What Defines Us - Chapter 40 (Patreon)

The moment Ruby opened her eyes, she was excited.  Her brain wasn’t even entirely on yet so she didn’t know why she was excited, but she was excited.

It was going to be one of those days.  Meaning a day of complete awesome!

Feeling something move on the bed beside her, she suddenly remembered exactly what she had to be excited about.  Weiss. Weiss was still here! Still sleeping, and still here. Like right here - sleeping on the bed beside her.

Trying to settle down, Ruby slowly rolled onto her side so she could watch Weiss sleep.  Who cared if it was creepy? She already decided that she didn’t care what ‘they’ thought about her and Weiss’ relationship.  Maybe watching each other sleep was just something they did! Like pottery or painting or killing loads and loads of Grimm.

Plus, Weiss was so cute when she was sleeping.  It’d be a low-level crime if Ruby didn’t watch!  The way her lips stayed slightly parted while she breathed...the perfectly un-creased brow that had forgotten how to worry...the pure white hair drifting across her eyes - Ruby loved every little thing about her.

This was the best way in the whole wide world to wake up.  Nothing was better - literally nothing. 

Except for kissing.  That was better. 

Remembering their kiss from last night, Ruby blushed.

Kissing was way better.  Glancing at Weiss’ lips, she immediately looked away like she hadn’t been planning anything.  Which she hadn’t been! 

Ok, maybe she kind of thought that maybe she could kiss Weiss right now.  Was that a crime too??  Weiss was the one who said Ruby didn't need to ask!  Weiss also said Ruby could do it whenever.  That was pretty clear permission, right?  That meant she could kiss Weiss right now, right?  

Seemed like a pretty simple answer to her.  Yes, she should do it. 

Taking a deep breath and summoning an extra bit of courage, Ruby leaned closer - trying not to exhale while moving into Weiss’ space.  A few more inches and she could feel warm breaths of air slipping past Weiss’ lips and brushing against her own. Running out of oxygen herself, she quickly moved the last few inches and placed an oh-so-delicate kiss to Weiss’ lips.

When Weiss suddenly stirred, Ruby jerked away and stayed perfectly still while blushing more than a tomato that loved to be red.

Did she really just do that??  She just did that! She totally kissed Weiss - and it was totally amazing.  

Now she got the unexpected bonus of watching Weiss wake up - which was pretty amazing too.  First, she shifted slightly. Then her eyes began to twitch, not in a scary possessed way, but in a waking up way.  Her lips curled into a tiny smile before her eyes barely cracked open - revealing pretty blue that was disappearing and reappearing while she blinked in confusion.

“Good morning,” Ruby whispered while intently watching Weiss’ eyes, wondering if Weiss knew what just happened.

“Good morning,” Weiss mumbled before letting out a long sigh followed by a big yawn.  Shutting her mouth and giving her head a quick shake, she was able to keep her eyes open - already quite alert for just having woken up.  “What’s wrong?”

“What?” Ruby asked in surprise when blue eyes narrowed at her.

“You’re blushing.”

“I’m - totally not!” Ruby answered with a scoff before fanning at her cheeks.  “It’s just a little hot in here, don’t ya think?”

After staring at Ruby for a few seconds, Weiss finally looked towards the window.  Ruby’s eyes followed - finding that it was already bright and sunny outside. 

“What time is it?” Weiss asked, thankfully dropping the subject of Ruby’s rampant blush.

Rolling onto her other side, Ruby grabbed her scroll off the nightstand to check the time.  Laughing when she saw what it was, she spun back to Weiss and held up the scroll.

“Late!  Guess we stayed up pretty late though…”

The memory of last night made Ruby grin while butterflies appeared in her stomach.  She’d confessed her feelings to Weiss, but Weiss returned them! The two of them were...in love.

Another round of butterflies swirled to life, and Ruby grinned even harder.  She could so get used to saying that.

“Think we can stay here all day?” Weiss whispered, placing one arm under her head like a pillow while laying on her side.

“You’d really stay here all day?” 

“I will if you will.” 

The slight smile on Weiss’ lips was a challenge - Ruby could sense it.  Could she stay in the room all day? Just thinking about it made her legs feel antsy, like they really, really wanted to move.  But no! She could definitely stay here all day.  Or at least another few minutes.

Hearing a rumble in her stomach, Ruby sheepishly smiled while Weiss’ smile grew into a full grin.

“Uh...any chance we could get food and come back?”

Laughing at the request, Weiss rolled out of bed and offered a hand to Ruby.

“Let’s get you some food.  You must be starving.”

Groaning at her failure to stay here for longer than a half second, Ruby willingly took the offered hand and allowed Weiss to tug her to her feet.  

“You can use the bathroom first.  Oh! And your toothbrush is still there.  You want to borrow more clothes too?”

“I think I’ll stick with these, but thank you,” Weiss replied before heading towards the bathroom - holding onto Ruby’s hand and only letting it slip out of her grasp when she moved too far away.

Ruby kind of stared while Weiss walked away, and she stared until Weiss disappeared behind the bathroom door.  But she was allowed to stare, wasn’t she?

Shaking her head, she went to the closet and threw on the first set of clothes her hands fell upon.  Once dressed, she sat on the edge of the bed listening to the sound of water running and stopping - patiently waiting for Weiss the reappear.

Ruby kissed Weiss awake, and Weiss had no idea!  How was that for the secret of the century? Ruby wanted to try that again though.  Maybe she could do that every morning.  How long would it be before Weiss realized something was up?

Hearing the door unlatch, Ruby jumped to her feet and grinned the moment Weiss stepped into view.

“I’ll be right back,” she quipped before whizzing into the bathroom, but not before pausing by Weiss’ side and placing a quick kiss to her cheek.  Without staying for a reaction, she blew into the bathroom and shut the door behind her - a grin of success set in place.

Today was definitely going to be a great day.

Wanting to get back to Weiss as quickly as possible, Ruby cut her morning routine in half.  Timmy Too was disappointed, but he’d survive. He had company now, after all! 

As soon as she finished getting ready, Ruby zipped out of the bathroom and found Weiss standing in the middle of the room - looking towards the window with a thoughtful expression on her face.  When Ruby grew nearer, Weiss seemed to sense her presence and turned with a smile - a smile that made Ruby immediately reach out to pull Weiss into a hug. A good morning hug - because no morning was complete without hugging Weiss.  At least, from here on out no morning would be complete without a hugging Weiss.

Sighing, Weiss wrapped her arms around Ruby and hugged back.  And it was so different from their first hug! This one was strong, unwavering, and immensely satisfying.  It no longer felt like Weiss was trying to run away from the show of affection. Instead, she embraced it. 

Ha - embraced it.  Get it?  Ruby needed to remember that one for later!  Yang would get a kick out of it.

Their hug only ended when Ruby’s stomach made an even louder demand for food - making Weiss drop her arms and step away.  But as she did so, she gave Ruby a happy smile - a beautifully-happy smile.

“Let’s find you some food?” 

The question was thoughtful and caring - everything Ruby expected Weiss to be.  Nodding, she reached down to hold Weiss’ hand while they headed towards the kitchen together.  

Maybe Yang made breakfast even though Ruby was still sleeping!  Sometimes Yang did that and left the leftovers on the stove to be reheated whenever Ruby woke up.

Crossing her fingers as they walked into the kitchen, her nose was greeted by the smell of bacon.  Yes.

“Good morning!” she called out to Blake and Yang, pulling out a chair for Weiss before heading to the stove to collect her food.

