Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Honestly, he still couldn't see why Weiss had come here. Sure, it was warmer, but that just meant the people were softer, weaker. Weiss looked softer, less hardened. No wonder Father was considering making him the heir. He bet she'd run off like Winter, and then...

"And then we have..." Weiss trailed off and winced. "Oh no."

"Whatever is troubling you, Sister?" Whitley asked dryly. He looked in the same direction and...

His heart stopped in his chest. His cheeks went bright red.

A vision of loveliness raced towards them, with black hair with red tips, a wide smile across her gorgeous face, and silver eyes that wanted to swallow him up completely.

"Heeeyyyy Weissss!" The beauty called, waving her hand as a red cloak spread behind her like angel wings. It may have been the angle of the sunlight, or the brightness of her smile, but... Whitley was rendered absolutely speechless.

The goddess slid to a halt in front of them, smiling widely.

"Who's your buddy?"

"This is my little brother," Weiss managed in a growl. "Whitley, this is Ruby Rose, my team leader. Ruby, my little brother Whitley. He's visiting me from home."

Ruby... Like the gemstone...

Ruby beamed.

"Hey! Nice to meet you!"

He tried to open his mouth. Nothing came out. His hand went up shakily, to try and give her a handshake as was proper... And then she sprang forward and hugged him.

"RUBY!" Weiss shrieked.

"What? We're best friends, I wanna be best friends with your little brother!" Ruby said. She smiled at him warmly. "Is it okay if I hug you? You look like you'd really like them!"

She blinked and paled.

"Oh, geez... Or do I work up to hugs?! I'm sorry, I've gotten so used to hugging-I-I'm sorry!"

Her scent, her warmth, seeing how beautiful she was up close... It all overwhelmed Whitley. He tried to open his mouth to speak, but again, nothing came out!

COME ON! SAY SOMETHING! ANYTHING! His brain screamed.

What dark power did this-this temptress possess?!

Weiss hauled Ruby back, and automatically began to fix his tie and straighten his vest.

"Seriously Ruby? Can you please not act like such a dolt? He's not used to... Well... You," Weiss hissed.

Whitley could not have hated his big sister more than in that moment.

Ruby flushed, and looked down. Her downcast face made him feel like the lowest scum on Earth-What was she doing to him?!

"I uh..." He managed to get his mouth working again, "That... It's... It's okay..."

She brightened, smiling like the sun. His heart thumped in his chest like a machine gun.

Why... Why does it look like she's shining?! He thought.

"So uh... You like Dust, right?" Ruby asked.

Weiss rolled her eyes.

"YES Ruby, he likes Dust. He's being trained to take over parts of the SDC when he's of age, he does know a lot about Dust!"

"Y-YES!" Whitley said, his voice cracking, "I-I know plentyabout Dust! I-I love learning about it! The Fousillier-Ingram Process is a hobby of mine!"

Weiss stared at him in bewildered horror. Whitley could not dispute the feeling. What kind of idiot just babbled about an obscure Dust production process to a beautiful woman?! She must think him a bore! Or an imbecile! Or a common laborer! Or a-!

Ruby's eyes shined.

"Really?! That process is so new! I read all about it in Dust to Dust magazine but I don't have anyone to talk about it! It's so fascinating, especially when it relates to cartridge expansion rates!"

... She... She liked Dust?! She knew all about it?! She understood it scientifically?!

Whitley was reminded of a bunch of empty headed socialites at his father's parties back home who babbled about social matters and politics and Gods knew what else! All boring, empty twaddle! He hated those parties, hated having to put up with all that nonsense!

A girl who... Who shared his passion? Was it possible?

"I... I would love to," Whitley managed, his face dreamy. Ruby beamed, and took his hand.

"Come on! Let's go to the library! Or maybe the range? Ooh! Library, then range!"

She was holding his hand...!

This girl... Was gorgeous, training to be a Huntress, a team leader, and liked Dust and guns?!

She's... The perfect woman, Whitley thought happily. Utterly unaware of the faintly horrified and nauseated look Weiss was wearing as she watched them run off.

Chapter Text

Weiss had gone to visit Whitley. Her brother had of course opted for a hotel room at the best hotel in Vale. That was the least he could do, being a Schnee and all. Normally such luxurious surroundings would put Weiss a bit more at ease. But not now.

"Whitley," she said to her brother as she marched into the hotel room, "We need to talk."

Whitley looked up from his Scroll. wearing a dreamy look at first. She expected it to turn into his usual arrogant sneer but instead... He kept smiling.

"Hello sister!" Whitley said cheerfully, "What do we need to talk about?"

Weiss grit her teeth.

"Ruby Rose."

Whitley beamed.

"She's amazing, isn't she?" He asked happily. "She's so fun, and cute, and she loves the Baldr Arms 372!" He scoffed. "She still likes the Winchester 72 better, can you believe it? I guess it's a girl thing but-"

"You cannot see her anymore," Weiss said firmly.

Whitley's monologue sputtered to a halt. He stared at Weiss in shock.

"I-What?!"

"You cannot see her anymore," Weiss repeated, "She's... She's not good enough for you."

Whitley's eyes narrowed.

"What do you mean, she's not good enough? She's your partner and friend, isn't she?"

"Yes, of course, and I trust her with my life," Weiss said, perfectly honest and sincere, "But she's not good enough for you."

"If she's good enough to keep my sister alive in battle, she's good enough for me," Whitley said, eyes narrowing.

"Do you think Father will see things the same way?" Weiss asked airly. "Be reasonable."

"You're the one who defied him first, remember?" Whitley shot back. Weiss shook her head.

"Becoming a Huntress is one thing-You're already planning marriage with her!" Weiss stated, waving her hands. She rarely did this but it emphasized her emotions.

"N-No I'm not!" Whitley insisted, his cheeks burning red, "I am absolutely not considering that! I-I mean, we haven't even had our first courtship outing! Our first dance! Our-Our first date-!"

"Yes, which is why I'm trying to help you nip this in the bud now before it gets messy!" Weiss insisted. She sighed. "Look, I know I haven't been the best big sister in-"

"Ever?" Whitley shot back. Weiss winced. That one... That really hurt.

"But I'm trying to help you now," Weiss insisted. "You're... You're young. She's young. This is just a crush! You'll get over it in no time! You don't even know what you're doing!"

Whitley scowled at her. Weiss continued.

"She doesn't know anything about romance! She's-She thinks taking guns apart and putting them back together is a fun outing, not a date-!"

"And so do I!" Whitley replied. He stood up, waving his Scroll at her. "What's the deal, huh?"

"I just... If you keep doing this, you're just going to get hurt," Weiss finally said, lowering her arms to her sides. "She'll get hurt. Do you really think Father would approve of her?"

"I..." Whitley shook his head. "I don't care what Father thinks of her!"

Weiss' jaw dropped. She could remember when she was younger, much younger, and heard Winter yelling something similar to their mother...

"Wha... Since when?!"

"Since I met a girl who wasn't some simpering idiot or a family member!" Whitley stated. He nodded firmly. "And... And maybe I'll mess it up, but I wanna try it!"

"Whitley, if Father finds out-!"

"What, are you going to tell him?" Whitley demanded. Weiss shook her head.

"Of course I won't-!"

"Then it's none of your business!" Whitley growled. He stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

Weiss was left frozen, feeling like she'd been hit with her own Ice Dust. She sighed heavily.

"What am I even doing?" She murmured.

- - -

Whitley made his way to Beacon, stewing over what Weiss had said. As he stepped off the Bullhead and headed for the dorms, his anger subsided and he thought things through.

In all honesty... Weiss was right about one thing. He didn't really know what he was doing. Sure, he'd gone out on fun outings with Ruby, but... Were they dates? Was this really romance or just friendship?

Friendship was... Was nice, true. But he wanted romance, damnit!

How did he get that? How did he even approach it?

Think, damnit, Whitley thought, as he walked through the dorm hallways, Think... There must be something... Anything...

Hadn't his sister mentioned some male student always after her? The Weiss he knew back in Atlas had endured a bunch of rich heirs and important men's flirtations with cold grace, and then just brushed them off. Complained about how boorish and stupid they were, then never spoke of them again.

If a man was trying his luck with his sister, and she was talking about it constantly in her letters back home... Well... That had to mean something, right? Maybe she was... What was the Mistralian term? Tsundere?

If this man was at least worth talking about... Maybe he could help Whitley with romance? It wasn't like he had a lot of other options.

He went to the dormroom right across from RWBY's. His (hopefully) future wife was out, but maybe...?

He knocked on the door.

A blond boy, two years older than him, opened the door. He was in a hoodie and boxers, and looked a bit fatigued. He yawned.

"Yes?" He asked.

"Jaune Arc?" He asked. The boy nodded.

"That's me. Short, sweet, and the ladies love it."

Whitley's eyebrows went up.

"Truly?" He asked.

Jaune smiled.

"Yup. You're Weiss's little brother, Whitley, right?"

"Yes! Yes, I am!" Whitley said happily. This Jaune seemed quick on the uptake!

"What can I do for you?" Jaune asked with a smile.

Whitley frowned.

"Er... I'm not really sure how to-"

Jaune frowned in turn. He then smiled, and guided Whitley over to another room. He opened the door and led him into a common room with a table, chairs, and couches. He sat Whitley down on a couch, and grabbed some sodas from a fridge. He walked over and handed one to Whitley.

"Give it a try," he said, "It'll calm you down."

Whitley studied the soda with scientific detachment. He took in the ingredients in an instant and made a face.

"You do know this is mostly sugar, right?" Whitley asked. Jaune popped open his soda, and beamed.

"Yup. That's the best part!" Jaune said, taking a long sip. Whitley mentally shrugged, then opened the can. He sipped it gingerly... Then slurped down more. And more! It was amazing!

He pulled the can away and sighed... Before he burped loudly. He flushed.

"I-uh-Excuse me-!"

Jaune laughed and gave him a thumbs up.

"Nice one!" Jaune grinned.

"That... That wasn't rude?" Whitley asked. Jaune shook his head, then belched himself. Whitley gaped.

"That-That was gross!"

"Yup!" Jaune said cheerfully. "Wanna do it again?"

"Yes!" Whitley grinned, holding up the can of soda... But he paused. "Oh, uh... Mister Arc-"

"Just call me Jaune, Whitley, you're only two years younger than me, right?" Jaune said smoothly, sitting on a table to face Whitley, "What's up?"

Whitley hemmed and hawed, and struggled. He looked up to Jaune with a frown.

"Well, I... I need help."

"Cool. How can I help you?" Jaune asked.

Just like that?! Whitley thought in shock.

"I-I don't know-How much do you want?" Whitley asked. Jaune shook his head.

"What? No, I don't want any money," he said, "You're Weiss's little brother! And Weiss is my friend. Mostly. So no need to pay me or anything!"

"R-Really?" Whitley asked, in a small tone. Jaune nodded.

"Really really. What can I help you with?"

Whitley sucked in a deep breath.

