Chapter Text
Nora slid into the seat across the sisters placing her plate of pancakes onto the table. "And that's my shift for today. How‘re you two ladies doin'?"
Yang sighed as Ruby laughed. "I guess we're okay." She glanced at her sister who was looking her up and down with a smirk.
"Is this 'bout the whole almost coming out thing last week?" Nora stuffed a pancake in her mouth. Yang nodded. "Personally, I don't see a problem with it. Blake seems to be accepting of that sort of stuff. Remember how they reacted when Ruby came out."
Reflecting on the confession her sister made years ago about her sexuality brought her confidence that everything would be okay, but something in the back of her head stated otherwise. She laughed. "I don't know. I just-" Ruby slung an arm around Yang's shoulders and pulled them closer together. "I'm still scared. What if something were to happen my friendship with Blake will change." She sighed and leaned into the table. "I'm just really scared."
Nora and Ruby look at each. Nora reached to hold Yang's hands. "Listen, come out when you're ready to. We won't force you to do anything. Just know we will be there for you if you ever need anything." Yang nodded and smiled.
"Thank you. I really appreciate it."
Nora let the moment pass before smirking. "On another note, you never did tell me how you came out to each other." She rested her chin on the palm of her hand and wiggled her eyebrows. The sisters turned to each other and giggled at the memory.
"Well, Ruby, want to explain how it happened?" She nudged Ruby who waved her arms and turned away from the two. Yang laughed. "Well, one day I'm studying for an exam and this one kicks my door in-" Ruby begins to snicker as she lay her head in her hands, "while blasting a song about loving girls with a rainbow flag over her shoulders." Nora snorted while she imagined the scene.
"And how did you come out to her?"
"I sang along." It took a moment to register in Nora's mind but when she got there her expression grew wide.
They stared into each other's eyes and couldn't maintain a straight face as Ruby's giggles urged them to follow suit. "God, you're joking. What was it, the gay anthem or something?"
"Might as well be. I mean, every queer I know can sing along to the whole of that song."
Nora shoved a pancake into her mouth and before swallowing said, "That better be your wedding song." The sisters gasped in unison glancing at each other.
"Are you assuming we will get married? Us? To who, a straight girl?" They giggled with a hint of sadness in Yang’s voice.
Nora shrugged. "Well, I think you could since I’m getting married myself." There was a silence over the table as the sisters stared across to her, their eyes gradually growing wider.
"Nora," Yang whispered, "you're-" She stood from her seat and leaned over, Ruby bouncing to Nora’s side of the table. "You're getting married?" Nora nodded humming. "And you're telling us now? What- when did this happen?"
Nora struggled out of Ruby's grasp and grinned. "Last month. We wanted to surprise you but I really don't like hiding things from people."
( )
Weiss continued to knock on her guest’s door before deciding to enter anyway once she wasn't given any acknowledgement. "Ruby?" She called. Her attention gravitated towards the scratching on the desk against the wall. She called her name a few more times with no response. Sighing her hand moved to the wall as she traced her fingers along it finding the door frame and locating the light panel from there.
Flicking all the switches she smiled as Ruby came to and turned to see the heiress in her room. Soon enough Weiss felt Ruby's arms wrap around her. "There you are. What took you so long?" She promptly hugged her back before Ruby hopped backward and led Weiss towards the desk. Weiss considered asking the question again but soon took back the idea when she remembered the reason for coming to her room in the first place.
"I have an invitation, though, Klein didn't give much of an explanation." She fished the pocket of her jacket for a ripped letter holding it to Ruby who skimmed over the contents smiling. "Is it important?" Ruby giggled before typing into her tablet.
"I think so, you're performing at the party next week?" It spoke.
"Oh, right. Next week, huh?" Weiss gave an exhausted sigh in response. Ruby glanced up to the heiress with raised eyebrows that immediately lowered upon seeing her expression. "Next week- And there will be another in the following month, knowing my father. Then another." She scrunched her face at the realisation. Ruby frowned at the sight.