“Good morning?  It’s almost lunchtime!” Yang replied before turning to Weiss.  “And when did you get here?”

“Late last night,” Blake muttered, heading to the stove while Ruby raced back to the table with a plate piled with bacon, eggs, and toast.  

“You knew this?” Yang asked, turning in her chair to track Blake.  

“I thought she was a burglar.”

Yang let out a delighted laugh.  

“Hopefully not a cat burglar,” she joked, cringing when Blake sent her a glare and quickly turning back to Weiss.  “Yeesh. But you got to meet our security system, huh? How would you rate it on a scale of one to very scary?”

“Startling and a bit painful,” Weiss answered, briefly rubbing at her collarbone.  Reaching over, Ruby patted the top of Weiss’ hand and silently begged for forgiveness.  She still felt so bad for falling asleep! That’s why she should never close her eyes in bed.  Unless she wanted to sleep, then she should probably close her eyes. Watching someone else sleep wasn’t creepy, but sleeping with her eyes open definitely was.

Nudging her plate towards Weiss and motioning that she would share, Weiss shook her head and waved Ruby away.  

That’s right - Weiss didn’t eat much when she first woke up.  Ruby needed to remember that! That was something a partner should know.

As Ruby shoveled a big forkful of eggs into her mouth, Yang leaned towards them and raised one hand to cover a whisper.  

“You should’ve heard Blake when we said we wanted a guard dog.”

From across the room, Blake let out a dismissive scoff.  

“There’s nothing a dog can do that I can’t do a thousand times better.” 

Grinning at the reply, Yang leaned back in her chair and said, “Of course, Blake - I agree with you one hundred percent!”  Behind Blake’s back, Yang shook her head and raised one finger to her lips.

When Ruby giggled, Blake sent them a suspicious glance - causing Yang to look innocently up towards the ceiling.  As soon as Blake turned away, Yang reached out and playfully pinched Ruby in the side for giving away the tease. That only made her giggle more while squirming away from her sister’s hands.

Walking back to the table - or more like sulking back to the table - Blake set a mug in front of Weiss before sitting in her own chair and wrapping both hands around a steaming cup of tea.  Before Blake could take the first sip, however, Yang rested one arm on the chair behind her and the air suddenly grew uncomfortably warm. 

Ruby scooted closer to Weiss to escape the heat, but Blake sank into her seat and sighed.

“You’re lucky you’re hot,” she grumbled, trying to sound disgruntled but smiling into her cup when Yang laughed.  

When Yang leaned over and kissed Blake on the cheek, Ruby glanced at Weiss.

What would Yang and Blake say if Ruby kissed Weiss on the cheek right now? Would they freak out?  Or would Yang bury Ruby in embarrassment? It might be worth it.  The look of surprise on Yang’s face would probably be epic.

“What brought you over so late?” Yang asked, making Ruby completely forget what she’d been plotting.  

How would Weiss answer that question?

“Ruby asked me to come over.”  

Ah, clever!  The response was honest but didn’t give much information.

“Uh huh…”  

But it was also so generic that Yang wasn’t going to let it go...

“We had things to talk about!” Ruby piped in.  “So we talked about them and then went to sleep!”

Wiggling her eyebrows at Ruby, Yang seemed willing to drop the subject...for now.  But this table just got a little more dangerous in the embarrassment department. There was a shark in the water...

“So Weiss, you gonna hang out?” Yang asked instead.  “There might be food left if Ruby didn’t just eat it all.”

“There’s still some left!” Ruby whined.  She made sure to leave enough so that Weiss could eat too!  She wasn’t that greedy.

“Actually…” Weiss replied, giving Ruby an apologetic expression.  “I should probably get going. I have quite a bit of work that should be done by this afternoon.  I’ve been severely neglecting that responsibility...”

“But we can hang out later today?” Ruby immediately asked.  

“Of course.  And if I get enough done, I can clear the next few days to spend with you.”

“Yes!” Ruby exclaimed, pumping one fist in excitement.  “Please do that! I promise not to bother you at all so you can work super hard!”

The two of them smiled at each other until Ruby noticed Yang’s grin growing dangerously big.  A tease was on the horizon if something didn’t distract her - and quick! 

Pushing her chair away from the table, Ruby shot to her feet and gestured to Weiss’ cup.

“Can I get you more tea first?”

After tilting the cup towards her, Weiss shook her head.  “I’m good, thank you.”

Darn.  Delay tactic failed.

“Then can I walk you out?” Ruby offered while Weiss stood from the table.

“That’s my sister!  So gentlemanly!” 

“At least one of you is polite,” Weiss commented offhandedly to Yang, never dropping the smile she had for Ruby while they stepped away from the table and headed to the front door.  

“Sorry I have to leave early,” Weiss said softly as they stepped outside.  

“Don’t worry about it!” After closing the door behind them, Ruby turned to Weiss and smiled.  “I know you’re busy and all. But...thanks again for coming over last night.”

That was probably the tenth time she’d thanked Weiss for that, but there were probably another ten on the way!  Especially with how perfectly the night turned out...Ruby never would’ve thought that something so magical could happen so easily.  Almost like it was meant to be...

“Ruby...you don’t need to thank me.  I love spending time with you.”

That word again.  It made Ruby’s cheeks light up every time!

“And I love spending time with you too,” she whispered in return.  There was a short pause when she considered asking if they could kiss again, but she wasn’t supposed to ask anymore!  At least, that’s what Weiss kept saying. So Ruby stooped down and closed her eyes - and this time Weiss met her lips in the middle.

Kissing Weiss was amazing.  

Was this what kissing was always like?  No wonder Yang and Blake did it so much.  Something about Weiss’ lips filled Ruby with this light, airy feeling - like she could float right off the ground with joy.  It combined with this building desire within her that became overwhelming really quickly, like she wanted to meld together with Weiss right there on the front porch.

Pulling away and coughing into one hand, Ruby felt her cheeks burning with a blush.  Was she going to blush every time? She couldn’t help it though - it was so grown up!  And it made her heart get all fluttery and fast.

Resting a hand on Ruby’s collar and mindlessly smoothing the fabric of her shirt, Weiss let out a content sigh.

“You’re really good at that,” she whispered before removing her hand and stepping away.

“Yeah??  You think so?” Ruby asked with unconcealable delight.  That was something she never expected to be good at! 

“I do,” Weiss answered while taking another step away from the house, towards the taxi that had arrived without Ruby noticing.  “I’ll see you later?”

It looked like Weiss didn’t want to leave, and Ruby didn’t want her to go, but the work stuff...

“Yes!” she replied anyway, not wanting Weiss to feel guilty for having other responsibilities.  “I can’t wait!”

With another shared smile, Weiss finally turned and hurried to the taxi.  The vehicle drove around the corner and out of sight, leaving Ruby to trudge back inside and close the door with a sigh.  

It sucked when Weiss left.  

Meanwhile, Yang and Blake sat at the table pretending they hadn’t been paying attention to Ruby and Weiss’ goodbye.  Only it was obvious that they had been, so why did they even bother trying??

“I know you were listening!” Ruby told them as she walked back to the table to put away her dishes. 

“I wasn’t listening!  I can’t hear through closed doors!” Yang protested, but her look of innocence disappeared when she smirked.  “But Blake can. And she narrated. I listened to her.”

Rolling her eyes, Ruby left her dishes in the washer and went back to the table to clear it off.  The silence would end with a joke soon. Very soon. Three...two...one...

