What Defines Us - Chapter 3 (Patreon)

After shutting the car door, she waited for the interior lights to turn off before resting her hands and forehead against the steering wheel and taking a deep breath.  She was still shaking - her entire body quivering with its own life.  Hopefully no one had noticed her hands trembling while she’d tried to eat her food - and if they had, hopefully they’d written it off as a result of the cold...even though the Vale spring weather was anything but chilly tonight.

Sighing, she closed her eyes and told herself she would remain that way until her heart calmed down to a more normal speed.

That had been hard.  Far more difficult than she’d ever imagined it could be.  Ruby’s smile...her laugh...that little giggle whenever Yang said something funny...none of it had changed.  Every little gesture was painfully familiar and yet Weiss had been forced to watch dinner unfold as an outsider - looking through the window of something that had once been hers.  

It had grown more unbearable with every second that ticked by without some form of recognition from Ruby.  And when Ruby brought up wanting to become a huntress...Weiss had purposefully set off the ringer on her phone and jumped at the opportunity to escape.  It wouldn’t have been possible for her to remain in that conversation without giving away something bigger...

But she’d done it.  After spending the entire airship ride to Vale and then the remainder of the day convincing herself that this was the only task she had left to accomplish, she’d actually managed to summon enough courage to see it through.  

She’d done what she’d come here to do.  She’d seen Ruby one last time.  Yang and Blake too.

As an added bonus, Yang hadn’t knocked her into the next century and Blake hadn’t riddled her in sarcastic barbs.  

But now her chest burned - consumed by an ache and longing she’d tried long and hard to stifle.  This was what she’d been trying to avoid in the first place.  This was why she’d run.  And why she wanted to run again.

What’d she’d thought would be a mountain to climb had turned out to be an entire range of mountains.  The river to cross wasn’t just wide and deep, but roiling with rapids and invisible undercurrents.  If that small interaction had been enough to melt her resolve...there was no possible way she could stay.

Right?

Fear was growing in her chest - impossible to stamp out with any degree of fake boisterousness.  But was there a point of continuing to lie to herself?  She was terrified.  Terrified of making the wrong decision, terrified of returning to Atlas, terrified of remaining in Vale.  

If she went back to Atlas, she’d return to a life without Ruby - which was...well, it wasn’t truly living.  Foolishly, she’d always believed that being apart would become easier as time passed, but that had turned out to be nothing more than another miserable fallacy.

Life had only gotten harder.  Living had gotten harder.  Things she’d once loved had become meaningless.  Everything had grown dull, boring, and lifeless.  

But if she remained here…

What was she thinking?  Staying in Vale wasn’t an option.  There was nothing for her here.  Except for Ruby.  Ruby...who was the same shining star she’d always been.  Ruby was the key - Weiss’ key to the vibrant world they’d once shared together.  If she ever wanted to see that place again, she needed Ruby.  

But Ruby didn’t even know who Weiss was.  It didn’t matter how much she needed Ruby - needing her and having her agree to be in Weiss’ life were two separate issues entirely.

With another heavy sigh, she opened her eyes and briefly rubbed at her right elbow.  The wound was much better today, but she was favoring it and evidently in an observable way.  The last thing she’d wanted her teammates to know was that she’d been injured, but of course Yang had pinpointed the weakness.  Weiss was certain Blake had noticed, as well, but had decided not to comment upon it. 

Sparing a quick glance towards the small home, her heart instantly jumping as she did so, she finally fished the car keys from one pocket, brought the vehicle to life, and drove away.  There wasn’t a particular destination in her mind other than away.  Away from the memories, away from the pain, away from Ruby.

Yet while she drove aimlessly through vaguely familiar yet strange streets, her mind drifted back to Ruby and Ruby only.  Her brunette hair had grown a little longer than Weiss had ever seen it, most likely to cover the scar she knew hid underneath.  But it looked good.  And, impossibly, Ruby had grown taller - or maybe Weiss just wasn’t used to being in her presence.

Tall, healthy, and...strong.  

Just as it had been obvious that Weiss was injured, it was obvious that Ruby had regained a great portion of her strength over the past year.  There was nothing about her that hinted at frailty.  And there was nothing but the scar tracing a jagged line across one wrist that suggested any previous injuries.

That hadn’t been the same girl Weiss had left behind.  That had been...someone new and unfamiliar, yet so heart wrenchingly familiar Weiss had had trouble doing anything but stare and wish that their lives had turned out differently.

