Chapter 22 – Broken Bird

In which Weiss Schnee's team finally reaches the bird-breaking point.

Weiss didn't violently pull away from Ruby, though she did flinch ever so slightly. As much as she feared Yang, her heart was not that of a coward, and she wasn't going to abandon Ruby in her time of need to save her own skin.

Yang soaked in the scene of Ruby crying in Weiss' clutches in for a few moments, no emotion showing on her face but for a dull interest. If she was angry, she certainly kept it held in quite well.

"Sis. Are you okay?"

"No," Ruby said. "I need to go home."

"To our dorm?" Yang clarified, as though Ruby might've been speaking of their home island of Patch.

The younger sister nodded, and Yang held out her arms. Ruby dashed forward into them for comfort, stepping away from her partner. Though Weiss wished to aid Ruby as best she could, her sister was probably better suited to care for her emotional needs right now. Thus, she had no qualms about remanding the emotional Rose child to Yang's custody.

Yang, one arm slung over Ruby and the other patting her closer shoulder, miraculously managed to keep both her face and voice even when she looked back and spoke to Weiss directly.

"We'll be having a little talk, later on. But Ruby comes first."

Ruby didn't perk up to that at first, probably partially lost in her sorry state of earned self-pity, but she did seem to hear it after the pass of a beat.

"Little…talk?" Her silver eyes widened to the size of sand dollars as she looked up at Yang and seemed to realize what that meant. "Oh my gods, Yang, no!"

She struggled out of Yang's tender hug and pushed away from her, shaking her head. Ruby's mouth opened to speak, but she didn't seem to have the words in mind to express herself.

Weiss decided to relieve her of that duty. "I was not the cause of Ruby's distress, Yang."

Yang's hands rose into the air. "Hey, I just said I was gonna talk to you, not –"

"BS! I'm not a stupid kid, Yang!" Ruby screamed. Her heartbreak evidently forgotten as rage took its place, she shot Yang a look so frosty that could have come to life from the touch of a silk top hat. "Oh, I cannot believe you! After everything…oh my gods, we sent you home, we bought you a flight, Dad and Qrow took time off from work…oh, there's no way. There's literally no way. You…You…You ungrateful little…I don't even know what to call you!"

Weiss really didn't want Ruby to be exploding at her sister and potentially ruining the relationship forever for her sake, but the alternative was to remind Ruby of her callous rejection at Torchwick's hands. Either way lay ruin, so Weiss decided to let the Rose sisterly drama enfold without her influence.

The blonde's eyes glanced Weiss' way and a flash of displeasure slid across her face, but Ruby physically walked to stand directly in front of her leader. "Don't look at her. This is about you, Yang. And what do you even think you're doing here, in this case? I'm yelling at you, and so you're gonna go be mad at Weiss?"

"I…n-no!"

"Really? You just glared her way." Ruby's arms folded. "Tell me you weren't going to be having a little talk with her."

"I wasn't! She…it wasn't her who made you sad!"

Ruby didn't buy it. "No, it wasn't, but you'd find a reason to blame her. Here's how I imagine it would go. You corner Weiss when she's alone, when I'm busy. You say, 'Weiss, you're gonna have to stop turning my sister against me. You tricked Ruby into getting angry and yelling at me.' She's feeling brave and resists, and then you make it physical when she does."

"I wouldn't –"

"Yang," Ruby seethed. "Look me in my eyes if you're going to lie to me."

Yang did look Ruby in the eyes, but she didn't say anything. The look on her face was enough.

"Do you not see yourself, Yang?" Ruby's hands flew up into the air as she threw them around. "You're taking your anger out on someone who you don't like. Somehow, becoming a bully has crept up on you, and you haven't even realized it. This was the kind of thing you said you hated in Signal."

The elder sister tried to stutter out some rejection of Ruby's accusation, but her lips failed to keep up with her brain, and she couldn't get a single coherent word out.

"Yang," Ruby said sternly. "Stop this. Stop it, and don't just say you're done. Fix this. Actually fix it. Fix yourself, and fix the root problem. Fix your temper, the one that's always gotten you into trouble since we were kids. I don't care if it's exacerbated by your semblance – FIX THIS. Or I quit Beacon."

"I will, Rubes, I pr…w-wait." The color drained out of Yang's face as Ruby's threat sank in, and she realized what had been said didn't match what she (or Weiss, for that matter) had been expecting. "You'll quit Beacon?"