“Ruby and Weiss, sittin’ in a tree -” Yang began singing.

“Come on, Yang.  Cut it out,” Ruby whined, blushing while whacking her sister on the back of the shoulder.

“Weiss sure looked happy this morning,” Blake commented while handing Ruby the plate she gestured for.

“Really?  You think so?”

“I do.”  The next second, Blake’s innocent smile grew into a not-so-innocent grin.  “What’d you two do last night that made her so happy?”

“What?” Ruby yelped when Yang started laughing.  “N-nothing! We just talked!”

“About how much you loveeee each other.”

Yang’s words made Ruby blush even more.  Curse her easily-embarrassed cheeks!

“About strategies!  She was teaching me our moves!”

That only made Yang laugh louder, and Ruby blushed even harder.  “Our battle moves!” she corrected while dumping the remaining dishes in the sink.  “She was teaching me our - oh nevermind!”

Throwing both hands in the air, she stalked away from the kitchen.

“Aw, Ruby come back!  Come back.” Reaching out, Yang grabbed Ruby’s hand to keep her from walking away.  Ruby narrowed her eyes while Yang tried to stop laughing and force a straight face. 

“If you really want help,” Yang said before a giggle slipped out.  “I can teach you some of Blake and I’s moves.”

“Yang!” Ruby shouted, yanking her arm away while Yang started laughing again. 

“I should warn you though - Blake’s super flexible!”

When Ruby wrinkled her nose, Blake slowly shook her head at Yang.  Noticing the reaction, Yang raised both hands in the air and said, “What?  You are!”

“Don’t listen to her, Ruby.  It’s great that you and Weiss are -”  Pausing mid-sentence, Blake covered her mouth as a yawn slipped out.

“Aww...do you need a nap later?”  

“Don’t say it,” Blake warned.  Beaming, Yang didn’t say anything aloud, but turned to Ruby and mouthed the words ‘cat nap’ with an added wink.  But Yang was so un-sneaky that Blake caught the gesture and narrowed her eyes.

“Between last night and this morning, you’re on pretty thin ice.”

What sounded like a stern warning only made Yang beam brighter.  “I know, isn’t it great? I can’t wait to see what happens!”

Blake shook her head while Ruby did the same.

“You two are such weirdos,” Ruby concluded before heading to her room - no longer needed in this conversation.

“You and Weiss will be just like us one day - you’ll see!” Yang called out after her.  

That wasn’t true though!  Ruby and Weiss would never be such big nerds!   

Briefly stopping in her room, Ruby grabbed the map builder and her notebook before heading back to the living room and collapsing on the sofa.  The notebook was filled with squiggly lines, random notes, and tons of awesome ideas. She learned so much from Weiss last night - and now she was convinced Weiss was an actual genius.  She was also a great teacher! She was so patient answering all of Ruby’s questions...even though there were a lot of them.

Ignoring her two roommates - who were quietly talking amongst themselves in the kitchen - Ruby flipped through the notes from last night to see how much she remembered.  Surprisingly, she remembered a lot of it! But knowing it on paper was different from knowing it in the heat of battle. She needed practice. Tons of it. 

After her injury, she started her training with the moves she’d learned when she was younger.  Those were the only ones she remembered, and even those were difficult to re-master. First, she re-built her strength from practically nothing.  Then she perfected those moves again. Then Blake and Yang taught her some more advanced stuff, and she learned some more from the books Yang gave her to read.

Creating Thorn allowed her to make up a few combat strategies on her own, but the maneuvers on these videos were completely new.  Not only that, but they were complicated.  Like, next level stuff. 

Just goes to show that there’s always more to learn!

Briefly checking her scroll for messages, she remembered that she needed to give Weiss time to work today.  If she worked hard enough, they’d get the next few days together! That was worth a little bit of silence.  Plus, Ruby had more than enough to do with what Weiss left her.

Only after reading through her notes three times did Ruby set down the notebook down and pick up the map builder.  Choosing one of the videos she and Weiss went through last night, she watched the simulation in slow motion. At half speed, she picked up so many more details!  Full speed was way too fast for her to catch any of the intricate movements that were happening.  Quarter speed would probably be even easier...she’d try that next.

Balancing the device on her knee, she picked up the notebook and started writing down her thoughts and ideas while the video progressed.  Everything seemed perfect and iron tight, but there were little details she was noticing...and there was a change they could make!

Rewinding the video, she played through the same segment multiple times before finally writing down her suggestion and drawing a small star beside it so she could find it later.  What they did before was perfect, but things were different now. She had Thorn now, and Thorn changed a lot.

After writing down that thought, she turned to a blank page and started a list of questions for Weiss.  She already had three - no, four - just from this first run-through.

Now she’d watch the video again.

And again.

She was so absorbed in the videos that she didn’t notice anything happening around her until Yang sat a snack right in front of her.  Snapping out of her focused haze, she managed to say “thank you” while grabbing a handful of crackers and going back to work.

Yang stayed to read a magazine, then disappeared sometime later.  Honestly, Ruby was so focused on what she was doing that she didn’t even notice when her sister left the room.  Her list of questions for Weiss had grown quite long though - multiple pages by now!

When her scroll suddenly buzzed on the sofa cushion beside her, she jumped in surprise.  Speak of the - angel! It was Weiss!

‘I’ll be done in a couple of hours.  When can I see you?’

Beaming at the best news all day, Ruby replied with ‘Come over as soon as you can!’ before setting down her scroll.  If there were any doubts in her mind about Weiss wanting to time with her, they were rapidly disappearing.  The fact that Weiss would go out of her way to clear the next few days for them to be together meant a lot - actually spending that time together would mean even more!

After all, they had a lot of catching up to do.  If Ruby started another list of questions about Weiss and their past, an entire notebook would fill up in no time.  There was no need to rush, but Ruby wanted to. It was like a batch of cookies fresh from the oven. Sure, she could wait and have some after they cooled off, but they were best when they were still warm and gooey.  Why not eat them all right away?

...that was supposed to mean that she should ask Weiss all the questions as soon as possible.  Just like she should eat all the cookies as soon as possible.

Finally taking a break towards the end of the day, Ruby set everything aside and leaned against the back of the sofa with a sigh.  While her brain decompressed all the information she’d just jammed inside, she picked up the end of her necklace and looked down at the ring hanging on it.

It was crazy that it was only a year ago that they were this close.  

Holding the diamond ring between two fingers, Ruby grinned and reached behind her neck to unclasp the chain.  When the necklace fell free, she slid the ring off and held it in her palm before lifting it up to look at.

Honestly, romance had been the last thing on her mind for like...forever.  She’d never considered being together with someone.  Or loving someone outside of family.  The idea of marrying someone hadn’t even entered her mind, but that’s what she’d agreed to do.  She’d agreed to spend the rest of her life with Weiss. To spend eternity together.

Glancing at the etching inside the band, she smiled at the singular word that had once caused her so much confusion.  Slipping the ring onto her finger without a second thought, she held her hand out in front of her to see it. And promptly got goosebumps.

Well.  Who knew she was the romantic type?

When three loud knocks suddenly hit the front door, she hastily removed the ring and shoved it into her pocket with the empty chain.

“I got it!” she yelled towards the hallway before rushing over to see who it was.  Maybe it was Weiss! 

Her excitement turned to confusion the instant she pulled open the door.

“Uh...hi?”

“What’s up, wiggle butt??” a girl with orange hair said before bouncing inside and giving Ruby a slightly painful knock on the shoulder.

