Chapter Eighteen: Rush

"Where are we going?"

Ruby was surprised it had taken Pyrrha so long to ask the question; they'd been walking deeper and deeper into the forest since morning. If it had been me, I'd have asked like three hours ago! Especially since I told her to bring a swimsuit! I suppose she just thinks differently. "It's a surprise!" Pyrrha nodded in response, taking it in stride as the two traversed the hilly terrain. "Are you sure you don't wanna take a break? We've been walking all morning."

"No, no, no," Pyrrha protested the offer. "I'm not tired in the least! I feel refreshed after yesterday, to be honest." That day was the second day of Pyrrha's visit to Patch. In the previous morning, Ruby, Yang, and Blake had picked up the Mistralian from the air terminal. As the four had bumbled around Patch, Yang and Ruby giving Pyrrha and Blake a small tour of the island's main town before finally heading back to Ruby's house for the night. I don't get how Pyrrha was so awake. It's a long flight from Mistral, and she was up later than I was yesterday! Maybe she slept on the flight ov- "Do you need a break, Ruby?" Pyrrha's voice interrupted the short teen's thoughts. "We have been walking for quite some time, as you said."

"Nope!" Ruby was the opposite of tired. In fact, she was so downright excited for the trip that she had trouble sleeping the night before. Ruby shook her head before pointing towards where they were headed and cheering, "Onward!" and sprinted off…

…at least she would have if Zwei hadn't whined so loudly.

"Oops!" Ruby looked down at the corgi, his tail in-between his legs, and hit herself on the head. I completely forgot about him! "Sorry buddy. Maybe we should take a break then?"

"That sounds like a grand idea," Pyrrha agreed before settling down on a nearby tree stump. Ruby followed, bending over to pick up the panting dog before sitting down next to the tall teen. Pyrrha looked worriedly at him. "Is he going to be alright?"

"Yeah, he just probably wants something to eat, that's all!" Ruby pulled off her backpack before reaching her hand into it. "I know I packed some treats somewhere… ah-ha!" Pulling out a big, unopened box, Ruby ripped off the top and grabbed a handful of bone-shaped treats to feed to the beleaguered corgi - only to find Zwei snoring loudly in Pyrrha's lap. "Or maybe he just wanted to nap."

"He's so cute," Pyrrha murmured as she gently stroked his fur, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth as she watched him snooze. "Have you and Yang had him for a long time?"

"Um, let's see…" Ruby pondered for a moment. "We got him right before I got into Signal, so he's three years old? Three and a half?"

"You mean he doesn't get any bigger?" Pyrrha did a double take, studying the corgi with renewed curiosity. "But he's so small."

"That's just how corgis are." Ruby shrugged. "Plus it makes him easy to carry! You should have seen him when we first got him, he was even smaller." The older teen's eyes widened, no doubt imagining just how small a puppy Zwei was. "When we get back to the house, I can show you some of his puppy pictures."

"That sounds wonderful!" Pyrrha nodded enthusiastically before returning to slowly petting Zwei as an amicable silence settled in. It was during this silence that Ruby found her attention being pulled from the sleeping corgi to Pyrrha.

It was different seeing Pyrrha like this; at Beacon, Ruby saw her pour all of her time into studying or training. Out in the field or in the tournament or even during training, Pyrrha had a brutal efficiency to her, one that Ruby admired. Yet out here, far away from that, away from all that attention and schoolwork, Pyrrha seemed different. She was just a normal teenager petting a dog.

Ruby had always saw Pyrrha as just a normal, kind person. When they'd been showing Patch to her, there had been numerous times when they were stopped by someone who thrusted a pen and paper at Pyrrha, asking for an autograph. Sometimes they wanted a picture taken posing with her. Sometimes people just did double takes as they had strolled along the street, as if they couldn't believe that Pyrrha was actually there.

It's not like she is some alien or anything, but that has to get to her, right? Most of the time Ruby forgot that Pyrrha was famous. The concept that her friend was on the front of cereal boxes – Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes no less! - was still difficult to grasp.

When Ruby had hung out with some of her friends from Signal, they couldn't believe that she knew Pyrrha Nikos, let alone was friends with her. It was only times like then that Ruby actually remembered who Pyrrha was. Or the fact that she had very few friends. Or how fragile she could be.

The drama at the end of the semester had been bizarre. Who knew that Pyrrha had a crush on Jaune? It blew Ruby's mind to find out her friend was crushing on Vomit Boy of all people. Once the issue had been figured out, Ruby gained a new best friend: Pyrrha.

Yet sometimes, a small question popped up in the back of her head: what if I'm not Pyrrha's best friend?

Of course I am! There was no doubt in Ruby's mind to that. I mean, I think I am? Perhaps a little doubt. I hope I am… Okay, a lot of doubt. It was a nagging little thing in the recesses of Ruby's mind. After all, how could she, a girl who would have rather been on a team with her own big sister then meet new people, be best friends with someone as amazing as Pyrrha "Invincible Girl" Nikos, an actual celebrity and huntress prodigy?

That doesn't matter! Ruby shook her head, dispelling the doubts. I'll make sure that Pyrrha has the most fun she has ever had today… ever!

"Ruby?" Pyrrha's soft voice pulled Ruby from her thoughts. "Do you think he needs to rest much longer?"

Glancing down at the corgi, it was clear that Zwei was no longer napping but had merely decided Pyrrha's lap was comfortable, as evident of his open eyes that were staring at Ruby. "Yeah, he's just being lazy now."

"Oh! I see." Pyrrha gently picked him up before placing the small dog on the ground, only for Zwei to start whining again. Immediately, her mouth gaped open and her body stiffened as she looked back at Ruby in mild horror. "Did-did I do something wrong?"