She attempted to reach for another hug but was interrupted by Weiss' want to return to her room with the excuse of rehearsal.
Their encounter was a small interaction but it occupied Ruby's mind ‘till midnight as she stared at her page. There was hardly any progress made to her work since Weiss came into her room. She came back in the middle of the night to keep company for her guest. Neither of them interacted with each other much more than the minimal exchanges they had but they mainly did it for the comfort of the company.
These kinds of nights occurred more often than not as time went on, the end goal more clearer after each night passed. Either Weiss or Ruby stayed around the other in their room until midnight and used the excuse of the distance between their separate rooms to stay for the night. The awkward moments in which either one of them awoke in the middle of the night to find the other mindlessly cuddling against them is unspoken between the two, invited even but not pursued from when they first fall asleep.
A part of Ruby wanted to ask why Weiss would allow such a thing to grow normal in their relationship or what led to the comfort of being so close around her, but she had no reason to complain and felt incredibly lucky to be in a position to be so close to the heiress in the first place. She hated thinking about it, though, since it made her realise just how much she liked Weiss. She always felt guilty of using Weiss’ disability to her advantage to stare at her and mindlessly observe her from either near or far.
The night before the party Weiss’ fatigue didn’t share any interest in sleep like she hoped she could have. Next to her Ruby was barely drifting to sleep. The heiress was awfully aware of the sounds that surrounded her. Her own breathing and the girl beside her filled her mind. She couldn’t focus on anything without drifting elsewhere, especially to what awaited the next day.
“Ruby?” Weiss whispered. Ruby hummed not thinking much of the silence in her calm state of mind. Weiss realised she had nothing to say. She only wanted the thoughts to slow down at the very least. The silence dragged out until it was forgotten with more nothing being said.
Instead, Weiss was caught in a limbo of endless thoughts and no thoughts at all. Her mind was racing despite her mind feeling empty. She felt sick, her head hurt.
If only she could fall asleep, was all she could repeat to herself while laying next to a girl that had peacefully fallen asleep with little to no stress. If only she could be as carefree as the girl next to her that lived life without many regrets, not as many burdens to live with and a heart of pure gold. Too precious, too naive to understand the true weight of the world. Either that or she is very good at hiding her worries. Even then, she can still stay so positive in life. Weiss was always brought up thanks to her.
If only she weren’t so weak, dependant on others. If only she didn’t hate herself so much.
And if only Ruby Rose weren’t so affectionate towards her, how would Weiss have managed to cope this far? The heiress always wanted to protest but Ruby had done so much for her. The lengths she went to just to get a better understanding of Weiss.
Weiss turned on her side to face Ruby. She felt Ruby’s breaths on her hands and slid her hand along the mattress towards her. Her arm met Ruby’s hand. She re-adjusted to hold hands with her and tried to focus on her hand.
Ruby struggles sometimes. She doesn’t show it but surely she hides it behind a smile. Would she ever have thoughts like these, doubting herself and her worth until she realises in the end she wouldn’t be valued? She isn’t much different to Weiss if she did. Except Weiss valued Ruby, more than she could admit to herself. Remembering life in the family manor without a Ruby to keep her company was impossible. Weiss’ life was starting to grow closer to Ruby’s, but she couldn’t complain against the idea. Instead, she invited it.
( )
The faunus sipped on her tea. “How was the party?” Blake grinned while Weiss groaned. “Sophisticated as always, I presume.” Weiss rolled her eyes.
“Indeed. Not the easiest when you can’t see anything though.”
“I can only imagine.” Weiss took a sip of her coffee, blended to perfection as she preferred it by her kitchen staff. Blake observed her actions before letting out a sigh. “Weiss, have you actually tried using a walking stick?”