"... I think I'm in love with Ruby and I don't know what to do and I really want to win her heart because she-she's the most beautiful, wonderful, amazing girl in the world can you help me please?!" Whitley blurted out, his face quite red by the time he finished.

Jaune sipped his soda, and then slowly nodded. He grinned.

"You've come to the right place."

Chapter Text

Ruby was fiddling with one of Crescent Rose's components out on the quad, her silver eyes focused intensely on the mechanisms within. She hummed and reached out for her toolkit. She rummaged around and pulled out a hook probe. She inserted it into the mechanisms and pressed down.

A loud beeping sound went off, and the component shot off some steam. Ruby yelped and then scowled as the device beeped angrily.

"All right, all right, that wasn't the right one," she huffed, putting the mechanism back in place to silence the beeping. "You're so temperamental today!"

She sighed and fiddled a bit more before she heard someone walking up to her table. She looked up, and smiled.

"Hey Whitley!" She chirped. The white-haired boy smiled back nervously and returned her eager wave with a shaky one of his own. He held something behind his back, which made Ruby frown.

"What have you got behind your back?"

"Ah... Uh... W-Well..." Whitley coughed, holding his fist up to his mouth, before he lowered it. He glanced off to the side. Ruby looked. All she could see was a tree nearby, with a hint of blond hair behind it. Whitley quickly moved in front of her, and held out the hand he'd been hiding behind his back.

"I... Found a new 3D printer model and decided to test it out," he said. He set down two items on the table then sat down next to her. Ruby's silver eyes sparkled in amazement as she picked up the items.

"Action figures?" She gasped. She turned a miniature version of herself over in her hands in wonder. Whitley nodded and held up his own small plastic doppelganger.

"Of us, yes. It-It seemed like a good means of testing the system," he said quickly. "See? The program even allows you to make articulated limbs!"

"Wow!" Ruby said with a grin as she moved the arms and legs of the figure, "Yeah! And this plastic version of my cape is spiffy! Little stiff, but that's just down to the plastic used and the weaving method!"

She beamed at him.

"I think it's a great printer!" She said honestly. Whitley nodded, and his face turned red.

"I uh... Um... It's at this tech expo this weekend-"

"Ooh, the Valean General Tech Demo Expo? I've always wanted to go!" Ruby said happily.

"M-Me too. So uh, I got us two tickets!" Whitley continued, pulling the items out of his pocket. "Would... Would you like to go with me?"

"Sure thing!" Ruby beamed, "You're a really great friend, Whitley!"

"Ah... Uh..." Whitley stammered. Ruby frowned.

"What's wrong?"

"It's just that... I-I'd like to... I'd like to go as... Um... M-More than friends," Whitley said nervously, sweat beading all over his burning red forehead. "U-Um... Y-You know... Like... Uh..."

Ruby blinked. She blinked again. Her own face turned bright red.

"Like... A-A date?" She squeaked, scooting back away from him. Whitley looked frantically behind him. Ruby tried to look, but Whitley again put his head in between her line of sight... Leading to their foreheads konking together.

"OW!"

"OOF!"

Of course, Ruby was much stronger than Whitley, and the heir to the SDC fell off the bench onto the stone tiling.

"AH! WHITLEY!" Ruby gasped. She slid off the bench to his side. "A-Are you okay?! Did I hurt you? I'm sorry!"

"N-No! No, it... It's fine," Whitley insisted, as Ruby helped sit him up. "It's okay, it-it was just an accident!"

"You're sure?"

"Positive! R-Really!" Whitley nodded quickly.

"I'm glad!" Ruby said with a relieved smile.

The two realized they were staring at one another, then looked aside as their blushes returned in force.

"U-Um... You... You mean..." Ruby mumbled, "You really wanna... Take me out on a... A date date?"

"Y-Yeah," Whitley muttered back.

"Are... I-I mean... There are probably lots of prettier girls around," Ruby squeaked, "And-And richer ones, too!"

Whitley again looked away from her towards that tree. He then took a deep breath, and took Ruby's hands between his. She squeaked a bit as her skin seemed to light up as red as her namesake. He looked into her silver eyes, shaking a bit out of nerves.

"I-I'm sure... Y-You're a beautiful, cool, and fun girl, Ruby! I-I can't imagine going on a d-date with anyone else!"

Ruby stared at him in total shock.

"I... You think... I'm beautiful?" She whispered. Whitley nodded hard.

"Y-Yeah! And cool! You're super cool! L-Like, the coolest! I-I think we could have a lot of fun! Y-Ya know, on a date! And stuff!"

Ruby stared at him intensely.

"Would... Would we... Kiss? A-At the end?" She managed, 'kiss' coming out as a tiny squeak. Whitley coughed, his own face bright red.

"O-Only if you wanted to... If-If not, that's cool! I-I just like spending time with you! Though kissing you would be cool! O-Only if you want to though! Th-That's the important part!"

Ruby nodded furiously, resembling a bobblehead on the top of a broken clothes dryer.

"Y-Yeah! Yeah! N-No kissing if we don't want to!"

"Yeah!"

Silence fell. Ruby looked shyly down at their joined hands.

"But... Y-You'd... Want to kiss me?"

"I do want to kiss you!" Whitley blurted out. "T-That's why I said it!"

"I... Um..."

"Do... Do you want to kiss me, too?" Whitley asked, trying not to sound too hopeful. Ruby shut her eyes.

"I um... I... I don't know..."

"That's okay!" Whitley said quickly. "Th-That's okay! That's the whole point of a date! To-To find out if you wanna kiss someone! R-Right?"

Ruby calmed a bit, and nodded.

"Y-Yeah! That makes sense!"

"Total sense!"

Ruby beamed.

"So um... Yeah. The date. Let's... Let's do that."

Whitley's jaw dropped.

"R-Really?"

"Yes!"

Whitley grinned, and Ruby had to admit, she liked how he looked when he was smiling. He did it so rarely!

"O-Okay! Um... I'm gonna go now!"

"O-Okay!" Ruby said. She looked down at their hands. "Um... Can you let go of my hands?"

Whitley looked down at them, flushed, and yanked his hands away.

"S-Sorry!"

"Don't be sorry!" Ruby insisted with a nervous laugh, "I-I uh, I-I liked it! But um, you-you can't go if you don't let go of-of my hands! And-And I need those!"

"R-Right! Of course you need those!" Whitley agreed with a nervous laugh. They both stood up, blushing, looking everywhere but at one another.

"S-So... I'll... See you then?" Whitley asked.

"S-Sure!" Ruby said cheerfully.

"C-Cool! See you then!"

"On-On the date!"

"Yep! B-Bye!" Whitley waved nervously then turned and headed off. Ruby gasped.

"Oh! Y-You want to take your figures-?"

"N-No! You keep them!" Whitley said quickly.

"S-Sure!" Ruby called back. She watched Whitley turn the corner. She turned back to the table and sat down, still blushing up a storm.

He... He wants to kiss me? He wants to...?

Ruby stared at the two action figures curiously. She then reached out and picked them up.

How... How would that work? How would it look?

She slowly pushed the two figures together... Their lips drew closer... Closer... Her hands shook... Closer...

"AH! I CAN'T DO IT!" Ruby cried, dropping the figures on the table. Her blush got worse when she saw how they had landed-On top of each other and yelped again. "AAHH!" She picked them up in her trembling hands.

"Hey Rubes! What's shaking?" Yang asked, leaning in over her shoulder. Ruby dropped them... They landed in an even more suggestive pose on the table!

"GYYYAAAHHHH!"

- - -

Some distance away, near one of many ancient marble statues dotting the grounds of Beacon, Whitley was panting like he'd run a marathon. At his side, Jaune Arc patted him on the back.

"You okay Whitley?"

"Y-yeah..."

"So... What'd she say?" Jaune asked with an encouraging smile.

Whitley looked up with a frown despite his cheeks still burning red.

"Y-You saw the whole thing-"

"Yeah, but it helps when you tell a bro how it went, believe me," Jaune said with a nod.

"So... We're... Bros now?" Whitley asked quietly. Jaune grinned.

"Yup!"

Whitley managed a nervous grin back.

"Then... Then... She said yes!"

"YES!" Jaune laughed, clapping him on the back, "Great job, Whitley! You did it!"

"Yeah!" Whitley declared. He did a fist pump-He'd seen some of the engineers at the company do it and it felt satisfying, "YEAH! I-I did it! She's going on a date with me!"

Whitley then paled.

"I... She said yes and she's going on a date with me," he whispered. Jaune laughed and squeezed his shoulder.

"You overcame the hardest part, Whitley! The date will be a breeze if you just focus on having fun! And don't overthink it!"

"R-Right... Don't overthink it," Whitley agreed. "Don't overthink it..."

"Now go on, start planning things out," Jaune encouraged him, "Don't make it too strict a schedule, but don't just be 'whatever'. You gotta find a good balance! Okay?"

"R-Right, I need to put together an itinerary, find the things she wants to see most, add in time for random browsing," Whitley began to mutter to himself as he walked off. Still, he was smiling.

Jaune sighed and chuckled.

"Thanks Dad... Maybe your advice hasn't worked for me yet, but it's letting me help others," he said.

He felt a very strong grip on his shoulder. A grip that turned him around. He stared into the burning red eyes of a furiously grinning Yang Xiao-Long.

"Oh? And what advice would that be, Vomit Boy?" Yang hissed.

Jaune gulped.

Crap...!

Chapter Text

To be frank, Whitley hadn't anticipated the raven haired redhead…or her beauty…or her genius…at all agreeing to this date of theirs. Sure, he'd asked and a Schnee always got what he wanted, but something about this, about her,that made this feel…different.

A buzzing in his heart, an airy head, limbs that felt like clay she could easily pull apart…weakness, he realized. It was total, complete, and utter weakness. And yet for some reason, despite all sense he wanted more. More of it, more of her.

He'd been a man dying of thirst without knowing until she'd arrived, and now that he knew he couldn't help but want to slake his desires with her, to drink up her endless warmth, her smile, and her love. It was simple. Ruby Rose had ruined him.

In a good way.

And he hated it. Hated how much he felt her pull on stringshe never thought he had before, hated how much his stomach coiled as it awaited every reply, and hated how much he let her do this to him. An insult to living. To being a Schnee.

Yet he let it happen anyway. Because of course he would when weakness felt this good. Of course, today would be different. He needed to put a good step forward, to make a good first impression, and he couldn't do that with this…weakness plaguing his soul.

Sighing in exasperation of his own self, he channeled every fiber of his training. To speak clearly and concisely. To stand tall and firm (despite his less than stellar height). To cut out his own heart.

It was woefully easy, at this point. An incision here, a snip there, and he was rid of paltry emotion. At least until he forced it back inside himself.

Knocking on the door, he held out a bouquet of Roses—All different kinds. White, Black, Yellows, Reds, even Blues and Magentas. It was a beautiful mixture of Vale, Vacuo, Atlas, and Mistral, speaking to life, love, (it's death and rebirth—Essentially, it's eternity), the enjoyment of each other and the Sun together, and more. (Flowers had a language and he'd speak it fluently if he could help it.)

