The Werewolf of Beacon - SeleneLawfulGood, pixlh3art (2024)

Chapter 1: Move-In

Chapter Text

Ruby flopped down on her bed, finally done unpacking. Her dad and Yang had left about an hour ago, once they’d gotten all of her things in from the car. She stretched and yawned as her scroll buzzed.

Yang: Did your new roomie get there yet?

Ruby rolled on to her side, swiped open her phone and lazily typed out a reply with one hand.

Not yet.

Finally got all my boxes unpacked, though.

Thanks for helping with that, btw.

I told you, I have homework!

Classes haven’t started yet.

Well when you’re a junior they don’t wait for classes to start before crushing you with work.

That’ll be you somedayyyy~

Ugh really?

Enjoy your youth while you can, dear sister.

Lol love you<3

Love you too<3

Ruby rolled her eyes at Yang’s antics and rolled off of her bed. She put her hands on her hips and stared at the gargantuan pile of stuff that she had made from the contents of her boxes. “Okay,” Ruby said aloud to herself. “I can totally do this. I’m gonna get organized and put things in the right places, and… yeah.”

Her room was surprisingly nice, for a freshman dorm. Yang had told her that Beacon College was like that, which Ruby was very grateful for - she could vividly remember her dad’s stories about his college days with Qrow, and how they apparently had just thirty square feet to their name during their first year.

The room was listed as a “studio double” apartment, so it was mostly all one chamber. There was a tiny kitchenette right by the front door, with little more than an oven/stove hybrid, refrigerator, and sink. Across from the kitchen was a door that led to a small but private bathroom. Ruby’s bed was in the far corner, and her desk was against the wall opposite the front door. Her short dresser was at the foot of her bed, and a tiny (apparently shared) closet took up the very small amount of wall space between her bed and the kitchen.

On the other half of the room was an almost identical setup, with the two desks actually touching one another. Ruby was a little concerned about that, because if she and her roommate didn’t get along, then that would make homework very awkward.

Ruby was around halfway through moving all of her kitchenware into the cabinets when she heard the door beep once. She recognized the sound from when she’d unlocked it herself. Ruby fumbled the several objects in her hands for a moment - this was about to be her first impression with her new roommate!

“How am I supposed to be standing? What would a normal person be doing the first time that they met their roommate??? What if she’s mean and judges me?!?!?”

“This appears to be your room, Miss Schnee,” Klein said.

“Yes. Thank you for helping me carry everything, Klein.”

“Of course, ma’am. Though I do apologize that Mr. and Mrs. Schnee weren’t available to help you move in.”

Weiss sighed. She knew that he was only trying to be polite, but she was honestly grateful that neither of her parents were there to help her move in. She’d chosen Beacon College over Atlas University for a few reasons, but by far the largest one was to get some distance from her family. Especially since Winter had started going to Atlas U, and had been making excuses to stay there for every holiday since.

Weiss pressed her brand-new card up against the door’s electronic lock. As soon as she did, she heard a small amount of clanging and a high-pitched, feminine voice saying something incomprehensible. This gave Weiss pause.

“M-miss Schnee?” Klein asked.

“Sorry,” Weiss said. She punched in her code, took a breath, and pushed open the door.

A small yelp was heard, followed by several clanging sounds. Weiss stood in the doorway and stared.

A young woman stood before her, awkwardly balancing on one foot, surrounded by a small number of pots and pans around her on the floor. Evidently, she had dropped them all, and startled herself with the sound.

The girl had short black hair, dyed red at the tips. Her clothing was remarkably casual, just a solid red tank top and black sweatpants with Beacon College’s insignia in white on her right leg. Her feet were bare, and Weiss could see the straps of her bra next to those of her tank top. Curiously, her eyes were a very pale grey - almost like silver.

They stared at each other for a moment, completely frozen. Slowly, awkwardly, the girl returned to a neutral stance, putting her hand on the back of her head in embarrassment.
“Um, hi,” she said. She stuck out a hand, which Weiss made no move to touch. “I’m Ruby Rose. It’s, uh, really nice to meet you!” An obnoxiously massive grin immediately found its way to her petite, round face.

“Weiss Schnee,” Weiss said, desperately trying to recover some of her dignity after startling the girl like this. “It.... appears that we will be living together.”

“Yup!” Ruby replied. “Uh - here, lemme get out of your way…” Ruby then spent the next several seconds picking up the four or five kitchen elements that she’d dropped, barely able to hold them all at once. She let them haphazardly spill out of her arms onto the kitchen counter, finally giving Weiss the space to actually walk into the apartment.

Sighing dramatically, Weiss quickly strode past her helpless roommate, putting her suitcase on her bed and her backpack in her desk chair. Klein silently walked behind her, carrying a stack of three neatly-labeled boxes. He set them down at the foot of her bed.

“Shall I help you unpack, Miss Schnee, or should I make another trip?”

“Another trip, if you don’t mind,” Weiss said over her shoulder as she began to open her backpack. “Thank you.”

“Of course,” he said. “I shall return shortly.”

“Here,” Ruby said. “Lemme prop the door open for you, so you can get back in.” Weiss watched her reach into a small, disorganized pile of shoes near the entrance, retrieve a single red sneaker, and jam it into the path of the door, preventing it from fully closing.

“Ah,” Klein said, likely as perplexed by this girl’s mannerisms as Weiss, though he was definitely better at hiding it than she was. Weiss figured that it was a part of his job. “Thank you, Miss…?”

“Ruby!” Ruby chirped. “Uh, Ruby Rose. Nice to meet you.”

“A pleasure to make your acquaintance as well, Miss Rose,” Klein said, giving a little bow. Ruby’s eyebrow raised, and Weiss could immediately tell that she’d never been called “Miss Rose” before. Klein gently pulled open the door and left the room. Too late, Weiss realized that that meant she was trapped here, alone with this… girl.

Weiss enjoyed a bit of silence for a moment, setting up her computer at her desk. The very large pile of objects that Ruby had apparently stacked on to her adjacent desk was concerning to Weiss, though she hoped that Ruby was in the process of putting those things away.

“Soooooooo…” Ruby said. Weiss resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the loss of her blissful silence. “Who was that helping you move in? He, uh, didn’t seem like your dad or anything.” Weiss’ eyebrow twitched just slightly, annoyed that Ruby’s choice of icebreaker was a rather invasive, personal question.

“That’s Klein,” she said, keeping her tone neutral.

“Cool,” Ruby said, closing the cabinet where she’d put all of her kitchen things. “Is he, like, a family friend or something, or…?” Weiss sighed.

“He’s my family’s butler,” she explained. “He accompanied me from Atlas to help me move in.”

“Whoa, you’re from Atlas?” Ruby asked, as if it were an incredibly exotic place, and not one of the four major continents on the planet. “You must have flown a long way.”

“Yes, I have, and I’m very tired from the trip,” Weiss lied. She’d flown in yesterday and slept very well. “I’d rather focus on unpacking, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh, sure!” Ruby said. “Sorry.”

Weiss let out a breath, happy for the return of quiet. Well, relative quiet. Ruby had finished moving her things into the kitchen and bathroom, so she was now setting up a large number of posters on the wall above her bed. She kept making little sounds of exertion as she stretched up to reach some part of the wall, often muttering under her breath about where to put things.

“Oh!” Ruby said. “Almost forgot.”

Weiss gave her a look.

“Sorry. Uh, here, this might help.” She slid a decently-sized box out from under her bed. It was poorly duct-taped together, but once Ruby opened it with an artist’s Xacto knife, Weiss could see over her shoulder that it had been packaged with a level of care that Weiss would not have previously imagined was possible for Ruby.

She grunted, lifting with her knees as she pulled out a huge silver box, short and wide. Carefully, she rested it on top of her dresser, then returned to the box with two tall and thin speakers. She caught Weiss staring, but before Weiss could look away in embarrassment, she said, “I figured I could put some music on. Would that be okay?”

“I suppose,” Weiss replied. Some ambient noise to drown out Ruby’s constant fidgeting sounds would be very welcome. “Though… I can’t say I’ve ever seen something like that before.”

“Oh, yeah,” Ruby said. “It’s, uh, my mom’s old stereo. It plays cassettes and stuff. It’s a bit old-fashioned, but the sound quality is great!” Weiss wouldn’t have imagined Ruby to be an audiophile. “Wanna listen to classic stuff, or, like, actual recent music?”

“Whichever,” Weiss replied. “As long as it’s not too distracting.”

“Easy listening, huh?” Ruby asked. “I can do that.” She reached into the box and dug through a large stack of cassette tapes in plastic cases before finally settling on one. At a glance, Weiss could tell that it was a custom mix, its track list handwritten in a black pen.

Ruby spent the next three minutes or so quietly wiring the stereo to the speakers, and then she inserted the cassette and pressed Play. Weiss had to admit, it was a rather interesting change of pace to watch the cassette physically spin instead of just listening to something on her scroll.

After a few seconds, a light melody came in - either guitar or synthesizer, she couldn’t tell. True to her word, Ruby was apparently playing something mostly relaxing.

“I like it,” Weiss declared after a moment. “Thank you.”

“You can never go wrong with the ‘80s,” she said. “Or, I guess, in this case, ‘79.”

Weiss couldn’t help her curiosity. “What’s the song?”

“It’s called ‘Goodbye Stranger,’ by Supertramp!” Ruby said. “It was written in ‘79, but I’m playing the 2010 remaster.” She gave an embarrassed grin. “Sorry, I’m a huge music nerd.”

Weiss simply hummed in response. Perhaps this roommate situation wouldn’t be too terrible after all.

Ruby heard the door open again as the well-dressed man that Weiss had brought with her returned to their room.

“Apologies for the delay, Miss Schnee,” he grunted, pushing the door open with his back, a stack of boxes in his hands, with a long, cylindrical gym bag hanging from one arm. “I had to repark the car in a parking garage, and there was a delay downstairs because the representatives were expecting a parent…”

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Klein,” she heard Weiss reply. “I should have gone with you, I would have been able to clear that up, and to help you carry.” She moved to help him set her boxes down. Ruby watched with astonishment as he pulled an honest-to-goodness handkerchief out of his pocket to wipe his forehead.

“Thank you, Miss Schnee,” he said, clearly winded from carrying all of that with him.

“Here, sit down for a moment to catch your breath,” Weiss said, gently leading him to her desk chair.

“A-are you sure, Miss Schnee?” He asked. “Your fath-”

“What my father doesn’t hear about won’t hurt him,” Weiss replied instantly, sitting Klein down. He nodded gratefully for a moment, relaxing in the chair. Weiss gave him a smile and started opening one of the boxes that he had brought with a pair of scissors.

Ruby was very surprised. At first she had Weiss pegged for a standard hoity-toity rich girl, literally bringing her butler to help her move in (Ruby was also confident that her outfit cost about as much as Taiyang made in a month), but perhaps she should re-evaluate that first impression.

“I say…” Klein said after a moment. “Pardon the interruption, ma’ams, but… is this ‘Lake Shore Drive?’”

“Yep!” Ruby said.

“Ah, I remember buying this record in my youth,” Klein said, eyes glazed over with nostalgia. “I’m surprised that… younger people are still listening to it these days.” Ruby giggled.

“My mom was really into old music,” Ruby said. She laughed at a memory. “My dad says that she was allergic to anything written after 1989.”

Klein let out a polite laugh at that, and for a while, Ruby’s cassette player was the only sound in the room.

“Well, thank you, Miss Schnee,” Klein said, standing up from her chair. “Is there anything else that I may assist you with?”

Weiss stopped for a minute, considering that. She looked around her half-unpacked room for a moment, then sighed.

“No, Klein, I figure that you should probably be getting back,” She said. Contemptuously, she added, “Wouldn’t want to keep Father waiting.”

“Indeed,” he replied, with a courteous nod. To Ruby, he said, “It was lovely meeting you, Miss Rose. I hope that you and Miss Schnee have a wonderful semester.”

“Oh, uhm, thanks so much!” Ruby said. She hadn’t at all been expecting that, and was embarrassed at how she’d fumbled her response.

Weiss stood up from one of her boxes, reaching up on her tiptoes to give him a hug. The balding man blinked in surprise, but soon returned her embrace.

“I’m going to miss you, Klein,” she said.

“And I you, Miss Schnee,” he replied.
Ruby felt like a horrible interloper as she witnessed the exchange. The moment that Weiss started to leave his embrace, her head whipped back to facing the decorations on her wall, pretending that she hadn’t been watching.

“Have a safe trip!” Weiss called after Klein. After a moment, Ruby heard their door quietly click shut.

Silence filled the air for a while, heavy as lead. Ruby could tell that Weiss was having a bit of an emotional moment, and while she wanted to give her her privacy, there was also nowhere else for her to be. She sat on her knees, frozen, completely unsure of what - if anything - to do or say.

Weiss sighed, still facing the door. Ruby carefully looked over her shoulder, and was immediately caught by Weiss. They just stared at each other for a moment, in complete silence.

“Oh!” Ruby said. “I, uh, I have to flip the tape.” She quickly but quietly made her way to her stereo, incredibly grateful for the excuse to do something. After a few seconds, music filled the room once more, and Ruby’s shoulders fell down from her ears in relief as the semi-comfortable atmosphere that they’d been enjoying slowly returned with it.

Things were going to be just fine.

She hoped.

Weiss had finally put away all of her things. She felt somewhat bad about taking up three quarters of their shared closet, but Ruby assured her that it was no big deal. She put her hands on her hips, satisfied with how pleasant and organized her half of the room was. Everything was color-matched, and her decorations were minimalist, but tasteful.

She turned to see Ruby’s half of the room, which was essentially controlled chaos - definitely closer to the latter than the former. She was lying on her bed, flicking through her scroll. The wall above her was covered in artwork and old band posters, just slightly misaligned with each other. She had a pillow meant to serve as a backrest at the head of her bed, and its blue did not at all match the red of her comforter. Her clothes were mostly in her dresser, but some of the drawers slightly bulged outwards from being overfilled. A red hoodie was sitting on the back of her desk chair, plus a few flannel shirts and a tote bag hung haphazardly from her bedposts. A ton of boxes were underneath her bed, opened but not yet broken down. Lastly, her desk had multiple cups of pencils and even paintbrushes strewn about, plus a sketchbook or two. Her laptop was plugged in, resting off-center, and she’d flipped the shelf that came with her desk upside-down. This, Weiss assumed, had been done so that she could rest an external monitor on the bottom side of the shelf, where it would be at approximately her eye level. A large lamp sat next to the monitor, and a pair of wireless on-ear headphones were hung on its neck.

“Are… are you an artist?” Weiss asked, trying to make conversation.

“Mm? Oh, yup!” Ruby said, looking up from her scroll. “Studio art major. I generally prefer traditional art, but the recruiter people told me I’d probably have to do digital stuff too.” She shrugged. “How about you? What’s your major?”

“Political science,” Weiss responded.

“Cool!” Ruby said. She paused. “What’s political science?” Weiss snorted.

“It’s fancy talk for ‘I want to be a lawyer,’” she said.

“Oh,” Ruby said. “Do… do you want to be a lawyer?”

“I’m not sure yet,” Weiss replied.

“Cool!” Ruby said again. She checked her scroll. “Oh, uh, hey,” She asked Weiss. “Do you have any dinner plans?”
Weiss didn’t.

“Why do you ask?”

“I just got a text from my sister, she said she’d take me to a restaurant near campus because I don’t have any groceries yet. Wanna come?”

Weiss also realized that she hadn’t bought any groceries, either.

“I… um, I’d like to!” Weiss replied. “What should I wear? Black-tie?”

Ruby looked at her like she had spoken a foreign language. She sighed, gesturing to her white dress and knee-high boots.

“Am I already overdressed?”

“Probably,” Ruby said. “I should definitely change, though.” Unceremoniously, she started pulling off her top, making Weiss nearly yelp in surprise before quickly turning around and tightly shutting her eyes.

“Oh, uh… sorry,” Ruby said. “Here, I’ll just be a second.”

Weiss stared at the wall like her life depended on it. Only a small amount of time passed, but it felt like an eternity. After she heard Ruby close her dresser drawer for the second time, she shakily asked, “Are you decent?”

“Yeah,” Ruby said. When Weiss slowly turned back around, she’d changed into a red t-shirt with an abstract design of a rose emblazoned on it in white, as well as a simple pair of black pants. She was sitting on her bed, halfway through tying on one red sneaker.

Weiss took the opportunity to put her scroll and her wallet into a small clutch, checking her hair in her makeup mirror. Her long, asymmetrical ponytail was still in good shape. She touched up her eyeliner a little bit, and smoothed out her dress.

“Ready?” Ruby asked. Unlike Weiss, she wore no makeup, and was apparently carrying her own scroll and wallet in her back pockets.

“Yes,” Weiss said. “Oh, um, where are we going?” Ruby chuckled.

“How do you feel about burgers?”

Ruby and Weiss returned to their room, full and tired.

“I would never have imagined that you loved cheeseburgers,” Ruby joked.

“I had one at an airport once,” Weiss said. “Our flight was delayed by weather and all of the other restaurants were closed, so my parents reluctantly bought us fast food. It’s been my guilty pleasure ever since.”

Ruby laughed at that.

“I think I’m gonna shower,” she said. “Do you want the bathroom first?”

“No, thank you,” Weiss replied. Ruby nodded, grabbed a towel from her suitcase, and headed into the bathroom.

Weiss sat down at her desk and reflected on her strange day. Ruby and her sister were certainly more… bombastic than the company that she was used to, but Yang’s girlfriend Blake had been rather lovely. She couldn’t imagine how somebody so quiet was dating the rambunctious blonde, but they seemed to make it work.

With the room effectively to herself for a moment, Weiss took her time removing her makeup and changing for bed. She sighed with relief after finally getting into her comfortable bed clothes. She was around halfway through her evening skincare routine when she heard the shower turn off. The door to the bathroom opened a few minutes later, and Ruby walked out with a towel wrapped around her body.

Weiss wasn’t looking at that, though.

She was utterly frozen, staring just above Ruby’s head.

“Weiss?” Ruby asked. “What is it?”

Weiss blinked several times.

“Um… what are those?” Weiss asked, pointing. Ruby’s heart stopped. Her hand whipped up to the top of her head, dropping the towel in surprise. Ruby winced as her fingers made contact with a red, furry ear.

She looked at Weiss, about to explain, and then realized that she’d dropped the towel. Embarrassed, she wrapped her tail around her legs to cover herself.

Wait. Her tail was out.

Oh no.

“Um…” Ruby began. “You… probably have a lot of questions…”

Weiss stared at her, absolutely speechless.

“But… uh… would you believe me if I told you that I’m a werewolf?”

Chapter 2: Secrets and Swords

Chapter Text

“YOU’RE A WHAT???” Weiss shouted in disbelief. Ruby immediately winced, desperately gesturing for Weiss to keep her voice down.

“It’s not a huge deal, I swear -”

“NOT A HUGE DEAL???” Weiss replied, almost hysterical. Before, she’d thought that maybe Ruby was just pulling her leg with a Halloween costume or something, but after taking a closer look, her ears were moving as she spoke. Her tail was fluffed up in alarm, and it appeared that she’d consciously wrapped it around her waist to cover herself.

“Weiss please just keep your voice down and I promise I’ll explain it -”

“I must be hallucinating. Either that or I’ve just finally gone crazy. You can’t possibly be a werewolf -”

“Weiss!” Ruby closed the distance between them and grabbed her by the shoulders now, shutting her up. A very, very small part of Weiss’ brain was able to register that she was currently staring into the determined silver eyes of a very naked Ruby Rose, whose body was suddenly inches away from hers. Exasperated, Ruby said, “I promise I can explain, just please stop yelling or someone will hear you.”

And, as if summoned, there was a knock at their door.

“Residential life!” Somebody called out. Ruby immediately panicked, searching for something to hide behind.

“Uh, just a second!” Ruby shouted towards the door. “I just got out of the shower!”

“Can’t you put those away?” Weiss hissed.

“Normally, yes!” Ruby tersely replied. “I don’t know why -”

“Residential life!” The voice said, knocking again.

“Put some clothes on or something!” Weiss said under her breath. Panicking, Ruby looked around until finally grabbing her towel and diving back into the bathroom, apparently leaving Weiss to answer the door.

“Residential life, keying i-” Weiss opened the door, suddenly face-to-face with a tall, fashionable brunette, who was apparently poised to key open their door. “Oh, uhm, hello.” She said.

“Good evening,” Weiss replied, feeling very under-dressed in her pajamas. “How can I help you?”

“My name’s Coco, I’m your RA,” the girl said. “I was coming by to meet everybody on my floor, but I heard shouting and I wanted to make sure everything was all right…”

“Oh!” Weiss said. Come on, make up a lie, you lie to Father all the time…

“So… is something going on?” Coco asked, narrowing her eyes at Weiss.

“No, no!” Weiss said. “I’m sorry, I must not have realized how loud I was, with my, er… rehearsal.”

“... rehearsal?” Coco asked, doubtful.

“Yes!” Weiss said. “I… um, I’m an opera singer, and there’s this one song that I’m practicing where I have to just completely break character and rhythm and everything and just… shout. It’s supposed to be a super emotional moment, but I’m struggling with it because it’s so different from what I normally do...”

“... I see.” Coco said. She appeared to believe Weiss’ story, but was just rather confused by the whole affair. “Well, it was nice to meet you, uh…”

“Weiss!” Weiss replied. “Weiss Schnee. Pleasure to meet you, Coco.”

“Yeah, you too,” Coco said. “Is your roommate around?”
“Uh, nope!” Weiss said. “I think she’s visiting her sister or something.”

“All right,” Coco said. “Well, have a nice evening. Sorry to bother you.” She turned away for a moment, and then turned back, adding, “Try to keep it down a little bit though, yeah? There are soundproofed rehearsal rooms in the library if you want to practice more.”

“Oh, thank you!” Weiss said. “I’ll do that in the future.”

“Have a nice rest of your night,” Coco said. She left, and Weiss closed the door, gratefully leaning against it. She sighed, amazed that she’d gotten away with her lie. She didn’t even know if she should be lying for Ruby’s sake, but it was apparently the choice that she’d made in the moment. She walked over to the bathroom door.

“Ruby?” Weiss asked. “It was just our RA checking in, but she’s gone now. You can come out now, and once you do, you really owe me some answers.”

She heard a low whine - almost like that of a dog - and some scratching at the door.

“... Ruby?” Weiss asked. “Are you okay?”

Another low whine.

“Is everything all right? Sh-should I come in, or…?”
Her curiosity finally got the better of her, and Weiss tepidly turned the handle to their bathroom. Slowly, carefully, she pushed the door open.

As she did, she was face-to-face with a very large, very guilty-looking brown wolf, sitting back on its haunches.

Weiss was barely able to restrain herself from screaming as she leapt back from the door in surprise. The wolf made a slightly shocked woof in surprise, recoiling a bit.

She and the wolf just stared at one another for a moment, blue eyes looking into silver ones. Wait… silver?

“... Ruby?” Weiss asked. Slowly, shamefully, the brown wolf gave her an approximation of how a human would nod. She began to stand, padding towards Weiss. She made a deep sound in her throat, which made Weiss jump back again. Ruby recoiled too, but Weiss’ nerves were so frayed at this point, she dove for the cylindrical gym bag under her bed. She quickly unzipped it and reached inside, her hand wrapping around the familiar handle.

Ruby winced internally as her slight cough made Weiss jump back and dive for her gym bag. She knew that this had to be completely shocking for her, but she’d been hoping for this whole situation to be a bit more delicate.

Weiss stood up from her gym bag, and to Ruby’s utter shock, she pulled out an actual freaking sword, which she pointed threateningly at Ruby.

“Don’t come any closer!” Weiss said, nearly shouting. “I will use this.”

Ruby closed her eyes in frustration, commanding herself to take a deep breath. If she provoked Weiss any further she might actually get stabbed, and even though the rapier didn’t appear to be silvered, it would still really hurt.

Ruby exhaled, and lied down in the middle of the floor, trying to look as non-threatening as she possibly could. She opened her eyes again, head resting on her front paws. She let her tongue roll out of her mouth, hoping that that would help.

“Okay.” Weiss said. Very slowly, she lowered the rapier, but still kept a firm grip on it. “So… this. This is you.”

Slowly, carefully, Ruby nodded.

“I’ll take that as a yes? Weiss asked. “Make one sound for yes, two sounds for no.”

Ruby let out one very small bark.

“Is this what you always look like on a full moon?”

Two barks.

“Can you change back?”

Ruby closed her eyes for a moment, exhaled, then gave two barks.

“Why not?”

Ruby stared at her.

“Right, right, you can’t talk. Let me…” Weiss searched around her desk for her scroll. She felt a tiny bit ridiculous while still holding her fencing rapier, but it gave her comfort, so she kept it in her hand. She flicked her scroll open and searched “moon tonight” on her phone’s browser.

“Um… apparently tonight there’s something called a ‘super moon?’” Weiss asked. Ruby snorted, which Weiss assumed was either an angry or frustrated sound. She clicked further into the article, and learned that a ‘super moon’ could occur in any phase. Tonight it was only a half moon, but the moon was at its closest possible point to the earth - did that mean it could still affect Ruby?

“Wait, just - really quick. Your… um, transformations… those are influenced by the moon, right?”

One bark.

“Okay, I just wanted to make sure.” Ruby let out a deep sound that could almost be interpreted as a chuckle.

“Hey, I don’t know!” Weiss said. “I’ve never exactly met an actual real-life werewolf before!”

Ruby just stared at her, waiting patiently.

“Sorry.” Weiss said. She rubbed her temples with her non-sword hand. “This is just… a lot to take in right now.” Ruby made a sympathetic sound, and very slowly padded towards Weiss. Before Weiss could really notice that she’d sat down right in front of her, she felt a very gentle lick on her hand.

For the slightest moment, Weiss forgot that the creature before her was her sometimes-human roommate. All she saw was a big dog in front of her licking her hand, so without even thinking, she gave Ruby a scratch behind her ears.

Ruby let out a low, pleased sound, and it took Weiss a moment to realize precisely what she was doing. She recoiled as if struck, and asked, “I’m sorry. Was… was that okay? I don’t want to be rude…”

One bark.

“Okay…” she said, very slowly reaching out to scratch Ruby’s ears again. She took much more care at first, but Ruby leaned into the scratches, encouraging her. Despite herself, Weiss smiled.

“This is weird,” she said. “This is very weird. Right?”

One bark.

“Should I stop?”

Two barks. Weiss laughed.

“I should probably put my rapier away, huh?”

One bark, though it was very low and gentle. Weiss sighed, and delicately returned her rapier to her gym bag. She was very aware of Ruby’s presence behind her as she knelt down to zip the bag back up, but she wasn’t afraid of her anymore. Weiss sat up on her bed, finally getting a good look at Ruby while she was in this form.

Anyone would mistake her for a normal wolf, at first. Her face was sharper and more angular than that of a domestic dog, and there was a remarkable intelligence to her silver eyes. Her fur was mostly brown, but some areas of it were redder, especially around her ears. Was it because she’d dyed her hair in her human form?

“Okay,” Weiss said. “Can I ask you a few more questions about… this?”

Ruby gave her one little bark.

“How did you become a werewolf? I - er, were you bitten by another werewolf?”

Two barks.

“How else does somebody become a werewolf?” Weiss asked aloud. “Uh, never mind, I guess you can tell me that when you’re human again tomorrow.” She paused. “You will be human again tomorrow, right?”

One bark.

“Okay, okay, good.” Weiss stared off into space for a moment, just considering all of this. She definitely had more questions, but they all required more than the little yes/no system that she’d developed with Ruby thus far. The more complex questions started swirling around in her head for a moment, before Ruby finally walked up and butted her head against Weiss’ foot, pulling her out of her thoughts.

Ruby’s eyes met hers, and for a moment, she looked like she was… begging? Weiss supposed that the ability to use puppy-dog eyes must come with the ability to literally transform into a dog.

“Do… do you want to come up on the bed with me?” Weiss asked.

One bark.

“Okay, fine,” Weiss said. “But there had better not be any fur on my sheets.”

Ruby seemed to consider that momentarily, but she sat back and waited for Weiss to make room for her. Weiss sat up, leaning her back against a small stack of pillows. Once there was adequate space, Ruby deftly leapt up onto Weiss’ bed, being careful where she walked, making sure not to step on her. She walked in a slow, deliberate circle, then curled up next to Weiss, facing her.

“Was the circle really necessary?”

Ruby didn’t dignify that with a response.

Weiss idly scratched at Ruby’s ears, earning a low, happy murmur from her. She laughed, saying “I always wanted a dog, you know. My father never let us have one, because he said they were too ‘dirty.’”

Ruby appeared to be offended by this.

“I know! He’s kind of the worst,” Weiss said. Ruby snorted at that. “Sorry,” Weiss said. “You’re pretty easy to talk to when you’re like this, y’know?”

Ruby gave her a look.

“Well it’s easier to talk in a one-sided conversation,” she said. “Am I, like… doing this right?”

Ruby made an inquisitive sound.

“I mean… I don’t really know how to interact with my roommate when she’s a huge brown wolf in our bedroom. Are there any werewolf social rules? Any major do’s and don’ts?”

Ruby snorted, and gave her two little barks.

“So… this is okay? Petting you like this?” Ruby barked once, then stood up, taking a few very tiny steps before immediately flopping down on Weiss’ lap entirely.

“Oof!” Weiss said, not expecting the sudden weight to crush her thighs. She laughed, though, and started running her hand along Ruby’s flank. “You’re not exactly a lapdog, you know.” Ruby seemed all too happy to ignore that statement completely, choosing instead to nuzzle her face up into the hand that Weiss wasn’t already using for petting.

Weiss leaned over to her desk and checked her scroll. Somehow, it was already past 10 PM, and she was quite tired from this emotional journey of a day.

“Ruby, it’s late,” she said. “Sorry, it… it still feels weird using your name, because I know it’s a human name, and it belongs to a human, and… yeah.” Ruby just licked her hand once. “But, seriously, it is getting kinda late, so I’m gonna go to sleep.” She stopped her petting for a moment, and looked Ruby in the eyes. “We’re going to have to talk about this tomorrow, okay?” Ruby gave her one little bark, then carefully stood up. She walked backwards slightly, giving Weiss a little lick on her cheek, then gracefully hopped down from her bed.

“Ruby, that’s gross!” Weiss said, wiping at her face. “I just did skincare tonight.” She flipped her duvet off and grabbed a small towel from her desk. After wiping her face, she looked over at Ruby, who had curled up on her own bed, resting her head on her front paws. Weiss climbed back under her covers, but it felt so… empty, without the huge wolf’s presence.

Ignoring the screams of protest from her better judgment, Weiss scooted up next to the wall in her own bed, then timidly said, “Ruby?”

The wolf’s red ears perked up at the sound of her voice.

“Um… you can sleep on the bed with me tonight, if you’d like.” Ruby stood up in an instant. She walked in an excited circle, her tail actually wagging, something that Weiss hadn’t yet seen her do. She hopped off her bed in delight, but before she finished crossing the room, Weiss held up a finger to stop her. She sat, her tail still lazily wagging back and forth.

“But don’t lie on me, okay? I do actually want to sleep.”

Ruby gave her one deep bark, waiting for her explicit approval.

“Okay, come on up,” Weiss said, and the brown wolf immediately leapt up onto the bed with her. She moved to lick Weiss’ face again, but she was able to restrain herself when Weiss gave her a stern look. Her mouth closed, and Weiss gave her a quick little scratch behind the ear as a thank you.

Ruby gave a happy little yip, then carefully maneuvered herself so that she could lie on her side, not putting any of her weight on Weiss.

“Goodnight, Ruby,” Weiss said. Hopefully I’ll finally figure out what to do with you in the morning.

Ruby was initially slow to wake. She felt so warm and safe, and she nuzzled her face into the soft object that she’d wrapped her arms around. Ruby yawned, picking her head up to flip her hair out of her face.

As she did, her eyes almost immediately snapped open. Ruby froze, staring at the back of Weiss’ head. Slowly, she realized that she was under Weiss’ blanket, and the soft object that she was snuggling with was Weiss herself, apparently still asleep.

Ruby just silently blinked for a moment, and the events of the previous evening came rushing back to her. She remembered Weiss finding out about her secret, then being forced into her wolf form by that freaking supermoon, and things got kind of fuzzy from there. She definitely remembered Weiss threatening her with a sword that she apparently just had for some reason, but the rest was mostly a blur. All she remembered was feeling incredibly safe as she fell asleep, but she was fairly confident that the two of them had not fallen asleep like this.

Slowly, Ruby heard Weiss yawn, and start to stretch. Panicking, Ruby didn’t know what to do, so she just stayed frozen. Weiss began to roll over, about to face her, and Ruby was just barely self aware enough to take her arm off of Weiss to let her do so. Ruby tried to scoot back on the bed a little bit to give Weiss some space, but there honestly wasn’t really anywhere to go on the tiny twin bed.

“Mm…” Weiss hummed as she finished rolling over. For a moment, Ruby thought she might be able to leave the bed without waking her, but as soon as she started to shift, Weiss’ blue eyes were open and staring at her.

Both women spent several seconds in utter silence, just staring at one another. Ruby’s brain finally managed to engage, and she finally squeaked out some actual words.

“Um, sorry…” she said lamely. “I think I’ll just…” She hastily threw the covers off of herself, and literally jumped out of Weiss’ bed as if it were made of hot coals. As soon as her feet reached the carpet, Ruby quickly made two realizations.

Firstly, her ears and her tail were still out, which meant that there was absolutely no chance that she’d be able to convince Weiss that last night had been a dream or hallucination.

Secondly, she was still very much naked, and she was almost certain that Weiss was watching her as she made a beeline for her dresser. As a werewolf, Ruby wasn’t normally bothered by nudity (she couldn’t exactly enter either of her other forms while wearing clothes), but the fact that she’d woken up in the same bed as her very attractive roommate put an entirely new, entirely human spin on the concept.

Hurriedly, Ruby threw on a sports bra, some underwear, a t-shirt, and a pair of jeans. She brought her ears and tail back in, more out of embarrassment than anything else. Wincing with anticipation, she slowly looked over her shoulder at Weiss, who was staring at her like she’d come from another planet. She’d sat up in bed by this point. Ruby felt her cheeks become the same color as the dye in her hair.

“Um…” Ruby began. Why wasn’t she saying anything? “So… uh… about last night…”

Weiss blinked as though someone had slapped her awake from a daydream. She immediately went on a face journey - first confusion, then embarrassment, back to confusion. The gears in her head appeared to be turning, and she opened her mouth as if to speak, but nothing came out.

“Look, Weiss, how about we both just pretend that last night didn’t happen - “

“So… you really are a werewolf, aren’t you?” Weiss asked. “I’m still struggling to believe it, but… “

“Yes,” Ruby said, her shoulders falling as she finally gave up trying to pretend otherwise. “Yes, Weiss, I’m actually a werewolf. Lycanthropy is real, and I actually turn into a seven-foot-tall humanoid wolf creature every twenty-nine days.” She glanced at the ground bitterly. “And apparently, I also forget about freaking supermoons.”

Weiss was still silent for a while, visibly processing all of this. Interacting with Ruby when she was essentially a very large, hyper-intelligent dog was rather easy, but actually having the girl in front of her, able to communicate about it, was a different matter entirely.

“I… I kept your secret,” Weiss finally said. “When our RA came by. I told her you weren’t home.”

“Thank you,” Ruby said, exhaling in relief. “And honestly, I’m so sorry that this happened. I - I wasn’t planning on having this conversation with you at all, much less on the first freaking night.”

“I… um… it’s okay,” Weiss said, to Ruby’s surprise. “I mean - don’t get me wrong, my mind is still kind of blown about all this, but…”

“Yeah.” Ruby said, looking at the floor in shame. “Yeah, I get that part.”

“But,” Weiss said, causing Ruby to meet her eyes, “I don’t really mind, in that way. If you need to, um, transform because of the moon, or, you need me to cover for you or something, I… I’ll do that for you.” She paused. “If that’s okay.”

“Are you sure?” Ruby said, doubtful.

“What else were you expecting, really?” Weiss asked, and Ruby supposed that she had a point. Slowly, she started getting out of bed. “I mean, we’re still definitely going to need to talk about this - my biggest worry is what actually happens on the full moon…”

“It’s a lot,” Ruby interjected, and Weiss nodded, relatively unsurprised.

“But I didn’t feel in any danger when I was around you last night. That’s what you’re afraid of, right?”

Ruby looked at Weiss like she’d started speaking in tongues. Because yes, she was explicitly correct - Ruby’s greatest fear was hurting other people, or making them afraid of her. She was always relatively in control of herself, even in her were form, but, well… werewolves were often referred to as ‘monsters’ for a reason. The sheer concept that Weiss had been able to not only guess her greatest fear, but even tell her right away that she wouldn’t have to worry about it left her utterly speechless. No one had ever just accepted this part of her so brazenly, except for other weres.

“I’m… going to take your silence as a yes,” Weiss finally said, and Ruby realized that she’d been staring at her, slack-jawed, for at least a full minute.

“I… um… Weiss I can’t begin to describe -”

“Then don’t,” Weiss said, like it was the simplest thing in the world. She hopped out of bed, and started to get dressed. Ruby turned her back to respect her privacy, and she used the time to check her scroll. As soon as the screen lit up, Ruby winced.

Yang: (30 messages)
Yang: (6 missed calls)

Dad: (4 missed calls)

“Um, okay,” Ruby said over her shoulder, “I promise I’ll answer all of your questions about… this, but first I really have to call my sister.” Once she shot off a quick “I’m okay” text to both of them, explaining the situation, she turned around, and Weiss had finished changing into a rather casual (by Weiss’ definitions, anyways) Sunday outfit. Ruby showed her the screen, and Weiss gave a slow, wide-eyed nod.

“Do you want me to maybe hang out in the 4th floor common room for a bit?” Weiss asked sympathetically. “Here, you can text me when you’re done.” Ruby’s cheeks warmed as she realized that she was getting a girl’s phone number - a girl that she had, in the most extremely technical sense, slept with. She would have generally imagined doing those things in a different order, but -

“Wanna go grocery shopping afterwards?” Weiss asked, pulling Ruby out from her thoughts. “I mean, we don’t really have anything for breakfast…”

“Uhm, yeah, that sounds great!” Ruby said. “I’ll uh… I’ll let you know.”

“Great.” Weiss said, trying not to note the very awkward energy between them. “See you.”

Ruby’s scroll started buzzing again in her hand, and, tentatively, she answered the call from Yang. As soon as the line connected and she put the phone to her ear, she immediately pulled it away again, as Yang shouted, “WHAT DO YOU MEAN ‘WEISS KNOWS?’”

Ruby sighed, and prepared herself for a very, very long phone call.

Chapter 3: A Much-Needed Talk

Chapter Text

“Yang, I’m sure she’s fine,” Blake said.

“You don’t know that,” Yang replied, still pacing. Her long, yellow tail was fluffed up to at least twice its usual size, her ears on high alert. Blake gave her a sympathetic look.

“I mean, from what you’ve told me about her, Ruby can handle herself,” Blake offered.

“Sure, when it comes to hunting or fighting,” Yang said. “But, I mean, you saw her last night. She’s not exactly good at being subtle.” Blake couldn’t help but roll her eyes at that.

“Ah, yes,” She said, standing up, flicking her lithe black tail back and forth in the way she knew Yang liked. “Because you’re such an expert on subterfuge.” She teasingly dragged a finger along Yang’s bare shoulder.

“Blake, I’m being serious,” Yang said. Blake stopped teasing and turned to face her.

“I am too,” Blake said. “Look, it’s…” she dug into her overnight bag, pulling out her scroll. The bag was still covered in morning dew, since she and Yang had fallen asleep under a tree in the woods near Beacon College. “It’s only 7:30 - she probably just slept in after finding somewhere to spend the moon.”

“Maybe,” Yang said. “I still don’t understand why she didn’t spend the moon with us.”

“I don’t know either. Maybe she met other weres who invited her?”

“Haha, Ruby? No, no, no - Ruby does NOT make friends that quickly. I figured she’d be attached to me at the hip once she got here.”

Blake’s brows furrowed at that, realizing the possibility that the continued presence of her girlfriend’s little sister could potentially hamper some of the romance in their date nights.

“I dunno,” Blake said, shrugging. “She seemed to have taken a liking to that roommate of hers.”

“Yeah, but - wait.” Yang finally stopped pacing. At first, Blake thought this was a good thing, until Yang said, “You don’t think she has a crush on that girl, do you?”

Blake’s eyes went wide, silently begging Yang not to make her participate in this conversation. Before she could open her mouth, though, Yang’s eyes whipped down to her scroll, and her shoulders fell in relief, causing Blake’s to do the same.

“She’s okay, she just got back to me,” Yang said, and Blake let out a very grateful sigh. “Wait…”

“What is it?” Blake asked, sidling up next to her to read her scroll. “Oh…”

Yang’s eyes nearly went red with fury, and she angrily punched the “answer” button when Ruby called her.

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN ‘WEISS KNOWS?’”

“Yang I’m sorry I forgot about the supermoon and ended up changing into my wolf in my dorm room but it turned out that Weiss was okay with it and we actually just sort of hung out and it was kind of nice so I’m sorry but please please please don’t be mad!” Ruby spat out, rapid-fire, and then immediately closed her eyes in preparation for another angry yell.

All that ended up coming was a very long, very tired sigh.

“I’m not mad, Ruby, I’m just glad that you’re all right.” Ruby exhaled with relief. “Just… try not to scare me like that, okay?”

“Okay,” Ruby placated. “I’m still really sorry.”

“For scaring me, or telling Weiss?” Yang asked.

“Um… both?” Ruby hazarded.

“Uh-huh,” Yang said. “Are you SURE that she’s not gonna tell anyone?”

“Yes,” Ruby said immediately, even though she had absolutely no guarantee of that. Somehow, she just knew.

“Okay,” Yang said tiredly. “Tell her that if she does tell anybody, even by accident, I will sink my teeth into her prissy little -”

“Yeah, I get it,” Ruby said, not wanting to know where that sentence was going to end up. She heard some muttering over the line, as though Yang were talking to someone else. “Um… is Blake there with you?” She asked, hoping to change the subject.

“Yeah, she’s here too,” Yang said, putting her scroll on speaker.

“Hey, Ruby,” Blake said. “Glad to hear you’re okay.”

“Thanks,” Ruby replied. “How did you two spend the moon?”

“We hunted out in the woods near campus,” Yang said. “We invited you last night, but you apparently didn’t get the message.”

“What?” Ruby asked. “When?”

“I asked you if you wanted to come to our place after dinner,” Yang said, “And you were all ‘no, I think I just wanna head home after this,’ and I couldn’t explain further because Weiss was there.”

“Ohh…” Ruby said, remembering that exchange. “Sorry, I… I must not have realized.”

“Told you she wouldn’t,” Blake said.

“Ugh, stop being right all the time,” Yang replied.

“Yeah,” Ruby said. “Again, I’m really sorry, Yang, but if nothing else… it really could have been worse.” All she heard from her sister was an exasperated sigh, so she decided to continue. “Anyways, um… Weiss and I don’t really have any food or anything at our place, so we were gonna go grocery shopping…”

“Okay,” Yang replied. “Just… please try to be more careful in the future, okay?”

“I will,” Ruby promised. “Weiss even said she’d help cover me and stuff.”

“All right,” Yang said, appearing to consider that. “Anyways, we’re gonna get dressed and head back to campus. Talk to you soon.”

“Talk to you soon,” Ruby replied. “Love you.”

“Love you too.”

Yang hung up her scroll, giving a loud sigh.

“See?” Blake said. “She was fine.”

“I know, and I knew she would be,” Yang said. “I just get worried, y’know?”

“Hey, it’s okay,” Blake said, putting a hand on Yang’s shoulder. “She’ll figure this stuff out on her own. That’s what college is about, right?” She smiled. “Besides, if she has trouble with something, I’m pretty sure that she’s gonna head to you first.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” Yang agreed. “Thanks. Sorry that this became a whole thing.”

“It’s fine, Yang. I was worried about Ruby, too.”

Yang just gave her an indulgent smile. She was so used to having no one else to really care for her, to help her with everything she was juggling, and even after a year of dating Blake, moments like these were still a pleasant surprise.

“She’s definitely into Weiss, though,” Blake teased, turning towards her bag.

“I freaking knew it!”

Ruby sighed once Yang had ended their call. She rubbed the remaining sleep from her eyes for a moment, looked over her hair in the mirror, and texted Weiss.

Sister convo over - head on up

Oh this is Ruby btw

I gathered.

I’ll be right up, see you soon.

Ruby raised an eyebrow at Weiss’ apparent habit of using perfect grammar in texting conversation, but she was coming to understand that that’s just what Weiss was like. She tried to make her hair not look like a complete disaster, smoothed out her clothes, and waited for Weiss to get back.

The door opened hesitantly as Weiss poked her head in.

“Um, hey,” she said. “How was… er... the conversation?”

“It was fine,” Ruby shrugged. “Yang just wants to protect me, y’know?”

“I… see.” Weiss said. She awkwardly stood right at the doorway, as if she were waiting to be properly invited to the room itself.

“Is… uh… is everything okay?” Ruby asked.

“Yes!” Weiss said, too quickly. “Sorry - while I was sitting there in the common room, a bunch of questions started swirling in my head, and…” Ruby gave her a sympathetic nod.

“Yeah, that’s… normal,” she said. She figured it was, at least - Weiss was the first human who she’d introduced to the concept of werewolves.

“I… yes.” Weiss said.

“Here,” Ruby offered. “How about we head out for groceries, you can ask me anything you want to know on the trip. I’ll do my best to answer!” She gave Weiss what she hoped was a winning smile, and a wave of relief washed over her when Weiss returned it.

“I actually would like to get ready, first,” Weiss said. “Brush my hair and all that.”

“Oh! Yeah!” Ruby said. “Want me to leave you alone for that?”

Weiss appeared to consider that, and then she shrugged.

“I’m going to be doing it in here every morning - I might as well get used to the company.” Ruby gave her a nod as Weiss moved to sit down at her desk, taking out a brush and sliding over a makeup mirror. Ruby sat down at her own desk, a respectable distance away.

“So, what did you want to know?”

“How did you become a werewolf?” Weiss asked right away. She blushed. “Sorry, I… I had time to think of which questions I wanted answered first.”

“That’s okay! That’s good!” Ruby said. They both shared an awkward laugh at the absurdity of the situation. “I was actually born like this. My mom and dad were werewolves, so they passed it on to me.”

“Oh…” Weiss said, surprised. “I didn’t know it could work that way. I thought another werewolf had to bite you or something.”
“Popular fiction gets a lot of things wrong,” Ruby laughed. “It’s kind of a joke between real werewolves, but it’s not as though we can just publish corrections.”

“Mm,” Weiss hummed. “No, I suppose not.” Ruby nodded, and Weiss took that as a cue to ask her next question. “So, you weren’t bitten, but… can that happen? Can the…” she didn’t want to say “curse,” so she tried a new sentence. “Can someone become a werewolf that way?” Ruby was quiet for a moment.

“Yeah,” she said. “If a werewolf bites a human, they might end up Turning them.”

“‘Might?’” Weiss asked.

“It doesn’t always work,” Ruby said impishly. Weiss could tell she was wondering how to phrase something delicate. “Often, when they’re supposed to transform the first time, the human will… um… die.”

“... oh.” Weiss said quietly.

“Yeah,” Ruby replied, leaning back in her chair with a nervous, forced grin. “I um… I try not to think about it.” She blinked, realizing she’d forgotten something. “Oh! It’s not just any old bite that will Turn someone - it only works if whoever’s doing the biting is in their actual, proper were form.”

Weiss raised an eyebrow, and Ruby figured that now was as good a time as any to explain this bit.

“So, I don’t just change between looking like this -” she gestured to herself “- and being the seven-foot-tall wolfman you’ve seen in movies. That’s what we call our ‘were form.’ I also have my wolf, which you saw last night.”

“And… on the full moon…” Weiss began. “You’re forced into the ‘were’ form?”

“Yup,” Ruby said. “Every twenty-nine days. The next one’s in two weeks.”

Weiss seemed to be concerned at this, and Ruby quickly jumped in to reassure her.

“You probably won’t ever have to see me like that, though. I’ve already talked a lot with Yang about it - there are these woods near campus that we’re gonna go to for the moons, so you’ll just see me leave in the afternoon and then come back some time the next morning.”

“Okay,” Weiss said. “When you transform, what do you… um… do?”

“We hunt, mostly,” Ruby said nonchalantly. Weiss’ eyes went as wide as dinner plates before Ruby realized that she’d left out an extremely important caveat.

“NOT PEOPLE!” Ruby shouted, to clarify. Weiss seemed to exhale in relief, and Ruby laughed weakly. “Sorry, I should have led with that - we just hunt, like, animals and stuff…” Weiss started to laugh along with her, once she recovered from the initial shock.

“Yes, that’s… that’s good information to note,” Weiss said, stifling her giggle. She had at some point moved from brushing her hair to doing some light makeup.

“Yeah, sorry…” Ruby laughed. They exchanged smiles, and Ruby could tell that Weiss had finally somewhat gotten used to all of this. After a lull in the conversation, Ruby remembered one thing she’d left out.

“Oh, and uh… I mean, I guess you’ve already seen them, but when I’m in my human form, I can also have these...” hesitantly, she let her ears and tail out, and Weiss stopped to stare at her. She was utterly captivated with Ruby for a moment, and Ruby could feel herself blushing heavily under Weiss’ studious gaze. Even though she’d technically seen her like this before, Weiss had never had a chance to actually look at her up close. Subconsciously, she turned her chair to face Ruby directly, scooting forward a little bit.

Weiss’ hand reached towards Ruby’s face, slowly inching towards her wolf ears. There was this sudden, unspoken heat between them. Their previous, very casual circ*mstances abruptly vanished into a soft, timid intimacy. Just before Weiss’ hand brushed against Ruby’s hair, she whispered, “Can I…?”

Ruby, too timid to reply, simply nodded, scooting forward to let Weiss touch her furry ear.

Weiss gently brushed her finger across the triangular tip of Ruby’s ear, letting out a soft gasp when it twitched in response. She paused for a moment, and moved closer to it again. This time, her fingertips made gentle contact, and the first thing she noticed was how incredibly soft they were. She very gently began to stroke Ruby’s ear, not unlike how she had the previous night, while Ruby was in her wolf.

Ruby tried her best not to lean too far forwards as Weiss’ delicate fingers stroked her ear. However, that became remarkably difficult as Weiss’ other hand reached up to her other ear, and she couldn’t exactly help the low moan of pleasure that escaped her lips as Weiss began to stroke that one, too. Weiss didn’t appear to react to that, though, and Ruby was not about to convince her to stop giving what essentially felt like a professional massage.

After a while, Weiss slowly withdrew her hands, and Ruby felt like she was waking from a trance. She blinked with embarrassment and quickly leaned back, having realized just how close her face had gotten to being buried in Weiss’ chest. When she looked up, her roommate was stifling a polite giggle.

“You enjoyed that, huh?” Weiss asked smugly.

“I… yeah…” Ruby said, looking down at the floor. Weiss let out this impossibly beautiful laugh, making Ruby’s cheeks burn like a wildfire.

“I could tell,” she added, a grin still on the corner of her mouth. “Your tail is wagging.”

Upon hearing it mentioned, Ruby whipped around to glare at her traitorous appendage, and it was indeed still wagging. She looked back at Weiss in embarrassment, but her roommate had already returned to finishing her makeup.

“So!” Weiss declared, putting her eyeliner down. “Groceries?”

“Did you have any other questions?” Ruby asked, putting a bag of cookies into her basket.

“I mean… here?” Weiss asked, gesturing to the fact that they were in a supermarket.

“Sure!” Ruby said. She shrugged. “I mean, maybe don’t intentionally shout about it at the top of your lungs, but… people don’t exactly spy on each other super closely or anything. You’d be surprised how little they pay attention to things like this.”

“I… I suppose,” Weiss replied. She thought for a moment about how to phrase her question. “When we were in our room, and you had your, um…” she made a gesture starting at her lower back and extending outwards, describing a phantom tail with her hand.

“When I had my tail out?” Ruby asked plainly.

“Yes,” Weiss said, embarrassed. “How did it… I mean, you’re wearing pants, but…”

Ruby laughed.

“Oh, yeah. There are little hidden flaps in most of my pants, so it can poke through. I also wear skirts pretty often, because they work really well for that.”

“Who makes the flaps?” Weiss asked. “They’re totally invisible…”

“You’ve been looking at my butt, then, huh?” Ruby asked with a wink.

Weiss froze as though she’d stuck a fork in a power outlet, making Ruby laugh.

“It’s okay, I was just teasing,” Ruby said, though she couldn’t help but notice that the crimson had yet to drain from Weiss’ cheeks. “Anyways, there’s a few were-friendly tailors around. I get a lot of my pants and tights altered in a shop near my house, though I don’t bother with every pair.”

Weiss just hummed at that, and they both somewhat wandered apart as they filled up their respective baskets. Ruby tended towards the more processed foods, and Weiss instead picked out a lot of fresh vegetables and other, similar options.

When they found each other once again, and began waiting in the checkout line, Weiss leaned towards Ruby to whisper a question.

“Is it… you know, common?” Ruby let out a soft little laugh at how embarrassed Weiss was at the whole thing, though she did also appreciate her curiosity.

“Probably more than you think,” Ruby said. “I mean, we’re a relatively small amount of the population, but there’s a pretty good chance that you’ve bumped into someone or met them briefly.” Weiss seemed to consider that for a moment, until it was her turn to check out from the store.

Ruby watched her. Truth be told, she didn’t really have much else to do as she waited, but… there was just something about Weiss, and her movements. Ruby had initially thought of the way that she carried herself as “haughty,” but on closer inspection, she figured that a better word was… “dignified.” Maybe even “graceful.”

Ruby blinked for a moment, suddenly realizing that it was her turn. She almost shook her head a little as she started putting her purchases on the conveyor belt, trying not to think about how she had described Weiss doing an incredibly mundane activity as “graceful.”

She was definitely in more trouble than she’d thought.

Chapter 4: New Normal

Chapter Text

“Ready?” Ruby asked, standing by the door. Weiss was grabbing items off her desk and carefully inserting them into her backpack.

“Just a second,” Weiss replied. “I have to make sure I’ve brought everything.”

“Weiss, it’s the first week,” Ruby replied. “You’re definitely bringing too many things.”

Weiss simply harrumphed at that, and added another three pencils to her bag out of spite.

“There,” she said triumphantly, standing up with her bag. “Now I'm ready.”

Ruby just rolled her eyes and held the door open.

“Where is it, again?” Weiss asked. Ruby pulled her scroll out of her pocket to check.

“320 Hawthorne,” she replied.

“Is that next to Greyson?”

“Across the quad.”

“Right, right.”

The two shared a mostly silent elevator ride. Even after just four days or so of living together, they’d already become quite accustomed to sharing space, so it was a comfortable silence.

“I still don’t understand why this class is so late,” Weiss said. “Don’t the professors want to leave campus some time before nine-thirty at night?”

“Yeah,” Ruby said. “Yang told me that they do classes like this on Thursdays because there isn’t any other time that they fit into that professor’s schedule. I dunno, I figure it’s voluntary.”

“I suppose,” Weiss said, noncommittal. “I’d prefer to get my courses out of the way early.”

“Yeah, everybody’s different,” Ruby replied. “I’m used to working on art stuff pretty late. Sometimes I feel like my brain doesn’t start working until after eleven.” She shrugged. “It’s still pretty late for a class, though. I might have to miss it because of the moon sometimes.”

“Well, if that happens, you can look at my notes,” Weiss replied. Ruby gave her that obnoxiously wide, frustratingly beautiful smile of hers.

“Thanks!” Ruby said. She laughed. “It may not even happen, though… there’s only really four or five moons in a semester, so chances are pretty low that one of them will be on a Thursday.”

“Don’t you… know?” Weiss asked.

Ruby stared at her.

“I mean… I just figured that since the moon has such an effect on you, that you’d, well… keep track. Plan in advance, I’d imagine.”

“Heh, nope!” Ruby said. “If it weren’t for my calendar I’d end up transforming in my bedroom every single time.”

“Is that why paper calendars show lunar cycles?” Weiss asked, suddenly realizing. “I’d always wondered…” Ruby just grinned.

“Like I said, we’re more common than you’d think.”

Weiss pulled open the door to room 320, entering with Ruby in tow.

As soon as she noticed who else was inside, she stopped in her tracks just to blink in surprise.

“Hey, Rubes!” Came a voice from the third row. Sure enough, her roommate’s impossibly loud sister was waving them over to two empty seats next to her. Blake sat on the other side, her nose in a book and wired headphones in her ears.

“They’re… also taking First-Year Writing?” Weiss asked.

“Yup!” Ruby said, trotting up the amphitheater-style seating area to greet her sister.

“I thought that this class was for… well… first-years,” Weiss said as she caught up.

“You would think that, yes,” Blake said, gathering up her earbuds. “But Beacon College, in its infinite wisdom, has decided to overhaul its gen-ed requirements, so instead of taking the college-wide writing course at the end of our college careers…”

“We’re all in here, and now we can suffer together!” Yang finished, playfully bumping against Ruby as she sat down next to her. “I can’t believe I get to take a class with my baby sister!”