Ruby nodded. "You only get this way with Weiss because of me, so I figure removing the root cause will…yeah, that's also BS. Goodwitch already threatened you, so I won't waste time redoing that. And I'm not joking, here. I've…"

The action Ruby did next, Weiss could only describe as a wail mixed with a shudder. Some sort of air just escaped from Ruby's lungs as she shivered, and it made a moan-like noise that left Weiss' stomach feeling quite uneasy.

"…I've already thought about quitting. For a while now." Ruby's head snapped towards Yang. "And not because of Weiss, so don't you even dare! Because of…a lot of things. Today was a particularly bad day, but it's starting to seem like every day's been a bad day, and I'm not sure when the good ones are going to start. I keep losing fights in combat class to older, more trained students, I'm not making progress in non-combat related recap lessons with Weiss fast enough, and I can't focus during the lectures. I just can't. I try, I listen, I peel my eyes open and I write down everything I can, but it just doesn't work. I…I think there's something wrong with me. I might have…something.

"But it's not just academics, either. I freeze up every time I've tried to talk to new people and make friends outside the team. I tried with Nora, because we were going to be partners, but I couldn't find anything to talk about. I just rambled on about the weather and my crush on…ffffffggrrr…and stuff, and Nora was clearly not into it and just humoring the stupid kid who came to Beacon too early. I flubbed it, and she even let me try again later, because she's so nice, but I just didn't know what to do. In the end, I just ran away. The only people I have are the ones on the team who were mandated to spent time with me."

Ruby seemed to have forgotten where she'd started with this rant, and it took her a moment to recall that it was meant to be a threat against the now horrified looking Yang.

"So…uh, yeah. I'm serious. B-But, if you can keep it together and be good with Weiss even though you slipped up, then maybe I have a chance of…of…even though…yeah." Ruby wiped her eyes with a sleeve of her school uniform. "Please, just fix it, Yang. I can't keep dealing with everything."

Yang reached a hand towards her sister, but Ruby backed away. Even to Weiss, who'd never cared much for her own siblings, that seemed like the death knell of something that didn't deserve to die.

"Weiss, please walk me back to our room. I need to lie down for a bit."

When they got back, Ruby pre-emptively cut Weiss off before she could rush to let out the torrent of reassurances that had been building up on the tip of her lips for the entire walk home.

"I'm not going to do something stupid, Weiss. I'm not gonna kill myself or something. Just…having a rough time."

The mention of suicide sent another shiver of fear down her spine, and Weiss found herself wondering if the proper thing to do was report this.

This is clearly beyond my capabilities as a leader, but betraying Ruby's trust and informing others of what I assume I was told in confidence might make her feel even worse. If she truly is just stressed, having a suicide hotline reaching out to her might add to the number of worries – she might mistake it for her being in trouble, even though she's not. But if it's more, then not telling someone could literally be a matter of life-or-death. No one's ever made the wrong call by reaching out when they think a friend is considering taking –

Ruby coughed. "Weiss, stop. I shouldn't have brought up. I only said it because I thought you would be thinking that I might…look, I'm fine. I mean, I'm fine in terms of sanity. B-But…if it's okay…" Ruby awkwardly wrung her hands. "…some time soon, can we just…you know, talk? About Beacon and lessons and stuff? I have some questions. I-I don't mean tutoring."

Weiss vigorously nodded up and down. "Anytime. Right now, even, if you –"

"I need to lie down." And so she did.

Honestly, Weiss had been hoping it could be now, and that she could put her anxieties to rest on this matter and help Ruby as best she could as soon as possible, but that was for Weiss' own sake. Ruby didn't need this rushed, even if drawing it out would also draw out Weiss' anguish on her partner's behalf.

"Before you do, let me say one thing," Weiss began. "You are making progress in your studies. I'm your tutor; I know. It may seem slow, but every inch gets you closer to your goals. As for your other difficulties in class, I don't think you have a developmental disability, if that's what you fear. But if you do, that doesn't mean there's something wrong with you."

Weiss decided to reuse Blake's words, hoping that the wisdom of someone smarter than herself might chime with Ruby.

"You're perfect, Ruby, and it's a part of you, so it's perfect too."

