Note: Okay, so there are two topics to cover for the note section.

First of all: some thoughts on this arc as a whole. Wow, that took a lot longer than I thought it would! I wanted it to be a brief little escape from the drama of the main story, but I ended up writing 75,000 words over three months, and that's probably too much. I tried to take in as many fan ideas as possible, and I hope I was able to satisfy at least a little on that front. That being said, this arc ended up way more dramatic and dark than I wanted it to be. I considered this whole thing to be a continuation of RWBY's victories since freeing Winter, and while I was writing, I guess I got too worried that the story would become too stale without any of its character drama to push it forward. Can't do smut and dumb stuff forever, obviously, especially without major plot relevance. Unfortunately, I went overboard with it, especially in the latter half of the arc. Velvet's backstory and the WhiteRose sex drama especially. For that, I am sorry. I am going to try to end things on a lighter note though, and while that probably won't make up for it, it is more in line with my original vision for this side-turned-main arc.

But as for the second topic: it was pointed out to me on my discord that with this chapter, I have officially written over 1,000,000 words of Of Fables, Nightmares, and Bloodstained Roses. That's... too much lol. Wayyyyyy too much. But for all of you who are somehow sticking with me through this long, long journey, thank you very much. Writing this story has really helped motivate me this year, and I appreciate it so much. Reading all of your comments and kind (and unkind) words is something I look forward to every day.

Okay, that's enough yammering from Andrea. Now, let's wrap up this fucking beach vacation already. Enjoy.

Weiss didn't want to exist. She was dressed in her robe that she had thrown her over pathetic form the night before and hadn't bothered to clean herself before crying underneath her covers. Her tear stains left a dark spot on her pillow, and even when she fell asleep deep into the night, she spent it shivering, trapped in a surreal nightmare. When she awoke, she did not move for hours. The sun beat down on her weathered face, but it could not call her. Her eyes drifted to the Scroll that was still resting on her nightstand, unmoved from the night before. The mere sight brought back the repulsive memory, but she was too numb to move away.

She lost track of the time. Was it already mid-afternoon? Sunset? Had she wasted away her entire life within those sheets? She half expected someone to knock on her door and tell her it was time to leave the villa, and she would respond with dismay, desperate to avoid human contact.

There eventually was a knock on her door. She didn't know when. The sudden sound sent a shockwave up her spine. A soft voice creaked through the wood.

"Weiss? Are you awake?"

Weiss's heart shattered, and she drew further inward.

Ruby knocked again. "Can we talk, please? I… I really want to talk to you."

She couldn't do this…

"Weiss, I'm not mad at you… if that's what you're thinking. Please, open the door."

Weiss stayed silent. Maybe if she didn't answer, didn't move, Ruby would go away eventually. Maybe she'd take the hint and leave before something else horrible happened. Wouldn't that be nice? To run forever…

Something stirred in Weiss's gut. Run away? Is that really what she had been reduced to? After how hard she fought to obtain the life she had, she was going to sit here and wallow forever? That something in her gut was small, buried down by mountains of guilt, but it was able to scream loud enough to barely break through the rubble. It was just enough to drag Weiss to her feet and move her toward the door. Ruby had gone quiet from waiting, and Weiss secretly wondered if she really did give up. Whether hope or fear, it was dashed when she opened the door and saw Ruby standing there, waiting awkwardly.

Ruby took one look at Weiss and was shaken. It had only been a few hours, yet all of the life had been drained from Weiss's face. Her hair was a mess, her eyes hollow, and her normally proud posture had been pierced and slumped like a corpse. She couldn't even look Ruby in the eye, and that hurt Ruby more than anything else. She smiled softly, trying to force through some light into the woman she loved.

"Hey."

Weiss swallowed. "Hey…"

"Can I come in?"

Weiss nodded in silence. Ruby stepped into Weiss's room, and the door shut behind them; though left open a crack, keeping an escape plainly visible. Ruby looked around for a moment. She thought it would be strange to return here, that some trauma would reignite and she would be forced to relive the awful moment from the night before. But she was wrong. It was just a bedroom. In fact, the only memory that came to her was feeding Weiss breakfast, and planning out their day together. What a day it was…

Ruby turned suddenly to Weiss. "Do you need a hug?"