“I understand your concern Blake but I don’t think I’ll be needing-”
The faunus sighed again. “At least try.” Blake’s voice was soft. The heiress thought over it for a moment but shook her head.
Weiss frowned, taking another sip of her coffee. “What purpose would that give? Besides, a walking stick really doesn’t work for me. I can still get around without one.”
“Around your manor, sure, but not when you’re out in the streets.” Blake swept her hair behind her. “Do you really want a butler by your side at all times.”
Weiss leaned back in her chair. v“I’ll ask Ruby then.”
“And what if she isn’t around to help you?” At this Weiss’ eyes widened not taking into consideration that Ruby wasn’t permanently going to be by her side at all times. Blake analysed her expression realising the weight of her words. “Sorry, Weiss. I just-”
“It’s fine.” She took a deep breath to compose herself “I understand where you’re coming from.” Sighing she sipped on her coffee and thought over her life from beginning to present. “I just wish I didn’t need this much assistance for such menial tasks.”
Blake smiled. “To some extent, it’s possible to not need others as much as you think you need them.” She swirled her teacup in her hand. “At least try. That’s all I’m asking you.” Weiss sat thinking over her words pondering the truth behind it.
The faunus cleared her throat while thinking over the sudden silence that fell over the room. On a normal occasion it would be comfortable, but she didn’t feel safe leaving the heiress in thought any longer. “How’s living with Ruby? Is she as much trouble as her sister?” Weiss chuckled, thankful to distract her mind for wherever it was leading her.
“No, not at all. It’s actually quite peaceful.” She thought over the days she spent with the girl now that they lived together. They slept in the same room so often they may as well be officially moving in, although neither of them would admit to take the next step in doing so. Weiss tries to distract her mind once again when she began to realise just how much her life had changed since Ruby came into it. “I do notice she talks to you and Yang often.”
Blake sighed and shook her head. “With you constantly at work she’s bound to find boredom every now and then.” Weiss raised an eyebrow at the idea of herself being at work when she was most likely with Klein as he did most of the work for her. “But it is entertaining to watch her at work.”
Weiss stayed silent for a moment, trying to piece together her thoughts. “Pardon?” She couldn’t wrap her head around the fact that the vibrant, childish girl that had the attention span of a toddler was working. “Work? Doing what?”
Blake smirked, picking up on the general idea of her thoughts. “Oh, you don’t know?” She pushed her hair behind her shoulders. “She’s an engineer and mechanic. Apparently she has a retractable scythe at home she made herself.” Weiss couldn’t help but continue in her silence as she only blinked. The faunus opted to offer more of an explanation but once the heiress began rubbing at her temple she retracted the idea.
The silence lingered longer as Weiss attempted to collect her thoughts on many factors. “She’s an engineer, works- for money I presume,” Blake silent nods on impulse before remembering the heiress wouldn’t be able to pick up on her cue, “not to mention that she has a scythe.” Weiss took another sip of her coffee, the unfortunate last sip as she soon found the cup to be empty. She took a deep breath as she concluded her thought. “She trained to be a huntress?”
“Precisely.” Blake chipped in once she knew the heiress had finished her rambling.
Weiss continued to rub at her temple while thoughts began passing through her mind of how she hadn’t noticed the girl working, or if there was any time that she had attempted to tell her of any of these traits but she simply hadn’t listened. She tried to think of all the time they spent together for any clues Ruby may have given her but all the memories of their days spent together was locked away when she desperately needed it.
“Why don’t you ask her?” Blake chimed into her thoughts before she could spiral into a whirlpool of a mess. Weiss nodded at the suggestion.
“Yes. I’ll do that.” She tapped a finger on her cup as the conversation trailed off to the subject of the faunus’ guest and the company Yang gave her.
( )
Weiss returned home taking Blake’s words to heart and opened the casing to her Myrtenaster as her replacement of a cane. She felt over every part to put them together. She heard the door creak open knowing Ruby was curiously peeking into what she was doing. “Hello, Ruby.” Weiss said locking the final piece to her rapier into place.