“I’m not a baby! I’m an adult! I do my own laundry and I voted last year!” Ruby protested.

Weiss and Blake made eye contact across the pair of siblings, both rolling their eyes.

The door to the lecture hall opened and a wiry, wild-haired man with thick, circular glasses barged in. His movements showed incredible haste, but with an amount of control that Weiss wouldn’t think possible for a real human - it was as if the man was a recording being played at double speed. The four of them watched in awe as he seemed to almost teleport around the lecturer’s station, moving from the chalkboard to the projector to the lecture stand as though there were three versions of him, each doing one of those tasks simultaneously.

Finally, he appeared to be set up, with his laptop plugged in and displaying a presentation. The words “First-Year Writing” sat in the center, in bold, subtitled by “ENGW 1101 Section 1” in a smaller, italic font. He took a long sip from the massive thermos in his hand, eerily motionless otherwise.

Weiss checked her scroll, and watched the digital display shift from “6:29” to “6:30.”

Instantly, the man spoke up, his booming voice quickly hushing the idle chatter of the large room.

“Good evening, class! Welcome to First-Year Writing. I am Professor Oobleck, and I will be sharing your late Thursday evenings with you for the rest of the semester.” He cracked a grin. “If you have ended up in the wrong place by mistake, there is no shame in getting lost, so please escape now if you’re due to be elsewhere!”

A beat passed. No one moved.

“Wonderful!” He said, walking out from behind the lecture stand. He had a frankly impossible amount of energy for this time of night. Using a small clicker in the opposite hand from his thermos, he advanced the slide to his contact information and office hours, which Weiss quickly began to copy down in her notebook.

“These are the various places that I can be found during the week! I also usually attempt to reserve an additional thirty minutes at most after class, for the brave souls who wish to speak to me more after hearing me lecture for three hours! I take questions during lecture, but if you don’t believe that your question will be relevant to anyone else, then I ask that you save it for then, for my office hours, or for my worryingly overflowed email inbox.” That got a small chuckle out of the lecture hall’s one hundred or so occupants. “That being said, I do make an effort to return emails within forty-eight business hours, and I would recommend turning your email notifications off if you prefer to sleep at four o’clock in the morning, because I apparently do not.” Another small chuckle emanated throughout the hall.

As he talked through the various disability accommodations that the College and the course would provide, Weiss heard Ruby whisper to Yang, “How is this guy so energetic at this time of night?”

“That’s just Oobleck,” Blake answered. “You’ll get used to him. He’s pretty eccentric, but he’s fun.”

“Have you had a class with this professor before?” Weiss asked. The siblings appeared to be equally curious.

“Yeah, he taught my Ancient Wars and Revolutions class freshman year,” Blake said.

“Ohhh,” Yang added, “So this is Fast History Man?”

“Yup,” Blake giggled. She turned to Weiss and Ruby, explaining, “That’s what we called him last year. If I were taking an online course that he was putting out, I’d listen to his lectures on half speed, not double.”

Weiss gulped, and Blake immediately noticed her fearful reaction.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “He always puts his slides up online, like, right away, so you can read back through them if you miss something.” She chuckled. “There’s that, plus all the readings he made us do…”

“Now then!” The professor said, pulling their attention back to him. “Any questions before we dive into the wonderful world of writing?”

Again, no one said a thing. Weiss figured everyone else was just as intimidated as she was.

“I’ll choose to take your silence as enthusiastic understanding,” he said. “Now, that aforementioned wonderful world of writing…”

“Now, moving on to sentence structure...” Oobleck continued, before an alarm went off on his watch. “Ah, drat!” He said, silencing it. “Very well. I suppose we shall continue this after the break. Please take the next fifteen minutes to head to the bathrooms, get some water, and do anything else that you need to maintain your frustratingly mortal body! If you return a bit late, please enter through the back so that you don’t disrupt the lecture.”

Weiss nearly slumped forward onto the table. Her hand ached from writing - she must have taken four pages of notes, even with her usual shorthand. She looked over to Ruby, who was working on a piece, her drawing tablet resting on her knees. A half-finished portrait sat open on her laptop. Upon noticing that Oobleck had stopped speaking, she leaned back and stretched. Weiss heard a few surprisingly loud cracks.

“I’m gonna run to the bathroom, be right back,” she said. Weiss scooted forward to allow her to pass by. Blake took out a water bottle and began to read her book again, and Yang leaned back, taking up a fair amount of the space that Ruby had left between them. She yawned, but her violet eyes were still focused on Ruby, making sure that she was out of earshot.

“So, Weiss,” Yang began, her tone a little too conversational to bode well for Weiss. “How’re things with my baby sister?”

“Fine,” Weiss replied immediately. The cold, deflective aura she was so used to putting on whenever her father or brother asked her personal questions had appeared without her noticing, and she consciously pushed it down. “It’s nice. I like our room, and Ruby’s a surprisingly good cook.”

“Right, right,” Yang said, leaning over a little bit further. “But I meant to ask, you know, how’re things?” Her voice went a bit low, too obviously showing that she was speaking in code.

“Do you mean… her secret?” Weiss asked, nervous. “I mean, I was surprised, to say the least, but I’m totally fine with it. We haven’t really needed to talk about any part of it since the weekend, so…”

“Ugh,” Yang said, slumping a bit in her chair. Apparently Weiss had guessed wrong. “What I mean to ask is -”

“She wants to know if you and Ruby are dating,” Blake asked, without looking up from her book.

Both of their eyes locked onto her, but Blake was completely unfazed, turning the page like she hadn’t said a word.

“I - if we’re - what?” Weiss asked, spluttering. “That’s - I mean, we’re not - “

“Ah-ha!” Yang declared. “So you do like Ruby! Admit it!”

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Weiss said, haughty. She didn’t like being challenged like this, and she hoped that she was properly disguising the heat in her cheeks. “I perfectly enjoy Ruby’s company, but I have no current romantic feelings for her. Should that change, I will promptly inform you.”

“Oof, she’s got it bad,” Yang replied.

“Mmhmm,” Blake hummed, eyes still on her book.

“What is with you two?” Weiss asked in frustration. “Ruby is a friend, that’s all.” All she got was a matching pair of doubtful looks. Weiss tried another tactic, adding, “You two don’t even know if I like girls.”

Yang’s eyes met Blake’s, and she knew that neither of them were buying that little lie for a second. In retrospect, Weiss realized she probably shouldn’t have tried to feign straightness to a pair of women who were dating.

“Suuuuuuure you don’t, ice queen,” Yang said, leaning back in her chair again. Weiss harrumphed, checking her scroll in protest. “Just so you know,” Yang said casually, “If you break my baby sister’s heart I will literally rip yours out with my bare hands.”

Weiss was utterly speechless in response. She looked to Blake, and received nothing other than a tepidly apologetic shrug. Yang, however, had returned to her laptop, as though nothing out of the ordinary had been said.

A beat passed, and then Weiss finally became too curious. There was one question that she still hadn’t asked Ruby, for fear of what it might imply. Yang would probably interpret it just as badly, but she appeared to already be certain that Weiss had a crush, so there wasn’t really any way for things to be any worse.

“Can… can that happen, though?” Yang raised a smug eyebrow. Weiss sighed. “I meant a human and… someone like Ruby. Could they…” she leaned over, looking at Blake. Weiss had guessed that Yang was also a werewolf like Ruby, what with their shared parentage and everything, but she hadn’t previously considered how Yang’s girlfriend fit into the equation.

“Oh, humans and weres?” Yang asked quietly. There wasn’t anyone too close to them, and the people around weren’t really paying them any mind. Weiss nodded. “Sure, I figure it happens. I’ve never done it myself, though, so I can’t say I know too much about how that would work.”

“Me neither,” Blake said.

“So, you’re…” Weiss trailed off, hoping Blake could figure out her meaning.

“I’m a were, but not a wolf like this dork,” Blake replied, jerking a thumb at Yang, who just let out a little chuckle.

“Oh!” Weiss replied, surprised. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize…” Blake nodded.

“Lycanthropy doesn’t just make wolves, although we’re most common,” Yang said. “And despite what they say about cats and dogs, Blake and I get along pretty well.”

Blake dramatically rolled her eyes at that, and Weiss immediately sympathized.

“I’m a werepanther,” Blake explained, her voice soft. “I’ve been told that I look a bit like a black jaguar when I’m shifted.” Weiss merely nodded, enlightened.

“Come over to our place some time and you’ll probably catch us with our ears and tails out,” Yang offered. “You’ll probably end up there, if you want to do the group project with us.”

“Group project?” Weiss asked. Professor Oobleck hadn’t mentioned that so far in his lecture.

“Yup,” Yang said, turning her laptop so that Weiss could see. She had the course’s schedule open, and apparently there was indeed a group project, whose first milestone was due in two weeks.

“Wanna work with us?” She asked.

“I don’t suppose why not,” Weiss said coolly. Truth be told, she was absolutely thrilled at the idea of not having to meet and work with random people in the class. She had never exactly been much of an extrovert.

“What’re you guys talking about?” Ruby asked from over Weiss’ shoulder.

“Group project,” Yang said.

“Among other things,” Blake chuckled under her breath.

“Wanna work with us?” Yang asked as Ruby sat down.

“Sure!” Ruby quickly replied. “We can probably just work in our room.”

“Your room doesn’t have a couch, Ruby,” Yang countered. “Blake and I live in an actual apartment, and we have spectacular, modern-day amenities like a living-room table.”

“Ugh, fine, that makes sense,” Ruby relented. “You guys are close to campus, right?”

“Only a few blocks, yeah,” Yang replied. “We got as close as the absurdly high rent would allow. It’s nuts, even for a one-bedroom.”

Weiss briefly wondered at the phrase “one-bedroom,” then things immediately clicked into place.

Before she could say anything else, Oobleck’s alarm went off again. “Welcome back!” He declared instantaneously. “Now, where were we… ah yes! Sentence structure!” Weiss’ note-taking hand twitched just from seeing the next slide.

It was going to be a long night.

“SooOOooo,” Ruby said, as they made their way home. “What was Yang’s threat like? Did she say she’d rip your throat out, or…?”

“Ugh, not you too,” Weiss said wearily.

“Oof, so she did give you that talk, huh? Sorry, she’s just really protective of me.”

“I gathered.”

“Sorry,” Ruby said again.

“It’s fine,” Weiss replied. “Does she do this to every girl you meet?”

“What? No, you’re the only human who’s ever found out about...” Ruby began, incredulous. “Wait,” she said, literally stopping in the middle of the sidewalk, forcing Weiss to do the same. “I’m talking about the werewolf thing. What are you talking about?” Weiss’ cheeks immediately began to burn.

“N-nothing!” She said, immediately wincing and how obviously she was lying. Ruby just narrowed her eyes and put her hands on her hips. Weiss sighed, relenting. Apparently, she was completely incapable of hiding anything from the members of the Rose/Xiao Long family.

“She thinks that I’m… interested in you…” Weiss admitted timidly.

Ruby closed her eyes, tilting her head up at the night sky in frustration for a moment.

“That… that sounds like Yang,” Ruby said. Weiss simply nodded once, the awkwardness hanging in the air. Ruby continued, with a fair share of stumbling. “I’m sorry - she just… I mean, it’s not that I’d be - er, well…”

“It’s okay,” Weiss said, mercifully cutting her off. “I’d rather just…”

“Put it behind us?”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.”

Weiss blinked for a moment. Something about Ruby’s tone… that couldn’t be disappointment, could it? No. Certainly not. She was just hearing things.

“Ugh, we should have eaten dinner before,” Weiss groaned, laying out on her bed. It was almost ten o’clock at night, and her stomach was absolutely livid with her for how long she’d gone without giving it anything to do.

“Relax, pasta’s almost on,” Ruby said. Her tail swished back and forth as she bounced to the song currently playing on her stereo.

Weiss had… attempted to cook for herself one afternoon, but after they’d had an adventure putting out a small grease fire, they’d agreed that Ruby was better-suited for the task. Weiss felt awful about having Ruby cook for her every evening, but Ruby had assured that she loved making food for her friends. Dirty dishes, on the other hand, were almost exclusively Weiss’ domain, which she supposed was a fair balance.

The current song trailed off, and Ruby stopped stirring.

“I’m gonna pick out a new tape - can you watch this pot?” Ruby asked. “Just throw the noodles in when the water comes to a boil.”

“Got it,” Weiss said, hopping out of bed and walking over to the stove.

“What’re you in the mood for?” Ruby asked. “We can do Genesis or REO Speedwagon.”

“Hmm,” Weiss said, carefully watching the water as it began to bubble slightly. “Have I heard Genesis yet?”

“You’ve heard ‘A Trick of the Tail’ but not ‘Wind and Wuthering,’” Ruby clarified. “‘Wind’ is their eighth album, so it gets really weird, but it’s cool!”

“Let’s do that, then,” Weiss snorted. “If it’s music that even you find strange, I’m sure it’ll sound like it comes from another planet.”

“That’s actually not a bad descriptor,” Ruby said as she put the cassette into her stereo.

Sure enough, an otherworldly melody rang out from her stereo’s speakers. A delightfully odd-sounding synthesizer dominated the song’s opening, eventually supplemented by a much more conventional piano. When the vocals came in after a minute or so, they were so stylized and complex that Weiss wasn’t sure if she could follow them even if she had the lyrics in hand.

Ruby appeared to notice her confusion, and gave her a literally wolfish grin. “This song is called ‘Eleventh Earl of Mar,’” she explained. “It’s seven minutes long, and I have no idea what it’s about.” Weiss just shook her head with a laugh.

Next to her, the water began to bubble. Weiss was briefly surprised, but she reached for their bowls - Ruby had already proportioned out the noodles - and began to pour them into the water. As she was halfway through, though, another pot on the burner made a series of angry popping sounds, startling her.

“Crap, I forgot about the sauce!” Ruby said, standing up.

“I-I’ve got it!” Weiss declared, quickly putting the now-empty bowls down and shifting over to the other pot. She picked up the wooden spoon and began to stir, like she’d seen Ruby do a few minutes ago. Slowly, the popping noises became quieter, but they didn’t stop.

“Here,” Ruby said, turning the heat down on both burners before standing behind Weiss. Ruby’s body pressed up against Weiss’ back, looking over her shoulder. Gently, she covered Weiss’ hands with her own, and began to stir faster, and with several times the confidence. Weiss felt a familiar heat rising in her cheeks as Ruby brought the situation back under control, using Weiss’ arms.

“Uh… sorry…” Ruby said, letting Weiss go. “I can take over now.”

“Yes, that’s… probably for the best,” Weiss laughed in embarrassment. She slid out from between Ruby and the stove, trying not to notice how upset she was at the absence of Ruby’s arms around her. As she absentmindedly walked by, she bumped into Ruby’s tail - she really couldn’t avoid it in the tiny space.

“Ow!” Ruby exclaimed.

“Sorry!” Weiss said.

“No, no, that’s probably on me,” Ruby said, rubbing her lower back. “I guess it’s not practical to have this thing out while we’re in such a tiny room…”

“No!” Weiss said, a little too quickly. “It’s fine, I…” she blushed. “I like it.”

Was that a little bit of red on Ruby Rose’s cheeks? Weiss, terrified of finding out, continued. “Plus, you said it’s uncomfortable to hide it, right?”

“I mean… a little, I guess…” Ruby said. To Weiss’ relief, her tail did stay out as she thought aloud. “It’s like… have you ever worn like semi-uncomfortable shoes all day, and then finally taken them off?”

“Every single day of my life, yes.”

“Right.” Ruby said, laughing. Weiss could see her remembering all of the boots, heels, and businesslike flats in their shared closet, while Weiss had never seen Ruby wear anything besides a single pair of red sneakers.

“Well… my ears and tail are kind of like that. Keeping them in isn’t necessarily uncomfortable, but it’s just nice to be able to let them out at the end of the day.”

“Then you should do that,” Weiss said. “After all, I figure that this is one of the few places on campus where you can really let them out…”

“Barring Halloween, of course,” Ruby joked. Weiss laughed. She was looking forward to that.

“Yes, well, every other day of the year, I’d imagine your options are limited, so I’d never want to keep that from you.”

“Thank you,” Ruby said sincerely. “I’m… I’m really glad we ended up being roommates. Or, that you ended up finding out about all the… were… stuff.” She laughed. “I would not have enjoyed having to hide it from you all year.”

Weiss gave a thoughtful hum. “Yes, I’d imagine that would be stressful.”

“Yeah,” Ruby replied. “I was hoping I’d randomly get matched with another were, but the instant I got a whiff of you…”

“What?” Weiss asked with alarm. Ruby dropped her spoon in shock, apparently realizing what she had just said.

“No! Wait, it’s not like that!” She reassured, her ears flattening against her head. “It’s not that you smelled bad or anything - you smell really good actually! I really like your perfume! - it’s just that, you see, weres have really sensitive noses, and…”

At this point, Weiss’ laughter had become loud enough that Ruby stopped talking in embarrassment. She waited for Weiss to finish, feeling her face get warmer by the second - and not from the stove.

“What I meant to say,” Ruby said hotly, “is that I can distinguish humans and weres by scent. I just knew you were human as soon as you walked in. That’s all.”

“Ah, I see,” Weiss said, still chuckling to herself. Ruby crossed her arms indignantly, and Weiss just shook her head at the sight.

“Never change, Ruby Rose,” Weiss laughed. Ruby finally giggled, giving her a warm smile.

A timer went off on Ruby’s scroll.

“Oh, the pasta’s done!” She said. She began straining it over the sink, and once combined with the sauce, their gourmet college dorm room meal was ready. Ruby handed Weiss a bowl and a fork, and the pair sat at their respective desks to eat, lacking a table.

“This is lovely, thank you,” Weiss said after taking a few bites.

“Thanks!” Ruby grinned. “I’m honestly flattered - I figure you’ve been to a bunch of fancy restaurants and stuff…” Weiss sighed. She very rarely enjoyed conversations about her father’s wealth, but Ruby had brought it up in the most innocent way possible. It was clear from the first moment that Ruby didn’t judge her for it, or even think about it very much, something that made her incredibly unique among the people that Weiss had met.

“I have been to far too many fancy restaurants,” Weiss replied. “I’d never had a home-cooked meal before I met you, and I must say that I prefer this.”

“You don’t mean that,” Ruby said. By her tone, Weiss could tell was more from a place of her own self-doubt than one of distrust.

“No, I mean it sincerely,” Weiss said. “Meals always had to be such an affair back home - I needed an outfit, table manners, that sort of thing. They were all full of such pomp and circ*mstance and they took forever. It’s very nice to just sit back and eat some home-cooked pasta in my bedclothes.” She gestured to her current outfit, which was a simple, ice-blue nightgown.

“That’s fair,” Ruby said with a laugh. “I’m sorry to hear that you never got to really enjoy meals like this…”

“The company helps,” Weiss said, without thinking. As soon as the phrase left her mouth, she wanted to jam her foot into it. She winced internally at how easily her usual filters had gone down - even so late at night, she was rarely ever so candid. There was just something about Ruby Rose that made her feel so… free, in many senses of the word.

Weiss found this concept to be equal parts elating and terrifying.

“Thanks,” Ruby laughed, bringing Weiss back to the present. “You’re not so bad yourself. Once you managed to chill out a little, anyways.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Weiss asked.

“Nothing, nothing!” Ruby laughed. “I just… my first impression of you was that you were just a little bit uptight.”

“I am not uptight!” Weiss replied, indignant.

“Yeah, exactly like that!” Ruby said, laughing at her own joke.

“You’re insufferable.” Weiss said, hiding a grin.

“Love you too,” Ruby said casually. They both stopped, slowly processing what had actually left her mouth.

A beat passed. The room was impossibly still.

“I… sorry…” Ruby said. “Yang and I do that all the time, I didn’t mean to…”

“No, no, it’s fine, it was just a little unexpected,” Weiss said, half talking over Ruby.

“Yeah, no, I totally get that,” Ruby said. “What with Yang today, and…”

“Yeah…” Weiss said. They both quietly trailed off, thinking.

“Do you…” Ruby began, then stopped.

Weiss just gave her an inquisitive hum, prompting her to continue.

“I… well. I’ve been wondering if you even… you know… like girls. Like like girls, that is.”

Weiss looked her right in the eyes. “Promise you won’t tell your sister?”

“Scout’s honor!” Ruby said with a grin. Weiss leaned back in her chair, satisfied with that.

“Yes, I do. I’m pretty sure I only like girls,” she said. “My father would often introduce me to... ‘eligible bachelors’ my age, and I never cared for any of them. I thought I was just maybe meeting the wrong men, but the more I reflected on it, I realized that in every story I’ve ever read, I identify with the lonely female protagonist right up until the part where she falls in love with the man.” Ruby immediately snorted.

“What a mood,” she replied. “I’m quite similar - just a tiny little lesbian.”

“You’re taller than me.” Weiss contested. Ruby rolled her eyes.

“Weiss, I don’t know how to break this to you, but you’re also tiny,” Ruby said.

“Hey! I’ve got an average height!” Weiss declared. “Your perspective is just skewed by that mountain you call a sister.”

“Fair, fair,” Ruby replied. She checked her scroll. “Jeez, it’s almost midnight.”

“Ugh, already?” Weiss asked. She suddenly realized how exhausted she was.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Ruby said, slowly standing from her desk. “Here, lemme take your bowl.”

“I thought dishes were my responsibility,” Weiss protested.

“Oh, don’t worry, I’m leaving you two dirty pots,” Ruby said. They both quietly chuckled, and Weiss handed over her bowl. She couldn’t help but watch Ruby bend over to put them both in the dishwasher - Weiss had to admit, her tail really enhanced the whole affair.

Weiss blinked her eyes, consciously processing that little unconscious realization.

Damn it all. That obnoxious blonde was right.

Chapter 5: Parents and Family Weekend

Chapter Text

“Awesome! I can’t wait to see you!” Ruby said, hopping off her bed in excitement.

“Ruby, it’s been three weeks. You miss me already?”

“Well, that, but I’m also so excited for you to come by and see Beacon and stuff!”

“I am too, sweetie, but I’ve done this trip a couple of times now. Remember two years ago when we went to see Yang?”

“Of course I do! But this time you’re visiting me!”

Taiyang laughed.

“That’s true, but I’m here for your sister too, okay?” Ruby sat down on her bed again.

“I know, I know - she’s really excited for you to meet Blake and all that…”

Ruby considered that for a moment. She figured that her dad would be utterly shocked that Blake was so quiet in comparison to his firecracker of a daughter, but would soon recover by making a joke about opposites attracting.

“Is there anybody you want me to meet?” Tai asked, bringing Ruby back into focus. “All of your friends are welcome at dinner tomorrow.”

“Umm…” Ruby didn’t really talk to too many people who weren’t already coming to that meal, but then her eyes landed on the gentle white-haired girl taking notes from something up on her laptop. “You can meet Weiss!” Ruby said, wrapping her into a hug to emphasize the point.

“Wh - Ruby!” Weiss exclaimed, pulling out one of her wireless earbuds as she was nearly knocked out of her chair.

“Sorry,” Ruby laughed, giving Weiss the wolfish grin that made it so frustratingly difficult to stay angry with her. “Wanna go to dinner with my dad tomorrow? Blake and Yang are gonna be there!”

Weiss looked down at her roommate, who was now kneeling next to her chair, her tail wagging expectantly.

“I - I’ll have to check with my father,” Weiss said, embarrassed.

“Okay!” Ruby said, unperturbed. “Let us know!”

She then got up and returned to discussing a few details with her father, so Weiss replaced her earbud.

Weiss’ mind drifted at the looming presence of Parents and Family Weekend. Shockingly, her father had actually told her that he would be attending, which frustrated her immensely. He was almost always gone on business trips, but apparently Beacon College had just happened to choose one of his exceedingly rare free weekends. She’d reached out to him with a few restaurant suggestions, and while she imagined that he already had a hotel room and everything, he hadn’t responded in almost four days, and she was getting just slightly frustrated at that. She was happy to make other plans, or just stay in her room by herself, but the uncertainty prevented her from planning on either activity until she heard.

“Bye, Dad. See you tomorrow!” The sound of Ruby ending her call made Weiss look up. “So, what did you say about having to hear from your dad?” Ruby asked her.

Weiss sighed internally. She knew that Ruby just wanted to know for the sake of making plans, and she was mostly able to convince herself that Ruby was inviting her because she genuinely enjoyed her company and not just as a formality, but…

“It’s okay, you should probably just make a reservation for four - I’m sure my father will want to take me to some fancy restaurant in town.”

“Weiss.” Ruby said. “Do you really think we’re going to a place that expects reservations?”

“I… suppose you have a point,” Weiss admitted.

Ruby sat down at her desk, gently putting her hand on Weiss’ shoulder.

“We’re going to a pizza place that’s near Blake and Yang’s apartment. If you don’t hear anything or whatever… come with us?”

Weiss wanted so badly to say yes, even if she did hear from her father. Fun, casual dinner with Ruby and her family sounded lovely, especially when weighed against the prospect of a cold, pompous dinner with her father.

“I… I’ll let you know,” Weiss said, with an awkward smile.

“Okay!” Ruby replied. Her face then softened, as she leaned back. “You really haven’t heard from your dad at all?”

“Not in four days, no,” Weiss said, letting some of her frustration show.

“Ugh, what a jerk,” Ruby said casually.

“I…” Weiss, for some reason, began to defend her father, but the sentence died on her lips. She already trusted Ruby with this information - she trusted Ruby with basically anything. After all, Ruby was trusting Weiss with her most precious secret, so it felt fair to return the favor.

“I mean, you said he was ‘the worst,’ right?” Ruby asked.

“I… didn’t think you would remember that night,” Weiss admitted. “When you were in your… wolf?” Ruby nodded, to indicate that her terminology was correct.

“Some memories are a bit fuzzy, but I usually get most of it,” Ruby said.

Weiss’ cheeks turned pink.

“So… you remember…”

“Oh! I, um… yeah…” Ruby shrugged, putting one hand on the back of her neck and looking away. “Sorry if that was weird, I just… you were pretty distressed, and it seemed like petting a puppy would help you calm down, so…”

“I…” Weiss laughed. “It worked, so I suppose that you were right.”

“Well,” Ruby began. She seemed to be a little nervous, suddenly, but she shored up her resolve and continued. “I’d be happy to help - that is, I could change into my wolf again, if you like. Just… say the word!”

Weiss snorted. She couldn’t help herself - Ruby was frustratingly adorable when she was nervous like this. Weiss was nervous too, so she was also trying desperately not to show it.

“I’ll let you know,” she said. She didn’t intend to, but the comment was a little sarcastic. When she heard it, Ruby’s ears drooped a little, which made Weiss furious with herself.

“All right!” Ruby said, halfhearted. Weiss could tell that she now regretted making the offer in the first place. She got up and went to the kitchen.

Weiss’ frustration at her mistake boiled over, and she gathered up her courage. She could fix this. Pulling her earbuds back out again, she asked, “Ruby?”

“Mm?” She answered, a baking sheet in her hand.

“If you’re not busy after dinner tonight… I’d like that.” Ruby quirked an eyebrow, and Weiss became even more embarrassed that she’d have to explain. “I mean… you being in your wolf. If you don’t have plans or anything, that would be really nice. It’s been a long week.”

Ruby’s thousand-watt smile made every single ounce of embarrassment worth it.

“I have a commission that I want to finish tonight, but I could probably work on that once everything’s in the oven,” She said.

Weiss gave her a smile, standing up and walking over to Ruby’s stereo.

“What’re you in the mood for tonight?” She asked, looking through Ruby’s tapes.

“Hmm… maybe some Billy Joel?” She asked. “It’s got a black cover.”

“I actually have heard some Billy Joel,” Weiss said proudly.

Ruby just laughed, and Weiss inserted the tape.

“You still haven’t heard?” Ruby asked, tying her sneaker.

“No,” Weiss said, frustrated. She was staring at her scroll, debating whether she should text again. Her father had read the one she’d sent that morning, but still hadn’t responded to it, or to her previous message.

“Sorry,” Ruby said. She put her hand on Weiss’ shoulder. “My dad’s outside. Come with us?”

Weiss looked up over her shoulder into a tender pair of silver eyes.

Those damned eyes were really going to be the death of her.

“All right,” she said, throwing her hands up in the air. “Let me grab my shoes.”

“Ruby!” A man’s voice called out. Weiss looked up to see Yang, Blake, and a tall, blond man who looked almost exactly like Yang waving to them.

“Hey, Dad!” Ruby called. She walked over, gesturing for Weiss to follow. The man opened his arms, and Ruby happily jumped up into the hug.

“You’re Weiss, right?” He asked, putting his daughter down. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Yes,” Weiss said, giving a shallow curtsy. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Rose.”

Blake and Yang snickered a bit at her curtsy, though she could tell it was good-natured.

“It’s Mr. Xiao Long, actually, but please, call me Tai.” He replied.

“Oh!” Weiss said. She looked over at Ruby, who explained.

“‘Rose’ was my mom’s last name,” she said.

Weiss merely nodded. She’d pieced together that Ruby’s mother wasn’t around anymore, but Ruby almost never spoke of her, and it was an area she didn’t dare enter without an express invitation.

“All right!” Yang said, taking Blake’s hand, almost as if she were purposefully steering the conversation away from the heavy subject. “Shall we dine on only the most fabulous pizza?”

This immediately got a laugh out of Blake, who seemed all too happy to hold hands. Weiss couldn’t help the tiny twinge of jealousy she felt while watching them.

“We shall!” Taiyang declared, in the same overdramatic joke voice as his daughter. “Onward, to pizza!”

“So, Blake,” Taiyang asked, mouth half full of pizza, “Your parents couldn’t make it?”

“Unfortunately not,” Blake said. “They live pretty far, and they’re both so busy…”

Taiyang just nodded his understanding. “Same for you, Weiss?” He asked.

“Pretty much,” she said, not wanting to get into it. “He might be here tomorrow, but he probably got caught up with work.”

“Well, if either of you need a place to stay locally, our house is always open,” he said, like it was nothing.

Weiss and Blake just kind of stared at him, surprised. Their eyes met, and they came to an unspoken understanding rather quickly - neither of them had ever been offered something like that before. Each just muttered her thanks.

“Oh!” Tai said. “What’re your girls’ majors?”

“History,” Blake said, speaking up first.

“Ah,” Tai said. “I dunno if my girls have told you, but I’m a high school teacher. I’ve substituted for a few history classes, and on the rare chance that I can afford to pay attention to the video instead of grading papers, I’ve always found it interesting.”

“I generally think so, too,” Blake agreed. “Though I could stand to read a bit less of ancient white guys talking about all the places they conquered.” Tai and Yang laughed together, and Weiss could suddenly tell where she got it from.

“How about you, Weiss?” Tai asked.

“I’m in Political Science at the moment,” she said. “It’s mostly just gen-ed stuff right now, and I might end up changing my major.”

“Ah, no shame in that!” He said. “I changed mine, after my first semester.”

“Where did you start?” Weiss asked, curious. Ruby laughed from beside her.

“He was a chemical engineering major,” she teased.

“Despite being terrible at math,” Yang added.

“Hey, I was just interested in chemistry!” Tai exclaimed. “I don’t know where Yang got her mind for math, though, because it didn’t come from me.” Weiss raised an eyebrow, and Yang explained. “I’m a physical therapy major,” she said. “Surprising amount of math.”

“My uncle Qrow says that Dad would spend hours on one problem,” Ruby continued.

“Your uncle?” Blake asked.

“Qrow and I were roommates for our freshman year,” Tai said, elegantly changing the subject. “It’s actually how I met Yang’s mom.”

“Yeah,” Yang snorted. “He asked Qrow who ‘that hot girl’ was, and he said -”

“‘My sister, you asshole!” Ruby interjected, doing what Weiss imagined was an impression of her uncle.

This got laughs from around the table, to Tai’s chagrin.

“If you girls brought your dear old dad here just so you could make fun of him, I’m sure you could at least stand to pay for his parking,” he said, pouting.

Weiss felt an unfamiliar warmth in her chest. There was something about being here, with these four other people - despite not knowing them very well, she was having a lovely time. The pizza was far better than she’d expected, and while Tai was just as loud and quirky as his eldest daughter, their dynamic had already grown on her quite a bit. She looked at Blake, comfortably nestled under Yang’s arm, and Ruby, grinning like an idiot as her father crossed his arms in mock irritation, and it suddenly felt like there wasn’t anywhere else that she would rather be. It almost felt like… well, like family.

“Hey,” Ruby said quietly, as Tai and Yang were having a spirited debate about something, with the occasional giggle from Blake. “You okay? You’ve been spaced out for a bit.”

“I’m okay,” Weiss said, a smile easily finding its way to her face. “I’m actually having a lot of fun.”

Ruby nudged her arm. “See? Told you you’d be glad that you came.”

“Yes,” Weiss said, resisting the urge to lean back into Ruby and rest her cheek on that lovely mop of hair. “You were right.”

“So then I turn the corner and there they are,” Tai said. “And he’s got her lipstick all over his face, and they both just freeze as soon as they see me. We just stare at each other for, like… ten seconds, and I finally just ask, ‘do you have hall passes?’”

Everyone burst into laughter as they walked back to Weiss and Ruby’s dorm.

“So?” Blake asked, on the edge of her metaphorical seat. “Did they?”

“Yep!” Tai laughed. “They both just… wordlessly held them up…” he faithfully pantomimed this, getting more laughter. “And I was just so surprised and embarrassed for them that I just kind of… nodded, and turned back around.”

Weiss shook her head in disbelief. She couldn’t even comprehend that level of embarrassment.

As their laughter died down, they approached the dorm building that had become Weiss’ home with Ruby in the past few weeks. She shivered a bit in the late September chill, wishing that she’d brought a coat. It had gotten much colder after nightfall.

Then her eyes recognized a man in a tailored white suit, and her entire body froze over.

“Uh… Weiss?” Ruby asked. Her eyes followed Weiss’ gaze, and stopped on the same man.

“Th… that’s my father,” she squeaked out. The rest of the group remained silent. Weiss knew she was being pathetic by just freezing up like this, but she couldn’t help it. The fears and worry that she’d pushed away earlier that afternoon instantaneously re-entered her system, and were thousands of times stronger now that they’d essentially come true.

“Weiss!” The man tersely announced. She twitched as she recognized his tone, and the way that it cooled once he saw that she wasn’t alone.

“Father,” she managed. They closed the distance between them, though Weiss and the group around her were much more hesitant to do so than her father was.

“I’ve been calling you for hours, where were you?” He asked. She could tell that he was putting on his “normal parent” mask, but she knew the exact amount of anger that lay underneath.

“I… I ... “ Weiss spluttered.

“I apologize, she was with me,” A voice said from beside her. To her utter shock, Ruby’s dad had stepped up to meet her father, offering to shake his hand. “Taiyang Xiao Long. Our daughters are roommates.”

“I… see…” he replied. He took the hand smoothly, with the experience of a thousand business deals. “Jacques Schnee. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Tai smiled.

“I’m sorry if Weiss didn’t check her scroll,” Tai continued. “Her table manners were too good, even as she was probably bored to death by my long stories.” It was a jovial attempt at self-deprecating humor and an indirect compliment to Jacques, which Weiss found impressive, but her father remained immune to pleasantries.

“Yes, well, I apologize that she even attended in the first place,” Jacques said. “I had a reservation in the city, but I was held up by a minor emergency at work and couldn’t get a hold of her beforehand.”

“No need to apologize!” Tai said, perfectly able to tell what Jacques had actually meant to express, and choosing to remain polite. “She was an absolute delight.” Ruby, Blake, and Yang all nodded at this.

“We were all getting dinner together anyways,” Ruby added, moving just a bit forward past Weiss - almost protectively. Weiss’ heart melted as she stepped up to the metaphorical plate, meeting her father in the eyes. “And when she said that she hadn’t heard anything, I invited her along.”

“Oh!” Tai said, backing Ruby up. “I forgot to introduce my daughters. This is Ruby, Weiss’ roommate. And this is my other daughter, Yang.”

“A pleasure, of course,” Jacques said. Ruby’s skin practically crawled at the false smoothness of his voice. His eyes narrowed on Blake. “And you are?”

Blake took a tiny step forward, taking Yang’s hand. Jacques quirked an eyebrow.

“I’m Yang’s girlfriend, Blake.”

Every pair of eyes in the group besides Weiss’ stared directly at Jacques, daring him to have a problem with that.

“I see,” he replied. Only Weiss could tell that he was hiding a sneer. “Splendid to meet you all, indeed.” His eyes narrowed on Weiss, who nearly squeaked with discomfort. “But I’m afraid that Weiss and I must be going back to my hotel - we have so much to catch up on.”

“Of - of course,” Weiss replied, shrinking up into her shell. Her heart fell as she crossed sides of the group, standing next to her father. Her eyes met each of the others’ in turn, settling on Ruby’s, which were filled with worry.

“All right,” Tai said. “Have a lovely rest of the evening, and sorry for the mix-up.” There was something in his voice that Weiss couldn’t quite place - she knew he wouldn’t exactly like her father, but there was another layer to it that she didn’t understand. It was as if he could already perceive what a horrible monster the man really was. Blake and Yang were looking at him contemptuously, too - Ruby hadn’t told them about him, had she?

“See you tomorrow, Weiss?” Ruby asked.

“Of course!” Weiss replied, hoping she was telling the truth and that her father wouldn't whisk her back to Atlas in his anger. This seemed to put Ruby at ease, but only a little.

“It was nice to meet you, sir,” Tai said. His eyes met Weiss’. Slowly and deliberately, he said, “If you ever need anything, give me a call.”

“I’ll send you his number,” Ruby said, whipping out her scroll.

“Yes, thank you,” Jacques said, replying for her. “We really must be going, now - our car is waiting.” He stepped away briskly, and Weiss turned to follow, giving Ruby a hollow little wave. She mentally prepared herself for all of the yelling she was about to endure.

As Weiss’ footsteps faded away, Ruby seethed. She turned to her family, quietly asking, “You all smelled him too, didn’t you?”

Chapter 6: Change

Chapter Text

“Young lady, do you have even the slightest idea how much disgrace you have brought to my name?”

Weiss flinched. The talks always got bad whenever her father talked about bloodlines.

“No, sir.” She looked at the floor of the limo. “That wasn’t my intention. I apologize profusely.” At least her fake apologies were getting better, though she feared that she had learned too much from his example.

Her father leaned back with a sigh. Weiss was curious at this - he usually had much more energy for yelling. “You really will need to learn the value of such things, you know,” he said.

Weiss didn’t really know what to say to that, so she remained silent, hoping that her father was about to just have an angry, one-sided rant that she could merely endure and then ignore afterwards.

Instead, however, Jacques’ scroll rang. He gave Weiss a “this isn’t over” glare, and answered it. Quickly, he began a very businesslike exchange with the person on the other end, which Weiss had essentially heard many times over. She waited for him to turn away and look out the window, and then pulled out her own scroll. She didn’t really try to hide it from him (they were directly facing one another in an enclosed space, after all) but she was subtle enough that she figured she wouldn’t draw his eyes. Immediately, she noticed a few messages from Ruby. She had shared her father’s number, as well as Yang’s. Two minutes later, she had also sent Blake’s number, and then asked:

You ok?

Weiss hid a tiny smile - it was truly touching that Ruby cared so much about all the people around her. Weiss figured she should message all of the new contacts in her phone, but she first replied:

Yes. Apparently I’ve disgraced the family name, but I’m sure that we’ll recover.

Whew

Okay

Sorry, I was… worried

Well I’m flattered, but trust me, I’ve dealt with this before. I’ll be fine.

See you tomorrow.

“Ruby, stop pacing. You’re just gonna make yourself more upset.”

Ruby stopped, and sighed.

“You’re right, but…” She rubbed at her eyes in frustration. “Do you think she knows?”

Tai shrugged, looking far too large for Ruby’s bed as he sat on it. Blake and Yang sat in the only two chairs in the room, which they had only selected because Ruby had too much energy to sit.

“She probably doesn’t,” Blake said. “I mean… she freaked out when she saw you, didn’t she? Even if you were the first wolf she’d seen, I think she’d be more surprised if she’d met other supernatural creatures.”

“But then… why would he keep it from her?” She paused. “Do you think she’s… you know… actually human? If he’s not?”

She looked to Tai.

“Hey, don’t look at me. You’re the one who spends the most time with her. Have you smelled anything else?”

Ruby tried to think back for a while, but she was interrupted by a buzz from her scroll.

“She’s okay! She’s okay.”

The room breathed a collective sigh of relief. Ruby tapped out a response, then replied to her dad, “I’ve never smelled anything else on her, so… maybe he was turned after she was born?”

“Either way,” Yang said, crossing her arms. “The most important thing we all have to think about now is…” she trailed off. Ruby nodded.

“Do we tell her?”

Jacques, naturally, had a room at a local five-star hotel. He strode directly to the elevator, punching the button hastily. He was still on the phone, and Weiss was trying pretty hard not to roll her eyes - it was so very like him to demand that she accompany him back to her hotel, and then immediately spend that entire trip talking to someone else. Jacques selected a high floor once the elevator came, and Weiss was genuinely surprised that it wasn’t the top one.

They rode the elevator up in relative silence, though Weiss could just barely hear the chatter of the person on the other end of the line. Something that that person said, however, made Jacques’ brow furrow.

“Tonight?” She heard him mutter. “Are you sure?”

Weiss raised an eyebrow at this. It was rather late, already past nine. She couldn’t imagine what business dealing would take place so late on a Friday night, but most of her fathers’ contacts had very little regard for privacy or timing.

“Of course. I understand.” He finally hung up his scroll. Conveniently, the elevator stopped, and Jacques immediately stepped out. Weiss, ever dutiful, followed him into his hotel room.

“Weiss,” he began, once they were inside. “I’m concerned about your commitment to this family and its goals.” Weiss was just barely able to resist pointing out that they were his goals, and his alone, directing a family that he had married into. Instead, she merely met his eyes, letting him continue.

“Now, I have a very important meeting in town tonight, in just a few minutes or so.” He tented his fingers as he sat in the room’s singular armchair. “I would like for you to come along. I believe that it will help you better understand just how important the family business is.”

Weiss had almost always capitulated to her father’s desires. Truth be told, it was all that she’d really known. However, when her sister had all but removed herself from the Schnee family name by attending a military academy right out of high school, Weiss had realized that her father wasn’t all-powerful. She had learned that she could push back against him on small things, like her decision to attend Beacon College instead of the more prestigious Atlas University. This process had gone over remarkably well - Jacques had seemed mostly too busy to care. Still, she had never outright refused her father, not a direct request. But perhaps the obvious love and care that Ruby shared with her family had emboldened Weiss enough to know that she didn’t owe this man any loyalty - after all, he had never shown any to her.

“Father, no. It’s very late, my college work has been exhausting this week, and I still have a lot to catch up on. I appreciate the opportunity, but I don’t believe that I’ll properly…” she thought for a moment. What did he want to hear? “... represent the family, at such an important meeting.” She hated the inherently manipulative way that she’d phrased her refusal.

Jacques, upon hearing this, immediately grew angry. He stood, suddenly towering over Weiss.

“Young lady, you presume very much to presume you have a choice in this matter. I am ordering you to attend!”
“NO!” Weiss shouted. Everything stopped - for a moment, Weiss had surprised even herself. She exhaled. “You can’t force me. I’m going home and focusing on my -” Weiss paused, realizing she may have just stepped too far. She had only lived at Beacon College for a few weeks, but already she’d called it ‘home’ - and by the look in her father’s eyes, he’d noticed it too. Weiss’ anger started to deflate, her throat suddenly too dry.

Wordlessly, Jacques advanced on her, seizing her wrist. He pulled her towards him, and Weiss gasped in surprise. For a moment, her instincts took over, and she defended herself.

Fencing was remarkably different from hand-to-hand combat. Fencing had a certain elegance to it, a set of rules. Weiss was used to wearing full-body gear, attached to a retractable cord that enabled the electronic scoring system, and most importantly, wielding a sword. However, if fencing had taught her one thing, it was the unique interactions between her sword and her opponent’s - the ways that they would engage and disengage from one another, what her opponent would and wouldn’t be able to properly react to, due to limitations of either time or the range of motion possible for a human arm.

So, in that instant, almost without realizing it, Weiss disengaged herself from his grip - pushing her arm towards him, and not away - by grabbing her, Jacques had given her a direct line past his “sword” - the only thing, in this split second, he could have used to defend himself. Thusly, Weiss - almost on instinct - shoved her arm towards her father, striking him in the chest. Her fist immediately hurt, because she had no idea how to properly make one, but Jacques’ hand slid up her arm, and as a result, he wasn’t able to keep his grip as tight once it was on her bicep instead of her wrist. Weiss pulled free, immediately stepping back to meet her father’s eyes.

Jacques was completely unhurt by her punch, which didn’t surprise Weiss at all. He still seemed angry, but he also seemed to have realized that he took a step farther than perhaps he should have, and Weiss immediately capitalized on his momentary hesitation. Squaring her shoulders, resolute, Weiss stood her ground.

“I’m leaving. Goodnight.”

She turned on her heel and left the room.

Weiss’ heart raced as she briskly walked down the stairs. Unsure as to whether he was following her, but not daring to look back, she moved as quickly as she could, furious with herself for wearing a kitten heel. Simultaneously, though, she was elated - she’d stood up to him! And she’d even managed to hold her composure!

As the immediate rush died down, though, the potential fallout of her actions began to creep into her mind. She knew that she had made the right choice, the one for herself - but she didn’t exactly expect her father to just let her get away with this. They’d had arguments before, but there was a new layer to this one - normally, Jacques was always the one to end the conversation. This was the first time that Weiss had been the one to leave him, and she doubted that he would simply stew for a while and return to normal, as she usually did in that position.

There were still several floors to go, and Weiss figured she should probably begin arranging a way back to her dorm room - she wasn’t about to simply let her father catch up to her at the curb as she waited for a car. When she took out her scroll, there was another text from Ruby.

When’re you gonna be back?

Weiss punched the “call” button. To her shock, Ruby picked up immediately.

“Weiss? Weiss are you oka-”

“Now,” Weiss replied. “I’m on my way back now.”

“Huh? Oh - yeah, okay, great.” She paused. “What… what happened?”

“An… argument,” Weiss said. She figured that Ruby could hear the echo of her hurried footsteps in the stairwell. “I’m leaving, and my father may not have expressly approved of that.” She paused. “He… he grabbed me.”

Ruby seemed to immediately understand. “Where are you right now?”

“His hotel - does your father perhaps have his car?”

“No, I’m sorry, his parking was going to expire so he had to run. Blake and Yang just went back to their place, too. Where in the city is the hotel?”

“Uh… one second…” Weiss flicked to the map application on her phone. She heard some rustling on Ruby’s end - was she making her bed or something?

Weiss found the address, and immediately relayed this information to Ruby.

“Okay - do you know if he’s following you down?”

“Not in the stairwell, but I don’t know about the elevator.”

“All right, then you shouldn’t stay. Do you think you can head back alone?”

“I…” Weiss hesitated to show weakness like this, but the thankfully serious way that Ruby was handling these circ*mstances made her feel comfortable enough to tell the truth. “I could find my way, but I’d be worried about having to wait for a car…” At this, there was immediately more rustling, as if Ruby was hurriedly packing.

“Okay. Are you almost out of the stairwell?”

“Two more floors.”

“When you get to the bottom, peek out and see if he’s there. If he is, find somewhere to hide, like a lobby or something on a random floor. If not, take a moment, catch your breath, and walk out of there as if you belong there and things are totally normal.”

“O-okay…” Weiss had made it to the bottom, and she casually looked through the heavy door’s tall, thin window. There were a few people sitting in the lobby, but her father was miraculously not among them. “I don’t see him.”

Ruby exhaled in relief.

“Good. Okay. Catch your breath for a second. I’m on my way there, okay?”

Weiss faltered.

“Y-you are?” Ruby’s voice softened.

“Of course - I’ll be there, sooner than you think. Meet me in the park that’s two blocks down, when you take a left out of the hotel. Sit down on a bench or something, one that’s out of the way if you can find it. I’ll see you soon. Okay?”

“O-okay…”

“Don’t worry, Weiss. I won’t let him get near you and we’ll figure this out.”

“Right.” She paused. “Thank you, Ruby. For… for doing this.”

There was a tiny pause.

“Of course. I… I’ll always be there for you when you need me.” On her end, there was more rustling, but it sounded less like clothes and almost like… a tree? A bush? It was hard to tell. “Gotta go - I’ll be there soon! Two blocks down, find a bench, relatively secluded. Got it?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. See you soon.” At this, Ruby hung up the call.

Weiss spent a minute making sure that her breathing had gone back to normal. She was sweating a little, but not too visibly, especially once she wiped her brow. She checked the lobby again, but her father still wasn’t there. Weiss was also very thankful that no one had taken the stairwell in all the time she’d been there. She took one more deep breath, and began to follow Ruby’s instructions.

She pushed the door open confidently, making her way through the lobby as if she owned the building. It was a very short walk, but for Weiss, it was still full of tension as she tried to not obviously look around for her father. Nobody paid her much mind, though, and she pushed through the revolving front door.

The cool night air was a huge relief for Weiss, but she made sure not to dwell on it as she took a sharp left turn and walked along the sidewalk. She checked her scroll - it was already nearly ten o’clock at night. The dinner with Ruby’s family (which already felt like a lifetime ago) had ended rather late, plus the twenty-minute car ride, the argument with her father, and the time she’d spent in the stairs… it all added up in Weiss’ mind, but she was concerned about walking alone that late.

But she wouldn’t be alone, she reminded herself. Ruby was on her way.

However, Weiss slowly began to realize that Ruby had only left their room (based on when their call had ended) five minutes ago, and Weiss was on her way to the park already. Their room was twenty minutes away by car, and even if Ruby had very quickly found one through an app or something… Weiss was going to be at that park for a while.

But Ruby had said that she’d be there, “Sooner than you think,” and… Weiss trusted her. The way that she’d reacted - taking the situation seriously, but without the slightest judgment, and even immediately dropping everything to go to her… it meant a lot, to Weiss. She had a fair amount of evidence that Ruby was just sort of like that, as a person - she’d already opened up so much of her life to Weiss, so freely, in a way that seemed normal for her. Even if Ruby was the kind of person who would do this for anyone, Weiss was genuinely, truly honored that Ruby was willing to do it for her.

Weiss could see the park - it had a wrought-iron fence around it, and the meager light from the streetlamps was enough for Weiss to tell that that fence didn’t have any obvious gaps. Immediately, she grew worried - was the park closed? It was already late at night, so such a thing wasn’t out of the question. She could probably get over the relatively short fence if she needed to, but the whole point of going to the park, Weiss had assumed, was being in public. Even if she got in, she wouldn’t be protected by the random bystanders.

Weiss made it to the fence, and tried to look casual as she searched for a gate. To her relief, she quickly found one, and it was thankfully unlocked. Weiss walked into the park, and a sign immediately clarified the need for the fence - this was a dog park, in the middle of the city. The fence was there so that the dogs could run around off-leash. The park was also, very fortunately, somewhat populated - a few late-night dog owners had taken their pets out one more time before bed.

Weiss sought a bench, and was relieved to find one in the corner of the park, near some bushes. She sat, caught her breath, and casually checked her scroll, still pretending that she was just a normal city girl going about her business. She didn’t have any messages or missed calls from Ruby or from her father. Weiss hoped that he was just seething, and would get over himself in a few days, but… he’d never grabbed her like that before. All for a business meeting late at night…

Why had he wanted her to attend that meeting? Weiss knew that her father had nearly thousands of meetings like this one every year, so what was special about it? If it was just a normal meeting, why had he been so insistent that she attend?

Weiss shook her head, trying to ignore her swirling thoughts. She could worry about that later - her primary concern was getting home and knowing that she was safe. And she knew that she would feel safer as soon as Ruby got there, so all she had to do was… wait.

She looked out around the park, taking in the scenery. It was small, but quaint. It was a great location, too - one of the small rivers that ran through the city was on one side of the park, with only the fence to distinguish where the park ended and where its banks began. Weiss’ favorite thing about the city of Vale over Atlas was its greater connection to nature. Atlas barely had any trees, but Vale was almost full of them - even in the most metropolitan areas, there were tiny parks like this, little splotches of green amongst all the greys. Near Beacon’s campus, which was closer to the edges of the city than to its heart, they became even more common. After all, there were even those woods near campus where Ruby, Blake, and Yang had apparently spent the last moon.

Weiss hadn’t actually talked to Ruby about how her first full moon at college had gone. She’d just taken an overnight bag out last Wednesday night, and returned with it (wearing the same clothes) the next morning. Back then, Weiss had assumed that Ruby wanted to keep the more serious parts of her nature as a werewolf hidden, but… the way that she’d snuggled with Ruby in her wolf last night had given her cause to reconsider.

The night air, which had previously been soothing for Weiss’ hot, adrenaline-filled body, began to feel more chilling. She checked her scroll again - it had only been five minutes since she’d sat, so it would probably be another five before Ruby got there, at least.

Weiss shivered, trying to pass the time, when she heard one of the dogs in the park trotting up to her. She’d been so preoccupied with her worry that she hadn’t noticed it get close. It was huge, for a dog, with straight brown fur, and… wait a minute.

“Ruby?” Weiss asked. Sure enough, the wolf put her front paws up on the bench next to Weiss, giving her a lick on the cheek after Weiss recognized her silver eyes. She also noticed, oddly, that Ruby was wearing a collar, though she supposed that she would look conspicuous without one in a city like this.

“You said you were coming, but…” Weiss trailed off, realizing that they were still somewhat in public. If she didn’t pretend that this “dog” was hers, it would look strange. “What now?” She whispered, scratching Ruby’s ears like she imagined an affectionate dog owner would. Ruby hopped off the bench and began to walk around behind it, near the bushes at the corner of the park, clearly intending for Weiss to follow.

Feeling a little bit silly, Weiss checked her surroundings once more, looking for that blindingly white suit. However, the street remained dark, the passers-by wearing mostly muted colors. Weiss hunched down on her knees next to Ruby, almost completely hidden between two wide bushes.

Weiss noticed a small black bag with backpack straps resting in the grass. Vaguely, she remembered it hanging up in their closet somewhere, so Ruby must have stashed it here. She lied down, closed her eyes, and her fur began to ripple.

Weiss had never actually seen Ruby transform. The first night, she’d done it in the bathroom, even though she hadn’t changed on purpose. Last night, they’d done the same thing again, so Weiss could give Ruby her privacy while she got… well, naked, and everything. When it was time for bed, Ruby had just walked back in there, walked out in her pajamas, and promptly flopped into bed.

The change seemed to start with her fur, as it rippled like the surface of a pond before starting to recede. Ruby’s body elongated somewhat, though her wolf form was still the approximate size of her human one. Her ears spread a bit farther apart as her snout faded into a nose, and her tail stretched itself out before once again flattening against the grass. Ruby’s paws broke out into hands, her hind legs thickening and her torso becoming a bit shorter. In just a few seconds, Ruby Rose was on her hands and knees before Weiss, ears and tail out, naked but for the collar, which was now just slightly loose around her neck.

“Ah,” Ruby said, once more capable of speech. She sat back into a slightly more comfortable position, meeting Weiss’ eyes. “First things first,” she said. “Are you okay?”

Weiss paused - she’d seen Ruby naked a surprising number of times already, but after watching her fascinating transformation, which somehow was not at all grotesque, her brain was having a bit of trouble getting in gear.

“Yes,” she said finally, trying to look into Ruby’s eyes, and not any further down. “At least, I think so. I just really wanna go home.” Ruby gently took both of Weiss’ hands in her own.

“I know, and we’ll be there soon, I promise. I, uh - I’ve got a bit to explain when we get there, but - “

“How did you get here so quickly?” Weiss asked. “And… why like this?”

Ruby gave Weiss a sheepish grin. “Isn’t it obvious? I... I sorta ran here.”

“By yourself???” Weiss asked, utterly shocked. “Nobody… nobody saw you, thought you were a lost dog?”

“Nope!” Ruby said. “I was quick, I tried to stay hidden in the trees and stuff, and it’s dark, so…” Weiss simply blinked away her astonishment. Ruby rubbed her arms. “Jeez, it’s freezing out here without all my fur.” Weiss chose to ignore that - she didn’t need any more evidence of Ruby’s nudity.

“Okay, but - how’re we gonna get out of here without looking suspicious?” Weiss asked. “You didn’t bring any clothes, did you?”

“I couldn’t, this bag is too small,” Ruby said, sliding it along the ground to sit between them. “Besides, it can be kinda tricky to carry it on my back in my wolf, so I didn’t wanna overpack.” She quietly opened the zipper, and Weiss looked in to see her scroll, her ID card that let her into their building, and…

“A leash?” Weiss asked.

“So, here was the rest of my idea,” Ruby said, a bit embarrassed. “Once we’re ready to head home, I’ll change back, you can carry this bag, and… and you’ll just walk me back to our building, like any normal dog owner in a city.”

“And… my father?” Weiss asked.

“I actually thought about that part!” Ruby said triumphantly, though Weiss quickly shushed her. More quietly, she said, “Sorry. I… look, it’s a lot to explain, but… now that I’ve met him, I’ll be able to smell your dad - or even one of his goons, if I’m right - from a few hundred feet off. If I start to take you down another route, then that’ll be why, so follow my lead?”
“O-okay,” Weiss said nervously. “What if he gets to us, though?” Wait, why had Ruby said that her father had ‘goons?’