“...what?” 

Bewildered, Ruby followed the girl - who strolled into the living room like she lived here.  Which...she didn’t, did she? 

Oh, this was one of the girls Ruby met at The Beacon Invite!  But what was her name? Why was Ruby so bad at remembering names??

“I’m so tiredddd,” the girl whined before collapsing onto the sofa.  A second later she popped back to her feet, not looking at all tired despite what she just said.  “Hey! When can you show me how to do that crazy thing you do with Crescent Rose now?”

“Uh, what crazy thing?”

“You know.”  The girl made hand motions like she was throwing something then caught it again.  “I want that! Make it for me too!”

Who was this girl??  She was kind of demanding and crazy.

“Ruby, who -”  Yang froze when she walked into the living room and found their unexpected visitor.  “Nora?? What are you doing here?”

Nora!  That’s right.  The one with hugs of steel.

“I came to visit my pal Ruby!” Nora replied, slinging an arm around Ruby’s shoulders and tugging her close.  “That’s allowed, right? Cuz you guys were at the tournament, so I figured it was ok now!”

Ruby looked at Nora and then at Yang - who looked like she had no idea what to do.  At least they were on the same page! Ruby remembered meeting Nora at Beacon but hadn’t expected to see her again - let alone in their home.

Before Yang could respond, her scroll started buzzing.

“Hold on.  Stay there,” Yang ordered, pointing at Nora like that would freeze her in place.  But as soon as Yang turned away, Nora started walking around the room again.

“This place is awesome!  I had trouble finding it cuz I didn’t remember the address.  Knocked on about a hundred doors before you answered!” 

Unsure what was going on, Ruby alternated between making sure Nora didn’t do anything crazy and turning to Yang for guidance.

“Yeah, she’s here,” Yang said before briefly glancing at Ruby.  “Uh...yeah. In a few minutes. Thanks.” 

Hanging up the call, Yang slipped her scroll into her pocket and turned back to Nora.  

“Ren’s on his way to get you.”

“Yay!  Then it’ll be a party!”  Freezing in one place, Nora gasped.  “We should have a party!  Can we do that? You should!  A party celebrating Ruby! And me!  But also Ruby.”

While Nora beamed at them, Ruby stared in open-mouthed wonder.  

People said that she was hyper?  How many cakes had this girl eaten?  Fifteen? Because that would be a new record!

“So...why are you here?” Ruby asked hesitantly, watching Nora flip through Yang’s magazines without reading a single word.  The question made her drop the magazine in her hands onto the floor.

“Oh!  I completely forgot!”  Racing out the front door, Nora reappeared seconds later dragging an enormous hammer that she then dropped on the ground with a thud that shook the walls.  

“He’s brokennn!” she wailed, suddenly on the verge of tears while she touched the weapon and tapped at a jammed part.  “I need you to fix ‘im! If you don’t, Jaune will be better than me. Jaune!”

Yang scoffed at the dramatic response and shook her head.

“I really doubt that…” she muttered under her breath while Ruby stared at the gleaming weapon sitting in the middle of their floor.

This girl was a little crazy and maybe psychotic, but her weapon was so cool!

“Wow!  What is this?” Ruby asked, kneeling down to look at the hammer more closely.  It was shiny and awesome, that’s what it was! And pink! That was pretty cool too.  

Standing up, she tried to lift the weapon off the ground with one hand only to find that it was stuck.  Stuck or really, really heavy. Using both hands, she nearly strained every muscle in her back and only managed to scoot it a couple of inches across the floor.  

“What the heck is it made of??” she huffed, giving up and putting her hands on her hips.

“The tears of my enemies!” Nora crowed before lifting the weapon off the floor like it was a feather.  “And I dunno...metal and stuff...”

“Uh...ok, well if you carry it into the garage, I’ll take a look at it,” Ruby offered while pointing to the garage door.

“Yes!  You’re the best!”  Skipping over to the door, Nora pulled it open with an audible groan of hinges and disappeared through the doorway.

After Ruby shared a quick glance with Yang, the two of them followed Nora into the garage - where she was already picking up anything within arm’s reach.

“Be careful with that!”  Rushing over, Ruby removed the potentially dangerous, unfinished weapon from Nora’s hands and set it carefully in a drawer.  After removing a few other fragile or shiny objects from sight, she pored over the giant weapon laying across the workbench. 

Huntsmen weapons were so awesome.  Their uniqueness made them incredible to look at, let alone take apart and fix!

“Still can’t stop touching things, can you?” Yang commented, leaning casually against the door and shaking her head.

“That’s a good thing!  Remember that time I picked up a golden apple worth three thousand Lien??”

“Uh, no.  Because that didn’t happen.”

Leaning over the workbench, Nora loudly whispered, “But it could have.”

“But it didn’t.”

Brow furrowing, Nora turned to Yang with a world-class pout.  “When did you become so unfun??”

“What??  I’m way more fun than you!”

“Oh yeah?”  Hopping down from her seat, Nora walked over to Yang without an ounce of fear.  “Prove it!”

She was a little ball of fire!  Not scared to fight Yang? Either she was an awesome fighter or out of her mind.  From what Ruby had seen so far, she was leaning towards the second one...

“How did you even do this??” Ruby interrupted before the two girls got into a wrestling match or something.  Taking the side of a huge wrench, she hit the broken piece of metal as hard as she could in an effort to unjam it from the plating.  It was really stuck!

“I jumped on the back of a Death Stalker!  Its stinger hit right there.”

“Are you serious??” 

“And then a Nevermore flew into the same spot!!  Whabam! Knocked itself right out!”

Jaw dropped, Ruby stared.  What was she even supposed to say to that??

Letting out a loud sigh, Yang shoved away from the door.  “I’m going to wake up Blake. Ruby, don’t believe anything she says.  And Nora - try to behave.”

“Ha.  Behaveeeeee…”  Shaking her head, Nora pointed her thumb towards where Yang had just been standing.  “She’s one to talk!”

“That’s super true!” Ruby agreed with a laugh before opening a drawer and scrounging around inside.

Finding what she was searching for, she pulled out another tool and loosened some nearly invisible latches to release pressure on the jammed section of metal.  Re-taking her perch on the stool, Nora watched intently. Well...intently for a few seconds before getting distracted by something, then intently again after the distraction passed.

“So we knew each other?” Ruby asked while she worked.

“Know, silly.”  Kicking her feet in the air, Nora grinned.

“Uh, yeah, but how?”

“Your team and my team!  We’re team BFFs!”

“Oh, so Team RUBY -”

“RWBY,” Nora corrected. 

“Right.  That’s what I said.”

“No, you said RUBY, but it’s RWBY.”

“Those sound exactly the same!”

“But you can’t forget Weiss!”

“Of course I’m not forgetting Weiss!” Ruby insisted.

Smiling, Nora shrugged.  

“It’s RWBY,” she concluded, as if she somehow just won whatever argument that had been.  Shaking her head in complete bewilderment, Ruby decided to let it go.

“Ok, so...my team...and Team…”

“JNPR!”

“Oh yeah!  Weiss has mentioned you guys!” Ruby replied when the name struck a bell.  “Who’s on your team again?”

“Well let’s see,” Nora said, leaning so far back on the stool that Ruby briefly worried she might fall off backwards.  “There’s our captain, the tall blonde beanpole named...Jasper. His partner is Pyr-ahna. She’s got red hair, a javelin, and loves to bite people.  My partner is Ren - the one who doesn’t talk. Ren the Silent, we call him. Then there’s me! Nora the Incredible - Destroyer of Grimm and All Evil Things, Plus Super Beautiful!”