Weiss hesitated, then looked away sharply. "I don't… feel like touching you right now… if that's all right."

"Oh," Ruby sighed, "okay… yeah…"

Ruby sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for Weiss to join her. The heiress just stood there, incapable of closing the distance. Ruby felt like she needed to say something. Walking over from Blake's room, she had so many things planned out. She wanted to be clear about where they stood, be the leader she needed to be in their relationship. This was her moment. But seeing Weiss so distraught, her priorities shifted. She could understand Weiss's twisted logic—a single touch had led her astray, and it must be avoided at all costs. But Ruby felt outcasted. Capsized. Weiss's means of recovery were clashing against her needs. It caused Ruby to tremble. She leaned forward, unable to speak as the shadow grew deeper inside her, calling for release.

She relented.

"I'm sorry, I have to rephrase that," Ruby admitted. "I… I really need you to hug me right now."

Weiss didn't try to understand. She couldn't. After what she had done, Ruby still wanted to be close to her. It was more than that. As Ruby's smile faltered, and her eyes watered, and her arms widened, Weiss could see her emptiness. It tore deeper at her and gnawed past her inhibitions. She nearly broke down as she raced forward and threw herself into Ruby's embrace. The two fell onto the bed, holding each other close as they both broke into tears.

"I'm sorry," Weiss cried, squeezing Ruby closer. "I'm so sorry, Ruby."

Ruby was able to keep herself composed despite crying. "It's okay. I'm okay."

"I didn't mean to hurt you."

"I know."

"I never wanted to make you feel like that."

"I know."

"I'm so, so, so, sorry."

"It's all right. I forgive you."

"I'm so ashamed."

"It's fine. I mean it… I forgive you."

"You shouldn't."

"Of course, I should. It's okay."

"No, it's not…"

"Yes, I promise. It's okay. Hey…" Ruby pulled away slightly to look Weiss in the eye. Weiss's face had become puffy and red, and it was difficult for her to compose herself. Laying together on the bed, they both had sunk into the mattress, and it let them stay close to each other. Ruby gently stroked the tears out of Weiss's face. "I love you, Weiss. Nothing about that has changed. You didn't hurt me, and you weren't trying to. You made a mistake, but you're going to learn from it. You are going to be fine."

Weiss pressed her cheek deeper into Ruby's palm. "Gods, I feel like shit."

"Because you know what you did was wrong, and you hold yourself to a high standard," Ruby explained. "It means that you care about me. That's what matters."

"Are you really okay though?" Weiss asked worriedly. "You were so scared last night. I was worried that I… I don't know…"

"I promise, I'm fine," Ruby explained, wiping away her own tears. "I got freaked out, but I'm feeling better."

Weiss closed her eyes. All she cared about was Ruby's safety. She said she was fine, so why was it so hard to believe her? Those crawling doubts toyed with her. How could she be fine after what happened? Weiss assaulted her. She violated her trust. They were just supposed to move past this? How dare she?

Yet, it was impossible to listen to those doubts with Ruby here. She trusted Ruby not to lie to her, and if Ruby was really damaged, would she be so willing to comfort her? Ruby felt safe within Weiss's embrace. That had to count for something, right?

"I don't…" Weiss stammered. "I don't want this to ever happen again."

"It won't. I know it won't."

"You can't promise that. I can't."

"But I know we're both going to try," Ruby said as if it were as true as day. She pressed their foreheads together, relaxing into her touch. "We are going to work through this, and we're going to come out stronger. That's what we always do."

"You still want to be with me?" Weiss said, hope threatening to break through.

"Of course," Ruby insisted. "Weiss, yesterday was so special to me. After everything we've given to each other, I'm not going to give it up because you messed up once. I want to be with you because you've made my life better, and this doesn't change that at all."

Weiss smiled against her will. The redness in her cheeks was dying down, and Ruby helped clear the rest of her tears from her eyes. In a matter of seconds, she looked like the Weiss of yesterday, and that brought warmth back to Ruby's heart. Weiss seemed to struggle to find the right words.