Stopping at a traffic light, Weiss glanced out the side window at what had once been a row of houses, but had since been torn down and replaced by a bustling shopping center.  Momentarily watching shoppers walk in and out of the stores, she willingly averted her gaze when it was time to drive away.

So much had changed since she’d been here last.  Even herself - she’d changed in ways she never would have imagined several years ago.  None of it was for the better, but it was change regardless...

She could leave.  She could drive herself to the nearest airship station right now and be on the next flight to Atlas.  She could leave this world behind and make her peace with the fact that Ruby was going to live on without her.  That’s what she’d already been doing, wasn’t it?

But something seemed different...something had changed.  A few hours ago Weiss had expected to be running from Vale with wings on her feet, but those wings hadn’t yet appeared.  Instead, it felt like...it felt like she wanted to stay.  

Maybe for a few more days.  There’d be little harm in delaying her return to Atlas until she was absolutely certain that’s what she wanted to do.  And maybe, just maybe, while she was here she could find a way to see Ruby again.  If there was any glimmer of hope for Weiss - any extra breath of life to fuel the tiny flame of resolve that was trying to spark in her heart - it was what Ruby had been wearing.

On cue, there was a fluttering of emotions in Weiss’ chest that had grown unfamiliar from its extended absence.

Ruby still had it.  The necklace - Weiss had noticed it immediately.  There must be a reason why Ruby had kept it.  Did she know what it meant?  Did she understand its significance?  It couldn’t be that Ruby had decided to wear it on a whim...could it?

Weiss had to believe, or hope, that there was still a section hidden away in Ruby’s mind that remembered.  Somewhere there was still a thread of connection between them.  If Weiss somehow found the courage and determination, maybe she could reach it.

But first things first - she needed to call Winter.

Pressing a single button on the dash, she said “Call Winter” in a steady voice before waiting patiently for the call to go through.  It connected on the very first ring.

“Where have you been?” Winter immediately demanded, her tone stern and unhappy.  “I left three messages with your office today and no one knew where you were.”

“I’m in Vale.”

There was a long silence at the other end of the phone while Weiss clutched the steering wheel a little tighter in anticipation of a response.

“Vale?” Winter finally repeated in a whisper of disbelief.

“Yes.”

“Did you -”

“Yes,” Weiss spoke again before her sister could ask the entire question.

“And?”

And her life had been thrown on its head, again.  And she didn’t know what was right, again.  And she didn’t know what to do, again.

“I might be here for a little while,” she said in lieu of answering the question directly.  “Would you mind if I stayed at the place you have here?”

“Yes, of course, Weiss.  But...how long do you think you’ll be there?”

The answer to that question was still so far up in the air Weiss couldn’t even begin to guess at a timeline.  When would this small breath of willpower fade away?  It could be a few minutes before she decided to leave.  Or a few hours, a few days...

“I’m not sure…” she muttered, mostly to herself.  “As long as I can…”  

“I can take care of everything here while you’re gone.  Do you need anything?”

“No,” she replied on instinct before realizing just how ill-prepared she was for an extended stay in Vale.  Sighing, she tapped her fingers against the steering wheel while asking, “You wouldn’t happen to have any clothes I could borrow at the house, would you?”  

She’d been in such a rush to leave Atlas that she hadn’t brought anything with her but the clothes on her back.  Unless she wanted to wear the same outfit everyday, she was going to need some new clothes.

“There might be some, but I’m really not sure what I left there.”

Even though Winter couldn’t see her, Weiss nodded in understanding while a possible solution came to mind.  

“That’s alright.  I think I know where I can find some…”  

“But if there’s anything else, you’ll let me know?” Winter pressed.  “Even if you need me to come to Vale -”

“No - no, that’s alright,” Weiss cut her sister off before Winter actually jumped on a transport to follow her.  “I’m doing fine right now, but I’ll let you know if that changes.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

There was a short silence while Winter analyzed the situation - calculating whether or not to believe in Weiss’ words.  Weiss would like to say that she’d never broken a promise made to her sister before, but there had been times when she hadn’t wanted Winter to worry.  As the eldest Schnee child, Winter already had so many other worries to deal with...

“Alright,” Winter finally acquiesced.  “If anything changes, let me know right away.”

“I will,” Weiss repeated before pausing briefly.  “And...thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Weiss.  Please update me soon.”

“I will.”