"Mmmmm." Ruby's face was buried in her pillow, but Weiss could tell her sleep was just being faked. "Hmmmm."

Weiss patted her hand against Ruby's mattress. "And I'm not just your friend because we're on the same team. Ruby…Blake was my best friend before Beacon, but she was also my only one. And now that she's my girlfriend, you have that illustrious honor of being my principal companion."

Ruby's laughter, if there was any, was muted by her pillow.

"Please don't quit Beacon. If you do decide to, as always, I will help you sort out whatever you need, Ruby, but I urge you to avoid…"

Okay, Ruby was now asleep for real. Weiss sort of regretted ignoring Ruby's desire to delay the issue, but she hadn't wanted to just leave it at that, with all of Ruby's fears unaddressed.

Grabbing her partner's sheets, she gently pulled them over her tiny frame. It wasn't going to be comfortable, falling asleep in her uniform with her scythe slung over her back, but even if Weiss couldn't protect Ruby from ever trace of danger, she could at least do as much as she could.

There was no way Weiss couldn't not tell someone. Someone in charge.

"…and that's why I'm afraid, sir. I don't think she's a danger to herself. She explicitly said she wasn't. But after she brought it up, I just…"

…felt like I had to offload this problem for fear of guilt.

"…felt like I had to say something."

Ozpin refrained from patting her shoulder, though he was close enough to. He'd gotten up from his desk and sat on the table in an effort to approach her as personably as possible. "You did the right thing, Ms. Schnee."

She'd tried to leave out as much detail as possible, as it was told to her in confidence, but she'd at least needed to explain parts of it so that he could understand this was a genuine case of depression and not just an offhanded remark.

This was a personal matter to Ruby, and going to Goodwitch just felt wrong somehow. She was always impartial, and this might have been one of the few things that might have needed some emotion. If Weiss got some cold and clinical psychiatrist to try and approach Ruby, it would be instantly shut down. A hotline would face the same issue. Perhaps Ozpin might choose to invoke such resources, but he at least knew Ruby personally, if that whole nepotism scare at the year's start was any indication.

"I'll continue to do my best to help her out of her slump in my capacity as leader, sir, but I think someone more responsible than me should be made aware of this, at the very least."

Ozpin smiled congenially. "While I applaud your choice to escalate a situation that needs escalation, I have nothing but the upmost faith in your leadership skills."

"Well I don't," Weiss snorted, before she could realize who she stood before and what she'd said. The self-deprecating statement might have been interpreted as an indictment of Ozpin's judgment, as he was the one to offer her the position.

"You regret it?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Weiss hadn't come to the headmaster to raise up this issue, but if she had his ear, she might as well. She would need to choose her words quite carefully, though.

"I do not regret it, as I still believe I am the best choice for leadership on my team. However, I am forced to admit that the growing pains of Team RWBY are almost all outside of my power to fix." Weiss had to hold her balled up fists behind her back in order to not show how strained and white her fingers were becoming. "And I find the lack of offered aid…disappointing."

"Help will always be given to those at Ho…those at Beacon who ask for it."

"Sir, with all due respect, we're just kids. Most of us are too proud to ask for help, and a lot of us barely even know that we need it. A fellow leader of mine who shall remain anonymous recently underwent intra-team issues in which he believed he could not train with teammates out of a misplaced desire to remain independent. And I feel like I barely know what I'm doing much of the time."

Ozpin, like Torchwick, was a master of concealing what he truly felt. Weiss couldn't get a peep out of his facial expressions. "Here at Beacon, we believe that some growth must be attained on a personal level. First years are almost adults in their own rights, and the final stretch from student to hunter could be…detracted from if hand-holding is performed. While this is especially true for leaders, the lesson holds for all students. At Beacon, we shall teach you whatever you need to know, but things like responsibility for our actions and consequences of lifestyle choices cannot be taught in a classroom. Mistakes will be made, surely, but I've often found mistakes to be the best teachers in life. While I know teenage drama and scholastic issues might seem like the end of the world right now, I can assure you that no one of the many generations I have trained have ever truly looked back with true, genuine regret on a spat among their team in their youth, a failed test, or other such issues." He got up off the table and went back around to his seat on the other side. "And for more severe matters as you have with Miss Rose, we rely on leaders like you to escalate the issue. As you did."