"That's… that's…"

"Yes?"

Weiss sighed. "That's the sunk-cost fallacy."

Ruby blinked. "The what?"

Weiss sighed again, compelled to speak despite her better judgment. "In economics. Father taught me. You aren't supposed to make future decisions based on your past investments. That's fallacious reasoning."

Ruby stared at her, wide-eyed. "Oh… so, you mean…"

"You shouldn't just be dating me because you put a lot into this relationship before," Weiss explained tiredly. "That would be a terrible idea."

Ruby remained silent for several awkward seconds.

"Well… crap," she muttered. "Then I guess… I want to date you because your rich?"

Weiss burst out laughing. She rolled away from Ruby onto her back, clasping her hand over her mouth to keep from waking up the entire villa. The joke had broken through the dam of emotions clogged inside of her, and they came spilling out. All of her doubts melted away into an uncharacteristically immature chortle. She rolled on the bed, trying to contain herself, but was incapable of stopping. She only managed to weakly choke out her displeasure.

"Why would you… say that! You… dolt…"

Ruby held back her own laughter. All she wanted was to see the life return to Weiss's eyes, and it had come back in spades. She had been telling herself for the past hour that they would recover their relationship but was never one hundred percent confident in herself. Now, there was nothing left to question. They would absolutely make this work. It may take a while to sort out all of the details. Ruby would hardly be able to completely forget Weiss's actions in a single night. But they were going to be all right. She wasn't sure if she could ask for anything more.

However, there was one thing she needed to address before she forgot. Weiss had to be prepared to hear her, and now that her defenses were lowered, Ruby knew she could be honest. She only hoped it wouldn't sour things too quickly. As Weiss's laughter died down, and the heiress sat up straight, breath returning to her lungs, Ruby made her move.

"Hey, Weiss, there is something else I needed to tell you though," Ruby confessed. She sat up to join Weiss on the edge of the bed. "Actually, it's been something I've been meaning to tell you for a long time."

Weiss was surprised by Ruby's earnestness after such a dumb joke, but she could sense its importance. She calmed down, ready to hear whatever Ruby had to say. She was certain she could handle it.

"What is it?"

"Last night… I got really freaked out when you came onto me. And I guess I've been thinking about why I was so panicked by you touching me like that. It made me realize that I haven't been upfront with you about everything," Ruby stated. "And I don't know if it would have changed anything if I had been. But it's obvious to me now that I owed you the truth a long time ago."

Weiss rested her hand on Ruby's back, her concern growing.

"Whatever's wrong, you can tell me."

Ruby took a deep breath. "Weiss, I… I do love you. I really do. I love being with you, and I wouldn't take any of it back. But I…" Ruby stuttered, almost ashamed of herself. "I don't… think I'm attracted to you."

Weiss stared at her blankly, trying to comprehend. "You don't think I'm… beautiful?"

"No, no, that's not what I mean," Ruby said quickly. "Of course, you're beautiful. You're very beautiful. I mean… how do I say this…" She tried again. "I don't find you, I don't know… sexy. I don't really want to be that kind of close with you, or anyone, really."

Weiss struggled to keep up. "Wait, you mean like… you're an asexual person?"

"I don't know. Maybe?"

"But we've been dating for months. We've been so close," Weiss said, confused but trying not to offend. "You've never felt anything physical toward me?"

"I mean, sometimes I have!" Ruby said. "Like, I think. There were times at the beach when I thought there was something, maybe once during the massage. And it's not like I hated any time we ever kissed. But it all feels very muted. It's like, I feel like there's supposed to be something there that I want, but when I try to find it, it just isn't there. Maybe one day it could become something, but for now it's just like a piece of me is missing."

"Oh." Weiss was stunned. The development hit her like a torpedo. She thought back over every encounter the pair had together, every playful moment, and all of the tension that had been stuck between them. Was that really all just inside of her head? This whole time, she had been making assumptions, thinking her romance was evolving along the fabled path, but she was blinded by her own feelings. She had to confess that it shook her deeply. Quickly, a worrisome revelation came over her. "Wait, I haven't been making you uncomfortable this whole time, have I?"