Ending the call, Weiss felt as if a tiny weight had been temporarily lifted from her shoulders.  It was a challenge to go through this on her own, but Winter’s support and understanding went a long way in making her feel not quite so alone.  Those were qualities that Weiss could be nothing but grateful for in her sister.  

The two of them had always been close, but the past year had forced a wedge between them.  Seemingly overnight Winter had become, in many ways, all Weiss had left in the world.  And even though Weiss loved her sister unconditionally, she’d found it close to impossible to explain a fraction of the thoughts and emotions running through her head.  Winter had been as helpful as possible given the circumstances, but Weiss knew that her sister worried more than was ever expressed through words.  

Weiss wished that she could say the worry was misplaced, but given the events of the last few days and her ever deteriorating frame of mind, it likely wasn’t.

Regardless, Winter’s unflinching support removed worries about the life Weiss had abruptly left behind.  There would be no angry calls from her father for abandoning the headquarters and no panicked calls from managers who had no idea what to do if they weren’t pointed in the right direction.  There was always work Weiss could do from Vale, if need be, but right now she didn’t need to concern herself with those matters.

Having been driving aimlessly since leaving the house, Weiss blinked out of her thoughts and took a few seconds to figure out where she’d ended up before charting a course to her second destination.  There was one more stop she had to make - one that was probably ill advised, but she was determined to see this through tonight.  

If she’d managed to sit down at a table next to Ruby, she should absolutely be able to do this.

That comparative knowledge did little to quell the dread that began to creep through her mind as the streets grew more recognizable.  Looking through the windows no longer greeted her with new sights, but with memories of days past.

There was the house that attorney had purchased only to lose several months later in a messy divorce.  There was the treehouse a devoted father had spent months building for his twin sons, who then used it religiously as their hideout.  There was the street that led to one of the best coffeeshops in town - the shopping center with Ruby’s favorite ice cream parlor - the stump of the poor oak tree that had been struck by lightning in a huge thunderstorm that had rolled through.

And then, the familiar iron gate that ran along the property line, dividing the lawn beyond from the street and neighbors next door.  Behind the fencing and up a small drive was a white home with dark blue shutters framing the windows.

Steering the car up to a keypad outside the entrance to the drive, she punched in a set of numbers and waited patiently for the gates to slide smoothly open.  They screeched as they slid apart, likely to do lack of use and proper oiling.  Once they were fully opened, she continued up the drive before pulling to a stop by the front door and turning the car off.

Just a quick run inside.  She’d grab a few things to wear and that was it.

Sitting in the car, she stared out the passenger window and felt her palms grow clammy at the thought of moving any closer.

The home was very moderately sized - at least, compared to what Weiss was used to.  Two stories, three bedrooms with a large yard out back, she’d actually found this house to be more comfortable than any of the mansions her family owned.  The porch light was on - as were the interior lights in the hallways, visible through the white slats of plantation shutters behind clean panes of glass.  Her personal code at the gate had lit the house up in expectation of her arrival, as if welcoming her back.

In and out - five minutes maximum.  

She’d sat right next to Ruby at the dinner table.  She could do this.

Clenching a fist and pushing the car door open, she crept towards the front door with more and more uncertainty beginning to swell in her chest.  This seemed like a horrible decision, but it would be the fastest and easiest way to get an entire wardrobe of her own clothing without spending needless hours shopping.  The outfits would be a little out of style, but that had never been a problem as far as Ruby was concerned.

Three wide stone steps led her up to a front door in the same color as the shutters.  The door handle was a glowing bronze that looked newly polished.  The side windows were sparkling and clean.

It almost looked as if someone still lived here.

Beside the front door was a separate keypad which required a separate code - but this code hadn’t been changed in years.  Even though Weiss hadn’t been here in quite some time, she’d refused to change it.  Buried deep down, she’d hung onto a foolish feeling that maybe one day…one day everything would be different.

“One, six, five, eight - now I know I won’t be late,” she whispered to herself while punching in the code.  The keypad immediately lit in green and she heard the deadbolts unlock.  

Reaching for the door handle, she found her fingers were trembling.  Drawing them back and curling them into a ball, she took a deep breath and reminded herself what it had been like walking up the sidewalk to Yang and Blake’s front door - how it had taken almost an hour to convince herself out of the car, how her feet hadn’t wanted to leave the street, how she’d nearly turned back a dozen times as she shook like a leaf in nervousness.

