Conflict of Interest - Chapter 11 (Patreon)

Ruby always did her best at work, but she’d gone above and beyond for the past couple of days.  Even though it felt silly to compete with someone she’d never met, she didn’t want to be remotely comparable to Jared, the poor tech specialist at Weiss’ office.

A small but growing part of her wanted to be the type of person Weiss liked working with.  If, by some miracle, the two of them occupied the same side of the law at the same time, she wanted to be Weiss’ most valuable resource, not daily gripe.  But that seemed like a natural desire for two people just getting to know each other.

The more time they spent together, however, the more Ruby’s curiosity became avid fascination.  The way Weiss smiled, laughed, and argued - both playfully and seriously - only made that fascination harder to escape.

Honestly, Ruby couldn’t wait to see Weiss again.  In fact, if Weiss didn’t message soon, Ruby would initiate a meeting for a change.  She could do that - she had Weiss’ number, and Weiss didn’t seem opposed to hearing from her.

She could do it, but could she do it?

She could.  She totally could.  It made her nervous, but nerves were normal.  Not for her, of course.  She didn’t get nervous very often anymore, mostly because she’d accepted that she didn’t have to be like everyone else.  She wasn’t like everyone else, and that’s who she liked to be.

Weiss made her nervous.

But Weiss also wasn’t like anyone else.  That meant...well, Ruby wasn’t sure what that meant yet, but she planned on finding out.

Based on observations made over the past few years, Weiss had two temperaments.  The first was confident and schmoozy - reserved exclusively for judges, clients, and the rare patrol officer or detective receiving the ultra-sarcastic version.  The second was also confident, but with a ‘too-busy-for-you’ vibe suggesting everyone was in her way.  At least, that was the feeling Ruby got under cross-examination, where Weiss’ base assumption was that everyone was wrong.

But there was a third version.  One Ruby had never noticed before.  And the more she saw it, the more she believed it might be who Weiss truly was or wanted to be.  That version was still confident above all else, but with an underlying sweetness and passion that Ruby couldn’t get enough of.

“Just message her,” Ruby scolded herself before grabbing her phone.  If she didn’t message Weiss now, she would spend the next few hours wondering when Weiss would message her.  So she might as well just get it out of the way, but...what should she say?

“Hey Weiss,” she said aloud while typing.  “How are you?”

After staring at the screen for a few seconds, she shook her head and started over.

“Hey Weiss - what’s up?”

That attempt was erased even faster than the first.  “You’re not in high school anymore,” she chided herself before trying to think of something relaxed but mature.  Something smart but chill.

“Sal-u-tations?” she tried out before groaning and setting her phone down.

When in doubt, online would help.  At least, that was her fallback method for answering many of life’s questions.

“‘How to start a conversation,’” she typed into the search field.  After a brief pause, she added, “‘In a calm, cool, collected manner.’”

Her coworkers called her a search guru.  Thankfully, none of them were here right now.

“Ruby!”

Jumping at her name, she managed to minimize the search results at the same time she turned around and smiled at Yang.

“Hey!  What’s up?  How’s it going?”

The suspicious greeting earned a curious look, but Yang quickly wrote it off and leaned closer.

“Can you do me a favor?” she asked, her quiet tone and glance towards the hall implying she was about to impart a secret.

“Sure,” Ruby replied in the same soft voice.  “But why are we whispering?”

After briefly looking surprised, Yang relaxed and shook her head.  “Sorry,” she continued in a normal tone.  “I’ve been pouring over videos for hours.  Now, I need your help.”

“The fallen angel?” Ruby guessed, and Yang nodded.

“I don’t think the boyfriend did it,” she explained, only to shake her head and sigh.  “But that’s the problem.”

“Uh oh...who do you think did?”

“The president of Vale U.”

“Are you...serious?”

“Unfortunately.  I’m pretty sure he’s running a drug ring at the school, making some big bucks selling to students.”

“Damn.”

If that was true, there were about to be some big news stories and very angry...everyone...running around.  Parents, students, administrators - no one would be thrilled to hear that someone in a position of power was pushing drugs to young adults.

“What do you need from me?”