Ruby gasped upon seeing Myrtenaster and rushed to her side tapping at the hilt. “Yes, this is my old weapon.” The heiress held out the grip for Ruby to take. Accepting the invitation Ruby lightly took the rapier and studied it noting every part and modification made to Weiss’ liking. She gently turned the dust cartridge within the hilt smiling at the idea of it being somewhat similar to how she designed her scythe back at home.
Weiss took this into consideration when remembering her conversation with Blake. The realisation that this girl was fawning over a simple functioning rapier for the sole purpose to use dust during combat compared to a retractable scythe doubling as a sniper rifle she made herself in her own home. Weiss supposed Ruby was more curious about the technical work of its creation as it was made under the craftsmanship of a professional. Wait, Weiss thought, hasn’t she already seen Myrtenaster before?
She shook the confusing thought from her mind. “Blake suggested I should start using a cane to walk without any assistance.” Ruby tapped Weiss arm to give the rapier back. “I’m not entirely sure about it though. It doesn’t feel-” She held her rapier and thought over her words. “I don’t like using a cane.” Ruby hummed in thought. Weiss shook her head and held the point to the floor. “Something about this doesn’t feel right.”
Ruby frowned and pulled her scroll out of her pocket. Moments later a video began to play which was fast forwarded and paused. Before the heiress could question what exactly she was watching Ruby began nudging at her fingers adjusting her grip and looking back to the screen before gently pulling at another finger. When Weiss’ hand looked similar to the one on her scroll she pressed play and found the camera zoom out to a full body shot. She skipped through futile explanations to pause on a shot of the canes position on the body. Without any worded explanations Weiss was left in the dark for what to do. Ruby held her hand pushing it to her hip.
“Hey, Ruby.” She paused the video again looking at the heiress. “I’m sure the video is made for blind people, so, they probably explain what to do in great detail.” Ruby stared at her for a moment before nodding quickly and scrolling back in the video, playing it and turning up the volume before she placed the scroll on a nearby shelf before walking to the bed and laying on her back covering her face. She scrunched her face as she withdrew a squeal of anxiety that threatened to come out.
Weiss focused on the video trying to comprehend what was meant to be of her movements and doing her best to perfect her technique. Ruby focused on controlling her breathing and retreated to the bathroom to wash her face trying to calm herself of embarrassment. She paced around the room until the heiress called for her assistance.
“Still don’t feel like the cane is right.” She began to dismantle her rapier. “You can take your scroll back.” Ruby nodded and cancelled the video, checking her notifications out of instinct for any important updates.
Weiss frowned when she realised her position was most likely different to where she assumed she was and wasn’t sure where the case to her rapier sat. “Ruby.” Glancing up to the pieces in Weiss’ hands Ruby assumed what she was being asked and stood to grab the briefcase. She walked in front of the heiress and let her put the pieces in herself, closing the case and taking it out of Ruby’s hands. “Thank you.”
Ruby walked back to the bed, Weiss following close behind with a hand on her elbow. When Ruby sat on the bed her hands naturally found their way to the heiress’ hip as a way of telling her that she had to stop walking and guided her body to the side. The interaction had become so effortless over time, the timid steps Weiss used to take turned to her normal stride trusting Ruby would catch her before she walked into anything.
It worked. That’s all that mattered to the heiress.
Silence lingered in the air as the two sat there, one still mulling over her own embarrassment and the other pondering of her changing comfort levels to physical affection.
The two were disturbed by the sound of a notification from Ruby’s scroll. Upon reading it she jumped to her feet in a panic. “Ruby? What was that?” Ruby hummed back and forth from her scroll to the heiress and tapped her hand which Weiss’ took as a sign to turn her palm upwards. Ruby ran a finger over it, letter by letter.