Ok, so maybe Ruby was a little gullible sometimes, but there’s no way she’d fall for that!  There were only about three words of truth in that entire spiel.  

Or...maybe Nora’s thing was that she pretended not to tell the truth while actually telling the truth.  In which case, she was a straight up genius!

Making a mental note to ask someone else about Team JNPR later on, Ruby decided to move on.  If anything, Nora was friendly and she’d known Ruby at Beacon so might have some good stories.  Not that they’d be true, but they’d be good!

“We’ve known each other for a long time then,” Ruby surmised while tossing a useless screwdriver onto the workbench and deciding to pull out the big guns - meaning, she got out Thorn and decided to yank at the broken part by hand.

“Since first year!  We lived across the hall from each other.”

“Oh cool!  So we must’ve seen each other all the time!”

“Only all the time,” Nora repeated happily.  

“Then you knew Weiss and me when we just met!”  

The moment Ruby made that realization, the weapon finally cooperated and she nearly smacked herself in the face pulling the broken part free.  Nora made a gleeful noise at the progress while leaning back on the stool again - using the very tips of her fingers to keep herself from toppling off.

“Youuuu betcha!  Got to see everyone get super duper close!”

The phrase perked Ruby’s attention.  “Close how?” she asked, briefly glancing up from the weapon she was now trying to fit back together.

“Everyone was falling in love!  You and Weiss, Yang and Blake, Pyrrha and Jaune...Ren and I watched it allllll happen!  If only Cardin and Slark had gotten together - that would’ve been the best.”

“Slark?  What kind of name is Slark?”

“Right??  What kind of name is Slark?” Nora giggled and shook her head with a goofy grin.  “It’s so weird.”

“Then you saw us...falling in love?” Ruby repeated, skipping over whatever that was.

“Oh yeah.  Everyone did!  It was only completely obvious.”

“Obvious how?”  

Even though Ruby knew not to completely trust anything Nora said, she still wanted to hear about the version of Weiss she couldn’t remember.  It might be wrong, but it’d be better than nothing. If anything, it’d give her some great questions to ask Weiss later!  Plus, getting an outsider’s perspective could be cool.

“You two were always together,” Nora answered, reaching out for a pair of pliers that Ruby swiped away at the last second.  “Glued to the tips! Or was it hips? But Weiss was so nice to you! Like, wayyy nicer than she was to me.  I was soooo jealous. She gave you presents that I wanted, but Ren kept saying they weren’t for me and I shouldn’t ask you for them.  One time you shared your ice cream with me though!”

“Ice cream?”

“Yeah!  She bought you like...an entire ice cream store!”

Did that sound like something Weiss would do?  Buy an entire ice cream store? Or maybe it was just a lot of ice cream?

“She got me gifts then,” Ruby replied, a smile growing as she imagined it.  It fit with Weiss’ generosity. And how cute would that be? Hopefully she’d given Weiss little gifts in return.

“Yeah!  And then you had that look - just like that one!  The Goofy Love Smile, I call it. ‘The GLoS’ for short.  Everywhere you went, it was The GLoS over and over again. The GLoS here, The GLoS there.  Finally, you shouted it from the rooftops! Then you two were together. That was it! Happily ever after.”

“From the rooftops?” Ruby asked dubiously, but Nora nodded.  

“It was awesome!”

It sounded awesome, but maybe a little too awesome.  Ruby made another mental note to ask Weiss how they’d actually asked each other out, but this was a great start!  Goofy Love Smiles and rooftops...seemed like it was pretty romantic!

“I think I fixed it!” she called out when she felt the successful snap of a piece clicking into its spot.  Stepping back, she pointed to the small flap that was now back in place. “Try not to let any Death Stalkers or Nevermores hit it again.”

“Yes!” Nora cried out, picking up the hammer and swinging it around the small garage with frightening speed.  Satisfied with the results, she set it back on the workbench and shoved it towards Ruby.

“Now can you make it bigger?  More powerful? More explosions??” Nora asked, setting her chin in her hands and looking at her weapon with stars in her eyes.  “I want Grimm to see him and cower in fear!”

The expression of pure glee on Nora’s face made Ruby laugh.

“You’re kinda funny,” she commented with a grin.

“You mean dangerous and beautiful!  And amazing! And awesome!”

“Uh, right.  Of course,” Ruby replied, shaking her head in amusement before looking at the weapon once more.  Were there alterations that could be made?

“Can you add fire?  I want fire. It’s no fair that Yang’s fists can become fire!  Then the two of us - we’re stuck using our brains.” Nora slumped onto the workbench before perking back up and laughing.  “I doubt you believed that...”

Between the weapon and personality, Ruby really wanted to see how Nora fought in an actual battle.  It had to be incredible! Or insane. Maybe a combination of both...

“Maybe one day we’ll get to fight together?” Ruby asked, smiling when the question made Nora unbelievably happy.

“Yes!  Whenever you want! Wanna go right now? We’ll find some bad ‘ol Grimm and take ‘em down.  You slice ‘em; I dice ‘em! Or, you slice ‘em and dice ‘em, and I’ll pound them to smithereens!!”  Smacking one fist into her palm, Nora grinned.

“I don’t think I can go right now,” Ruby replied with a disbelieving chuckle at Nora’s reaction.  “But hopefully soon!”

And hopefully with other people around to chaperone.  The two of them alone out in the forest might be just a tad terrifying.  Would she have to keep Nora out of trouble? Could she keep Nora out of trouble?  

“Let’s go real soon!  See, this is why we should hang out more often!  More awesome hunts and more awesome weapons!!”

While Nora beamed at the prospect of hunts and weapons, Ruby was suddenly struck by the realization that Nora was her friend.  Nora was someone she’d hung out with before.  They could’ve had conversations just like this one, or maybe they had gone on hunts together.

Grinning while a surge of happiness warmed her heart, Ruby looked at Nora’s hammer and pointed to a particular piece.

“I think I can add some fire here,” she said while flipping down a small cover to point to a hollow space inside.  “How do you feel about a mini flamethrower?”

“I love it!  But not mini - full size!  Or a jumbo one! Can you do it now?”

Laughing again, Ruby snapped a latch back in place and pushed the weapon to Nora.

“I’ll have to do some research first, but I’ll let you know what I find out.”

“Nora!” Yang yelled before sticking her head back into the garage.  “Your handler’s here.”

Gasping, Nora grabbed her weapon and shouted, “Ren!” before racing inside.  Following Nora inside, Ruby found a lean boy with dark hair standing in the living room - talking to Blake while Nora pulled at his arm.  When their eyes met, he gave Ruby a polite smile and nod.

“I’m sorry if she disturbed you.  She slipped out of my sight incredibly fast.”  

“She fixed it, Ren!  I knew she could fix it!” Nora proclaimed while throwing her arms around the boy’s neck.  Releasing him and dropping the hammer onto the ground, Nora raced over to Ruby and gave her a crushing hug.

“We should hang out!” Nora announced once she’d tested the strength of Ruby’s ribs.  “Can we hang out? Pleaseeeee?”

“Sure!  That sounds like fun!”

“Yes!  It’s gonna be more fun than fun!  We’ll find some big Grimm! Like the huge ones!  We’ll use our flamethrowers!”