This would be far easier and faster than what she’d just gone though.  For one thing, there would be no one here.  Plus, she knew exactly what she wanted to grab and exactly where to find it.

Turning the handle, she pushed open the door and glided through before she lost her miniscule burst of courage.  Once inside silence quickly enveloped her - silence and stillness unlike anything she would have expected, broken only by the unsettling tick tock of a faraway clock.  A car drove past on the street behind her, but then the sound faded into nothing and left her alone with the clock.

The chandelier in the entryway still sparkled like it had been installed yesterday.  The dark wood floor was immaculately clean.  The little wooden table by the coat closet was devoid of dust.  The bookcase near the entry to the living room was tidy and clean.  The cleaning crew she’d been paying was doing an excellent job - everything was spotless, but cleanliness did nothing to remove the unnerving lack of motion surrounding her.

A mental timer was ticking in her head - urging her to move faster, to not dwell for too long in any particular space.  She needed to hurry, but instead she inched forward, looking left and right while trying to decide if she wanted to head further inside.  

When her eyes lit upon some of the items that hadn’t moved in years, her chest tightened with emotion that compounded with every momento and photograph she found.  While Yang and Blake’s house had been devoid of memories, this one was filled with them.  They were staring at her from the walls, the table, the bookcase…happier days that had been captured for eternity, filled with smiles, pride, and love.  Birthdays...anniversaries...vacations...

Focusing her eyes straight forward, she tried to move towards the staircase directly in front of her.  The long wooden banister was beckoning her to move upstairs, to leave the wood floor behind in favor of plush, off white carpet that had seen its fair share of wear and tear.  But when she forced one foot forward, it felt like the eyes were following her.  They begged her to turn towards them - to take a painful trip down memory lane that she might never return from.  ‘Pick me,’ they all said.  ‘Don’t you want to remember this day?’  ‘Don’t you want to remember how things were?’

‘Don’t you want to remember what you used to have?’  ‘Don’t you want to remember how it used to be?’

Finally breaking, she shot over to the nearest wall and turned the frame around so the photo was facing away from her.  The frame on a nearby table was flattened immediately after.  The opposite wall had two more pictures.  The table by the front door had three little ones.  Each and every one was turned down or flipped around so she could no longer see what contents they held.

It was only when the memories had been silenced that she could breathe a little more easily.  The fewer memories, the better.

Walking towards the staircase, she’s just set one hand upon the banister when her eyes landed upon a vase sitting on the table by the closet.  It had been the subject of great turbulence during its short life - having been repeatedly on the verge of death due to the great winds that used to tear through the hallways at hurricane speeds.  Now here it sat...perfectly still and safe from any potential harm.

Lifting her hand from the railing and diverting from her course, she decided that it would be best to put it out of sight - just in case.

Walking over and carefully picking it up in one hand, she opened the closet door only to gasp in surprise and stumble away - shoving the door shut as she did so.

How, after all this time, did it still smell like roses in there?

Heart pounding, she stood in the middle of the hallway - freezing to one spot like her feet had just been set in cement.  If memories were like ropes, she could feel them tying around her limbs - tugging and pulling her away from her grip on reality.  Her eyes darted around the room, trying to ground herself in this place while her past tried to tear her away from it.  

She’d left the front door open.  She’d turned the pictures around.  There were roses in the other vase by the front door - had those always been there?  There were roses in the vase in her hand - she immediately let go and watched it fall to the ground with a crash, shattering into pieces as water and flower petals flowed around her feet.

Her breathing was desperate - her pulse pounding erratically as she struggled to regain control of her emotions.  She knew what was happening.  Emotional trauma, they called it.  Each mind has its own way of coping with pain and loss, especially after events that were particularly distressing.  Her scars manifested themselves in the source of her pain - memories.  Memories of Ruby.  Memories of the past.  They haunted her.

But understanding what was happening didn’t make it any easier to stop it.

Closing her eyes, she focused on taking deep breaths.  One long inhale - she held it until her lungs burned before letting it out in a long, shaky exhale.

“One...”

There weren’t roses in the vases.  She’d specifically instructed the housekeepers to keep all plants out of the house.

Another deep inhale.  Wait.  Exhale slowly.

“Two…”

So it couldn’t smell like roses in here.  Because there hadn’t been roses in here for over a year.

“Three…”

Because Ruby hadn’t been here since -

‘Four!  Ready or not, Weiss - here I come!’