Weiss had already begun to foment responses in her head at each point in his little speech, and she didn't hesitate to bring them up as soon as he was clearly finished speaking.

"Again, I mean no disrespect, but you're wrong, sir. Some mistakes aren't lessons; some mistakes stay with us for the rest of our lives. Our issues may seem trivial on the grand scale of things, but they matter to us now. Perhaps we shall forget them in the years to come, but the life we are living as students right now is the only life we know. Reassurance that eventually our issues will fade away is no true reassurance.

"And as for teaching moments, I've yet to see any. We have no classes on leadership, no periodic check-ins with the faculty, and no school-issued resources by which to grow. If I make a mistake, I'm left with the consequences, but not with any means to determine what I did wrong or how to avoid repeating it in the future other than my own intuition.

"The other leader I mentioned, the one who isolated themselves from their team…I supported them at the time. Prior to our discussion, I had come to the same conclusion myself, internalizing the belief of absolute self-reliance, which I then passed on like a noxious plague to them. And perhaps they have now offered the same advice to others. Mistakes can be teaching moments, sir, but there's no guarantee the right lesson will be taught."

Finally, the old headmaster's face was decipherable, though the message on it was not a good one. Weiss could tell from the way Ozpin regarded her that he had no intention of changing Beacon and was viewing this little diatribe of hers as a petulant student attempting to lecture him, a tried and tested professor, in his own field. Perhaps it was, but at the same time, perhaps it wasn't.

She wasn't going to convince him of anything; that much was clear. Weiss would be wise to drop the issue and not further strain any rapport she had with her professor. There was nothing to be gained from continuing a losing fight, but everything to be gained by retreating from one.

Or perhaps that's wrong, and I'd be a toxic leader for perpetuating that belief. There's really no way of knowing, as Ozpin intends for me to fail and then learn from it.

Weiss stood up and did the damage control that was expected of her by polite society. "Forgive me if I have been rude, sir. I was merely expressing my beliefs, not criticizing you or your academy."

And like the clockwork that was moving about behind him, Ozpin reacted in the perfectly predictable way. "Oh, I was never offended, Ms. Schnee. In fact, I quite enjoy hearing any and all viewpoints and perspectives from the student body. No matter my age or tenure, it never hurts to keep myself grounded in the reality you can provide."

This kind of exchange was sickening to Weiss. Both of them were so fake – Weiss didn't care if she was rude, and she had fully intended to criticize Ozpin. The headmaster, for his part, may or may not have truly enjoyed their conversation, but he was so sure of his own method of teaching's rightness that Weiss may as well have argued her points to a brick wall.

Ruby had said that every day was a bad day, and Weiss found herself agreeing with that sentiment more and more. Every morning brought some new issue – Torchwick and his potential lies, Yang's return and churlishness, Ruby's breakdown and root issues.

I need to fix this all. It can't wait any longer.

I need to take a break before I go crazy.

I need to help Ruby. She's my partner, and my duty as her leader demands it.

I need to…

I need…

Weiss didn't know what she needed.

Yang ambushed her at the base of the CCT tower.

Not violently, but it was still quite a shock to see the blonde-haired human twiddling her thumbs, waiting for Weiss to finish her meeting with the headmaster.

"Good talk?" she asked. "All good with Oz?"

Weiss ignored Yang, walking right past her.

One of Yang's meaty fists wrapped around Weiss' wrists, trapping her like a vice. Weiss tried to pull away, but Yang's grip was simply too strong, so she began to beat her wings to give herself extra force.

"Shit, I wasn't…" Yang let go. "…I forgot about your thing. Weiss, please, I just want to talk."

Weiss didn't hesitate to move past her. "My private conferences with the headmaster are of no concern to you, Xiao-Long."

"No, that was just supposed to be small-talk. Weiss, it's about Ruby. Please, I need…I need your help with her. Or maybe you need mine – I don't know! But she's so troubled by all of this, and us fighting is only making it worse, and…please, I'm sorry!"

For the record, Weiss didn't believe they were fighting. Yang was blaming Weiss for every conceivable grievance down to her own shoelaces coming untied, but fighting would imply Weiss an equal participant in these reindeer games.

"Look, I don't know what to do! I want to help Ruby, but she's saying that I'm too helpful and I need to back off! How do I fix this? It's a catch-22, Weiss! Please, you're my leader." Yang gripped the elbow of her hanging arm in a rare displace of unconfident body language. "I need your help with this."