“I need...I don’t really know.  I need anything that suggests a motive other than this feeling I have.”

Yang had many gut feelings like this, but she was right more often than not.  Because of that, and because she was Ruby’s sister, Ruby was more than willing to jump down this rabbit hole with her.

“You got it.  I’ll look into him for you.”

“I hope you find something good,” Yang added, rubbing her hands together while her mind returned to the case.  “He’s such a sleazy bastard.  If he’s behind this, we have to take him down.”

Those were Ruby’s favorite types of people to put away, and she nodded to show she was on Yang’s side.  She was always on Yang’s side though, so that shouldn’t be a surprise.

“Keep me up-to-date?” Yang requested as she backed towards the door.  “I have like a hundred more hours to go through.”

“I’ll let you know as soon as I find something.”

After Yang tapped the doorframe and hurried back to her office, Ruby returned her attention to her computer and drummed her fingers on her leg.  That unexpected breakthrough had filled her with so much jittery energy that she felt like she could run a hundred miles without breaking a sweat.

Rather than run around the block several times, she pulled up a search function and let her hands fly through the motions of gathering as much information as possible.  While her little wizards started their missions, she set up new folders and a comprehensive information profile just begging to be filled out.

With how much the world relied on technology these days, it was only a matter of time before she unraveled this latest mystery.  Maybe the foregone conclusion was what made her feel a little...unfulfilled.  It was always possible that she found nothing, but if Yang’s hunch was correct...she was very, very confident that she could find the evidence to back it up.

The first part was the easiest - find as much information as possible.  From there she would analyze every shred of data and determine which pieces needed more exploring, but for now she was just gathering.

While she swept the first set of video logs into a folder, her ears perked up at the sound of high heels clicking down the hall.  The pace sounded familiar, if that was possible, and her heart was already speeding up by the time Weiss turned the corner.

Trailed by a pair of paralegals who seemed to rotate by the day, Weiss walked down the hall with confidence and certainty that came with knowing exactly where she was going and exactly what she would do once she got there.  The self-assuredness alone was enough to make her attractive, but today, just like every other day, she looked flawless.  With her hair perfectly styled, her blazer fitting like a glove, and her skirt stopping at a professional-yet-alluring length, she drew attention without even trying.

Had she always walked that way?  And looked so incredibly...captivating?  It was no secret she was gorgeous - most of the prosecutors used her beauty as an excuse for her success - but today she looked so beautiful that Ruby couldn’t turn away.

Weiss must have felt the attention because, rather than keep her eyes trained straightforward, she turned and locked gazes with Ruby.

Heart pounding now, Ruby lowered her hands to her sides as work disappeared from her mind.  She wanted to read Weiss’ thoughts instead.  She wanted to hear what Weiss was thinking as her gaze lingered longer than expected.  Even though she maintained a passive-bordering-on-annoyed expression, her eyes lightened.  Almost as if she was happy to see Ruby.

Several days ago, that would have seemed impossible - Weiss never looked happy to see anyone.  Now...Ruby knew Weiss better, and knowing Weiss better meant picking up mannerisms that everyone else missed.

Unfortunately, the moment ended too soon.  Weiss turned her gaze forward, gently flipping her hair over her shoulder in the process.  A few seconds later, she passed Ruby’s lab and headed towards the exit of the department as if they’d never seen each other at all.

Maybe Ruby was reading into the look, but it felt different.  And it reinforced her growing suspicion that Weiss’ job was just an act, and Weiss was an incredible actress.  The real her was similar, but with an underlying softness that conflicted with her hard exterior.  Almost as if she didn’t want to be that person but had learned not to question herself.  She’d learned how to be...content.

All Ruby knew for certain was that she’d never met someone like Weiss.  She’d never met someone she wanted to know so much about, like learning a new technology only better because Weiss was more complex than technology could ever be.

Was that Ruby’s solution?  She loved her job - she really did - but what was infinitely more complicated than any computer in existence?  A human being.  Not just any human being though - Weiss Schnee, who was probably as complicated as they came.

When had seeing Weiss become such a distraction?  At this rate, it would be several minutes before Ruby refocused on her work, even as she mindlessly swept more videos into her growing collection.  Even then, Weiss lingered on her mind just like their gazes lingered in the hall.