The front door slammed behind her as she raced back to the car and jumped inside.  The house disappeared in the rearview mirror as she sped down the drive before re-entering her code at the gate to let her back onto the streets and lock the memories away behind her.

That had been a horrible idea.  A horrible, horrible idea.  And clearly one she wasn't close to ready for.  New clothes would be easy to find - she’d just have to go shopping.  She didn’t necessarily want to go shopping, but she would have to because her other option was…

She couldn’t set foot in that house again.  It was still too soon, which was remarkable seeing as how it had already been a year.  But it was still...far too soon...

When the house was gone from view her heartbeat finally began to return to a normal speed while her hands loosened their death grip on the steering wheel.  Sounds of the street passing by outside came back to her once her pulse stopped pounding in her ears.  And her brain came back to reality - only to find that she’d again been driving with no purpose and no direction.  

Quickly picking up her surroundings, her new destination took her to the part of Vale where small neighborhoods gave way to massive plots of land.  The houses grew further and further apart as lawns and landscaping grew by leaps and bounds with each passing block.  

It was in this area of town where Winter’s house lay - and it was one of the larger buildings in sight.  Rather than hide the enormous size of the mansion behind cleverly placed trees and winding drives, this house was ostentatiously standing at the top of a small knoll.  The heightened elevation ensured that passerby would take notice of the grand manor from afar.

The entrance to the property was accompanied by a guard station, where the singular guard was probably tasked with one of the slowest jobs in Remnant seeing as how Winter spent all of her time anywhere but Vale.  This lack of duties likely explained the pep in his step as he shot to his feet and walked out of his guard booth to greet her. 

“May I help you, Miss?” he asked after she’d rolled down her window.  His eyes lit up at the sight of her, but he didn’t immediately jump to the conclusion that she and Winter were related.  That was a good sign - the guards her family needed to be concerned about were the ones who jumped to conclusions about relationships.  Even though she and Winter had the same hair...one could never be too careful.

“You should have received a call from my sister, Winter,” she replied calmly.  “I’m guessing the code will be...six-five-zero.”

That was the passcode Winter had assigned to Weiss when she was much younger, and they now used in any situation where Weiss needed access to something her sister owned.

Six - the age Weiss had been when she’d gotten Myrtenaster.

Five - the number of moves it had taken her to defeat her first Grimm, a lowly Boarbatusk.

Zero - the chance of Winter ever not having Weiss’ back.

The guard grinned at the correct passcode and reached into his booth to push the button to open the wrought iron gates for her.  

“Welcome, Miss Schnee,” he said while the gates quietly slid open.  “How long will you be staying?”

“I’m not entirely sure yet,” she answered truthfully.  “It could be awhile, if things go well.”

The news seemed to make his night while he waved her through.

“Take your time!  And if you need anything while you’re here, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“Thank you -…?”  Her words trailed off when she realized she hadn’t gotten his name.

“Charles!  But you can call me Chuck - everyone does.  Well, you can.”

“Thank you, Chuck,” she replied with a courteous smile before rolling up the window and continuing up the drive towards the large manor.  In the rearview mirror, she watched him duck back into his outpost as soon as she’d left.  It was entirely likely that Winter had requested him to update her whenever Weiss arrived.  And she wouldn’t be surprised if Winter had also instructed him to provide consistent updates on Weiss’ comings and goings while she was staying here - that sounded entirely like something her sister would do.

But that subtle supervision was to be expected regardless of where Weiss decided to stay while in Vale.  If anything, she’d saved her sister the effort of finding and hiring a good tail on such short notice.  Although Weiss did know of an exceptional tail who happened to live in the area…

Pulling around the large circular drive to the front of the building, her pulse beat easily at the sight of the unfamiliar house sprawling in front of her.  She’d been here several times before, but always by herself and never for more than a brief visit when Winter happened to be in town.  The lack of memories was a breath of fresh air and exactly what she needed after a tumultuous couple of days that had put her through both the physical and mental wringer.

Striding easily up to the front door, she found that she had to use both hands to pull it open due to its massive size.  That was one of the problems with such an impressive oak door.  It was beautiful, but weighed far too much to be reasonably practical.

As soon as the door had opened, lighting inside the house clicked on to welcome her into the expansive foyer.  After stepping inside and pulling the front door shut behind her, she took a minute to survey the decorations surrounding her.  Elegant paintings, an impressive crystal chandelier, soft lighting that was perfect for the evening, and several large open doorways leading elsewhere in the house.