The door opened, and the goddess opened the door slowly and shyly, in a black and red dress that fit her quite nicely. It revealed how shapely she was beneath her corset, how her…developing features, and yet was modest and elegant in how it still centered on her youthfulness. Innocence. Ruby's face was crimson, and Whitley smiled, channeling every inch of his father's countenance when he courted Willow Schnee.

"You're breathtaking, Ruby."

The girl slammed the door in his face.

Whitley…well, he stared at the door, confused. He couldn't make out what was being said on the other side, but it was quite loud and heated. Eventually, the door opened again, and the Older Goddess (Yang), opened the door instead.

"Uh, sorry about that. My sister's a bit…shy, so she's feeling really nervous and uncertain about this." The blonde beauty commented earnestly as she rubbed the back of her neck.

The Schnee hummed. "I…see." Silence.

Why? Well, internally Whitley was stretched between his cool nature he'd forced upon himself and the panicking and dejected heart he'd torn out, moments earlier. So he did the only thing he could think of—Try to regain control. And how did he do that? Talking.

"I suppose you must be the Great Yang Xiao-Long." He started, proddingly.

"The one and only!" She replied proudly, flexing her arm. It was then Whitley took stock of her apparel, and—Wow.The dress was purple, going all the way down the legs instead of stopping at the knees like Ruby's, clearly having been fitted to accentuate her bombastic chest and prodigious hips. It lacked any shoulder covering, as well, but it frankly didn't matter, as the lion's mane she called hair did all the work for her.

Put simply, she was voluptuous.

"Yes, I've heard quite a bit about you." Whitley pressed on, noting it all without flicking for even a second glance.

"Oh?" Yang asked confidently, cocking her hips, putting a hand on her hair, and giving her voice a low, sultry tone as she leaned forward. All purposeful. All to make his blood race. He'd seen it all before, though. From less gorgeous women, true, but the act was the same. Down to even playing with her marvelous hair. "And what have you heard?"

Whitley didn't even move his eyes from her own. "How much Ruby adores you. You're like the Sun to her. She praises your strength, confidence, intelligence, integrity, and even your beauty. She feels herself a…pale shadow, in comparison." He phrased carefully.

Yang's eyes narrowed. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying be careful. Ruby…she's sort of like me. She believes herself stuck in the shadow of another, and puts herself down for it." The teen admitted, softly as he looked away, towards the white tiled floor. "She doesn't deserve that when she's beyond peer. Frankly, I don't see how she could believe herself beneath someone like you."

And he meant it, truly meant it. Sure, Yang's body was voluptuous, but Ruby's was divine. Yang may have been confident, but Ruby's shyness was honest. Yang may have a better combat record, but Ruby was a prodigy. Yang may have been every man's literal dream, but Ruby was…pure.Yang was "perfect," and Ruby was simply better.

The Blonde Huntress-in-Training blinked at his honesty. "I—Well—Huh."

Whitley coughed and held the flowers back up. "Anyway, I just wanted you to know that you should perhaps invest in something that helps bolster her self-image."

Because he'd seen what a damaged self-image could do to a person. That same person walked around mindlessly, drunk endlessly, and abandoned him entirely to the depths of a bottle when he was eight years old. He didn't want something like that to happen to someone as wonderful as Ruby Rose.

"And please, give these to Ruby."

As the Schnee went to turn away, however, Yang's arm bolted forward, like a viper, gripping his arm. "No."

"No?" Whitley echoed, confused.

"Because you're going to give them to her." Then Yang opened the door, and pulled the two of them into Team RWBY's room.

Chapter Text

As Yang pulled him into the room, Whitley stumbled—The strength of a Huntress-In-Training massively exceeding the strength of the teen, even when she had suppressed her powers to insane degrees. Looking down at the blushing Ruby, his gaze flicked up towards the others in the room.

Blake was watching with a notepad, and it didn't take a genius to figure out why as she wrote at speeds that would make Glynda Goodwitch jealous. Then he turned to the girl who held him hostage, Yang, with an inquisitive raised brow. After all, this is the Xiao-Long forcing the date that she originally protested.

She nodded, and Whitley turned back to Ruby. With a cough, he held his flowers back out. "Ruby, I believe you've forgotten these."

The Rose squeaked and sloooowly turned around, as if she was about to face the Grimm. Which was really something, because the reaper had always been fearless in the face of their ilk. "W-Whitley?"

The Schnee smirked, took a bow as he grabbed her hand and kissed it—Ever so gently, making her voice rise in pitch further. "The one and only." Then he pulled her up from her spot on the floor, an arm wrapped around her hip and keeping their bodies close.

His arctic blue eyes pierced her sterling silver, and she was left stammering. Good. Whitley then began to slowly dance, and on reflex Ruby followed. She wasn't capable of dance, of course, but she could reflexively follow the movements the boy lead her in, creating a more than decent mimicry of the art.

"I hope you'll excuse my intrusion, but I wanted you to have the flowers, even if we didn't go out." Was what flowed out of the Schnee, smooth and practiced. The benefits of cutting out his heart.

It took Ruby a good minute to catch her bearings, but eventually she did. "T-thank you, Whitley."

"I want you to know we don't have to go. We could stay here. Or if you don't want the date at all, I could leave. There's no problem in saying you bit off too much to chew."

The Huntress-In-Training paused, considering, and went to voice the affirmative. She just...she just wasn't ready!

Yang cut in, though. "But there's definitely shame~." She said in a sing-song voice. "After all, you can fight monsters, but you can't take a boy out to an expo? Plus, I can't wait to remind you of this for the rest of your life. Instant argument-winning material. Especially when you try to argue over your maturity—"

Ruby's gaze steeled. "I'll do it! We're going on the date, Whitley!"

KNOCK. KNOCK.

Everyone turned to the door. Yang stepped up to it and opened it. In it's place revealed Jaune Arc in a black and white suit and tie, his tuxedo well-pressed and fitted. Currently, he was fiddling with the cuffs. The Arc found them…itchy.

Yang snickered. "Hey Vomit Boy! I didn't realize you cleaned up so nicely!" Jaune looked up, went to speak, and then opened his mouth…and…absolutely no sound came out. It was strangled in his throat as his eyes roved the Sun Dragon's form, and then utterly decimated when he locked onto her most impressive feature—Her eyes. It was then that the box of chocolates he had fell to the floor. His jaw would've, too, but he had Aura for that.

"I-Yang-Ack-Mrg-Yang-I-Mrbl-Yang—" Was eventually what came out of his malfunctioning brain.

The blonde bombshell started laughing, wrapping an arm around the Arc and dragging him inside. "Never let anyone tell ya you're just a pretty face, VB." She quipped with a wink, not letting the fact that rendering Jaune absolutely speechless was making her…feel things. Things she definitely wasn't going to feel on this double date, because it was all about Ruby and Whitley.

At some point, Jaune's brain rebooted, and the Arc could actually form coherent strings of words. "Yang…you're—Wow. You're stunning."

"And I got the mind-blown Jaune Arc from a minute ago to prove it!" She chimed, grinning.

Whitley pulled away from Ruby, sitting her down on her bunk—Which honestly was great for her because that dance, atmosphere, and contact had her brain doing as many tricks as Jaune's was when he saw Yang. Probably more, because her's moved faster.

As she contemplated how Whitley was going to be the death of her, the Schnee walked over to Jaune and offered him a hand. For shaking. The Arc smiled instead and came in for a hug. "Don't be a stranger, Whit!"

His arms wrapped around the fifteen year old and pulled him close—Astonishingly so. Combine that with super strength (relative to even Huntsmen before unlocking Aura), Huntsman added strength (as in, the boost from Aura), and Jaune's familiarity with those of similar attitude to Whitley (but those people had greater strength) making him close his arms harder than he really needed to, to prevent escape, and you had a recipe for a dead Schnee.

At least, Whitley would've been if Ruby hadn't stepped in. "JAUNE! You're killing him!" Jaune looked at Ruby as if she was kidding, than down at the male fifteen-year-old—Realized she was absolutely serious—And immediately put him down.

"Huh. I wonder if that's what Nora feels like…" Jaune mused as he looks over the younger boy, (thanking his mother's training because the guilt if he killed Ruby's maybe-boyfriend would be infinite), and cleared him for the date.

Whitley, on the other hand, was counting his dying brain cells and drinking in every breath of air he could. "You…dolt…"

"Huh. Deja vu."

The Schnee's eyes burned with life-destroying anger. Inviting Jaune to continue. The older boy wisely chose not to.

"Right. Uh, so how are we getting to the Expo?"

Once Whitley got as much air as he needed, he caught his bearings, fixed his suit and hair, and then cleared his throat. "I have a privately serviced, luxury bullhead that will take us down to the Expo."

Yang blinked. "You mean rented and to like, a limo to drive there, right?"

Whitley smirked. "Why would I mean that? I intend only the best for your sister. Half-measures aren't that." Then, looping his arm with Ruby, who barely just realized what she really got herself into, he left the room. Jaune and Yang quickly followed.

One beat. Two. Three, to be safe.

Blake walked over to the closet door and opened it, revealing a loud and noisy bound and gagged Weiss Schnee. Protesting Whitley's decision. Protesting Ruby's. Protesting Yang for enabling those two. Protesting Jaune (in what Blake was certain a totally tsundere manner) for going out with Yang, and vice versa.

She sighed. "The price I pay for my real life dramas…"

Chapter Text

Yesterday evening...

After dinner, while they trained on the dorm roof as usual, Jaune was distracted. Pyrrha knew this very well, given how much attention she paid to him on a daily basis.

It wasn't weird or creepy for her to observe Jaune whenever possible! She was his partner, his mentor! She was always working on ways to make him a better fighter and to reach his goals! It was entirely understandable! It was part of how she had become so good as a fighter, that rigorous training to study, examine, and completely understand her opponent!

"URK!"

Of course, part of that training was in instinctively exploiting openings in her opponent's guard. Like how she had put her elbow into Jaune's jaw and sent him slamming down onto the roof of the dorm.

"Ah! Oh! Sorry!" Pyrrha said instantly. Jaune waved his hand with a wince and a smile.

"I'm okay! My fault!"

She held out her hand and he took it gratefully. She pulled him up onto his feet. Jaune let out a sigh.

"Ugh... Sorry Pyr. I should have paid more attention."

Pyrrha nodded.

"You've really improved your guard, Jaune," Pyrrha said, "But as one of my trainers said, if your mind isn't on the battle, you'll lose no matter how hard you train. Is there something wrong?"

"No!" Jaune said, a bit too quickly. He coughed. "Well... Sort of."

"Is it... Your family?" Pyrrha asked. She had made sure the private detective she'd hired in Radian was keeping her apprised of Jaune's very extensive family and relations. Especially his parents, with whom she knew he had a... Complicated relationship with.

J-Just to make sure it wouldn't affect his training, of course!

"No, we're... Working stuff out," Jaune shrugged, "I kind of got inspired to try talking to them again. Mom's still really unhappy but Dad's more supportive."

