Ruby Schnee

"Ok... we're ok. We are not freaking out." She took a deep breath... gathered her strength... and calmly exhaled. "We are not... freaking out." One eye slowly peeked open and settled onto the room around them... and she was certain.

Ruby was definitely freaking out.

This place carried an air of artificial cleanliness. No one thought for a second that any of these rooms were kept clean by their occupants or just remained sparkling over time. Each of them were used, then sprayed down and rendered spotless once again by nothing short of a miracle. The whole building gave off that same vibe. It smelled of cleaning products and held mostly white decor that gave a feeling of familiarity to Ruby... though their own furniture at home was definitely more expensive.

She probably shouldn't even be here today. Technically still being on house arrest, and only being let out thanks to a... special... circumstance. She doubted any of the doctors or nurses would comment or try and get them in trouble for it... after all, they were kind of at the top of the ladder. Her clothes were rather mundane today, wearing one of the few outfits she had kept from before meeting Weiss. Really it was just because she had every intention to burn these clothes after this... or more accurately Weiss did, and Ruby just wasn't planning on getting in her way.

The only thing she wore of value was her cloak, but that was more sentimental then actual monetary value... though a Gilded item would probably sell for a lot now that she thought about it.

The room they were in was one of many, though clearly someone had tried to fancy it up a bit before they arrived. There were some candles strewn about and even a rug layed out... not that Ruby was going to let any of those candles actually be lit. Honestly she had hoped that rather then trying to artificially make this place look nicer they would have just been focoused on their jobs.

Nothing about this situation left Ruby with anything but stress. Today was a day of joy, but that joy would only start hours from now... once this was done. Until then? Stress, pain, and anxiety. At least, she would be the one experiencing two of those. Weiss was definitely going to be in a lot more pain then Ruby was... and just the thought of it made her tense up.

"Ow!" She quickly turned to Weiss, panic strewn over Rubys expression as she checked her over.

"Are you ok? Why ow? What's hurting??" She quickly stood up and was checking the woman all over, making Weiss look rather unimpressed from the bed.

"You squeezed my hand Ruby." She held there hands up with her own and sighed. "You know I'm the one supposed to be squeezing right?"

"Aren't you meant to be pushing...?" Ruby tilted her head as she spoke and Weiss facepalmed.

"Your hand Ruby... squeezing your hand..." She let out another sigh. "And I can't push yet, the doctor isn't here." That particular nugget of information was getting on Weiss's nerves in particular... and Ruby's too if she was being honest. The doctor had done a once over to check that Weiss and the baby were ok once she had gone into labour, then promptly left the room without explanation.

"Want me to go find another doctor?"

"No, we'll wait for this one to come back first." She rested her head back and looked up at the ceiling.

"You ok?"

She glanced at Ruby without turning her head. "I'm about to give birth Ruby."

"...but like... besides that...?" They shared a look for a moment and Weiss chuckled gently.

"Gillingham is being stressful... that's all." Ruby nodded in understanding. The ruler of Vacuo had decided she'd be so gracious as to stay in Vale until she could greet the newborn heir to their family... Weiss had tried to calmly and politely reject the offer, but Gillingham was adamant she 'do the proper thing'... meanwhile Carmine had left almost as soon as she could.

"I can kick her out if you want."

"Ruby... I think you've done enough to piss off Vacuo." She gave a gentle smile from the bed and Ruby shrugged with a weaker smile of her own. She didn't really like talking about that... but she was at least back to eating properly again. Besides meat of course... she still couldn't quite stomach that.

"I could always do more." She gave her wife a sly grin, and they shared a small giggle before the door opened. Ruby turned to give the doctor a piece of her mind... but was instead greeted by a friend first, followed by the doctor.

"Salutations friends!!" Penny walked in with a brighter smile then Ruby could respond with, and she was instantly feeling better about all this with just her presence in the room. The ginger haired girl was dressed in a nurses outfit, and Ruby honestly wasn't sure if she actually had a job here or if she had gotten dressed up specifically for this... either way, she was extremely happy to see Penny of all faces right now.

Ruby glanced back at Weiss with a smile, and the Queen nodded, agreeing without Ruby having to ask or say anything. Out of everyone they could have brought in, Ruby trusted Weiss and their babies safety with Penny above all.

"Alright then... let's meet your baby." The doctor smiled as he entered, but the words seemed to cause Weiss more stress then anything.

Ruby lost track of time once Weiss had started pushing. Her groans and almost screams never reached too loud or painful sounding... Ruby was hoping that was due to her strength rather then her need to not show weakness... but it had been difficult trying to tell. Penny was on the opposite side of the bed to Ruby the whole time, her hand gently on Weiss's shoulder and giving a constant source of green light... Ruby wasnt actually sure if she was doing any healing or not, but at the very least she could be dulling some of the pain.

Meanwhile Ruby's own pain was her hand currently. Weiss was squeezing the life out of it so much that she was confident it would either be bruised or worse once this was over. But Ruby wasnt about to complain about her pain during this scenario.

Too long, and too much yelling later... a different scream filled the room. Weiss was a mess, her body covered in sweat and she was surely going to be outraged about how her hair looked at the moment... but for once that wasn't too important to her right now. The doctor held their little miracle in a blanket and both of them waited with baited breath, every second between the instant the cries had started and actually getting the chance to look at him felt like an eternity... before finally the doctor offered the crying bundle of joy to Weiss.

Her expression was one of pure love and affection. A face Ruby had only ever seen directed at herself, but she knew that from now on she would be forced to share it's light... and she didn't mind for a second. Her own expression surely matched Weiss's as she leaned over the bed, getting a look at him for the first time as Weiss cradled him.

She couldn't describe the feeling if she tried. Her body and soul welled with a feeling almost reminiscent of the warmth she felt when she looked at Weiss... but it wasn't the same. She didn't love Weiss more or less then the baby in front of her... it was just a different kind of love. The feeling of a need to protect... the feeling that she would claim the world and present it to him if she could... this burning love...

"Good morning... Argus." Weiss whispered gently as the baby finally stopped crying, his eyes too weak to open yet and his soul felt so weak... he was too precious for this world Ruby decided. He was a precious jewel that could be broken by any wrong touch or bump... and she needed to protect him from all of it.

"I'm so sorry to interrupt this moment... but, may I?" Ruby looked up at the doctor and he was holding a small device in his hand. It resembled a torch, but Ruby recognised it at a glance, and carefully nodded as she leaned back a little to give him room.

He moved his hands down and turned the torch on next to the baby. It seemed to suck the very light from the air, making the space around Argus nice and dim... enough shade for him to open his eyes for the first time, with the doctor holding his notepad ready for when he opened his eyes.

Weiss smiled gently at Ruby. "I wonder if he'll manage to break the 'Schnee curse' or not." Ruby tilted her head.

"What's that?"

"Well... our family nearly always has an Ice Affinity... we call it the Schnee Curse just because elemental Affinitys are considered the most common kind."

"Ohh..." She looked down at their son again. He let out a gentle yawn and his eyes slowly flickered, gently and slowly opening as Ruby leaned in a bit more to get a better look... and she saw into those orbs for the first time as their eyes met. "Umm... does that count...?" Ruby's whispers were gentle, and while her words were meant for Weiss, she gave Argus a soft smile that promised all the love he could want.

Weiss chuckled a little and nodded. "I suppose it does... but... what were the chances honestly..." Her eyes widened after a moment and she focused her gaze again not long after. "Safe... healthy... and... strong... huh. I didn't think his luck would affect this of all things."

Argus's eyes... One was Silver, and one was Light Blue.