Then a message popped up on her phone.  As soon as she saw the encryption status, any thought of returning to work disappeared.  Instead, she breezed through the unlock process and stared at the words on the screen.

‘Any chance you’re free for lunch?’

It wasn’t just a message; it was an invitation.  And Ruby wasted no time accepting it.

‘Yes, of course!’

‘Meet at Jablue’s?  No need for a mask.’

Ruby was already pulling on her jacket and grabbing her wallet when the message arrived so responded with a quick ‘leaving now’ before rushing out of the lab.

As one of the many eateries near the Justice Center, Jablue’s was famous for its enormous ‘triple threat’ sandwiches.  Ruby had no interest in the menu today though, as her excitement and anticipation of seeing Weiss kicked into high gear.  She was so excited that she might have jaywalked a couple of streets on her way to the restaurant - something Yang would’ve given her an earful for.

As soon as she opened the door and stepped inside, she scanned the tables and found only a handful of people eating alone.  Of those, only one could be Weiss.  When Ruby pulled out the chair on the other side of the table and sat down, Weiss put her phone away and held back a smile.

“Are you sure you picked the right table?”

“One time that happened!” Ruby pointed out, only for her heart to swoon when Weiss laughed.  “Are you ever going to let me forget?”

“Probably not,” Weiss replied with a shrug.  “I figured I’d make it easier by wearing one of the masks you made.”

“How do you know I made them?”

“Because there are twelve of them.”

After waiting for more of an explanation, Ruby motioned with her hand when Weiss didn’t automatically provide one.

“And…?”

“And I don’t think you’d ever pay for the same thing over and over again.  You probably bought five before figuring out how to make them yourself.”

“More like twenty-five,” Ruby admitted as an unstoppable smile sprang into being.  “But the last ten or so were only to set up the program.”

Weiss waved her hand as if to say ‘see?’ but Ruby had no idea how that was so obvious.  Was she that easy to read?

“I’m glad you were free,” Weiss continued while passing a menu to Ruby.  “I worried it might take too long to decrypt the message.”

“You realize it takes like two seconds to unlock those, right?”  When Weiss’ eyes briefly widened at the disclosure, Ruby ordered a salad and pushed the menu off to the side.  “If you want, I can add native encryption to your phone, then you could send me a normal message whenever you want.”

“Oh.”

The instant Weiss’ gaze fell to her phone, Ruby realized why Weiss wouldn’t want to do that.

“You don’t have to,” Ruby quickly added.  “It’s just an option.  I don’t mind unlocking them either!”

Drumming her fingers on the table, Weiss stared at her phone as if it was saying something that worried her.  Without an advanced understanding of data encryption, she had legitimate reasons to be concerned.  Ruby could install spyware and Weiss would never know.  Considering the device hardly left her side, all of her work probably went through it, meaning case details, confidential information, etc.

When Weiss set her hand over her phone, Ruby thought the conversation would end there.  Then Weiss pushed the device across the table.

“Ok.”

Ruby heard the word, knew what it meant, and understood the implicit agreement as the phone sat in front of her, but she didn’t understand why.  Weiss must vaguely understand what Ruby could do, but she couldn’t possibly grasp the depths of how much Ruby could take over her life through her phone.  Still, she...trusted?...that Ruby would only do what she said.

Suddenly, Ruby felt like she’d accomplished the impossible.  Weiss trusted her.  Her.  She had no idea how she’d earned that trust, but she wouldn’t waste it.

“Here, let me show you.”

After picking up the phone, Ruby slid her chair around the table so they were sitting side-by-side.

“First, you open the codebase.”  Speaking aloud, she navigated to the innermost workings of the device and popped up a holoscreen showing the code.  “Most of this relates to your services,” she explained while scrolling through.  “But we’re looking for...aha.”

Finding what she needed, she pointed out a few words on the screen.  Fortunately, both for her and Weiss, there were enough partial words suggesting that they were now dealing with messages and security.