Right. She would need to bring her A-Game when talking to his mom about their marriage-If-If that happened!

"I'm helping out Weiss' little brother with Ruby," Jaune said. He grinned and winked. "He likes her."

Pyrrha smiled and giggled a bit, reaching up to cover her mouth.

"He-He does? Oh dear...!"

She could only imagine the torment Weiss was going through! A torment Pyrrha privately relished. Bad enough Jaune had feelings for her, but she had to stomp on his heartfelt and genuine overtures! Certainly, Pyrrha was glad Weiss was not interested in Jaune, but to be so rude!

If he did that to me... Ohhh myyy...

Pyrrha got her focus back on the moment. She smiled.

"So... You're helping him. How is that going?"

"Oh, great!" Jaune grinned. "I mean he's really formal and stiff and a little arrogant-"

"Like Weiss?" Pyrrha suggested. Jaune shrugged.

"Kind of... But at heart, he's like her. He loves geeking out over tech and he thinks she's cute and sweet. He uh, he didn't know how to approach things... So I helped him. And now they're going on a date!"

Pyrrha beamed.

"That's wonderful!" She gushed. Jaune nodded.

"Yeah! I think they'll be great together. And hey, it's just one date. But because it's the first, it's really tough. I know my first date was nerve wracking."

Pyrrha blinked quickly, then feigned ignorance.

"Oh?"

"Oh yeah," Jaune said with a smile, "I had a girlfriend back home. Her name was Katy Sith. We were childhood friends. To be honest, uh, I didn't know she liked me liked me until she marched into our house and demanded I take her on a date! Kind of dumb in hindsight, really."

"I... Yes. A little," Pyrrha admitted. She had done a thorough investigation on Katy Sith, too. She had gone to a local college to learn fashion, and worked as an online model on the CCTnet to pay her way. She seemed to have parted amicably with Jaune and had zero interest in getting back together with him.

... Just to ensure she wasn't a possible distraction for Jaune's goal, of course! That's the only reason Pyrrha had been so thorough in her investigation!

"But I got a little better at seeing things, I guess," Jaune said with a shrug, "And it's helped Whitley and Ruby."

"Wonderful," Pyrrha said with a smile. Jaune nodded back.

"Yeah! We're going to the Vale Tech Expo!"

"We?" Pyrrha asked, blinking in confusion even as she continued to smile. Jaune nodded.

"Yeah! Yang wants to be there to help Ruby, and since I'm helping Whitley, we're going on a double date. It's a lot less stressful when you're with friends on a first date."

Outwardly, Pyrrha remained her usual composed self, smiling gently. Inwardly, an icy block had dropped into her stomach as her mind went into overdrive.

Yang?! No! Why is she taking interest in Jaune now?! She's never shown any interest before! Is it because he reminds her of her father? Is it because she's seen how incredible and amazing he is?! No. Calm down. She's just a flirt, she's just supporting her sister, it means nothing!

She nodded slowly, then smiled in a teasing way she had practiced over and over for a hundred magazine covers.

"I see. Then you've given up on Weiss? She might be upset."

Jaune laughed and shrugged awkwardly, turning to look out at the sun setting behind the mountains off in the distance.

"After the dance, I realized... I was kind of going after her out of pride. What's important is making the people we care about happy," he said.

"... Yes, I-I suppose," Pyrrha allowed softly. She cleared her throat.

"You know, I-I could come along too," she said, "After all, I've been meaning to get to know Ruby better."

She was also a prodigy with a lot of pressure placed on her. Pyrrha had wanted to reach out to her, but honestly hadn't known where to begin.

Jaune turned back to Pyrrha and smiled apologetically.

"Sorry Pyr. A double date turns into a whole group thing if there's more than four people on it," he said, "And while Yang and I are going to keep an eye on them? They do need to be able to go and, well... Do the date themselves. Katy's older brother and my sister went on a double date or two with us for the same reason, but they let us figure things out on our own."

"O-Oh," Pyrrha allowed, nodding slowly as her heart clenched. "Yes, I suppose that makes sense."

Jaune smiled at Pyrrha and reached out to lightly squeeze her shoulder. His touch was, as always, electric.

"But we can make sure you and Ruby can meet up after," he said, "She does really admire you. She's just a little nervous to talk to you."

Pyrrha nodded slowly.

"Of-Of course!"

Perhaps she could steer Ruby into having another double date-This time with Pyrrha and Jaune instead! Yes, that could work! Now that Jaune's feelings for Weiss had cooled, maybe she could take some initiative! Just a little!

"And um... Do you need any help with your date with... Yang?" She asked politely. Jaune smiled and shook his head.

"Nah. I mean, I appreciate your advice with Weiss... Even if it didn't work..."

Pyrrha felt simultaneously pleased and ashamed.

"But this is just a friendly date," Jaune reassured her. "We're just gonna go off and have fun."

Pyrrha smiled, feeling a lot more relaxed.

Come now... She was being silly. Overreacting.

There was no chance of anything happening, right? Yang was too flighty, too free spirited to ever consider Jaune a viable boyfriend or-or anything else!

She wasn't worried! Not a bit!

"Uh, Pyr?" Jaune blinked, "Are you okay? You're holding Milo pretty tightly-"

"I'm fine~!"

Chapter Text

The trip to the Expo was short, but very sweet. Yang and Jaune couldn't help but be impressed by the level of luxury that Whitley was allowing them to dip into. The bullhead was decked out in state of the art games, the best snacks, all kinds of beverages, books, chairs that had dozens of functions—From relaxing to risqué, and even more slices of heaven within.

It took herculean amounts of energy and effort to avoid stuffing themselves, and Ruby even more to not let herself get immersed too deeply into a video game.

That's not to say they didn't play—They absolutely did. It was some game called Team Mario Racing, or Sonic Kart. Ruby picked Sonic the Plumber, a red speedster who fights Egg-Koopa. He was a daredevil with a heart of gold, and his car, the Red Rocket, represented that quite clearly. Jaune picked Luigi the Fox, a much less capable but braver player two compared to Sonic the Plumber. Yang was Princess Rose, a blonde with anger issues often courted by Sonic the Plumber. And Whitley himself chose Egg-Koopa, a genius monstrosity intent on ruling the world.

The races were intense, heart-stopping, and even friendship-breaking. Ruby watched as Jaune mashed buttons like his life depended on it, as Yang raged as she was hit by a Blue Shell, and as Whitley…well, did nothing.

Oh, he played the game. He pressed the buttons, he used items, engaged the drift, and was even good—Not stellar, because it was first time playing—Yet his face was devoid of reactions. When he won a game, he didn't cheer. When he was hit, he didn't cry. He just played. Silently.

His heart simply wasn't in the game.

How could it be, when he cut it out?

The Expo was a wonderful location. It was being hosted at a venue of very high regard, meaning it was pushing the very edge of what was possible architecturally. Elaborate, high white walls decorated with technology that was ornate in a way that radiated prestige and practicality.

Ruby was over the Moon, flitting from one piece of technology to te next, though—Thankfully—Without her Semblance so she didn't make a mess. It was actually quite surprising, considering her usual trouble walking in the "accursed Lady Stilts." It seemed like not even heels could stop the Rose from enjoying her hobbies.

As Jaune and Yang relished the high life, cracking jokes, and getting along—While monitoring the two, Ruby felt warmth bloom in her chest. Was this what it was like to be on a date? Experiencing such pure and innocent joy?

She looked up at Whitley, and she saw him smiling. But her stomach coiled. Not in the way it normally did, either. Usually, when she saw him smile (which seemed so rare) it made her heart flutter, her cheeks redden, and her stomach ache—As if she'd had too much sugar. This was different, wrong. The flavor of the smile was bitter, her heart ached, and her blood tingled.

Because this smile…it didn't reach Whitley's eyes.

No one noticed. It was so perfect, so…lifelike, that nobody could see the difference. In fact, she didn't think even Weiss could have noticed. But there was something in Whitley's eyes when he smiled, really smiled, that couldn't be compared. It was more Divine than her own Silver Eyes.

This…this sham made her sick, instead. Ruby studied Jaune and Yang, wondering how they couldn't see it. Couldn't find the flaw. Eventually, she turned back to the teen next to her, and to the show.

Whitley's heart wasn't in it.

How could it be, when he cut it out?

At some point, they came across the inventions of a company that was known to be shit at inventions. Hammer Industries. Its tools were crap, its tech was crap, its software was crap—Everything about it was utterly worthless. Essentially trash.

No one worth their salt would buy (or steal) anything HammerTech, even if they were stranded on an island with no other options. THAT is how awful it was.

Often, Ruby and Whitley would band together in their vitriol, in their disdain for the company's product. It was a past time they enjoyed together in the workshop that no one else could intrude on, because no one understood technology like they did.

The Rose figured that if she couldn't draw out positivity from Whitley, she could draw out his negativity. It was his base setting. His sass and snark were built into the DNA of Whitley Schnee. So she pointed out the tech.

It failed.

Oh, he scowled. He insulted. He gave her exactly what she wanted, and she joined in. But it was all…fake. It was hollow. When Whitley insulted someone, REALLY wanted to, there was a passion to it. A burning steel in his eyes that exceeded the cold flames of Hell itself.

This was…it was passable. It fooled their chaperones. But it wasn't REAL. Ruby bit her lip and played with the fringes of her dress.

Whitley's heart wasn't in it.

How could it be, when he cut it out?

Ruby went to the bathroom, and Yang, catching the signal, followed. The two young women stood in front of the mirror, fixing any imperfections caused by their outing. The older sister spoke first.

"Well, this date seems to have gone off without a hitch. I was convinced back at the dorm, but he's really sold me on him. He's pampered you, given you all your interests, and you two looked absolutely adorable in your anti-HammerBro tirade." Yang prodded.

"This date…it's gone terrible." Ruby admitted.

"How's that, little sis?"

"I don't know how to explain it…" The younger girl says lamely, looking towards his sister with an awkward air.

"Alright. Then I'll give you some questions. That cool?" The blonde bombshell asked as she leaned on the counter.

"…Okay."

"Has he been ungentlemanly to you?"

"No…"

"Have you had fun?"

"Absolutely. It's been a blast."

"Do you enjoy spending time with him?"

"Mhm."

"Has he done anything you don't like?"

"No. He's actually quite considerate…"

"Do you love him?"

Ruby squeaked. Then she paused and after some thought, nodded. "Yeah. I think I am, anyway."

"So the date's gone basically perfectly?"

"…Yes." Ruby winced.

"But it still is awful?"

"Mmhm."

Yang hummed, tapping her fingers. "I don't know how to diagnose it. You're saying that everything is great, but the date is still bad. It could just be you don't like him."

"I do, I do!" Ruby protested earnestly with red cheeks.

"Well. Then all I can say is to trust your instincts. It doesn't matter if he's God's gift to women and literally perfect for you—If you say nope, that's nope. I'll enforce and support whatever you want." The older sister chimed as she lifted her arms up and mined punching attacks.