“If anybody starts coming up and giving us trouble, I can just start barking my head off,” Ruby said, with a smug grin on her face. “And then you can be all ‘oh, sorry, she’s just not good with people,’ and drag me along!”

Weiss just shook her head in disbelief. They were actually going to do this, weren’t they?

“Ruby Rose,” Weiss finally said, “You are absolutely insane.”

“Do you have any better ideas?” Ruby asked, exasperated. “I could run back home on my own, but I really think I should be there with you, because -”

“No, I know,” Weiss said. “I know. I want you to stay close, too.” At this, Ruby’s cheeks flushed, almost matching her hair and the red leather of what was currently her only article of clothing. Weiss sighed, and pulled the leash out of the bag. It was one of those fancy retractable ones, which Weiss imagined would be less cumbersome when attached to Ruby’s wolf.

“I was just saying that this plan is insane, and so, apparently, am I, because I’m about to go along with it.”

Ruby’s eyes widened, as if she wasn’t sure that Weiss would actually go along with her crazy scheme. Weiss closed up the bag, and threw it over her shoulders.

“Okay,” Ruby said, returning to the no-nonsense tone that she’d had during their phone call. “I stashed some clothes behind a tree near our building. I’m prepared to lose them, so just in case I laid out another set on my bed. If the ones I hid are gone, I’ll wait behind that tree while you head upstairs, grab the others, and bring them back down. Make sense?”

“Yes,” Weiss said. “And, um, one last thing - what did you say about my father having ‘goons?’”

“O-oh. Uhm, well, look - there’s actually a fair bit to explain and I’d rather wait until we’re safe, but Blake looked him up, and… he seems to be the type who might hire a few guys just to be big and scary.”

Weiss had never imagined that her father would send hired men out to find her, but knowing him for as long as she had, she couldn’t really discredit the possibility. She slowly began to realize that, depending on how angry he actually was, there was a good to fair chance that he might stop supporting her financially. She wasn’t too concerned about the money, but the choices that he’d potentially make after cutting her off - especially if she spoke out against him - troubled her a great deal.

Ruby seemed to pick up on this worry, placing a hand on Weiss’ shoulder. “Hey,” she said. “This is gonna work, trust me. I’ll be there for you, okay? I promise.”

The certainty in Ruby’s smile was reassuring, but the sheer tenderness in her eyes nearly took Weiss’ breath away. Weiss had never once doubted that Ruby Rose deeply cared for other people, but now, she was absolutely certain of it.

“Okay.” Weiss finally said, giving a determined nod. “Ready?” Ruby nodded.

“Ready.”

They left the dog park just before ten-thirty, with Weiss trying to act the part of just a regular, everyday “dog” owner. Some of the others gave her a friendly wave as she and Ruby left, but mercifully, none of the other dogs went to greet Ruby or anything, which Weiss imagined would be quite embarrassing for her.

The night air was still cold, but at least she was moving again. Ruby took her down the sidewalk at a brusque pace, which Weiss might have found tiring if she wasn’t so concerned. Ruby wasn’t even using half of the room that the long leash provided, sticking closely in front of Weiss as they headed back to their building. Because it was so late at night, there weren’t many passers-by, and all of them left the pair alone. So far, anyways.

About twenty minutes into their walk, though, Weiss and Ruby had to take a narrow pedestrian bridge above a highway, and before they were halfway across, Ruby’s tail stuck up in the air, her pace slowing.

“What is it, Ruby?” She asked. At this point, she was basically over the relative strangeness of talking to a large wolf and actually expecting an intelligent response. Ruby just stared straight ahead, and in the low light, Weiss was able to just make out a figure in the distance. A low, threatening growl escaped Ruby’s throat. Weiss figured that this was the point where a normal “dog” owner would try to calm things down and assure their “dog” that the approaching figure meant them no harm, but… she didn’t know that for certain.

Still, they kept walking, and Ruby did eventually stop growling, but her tail still stuck up in the air, on high alert. As they got closer, Weiss could make the figure out a bit better - the man was tall, burly, and pale, wearing a simple black t-shirt and jeans. He acknowledged Weiss as she approached, something that she reluctantly reciprocated.

“What a cute puppy!” The man said, reaching down to pet Ruby’s head once he was close enough. Immediately, Ruby growled, and let out one threatening bark. The man stepped back a little bit, on instinct, and Weiss got closer to her - for her own safety more than that of the man.

“I’m sorry,” Weiss said.

“No, it’s okay,” the man said. Weiss couldn’t help but notice that he had stopped, essentially forcing them to do the same, because he hadn’t made space for them on the narrow bridge. “He doesn’t like people, huh?”

“No, she doesn’t,” Weiss said, correcting him. “Come on, Ruby,” she said, hoping her acting skills were up to par as she patted her flank. “Let’s let the nice man pass, okay?”

At this, Ruby played her part by going silent, but she still gave the man a threatening glare, lowering herself into a defensive position.

“Actually, ma’am,” the man said, making Weiss’ stomach drop like a rock, “I was hoping to talk to you for a minute.” Ruby’s growl immediately resumed.

Oh my god, Weiss thought. My father hired a man to try and find me.

“Sorry!” Weiss said, pushing past him, making sure that Ruby was between them the entire time. “I really need to get home.”

“No, please -” the man began, reaching for her.

Like a flash of lighting, Ruby leapt up at the man, her jaws locking down on the outstretched hand. He yelped and tried to pull it away, but Ruby stayed firm, her teeth digging into his hand until she drew blood. The man swung his other arm down, actually trying to punch her, but Ruby immediately let go and leaped out of the way, standing protectively in front of Weiss. She let out several low, threatening barks as the man stood there, clutching his bleeding hand. The message was abundantly clear - “back off, now.”

“What the f*ck?!?” The man asked. “Stupid mutt!”

“Leave us alone!” Weiss said.

“No way, bitch! That crazy dog f*cking bit me! I could sue!”

Weiss rolled her eyes. He didn’t know who he was dealing with.

“No, you couldn’t. She bit your hand because you reached for me. She’s perfectly docile around most people, but she moved to protect me - what’re you gonna tell the judge? ‘I was just minding my own business as this young, innocent girl and her dog suddenly attacked me in the middle of the night?’”

The man scowled at this - frustrated, apparently, because Weiss was right. He stood up straight, taking another step back. Ruby didn’t relax, though - she still watched him intently.

“You really should go home to daddy, little girl. He knows what’s best for you.”

Weiss fumed at this - she knew it. When she’d left, her father hadn’t yelled, he hadn’t gotten angry, he hadn’t even followed her or reached out to her.

He had just told someone else to go “collect” her, like she wasn’t even worth his time to contact personally. He would rather pay someone else to tell his own daughter to come and see him after an argument.

“You can tell my father to go f*ck himself!” Weiss screamed. “Leave me alone!” The man just raised up his hands, took a few steps backwards, and turned away. Weiss watched until he faded away into the night, and then immediately fell to her knees in defeat and began to sob.

“He doesn’t care,” she said, finally admitting it to herself. “He doesn’t - he never cared. I’m just nothing to him, am I? I’m just - I’m just…” she stopped, breaking down into tears. Soon, though, a big mass of fur pushed itself underneath her. It was Ruby, letting Weiss lean on her back for support. She looked back up at Weiss over her shoulder, with the handle of her leash in her mouth - Weiss didn’t even remember dropping it.

“I’m sorry,” she said, wiping her eye with the back of her hand. “I know, we should be getting back, but…” Ruby just stayed there, patiently letting Weiss lean on her. After a moment, Ruby dropped the leash, and gave Weiss a tentative little lick.

“Thanks,” she laughed. “I’m sorry, I… I’m breaking down crying in the middle of the night on a concrete bridge above a highway…” The absurdity of it all began to really take hold, making her laugh once more. Eventually, she stood up, wincing as she felt the rough surface of the bridge leave an impression on her knees.

Ruby leaned down to pick her leash up again, sitting down to face Weiss. “Thank you,” she said, gently taking the plastic leash from Ruby’s mouth. It was somewhat coated in saliva, so Weiss wiped it off on her dress, which was already very dirty from everything that day. She gave the wolf a smile, affectionately scratching behind her ear. Ruby let out a low, pleased sound, leaning into the contact.

“Thank you so much,” Weiss said, trying to hold back her tears again. “Thank you for being here, I… I don’t know what I would have done without you.” Ruby exhaled, giving her a tiny lick on the cheek, and standing up and preparing to lead the way. She looked over her shoulder expectantly, her tail wagging.

“Yeah,” Weiss said. “I’m coming. Let’s go.”

The walk back to their building was relatively uneventful. They found Ruby’s clothes behind the tree, and Weiss kept watch as she quickly changed - first from wolf to human, then from naked to clothed. After just a minute or so, Ruby stepped out next to Weiss, putting a hand on her shoulder.

“You okay?” She said. In response, Weiss immediately hugged her. Ruby was surprised for a moment, but she smiled, hugging back. “Hey,” she finally said, pulling away slightly. Weiss loosened, but didn’t seem ready to let go, which didn’t bother Ruby in the slightest.

Ruby got a good look at Weiss - her ponytail was barely hanging on, her makeup was smudged beyond recognition, her eyes were red and a bit puffy. Her dress had a few grass stains, and her knees were red from kneeling on a rough surface. In a word, Weiss was exhausted.

In another, though… Weiss Schnee was strong. She had stood up for herself against her own father, and then again to that man they’d met on the bridge. And, based on what Ruby knew about both of those men that Weiss still did not, those feats were far more impressive than she realized.

“Ready to go home?” Ruby asked. Weiss nodded, finally letting go of Ruby.

“Yes,” Weiss said. She let out a tiny little laugh. “I cannot wait to wash my face.”

Ruby nodded, laughing as well. Despite it all, it was still Weiss.

“Okay,” Ruby said. “After that… well… I’ll talk to you about it when we get up there.” Weiss briefly raised an eyebrow at that, but appeared to be too exhausted to fully care about that moment until it arrived. They stood there for a beat, and Ruby decided to take a tiny risk. After all, they’d been so close to one another the whole night…

“Come on,” Ruby said, gently taking Weiss’ hand. “Let’s go home.”

Weiss stepped out of the bathroom, sighing with bliss at a clean face. She’d considered taking a quick shower without washing her hair, but she’d instead settled for just a quick sink bath and a change of clothes.

Ruby was sitting on her bed, having also changed clothes - the ones that she’d put on to walk into the building had been stashed behind a tree, after all. She was now ready for bed with a soft tank top and a pair of booty shorts, tail sticking out over the waistband. Her ears perked up when she noticed Weiss.

“Better?” She asked.

“Much,” Weiss said. “So… what did you want to talk to me about?”

Ruby scooted up onto her bed a little, sitting cross-legged near her pillow. She patted the space in front of her, indicating that Weiss sit, which she did.

“It’s, um… it’s about your dad,” Ruby began, hesitantly. “We weren’t sure if we should tell you, but, given the circ*mstances…”

“... ‘We?’” Weiss asked. Ruby just exhaled, preparing herself.

“There’s, um, no easy way to say this,” she began. “But as soon as we all met him, well… we knew what he was, and that’s why we were so worried about you.” Weiss just co*cked her head slightly, and Ruby sighed again, apparently resolving to just say it.

“Weiss… your dad is a vampire.”

Chapter 7: Rest and Relaxation

Chapter Text

“Um… Weiss?”

“Sorry?”

“Did you hear what I said?”

Weiss sighed.

“I did.”

“Do you… I mean…” Ruby stopped. “I figured that that would get a bigger reaction.”

“On another day, yes,” Weiss replied. “But… honestly? After everything tonight…” She made an empty gesture at the air in front of her. “I’ve got nothing.”

“O-okay…” Ruby said. The concern in her voice was evident. “Do you wanna talk about it, or…” Weiss thought for a moment. She nodded. “I figure I won’t get to sleep remarkably soon.” She then pointed to Ruby’s large back rest pillow. “Can I sit on that end?”

“Oh, sure!” Ruby haphazardly scooted to the side, giving Weiss the room to crawl past “Sorry,” Ruby laughed, as the awkwardness of their little dance became a little too evident for them to leave it unacknowledged. Ruby sat cross-legged near the foot of the bed.

“It’s okay,” Weiss said. She slowly, delicately leaned back into the pillow. She let out a sigh of relief that Ruby’s extra pair of ears could just barely detect when she finally reached the level of comfort that she’d been seeking for hours. She took a breath. “Okay. Tell me what I need to know about vampires.”

Ruby’s ears perked up at this. “Are you… sure? You seem exhausted.”

“I am,” Weiss said. “But I’m around 50% sure that if I got into bed right now, I’d spend a few hours just staring at the ceiling, thinking about everything that’s happened today, and…” She met Ruby’s silver eyes, which were filled with worry.

“Apologies, I… I may have overshared.”

Ruby watched that sentence fill Weiss’ body language, as if she were a doll that had been adjusted in order to sit properly. Her posture straightened, her legs delicately crossed, her hands folded in her lap, and she looked away from Ruby. Her long cascade of hair blocked her eyes entirely. It was almost like Weiss had been possessed by some kind of ghost of cold deference, and the soft, kind, warm Weiss that Ruby had slowly been getting to know seemed to vanish.

“Hey,” Ruby said carefully. Taking a risk, she reached out to put a hand on Weiss’ knee. “You’re not oversharing, I promise. I want to hear about it!” She gave Weiss the best grin that she could muster.

Ruby’s heart swelled as Weiss’ hair shifted enough for Ruby to see her face. She was timid. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” Ruby said immediately. She laughed. “I mean, you’ve seen me naked, like… three times now. I think we’re kind of past the phase where ‘oversharing’ is really possible.”

Confusingly, this seemed to draw Weiss further into her shell - was it because she had trivialized things?

“Seriously, though,” Ruby said, returning to a softer, comforting tone. “I care about you. If you feel comfortable talking to me about that kind of thing, I’ll be happy to listen.”

Weiss was quiet for awhile. She seemed to be considering that. The silence was deafening to Ruby - she didn’t know what to do, or how to help. All she knew was that if she could help Weiss, she would.

“Can… can I snuggle with your wolf form?” Weiss finally asked. Ruby blinked for a moment, more surprised than anything else. Weiss looked away again, saying, “Sorry, I… I shouldn’t just use you for when I wish I was petting a dog.”

Ruby recovered for a moment - she rarely got so much candor from Weiss, and she didn’t want to discourage it.

“No, it’s an okay thing to ask,” Ruby said. “After all, I offered it last night, remember?”

Weiss looked sheepish.

“I… I thought that was a one-time thing,” she admitted.

“It wasn’t. If I’m honest, being petted is really nice, which is, weird, I guess, but…”

Weiss giggled.

“So is apparently having a vampire for a dad.”

“Yeah.” Ruby smiled. “But, to answer your question… sorry, I’m absolutely beat.” Weiss looked confused at this. “Oh, well… I’ve already shifted a few times today. First there was going out to find you in my wolf, then going back to human form to talk to you behind those bushes, then back to my wolf… and now I’m here, in human form again.”

“Does using your wolf too much tire you out?” Weiss asked.

“Kind of, but what’s most exhausting is swapping between forms. That, and entering my were without the full moon is really hard, but… I could do it if I really needed to.”

“Oh, okay…” Weiss said. She seemed the tiniest bit disappointed, but was mostly understanding.

“But…” Ruby began, very timidly. “My… my wolf is still me, and… I’m still here.” She stopped, the actual request she was leading to catching in her throat. “So…” she stopped. “Never mind. Anyways…”

“No, it’s all right,” Weiss said, quietly. Ruby shrugged, trying to downplay the idea as much as she could.

“I… it’s stupid, but… I was gonna say…” Ruby clenched her fists, forcing herself to just say it. “You could just snuggle with… with me, if you wanted.” Weiss was blank for a moment. Ruby had definitely messed up. “I know, I’m… sorry. Let’s just… forget that part, and…”

Wordlessly, Weiss scooted over.

Ruby paused. She couldn’t possibly be doing this, right? Weiss was just in a vulnerable place right now, and it would be wrong for Ruby to take advantage of her during that. She was always so careful to be sure that she wasn’t hurting people - Ruby knew how easy it was for her to do it by accident.

But then, she remembered what Weiss had told her on the very second day that they had lived together. She had just so casually accepted Ruby for what she was, and… she wasn’t afraid. Weiss was, Ruby realized, perhaps the very first person in Ruby’s life who had legitimate reason to fear her, but didn’t.

At a snail’s pace, Ruby scooted up, gently placing herself next to Weiss. She shifted her tail so that she wasn’t sitting on it, which accidentally laid it across Weiss’ lap. However, rather than pushing it away or complaining, Weiss just gently began to stroke her fingers through the fur. Ruby heavily blushed at the sensation, but tried to keep her cool.

While idly doing that, Weiss delicately slid into Ruby, leaning against her arm. Ruby swallowed her fears and tenderly wrapped that arm around Weiss’ shoulders. At this, she let out a happy little sound, and nestled her head just under Ruby’s chin. The pair just sat there for a while, in a comfortable silence. Finally, though, Weiss asked a question.

“Am I gonna be a vampire too?” Ruby sighed.

“I… don’t know. It depends on whether your dad became one before or after he had you. I think - I don’t really know any vampires that well.”

Weiss just made a low, worried hum at that. Wordlessly, Ruby held her a bit tighter.

“Are there any ways that I could tell?”

Ruby nearly slapped her forehead. Of course there were, how could she have forgotten?

“Ever seen your dad in direct sunlight, not burning to death?” Weiss snorted.

“Yes. We went on a beach vacation two years ago.” She sighed. “He was on the phone the whole time.” Ruby didn’t know what to say to the second half, but she could address the first.

“Well, if that’s the case… it’s probably a more recent thing,” She said. “And I figure you’d probably be showing signs by now, but… you smell human to me.” With her free arm, she scratched behind her head. “Not that vampirism is inherently wrong or anything, but…”

“No, I get it,” Weiss said. She laughed. “I like having the ability to stay in direct sunlight sometimes.”

“Yeah,” Ruby replied. “I mean, sometimes full moons happen at inconvenient times, but… I don’t envy vampires.” Weiss just made a little sound of agreement. Tentatively, Ruby started running her fingers through Weiss’ hair, earning a sleepy, happy murmur from her.

“Why do you think he did it, then?” She asked. “I mean… if he wasn’t born one, which it sounds like he probably wasn’t…”

“Well…” Ruby shrugged a little, shifting Weiss ever so slightly. “I don’t know a polite way to say this…”

“If it’s about my father, please, be impolite,” Weiss said. Ruby chuckled.

“Okay, okay. So, your dad’s loaded, right?” Weiss gave a sigh.

“Very.”

“If that’s the case… it could be he paid someone to do it so he could live forever,” she said. “I uh… I hear that’s a thing that vamps get offered a lot.”

Weiss was surprised.

“Do they actually live forever?” She asked.

“Well, the way my dad put it was, ‘in theory, but forever hasn’t happened yet,’” Ruby replied. “They certainly don’t die from getting old.”

“Wow…” Weiss replied. “I… I wonder how they’ve stayed secret, then.” She looked up at Ruby. “I mean… doesn’t everybody want to live forever?”

“I dunno,” Ruby said. “But vampires generally seem to keep things under wraps, just like us wolves do.” Weiss simply hummed, apparently not sure of what to say.

“Anything else I should know?” Weiss asked. “Can he, like… turn into a bat, and stuff?”

“I wish I could tell you,” Ruby said. She laughed. “We could always ask him.”

“Yes, right,” she said. “I’m sure that would go over well.”

“Sorry, I don’t know that much about it,” Ruby said. “But… no matter what happens with him… I’ll be here, when you need me.” She gave Weiss a smile. “If any more vampires come by trying to take you to your dad, I’ll happily try to bite their hands off, too.”

“That guy on the bridge was also a vampire?” Weiss asked. She barely sounded surprised.

“Oh, yeah…” Ruby said. “He was the only one I noticed on the way home, though.”

Weiss just nodded into Ruby’s shoulder, yawning.

“What time is it?” She asked.

Ruby was barely able to reach her scroll, but she managed to do it without having to move Weiss. When she checked the screen, she froze.

“That bad, huh?” Weiss asked, able to feel Ruby’s reaction.

“It’s already almost two,” she said.

“How?” Weiss asked. “We got back just before midnight, didn’t we?”

“I don’t remember,” Ruby said. “Either way…” She stopped for a moment. She didn’t want to let go of Weiss, and immediately scolded herself for her greed. She didn’t want this feeling to end, but she refused to even slightly stretch Weiss’ consent with their current situation. “Do you want to head to bed?”

“We probably should,” Weiss said, though she didn’t make any effort to move. Ruby nodded, and started to get up anyways. “Ruby,” Weiss laughed, “this is your bed.”

“I… yeah,” Ruby admitted sheepishly. Weiss curled up into herself a little bit at the absence of a body to lean against. Ruby smiled, offering Weiss a hand up. “Ready?” she asked.

Weiss was motionless for a minute. She just stared at Ruby’s hand for a little bit, as if it presented her with a deep, philosophical quandary. Ruby co*cked her head slightly, confused.

“Can… can I stay?” Weiss asked. “I’m sorry, that’s… really forward, but…” she hugged herself a little tighter, then shook her head. “Sorry, I’ll go,” she said, starting to stand.

“No!” Ruby said, too loudly. “It’s… um… it’s fine.” She cursed herself for that phrasing - she was actually really excited that she’d gotten the chance to snuggle with Weiss like this already, but she was so nervous that she couldn’t express it the way she wanted to.

“No, no, this is your bed, and mine is right over there,” Weiss replied, now with both of her feet on the floor. “It was rude of me to ask. I’m sorry.” She quickly walked across the floor, already pulling her own covers back.

“W-Weiss?” Ruby stuttered. Her roommate turned, catching Ruby’s eyes over her shoulder. “Tonight was… nice.” She coughed, her cheeks burning. “I mean, I know that a bunch of awful things happened to you and I’m so sorry but I really liked having you there for dinner tonight and my dad liked you too and I’m really glad that I could be there for you with all this stuff you’re going through with your dad and I promise that I’ll be there to help whenever you need me and…” Ruby finally paused to take a breath, but stopped when she noticed Weiss was giving her a polite, indulgent giggle. “Sorry,” she admitted sheepishly. “My brain isn’t very organized right now.”

“Goodnight, Ruby,” Weiss said, climbing into bed.

“W-wait!” Ruby said, probably louder than intended. Weiss stopped and just raised her eyebrow. Ruby nervously held her elbow in her other hand, trying to make herself as small as possible. “I… um… this is probably too late, but…” she made a tiny gesture to her own bed. “If you want to, you can…”

“I mostly asked because I didn’t want to get up,” Weiss explained, and Ruby’s heart fell.

“O-oh,” Ruby said. “Sorry, I’ll…” She turned, and pulled back the covers of her own bed.

“But…” Weiss began nervously, “if it’s all right…” she began to stand.

Ruby’s heart rate doubled. Quickly, she threw the covers back, jumping into her bed and making as much space as she could for Weiss once underneath them. Weiss let out a polite giggle at this, but it was clear that she found Ruby endearing more than anything else. Delicately, she laid herself down under the covers, and Ruby carefully wrapped an arm around her waist. Weiss unsubtly scooted into it, pressing her back into Ruby’s chest.

“Can you reach the lamp on my desk?” Ruby asked.

“I can try,” Weiss laughed. It took her a moment of adorable stretching, but she finally managed to flick the light off, and the pair were cloaked in darkness.

“Ruby?” Weiss asked, out into the gloom.

“Mm?”

“... Thank you. For today. I know I already said it, but… I don’t know where I’d be if you hadn’t been there.”

“Of course,” Ruby murmured into Weiss’ hair.

Weiss, unsure of what to say, just smiled, and nuzzled herself a little bit closer.

Whatever tomorrow was going to bring… Ruby was going to make sure that Weiss didn’t have to face it alone.

Ruby gently got up, careful not to disturb her bedmate. Weiss made some downright adorable sleepy murmurs as Ruby pulled the covers back over her.

For a moment, Ruby just looked at her roommate, peacefully asleep. Her chest gently rose and fell with her breath, each of her exhales making the tiniest little sounds. Her lips were ever so slightly parted, her face turned towards the impression that Ruby had left in the mattress. Now that she wasn’t wrapped around another body, Weiss had curled into herself a little, though not quite in the fetal position. The faded scar leading from her eyebrow to her cheek was slightly more visible now, though that’s probably just because her eyes were closed. A bit of her hair had fallen in front of her face, and Ruby very carefully tucked it behind her ear. In a way, she looked delicate, but Ruby had just witnessed firsthand how much strength and resilience laid underneath that exterior.

The amount of trust that it had taken for Weiss to fall asleep in Ruby’s arms… it was indescribable. Ruby had always been ready and willing to help other people, and Weiss was no exception - though, in a way, she almost was. Normally, when Ruby told people that she’d be there for them, they would laugh and ask Ruby if she could help them move. She was happy to do things like that, of course (her strong arms were certainly quite an asset for that activity), but only Weiss had so far seemed to understand what she meant when she said it.

She wanted to help other people no matter what, and Weiss - calm, collected, dignified, defiant, proud, gorgeous Weiss - had let her make good on that promise. Ruby wasn’t quite sure whether that was because Weiss was more of an open, trusting person than Ruby had expected, or if it was because she simply needed much more help right now, but for the moment Ruby didn’t much care. She loved Weiss and would gladly help her with anything, from carrying a box to confronting her vampiric father.

Ruby loved Weiss.

Oh, no.

Ruby was in love with Weiss.

Trying to push that thought out of her mind as she changed clothes, Ruby picked up her scroll and walked into the kitchen. She idly checked it while turning on the stove, and she had a text message from last night, which she checked while making the batter for pancakes.

Yang: Hey, did Weiss get back yet?

11:30 AM

Yeah, she came back last night.

She and her dad had a fight… it was a whole thing.

Like… a lot, actually. But we’re here now, and we’re safe.

Hey, it’s Blake, Yang’s still asleep.

Is she okay?

Ruby raised an eyebrow at this.

Yeah, she’s okay. Why are you using Yang’s scroll? You have my number now, right?

Hers was closer

I did some more research on Weiss’ dad before bed last night - it’s bad, Ruby

How bad?

He’s been involved in more lawsuits than any other private mining company, ever. The guy’s probably the biggest reason for anti-SLAPP legislation in the country.

?

SLAPP suits are basically BS lawsuits that big companies use to threaten members of the press and drown them in legal fees. It’s more meant to keep people from speaking out than it is to actually win in court.

Ugh.

Any guesses on why he went vamp?

I figured it was the living forever thing…

I can’t say for certain

What’s she gonna do now that she knows?

We… uh… didn’t really get there last night

I can tell you guys the story later, I’m making pancakes

Cool! Hang on, Yang’s up

Ruby just shook her head as she put her scroll down to crack an egg. Yang was normally pretty protective with her stuff, so letting Blake unlock her phone was probably a big step for the both of them. Ruby got around halfway through getting all the ingredients ready before her scroll buzzed again - she winced as it made a loud noise on the countertop. Weiss hadn’t appeared to wake, though, so Ruby checked it.

What’s this I hear about pancakes

Good morning, Yang

Are you making Dad’s recipe?

Of course, who do you think I am?

Some kind of heathen who would use store-bought pancake mix?

We’re coming over

Be there in 15

Yang, Weiss is still asleep

My plan was to do something nice for her

Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine

At least ask her if we can come when she’s awake?

We should *probably* work on the writing project today too

Yeah, like that’s your only reason

Pancakes help me focus!

Ruby was around halfway through writing a snide reply when she heard Weiss begin to stir. She wasn’t much of a morning person, so Ruby was fully prepared to pretend that Weiss didn’t exist until she’d gotten some coffee in her system. To her surprise, though, Weiss did actually speak to her right away.

“Ruby?” She asked, her voice thickly coated in sleep.

“Morning!” Ruby said, then awkwardly cleared her throat because hers was similarly raspy. “How’d you sleep?”

“Surprisingly well,” Weiss replied. “How is your mattress pad so soft?”

“My dad slept at Beacon’s dorms during the weekend of Yang’s orientation,” Ruby said. “The bed they gave him had no mattress pad, and he complained about his back for a week. When it was time for me to buy dorm supplies, he insisted I get the biggest, softest one.”

Weiss giggled at that. “Your father seems very kind.”

“Yeah…” Ruby said. She then remembered what she was doing. “Oh! Speaking of, I’m making pancakes with his recipe for breakfast! Want some?”

“That sounds lovely,” Weiss said. “Mind if I get dressed while you bake?”

“Go for it!” Ruby said, noticeably turning her back to give Weiss her privacy. Her scroll buzzed again. “Oh,” She called over her shoulder, “Would it be cool if Yang and Blake come over to have some?”

“I suppose,” Weiss said, pretending to be annoyed by the idea. “Think we should have a project meeting after?”

“Yang said the same thing,” Ruby replied. “Though I think it’s just because she wanted an excuse to have pancakes.” Weiss laughed at that.

“From what little I know of Yang, that seems accurate,” she said. “Want some music?”

“Take your pick!”

She heard Weiss open up the little plastic set of drawers where she kept her cassettes, eventually settling on one. As soon as she heard the opening notes of the Electric Light Orchestra’s “Mr. Blue Sky,” she grinned, because Weiss had picked one of the custom mixes that Ruby had made herself.

It was amazing how… normal everything felt. A lot of things were still up in the air right now with Weiss’ dad, but it seemed like she didn’t want to dwell on it right now. If that were indeed the case, Ruby was all too happy to provide her with every possible distraction.

Ruby remembered that her scroll had buzzed, and she leaned down from her mixing bowl to check it.

Blake: I confess, I also wouldn’t mind trying your famous pancakes…

Weiss stood in the lobby of her dorm building, waiting to sign Yang and Blake in while Ruby cooked. She was a little nervous seeing them without Ruby around, but it theoretically wouldn’t be long. She’d sent them each messages so that they had her number, and only Blake had replied, saying they were on their way.

The doors opened and the pair walked in, and it was rather obvious that they’d woken up recently. Yang’s hair was still a bit frizzy, and Blake was only wearing mascara, a contrast to her usual winged eyeliner look. They both waved as Weiss pulled out her card.

After doing the sign-in dance, the trio quickly found an elevator and began to ride up to Weiss and Ruby’s fourth-floor room.

“How, uh…” Yang began. Weiss looked at her, and Yang gave a sheepish grin. “How’re you doing, after last night? We’re glad to hear that you got back and everything.”

“Honestly,” Weiss said, somehow already past the point of hiding her feelings from either of them, “It hasn’t really hit me yet. How much did Ruby tell you?”

“Not much,” Blake said. “All we heard was that it was… a lot.”

“That’s certainly an accurate way of putting it,” Weiss laughed. “We can tell you the full story once we’re there.”

“Hey!” Ruby said, once Weiss opened the door. “Pancakes are almost ready!”

“Fantastic,” Yang said, letting her ears and tail out as soon as the door was closed. “I haven’t had this recipe since the summer.

“It hasn’t even been a month for you,” Blake teased, letting her own ears and tail out as well. “I, however, can’t wait to try them for the first time.” Weiss stood there for a moment, absorbing the pair’s appearances.

Yang’s ears were mostly shaped like Ruby’s, triangular and fluffy, though they were a bright yellow to match her hair. The right one also seemed to droop a little, which Weiss found somewhat odd. Her tail was the same color, though far longer than Ruby’s, perhaps because of their relative differences in height. It lazily wagged back and forth as it emerged from the back of her jeans.

Blake, on the other hand, was a bit different than the siblings. While Ruby and Yang’s ears were taller than they were wide, Blake’s were a bit shorter, more closely resembling an equilateral triangle in shape. They also weren’t quite as fluffy on the inside. Her tail was similarly sleek, and jet black. She also appeared to have far more control over it than the wolves did, as it flicked about with purpose to balance out her movements.

The pair turned, and appeared to notice that Weiss was staring. Her cheeks flushed.

“S-sorry,” she said, looking down, “I’d only ever seen Ruby like this…”

“Oh! It’s okay,” Yang replied, and Blake similarly nodded. “We forgot you’re just getting used to all the were… stuff.” Weiss gave a grateful nod.

The telltale hiss of food beginning to cook made Weiss turn, as Ruby had apparently finished making the batter.

“All righty, give that a few minutes,” Ruby said. “Make yourselves at home!”

“Oh my gods, Ruby,” Yang said, the genuine shock in her voice making Weiss jump a little. “You made your bed! I can’t believe this, I’m texting Dad -”

“What?” Ruby asked. “I didn’t…” She looked at Weiss, whose cheeks were now on fire. Blake noticed this next, and Yang finally turned to see it, too.

“Um…” Weiss began, very slowly… “That may have been me.”

Dead silence followed. Were it not for the sounds of the kitchen, Weiss probably could have literally heard a pin drop.

“Why’re you all staring at me?” She finally asked, trying and failing not to sound exasperated.

“Weiss, you didn’t have to do that,” Ruby finally said. Yang raised an eyebrow, and Blake simply met her eyes with a neutral expression. Weiss crossed her arms, looking away.

“Force of habit,” she finally said, peeking at Blake and Yang’s reaction. The eye contact that they shared immediately told Weiss that they were on to her. “Listen, let’s just start breakfast and everything, okay?”

“Oh my gods,” Yang whispered. “They really did sleep together!”
“Yang!” Blake said, covering her mouth to laugh.

“Okay!” Ruby said, likely far louder than she’d intended. “Weiss, first pancake’s yours!”

“Hey!” Yang protested as Ruby handed her a plate and utensils.

“If you punch your own father in the chest and walk out of his hotel room after he explicitly told you to stay, I’m sure you can have the first pancake the next morning,” Weiss said. She’d attempted to keep her tone casual, but the fact that she was still a bit shaken clearly shone through.

“... that bad, huh?” Blake asked sympathetically. Weiss just nodded silently.

“Here,” Yang said, gently pulling Blake down to sit on the floor against Weiss’ bed, “How about we all sit for a second, and you can catch us up to speed?” She hesitated. “If… if that’s okay, or if you wanna wait…”

“No,” Weiss said, “It’ll be better to get it over with.” She gestured to the fresh pancake in her hands with a weak grin. “This will probably help.”

“Wait for syrup!” Ruby called, opening the fridge with her foot as she poured another large circle of batter onto the pan. Everybody chuckled at that, and for just a moment, Weiss was pretty sure that everything was going to be all right.

“So he reached for her, and I just went berserk and took a bite out of his hand,” Ruby said.

“Oof, I can’t imagine he tasted good,” Yang sympathized.

“Yeah, he was gross,” she said. “But, anyways, he gets all mad, like ‘I could sue!’ -”

“Which, as I pointed out right then, was preposterous,” Weiss jumped in. “No jury in the world would believe the story that a young girl walking her dog just before midnight had attacked him for no reason.”

“Then,” Ruby continued, “After Weiss totally dunked on him like that, he just backed off and ran, and then we made it back home safely.” Weiss privately smiled, happy that Ruby had generously left out the part where she’d burst into tears.

“That’s… wow,” Blake said, after a moment. “I’m so sorry that you had to go through all that.”

“Thank you,” Weiss replied. “I’m just glad Ruby was there to fight that creep off.”

“Any time,” Ruby said, affectionately rubbing her shoulder for a moment. They shared a smile at that, and Weiss could only hope she was conveying how grateful she really was.

“So, Weiss,” Yang asked after a moment, “What do you think your dad is gonna, like… do? Have you fought with him like this before?”

“We’ve fought, but not like this,” she said. “He’s never… grabbed me, not like that. Don’t get me wrong, he’ll raise his voice, occasionally knock things off his desk, but…”

There was an empathy in Blake’s eyes when she said that, and Weiss wondered if she’d ever had similar experiences. Based on what little she’d said of her parents at dinner last night, they didn’t seem to be like Weiss’, but she couldn’t say for certain what was happening there. Still, she appreciated the sentiment, no matter its origin.

“So, I don’t know, exactly.” Weiss said. “Worst case, he might make me drop out, try to take me back to Atlas…” The entire group was concerned at this. Gently, Ruby took her hand.

“We won’t let that happen,” she said. Blake and Yang both nodded gravely.

“Thank you,” Weiss said, to all three of them. “But, if nothing else, he’s paying for my college education out of pocket, and he definitely still has control over ‘my’ bank account, too. I might have to talk to someone here at school and explain the situation…”

“Talk to Student Financial Services,” Blake said instantly. “Or, I guess… if it comes to that. They’re super nice, their office is next to the library where I did work-study last year. Don’t worry, Beacon won’t just kick you out if your financial situation changes.” Weiss exhaled at that in relief.

“That’s good to hear,” she said. “Maybe I should text Klein and ask him to send me a few silver candlesticks or something before my father makes up his mind.”

“Not a bad idea, honestly,” Yang said. “You might wanna try and get anything you left there, too, like winter clothes.”

“I actually took most of what I really wanted to keep on my first trip out here,” she said. “I didn’t exactly predict this, but… my sister basically took most of her things to Atlas University and hasn’t looked back. We talk sometimes, and she’s never outright stated that she and Father had a falling-out, but they never mention each other.” She gave a very weak smile. “Unfortunately, I knew to be at least a little prepared for something like this to happen, one way or the other.”

Wordlessly, Ruby took her hand. When Weiss looked over to her, she was wearing a smile, though her eyes were still deeply concerned. All Weiss could do was simply return it.

“And hey, we don’t know if it’s gonna be that far, yet,” Blake said. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, he sounds awful, but you may not have to totally cut ties right this minute.”

“If and when you do need to, though,” Yang said, making direct eye contact, “All of us will be here for you. Okay?” Ruby and Blake also nodded firmly at this.

“O-okay…” Weiss said, not realizing how close she’d come to tears. “I’m sorry, I… this is just so much, so fast, but… thank you all. You barely even know me...”

“That doesn’t matter,” Ruby said gently. “We know you enough to want to help.” Weiss could only smile, and Ruby just quietly laid her arm over Weiss’ shoulders.

“Here,” Yang said. “We’re gonna start working on the project. You two can take a minute, and let us know when you’re ready to join in. We’ll be in the lounge outside, come grab us.” She took Blake’s hand, and the pair stood up, giving Weiss and Ruby the room to themselves for a little while. Ruby and Yang exchanged a look as the pair left, and for a little while, Weiss could just spend some time quietly being held.

At around three PM, the four of them had finished most of the first leg of their writing project. All that was left were a few individual touches that they could do on their own time, so Blake and Yang were getting ready to leave.

“All right, gang!” Ruby said, “Great work today!”

“Yeah!” Yang said, slinging her backpack over her shoulder. “Oh, hey - Blake and I were gonna see a movie this Friday night. You two wanna come?”

Ruby simply looked over at Weiss, and from the look alone, Weiss could tell she was interested. “I’d like that!” Weiss said. “Text us the details and everything?”

“I’ve got it,” Blake said, already on her scroll. “Looking forward to it!”

After the group exchanged their goodbyes, Ruby closed the door, with just the slightest smile on her face.

“What?” Weiss finally asked, immediately making her erupt into giggles.

“I can’t believe you made my bed.”

Chapter 8: Transformation: Part 1

Chapter Text

“Ruby, are you ready to go?”

Ruby looked over her shoulder, tablet pen in one hand.

“Why are you asking so early? We have, like, half an hour!”

“I’m asking because I know you, and that if I don’t tell you to get ready now you won’t be until we’re already late.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” She laughed. “Here, lemme save this and I’ll get changed.”

Weiss had already changed for their trip to the movies with Blake and Yang. She had also already enhanced her normal, daily makeup for the occasion, but she always had the habit of being ready too early. This, she realized, would probably come in handy now that she had to drag Ruby through the process of getting ready herself.

“Okay,” she said, standing up from her chair. She turned, actually taking in Weiss’ appearance. “Whoa...” Ruby whispered. “You look… really nice!”

“Thank you,” Weiss said, trying to hide her blush. “What’re you gonna wear?”

“Not sure,” Ruby said, opening her drawers. “I’m in the mood to be fancy, so maybe I’ll wear a skirt.” Weiss giggled at that.

“That’d be the day,” she said.

“Yeah,” Ruby laughed. “I used to wear skirts all the time, but I guess college has made me lazier.”

“Mm, I feel that a little bit,” Weiss said. She let out a little laugh. “I brought two different eyeshadow palettes, and most days I don’t even wear anything besides mascara and concealer.”

Ruby looked at her.

“Weiss, you put tons of effort into your appearance every day, and it shows. I find it really impressive, so please don’t put yourself down like that.”

“I…” Weiss stopped completely. She hadn’t really realized that that’s what she was doing until Ruby had just… said so, out loud. Her naked honesty was just so refreshing when compared to what Weiss was accustomed to. She looked up at Ruby to reply, but she had already returned to her dresser drawers.

“You know what? I’m wearing a flannel,” Ruby declared. She was already wearing a black tank top (Weiss had eventually learned that she had several tank tops, in a few colors), which she’d selected as an inner layer, so she put on a red and black checkered flannel shirt that was hanging on her bedpost. She left it unbuttoned.

Weiss checked her scroll for a moment, after noticing that Ruby was about to start changing her pants. She checked through a few random things, until Ruby’s voice made her look up. “Which do you think looks better?” She asked, holding up a black chiffon skirt with a line of red fabric around its base in one hand, and a simple, red A-line skirt in the other. She’d also changed into a pair of black tights.

“Hmmm…” Weiss said, a thoughtful finger on her chin. “Here, let me offer you a third option.”

She walked over to their shared closet and flicked through her skirt hangers for a moment, retrieving the garment she was looking for: A black skirt that would match Ruby’s tights, but it also had a pair of built-in shorts on the inside for comfort, and most impressively, the outside was embroidered with a subtle but lovely floral pattern.

“Oh, wow!” Ruby said. “That’s gorgeous! Are you sure you want me to try it?”

Weiss simply smiled and handed it over. She and Ruby weren’t quite the same size, but they were close enough, and the skirt had a semi-elastic waistband. As she tried it on, Weiss was happy to see that it would fit well. She checked her reflection in Weiss’ full-length mirror, and did an adorable little twirl.

“What do you think?” She asked with a grin.

“You look fantastic!” Weiss said. “Wanna borrow that skirt tonight?”

“Yeah!” Ruby said. “Are you sure it’s okay?”

“Of course,” Weiss said. She looked Ruby over for a moment. “Are you a makeup person, or…?” Ruby sighed.

“I… it’s weird. I like wearing it, but I never really got good at doing it myself because Yang always wanted to practice on me before she went out, so… yes? But I wasn’t planning on wearing any.”

Weiss’ grin had slowly widened as Ruby explained her unique predicament. Carefully, as if it meant nothing at all, Weiss asked, “Want me to do yours?” And she couldn’t help but crack a grin as Ruby flushed.

“Um… I’d like that!” She said tentatively. Before she was finished speaking, Weiss was already in her chair, opening her makeup drawer. She pulled Ruby’s chair over to hers with terrifying confidence, and, brush in her hand, she gestured to the empty seat.

“Sit.” She commanded, and Ruby’s butt fell down into the chair like a ton of bricks. She made a tiny, slightly scared sound, which made Weiss giggle. “There’s a dog joke to make there, but I think I’ll spare you,” she said, shaking an eyeliner in one hand while opening one of her aforementioned palettes with the other. When she turned back to Ruby, her cheeks were a deep crimson.

“Sorry, too much?” She asked.

“N-no, I just…” she laughed. “Nobody’s ever done this for me besides Yang, and…” Weiss suspected that her blush also had something to do with her previous quip, but she made sure to dial herself back a little.

“Here,” she said. “We don’t have too much time as it is, so maybe I’ll save eyeshadow for next time?” Ruby just nodded. “Okay,” Weiss said, clicking her palette closed. “Here, scoot in a bit.” Ruby did so, and Weiss carefully cupped her cheek, leaning in to start using her liquid liner. Ruby’s eyes, though, were wide open, staring into hers.

“Close your eyes,” Weiss said gently. “Don’t worry, this won’t take long.” Ruby’s eyelids delicately fluttered shut, and Weiss suddenly realized how close they were. They had snuggled before, sure, but that was always side by side (or, that one lovely evening where Weiss had been lucky enough to sleep in Ruby’s bed with her), and now they were face to face. Carefully, Weiss began to draw a subtle little wing on the outside of Ruby’s left eye.

“Stop fidgeting,” she muttered.

“Sorry,” Ruby said, which only moved her face around more. Weiss sighed, grabbing Ruby’s chin as she adjusted her angle slightly. Fortunately for Ruby, Weiss’ hands were remarkably steady, so the eyeliner was mostly unaffected.

“Halfway done,” she said. Ruby blinked.

“Already?”

“I told you, I’m quick,” she said. “After this, a bit of mascara, and then we’ll be ready to head out!” Those gorgeous silver eyes blinked a few times, and then met hers. Their faces were so close - Weiss could just let her eyes slip closed and press her lips against -

No, Weiss. Stop it.

“Okay, close ‘em,” she said, shaking her eyeliner again. This side was a bit faster, because Weiss was left-handed. She leaned back a bit to make sure that both wings were balanced, and was happy to see that they were.

“Done,” she said, capping her eyeliner. She turned her desk mirror towards Ruby. “Take a look!”

“... wow,” Ruby whispered, almost to herself. “You did this in, like… five minutes?”

“I can do it in three on myself,” she said, pulling out her mascara. “Last little step.”

Ruby nodded, leaning in and keeping her eyes open. “I remember what to do here!” She said with a grin.

Weiss gently held the wand against Ruby’s lashes, extending them as she slowly blinked. Soon, they were just about done, and ready to leave with a few minutes to spare.

“Okay!” Ruby said, jumping out of her chair with enthusiasm. “How do I look?”

“You look fantastic,” Weiss said, with complete honesty behind the statement. “Ready to go?”

“Almost, I need shoes.” Her eyes widened for a moment as she realized something. “Hey, I can wear my lesbian boots!”

“Aren’t all boots lesbian boots, when on you?” Weiss asked with a grin. Ruby laughed.

“Maybe, but these babies count double!” From under her bed, she pulled out an intimidating pair of black boots. They honestly looked to Weiss like they were meant for riding a motorcycle. They were tall, for short boots anyways - they reached a more than a few inches above Ruby’s ankles. Near the top, there were two large silver buckles, stacked vertically, for each boot. As Ruby sat to lace them, Weiss could also tell that the heels weren’t flat, but the rubber pattern on the sole was quite jagged - whether this was for grip or pure intimidation, she couldn’t tell, though it appeared to accomplish both.

“Okay…” Weiss agreed. “Those are definitely lesbian boots.”

They left their room with a few minutes to spare. Weiss had chosen a classy white retro dress with a black petticoat underneath that was just barely visible below the hem. She had also chosen a knee-length pair of brown boots, and wore a brown leather jacket for the weather. Lastly, because the forecast had claimed that it would rain some time after eight, Weiss had brought a long umbrella. Ruby was actually carrying her school backpack as they walked.

“So we’re meeting at Yang and Blake’s apartment?” Weiss asked.

“Yup!” Ruby said. “It’s near where we got pizza with my dad last week.”

“I remember,” Weiss said. “How close is the theatre?”

“Not far, maybe a 20-minute walk,” Ruby said. She gave Weiss a smile. “Relax, we’ve got plenty of time.” When Weiss checked her scroll, she had to concede that Ruby had a point - it was only 6:15, and the movie started at 7. Ruby adjusted the straps of her backpack as they waited for a walk signal.

“Why did you bring that?” Weiss asked. “I thought you were the one making fun of me for overpacking.”

“Well yeah, for school,” Ruby said. “But this baby’s full of snacks!”

“Aren’t there snacks at the theatre?” Weiss asked, confused. Ruby’s eyes widened.

“The snacks at the theatre are so expensive! They mark up the candy they sell by like six dollars or something!” Ruby defended.

“O-oh,” Weiss said, having just learned this information for the first time. Determined not to let the reminder of her lack of understanding about money ruin her evening, she reached into her wallet and pulled out her card. “Well, hey - my father doesn’t seem to have cut me off just yet, so we might as well enjoy some snacks on his dime while we can.”

Ruby stared at her like a kid on Christmas. “Are you sure?” she asked. Weiss snorted.

“Absolutely - I doubt that splurging a little on movie snacks is going to make him more upset with me than he already is.” Ruby’s eyes softened for a moment, but she appeared to make the same concession that Weiss had: refusing to let Jacques’ presence hang over their evening. Instead of dwelling on it, she just looked up at Weiss with those gorgeous silver eyes.

“Can we get a large popcorn?”

“Hey, you guys made it!” Yang said, crushing Ruby in a hug. Ruby flailed a bit to escape her sister’s iron grip, and Weiss and Blake just shared the same bemused look that they’d had plenty of time to practice while around the Rose/Xiao Long family.

Yang wore a well-fitting pair of black jeans, orange shirt, black and white sneakers, and a bomber jacket, while Blake had an intricate sleeveless black top, a white coat with long tails, and black pants. Her shoes also had a very slight heel.

Yang put Ruby down, stopping over her outfit. “You look good!” She said, equal parts proud and surprised. “Wait, who did your makeup?”

“Weiss did!” Ruby said happily, making Weiss flush and look away with a nervous smile.

Blake took a closer look at Ruby’s face, heavily examining it. “Not bad,” she finally concluded. Her tone was detached, but warmer than usual.

“Ooooh,” Yang said, noting her girlfriend’s reaction. “You must have talent, Schnee!”

“I’m… confused,” Weiss admitted.

“Oh!” Yang said. “Blake is, like… amazing at makeup. She does all of these cool, artistic looks with crazy colors and stuff! You should check out some of her posts!” She immediately whipped out her scroll, apparently on her way to find evidence of her girlfriend’s skills. Blake blushed, hand on the back of her neck.

“I… used to want to be a makeup artist,” Blake said sheepishly. “I got really into the abstract stuff.” At this point, Yang had found some of Blake’s photos, and was eagerly showing Weiss her scroll. From the few pictures that she could really get a good look at in these conditions, they were remarkably impressive - in one, Blake wore bold, abstract purple eyeshadow in a geometric pattern, with yellow highlights - both on her eyes and her cheeks. In another, she’d drawn a rose on one cheek and covered the rest of that side of her face with an intricate pattern of vines - they curled up around her eye and into her hair. Still another actually showed Blake with her ears out, but the photo’s description claimed that they were custom made for her by “a friend.”

“These are amazing, Blake!” Weiss exclaimed. “I’d love to talk makeup with you some time - I only know about the whole ‘conforming to traditional gender roles’ aspect of it.”

“Objectively the worst way to use makeup,” Blake laughed. “I’d love to talk to you about it - there’s a lot of things I could probably pull off with your skin tone…” She trailed off, apparently lost in ideas. As Weiss looked more thoroughly, she saw that some pictures also featured Yang, and one even featured a very nervous Ruby, sporting a very dark, dramatic look. According to the description, it was an abstract design inspired by thunderstorms - Ruby had water droplets rolling down her cheek, and lightning bolts sparking off from her eyes.

“Oh, no need to look at that one,” Ruby said, clearly embarrassed.

“Aww, c’mon, Rubes!” Yang said. “You looked amazing!” Ruby pushed her hair behind her ear, hiding a blush. Weiss gave her an indulgent smile.
“Shall we go?” She asked. The trio all nodded, and soon they were on their way.

Chapter 9: Transformation: Part 2

Chapter Text

The movie was fun, even if it wasn’t something that Weiss would seek out herself. Apparently, Blake had a secret love of period dramas, which Yang had quickly fallen into as well. They were excited about the film because it was a long-awaited adaptation of a book written during the same time period as its events, which had only gained its fame in the last few decades. The film had mostly centered around themes of sisterhood and togetherness, which absolutely struck a chord with Weiss.

“Do you think Yang caught us snuggling in the theatre?” Ruby asked, as they made their way home in the rain under Weiss’ umbrella.

“I doubt it,” Weiss said. “If she had, she would have said it out loud, immediately upon noticing.”

“That’s fair,” Ruby giggled.

“Plus, we were hardly snuggling,” Weiss said. “I was just leaning against your shoulder to reach the popcorn. Those two, on the other hand, were practically in each others’ laps.”

“Yeah, well, they’re used to having that apartment all to themselves,” Ruby said. “The few times I’ve come over, it’s always taken them a while to answer the door and I think it might be because they’re putting their clothes back on.”

Weiss snorted. “Ah, young love,” she said, eliciting a full-on laughing fit from Ruby.

The pair turned a corner on the way back to their room, and almost as soon as they did, Ruby stopped dead in her tracks.

“What is it?” Weiss asked, her voice immediately full of concern.

“I’m not sure yet,” Ruby replied. “It might be nothing - the rain makes it harder to tell.”

Wordlessly, she took Weiss’ free hand. Weiss interlocked their fingers.

“Just stay close - hopefully it’s just some random person who has nothing to do with your dad.” She sniffed at the air, and corrected, “just some random… people… who have nothing to do with your dad.” Weiss gulped.

“Should we change our route?”

“On it,” Ruby said, steering her off the beaten path.

The pair spent a very tense five or so minutes in silence, with Ruby occasionally sniffing at the air and then going off in a different direction immediately afterwards. Weiss felt so blind as Ruby led her through various alleyways and side streets.

“Okay,” Ruby said finally. “They’re definitely tracking us.”

“How can you tell?” Weiss asked.

“Based on their movements, they’re purposefully surrounding us, trying to corral us in somewhere.” Weiss’ stomach lurched.

“Should I call Yang and Blake?”

“Text them,” Ruby said, her voice still very low, calm, and quiet. “We don’t want the noise.” Weiss nodded, desperately digging out her scroll and sending out a quick, desperate text to both numbers. Copying and pasting it took five seconds that lasted an eternity. The scroll buzzed instantly, telling Weiss that neither message was delivered.

“Dammit, I’ve got no signal!” She said, frustrated.

“Put your scroll away,” Ruby said gently. “The messages might go through, but right now, I’m going to need your focus.” Weiss gulped again, but nodded. “There’s no way we can evade them fully,” Ruby explained, “So if we’re going to have to fight, I want to do it here.”

Weiss looked around - Ruby had steered them into a narrow alleyway, just wide enough where maybe three people could fit if they stood shoulder to shoulder. Weiss understood right away - their environment would force their pursuers into a bottleneck, and weaken their numerical advantage.

Weiss pressed her back into Ruby’s, covering both sides of the alley. She made a quick, ugly ponytail to make sure her hair would be out of her face. “How many?” She asked.

“Five, maybe six,” Ruby replied. “Seven if we’re unlucky.”

“Can you… take that many?” Weiss asked. She didn’t mean to sound unconfident, but those odds were not great.

“I can try,” Ruby admitted. She winced. “I might end up in my were.” Quickly, she stepped out of the skirt she’d borrowed from Weiss, shoving it into her backpack. She practically tore her boots off, and did the same with them. Weiss was honestly amazed that Ruby would think to protect not just Weiss, but her clothing, from what they were apparently facing.

“Weiss,” Ruby said, her tone immediately conveying that it was important. “If you end up having to see me in my were… I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t hold back on my account,” Weiss said. She took Ruby’s hand again, squeezing it. “And you’d better make sure that we both make it out of here in one piece.”

“Hello, ladies,” a man’s voice said. The figure quite literally stepped out of the shadows, on Weiss’ side of the alley. She immediately noticed the bandages on his right hand, and she recognized his face - he was the man they’d met on the bridge, from the night she’d confronted her father.

“Evening, fellas,” Ruby said. Weiss was shocked at the confidence in her tone. “Any chance you’d help escort two young ladies home?”

“Sorry, bitch,” the vampire from the bridge said. At the word, Ruby immediately began to growl, her eyes flashing with rage as she glared at him over her shoulder. “We’re only interested in Princess Schnee this evening.” As he spoke, several figures emerged around him - to Weiss’ surprise, most carried knives in one hand, their blades flashing in the low light. Weiss did a head count - including the speaker, Weiss and Ruby were apparently unlucky.

Something brewed in Weiss. She was so sick of having to be protected and defended. She may not be nearly as powerful or experienced as Ruby, but she refused to be treated like an object by men. Weiss closed her umbrella, immediately feeling the rain begin to soak into her hair, and pointed its admittedly sharp tip towards the man, with perfect fencing posture. Her attacks may not wound them, but she would not be defenseless.

“I’m more than a name,” she threatened. “Leave us alone, now.”

“Can’t do that, girlie,” the man said. “We’ve got to take you back home to your daddy - and that stupid mutt of yours isn’t around to protect you this time.” Weiss was confused by this. Ruby was right behind her - couldn’t they tell?

The vampires’ apparent leader snapped his fingers, and one on Ruby’s side of the alleyway charged at her. She raised her fists and cracked him across the jaw, but as Weiss turned to face Ruby, another one had sunk his blade into her stomach. Weiss gasped, covering her mouth.

However, to Weiss’ surprise, and to that of her assailant, Ruby didn’t cry out. She didn’t crumple upon being stabbed. She didn’t even really appear to flinch. She simply looked up at the man, meeting his now-terrified eyes as her ears rose from the top of her head, and simply uttered, “Ouch.”