"I don't appreciate you trying to appeal to my sense of responsibility as a means of manipulating me," Weiss murmured with contempt. However, she did stop walking, for Yang was technically right. She was Weiss' teammate, and Weiss owed her a responsibility for fair, impartial aid when it was asked for.

Then, she continued walking. I really need to listen to Blake more often when she tells me not to do stupid shit.

Weiss didn't need to help Yang with anything. Any leaderly duty her teammate felt she was owed was overshadowed by the fact that Yang had literally threatened Weiss with bodily harm this very afternoon, just a few hours ago.

Yang chased after her. "Please, Weiss. Do it for Ruby!"

Her manipulations were becoming more and more transparent. Were she ever to attempt to leave hunting behind as a career and approach the business world of Dust trade, she would be eaten alive by the Beowolves within.

"I'm sorry about your wings! I really am! I made a mistake, and I'm doing my best to not make it again, but I just…I…Weiss, I don't know what I'm doing."

Making a mistake…she hasn't even waited a full ten minutes since I fought with the headmaster over that very thing, and she's already using it as verbal ammunition to convince me. Shameful.

Weiss paused.

Except she wasn't there for that. It's not a targeted phrase to appeal to me, just Yang telling the truth.

That shouldn't have mattered enough to change anything, but…

Yang made a mistake. Everyone knows that, even her. She doesn't know how to fix it, and she's struggling. Yet here I am, turning her away and expecting her to fix herself on her own.

Isn't this the same thing I detest Ozpin for?

Am I being a hypocrite?

Weiss stopped walking away from Yang. Blake, forgive me for the stupid thing I'm about to do.

"It's past time for dinner. Let's talk about this over a meal, shall we?"

Neither girl knew where to start. Neither of them truly wanted to associate with the other and had been avoid it as much as possible accordingly, but they now shared a common interest in fixing this situation lest they lose Ruby.

The only problem was, that meant neither of them wanted to go first. Despite it being an offer to discuss business over dinner, Weiss found herself unable to eat her own food as Yang idly picked at her own withing consuming any. No words were shared as both girls stared off into the distance.

The cafeteria was nearly empty. It was later than dinner was supposed to be, meaning that they had the room almost to themselves but for a few other stragglers getting a snack after dark. Weiss had been delayed by her business with Ozpin, which she decided took priority, and now she had the benefit of both privacy and space with Yang.

Eventually, after her mashed potatoes and pork roast were thoroughly shredded by her spoon, Yang spoke first.

"C-Can we just start over? It's not like either of us wants to live like this."

"No," Weiss said. "We can't.

Yang's normal look of displeasure was replaced by one of pain.

"It's not because I don't want to," Weiss explained. "Believe me, if I could put this whole thing in the past and forget it, I gladly would. But the root cause of our problem remains. You and I seem to have irreconcilable differences in our beliefs that will reappear should we not address them."

"I'm just trying to protect my sister," Yang said. "I mean, you have to understand, right? You have siblings."

"How did you…oh." Weiss had briefly forgotten her own fame for a blissful moment, and the fact that Yang had an advantage of foreknowledge over Weiss that would never be evened out was once again reminded to her. "As a matter of fact, I do. Two siblings – Winter and Whitley. Winter is a closet racist…perhaps that's not the right word. A racist believes one species is superior to another. She merely is made uncomfortable by reminders that I am not a 'pure' human like she is. As for Whitley, I'd sooner declare my undying love for you than spent a minute in that weasel's presence. He's an utter sycophant who has always resented me for my own success in comparison to his numerous modes of failure. So no, Yang, I don't intrinsically understand this bond you and Ruby share."

In spite of Weiss pouring her heart out, Yang just shrugged. "Like Blake and you, then."

"I…" Weiss' mouth shut. "…I do understand, then."

Yang actually began to eat at that point, speaking as she did. "I'm not stupid. I beat the shit out of you, and I get that it makes you mad. Who wouldn't be? But I only did it because you tore into Ruby like she was made of paper. You were unnecessarily cruel."

Weiss couldn't exactly argue the last statement; she herself quite sincerely regretted biting Ruby's head off over the age issue, even if they'd come to a superior understanding of one another as a result of it. She'd lost her temper, plain and simple.