"N-No."

"Ruby, please."

"Only very, very rarely!" Ruby insisted. She took Weiss's hand and squeezed it tight. "Like I said, I like this. I like being really close to you, and I like whenever you kiss me, and I like that you're comfortable in your skin whenever you are around me. I feel the same way. It's something I've never felt with anyone. It's just… I like this. And I don't really want to go anywhere beyond that. I may never want to."

Weiss shook her head, saddened for some reason Ruby couldn't discern. "Why didn't you ever tell me this?"

"Because," Ruby confessed, "I knew that you wanted more. You always seemed ready to push things further, and I was afraid of what would happen if you found out I didn't feel the same. I mean, I'm not stupid. I know that people get into relationships for the sex. If I couldn't do that, and if you wanted more, I mean, then what would we eventually be. I can't satisfy you in the way you want, and you would move on, and the idea of losing what we had scared me. So, I kept putting it off, and I hoped it wouldn't become an issue. It was really stupid, and I didn't have a right to hide it from you. I messed up badly, too." Ruby rubbed her face, already mentally exhausted early into the morning. "I'm sorry, Weiss. Are you upset?"

Weiss let the news simmer, contemplating her next words very precisely. "I am… surprised. And, to be honest, a little hurt you didn't tell me sooner. I would also be lying if I said I wasn't… disappointed to hear that. It certainly changes things."

Ruby was dejected, but Weiss suddenly squeezed hand tightly and picked up her chin.

"But," she said firmly, "I love you for you, Ruby. You are an incredible person. You are intelligent and compassionate and remarkable. We don't need sex for this relationship to be meaningful. It's been meaningful because I get to spend time with someone who means the world to me. I would be just as happy being with you without anything sexual between us."

"You mean that?" Ruby asked kindly.

Weiss hesitated for just a moment. Okay, she would be slightly less happy without the sex, but she didn't see the need to clarify her point. "Relationships are about sacrifices, Ruby. We accept each other's boundaries, and we try to make the most of it. That's what I want to do."

Ruby let out the breath she was holding in. That was long overdue, but she felt more whole than she did before. Though she wished the circumstances leading to it never happened, they had taken an important step forward, and as long as they were honest with each other, they could mend whatever was broken. In many ways, they already had.

Weiss cleared her throat. "You did say that kisses were acceptable, correct?"

"Yes," Ruby nodded.

"May I?"

"As you wish."

It was close to lunchtime when a message appeared in the RWBY-JNPR-CFVY group chat.

Important group meeting in twenty in the living room. See everyone there. – Ruby

It drew a plethora of reactions. Why did they all need to meet so suddenly? Was someone in trouble? Was it really a great idea to force all twelve of them into a room together when some of them still had some serious issues with each other? Their imaginations ran wild as they waited for the clock to tick in silence. Well, mostly silence. Yang did respond back to the chat:

Ruby u don't need to sign off texts, everyone can see who its from :/

To which Ruby responded back:

Sorry, I get nervous. – Ruby

To which Coco responded:

Lol

As the deadline approached, the twelve eventually made their way into the living room. Ruby and Weiss were there first, discussing something in private. Pyrrha and Jaune were next to arrive, the former lying down on the latter for rest, snuggling lovingly against his chest. Weiss smiled for the happy couple, whereas Ruby had mostly forgotten the two had tried to hook up, and was genuinely baffled. Team CFVY arrived in one giant group, led by Coco like a pack of stray dogs. They all huddled around one corner of the long couch, relaxing impatiently. Ruby focused on Velvet's face. Her nose had settled bac into place, though the bruising hadn't dissipated fully. Combined with her eyepatch, the abuse she had suffered recently drew sympathy from Ruby that she wasn't sure she was in the position to give. Ren and Nora did not arrive until two minutes before the deadline, taking a prolonged stop in the kitchen to grab snacks. Nora fully expected chaos, and the food was going to help her live through it. Yang arrived three minutes late, though not late enough to avoid seeing Nora's snack rummage and ask for a bag of chips. This triggered a brief chain reaction of Team CFVY also asking for snacks and drinks, and then to Ruby's surprise, artificial foods and beverages were somehow passed around the group, leading to everyone munching and snacking as if they were about to watch a movie. Yang plopped herself down next to Weiss and Ruby with not just a bag of chips, but a giant bag of chips, which she planned to devour over the course of the next twenty minutes.

