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There were plenty of activities that Weiss found calming. A lot of them involved being alone in her room, studying or practicing her battle stances. Since she met Ruby, however, she found that certain things were better done with another person. It seemed unbelievable that Ruby could ever stay calm, considering how hyper she always was. However, Weiss had firsthand experience proving that she could simmer down and relax with the best of them. That night was one of those times.
The two of them had journeyed to the upper floor balcony of Beacon, drawn there by the sound and beauty of the rain falling outside. Thankfully, the roof of the school jutted out just far enough for them to be able to avoid getting soaked. Weiss had brought a blanket with her, lying it down on the ground so the two of them could sit down without having to dirty their clothes. The two of them sat there, each of them wrapping an arm around the other as they watched the rain come down.
Weiss had always found the rain to be particularly calming. Whenever she was in her room after a tense dinner, and it just so happened to be raining outside, she would sit on her knees by her window and watch drops of rain make rivulets down the glass. Sometimes she would pretend that two droplets were racing each other to the bottom: anything to take her mind off her family life. Of course, remembering that she did that was embarrassing, and she took care not to mention that to anyone.
"Rain really is awesome." Ruby broke the silence that had descended upon them for the first few minutes of them sitting there. Before that, they had just been sitting quietly, an arm slung over each other's shoulders and just watching the beauty of nature. "I never thought it was awesome, though, you know? When I was a kid, rain meant that I couldn't go out and play. I'd be cooped up in the house all day, and that always sucked."
"Hm, I suppose I can understand that." Before the two of them had grown closer, Weiss would have considered Ruby's complaint to be rather trite. However, she now understood that there were others that lived much differently than she had, and she had become better at understanding how others felt. She also felt more comfortable explaining why she felt the way she did. "For me, there was never much incentive to go outside besides the places I needed to go. There weren't any friends for me to hang out with or outside activities I felt like partaking in."
Hearing that made Ruby frown, just as it always did when she heard things about Weiss's life. Her entire perspective on her partner had changed when she started learning about things that began to explain why Weiss was the way she was. Everyone had thought that she was just this angry, prissy princess who didn't have what it took to be a huntress, but Ruby had always felt that there was more to her than that. During an argument Weiss and Blake had concerning the faunus early in their time as a huntress team, she had definitely heard more to prove that than she expected. It was at that point that it became clear the family life of the Schness wasn't everything others might think it was.
Though they had become great friends - in her opinion, at least - as the months went by, she hadn't been able to pry much information about Weiss's family life from her. Of course, she understood that there were things that were too private to talk about, even to best friends. That was why she never pressed, no matter how much worry she felt when she'd see Weiss's entire body tense up at the sight of a call from her father. She couldn't understand not wanting to receive a call from a family member, and she hoped that someday Weiss would feel comfortable enough to talk to her about it.
For the moment, she would just enjoy the fact that Weiss wanted to be near her. They had gotten off on the wrong foot when they first met, then seemingly every time thereafter. The difference between then and now was night and day, though. They had grown so much closer than anyone, even the two of them, could have ever imagined. It now felt strange when they weren't together, but despite all the time they spent together, Ruby still cherished every second. Her hands didn't feel so fidgety just watching it rain when Weiss was next to her.
"I can see why you listen to rain sounds when we're all going to bed." She laid her head on Weiss's shoulder, deciding it was best to change the subject rather than try to pry any information out of Weiss. "I think I might actually fall asleep." To hammer home her point, she let out a long yawn. She'd started growing used to Weiss listening to ambient noise like wind and rain at night. It was definitely as calming as she said it was.
"Hey, don't fall asleep out here. I'm not going to carry you back to the dorm room." Of course, she left out the little detail that she couldn't carry Ruby anywhere. Her arms weren't as strong as the rest of her teammates, but that didn't need to be said. "Though it is rather calming..." She yawned as well, covering her mouth like the respectable person she was. This was Ruby's fault for letting out a contagious yawn. "It would be embarrassing if anyone found us out here sleeping, though."
"I suppose so," Ruby shrugged, though she didn't think of it as embarrassing. To her, it would be cute to fall asleep together, with Weiss's head lying on her own, arms still locked together. It was the perfect scenario to rest and relax, with the exception of a lack of pillows. As huntresses, they had to become used to potentially falling asleep in less-than-stellar conditions, but it was always nice to have a pillow to rest their heads on.
The storm began to increase in ferocity. Thunder rumbled beneath the dark clouds, and they could see lightning crackling in the sky. Ruby pushed herself closer to Weiss, snuggling up as close as she could. It was a testament to how much their relationship had grown that Weiss didn't try to push her away. Her arm tightened around Ruby's torso, holding her close as they lapsed into silence. They just let the weather do the talking for them.
Ruby closed her eyes, feeling sleep tugging at her. She tried to fight it off, but she didn't try all that hard. Truth be told, she felt comforted falling asleep next to Weiss. It didn't matter where they were, as long as they were together. Soon enough, her eyes stayed closed, her body going slack against Weiss's. That was what let her know that Ruby had fallen into dream land.
"I thought I told you not to fall asleep," Weiss gently scolded her sleeping friend, but of course those words fell on deaf ears. She could already hear Ruby's soft snoring, showing that she had already fallen deep into sleep. Rolling her eyes fondly, she stroked Ruby's arm and decided to let her sleep for a little bit. She would be fine watching the rain on her own, because she wasn't truly alone. Not as long as Ruby was by her side. It was her presence that gave her the strength to keep going.
"Oh well," she sighed, resting her head on Ruby's and closing her eyes as well. It would be embarrassing if someone came up there and found them in such a position. She had already made that perfectly clear, but Ruby didn't care. If she was being honest, she kind of didn't care either. There were a lot of things she no longer felt as self-conscious about, and it was all because of the girl sitting next to her. Her life would be so much different without having bumped into Ruby all that time ago, and she was confident in saying it would be worse. Everything had changed that day, and in the end, it was for the better. She was happier than she could ever admit that Ruby hadn't given up on her despite having so many righteous chances to do so.
After spending seventeen years growing up with a family that made her feel like less of a human being, she had found a new family within the halls of Beacon Academy. Becoming friends with Ruby, Blake, and Yang had changed her life, as cliche as it might be to say. More cliche, it had changed her life for the better. She had met so many students who had come to change her perception of the world around her, and even though she hadn't said it to the vast majority of them, she couldn't thank them enough for what they had done for her life. They had all become like family to her, and it made her realize just what she had been missing throughout her life.
Smiling to herself, she nuzzled against the top of Ruby's head and listened to the storm just beyond her reach. "Thank you, Ruby," she whispered, feeling sleep tugging at the edges of her being. "For always being there for me. I'll never take your friendship for granted." The two of them slept there together on the blanket, the rain pattering against the balcony as a soothing soundtrack for their warm dreams.