The fifteen-year-old sighed. "Thanks, Yang." Then she got an idea. "I want a moment of just us. Can you do that?"

Yang mulled it over before nodding the affirmative. "In fact, I'll tell Jaune that the rest of the date is just a solo date, so we don't end up barging back in at the worst moment."

"You're the best!"

Yang raised her arms and flexed her muscles. "And don't you ever forget it, Rubes!"

It didn't take very long for Jaune and Yang to vacate the area, or for the Schnee to find them a secluded area away from anyone else. Once he had, he turned to Ruby with fluidity.

He was perfect. The picture of precision, of the doting and loving partner. Of everything she could ever want. He was wrong.

"You wanted to talk?" Whitley asked, his voice harmonious and tempting. Promising. Wrong.

Ruby coughed, clearing her throat. "Whitley…I've loved the date so far. It's been perfect. The games, the Expo, the dinner, the sky. It's been…amazing." And she spoke true. There wasn't anything she didn't enjoy, nothing that was less than absolutely perfect.

Including Whitley.

"I'm glad you feel that way. To be honest, I felt quite nervous through this whole thing."

'Liar.' Ruby's mind blurted immediately. She hummed. She needed to do this right. She needed to get past that wall. That wrongness. After a thought, she spoke. "I think…that we should have another."

It will was worth a shot, right? Typically a boy was hyper-happy to be promised more time to be with the girl they love. So maybe the promise of more would break the cold chains?

It wasn't to be. Whitley merely smiled that fake smile and nodded, replying in kind. Immediately, Ruby went to try and open her mouth, to say something hurtful, to force the Schnee out of his binds, but she froze. There wasn't a hurtful bone in her body. She couldn't. She wouldn't.

What was she to do? She thought back, to the last time the REAL Whitley Schnee spoke to her. It was in the garage, when they were talking about…

About…

Ruby's brain superheated, embarrassed, but following the advice of her sister, she followed her instincts. She kept her face in check. She didn't take more breaths than necessary. And her face was fair. Walking to her date in those damned Lady Stilts, she did the only thing she could do.

She kissed him.

At first it was like someone got two action figures and smacked their heads together, nothing more than chaste lips upon another. But as it happened, their faces became cherry red, blushing. The cold chains around the Schnee melted.

For the weakness of cutting out one's heart and keping it on the outside is that someone, especially the one you want to give it to, can rip it out of that box and shove your heart back in. Give you back your emotion. Your love. Your sorrow.

As his heart filled his cold body, for his skin was so utterly cold, his arms moved and wrapped around Ruby's hips, and the Rose made delightful sounds in turn as the kiss went from naught more than scant contact into a full liplock. He drank her and she drank him.

The cold, an addictive thing, flowed into Ruby, and the heat was stolen from her by the needy Whitley. As time passed, the kiss continued to deepen, their Souls becoming more and more tangled in one another. Red and White, bound together.

Once it reached it's zenith—A kiss that Yang wpild describe as 'X-Rated,' (Ruby had no idea what that meant), they pulled away from one another. Ruby's cheeks were the same as her name, but Whitley somehow exceeded that. The boy broke the silence with a stammer.

"W-whar? W-why…?"

"There you are." Ruby cheered. The real Whitley Schnee was here. Flawed, loving, full of emotion and just as awkward as herself.

"W-what?"

"Whitley…This date isn't working." She confessed as she put her hands together.

"I thought you said you liked it?"

"I did! I loved every second. But you didn't. I don't know much about dating and stuff, but I know dates are supposed to be about togetherness. Enjoying things together, enjoying each other. I had fun, but did you?"

"Sure I did—" Whitley tried, but Ruby shook her head.

"No. You pretended. You…you did something to yourself and it make you all…wrong. Icky. Worse. You didn't reallysmile. You didn't really cry. You were the perfect partner. It's just that partner was fake." Ruby explained, having gotten her words together now. After tasting Whitley Schnee, the REAL one, the cold fire within during that kiss, the one she FORCED out into the open, it became clear as day.

"I don't understand." The boy responded helplessly.

Ruby just hugged him. "I know. But I do. Sorta. I know I love you. The real you. What you did tonight…it was perfect. It was fake. We're gonna do another date, just me and you. And we'll really get to enjoy ourselves. Okay?"

Whitley wrapped his arms around her. "…Okay."

"Now, promise me that whatever you did, you won't ever do it again."

"Ruby—" He tried to defend, to try and explain he'd be useless on a date with his heart. It fell on uncaring ears.

"Promise!"

The boy gave in.

"I promise."

Chapter Text

It helped Jaune to know he wasn't the only person out of his depth when it came to the double date. Not just because Yang was so gorgeous he could barely keep his eyes off her, no. But Whitley's Bullhead filled with treats and games was just on another level for the farm boy and the girls from Patch. Ruby though took to it immediately, happily roping everyone into playing some rounds of Team Mario Racing.

He'd gone with Luigi the Fox, his favorite. He just kind of related to the nervous but determined little guy trying to help his big bro Sonic be the best he could be.

"Oh you son of a-!"

It also helped he had a lot of experience playing him, and Yang's rage as he blue shelled her again and again on the race course was satisfying... Even if he didn't want to admit to it.

Yang scowled at him, incensed, but with some respect in her lilac eyes. He didn't get a lot of that, that was for sure.

"Seven sisters," Jaune deadpanned, "If I was gonna get any playtime on our Gentendo set, I had to be good."

"Seven?" Whitley asked, raising an eyebrow. Jaune nodded and grinned before shrugging.

"Yeah."

"Eesh, and you thought you had it bad," Ruby giggled, playfully elbowing Whitley. He smiled, but it didn't quite meet his eyes. Not unlike Weiss, if Jaune thought about it.

Must just be nervous, Jaune reasoned. The Bullhead landed. "Oh, hey! We're here!"

"Excellent," Whitley said. He extended his arm to Ruby, who happily took it, "Shall we?"

"Let's shall!" Ruby said enthusiastically, nibbling on some cookies Whitley had provided.

Yang scowled a bit at Jaune, before she smiled and took his own offered elbow.

"All right... But you owe me a rematch," she said, her eyes lit up with aggressive mischief.

Jaune gulped.

"I-I look forward to it," he stuttered, not a word a lie.

- - -

The Exposition was held in the Odd Green Convention Center. It opened over a century ago, a gigantic green glass structure housing exotic plants and animals from around the world as part of Vale's World's Fair. It had been maintained and now was just one part of a greatly expanded convention center, leading from the exotic greenhouse to high vaulted white ceilings of modern construction. Here was where the Technology Exposition of Sanus really shined, as everything from holographic projector game systems to home appliances were showcased.

Ruby dragged Whitley to every single booth, nearly slipping into her Semblance at times due to how eager she was. Yang and Jaune followed, keeping a respectful distance.

"She's just lost in her own little world," Yang sighed with a little smile. She looked over at Jaune. "I was a little worried, ya know? She's had it a little rough making friends."

Jaune nodded.

"Yeah. I don't think we're alone in that," he said, nodding towards Whitley. "He's still having trouble."

"Yeah," Yang sighed, "Kind of like Weiss. There's this... Ice barrier, between them and the world. So it doesn't hurt them."

"We all do it," Jaune nodded, "We all have our defenses."

Yang glanced at him. Jaune shrugged, suddenly nervous.

"M-My mom's a doctor and well... You pick up a few things," he admitted. "But I miss a lot, especially when I'm nervous."

Yang smiled and squeezed his hand.

"And why would you be nervous, VB?" Yang asked, sing song.

"Um, well," Jaune stumbled. Yang grinned and leaned in.

"Is there any particular part of me that's making you nervous, Ladykiller? Hmm?"

Honestly, teasing Jaune was endless fun. And he deserved it for how he'd thrashed her at Sonic Cart.

"Anything come to mind~?" She crooned, leaning in even closer until her body very nearly touched his.

Jaune worked his jaw. He sucked in a breath. He looked her in the eyes, though it took a great deal of effort.

"Y-Yes," He managed.

Yang smirked and bent at the waist just a bit. Really pouring on the heat.

"Ohhh~?"

"Your eyes," He said, his gaze not even wavering an inch. Yang's jaw dropped and her cheeks went red.

"I-You-Wha-?"

"Your eyes," he repeated, "I-I mean, the rest of you is amazing but... I-I really love your eyes. They glow like the rising sun and they're perfect and just... I really like them."

Yang's entire face was bright red. Jaune sighed, tearing his gaze away from her and down towards their feet.

"I... Sorry, that's corny. You've heard it a million times-"

"No! No, I... I liked it," Yang said with a soft smile. She cleared her throat. "Um... I mean, I've heard a lot of lines but uh... Well..." She shrugged. "I haven't really been on many dates. And uh... They never went anywhere, so um... So this is nice."

Jaune smiled.

"Oh! Good!"

Yang stared at him, a germ of insecurity appearing in her chest.

"Uh... How about you?"

"Me? Oh, uh... I had a girlfriend. Childhood friend. We were really close," Jaune said with a casual shrug. A small stab of jealousy hit her heart next, but Yang powered through.

"Oh?"

"Yeah but uh, we broke up," Jaune finished, "And we mostly went to like, rodeos and town dances and so on."

"So we're both pretty lame, huh?" Yang asked with a grin. Jaune blinked.

"Me? Yes. You? No! No, never!"

"What if I walked with a limp?" Yang deadpanned. Jaune snickered.

"Heh... I think I'm gonna get in trouble if I say anything else."

"Oh? You don't like trouble?" Yang teased. Jaune smiled back, more relaxed.

"I'm starting to think it's your middle name."

"So, you wanna get into trouble? How deep do you wanna-?"

"Yang!" Jaune laughed/scolded, as Yang cackled. He shook his head and grinned. She was grinning back.

"I knew you were going to take me for a ride."

Yang winked.

"Might still be in the cards, farmboy!"

- - -

Nearby, Weiss and Pyrrha were dressed in trenchcoats and trying not to look conspicuous. They actually were managing it, for the most part.

Which was difficult given that Pyrrha had to hold Weiss back from charging Ruby and Whitley several times.

"That little-Ooooh!" Weiss growled. "He's evil! Pure evil!"

"Now now, Weiss," Pyrrha said tightly, "I'm sure your brother has... Good intentions towards Ruby."

"If they get married, we'll be related!" Weiss moaned. "Can you imagine?! The horror, the scandal, the annoying chattering!" She glared at the two as they enjoyed cryogenically prepared sushi. "He's always doing things like this without regard for anyone else's feelings! Hmph!"

She sighed and shrugged.

"Still, at the very least, Yang is keeping Arc occupied. Maybe he'll stop bothering me if they get involved..."

Everything metal, including the legs for a booth table and the limbs of a robot, began to bend and break ominously around them. Weiss stared at Pyrrha, whose smile was uncomfortably wide and whose eyebrow was twitching in a fairly terrifying manner.

"Um, Pyrrha? Are you all right?" She asked.

"I-I'm fine!" Pyrrha managed tightly through clenched teeth, "I'm totally fine."

