Weiss felt like hell. She was sore, her feelings were hurt, and her head was pounding. She was in the infirmary, and she couldn't bear to look at her partner, but she refused to leave Ruby alone.

"Weiss, it's okay," Ruby insisted. "It's just a cut."

Weiss shivered. Just a cut. Cut. Weiss had cut Ruby. Qrow had instructed them to spar until their Auras broke in order to give them a more realistic feel as to what combat is really like, and Weiss had cut Ruby. Just an offhand slash with Rosenwache, and Ruby's Aura had broken without Weiss noticing, and her follow-up with Myrtenaster had cut Ruby. She could remember the feeling of Myrtenaster cutting easily across the flesh of Ruby's upper arm, how the blood travelled down the length of its blade, how it settled in the blade's Dust channels, creating a macabre, labyrinthine pattern. She especially remembered the little cry Ruby made before dropping Crescent Rose and clutching the crimson-stained fabric of her shirt.

"I cut you, Ruby." Weiss whispered.

"Yeah, you did." Weiss cringed. "But it's okay. I've been cut before, y'know. Way worse, too. Remember Bartramb?"

Of course she remembered Bartramb. Ruby had nearly died of blood loss. "Bartramb was a Grimm, Ruby. I am your partner. I'm not supposed to hurt you."

Ruby huffed. The sound of rustling sheets was almost enough to make Weiss lift her gaze, but she refused to look at her partner. She didn't deserve to.

Of course, Ruby wouldn't have that. Her bare feet slapped against the cold tile of the infirmary as she walked to Weiss. Ruby kneeled in front of her partner, deliberately putting herself within the heiress' line of sight. She reached out with her good arm and laid a hand on Weiss' shoulder. "You know, Weiss, if I had hurt you like this, I'd probably be doing the same thing. And, if you were in my position, you'd be doing the same thing I'm doing right now."

Weiss huffed.

"Probably a bit more harshly, but my point still stands." Ruby smiled at Weiss.

Damn that girl. It was incredibly difficult to nurture a healthy self-loathing with Ruby around. Weiss slowly met Ruby's eyes. "I—" She choked. "I'm sorry, Ruby."

Weiss was pulled in for a one-armed hug by Ruby, one which she eagerly reciprocated. "It's okay, Weiss."

Ruby winced as she brought up her bandaged arm to wrap around her partner. It hurt a little, but it was worth it.

The two stayed like that for a long while, just holding each other in the infirmary, until the nurse returned. The tall, ginger woman scolded Ruby for getting out of bed, changed her bandages, checked Ruby's Aura levels. After much begging, she acquiesced to letting Ruby leave the infirmary, so long as she agreed to not use her Semblance or partake in any otherwise strenuous activity, including, much to Ruby's chagrin, wielding Crescent Rose.

Weiss escorted Ruby back to their dorm, and Ruby could tell that she was still worried about her, mostly because Weiss was throwing her concerned glances every few steps. Normally, such attention would be appreciated, but Ruby was just getting frustrated with the heiress. "Weiss," Ruby said, her voice firm. "I'm okay. I'm not going to fall apart the moment I leave your sight."

Weiss didn't respond, she just kept leading her through the halls by the hand.

"Weiss, I'm serious. I'm not a kid." Weiss still didn't respond. "Weiss, look at me."

Weiss pushed open the door to the dorm. No one greeted her, what with Yang doing her usual after-class gym routine and Blake doing whatever she does after class. As soon as Weiss entered the room, she escorted her partner to her bed.

Ruby's jaw clenched. She planted her feet, and didn't allow Weiss to drag her any further. Weiss turned to Ruby, confusion evident in her expression. "Weiss, stop." Ruby demanded, her tone firm.

"I'm just trying to take care of you," Weiss insisted. "The same way you did for me."

Ruby felt a tug in her heart. She slipped her hand out of Weiss' grip and shook her head. "Weiss, this is different. We are different. When have you ever known me as someone to just rest?"

Weiss opened her mouth to say something, but opted to stay quiet when she realized she was just going to parrot whatever the nurse had said. Ruby wouldn't listen to that.

Ruby took her silence as an adequate answer. "I'm gonna get these bandages off, hop in the shower, and then we can go to Vale. Schedule says our first mission is next week, and we need to run some errands."

Weiss simply nodded. In return, Ruby gave her a small smile before grabbing a set of street clothes from her dresser and stepping into the bathroom. After a couple of minutes, Weiss heard the water turn on.

Weiss sighed, and untied her half-cape, folded it neatly, and placed it back in her dresser. However, just as she began to close the dresser, she heard a small yelp from the bathroom.

Immediately, Weiss was pressed up against the door. "Are you okay, Ruby? I heard a noise!"

"Yeah— yep, uh-huh, yes. I am o-kay. Just, uh, cold water?"

Weiss sighed. Ruby wouldn't last a second in Atlas society. What a terrible liar. "Ruby, I'm coming in."

Ruby yelped again. "Don't look!"