"But what you did, Yang…I said words in anger, and you broke my wings. You tore off my feathers. That's a disproportionate response."

Yang swallowed some food. "Not to me."

This was what Weiss had wanted when Yang first arrived. Not Yang blindly agreeing with her for fear of being expelled, not Yang beating her into a seagull pudding, but just the two of them telling the truth. There was no one else around and no need for social pretense, and they could actually talk for once.

"If you yelled at Blake and made her cry, would you find it appropriate for me to shave your head and snap your arm?" Weiss asked, going along with the comparison of their partners that Yang had brought up.

"Yup," was Yang's answer.

Weiss could've screamed. "Care to elaborate? You came to me, Yang. We need more than one word answers if we're going to get past this."

"Fine." Yang set down her utensils. "You may hate your siblings, but I don't. I love my baby sis. And I nearly fucked her over when we were kids. I was looking for my biological mom, but all I found was hungry mouths of black and white, and to top it off, I'd brought Rubes with me. If it hadn't been for my uncle busting his ass to save us, I would've gotten myself and my sister killed. Even as it was, Qrow's arm got broken, and his leg got a pretty nasty bite that took months to heal. So ever since then, I've promised that I would make up for it by never letting anything hurt Ruby."

Weiss sucked in her lips. She had half a mind to point out that doing so might've been the reason Ruby was too sheltered, but that wasn't her place. Ruby had discovered her own take on independence, and whether it was working or not, it was Ruby's choice, not Yang's or Weiss'. Furthermore, if they decided that the resolution was to let Ruby fight her own battles, that would imply that Yang would think it okay if Ruby had been the one to break Weiss' wings to defend herself.

"I won't begrudge you looking after her," Weiss settled on saying. "That's between you and her. But you escalated a verbal disagreement into a physical one."

"It was a spar." Yang raised her eyebrows. "You agreed to it."

"Yeaaaaah, no. Do you normally break bones, tear off body parts, and shove them down throats during spars? Would you have done any of that to me or another student if you hadn't been angry?"

Before Yang could answer, Weiss rephrased it.

"Tell me this. If you'd been in the audience and had seen someone else…say, Pyrrha or Cardin doing what you did to me, would you have thought them justified?"

Yang shook her head. "No. But if I'd seem them do it and later learned that you'd bullied their kid sister, I would change my mind. I mean, if I see someone shoot someone, I would condemn that, but if I learned it was a hunter shooting a dangerous bandit, my opinion would change on the matter."

"And earlier today?" Weiss asked. "All you saw was Ruby crying and you were prepared to…"

The two girls' eyes met. Weiss didn't have to speak to ask her question.

"…yes," Yang admitted. "I was pissed, and I was going to do something. But I didn't, because Ruby told me. You're here right in front of me, unharmed, Weiss. You can't blame me for something that didn't even happen."

"And if Ruby had been too emotional to intervene?" Weiss asked. "If Ruby hadn't picked up the undertone of a threat within your words? You would have brutalized me for something I hadn't even done."

"I…that's…"

Yang didn't have a prepared response for that. In an ideal scenario, Weiss would be able to convince her that she was overprotective of Ruby and needlessly belligerent when the situation didn't call for it, and the first step was pointing out the flaws in her logic.

People don't like to be told they're wrong, but they can be convinced. Evidence is the way, evidence and logic.

"…you may have a point," Yang said. "About today, that it. But can I ask you something?"

Weiss nodded.

"If you saw someone pulling kitty cat's ears and calling her a dirty Faunus animal or whatever the most offensive term is, would you intervene?"

Again, Weiss nodded. Then, she shook her head. Then, she nodded again. "Blake could easily defend herself, but if for whatever reason she found herself unable to, I would aid her as best I could. With an appropriate level of response, of course. Were someone doing what you described, I would not beat them black and blue."

"Yeah, but are you sure?" Yang said. "People see red in the heat of the moment. Are you absolutely sure you're better?"

Weiss could easily say yes and prove it. Yang was the one upsetting Blake with her very presence right now, and Weiss was conducting herself quite well, if she did say so herself. But to do so would be to share something told to her in confidence, so she could only tell Yang that she believed she would.

"The reason I say so is because Blake wouldn't want me to hurt someone. Ruby didn't want you to hurt me, Yang. You can't keep playing the protective elder sibling card when she herself is begging you to stop."