“We turn these two things off,” Ruby explained while dragging the radio buttons into the off position.  “It seems counterintuitive, but the lines these connect to are some of the least secure in the city.  Instead, we want these guys.”

Finding the settings she wanted, she turned those on and entered her passcode.

“How do you know the password?”

“Oh.”  Realizing that Weiss was actually paying close attention, Ruby looked over and smiled.  “It’s mine, actually.  I created an access point for myself and password protected it.  But I can make another one for you, if you want!  It’ll just take a little longer.”

“No, that’s fine.  I was just wondering.”

When Weiss returned her attention to the screen, Ruby gave her a long look before continuing.

“You’re connected to more secure lines now,” Ruby explained.  “So your messages are traveling safer.  Now we just add some native encryption...and not like that expensive junk you have.”

For this, she opened Weiss’ messaging software only to close it the instant the conversations came up.

“Actually, I just need you to open that and click into the settings for me.”

Before turning away, she noticed the amused look Weiss gave her.  But she didn’t want to accidentally read one of the messages, so she stared across the restaurant rather than anywhere near Weiss’ phone.

“Done,” Weiss said several seconds later, so Ruby turned back and smiled.

“Perfect.  This last part is a little difficult, so maybe you can just watch…”

Trailing off as her concentration shifted to the lines of code, Ruby pinpointed the pieces she wanted and typed in new instructions.  Weiss never stopped watching while she worked, so she tried to type fast enough to be impressive while also not messing up.

“Done.”  After returning to the home screen and confirming everything still worked, she handed the phone back to Weiss.  “Now all your messages have a built-in encryption buffer.  Basically unhackable.”

“‘Basically?’”

“Well everything’s hackable with enough time,” Ruby replied with a laugh.  “But you’ve got a solid defense right now.  You’ll just need updates later on.”

“Good thing I know who can help me with those.”

When Weiss gave Ruby a look, she smiled and nodded.  Honestly, what made her happiest about that statement was the implication that they would still be seeing each other in the future.  For that, she would willingly keep Weiss’ phone up-to-date.

“You know who to call.”  Feeling a preemptive blush on her cheeks, Ruby moved her chair back to her side of the table and played with her silverware.  “Or if you ever want to message me sometime, about whatever, that’d be fine too.”

Fortunately for her increasingly warm cheeks, she didn’t have to explain further than that.  Weiss was smart enough to read between the lines, and gave her phone a long look before nodding and putting it away.  Before she responded though, Ruby’s phone buzzed against the table and made them both jump in surprise.

“Jesus,” Ruby said while flipping it over and checking the name.  “Of course - Yang.  She’s had great timing the past few days.”  After quickly reading the message, which listed a dozen possible types of evidence against Vale University’s president, she pinned it to work on later.  “Sorry about that.”

“It’s alright.”  Expression thoughtful now, Weiss hardly glanced at their meals as they were placed on the table.  “You and your sister are close, right?”

“You could say that.”  After laying her napkin across her lap and picking up her fork, Ruby smiled.  “She’s my best friend.”

“It must be nice to work with her then.”

“It is.  I’d be bummed if she wasn’t around, but I still see her pretty often.  Mostly at night - we Dreamscape together.”

“Do you?”

“Yeah!  She’s dating this amazing dream theorist.  Literally one of the best in the world - she can recreate anything on a whim.”

“That’s impressive.”

“It’s one of the coolest, most mind-blowing things I’ve ever experienced.”  That seemed like an appropriate way to describe Blake’s awesomeness.  “If I didn’t like computers so much, I’d try to do what she does.”

“Quite the career change.”

“I’ll save it for my midlife crisis,” Ruby joked.  “Should be having one any day now.”

Even though she chuckled and stuck a bite of lunch into her mouth, she silently wondered if that was happening to her now.  Did a midlife crisis feel like she needed more purpose than what she already had?

“What about you?” she asked after finishing that bite.  “Would you ever change careers?  Or what about - would you ever consider being a prosecutor?”

That idea had never occurred to Ruby before this instant, but it faded away when Weiss scoffed.

“Of course not,” she said as she speared a slice of tomato and popped it into her mouth.

“Why not?”

“No offense, but the salaries are borderline insulting.”