Laughing, Ruby nodded and said “Absolutely!” while Nora bounced out the door.  In the abrupt silence left in her wake, Ren turned towards them with another apologetic smile.

“She’s wanted to see you ever since Beacon,” he explained, his warm gaze never leaving Ruby’s.  “I’m fairly certain she broke her weapon so she had an excuse.”

“Ren!”  Racing back inside, Nora waved her hand and then disappeared once again.

“I should go,” he said, giving a quick bow before following Nora outside.  Trailing both of them, Yang waved before shutting the front door and slowly turning around to look at Ruby.

It felt like a tornado had just torn through their home.  

“Is she a maniac?” Ruby finally asked.  The question made Yang burst out laughing.

“I think she’s been tested - right, Blake?”

When Blake smiled and nodded, Ruby grinned and added, “She’s cool though!  But how does she swing that hammer around? It’s so heavy!”

“She’s stronger than she looks.”

Nodding at Blake’s answer, Ruby couldn’t fight a huge smile while bouncing on her toes with leftover excitement.  A few weeks ago, she didn’t have any friends except Yang and Blake. Now she had Weiss, and Nora too! 

From what Ruby just learned, Nora was crazy, but in a fun way.  Like...going bowling was fun, right? Well, Nora was the bowling ball.  Or a wrecking ball.

For most of her life Ruby had been a loner, so she never questioned that she didn’t have many friends.  So...it was kind of awesome to find out that she had had friends.  And, even better, they were starting to reappear in her life!  She liked that. Even if she didn’t remember, they seemed nice enough for that not to matter.  

And people wanted to hang out with her!

“Well now that that’s over…” Yang said, gesturing Ruby to the kitchen table.  “How ‘bout you pick out our next hunt, miss team leader?”

“Right now??”

“Yeah!  Why not - you have other plans?”

“Uh…” she stalled while trying to think of a response.  But she kind of did have other plans! Like spending a whole bunch of time with Weiss.

“I thought you wanted to be a huntress!” Yang added when Ruby didn’t say anything else.

“I do!”

“Butttt…?  You’re too busy smooching on your new-old girlfriend?”

“She’s not -” Ruby began to deny, but grinned when Yang gave her a knowing look.  “Old,” she finished, making Yang laugh.

They’d never attached a label to it.  Ruby only knew that she loved Weiss, and Weiss loved her in return.  Were they together now?  Ruby would like to think so.  And if they were together...that’d make Weiss her girlfriend, huh?

Woah.  Not only did Ruby have friends, but she had a girlfriend.

“Let’s pick out a hunt though!” Yang continued.  “You said you wanted to go out again! And Weiss can come with us, you know.”

That comment convinced her pretty darn quick.  

“Let’s do it!”

Grinning and pulling over a chair, Yang sat next to Ruby at the dining table and held the scroll in front of them so they could both see.

“Ok, so you can pick anyyyy one you want - except a solo one.  I don’t feel great about sending you out there alone, and I’m sure Weiss would skewer me if I did.  But other than that, it’s your call! So you can pick one of those boring, sneaky Assassinate contracts or go big with a super fun Eradicate contract!”

“Don’t let her obvious bias sway you,” Blake commented from the living room sofa, lowering her book and looking Ruby’s way.  “Sometimes removing powerful foes is more important than slaughtering a bunch of grunts.”

“She’s just mad because I always have a higher kill count than her,” Yang whispered.  When Ruby giggled, Blake let out a huff.

“I could easily have a greater number of kills if I wanted, but then what would we do with your ego?”

“Oh really?” Yang asked in dismay, swiveling in her chair to face Blake.  “Wanna make it interesting then? How about a little competition?  Whoever gets the most kills gets to boss the loser around for a day.”

When Blake scoffed at the challenge but didn’t respond, Ruby turned to Yang and asked, “What if I get the most kills?  Can I boss you around?”

While Yang stared at Ruby in surprise, Blake smirked and turned her attention back to her book. 

“Walked into that one, didn’t you…” she muttered while leaving Yang to answer on her own.

“Well...uh…” Yang began before finally waving her hand and shaking her head.  “Nevermind that for now. Let’s just pick one!”

Turning back to the screen, Ruby read the first title.

“This one!” she exclaimed, pointing to the top entry on the list.  Yang looked at it carefully before turning back to her.

“But...don’t you want to look through the rest?”

“Nope!  That one looks good!”

“Yeah, but there’s a whole list of things here!”

“But this one’s on top!”

Shaking her head at the foolproof reasoning, Yang clicked on the page and handed the scroll to Ruby.

“You’re convincing Weiss then,” her sister said while Ruby entered their names to claim the hunt.  “Not that it’ll take much for you to convince her of anything,”

After staring at their names for a second - making sure everything was spelled right - Ruby pressed submit and the hunt’s status updated to ‘Claimed - Team RWBY.’  It felt so official!

“When do we leave?” she asked while handing Yang’s scroll back.

“Tomorrow morning.”

“Tomorrow??” she squealed in disbelief.  Laughing, Yang clapped one heavy hand down on Ruby’s shoulder.

“Welcome to being a huntress.”

Tomorrow morning though?  

“You have a visitor,” Blake commented from the sofa.  Gasping, Ruby raced over and threw open the front door right as Weiss stepped onto the porch.  The moment their eyes met, Ruby’s heart started beating faster.

“Weiss!  Come in! I’ve missed you!”

“I’ve...missed you too...” Weiss commented softly, her cheeks turning a soft pink as she stepped through the doorway.

“Can’t you guys be apart for more than a few hours?” Yang teased, patting Weiss’ shoulder before walking into the living room and falling onto the sofa beside Blake.

“When’s the last time you and Blake were apart for more than an hour?” Weiss asked in return.

“Last night while I was sleeping.”  Pausing, Yang tapped one finger to her chin and grinned.  “Although not even then cuz she was in my dreams!”

When Yang winked, Weiss rolled her eyes.  Reaching out for one of Weiss’ hands, Ruby stole all of her attention away from Yang. 

“We’re going on a hunt tomorrow,” Ruby explained, ignoring her sister.  “Will you come with us?” 

“Tomorrow?” Weiss asked, her eyes widening in surprise.

“Yeah!  Oh, uh, is that not enough notice?”

“No, I just...wasn’t expecting it, but - yes.  I’ll go with you,” Weiss managed to get out with a smile. From the living room, Yang let out an exaggerated sigh of relief.

“Thank god.  Cuz Ruby picked the contract with Nevermores.”

Abruptly standing from the sofa, Blake reached down and pulled Yang to her feet.

“Let’s give them some privacy, hmm?” Blake said quietly before leading Yang out of the room, giving Ruby and Weiss a smile as they left.

“What do they need privacy for??” Yang asked, but followed Blake out of the room regardless.  Left in silence, Weiss turned back to Ruby with a small smile that suddenly vanished.

“You’re not wearing your necklace.” 

Grasping where the ring should be, Ruby felt a bubble of panic burst in her chest when she discovered that her neck was bare.  Scrambling in her pockets, the momentary alarm disappeared when she felt the chain and ring inside. 

“I was playing with it earlier,” she explained while slipping the ring back onto the chain and trying to fasten it around her neck.  Why was it so dang hard to get these things back on?

“Let me help you,” Weiss offered, stepping behind Ruby and taking the two ends of the chain from her hands.  The tiny hairs on the back of her neck raised when Weiss’ hands lightly grazed them - clasping the necklace in place a second later.  “There.”