W. O. R. K
“Oh, I’ve been meaning to ask you about that.” Ruby raised an eyebrow at the interest and smiled. “What kind of work do you do? I know it’s something to do with engineering or mechanics but...” As she trailed off Ruby nudged into her squealing. She didn’t think that the heiress would have taken an interest into her hobbies let alone her profession. Jumping to her feet she tugged on Weiss’ arm to pull her up and walk to her room.
The journey was mostly silent as many of their walks were. Weiss voiced many of her questions related to Ruby’s career but settled with the lack of reply she received knowing she would be answered in due time.
When they reached Ruby’s room she led the heiress to her bed to sit on and staring at the pile of papers filled with various designs she began to file through them. She looked over the request on her scroll before turning her attention back to the files on the desk. Weiss listened to the rustling of papers and pondered over what they held. “What are you doing?” Ruby gave the question some thought before she pulled out her scroll and finally began an explanation.
“I have designs I’ve finished and need to show these people. If they like the idea they will get me to make it for them.” Weiss nodded along to the idea. “I just wanted to make sure I finished the designs tonight in case I left anything out.” As her scroll said this Ruby held the most recent draft she created and set it aside as she plucked another blank sheet from the pile next to the desk. She frowned at the paper in thought for any minor changes she might make and sat down at her desk to work.
The heiress sighed and laid on the bed listening to the pencil scratch on the sheet of paper. She pondered over Ruby’s personality and the realisation that the two of them are contrasting people that somehow work well together in a weird sense. Due to the fatigue lingering from the night prior Weiss quickly fell asleep to the sound of Ruby working over her desk with undivided attention.
Ruby lost track of her time as she always did making sure to perfect every stroke she made, the notes lining the side of the design clear and concise. She arched her back stretching, promptly folding her arms behind her head before looking to the heiress laying on her bed sound asleep. Ruby couldn’t help but smile at the idea that she fell asleep without saying a word while she was working. She packed her things away and settled into the bed next to Weiss.
Her eyes shifted from the ceiling to the heiress next to her. Their nights together always began separated side by side at a distance and tended to end entangled together at some point, either from one turning over and letting their arm rest over the other or them inching close enough to wake up to one of their heads resting on the other’s shoulder.
Ruby wanted to change this cycle just slightly. She inched closer and lay an arm across the heiress staring up to her face to watch if she would wake up or not. When she confirmed that Weiss wasn’t going to wake up she nuzzled into the comfort and let her mind wander before she eventually drifted off to sleep.
( )
The chauffeur slowed to a stop. He opened the door and walked around to the passenger side to open it for the heiress. “Did you need any assistance to get to your destination?”
Weiss shook her head. “No, I’ll be quite alright. Thank you.” The chauffeur bowed and walked around to the driver's side of the car.
“Weiss.” A voice called out to her. She recognised the voice and greeted them with a smile.
“Hello, Yang. It’s nice to see you again.” Yang laughed.
She nudged her elbow into Weiss’ arm reflecting on how she remembered Blake did so to offer her guidance. Weiss promptly took the elbow as they began their walk. “It’s good to see you too. Sorry to call you out so suddenly.”
Weiss shook her head. “Don’t worry about it. Why did you even call me out here to begin with?” She heard Yang take a deep breath, hesitating over her thoughts as she chose her words carefully.
“I wanted to talk about Ruby. Especially that other night." Weiss knew exactly what she meant. The night which she woke to a panicked Ruby that ultimately changed how she viewed the girl. “I hope I can answer at least some of your questions, if not all of them.”
As she said this they walked into an establishment that was all too familiar. The smell of pastries filled Weiss’ nose. “Please, even if I leave this evening more confused than I was to begin with I would still appreciate the effort.” Yang smiled.
“Okay, that’s reassuring.” They took their seats and ordered their usuals, Weiss getting what she had the last time she came around with Ruby. Yang took a final deep breath to gather her thoughts. “I guess I’ll start from the beginning.”