After parting ways with Qrow and Winter, Team RWBY opted to explore more of Vacuo as a group before coming upon a small restaurant, looking up at it Weiss' legs suddenly felt tired from all of the day's activities.
"I don't know about you guys but I could go for some lunch?"
Weiss turned to Ruby who nodded in agreement, eliciting a smile from Weiss as Yang stretched her arms above her head, Yang groaned while clicking her fingers.
"Ugh, I agree, we've earned a treat."
Making their way inside a little bell rung out atop the door signalling their entrance, Ruby quickly dashed over to a table that you could see out of the long front window, with two rows of padded benches, the four menus were wrapped up inside a wide glass bottle in the middle and she eagerly placed them out on the surface before waiting for everyone to make their way over.
"Somone's eager." Teased Blake.
Ruby turned to the three of them with a huff as she deflated a little.
"After today, I need like Vauco's entire supply of strawberries…" Pausing for a moment she turned to Weiss, with a worrying expression. "…Does Vacuo even have strawberries?"
Weiss realized she didn't know the answer, unwilling to admit that though she looked at Ruby apologetically.
"I specialise in Dust not agriculture."
"There's simpler ways to say I don't know." Blake spoke as she rolled her eyes, speaking as she sat down, sliding along until she was sat against the wall and leaving a seat available beside her.
Weiss reacted defensively as she sat opposite Blake.
"Because Vacuo is primarily desert, it's unlikely that they grow any but they could import them from Vale or Menagerie."
Blake smirked at Weiss.
"So you don't know."
"Irrelevant, I can make an educated guess…" Weiss turned to Ruby who had sat beside her, she rested her hand supportively on Ruby's. "I'm sure they will probably have strawberries."
Ruby pumped her free hand in victory. "Yesss! Dessert is sorted then."
The four of them fell into silence as they each scanned their respective menus, eventually all coming to their decisions, Yang and Ruby volunteered to walk up to the counter and give the groups order since they were on the ends, once the two sisters were told they stood up and made their way over leaving Weiss to frown suspiciously at Blake who had started to stare at her with a knowing smirk.
"What?" The word came out instinctively without meaning and Blake shook her head slightly as her smile grew.
The words she chose mirrored the conversation the two sisters had said earlier as they all left the Branwen camp.
"So, Ruby?"
Weiss crossed her arms defensively as she felt her cheeks flush red slightly, not used to being teased in such a way. Blake seemingly took mercy on Weiss as her giddy smile fell into a nervous expression.
"Can I ask…" Blake spoke as she turned to look over at the two sisters who were queuing to order, they were seemingly in their own conversation. "…When did you know?"
Weiss looked over to where Blake was also looking and smiled happily when her eyes landed on Ruby, their leader had her back to the two as she stood next to Yang but just seeing her as she thought over Blake's question elicited a feeling of warmth throughout Weiss.
"When Ruby and I reunited in Mistral. Just seeing her, it felt like all the weight fell from my shoulders. I don't think I realized what my emotions meant at the time but then the next thing I knew, I got hurt and we were suddenly on our way to Atlas. It was as if the universe was sending all these signals that it wasn't meant to be and I was a coward, at least now after all that's happened we were brave enough to open up. Take that leap."
"You felt like you were falling?"
Weiss chuckled as she turned back to Blake.
"I think the question is if I ever thought she was falling with me."
"Did you?"
"Literally at one point yes, when we were fighting the Grimm in Argus and I caught her as she was falling. We were both perfectly in sync with each other but then Atlas happened and Ruby was so busy focusing on being the best leader, it seemed like the perfect cowardly excuse. I didn't want to distract her."
Blake's smile softened as Weiss spoke, presumably thinking about how Weiss and Ruby were more useless than the two of themselves.
"Don't think you can keep me talking, what about you and Yang?" Weiss teased trying to deflect back onto her teammate.
"Me and Yang?"
"How can you stand all the puns?" Weiss incredulously. "Like, don't get me wrong it's about time but come on, but I don't see how you don't want to push her off a cliff sometimes."
Blake giggled at Weiss' words, taking some fun at Weiss' idea of the puns as something to suffer.
"Well sometimes they can be annoying but she means well and besides I do love how she makes them seem so easy."
A flash of guilt spread across Weiss eliciting a look of concern from Blake, the Faunus sense that Weiss wanted to say something and she reached across, resting her hand on top one of Weiss'.
"What is it Weiss?"
Weiss' eyes glanced over at the sisters before darting back to Blake.
"You can't tell Yang this…" Weiss paused waiting for Blake to nod in agreement.
"Ruby said she was jealous of you and Yang…" Blake went to talk but Weiss raised a hand before continuing. "…She said that she wanted to have what you guys have with me but that she was unworthy, that a leader can't ask for help so I want your help. I want to do something special for Ruby, show her that we not just want to help her but that it's okay to ask."
Blake quickly agreed.
"Of course I'll help, Ruby is our leader after all and she deserves a break and don't worry, I won't tell Yang but I do admit, the idea of seeing Ruby jealous is definitely not something I can easily imagine."
Weiss laughed out in response. "I don't know about hard, just dangle some cookies in front of her and eat one, she gets jealous quickly then."
Blake playfully pushed Weiss' hand as she used it to push herself against the back of where she was sat. "I meant jealous emotionally and you know that."
…
Separate to Blake and Weiss, Ruby and Yang were having their own conversation as they were in the queue. Yang suddenly felt a wave of guilt spread over her so she reached her arm and wrapped it around Ruby pulling her sister in close to her.
"I love you; you know that right, I love you just the way you are… Even if your taste in partners leaves something to be desired."
"Hey!" Ruby shoved herself free from Yang's grasp. "I love you to but what's wrong with Weiss? She's perfect."
"pfft, a perfect pain in the butt more like. Come on you've heard her attempts at puns."
"Not everyone needs a constant supply of jokes you know; life isn't a Dust mine."
Yang felt that wave of guilt return as she turned her head and looked at Blake and Weiss in conversation, the two were too busy to realize she was looking back at them as one word Ruby had said stuck in her head, perfect, if Weiss was perfect surely that meant…
Yang's voice was a mixture of guilt and worry. "If Weiss is perfect, does that mean you're going to keep trying to be the perfect team leader? We didn't ask you to be perfect."
Yang turned back to her sister and Ruby was staring nervously at the ground, Yang grabbed her hand with her own, she watched Ruby's thumb move nervously along her prosthetic as she responded by grasping Yang's hand tight.
"What if she deserves perfect?" Ruby asked softly.
Using her free hand she brought it up to Ruby's face, resting it softly on her sister's cheek and slowly guiding her eyeline up to herself.
Yang's voice was suddenly confident and stern.
"She deserves you Ruby! Not some idealist version of yourself."
Ruby nodded but that wasn't enough for Yang.
"Say it." The blonde pushed verbally, not just for herself but she knew Ruby needed to hear herself say it as well.
"She deserves me."
Pulling Ruby back into a hug she spoke.
"Yes, my amazing sister, now we've not done anything too crazy in Vacuo yet and that needs to change.
"Speak for yourself, Weiss tricked me into doing karaoke."
Yang raised an eyebrow at that revelation.
"Maybe Weiss is the fun one." She teased before continuing. "The Rose- Xiao Long sisters have to make our mark on this town, let's do something special for our girls."
Ruby smirked, nodding eagerly, those words warmed her heart.
"Our girls." She repeated, almost as if in a reverence and Yang smiled as she heard how just the thought of Weiss seemed to influence her sister.