"Hey, sis. Everything good?" Yang asked.

Weiss and Rub briefly exchanged glances.

"Yep," Ruby said succinctly.

"Cool. Chips?" She leaned the bag in Ruby's direction.

"No, thank you."

"More for me."

"Wait, what flavor is that?" Weiss asked.

"Jalapeño BBQ," Yang said.

"No, thank you."

"I didn't offer you any."

"Good."

Coco downed a sip of an energy drink and smacked her lips. "So, we good to begin yet?"

"We're missing one," Ruby reminded her. Coco shrugged. Of course. Her. None of her business anyway. Ruby knew she would be late. It was just a matter of when. Eventually, nearly fifteen minutes after Ruby had asked, Blake slinked into the room. She tried to be subtle about it, staying low and checking her corners but was caught dead by the other eleven Huntsmen and Huntresses staring at her. She stood up straight, hiding her embarrassment well.

"Oh. You all were waiting for me?"

"Sorry," Ruby said sheepishly. "I know you were trying to skip most of it and then sneak in quietly, but I wanted you here too."

Blake grimaced. "Wow. Pinning me real hard there, Rose."

"Am I wrong?"

Blake said nothing before silently moving to the other side of the couch. She was as physically far away as possible from Team CFVY, separated by an ocean of Huntresses. She had noticed the judging stares she received from the four of them, but true to her word, she would act as if they didn't exist. Ruby took another breath, and with Weiss's assurance, she moved to the center of the room, standing before her captive audience of allies.

"Okay. Hi, everyone. There's a few things I want to go over. We are going to be leaving the villa tonight at nine. Weiss has already scheduled transport to take us back to Atlas Academy, so make sure you have everything packed up and accounted for. Toothbrushes, chargers, that stuff. It's going to be difficult to ship it back, obviously. We are scheduling an early dinner to account for that, so I was going to say, be careful what you eat now. But well, that's, um, a little late for that." Ruby fidgeted. "But I also wanted to talk with all of you together, because… well, it's important. This is really the first time we've all gotten to know each other under normal circumstances, or at least the closest thing you can call normal. I know the past few days haven't necessarily been what we all wanted. There's definitely been some tension."

Blake crossed her arms, keeping her eyes fixed on Ruby. If anyone was staring at her, that was their problem.

"But, I wanted to let everyone here know, and I do mean everyone," Ruby made sure to make eye contact with everyone in the room, "I do really appreciate all of you being here for this. Especially the other teams. You were willing to hear us out and put your trust in us. That means so much to me, and I feel like I haven't said that enough. Regardless of our differences, I'm happy with what we've done together. It's only going to get harder from here, but I believe in us. All of us. So, yeah… that's really it."

She looked at her audience and was relieved to see them mostly accepting of her. They were quiet, however, and it wasn't long before Yang spoke up, confused.

"Wait, is that it?"

Ruby nodded. "Yep."

"We definitely didn't need to meet in person for that."

"Well, I wanted it to be in person," Ruby explained, "so you can see how much I care."

"It was like two seconds," Blake noted.

"Rather short, really," Velvet agreed.

"Hey, she's trying to be genuine!" Weiss protested. "Show some respect."

"I'm not trying to be disrespectful," Velvet said defensively. "I'm just surprised by the length is all."

Someone cleared their throat.

"Well, if Ruby doesn't have anything else," Coco said, suddenly standing up. "There's something I wanted to say to everyone."