The unfamiliarity nearly made her sigh out loud in relief.  

Winter’s home was a bit...large...for a single person, but that meant there would be plenty of bedrooms to choose from.  She should be able to easily find one that was comfortable and as different as possible from any room she’d stayed in before.

Leaving the foyer behind, Weiss walked through the downstairs living room first to create a general feel for the layout of her temporary housing.  Before she could even attempt to find the light switch for the room, the lighted chandeliers turned on automatically.  Staring into the room for several seconds in surprise, it was only when she found the set of complex light switches along wall that she remembered that Winter had had an automatic lighting system installed.

The lighting in the entire house ran off of sensors hidden throughout the walls.  The room would speak to each other and turn the lights on and off as the home’s inhabitants walked about.  It was one of those technologies she’d always found to be a little unnerving, but was highly touted by the wealthy elite.  

Walking through the living room, with the carpet absorbing any sound her feet might make, the light in the room up ahead turned on before she’d even reached it.  It left her with the feeling that someone was always a few seconds ahead of her - flipping switches to save her the effort.  

Entering a well-equipped study next, which was decorated in soft blues instead of the cream and gold of the living room, she turned around to see when the lights in the recently vacated room would switch off.  They remained on while she watched, so she took several more steps into the middle of the study before sensing the change in lighting behind her.

The system was accurate, which was good.  And she was sure she would eventually get used to the lights following her around the house.  Maybe she would even enjoy not having to flip switches all of the time, not that that was any real hassle.

Continuing her brief tour, she left behind the study filled with books on combat strategy and Dust manufacturing in order to peruse the massive kitchen and dining room.  The dining room table had enough chairs to seat twelve, which seemed inordinately excessive for a person who lived alone.  

Making it to one end of the house, she found a staircase that would lead her to the upper level - where the bedrooms would lie.  After taking the stairs, she found that the second story was nothing more than a long hallway with doors along both sides, split in the middle by an upstairs living room lit by moonlight.

About a third of the hallway was currently illuminated, but it was difficult to tell how far the hallway went in the darkness that stretched beyond.  Unperturbed, she began peeking into the rooms to find one she might like.  The bedrooms didn’t seem to be connected to the automatic lighting system, which made sense from a rational standpoint if people were sleeping, but this meant that every door she opened greeted her with a pitch black room beyond.  The darkness was short lived, however, as each room had its own light switch tucked right inside the door - in an easy to find location.

After peeking into the first two rooms and immediately marking them off as viable options, she searched the next few rooms before coming to the same determination.  It would most likely be one of the corner rooms she was searching for since those were often the largest and most livable spaces, but she would check each one just to be sure.

While she slowly made her way down the hall, she heard the soft ‘click, click’ of lights shutting off behind her and turning on in front of her.  Each room she glanced into was nice and immaculately decorated, but she wanted something a little bigger if she was going to be staying here for the foreseeable future.

Marking off two more bedrooms, she finally made it to the upstairs living room.  It was a large space that stretched the entire width of the house with windows lining the walls on both sides.  Combined with a skylight overhead, it was essentially a room made of glass with hallways attached to both sides.  

With the night sky surrounding her, the ambience of the room was calming and magnificent.

Standing in the center of the space and looking up, she could easily make out several fragments of the moon shining above her - glowing brightly amongst the stars.  One piece in particular immediately drew her full attention - the small sliver that Ruby firmly believed held the soul of her mother, Summer Rose.

They’d still been in their first year at Beacon when Ruby had explained her beliefs...which Weiss might have immediately refuted had it not been for the undying love and adoration in Ruby’s eyes as she told the story.  Even though Weiss had known it was fundamentally incorrect, she hadn’t been able to bring herself to tell Ruby as much.  What type of person knowingly tried to take away the faith that helped a girl cope with having lost her mother?

It had only been after Ruby’s confession that Yang had pulled Weiss aside and explained exactly how it had come to be - how Yang had made the entire story up as a way to make Ruby feel better about what had happened.  How Ruby had latched onto it with her entire being and firmly believed it to this day.

Regardless of its factual shortcomings, none of them had ever said anything to contradict Ruby’s belief.  Instead, they’d started sending little ‘thank yous’ up to Summer whenever they were particularly lucky in battle.  Strange happenings were Summer’s way of playing a trick on them.  Fortunate turns of events were gifts.  A sudden gust of wind on a still day was Summer’s way of saying ‘hello.’

