What Defines Us - Commentary - Ch. 13-14 (Patreon)

We’ve started the second quarter of the story, which I’m super excited about!  If you think about the story in quarters (which I do), the first is the introduction, the second and third hold a lot of the...emotion and action?  And the fourth winds down to the ending.  Essentially, we’ll be getting a lot of information in the coming chapters about what happened and how the characters try to piece themselves back together.  This takes place over the course of 20+ chapters, but...Rome wasn’t built in a day, I guess!

Chapter 13 (Weiss’ chapter) gives us more information - see, it’s ramping up already!  But first...who didn’t think it was adorable when Ruby answered the front door and Weiss immediately forgot what she wanted to say?  She’d been practicing on her way up to the house and then poof!  She fumbles through some awkward greeting instead.

I really liked the idea of Weiss spending time with Ruby in Ruby’s new workshop.  Sure, it’s mostly just a table and some cabinets in the garage, but it’s Ruby’s space.  This is another instance where Weiss is forced to encounter a piece of her past - in this case, an area where Ruby’s unique brand of chaos reigns.

There are a couple of small things I want to point out in the garage - the first being the red and black dagger that Ruby’s modifying.  This is the same one she was playing with in Chapter 2 - the one she had no idea what to do with, but that Yang had brought home for her.  She’s found a use for it now - trying to make it fly back to her!  This might have something to do with a very similar feature she just finished in Crescent Rose...because who doesn’t want a weapon that’s also a gun and also flies?

It still makes me laugh that Ruby is practicing with the dagger by throwing it at a box of Yang’s stuff.  If it was holding something important, Yang wouldn’t have left it out in the garage, right?  Especially not with Ruby working out there.  At least, that’s the hope…

Another part of this chapter that makes me chuckle is that Ruby still has her gross, unexploded eggs sitting out there.  Those were also mentioned in Chapter 2 - how Ruby thought they would explode, but they just crisped up instead.  I’m not sure if that’s actually what would happen (please don’t try this at home!), but I thought it was cute that Ruby didn’t let Weiss pick it up!  Wasn’t that nice of her?  Ruby just watched Yang pick it up, but snatched it away before Weiss can even touch it.  Sisterly love, right?

Speaking of sisters...this chapter includes what might be the closest thing we’ve had to an argument between Yang and Weiss.  Is that fair to say?  Surprisingly (not), Weiss is less than thrilled to learn that Ruby will be going on another hunt.  Who can blame her?

I like to think that when Weiss was snapping back at Yang, she started to show a bit more of her normal backbone and unwillingness to surrender.  I don’t think we’ve seen that thus far in the story.  In fact, I think most of what Weiss has done so far suggests that she’s actually on the verge of leaving.  But in this chapter she knew what she wanted - for Ruby not to go - and was willing to fight for it.  Although...as soon as the confidence appeared, it almost immediately disappeared, right?  Yang pushed back, and Weiss gave in.  Actually, I’ll say that Weiss compromised - she gets the chance to change Yang’s mind if she can beat Ruby in battle.  Don’t worry, we’ll get to see that later!

If you compare Weiss and Yang’s interaction with what we saw in Chapter 7 (this was the flashback/memory chapter where Weiss learns that Ruby’s memories have been lost), I think it’s easy to see how far the two of them have fallen out as friends.  If you don’t remember (or don’t want to go back and re-read), in Chapter 7 Blake and Yang went over to see Weiss at night, and Yang asked Weiss what she wanted to do about Ruby.  

Let that sink in for a bit.  Ruby is Yang’s little sister, and Yang asked Weiss how she wanted to handle the situation.  They needed to decide how they would introduce themselves to Ruby, and Yang deferred - because she was giving that control to Weiss.  

Flash forward to this chapter, and Yang has taken that control back.  She’s shut Weiss out.  In Yang’s eyes, Weiss shouldn’t be allowed that type of control over Ruby’s life anymore.  It doesn’t matter how close they used to be, Weiss left and forfeited her right to any say in decisions that impacted Ruby.  Whether it’s fair or not, that’s the way things currently are.  Weiss clearly doesn’t like that, but at this point what can she do?

Last note about this chapter - I really like the idea that Weiss wouldn’t let Ruby touch Myrtenaster at first, only to realize that Ruby is actually a weapons guru.  The school version of Weiss wants to keep this advantage all for their team so they can be the best in the school, but of course Ruby goes and shares with everyone.  She just wants everyone safer and better at fighting Grimm!