"You're only seeing half the picture, Schnee." Yang leaned back in her chair. "Ruby's always been a weapons nerd – her own words, not mine. She had it rough in Signal, because everyone else there saw her as…different. She couldn't care less for the other girls and their teenager interests, and this was around the age where young boys didn't want to have anything to do with girls their age. For the longest time, I was the only one she had. And I'm all for her making new friends with you and Blake and Team JNPR and all, but she doesn't have that same experience at it. She hasn't had many friends before, so she hasn't had the same experiences of breaking up, arguing, things going sour, and so on. The reason she started crying when you lost it with her was because she was a kid and didn't know how to manage that emotion of having someone she thought was her friend hurl abuse at her."

Weiss' hands folded in her lap. "I was uncharitable; I admit that. But you were just as careless of her feelings."

"I defended her."

"No, you avenged her. Ruby got nothing out of seeing me battered and broken; she was actually quite horrified after the fact. That was for you, Yang."

"Rubes might not appreciate seeing the violence, but no tender soul being protected ever does, even if they still need to be protected." A thin, somewhat challenging frown spread across Yang's face. "She never complained when her bullies apologized to her at Signal."

"And how did you acquire these apologies?"

"Told 'em I'd pulverize them behind the school bleachers if they didn't."

Weiss raised an eyebrow. "Did you?"

"No. I never had to, because they were all smart enough to leave her be. And soon, the word got around, and everyone knew Ruby was…off…o-off…"

Yang trailed off as comprehension dawned across her face.

Off-limits. I guess that might explain why she was seen as 'different' back at her school. Bullies might not the most reliable people to spread messages along, especially those who would choose to pick on someone like Ruby.

"Yang, do you see that your actions, regardless of their intention, can actually boomerang around to harm Ruby?" Weiss asked, hoping to drive the point home. "As a kid, you didn't mean to nearly get her killed, and as a teen, you didn't mean to drive away both good and bad peers alike. But it doesn't matter what you meant as much as it does what you did."

Yang probably didn't even hear the words, as she was quite focused on her own realization. This was progress, but it wasn't exactly how Weiss had wanted it. Even if Yang was convinced that her protection of Ruby was overbearing, it did nothing to convince her that assaulting other students was wrong.

Too many times, I've said to myself 'If I can just not antagonize Yang, everything will work out.' I need to actually change her mind, or at least find some reasonable compromise.

But it wasn't for tonight. Right now, Yang had enough to work through without approaching the subject of the appropriate use of force.

"We'll need to talk more, Yang. But I'll leave you to what we've discussed for tonight. I shall meet you back at the dorm."

Weiss stood up, but before she could grab hold of her dinner to take it elsewhere, Yang's fingers grabbed around her wrist. As the digits took hold of Weiss, so did the unpleasant feeling of having her personal space ignored, but Weiss did her best to hold back on any rebukes. She was finally getting through to Yang, but appearing the prissy, temperamental princess could ruin it all.

"I'm not a bad sister, Weiss. I'm not like yours."

Yang looked up at Weiss, desperation in her eyes.

"I-I'm not. Am I?"

If one surveyed the scenario objectively, they might not give an answer Yang wanted to hear. Ruby was in shambles, just barely managing to keep herself together, and Yang was partially to blame. Her development as a social being was stunted, and many potential friends she could have had were perhaps driven away because her older sister had protected her a little too well.

The worst part was that it was still happening. Weiss and Blake were now Ruby's only friends within Beacon. If Weiss had been a more bitter woman, she might have held Ruby accountable for Yang's actions. If she were a more cowardly person, she might have chosen to distance herself from Ruby for fear of retaliation from Yang. 50% of Ruby's current new friend group was jeopardized because of Yang.

"As I said, intent matters less than actions."

Yang's frown deepened.

"But it does matter. You never wanted to hurt Ruby, and it's not too late to be better. But you have to change, Yang. The responsibility of undoing the damage falls to you, Yang. I want to help you – believe me, my wings will be far safer for it – but I can't force this. It's up to you, Yang."

Next Chapter: At the Center

In which Weiss Schnee realizes the common denominator in all of her team's problems and take action to counteract it.

Author's Notes

Chapter summary: Every bird broke except the actual bird.

0/10 literally unreadable

Happy rats, and don't do crime!