Weiss blinked. She looked over at Yang and Jaune. They'd found a VR hologame where you played golf. Jaune was behind Yang, helping her to swing the club properly. He held his hands over hers as she took hold of the shaft, and swung with her.

"There, like that," Jaune said. Yang giggled.

"You played golf?"

"Ugh, my uncle dragged me along as a caddy," Jaune moaned, "So I had to play."

"So, you want to help me work your shaft?" Yang teased. Jaune turned red, but grinned back.

"Well, I gotta make sure you do it properly!"

"Ha!"

Weiss then slowly turned to stare at Pyrrha. She was gripping the edge of a metal table and bending it with the strength in her fingers. The guy at the booth cleared his throat.

"Um, miss, would you mind-?"

Pyrrha snarled at him, and he promptly turned and fled. Weiss' jaw dropped.

"Pyrrha, I-?"

The redhead flushed, then pulled her hands away.

"Oh... Um... Sorry."

Weiss blinked.

"You're... That upset about Arc? Why?"

"... No reason. No reason at all," Pyrrha mumbled. She glanced up back at Whitley and Ruby. "Are they eating ice cream together?"

"What?!" Weiss gasped, immediately distracted. Something Pyrrha was very grateful for.

- - -

Blake, having found a nice perch near the ceiling, was content to record the goings-on with her Scroll. Whitley and Ruby were cute, of course. Already she was weaving a fantastical tale of an ice hearted prince finding love with a cheerful red reaper... Maybe she should include a robot girl love interest to make the Ruby expy question her sexuality when paired with her love of mechanics? Yeah, and the Whitley expy torn between his loves... Even better!

But Yang and Jaune? Hmmm... It was strangely wholesome. Already she was imagining them happily married with a bundle of kids on a farm somewhere. She made a face.

It was far too vanilla. She tapped her chin with her pen.

Maybe if she added in their self esteem issues? And abandonment? Ooh, that could be spicy too! She scribbed some notes down. She would ask Jaune about ropes and knots he would use: He was a farmboy, after all.

And of course, Weiss and Pyrrha. Pyrrha was a blank slate, nearly impenetrable. Yet her actions here... Did she really care for Jaune that much? What a shocking twist!

The shy celebrity girl, unable to express her true feelings, Blake hummed as she scribbled more of her masterpiece down, Caught in a love triangle with the bicurious disaster that is a greedy, spoiled ice princess and the wholesome farmboy... Hmmm...

That could work! And it would make Weiss even more annoyed, which was definitely a bonus!

"Oh, hey Blake!"

"Hey Nora," Blake greeted, before she started and looked to her right. Nora and Ren were sitting on the same vent unit she was, Nora eating some cotton candy while Ren observed things below in his usual stoic manner.

"How-Wha-?"

"We are quite adept at going unseen and unheard," Ren stated blandly. "We're just here to make sure they have fun on their date."

"Ya know, before Pyr or Weissy go cray-cray," Nora said cheerfully, "You?"

"Ummmm..."

"She's writing more porn," Ren deadpanned.

"IT IS NOT PORN!" Blake whisper shouted. "It-It is romantic drama!"

"Ooh, neato!" Nora said happily. "Anything about us?"

"Ummmm..." Blake coughed. "Ah... Well...?"

Nora frowned.

"What? Nothing?" Nora demanded. "Not even of you stealing my Renny away and taking him for yourself? The stoic ninja stud who can understand your pain, drawn away by the seductive ninja catgirl from his destined love the hammer wielding berserker girl?"

Blake blinked a few times.

"... Shit, that's good," Blake muttered, scribbling it down.

Ren raised an eyebrow at Nora.

"Why would you want her to write that?" Ren asked.

"Cause if she's writing about stealing you away from me, that makes you even hotter!" Nora said cheerfully.

Ren blinked and looked back at their friends on the expo floor.

"If you say so," he said.

"I know so!"

Chapter Text

The sisters went off to the restroom, leaving Whitley and Jaune to sit at a small, isolated cafe in the main greenhouse area. The gimmick here were robot waiters, who hovered around on small Gravity-dust powered levitation skirts. They were colored red and had glass-like domes that projected your order on them, and then hovered away to go to the robot cooks to prepare the order. Other than the two humans, there was no one else around.

Whitley snorted a bit as he watched the robot waiters fly to and fro.

"Inefficient," he declared, "It would be easier to just transmit the order with a larger transceiver than waste time with the spectacle."

"Well, uh, maybe it's for the spectacle?" Jaune asked with a smile, "It makes them seem a bit more human, I guess."

Whitley nodded slowly. He then turned to Jaune.

"So... Do you think I'm doing well?" He asked.

Jaune blinked.

"You're asking me? I mean, you put all this effort into this."

"Yes, but pure effort is not enough," Whitley stated, "One must know where you are wasting energy. Do you think I'm doing well?"

Jaune glanced over towards the lady's room, then back at Whitley.

"Well, you've planned it out perfectly, and your timing is perfect. Ruby is definitely smiling and laughing a lot," Jaune said, "She is enjoying herself, but..."

Whitley frowned.

"But?"

Jaune hummed as one of the robot waiters brought them their drinks. He took his fruity concoction and took a long sip before he answered.

"She's a little tense," Jaune said, "And so are you."

"Nonsense," Whitley stated, "I'm executing everything perfectly. You said so yourself-"

"Yes," Jaune nodded, "And that's great. But you're... I dunno... Maybe that's the problem? Imperfection is just as fun as perfection! Least that's what my dad says."

Whitley frowned.

"I don't understand," he admitted.

Ruby and Yang returned, the latter grabbing Jaune's hand.

"Little sis and her date need some private time," Yang stated, "Come on, let's go see the seals!"

"Oh, uh, sure!" Jaune said. He thought he saw Whitley shoot a concerned look at him, but the smile on Ruby's face, while a bit tense, wasn't too upset. He smiled encouragingly at them both as Yang led him away.

They took a few turns through some glass tunnels before ending up at a large pool. A few onlookers were around the water, shooting photos of the seals swimming, eating fish, or chilling out on rafts of Dust-generated ice. Jaune and Yang held hands as they looked out at the exhibit.

"Everything okay?" Jaune asked. Yang turned and smiled at him.

"Yeah... They're sorting things out," she said. "So! How are you enjoying things with me? You getting the Yang of things?"

Jaune chuckled, squeezing her hand back.

"I think so. Sometimes I'm just barely 'Yang-ing' on," he joked back, and she laughed. It was wonderful to hear, and even more wonderful to know he'd caused it. "How about you?"

"I..." She looked at the water, surprisingly thoughtfully, before she looked back warmly, "Yeah. Yeah, I am. Though uh, I haven't actually been on a lot of dates."

"You haven't?" Jaune scoffed. "Come on, you're-you were like the most popular girl in your school!"

"Yeah," Yang sighed, "With a little sister I had to look after. That and... She exaggerates, okay? I mean, geez. I almost got kicked out twice for fighting. And on dates with guys, I..." She shook her head. "It never... Went anywhere, you know? I had to worry about her, I had to..."

She sighed.

"Sorry. God, I must sound like a brat."

"No, no," Jaune shook his head, "I get it. I mean, I didn't have much of a social life back home either." He looked back towards the water and grimaced.

"If... If it helps?" He tried, "I'm... Not exactly the paragon I'm presented as."

Yang snorted.

"Come on, VB. So you struggled when you started. It's all right! You tried your hardest and now you're able to keep up! That's nothing to be ashamed of! Me, eh. Ruby puts me on a pedestal but... Hey... A lot of what she thinks is wrong."

She looked out at the water herself, watching a seal blow some water out of its nostrils before diving again.

"Like I'm some... Super popular party girl, or the apple of Dad's eye," she snorted, "I'm just... I'm bluffing my way through a lot of this. If my dad hadn't intervened or been so popular, I would've gotten kicked out of Signal. And I've done my best but... I'm not her mom. And I didn't... Didn't do as good a job as she thinks I did."

She sucked in a deep breath.

"And now she's on a date and growing up and I guess..." She slowly shook her head. "I dunno... I'm sorry VB. I shouldn't be dumping all of this on you. I don't want to spoil the night and now I've gone and made it all heavy."

"No, no," Jaune shook his head, tugging her hand to get her to look at him, "I get it. I mean... My parents didn't even think I could be a Huntsman. My mom kept pushing me at medical school. My dad wanted to do more for me, but... Ya know, seven sisters and his job? It was a lot to juggle. When I got well enough to handle things on my own, I well... I had to figure a lot out myself. My parents did everything they could, and so did my sisters, but..." He shrugged. "I was just kind of... Awkward. Odd man out."

"Still, I mean," Yang smiled warmly, "They were there for you, weren't they?"

Jaune smiled and nodded.

"When it counted? Yeah... Mostly. Though I did screw up a lot... Did some things they didn't approve of. A lot of it because I was... Well, too stubborn."

Jaune groaned.

"Ugh, now I'm making it heavy," he sighed, slapping a hand against his face. Yang giggled, and leaned in.

"Nah," she said softly, "I'm okay with it being heavy... As long as we both carry it, huh?"

Jaune snorted in laughter. Yang giggled. They turned back to the leaping seals. And Jaune's arm naturally found its way around her waist. Just as naturally, she leaned in and made sure his grip was tight.

She turned her head to say something else... At the same time Jaune turned his to ask her something. Their lips brushed against eachother.

They jerked back a bit, staring at one another with red cheeks. Jaune took a deep breath.

"Ah, uh... Sorry," he mumbled.

"Seriously," Yang grumbled, "You should be."

"Huh?" Jaune asked, blinking. Yang coughed and looked to the side."

"I-I mean, uh... Not that I... Um..."

Seeing Yang being so bashful, so unlike her usual bombastic self, was really kind of adorable. Jaune then blanched.

"Wait... Was that your first-?"

"N-No!" Yang sputtered. "But uh... I mean... You could at least do it properly if you're trying to sneak one!"

He hadn't been. It had been a total accident. However...

"... Fair enough," Jaune said, leaning in to properly press his lips to hers. She froze, then tentatively kissed back.

In the background, the seals honked and barked happily as a light display went up. The couple continued to kiss, utterly lost in their own world.

- - -

Some distance away, Weiss scowled at the happy couple (though she wasn't entirely sure why).

"Damnit, we lost them," she muttered. "I can't believe he'd just run off like this... And since when does Yang have such low standards?"

Pyrrha was staring intensely at the scene. Her lips twitched a bit. Weiss stared at her.

"Pyrrha? Is something wrong?" She pressed.

Pyrrha worked her jaw.

"...I-"

"Hey guys!" Nora cheered, making Weiss jump and yelp. "There's this robot bar that makes pancakes and shoots them like frisbees! It also pours chocolate ice cream on them!" She slapped a hand onto Pyrrha's shoulder with a commiserating look, "I think we could use some."

Pyrrha slowly nodded. Ren showed up, along with Blake. The redhead sucked in a breath.

"Yes," she murmured, "Yes we could."

"Wha... Were you following us?!" Weiss demanded, as Ren and Blake gently but firmly led her away.