Ruby’s left hand, hanging at her waist, erupted into claws that raked the man across his chest. She grabbed his knife hand in the other, biting a large chunk out of the man’s bicep with her fangs. She still looked human, mostly, but she had far more wolf-like features than she normally did.

Weiss was barely able to process what Ruby’s next move was as she heard footsteps splashing towards her - another vampire, trying to take advantage of her distraction, had lunged for her with his arm outstretched. Weiss sidestepped him, using her umbrella to parry his arm and riposte - the tip of her umbrella dug into his solar plexus. Would what normally be a clean hit in a fencing match instead seemed to almost pierce the man’s flesh, assisted by his momentum. Weiss pushed him aside and Ruby took advantage of his loss of balance, brutally kicking him on the inside of the knee, which resulted in a very loud crack .

“Just kill the stupid wolf!” The leader shouted. At this, he drew his own knife, and lunged for her. Weiss, somehow focused enough to be prepared for his approach, used her umbrella to safely push his knife to the side, away from both her and from Ruby as she apparently fought most of the other vampires at once. Increasingly, Ruby’s movements became wider, and more powerful, as her size appeared to increase. Weiss heard her use what remained of her flannel shirt to cover one vampire’s knife before punching him with a fist the size of his head and yanking him off his feet and tossing him into the wall.

The leader kept lunging towards Weiss, but it was clear that she was not his target. Instead, he aimed for Ruby’s back, a target that Weiss would not allow him to access. She abused her superior range, cutting off the vampire’s advances as he tried to reach Ruby.

“What does my father want with all of this?” Weiss shouted. “Can’t he just leave me alone?”

Her attacker did not answer, he simply continued his little dance with Weiss. One vampire screamed as he was picked up in Ruby’s mouth and tossed aside like a dissatisfactory toy. Weiss didn’t exactly have the time to get a good look at Ruby, but it was clear that she had fully transformed into her were.

Ruby whined as a vampire’s knife made its way into her chest again. She picked him up with one hand, and raked the claws of her other one down his chest and threw him, but her breathing was haggard as the knife slid out and fell to the ground.

Weiss’ assailant, frustrated, lunged far too close to her - a very sloppy attack. Weiss, now accustomed to bending the rules of traditional fencing, first parried, then drove her boot into the man’s crotch, and shoved him away with her shoulder. Apparently, that move still worked on bloodsucking creatures of the night, because he went down hard.

Weiss quickly turned to try and help Ruby. Three vampires were down for the count, two of those unconscious and in various states of blood loss. Weiss noticed that Ruby apparently had been attempting to give non-lethal wounds, bashing her opponents against one another or the walls instead of directly going for kill bites. Weiss scooped up the dropped knife beneath her feet and slashed at the thigh of a vampire assailing her as she stood. Ruby then kicked him several feet down the alleyway.

At this point, with over half of their comrades incapacitated, the two vampires still on their feet met each others’ eyes. Everyone simply made eye contact, with only Ruby and Weiss breathing heavily - apparently, their attackers did not need to breathe at all. Ruby, now seven feet tall and likely hundreds of pounds of rippling muscle, walked forwards and bared her teeth at them, her message clear - she may be exhausted, but she could still absolutely take both of them if she had to. Each vampire instead picked up an unconscious comrade and made their escape. The vampire whose leg Weiss had slashed hobbling along, leaning against one whose shirt was torn open.

Ruby’s breathing became even more labored as they all vanished, and Weiss watched her fur recede and her body shrink until she fell to her hands and knees, returning to the normal Ruby Rose. Weiss ran to her, but was stopped by a sudden arm wrapping firmly around her waist, and the sensation of something hard and metal pressing against her throat.

“Ruby!” Weiss shouted, futilely reaching for her as she was lifted off her feet.

“Ah, ah, ah,” the leader vampire said, pressing his blade closer to her neck. “I wouldn’t wriggle around too much if I were you.”

Ruby’s head whipped around, her fervent spirit immediately reignited by Weiss’ outcry. She met the man’s gaze with a pure, seething anger that would have terrified Weiss if it were directed towards her. She rose, her fingers almost immediately replaced by claws.

“Settle down there, little wolf,” the vampire sneered. “We wouldn’t want anything to happen to Weiss, here, now would we?” Ruby didn’t move, simply seething in her anger. She was naked now, having destroyed all of the clothes that she hadn’t managed to save before the encounter. Weiss didn’t dare sigh with relief, but the two stab wounds in her chest had already closed themselves up, and were no longer bleeding. Ruby was clearly hurt, but nowhere near as close to mortal danger as Weiss had feared.

“All your friends ran away,” Ruby finally said. “And I let them go.” Her eyes narrowed on the man, and she took a fighting stance. “But I promise you that if you try to hurt her, I will not let you do the same.”

“You stupid wolves are far too loyal for your own good,” the vampire replied. “Look at you - you’re exhausted. Are you really willing to die to protect this one human girl?”

“I am,” Ruby said immediately. Weiss couldn’t even begin to process that, however, as Ruby also added, “But we both know that if it really comes down to it, I won’t have to.” Weiss was pressed so close to the man that she could actually feel his muscles tense. “Just leave.” Ruby said. “Whatever her dad has on you, I guarantee it’s not worth your life.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about, little girl,” he said.

“Maybe not,” Ruby shrugged. “But I’m not about to let you get away with this.”

The vampire holding Weiss appeared to come to some sort of realization at that. He sighed, almost in defeat, and muttered, “... I hope Jacques doesn’t mind a little damaged goods.” Ruby’s eyes widened as he quickly withdrew the knife from Weiss’ throat to drive it into her chest. She screamed in agony before the vampire then slit his own hand open with the knife, shoving the wound over Weiss’ mouth.

The blood on Weiss’ tongue tasted… sweet. Succulent - like one of those rich, fancy desserts that her father’s chef would make. Everything in the world was suddenly so heavy - Weiss stopped feeling the cold wetness of the rain instantly. The searing, blinding pain in her chest was but a distant memory - or was that part just a dream? She couldn’t really recall. Weiss’ eyelids fluttered shut as she drank deeply of the sweet liquid that poured down her throat like honey. She couldn’t see or hear anything - the only sensation that she was aware of was that impossibly sweet, delectable taste.

“...iss? Weiss, can you hear me…?”

Weiss was waking up from the loveliest dream.

“Weiss, come on - wake up…”

Suddenly, something was cold. Weiss did not care for that sensation one bit.

“Come on Weiss, please be okay...”

The dreadful, cold thing, Weiss soon discovered, was everything.

“R… Ruby?” She asked, her eyelids barely creaking open.

“WEISS!” Ruby shouted, instantly crushing her into a hug. “By the moon, you’re okay.”

“What… happened?” Weiss asked slowly. Her brain was still catching up to her body. She frowned. “And why does my chest hurt?” She moved to look down at herself, but Ruby’s strong arms gently stopped her.

“Don’t look down there, look at me,” Ruby said. “We made it, the vampires are all gone now.”

“What about the… the main one?” Weiss asked.

“Gone,” Ruby said. “If he’d have pushed me any harder, he’d be dust.”

“Are you… okay?” Weiss asked. Ruby let out a low, pained laugh.

“I’ll be fine - I’m not the one I’m worried about.” Weiss managed to summon the effort to raise an eyebrow. Ruby exhaled. “That vampire… he started the process of Turning you. He fed you some of his blood after severely injuring you. I fought him off pretty quickly, and I guess we’re lucky that vampire blood is such a powerful anesthesia, but…”

Weiss went cold, and not just from the rain.

“Am I going to…”

“Not yet,” Ruby assured her. “And not just from this. It apparently takes a few sessions, and eventually you’d have to get buried for a whole day.” She gave the tiniest, weakest little smile. “My dad asked around with some old friends, and we learned a thing or two about vamps. A-anyways, your wounds… they’re…”

“Bad,” Weiss said simply. At this point, the sensation had mostly returned.

“Yeah,” Ruby admitted. “And a hospital will have a lot of questions for us, and it may not even be safe there - plus there’s no telling how long we have before something like this happens again, only worse.” Ruby didn’t appear to be too defeated by this, and Weiss could tell that there was an alternative that she hadn’t mentioned yet.

“What’s your idea, then?” Weiss asked. Dimly, she was aware that Ruby had been cradling her in her arms the entire time. She imagined she’d rather enjoy that feeling under better circ*mstances.

“If their goal is to Turn you…” Ruby began. “I could do it first.”

She let that hang in the air for a moment, and then quickly explained. “You’d start healing right away - the bite will probably knock you out again but I can take you somewhere safe while that happens. I am certain that you would survive tonight, and it would be utterly impossible for vampires to try and Turn you themselves.”

“But…?” Weiss asked.

“But,” Ruby admitted, her shoulders sinking, “You might not make it through your first moon.” She immediately began to talk at a mile a minute. “I’ll be there to help you the whole time - I can show you what will make the transformation easiest, we can all help you through, and since you’re young and pretty healthy it shouldn’t be too unlikely but I’ll admit that a fair amount of it is just kinda dependent on luck and how well your body handles the change so -”

“Do it,” Weiss said. The longer their conversation went on, the more she felt the pain of her wounds returning.

“Are you sure?” Ruby asked. “Nobody will be able to undo this. No matter what happens, you’ll be a werewolf for the rest of your life.”

“I know,” Weiss said. “But I’m not dying here, and I’m sure as hell not going back to my father.” Slowly, painfully, she reached out to cup Ruby’s cheek. “I trust you. Do it.” Ruby covered Weiss’ hand with her own, and it appeared that a tear was running down her cheek. Perhaps it was from sadness, from anger, or even simply because she’d been overwhelmed by the utter nightmare that they’d just experienced.

“There’s gonna be a scar,” Ruby said softly. “I’ll try and be gentle, but… is there a certain place you want it?” Weiss barely had the capacity to consider that, but she was amazed that right now, Ruby was considering her feelings for something like this. In a literal matter of life and death, Ruby wanted to be sure that Weiss was as comfortable as she could be.

Weiss, slowly getting woozy as the feelings of her injury became clearer, simply pulled up her dress, exposing her right thigh.

“Okay,” Ruby said, not making Weiss speak any more than she had to. “I… I’m so sorry.”

Ruby sat up, closing her eyes in intense concentration. Weiss very dimly realized that she was transforming into her were, without the assistance of the moon, for the second time that night. For a moment, Weiss was terrified that Ruby wouldn’t even be able to do it, but soon, her skin began to shift, and she slowly, slowly grew. Weiss could barely keep her eyes open as Ruby’s were finally loomed over her. As gently as she could, on all fours, Ruby nudged Weiss’ skirts up. After a tiny hesitation, she carefully opened her jaws, and bit down.

The sensation was painful, but not in the way Weiss had expected. The pain felt more akin to a high-powered massage tool hitting a particularly good spot, or the pain of over-exerting herself as she completed an exercise one too many times that day. Weiss’ bloodstream was filled with warmth, but unlike the too-sweet, heavy, sluggish feeling of the vampire’s blood, Ruby’s bite felt more like walking into a sauna. The heat felt oddly clean, like a nice hot shower on a winter’s morning.

Ruby’s teeth eventually relaxed, and she pulled away from Weiss’ thigh. At this point Weiss was able to sit up and observe that her white dress was covered with blood, and torn in the area around her stomach. She shakily reached a hand up to feel it, and her chest was… smooth. Dry, except for the dress and the rain. Her wound was completely gone. Ruby, noticing this too, exhaled with relief, and began padding over to her discarded backpack. She used her limited dexterity to pull the straps as loose as they would go, and then delicately scooped Weiss up, helping her arms into the loops. Weiss had absolutely no idea where Ruby was going with this until she carefully inserted each of her front paws through the straps as well, effectively using the backpack as a sort of harness to keep Weiss on her back. Once she appeared to be secured, Ruby began to move on all fours, carrying Weiss off into the night.

The last thing she remembered was blacking out, her face safely buried in Ruby’s fur.

Chapter 10: What Comes Next

Chapter Text

Yang’s eyes fluttered open at the sound of her scroll ringing.

“... ugh,” Blake managed, snuggled up to her chest.

Bleary-eyed, Yang reached over for her scroll, to see who in the hell was calling at three o’clock in the morning.

“It’s my dad,” Yang whispered to Blake, who just made a small sound of acknowledgement before rolling over.

“Dad, it’s -” She paused, listening. At this, Blake’s ears perked up - sounded like something important.

“She what?” Yang asked, shocked. Blake moved up a little, meeting her girlfriend’s eyes. Yang just scratched at her head reassuringly with her free hand, continuing to listen.

“Are they all right?” She asked. “Did they - okay. Okay, at least there’s that.”

A few more seconds passed, and Blake’s eyes were filled with concern.
“Okay. Do you need us now, or… okay. In the morning, then? Yeah, as soon as we wake up, we’ll take Bumblebee.” Blake raised her eyebrows at that. Given the apparent severity of the situation, she was happy to go with Yang, but she was still worried about what had happened.

“I dunno. I guess they’ll have to tell us.” She sighed. “Try and get some rest, Dad.”

She nodded for a moment.

“Yeah. Goodnight, love you.” At this, Yang hung up her scroll and put it back on their nightstand. Blake looked up at her, a wordless question on her face.

“It’s Ruby,” Yang sighed. “She showed up at Dad’s door about half an hour ago, in her were, with an unconscious Weiss on her back.” Blake just silently blinked for a moment, processing that.

“What happened? Did she say?”

“Nope. By the time he was awake from her banging on the door, she was out cold. Dad said she had two injuries on her chest, while Weiss had something on her leg.”

“By the moon…” Blake merely whispered.

Yeah,” Yang said. “They’re both asleep now, and I told Dad to do the same, but… I doubt it.”

“Do you think it was…” Blake couldn’t finish that, hoping that Yang would know what she meant.

“I dunno what else it could be,” Yang said. “Her dad seems pretty freakin’ persistent.”

“I just… I’m trying to wrap my head around why he’s doing this,” Blake said. “Does he know that she figured out he’s a vampire, and he’s trying to silence her?”

“I dunno,” Yang said. “I guess we’ll have to wait until the morning when we get there, and hopefully one or both of them will be up to tell us what happened.” She paused. “That is… if you wanna come with…” Blake looked at her.

“Yang, your sister and her roommate showed up at your father’s door at three o’clock in the morning, wounded. Of course I wanna be there.”

“Okay,” Yang said, visibly relieved. “I just… I figured that since it was all about my family…”

“Honestly, Ruby’s starting to feel like my little sister, too,” Blake said. “And I like Weiss.” She paused for a moment, wrapping her arms around Yang. “But even if that wasn’t true, I would still come with. You’re always trying to be there for everyone else, so…” she smiled. “I’m gonna be there for you, too.” At this, Yang gave her a tired grin, pulling her close and kissing the crown of her head, just between her ears.

“I love you. You know that?” Yang asked.

“I do.” She snuggled her head into Yang’s shoulder once more, returning to their usual sleeping position. “But I never get tired of hearing it.” Yang merely hummed, her arm wrapped around Blake.

“You’re not gonna get much sleep, are you?” Blake asked after a while.

“Maybe, but I doubt it,” Yang said. “I’ll try.” Blake just nodded a little, trying to drift off herself.

It didn’t work remarkably well for either of them.

When morning came, the pair went about their usual routines, some tension hanging over them both. Their meals were quick and easy, their outfits simple and comfortable. Yang stood up, grabbing her motorcycle helmet from its place on their hallway table. Blake pulled hers out of its nearby closet.

Only a few hours after sunrise, Yang pulled Bumblebee out of the parking garage of their building, with Blake’s arms wrapped around her waist. They drove off towards the highway, uncertain of what awaited at their destination.

“Yeah, okay. Thanks, Barty. Talk to you soon.”

Weiss’ leg hurt.

But, surprisingly, she was quite comfortable. Wherever she was felt… warm. And soft. Somewhere, she heard the light sound of birds chirping. Weiss adjusted her position in the bed, and by doing so, she learned that she was in a bed. She curled up into herself, not ready to wake up just yet. If she was lucky, maybe most of last night had been a dream.

Weiss was about to drift off again before she heard the sound of a door closing, which made her sit up with a start. Her vision was still a bit bleary, she tried to get her bearings. For the tiniest moment, it looked like she was back in her shared dorm room with Ruby, but her surroundings were soon different enough for her to know otherwise.

A small, tidy bedroom was laid out before Weiss - the wall to her left was dominated by a large window, with sunlight gently filtering through it. A small desk sat next to her. Near the foot of her bed, the rest of the wall was taken up by another desk with a bookshelf, haloed by string lights. Near the door at the far wall was an empty wooden chair, angled slightly away from her. Farther to her right, the opposite wall had a slightly smaller window, with the remaining area taken up by a few framed paintings. Another twin bed was on this half of the room, and Weiss blinked a moment once she noticed that it, too, was occupied. A mop of dark hair, red at the tips, just barely poked out from the blanket.

“Ruby!” Weiss shouted. Her throat was sore and she was exhausted, but that didn’t matter right now - first, she had to get to Ruby. Weiss threw the covers off of herself, wincing as soon as her right foot touched the floor. Her entire thigh ached, but she ignored it as she hobbled towards Ruby’s sleeping form, using the nearby desk to balance herself. As she made it to the bed, the door in the room creaked as it was swung open, drawing her focus momentarily.

“Whoa!” Taiyang said, immediately coming to her side. “Take it easy for a second.” Weiss pulled against him, still focused on Ruby.

“I have to check on her,” she said, and upon hearing this, Tai let her go. Weiss shakily leaned against the bed, looking over her unconscious roommate. Ruby appeared to be mostly peaceful, though her hair was a complete mess. She took long breaths, curled up on her side. The covers were held tightly in her grasp, as if she were trying to wrap herself around them, and not the other way around. Weiss could only see her head and the very tops of her shoulders, but someone had put an oversized shirt on her at some point.

Once she had gotten a good look, Taiyang came to her side again, helping her stand. “I-is she going to be all right?” Weiss asked, as he walked her back over to the other bed.

“Ruby will be fine,” he said. “She’s pretty tough, even for a wolf.” He helped Weiss sit on the bed where she’d awoken, and she leaned against the headboard. Once she’d settled, Taiyang knelt beside the bed. His eyes stayed on her, filled with worry.

“What… happened, last night?” Weiss asked.

“That’s what I was hoping to ask you,” Tai said. “I jumped out of bed because someone was pounding on the door at three in the morning, and by the time I got to the porch, Ruby was lying down in her were, with you strapped to her back, completely unconscious and with your dress covered in blood.”

Weiss just blinked, as some of the memories of last night returned to her. Tai, taking this as her needing a moment, continued. “I cleaned you both up as best I could and got you into bed. I also called Blake and Yang, who should get here soon.”

Weiss looked down at herself - she appeared to be wearing an oversized solid yellow t-shirt, which appeared to come from Yang. She was still wearing the underwear she’d had on last night - if Tai really had changed her clothes while she was unconscious, at least he’d respected her decency.

“We’re… where are we?” Weiss finally asked.

“My home,” Tai said. “Ruby and Yang grew up here - we’re about thirty miles out from the city.”

Thirty miles… Weiss thought. She ran thirty miles with me on her back…

“Oh!” Weiss said. “I… I think some of last night is coming back to me.”

“Really?” Tai asked, his eyes brightening. “What’s the last thing you remember?”

Weiss looked down for a moment, trying to properly order the events in her mind.

“Ruby and I were walking home late from the movies… it was raining, and she suddenly stopped, because she smelled something.” Weiss took a breath as her memory cleared. “We tried to avoid them, but they ended up cornering us in a narrow alley.”

“They?” Tai asked.

“V-Vampires,” Weiss said, and Tai merely nodded - apparently she’d confirmed his suspicions. “That man from the bridge was there too, from the night when I ran from my father.” Tai’s eyes narrowed with concern at that, but Weiss continued.

“We ended up having to fight them - Ruby went into her were, and I tried my best to help, I…” she let out the tiniest, slightest laugh. “I somehow held off their leader with my umbrella.” Tai also chuckled for a moment, just at the sheer absurdity.

“A-Anyways,” Weiss continued, “Ruby seemed to mostly fight them all off, and when the regular ones started to run away, she went back to normal, and when I ran to her, that man, the leader, he… he grabbed me around the waist, and he held his knife to my throat.” Tai’s face darkened at this, but he let Weiss continue.
“Ruby argued with him for a moment - she tried to convince him to let me go, and when it looked like they were gonna have to fight, he…” she winced, recalling the memory. “He stabbed me, in the chest.” Tai’s eyebrows rose.

“I saw the blood on your dress, but…” Weiss’ hand covered where the injury had been, but there was no scar. It was like the wound had never even happened.

“After that, he - I guess he cut his own hand, too, and he pressed the wound to my mouth,” Weiss continued, shuddering. “It gets really fuzzy after that - the taste was so overwhelmingly sweet, and I… I couldn’t see, I couldn’t hear...”

“Vampire blood does that, apparently,” Tai comforted. “Or so I’ve heard.” Weiss nodded.

“Then, later, I remember waking up with Ruby leaning over me - the man was gone, and she…” Weiss gasped, as this part finally came back to her. “Ruby ended up biting me. It hurt, but it somehow also made me feel better, and…” she stopped. “That’s all I remember.”

At this, Tai was utterly silent. He looked Weiss up and down for a moment, examining her.

“When you say she bit you…” Tai began carefully. “Was she in her regular wolf form, or the big, werewolf form?”

“The big one,” Weiss confirmed. “I - we talked about it. I don’t remember everything she said, but… she wanted my permission, first.” Tai just sighed a very long, very tired sigh.

“By the look of things, that bite may be the only reason you’re here, and not in a hospital,” Tai said. He looked over at his sleeping daughter and shook his head.

“You know what she did, right? What that bite means, now, for you?”

“Yes,” Weiss said, nodding firmly. “And… and I chose this.” She looked over at Ruby. “I’m just glad it came from her, and not from my father.” At this, Tai merely nodded. He reached out, hesitated a moment, and patted her knee. “I’m just… glad that you’re safe. Both of you.”

They shared a tender, almost awkward look for a moment. Taiyang was kind and gracious and he clearly cared about Weiss’ well-being, but he was also her roommate’s father, and she’d only met him once.

Perhaps sensing her awkwardness at his paternal doting, Tai backed off slightly, checking his watch. “Yang and Blake should be here soon - I was gonna make us some tea.” he stood, stretching a little. “Would you like any?” Weiss gave him a smile.

“Do you have coffee?”

Yang flicked down the kickstand with her boot as Blake swung her leg off of the motorcycle. Both took their helmets off as Yang walked the bike into her father’s small garden shed. Once inside, Yang hung her helmet on the handlebars and Blake placed hers on the seat.

“Okay,” Yang exhaled, hands on her hips.

“Hey,” Blake said, putting a hand on her shoulder. “He said they’re both fine.” She gave a weak smile. “C’mon, let’s go.”

“Ruby did what?” Yang almost screamed.

“I know,” Tai said. “I know, Yang.”

“But why?” Blake asked. “She knows that Turning a human into a were is dangerous, right? Weiss might die!”

“She can also hear you,” A voice said. The trio turned, and there was Weiss, now out of bed.

For a moment, none of them said a word, just staring at one another. The bite scar on Weiss’ right leg was visible beneath the hem of her shirt, still red and agitated. She had a steaming coffee mug in her hand, and she leaned against the doorway to Yang and Ruby’s bedroom - apparently she still wasn’t quite confident putting too much weight on her right leg for too long.

“Is that my shirt?” Yang finally asked. Blake gave her a look, but Tai just laughed.

“Sorry. I helped her change, and it was dark. I just grabbed one out of the dresser.”

The four of them let that hang in the air for a moment, and then they all laughed at the absurdity of it all.

“Here,” Blake said. “Want my help getting to the couch?” Weiss nodded, and Blake let her arm rest on her shoulders, carefully guiding her further into the living room. Blake gently let Weiss down onto the couch, and Tai took his usual armchair. Yang took her motorcycle jacket off, throwing it onto a chair in the kitchen before joining Blake and Weiss on the couch.

Weiss told them both her tale, a bit more coherently this time now that she’d had a practice round with Tai. Once she’d finished, they were both silent for a while, and Tai continued where she left off, briefly explaining how he’d gotten them both into bed.

“So… Weiss,” Yang finally asked. “Do you know what your dad wants with you?”

“I have no clue,” Weiss answered. “Don’t get me wrong, he’s… controlling, but this seems like another level, even for him.” Everyone just soberly nodded at that. Weiss, still a bit timid about the whole thing, finally worked up the courage to ask them something that had been on her mind ever since she’d let Ruby Turn her.

“How long do I have?” Weiss asked quietly. “Until the next moon.”

“Three weeks,” Blake said. Yang nodded.

“It’s that Friday.”

Weiss gave one simple, curt nod.

“How… much has Ruby told you?” Blake asked.

“She basically answered every question I asked,” Weiss said. “There’s the wolf form, the were form, which I’d only seen last night… full moons, most of how Turning apparently happens…”

“Did she tell you what can happen to Turned wolves?” Yang asked solemnly. “On their first moon?”

“Yes,” Weiss replied. “And I would rather die a werewolf than under my father’s thumb.” She gave a very weak smile. “At least this way I’ll be surrounded by friends, right?”

“You will,” Blake assured her. “And you’re going to make it through this - we’re all going to be here for you when the moon comes.”

Weiss’ smile felt like it was a mile wide. She offered Blake a sitting hug, which was quickly accepted. Yang leaned over and wrapped them both up in her arms, too. They all just shared that moment for a little while, before finally pulling apart - though Blake invited Weiss to lean against her, which she gratefully did. Yang put her arm around Blake’s shoulders, gently playing with Weiss’ hair.

“What do we do now?” Weiss asked gently. “With the moon coming?”

“Well, I’m going to move the laundry along,” Tai said, standing up from his chair. “I threw your clothes in there, Weiss - though your dress may be beyond mending.” Weiss just nodded for a moment, a little morose - she loved that dress.

“How did my jacket do?” She asked, as if she were asking about a friend’s visit to the doctor.

“I did some spot cleaning on it and hung it up in the closet,” Tai said. “Do you want it?”

“That would be lovely,” Weiss said. “Thank you so much.” Tai just nodded.

“Here, Dad, I got it,” Yang said, standing. Her eyes met Blake’s, and the pair silently understood that Blake would stay with Weiss, so at least one of them was there for her physically. Yang walked over to the hallway closet, soon returning with Weiss’ leather jacket. She sat up from leaning against Blake to accept it gratefully, and quickly wrapped herself up in it as though it were a blanket. Yang sat back on the couch, now on Weiss’ opposite side. Delicately, she and Blake sandwiched Weiss between them, and she let her head rest on Yang’s shoulder.

“I… thank you, both,” she managed. “For being here. I - I hope I’m not, I don’t know… third wheeling?” Yang snorted, and Blake let out a little giggle.

“It’s okay,” Yang said. “Are you comfortable right now?”

“Yes,” Weiss said immediately. “I… my family was never close like this. Everyone was always so… cold.”

“Well, that might be because your dad’s literally a vampire,” Blake teased gently. “But if that’s the case, then you’re missing out. Platonic snuggles are amazing, and we’re happy to provide them.” Weiss just hummed at that, burying her face a bit further in Yang’s shoulder.

“Just wait until you get used to your wolf,” Yang said. “When Ruby and I were little and we used to go out hunting, I used to fall asleep with my head resting over her neck. I guess I can get a little… protective, sometimes.”

“I guess all of you wolves are at least a little like that,” Blake mused. “Though now I know why you do that with me.” Yang laughed.

“Sorry, sorry,” She admitted. “Force of habit.”

“When… when will I be able to do that?” Weiss asked. “I’m not sure how this whole thing works, exactly.”

“I can’t say I really know, either,” Blake admitted. “I grew up like this, so my answer would normally be ‘around your tenth birthday or so,’ but…” Weiss snorted.

“Yes, well, that disaster has come and gone,” she joked. When she sensed Blake and Yang’s silent concern at the statement, she added, “My parents were never close, but… that night was when they started to really drift apart.”

“Speaking of your family,” Yang began, “Not to get back into heavy stuff too soon, but - you said you had a sister, right?”

“And a brother,” Weiss said. “He’s much younger, though.” Blake merely hummed.

“Well, do you think your sister might know anything about all this?” Yang asked. “You said she broke off from your dad…”

“I’m not sure,” Weiss admitted. “Ruby and I pieced together that my father becoming a vampire was probably at least somewhat recent - we took a beach vacation two years ago, and he didn’t burn up or anything then.”

“Shame,” Blake muttered. Yang chuckled.

“Still,” Weiss continued. “That’s not a bad idea. I’ll talk to Winter about it.”

“No need to go right this second,” Yang said.

“I don’t know how in Remnant I’m going to ask her without being obvious about it,” Weiss laughed. “And if it turns out she doesn’t know, she’ll probably think I’m a lunatic.” She thought for a moment. “I also have no idea where my scroll is - I think Ruby put it in her backpack…”

“Speaking of, I was gonna go check on her,” Yang said. “I’ll try and find her bag, too.” She stood up from the couch, looking down at the pair still on the couch, with Weiss comfortably nestled into Blake. She rubbed Weiss’ shoulder, and placed a gentle kiss on Blake’s head.

“Be right back,” she murmured.

Ruby hurt all over.

She was used to running, even in her were, but the extra weight she had to carry had made it harder than she’d imagined, and the highway that led back to her home town was way longer than she’d remembered. She had felt like she was going to collapse by the time that she made it to the familiar wooden porch, and was rather frustrated to find that her paws were too large for the doorbell.

None of that really mattered, though. She’d brought Weiss home safe, and - Weiss!

Ruby sat up with a start, and immediately regretted it. Her head started pounding, and she shakily put her hand against her temple.

“Ugh,” she managed, trying to force her eyelids apart with sheer willpower.

“Hey, hey, easy,” a soft voice said. A pair of arms gently held her shoulders.

“Ugh,” Ruby said again. One eye finally opened to a cascade of golden hair and a pair of lilac eyes. “Yang? Where’s… Weiss…?”

“She’s fine,” Yang said immediately. “Dad gave her some coffee, and it seems like she’s doing better. She’s with Blake on the couch right now.” Ruby sat back for a moment at that, her worries abated. Yang gave Ruby a minute to wake up.

“Two stab wounds, huh?” Yang asked. “You’re lucky they weren’t carrying silver.” Ruby gave a playful laugh.

“This is nuthin’,” she said, with a fake tough voice. “You should’ve seen the other guy.”

“Seriously, Ruby,” Yang said. “Are you all right? Why didn’t you call us?”

“I’m fine,” Ruby said, though the slight shakiness in her voice betrayed her. “And we tried - Weiss’ scroll didn’t have a signal, and we didn’t really get a chance beyond that.”

“Well, I’m just glad you were there for her,” Yang said, sitting on the foot of her bed. “But do you think it was the best idea to Turn her in the middle of an alley?”

“I didn’t - ugh - have too many other options,” Ruby said, her hand returning to her temple. “What was I gonna do, show up with her at a hospital, butt naked?”

“Dad says you gave her a choice,” Yang said. “And… it seems like she’s okay with things, but… still.”

“I know, Yang,” Ruby said. “I know.”

“Yeah,” Yang replied. “Well… if nothing else, let’s just hope we can get her through the next moon.” Ruby nodded.

“Can I see her?” Ruby asked quietly.

“Of course,” Yang said. She gave a cheeky little grin. “Want me to carry you out there?” Ruby gave her an exasperated “stop babying me” look.

“Sorry, sorry,” Yang said. “Here, you can lean on me like a cool, injured action hero, and then you won’t have to let your big sister embarrass you in front of your girlfriend.”

“Yang!” Ruby protested. “She’s not my girlfriend!”

“Not yet, maybe,” Yang teased. More serious, she added, “But tell me honestly. Do you want that?” Ruby tapped her fingers together nervously, looking away.

“Maybe a little,” she admitted. “I haven’t been sure how to, well… start anything. I mean, she’s in a really terrible place right now, and if I were to ask her, and she just wanted to be friends, then…”

“I get it,” Yang said. “You can and should take your time. If she doesn’t feel the same way, and especially if you guys start dating and then break up... I figure it’d be pretty awkward, considering that you’re the wolf who Turned her.”

“I know,” Ruby said sadly. “I know that doing this might’ve… blown my chances, and…” she sighed. “And I’m fine with that. It’s what Weiss wanted, and that’s what matters.”

“There you go,” Yang said, with an approving nod. She reached down to help Ruby up. “But, play it cool in there, because if nothing else… I’m pretty sure she likes you too.”

Five minutes later, Yang came out of the bedroom with a now fully clothed Ruby leaning on her one shoulder and the backpack on the other.

“Here’s your brave hero, Schnee,” Yang announced. Ruby looked up at Weiss, wrapped up in her jacket and resting against Blake. She gave a timid little grin, which sank into a bit of fear and nervousness when Weiss’ eyes widened in surprise.

“Ruby!” Weiss shouted, getting up to run to her. It wasn’t exactly a ‘run,’ with her leg, but she still moved remarkably quickly given the circ*mstances. She quickly wrapped her arms around Ruby, her head leaning on Ruby’s shoulder - Yang had barely managed to let Ruby go in time.

“Hey, Weiss,” Ruby said meekly. She paused, then brought up a tender hand to cradle Weiss’ head as she hugged her back. “How’re you feeling?”

“How am I feeling?” Weiss asked, her tone almost angry. “You ran thirty miles with me on your back, you dolt! When you said it would be ‘somewhere safe,’ I didn’t know you’d have to run so far!”

“S-sorry,” Ruby said, almost laughing. “I didn’t think we’d be able to go to campus, and Blake and Yang have a bunch of neighbors who would see us, so… this was the only other place I could think of.” Weiss just paused at that, still a bit indignant. Miraculously, the two of them were both on their feet, supporting each other. Eventually, Weiss sighed in defeat. She leaned back, not yet leaving the hug and meeting Ruby’s eyes.

“Promise me you won’t do something so reckless ever again!” Weiss demanded.

“Asking that of Ruby is like asking a river to flow the other way,” Yang joked. They both looked at her, and she just offered out her arm. “Come on, you two - this reunion will be just as heartfelt if you’re both sitting down.”

Yang and Blake gently brought the pair to the couch. It could just barely fit the four of them, with Ruby and Weiss in the middle, Yang supporting Ruby and Blake gently leaning against Weiss. The pair of injured roommates still held each other tightly, which prompted their friends to exchange a knowing look.

“I’m serious, Ruby,” Weiss said. “If you ever get that close to dying just for my sake like that again, I will kill you myself and then drag you back up here from the underworld just to yell at you for an hour.”

“Looking forward to it,” Ruby laughed, and soon they all were chuckling along.

“Look, I… I know we have a lot to talk about,” Weiss began. “And I have a lot of things to learn in these next three weeks. But for now, can we just… stay here? The four of us?” She met Blake’s eyes, and then Yang’s. “I don’t know if you two have somewhere to be or something, but…” Ruby appeared to also support this idea, and soon all three of them were looking at Yang expectantly.

She just smiled. “I’ll get the blankets.”

“Hey again, Barty,” Tai said, scroll up against his ear. “Yeah, they’re both awake now - my other daughter and her girlfriend got here a couple hours ago. Can you spare a minute to talk to them? They needed a break, and probably still do, but… they could also use some answers.”

“Of course. I just finished up some grading, so I’ll happily explain what I can when they’re ready.”

“Thanks. Sorry that they’re gonna, y’know… find out.”

“Oh, I’m sure one of them would have dropped by my office hours sooner or later. Besides, once I saw your daughter’s last name on one of her group projects, and from what you’ve told me today… I’d basically put together all their secrets - they might as well get to know mine.”

“Hey, girls,” Tai asked, walking back into the living room, where the four of them were still snuggled up on the couch. Things had moved well into the late afternoon, and after eating some lunch he’d made them, they were now watching one of Yang’s favorite movies. Tai couldn’t help but notice that Weiss and Ruby were snuggled up just about as comfortably as Blake and Yang often were, though it was basically consistent with the way they’d acted at Parents and Family Weekend.

“Dad,” Ruby protested. “This is the best part!”

“Sorry, sorry,” Tai said, his hands up in a mock apology. “But if you four can bear to pause the movie for a little while, I’ve got a friend on the line right now who might be able to answer some more of your guys’ questions when it comes to vampires and everything.”

“All right,” Yang said, reaching over for the remote. Tai nodded and set his scroll down on the table in front of them, putting their call on speaker.

“Good afternoon!” A chipper male voice announced. “I understand that you four have been through quite an ordeal these last twenty-four hours, but if there’s anything that you would like to hear directly from the horse, er… vampire’s mouth… I shall do my best to answer.”

Blake’s ears flattened against her head for a moment, as if she were questioning what she’d heard. In fact, all of them had ears out, except for Weiss - Tai noticed the asymmetry, and hoped that they’d soon get there.

“Um, hello…” Weiss began timidly. “I, er… I was basically fed some vampire blood last night, against my will. Is that something I should be worried about, going forward?” She paused, and added, “Oh! He also stabbed me.” Given everything else that had happened, that part was almost a forgettable detail.

“Yes, I did hear about that, and besides offering my condolences,” The voice began, “I can assuredly say that especially after acquiring lycanthropy, the excess vampire blood in your system should be processed by your body, just like any other poison, and excreted safely. You may feel a bit tired or sluggish for the rest of the day, but that seems it would be the case regardless, due to these circ*mstances.”

Blake’s ears twitched again, her face scrunched up in concentration for a moment. Yang gave her a worried look, but she waved her off, still deep in thought.

“When it comes to the stabbing, though, if that nasty brute’s purpose was indeed to Turn you, he likely intended to, well… the nicest way that I can put it is ‘remove some of your blood.’ This is normally accomplished through feeding from a subject before having them ingest a vampire’s blood in return, though from what I have heard, your assailant was in quite a hurry.”

“Oh, I took care of him, by the way,” Ruby added. “The moment he stabbed you, I tackled him, and got you out of his grip. He didn’t put up much of a fight before running off like a coward.”

“You did also fight off six of his friends, Ruby,” Yang added. “I don’t think he’d have had much of a chance one on one, and he knew that.”

“Six? Dear me,” the voice responded. “You should consider yourselves lucky, then - the men you fought must be very new vampires if you were able to defeat them by yourself, Miss Rose. We generally get stronger with age - the youngest vampires are often a bit weaker than normal humans until they’ve had a few years. Plus, though I doubt you’re truly worried about them, your assailants will likely make a full recovery provided that they feed appropriately.”

“Oh, thank goodness,” Weiss said, her sarcasm so thick that it collected in a puddle on the floor.

“But, as I was saying,” the voice continued, “You were likely stabbed because simply ingesting vampire blood is not enough to begin the Turning process - the subject’s own blood must gradually be replaced by it, which was likely your assailant’s intention.” Weiss simply hummed at that, thoughtful.

“Um, just a little side note,” Blake said, speaking up for the first time since the call had began. “I, uh… Professor Oobleck, is that you?”

The other three girls dropped their jaws in surprise, staring at the scroll.

“Oh!” The professor said. Weiss could just picture him pushing up his glasses. “My apologies - I forgot to introduce myself! You’ll have to forgive me, I get caught up with explaining things outside of the classroom, as well.”

There was a beat where none of the girls said a word. Tai just let out a little chuckle in his armchair.

“You’re a vampire?” Ruby finally asked. “But you teach a college class!”

“And you, Miss Rose, are a werewolf who attends that college class - I’d imagine that both concepts are equally absurd.”

Yang just shook her head. “I mean, he did say that he answers his emails at four AM…”

“Still!” Blake pressed. “How do you walk around campus and everything without getting burned?” Oobleck laughed.

“Beacon College is a remarkable institution, Miss Belladonna - I’m sure you’re familiar with the tunnels between various buildings on campus. It just so happens that they connect my office and many of the classrooms where I teach. I arrive on campus before sunrise and keep my blinds closed during office hours. It can get a bit stuffy in there, but I’d imagine that’s rather fitting of an eccentric history professor, wouldn’t you say? Plus, you’d be amazed what someone like me can do on a rainy day with an umbrella and generous amounts of sunscreen.”

They all just sat there in utter disbelief.

“How did you not smell him?” Weiss finally asked. “I thought you… er, we, were really good at doing that.”

“I’ve never gotten that close, to be honest,” Blake said. “I almost visited your office hours once in person, but you were away.”

“Apologies that you missed me, but I’d imagine that my secret was better kept as a result,” the professor said. “A few students with such keen senses as yours have found me out in the past, but they’re usually surprised enough that they end up revealing whatever sort of creature they are, and we’ll just agree to keep what we learned to ourselves.”

Yang finally looked over at her father.

“You knew one of our professors this whole time and you didn’t tell us?”

“In my defense, we only learned that he taught a class with all four of you this morning,” Tai said. “But come on, of course I know some Beacon profs - it’s by far the most popular college for all of my kids at Signal High.”

“I was offered to teach Advanced Placement History there,” Oobleck said. “But your father told me that what was to be my classroom had a wall made up entirely of picture windows, and I didn’t want to catch fire at eleven o’clock each morning, so I recommended a more sun-resistant colleague instead.”

Weiss just looked up at Ruby, her face clearly denoting the absurdity of it all. Ruby just gave her a tiny shrug, as if to say “this is what you’re getting into,” and Weiss snuggled back up into her shoulder, shaking her head a bit in response.

“Anyways,” Blake finally said, pulling them back to the conversation, “Was there anything else you wanted to ask, Weiss?”

“Oh, yes, yes! Apologies for getting so sidetracked.” Oobleck agreed.

“It’s fine,” Weiss said, thinking for a moment. “I guess… the only thing I’m wondering now is why my father keeps going through all of this trouble to try and Turn me into a vampire. Do you have any guesses there?”

“Hrm.” Oobleck said. “If that is indeed your father’s goal, I may not exactly know why, but I can say what it would ‘give’ him, in the material sense.” Weiss just raised an eyebrow as he cleared his throat. “This aspect of vampirism, you see, is rather dark. Turning another vampire will give the Turner - often called the ‘sire’ - a significant amount of, well... control, mentally, over the vampire which they have now Turned. Besides simply adding to the number of vampires in the world by one, your father may have been seeking this control, but I cannot guess at his methods beyond that.”

“That’s…” Ruby began.

“Messed-up,” Yang finally said. The four of them just nodded.

“Indeed,” Oobleck said morosely. “This is why I personally have not been in the business of creating new vampires.”

“I hope Winter is okay,” Weiss said quietly. “I should text her.”

Oobleck paused for a moment, letting the girls quietly confer with each other.

“If there’s nothing else, ladies, I believe I shall bid you good day,” Oobleck said.

“Thank you,” Weiss offered. “For talking to all of us about this.”

“Of course, Miss Schnee,” Oobleck replied. “It is my job to answer students’ questions, after all.” They all could just hear his little smile. “And, considering that you four are still students, I believe I shall leave you to enjoy the rest of your Saturday. I doubt I need to mention this, but I shall not treat you any differently than the rest of my students. If you should require an extension on one of my assignments due to another night like the previous, which I surely hope will not be the case, you can inform me directly if you wish, but I would also happily be lied to about illness. Plus, if the moon does happen to be full on a day when our class meets, I won’t be insulted by your absence. My lectures are always online.”

“We’ll keep that in mind,” Blake laughed. “Thank you, Professor.”

“You’re very welcome,” he replied. “Finally, I shall keep the secrets regarding your identities to myself, and I imagine you four shall do the same.”

“We will,” Ruby assured.

“Wonderful. See you all on Thursday.”

“Thanks again, Barty,” Tai said, standing up from his chair. He grabbed his scroll, taking Oobleck off of speaker. “Have a good one. Bye.” He put the scroll in his back pocket. “I was gonna water my plants for a little bit - how does dinner in an hour sound?”

The four girls quickly gauged each others’ feelings on that with looks alone, before Ruby said, “Sounds great, Dad. Let me know if you need another pair of hands.”

“That’s my girl,” he laughed. “I might just need it, cooking for five.”

“So… we can stay, then?” Weiss asked. Everyone but Blake looked at her like she’d just spoken an alien language.

“Weiss, of course you can stay,” Ruby said.

“We’ll see how you girls are feeling tomorrow,” Tai added. “And if you’re ready to head back to school, I can drive you up there in the afternoon.”

“What about you two?” Weiss asked.

“I’ve never actually been here before,” Blake admitted. “I wanted to come by over the summer, but my parents’ place in Menagerie is a bit too far to just visit for a little while.” She looked up at Yang. “I wouldn’t mind staying for a night.”

“Sure,” Yang said. “I parked Bumblebee in the shed, Dad - would you mind throwing a sheet on her so she doesn’t get dusty?”

“Got it,” Tai said, walking outside.

Weiss looked up at Ruby, who quietly muttered “Her motorcycle.” Weiss just raised her eyebrows in response.

“Now then,” Yang said, confidently taking up the remote for the TV. “Where were we?”

As the movie resumed, Weiss leaned her head back into Ruby’s shoulder. She was still uncertain of where this radical new change in her life would take her, but for the immediate future… she had very little to worry about.

Chapter 11: Bedtime and Blanket Forts

Chapter Text

Dinner was wonderful, especially because the four of them had returned to snuggling in the living room. By now, they were all a bit more focused on comfort rather than closeness, so Ruby sat on the corner of the couch with her feet up. Weiss laid down on her side, her head in Ruby’s lap. Ruby gently played with her hair with one hand, looking at her scroll with the other. Blake sat on the floor, with her back against the side of the couch that Ruby was on. She’d borrowed a book from Yang’s bookshelf, while Yang herself was lying flat on her back, spread-eagle, her head propped up against Blake’s thigh. Blake was quietly reading aloud, and Weiss was half-listening. She kept her scroll on the couch with her, waiting for a response text from Winter.

After an hour or so had passed, Yang spoke up.

“Hey,” she asked. “What’re we going to do for sleeping arrangements?”

“Oh, yeah…” Ruby said. “We don’t really have much of a guest room…”

“Blake, you can share a bed with me, right?” Yang asked. “So that’s one down.”

Weiss figured that she and Ruby could do the same if need be, but she felt it might not be perfectly tactful to advertise that right away.

“That depends,” Blake said. She looked down at her girlfriend, a playful look on her face. “Is it a twin bed?”

“They both are,” Ruby answered helpfully. Blake rolled her eyes, smiling.

“I had a feeling,” she said. “I love you, Yang, but I am not going to share a twin bed with you. I need my space.”

“That’s fair,” Yang admitted. “I’m getting too tall for that old bed, anyways.”

They were silent for a while, all thinking about alternatives.

“I guess we could just shift and sleep on the couch,” Blake offered.

“Dad has a rule,” Yang replied. “No paws on the couch. Not without a cover, at least.” Ruby made a shocked, inspired gasp, prompting Weiss to look up at her.

“I’ve got it!” Ruby said. “We can make a blanket fort!”

“A what?” Weiss asked in confusion. Ruby immediately looked down at her, shock, pity, and hurt on her face - it was like Weiss had just said that she’d never smiled before.

“Weiss, you’ve never made a -”

“Okay,” Yang said, slowly standing. “Now we have to do it.” She stretched a bit, and offered Blake a hand up. “Wanna help me strip the twins in the bedroom, Blake?” She asked.

“Sure,” her girlfriend laughed, taking the offered hand.

“And I’ll…” Ruby stopped for a moment, looking down at Weiss. “Here - we’ll strip the couch when you guys get back.” Blake raised a subtle eyebrow, but Yang just quietly pulled her along.

“How’re you feeling?” Ruby asked softly, her fingers once again carding themselves through Weiss’ hair.

“Better,” she said. “I’m… nervous, about what’s to come. About what Winter is going to say… all of that.”

“That’s fair,” Ruby admitted, gazing out the window. “What do you think are the chances that your sister is working with your dad?”

“I honestly figure they’d be low, considering that she moved away,” Weiss said. “She’s pretty cagey about it, but apparently she started renting a medium-sized house with a bunch of friends in Atlas.”

“Huh,” Ruby said. “Do you think she’s a vampire, then? Or did she get away before that?”

“Well, she only really moved out about six months ago, so it’s a possibility that my father still Turned her,” Weiss mused. “But if he did, I doubt she would have been able to leave…”

“Maybe she found a way to break free from him,” Ruby offered. “I mean, the professor said that he’d have some control over her, but it didn’t sound like it was full-on brainwashing…”

“Maybe,” Weiss agreed. “If Winter is anything, it’s strong.” Ruby just hummed at that, her fingers still tangled in Weiss’ hair. She honestly loved the feeling - her head almost felt a bit warm, somehow, tingling just a bit. She chalked the feeling up to the general warmth of snuggling.

“Is that all you’re worried about?” Ruby asked, a note of shame in her voice. It was like she was admitting that she’d accidentally broken something expensive.

“I mean… my anxiety knows no bounds,” Weiss said. “But you’re referring to the moon, aren’t you?”

“Yeah.” Ruby said. She paused, exhaling for a moment. “I just… I’m worried that it’ll turn out that I was wrong. That… this... wasn’t a good idea. You know?”

“It was my choice too, Ruby,” Weiss said. Her own anxieties could wait - for now, comforting Ruby was the only thing on her mind. “You gave me that option, and I took it.”

“I know,” Ruby said. “But it was still, like… my idea and everything, and I’m worried that I made being a were sound easier than it actually is.”

“Nothing worth doing is ever easy,” Weiss said. “But… I trusted you to do it.” She looked up at Ruby with a smile. “And I still do. You’re going to teach me how to do all of this, and we’ll figure it out.” Ruby just hummed at that, a little bit of worry still in her tone. She wasn’t looking at Weiss - maybe out of shame, Weiss couldn’t tell.

“Hey,” she said, sitting up. “I’m ready to start figuring all of this out if you are, okay?”

Ruby finally met her eyes, and for the brief instant it took her to turn, Weiss was relieved. Instead of smiling, though, Ruby gasped as soon as she actually looked at her.

“What?” Weiss asked. “What is it?” Ruby was looking just above her face for some reason.

“Well,” she finally said with a smile. “It looks like you’ve already gotten a head start.”

Weiss just looked confused at that, so Ruby pulled out her scroll and opened the camera.

“See for yourself,” she said, with all the delight of someone who knew they were giving the perfect gift.

Weiss gently took the scroll and met her reflection, finally able to understand what Ruby was talking about. Atop her head was a pair of tall, furry ears, white as the driven snow. They were standing on end in surprise, but as Weiss spent a few seconds getting used to it, they flattened out a little, to a more neutral expression. After around a minute of staring at herself in the camera feed, fascinated by her ears just gently twitching and moving as she got used to controlling them, she finally looked up at Ruby. Her grin was brighter than the sun.

“See?” Ruby asked gently. “You’ve already made your first little step!” Weiss just nodded, too elated for much else. Ruby’s eyes stayed on her, happy and interested, causing Weiss to blush. She shyly pushed one strand of hair behind her human ear, asking, “What do you think?”

“They’re beautiful, Weiss,” Ruby said immediately. “I mean, they’re on you, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised or anything, but…” Her thousand-watt beam of a smile returned. “Still. They suit you.”

Weiss’ cheeks burned at Ruby’s compliment - she was never going to understand how the simplest little phrases from Ruby could make her so flustered. She wasn’t even sure how to respond, but fortunately, she was saved by Blake and Yang returning, carrying a mattress between them.

“O-oh! Hey guys!” Ruby said. “Need a hand?”

“Sure,” Yang said, her tail stretched out with the exertion. “Move the table?” Ruby stood up to grab one end, and Weiss quickly took the other. They pulled it out of the way, letting Blake and Yang drop the bare mattress onto the center of the rug.

“So… what exactly happens from here?” Weiss asked.

“Hey!” Yang interrupted. “Way to go, Weiss!”

“Hm? Oh,” she said, looking away. “They’re still out, huh?”

“They are,” Blake said with a smile. “Did you let them out on purpose?”

“N-no,” Weiss admitted. “I was just sitting against Ruby, and they must have come out. I didn’t even know about them until she pointed it out.” That was a bit sobering, but the atmosphere stayed positive.

“Still,” Ruby said, putting her hand on Weiss’ shoulder. “It’s a big step!”

“It is,” Blake agreed. “And… I was wondering. If you’re ready, we could try taking another step tonight, too. So we can all be in the fort.”

“Um… o-okay!” Weiss stuttered. “I can try, at least.” Blake nodded.

“I’ll be there to help you through. I remembered an old trick my mom used to do to help me get used to all the were stuff when I was younger.” Weiss just nodded, a bit nervous.

“We’ll all be there to help you,” Ruby said. “And it’s okay if you don’t get it right away. Three weeks is a long time, and we’ll figure it out. I promise!” Everyone nodded at that, and Weiss just smiled.

They spent the better part of an hour setting up the fort. The mattresses from Ruby and Yang’s room served as the base, with a blanket from the closet laid out over them. They took the pillows off the couch for sitting, and used the chairs from the kitchen to hang up the blankets. By the time they were done, they’d made a modest little tent, with a very soft base. There was just enough room for the four of them to sit inside, all cross-legged.

“Permission to enter?” A voice asked. They looked up to see the face of Tai, peeking under the tent.

“Not much space, I’m afraid,” Yang said.

“Oh, I figured,” he said. “I just wanted to ask - I hope that you girls do plan on un-destroying my living room in the morning.”

“We will,” Ruby promised. “And hey! Check it out!” She pointed at Weiss, whose ears were still out. She realized briefly that she didn’t actually know how to make them go away, but that, she decided, was a problem for tomorrow.

“Congrats, Weiss,” Tai said, giving her a nod. “That’s a really good start.” Weiss could only nod back. “Anyways,” Tai continued, “I was going to say that I’m on my way to bed, so I’m gonna wish you four goodnight.”

“Dad, it’s like eight-thirty,” Ruby teased.

“Yeah, and this old man is beat,” Tai joked. “Also, if I recall, a certain someone woke me up at three o’clock in the morning, and then slept until about noon, so maybe that someone shouldn’t poke fun at her dad for needing some rest.” Ruby put a hand behind her head, just letting out a nervous giggle.

“Goodnight, girls,” Tai said. He shook his head as he withdrew from their fort. “I don’t remember signing up for four daughters,” he muttered, mostly to himself.

“We love you too, Dad!” Yang called out enthusiastically.

“Yeah, yeah,” he called out behind him. “Try not to stay up too late?”

“No promises!” Ruby called back. Tai’s exhausted, fatherly sigh faded away as he closed his door.

“You two really are too mean to him,” Blake said.

“Seriously,” Weiss agreed. “He’s definitely leagues kinder than my father.”

“Fair, fair,” Yang said. “But the teasing is a two-way street.” She smiled. “For the most part.”

“So, Weiss,” Blake began. “Are you ready to try the next little step?” Weiss gulped a little.

“Before I decide,” she asked, “Can you explain it to me?” Ruby and Yang also looked at Blake - apparently they were just as in the dark as she was.

“Oh! Of course,” Blake said. She cleared her throat a little, and began to explain.

“The biggest aspect of being a were is the transformation,” she said. “That part can also be the hardest, more often than not. And, since at least the three of us were going to shift before bed so that we can actually lie down in here…” Weiss nodded, at least a little bit confident of where Blake was going with this.

“I was going to offer to help you transform into your wolf,” Blake said.

“Help her? How?” Ruby asked. Blake smiled.

“Well, changing, as you two know, takes a lot of focus and concentration. I used to struggle with it as a kid - I couldn’t do it unless forced to by the moon.” There was a bit of sympathy in Yang’s eyes at that, but Blake just gave her a reassuring smile. “So, my mom used to walk me through what was basically a guided meditation. I would curl up in her lap, and she would just gently hold me and talk through every step of the transformation.”

“Oh…” Weiss said, thinking. “I-I’m happy to try, but…” she laughed. “I figured the tail would be first.”

“That’ll be part of it,” Blake assured with a smile. “It’s much easier to start that way, so we’ll do that first.” Weiss nodded.

“I’m ready to try,” she said.

“There’s no real rush,” Blake said. “I figured you might want to watch another wolf shift, first, so you can watch and know what it’s supposed to be like - at least on some level.”

“That… sounds like a good idea,” Weiss admitted. “I saw Ruby go into her wolf once, but…”

“Yeah, I’m usually really fast,” Ruby said, hand behind her head. Weiss rolled her eyes.

“I meant that it was dark, Ruby.” Weiss said. “And I was trying to preserve your decency.”

“Not much of that for us weres, I’m afraid,” Yang noted. “But we can put you under a blanket, if you like.”

“For what?” Weiss asked. Yang let out a little laugh.

“Well… if you do change like that, you’d kind of ruin my shirt,” she said.

“O-oh,” Weiss said. “Yes, that… that makes sense.” The promise of nudity made Weiss look down a bit - she was comfortable around the other weres, certainly, but she wasn’t too interested in the concept of showing them her birthday suit.

Ruby, noticing this, covered Weiss’ hand with her own. “Don’t worry,” she said. “You can change clothes in the bathroom, and come out in the blanket. We’re all…” she made eye contact with Yang and Blake, “... used to this. But we’ll adjust to make sure you’re comfortable.”

Weiss gave her a grateful smile.

Blake gave a nod, looking to Yang. “Would you mind demonstrating, Sunshine?”

“O-oh! Sure,” Yang said, peeling off her shirt and hiding her blush at Blake’s choice of nickname. Weiss averted her eyes as Yang got undressed, only looking back when the sounds of shifting blankets had ceased. Yang was now resting her head on Blake’s lap, and she had mercifully covered herself with an arm and some clever positioning of her legs.