It had begun as Yang’s attempt to make her little sister feel better, but in the end it had affected them all.  The idea that there was some spirit up in the sky looking after them was preposterous, but also...comforting, in a way.  And there had been many instances where their team had either been entirely too lucky, or something else had intervened in their favor.

Staring up through the skylight at the piece of moon she could pick out without hesitation, she gently rubbed at her right arm before dropping both hands to her sides.

“Summer...” she whispered, the name strange on her tongue.  There were some days, like today, when she really wished it was true - that Ruby’s mother was up there like some type of angel, looking down and protecting her daughter.  Because Weiss hadn’t been.

The threat of tears forced her eyes down, but she sent one last glance up towards the moon - one last whisper that would go unheard.

“I’m sorry - I...wasn’t there for her.  But I’ll make it right, somehow...”

Rushing out of the living room and into the next hallway, she quickly found the master bedroom - it was the only door on the left side of the hall and took up an incredible amount of space.  It was...too large.  The sheer size of the suite made the king sized bed inside look comically small.  She didn’t understand how Winter could stand to sleep in such cavernous spaces…

Well, Weiss had once been able to too.  Growing up, her room had been far larger than necessary.  It had actually been a set of three rooms - bedroom, sitting room, and study - with enough space that it probably could have comfortably housed two full families.

What had changed?  She’d gone to Beacon and she’d been forced share a tiny room with three other girls.  There had been some growing pains, but in the end...comfort wasn’t having space, but rather having company.

Shutting the door to the master bedroom, she had two doors left on the opposite side of the hallway.  Based on the spacing of the doors these had to be smaller suites - demi-suites, she believed they were called.  Heading towards the one at the end of the hallway near another staircase, she paused for a second when she sensed that something wasn’t quite right.  Turning back down the hallway, she instantly found what had caused her unease.

The lights in the upstairs living room were still on.  They shouldn’t be...since there were sections of hall between her and the room that had already switched off, yet they were.  

Standing in the hallway, she stared for several seconds while trying to decide whether or not she should walk back to the room and see what was wrong.  It could be that the sensor was broken or set up incorrectly, but caution won out in the end and she crept quietly back to the room.  

It was impossible to sneak with the lighting announcing her approach, but she kept her eyes and ears peeled for any sight or sound of movement.  One hand went defensively to her side only to remember that she didn’t have Myrtenaster with her at the moment - her weapon still safely stored in a locker back in Atlas.

Undeterred, she focused instead on her semblance while taking calculated steps forward.  Her eyes swept every bit of the room while it slowly came into view, but there was nothing out of place.  Dropping some of her caution, she walked fully into the room and stood between two dark blue sofas, spinning in a slow circle and carefully checking every corner.

Nothing.  There was no one here, which was as she’d expected.  And there was nothing noticeably changed from when she’d been standing here last.

The sensor must be broken.  Or maybe there was a faulty wire somewhere.  The system probably worked just enough that the lights would trigger to turn on, but now they weren’t capable of turning back off.  

Finding the set of switches on one side of the room, she headed over and pressed the pad where the ‘off’ command should be.  When nothing happened, she pressed it again - a little longer and harder this time - but again nothing happened.  Next she tried all of the possible commands, but was met with the same results.

Apparently the lights in this room were critically broken.  Seeing as how she wasn’t an electrician, it wasn’t anything she’d be able to fix.  She’d just have to live with the lights staying on for the time being, which wasn’t a huge issue at all.

Quickly heading back to the corner suite, she made sure to check the lights once more and, sure enough, they were still on.  Making a mental note to call someone in the morning, she finally opened the door and immediately knew that this was the room she’d been searching for.  

It was perfect - large enough to call home for an extended period of time, but not overbearing like the master suite.  It had four sets of windows, two on each side of the outer wall, along with an outdoor balcony that appeared to stretch the length of all four windows.  The bed was a traditional four-post with what must be a mile of covers and blankets on top.  The room was also equipped with a rather large closet which she could stock full of new clothes as soon as she had them.  

With a safe place to sleep, the events of the past day were quickly catching up to her.  She’d been traveling for several days now, stretching back to before the battle in the forest, and was sufficiently exhausted.  In fact, she was so exhausted that it felt like she’d be able to fall right into bed and fall asleep.