"Yes," Ren said, "To keep you from making a scene."

"I would not have...!" At everyone's looks, she flushed. "Okay, um... I might have. It is my family's future on the line here!"

"Then work it out with your brother in private," Ren pointed out.

"Though public would be more dramatic," Blake muttered, making some notes. Weiss stared at her.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," Blake said, smiling softly.

Chapter Text

Ruby had it all planned out. That may be hard to believe—She was flighty, anxious, nervous, and utterly incapable of thinking about Whitley without incredibly red cheeks—(It's not her fault! I-it's his! She swears!) But it was true. She had allocated a day, a time, places, and even had everyone else (except Weiss, strangely…) in on the plan.

What was that plan? What exactly had she figured all out? Their replacement date, of course! It wasn't easy, and it certainly required work, but Ruby Rose was, if anything, incredibly determined and stubborn. Some may call that a negative trait, but she had it on good authority it was perfect.

(Whitley was that authority. He commented on just how bad it was, and then said he loved for her it with the sweetest whispers and—Gods. He'd ruined her. Before him boys were all icky. Romance? Bleh. Crescent Rose for life! Now she's stuck daydreaming about that snow white hair, pale skin, that haughty voice and that arrogant smirk. It was just a small lilt to his lips, but it made Ruby's heart flutter. Not as much as his genuine smiles did, though.)

(…)

(This was all Yang's fault! Somehow…!)

Anyway, Ruby had it all set up. Now all that was needed was to execute. Walking to her closet, she got out her tried and true outfit, corset and all. As she went to put it ok, she went over everything to make sure not a detail was missed.

——

One Week Ago…

Ruby sighed and leaned against the tree, slowly sliding down it, arms crossed with a pouty face. Typically, she resolved this by being with Whitley in the forge, but such a solution wasn't viable today. The problem WAS Whitley. More specifically, what she promised him.

Their date had been a little while ago, and ever since then they've been having fun, truly dating. It was weird and awkward at first, being boyfriend and girlfriend, but once they realized it was just a label and that nothing had actually changed between them (outside of physical affection), it became normal.

(In fact, it could be argued they had been dating already without realizing it. When she had brought it up to him, their faces had become the same color as her name, and the thought of the implications—Well, when Whitley returned to the room hiding traces of her lipstick under his clothes, it became clear they'd REALLY liked the idea. Also, kissing was addictive. Moreso than Cookies. Don't let ANYONE know.)

Point being, they had rested into an easy pause, enjoying each other and themselves in such a way she had almost forgotten her promise to him. They were to go on another date and it would be "Real." At the time, when she said it, the thought had been as simple as "Do this again, but stop faking."

Now, though, she was realizing how foolish that thought was. She didn't know what or why Whitley had made himself fake on the Date, but she was sure that the Date ITSELF was the issue. The rest of the time, he was normal. (Well, as normal as he could be.) Going on a second one just wasn't feasible.

Maybe they could just…not?

It was a compelling idea. Besides, as much as people liked to pretend Ruby didn't know what…that was, she was more than aware her father himself had done the dating bit out of order. Mostly from when Uncle Qrow complained when he thought she wasn't listening. Apparently, Taiyang was a bit of a hypocrite.

(Admittedly, that made tons of sense to her. Yang was 17 and their dad was in his thirties, going onto forties. At worst, early forties. That could only work out numbers wise if their dad hadn't even waited until marriage or graduation before he decided to give Yang's mom…well. And considering how her Uncle phrased it, it was probably before even that, closer to their freshman and sophomore years, with Yang just being the one time their luck ran out.)

So why couldn't they? Ruby and Whitley could just be dating without dates! They were already in love, they liked each other, and it wasn't necessary to do things traditionally. Even IF she had REALLY liked the way Whitley had looked at her when she had on that dress (and those awful Lady Stilts).

But when Ruby thought of the moment, of Whitley's fake-ness, her heart—Well, it was hard to describe. It was like it fell to pieces and tried to run out of her chest (to him) all at once. Could Ruby really disappoint him like that? Back out of her promise? She was no Arc, and thus didn't live up to their creed, but she still highly valued her word.

No, she couldn't betray that trust and faith. Not ever.

So for those reasons, she was sitting under the tree of the Beacon Courtyard, pouting up a storm. Because she didn't know what to do, and found the situation hopeless. No date could possibly work, so as long as they went on one it was doomed to fail.

Then, Blake fell out of the tree. Gracefully. Which didn't make much sense, because she landed face first, but that was how it went. She very, very gracefully fell face first into the floor and rebounded onto her feet with a silky smooth movement. Eventually, she was on level with Ruby, sitting next to her.

"What's wrong?"

Ruby's silver gaze met amber eyes, and with a sigh she started speaking. "Hey, Blake…you have experience with boys, dates and stuff, right?"

The Faunus blinked.

"Well…" Briefly, she thought of Adam. They had definitely dated and been in a relationship, but going on an actual DATE? Not really feasible in a life on the run with the White Fang. The closest they got were silently enjoying the sights whilst on missions, or brief reprieves in population centers to enjoy themselves. Still on mission, of course. So no. Definitely no experience. But she couldn't say that. "…You could say so, yes." Ninjas of Love, don't let her down!

"Okay. So—I went on that date with Whitley, and it was…" Ruby started, slow and unsure.

"Was…?" Her teammate dragged out, proddingly.

"It was great! But also…bad."

Blake raised a brow and inched toward Gambol Shroud, causing the Rose to panic. "No-no! Not like that! I mean like…Whitley did it perfectly. But he wasn't…himself."

The Princess of the Faunus pulled her hand away from her weapon. "…Oh. Huh. Go on."

"So—Like—It was as if made it to where he couldn't enjoy the date because he was too focused on doing good!"

"Focused and awkwardly useless?"

"No, focused and—Attentive, polite, and charming."

"So the problem is…he's selfless?" Blake asked, confused.

"When you say it like that, it sounds dumb!" Ruby whined and pulled her hood over her head, feeling silly.

"That's not—I'm just trying to understand." The black beauty clarified.

"Well," The Rose paused before continuing. "It's like he was so focused on his task the best way he figured he could solve it is to stop feeling properly."

Blake's breath hitched. Adam resurfaced, but this time much, much less comedically. Her mind flicked to signs she should've picked up on, details she had overlooked in her youth. The way that Taurus' smile didn't reach his eyes, or when he straight up just didn't—Even when it was stuff he had loved. Like her. Ruby's words had resonated in a way that she hadn't ever anticipated, and so the Faunus hadn't been prepared for the way she was immediately ready to help her team leader.

Of course, she was going to do that anyway, for her real-life drama, but still. There was a new, surging need to help, beyond her personal entertainment. Slowly letting her once caught breath ebb, an exhale for the ages, Blake's amber gaze focused. "Okay. I have some experience in that field, too."

"You do?" Ruby asked softly.

"Yes. And right now, the fact you can recognize there's an issue and that you need to do something about it puts you far beyond me when I was your age."

The Rose preened a bit, feeling a bit of her ego being bolstered. (Then she remembered she was supposed to have normal knees and felt conflicted.) "So what do I do?"

"To be frank, I…never quite figured that out either. What I can say is you aren't to blame for whatever he's going through. You never will be." To Ruby, it sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than the younger girl, but she didn't comment. "And that you should definitely try to help." The Belladonna grimaced at her memories. "When it was me, I didn't see it and what I did notice I left be. By the time I realized…realized that he had changed…It was too late."

The leader of Team RWBY just stayed silent, listening carefully.

"He was gone. The person I had fallen in love with had died some time ago. What remained were the warped remnants, a semblance of what was."

"Warped? By what?"

"Negativity. He didn't see the good anymore. Just the bad. When he was younger he could see justice and cheer and stand up for what was right when he came across injustice. But at some point he only saw the injustice. Only lived the fight for our freedom." Blake curled up her legs, hugging them as she spoke, her golden eyes glassy. "If Whitley is like that, then he needs you, but don't feel…responsible if you fail."

The Red Reapette hummed, thinking. "I don't think he'll end up like that. It wasn't just the good feelings he lacked—It was bad ones too."

The mysterious beauty's eyes finally returned to a suitable level of cognition, no longer trapped within the compounding fractals of the past. The ghosts of what used to be losing their hold, Ruby's words brought the Faunus to the present. Blake tapped her knee. "That might be just as bad."

"Hm?"

"On one hand, many would say that experiencing only negativity makes you no better than the Grimm. While we don't know for sure, it's believed they're made of darkness and negativity. Bad emotions. It's why they track it, why they hate the positive light of our Souls, our Aura. If a person only experienced the darkness of the world, without the light, then they're experiencing the world as the monsters we hunt." Blake started softly, running her finger up her legs as she spoke.

Ruby kind of understood the idea her ally was explaining, and so nodded. It's why Raven and the White Fang woreGrimm Masks, to represent that very concept. To become the weapons of fear by proclaiming "Look what the world has made of me, a Monster." And human monsters…the bad guys, they were bathed in evil. Metaphorically, and in X-Ray and Vav, literally.

"But on the other hand, many would say that feeling something is better than nothing at all. To feel is the human experience. Even people who experience nothing but agony and suffering, and are shaped by it, by definition are embodying the human spirit when they torment. Even if it's the part we'd rather not discuss. Feeling nothing? Not even the negative? That's…inhuman." Or, as the context was portraying, monstrous.

Ruby's steel gaze became laser-focused. "Which is worse?"

"I…I don't know. If Whitley's anything like Weiss, his behavior is informed by his circumstances as a Schnee. It could be nothing…or it could be an omen for the worst." Was all Blake had to say.

Such an answer only motivated the Rose more. Then, Ruby wrapped her arms around her teammate, grateful. "Thanks, Blake. I know that your secrecy is important and we aren't all that close compared to your bond eith Yang, so this means a lot to me."

The Faunus moved in kind, hugging the younger girl and leaning on her. "Of course. You can come to me at any time. I don't want you that sense of…distance to make you not seek out my help. Especially with something like this."

Ruby intoned softly as she pulled away. "So what do you suggest? For Whitley?"

Blake took on a wry look. "Well, while my personal experience is bad, you could absolutely use something from Ninjas of Love."

Ruby only groaned. "Not that filth!"

They started to laugh together, giggling. In between chuckles, Blake presses on, but is clearly joking. "It may surprise you."

"Oh?"

"Well, the Protagonist—Kurona, the man she loves is another Shinobi. He's sold his soul to the job, though, and only enjoys physical activities. So she tricks him by going on outings with him that are dates without letting him realize they're dates."

The younger girl froze. "OHMYGODBLAKEYOU'REAGENIUS—" Was all that came out before she vanished in a sea of crimson petals.

——

Now…

After that, it was a matter of picking venues, keeping what their outing was a secret, and preparing. The Huntress-In-Training had even enlisted help from the entirety of her friends. She asked Pyrrha what Whitley might want as a fellow isolated rich person, had Yang coach her on leading a date (without becoming a beet red mess), had Nora running distraction to prevent Whitley figuring it out (gibberish best rational thought any day), Ren and Blake were to monitor him to make sure he still suspected nothing, and Jaune—Confidant to Whitley that he was—Acted as the voice in the boy's head that put him in the proper, real headspace for this date.

