awkward and clumsy in casual conversation. I didn't understand how to be funny like Yang, witty and biting like Blake or even carefree like you. I was jealous of how comfortable you all were with each other. But, you were so accepting of me. You dealt with the insults and the name calling and took it all in stride. You teased back even. No one had ever done that before. But, I still didn't know what to do with it. Then we started hanging out all the time and I got to the point where I was really, actually comfortable with you."
Yang couldn't believe this spilling of Weiss's guts she was hearing. She actually started to feel a little guilty for eavesdropping but honestly couldn't risk sneaking away then. She had gotten lucky enough to make her stealthy approach, she doubted she could make an equally stealthy exit.
"It was so nice Ruby. This time together, all the things we've done. It's the first time in my life I haven't felt like I was totally alone. So, when you explained how you felt. I got so scared. I didn't know what any of that meant. I was just getting a handle on us being friends and I had never even thought of a girl that way before. I mean, I'm supposed to like boys right? That's the way it goes." Weiss's voice grew softer and softer as she went.
"Weiss that's not true. You can like anyone you want. It doesn't matter." Ruby was frantic now, maybe she had started to see where Weiss might be headed with all this. Good for her, ruby had never been the most insightful girl but Yang hoped that this time she would have a glimpse of Weiss's meaning.
"I told you Ruby. I grew up really, really sheltered. You remember how I reacted to Blake, and the way I felt about Faunus before I got to know Blake and Velvet and even Sun. I still think he's a cretin but it has nothing to do with him being a Faunus now. Now I know him and I can say he's an undesirable completely based on his personality." Weiss huffed out another sigh. "I'm sorry, I'm getting way off track. What I'm trying to say is that my father raised me my whole life with visions of a grand wedding and raising lots of children and carrying on the family name with some other high born, rich kid who was doing exactly the same for his family. That's all I ever knew."
"Aren't you trying to get away from all of that though? From your Father and the company and everything?" Ruby was pleading with her.
"I am Ruby, really. But…." Weiss trailed off and there were a few moments of silence, "It's just so hard to go against everything I've known my whole life."
"Oh, okay." Ruby had broken. Yang could tell, she had reached her limit and figured there was no chance now. That this was just some sort of protracted apology from the ever polite and proper Schnee girl.
"No Ruby," Weiss shouted suddenly, and Yang could hear a sharp intake of breath though from which girl she wasn't sure, "That's not what I mean. I mean I don't know what I'm doing but I wanna try. I do want to get away from all the bigotry and the hate and the stereotypes my father put in my head. I really, really do."
"Weiss, I don't want you to be with me just as some way of getting back at your Dad. I don't want anything we have to be a symbol of anything other than how we feel about each other." Ruby had a confidence back to her voice, she had steeled herself up and Yang couldn't take to hear anymore. She decided she would have to risk sneaking away. Slowly she began creeping out across the sand, hugging close to the rocks again.
"No Ruby. It's not!" Weiss shouted and Yang turned. Weiss had rushed forward and had both of ruby's hands in hers. She was clutching them up to her chest and between the gentle light of the stadium and the shattered moon Yang could see tears shimmering in both of the girl's eyes. "I don't know how to, I don't know if I can explain it. But I want to Ruby."
"You don't have to-" Ruby started but Weiss flung an impertinent finger against her lips to silence the little brunette. Yang slunk against the rock, she had to stay now to see what happened. Weiss obviously had something in mind and Yang's curiosity would not let her miss it.
Weiss kept one hand against Ruby's lips and held the other flat out to her side, palm up towards the sky and closed her eyes in concentration. Ruby looked back and forth between her hand and her face, trying to figure out what she was doing but stayed silent as she had been instructed by a still present finger. Weiss furrowed her brow in concentration and a tiny shimmer appeared above her hand. It grew slowly, expanding and widening into a small circle parallel to Weiss's hand and Ruby's eyes grew wider as well. The little light kept pushing outwards until Yang could make out the Schnee logo in the center as the little circle got to what must have been around two or three inches wide.
Weiss's brows unfurrowed slightly, but definitely not completely and she arched her fingers up towards the circle. A single, rigid white line extended down from the circle towards Weiss's outstretched fingers and she grasped it tightly. Slowly the heiress pulled down and more and more of the white line descended from the floating insignia. Yang couldn't tell what it was other than a shimmering string of light until a flower head emerged from the glyph. Weiss sighed and opened her eyes, her shoulder slumping down from the apparent effort of what she had just done. She held a white rose out to Ruby, one seemingly made entirely of light.
"Weiss…" Ruby's voice was weak and there were tears running down her face. She reached out and gingerly took the rose from Weiss.
"It won't last very long. It's basically made of my aura and I'm really, really not good at that yet. But, I wanted to show you how I feel." Weiss had tears on her cheeks now as well and her voice was wavering, "I don't know exactly what it means, but I do know that I care about you more than anyone else in my life and I can't stand to see you the way you've been the past few days. I want to try and make you happy Ruby. I don't know if I can, but I want to try."
Ruby fell forward onto Weiss and wrapped her tiny arms around the taller girl's shoulders. Weiss stood in shock for a moment and then awkwardly returned the hug. Yang could feel tears dripping down her cheeks as well now and she reached up to wipe them away with her sleeve. She looked back up and Weiss and Ruby were still locked firmly around each other but the rose was slowly fading, shimmering brightly but flaking away into little specks of light that drifted aimlessly around the pair. Yang wiped at her eyes again and made her way quietly back to where Nora was still waiting.
"What was that? I couldn't hear but I saw that. What did she even just do? Is Weiss a witch? Yang what happened?" Nora launched question after question at her as soon as she was back on their side of the rock.
"I'll tell you, but come on. We should leave them alone right now." Yang grabbed Nora's hand gently and pulled away along the sand, back the way they'd come.
A/N - This was not in any way a result of reader pressure, please understand that. I am always in it to see everyone happy, really I am. At least in this silly little "Clubbin' "crack ship disaster. Also, I hope you liked that scene. I had to stop and start as I wrote it, which is weird for me, because I wanted to make sure it came out just right. So please, tell me what you thought of that.
On another, possibly more melancholy note, I guess it depends on how you feel about this story, this is the penultimate chapter. Meaning tomorrow's chapter, number 32, will be the final chapter of "Clubbin' ". 32 feels like a good number, and I refuse to deal with the end of the Vytal Festival in this fic so there it is. tomorrow's chapter will be a sort of reunion and reflection at their big friendly dinner and then I will mark it complete. Thank you so much for reading everyone. I meant this to be a toe dipping, experiment and almost two months later I'm sad to see it go. Thank you all for the ride.
-Zach