When Ruby turned around, Weiss centered the ring on the chain then straightened the hem of Ruby’s shirt.  It was such a simple gesture, but it made her heart flutter even faster - especially with the way Weiss’ fingers lingered on the bottom of her shirt.

“Um...” Ruby said before clearing her throat.  “So...how was your day?”

“Busy.  Tiring.”  

It was easy to see from Weiss’ posture that she was tired.  What had the day been like for her? Ruby could only imagine the important things that needed to be done at such a big company, but Weiss was here now!  They could have a nice, relaxing evening together. 

“Will you stay over tonight?” Ruby asked, not thinking about how the question might sound until it was already out in the open.  But any embarrassment disappeared when Weiss looked at her with brilliant blue eyes and smiled.

“I’d love to.”

“We’ll just hang out!” Ruby added, grinning like a fool knowing that she’d end another day with Weiss by her side.  “You need your rest!”

“Being around you is rejuvenating in its own way,” Weiss commented while taking both of Ruby’s hands in her own and looking down at them.  

Sometimes, it felt like they shared energy through their connected hands - although nothing as strong as what Ruby felt with Weiss’ aura in the garage.  It was more subtle than that, but it was still there.

“Oh, I have an idea!” Ruby said when a thought of brilliance popped into her mind.  “Why don’t we stay at our old house tonight?” Reading the instant hesitation on Weiss’ face, she added, “I mean, only if you want to...”

She wanted to go back though!  

“I don’t know…”

“It’ll be fun!” she offered as an additional incentive when Weiss still looked unsure.  “I mean, it’s not like...haunted or anything is it?” 

The joke worked, and a small smile broke through Weiss’ unconcealed concern.

“I’m not sure.  Would you like to check?”

“Oh no you don’t!” Ruby said while shaking her head.  “I’m not checking for ghosts ever again! For the rest of our lives, that’s your job!”

When Weiss let out a short laugh, Ruby knew she was making progress in pushing through Weiss’ hesitation.  Of course, they wouldn’t go if Weiss really didn’t want to go, but Ruby was still going to make her case for why they should.

“I think it’d be cool though!  I mean, we used to live there.  What if I get all my memories back?  Like maybe they’re just hangin’ in the air like some invisible spores and I breathe them all in!”

“Are you referring to asbestos or black mold?  Both are ill-advised for inhaling.”

“What?” Ruby asked, her face briefly scrunching in confusion.  “No! Ok, I can tell you’re not convinced. What can I do to persuade you?”

Initially, Weiss didn’t look like she wanted to be convinced into this at all, but after a few seconds she physically relaxed and gently squeezed Ruby’s hands.

“I have a price.”

“What is it?”

“My tell,” Weiss replied, giving Ruby a serious look.  “What’s my tell?”

Now that was unexpected!  Laughing gleefully, Ruby shook her head and used one hand to zip her lips.  That was a super-secret secret that only she would ever know!

“I have a counteroffer!” she suggested, making Weiss raise one eyebrow.  Leaning forward, Ruby kissed Weiss on the lips before pulling away and putting on her very best set of puppy dog eyes.

“Pleaseeee?”

Weiss stared at Ruby for several seconds before saying “That’s so unfair” and spinning around on one heel to leave.  Still clutching one of Weiss’ hands and using the other to pump one fist in success, Ruby turned towards the hallway and shouted, “Yang!  I’m leaving!”

“Woah, woah woah!” they heard Yang call out before appearing in the living room right as they were about to step through the front door.  “Are you seriously going to leave without giving me a hug?”

“Uh, I was planning on it,” Ruby joked before dropping Weiss’ hand and hurrying over to hug Yang.  “Have a good night!”

“That means you’re not coming back tonight?” Yang replied while reaching out to ruffle Ruby’s hair, but missing when Ruby dodged out of the way and skipped back to Weiss’ side.

“Nnnnope!”

“You should take Crescent Rose and Thorn with you,” Yang suggested.  “Then you can just meet up with us in the morning.”

“Oh, that’s right!” Ruby gasped - having forgotten about the hunt after Weiss agreed to go with them.  Blasting into her room, she collected a quick bag of clothes and the picture Yang gave her last night. It was a good luck charm - she had to take it with her!  Next, she ran into the garage for Crescent Rose and Thorn before shooting back into the house. The petals had hardly hit the ground before she was back in the entryway with everything she needed.

“Ready!” she quipped, hopping out the front door with Weiss in tow.  “See you tomorrow, Yang!”

“See you!” Yang replied as the door closed, and Ruby ran down the sidewalk towards the vehicle sitting out front.

“So excited!” she exclaimed while waiting for Weiss to catch up.  It was the truth too! Not only were they going on a hunt tomorrow, but tonight she got to stay at her old house!  Talk about awesome squared.

“I can’t believe you convinced me to do this,” Weiss muttered while opening her door and ducking into the vehicle.

“It’s gonna be awesome - trust me!” Ruby replied, tossing her stuff into the back and giving Weiss a grin before they went on their way.

It was still pretty unbelievable how close Ruby had lived to her old home this entire time.  It was literally only a few minutes away! But it felt like no time at all before they pulled up to the comfortably-familiar house and got out of the car.

“I can’t believe it’s so close!” she remarked again while racing ahead.  There was an intense security keypad near the front door that she assumed Weiss knew how to open.  While Weiss did that, Ruby looked out at the front yard, which was a patchwork of shadows now that evening had arrived.  

Everything looked so different when the sun set…but did it all look the same to Blake?  Since her night vision was so good, did it always seem like daytime? Did she ever get confused about whether it was day or night?

“Ruby,” Weiss whispered, pulling Ruby out of her thoughts to discover that the door was open and Weiss was gesturing inside.  “Come on in.”

Stepping into the quiet home, Ruby found that it was exactly how she’d remembered it.

Yang and Blake’s house was theirs, and Ruby lived in it.  Weiss’ other house, which was technically her sister’s, was unfamiliar and Ruby had been kind of scared she’d accidentally break something worth a million Lien.  But this one...for whatever reason she felt strangely at ease here. Well, that was probably because she’d once lived here.

Was that it?  Did she remember this place?  Or did she feel so connected with it because she knew it was her old home?  Was this one of those things Yang and Blake tried to avoid - where Ruby felt connected or disconnected to people or moments for no reason other than the memories told to her?

Did she care?  This was her home, and she liked it here!

Racing up the stairs to the second story, she paused and waited for Weiss to catch up to her.

“Yellow or lavender?” Weiss asked while taking the last two steps with the grace of a princess.

Yellow or lavender?  Oh! The two guests rooms.  Weiss was asking which of the two guest rooms Ruby wanted to stay in.

“But...that’s our room,” Ruby replied in confusion, pointing down the hall towards the closed door.  “Why wouldn’t we sleep in there?”

Uncertainty was written on Weiss’ face.  Not literally, but Ruby could tell that Weiss was very uncertain about the idea of spending the night in their old room.  Which made sense, but if they didn’t stay in the room now, when would they ever stay there?

This might be difficult for Weiss, but Ruby was more than willing to help get her through it!  Step one - and really the only step - was to get Weiss through that door.

Reaching out, Ruby took Weiss’ hands and gently tugged her down the hall - away from the safety of the guest bedrooms. 

“It’ll be ok,” Ruby cooed like she was trying to convince a puppy to come out and play.  “There’s noooo ghosts in here - unless you’re going to make more...” Grinning when her words earned a hint of a smile, she blindly reached behind her and slammed her hand into the door.