“Ready?” Blake asked.

“Ready,” Yang said.

“Good,” Blake said. “Don’t change all at once, okay? Take your time and follow along.” Yang just nodded, and Blake smiled, pushing her own hair out of her face as she looked down at her girlfriend.

In that moment, more than any that Weiss had observed them, she could tell that Blake and Yang were in love. It was evident in the way that they looked at one another. The sheer admiration in Blake’s eyes as Yang curled up against her - to Weiss, it was as if Blake were looking at Yang for both the first time and the thousandth. It was honestly beautiful - Weiss had seen people who were together, but… she couldn’t say that she’d ever observed a love like theirs. Perhaps she hadn’t grown up around the best examples, but even so, it warmed Weiss’ heart to see how much they truly cared for one another.

The only negative aspect, of course, was the pangs of jealousy that shot through her heart whenever she looked at them.

“Okay, Yang,” Blake murmured. “I want you to take this nice and slow.” She nodded, shifting a bit for comfort. Blake inhaled, taking a minute to gather her thoughts.

“I want you to start with your head. Think about your hair, and your ears - your ears and tail are the only things that will stay in your new form. Let your hair gently recede, and feel your face begin to change...”

Weiss watched on with astonishment as Blake talked Yang through the transformation. It took five minutes, at most - and Weiss could tell that Yang was putting a fair amount of effort into deliberately slowing herself down. If Ruby could change in only a few seconds, she doubted her sister was any less proficient.

“And done!” Blake said, causing Weiss to zone back in. Yang stretched in her lap, standing up and shaking herself off. Yang’s wolf was the same straw yellow as her hair, vaguely reminding Weiss of a bigger, more wolflike golden retriever. Blake grabbed her face with a smile, asking, “How do you feel, Sunshine?” Yang quickly began to lick her face, making Blake giggle. “Good girl!” she said, kissing Yang’s head as she scratched her behind the ears. Weiss also briefly noticed that in this form, Yang’s right ear still drooped in comparison to her left. They both looked over at Weiss, making her stomach flip with nervousness.

“Okay, Weiss,” Blake said. “Your turn.” Weiss’ mouth went a bit dry.

“I… are you sure?” Weiss asked. “The whole thing seems rather… intimate.”

“You can lean on me, if you like,” Ruby offered. “Or we can just give you some space.”

“Plus, we can stop with just your tail,” Blake said. “Any time you want to give up, just say so. I don’t want to force you into anything.”

Weiss met Ruby’s eyes. They were warm, as always, but so was her smile.

Always that damn smile.

“Okay,” Weiss finally said. “I’ll… I’ll try it. Let me get changed.”

“You can leave Yang’s shirt in one of the bins in the laundry room,” Ruby said. She handed Weiss a big blanket from the floor of their fort. “See you soon.”

Around five minutes later, Weiss sat down back inside the fort, wearing nothing but the provided blanket. As soon as she sat down, Blake and Ruby stopped whispering between each other. They both stared at her momentarily, making Weiss’ ears flatten against her head with worry.

“What is it?” She asked.

“Nothing, sorry,” Blake said. “I was just giving Ruby instructions for this.”

Weiss quirked a brow. Blake let out a small laugh.

“I mean… you are going to lean against her instead of me, aren’t you?” She had a point. Weiss’ face burned as she sat down between them, slowly positioning herself to let her head rest in Ruby’s lap. Yang, still in her wolf, was curled up in the corner, chin resting on her paws. Blake reached over to scratch her head without having to look. Yang carefully crawled forward until her head laid next to Blake’s hip, where the scratches continued.

“Get comfy,” Ruby whispered gently. “You might also wanna make space for your tail.”

“Take your time settling in,” Blake agreed. “Let me know when you’re ready to start. Remember, you can interrupt me at any time and I’ll stop there. If you’re partway through, I’ll talk you back out.” Weiss nodded gratefully.

After a minute or so, Weiss exhaled in preparation. “Okay,” Weiss said. “I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”

“Okay,” Blake said. “First, I want you to imagine a line, starting from the nape of your neck, and travelling all the way down to your lower back. Think of each of your vertebrae as a single point along the line. Changing in the way we do requires energy - the same energy that we get from our food, and use for everything else we do. Starting at the top of your head, I want you to feel as though you’re physically pushing the energy within you - your potential to move - down each of your vertebrae, starting from the top.”

Ruby reached her hand over Weiss, gently placing one finger on the nape of her neck. Ruby drew a tiny little circle with that finger around Weiss’ uppermost vertebrae, and then moved onto the next one.

The sensation of Ruby’s finger on Weiss’ bare skin was indescribably wonderful - she was so delightfully gentle and her touch alone in this soft, intimate way made Weiss get goosebumps, her whole body tingling. She tried to stay focused on Blake’s words. She continued, her tone very even, methodical, and slow. It was somewhat hypnotic, in a way, though Weiss imagined that was sort of the point.

“Halfway there. You’re doing an amazing job, Weiss - pace yourself, take your time. This will get much easier as you do this more often, so this first time will be hard, but Ruby and I are here with you. Make sure you’re remembering to breathe…”

Before she knew it, Ruby’s finger had almost made it to Weiss’ lower back.

“Now, we’re almost there - many weres describe the feeling of transforming as a sort of flowing sensation - it will almost feel like your body is made of water for a moment. Just relax, exhale, and let your tail out.”

Ruby’s finger left Weiss’ back, and she tried to stay calm as she felt her body changing. Blake’s description had been accurate - for the briefest instant, Weiss felt as though her lower back became liquid, and then in an exhilarating rush of motion, she felt her that area shift, as something immediately sprouted out from it. Weiss’ breathing got heavier, as the exertion of the change caught up to her a little bit. Right away, she could feel the new appendage that she’d grown. She sat up with a start, needing visual confirmation that it was actually real.

“Weiss!” Ruby said as she got up, carefully supporting her. The immediate head rush that Weiss felt showed why Ruby had gone to her so quickly, but Weiss just blinked until her vision cleared, twisting around until she saw it.

By design, Weiss didn’t have a great perspective on it, but… she definitely had a tail now. It gently thumped against Ruby’s thigh behind her, though Ruby was apparently much more focused on Weiss herself. Her hands delicately lingered on Weiss’ bare shoulders, which…

Right.

Weiss snatched up the blanket that had puddled around her waist and covered her chest with it - fortunately, her long hair mostly covered the rest of her, though it also quickly settled in front of her face. Frustrated, she tried to flip it out, but her hands were still occupied with the blanket.

“Hey,” Ruby said gently. She’d crawled around to face Weiss, pushing her hair out of her eyes. “We’re here, everything’s fine. Give yourself a few second to get used to it.”

Weiss settled. Fortunately, the tail wasn’t too much of an obstacle when it came to sitting down, but she could still feel it gently brush against the blankets on the floor. “Sorry,” she said. “I don’t know what I was expecting, honestly, but…”

“It’s okay,” Blake offered quietly, over Ruby’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, I should have explained a bit more before we got into it…”

“No, no - it wasn’t your fault,” Weiss said. She offered a timid smile. “The meditation part was actually very… nice. I don’t know how I would have done it otherwise.” Blake’s face softened, and she looked away with a tiny grin. Yang’s head flopped down unceremoniously in her lap, making Blake giggle a bit and start to pet her.

“How are you feeling?” Ruby asked, causing Weiss to refocus on her.

“Better,” Weiss said. “Sorry for jumping up and everything, I was just… surprised.”

“That’s normal, I’d figure,” Ruby said. “Do you want to keep going, or stop here?”

“Can I just have a little break?” Weiss asked.

“Of course,” Ruby said. “Here, since I’m… decent, how about I get you some water?”

Weiss flushed - she’d forgotten the fact that she was totally naked, and that Ruby might have gotten an eyeful before she’d covered herself with the blanket. There’s no way that Blake hadn’t, with where she’d been sitting.

“I’d like one too, please,” Blake said.

“Oh, yeah, that makes sense,” Ruby said. She had been talking a lot.

The moment Ruby left the tent, Weiss buried her face in her hands, careful not to drop the blanket that still covered her.

“I’m so bad at this,” Weiss said.

“Hey, c’mon, you’re figuring it out,” Blake offered. “I mean, it’s only one day later and here you are, ears and tail out.”

“No, I…” Weiss paused. “I mean, yes, I am worried about that, but…”

“So it’s about Ruby, huh?” Blake asked. Weiss was expecting a smug grin, but mercifully, Blake was sincere.

“I… yes,” Weiss admitted. She looked down at Yang, and was grateful that for the moment only Blake was capable of speech. “I don’t know how to do this.”

“It’s okay, Weiss,” Blake offered. “You don’t have to figure out your whole life in the first few weeks of college. Plus, it seems like you’ve got a lot going on right now, and Ruby is respecting that.”

“She - she is?” Weiss asked. At this, Blake endearingly rolled her eyes, and Yang let out a snort that was suspiciously close to a laugh.

“Weiss, look at what Ruby’s doing. She ran you here last night, has been constantly reassuring you all day, and is doing everything she can to pretend that you’re not a pretty, naked girl resting your head in her lap as we’re doing this because she wants to respect your boundaries.” Weiss blinked, and in that context, so many of Ruby’s actions clicked into place. It wasn’t just protecting her from the vampires, or standing up to talk to her father when they met in person - it was the meals she’d prepared for Weiss, the smiles, the timid but reassuring touches… everything.

“O-oh…” Weiss said, her voice small. “I just… I thought that that’s what Ruby was like.”

“To a certain extent, absolutely,” Blake said. “She and Yang are both like that - they’re trusting, loving, and will do anything for someone who needs them, with or without romance.” She affectionately looked down at Yang, idly scratching her head. “I’m confident that Ruby wouldn’t be treating you all that differently if she didn’t like you in that way, especially since she’s the wolf who Turned you.” Weiss’ heart fell a little bit, as her fears were ever so slightly confirmed.

“But,” Blake continued, “As a former clueless gay girl being wooed by a member of the Rose/Xiao Long family, I would bet there’s a chance that Ruby does like you like that.” Weiss looked up at her, eyes full of hope. “Maybe now isn’t the best time,” Blake said. “And I’m sure that Ruby is being extra-careful with her feelings because she knows how much you’re going through. But… she really, really cares about you.”

“I… I should do something for her,” Weiss said, mostly to herself. Blake smiled.

“I think she’d like that.”

“Hey!” Ruby said, returning with two water bottles in her hands. “What were you two talking about?”

“Were stuff,” Blake said smoothly. From that line alone, Weiss could tell that Blake was probably ten times the liar that she was.

“Cool,” Ruby said, handing them each a water. Weiss gratefully cracked hers open and took a deep drink, while Blake sipped her own. They made small talk for a while, talking about their writing project, as well as their thoughts on the movie they’d all seen last night, though it felt like forever ago.

“Okay,” Weiss said, capping her water bottle. “I think I’m ready.”

“Good,” Blake said, putting hers aside. “Ruby, do you remember everything I said before?”

“Yup!” Ruby chirped.

“All righty,” Blake said. “Let’s get started.”

“We’re going to start with your head. You’ve already gotten your ears out for the first time, and I want you to focus on those. Think about how you can move them, ever so slightly - make them perk up, and then flatten against your head.” Weiss followed along, doing each action in order. It was still a little odd to manipulate some body parts that she’d never had before. Ruby was very gently scratching behind her wolf ears, which Weiss now understood to be the single greatest feeling in the world.

“I know that this is all strange, but I can tell that you’re already getting used to it. Your ears, your tail… they’re a part of you, now, and your wolf is no different. Have you noticed that you can pretty easily recognize Ruby while she’s in her wolf, just from her eyes?”

Weiss nodded a little bit, her head still in Ruby’s lap.

“The same is true for all of us - the little details of our faces and bodies that make us recognizable tend to carry over. I can recognize Yang in her wolf from the side, just because of the shape of her profile. I’m not too sure if I can fully quantify it, but I just know it’s Yang.”

“Picture yourself - imagine your reflection. Think about the little details that you recognize from looking in the mirror every morning. The shape of your cheekbones, the precise angle of your nose, the unique shape of your lips. The tiniest little details that distinguish you from, say, your sister, or your mom.”

“Now… let those features shift. They’re not disappearing, they’re just moving - start with your nose and lips. Feel them ever so slightly begin to stretch. You’ve seen Ruby in her wolf, you’ve seen Yang - try to apply the features that make you you to that form. Think about how things would work, how those traits of yours might express on a wolf. And… let them slowly begin to take place.”

Weiss’ eyes clenched shut for a moment as she tried to imagine it. That similar liquid feeling took over again, but she was ready for it this time. Weiss felt her face pushing outwards as she followed Blake’s instructions.

Her nose and mouth elongated into a snout. Weiss felt her teeth grow and sharpen, though they still fit together elegantly. Her neck got a bit longer, and much thicker, as fur began to sprout. Her human ears faded away, and her hair receded until it was indistinguishable from her fur.

“Great job!” Blake said, her voice a bit warmer, though still calm and even. “That was the hardest part. Now, just let that feeling continue down your body.” Ruby’s gentle scratches turned into longer, more purposeful strokes, as if she were physically coaxing the transformation downward.

“Now, from what I understand about wolves from an evolutionary standpoint, in terms of physiology, they’re exceptionally good at one thing: running. We can enjoy our opposable thumbs in our human forms, but your wolf is much more specialized than that. Every aspect of a wolf’s body is meant to be sleek and agile. With that in mind, let your hands close up and become more specialized, too.”

Weiss felt her hands shrink as her elbows realigned. By now, the changes had reached her whole upper body, and she felt her shoulders narrow in as they became more suited to her new profile. Ruby’s encouraging touches spread the change still downwards, and while the process was difficult and a little exhausting, it also became invigorating - Weiss was doing it, she was actually changing her form along with Blake’s instructions.

“Halfway there! The second half is much easier. Your torso and legs are gonna get shorter. Let your feet change too, just like your hands. Feel these changes meet up with your tail. It was always meant to be a part of this form, just like that. From here, you’re mostly just finishing up.”

Blake was right - Weiss had needed the instruction for the first parts, and while she certainly wouldn’t imagine herself as remarkably proficient, she could see what other changes remained, and followed them to their logical conclusion. Mercifully, it seemed, the final part was the easiest. Before Weiss knew it, she was fully transformed, still lying on her side in Ruby’s lap.

“Hey, Weiss,” Ruby whispered delicately. Weiss stretched out her limbs, like she’d seen Yang do - now that she had finally finished, the changes had been quite tiring, and Blake’s calm, hypnotic ramblings had certainly mellowed her out. Ruby slowly drew her hand along Weiss’ flank, underneath the blanket.

“Great job, Weiss!” Blake said. The approval in her voice gave Weiss a little thrill. “Do you think you can stand up?”

Weiss huffed. Maybe she could, but for the moment, she had absolutely no desire to.

“Aw, c’mon,” Ruby teased gently. “At least open up those beautiful blue eyes of yours?”

If Weiss could blush in this form, she would most certainly be doing it now.

Slowly, Weiss blinked, letting her eyes adjust to seeing the world from this angle for the very first time. She hadn’t really felt them change all that much, but she did notice that the world was suddenly much clearer in the gloom. She could make out the small details of their little blanket fort, even in what was now almost total darkness.

“There you are,” Ruby whispered tenderly. “How do you feel?”

Weiss opened her mouth, then found her tongue inadequate to speak proper English. Instead, she merely nuzzled up against Ruby a bit more, her tail thumping against the blankets.

“That’s good to hear,” Ruby chuckled softly. Weiss still couldn’t really see her at this angle. “Is it okay if I pull the blanket off?” She laughed as she remembered the little system they’d developed, now in reverse. “One bark for yes, two for no.”

Weiss was concerned at this - she was now apparently tasked with figuring out how to make sound. Not wishing to embarrass herself or make too much noise, she hesitated, trying to find the best way to do it. It couldn’t be too different from talking, could it?

What finally came out was a quick, high-pitched yip, which definitely made Weiss cringe a bit, but it certainly could have been worse.

“Okay,” Ruby said, peeling the blanket off of her. “Let’s get a proper look at you.”

Weiss heard both Ruby and Blake let out tiny little gasps, but they didn’t say anything in particular. She picked her head up, trying to meet Ruby’s eyes and silently ask her what that was about. Instead, she saw Yang, now standing up from Blake’s lap. She gently padded out of their little tent, looking back at Weiss to indicate that she follow. She looked around a bit more to find Ruby, but apparently she would need to stand up to get a better look.

Carefully, Weiss tried to roll up from her side. She hoped that the movement looked at least a little graceful, but judging by Ruby’s resulting giggle, it likely wasn’t. However, she successfully made her way up to lying on her stomach, now only tasked with actually standing.

This motion was easier than Weiss had expected, as her hind legs were conveniently bent in such a way that she could simply push herself up from there. Standing wasn’t too much of a problem, but walking seemed like quite another.

“It’s okay,” Ruby said, gently petting her back. “Take your time and follow Yang. It’s not too difficult, I promise.” Weiss was finally able to turn her head at the proper angle to actually meet Ruby’s eyes with her own, and she took one small, tentative little step towards her, bringing her snout right up to Ruby’s face. Ruby blinked in surprise, and Weiss, nervous and wishing to remain demure, but also wanting to show her gratitude, stuck her tongue out the tiniest little bit, and gave Ruby a miniscule, dainty lick.

“Thank you,” Ruby laughed, scratching at her ears. “But Blake did most of the work, so you should be thanking her.” Weiss sat, looking over at Blake. The girl just smiled, giving Weiss a nod - she was completely uncertain if a lick would be socially acceptable to give to a taken woman, and she already felt like she’d embarrassed herself with Ruby. Weiss merely returned the nod as best she could.

“You’re welcome,” Blake said. “And I’m really glad that you managed to get here so quickly.” She flicked her head over at Yang. “Seriously, though, try following Yang. She’ll show you how to walk.”

Yang’s tail wagged a bit at this mention of her name, and she walked in a quick little circle, almost impatient. Weiss nervously stood up, reaching out with one of her front paws. She made the same movement with the back paw on the opposite side, figuring that walking as a wolf had to be somewhat similar to crawling on her hands and knees. This first step became a second, and then a third, and slowly but surely, she made her way out of the blanket fort.

“Great job, Weiss!” Ruby said from behind her, causing Weiss’ tail to involuntarily wag at the praise. Ruby got up herself, following her out. “I’ll be right behind you.” Weiss tried to nod again, and turned her attention back to Yang. Upon knowing that she was following, Yang took several confident strides in the direction of her childhood bedroom with Ruby, making Weiss struggle to keep up. She also heard Blake stand up behind her (apparently her hearing had improved), apparently also coming along.

Upon making it into the next room, Weiss found Yang sitting back on her haunches next to a tall rectangular object - a full-length mirror. Ruby flicked the lights on, and Yang gestured towards the mirror, indicating that Weiss take a look.

Weiss nervously sat before the mirror, looking up at her reflection. The first thing she noticed was her scar - the thin pink line that she’d earned from an unfortunate accident while fencing was even more pronounced in this form, as it was now the only part of her face that didn’t have any fur.

Speaking of, that fur was a stark contrast to the brown walls behind her. Weiss’ entire body was as white as fresh snowfall - she imagined that she’d be nearly impossible to spot in a December blizzard. The most prominent details that stood out against her fur were her black nose and her crystal-clear blue eyes.

The rest of her face was very soft, and not just in texture - her fur quickly fluffed outwards as it got farther from her snout, making her face appear very round as a result. Her wolf ears, now the only pair that she had, were essentially identical to the way they’d appeared before she’d changed. Unlike Ruby, whose ears were brown on the outside with white fluff on the inside, Weiss’ ears were all the same color throughout.

Overall, Weiss felt almost the same, in a way - her body was of course very different, but she felt like she’d be able to recognize herself in this form in something like a photograph. Apparently, Blake had been right - the subtle details of her face, its elegant, yet soft shape had essentially transferred over.

“What do you think?” Ruby asked, walking up behind her and gently tousling her ears.

Weiss, still unable to form actual words, just looked up at her, letting her tail gently wag across the floor. She met Ruby’s eyes, hoping to silently ask her the same question.

“You look amazing, Weiss,” Blake said from behind her. When Weiss looked over, she saw that Yang was now beside her, happy to receive idle petting across her back. “I figured that you’d be a white or grey wolf, because of your hair, but…”

“I couldn’t have imagined that she’d look like this,” Ruby said, mostly to herself. Weiss tilted her head in a silent question, prompting Ruby to kneel down in front of her, so that they were mostly on the same level.

“So, don’t take this the wrong way, or anything, but… your wolf is…” Ruby exhaled. “Your wolf is beautiful, Weiss. It’s, like…”

“Very beautiful,” Blake agreed. “You’d probably be some photographer’s dream nature shot.” She laughed. “I can just picture it now - a calm, frozen wood, dotted with evergreen trees, with a lone white wolf standing on a cliff, her face just perfectly turned towards the camera in an elegant, demure expression…”

Weiss huffed, now certain that she was being made fun of. She stood up, holding her head high as she walked past Blake and Yang. Ruby followed, and soon the four of them were back in the blanket fort.

“I didn’t mean to tease you,” Blake said. Weiss looked up at her, and just rolled her eyes, not actually very annoyed. “Thank you for your forgiveness,” Blake laughed.

“You… are really pretty, though,” Ruby said, her hand behind her head. “I - um! In your wolf, I mean. N-not to say that you aren’t really pretty when you’re a human too - you are! I just mean, that…”

Weiss sat up, putting a paw in her lap to stop her. Ruby’s face had turned an adorable shade of crimson, and Weiss just rubbed her face against Ruby’s, trying to tell her it was all right.

She was also maybe flirting. Just a little bit.

“Sorry,” Ruby laughed. “I should probably change for bed and stop embarrassing myself.” She took her shirt off, walking out of the fort to put it and the rest of her clothes away. Blake met Weiss’ eyes, a smug ‘I told you so’ more than evident on her face.

“I think I’ll change, too,” Blake said. To Yang, she asked, “Should I throw my clothes in the laundry room?” Yang picked her head up to nod. She was lying next to Weiss, slightly curled up on her side, with her back against Weiss’ flank. Weiss herself found it generally more comfortable to lie on her chest, her head resting on her front paws, with her back legs tucked up underneath her. Blake followed Ruby out of the fort, and Weiss heard her flick off the light in the bedroom, shrouding their cozy little den in complete darkness.

Soon, a familiar brown wolf and a lithe, pitch-black panther made their way into the fort. Ruby sidled up next to Weiss, laying her head protectively over Weiss’ neck, just as Yang had described earlier that day. Blake, almost invisible in the gloom, curled up on Yang, covering her exposed legs. She received a small lick on the face from Yang upon settling in, letting out a deep, happy purr in response.

Ruby’s weight on her shoulders was just right in terms of Weiss’ comfort - she felt like the warmest, fuzziest weighted blanket in the universe. Add that to the fact that Yang’s wolf was basically a space heater, snuggled up against her side, and Weiss almost immediately felt her eyelids begin to droop.

It had been quite a day, and Weiss was already exhausted. Even still, she couldn’t help but feel immensely proud of the progress she’d made, even though Blake, Yang, and Ruby had been a major part of it. Weiss wasn’t sure that she could have managed any of this without them, and she was very grateful that she didn’t have to. Already, the three of them, and even Tai, had been far kinder to her than her actual family, except for maybe Winter.

Family, Weiss thought, the word echoing in her mind a little bit. Maybe, in some sense, that’s what they were - maybe it was because they were weres and therefore much more prone to snuggling, maybe it was just because they were all extraordinarily kind, but that word somehow already felt like an appropriate descriptor for the three of them.

In a sense, Weiss had somewhat grown up as the odd one out in the family, which she had previously chalked up to being the middle child. Winter had immediately dedicated herself to academia, and eventually criminal justice and law school, and even though Whitley was only fourteen, he had already taken up an impressive amount of their father’s business acumen. Weiss, by contrast, had never really felt like she fit - there was fencing, singing, but those felt a bit more like hobbies than true passions. She’d never found her drive, her place in the world.

But here, now, at least for the moment - snuggled up comfortably beneath her roommate, who was quickly becoming a bit more than just Weiss’s roommate, pressed up against two other weres who she somehow already trusted with her life…

Weiss had never been more certain that she belonged.

Chapter 12: Blood Bonds

Chapter Text

Weiss’ leg bounced gently as she sat in front of her computer, waiting for Winter to call. Tai had driven her and Ruby back to their room three days ago, once Blake had talked Weiss back out of her wolf. To Weiss’ relief, entering that form was much more difficult than leaving it, so she wasn’t too worried about ever finding herself stuck that way. Tai had also promised to take Weiss’ dress to the were-friendly tailor in Ruby’s cozy little home town, hoping that she might be able to repair it for her. If nothing else, Weiss planned to take a few pairs of pants and tights to her next weekend, so that they could be altered to accommodate her tail.

Everything else was mostly set - she and Ruby would try a few simple things in their room at night to help Weiss get used to transforming, and the four of them were planning on going hunting next weekend in the woods of Patch, where Yang and Ruby had spent the moons before going to Beacon. Ruby had assured her that the actual “hunting” part didn’t at all require her participation - they just wanted to get her in an open space where she could really get used to her wolf. Now, the only thing left to worry about in Weiss’ immediate future was…

“I am well,” she replied smoothly. “How have your first few weeks at college been?”

Weiss resisted the urge to laugh.

“Eventful,” she said.

“Oh?” Winter asked, one eyebrow very slightly raised. She really must make an amazing interrogator.

Weiss sighed.

“Father… attempted to visit for Parents and Family Weekend,” she explained, knowing that she was breaking their unwritten rule of leaving all other family members out of their conversations. Still, she absolutely wanted to know where Winter stood with their father, and this seemed to be the best way to broach that subject.

“I see,” Winter said, fortunately allowing herself a small laugh at Weiss’ choice of phrase. “And how successful was his… ‘attempt?’”

“I suppose that depends on one’s definition,” Weiss hedged. “I did give him four days to plan logistics with me, though apparently the Schnee Drilling Company was far too time-consuming for him to respond.”

“Color me surprised,” Winter said. “Did you end up even seeing him?”

“ Un fortunately,” Weiss said, stressing the first syllable of the word. “He managed to ruin what was an otherwise lovely evening with my roommate and her family.”

“Your roommate?” Winter asked. Weiss looked over at Ruby, who appeared to be deep in concentration with her drawing tablet, headphones in. She knew that this call was happening, and had wanted to give Weiss her space.

“Her name is Ruby,” Weiss said, turning back to Winter. “She’s rather… enthusiastic, about a great many things, but she’s remarkably kind, and so is her family.” Weiss snickered. “I imagine that Father doesn’t like her one bit.” Winter’s expression became a bit colder at Jacques’ second mention, and Weiss realized she was pushing her luck a little.

“Yes, well.” Winter replied, cutting off that line of conversation.

“How about you?” Weiss asked. “How is your new home in Mantle working out?”

“It’s… certainly something,” Winter admitted, side-eyeing what Weiss presumed to be her door. “Having four roommates is challenging, to say the least, though it is nice to be a bit further from central Atlas.” Further from him, Weiss thought.

“Sorry - four roommates?” Weiss asked.

“Yes,” Winter said, an existential tiredness quite present in her voice. “Though splitting rent five ways does mean that we can enjoy a rather large home. Perhaps I can show you -”

“Hey, Snowflake!” a voice called from another room, making both women freeze instantly. From what little Weiss did hear from the voice, it was certainly feminine, but low - honestly, the best adjective that came to mind was ‘sultry.’

“May and I are back with dinner - I got your favorite!”

Winter softly gasped, her hand reaching up to cover her mouth. If Weiss were even slightly less perceptive, she definitely wouldn’t have noticed it, but she could have sworn that she saw the tiniest little glint of light reflecting off of something in Winter’s mouth. Her eyes narrowed to get a better look, but Winter regained her composure too quickly for Weiss to be sure.

“Excuse me,” Winter said curtly, standing up in a rush. She walked offscreen.

Weiss sat back in her chair, utterly astonished. As far as she knew, Winter Schnee had been called that pet name precisely once, when she was sixteen years old. At a Schnee Family Foundation charity event, one of their father’s older associates had, after being a bit too indulgent in the open bar, told Winter to “lighten up a little, Snowflake.”

The exact outline of her hand could be seen on his cheek for hours afterwards, and Winter had never attended another charity fundraiser after that.

Weiss stealthily turned up the volume on her laptop, hoping to hear a bit of Winter’s offscreen conversation. It was too muffled for her to really catch anything, though, and it quickly died down.

“Everything okay?” Ruby asked softly, holding up one ear of her headphones.

“Not quite sure yet,” Weiss admitted. “She had to go for a moment.”

“Do you think she’s…” Ruby put her tablet pencil down, using both index fingers to pantomime a pair of fangs. It was frustratingly adorable.

“I don’t know yet,” Weiss admitted. “She certainly doesn’t have a high opinion of Father, which is definitely a positive.” Ruby just nodded, giving her a reassuring look before returning to her drawing assignment.

“Winter?” Weiss finally called out, hesitant. She was about to wonder whether she should try calling back later when Winter re-entered the screen, her metaphorical feathers a bit ruffled. Weiss also noticed that she’d set an unmarked soda cup, straw and all, on the corner of her desk.

“Apologies,” Winter said. “Two of my roommates just got back from ordering takeout.”

“I… see…” Weiss said. She had never experienced this before - normally, she was always the one embarrassing herself in front of Winter, so the reverse was rather strange. Innocently, Weiss asked, “Who was that?”

Winter sighed, existentially tired once more. “One of my roommates.”

“Of course,” Weiss said. For some reason - perhaps because recent events in her life had emboldened her - Weiss decided to push her luck. “Does she… have a name?” Winter gave her a look, and Weiss innocently said, “She seemed very… interesting.”

Winter seemed to consider that for a moment. She gave Weiss a long, probing look, and Weiss did her best to stay calm under that gaze.

“You know what?” Winter asked, mostly to herself. “I think it’s time I showed you.” She turned her head towards the door, and called, “Robyn! Come meet my sister!”

A pregnant pause lingered in the air from a moment. That same sultry voice, now the teensiest bit nervous, asked, “Are you sure?” Winter immediately rolled her eyes with a smile, and Weiss now knew what other people saw when she did it.

“Don’t make me change my mi-ind,” Winter called.

Weiss’ ears must be deceiving her. Her elder sister’s voice surely hadn’t been flirtatious there, had it? She was practically singsongy.

The door tepidly opened. Winter scooted over, and a woman pulled a chair into frame from offscreen, sitting next to her.

The mysterious ‘Robyn’ turned out to be a woman with tanned skin and very light platinum blond hair, the back section pulled into a breezy ponytail. Her violet eyes reminded Weiss of Yang, though this woman’s eyes were a bit of a darker shade. By Weiss’ estimate, she appeared to be a little bit taller than Winter, and by all accounts, she was also gorgeous.

“Weiss…” Winter began. Robyn gave her a sly smile. Winter rolled her eyes, and finally just said it.

“This is my girlfriend, Robyn Hill.”

Weiss was very proud that she managed to keep her jaw off the floor.

“It’s nice to meet you, Weiss,” Robyn said. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Th-thank you,” Weiss stuttered. “I’ll admit, I’m… a little surprised.”

Winter raised an eyebrow.

“I just… I didn’t know you were attracted to women,” Weiss said, making sure to use her tone to imply that she was too. She’d never discussed this with her sister, and wanted to ensure that nobody had the impression that she’d inherited her father’s opinion on same-sex relationships.

“Please,” Winter scoffed. “The gender of my partners has never been of much concern to me.”

Robyn leaned into the camera in a stage whisper, putting her hand beside her mouth, as if she were trying to hide her speech from Winter. “What she’s trying to say,” Robyn said dryly, “is that she’s a raging pansexual.”

Winter gave her a haughty glare, but Robyn just laughed it off. Her laugh was so bright, so warm, and when she just casually put her arm around Winter’s shoulders to cheer her up, it almost immediately worked.

Looking at the two of them, from what little she’d seen of Robyn, something seemed to click for Weiss. Robyn was warm, charming, funny - Winter’s exact opposite in many ways. However, their energy played off of each other quite well, and Weiss was absolutely amazed to see her sister tease Robyn back. Most impressively, Robyn had managed to call Winter “Snowflake” and retain all of her body parts, which definitely meant that Winter cared for her a very great deal.

It appeared that Schnee women had a type.

“So, what were you two girls talking about?” Robyn asked. Both of them rolled their eyes, and replied, “Father,” in almost perfect unison. Robyn’s eyes just went wide for a moment, until she immediately burst into laughter.

Weiss’ cheeks turned red, and Winter just looked away in embarrassment.

“Sorry,” Robyn managed. “I know that he’s a sensitive topic, but…” she laughed again. “You two really are sisters, huh, Snowflake?”

“Astute observation,” Winter glowered. Ignoring her giggling girlfriend for a moment, she continued. “Weiss,” she said. “You were talking about Father’s visit.”

“Y-yes,” Weiss said nervously. Apparently Winter had changed her mind about hearing this story - maybe Robyn’s presence was helpful in that regard. “He never properly informed me of our dinner reservation, and then called me four times just fifteen minutes before that reservation was supposed to occur.”

“And you ignored him?” Winter asked, impressed.

“I didn’t even know he was calling,” Weiss clarified. “He then showed up at my room when Ruby and I were on our way back home, and…” Robyn was confused. “Ruby is my roommate,” Weiss added, which made her give a soft ‘ah’ of understanding.

“So, Ruby, her father, her sister, and her sister’s girlfriend and I were almost back to campus when he stopped us, and insisted that I return to his hotel with him.”

Winter’s eyes flashed ever so slightly with more emotion than usual. Even Robyn’s brow furrowed a little bit. Weiss decided to test if they really knew.

“Anyways,” Weiss said, falsely brightening her tone. “How long have you two been together?”

“Coming up on three years,” Robyn replied, businesslike. She met Winter’s eyes, getting a little nod. “What happened when he took you back to his hotel?”

“Oh,” Weiss said, as if she’d forgotten. “He was so insistent that I accompany him to this business meeting, late at night, and -”

“Did he explain why?” Winter asked, tense.

“No,” Weiss breezed. “Something about ‘embarrassing the family,’ but I refused.”

“And he just… let you walk away?” Robyn asked, confused.

“Not exactly,” Weiss admitted. “He grabbed me, so I sort of… punched him? And then I left the hotel.” Idly, Weiss realized that that was quite the understatement. She looked over at Ruby, who was still drawing. Weiss didn’t want to bother her, but she also figured that Ruby should probably be involved in this conversation if it went where she expected it to.

“But you aren’t hurt?” Winter asked, now dropping most of their cordial atmosphere.

“Why would I be?” Weiss asked. She hated playing games like this with Winter, but she had to be sure.

“It’s… complicated,” she finally said. She and Robyn appeared to have a silent conversation with their eyes. Weiss tried a slightly different approach.

“Winter, I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Weiss said. “I know you have no love for Father, and neither do I, but… was it something specific, that made you leave? Did he… hurt you?”

Winter finally sighed, and Robyn shrugged. “Tell her,” Robyn whispered. “She deserves to know.”

Weiss leaned over and nudged Ruby with her foot. She silently removed her headphones, tilting her head in confusion.

“Weiss,” Winter began. “What I’m about to tell you is going to sound utterly ridiculous, but… I promise, I’m being completely serious. I wanted to keep you out of this, but it appears that our bastard of a father isn’t giving me much choice.”

Weiss shoulders sagged in relief. She knew what was coming next, and she figured that she should come clean about her own knowledge.
“I’m pretty sure I know what you’re going to say,” Weiss said.

Winter’s raised eyebrow had more suspicion than a true crime podcast.
“You’re going to tell me that our father is a vampire,” Weiss said plainly. “And… if I’m right, you’re going to tell me that he made you a vampire, too.”

Both Winter and Robyn’s jaws hung open. The sharp pair of incisors that were now visible in Winter’s mouth confirmed Weiss’ latter claim.

“How did you…” Robyn began. Weiss closed her eyes, concentrating on her head. The liquid, flowing sensation returned to Weiss’ head, and when her eyes opened once more, she felt her ears twitch upon being revealed to the world.

Weiss looked over at Ruby, who had now begun paying close enough attention to the conversation that she’d noticed Weiss letting her ears out as well. Weiss scooted over, making space for Ruby to sit next to her.

“Well… Father seems to wish to Turn me into a vampire,” Weiss said. Ruby scooted into frame, with her own ears out as well. “So Ruby helped me become a werewolf, instead.”

Winter’s eyes narrowed on Ruby.

“That’s a helluva story,” Robyn said. She met Ruby’s eyes. “Seven vampires, huh, Pipsqueak?”

“Um… a friend of my dad’s said that they were probably really young,” Ruby said. “But… yeah.”

Winter was quiet.

“Still, damn,” Robyn said. “Not bad.” Ruby flushed.

“When is the next moon?” Winter asked.

“Two and a half weeks,” Weiss said. “We’re… trying to figure out as much as we can until then,”

Winter just gave a very pensive nod. “I… I hope that you know what you’re doing, Weiss.”

Weiss just nodded. “Me too.”

“Our other roommates,” Robyn began, “Fiona, May, and Joanna - they’re all wolves, too. Fiona was Turned.”

“How… how was her first moon?” Ruby asked.

“She doesn’t really talk about it,” Robyn said. “But… she made it, if nothing else.”

Weiss tried very hard to find this reassuring.

“So, what’s your story, Winter?” Weiss asked. “Father… he made you a vampire, didn’t he?”

“Yes,” Winter said. “How did you…”

“Your teeth, hun,” Robyn said tenderly. Winter’s hand went to her mouth, her finger lightly brushing against one of her enlarged incisors. Robyn just quietly handed Winter the drink that she’d left on the corner of her desk. Weiss had completely forgotten about it.

Winter removed the top of the soda cup with her hand, choosing to forgo the straw entirely and taking a long swig of whatever was in the cup. Judging by the slight red staining on Winter’s lips before she wiped her mouth… Weiss had a pretty good idea.

When she was finished, Winter’s fangs had vanished completely, and she was once more indistinguishable from a normal human.

“Apologies,” Winter said. “It has been a rather tiring day - I must not have realized how long it had been since my last drink.”

To Weiss and Ruby’s confused expressions, Robyn explained: “You wolves can let your ears and tails out, we vamps can show our teeth - though they’ll occasionally come out when we’re hungry, or if we can smell blood.”

“... ‘We?’” Ruby asked.

“I’m a bit of a special case,” Robyn admitted. She gave them a rather fang-y grin all the same, and for a moment, her teeth were just as large as Winter’s had been. “But… yes.”

“How much time do you two have?” Winter asked. “Our story is rather… long.” Weiss looked over at Ruby, who had interrupted her homework for this. Silently, she went up to get her tablet and pen, turning her laptop screen to face Weiss. She sat back down, angling her chair to face her own desk, but staying in the frame.

“I still have some drawing to do,” Ruby explained. “But I promise, I’m still listening. I don’t mean any disrespect.”

“She’s a studio art major,” Weiss explained to Winter’s raised eyebrow.

“I see,” Winter said simply. She appeared to appreciate Ruby’s explanation. “Well, settle in then. We’re going to be here a while.”

“Around three and a half years ago, Father introduced me to a man named Arthur Watts,” Winter began. “Over my winter break from Atlas U, we were… acquainted rather quickly. I was told that he was an important associate of Father’s, and someone that I would need to become better-acquainted with as the heiress of the company.” Weiss’ brow furrowed at this - Winter’s status as heiress had been transferred to Weiss only a year later, once her sister had cut off all contact from their father. Weiss briefly wondered if the title had already fallen to Whitley by now.

“The three of us would often spend nights in Father’s office,” Winter said. “He always insisted that I drink with them. At first, I thought it was the alcohol that was tiring me out, but…”

“Vampire blood?” Weiss asked hesitantly.

“It was heavily diluted by the alcohol it was served with,” Winter said. “So it didn’t completely knock me out, like it normally does for humans.” She looked at the floor for a moment, appearing to gather her resolve. “This went on for maybe a week, and one night, Father turned in early.” She let out an angry, frustrated sigh. “Leaving me alone with… him.” Robyn put a small, delicate hand on Winter’s shoulder before she continued.

“Soon after he was gone, Arthur suggested that we head somewhere a bit more ‘casual’ than Father’s office. Upon my hesitation, he insisted, and before I knew it, he shoved me onto the desk and his fangs were in my throat.” She undid her tie as she spoke, unbuttoning the top button of her shirt. She tilted her head slightly so that Weiss could see, and sure enough, there were two small pinprick scars there on her neck, just above her collarbone. Shakily, she continued.

“I tried to fight him off, but he was too strong. When I started to lose consciousness from the bite, he drew blood from his own wrist and shoved it down my throat.” Robyn had gently moved to wrap her arm around Winter completely at this point, though Winter had not even slightly adjusted to her embrace - she was so caught up in her memories that she may not have even noticed.

“Then, the next morning… I awoke in bed, perfectly safe. It all felt like a strange nightmare. The marks on my neck were gone - I had no proof of anything, and the memories were foggy at best.” She sighed.

“It was like that every night for a week, until one evening, instead of waking in my bed…” she shivered. “I woke up underground, with the two of them staring down at me, shovels in hand. The scars were permanent by then.” She let out a bitter, utterly mirthless laugh. “Digging me up that night is probably the closest Father has ever come to honest labor in his entire life.”

“May I… ask something?” Ruby said, her voice barely a squeak. “I’m sorry, that all sounds so awful, but… Weiss…” Weiss turned to meet her eyes. “Where were you during all this?”

“I had dozens of recitals that winter,” Weiss said. “Father said that he’d decided to brighten up the home with some ‘holiday cheer,’ and forced me onto an extremely tight performance schedule for his corporate friends and customers. Two shows a day and rehearsal...I barely had time for sleep.” She shook her head. “I thought I was being used for a PR stunt, and I suppose I still was, but…” Winter nodded gravely.

“He was keeping you from finding out,” she said. “From talking to me.”

“Oh…” Ruby said quietly. “I’m sorry for interrupting.”

“That’s all right,” Winter said. “Arthur was originally supposed to stay for longer, to ‘train’ me, but one night he just disappeared. Father said that he’d had some very important business, and expected me to obey him instead, even after what he had let that man do to me. Only two nights after Arthur was gone, he ordered me to attack one of his rivals on his way home from one of Weiss’ recitals.”

“I told him no, and he reached back to strike me. He’d been starving me of blood in hopes that I’d comply, just for the chance to drink. I… I was still weak, but… I remembered how powerless I felt the moment that Arthur bit down on me the first time.” She took a shuddering breath. “I… I caught his hand in my fangs, and I was just so thirsty that I couldn’t even stop drinking until he was unconscious. I found the spare blood that Arthur had left Father to bribe me with, packed a bag, and was gone before morning.” The energy left Winter as she finally finished her tale, and she slumped into Robyn’s waiting arms.

“H-How did you end up drinking from him?” Ruby asked, softly. “Wasn’t he a vampire, too?”

“No,” Robyn answered. “We don’t know exactly when he got Turned, or who did it, but… Winter was first. She was the guinea pig.”

Ruby put her hand on Weiss’ shoulder, and she didn’t even notice that she’d been letting out a low growl of anger until then. She almost apologized, but the understanding sadness in Ruby’s eyes told her that there was no need. She just nodded, trying to compose herself.

“I… I just wish that there were something I could have done,” Weiss said slowly. “I knew he kept us separated for a reason, but… why didn’t you call?”

“What was I supposed to tell you?” Winter asked with a pained laugh. “‘Help, our sad*stic father has made me a vampire and I had to escape him?’ He controlled all of your life, then, too.” Softer, she added, “I just wanted to get away.”

“Want me to finish the story?” Robyn asked gently. Winter nodded. Robyn kept her arms around Winter, but her eyes went back to Weiss and Ruby, the latter of whom no longer found any point in trying to draw.

“One night around the northern blocks of Mantle, I smelled some blood out of nowhere,” Robyn says. “It’s wasn’t fresh, but it was nowhere one second and overpowering the next. I followed my nose and came upon an alley with a starved-looking vampire huddled over an uncorked vial of blood, just staring at it…”

“Back off!” Winter said. “I’m not one for sharing.”

“No need,” Robyn said, innocently raising her hands. “I’m not thirsty. I just wanted to see who was opening some saved blood in a place like this.”

“Nobody,” Winter replied.

“Sweetheart, you don’t look like a nobody to me,” Robyn replied. Winter’s shoulders sagged.

“So you know who I am, then?” Winter asked, defeated.

“Never seen you before in my life.” Robyn said honestly. “But I don’t believe that anybody is really a nobody.”

Winter scoffed.

“I’d like to be.”

Robyn gently knelt down to Winter’s level, still not coming any closer.

“I don’t think you mean that,” Robyn said. “You look like you just got done being somebody, but sooner or later you’re gonna have to be somebody new.”

“I didn’t expect to meet a philosopher tonight,” Winter said. It was only the ghost of a joke, the way she told it.

“You’d be surprised by the kind of vampires you meet when you uncork some saved blood in an alley,” Robyn said. She slowly turned to the side, sitting against the alley wall. “So are you gonna drink that, or just keep staring at it?”

“None of your business,” Winter said.

“Fair enough,” Robyn said with a shrug of her shoulders. She paused, hoping that her casual language and posture were conveying that she meant no threat.

“So what’s your story?” Winter stared at her, causing her to raise her hands once more. “Not many vampires are on the run with fancy airtight vials of blood like that one you’ve got,” Robyn elaborated. “Did you steal that from a count or something?”

Winter’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t tell me that any vampires are actually counts.”

Robyn laughed. “I wouldn’t know any. It’s just a little vampiric humor.” She checked her watch - it was almost five in the morning. “You got a place to spend the morning, O Vampire of the Alleyway?”

“What’s it to you?” Winter asked, her eyes hard. Robyn shrugged.

“Well, I’m just getting to know you - I hope you don’t end up turning to ash in thirty minutes or so.” Winter checked a scroll in her bag, making a frustrated growl when she confirmed the time.

“Dammit,” she muttered. She looked over at Robyn, still casually leaning against the wall without a care in the world. “If the sun’s coming so soon, don’t you have somewhere else to be?”

“Not really,” Robyn said. “It doesn’t bother me too much.” Winter just raised an eyebrow at this - she was clearly a vampire herself, if she could smell Winter’s blood vial from so far off.

“But,” Robyn continued, “If you need a place to crash, I’m sure my roommates wouldn’t mind. I’m the only nocturnal one, anyways.” Winter stayed guarded.

“That’s kind,” she said, her tone indicating that she thought no such thing, “But I’ll have to pass.”

“Suit yourself,” Robyn said, slowly getting up. “But you’ll burn if you don’t find somewhere to go.” She stretched for a moment. “Offer still stands, if you’re interested.” She reached into a pocket, causing Winter to flinch. Robyn’s movements immediately slowed, and she raised one hand up innocently, very slowly removing a scroll of her own.

“That scroll of yours got a number? I can text you the address.” She wiggled the scroll in her hands to emphasize the point.

“I said that I’ll pass,” Winter replied, a bit more forcefully. She’d closed up her bag, apparently ready to leave. The vial still stayed open in her hand.

“Fine,” Robyn said, putting the scroll away. “Take care of yourself today. If you ever change your mind, my name is Robyn Hill. Most other vamps know me - if you ask around, you’ll be able to find me that way.” She snickered, dropping a scrap of paper out of her sleeve. It gently fluttered to the ground near Winter, and it was obvious that it had a phone number on it. “Or, you could just call.”

Winter looked her up and down, regarding her. Finally, she remembered the vial in her hand, and apparently decided to down it all in one greedy swig. She let the empty glass break on the ground of the alley, swinging her bag over her shoulder. She picked up the paper scrap, shoving it in a pocket.

“Just for today.”

Robyn keyed open the door to her apartment just as the sun began to crest over the horizon. Winter darted inside, just before she began to sizzle in the cold December morning. Robyn lingered for a moment, checking the alleyways to see if they’d been followed. Winter stared at her with amazement as the dawn began to harmlessly light upon her face before she went inside.

“You weren’t kidding about the sun,” Winter said. “How?”

“I’m a daywalker, darlin’,” Robyn cooed. Winter’s eyes narrowed at that, and Robyn couldn’t tell if it was the term she’d used or the pet name she’d given. She shrugged, explaining the former.

“Mommy was a vamp, Daddy was a human, and they just couldn’t wait to Turn him before doing the nasty,” Robyn said. “Nine months pass, Daddy’s been sucked dry, and out pops a dirty little daywalker.”

“I still don’t understand what that word means,” Winter pressed. Robyn laughed.

“I’ll give you one guess.” Winter just crossed her arms, immobile. Robyn sighed. “It means I’m only half-vampire. Not as strong as purebloods, and I’ll die of old age eventually - but I can walk outside most times of day and not burn to death.”

Winter stared at the ground. “That sounds like quite a luxury.”

“It has its upsides.” She walked past Winter, into a modest kitchen. “You want anything?”

Winter scoffed - it appeared to be a habit of hers. “You just saw me drink the last of my blood vials. It should last me another day or so.”

“I wasn’t talking about blood, Sweetheart,” Robyn said, poking her head above the door to the refrigerator. She held up a cup of ramen noodles. “Just because it doesn’t stave off starvation doesn’t mean that it won’t taste good.”

Winter stared at the cup - she hadn’t had any human food in weeks. She hadn’t thought about doing it ever again - why bother?

“Tell you what,” Robyn said. “I’ll heat one up for me, and if you want one too, it’s yours.”

Winter stood stock-still in the apartment’s threshold, still quite wary of everything.

“You can put that bag of yours down by the entrance, if you like,” Robyn said.

“I’d prefer to keep it on me,” Winter replied.

“Nobody’s gonna take it from you, Sweetheart,” Robyn said as she turned on the microwave. “But if it makes you feel any better, you can hold onto it.”

“Stop calling me that,” Winter finally said.

“Oh! I’m sorry,” Robyn said. Winter’s eyebrows raised at the honesty in her voice. “I didn’t know what else to call you.” The microwave beeped, and she removed her noodles, sitting down at a small table in the kitchen. She gestured to the seat across from her - she’d gone out of her way to give Winter the one closest to the door. Winter finally sighed, apparently letting go of a large amount of her apprehension, as she finally pulled the chair out.

“It’s Winter.”

Winter greedily slurped up the noodles the moment they were out of the microwave.

“Careful, it’s hot,” Robyn warned. Her words had no effect on the vampire, though she did take a quick sip of water immediately afterwards.

“So, Winter,” Robyn said. “What’s your story?” Winter let out a laugh.

“How much time do you have?” Robyn checked her watch.

“How long did you plan on staying around Mantle?”

“Less than a week.” Robyn raised an eyebrow.

“Got somewhere to be after the holidays?” Winter looked at the wall, remorseful.

“I hope I still do.”

“So, lemme get this straight,” Robyn said. “Your sire just leaves outta nowhere, and you take a bite out of your old man -” Winter gave her a deadly gaze, and Robyn capitulated. “I’m not judgin’, I would’ve done the same thing in your shoes. But, after all that, you’re gonna waltz back into college like nothing happened?”

“I don’t have much choice,” Winter said. “I don’t know how I’ll be able to get a job as a twenty-year-old vampire with no work experience. I don’t think I’m going to graduate or anything, but the room and board will give me some time to figure things out.”

“Your old man paid for school?” Robyn asked.

“Of course he did.”

“Think he’s gonna keep doing that?”

“I know he won’t.”

“So what’s your plan?”

“I’ll take out a loan, pick up a job on campus. Something.”

“Right.” Winter dropped her fork in frustration at that.

“Fine! I don’t have it all figured out yet, okay?” She stopped, as Robyn was clearly put off by her outburst. She put her head in her hands. “I just… I can’t go back there.”

Slowly, Robyn reached out a hand, gently laying it on Winter’s elbow. Instinctively, she twitched away, and Robyn pulled back, out of respect. Winter met her eyes and hesitantly moved her elbow back, letting Robyn’s fingers rest there once more.

“I wasn’t saying that you had to have it all figured out,” Robyn offered gently.

Before she could say anything more, a sleep-addled voice came around the corner to the kitchen.

“Ugh, Robyn - it’s like six in the morning…” Winter looked up immediately, swiping away Robyn’s hand. She stood, fangs bared, letting out a threatening, primal hiss.

The blue-haired woman yelped, a pair of wolfish ears and a tail appearing on her form. She, too, bore a pair of fangs back at Winter for a moment, but soon settled when Robyn stood up between them, arms out to prevent a fight.

“Hey, hey,” she said in Winter’s direction, as the violence in her eyes slowly began to fade. Her fangs didn’t disappear, though. “This is May - she’s one of my roommates.”

“Taking in strays again?” May asked. Her own fangs were now gone, but her ears and tail remained. She shrugged. “Fiona’s cuter.”

“What the hell are you?” Winter asked.

“New vamp, huh?” May asked slyly.

Robyn gave her a look, as if to say, ‘not helping,’ and then explained. “May here is a werewolf. So are Joanna and Fiona, my other two roommates, who I hope are heavier sleepers.”

“I’ll go tell them, if they’re up yet,” May said. She gave Winter a nod, and then turned and left the room.

Winter shook her head as soon as May was gone, upset with herself.

“It’s been one week since I left home and I’m already jumping at anything that moves,” she said, mostly to herself.

“It’s all right,” Robyn said gently. She coaxed Winter back to her seat.

“Werewolves too, huh?” Winter asked tiredly as she sat back down. Robyn laughed.

“I’m afraid we vampires aren’t the only things that go ‘bump’ in the night.” She sat down again, more serious. “Where did you say you went to college, again?”

“Atlas University.” Robyn immediately began to laugh, causing Winter to raise an eyebrow.

“What’s so funny?” She asked. “I told you who my father is - did you really think he’d send me anywhere else?”

“No, no, it’s not that,” Robyn said. “I just can’t believe your luck.” Winter co*cked her head - right now, she felt anything but lucky. It was fortunate that she’d apparently found a place to stay, but that was a very small uptick in what had so far been a hopeless downward spiral. Robyn had finally stopped laughing long enough to answer.

“We all go there, too.”

“So, from there,” Winter told the two of them, mostly recovered from reliving the ugliest part of her story, “I took out a loan, kept studying at the university, and after graduation, we all started renting out this place together.”

“You didn’t move in right away?” Weiss asked.

“Our old apartment was cramped,” Robyn explained. “May, Joanna, and Fiona all shared a bed…”

“Not that it was much of a problem for them,” Winter said, sipping on the dregs of her cup.

“True, but they were sharing a full back then,” Robyn said. “Now they’ve actually got a king, and it doesn’t touch three out of four walls of their room.”

“Besides, I wanted my space,” Winter said. “At least at first.”

“So… you really are only half vampire?” Ruby asked Robyn. “I didn’t know that was possible.”

“Sure is,” Robyn said. “Check it out.” She stood up and pulled the blinds up from a nearby window, letting the last light of the evening play over her hand, to no ill effect. Weiss knew it was impressive given the circ*mstances, but out of context, it was the most mundane action she’d ever seen.

“Winter!” Weiss said, as a sunbeam made its way onto her bare cheek. “Be careful!”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Winter said. She looked at Robyn with a smile. “The sun doesn’t bother me as much as it used to.”

“Okay, I’m confused again,” Ruby said.

“Vampires get the traits we do from our sires,” Robyn said. “Or, I guess, in my case, from my mom. Either way, it’s a pretty literal thing - the more vampiric blood you have in you, the more of a vampire you are.”

“That’s part of why vampiric sires can enact some level of control over their spawn,” Winter said. “Those vampires are literally their blood.”

“However,” Robyn said, pulling her collar aside, “That kind of bond can be weakened, if a vampire feeds from another vampire.” She revealed a set of pinpricks on her own neck, mostly healed.

“Every time I feed from Robyn, I get a bit better at dealing with the sun. A bit less like Arthur, and a bit more like her.”

“That’s… honestly kind of romantic,” Ruby said. All three pairs of eyes landed on her, and she flushed. “What?” I think it is!”

“I suppose so,” Winter said, giving Robyn a rare, full-fledged smile. Robyn simply returned it with a wink.

They fell into a pause for a moment, and Weiss decided to broach the question that was still on her mind. “What happened with Father?” She asked. “Did he ever… come for you?”

“Not as such,” Winter admitted. “He sent me messages at first - I ignored them all, of course, but he told me that he was Turned now, and he felt ‘so sorry’ for the way he’d treated me before.” Weiss scoffed.

“Pretty much. The closest things ever got was that Arthur called me once.” Weiss co*cked her head. “The bastard must be good with computers, because he forced my scroll to answer. It was a video call, and he commanded me to return to the manor.”

Weiss gasped.

“Unfortunately for him,” Winter said, “I’d been feeding from Robyn for weeks by then, and while I felt a little pull at first, I hated him enough that I told him to f*ck off and threw my scroll into the river. Fortunately, I’d given Robyn your number, just in case.”

“And… you haven’t heard anything since?” Weiss asked.

“No,” Winter said. “I figured that he’d given up. I feel so stupid now - I should have told you about all of this then. I didn’t think he’d just move down to you…”

“It’s okay,” Weiss said gently. She gave Ruby a wan smile. “I think I got a pretty good deal anyways.” She turned back to Winter. “But we should at least try reaching out to Whitley.”