First, she walked into the bathroom and found it was stocked with new toiletries like a fine hotel, which was superb since she hadn’t brought any of those items with her.  The more she thought about it, the more she understood how much of a knee jerk reaction this trip had been.  All because of a picture.

But that picture had told her something her imagination never could have.  Maybe her mistakes hadn't completely destroyed everything.  Maybe something good could be salvaged from the wreckage.

After preparing herself for bed, she gratefully laid down only for her mind to begin racing the instant she closed her eyes.

Ruby...Ruby was in every corner of her mind.  

Her memories of Ruby had been frozen in time for so long that new memories were nearly overpowering in their clarity.  Hearing Ruby laugh...seeing her smile...answering questions…the entire evening had been one Weiss had never believed possible.

Internally groaning, she remembered the very much failed handshake that would have given her the opportunity to feel Ruby’s warmth again.  How she’d managed to blunder such a simple display of manners was beyond her.  All she could remember was that the very sight of Ruby had made her want to run back to the safety of the car.  Somehow she’d willed herself to stay...it had been the necklace.  She’d seen it as soon as Ruby had stuck out a hand towards her.  That little token had given her the temporary boost of courage she’d needed to stick around a little while longer.

She hadn’t exactly been the most engaging dinner guest for the time she’d managed to stay, though.  She could have spoken up more - been funnier or more clever.  She knew how much Ruby enjoyed humor of any sort, but in that moment her mind had been frozen solid.  It was easy for her to think of things she should have said now...but now was too late.  It had only been with Blake’s help that Weiss had even been able to tell the story about the shipment of red Dust.

At the recollection of that moment, something stronger than sadness began growing in her chest...despair.  It was the same despair that had crushed her spirit this past year.  It was the same despair that had pressed her into a tighter and tighter box, unwilling to let her breathe.

Lip quivering as her chest tightened, she squeezed her eyes shut and struggled to push away the emotion as it fought against her.

Ruby didn’t recognize her, but Ruby also didn’t remember any of the memories they’d shared together.  They’d all watched that shipment of Dust explode.  They’d all watched the tower of sand shoot towards the sky.  They’d all felt the blast of heat roll over them even at the distance they’d been sheltering from.

Those moments were gone from Ruby’s mind.  And Weiss was now a stranger - someone Ruby wouldn’t be comfortable spending time alone with - which was why she’d invited Yang as company.

Yang’s image popped into Weiss’ mind then - her purple eyes narrowed in loathing.  Honestly, Weiss was surprised that Yang hadn’t slammed the door in her face.  Or worse, knocked her into the next century with one good punch.  She wasn’t dense - she knew that Yang was beyond livid.  And she’d been able to hear the sound of protesting metal as Yang had crushed the door knob on the other side of the door in self-restraint.

At least Yang had been straightforward in her quickly uttered warning - mess things up and she would rip out Weiss’ trachea.  It was certainly one of the most violent threats Weiss had ever received, but she didn’t think it was undeserved.  Honestly, she probably deserved far worse than that - although she wasn’t going to go volunteering that admission to Yang at this point.  

Thankfully, Weiss had no plans of ‘messing up.’  Although she wasn’t sure that anyone ever actually planned to do that.  She certainly hadn’t planned on making such colossal mistakes herself, yet here she was...struggling to atone for them.

Yang and Blake’s new house had been an unexpected surprise - Weiss hadn’t even known they’d moved until she’d gone to their old address and discovered a new family living there.  As a stroke of good fortune, the kind older couple been able to point her in the right direction - Yang’s propensity to overshare working in Weiss’ advantage for once.  

She’d always pictured Blake and Yang moving into a bigger place, not smaller.  But the pair had always had their own way of going about things.  Blake, in particular, was more fond of comfortable than lavish.

Thinking about Blake, Weiss covered her eyes with one hand even though the room was completely dark.  Before attending Beacon, she never would have thought she’d be close friends with a Faunus, but now...Blake seemed to be the only one even remotely willing to have Weiss around - and maybe even slightly happy to see her again.

Of course, that made sense because Weiss had never abandoned Blake’s little sister. 

Letting out a heavy sigh, she decided that she probably wasn’t going to get any sleep tonight after all.  Rolling onto her side, she pulled out her scroll and started making a list of everything she needed to do, could do, should do, and would do.

First, new clothes.

Second, call an electrician for the broken lights.

Third, find some excuse to see Ruby again, and find the courage to actually go through with it.

Fourth...she really didn’t know.  Everything very much hinged upon the third item on the list.