“I mean, sure,” Ruby replied with a laugh.  “They don’t get paid much, but what about keeping bad guys off the streets?  Making the city safer?”

Those were good reasons for Ruby, but Weiss pursed her lips while coming up with her reply.

“Have you ever thought that maybe the department has too much power?”

Caught by surprise, Ruby blinked before hesitantly shaking her head.

“No...”

“Imagine what would happen if there weren’t people like me,” Weiss explained.  “What if the police arrested someone - anyone they wanted - and there were no good defense attorneys around?  The conviction rate would skyrocket, and the department would grow bolder.  Their evidence wouldn’t be as good.  Their methods wouldn’t be as clean.  They would essentially become the judge and jury of the city.”

“That’s what we have public defenders for.”

“You mean the public defenders who are paid half what the prosecutors are?”

“It’s not all about money, Weiss.  Most of us are there because we want to help, not because we want to get rich.”

The response held more exasperation than Ruby intended, which was why Weiss looked momentarily taken aback, but that was what she believed.  Making good money was nice and made her life easier, but that wasn’t what brought her to work every day - her sense of duty did.  She wanted to help as many people as possible.  People who, in some instances, couldn’t speak for themselves.

“But I understand what you’re saying,” she added before Weiss replied.  “You provide balance and keep the department in check.  That makes sense.”

In the silence that followed, Ruby focused on her food rather than meet Weiss’ gaze.  Still, she felt Weiss watching her, and she knew the conversation wasn’t over.

“Let me ask you something.”

When Ruby looked up, Weiss’ expression was soft and her eyes observant.  Almost as if she wanted to know the answer but also didn’t.

“What makes you think I don’t help people?”

Ruby opened her mouth to say the first response that came to mind only to stop herself when she realized how wrong it was.

“Is being wealthy a crime?” Weiss continued, somehow knowing that was what Ruby had been about to say.  “Are they not worth helping?  I realize they can be difficult, entitled, and arrogant, but they’re just trying to make a life for themselves like the rest of us.”

With Weiss’ gaze still trained upon her, Ruby understood that this wasn’t an argument.  If she disagreed, Weiss wouldn’t try to convince her otherwise.  Remarkably, that only made her feel worse for so harshly judging the rich and powerful.

“I guess that’s unfair to think,” she admitted.

“I’m not saying you’re wrong,” Weiss replied, much to Ruby’s surprise.  “I’m just saying...I’ve had the opportunity to help some amazing people who were just in the wrong place at the wrong time - same as you have.”

For someone who prided herself on being empathetic, such obvious bias felt shameful.  In a world where the elite seemed to get away with whatever they wanted, Ruby had gotten used to viewing them all as the bad guys.  But being a bad person wasn’t restricted to those who had a certain amount of money - she knew that too.

“Thank you,” she said, only for Weiss to send her a curious glance.

“For what?”

“For sharing your point-of-view.  It’s nice - and important, I think - to hear someone else’s thoughts.  It gives us perspective.”

“Thank you for listening,” Weiss replied with a small smile.

“Of course!  I like hearing what you have to say.  But god, can you imagine what it’d be like if we actually worked together?”

“I do, sometimes.”

Surprised by the candor, Ruby tilted her head.  “Really?”

“Yes.  Don’t you?”

Well, she was now.  From what she knew of Weiss’ work ethic and organization, cases would be a breeze.  Any evidence Ruby put together would be presented better than she could imagine.  No arguments would be missed, and every protocol would be followed to the letter.

“That’d be fun,” she said before chuckling and taking another bite to eat.

Weiss looked like she had something to add, but she hardly opened her mouth before her gaze fixed on something over Ruby’s shoulder.  Curious, Ruby glanced that way right as Jez and Casey walked through the door.  Before she could decide what to do, they caught sight of her, smiled, and headed over.

“Hey guys!” she said, surrendering to the inevitability of this situation.  Her eyes flitted to Weiss, wondering if Weiss might get up and leave, but that opportunity came and went when the two officers stopped beside the table.

“Hey Ruby,” Jez greeted Ruby with a warm smile before glancing at Weiss.  She didn’t have to say anything to make it obvious she wanted to know who Weiss was, but Weiss just returned her gaze with a small, patient smile.