Winter gave her a nod, though she wasn’t happy about it. Whitley had never been close with either of them, but he and Winter barely interacted unless forced.

“Let’s hope we can get somewhere with him,” Winter said. It was clear that she was also still anxious about the upcoming moon. Her hard expression didn’t last, though, and she offered Weiss a soft smile. “Still… it was good to finally share this piece of my life with you.”

Robyn nodded at that. “If you two are ever around Mantle, make sure to drop by. You’re free to crash on our couch.”

“Please visit if you ever find yourselves in Vale,” Weiss said. “Our room is a bit too small for you to stay overnight, but…”

Winter laughed. “I’m sure we’d figure it out.” Her eyes landed on Ruby, finally addressing her directly. “It was a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for protecting Weiss - and while I don’t necessarily condone your rather reckless Turning of my sister… I hope that it turns out for the better.” Ruby gave a weak grin, very clearly intimidated by Winter.

“All righty, it’s getting late,” Robyn said. “Take care, you two. Let us know if anything happens.”

“We will,” Weiss promised. She hung up the call.

“So,” Ruby said. “Your sister is nice!” Weiss just let out a chuckle.

“Ready to help me practice?” She asked.

“Oh! Yeah!” Ruby said. She moved over to her desk, taking her scroll into her hand. “Okay…” she began, navigating to a stopwatch application. “Tail out… now!”

After around four days of fitting in whatever practice she could, Weiss was getting faster with her tail - it only took her around two minutes to let out, with no assistance. She still didn’t think she could get into her wolf without Blake’s help, but that’s what the coming weekend was for. As she headed into the shower, Weiss noticed a message from Winter.

Don’t think I didn’t catch what you said about liking girls.

For the record, I must admit that she’s rather cute.

Robyn thinks so too.

Chapter 13: Hunters

Chapter by pixlh3art

Chapter Text

“Think you’re ready for tonight?” Ruby asked.

Weiss blinked, she’d been spacing out while watching the trees rolled past her window.

“I think so,” Weiss said, trying to hide her nervousness. “I just… you’re sure that the woods will be private?”

“Yup!” Ruby said with a nod.

“We’re pretty much the only weres in Patch,” Tai explained from behind the wheel. “Wolves are pretty territorial, and the same is generally true for weres of all kinds. There’s only so much that folks can do in cities like Vale, but I can’t say that I’ve seen anybody else out here in…” he paused, and Weiss saw his arm move in a way that indicated he was scratching at his chin. “Oh, ten years or so? Sometimes Qrow will visit for a moon, but that’s really it.”

Weiss just hummed at that, thoughtful.

“Besides, it’s not even a full moon tonight!” Ruby said. “So don’t worry too much about that.”

“What about Beacon?” Weiss asked. “I mean, unless we want to come out here every time… we’ll start seeing other weres there too, right?”

“I’m not a taxi service,” Tai noted. “That said, if you kids wanna pay for gas, I’d happily come by. The whole ‘empty nester’ thing is starting to hit me a little bit.”

Weiss was utterly shocked that he hadn’t concocted a pun about wolf dens or packs, but she figured that it was best not to mention it, for fear of giving him inspiration in the future.

“There are sometimes other weres at Beacon, I’d figure,” Ruby said. “I mean, I’ve only had the one moon, and I was with Blake and Yang, but there were a few new songs that I heard that night.”

“‘Songs?’” Weiss asked.

“Howls,” Tai explained. “Here, this can be your werewolf vocab lesson for the day - wolves refer to it as ‘singing,’ because that’s honestly what it feels like when we do it.” He shrugged. “Not sure if normal wolves see it that way, but even their howls sound pretty melodious, so I guess it fits.” Weiss knew that Tai was a werewolf, but she also knew that he was a high school English teacher, and apparently that came first.

“And I assume that only werewolves do the singing?” Weiss asked.

“Pretty much,” Ruby said. She let out a soft chuckle. “When Yang and I did it during my first moon at Beacon, Blake looked at us like we were a couple of idiots.”

Weiss smiled at that image.

“You two are some of my closest friends, but I’m inclined to agree with Blake on that one,” Weiss said.

“Hey, don’t knock it ‘til you try it,” Tai said, turning left onto the long county road that would eventually dead-end at their cul-de-sac. “You can mock it now, but you’ll probably be singing a different tune when you’re out and ready to hunt.”

Weiss groaned loudly, but Tai’s self-satisfied smile took up almost all of his reflection in the rear-view mirror. Ruby burst into a fit of giggles.

“Will you be coming with us?” Weiss asked tentatively. She didn’t expect there to be any actual danger or anything, and she felt quite safe with Ruby around, not to mention Blake and Yang. Still, she remembered Tai’s confidence facing down her father during Parents and Family Weekend, and she certainly wouldn’t mind having that confidence around during tonight.

Just in case something happened.

“‘Fraid not,” Tai said. “My sophom*ores just turned in their first big essay this year, and I wanna get a head start on grading.” He laughed. “Besides, I can tell that I’m not welcome during girls’ night.”

“Aw, c’mon, Dad!” Ruby said. “You used to love girls’ night! Remember the tiara?”

Weiss realized that Ruby and Yang, two rambunctious girls, had grown up with a single father, and a few images of what “girls’ night” likely entailed flashed into her mind. For Tai’s dignity, she attempted not to laugh.

“I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about,” Tai lied.

“Remind me to show you some pictures later,” Ruby whispered.

“I’ll turn this car around if I have to,” Tai said, though his threat was far from serious.

“Girls’ night does sound fun,” Weiss added. “I haven’t had a manicure since I got here from Atlas.”

Tai laughed. “I believe Ruby tried a manicure… once? Maybe twice?”

“I can’t just not grab stuff for that long!!!” Ruby complained.

Tai quickly took the opportunity to gain ground in the war of teasing. “She thought it’d be easier if Yang did it,” Tai explained snidely. “I had to ban nail polish from the house for a whole month.”

Ruby threw her arms up, bumping them on the car’s ceiling.

“I said I was sorry about that!”

“Hey, guys,” Yang said, walking Bumblebee into Tai’s shed. Blake followed, to hang up her helmet.

“You two ready for tonight?” Blake added. The question was aimed at both of them, but Weiss knew it was primarily meant for her.

“Yes,” she said. “Ruby’s mostly told me everything - we’re still eating before, right?”

“Of course,” Yang confirmed. “Dad didn’t really get any meat last time he went grocery shopping, though, so we were gonna order delivery. Is a cheeseburger okay?”

Weiss was impressed by her memory. “Yes, that honestly sounds lovely.” Her brow furrowed. “Is there a particular reason that we should be eating meat?”

Blake shrugged. “I mean, we are carnivores, in the technical sense. It’s the same stomach and all, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a wolf go for something like salad or pasta.”

“Oh, the videos I could show you,” Tai said fondly. Ruby and Yang both gave him death glares, but he continued unperturbed, speaking to Weiss and Blake. “Several family dinners were had on the floor, so they didn’t have to shift back in-between playtimes.”

Weiss looked at Ruby, her eyebrows somewhere above the clouds.

“I was, like, eleven,” she muttered under her breath.

The sun lazily drifted towards the horizon as Yang gave a generous tip to the man on the porch. “Thanks!” She called after him, bumping the door closed with her hip. She carried a large bag into the kitchen, placing it in the center of the table.

“All right, ladies,” she said. “A bit of processed food before we take the more direct approach tonight.” She and Ruby tapped their burgers together before chowing down. Blake took her time with her tuna sandwich.

“So… you guys really do go hunting for food and call that a meal, huh?” Weiss asked. She flushed. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound rude or anything, I just… I guess I’m still wrapping my head around it.”

“S’okay,” Ruby said through her mouthful. She swallowed. “I mean, we don’t really go out and do it except on the full moon,” she gestured to herself, Yang, and Tai, who was still finishing up his own dinner at the stove. “But, we could if we really wanted to. It’s, like… safe, and all that.”

“We try not to overhunt,” Yang added. “These woods aren’t really accustomed to apex predators, so we try not to, like… destroy the ecosystem.” She shrugged. “A deer or two, maybe some rabbits, though… that’ll probably be fine.”

Weiss nodded tentatively.

“How about you, Blake?” She asked. “Does your family ever go hunting instead of eating human food?”

Blake was quiet for a moment, her ears flat against her head. Yang’s eyes flicked over to her with concern. Weiss tensed - she hadn’t meant to hit a sensitive topic.

“I - I’m sorry,” she said, her instinct to apologize showing itself instantly. “Never mind.”

“No, it’s okay,” Blake said. She took a little breath in preparation. “I guess, the short answer is ‘I used to.’ But I sorta stopped doing that, after…”

Silently, Yang’s hand was laid across the table, offering itself to Blake. She blinked herself out of her reverie for a moment, giving a smile. She reached out to squeeze it, then returned to her meal with an assuring nod. Yang lingered for a moment, then withdrew.

“Before Beacon, I was sort of a nature-bound were,” she said. “As in, I spent probably just as much, maybe more time in my panther than I did in human form.”

“Oh,” Weiss said quietly. She hadn’t realized that that was a possibility for a were’s lifestyle. “May I ask what changed?”

“It’s… complicated,” she said. “It’s a bit of a long story, but… my mom and dad used to be in this group of weres with me. Panthers don’t really have ‘packs,’ like wolves do, and there were other types of weres around. We called ourselves the White Fang.” She took a bite, her eyes in a far-off place. “Back in Menagerie, enough of the region was still relatively unpopulated forest that a lot of weres chose to live in, instead of fully integrating with human society. We saw ourselves as different enough that we wanted to live apart, left alone.” She sighed. “That’s where it started, at least.”

“... But?” Ruby prompted. Weiss looked over to find that Ruby was just as interested as she was.

“Well, the world kept moving around us,” Blake said. “And eventually, logging companies started trying to explore the forest, to see if it was a potential site for them to operate. We’d generally managed a peaceful relationship with humans before then - campers, hikers, even lumberjacks and stuff. The logging companies weren’t successful right away - our forest was so dense that it felt like a jungle.” She sighed. “Eventually, though, they really started to get their footing. Before we knew it, the heavy machinery started to come in.”

“What did you do?” Weiss asked quietly.

“Well, my parents started spending a lot more of their time in their human forms. My dad was contacting our senators, my mom started raising awareness about the logging company’s harm to the environment around the human settlements in Menagerie...” Her ears flattened against her head once more. “And I was right there, on the front lines, protesting the company itself.”

“So… what happened?” Ruby asked. “Were you forced out?”

Blake’s shoulders fell. “No,” she said. The word sounded good in theory, but Blake’s tone told another story. “The protests weren’t working - my dad was running for office, and it even looked like he was going to win, but… it wasn’t gonna be soon enough to stop them in time.” Yang’s hand extended itself again, and Blake took it, holding on this time. “So… some of the members who were still trying to live in the forest full-time started taking matters into their own hands.” She sighed. “And I was right there with them.”

“Blake, you… you don’t have to talk about him,” Yang said quietly. She looked over at Ruby and Weiss.

“He’s kinda essential to the story,” Blake said with a tepid shrug. She met Yang’s eyes. “Are you okay with it?”

Weiss tried to make herself as small as possible. She felt like a horrible interloper in this tender moment between them. She looked over at Ruby, who appeared to feel the same. Tai had quietly left the room with his own meal. During the pause, Weiss could just barely hear the sounds of the TV. It seemed like he was trying to give them their space. Maybe he knew, maybe he’d left before this part - Weiss couldn’t tell.

“Yeah,” Yang said. Weiss noticed her scratch behind her right ear. “Yeah, I’m okay.”

Blake nodded. She turned back to Weiss, reminding her that she had asked this question in the first place.

“So, in the White Fang, we were all kind of a communal family, in a sense.” A phantom grin found its way to her face. “Honestly, when the four of us are together, I’m kinda reminded of the good parts of all that.” All three of them gave her a reassuring smile. “But,” she continued, “We were mostly from separate biological families, and there were all different types of weres, so… dating, if you can call it that, wasn’t uncommon.” She shrugged. “It’s how my parents met. Heck, I was basically born into all of it. A lot of us were.”

“How… how big was this group?” Weiss asked timidly. Blake shrugged.

“Couple hundred? Maybe a thousand, at its peak? We didn’t all live and hunt together, obviously. There were dozens of little subgroups, but…” Weiss just shook her head, and she could tell Ruby was surprised, too. She was starting to understand that werecreatures were at least a little common, but still…

“A-Anyways. My parents and I shifted around between subgroups when I was around thirteen, and that’s when I ended up meeting a wereox named Adam.”

“Were-fox?” Ruby asked.

“Were-ox,” Yang corrected. “He looks like a black bull.”

Before Weiss could fully process the fact that Yang had apparently met this person at some point, Blake continued.

“Adam was always a bit… aggressive, when he wanted to be.” She said. Weiss noticed that her posture was more withdrawn at this point, but she still held on to Yang. “It was honestly a little funny, because he ate plants instead of hunting, but I guess that made him all the more protective of the forest.” She shuddered, just the tiniest bit. “A-Anyways, one night, it was about to be a full moon, so we were all in our human forms, talking and making plans for the change. My parents weren’t around, by then. I didn’t know where they were spending their moons.”

She took a shuddering breath. “Adam… suggested… that we attack the machines that the logging company was using. His reasoning was that all of us would be at our strongest, and that the humans needed their heavy equipment to bring down the trees. At first, he phrased it like our plan was to make it not worth their investment.”

“So… most of us agreed, and those who didn’t felt enough pressure to come anyways. We were only a subgroup of ten, maybe twelve, but…”

Weiss had seen what Ruby could do to seven vampires, young though they were. A group of twelve fully-grown werecreatures, especially those with a grudge…

“Did it… work?” Ruby asked.

“At first,” Blake said. “They didn’t chop down a single tree the next day. How could they, when their equipment had been turned into scrap metal? People called Adam a hero. But, eventually, they came back, and they brought things like guns. Trained hunters, poachers, even. They weren’t packing silver, obviously, so most of us weres were okay, but a lot of the regular forest animals…”

“Oh…” Weiss said.

“Adam was furious.” Blake continued. “The whole thing devolved into this… this war, between us and them. My parents and the weres who followed them were having trouble convincing people that our forest needed saving when it became abundantly clear that the creatures living in it were so hostile. I mean, from a human perspective, they hadn’t seen anything like it - these weren’t isolated attacks, they were coordinated. We destroyed machines, we left claw marks on their encampments. Sometimes, a few of the most dedicated members started killing hunters in self-defense.” Weiss put a hand over her mouth.

“The regular humans who lived in Menagerie thought we were a bunch of eco-terrorists, and honestly, they were right! We weren’t ‘pretending’ to be the animals of the forest, like the papers said we were, but the logging company suddenly appeared a lot more like victims. I didn’t see it that way until a bit later, of course. I was so caught up in Adam and his ‘righteous’ quest that I didn’t notice the real hurt that we were doing to people just doing their jobs.”

Blake took a shuddering breath, apparently in preparation for this last little part of her tale. “One night, without a full moon, Adam came up with a plan, and it was just for me.” She scoffed, bitter. “Apparently, he trusted me most of all. At least, that’s what he said. He… he wanted me to sneak out to the edges of the forest, and find their home base.” Yang scooted her chair over, silently laying her arm over Blake’s shoulders. “He wanted me to assassinate the foreman.”

Ruby and Weiss both gasped. Yang didn’t appear to react very much - she’d clearly heard this before.

“Adam was going to scope the place out in his human form, and give me a signal. In the dead of night, I was supposed to come in, once he’d broken the lock, and…” She stopped, unable to finish that. “I was the perfect one for the job - I’m nearly silent, I blend into the darkness perfectly…” she looked at her own hand, imagining a set of claws. “He wouldn’t have stood a chance.”

“I was… scared, to do it. I lied to Adam, saying that I was afraid that the foreman would be able to call someone, or maybe he’d have a gun by his bedside or something. But he kept ‘reassuring’ me, saying that he’d be there the whole time to make sure.” She gave a bitter, mirthless laugh. “He probably thought he was being romantic.”

“What… what happened?” Weiss asked. “Did you…”

“I couldn’t,” Blake said. “I was honestly afraid of Adam by then - afraid of what he’d think up next, what he’d do to the people who didn’t go along with him. I know that from an outside perspective, this looks like something that a rational person would never get caught up in, but Adam just had this way about him - he’d get into my head, convince me that what we were doing was right…”

She stopped, apparently not wanting to get into it any further.

“A-Anyways, the time came. I met up with Adam there, ready to bust into the foreman’s room. But what tipped me over the edge was that… he had a gun in his waistband. I… I guess he didn’t think I would notice, or maybe he thought I wouldn’t care, but… that really gave me a reality check, you know? We weren’t vindictive, justified forest animals anymore. We were killers, and he was the one who had brought us there.”

“He was getting close to the foreman’s building. I ran there first - I wanted to warn him, tell him to call someone, to leave. I shifted back into my human form, and started banging on his window. He got up to look, but… the door burst open. Adam was there - I hadn’t responded to his signal. He looked me in the eyes and shot the foreman three times in the chest.”

They all were silent for quite a long time.

“After that, I ran. I thought about trying to find my parents, but… I couldn’t face them, after choosing Adam over them. I snuck my way back into our little encampment, and I grabbed all my stuff - my ID, passport, scroll… all the things we needed when we had to spend time in our human forms. I bought a cheap ticket for a boat, and pretty much hitchhiked my way to Vale.”

“How… how did you get into Beacon?” Weiss asked. She didn’t realize how insulting it was until it left her mouth.

“I filled out an online application, same as you,” Blake said with a shrug. “Sure, I spent a lot of time in my were, but we did have education. Dad had a lot of books on an old computer. The White Fang prided itself on giving its members the knowledge to integrate with human society, once they were old enough to make that choice.” Her ears flattened against her head. “Or, I guess it used to, anyways.”

“Okay,” Yang said. At first, it almost sounded insensitive to what Blake had told them, but her eyes were looking out the window. When Weiss followed her gaze, the sun was beginning to set, which meant that it was time for them to start heading out. “There’s… there’s a bit more to this story,” Yang said. “But I think we could all use a break to get ready.”

“Are you… okay?” Ruby asked softly. Blake gave her a tiny smile.

“Yes,” she said, looking up at Yang. “Yang’s right that there’s still more to tell, but… this is a good stopping point. Trust me, most of that stuff is all in the past, anyways.” Her eyes landed on Weiss. “Don’t worry, I’ll still be there to talk you into your wolf and everything. I think I have to just take a minute before I’ll be ready.”

“Th-thank you,” Weiss said, timidly. She obviously wanted to respect Blake’s emotions and everything, but she also still couldn’t change into her wolf on her own. Ruby had helped a little with letting her tail out, but Blake’s calm, hypnotic voice would probably be best suited for what they had all come to do in the first place.

“We’ll give you two some space,” Ruby said softly. To Yang, she asked, “Wanna meet up near the big tree?”

“Sure,” Yang said. “We’ll catch up to you.” Ruby nodded, standing up from her chair to clear away everything from their meal. Weiss busied herself with helping. Ruby gently rubbed the shoulder that Blake hadn’t tucked into Yang’s protective embrace, earning her a soft smile. Weiss wanted to do the same, but was too afraid. She ended up just following Ruby. The two of them quickly left the room.

“Don’t forget the blanket!” Yang called after them.

“I never forget the blanket!” Ruby countered.

“I’ll believe that when it happens!” Yang smugly replied. Their banter was a bit refreshing after hearing Blake’s story.

“Do you… think she’ll be okay?” Weiss asked as Ruby dug up a huge picnic blanket from her closet.

“Blake? I dunno,” Ruby said. “I’m only really getting to know her just now, y’know?”

Weiss nodded.

“But, from what I’ve seen of her, Blake’s pretty tough,” Ruby said. “I hadn’t heard that whole thing, but I guess it explains why she’s incredible at all the were stuff. During the full moon, she changed in, like… ten seconds, tops.”

“Is that fast?” Weiss asked.

“Yang’s been doing it every full moon for the last decade and she takes around twenty.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah,” Ruby said. “Here - help carry this?” She was holding out a beach towel, also retrieved from their closet.

“Sure,” Weiss said, taking it. It was thicker than she’d expected. “What’s it for?”

“You, dummy,” Ruby said, poking her in the ribs. “We’re gonna put our clothes in a bag so they don’t get lost or stolen by squirrels or whatever, and I figured you’d wanna cover up while you change.”

“Oh…” Weiss said. The thought hadn’t even occurred to her, but she was very grateful that it had occurred to Ruby. “Thank you. For thinking of me.”

“Always,” Ruby said, slinging an empty bag over her shoulder. “C’mon.”

“Okay Dad, we’re heading out!” Ruby said. Tai looked up, noticing them.

“Tails away,” he said. “The neighbors got a security camera the other week.”

“Ugh, seriously?” Ruby asked.

“Tell me about it,” Tai replied. “I don’t think they review the footage or anything, but still.”

“Yeah,” Ruby said, her ears disappearing into her hair. It took Weiss a moment, but she managed to hide hers away, too.

“Hey, you’re getting better at that!” Tai said, upon noticing.

“Thank you,” Weiss said, flushing a little. “I’ve been practicing. Ruby even helps by timing me.”

“Hey, of course I’m gonna help you!” Ruby said. “It’s my…” she stopped herself. “Nevermind.” She turned back towards the door, pushing it open with her foot while her hands were full. “We’ll be back late tonight, Dad. Tell Blake and Yang we’re heading out.”

“Can do,” Tai replied. He sighed. “You’re gonna make another blanket fort, aren’t you?”

To her credit, Ruby gave a sly grin. “I dunno if Weiss has the energy to return to her human form in the same night,” she called back, clearly using it as an excuse. “And we can’t just make her sleep alone on the floor or something…”

Tai let out a defeated sigh. “Just clean it up by morning!”

With that, they were on their way.

“Welcome to the wonderful woods of Patch,” Ruby said, walking Weiss down a trail. “They’re really beautiful this time of year.”

Weiss had to admit that she was correct. The trees were remarkably tall - easily two or three times the height of anything planted on campus. Their branches were covered in leaves, all tinged with the reds, browns, and golds of autumn. Not many had begun to fall just yet, but the dirt and the roots around their feet had already started to dry up in the chilly weather.

“Ruby?” Weiss asked. There was something on her mind.

“What’s up?” She asked merrily, looking over her shoulder. “Oh, watch your step.”

Weiss’ eyes followed her hand, and Ruby was pointing to a giant tree root that had overtaken the path. Gratefully, she stepped over it.

“What were you about to say, when you were talking to your dad?” She asked. “When I said that you were helping me with all the were stuff, you were gonna say something, but you trailed off.”

“Oh,” Ruby said quietly. “It’s… it’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

“Ruby,” Weiss admonished tenderly. “If it really is nothing, that’s okay, but… it didn’t really sound like nothing.” she paused, searching for the right words. “And… you don’t have to tell me everything, of course. But I just… well, I figured that I’ve told you so much about me, and all of my problems, I feel like…”

“Like what?” Ruby said. Her words were… guarded, but not approaching accusatory.

“I feel like you’re doing so much for me, and I guess, if you’re ready, and probably once all this were stuff becomes a bit easier…” She paused, resolving to just say it. “I’m ready to be there for you, too.”

“Weiss, you don’t have to do that,” Ruby said. It was almost instantaneous, like a knee-jerk reaction. Weiss had noticed this little pattern with Ruby - she was always incredibly willing to help other people, Weiss especially, but she often balked at help from others. It almost seemed like she was trying to prove herself, in some nebulous way.

“I know I don’t,” Weiss said. Ruby stopped. This apparently hadn’t been the line she was expecting. “I don’t have to help you, Ruby.” Weiss timidly met her eyes, summoning her warmest smile. “But I do want to.”

Ruby stood there for a moment, thinking up a reply. Finally, the thing that came to her mind was just a timid, reserved… almost heartbroken question. “Are you sure?”

“Of course I’m sure,” Weiss said, taking a few slow steps, coaxing Ruby to keep walking. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I mean…” Ruby shrugged. “I don’t have a specific reason, I guess. I just…” she sighed. “I’m… a lot. Like, really… a lot. I just wanted to know if you were sure.”

“Ruby,” Weiss said gently. “From almost the first day that I met you, you’ve been so impossibly kind to me. Until I started going to Beacon, I genuinely did not know that it was possible for human beings…” she paused. Ruby let out a tiny chuckle at her slip-up. “For anyone, werewolf or otherwise, to be so kind.” She looked down, cradling her own arm. “I imagined that if someone like that even existed… well. Someone like that would have no reason to be so kind to me.”

“Weiss, what’re you talking about?” Ruby asked. It wasn’t meant to shut her down - if anything, the question was meant to support her. “You’re a really cool, kind, caring friend.”

“I wasn’t always,” Weiss said. “As much as I enjoy having you in my life, Ruby… I’m honestly glad that we didn’t meet until this year. I don’t think you would have liked me any time before then.”

“Hey, don’t say that,” Ruby replied. It was soft, even a little halfhearted.

“It’s the truth,” Weiss shrugged. “Up until I started to attend high school in Atlas - when I saw what other kids, even those with rich, sh*tty parents, said about my father… what I learned about Atlas in history class, when I started watching the news coverage of his mining disaster seven years ago, when I started talking to Winter, after she left - I learned that the person my father was and the person he claimed to be were two very different people. And it made me think a lot about all the beliefs that I’d been unconsciously holding up until then.”

Ruby just looked at her, unsure of what to say.

“Don’t get me wrong - I’m glad that I changed. I’m glad that there was just enough outside influence for me to see how much of my world view was fundamentally flawed. But the person I was up until I realized all that…” Weiss let out a little laugh. “Well, for one thing, she would have hated you.”

Ruby laughed along, to Weiss’ relief.

“But you never really answered my question,” she said. “What is it that you were going to say?”

“Honestly?” Ruby asked. Weiss nodded, looking into Ruby’s eyes. Ruby sighed, and Weiss could almost watch a barrier that she hadn’t even noticed before start to go down. “I was gonna say… ‘it’s my job.’” Weiss paused at that, initially unsure of what to make of it. “Which… yeah, I know - pretty gross thing to say. So I didn’t say it. I’m sorry.”

“I don’t see what’s necessarily gross about it,” Weiss said slowly. “I mean, if you were expecting to be paid for it, I regret to inform you that I’ve recently been cut off from the family fortune…”

Ruby let out a little snort before turning serious. “Your dad finally did it then, huh?”

“I’m afraid so,” Weiss said. “Don’t worry too much. Winter gave me some pointers about how I could put away money that’s in my name without his approval, and he did already pay for my whole first semester at Beacon. Plus Klein is still going to send me a few candlesticks. I’ll be okay.”

“How much did you manage to get away from him?” Ruby asked.

“Currently? About two million dollars. Why, is that a lot?”

Ruby nearly tripped over her own feet.

“Um… yeah. That’s a ton of money, Weiss.”

“It’s mostly in the stock market,” Weiss said. “Plus, Winter and I agreed that we’d pool whatever we had to help get Whitley through college, if we end up convincing him to emancipate himself from Father. That, and the remainder of my own college education...” Weiss shook her head. “Either way, that doesn’t matter right now. Why do you think of helping me like a job?”

“Weiss, I don’t really think of it like that. It’s just, well…”

“Am I being too much of a burden?” Weiss asked softly. “I -”

“No!” Ruby said, immediately turning to Weiss. She almost reached out to hug her, but stopped herself. “No, Weiss. You’re not a burden. Not on me, not on Yang and Blake, not on my dad… none of us. Don’t ever think of yourself like that.”

“Thank you,” Weiss said sheepishly. “And… I’m sorry. I just… I feel awful that you’re doing all of these lovely things for me.” She looked at the ground, then up at Ruby. “It’s why I wanted to help you with things in the first place. Why I want to be there for you with things.”

“Weiss, you don’t owe me anything,” Ruby said. “I mean, if I’m honest, learning that you have two million bucks lying around has me thinking that you could maybe pay for groceries every now and again, but…” she kicked a little pebble on the path. “If anything, I’m the one who owes you.”

Weiss’ brows raised.

“I… here,” Ruby said. “This is the tree where we said we were gonna meet Blake and Yang. Help me spread out the blanket?”

Weiss nodded, silently moving. As they worked, the weight of what Ruby was still about to say filled the air. It took them about two minutes to spread the blanket out, but it felt like an eternity. Ruby sat down on it, leaning against the wide trunk of the big tree in the middle of Patch’s woods. She’d left space on the blanket for Weiss to do the same, and while it looked like she wanted to, Weiss resolved to sitting cross-legged, facing her instead. Ruby’s heart fell. With all the side topics that they had drifted towards, the look in Weiss’ eyes told her that she was definitely going to have to have this conversation.

“Ruby,” Weiss said. “Why do you feel like you owe me?”

That finally did it. Ruby broke.

“Because you might f*cking die in two weeks!” Ruby shouted. Weiss immediately flinched, and Ruby closed her eyes, hating herself for lashing out. “I’m sorry for yelling,” she said tepidly. “And I’m sorry for yelling what I yelled, too. I’m just…” she crossed her arms, unable to meet Weiss’ gaze. Already, she was too ashamed of herself. “I’m just really, really worried that what I did for you - to you - might have cost you your life.” She exhaled, upset with herself. “All because I’m selfish.”

“R-Ruby,” Weiss said, timid. Ruby looked up at her, and she must have moved her head quickly enough to make Weiss recoil a bit. She’d been extending her hand to Ruby, but it quickly shrunk away. Ruby closed her eyes painfully - already, she’d ruined it. She’d spent all that time, being so careful to help Weiss out of her shell, and one tiny little peek of who she really was had sent Weiss all the way backwards.

“I’m sorry,” Ruby said again. “I shouldn’t have said any of this.”

“Ruby,” Weiss said again.

“I’ve f*cked things up again, I know. Here, I’ll… I’ll head back to my dad’s place. If you want, Blake and Yang can still do everything with you tonight, and then Yang can take you back on Bumblebee tomorrow morning. I -”

“Ruby!” Weiss said sharply, finally getting her attention. “What’s going on with you tonight?” Weiss asked, more softly. “I… I’ve never seen you like this.” Tenderly, like Ruby was a time bomb, Weiss scooted forward, laying her hand on Ruby’s knee so gently that there was barely any noticeable weight. “Can you please tell me what has you so worried?” Ruby looked away from her for a moment, ashamed. Weiss, frustratingly determined, scooted a bit closer. “Ruby. Please.” She took a breath. “Tell me what it is that you’re so afraid of.”

Ruby muttered something. To Weiss, it was inaudible.

“What?” Weiss asked gently. Ruby’s shoulders fell, and she finally gave up.

“It’s me, Weiss. I’m afraid of me.”

Weiss blinked for a moment, motionless. She appeared to be processing that. Ruby idly wondered when Blake and Yang were going to save them from this conversation.

“Ruby, why are you afraid of yourself?” Weiss asked gently. Her gentle, coaxing questions were really getting on Ruby’s nerves at this point, but she couldn’t really blame Weiss for that. She was certainly taking her sweet time getting to it.

“It’s… kinda complicated,” Ruby finally admitted. From her tone, Weiss could tell that this was the beginning of a longer speech, so she sat back, apparently ready to listen. “There isn’t really much of a singular answer, either,” Ruby warned. Weiss remained silent. Attentive. Caring. Worried.

Ruby figured that the last one was probably the smartest.

“Blake isn’t the only one with a sh*tty ex,” Ruby finally said. It felt simultaneously freeing and revolting to finally talk about the worst period of time in her life to probably the best person who would ever walk into it. She looked up at the sky as its colors began to fade. There was no escaping it now. “But in my story… I sound a lot more like Adam.”

Weiss eyes went as wide as dinner plates. That reaction was probably fair, Ruby mused.

“H-How?” Weiss stuttered. Ruby was amazed that Weiss was still here.

“I never… I never killed anyone, if that’s what you were worrying about,” Ruby said. She sighed - she really always had to make herself sound better right away, didn’t she? “But the whole ‘crazy overprotective jerk who you should probably run away from’ thing? Yeah.”

Weiss stayed silent. Ruby could tell it was killing her to do so, but she also didn’t want to stop Ruby from telling her story.

“When I was in high school,” Ruby finally said, “I dated a girl for almost two years. We started late sophom*ore year, and broke up a couple months before graduation.” She shook her head. They didn’t have time for that version - it was too long. “We were… good, for a while, for like a year and change. I guess I ended up getting too comfortable. I thought I was gonna be with her forever, y’know?”

Weiss co*cked her head - it was clear that she didn’t understand the correlation, which Ruby thought was fair. “I guess I felt… I dunno. Entitled to her, in a way. Things felt so natural that I stopped imagining that they’d be any different, once we really settled into a rhythm with things. Our relationship… progressed, I guess is the right word. She was really into me at first, which was so flattering, but…”

“Ruby,” Weiss said gently. Ruby sighed. She had to stop dancing around it. Weiss deserved better than that.

“One day, she just broke up with me on the spot,” Ruby said. “I had no idea why - I was heartbroken at first, but… I heard a few things through the grapevine. About how I was ‘abusive,’ how I was… ‘controlling,’ apparently. She was telling people that she’d started to feel obligated to be with me, like it was never something that she’d actually wanted.”

Weiss made a sympathetic sound, and Ruby snorted.

“Did you… did you ever actually violate her consent?” Weiss asked softly. For a terrified moment, Ruby worried that she already thought that was true.

“No,” Ruby said immediately. “I never - it was nothing direct, like that, I guess. The conversations that I heard from people, everything that was expressed, it was always so… nebulous. There wasn’t a specific moment or anything that I heard, it was just… feelings.”

“I didn’t really know what she was talking about. In some ways, I still don’t. But… the more I thought about it, the more it started to make sense.” Weiss looked like she was about to open her mouth to say something, and Ruby wasn’t ready for that just yet. “She was right - I was just… so attached to her. I wanted to see her constantly, I was always holding onto her, always wanting to hold hands, always wanting to…” Ruby sighed. “Look, I said it wasn’t gonna have a singular answer. But the more I thought about the way I was with her - the way I was with every girl I’ve ever liked, even the ones I never dated - I was just so… obsessed... with this idea of having a girlfriend. With loving someone. And when people don’t measure up to that, or don’t see relationships in the same, crazy way that I do… I overcompensate. I hold on too tight and I do things that my partner doesn’t want and apparently I freak people out to the point where they leave me.” She paused. “And it’s probably for their own good.”

Ruby exhaled, letting her head hit the tree trunk. It hurt, but she tried not to show it.

“So yeah. Happy now?”

Weiss was quiet. She had withdrawn her hand from Ruby’s leg, deep in thought. Ruby knew it was a lot, and she mostly imagined what Weiss was ultimately going to say, but the wait was killing her.

“Weiss, will you please just say something?” Ruby finally begged.

“I… I don’t know what to say, Ruby.” Weiss finally managed. Ruby raised her eyebrows - she was expecting more scorn in Weiss’ tone than that.

“Yeah.” Ruby said. “Told you, it’s a lot.”

“I’m sorry.” Weiss finally said.

“Me too,” Ruby agreed, now fully entrenched in her misery.

“Ruby Rose,” Weiss said gently. “You have absolutely nothing to apologize for.”

Ruby blinked at her. Had she lost her mind?

“I mean it,” Weiss said. Ruby opened her mouth, but Weiss held up a hand. “Don’t tell me that it’s because you Turned me,” Weiss said. “That was, as I would like to once again remind you, entirely my choice. It continues to be, and I have not regretted it for one single moment, so don’t you start regretting it, okay?” Ruby looked away, clearly still ashamed. “Also...” Weiss let out a sigh, finally ready to admit this to Ruby. It was only fair, because telling her story to Weiss had clearly been very difficult. “If I’m completely honest with myself… I was pretty jealous of you, Yang, and Blake.”

Ruby finally met her eyes again - finally, she was the one caught off guard.

“I mean… the three of you had this… this thing, uniting you all,” she said. “You were always kind and open with me, before I became a were. Even before then, I felt like I was being let into your family, and I’ll never be able to express how much that means to me.” She hugged herself for a moment. “Especially with how my actual family is right now.” She closed her eyes, looking back to Ruby. “But if I’m being completely, totally honest with you, and with myself… I’m actually really glad that you ended up offering to Turn me.”

Ruby gave her a look.

“And I know what you’re going to say - that it’s dangerous, that I don’t know how dangerous it’s going to be, all of that. I’ve heard it already, and I can at least guess at what I haven’t heard. But at the end of the day, I basically don’t care. I already told you - I would rather die a werewolf than live under my father’s thumb. Especially if he made me live forever.”

“After hearing everything that happened to Winter, I realized how insanely fortunate I am to have had you in my life. I mean, for gods’ sake, Ruby, I’ve known you for a month and a half and you have literally, physically fought men sent by my father to kidnap me. Twice! And now, I’ve spent one entire week as a werewolf, and I already feel like I belong here, with you, Blake, and Yang, more than I ever have, anywhere, in my entire life! So don’t you dare apologize for that!”

Weiss stopped, realizing that she was shouting now.

“Weiss, I…” Ruby paused. “This is what happens. This is what it’s like. Listen to what you’re saying! You might be glad about it now, but think about what I’ve actually done! I’ve put you in this position where you need me because I want you to need me! I want to be needed, to ‘be there’ for someone, to ‘protect’ them! This is what I do to people - this is what I’m like, and I hate it!”

Weiss moved to speak, but Ruby interrupted her. She was digging this grave, and she was not about to let Weiss offer her a ladder. She knew she had to go to the bottom sooner or later.

“Haven’t you noticed how obsessed I am with helping you? How much I want to hold you when you’re scared, how freaking overjoyed I am when you want to pet me in my wolf? I practically dragged you into my bed that one night - I can’t believe that I managed to only do it once!” She stopped, slowing herself down. Ruby suddenly had a splitting headache. “I just… don’t you see how badly I want to hold you, to hug you, to touch you?”

There was a very long pause. Blake and Yang were definitely late by now.

“No…” Weiss said quietly. “No, Ruby, I don’t see that.” Ruby scoffed, looking away. She opened her mouth, but Weiss stopped her. “Instead, I see a girl who is absolutely terrified of hurting me. I see someone who almost never touches me without explicit verbal consent. You honestly used to before, but now you’ve begun stopping yourself. When you poked me in the ribs tonight, that genuinely felt like progress.”

“Weiss, I…”

“Just… hang on a second,” Weiss said. “I can tell you’ve done a lot of thinking about this, about the way you view other people. Maybe it’s other girls specifically.”

“It is,” Ruby confirmed.

“Okay,” Weiss said, as though that were inconsequential when Ruby knew it definitely wasn’t. “Either way, it seems like you’re really in your head about this - maybe you have been for a long time.”

Ruby just gave her a weak nod.

“Well, do you mind if I offer you an alternative perspective?” Weiss asked. It seemed like she had attempted to make it sound gentle, but she mostly came off as tired.

Ruby nodded.

“I think that you don’t give me nearly enough credit.”

Ruby quirked a brow - she hadn’t been expecting this.

“Look, I… I dunno if now is the best time to do this. But Ruby, Sweetheart…” Weiss had apparently tried out the nickname, probably inspired by Robyn. Her face told Ruby that she didn’t like hearing it out loud, and Ruby was inclined to agree. Weiss started over.

“Ruby.” She sighed. “Do you really think that I’ve been just drifting along, completely unaware of the way that you act around me?”

Ruby blinked. She hadn’t consciously thought of it like that, but she had to admit that the description was rather fitting.

“I mean… do you think I’ve been sitting here, just taking or leaving your offers of physical affection for your sake? Do you think that that stuff just means nothing to me?”

“I…” Ruby began, but the sentence died on her lips.

“I don’t know how you got it so far jammed up in your head that you didn’t consider this, but have you ever maybe perhaps wondered if I like snuggling with you, too?”

Ruby was motionless for what felt like several minutes. In reality, it was five seconds at most.

“I… um…” Ruby began. Weiss just put her hands on her hips, expectantly. Ruby sighed. “No?” She finally admitted.

“Well, you’re wrong,” Weiss said. Clearly, she’d been anticipating Ruby’s response. “Last weekend, when I first woke up after you Turned me, I sat on the couch with Blake and Yang.” She said. “They let me lean against them, and eventually between them, like it was nothing. Like it was just something that any person could just… do. For a minute, I was so self-conscious - as you can probably imagine, my family wasn’t exactly the snuggling type.”

Ruby had to admit that was fair.

“And I don’t know if that’s because yours is an actual, normal family, or if it’s because you’re werewolves, or both, but I honestly don’t care.” Weiss said. “I had no freaking idea how touch-starved I was up until meeting you all. I always thought it had to be this incredibly special thing, exclusive to only the most romantic of romances.”

“... and?” Ruby asked.

“And then your sister and her girlfriend laughed at me and I realized I was being an idiot.” Weiss said. Ruby couldn’t help but laugh at that, though it was still pretty hollow. “Don’t get me wrong,” Weiss said softly. “It feels a bit… different, when it’s just you. I don’t really know why, exactly. I think maybe it’s because even then I can feel how scared you are about the whole thing.” Ruby looked away, her lingering attraction to Weiss weighing heavily in her stomach. She knew that that was probably the actual reason, but there was no way she was admitting that now.

“So, Ruby Rose,” Weiss finally said. “I promise you that you don’t need to be afraid of touching me. And you don’t need to be ashamed for Turning me. I am truly, honestly glad for both of those things. So will you please stop doubting yourself so much around me?”

Ruby closed her eyes. This conversation didn’t entirely feel real, if she was being honest. Part of her was still deeply ashamed of her residual attraction to Weiss. Yang had implied that things were mutual in that regard, but Ruby wasn’t so sure anymore. Yang had never exactly been spectacular with romantic advice, either - she certainly hadn’t heard about Ruby’s one long-term girlfriend, and there was a reason for that even before that relationship ended as badly as it did.

“Hello?” Weiss asked softly. “You still in there?”

“Sorry,” Ruby said, opening her eyes. “I’m just… surprised. I honestly didn’t think you’d be willing to talk to me, like… at all, after what I told you.”

“Like I said,” Weiss began, wordlessly positioning her back against the tree trunk. Ruby let out a soft gasp as Weiss’ head fell onto her shoulder, like it was the simplest, easiest thing in the world. “You really don’t give me enough credit.”

Chapter 14: Become

Chapter Text

“You know… we’re still going to have to talk more about this later,” Weiss said.

“I know.” Ruby said. “I’m still… really sorry.”

“You don’t have to be.”

Ruby laughed. “I… yeah. Sorry, we can…”

“Mm.”

They were silent for a little while, before Weiss suddenly spoke up again.

“Oh, and Ruby?”

“... yeah?” She asked, a bit of a worried note in her voice.

“I really enjoyed having you rest on my shoulders when we fell asleep last weekend. If you still feel comfortable, I’d like for you to do that again.”

Ruby was quiet for a moment. “Weiss, I…”

“It helped me sleep,” Weiss said. “I’m normally used to a blanket, so I found the weight to be very comforting.” She looked up at Ruby with a tepid smile. “I’m… I’m asking you to do it. Does that help make it easier?” She hoped that her eyes were conveying how much she cared about Ruby and her comfort levels. From the admittedly timid and scared but overall hopeful look that Ruby returned with, it looked like she understood.

“It… does,” Ruby said, still clearly a little unsure. Weiss put her head back down on Ruby’s shoulder, and felt a warm feeling in her chest when Ruby finally leaned back in, her cheek resting in Weiss’ hair. Very quietly, she muttered something.

“...thank you.”

“Hey guys!” Yang called out, with Blake in tow. “Sorry we took so long!”

“Don’t worry about it,” Weiss offered. “Are you two just about ready?”

“Yes,” Blake said. “Thanks for waiting up.”

Weiss gave her a smile.

“Of course.” She leaned a bit further into Ruby for just a moment before sitting up again. “Now, can you all tell me how this whole thing works, so that I don’t make a fool of myself?”

Weiss stood up in her wolf, sniffing at the air. Her only other experience in this form had been constrained to Tai’s home, but now that she was out here in the woods, feeling the breeze, gazing up at the stars…

The world was a thousand times more beautiful from this position.

“How do you feel, Weiss?” Blake asked. She gave a happy yip in response - despite everything leading up to all of this, and everything weighing on all of them as the full moon loomed... she was excited. This was a whole new experience for her, and she was honestly looking forward to seeing what all of her friends would be like in this context.

Weiss felt Ruby run a hand along her back, and she let her tail happily wag in appreciation. She had curled up in Ruby’s lap while Blake guided her through the change - it was a relief that Ruby still at least felt comfortable enough to do that. Weiss’ main goal was to get Ruby out of her head with everything, and she hoped that tonight would be a decent opportunity to do just that.

She owed it to Ruby to try.

“All righty,” Yang said, peeling off her shirt. “Let’s get going, then!”

Weiss looked over at Blake, who was just about to enter her panther. For a moment, Weiss felt a bit of shame at seeing her naked, but that was (as she continued to learn) basically part of the whole thing. Besides, the fact that Blake was doing it in front of her probably meant that she didn’t really mind.

Blake’s transformation was nearly instantaneous - it was almost too fast to follow. One second there was a girl with raven hair, the next there was a shadowy form between Weiss and the trees - Blake had blended in with the darkness well enough inside, last weekend, but she was practically invisible out here. Weiss’ enhanced vision could only vaguely tell that there was something standing in front of her as Blake moved around, but she looked like a formless void, a ripple of motion in the darkness. Weiss heard a low, lazy purr as Blake apparently stretched, turning her golden eyes towards her. They were truly the only obvious indication that something was there.

Blake appeared to notice her staring, and gave Weiss a curious look. She affectionately rubbed her head under Weiss’ chin before slinking away to brush up against Yang’s bare legs as she hung up the bag with their clothes on a limb of the tree.

“Yes, hello there,” Yang chided, letting Blake press herself into her open hand. “If you make me fall down while I’m doing this, it’s just gonna take longer.”

Blake’s tail lazily and unapologetically wrapped itself around Yang’s leg as she walked in a slow, deliberate circle. If Weiss was reading the room correctly, it definitely appeared as though Blake was flirting - something that she evidently enjoyed doing in this form.

Ruby walked up to Weiss, letting out a tiny sound so that Weiss knew she was there. Weiss turned, careful not to smack Ruby in the face with her tail. Once they were facing one another, Weiss started to give Ruby a few small licks, affectionate but not too overbearing. Based on the lazy wag of Ruby’s tail, she appeared to be enjoying it. When Weiss stopped, Ruby bowed her head a little, looking at the ground. It was almost a respectful gesture, in a way, and for one reason or another, Weiss decided to gently press her forehead into Ruby’s.

Ruby made a soft sound at that - probably as close to a gasp as she could make in this form. After a moment, though, she returned the contact, even gently rubbing her head into it a little. Weiss felt herself relax as she did. Their talk had certainly been intense, and they still hadn’t gotten to everything just yet, but it appeared that the Ruby she’d been getting to know was hesitantly making her way back.

Weiss’ heart finally began to settle.

“There - got it!” Yang said triumphantly. She looked down at Blake with mock annoyance. “Yeah, you were very helpful, as always.” Blake turned away, tail held high, as if to convey that she had no idea what Yang was talking about.

“Everyone all set?” Yang asked, as the last person still capable of speech. They all gave her approximate nods, and Weiss already found herself feeling a bit silly. “Okay, then,” she said. She met Weiss’ eyes for a moment. “Remember, if you get lost, follow our scents back to the blanket. Howl if you can’t find it, and then stay put - we’ll all be right there.”

Ruby brushed up against Weiss at that, reassuringly. She knew that Ruby wouldn’t leave her side for a second.

Yang dropped to her hands and knees, shifting rather quickly. Now that Weiss had a better picture of all of them, she could tell that Yang was noticeably larger than her and Ruby. Weiss, however, was actually in the middle in terms of sizing - though her winter coat had (according to Ruby) come in early, and thus contributed a fair amount to her apparent size with just the length of her fur.

Yang, now standing there in all her glory, walked out in front of all of them, head held high. She sat back on her haunches and let out a triumphant howl, her voice proud and clear. Ruby sidled up next to her, joining in. Her song was a slightly higher pitch, and it had more yips and yelps, contrasting Yang’s one contiguous note.

Weiss observed them for a moment. Quickly, though, she gave in, walking up on Yang’s other side.

Weiss had been singing ever since she was a child. Her ear wasn’t remarkably gifted, but she could generally pull out a middle C when necessary. She certainly didn’t know much about music theory, either, and could only read treble clef, but the more musical aspects of this activity did appeal to her enough that she figured she might as well try it.

Weiss sat back on her haunches and sang.

She tried to go about it in an abstract way, perhaps so that she didn’t have to think too much about what she was doing from an outside perspective. She could hear the pitch that Ruby and Yang were going for, and she mostly tried to stay within that range.

As soon as her note mingled with theirs, the siblings immediately stopped, and Weiss could briefly feel their eyes on her. She accidentally let a few yips into her howl in response, now suddenly rather nervous. Yang looked back upwards, though, howling again - somehow even more bold now that Weiss was singing along. Ruby was quick to join her, and Weiss took a breath, letting herself sing one more long, clear note.

They all finished at around the same time, and they looked forward to find Blake, curled up on her side in front of them. Her tail flicked back and forth impatiently, and Weiss could have sworn that she was somehow raising an eyebrow at Yang. The look on her face was almost comically obvious. Are you done?

Yang took two steps towards her, licking her forehead once. Blake closed her eyes as if she were generously choosing to permit this, and Yang leaned back before taking a huge, bounding leap over her, running into the thick of the trees. Blake stood up almost lazily, stretching. She then quickly sprinted after her girlfriend, her muscular body moving with impossible efficiency.

Ruby took a few steps forward, looking over her shoulder at Weiss. It was clear that she figured that Weiss wanted to take things a bit more slowly, and though Weiss certainly appreciated the sentiment, she wasn’t about to follow up that frankly exhilarating feeling of howling at the top of her lungs with slow, careful walking.

She gave Ruby a mischievous look and took off running.

Running felt good - running was amazing. The feeling of her paws striking the ground, the wind blowing through her fur… there was nothing like it. Weiss had never been one to really enjoy something like running or jogging - fencing kept her in shape, and laps around the gym were a part of her warm-up and cool-down, but this… this was different.

Ruby quickly appeared alongside her, clearly pleased that Weiss had taken to this so easily. Weiss dodged around foliage, truly enjoying the physical exertion in a way that she hadn’t imagined was possible. She watched a squirrel desperately scamper up a tree at her approach, but she paid it no mind, moving far too quickly to care.

To her surprise, she nearly bowled over Blake, who had now stopped next to Yang. Yang’s nose was pressed against the ground, and she roamed over the dirt with scrutiny, like she’d dropped something. Blake wasn’t as insistent, but Weiss could tell that she smelled something, too. The two of them walked back and forth for a little while, apparently trying to pick something up.

Weiss leaned down herself - she didn’t really know what she was looking for, if she was being honest. She could easily pick out the dirt, some grass, the faint woodsy smell of the trees…

She stopped at something - it was subtle, underneath all the olfactory noise. For a moment she thought she might have found whatever it was that the two of them were looking for, but upon closer inspection, she realized that the “trail” she’d been following belonged to Blake.

With a huff, she looked up at Ruby, whose idle searching appeared to be taking on a more promising direction. After a few moments, she picked her head up, letting out a short woof to tell the others that she’d found something. Yang padded her way over, and Blake walked around Weiss’ other side, almost startling her. She wasn’t kidding about being nearly silent.

After they both picked up on whatever Ruby had found, they looked up, with Yang giving Blake a little lick. They then quickly separated, making a wide circle together.

Weiss remembered what Ruby and Yang had explained to her. They hunted like a pack, splitting up to surround their prey, corner it, and cut off its means of escape. Blake was more accustomed to being a solitary hunter - apparently, even during her time in the White Fang, she’d been mostly tasked with feeding herself. But, after spending around a year’s worth of moons with Yang, she’d become better at working with her, and they’d apparently fallen into a bit of a rhythm.

Their general plan for this evening involved the three wolves cornering whatever it was they found, chasing it to where Blake would hopefully be waiting to pounce from a tree. Ruby and Yang were perfectly experienced corralling a wild animal between just the two of them, so Weiss could simply stick with Ruby and mostly observe her. They’d all made it abundantly clear that it was fine if they didn’t catch anything, and that Weiss could participate as much or as little as she wanted, which she was extremely grateful for.

Ruby got her attention with a little yip, and Weiss realized that she’d been spacing out. Ruby’s nose was pointed to a particular clump of grass, indicating that she wanted Weiss to observe it. When she did so, she finally caught the scent - she honestly had no idea what kind of creature it was - that ability, she’d been told, would come with time - but it was certainly distinct enough that she figured she’d be able to pick it out from the other things in the little forest.

Ruby, satisfied that Weiss had gotten a good grasp on what they were hunting, began to walk forward, in the direct middle of the paths that Blake and Yang had taken. She moved at a reasonable pace, though it appeared she was deliberately slowing herself down for Weiss’ sake as they followed the scent.

It went on like this for around fifteen minutes or so. Weiss couldn’t have been quite certain - she felt almost entirely in control of herself in this form, but she did have to admit that her sense of time, as well as a few other small things, was a bit muddled. She idly wondered if that was just what being a were was like, or if it was something she’d get better at with experience.

Ruby’s pace began to slow, and Weiss immediately followed suit, crouching down behind a bush. She was rather aware that she stuck out like a sore thumb amongst all the dark browns and greens of the foliage around them, and Ruby’s goal appeared to be stealth. Silently, she looked straight ahead, and Weiss followed her gaze, peeking her head out just a little.

A medium-sized buck, maybe about half a foot taller than Yang’s wolf, was idly grazing in a small clearing. He appeared peaceful enough, though Weiss couldn’t help but notice his rather massive antlers - they definitely looked like they could do some damage in the right circ*mstances.

Weiss had never felt a particular love for wild animals, but she had to admit that she did feel a bit of sympathy for the creature, now that she knew its fate. She understood that part of being a wolf was getting accustomed to the actual hunting part of hunting, but she did still feel a twinge of guilt for her involvement with what was about to happen.

Ruby looked up at her, checking in. Weiss gave her a small nod, ready.

Ruby stood up, tilting her head to the sky once more. She sucked in a breath and howled. The deer immediately raised his head in alarm, one beady eye finding its way to Ruby instantly. It seemed to panic, turning on a dime and bolting away.

This, Weiss quickly learned, was the wrong choice, as Yang burst out from the undergrowth, bearing down on the buck from the direction that it had just started to run. The frightened creature skidded to a halt, and Yang took the slightest step to Weiss’ right, immediately provoking the buck to turn left. Weiss recognized the feint - she wasn’t actually aiming to take the thing down on her own, but her quick little gesture had corralled it closer to where Blake inevitably lay in wait.

Ruby took off with Yang, keeping pace with the buck on either side of it. Weiss hurried to follow her, keeping her distance. She didn’t want to interfere, but she also didn’t want to lose Ruby.

The buck began to outpace them, as its top speed easily bested their own - but Weiss knew that the three of them had far more endurance overall, and that it couldn’t keep its dead sprint up for long.

Just then, a tree up ahead made the slightest noise, and like a shadow stretching in the sunset, Blake pounced down from the lower branches. It appeared that she hadn’t been expecting a buck, because there was no way that she’d be able to get a clean hit from above it with those antlers in the way. She was forced to leap over its body, attempting to catch its hind legs on her way down. The buck twisted, trying to keep itself out of the range of her claws. Blake coiled into the ground like a spring, preparing herself for another leap.

Yang came up from the side, trying to tag the creature, but she barely got a decent hit. Their numbers advantage was clear, but the buck was still absurdly muscular, throwing a powerful kick in Yang’s direction with its hind legs. She dodged its hooves, but had to leap backwards a bit to do it, moving herself out of threatening range. Blake tried to go for a brutal kill bite, but the buck was already moving again, and while she tore into its flank with her claws, the buck was still on his feet.

He ran into the space that he’d created from threatening Yang, and Ruby pursued him while Blake was still getting back up from her previous swipe. She was only on the ground for maybe half a second, but that was plenty of time for the buck to get a head start. Weiss closed in with Ruby - she wasn’t sure if she was ready to actually bite into the thing, exactly, but she could certainly be another body pursuing it.

Weiss trailed the buck from behind, nearing its right hind leg while Ruby threatened its left. Ruby then leapt, attempting to tear at the leg on her side, but she slightly overestimated her jump distance, and the buck turned, letting Ruby fly past him. She landed and spun around with a frustrated growl, now actually staring the buck down face-to-face.

Weiss’ heart momentarily stopped - Ruby was directly in front of the buck’s horns, and he had apparently gone from ‘flight’ to ‘fight.’ He lowered his head at Ruby, threatening to dig his horns underneath her soft underbelly. Ruby growled and even barked a few times, trying to intimidate him, but the buck was undeterred. His breathing was heavy, even ragged - this looked like his only chance to get out.

His hind leg suddenly came out from under him, and he whined with shock, his head lifting up to see behind him. In that split second, he exposed his throat, and Ruby took the opportunity to tear into it.

Yang hit the buck from the side a second later, and Blake was there right beside her in an instant. They brought him down, now almost gentle, once the fight had left him.