The only one she hadn't gotten help from was Weiss. In fact, she hadn't seen her in a while, but the rest of her friends had assured her not to worry.

Clothes on, she went to the door and opened it, grinning as she went to JNPR's dorm to get her boyfriend. You could consider Ruby Rose many things. Stubborn, headstrong, idealistic. Typically these were bad qualities. But Whitley adored her for them, and now it was time to use those same qualities to help him and save him from a cold, heartless future. (Plus, it got her more of those addictive cold kisses.)

Chapter Text

Ruby was grinning, leading her boyfriend by the arm. "C'mon, Whitley! The Festival has probably started already!" The white haired boy was helpless to her hold, unable to at all resist the strength of the crimson comet that was stringing him around. Huntress-In-Training strength, even on the very fringe low-ends that left the fifteen year old girl physically inferior to everyone in their year, still completely outgunned 95% of the population's power on that front. It was just the benefits of a lifestyle that honed the body for her entire life and Aura.

"Yes, well, if you had let me prepare beforehand, we wouldn't have had this issue!" Whitley commented with a snide tone as he tried and failed to save himself from the whirlwind he considered the love of his life. Ruby only beamed in response. Somehow, that made the Schnee conflicted. On ONE hand, NO! His mean-ness was NOT supposed to earn him smiles! Feel bad about the inconvenience, charlatan! But ALSO, on the OTHER hand, he couldn't help the small tinge of warmth on his cheek. He hated to admit it, but that infestious optimism was just part of her charm. 

"Yeah, yeah. You're the meanest, baddest kid in Beacon." Ruby teased as she lead them to their destination, the seat of a public bullhead. "All hail Whitley, master planner of all time."

The Schnee scoffed and turned his face away from her in mock hurt. "I'll have you know I am NOT the meanest, baddest kid in Beacon."

"Oh? And who would you say takes that role?" Ruby asked with a curious, but amused tone.

"Coco. She's incredibly vindictive. Apparently, the only reason Cardin has legs still is because Velvet convinced her not to swap out Cardin's Dust for Dust amped by her Semblance, Hype." He noted with what almost could be a shudder. Almost, because Whitley Schnee was afraid of no one. And thus any contradictions to that information simply didn't exist. At all!

Ruby, understandably, winced. "Ouch. That sounds bad."

"Yes, precisely."

The Rose clicked her tongue and let her gaze rove over the snow-haired child. "Okay. Then I guess you're...hm. What are you the -est in at Beacon?"

Whitley looked at her with a pointed look, almost offended at her lack of immediate grasp on the answer he'd choose. It was sort of adorable in that 'haughty rich kid' way.

"Right. Smarts and money. Should've seen that one coming, honestly. Though, are you really the smartest? I mean, I'm nearly as smart as you in the forge, Pyrrha and Weiss get really good grades like you do, and Jaune comes close to beating you in strategy games." Ruby listed. However, she was rewarded not with an afronted look, but an arrogant one. 

"Yes, individually each of you may rival me in one small piece of the puzzle that is my intellect, but consider how none of them can match me at everything. You can or legitimately are better than me in weaponmaking--In fact, I'd bet you're my superior. But you lack any strategic capability and your ability to learn is immensely stunted. My sister can learn extraordinarily quickly, but she's a moron--"

"--Hey--!" Ruby protested.

"--Who can't do anything without tripping over her own feet in terms of applying that information. And while Jaune definitely has the makings of a good leader, I doubt he could tell me anything about working around technology, history, politics, or even deeper understanding behind those comics you two read beyond 'it's cool.' To put it simply, none of you can match the full extent of my brain."

Team RWBY's leader hummed. "I guess that makes sense."

"You guess?"

"Yeah. I mean, Pyrrha is smarter than you in a fight, because you don't fight. And Penny has a robot brain that is better than any ordinary fleshy brain. So technically you got a few holes in the logic, there, but I mean you're mostly right anyway!" Ruby chirped innocently. Whitley raised a finger...then he dropped the finger, crossed his arms, and looked out the window, grumbling. 

Ruby couldn't quite piece everything together, but she was sure she heard something like: "Dumb...lucky I think she's cute...I'll...then strangle Nikos...THEN we'll see who is smarter..." The girl only chuckled at his pout. Then, while he was distracted, she took a deeper look into his expressions and position, to see what exactly he was feeling. A few things she noticed right away was just how uncomfortable Whitley was in his seat. He kept his distance from anyone and anything not her, (which made her stomach do things), speaking to a rather strong aversion to contact. In fact, he straight up didn't even let the skin of his arms touch the seat, and did his level best to keep his legs the same way.

It was sort of odd, at first, but after some thought it made sense. Whitley was used to the upper crust of society. For her, this Bullhead was relatively clean. For him, this place was disgusting. For her, it wasn't uncommon to bump into another and just walk off the contact. For him, mere touching of his skin with those several classes beneath him was the definition of filth. Hm. Problematic.

But...was it a problem, really? After all, she's finding all these flaws, and wants to change and fix them. But that implied she didn't like him as he was. And that was untrue. Ruby really and truly believed (no, KNEW), she had feelings for the lad. So why was she trying to change him? Plus, all of the fairytales said it was better to stay true to yourself and not to let someone else change you. Wasn't she, by trying to change Whitley, one of those bad people in the stories trying to make Whitley not true to herself? Ugh. This love stuff was waaaay more complicated than she thought. 

Present Ruby resolved to file that all away and let all of those problems bother Future Ruby. It almost always (read: NEVER) worked out for her before! Why wouldn't it now?

Chapter Text

Whitley let himself be dragged into the throng of random strangers, because honestly there was no point in trying to fight Ruby when she had her mind set on something. "You know, when you said we should go out on the town, I thought you meant a tour. Or a shopping trip."

Looking around, he raised a brow at the location she had brought them to. It was once an open field, having been cleared by Huntsman and Huntresses, and now had tons of stalls, attractions, and general activities placed to entertain. How droll.

Ruby smiled innocently. "I just thought we could have some fun together. Unless…" Her eyes soon became silvery puppy-messes. "…You don't like it…?"

The Schnee panicked. "No-no! I like it, I like it!"

"Yay!" Then the Red Reapette glomped him.

There was a snicker from a nearby. Whitley slowly craned his head, looking for the source.

"That guy is totally whipped."

"Not a sign of backbone."

Mm. He stopped himself, thinking. There's no reason to assume they meant them. And even if they did, insulting him was worthless. Such trivial behavior was beneath him. "It's fine."

"And the girl he's with—How lame! I mean, how much do you need to play up how young you are?"

"Probably to cover up her horrible sense of fashion."

Whitley's eye twitched. It's fine. They could mean anybody—

"I mean, black hair with red tips? That's so last year. And those straps—How many do you need?!"

"Not to mention that the girl's got nothing to show for it."

—They deserved to die. It wasn't long before Whitley found the source of his ire. His icy eyes found the pair of girls staring and mocking at the Rose-Schnee couple. Going to take a step in their direction, he realized he couldn't walk.

"What?"

Looking down, the Schnee realized that his girlfriend was keeping him still. He turned to the girl, who was smiling through a flushed face. "Mm." Then she started rubbing said face into his shoulder.

"Ruby? What are you doing? Why are you preventing me from—?" He inquired in confusion.

"I just really find it nice that you want to defend eme." She said softly, causing Whitley's hardened gaze to completely shattered.

"Of course I would. You mean the world to me." He replied instinctively. It was reflex, almost second nature. Realizing what he had said, he froze and his face became crimson. "Let me go. I don't need much assistance in walking."

Ruby nodded and dropped the teen, smiling. Her head was in the clouds, and so to was Whitley's. Shaking their heads, they gently intertwined their fingers with one another as they walked together into the clearing. Then the Schnee cleared his throat with a cough, looking to the side. "So, the fair."

That startled Ruby back into action. The gameplan! Er. With a bit of quick thinking, she remembered the lies she practiced! "Right. So, I thought about doing that at first, but I realized we haven't really hung out anywhere outside of Beacon."

"That's not true. We've gone out to eat, we've bought parts together, browsed your reading habits, and—" Whitley was about to go into a long list, only to be silenced by one of those addictive hot kisses. He melted into her, and enjoyed the pouring of his cold heart into her embrace.

It was too short. Too short and not nearly enough. When she finally pulled away, his thoughts were totally scattered and incapable of perceiving more than the strawberry flavor of her lips.

Ruby smiled again. "So. The fair."

"Right. The fair." Whitley echoed with no resistance as she dragged him away once more.

—

The first stall they played at was a the ring toss. The bottles were set up so that the close ones were low on points, and the long-distance ones were worth a ton. It was clear that the man running it had seen many a pair like them, because he his grin was beaming.

"You two having a fine evening?"

Whitley flicked his gaze around the game's parameters and raised a brow. "Yes, but I imagine it'll get even better."

"Ah, a prickly one. Makes sense. Couples like yourselves need one of those to work. Don't balance out right, otherwise." The stranger commented with a twinkle in his eyes.

Ruby just shyly put her hands out to pay—To play the game. The Schnee scoffed and his arm leapt out like a viper, holding her arms down. "You will not pay a single cent. This outing is for your benefit, and as such I'll be covering all expenses."

The stranger's grin only grew as he took Whitley's lien. "Ah. The good kind of prickly." Turning to Ruby, he nods. "You've made a mighty fine choice, miss. Though, I'm guessing he's currently missing the forest for the trees right now."

Whitley merely ignored the man's odd words, grabbing the rings and tossing them to the best of his ability. Unfortunately, while the Schnee certainly had the brain, he did not have to muscle control, reflex, or the physical ability to act on the intellect. He missed, epically.

Unsurprisingly, Ruby was much the same. She had Huntress-In-Training coordination and strength with Crescent Rose, but outside of that her actual ability to manipulate her body was very little. Fighting with such a massive weapon all the time simply created a constant misjudgement of distance, force, etc.

Whitley seemed like he was about to pay for another round, but with a hearty laugh, the stranger stopped him and held out two chocolates instead.

The Schnee raised a brow. "What is this? We lost."

"Ah, this isn't the prize. The prize for winning is a goldfish. This is more…a consolation prize." The man explained with a wink.

"Pity?"

"Only from a reductionist view."

Whitley was about to go on a tirade, but Ruby instead just went to take the candy. Only for the man to hold it out of reach on her short, stubby legs. "Hey!"

"There's a catch. You can two can only eat the candy at midnight." He stated as he dropped the sweets back down.

Whitley crossed his arms. "Why?"

"Tradition."

The Schnee wasn't convinced, but the stranger's impeccable poker face left no hints.

"Fine. We'll eat it at midnight." Then Whitley snatched up the chocolates and stuffed them in his pocket before he turned to leave, Ruby quickly following suit.

The man simply watched them leave and sighed. "Ah, young love."