“Oh, this is my friend W-ynn.”

Caught halfway between ‘Weiss’ and ‘Lynn,’ Ruby cringed at the weird half-name that came out, especially when Casey raised one brow.

“Wynn?”

“It’s Atlesian,” Weiss replied without hesitation, her perfect smile and endless poise not the least bit shaken by the situation.

“What’re you guys doing here?” Ruby asked, trying to keep the conversation moving along.

“Jez is having a bad day, so I’m buying her lunch.”  Casey patted Jez’s shoulder and smiled while she rolled her eyes.

“What happened?”

Ruby glanced at Casey, who motioned that Jez would have to tell the story.  Jez, meanwhile, sighed and shook her head.

“One of my cases just got tossed.”

“Oh, that sucks...”

“Yup.  Witch Schnee strikes again.”

Hearing the nickname widely used for Weiss around the department, Ruby stiffened and tried not to be obvious while glancing across the table.  For her part, Weiss ate her salad and pretended she didn’t have much interest in the conversation.  The slight twitch at the corner of her mouth, however, suggested she was holding back a smile.

“Oh no.”  Keeping in mind that Weiss was sitting right across from her, Ruby tried to respond normally.  “What’d she do this time?”

“She chewed me out for missing two words on the intake form.”  Jez held up two fingers and glanced at Casey for his approving nod.  “Not important words, either, but apparently it suggests ‘a clear lack of understanding of the civil code.’”

When Jez scoffed and shook her head, Ruby glanced Weiss’ way to see how she took the response.  As it turned out, surprisingly well.  If anything, her sparkling blue eyes suggested this was particularly amusing.

“And I might’ve missed a timestamp,” Jez admitted before throwing her hands in the air.  “But it doesn’t matter now.  Case got thrown back to processing.  Have to start over.”

As bummed as Ruby was for Jez, a hard worker who sometimes skipped a few steps when excited or stressed, she also felt that tingling sense of respect for the attorney capable of tearing apart seemingly anything.

“Well, you know how it is,” she said in an effort to console Jez but also get them to leave.  “We can’t win them all.”

“Yeah…”

“Besides, Weiss makes us better.”

The comment caught Weiss’ full attention, but also Jez and Casey’s.

“What?”  Ruby raised her hands in response to their disbelieving expressions.  “She does.  She doesn’t let us get away with sloppy work, so we have to make sure everything’s by the book.  It’s a challenge.”

Their wide eyes suggested that they didn’t believe her, but Casey eventually chuckled and nudged Jez’s elbow.

“Hear that?  Ruby likes the challenge.”

“Shut it,” Jez said while punching him in the shoulder, which only made him laugh harder.  “Thanks, Ruby,” she added before pushing Casey towards the takeout counter.  “We’ll see you back at the station.”

“See you!”

While they headed towards the other side of the restaurant, Ruby sat back and sighed in relief.  They weren’t out of the weeds yet, but the two officers should collect their lunches and carry on their way before long.  In the meantime, she had some apologizing to do.

“I’m so sorry -”

“It’s ok,” Weiss cut Ruby off with a small wave.  “I’m well aware that I’m not...easy...to get along with.”

“But that’s not true,” Ruby argued.  “You’re really easy to get along with!  They just don’t see that.”

Ruby hadn’t seen it either until their first meeting outside of work.  Now, she would never be able to call Weiss that horrible nickname again.

Fortunately, Weiss didn’t appear offended by it.  Instead, she furrowed her brow and watched the two patrol officers head back to work before meeting Ruby’s gaze.

“Do you really think I make you better?”

“Well...yeah,” Ruby admitted.  “Everyone knows you’re the toughest attorney around.  You’re like the ultimate stress test of our capabilities.  How could that not make us better?”

Having a case or piece of evidence torn to shreds was never enjoyable, so Ruby went to great lengths to keep her work iron tight whenever Weiss was nearby.  She wasn’t the only one who felt that way, and she wasn’t the only one who learned new ways of doing things in order to avoid Weiss’ snares.