With their hunt successful, all three of them stared at Weiss.

She sat back on her haunches for a moment, recalling what, exactly, had just happened. The instant that the buck was threatening Ruby, Weiss had moved without thinking, her jaws wrapping around the tendons in his hind leg and pulling. It almost didn’t even feel like a choice - her body had just naturally responded the moment that Ruby was in danger.

The adrenaline coursing through Weiss’ veins slowly began to fade as she watched the three of them tear off their pieces, settling down to eat. Weiss wasn’t sure that she had the stomach to watch them, but when she looked back down at the buck, her cheeseburger suddenly wasn’t as filling as it had been an hour ago. Letting out a tiny sigh, she very carefully dug her teeth into that same spot, and let her instincts take over again.

It didn’t take them very long to finish, and Weiss soon heard Blake stand up, gently dragging her tongue across Yang’s front legs to clean up a little bit of spattered blood. Weiss looked down at her own front paws with a bit of frustration - her stark white coat was now covered in mud up to her elbows. There were also a few red spots, and probably more on her face.

Timidly, Weiss stood and made her way over to them. She lied down with her front paws in plain view, hoping that her intention was clear. Ruby wandered over, stopping to look at her. Yang sat up on her haunches, gently butting her head against Ruby’s flank, obviously urging her in Weiss’ direction.

Ruby looked back over her shoulder at Yang, almost insulted, but Yang just gave an unapologetic look, tending to the matted fur around Blake’s mouth. Ruby met Weiss’ eyes, clearly still a bit afraid. Weiss, having absolutely none of that, sat up and began to delicately groom some of the fur around Ruby’s jaws - she was probably the dirtiest out of all of them, since she’d taken the buck down in the first place.

Ruby froze at Weiss’ touch, even her tail going stock-still. But after a few seconds, Weiss felt her body relax as her tail resumed a lazy wag. Weiss stopped, inspecting her handiwork. Ruby was mostly clean, so Weiss affectionately rubbed her head against Ruby’s, getting a lick in return. She sat back, and Ruby began to carefully groom her, clearly still a bit nervous about the whole thing.

That was fine, for Weiss. She was more than happy to be patient.

Eventually, the four of them found their way back to the blanket they’d left out - Ruby had taken point, and they mostly followed her nose. Weiss flopped down, tired from all of their running, and, if she was honest, slipping into a little bit of a food coma from eating so late at night. She didn’t notice that Ruby and Yang had both changed back, though she figured it was so that they could start cleaning up their little campsite. She heard them talking back and forth to each other, but she had only half a mind to pay attention. Blake, too, was pretty zoned-out, lying on her back and shifting around, trying to scratch her shoulders.

Curiously, though, Ruby sat down in front of Weiss, with the beach towel that they’d brought in her hands. Mercifully, she’d thrown on some underwear and a shirt.

“Hey,” Ruby said. “Um… thanks, for everything with that buck. I dunno how he cornered me like that - he was a lot smarter than I thought he’d be…”

“It was my bad,” Yang said over her shoulder. “I should’ve stayed on him when he tried to kick me.”

“Still…” Ruby shrugged it off. “Either way, I appreciated the help.”

Weiss sat up, giving her a big, warm lick, right on her face. Ruby immediately burst into giggles. “Thank you,” she laughed. She held up the towel in her hands. “Here, Dad hates it when we bring mud into the house - do you mind?”

“You’re next, Blake,” Yang said, having brought the bag with their clothes down from the tree limb.

Blake let out an annoyed huff, but it soon gave in to a purr when Yang started scratching between her shoulder blades.

Weiss gave Ruby a grateful nod, standing up. She held out her front paw, letting Ruby wipe away most of the mud. The other one didn’t take long, and Ruby slid over behind her to get the back paws.

Weiss felt her tail thump against something.

“Hey!” Ruby complained. “Watch the face!”

Weiss let out an embarrassed yip, which immediately got a laugh from both sisters.

“All set,” Ruby said, running her hand along Weiss’ back. “Feel better?” Weiss turned around, immediately running her tongue from Ruby’s chin all the way up to her forehead. “I’ll take that as a yes,” she laughed, tossing the towel over to Yang. She wiped the remaining mud off of her hands before tending to Blake.

Weiss enjoyed the scratches that Ruby started giving her, though one of her ears turned in Blake’s direction when she hissed.

“Sorry, sorry,” Yang said, chuckling as she brought the towel down on Blake’s paws again. “I know, this one is sensitive.”

Blake gently laid her head back down, apparently satisfied with Yang’s new, slower pace.

Weiss once again marvelled at how normal everything felt right now. This situation was objectively strange - probably the single oddest life experience that she’d ever had up until this point. In the last few hours, she’d gone into the woods and gotten naked with three other girls before actually hunting a wild animal with them. Their grooming tasks were so lighthearted that they could have easily been having a pillow fight instead of cleaning dirt and even blood off of one another. Not to mention the fact that she had actually howled at the moon.

But, as Ruby’s tender fingers kept scratching behind her one ear - she felt her tail start to thump against the ground as Ruby found a particularly good spot - she realized that in some respect, she’d given up on any concept of ‘normal’ a long time ago. Strange as it all was, she still felt relatively at ease with the pace with which she’d started to take up being a werewolf.

Normal was what she made of it. And to Weiss, lying on a picnic blanket at probably one o’ clock in the morning, letting her college roommate scratch behind her wolf ears, looking up at the beautiful crescent moon…

It felt like the most normal thing in the world.

“All set,” Yang said, earning herself a lick on the cheek from Blake. Weiss imagined that it must feel rather sandpaper-y, but Yang didn’t seem to mind. “Ready to head back, everyone?” Weiss stretched herself out in Ruby’s lap, and she followed Blake off of their little blanket. The two sisters quickly worked to fold it up, and Ruby scooped it up in her arms. Yang had the bag full of their clothes over her shoulder.

Weiss sort of co*cked her head for a moment, wondering about their usual routine when it came to this. It wasn’t as though they could willingly change back on a full moon - not until morning, at least…

Ruby, apparently reading her mind, spoke up. “We normally just sleep on the blanket and head back home in the morning,” she said. “But…” she gave Weiss a tender look. “We figured that you’d be more comfortable back in the house.”

That made sense. She and Ruby had honestly been avoiding being out at night when they could, just in case any vampires came for them again. They’d been a bit worried on their way home from Oobleck’s class that week, but fortunately their short walk had been uneventful. Whether that was due to luck, or to Yang and Blake accompanying them the entire way, was anyone’s guess. Weiss hoped it was the former, but was grateful for the latter all the same.

Weiss trotted along at Ruby’s hip as they made their way back to Tai’s home - the walk was a lot more pleasant without the tension that had hung over them on the way out. They quietly entered through a back door, and after a short hallway, Weiss recognized Tai’s living room. Surprisingly, it had already been set up in a blanket fort, though it was slightly less elaborate than their previous design.

“Oh, yeah,” Yang chuckled, keeping quiet because she knew Tai was asleep. “This is why Blake and I took so long - we figured we’d get it out of the way beforehand…”

Weiss was all too happy to hear that. She figured that building the fort was likely what had improved Blake’s disposition after telling her whole story to them that evening. She heard Yang walk into the laundry room, putting their dirty clothes and the beach towel directly into the laundry machine. Ruby had shaken the dirt out of the blanket in the backyard, and she went to go return it to its place in their closet.

Sleepy and satisfied, Weiss padded into the fort, flopping down on her chest. Blake wasn’t far behind, leaning her back against Weiss’ flank. Ruby, now in her wolf again, quickly joined them, with Yang in tow. She let Yang walk in first, and she settled up against Blake, who adjusted to lay her head on Yang’s back when she curled up. Ruby slowly padded in, careful not to knock anything down in the new, admittedly smaller fort design. She sat next to Weiss. After a moment’s hesitation, Weiss exhaled with relief, as sure enough, Ruby gently draped her head across Weiss’ shoulders.

For the moment, all was right with the world, and sleep soon came for her.

When they awoke the next morning, Tai offered to let Weiss drop some of her clothes off at the were-friendly tailor that he’d mentioned last weekend. The short woman behind the counter, who apparently owned the place, had introduced herself as “Maria.” Unfortunately, she hadn’t been able to save Weiss’ dress, not without an obvious stitch. Weiss thanked her regardless, and was happy to let Maria use the rest of it for fabric scraps.

She’d actually had to let her tail out in Maria’s back room while she took a few measurements, wanting to make proper space for it. It had been more than a little embarrassing for Weiss as an elderly woman wrapped a measuring tape around the base of her tail, but when she had told Weiss to “quit fidgeting” for the third time, she obeyed out of sheer awkwardness. However, once that business had concluded, Maria promised that she’d have all of Weiss’ pants and tights altered by the end of the week, and her price was very reasonable. Weiss had made sure to tip generously. On their way out, Maria had called after Tai.

“You tell that daughter of yours that if she grows out of another pair of pants, I’m gonna start charging her double for a year,” she’d muttered. “I’m honestly glad to be doing this for somebody else, for a change.”

“According to Ruby, she’s just about done growing,” Tai had replied. “Which is very good news for my wallet. She’s had the same pair of shoes for almost four months now - it’s very exciting.” Maria had just given him a chuckle and a smile as they headed out.

After that, he’d driven Weiss and Ruby back to campus, with Blake and Yang not too far behind on Bumblebee. By late afternoon, she and Ruby were at the grocery store, stocking up for the week.

“Ruby, why are you buying all of that popcorn?”

Ruby looked over her shoulder, nervous for a moment. “Oh, umm… I was actually thinking that we could do a movie night tonight. You deserve a break after all the activity last night, plus there’s the moon…”

Weiss froze.

“What about the moon?” She asked, her voice carefully soft. “Is… is there another supermoon, or…?”

“Oh!” Ruby said, realizing she’d forgotten something. “No, no, don’t worry about that. If anything, it’ll actually be the opposite…”

Weiss co*cked her head. Fortunately, they were alone in the aisle, which was rare for a Saturday.

“So, it was a waning crescent last night,” Ruby explained. “And since the full moon is in two weeks, tonight is a new moon.”

Weiss’ brow furrowed, imagining what that meant.

“So, what, are we gonna be extra-human tonight or something?” She asked, keeping her voice down. Ruby laughed.

“In a way, I guess. No transforming, no ears, no tails - we’ll just be a pair of regular, squishy humans with a really good sense of smell and super-healing.” Ruby shrugged, a bit of pink on her cheeks. “I’m sorry, I should have explained this... I’m still getting used to remembering that you’re Turned. Most of us can feel a new moon coming, because it’s that one day a month where we feel really lazy and tired and don’t wanna do anything. Dad, Yang and I used to always do movie night.”

“It’s okay, Ruby,” Weiss said softly. “I figure that there’s… a lot to cover, if nothing else.” She gave her a smile. “A movie night sounds lovely, but I’m afraid that you’ll have to have that popcorn all by yourself.”

“Oh, what a tragedy,” Ruby lamented sarcastically. She laughed. “Thanks, Weiss. Want me to grab you snacks or anything?”

“Do you remember what that candy I had at the movie theatre was called?” Weiss asked. Ruby smiled.

“Oh, yeah. I know where they are, I’ll go grab some.”

“Sure. Oh, did you pick up the pasta yet?”

“Not yet. Can you get some? The ones that’re little bow ties?”

Weiss rolled her eyes.

“Only you could have a favorite shape of pasta.”

“The other ones don’t taste as good!”

“Never change, Ruby. Never change.”

The two of them had already started using a shared grocery list - there really wasn’t much of a point to do anything else, because Ruby was the only one cooking, and Weiss wasn’t picky. It was a rhythm that they’d fallen into naturally, grocery shopping together on Saturdays. The store that they usually went to was around half a mile from campus. Since neither of them had a car, and Vale was mostly a walking city anyways, they had to make the trip on foot. Going together meant that they’d actually be able to carry back everything that they needed for the week in one trip.

Obviously, Weiss thought, the convenience wasn’t the only benefit - any time she got to spend with Ruby, especially with all of the time to chat that their walking trip afforded them, was time well-spent as far as she was concerned.

“Hey!” Ruby said, appearing next to Weiss, her candies now in Ruby’s basket. “Ready to go?”

“Oh - yes, sorry, I must’ve just spaced out for a second.”

Ruby smiled.

“Yeah, the new moon will do that to you.”

Weiss shrugged, starting to follow her to the checkout counter.

“I guess so - honestly, I’ve just been tired enough from everything with my father, talking to Winter, this weekend… not to mention all my homework.” She sighed. “I don’t think I would have noticed the moon making me tired, even if I had known about it beforehand.”

“Don’t worry,” Ruby chuckled. “We can get home, unpack all this stuff, flop onto our beds, and watch any movie you like.”

“Ruby, it’s four in the afternoon,” Weiss laughed. “I thought it was supposed to be a movie night.”

“Nights can start as early as we want!” Ruby declared.

“Fair enough,” Weiss said. She let out a surprisingly big yawn, stretching for a moment, and for some reason, her first instinct was to put her arms around Ruby immediately afterwards. The thought startled her awake - for one thing, Ruby was checking out with her groceries, so Weiss lazily grabbing her would definitely hinder that activity, and she didn’t want to be rude.

Secondly, though… they were in public. Weiss certainly liked hugging Ruby... leaning against Ruby... snuggling with Ruby - but she’d never actually expressed any of that physical affection in public before. For some irritating reason, that made it all a bit more real for her - when they were alone in their room, casually leaning against each other and chatting, that was one thing. It still allowed plausible deniability that they were still just friends. But if Weiss were to do something like that here… any onlookers would certainly interpret that as romantic, and Weiss just wasn’t sure if Ruby would be comfortable with that.

On some level, she knew she was being silly. Even if she and Ruby were dating, that would certainly be an acceptable thing to do in public - Blake and Yang held hands nearly everywhere that they went. Yang’s arm even found its way around Blake’s shoulders sometimes during Oobleck’s lectures, and no one had ever given them a second look about any of it - except her father, of course. So who would care what onlookers thought, even if they weren’t actually together?

But still… something about that public aspect of it all seemed like it would make the idea of a romantic relationship between herself and Ruby - something that Weiss imagined more frequently than she would ever admit - more obvious, more out in the open. She didn’t want to put that kind of pressure on Ruby about the whole thing, especially after their conversation last night…

“Weiss!” Ruby said, startling her out of her thoughts.

“Oh!” She said, quickly unloading her basket onto the checkout counter. “Sorry, my head’s been in the clouds all day.” The young man behind the counter just gave her a nod - fortunately, there was no one behind her, so she was spared that embarrassment. They quickly checked out, and soon she and Ruby were sharing the sidewalk back to campus.

“What were you thinkin’ about?” Ruby asked.

Weiss already felt her cheeks getting a bit pink. She wasn’t certain if Ruby would want to talk about what was on her mind this soon, and especially not relatively in public.

“L-last night,” she admitted.

“Oh,” Ruby said, her voice small.

“It’s okay,” Weiss said immediately. “We don’t have to talk about it here, I just…”

“Yeah,” Ruby said, a little sullen. Weiss frowned. She was not about to let Ruby get wrapped up in her own head about this again - if she did try to broach the subject later tonight, in their room, that would only make things worse.

“Also,” Weiss said, making Ruby perk up at the change of topic, “I was wondering about my father, and the new moon.”

Ruby’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”

“Well,” Weiss admitted, “It’s clear that he… wants me to be a vampire. And I don’t think he knows I’m a werewolf, but he definitely knows that you are.”

Ruby gave a tiny shrug at that, conceding the point.

“And you said we can’t transform tonight, because of the moon, right?” Ruby nodded. “So… I guess I’m worried that he might try something today.”

“Yeah.” Ruby looked at the ground. “I’ll admit, I… part of why I wanted to do movie night was so that we were inside before sundown. Just in case, y’know?”

“That’s probably smart,” Weiss agreed. She looked over at Ruby, who was still looking down a little. “No need to feel bad about it,” Weiss said warmly. “You’re just looking out for me.”

“Yeah, but…” Ruby sighed. “I also could’ve just told you. I guess I didn’t wanna talk about your dad and stuff, ‘cuz I’m sure it’s not very fun to think about, so…”

“That’s sweet.” Weiss said. Ruby met her eyes - this was not what she had been expecting, clearly. “I appreciate it, and trust me, once Whitley and I are free of that man, I will very much enjoy spending several days or even weeks in a row never speaking about him.”

Ruby let out a small laugh.

“But until then,” Weiss said, her tone gentle, “I think I’ll be able to talk about him every once in a while.” She paused. “I do appreciate the gesture, though.”

Finally, Ruby looked up at her, her smile tiny, but warm.

“Thanks.” Her smile faded, and she added, “If he does try something… what do you think it’ll be?”

“I’m not sure,” Weiss said honestly. “He cut me off, in the financial sense, a few days ago. Fortunately I was able to get that two million that he had in stocks that were under my name, because I remembered which stockbroker was handling all of ‘my’ finances. I’m lucky that I turned eighteen already, so the money did technically become mine.” She paused. “But I still haven’t actually heard anything from him.”

“Is that… normal?” Ruby asked. “I mean, it seems like communication really isn’t his strong suit, what with the whole ‘left his daughter on read for four freaking days’ thing, but…”

Weiss sighed.

“Honestly? I think he’s expecting me to call him, asking for his money back.”

Ruby scoffed. “That’s so gross.” Weiss just nodded. “What… what do you think he’ll do if you just… don’t? Ever?”

“I doubt he’ll just leave it there, if that’s what you were hoping,” Weiss said. By the small sound of disappointment that Ruby made, she had indeed been hoping that. She shrugged. “I guess I could just call him and tell him I’m a wolf now.”

Ruby laughed. “The look on his face would probably be worth it.”

“No kidding,” Weiss said. “Let me try texting Whitley again. I just asked him something casual last time, so maybe he was busy and forgot about it. If I make it sound a bit more serious, I think he’ll reply.”

“Okay,” Ruby said, tepidly encouraging. “Are you two, like… close?”

“Not really,” Weiss admitted. “We’re certainly nowhere near as close as you and Yang, or even as close as Winter and I am now. Whitley always kind of did his own thing, which was usually doing whatever he could to take after Father.”

Ruby paused. “Think he’s…” she didn’t pantomime fangs with her hands because they were full, but the overdramatic hiss that she made (plus her fake angry expression) told Weiss what she meant.

“Whitley’s only fourteen,” she said. “Think he’d wait until he actually became an adult first, so he wouldn’t stay a child forever?”

“Maybe,” Ruby shrugged. “Does Whitley have social media or anything? A recent sunlight pic might tell us.” Weiss smiled at her cleverness.

“I’ll look into that when we get home,” she said. She laughed a little, remembering last Friday night. It felt like years ago. “I’m sure that you’ll be very surprised to hear that Father hates that I call it that.”

“Sounds like a him problem,” Ruby shrugged. More serious, she asked, “Do you… mean that?”

“Of course I do, Ruby,” Weiss said. “The Schnee manor certainly isn’t a home to me anymore.”

“No, I… I know,” she said. “But still, you… you think of our room like a home? Not just a place you live or anything?”

“Yes,” Weiss said, without hesitation. She smiled as they walked up to their building. “After all, my dresses are there, as is my rapier, my computer, not to mention all of my shoes…”

Ruby rolled her eyes. “Well, when you put it like that...” she said, trailing off.

Weiss turned, giving her a smile and a wink once she called the elevator.

“I may have a few other reasons, too.”

As the credits rolled on Weiss’ choice of movies (a delightfully silly romantic comedy), Ruby got up to stretch and make more popcorn before the next one. They’d moved her computer monitor, the biggest screen they had, to be visible from Ruby’s bed and created a half-decent back rest out of pillows against the wall. Weiss’ shoulder had been touching Ruby’s, but the angle of their sitting was a bit too awkward to fully lean against her. The general aura that she’d been giving off had made Weiss have second thoughts about trying.

She gathered up her courage. It was time to talk to her about it.

“Hey, Ruby,” Weiss said, causing her to turn around. It was honestly a little odd to see her like this - in their room, early in the evening, wearing comfy clothes, without her ears and tail - but Weiss pushed through it anyways. “Before the next one, do you… wanna maybe continue our talk from last night?”

Ruby’s shoulders fell a little bit. “I… sure, if you had something specific in mind. What did you wanna ask about?”

“I just…” Weiss paused. “Are you… feeling okay about it? Or maybe at least a little better?”

Ruby shrugged. She put the popcorn in their microwave, a recent housewarming gift from Qrow. It appeared to be ten years old and had arrived in a sorry-looking box, but it worked. She set the timer, but didn’t press the ‘start’ button yet, knowing it would make noise. Weiss also figured that she didn’t know how long this conversation would take, and the popcorn might get cold.

“I dunno. I’m a little better, I guess, it’s just… weird. I don’t know how to quantify it, y’know?”

“Me neither,” Weiss admitted readily. Carefully, she patted the bed next to her, turning so that she and Ruby could face one another. “I… I’d like to hear your story again, or I suppose with a little more detail.” She paused. “If… if you’re okay with sharing.”

“Honestly, there really isn’t much else to share,” Ruby admitted. She started walking towards her bed and hopped up, sitting cross-legged about a foot away form Weiss. “My ex and I were together for about two years. We were… normal, I guess, and happy, until she broke up with me pretty spontaneously, and then over the next few months I started hearing all these rumors about how ‘abusive’ I was. It was nothing specific, and I know none of it was true, but…” she sighed. “When you know someone that well, for that long, and they say something like that about you… some part of it has to be true, right?”

Weiss’ brow furrowed.

“Did she ever tell you that she felt uncomfortable with anything while you two were actually together?” Weiss asked. “Because the way you’re telling it, it seems like all of this started afterwards, so…”

Ruby thought back for a moment. “Well, there was one thing, I guess, early on, but…”

Weiss just gave her a nod, encouraging that she continue.

“Um…” Ruby said, her cheeks going a bit pink. “After we’d been dating for like two months, we were, uh… making out…” she seemed very embarrassed telling this to Weiss, who actively made efforts not to picture Ruby passionately kissing another girl, and simply gave her another nod. “And I, uh… I started to take her shirt off, and she stopped kissing me, and told me she didn’t want to.”

“And?” Weiss asked.

“Well, I stopped,” Ruby said. “I asked her if she still wanted to kiss, or if she just wanted to chill out or do something else, and she said it was okay if we kept kissing.” Ruby’s cheeks got a little redder. “Well, she used her mouth to say it, but what she did wasn’t technically speaking…”

Weiss rolled her eyes. “Yes, you can spare me the details.”

Ruby just nodded, still visibly embarrassed.

“Okay, then,” Weiss said. “So early on, you began to take a step in a direction that she maybe wasn’t ready to take yet, and when she expressed that, you stopped.”

Ruby nodded.

“Then… doesn’t that seem like the complete opposite of what she’s describing?” Weiss asked gently. “Doesn’t it strike you as odd that you didn’t hear anything like this until after the breakup?”

“I dunno!” Ruby said, throwing her hands up in the air. “I don’t know how she feels - she never really said anything to me! So now I’m just kinda sitting here, worried that I hurt her because I didn’t pay close enough attention to her feelings, and even more worried that I’ll do that to someone else.”

“Ruby,” Weiss said gently. “You’re not a mind-reader.”

“And, I mean… I really liked being with her. Like I said, I wanted to hold hands all the time, I’d kiss her in public a lot, I liked calling her ‘my girlfriend’ even when everybody already knew who she was…” Ruby sighed a very tired, very existential sigh. “I just feel so creepy, so… predatory now.” She laughed an empty, hollow laugh. “I guess it probably doesn’t help that I’m a literal apex predator.”

Weiss had to give her that.

“Ruby,” Weiss said again, even more gently. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to fully understand your feelings - both about your past relationship or your current friendship with me.” The word “friendship” didn’t quite feel like a perfect descriptor, here, but it was certainly the closest word that she had. “And your past is only my business to the point that you feel comfortable sharing it with me. Maybe you were a little overzealous with that girl, and maybe in some scenarios that made her uncomfortable, but she couldn’t or didn’t express that for some reason. If that’s the case, then that’s unfortunate, and I’m sorry for both of your sakes that it ended up happening.”

Ruby looked down at her lap, her face filled with gloom.

“But,” Weiss said. “The Ruby Rose that I have been getting to know for the past several weeks has been an extremely kind, considerate, gentle, friendly, and warm person, who I simply could not imagine being even slightly uncomfortable with.” Ruby met her eyes with a soft but grateful smile.

“In fact,” Weiss continued, “I’m pretty sure that I’m infinitely more comfortable being alone in a room with you than I would be with my brother, or even my own father.”

“That’s a pretty low bar,” Ruby muttered.

“Sure it is,” Weiss shrugged, “It’s subterranean. But the point that I’m trying to make here is that you make me feel like I have a family, Ruby. In the short time that I’ve known you, you’ve opened your home to me, treated me like a member of your family, cooked dinner for me every single night, ran halfway across the city for me without even being asked, and in that alley last week, you probably saved my life.”

Ruby shrugged. “Yeah, but… I wanted to protect you. I wanted to be close to you - I still do. I’ll admit, I… I really like being needed by people. I mean, I don’t like it when bad things happen to my friends, not even close, but… I kinda secretly love that I’m the person they come to when they do.”

“Have you perhaps considered that that isn’t a bad thing?” Weiss asked. Ruby’s face scrunched up in confusion. “Ruby,” Weiss said patiently. “I know you probably can’t see it this way, but I’m genuinely amazed that you’ve done all of these things for me. I may have grown up with bad examples, but the point remains that almost no one I know cares about me as much as you do. That makes me care about you more, not less.”

“Yeah, but that was my goal,” Ruby said. “I wanted to be close with you, so I did those things. I thought you were really cool and I wanted you to like me, and -”

“Ruby,” Weiss said, almost exasperated at this point. “That’s what friendship IS. You do things for people, with people, because you care about them, and you want them to be a part of your life.”

Ruby stared at Weiss for an entire minute, completely silent. She barely even blinked.

“... holy f*cking sh*t…” she said quietly.

Weiss gave her a slightly exasperated but still gentle expression, which appeared to say “get it now?”

Ruby was just silent, shaking her head in utter disbelief about how she genuinely had never seen it that way.

“Also, for the record,” Weiss said. “If I didn’t like you, and I didn’t want to be your friend, do you think that you’d be able to magically convince me otherwise just by being nice enough?”

Ruby shrugged.

“I’m around you because I want to be, Ruby. No one is forcing me to.”

“We were randomly-assigned roommates,” Ruby countered.

“And if you had been rude, annoying, or the kind of person who doesn’t replace the toilet paper,” Weiss said, getting Ruby to laugh a little, “I would have called my father and had a single apartment off-campus ready to go within the week.”

Ruby blinked.

“I…” she began, but the sentence didn’t go anywhere.

“Like I said,” Weiss smiled, “I’m around you because I want to be. So please, don’t try to pretend like you don’t deserve to be my friend, or whatever silly thing that that girl managed to convince you. I genuinely enjoy your company, and the moment that that stops being true, I will promptly inform you. Communication is a two-way street, and I don’t expect you to read my mind.”

Ruby let out a small laugh.

“Okay?” Weiss asked.

“Okay,” Ruby said, her shoulders finally relaxing.

Wordlessly, Weiss opened her arms, letting Ruby practically dive forward and crush her into a hug. Because Ruby was stretching forward, her head was lower than Weiss’, so Weiss gently ran her fingers through Ruby’s hair.

“Now, I don’t expect to make all your doubts vanish overnight,” Weiss said gently, as they pulled apart. She scooted forward, putting a hand on Ruby’s knee. “Unfortunately, it seems that your problems, unlike mine, cannot be simply thrown against a wall and defeated in one shot.”

“To be fair, it did take like three or four swings, for most of ‘em,” Ruby said with a quiet laugh.

“Point taken,” Weiss chuckled. “Still - this seems like a lot, and I probably can’t fix all of it for you. Certainly not in one day, as much as I certainly wish that I could.”

Ruby’s smile was tender, understanding, and very, very grateful.

“But still, I hope that this helped - at least when it comes to me,” Weiss said.

“It does,” Ruby nodded, her eyes a little wet. “I… thanks, Weiss. This whole thing has been on my mind for so long, I just… I think I really needed that perspective.”

“You’re very welcome,” Weiss said with a grin. “I’m very, very glad that I could help you with something for a change.” Ruby giggled at that.

“Don’t get used to it,” she laughed.

“Don’t underestimate me,” Weiss threatened.

“Fine, fine,” Ruby relented, with a smile. “Should I start the popcorn, or are you gonna fix any more of my underlying psychological problems?”

Weiss rolled her eyes. It was a bad joke, and they both knew it, but it had worked.

“Just one more little thing,” Weiss said. “Like I said last night, I… I’ve noticed that you’re really hesitant about things like touching or holding me unless I initiate them, or unless I ask.”

Ruby gave a semi-affirmative shrug, looking away.

“That’s… yeah. That’s a part of this whole mess. I just dunno what you’re okay with, and in what moment, so I always wanna lean on the safe side...”

“I figured as much,” Weiss said. “In that case, I’ll offer you this.” She took a breath. “Like I said last night, I enjoy snuggling with you, too - Human Ruby and Wolf Ruby are both very soft and warm.”

Ruby blushed at the compliment.

“So, Ruby Rose, I am telling you right now - I would very much like for you to initiate snuggling with me when you want to. If you’re unsure about what I want or how I’m feeling, then please ask me, and I’ll never be upset with you for doing so. But, and I do mean this in a purely literal, non-euphemistic sense… it’s okay for you to touch me.”

Weiss’ cheeks reddened - while she wanted to be certain that Ruby didn’t interpret her words in the euphemistic sense, even acknowledging the euphemism at all still brought it to mind. Weiss wasn’t even necessarily opposed in theory, but this moment wasn’t really about that, and…

“Okay,” Ruby said, helpfully pulling Weiss out of her thoughts before she spiralled down that rabbit hole any further. Her eyes refocused to a very welcome sight - finally, for the first time in two days, she saw one of Ruby’s trademark thousand-watt smiles.

“I’ll try that.” She paused for a moment. “Thanks again, for… for all of this, Weiss.”

“It was my pleasure,” Weiss said.

She’d happily do anything for one of those smiles.

Around three minutes later, Ruby returned to the bed with a fresh bowl of popcorn, plus another bag of Weiss’ favorite candy, upon request. She scrolled through her laptop for a moment, looking for an action movie that Weiss hadn’t seen, and queued it up.

She sat back down on the bed, careful not to spill any popcorn. When the bowl rested safely in her lap, she put a slow, gentle arm across Weiss’ shoulders.

“Is… is this okay?” Ruby asked.

“Yes,” Weiss immediately confirmed. She nestled her head into Ruby’s shoulder, her new favorite spot in the world. Her chest began to buzz with a warm, satisfied feeling, and while she wasn’t quite ready to express her full feelings to Ruby just yet… Weiss somehow felt bold enough to take a quiet little risk.

“Oh, how’re you liking movie night so far?” Ruby asked, delaying Weiss’ plans for a slight second. “I was wondering if you wanted to start doing this every new moon…”

She reached up with her arm, gently pulling Ruby’s face just a little bit closer down.

Tilting her head up, she placed a very quick and light kiss on Ruby’s cheek.

She pulled away almost instantly, though she did allow herself a teensy smile of satisfaction when she noticed that Ruby’s entire face had gone scarlet almost immediately.

Weiss settled back into Ruby’s chest as if nothing had happened at all, answering her question.

“I would like nothing better.”

Chapter 15: The Hunted

Chapter Text

Ruby stiffened.

“What is it?” Weiss asked.

“Something’s wrong,” she replied. “Do you smell that?”

Weiss sniffed at the air, but she couldn’t detect anything out of the ordinary.

“No,” she said. “All I can smell is your popcorn.” The bowl was now mostly empty, as they had nearly finished up their second movie of the evening.

“Just… give me a second,” Ruby said quietly. The suspicion in her voice made Weiss apprehensive, and as Ruby hopped off the bed to warily approach their door, Weiss stood to pause the movie on Ruby’s computer. She then took a short moment to check her scroll, which she had left on her bed.

When she flipped the device over, she panicked.

Dozens of text messages and calls from her father instantly greeted her as the screen lit up. Silently freaking out, she opened the text messages, her heart stopping as she read the most recent one. It was so simple, and yet so terrifying.

I’m on my way.

“R-Ruby,” Weiss stuttered, her voice small.

Ruby instantly turned, crossing the floor to Weiss in four long strides, wrapping her up in her arms.

“What is it?” she asked, her tone unwaveringly serious.

Wordlessly, Weiss showed her the screen, causing Ruby’s face to darken so heavily that for a moment, it was as though Blake had redrawn those thunderclouds back on her cheeks.

“He-he’ll be here,” she said dumbly.

“Shh,” Ruby said, pulling Weiss’ body up against her chest. Her fingers tangled in Weiss’ hair. “He can’t just take you. The proctors at the front won’t let him in, and you’re a legal adult now - he can’t compel you to do anything.”

“He sent seven men after us last time, Ruby,” Weiss whimpered. “And - with today, he… he has to know, doesn’t he? That you won’t be able to protect me?”

“I will,” Ruby said. It sounded like a vow. “Sure, I… I can’t change, but I swear to the moon, I will not let that man lay a finger on you.”

Weiss looked up at her, nodding shakily. Ruby met her eyes - her face was hard, but those gorgeous silver orbs remained tender. “Do you want me to call Blake and Yang?” she asked. She sniffed at the air again, her features somehow darkening further.

“He… he’s here, isn’t he?” Weiss asked. Her voice would have sounded accusatory if it wasn’t so shaky. “Tell me, Ruby. Don’t you dare lie to me.”

Ruby’s shoulders fell a little bit. “He’s here,” she admitted. “I can text Blake and Yang - they’ll be on their way in a heartbeat, I know it.”

“Will they…” she stopped, unable to vocalize it. “He’s met them - they’ll be in danger…”

“Okay,” Ruby said quietly. “I… Yang’s gonna be mad at me, but…”

“I don’t care,” Weiss pouted. She hated how childish she sounded. “I… I can’t endanger them.”

“I know,” Ruby said. Her hand carded through Weiss’ hair again. “I know.”

They were quiet for a moment.

“Is he… moving?” Weiss asked. “Can you tell if he’s getting closer?”

“I’m not sure yet,” Ruby admitted. “It’s hard to tell - I think he’s still a ways off. Floors down, maybe.” She sniffed at the air again, her eyebrows furrowing. “He smells… ancient,” she remarked absentmindedly.

Once again, Weiss found herself jealous of Ruby’s nose. At first, she thought it was just because Ruby was a werewolf, but after noticing her ability to pick up on the deer first during their hunt, and after experiencing life as a were herself, she was starting to understand that Ruby’s perception, even for a werewolf, was basically supernatural.

“What does that mean?” Weiss asked. “He’s only, like… forty.”

“Sure, but…” Ruby sniffed at the air once more to confirm. Her face paled upon a realization. “Do you…” she shook her head. “Remember what Professor Oobleck told us, about what makes vampires stronger?”

“He said it was age, right?” Weiss said. Her emotions somewhat faded as a rational side of her brain took over. “Winter told me that she felt pretty weak when she was first Turned, but she got stronger over time. Then when Robyn made her a daywalker, she felt like it stagnated, and even now she can’t lift much more weight than she could when she was human, but…”

She met Ruby’s eyes. “I saw my father in direct sunlight. Even Winter or Robyn would be hurt if they were just wearing a bathing suit. He couldn’t have been a vampire for too long…”

The rational part of her brain, its job now completed, began to fade, as the emotional part resumed control, with her realization serving as a new source of fear. If that was the case, then why did he smell so ancient?

“I don’t know,” Ruby said finally. “I don’t know. But it doesn’t matter right now. I… I’ll be here for you. He won’t get anywhere close to you, I swear.”

There was a very heavy pause between them.

“You can’t promise that,” Weiss said quietly.

Ruby met her eyes with a challenge, but she didn’t disagree.

Weiss inhaled, forcing herself to calm down. Rationally, she knew that the proctor at the front wouldn’t let Jacques enter without a resident to sign him in, and she prayed that no student who lived in the building would be stupid enough to do it for him on their way up.

However, she also knew that at the end of the day, the proctor was just a person, and her father was a powerful creature of the night. If he didn’t feel the necessity to maintain appearances, that singular human person, with no idea what they were up against, likely wouldn’t be able to overpower him in a straight fight. They probably had the means to call campus police, but would they get here in time?

He hadn’t been around to move Weiss in, which probably meant that he didn’t know which room was hers. He’d found her building, sure, but maybe he found that from a university email about the particular move-in procedures for her building. Beacon’s administration had sent it to him, assuming that the person Weiss had put in her “Parent/Guardian email address” field in her contact information would actually be there on her first day. That email hadn’t had her room number, right? It had been a separate email. It must have.

Weiss forced herself to take another breath.

Her father was just a man. He may be a vampire, but he was just one man.

She had faced him before - refused him before.

Ruby had fought seven men that he sent to take her, surviving two stab wounds in the process.

Weiss refused to sit idly by and let Ruby do everything for her.

At one point or another, she knew she’d have to face him.

Apparently, that day was today.

“Weiss?” Ruby asked, as she unceremoniously left Ruby’s embrace. “What is it?”

“I’m calling him,” Weiss replied, businesslike.

“What?” Ruby asked. Her shock appeared to be equally based upon the cold, emotionless tone of Weiss’ voice, and the actual implication of her statement.

“I’m putting a stop to this,” Weiss said. “I’m a werewolf - he can’t Turn me. I don’t need his money anymore, or at the very least I refuse to ask for another cent. I won’t be beholden to him. Winter and I are going to do everything that we can to emancipate Whitley - she has a friend who does family trials like this from law school. After that, I can get a restraining order or some thing and then I’ll never have to hear from him again.”

She was proud of how calm and even icy her tone was.

Ruby had broken through that barrier of hers weeks ago, and Weiss had gladly let her. Blake and Yang were already past it, too. But while that may be true…

It was at least handy that she could still put it back up when she needed to.

Weiss grabbed her scroll. Ruby, once again careful to touch her, simply stood near Weiss, making her presence known. The concern in her posture made Weiss stop for a moment, as it was clear she had something to say.

“Are you sure?” Ruby asked solemnly. Weiss could tell that Ruby wasn’t about to stop her - she was just worried. Weiss had to clench her fist to prevent her heart from melting at Ruby’s concern. Now wasn’t the time for that emotion.

“Yes.” Weiss said. Her voice was like steel.

Ruby’s eyes closed, as if she’d been expecting that response. She let out a tiny huff of a breath, and then nodded. “Okay. Okay, Weiss.” She said. She held up a finger. “I’m still not leaving your side for one single second, and I swear, if he somehow gets in here, I’m going to protect you with my life.”

It wasn’t a request.

Weiss just nodded, refusing to acknowledge the emotions that crept up at Ruby’s dedication.

“I know.” She said. She put the scroll up to her ear.

Ruby took a faltering step towards her, appearing to (perhaps even subconsciously) want to hug Weiss once more. Another version of Weiss would have appreciated the comfort of her arms during this time, but this version found herself unable to. Ruby, sensing this, paused, and turned instead. She went to their closet, and Weiss watched her begin to change clothes.

She tilted her head at the bizarre behavior, until she saw Ruby pull out her motorcycle boots. Her bulky red hoodie also came off, in favor of a sleek, form-fitting tank top.

She was dressing for a fight.

Weiss heard a dial tone on the other end, still eerily calm. It rang once, before the line picked up.

“Hello, Father,” Weiss said curtly, interrupting his greeting. “Can I help you this evening?”

Silence hung in the air from the other end for a moment.

“Good evening, Weiss,” the voice on the other end replied, smooth and silky as always. Weiss was impressed at how well he was masking what she was all too certain was rage.

Perhaps that’s where she’d gotten it from.

“May I have a word with you?” Her father asked, as if he were pulling her aside at a party because he disapproved of her dance partner.

“We’re speaking now,” Weiss said flatly. “What did you wish to discuss?”

The line was quiet again, but Weiss could have sworn that she heard a miniscule, frustrated growl. She allowed the ghost of a smile to creep at the corner of her mouth - she was going to make sure to push that advantage.

“It’s a sensitive, family matter,” her father replied. His emphasis on the word ‘family’ told Weiss everything that she needed to know. “I would prefer to discuss it in person.”

“I’m afraid I’m not available in person at the moment,” Weiss replied. She hadn’t checked her nails, but her almost bored tone implied that she had. “Is the matter so sensitive that it truly can’t be discussed over the phone? I recall that this line is very secure.”

Something appeared to break, slightly, in Jacques. She didn’t even hear it, per se - Weiss almost felt his anger boil up, a like a tangible force, over the phone. Instead of yelling, Jacques’ voice actually quieted, but every single word dripped with gallons and gallons of venom.

“Listen to me very carefully, girl,” Jacques spat, his disgust thickening the air. “I am done playing games with you. You will come downstairs and attend me to my car this instant or I swear that I will -”

“You’ll what, Father?” Weiss asked, unimpressed. She hadn’t been looking at Ruby, per se, but she was in Weiss’ general field of unfocused vision, and even she stopped cold at that, shocked by Weiss’ calm, almost bored interruption. “Will you stop paying my tuition at Beacon, like you have already? Will you cancel all of my cards, like you did three days ago? Will you not allow me to return to the mansion, something I will never do again in a thousand years? Do tell me, please. I’m a legal adult now - you can try whatever you like, but you have no sway over me or any of my decisions.” Her calm, matter-of-fact voice finally hardened as she added two little words. “Not anymore.”

Weiss had expected another silence, or even yelling. She had never spoken back to him like this - even Winter hadn’t, and Winter had been bold enough to knock their father unconscious by drinking a pint of his blood.

Instead, Jacques’ neutral tone returned, his voice smooth as the finest silk.

“Or I’ll take that little redheaded wolf of yours and put her head on a pike.”

Weiss gasped, her resolve shattering. The carefully-crafted suit of armor that she’d worn into this battle with her father turned to dust at his words, as the image he’d described of Ruby stole the breath from her lungs and brought tears to her eyes. Weiss went from infinitely powerful to empty and broken, paralyzed at the horrible concept.

“N-no…” she finally whispered.

“Oh, please,” her father said, already bored of his victory. “She may be a fighter, I’ll give her that. But you and I both know that that mutt can’t protect you forever.” His voice became just a little bit more snide, as he added, “She can’t change tonight - did she tell you that? For twenty-four hours, all wolves lose their teeth. It’s a shame, really. They think themselves so powerful, but their weaknesses are all too easy to exploit.”

Weiss was hardly listening. Her knees were weak, her body hot with sweat. She hadn’t made much of a sound, so Ruby was yet to notice, still lacing her boots. It felt like they were a thousand miles apart, as if Jacques had somehow already begun to take her away.

Weakly, Weiss reached for her, her arm not even strong enough to extend its full length.

“Please,” Weiss said, her voice barely a whisper. “D-Don’t…”

“If you come quietly, then the stupid wolf will be spared,” Jacques said calmly. “I will be there soon. Don’t make this difficult for me, or she will pay the price.”

And with that, he hung up.

Weiss just stood there, shaking. Ruby looked up at her, immediately noticing her distress. Ruby gasped in surprise and ran to her, arms outstretched. Weiss crumpled into Ruby’s embrace, forcing her to basically catch her. At some point, the scroll fell from her hand, bouncing uselessly against the carpet.

“Weiss!” Ruby nearly shouted. “What happened? Are you okay?”

It was strange - even while being held there, safe in Ruby’s arms, Weiss felt as though they were miles apart.

“He - he’s coming,” Weiss said. “I… I have to go with him, I -”

“What?” Ruby shouted. “What did he do to you - did he put a spell on you or something? Weiss, you can’t go with him - you won’t - I won’t let you!”

“Ruby!” Weiss said, stopping her. “It’s not that, it’s…” she took a choking breath. “It’s you. If I don’t go with him he’s going to hurt you.”

Ruby let out a low, angry growl, her previously concerned face tightening into an enraged mask. She spoke, her voice now deep and guttural.

“I’m not going to let that happen.” She said. She met Weiss’ eyes, still fully supporting her weight as Weiss’ legs refused to stay underneath her. “Weiss, we are both staying right here. I don’t care what we have to do - I’m not letting him take you and I’m not going down without a fight.”

“Ruby, you can’t,” Weiss said. “You can’t fight him today - you can’t change!” She shook her head. “He’s already past the proctor, I could hear him taking stairs over the phone. You’re no match for him like this.”

Ruby scowled, her face admitting that Weiss was correct. Suddenly, her face brightened.

“Your sword!” Ruby said. “You pointed it at me when we first met - that could work! Right?”

Weiss just shook her head. “It’s for fencing, Ruby. It’s not sharp, it’s not a weapon.”

“Fine!” Ruby said, frustrated. However, she remained gentle as she carefully put Weiss down on the floor. Weiss reached for her, not wanting to let go, but Ruby stood once more, heading to the kitchen.

She reached into her knife block, pulling out the longest one - maybe eight inches of blade past the handle. She looked it over momentarily, satisfied with its weight and sharpness.

“I hear that beheading vampires works,” Ruby muttered, almost to herself. “I can heal through most of his initial hits, too.”

“Ruby, please,” Weiss whimpered.

Ruby turned, gently walking over to her. She put the knife down on the floor, embracing Weiss one more time. She felt Ruby’s lips tenderly linger on the crown of her head.

“It’s gonna be okay, Weiss,” Ruby said into her hair. “Go hide in the bathroom. I can’t promise that it won’t be ugly, but I can promise that I’ll be the last one standing.”

“I’m not leaving you,” Weiss said, her voice high-pitched and cracking.

“Weiss, he’s almost here, I can smell him,” Ruby said, matter-of-fact. “He’s on our floor now. I dunno how long the lock is gonna hold, but… please. I don’t want him to even see you until he’s dust.”

Just then, there was a knock at the door. A pair of knuckles rapped on it three times, almost polite. The following voice, however, most assuredly was not.

“Weiss, open up this door this instant.”

Weiss couldn’t move a muscle. Ruby, still holding her, took the knife up in one hand, calling over her shoulder. “She’s not home,” Ruby replied, feigning ignorance. “Come back later.”

There was a pause.

“Well, well. Hello there, little wolf. I see you’ve grown rather protective of my daughter.” Weiss could hear his scowl. “I know perfectly well that she is there. Give her up peacefully and I won’t harm you. Resist, and I will not hesitate to kill anything or any one who stands between me and what is mine.”

Weiss felt herself break at that statement, in a very odd way. She had somehow found something beneath hopelessness, a state beyond abject terror and misery. Underneath her pain, her fear, she found something that she thought she’d lost.

Weiss found resolve.

“I was never yours,” Weiss shouted. “Just leave us alone!”

At that, there was a brutal, swift kick at their door. The electronic lock held briefly, but the first kick was followed by another, and another. Ruby grimaced, starting to stand. But Weiss was too greedy to let Ruby leave her right now. She held on tight, not letting Ruby up. If this was going to end, she wanted - needed - Ruby in her arms while it did.

Ruby turned to Weiss, about to protest, but Weiss held firm. In that instant, a final, powerful kick from Jacques splintered the wood of their door, forcing it to swing inwards. The metal arm at the top, meant to gently pull the door closed, swung wildly, broken free from its moorings.

The door hung open, and there stood Jacques Schnee - polished white suit, red pocket square folded ever so perfectly. His snow-white hair and moustache, dyed to match the natural hue of his wife and children, was perfectly well-groomed, as if he were about to attend a business meeting. He placed his foot, clad in a white loafer, back down on the ground almost gently, standing before them with perfect posture. It looked like busting in their lock hadn’t even really cost him much effort, if any.

His piercing blue eyes, full of utter hatred, took in the scene before him. Ruby, her body turned toward him, the knife clutched so tightly in her hand that her knuckles were white. She was still lowered down to the ground, as Weiss held her from behind, her arms clutching onto Ruby’s waist for dear life, refusing to let her stand.

The scoff that Jacques made was almost one of pity.

“Final chance,” he said, as if he were asking them how they liked their tea. “Come now, Weiss. Don’t make this any harder than it already is.”

Ruby’s low growl became much louder.

“She’s not going anywhere with you.”

Jacques shook his head, disappointed in the misbehaving children. “That’s a shame,” he said. “I didn’t want to ruin this suit.” He calmly adjusted his dress shirt at the wrist and took a slow, menacing step towards them, his foot just on the edge of what separated the hallway and their room. He lifted his other foot off the ground, about to place it on the cheap tile of their miniscule kitchenette. Weiss closed her eyes, unable to watch.

“What?” Jacques asked, annoyed. Weiss blinked. She looked up, over Ruby’s shoulder, to find him standing there, still just outside their room. He reached his hand forward, and Weiss’ jaw dropped as it appeared to press against something solid. He put his shoulder against the invisible barrier, pushing, but it didn’t appear to budge.

The knife fell from Ruby’s hand, and she slumped forward. For a terrified moment, Weiss was afraid that something had happened to her, but as a frantic, almost insane giggle emanated throughout the tiny space, Weiss realized that she was doubled over in laughter.

“You f*cking idiot!” Ruby shouted, barely able to contain herself. “You can’t cross our threshold! You’re not invited!”

Jacques’ mask of hatred contorted itself into one of absolute, abject loathing as he realized she was correct. Ruby, now practically hysterical from the absurd roller coaster of emotions that they had experienced, actually pointed her finger at Jacques and laughed further, the danger momentarily forgotten.

“He can’t enter a home uninvited!” She said, half mocking Jacques, half explaining it to Weiss. “You went through all that trouble and you’re stopped by the stupid rules of what makes you powerful!”

“Silence!” Jacques roared. He straightened his coat, as if he could somehow reclaim an ounce of his lost dignity. “I may not be able to enter, but I can make her leave.”

His cruel eyes focused on Weiss, and he curled a perfectly manicured, pale finger. His voice seemed to supernaturally echo as he commanded, “Come here. NOW.”

A barely-visible wisp of air seemed to travel from his finger, looping once before dispersing over Weiss’ forehead and face, like a puff of makeup powder. For a horrible moment, Weiss was reminded of the too-sweet sensation of drinking the blood of the vampire in that alleyway, barely more than a week ago. For that brief instant, she felt compelled to crawl forward, but she shoved the thought out of her mind with contempt. This time, there was something horrendously sour under the sweetness - it was as if her enhanced sense of taste was warning her, telling her that this compulsion was inherently wrong. Weiss blinked for the slightest moment to clear her vision, and once she did, she stared her father dead in the face.

“Go f*ck yourself,” she said plainly.

Jacques’ eyes flashed with anger. He shook his head, his voice more forceful this time.

“Weiss Schnee,” he commanded. “I am ORDERING you to come to me this very instant!”

Weiss tried to cover her mouth and nose, but the puff of air still cascaded over her face, sneaking in through the smallest gaps. The pull was stronger this time, sweeter, more tempting. Weiss almost felt herself lean forward, ready to crawl (she had been compelled to approach, not stand) but Ruby just squeezed her wrist and pulled her back to reality in an instant.

“Your compulsions won’t work on me, Father,” Weiss spat. “I’m too strong for you.” She looked him dead in the eyes, giving him one final chance. “Leave. Us. Alone.”

Jacques took a hate-filled breath, his rage alone seeming to make the air a degree warmer. But he soon settled, as if this entire affair had been a minor inconvenience for him in the grand scheme of things.

“Weiss, if you believe that I will simply let this go, then you have no idea the man your father is,” he said, his voice silky once more. To Ruby, he added, “Whatever it is you did to her to let her resist me, I will undo it. I will bring her to fulfill her destiny. And once I do, I will mount your filthy, mangy head on my wall. Mark my words.”

Ruby stood, helping Weiss to her feet as well. They held one another closely still, but they both stared him down.

“If you come for us again, we will fight you,” Ruby said. “Both of us.”

Jacques seemed to ponder that, looking from one of them to the other. He appeared to be almost contemplative, and his eyes found their way to Weiss’ right leg. Weiss briefly remembered that she’d changed into shorts for their movie night, and her hand absentmindedly covered the bite marks that were visible there. As she did, Jacques’ eyes widened before piercing through Ruby.

“What did you do to her?” He demanded, as if he didn’t know.

“It was my choice,” Weiss said firmly. She moved her hand, refusing to hide the scar from him - now, it was a badge of pride. “Give up, Father. I will never be like you. We made sure of that.”

He scowled back at her, his hands tightening into fists.

“If you think I’m not powerful enough to remove that disgusting curse from you, then you have no idea what I am,” Jacques threatened. Weiss let go of Ruby for a moment, taking a step forward - still several feet away from the door, but close enough to prove that she wasn’t afraid.

“I know exactly what you are, Father,” Weiss said. “I know what you’re trying to do to me. I know what you have done to Winter. I promise you, neither of us wants any part of it.” She crossed her arms. “No matter what you do, no matter what you’re capable of, we will fight you. Every single step of the way.”

Jacques scoffed, though he appeared to be genuinely taken aback by her affirmation, if only slightly. She looked past Weiss, gazing thoughtfully at Ruby.

“So this is the little friend that you’re willing to defy me for?” He asked with a sneer.

“Ruby’s not my friend,” Weiss said calmly. She turned back to Ruby, whose face was ever so slightly confused by that statement, before Weiss took her hand, pulling her forward so that they were standing before Jacques, hand in hand.

“She’s family.”

Sirens began to wail outside their building, interrupting Jacques’ retort. He let out a low growl of frustration.

“Your move, tough guy,” Ruby said, almost a little smug. “You can leave us alone, or you can deal with the cops.”

“No number of humans will ever be able to stop me,” Jacques scoffed.

“Sure they won’t,” Ruby said with a shrug. “But I guarantee you, after breaking onto campus property with plans to assault two students, if you kill a cop, your reputation will be ruined. Even if you manage to kill them all, you won’t be able to get off scot-free - people will know it was you.”

She leaned in just a little bit, her hand tightening around Weiss’. She interlocked their fingers.

“And I bet that your reputation matters quite a bit to you, doesn’t it?”

Red and blue lights began to flash in through their windows. Jacques adjusted his collar - he appeared to know that they were right. He turned a brief, angry eye at Weiss, his look so calm and poisonous that it shook her to her core.

“This isn’t over.”

And like that, Jacques turned around, his body transforming instantly into mist, quickly floating down their hallway. Weiss closed her eyes in relief, but Ruby ran to their threshold, peeking her head out of the doorframe.

“How about you visit while there’s a moon next time, coward!” She shouted after him.

She turned back to Weiss, who had crumpled to the floor, her energy and resolve completely melted. Ruby quickly dropped down beside her, cupping Weiss’ cheek and pressing their foreheads together.

“It’s okay, Weiss. It’s okay. We made it, and we’re both okay.” She let out a breath, as if she could hardly believe it herself. “See? Just like I promised.” Weiss nodded into her chest, unable to speak. She just gently held her roommate as the overwhelming emotion of it all made her begin to sob. Ruby calmly rocked her back and forth, comforting Weiss without any haste or judgment. The sirens still blared in their ears.

After a minute, Weiss managed to wipe her eyes and pull back, making Ruby stop to look at her.

“He said he’d be back,” she managed.

“I know,” Ruby said gently, running her fingers through Weiss’ hair, still holding her. “And I swear to you, I will be beside you when he does.” Weiss looked up at her again, and Ruby delicately brushed away one of Weiss’ tears with her thumb. “I won’t leave your side for a moment, Weiss. Not when you need me.”

Weiss exhaled, trying to control her tears. She wasn’t doing a very good job, but Ruby didn’t seem to mind. When she finally managed to speak again, she asked a tiny question, her voice barely audible.

“Promise?”

Ruby’s response was instantaneous, and accompanied by a quick, warm hug.

“Promise.”

They spent a while there, huddled together on the floor. It felt like hours, but in reality, it was maybe sixty seconds at most. The sirens hadn’t been going on long, but to Ruby, it felt like an eternity. Time had seemed to slow as she comforted Weiss, and she was ready to sit there all night if that’s what Weiss needed.

Instead, though, there was a knock at their door.

Or, well, what was left of it.

Ruby’s head whipped up at the sound, her expression alone nearly enough to kill a man. If she was honest with herself, she’d been expecting Jacques, or maybe a police officer.

Instead, she found a tall, short-haired brunette with a fashionable outfit, notably including a black beret.

Ruby just started at the stranger, dumbfounded, until Weiss looked up to see what she had moved for. Weiss made a tiny, puzzled sound, asking, “... Coco?”

Ruby blinked. “Who?”

“Hi, I heard everything,” Coco said tersely. “Can I come in? We don’t have long.”

Ruby met Weiss’ eyes.

“All due respect,” Ruby said, “We’d rather not give somebody express permission to cross our threshold.”

Coco rolled her eyes, taking a quick step over their doorframe, then back.

“I can do it, I just wanted to ask first. I was the one who called the cops - we don’t have long until they get here. I can slow things down for us, but not too much. I gotta be close to you guys to do it, so...”

Ruby gave a look to Weiss, who responded with a one-shouldered shrug. Taking that as good enough, Ruby flicked her head inwards, a silent indication of welcome. She sighed with relief, walking in and immediately plopping down on their tile floor. She took a black piece of chalk out from a pocket, and gestured that they both approach. When they did, She quickly began to draw a circle around the three of them - as an artist, Ruby was impressed at how even it was.