Having grown and matured, the current version of Weiss understands what it means to work for the greater good, not just personal status and gain.  You can see this in how she looks back on her past actions with regret - as if upset it took her so much longer than Ruby to figure that out.

These two chapters also give Weiss and Ruby a good amount of time to hang out together.  Their relationship has grown closer, immediately evident in Ruby’s chapter (Chapter 14).  She really seems to like Weiss, right?  But she loves weapons.  Of course she does!  Weapons are easier to understand and work with than people are, so she wants to see Weiss’ weapon and the potential secrets it might hold.

I don’t know if weapons are really discussed in the show, but I feel like most huntsmen would be pretty possessive of theirs - that’s their livelihood, after all - but to Weiss, having Ruby hold and use Myrtenaster is not a big deal.  I wanted to use those moments to show how close they’d once been, and how much of that closeness is still hidden within Weiss.  It’s a subtle comfort and ease that comes with familiarity.

Ruby discovers the hidden version of Weiss in this chapter when Weiss laughs after playing a little bit of a joke on Ruby.  And Ruby is...mesmerized might be a good word for it.  Weiss is trying so hard to hold herself together and behave normally around Ruby, but sometimes these little pieces of the past slip out - and Ruby really seems to love them, doesn’t she?

*Tiny side note - in the garage, Ruby asks if Weiss has any stories from being a huntress.  She then elaborates that Yang has tons of stories about “Giant Grimm, blowing up caves, and jumping off waterfalls.”  The jumping off waterfalls comment is a nod to one of my recent stories, Retribution, where the team had to jump off a waterfall.  What’s slightly ironic is that they were trying to rescue Yang at the time, so Yang didn’t actually get to participate in that part of the story!*

Ok, so Ruby loves to see this old version of Weiss pop up, but Weiss took immense pleasure in watching Ruby gush over her own handiwork when examining Myrtenaster.  Weiss even prods Ruby into unwittingly complimenting herself, calling the modifications a ‘masterpiece.’  I think Ruby is typically modest, so it was probably pretty satisfying for Weiss to hear her take actual credit for what she’d done because it is amazing and is incredible.  Of course, Ruby immediately wants to know who made the changes to Myrtenaster and Weiss has to use vague answers to get around the question.

You know what Weiss’ most common phrase in this story might be?  ‘I’m fine.’  That’s intentional on my part, so try to keep an eye on all the times Weiss uses it - the circumstances, her internal thoughts and external reactions.  How often do we say that we’re fine when we’re really not?  Weiss is clearly not fine, yet she uses the phrase repeatedly in an attempt to assure others that she is.  

She uses it again in this chapter, but the outcome is different this time.  She doesn’t just leave it at that and move on.  Ruby offers an ear to listen and Weiss actually comes back and elaborates on her current emotions.

To me, this moment is like...huge!  Weiss actually tried to explain what’s going on in her head!  She’s not very explicit because she really can’t be, but she explains some of the internal emotions and turmoil she’s dealing with.  Because it’s Ruby, and Weiss trusts Ruby so wholly and completely, she’s willing to lower her walls a fraction of an inch.

And when she does that, guess what happens?  Ruby tries to help.  She offers support.  She doesn’t go running in the other direction like Weiss is damaged or crazy.  If anything, the moment of vulnerability only brought them closer.  

Can you feel it too?  How Ruby is thinking about Weiss now - they’re close enough that Ruby finally asked Yang what really happened and why Yang is so mad.  Because Ruby cares - she’s seen Weiss’ struggle and she really, truly wants to help.  Isn’t that just the type of person Ruby is though?  Willing to help anyone in need.

As Ruby tries to study for her hunt, we can see how preoccupied she is with helping Weiss - enough where she finds it difficult to focus on the hunt she’s been training for for a really long time.  To her, it’s almost unfathomable that anything would be able to distract her from that ultimate goal, but maybe Ruby’s forgetting a bit of something.

Did she want to become a huntress to go on hunts, or did she want to become a huntress so she could help people?  Here she is - at the cusp of going out into the forest, of finally becoming a huntress - and her mind is stuck on Weiss instead.  

Sometimes accomplishing our goals isn’t exactly how we imagine them to be, which Ruby might be about to learn.  Keep an eye on her - keep an eye on both of them, because things are really starting to change.

Until next time,

Miko