"I'll cover my eyes."

Ruby didn't respond, and Weiss took that as her cue to enter. She placed her hand in front of her eyes, and slowly stepped into the bathroom. Immediately, she was blasted by steam and heat. She blindly stumbled through the restroom towards the sound of rushing water with one hand covering her eyes, and the other in front of her. "Ruby?"

"Y-yes, Weiss?"

Weiss felt the glass door of the bath-shower combo and stopped. "What happened?"

"Well, I, uh… I guess stretching counts as strenuous, doesn't it? I kind of, uh, reopened the cut. Partially."

"I'm going to open my eyes, Ruby."

"What! Why!"

"I need to see it, to make sure you're okay."

"Weiss, I'm fine, really, it's better than it looks."

That did not bode well. "I'm going to look, Ruby."

"Wait! Not yet!" Weiss kept her eyes shielded. "O-okay, you can look, now."

Weiss felt her heart speed up as she lifted her hand from her eyes. She was met with a steamed-over glass, on the other side of which she could make out the vague, fuzzy silhouette of her partner. She placed her hand on the glass, and slid it to the side.

Ruby looked over her shoulder briefly, gasped, and turned her head back to the wall. Weiss was looking at her! "Y-y'know, Weiss, people usually go on a couple of dates before seeing each other na— like this." Ruby's words, though meant to be joking, carried no humor. Ruby's voice lacked all confidence, and she felt herself shrinking under her partner's gaze.

Weiss stared slack jawed. She was speechless, and she barely heard what Ruby had said. The cut on Ruby's arm was, as she said, partially reopened, causing blood to stream down her arm and create a disturbing contrast as it struck the tub's white surface. That was minor, however, compared to what Weiss saw on Ruby's back. Her partner's back was a mural of scar tissue. Three of the most painful-looking scars Weiss had ever seen crossed Ruby's back in raised, pink ridges of uneven tissue.

Ruby turned again after a few moments of Weiss saying nothing, and realized her mistake. Weiss was reaching out towards her back, her expression filled with disbelief. Before Weiss could touch her scars, Ruby spun around, grabbing her partner's wrist. Ruby was about to say something, when she realized an entirely different expression had taken over Weiss' face. Weiss was flushed red, her jaw was clenched, and she was staring directly at Ruby's chest.

Ruby felt the cogs turning in her mind. Weiss was staring at her chest, her breasts specifically, which were not covered up because Ruby was in the shower. That took a few seconds to parse in Ruby's mind. Weiss was staring at her breasts. Ruby was naked. That's not supposed to happen.

Ruby screamed, pushing Weiss away and yanking the glass door shut again. As soon as she began pulling, however, she cried out again. She'd yanked the door with her injured arm, causing a shock of pain. She stumbled, her back hitting cool tile as she cradled her injury.

The fog permeating Weiss' mind was split with Ruby's shriek, and she was immediately against the glass again. "Ruby! Are you alright?"

"Yes!" Ruby hissed through gritted teeth. "I'm okay!"

Weiss peeked around the half-closed glass door. Ruby was pressed against the back of the shower, her face was a mask of pain, and her hand was covering the cut on her arm. A small amount of blood was leaking past her fingers. Weiss rushed to get away from the shower again before she saw more of Ruby. She rifled through the drawers beneath the bathroom sink, and extracted a large adhesive bandage. Her voice was shaky. "I'm getting you a bandage, Ruby."

Weiss heard her partner grunt in affirmation, set the bandage on the sink, and grabbed a big enough towel to cover her partner. Ruby turned the flow of water off, and Weiss thrust the towel through the gap. She deliberately looked away, she couldn't trust her eyes to behave if she caught sight of Ruby again.

A tug announced that Ruby had grabbed the towel, and the sound of wet feet on tile announced that it was most likely okay to look again, which Weiss did. Ruby was, gratefully, covered up by the large white towel. Ruby's hand was still covering the cut.

"Ruby," Weiss insisted. "Let me see it."

Ruby sheepishly looked away and lifted her hand from her arm. The injury was still bleeding, but Weiss could see Ruby's Aura throwing red sparks around the perimeter of the cut, the most common sign that someone's Aura was healing them. Weiss gently lifted Ruby's arm to get a closer look, but found herself marvelling at the soft skin in her hands. She had to keep herself from running her fingers along the length of Ruby's arm, instead opting to apply the adhesive bandage to the wound.

They remained in silence for a long time. Weiss didn't release her hold on Ruby's arm, and Ruby refused to meet Weiss' eyes.

"I've never seen your back before, Ruby." Weiss observed her partner's face, and felt relieved to find that Ruby didn't seem angry. "I didn't know it was that bad."

Ruby's brows furrowed, and she looked back at her partner. "Bad? Why would it be bad?"

Weiss regarded her partner with confusion again. "Have you seen them? They're—" Weiss caught herself. She didn't want to say that.

Ruby said it for her, though. "Ugly? Grotesque? Is that what you think, Weiss?"