“Ouch,” she said on instinct, even though it was more surprising than painful.  Undeterred, she searched for the handle and pushed the door open before grabbing both of Weiss’ hands and backing inside with her in tow.

“There’s just a niceeee big bed,” Ruby continued while leading them towards the middle of the room.  “And a niceeee big closet and a niceeee big window.” 

A smile finally appeared on Weiss’ lips - enough to make Ruby beam in pride.  

Mission successful!  Weiss was convinced. Or at least, acquiesced. 

“I’m gonna put my stuff away,” Ruby said, nodding towards the bed stand.  

“Before you do that,” Weiss replied before Ruby dropped her hands.  “What do you want for dinner?”

“Oh, uh…”  When her mind failed to provide any names of food - the first time that had ever happened - Ruby shrugged.  “Whatever you want?”

Chuckling softly and pulling out her scroll, Weiss said “alright, I’ll order something.”

Feeling more positive by the second that Weiss wouldn’t try to run away, Ruby grinned and set off to make herself at home.  Which, technically, this was her home! Her scroll went on the nightstand, her PJs on the bed, Crescent Rose and Thorn went off in one corner out of the way.  Then she shot towards the bathroom - only to freeze and nearly face plant on the plush carpet when she realized she shouldn’t use her semblance inside. Turning around, she grimaced at the trail of petals falling to the ground.

“I’ll pick those up!” she said before walking quickly into the bathroom to put Timmy Too by the sink.  Returning to the room, confusion appeared when she found that the petals were already gone. 

“Uh...where’d they go?” she asked, looking around and finding no trace of her semblance.

Still standing somewhat-stubbornly in the middle of the room, Weiss used a glyph to draw a basket from underneath a cabinet before using another glyph to gently pop the petals up from inside.

“There’s one in every room,” she explained before sliding the basket back into place and smiling.

It was a little thing, right?  So Weiss put little baskets in every room to hold Ruby’s petals.  So Weiss could easily pick them up with her semblance. So she didn’t seem remotely bothered by the fact that Ruby pretty much sprayed them everywhere all the time.

So they’d lived together.  And it worked.   

“You’re so awesome,” Ruby breathed out. When Weiss looked away and murmured a quiet, “Thank you,” Ruby suddenly remembered what she’d worked on earlier that day.

“Oh!  If you’re not too tired, I have questions for you!”  Pulling her notebook out of her bag, Ruby handed it o Weiss.  After taking it uncertainly, Weiss’ eyes widened when she flipped the first page.  And then the next.

“Ruby, there are five pages of questions here.”

“Yup!  So let’s get started?”  Leaping onto the bed, Ruby patted the covers so Weiss would join her.  “Wow, this bed is super comfortable,” she remarked while Weiss sat down, her eyes too busy scanning the questions to look at Ruby.  Her concentrated expression was super cute though.

“Alright,” Weiss suddenly said while lowering the notebook.  “These are good, but didn’t you say the hunt is tomorrow morning?”

“Oh, right.  That’s pretty fast, isn’t it?”

“Well, didn’t you pick the first one on the list?” Weiss asked, giving Ruby a knowing look.

“Uh, maybe…”

“That’s why,” Weiss answered.  “The hunts listed first are there for a reason - they’re time sensitive, either because Grimm are close to populated areas or we’re worried we’ll lose track of them.”  Pausing for a second, Weiss gave Ruby a look that could only be described as a look of love.

“You always picked the hunts at the top.”

“Well, if they’re time sensitive…” Ruby began, but trailed off when Weiss reached over and squeezed her hand.

“Exactly.”  Glancing at the notebook, Weiss flipped a page before turning back to Ruby.  “Which is why we should go over these questions later. Tonight, we need to focus on the hunt.”

“Focus on it how?” Ruby asked, scrunching her face up in thought.  “Like by imagining how many Grimm we’re gonna kill? I’m thinking lots and lots of Grimm.”

The response made Weiss shake her head.

“We need to develop action plans.  You don’t think we just show up without doing a bit of research first, do you?”

“Uh...well...maybe?”

Again, Weiss shook her head with a smile.  “What do you think Blake and Yang are doing right now?” she asked - the question making Ruby wrinkle her nose.

“Probably don’t wanna know.”

The response made Weiss briefly scrunch her nose before shaking her head one more time to clear that thought.

“No, they’re preparing,” she explained.  “Blake goes through terrain maps - she’s our navigator.  And Yang...she’s probably making jokes, but she’ll arrange evac or escape points while memorizing the hunt details.”

“She can do that??”

“Surprisingly, yes.”

Apparently, Ruby still had a lot to learn.  With Yang and Blake leading the way, she hadn’t thought about the planning that went into each hunt.  At the time, she needed to focus on becoming stronger and more capable, but now...now she needed to learn how to work with her team and put together a foolproof plan!

“Then what are we in charge of?” she asked.

“I’ll show you,” Weiss said while grabbing her scroll and pulling up the hunt details.  “We like to do the planning as a team if possible, but it shouldn’t be a problem this time.”  Setting the scroll on the bed so they could both read the screen, Weiss then flipped Ruby’s notebook to a blank page and reached over to grab a pen from inside the nightstand.  It looked like the pen didn’t want to write at first, but after Weiss gave it a few good taps, the ink started flowing.

Both curious and excited to learn something new, Ruby leaned over Weiss’ shoulder and watched her write in small, neat letters while referencing the information on the scroll every so often.

“We’re in charge of the Grimm!” Ruby exclaimed when she understood what Weiss was jotting down.

“Yes,” Weiss replied, holding the notebook out so Ruby could more easily read it.  “The data in the documents given to us is compiled from various sources - first-person accounts or scans and imagery.  Some pieces of intel are more accurate than others, but they all serve as a good starting point to build the hunt around.”

With one finger, Weiss tapped the first of several lines she’d written on the page.

“It might seem elementary, but we start by listing what we know about the hunt.  From there, we come up with what we can expect given what we know. Blake will handle location and Yang will handle entry and exit, so let’s start with our target.  For this hunt, we have a very specific target -” as she spoke, Weiss lifted the scroll and showed Ruby a map image with a red circle indicating their destination. Another photo showed a large group of Nevermores circling in the skies above the trees.  

“A Nevermore nest!” Ruby answered, making Weiss nod and set the scroll back on the covers.

“We need to take out this nest.”  Tapping the screen once, Weiss then picked up her pen and notebook again.  “We take what we know about Nevermores and determine what battle strategies are possible.  This might be difficult for you right now, but I’ll teach you some of the most basic parts tonight.  We’ll probably end up winging it tomorrow anyway.”

“Awesome!  I’m so ready!”

“First things first - what do you know about Nevermores?”

Ruby laughed and leaned into Weiss’ side, enjoying the slight warmth that passed between them.  

“I think the question should be what don’t I know about Nevermores!  Which...from the look on your face, is probably a lot...”

Grinning, Weiss shook her head and put the pen back to paper.

“Tell me what you know,” she said while jotting down what seemed like a never-ending stream of notes.  “We’ll go from there.”

While Weiss wrote a few more sentences, Ruby turned to the side and grinned at her partner.  

She liked it here.  And she liked being here with Weiss.

She loved being with Weiss.

“Ruby?”

Jolting from her thoughts and what had to be a GLoS for the ages, Ruby spooled up her brain while searching for any information that had ‘Nevermore’ attached to it.

“Nevermores!  Got it. Prepare to be amazed by my Nevermore knowledge!”