As soon as the circle was closed, Coco began to mutter something. The world outside the circle took on a shade of gray, and while there wasn’t much visual stimuli to confirm it, Ruby could have sworn that everything besides them began to slow down, as if time itself were lengthening.

“Uh… sorry,” Ruby murmured. “Who are you again?”

“She’s our RA,” Weiss said numbly. “Remember the first night we moved in?”

“I’m also a witch,” Coco added, now that her mumblings - apparently an actual magic spell - were complete. She met Ruby’s eyes. “So you’re the werewolf on this floor, huh?”

Ruby blinked. “I…”

“I overheard you shouting about it that night,” she said to Weiss. “I didn’t know if you meant it at first, and you looked human to me then, but…” she peered over her sunglasses, her brown eyes briefly flashing white. “You’re not just a human anymore, are you? You’re both wolves, then?”

“I… yeah,” Ruby admitted dumbly. “Uh, how did you, um…” the whole situation was confusing enough that she just stopped there, hoping it was sufficient.

“Like she said, I’m your RA,” Coco said. “I took the job because I wanted time to set up around the building, and keep students safe from everything that goes bump in the night.”

“I’m… lost.” Weiss said. “Are you against weres or something?”

“If I was, I wouldn’t be dating one,” Coco said with a roll of her eyes. “I don’t care what you guys are, you’re also students, and I took this job to protect you from…” she looked over her shoulder, out the hallway. “sh*t like that.”

“Great job so far,” Ruby muttered.

“Right, yeah, let me just take on a master freakin’ vampire without a moment to prepare,” Coco said sarcastically. “He’d rip my heart out and eat it in one bite. You two are lucky to be alive - especially on a new moon.”

Weiss’ brow furrowed. “If you aren’t here to fight my father, then what do you want?”

Coco’s eyes flicked over to her. “I called the cops as soon as I noticed a vampire hypnotize the proctor downstairs through my arcane eye. I’m here now to make sure you two are okay, and to make sure you have a good cover story for university police.”

“Well... thank you, I guess,” Ruby said. “Sorry, this is all -”

“What’s an arcane eye?” Weiss interrupted.

“Magic security camera,” Coco said, and Ruby could tell it was an oversimplification. “It’s invisible and I can see the lobby whenever I need to. Listen, that’s not the point - the point is that the cops are gonna try and get you two to move somewhere else on campus for the night, and if it’s a temporary space it won’t be a home.” They blinked at her. “From what I overheard, that’s the only reason you two are sitting here.”

“Fair enough, but we knew that,” Ruby said. She looked at Weiss. “I was gonna offer that we either go to Blake and Yang’s place, or to my dad’s.”

“Let’s go with Blake and Yang,” Weiss said. “The less time we spend outside tonight, the better.”

“Good idea,” Coco approved. “I can come with you guys, and bring some of my ingredients and spellbooks. I’ll put a ward up around wherever it is you two are going, in case that vamp sends a human to break in or something.”

“Thank you,” Weiss said with a nod. “We’d… we’d really appreciate that.”

Coco nodded. “Sorry we had to meet like this. I really wish I could have actually helped earlier, or warned you, but…” she stopped, realizing that this wasn’t important right now. “Anyways. That asshole broke into my building and tried to seriously injure or even kill two of the people I’m trying to protect, so trust me, I’ll do whatever I can to help from a magical standpoint.”

“Sure,” Ruby said. She was curious about Coco’s apparent self-appointed mission, but that was a conversation for a later date.

“Right,” Coco said. She checked her watch. “We’ve got about a minute left on the spell, so let me ask - what do you two plan on telling the cops?”

“Good evenin’,” the detective said, sitting down in Ruby’s chair. His tone was surprisingly friendly, but stoic, and he had a slight accent. “I understand you girls had quite the experience tonight.”

“Bit of an understatement,” Ruby muttered. The detective’s eyes flicked to her for a moment, but went back to a neutral stance.

“I know it’s been a lot,” he said. “Stuff like this can be traumatizing, and I’d be happy to point you in the direction of the university’s trauma counselling services, and therapy. There are also some folks who can talk to your profs and tell them to let some due dates slide while you girls get your lives back to normal.” His eyes narrowed. “But first, it would really help me and the rest of the force out -” he gestured with a hand at the five other uniformed officers in their tiny room, all carefully looking over the space itself. Coco was leaning against their bathroom door, her arms crossed. “- if you could tell us everything you saw tonight, so we can figure out what, exactly, happened here.”

“We know who this was,” Weiss said. Despite the warmth of Ruby’s arm on her shoulders and the comfort blanket that the police had draped over them, she was still shivering. “The man who did this was my father, Jacques Schnee.”

“Okay…” the detective said. He wasn’t distrustful, per se, but he was certainly surprised. “I think I’ve heard that name somewhere before - Schnee Drillin’ Corporation?”

“Company,” Weiss corrected offhand. “But yes.”

He nodded. “So that makes you…”

“Weiss Schnee, daughter to Jacques and Willow Schnee, ex-heiress to the Schnee Drilling Company,” she said, irritated. “My father has a Wikipedia page, and it’s quite accurate. Trust me, you’ll find everything you need to know about him there.”

“We always do our research,” the detective said simply. “But, if you don’t mind my sayin’ so… this is a lotta damage for a family dispute.” Weiss glared at him, causing him to raise his hands. “I’m not judgin’ - I’m just lookin’ for a motive.” He returned to his inquisitive posture, notepad at the ready. “So tell me - ex -heiress?”

“Yes,” Weiss replied. While she had no love for her father, the added syllable to her title still irritated her. “Or, at the very least, I believe so. If it’s not official yet, I’m sure that it will be - he’s already cut me off from all of his finances.”

“Why’d he do that?” The detective prompted. Weiss sighed.

“My father never took much interest in my life. I’m sure you’ll be shocked to learn that he was a very busy man as I was growing up.”

The detective nodded. “Missed birthdays, that sorta thing?”

Weiss rolled her eyes, but nodded. Ruby gently rubbed her arm underneath the blanket.

“He expected me to attend Atlas University, like my sister, but as you can see, I’m here instead.”

“I take it he didn’t like that,” the detective observed dryly. “We’ll get back to your sister in a minute, but first - if he didn’t want you coming here, what convinced him? You’re here, ain’t you?”

“Yes,” Weiss said. “Truth be told, he didn’t take much interest in me until I was already here. I expected him to resist my choice of Beacon over Atlas, but he didn’t pay it any mind.”

“At first.” The detective said.

“Yes, at first.”

“What changed?”

“A few weeks ago, my father attended Parents and Family Weekend.”

“That out of the ordinary?”

Weiss looked at him.

“For the eighteen years that I have been alive, I could count the number of times that my father has had a free weekend, ever, on my fingers.”

“I see,” the detective said. “So why that weekend?”

“After I was done eating dinner with Ruby and her family,” Weiss began, “He came for me. He found this building.”

“Uh, not to interrupt, but speaking of my family,” Ruby said, “Can I text my sister about all this? And tell her I’m okay?”

“Sure, kid,” the detective said. He turned back to Weiss as Ruby got up to grab her scroll. “What did he want for you?”

“He’d been calling,” Weiss said. “He took me back to his hotel in a limousine, telling me what a ‘disgrace to the family’ I was.”

“What pissed him off?”

Weiss laughed.

“I had spent the evening with Ruby’s family, and not with him.”

The detective’s eyebrows went up.

“That all?”

Ruby sat back down on the bed, using both hands to text. Her shoulder pressed against Weiss’, though, and she was happy for the contact. She pulled the blanket back over Ruby’s shoulders.

“Well,” Weiss said, “He was never exactly happy about us being seen around…” she searched for the euphemism he often employed. “...’working-class people.’”

The detective leaned back a bit, tipping his hat upwards with a thumb.

“I see,” he said, clearly holding back a verbal judgment of Jacques to maintain his professionalism. “So it was just that? You had a fun night out with friends?”

“Ruby’s sister brought her girlfriend to that meal, and she introduced herself as such,” Weiss added. “I could tell he was quite angry about that.”

“Just because your sister’s gay?” He asked in Ruby’s general direction.

“That’s a possibility, yes,” Weiss explained. “If you do your digging, you’ll find… evidence of... that.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” the detective noted. “Any suggestions on where we might start? If you’ve got somethin’ specific, that’d help us out.”

Weiss thought back for a moment. “Oh, before gay marriage was legalized, if an employee of the Schnee Drilling Company was in a domestic partnership, the insurance benefits weren’t extended to their partner or their children,” Weiss explained. “There was a news story about it like ten years ago.”

The detective raised an eyebrow. “You remember that far back?”

“I remember how much yelling he did that night,” Weiss said plainly. “I came across the article a few years later when I looked him up.” That was a little white lie - Weiss remembered him throwing out a tirade of slurs one evening when she was eight years old, but Blake had found the article when she first started researching him.

“So, okay.” The detective said, relaxing his posture a bit. “Say he’s a hom*ophobe. I legally can’t say whether that’s true at the moment, but let’s pretend he is.” Weiss nodded - she didn’t have to pretend, but she humored the man for the sake of his job. “And, if he’s a hom*ophobe, he sees his daughter hangin’ out with a girl who’s datin’ another girl. That seems like somethin’ he’d get angry about, if his alleged hom*ophobia was indeed true.”

He narrowed his eyes at her. “But Parents and Family Weekend was a while back. And it seems like he yelled at you right then and there.”

Weiss nodded.

“So what other kinda grudge could he potentially have?” The detective asked. “Because if that’s all his motivation, why today?”

By now, Ruby had finished her text to Yang, once again putting her arm across Weiss’ shoulders. Weiss leaned into her, grateful. The detective raised an eyebrow momentarily, and appeared to change direction slightly.

“Now, listen,” the detective said, levelling with them. “Here at Beacon, we all support all kinds of folks in all kinds of relationships. It’s not just policy, it’s the right thing to do.” Weiss blinked in surprise, hearing that - she hadn’t expected such a genuine, good-natured statement to come out of the man. He continued. “Me, I got a trans daughter at home, and I couldn’t be more proud of her.”

“That’s wonderful,” Ruby offered quietly.

“Thanks,” he said with a nod. He straightened. “So believe me, I might be a crusty adult, but I got eyes, and you can trust me about this kinda thing.” He looked between them, and jerked a thumb at the entryway. “So. Did your old man break down that door because he found out you two are datin’?”

Weiss’ eyes went as wide as dinner plates. A blush immediately filled her entire face, and she felt Ruby freeze up, completely motionless. In retrospect… it’s not as though they were being subtle about touching and holding each other.

“I…” Weiss began.

“Hey, like I said, no judgment here,” the detective added. “But that, to me, would seem like much more of a motive - if he really is against that type of relationship.”

“We’re… uh…” Ruby said.

“Ruby and I are... very close friends,” Weiss managed to explain. “And… well, I might be a lesbian, but I’ve never told him or anything…”

“Ah. Apologies for my assumption, then,” the detective said. Weiss could tell that he was able to read the rather… complex situation with her feelings about Ruby, from just that comment alone. “So, okay - but does he know you’re not into guys? Or could he, in some way?”

“I… maybe,” Weiss said. “My older sister, Winter - she’s dating a woman, but that only started after she left the mansion for good…”

“And like I said, we’ll get to her,” the detective said patiently. “But I’m just lookin’ for somethin’ a little more concrete here.”

Ruby met Weiss’ eyes. It was time for their cover story.

“So, that evening, when he took me back to his hotel room,” Weiss said.

“Parents and Family Weekend?” The detective asked. He idly licked a finger to turn the page of his little notebook.

“Yes,” Weiss said. “When we returned to his room, he started to lecture me about how much I was a ‘disgrace to the family,’ et cetera.”

“Sorry,” the detective sympathized.

“I’d heard it before,” Weiss said, brushing off the apology.

“So, to clarify - this is all still about being seen with your older sister, and her girlfriend?” He asked, pointing the top of his pen at Ruby.

“It started that way,” Weiss said. “But his rants rarely finish in the same place that they start.” The detective gave her a nod, telling her to continue. “He quickly devolved into being angry with me for going to school at Beacon instead of Atlas, about my major -”

“Which is?”

“Political Science. He wanted Business.”

“Ah.”

“And… well. By the time his rant was over, he declared that he was taking me back to Atlas with him that morning, where I’d be taking an entry-level desk job at the SDC.”

The detective’s fingers tented as he finished taking down what she said. “I take it he didn’t offer you much choice.”

“None,” Weiss confirmed. “And for the very first time in my life, I refused.”

“Didn’t go over well?”

“No.”

“What’d he do?”

“He yelled more. Told me I didn’t have a choice. He eventually grabbed my wrist.”

The detective’s eyebrows went up. “He do that before?”

“No.”

“He ever hit you, your mom, your siblings? Throw anything, break anything of yours when he got angry?”

“Not that I know of. Not until now.”

“What happened after he grabbed you?”

“I pulled away,” Weiss said. “Or, well, I tried. He had his hand wrapped around my wrist, so instead of pulling away, I shoved forwards, and… I struck him in the chest.”

“Okay,” the detective said. “To clarify: did you punch him?”

“I would hardly call it that,” Weiss said. “He certainly wasn’t injured. All that mattered was that I got my wrist free.”

“And then?”

“And then I turned around and left the hotel.”

“Simple as that?”

“I thought so, at first.”

“Oh?”

“He… he sent a man after me that night. He found me walking back home, and he asked me to come with him and see my father.”

“What’d he look like?”

The detective took down her physical description.

“So a strange man walked up to you in the dead of night, telling you to come with him, and you didn’t call us? Or Vale PD?”

“I… no…” Weiss admitted sheepishly. “It just didn’t occur to me. Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize, just... call us next time,” the detective said. “How’d you get away from the guy?”

“He wasn’t, like… insistent, in the physical sense,” Weiss said. She was annoyed at how this lie made her father appear slightly more reasonable, but they’d debated it - there was no other explanation she had for how she could have escaped a man like that in those circ*mstances.

“So he let you leave?”

“Well, I did scream at him,” Weiss hedged.

“What did you say?”

“I said, ‘You can tell my father to go f*ck himself,’” Weiss explained calmly.

“I see,” The detective replied. “So, then you make it home?”

“Yes,” Weiss said. “Then I saw the man once more the next week, walking home from a movie with Ruby, but we were able to cross the street before he got too close to us.” She paused. “That was last Friday, eight days ago.”

“And nothing from your father, until now?”

“Well, he did cancel all of my cards and everything a few days ago,” Weiss said. “And I don’t believe he’s going to make my next tuition payment.”

“Sorry to hear that,” the detective said, his voice genuine. “If you talk to Student Financial Services, they can probably help you renegotiate things there.”

“Thank you,” Weiss said. “Though I’m not in any immediate danger - I was able to get control of a significant amount of the finances that are in my name, now that I’m eighteen years old. After seeing that man the second time, I called the stock broker who handles ‘my’ accounts, and was able to get full control of them.”

“How much?” The detective asked.

“Most of it’s in the stock market.”

“Gimme a guess, based on current values.”

“Two million? Two million and ten? Depends on how well that one tech company is doing.”

The detective let out a low whistle. “Do you think that could have anything to do with it? I know the SDC is big, but still, that’s a lot of money.”

“Honestly? I hadn’t considered it,” Weiss admitted. “I genuinely don’t know if my father has noticed that it’s gone. He didn’t mention it today or anything.”

The detective just shook his head, probably comparing the theoretical income of a man who didn’t notice when he lost two million dollars to his own yearly salary.

“Now sounds like as good a time as any to talk about what happened when he was actually here,” the detective said. Ruby perked up, finally reaching a point where she was potentially able to answer questions. She’d been there for nearly every other event that they’d discussed so far, but they didn’t want to disclose that, or give conflicting information that would be suspicious.

“So, he somehow got in the building,” the detective asked. “Then what?”

“No, you listen here,” Yang said, her eyes red with fury as she clutched the front desk. “My sister is the one whose room was broken into - Ruby Rose? I want to see her. Here’s the text she sent me!” Yang held up her scroll. “We’ve both been here before, you can check the records. So just let us up, okay? I know you’ve got the rules and everything, but she’s my sister -”

“The rules are what prevent things like this in the first place,” the proctor said, firm. “Unless you’re signed in by a resident, I can’t allow you in. Especially this evening.” Considering that he was the one who had taken over while the police were questioning the guy who had been on duty while Jacques had gotten in, she had to admit that his strict adherence to the rules was warranted, but he was keeping her from Ruby.

“I’ll text her again,” Blake said, getting her scroll out. She noticed someone walking down into the lobby, and looked up.

“Hey,” a girl said. She was a remarkably fashionable brunette. Blake caught a whiff of something on her, but let it go for now. “You two Yang Xiao Long and Blake Belladonna?”

“That’s us,” Blake confirmed. The girl nodded and pulled out her card.

“I’m Coco, Ruby and Weiss’ RA,” she said. “The police are still talking to them, but they let me come by and grab you.” She handed her card to the proctor, as the girls quickly dug out their own.

“Are they okay?” Yang asked, her eyes returning to their usual lilac. She still gave the proctor a glare.

“They’re holding up,” Coco said. “You two can take them back to your apartment for tonight, right?”

“Of course we can,” Blake said. “We heard in advance.”

“Great,” Coco said, leading them to the elevator. She called it, and the three of them stood there in silence until it arrived. They stepped in, and it was a bit awkward to share this apprehensive moment with a total stranger. As soon as the doors closed, Coco turned to them, her face now serious instead of the inexpressive mask that they’d seen earlier.

“So that bastard that came in here, hypnotized the old proctor to let him in, and busted their door in four kicks,” Coco said. “He also walked right past my wards, like they were nothing. This guy means serious business.”

“I’m sorry, your what?” Yang asked.

“You’re a witch, aren’t you?” Blake asked plainly.

“Got it in one,” Coco said. Yang looked at Blake, who shrugged. “And I’m sorry I couldn’t help your sister fight that lunatic off - I was totally unprepared for a freaking master vampire to waltz through these doors. But once they’re all done with the cops and everything tonight, I can set up a few spells around your apartment to help keep you guys safe, or at least a little forewarned.”

“I…” Yang opened her mouth, and closed it.
“Thank you,” Blake said. She gave Yang a sympathetic rub on the shoulder. “We can talk more later, but for now…”

“Yeah,” Coco said. “I get it - just wanted to say I’m here to help.”

The elevator dinged.

“RUBY!” A voice shouted from the general direction of the elevator. Some of the police in the room perked up at the sound, confused.

“That’s my sister,” Ruby said. “You’re gonna want to let her in.” Two of the officers gave her a dubious look before the sound of heavy footfalls approached at an alarming rate, and a tall blond woman entered the ruined doorframe. One of the police officers moved on instinct to stop her, but Yang’s glare alone was so intimidating that he hesitated. Yang immediately pushed past all of the officers in the room, practically snatching Ruby away from Weiss to scoop her up in a hug.

“Ruby! By the -” she stopped herself from swearing on the moon, which would raise an eyebrow or two with their present company, and simply resolved to say, “You’re okay! Are you hurt? What did he say to you?”

“I told you, we’re fine!” Ruby said, her voice muffled because her face was buried in Yang’s leather coat.

“I know, I just…” she squeezed. “I swear, if that bastard had hurt you - either of you…”

A voice behind her, at about waist height, cleared its throat. For a moment, Yang glared daggers at the owner of said voice, before realizing that it belonged to a police officer. Squeezing Ruby one more time out of spite, she gently placed her back down on her bed. Noticing Weiss, Yang put a hand on her knee, sympathetic. She didn’t say anything, but her concerns, worry, and unadulterated rage at what Jacques had done were evident in her look all by itself.

“Miss,” The detective finally said. “If you would allow us to continue our police business, we’d sincerely appreciate it.” When Yang hesitated, he added, “We’re almost done here, and then your sister will be free to talk to you as long as she wants. I promise.”

At this point, Blake and Coco had made it to the room as well, and Yang gave Ruby one final look, and graciously stepped backwards. “You two are welcome at our place for as long as you need,” Yang said, even though they both already knew that.

Blake gave Yang a wordless look, knowing already what was on her mind. She took a slight step backwards to brace herself for the hug that she knew Yang was going to tackle her into.

“I’m gonna check on the other residents one more time,” Coco said, clearly wanting to leave them to their family moment. “Almost everybody was out partying - I mean, it’s a Saturday night and all, but…”

One officer turned, ready to accompany her. “I’m going with her,” she called after the detective, who just gave her a nod.

“One final question,” the detective said, “and I apologize for its rather... intense nature.”

“That’s sort of been the theme of the evening,” Weiss said with a shrug. The detective nodded, conceding the point.

“So, your attacker, allegedly Jacques Schnee - he broke through that door, but here you two are, relatively unscathed. You told me about the argument, sure, but… well. He must have - allegedly - come into this building with a hell of a violent intent, but he disappears instead, and both of you are here. What stopped him?”

“You’ve got it in an evidence bag,” Ruby said, gesturing to the officer that she had seen pick it up. “My dad got me a really nice set of kitchen knives for my high school graduation, and when her dad bust in, I had the big one in my hand.”

“Did you threaten him with it?” The detective asked.

“What do you mean?” Ruby asked, bristling. “The man broke into our home . I was ready to defend myself - and her.”

“Sure, sure, I know that,” The detective said. “Don’t worry, it’d all be self-defense, all that - I’m not sayin’ you’re in trouble or anything.” He flipped another page in his notebook. Ruby was amazed that it hadn’t run out by now - they’d been at this for nearly an hour. “But were you pointing it at him, preventing him from coming closer?”

“Why does it matter?” Ruby asked, exhausted.

“Well, if my training at the academy has taught me anything,” the detective began, “It’s that generally, when you point a weapon at somebody, if they’ve got one, they’ll point it back.” He leaned in. “We wanted to know if he was armed. I doubt he’d do something like this without at least having something on him, but you girls haven’t told me about anything like that.”

Weiss shrugged. “We’re two eighteen-year-old girls. I don’t think he expected us to fight back.”

“But he did bust the door down?”

“He told us to open it, first. He started kicking when we didn’t.”

The detective met her eyes at that, contemplative, but he shrugged.

“All righty,” the detective said, closing up his pad. “Well, thank you both for your statements.” He looked at an officer in the room. “You got Ms. Adel’s statement, right?” The officer nodded.

“It was pretty short,” he said. “She didn’t see much, just enough to call us.” The detective nodded, finally standing up from Ruby’s desk chair.

“Well, ladies, thanks for your time this evenin’,” he said. “I promise, we’ll do a very thorough investigation here, up to and including a coordinated effort with Vale and even Atlas PD to make sure we cover all our bases.”

“Good luck,” Weiss snorted. Ruby gave her a look, and she shrugged. “My father has a team of something like twenty lawyers. He’s been taken to court for unsafe mining conditions and even for things like fraud and tax evasion, but nothing sticks. Don’t get me wrong, I hope that you all can get him, but… I doubt it.”

“That remains to be seen,” the officer said plainly. “The security camera footage in the lobby will likely give us some pretty incriminating stuff, but we can’t be certain until we review it. Either way, thank you both once again for your time.” He reached into the front pocket of his uniform, pulling out a small white rectangle. It read “Detective Joe O’Brien, Beacon College Police Department,” and had his phone number beneath that. “Here’s my card. You can call me specifically if you remember any details, or you can call Beacon PD if you feel unsafe.” He looked in Yang’s direction. “You’re the sister, right?”

“I am,” Yang said, arms crossed.

“And Miss Rose and Miss Schnee are staying with you this evening?”

“We’d really prefer that to being anywhere on campus,” Ruby said. “I mean… he found our building.”

“I understand,” Detective O’Brien said. “And while policy would normally suggest that we have you girls sleep in the station, at least for tonight... considering what you’ve been through, as well as the weekly pattern of events that you’ve described, and that neither Beacon nor Vale PD has seen anyone matching his description out and about anywhere…” he gave them a small smile. “I think it’d be better for you girls to stay somewhere that’s a bit more comfortable. Some Residential Life contractors are gonna be around tomorrow to fix your door. They estimated about three days, but they’ll update you.”

They all gave him a grateful nod, but he held up a finger.

“One more thing before I fully sign off on this,” he said, looking once more at Yang. “I’d like for you to give us your address, so we can pass it along to Vale PD. That way, they’ll park a squad car across the street for the next twenty-four hours, and if nothing happens, we’ll have somebody just drive by nice and slow, a few times a day, until you two are back here, or if we catch our guy.”

Yang looked at Blake, who shrugged, indicating that she didn’t mind.

“Fine by me,” Yang said. “Lemme write it down for you.”

Once that was done, the police officers all cleared out, leaving the five girls in the room, though one stayed by the door to escort them to Blake and Yang’s apartment. This meant that they weren’t going to really let Coco come along (as far as they knew, there was no reason for it) but she’d just given Weiss a nod, indicating for her not to worry, which she supposed she trusted. Coco had insisted on exchanging numbers with all of them, though.

“Thank you very much,” Detective O’Brien said. “And I promise, we’ll get to the bottom of this for you as fast as we can.”

“Thank you,” Weiss said, trying not to let doubt fill her voice. After all, she didn’t really think that a mundane police force would be able to catch a man with an excessively robust legal team and the apparent ability to turn into a cloud of mist at will, but she appreciated the effort all the same. If nothing else, this would at least inconvenience her father on the human side of things.

“Have a safe night,” the detective said, tipping his hat to them as he left.

“Have a safe night,” the officer said, “and call us if you need anything.”

“We’re all set, thank you,” Yang said, her hand on the door. The officer nodded, and finally, the four of them were alone in Blake and Yang’s apartment.

“What do you guys wanna do for dinner?” Blake asked.

Ruby shrugged. “No way I’m up for cooking tonight, so… pizza?”

Before anyone could agree or disagree, they were all interrupted by the sudden sound of an exhalation, coming from the middle of the room. All four girls nearly jumped out of their skin as Coco, now standing there when she hadn’t been just a a second prior, doubled over, hands on her knees.

“Ugh, I’ve never been invisible for that long,” she said, catching her breath. “I thought he’d never leave!”

The three of them stared at her, but Ruby was unsurprised.

“What, you guys didn’t smell her walking behind us the whole time?” She asked. They shook their heads, and Ruby shrugged.

“She… she really is a witch,” Yang whispered.

“I wasn’t kidding,” Coco scoffed. She appeared to regain her composure. “So, first things first, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but there’s no way your dad is showing up on that security camera. It’s got mirrors in it, so…”

“No reflection?” Weiss asked tiredly. Coco just nodded.

“So we’re just - we’re accepting this.” Yang said. “There’s just a witch standing in our apartment. Everyone’s on the same page there? Nobody’s freaking out that magic is apparently real?”

There was a pause.

“I mean…” Weiss began. “In August I thought there was no such thing as magic, and now in early October, I’m a werewolf, my father is a vampire, and my sister is a daywalker, so…” she let out a little laugh. “I guess I’m sort of immune to being surprised at this point.”

Yang just shook her head.

“Okay, Witch Girl,” she said.

“Coco,” the brunette huffed.

“Whatever. You said you can do spells on our apartment.”

“It’s not much,” she admitted. “If I had more time or ingredients, I could set up more, but I wanna save what I can to fortify the Beacon dorms, too…”

“We get it,” Blake said. “You wanna save your stuff for the rooms that aren’t occupied by four werecreatures, who can mostly fend for themselves for the next month.”

Coco nodded gratefully. She was already opening a pouch on her hip, pulling out some ingredients.

“Still, I can do some cursory stuff,” she said. “I can only have one arcane eye at a time, and I’d really rather keep that in the lobby for now.” She let out a little laugh. “Plus, I doubt you want me to literally always be able to see everything happening in your living room.”

“No thanks,” Yang said.

“Yeah. Still, I can put up a few small wards and things, charms that make vamps feel unwelcome. I can put an alarm on your door, too.”

“What, like… something that’ll make sound?” Ruby asked.

“Not as such,” Coco said. “I’ll give the four of you a phrase to say when you enter or leave - if somebody tries to use the door without saying it, then I’ll know. No sound or anything, so they won’t know they’ve been detected.”

“What if we forget to say it?” Yang asked. Blake gave her a look, but she shrugged. It was a valid question.

“Text me,” Coco said. “If somebody actually trips it, then I’ll probably be texting all of you.”

“Thank you, Coco,” Weiss said, sincerity in her voice. “I… I already had these three, but… I’m very thankful that you’re willing to help me deal with my father.”

“Don’t mention it,” Coco said. She paused, apparently choosing to share something. “My, uh… my mom was a witch, too. She was really good with blood magic - I never had a taste for that stuff, it really grossed me out. I was worried about her, because she was stockpiling rare blood in high quantities for her spells.”

“What does blood magic do?” Ruby asked quietly.

“Same stuff as my magic, only more,” Coco said. “The quality of the spell is based on the quality of the ingredients - and blood is best for channeling really intense stuff.” She looked at their ceiling with a sigh. “Mom could scry on the other side of the planet if she wanted to.”

She shook her head, clearing out the memory. “Anyways… somebody let slip that they’d been delivering rare, highly sought-after blood - stuff like ‘blond virgin girl who’s AB negative,’ like really specific - to the same place, and…”

“Vampires came,” Ruby said darkly. Coco nodded.

“They raided her whole stock. Drank her and killed her themselves - magic-users apparently taste great.”

Weiss slowly nodded, understanding. “So now you hate vampires?”

“Not vamps necessarily,” she admitted. “I’m just… really not fond of people who use their supernatural powers to prey on others.” She let out a sigh. “Though it did take me a while to get that nuanced.”

They all let Coco’s story hang in the air for a moment. She began to set up her ingredients, drawing another circle on the ground in chalk. Yang made a face - they paid higher rent because of the nice wood floors - but Blake placed a soothing hand on her arm. Weiss remembered that the circle that Coco had made in their apartment vanished when her spell was completed, which was probably for the best, as the officers would have seen it otherwise. When she appeared to reach a stopping point, Weiss got up, carefully sitting down in front of her.

“I… thank you, Coco,” she said. “For helping us, and for sharing.”

“It’s what I do,” the girl said with a shrug. “But you’re welcome.”

“Can we do anything for you?” Ruby asked. “I - I feel bad, this whole thing has kinda taken up your entire evening…”

Coco finally let out a little smile.

“Well, I heard there would be pizza…”

Chapter 16: Office Hours

Chapter Text

“Professor?” Weiss asked, knocking on the open door to a tiny office in a building that she’d never been to before.

“Ah, Miss Schnee!” Professor Oobleck said. He began clearing a mess of papers off of his desk, and frowned when he realized that his coffee mug had left a ring on the top corner of one of them. “Please, come in, come in! How can I help you?” He continued fussing over his workspace, making it as presentable as he could, given the circ*mstances.

Weiss gingerly stepped inside.

The office was miniscule - perhaps half the size of the room she shared with Ruby, not including the bathroom or kitchen. The professor’s desk was a thin, white surface coming out of the wall to her left, taking up just enough of the center of the room that walking past it must be a squeeze. There was plenty of legroom underneath, though, save for the thick grey pillar that supported the end not connected to the wall. The wall side of the desk curved all the way to the far left corner, supporting a bulky desktop computer that was just short enough to fit under the metal cabinet the wall above. In the nearer corner to her left, by the door, was a very small fridge. The entire wall to Weiss’ right was dominated by a huge floor-to-ceiling bookshelf, packed to the brim with volumes. Across from the professor himself was a short chair in the style that Weiss had seen around various classrooms on campus.

The office was carpeted with a dull grey, with only a few abstract squiggles of red, green, and yellow to break up the monotony. The wall behind where the professor sat was taken up entirely by a massive picture window, and (considering that it was the middle of the day) the blinds were shut tight.

Weiss actually had to scoot the chair in to shut the door behind her.

“I was actually hoping to ask you about some… non-academic information,” Weiss hedged, sitting down. The professor had finished cleaning up the stack of papers between them, and he now let his elbows rest on the table, taking a long sip from his coffee mug. Weiss noticed his usual thermos sitting a bit precariously on the windowsill behind him. When he finished, the professor gave her a smile over his glasses.

“We can speak quite plainly here, Miss Schnee.”

“Oh, thank goodness. Then if it’s all right, may I let my ears and tail out?” He nodded, and she did so, stretching her back a little bit. She’d been rather uncomfortable with them forced in all day during the new moon, and was taking any chance she could to let them breathe since then.

“Would it be fair to presume that you’ve come to ask about your father, or vampires in general?” Oobleck asked. His face softened. “Tai informed of the dreadful experience that you and Miss Rose went through two nights prior - I was also emailed an official communication from the university, asking me to grant both of you any extensions you request, which I assume is related.”

Weiss nodded, absentmindedly stroking her tail while it was curled up in her lap.

“I figured - and I’m dreadfully sorry for both of you, but very glad that you remain here in one piece.”

“Thank you,” Weiss said. “This is actually the first place I’ve gone by myself since that night, though Ruby has a class right across the quad. It’s a three-hour studio, but she was going to walk me home afterwards.”

“Unfortunately, I do have a lecture in about…” he checked his watch. “One hour, but you have all of my free time until then.”

“That’s okay,” Weiss said. “Ruby’s professor said it was all right if I just study quietly while everyone paints, so I won’t be alone.”

“That’s good, that’s very good,” the professor replied. “So - what did you want to ask me?”

Weiss let out a breath. “Well, apologies if it’s a bit difficult for you to talk about, but… I was hoping you could tell me everything you know about, er… fighting vampires.”

“Don’t worry, Miss Schnee, you’ve come to the right place. I trust you not to use any of this information against me.” He let out a chuckle. “I imagine that if you’d come here to kill me, you would have simply raised the blinds.”

“Yes, quite,” she laughed. Talking with the professor was honestly nice - she adored Ruby, and always enjoyed Blake and Yang’s company, but Oobleck’s somewhat formal speech patterns and mannerisms reminded her of the very, very few enjoyable conversations that she’d had during events in the Schnee manor. He was just... charming, in an odd way.

“So, I already know a few things,” Weiss began. “I know about sunlight from Robyn and Winter - ah, my sister and her girlfriend are vampires as well. Daywalkers, actually.”

“Mm,” the professor hummed through his coffee. “That’s quite rare.”

“Robyn used her blood to make Winter a daywalker - she was... er, a ‘normal’ vampire, first?”

“Ah, I see - and the industry term is ‘pureblood,’” the professor said. “Though I imagine that that’s because a fair amount of vampire lexicology was standardized by western Anima’s aristocracy in the mid-1400s or so, and that lot was rather concerned with the ‘purity’ of their bloodlines.”

“My father would fit right in,” Weiss muttered. “Anyways, last night, we also learned that my father is apparently able to, well… ‘hypnotize’ other people.”

“Mm, yes,” Oobleck said gravely. “I’m afraid that that ability does find its way to a fair amount of vampires, once they become proficient enough with vampirism in general.”

“It didn’t work on me, when he tried it,” Weiss said. “I felt a little pull, but shook it off. He tried again a second time, and it was stronger, but Ruby snapped me out of it with just her touch.” Oobleck raised an eyebrow. “So why could I resist him when humans apparently can’t? Is it because I’m a werewolf?”

“In a sense, that’s likely,” Oobleck mused. “Werecreatures are gifted with supernatural senses. Vampiric ‘hypnosis,’ as I understand it, is actually based a bit more around pheromones. You’ve ingested vampire blood, correct?” He said it as though he were asking whether she’d had a particular flavor of ice cream.

“I have. It was so horribly sweet, like trying to eat a pound of fudge, or maybe a gallon of raw sugar.”

“Well, the pheromones that are released when other vampires attempt to compel a human - I’ve never had the ability myself, nor do I desire it - are essentially like a miniscule dose of that vampire’s blood, making the subject a bit, or even a lot more compliant and open to suggestion. With your enhanced senses of smell and taste, though, I’d imagine that the sweetness may be so overwhelming to you that you were able to shake it off. Additionally,” he said, sipping his coffee, “Becoming ‘more pliable’ does not make you willing to jump off a cliff. If a sufficiently powerful vampire compelled you to say your name or pick up a pencil, I’d imagine you might - but a suggestion that you were vehemently opposed to…”

“Like my father demanding that I go with him,” Weiss supplied.

“Precisely. Something like that would be extremely difficult, or perhaps impossible.”

“That’s a relief,” Weiss said. “Oh, he also… he couldn’t enter our room. He tried, but it was like we had a force field or something - Ruby said it was because he couldn’t come in without an invitation.”

The professor’s eyebrows approached his wiry hairline. “I see,” he murmured. “Vampires whose abilities are more varied are also usually burdened by greater restrictions - we all burn in the sun, for example, but some vampires may find no issue with crossing a threshold while others do. I’m honestly surprised that your father did.”

He met Weiss’ eyes. “Quite fortunate, though - both that he experiences that limitation, and that you, Miss Rose, or perhaps the both of you, are emotionally attached enough to your dorm room that you consider it a ‘home.’”

Weiss raised a questioning eyebrow, and Oobleck explained.

“The threshold rule doesn’t just apply to a space that a person is occupying, or even living in - it’s more emotional than that. The threshold must separate the space that a person considers to be their home - the place that they belong - from the rest of the world. They must always be a doorway of sorts, true, but the threshold doesn’t need to separate a theoretical ‘inside’ and ‘outside.’ If you lived in a larger house, for example, the door between your bedroom and the hallway might be your threshold. Alternatively, If you felt most at home in a public park, perhaps your threshold might be its gate.”

“So, do you think that I might be safe in my room back at the Schnee mansion?” Weiss asked. “I’ve no desire to return, but I’ve lived there for basically my whole life…”

Oobleck shook his head vigorously.

“Oh, no, Miss Schnee. Not everyone has a threshold, as some people do not see any particular space as their ‘home,’ but everyone who does has only one. The moment that a space becomes the most meaningful one in the world to you, it becomes your threshold. If your feelings are evenly split between any two potential thresholds, you may as well have none.” He sipped his coffee. “You and Miss Rose must truly see your room at the college as a home.”

“Oh…” Weiss said, taking that in. “What if only Ruby was enforcing the threshold? You said it could just be one of us, right?”

“That’s a possibility, I suppose,” Oobleck said, waving a noncommittal hand. “But if I may be so bold, Miss Schnee…”

Weiss nodded, giving him permission.

“Be honest with yourself. If you had to choose one, for eternity, where would you live? In your room here at Beacon, or in the Schnee manor?”

“Here,” Weiss said instantly. She blinked.

“Okay,” she admitted, nodding. “I suppose that’s fair.”

“Miss Rose’s choice may not quite be so easy,” the professor said, “as I imagine that she has much fonder memories of her childhood home. Perhaps you could ask her, if you’re curious. Either way, I’d figure that you would be safe from vampires there, as Taiyang still occupies the residence full-time.”

“I see,” Weiss said. “Thank you.”

“Of course,” the professor replied. “Did you observe anything else?”

Weiss thought for a moment.

“He turned into mist,” she said. “Is that typical?”

“No,” Oobleck said, his brow furrowing. “That’s quite rare - I can’t say I’ve personally met a vampire with such a power. Many can transform into bats, or occasionally a blackbird, but mist… that’s a new one, even for me.”

Weiss let out a worrisome nod.

“Now, er… I’d like to ask about, well, killing vampires, if that’s all right.”

“Ah, yes. Don’t worry, the topic brings me no displeasure.”

“All right,” Weiss said. "Ruby mentioned beheading."

"Should work. Bit gruesome."

"Crosses, holy water?"

"Christian propaganda, I fear. One is a shape and the other is the most common substance on Earth that’s had a man say some words near it.” He sipped again. “Running water burns most of us like acid, though."

"Really? How do you bathe?"

"Still water in a bathtub," Oobleck said. "I believe that 'bath bombs' are one of the greatest inventions of this century."

"Garlic?"

"It's delicious - I prefer it on pizza crusts."

"How about wooden stakes?"

"They paralyze us, until removed. You really do have to get the heart, though - an inch in any direction and we're just inconvenienced." He paused. “Oh, if you do use stakes as a weapon, wear thick gloves. You’ll get splinters otherwise.”

Weiss made a small sound of affirmation at that.

"That’s good to keep in mind, thank you. Anything else?"

"Not that I can think of. I will also note that these more specific weaknesses - running water, thresholds, even minor things like mirrors - do only apply to certain vampires, as I said earlier. We’re actually a rather inconsistent bunch in that regard. But beheading, stakes, and of course, the sun - those should work on any vampire you meet."

Oobleck took a calm sip from his coffee mug. "Oh, this likely won't come up, but there’s a chance that if you place a wild rose stalk on your father’s coffin or bed while he sleeps there, he won't be able to rise until it is removed."

"Wait, really?"

"Yes. Haven't you read the original Dracula?"

Weiss shook her head. He shrugged.

"I highly recommend it."

Weiss laughed. “I fear it might hit a little too close to home.”

“I suppose that’s fair,” Oobleck said with a chuckle.

“I also wanted to ask you about something you told us earlier,” Weiss said. “You said that vampires generally became stronger with age, right?”

“Yes,” Oobleck said. “Though I did mean literal strength - the distribution of vampire powers and traits has more to do with the vampire’s Sire.”

“How so?” Weiss asked.

“Well, if you’d indulge me with a bit of vampire legend for a moment,” Oobleck began, and Weiss shifted her tail to the other side of her chair, nodding for him to continue, “We aren’t exactly certain where we came from. Unlike, say, lycanthropes, many vampires have led impressively long lives, but as far as all of my research and personal experience with the matter is concerned, none of us know who the original vampire was, or even if they were one person.”

“Wasn’t there a ‘Dracula?’” Weiss asked, her right ear flopping to the side as she tilted her head in confusion. “I figured that he’d be first.”

“Well, if you believe some,” Oobleck said, “There was a Count Dracula, who lived in central Anima for several centuries. He apparently had an unprecedented amount of influence over the realm. But, rumor has it he met his end in the year 1476, vanquished by a legendary vampire hunter, a sorceress, and the Count’s own son, a daywalker.”

“Mm,” Weiss said.

“But regardless, we have evidence of vampires existing for much longer. It’s not as though there’s much vampire archaeology to be done, considering that we turn to ash when killed, but also considering how prevalent vampires or vampire-like creatures were in ancient cultures... there’s at least a fair chance they got that inspiration from the real thing. Not to mention those of us who claim to be able to trace their lineage of Sires back to the first millenium.”

Oobleck sipped on the dregs of his coffee. “So, as the myth goes, at the beginning of human civilization, perhaps at the beginning of humanity itself, or even earlier, maybe at the very beginning of time, there was one individual, the first vampire. Their gender is often debated, as is the idea that they predated human genders entirely. But in nearly every version of the story, this original vampire was, well, the ur-vampire, possessing all of the traits expressed in any vampire today, benefits and drawbacks. Supposedly, every single vampire has at least an infinitesimal fraction of that vampire’s blood in their veins, and the abilities that they possess are determined by which traits were and weren’t expressed as that blood became more and more diluted over the centuries.”

Weiss let that hang in the air for a while, thinking about it. The professor’s coffee mug was now empty.

“Do you… do you think that they’re still alive?” Weiss asked. “The first vampire?”

Oobleck laughed. “Miss Schnee, I don’t even know if they ever existed.” He shrugged. “It does make for a nice story, though, don’t you think?”

“Yes, I suppose so,” Weiss replied, staring off into space for a moment, thoughtful.

“Well,” the professor said. “My class begins in around…” he checked his watch. “Oh, twenty minutes. I’d be happy to discuss any of this with you further, but I also wouldn’t mind refilling my coffee thermos downstairs before I get there. Do you have any other questions?”

“Oh,” Weiss said, startled out of her reverie. “I… well, I was just thinking. Ruby could smell my father while he was a few floors below us, but I had no idea what I was looking for, and I figured that I… probably should get a strong sense of what a vampire smells like.”

“Ah,” the professor said. “I see. Well, I apologize in advance if this is slightly awkward, but I would not be opposed to serving as an example, for that purpose.” He gave her a shrug. “I fear that my scent is quite a bit subtler than most - I go through quite a bit of trouble to mask it with my coffee.”

Weiss blinked. “Is that why you’re always drinking it?”

“Oh yes,” he said. “My body doesn’t actually process caffeine, it doesn’t give me energy or anything. But I’ve found that carrying a strong brew is able to mask my vampiric nature from even the most perceptive creatures, like Miss Rose. But I’m sure she’d be able to tell if she got within five feet or so.” He let out a small laugh. “I used to only take sips to keep up appearances, but I must admit, I’ve become rather addicted to the taste. Regardless… here. I hope this will make things as minimally awkward as possible.”

He drew back the cuff of his shirt a few inches above the wrist and extended it over the desk. Weiss approached tepidly, only getting about six inches away.

Her ears flattened against her head as she processed the scent. First and foremost, of course, was coffee, and a bit of the ink from the pen he’d been grading with when she’d entered. But underneath, Oobleck himself reminded her vaguely of chemical preservatives, like the sterile scent of a hospital. There was also, as she likely could have guessed, the faint iron or coppery aroma of freshly-spilled blood. As she examined closer, there was a final, very subtle aroma. It made her think of digging out a stone that had been entrenched in the earth for several years - as if one had just removed an old gravestone from the ground.

It was distinct enough that she was confident she’d be able to recognize it in other contexts. The only word she could really ascribe to his scent was ‘vampire’ - like the unique, layered combinations of fragrances that she’d noticed were different between humans from weres.

“I think I’ve got it,” Weiss said, pulling back quickly. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” the professor replied, pulling his shirt sleeve back down. Apparently he was just as uninterested in the physical proximity as she was.

“Also, you drink decaf?” Weiss asked, sniffing the air to confirm. “Does that actually matter?”

“Not in the slightest,” Oobleck replied with a chuckle. “A coworker insisted I switch to it, around five years ago. ‘For my health,’ she advised. I decided to humor her, and now I’m just accustomed to it.”

Weiss snickered. “You didn’t have the heart to tell her you’re already dead, then?”

“No, I most certainly didn’t,” Oobleck laughed. “Though I have made that joke before at department events. ‘I’m working myself to the grave’ is a popular one - always gets a laugh, even from the humans who miss the extra layer of irony.”

Weiss giggled, causing Oobleck to chuckle brightly as well.

“Thank you so much, Professor, for everything.” Weiss said.

“Of course, Miss Schnee. I do hope that we’ll talk like this again soon - and perhaps it will even occur without a ruthless vampire attack preceding it.”

“Yes, well, maybe now I’ll smell it coming,” she said, standing and reaching for the door. She pulled her ears and tail back in. Oobleck stood as well, ready to follow. Weiss paused, a thought occurring to her.

“Oh, one more small thing,” she said. “I almost forgot with everything that happened - Ruby mentioned that my father smelled ‘ancient.’ Like he was already very old and powerful, even though I know he was a human two years ago.”

“Hrmm…” Oobleck said, thinking. “I’ve never heard of a young vampire gaining strength so quickly - there’s really not much we can do to grow stronger besides feed and wait.”

“Coco also called him something - she said he was a ‘master vampire,’ or whatever.”

Oobleck’s face was instantly as dark as a stormcloud. He stared at Weiss over his thick glasses.

“Miss Adel said that? She used those words, precisely?”

“Y-Yes,” Weiss stuttered. “You’ve met Coco?”

“We’re acquainted,” the professor said nonchalantly. “If he were indeed a master vampire, she would absolutely know for certain… oh my.” He sank into his chair, frightened and contemplative.

“Professor… what does that mean, exactly?”

Oobleck sighed.

“Master vampires are extremely rare and very powerful. I don’t know who their Sires must be - if they even have Sires. I’m very fortunate to say that I met one only once, and I was too insignificant at the time for her to notice me.”

Weiss just raised an eyebrow.

“I spent around five decades back in the late nineteen-hundreds under direct control of my Sire, until a young vampire hunter managed to kill him and free me around thirty years ago. But before then, my Sire took me to a castle in the Mistral countryside, and which was owned by a master vampire.”

He stared Weiss right in the face.

“She was so powerful that you could feel the raw death coming off of her in waves from across the room. I watched her break an adult man’s neck with the muscles in one finger before drinking him dry. I’d never been so frightened before or since, and I am almost two hundred years old.”

Weiss had absolutely nothing to say to that. She just stood motionless in horror for a minute, before Oobleck continued.

“Miss Adel, as I’m sure you’ve seen, has a fair amount of magical prowess,” Oobleck said.

“Yes,” Weiss said. “I suppose I wouldn’t have guessed that magic is real on my own, but considering everything I’ve learned these past few months…” Oobleck gave her an indulgent smile.

“Quite. Regardless, Miss Adel has the ability to determine a person’s exact nature with a good enough look - she can tell precisely what kind of creature you are, be it vampire, lycanthrope, et cetera, down to the slightest detail. She probably even ‘saw’ you in all your forms, all at once. It’s an extremely valuable trait for a human.”

“So that’s how she knew about me,” Weiss said. She recalled Coco’s eyes flashing white as she’d looked at her.

“If Miss Adel said that your father is a master vampire, she is correct,” Oobleck stated. “And that means that he is far, far more powerful than we feared.”

Chapter 17: Fluff and Comfort

Chapter Text

“How’d your talk go with Oobleck?” Ruby asked. “Did he tell you how to, uh…”

She stopped there, considering that they were still in public as they walked back to their temporary home with Blake and Yang.

“He did, yes. I actually learned quite a bit about my father,” Weiss said.

“That’s good,” Ruby said. “I still can’t get over how he smelled so old…”

“Well… apparently he’s a lot more powerful than we thought,” Weiss said.

“What do you mean?” Ruby asked, her brows furrowing.

“Do you remember what Coco called him?” Weiss lowered her voice. “A ‘master vampire?’”

“Yeah,” Ruby said, scratching her head. “I guess I hadn’t done much thinking about it…”

“Well, according to the professor, it means he’s extremely powerful and dangerous,” Weiss said. “I don’t know how powerful, exactly, but I’m not really sure if you and I could actually, well… take him, in a straight fight.”

Ruby made a worried sound at that. They both had assumed that Jacques would be too young a vampire to really threaten Ruby in her were, and their assumption had been further validated by the fact that Jacques had only came for them on the new moon. But based on Oobleck’s description of the raw strength that a master vampire had… Weiss suddenly wasn’t so sure.

“I dunno,” Ruby said. “But we’ve got each other, Blake and Yang, and heck, probably Coco if we know he’s coming...”

“Winter and Robyn, too, if that really became necessary,” Weiss said. “But I don’t truly know.” Weiss put a hand on her chin as she thought over it all again.

“Hey,” Ruby said, gently getting her attention. “No matter what, we’ll figure it out.” She gave Weiss a winning smile, though she briefly lost control of her unwieldy art bag in the process. She scrambled with it for a moment, and then resumed her confident pose as if nothing had gone awry.

“Thank you,” Weiss said with a smile. “And are you sure you don’t need help carrying that?” She felt bad walking next to Ruby as she struggled with the unwieldy bag and her backpack, while Weiss carried nothing but her card and her scroll.

“Fine,” Ruby relented, handing the bag over while they waited at a crosswalk. She adjusted her backpack straps once her arms were free, then gave Weiss a nervous smile. “Thanks.”

“Of course, Ruby,” Weiss said simply, holding the bag up under her arm. “I like your painting so far, by the way.”

“Oh, you were watching?” Ruby asked with a blush. She rubbed the back of her neck, a bit nervous. “I figure I paint too slow to be entertaining…”

“No, it was nice,” Weiss said. “I’ve never observed you staying that quiet for that long. It was a welcome change of pace.”

“Hey!” Ruby said, giving her a tiny, playful shove. “I can be quiet! I’m quiet all the time!”

“No, Ruby, you are not,” Weiss said, the endearing grin plain on her face. “Not when you cook, not when you do homework, not even when you draw on your tablet. You’re always humming along to music, at least - if not fully talking to yourself.”

“This is slander!” Ruby protested. “You’re slandering me, Weiss Schnee!”

“As my sister would happily tell you, it’s only slander if it’s false,” Weiss said, milking every ounce of enjoyment out of this exchange. Ruby was about to retort, but she was interrupted by the scroll in Weiss’ hand ringing. Winter’s name appeared on the screen.

“Speaking of…” Weiss said.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Weiss,” came a voice that decidedly did not belong to Winter. “Can you maybe tell me why there are two Atlas PD officers at our door, and why they’re asking to talk to my girlfriend about you?”

Weiss suddenly remembered that she hadn’t yet told Winter about the break-in.

“OH! Sorry, Robyn - is Winter there?”

A sigh came from over the line.

“She’s currently bombarding the two cops with legal-speak, and I’m pretty sure that if she talks them in circles for much longer, they’ll die of hunger on our porch.” She could almost hear Robyn pinching the bridge of her nose. “Can you tell me what’s going on?”

“Well…” Weiss said, looking at Ruby. They were walking close enough that she had heard the entire exchange, and she just gave Weiss a reassuring nod. “My father… came for us, Saturday night. Me and Ruby, that is - he broke into our building and even kicked down our door…”

“Holy sh*t,” Robyn said, the annoyance vanishing from her tone. “Are you two all right?”

“We’re fine, don’t worry,” she said. “He, um…” she whispered. “He couldn’t cross our threshold.”

“Okay, that’s good,” Robyn sighed.

“The police here at Beacon are doing an investigation, trying to pin it on him. I had to tell them about Winter - she’s enough of a public figure that I knew they’d find her anyways, and I wanted to be upfront. I’m so sorry, I forgot to tell you both...”

“No, no, I get it,” Robyn said. “I’m just glad you and Ruby are okay - do you have somewhere to stay right now?”

“Yes, of course,” Weiss said. “We’re living with Ruby’s sister in an off-campus apartment for the next few days. It should have a threshold, too.”

“Okay,” Robyn said. “Give me a second.” Weiss could hear her cover the receiver, but she still heard her call a faint “Honey? C’mere a sec!” and some hushed conversation before Winter grabbed the scroll.

“Weiss - are you all right?”

“Yes,” Weiss said, rolling her eyes a little at how many people she’d said that to today.

“Robyn told me some of what happened - Father broke in to your room?”

“He tried,” Weiss shrugged. “We’re safe, but the police are investigating it now…”

“Weiss,” Winter admonished. Her voice grew softer. “You do realize what this means, right? If this investigation leaks, it’ll probably harm Father’s public image. He’ll absolutely retaliate - not just against you, but against the officers investigating him, maybe even Beacon College itself.” She let out a sigh. “I just… are you sure it was smart to tell the police that it was him?”

“We… didn’t exactly get much time to think it over,” Weiss hedged. “But, Winter… he broke into our home. He was fully ready to kidnap me back to Atlas, or heaven knows where, and he…” she paused.

“What, Weiss? What else did he do?”

“He threatened to kill Ruby,” Weiss spat. “And I just - I can’t… I won’t allow him to…”

The other line was quiet for a moment. Winter exhaled, making the microphone crackle.

“Dammit. I’m sorry, Weiss - I get it. I… I didn’t know things had already escalated that far.”

“I fear that they most certainly have,” Weiss said with a huff.

“Indeed,” Winter said. “Okay, Weiss. I’ll talk to these bumbling idiots who think they can just walk in here without a warrant -” this part was yelled away from the scroll, likely towards Winter’s door “- and at least tell them what I can about Father.” She let out a little sigh. “I assume that you left out the vampire part.”

“I did,” Weiss said. “Our cover story is that he saw me with Ruby’s sister and her girlfriend, and that he demanded that I return to Atlas for an SDC desk job when he visited Beacon two weeks ago.”

“Got it,” Winter said. “Anything about the man he sent after you?”

“The first time he asked me to come with him, to Father, the second time we just saw his face and were able to steer clear,” Weiss said.

“Okay. I’ll let you know if I think they suspect anything, but…” she let out a tiny laugh. “I’ll happily state for the record that our father is a greedy, abusive old hom*ophobe.”

Weiss chuckled at that.

“I just… I hope you know what you’re doing, Weiss.”

“You said that to me last week,” Weiss said with a weak smile. “I’m figuring it out, Winter. Promise.” She looked at Ruby. “We… we just want to be left alone.”

“I know,” Winter said. “But you know our father isn’t the type of man to do that.”

“Trust me, I’m aware,” Weiss sighed. “I don’t want to keep those officers waiting, but… have you heard anything from Whitley?”

“No. Have you?”

“No,” Weiss said. “We’re getting worried - Ruby and I found his social media, and he took a picture in direct sunlight somewhat recently, but…”

“Hmm.” Winter said. “Maybe ask Klein?”

Weiss raised her eyebrows - she hadn’t thought of that.

“Good idea, I’ll try that.”

“Let me know,” Winter said. “The emancipation lawyer I know has done what little prep work she can to start getting him out of there, but at this point he has to meet with her and decide to go through with it.” She sighed. “I have to go now, Weiss - if I keep these cops at my door any longer I’m afraid that they’ll fuse with the porch.”

“Okay,” Weiss said. “Good luck. Love you.”

“Love you too, Weiss. Talk to you soon.”

Weiss looked up to realize that they’d already made it to Blake and Yang’s apartment building. Ruby was patiently leaning against the iron railing of their little stone stoop.

“Oh, thank you for waiting,” she said, giving Ruby an indulgent smile as she pulled out the spare key they’d lent her.

“It wasn’t long,” Ruby said. She stopped for a moment. “You okay?”

“Yes,” Weiss sighed. “I’m just… worried for my brother.” Ruby gave her a sympathetic look.