Ruby felt her stomach drop. Oh god, how disastrous was this going to be? Surely, Coco wouldn't be selfish enough to use this kind moment to raise grievances. Putting perhaps more faith in Coco than she should, Ruby relinquished the floor, allowing Coco to take center stage. The shade-wearing second-year placed her hands on her hips, surveying the landscape. She could see the subtle shifts in body language, and the increased tension, and honestly, it just made her laugh.

"Come on guys, calm down. You think I'm gonna start drama on the last day of vacation?" She rolled her eyes behind her shades. "I wanted to say this. Two weeks ago, I was waking up at five in the morning to get the shit kicked out of me by an Atlasian drill instructor. I hated everything I was doing and wanted to bash my head against the wall. Today, I woke up in a luxury villa on the beach, eating expensive food and wine. I got to watch an asshole CEO get toppled so his Faunus slaves can get freed. I got to shop. I got my nails done. And on top of all that, I'm partnered with seven badass ladies and four badass dudes to save the world from fascists and monsters. This has been like, objectively, one of the coolest fucking weeks of my entire life. I know that some of you have mixed opinions of me, but honestly? I don't really care if some of y'all are my friends or not. Friendship is overrated. As long as we can keep this, I'm loyal as a dog." She raised her energy drink aloft, and flipped off her shades, taking in the moment properly. "So, here's to this alliance! Let's keep kicking ass and notching more wins."

Coco's enthusiasm was infectious. Those who had drinks raised them in celebration, and drank alongside her. It was easy to forget that Coco was, and always had been, a chill individual. She had her faults, but she was loyal to cause and friend, for better or worse. She was along for the ride, and there wasn't anything that would shake her off. It gave Ruby confidence. She had been worried about their alliance shattering, but she should have realized how easy it was to soothe hardships with luxurious gifts. It helped put the vacation in perspective—yes, the drama had often overshadowed the fun, but the change of scenery alone was enough to inspire unity. From that perspective, it was a rousing success on premise alone. It made Ruby sad to return to Atlas Academy, though it made the current moment all the more precious.

"Oh, me! Me!" Nora suddenly shouted. "I want to say something also!"

Coco gestured to the orange-haired lightning bolt. "The floor is yours."

"Yes!" Nora pumped her fist, and sprinted into position. Coco didn't even have time to return to her seat before Nora started talking. "Okay, so since we're all here and not mad at each other, there is something that has been bothering me for like literally forever. You guys all see it too, right?"

A collective shaking of heads caused Nora to pout.

"Really? No one?"

"There are many things that might be upsetting you, Nora," Ren reminded her.

"But this one is so obvious," Nora grunted.

"Is it that we never played a beach volleyball game together?" asked Yang.

"That bothers me also, but it's not what I'm thinking of," Nora said, waving her hands through the air. "Guys… we don't have a Team name!"

No one seemed to react. Nora waved her arms even wilder.

"A Team name!"

Weiss crossed her arms. "Is that really that important?"

Ruby suddenly reached over her, cutting her off. "Hold on, Weiss, she has a point."

"What?"

"We don't have any official group name. What if we need to call ourselves something? That's kind of important."

"Of course, you'd think this is important," Weiss said astutely, "given that you need to name every single group attack we do."

"I like naming things!" Ruby said passionately. "I won't apologize for that!"

"And you shouldn't!" Nora agreed. "We have to be able to come up with a good team name for our alliance."

"Nora, you've been trying at this all week," Ren reminded her. "I don't think there is a good naming structure for you to utilize."

"We already have the naming structure: initials," Nora said firmly.

"Well, that's rather complicated," Pyrrha pointed out. "There are twelve of us. Twelve letters. None of them are even vowels."

"Y is sometimes a vowel," Yang reminded her.

"She is correct," nodded Yatsu.

"That's still very awkward," Pyrrha explained. "R-W-B-Y-J-N-P-R-C-F-V-Y. Two Ys. Two Rs. A V and a W. J and C. There are not many words that align with that structure."

"What if we just used the first letters of each of our team names?" Coco suggested. "Like, just R, J, and C. We can make something with that."

"But there's no fourth letter!" Nora complained. "It ruins the whole structure."

"Why are we talking about this?" Weiss wondered aloud. "What does this have to do with anything?"

