Yang pushed her little sister against the garage wall, trapping the smaller girl with her body. "Alright, what the hell, Ruby? You haven't said a word since we left, and you're usually telling me all about what you did at Weiss' place."
To the tough blonde's surprise, Ruby didn't put up a fight. "I ruined her life," she mumbled, staring at her shoes.
"What? How could you, the most adorable little sister in the world, make someone that upset?" Yang easily scooped Ruby into her comforting arms and gave her an Eskimo kiss.
"Quit it, Yang," Ruby giggled. "This is serious."
"I just can't stand to see you all depressed like that," Yang reasoned. "Tell me everything that happened."
•••
"After I said sorry and she told me there wasn't much I could do about it anyways, we didn't talk to each other at all. She just grabbed a book and started reading on her bed, and I messed around on my phone. It was a good thing you came so soon."
"Wow," Yang responded when Ruby finished her story. "Not even I get that pissed when someone kicks my ass."
"That wasn't why she was upset!" Ruby exclaimed. "It's because that was the last time she ever had a match. Her dad forced her to hang it up because she came in second place."
The blonde made a guilty face. "...Oh..."
"All this time, we've been fencing behind his back," Ruby continued, "and I had no idea that Weiss was using me as an excuse to go back to doing what she loved. And now, she's super mad at herself for it."
"That's not why she did it," Yang replied.
Ruby looked at her sister quizzically. "How do you know?"
Yang tapped her chin. "I don't think someone like her would spend so much time with you just so she could earn your trust. Think about it! Fencing isn't all you've done together. You've hung out a few times, on top of that. You talk to each other, even through text. I've seen you make her smile. And now, you've seen her cry, twice, and not by coincidence. She let you. You said she even kicked Blake out of the room before she broke down this afternoon!"
"You aren't just her tool, Ruby," Yang concluded. "You're her friend. She's convinced herself, out of guilt, that she's been using you. She can fool herself, but not me. I know what friends are, and you do, too. I'm... not sure if she does."
"Yang, that makes me feel even worse," Ruby whimpered.
Her older sister chuckled. "I'm saying that she needs you, Ruby. You're the only one who can show her what friendship really is. Who knows whether she's let anyone else close enough to experience that?"
"You know what?... You're right! Thanks, sis!" Ruby suddenly sprung off the couch and ran towards her room.
"Ruby, what're you doing?" Yang called, laughing.
"I'm gonna show Weiss what friendship is!" Ruby shouted back.
•••
Monday. It was usually the worst day of the week, but today felt even more dreadful. Monday meant school, and school meant Ruby.
"I don't feel good," Weiss whined when Blake told her to get up.
"You feel fine," she argued. "You aren't fooling me."
"How do you know?" the heiress asked with a pout.
"I have my ways. Now, get up. We're leaving in an hour," the incognito Faunus replied mysteriously before slinking out of the room.
"Uuuuuuuugh!" Weiss turned over and stuffed her face in her pillow. Blake was right, as usual, but Weiss did feel feverish every time she thought of setting foot on that dreaded campus again.
Naturally, Weiss spun up a lie worthy of deceiving her witty cousin. Blake had no idea why her cousin was so reluctant to go to school, and Weiss wanted to keep it that way. Talking to Blake was like being in a room covered in mouse traps.
As such, she had no other option than to comply and get ready for school. However, the looming realization of having to confront Ruby again made it less than pleasant. Red toothbrush, bloodshot eyes, raw cuticles from her nervous habits returning the previous evening... Just looking at the strawberry jam on her pancakes made her want to gag. She managed to skip breakfast with a heartfelt apology to the cook.
"You really do look like a wreck," Blake observed when they got into her black BMW. "Something tells me you weren't just talking to Ruby about grades yesterday."
"I simply had trouble sleeping last night," Weiss snapped in reply. "Nothing more."
Blake sighed wistfully. "If you say so, Princess. Next stop, Beacon."
•••
"Go get 'em, tiger!" Yang encouraged, ruffling Ruby's hair.
"Yaaaaaang!" The little brunette tried to smooth her hair out. "I just fixed my bed head!"
"Little old me, mess up my sister's hair?" Yang mocked. "Oh, no. I was just fixing you up to look your best for your girlfriend."
Ruby slung her backpack over her shoulder and left without another word.
"Well, shit. I was only teasing." Yang waved her off and practically screamed, "Bye, Rubbles! Have a good daaaay!"
That Monday was starting to feel like the first day of school: an obnoxious adult sending her off, no idea what to expect, and a possible run-in with the most beautiful girl in Vale. Ruby brought her head back up. Today would not be a repeat of the first day.
•••
Weiss was there in body, but not as much in spirit. Whenever Ruby tried to approach her, she'd ignore her or walk away. She never spoke a word to anyone, and it seemed as if like she was merely a ghostly apparition wandering the halls of Beacon.
When she didn't show up at the usual table during lunch, Ruby was fed up. "Sorry, guys, but I'm going to find Weiss," she told her friends.
"Weiss is acting really weird today," Ruby heard Coco say as she left. "Maybe Ruby has something to do with it."
Ruby knew the next best place to find her was in the library. When she entered, she found it mostly empty. That was probably because food and drink normally wasn't allowed inside, but Weiss once told her that the librarians made an exception for her because of her refined manners and high status.
Ruby went up to the checkout counter. "Hi," she whispered to the librarian. "Is Weiss in here?"
"Yes, dear, behind those shelves," the librarian replied, pointing her in the right direction.
"Thanks," Ruby said with a smile before going over to her friend. When she peered around the corner, there was Weiss, leaned against the shelf and reading a book. Her lunch was left untouched.
Crud, Ruby thought, chewing at one of her fingernails. She looks even more upset than she did earlier. What if she just walks away again? Man, that would be humiliating. But nobody's watching and I sacrificed my lunch for her, so I may as well sacrifice my pride!
"Hey, Weiss?" she called quietly as she came into the heiress' view.
Weiss turned and looked at her solemnly. "You seriously followed me here? Why do you even want to be around me?"
"I told you yesterday," Ruby replied, sitting down next to her. "Nothing you say or do will change the way I see you. And I see you as more than just a friend, Weiss, even if you don't feel the same way." She paused, the suddenly realizing what she had thought out loud. She silently thanked [the author] for Weiss not grasping the significance of what she had just said.
"I don't even know what I'm reading about." The heiress shut her book. "I'm just as ridiculous as you are sometimes," she sighed. "Sorry for the way I acted yesterday... again. As much as I hate to admit it, I don't know what to do."
Ruby smiled. "That's exactly what I'm here for." She pulled something out of her pocket, took Weiss' hand, and gently placed the item into it.
When the heiress snatched her hand back, she found a braided bracelet in her palm. "What is this?"
"It's a friendship bracelet," Ruby chirped, pulling out another one and slipping it on her wrist. "I have a matching one. Now we're like best friends! ...Heh."
Weiss looked from Ruby to the bracelet in her hand and suddenly broke into a hushed laughter.
"What's so funny?" the little brunette pouted, blushing.
"We really are ridiculous," Weiss giggled, fitting the bracelet around her wrist.
AN: yay, more OOC Weiss and plot development! Sorta. Also added some extra gayness for a very *demanding* editor. It's about time they had that whole situation settled. But with the secret out, will they continue fencing as they have been? Find out in the next chapter... *insert dramatic gopher here*