Weiss tripped over her words. "N-no I didn't mean it like that!"

Ruby smirked. "Yeah you did, you just didn't say it."

Weiss released Ruby's arm and looked to the floor in shame.

Ruby's small laugh caused her to look up again. "It's okay, Weiss. I used to think that, too, but that sucked, so instead, I thought of them like trophies! Clear evidence that I, Ruby Rose, kick ass."

Weiss looked at her partner in awe.

Ruby pointed to Weiss' scar. "Isn't that how you see yours?"

Weiss reached up to feel the mark. It was so small compared to Ruby's, but it held just as much meaning. It was a reminder of her rebellion, and a reminder of its consequences. Weiss nodded.

Ruby smiled gently and reached forward, drifting a finger carefully along its edge. "Sorry I flipped on ya, Weiss."

Weiss met Ruby's eyes. It was back, that tension.

Ruby could feel it too, and she wanted to do something about it. "Weiss," Her voice was nearly a whisper. "Do you want to touch them?"

Weiss' breath hitched. When she'd nearly touched Ruby's scars, she'd barely been conscious of it. Weiss swallowed, and nodded.

Ruby felt her heartbeat quicken, and she took a deep breath to steady herself. She gave Weiss one last smile before shooing her with her hands. "Wait for me in the dorm."

Weiss left the bathroom in a daze. She was going to touch Ruby's scars. Ruby was letting her touch her bare scars. It was… intimate. For partners. Friends. Weiss' fingers curled against her palms. Just friends, she insisted. She couldn't bring Ruby into her life in Atlas, they would kill the poor girl, but not before killing Weiss first. That is, unless—

The door to the bathroom swung open, interrupting Weiss' thought with both its sound, and the reveal of her partner. Ruby was clad only in jeans and a black bra. It was the first time she'd stepped into the main dorm room in anything less but a full outfit, and it was quickly going to Weiss' head. Ruby was nothing but tight muscle thanks to her incredibly heavy weapon, and Weiss could see the definition of her shoulders, arms, and abdominal muscles clearly. It was almost enough to make Weiss envious.

Ruby gingerly approached her partner. "I'm gonna turn around and you can…" Ruby coughed. "U-unclasp my bra. Then just… y'know."

Weiss' mouth grew dry, and she nodded. The air only grew thicker as Ruby approached her partner and turned around. To the heiress, it was surreal. She barely felt her own hands shakily unclasping Ruby's bra, which Ruby rushed to hold up in the front. Weiss's hands hovered over her partner's skin.

"Ruby?" Weiss wanted to tell her everything. She wanted to tell her what she felt, what she was going to do. The words were in her mind, they were in her throat, they were in her mouth.

They wouldn't come out.

Ruby glanced over her shoulder to see her partner's expression twisted with confliction. Ruby understood, she'd be scared to touch something like her scars, too. They were intimidating. She draped one arm across her chest, holding up her bra, and reached back with her other hand. She gently took hold of Weiss' wrist, and pulled it to the flesh of her back.

Weiss flinched. The flesh beneath her fingers was uneven, raised, and she could clearly feel the difference between scar tissue and normal skin. It was haunting, but intoxicating. She laid her other hand on Ruby's back, and traced the scars with her fingers, with her palms, and with her eyes.

Ruby hissed lowly as Weiss ran her hands along the sensitive flesh. It didn't hurt, but it was a strange feeling, like a sensory overload. Weiss' hands were cool against her skin, and she found herself beginning to relax into the heiress' touch. It felt right, as most things do with Weiss. Ruby could feel her heart hammering against her chest. Weiss pressed her fingers slightly into the flesh, kneading it gently. Ruby sighed, this must be heaven.

Weiss was panicking, internally. Her hands were shaking, but she couldn't stop touching Ruby. She was right, the scars were a trophy, a sign that she had lived, and Weiss couldn't get enough of them. Ruby was alive, breathing, and the scars were just proof. Thanks to these scars, she was with Weiss. Weiss felt a rock sink into her gut, she was going to do something, and there was no way she could stop herself.

Ruby felt something else touch the sensitive skin of her back, something smaller, softer than Weiss' fingers. Something warm. Did Weiss just—?

She'd done it, and she couldn't stop herself. Weiss had leaned forward, and pressed a single, feather-light kiss to the largest of Ruby's scars. Weiss had been nervous, now she was horrified. She'd kissed Ruby, without her permission, on her scars. Weiss' face was still close to Ruby's back, and she could see exactly where she'd kissed her.

Weiss wanted to scream, or cry, but she couldn't. If she did, what would Ruby say?

"Weiss, did you… kiss my scars?"

Weiss felt her heart jump into her throat. As if it were red-hot steel, Weiss' hands quickly came away from Ruby's back. Weiss backed away from her partner, horrified by what she'd done. "Y-you," Weiss stuttered. "You should get your clothes on. "

Weiss refused to look at her partner as she stormed out of the dorm.