"Well hold on, Weiss," said Velvet. "Now I'm curious as well."

"We can borrow someone else's letter," Coco stated. "Any of them will do?"

"So what?" said Nora, highly doubtful. "We have three letters from team leaders, and one from some rando? No way!"

"Wait, wait, wait!" said Fox suddenly. "Aren't we going about this all wrong? We could take letters from our last names as well. That's twenty-four letters to choose from!"

"Hey, that's a good point, Fox!" said Velvet enthusiastically. "We can easily make something with twenty-four letters."

"Twenty-three," said Ruby. "My first and last initials are the same."

"Twenty-two," said Blake, begrudgingly throwing her hat into the ring if only to clear a technicality. "Mine are identical also."

"And my last name is X," said Yang. "So that won't be helpful."

"Your first initial is Y," said Fox. "That's barely helpful either."

"There are so many more Y words than X words," Yang fought back.

"Still not ideal though."

"Of course you'd say that, Mr. Last Name Starts With A."

"Wait, wait, wait. Guys," Velvet said suddenly. "What if it's a phrase?"

That idea seemed to quickly catch hold.

"Ooooh. A phrase," said Nora. "I'm literally so good at making phrases."

"And there's a lot more leeway with phrases," said Ruby.

"I'm down for giving us a Team Phrase," said Coco.

"I think it will be nice to make it official," said Pyrrha. "What do you think, Jaune?"

"Whatever you guys want, I'm ready for," said Jaune.

"This is so fucking stupid," said Weiss.

"You're telling me, sister," said Blake.

"You encouraged them two seconds ago!"

"I'm a stickler for accuracy. I take no stances."

The original purpose of the conversation had long since flown off the deep end. All it took were a few sugary snacks and energy drinks, and all of the tension, the drama, and the frustrations of the past few days melted away. What was left was twelve people all deep in thought, bouncing ideas off one another, to ultimately fulfill a goal that didn't really matter to anyone and wouldn't have any significant relevance. But it made them excited, and youthful, and dammit, for the first time in a while, it felt like something to do when they were on vacation. Like Coco had said, it didn't really matter that they weren't all the best of friends. They were close enough to depend on each other, for both the direst of threats and the pettiest of challenges. And that seemed to be the missing piece of the puzzle to help them in their newest quest.

Forty minutes later, a conclusion had been reached. The RWBY-JNPR-CFVY alliance would officially be known as: Team (Not Yet) Best Friends of Youth, Power, Radiance and Charisma, Revolting for Justice, Wisdom, and Virtue. Or, Team (Not Yet) Best Friends—NYBF.

Was it perfect? No, but neither were they. It was the closest anyone would likely ever get, and they finally realized that was enough.

The airship blew heavily at Ruby's hair. The sun was setting, cascading long shadows over the beach. She turned one last time to the villa, where even though only a week had passed, it seemed like she had spent a lifetime there. She would miss its proud wide walls and wide-open spaces. She would miss the feeling of sand between her toes and the heat on her back. By her side, Yang, Weiss, and Blake looked back longingly, suitcases in hand. She knew they felt the same. Ruby felt something inside of her grieve.

"I think I'm gonna miss this place," Ruby sighed.

"Let's come back here over the summer," Yang suggested.

"Only if we keep the wine cellar open," said Blake snidely.

"For you, Blake? Anything," Weiss smirked.

"Ready, girls?" Ruby asked. They nodded in unison. The vacation was like a dream. A strange, surreal, often spectacular dream.

But now the dream was over. Time had stirred them awake.

Atlas Academy was waiting for them. The Vytal Festival was just around the corner. Glass was still on the loose and Ironwood and Ozpin were out for blood. Ruby didn't know what waited for her next, but she knew that with her allies, she was ready for anything. Together, Team RWBY boarded the airship.

They thought they were ready for anything, but a week in a villa was a lifetime for the rest of the world. Cut off from outside events, they were oblivious to the fact that Remnant kept moving, bringing in a changing of the tides. The twelve young Huntsmen and Huntresses, now a united front, would soon discover just how far the ocean moved in one week's time.