More than anything, she hoped that Weiss realized they didn’t just run around calling her names all the time.  Her skill had earned their respect and, in some cases, a little fear and trepidation too.  Thankfully, after a few seconds of silence, Weiss smiled.

“What you’re saying is that I created my own worst nightmare in you.”

“Guess you could look at it like that,” Ruby replied with a laugh, though didn’t escape her notice that Weiss just made another joke.  And who would’ve thought that someone so serious would make so many jokes?

“But I don’t think you’re hard to get along with,” she reiterated instead of drawing attention to the break in character.  “Then again, you’re not browbeating me over a missed timestamp.”

“Because you don’t miss timestamps.”

“Thank god!  I don’t want you to make me look stupid in front of everyone.”

“Name one instance when I’ve made you look stupid.”

“Ok,” Ruby said before searching for a memory where Weiss schooled her in front of a courtroom.  “Ok, what about that time I said that ‘I don’t think’ holocuffs have the electrical capacity to kill someone, and you jumped all over me for sources?”

“Ah.”  Clearly remembering that moment, Weiss couldn’t hide her smile.  “That was a good day.”

The obvious enjoyment in Weiss’ eyes made Ruby laugh.

“At least one of us had a good time.  And they don’t have enough capacity, by the way.”

“You think I’d use that again?  I’m sure you found the answer five minutes after leaving the courtroom.”

“I did,” Ruby admitted before pausing.  “Shoot - you might know me too well now.”

Not that it bothered her.  Quite the opposite, really.  It was nice for someone to get her the way Weiss did.  Even though they came from different realms of the law and vastly different backgrounds, their minds worked in similar ways.

“I might.”  After holding Ruby’s gaze for several long, heart-stopping seconds, Weiss grew more serious.  “Actually, can I talk to you about something?”

“Sure!”

Before Weiss could continue, Ruby’s phone buzzed against the table.

“Sorry.”  Ruby silenced the device, only for Weiss’ phone to ring immediately after.  “Looks like people miss us,” she joked while Weiss glanced at her phone and sighed.

“Hold that thought?” Ruby offered, smiling hopefully when Weiss met her gaze.

“Hold that thought,” Weiss agreed with a determined nod.

“Then...can we get lunch again?  Sometime soon?”

As much fun as it was to wait on pins and needles for an invitation, Ruby wanted a date and time to look forward to.

“Sure.  Pick a day.”

“How about Monday?”

Without hesitation, Weiss opened her phone and looked at her calendar.  “Monday works,” she said while dropping an appointment on that day - an appointment specifically for Ruby.

“Why don’t we meet at Stella’s?” she added, unaware that Ruby’s heart was fluttering at what just transpired.  “It’s further away but might be more...private.”

When Weiss’ gaze slid in the direction Jez and Casey went, Ruby nodded at the unspoken request.

“I love Stella’s.  I haven’t been there since…”  Remembering the last time she was there - and why - she cleared her throat and smiled.  “In a while,” she concluded, even though she knew Weiss would sense the coverup.

She did, and her eyes narrowed in thought.  Fortunately for Ruby, their phones buzzed in unison this time, and Weiss sighed rather than pursue an answer.

“They can’t survive thirty minutes without me?”  Again silencing the device, she gave Ruby one last smile and stood to leave.

“I’ll see you on Monday,” she said before heading towards the door.  Her steps quick and determined.  Her posture confident and poised.  Her aura one of absolute certainty.  But when she glanced over her shoulder and caught Ruby staring, she smiled and waved before walking outside.

As soon as Weiss disappeared, Ruby silently counted to ten before packing up her partially-eaten salad and standing.  Spending time with Weiss captured so much of her mind and imagination, she wished they didn’t have to part so soon.  She wished that they could spend hours talking about any topic that came to mind.  That was the only way she would learn everything she wanted to know and figure out why she was so inexplicably drawn to the sharp-witted attorney.

There was still so much she didn’t understand, but she understood that her heart was getting just as involved in this as her mind.  That scared her a bit.  Her heart’s participation meant she wouldn’t think as clearly or rationally, but...she was enjoying herself.  And she couldn’t wait for Monday.