"I don't think so?" Ruby studied her dog. "He probably just wants to be carried." Ruby didn't even have to look at Pyrrha, hearing her long crimson hair swishing as she nodded. "That, or he wants to ride in the back pack."

"So… I didn't hurt him?" The pleading voice made it clear that just how afraid Pyrrha was that'd she had harmed Zwei.

"Nope! Professor Oobleck once set him on fire and hit him with a bat, so he can take just about anything." Pyrrha breathed an audible sigh of relief as Zwei took a few steps with his stubby feet before plopping down on the two girls' feet. "He really is lazy sometimes." The shorter teen giggled as she stood up before reaching down and scooping Zwei up in her arms. "Alright! Back to the adventu-"

Pyrrha was focused clearly on the dog still. "Sorry, what were you saying, Ruby?" Her emerald eyes glanced up at her Ruby before returning to Zwei. The solution was quite clear to Ruby.

"You can hold him if you want to."

"I can?" The Pyrrha's eyes were wide with surprise and a hint of wonder in her voice.

"Yup, hold out your arms!" Pyrrha complied and let Ruby gently transfer the corgi to her. A huge smile stretched across Pyrrha's face as Zwei gave her a lick before nuzzling into her arms. "There ya go! Ready to go now?"

"Sure!" Pyrrha nodded. "Which way are we headed?"

"Just follow me!"

I wonder where we are going.

Pyrrha had been more than content to keep the question to herself as Ruby led her deeper into the forest before finally caving in and asking. When they'd planned Pyrrha's visit, back before she'd even bought the airship tickets, Ruby had insisted on keeping that day as a surprise.

Surprises were something that Pyrrha didn't experience too often. For the past few years her life had been nothing but a regimented schedule for school and training. Even tournaments were no longer much of a surprise, as she could almost always guarantee the outcome; in fact, it'd be more surprising if she lost.

So when Ruby had suggested keeping what they'd be doing today a secret, Pyrrha was happy to play along. Although I have to wonder where we are going… From what little Pyrrha knew about the island of Patch, the two of them were headed away from the main town and towards the sprawling wilderness in the interior. As far as I remember from the tour, nothing is there. Oh well. Pyrrha gave a small shrug. It'll be interesting to see what Ruby has in store for us. Until then, Pyrrha was content to follow Ruby while holding a snoozing dog.

At the present, the two were just cresting over a hill when Ruby spun around and swept her arms outwards. "Ta-da! We're here!" Peering around Ruby, Pyrrha finally realized why Ruby had told her to bring a swimsuit.

At the base of the hill, the tree line thinned into a wide, quiet river with a small shack – "building" was too generous a word for the structure - complete with several boats lying on the embankment. Scrawled across the shack's front in big colourful letters were the words Kayaks for rent! "We're going kayaking?"

"Yup!" Ruby nodded before grabbing Pyrrha's hand and bolting down the hill towards the shack. "Yang and I used to do this a lot, and it's usually not too busy during this part of the summer 'cause all of the Signal students are back in classes!" Ruby halted suddenly in her rush down to the shack. "I totally forgot to ask: have you gone kayaking before?"

Pyrrha shook her head, a smile stretched across her face. "I have not, although I'm more than willing to try it!" Her eyebrows furrowed, though, as a concern popped into her head. "What about Zwei?" She nodded down toward the slightly less sleepy corgi in her arms, well, left arm since her right hand was being tugged by Ruby. "Do we just leave him here…?" Leaving Zwei at the shack didn't sound like a very good idea. Won't he get lonely or hungry?

"He'll come with us, duh!" Pyrrha involuntarily raised an eyebrow, prompting Ruby to explain. "Zwei loves the water, he used to come with me and Yang all the time."

"Oh. Oka-" Zwei started wriggling out of Pyrrha's arms as if on cue, jumping away and dashing towards the river before diving in. Pyrrha didn't even try to suppress a giggle as she watched the adorable ball of fluff bob up and down in the river, his tongue lolling out. "So I see." Favouring Ruby with a smile, she started to walk towards the shack, pulling Ruby by the hand this time. "As you said, onward!"

As Pyrrha sat down in the small compartment, it dawned on her that she truly had no idea what she was doing.

True, she'd never been kayaking before, but more than that, Pyrrha had never been on a boat at all. It was an odd experience of being so close to the water level yet gliding smoothly over it. It was not unnerving or anything but certainly different.

Ruby had insisted on paying for the rental, nabbing the nicest of the surprisingly varied collection of kayaks. I hope it didn't eat too deep into her pockets. I know Ruby mentioned she was running low on money a little while ago.

Nevertheless, the two, now clad in swimwear, were seated in the kayak, Zwei standing on the front end, carried by the current as Ruby taught Pyrrha how to paddle. "So when I paddle on one side, you paddle on the same side, and, um... follow my strokes and we'll go straight. If we wanna go left we paddle on the left side and if we want to do a hard left, you gotta paddle backwards on the left side, while I paddle on the right. I think?"

Pyrrha looked at the double-ended paddle she was holding and back up at Ruby. "That makes sense. Since you're up front, that would turn the boat quickly due to opposite forces, I believe."

"Yup! Let's try going straight!" With that, Ruby dipped her paddle into the water before gently pushing back. Pyrrha meanwhile followed the motion, propelling the kayak forward. "Just like that." It didn't take long for Pyrrha to get the hang of it; eventually, Ruby's strokes became faster and more of what Pyrrha assumed was a normal pace for her, while Pyrrha matched her speed.

The two of them floated down the river as Pyrrha admired the scenery. The calm river flowed through the forest that covered much of Patch's wilderness, branching off into a myriad of other, smaller streams. In the heat of the summer, the humidity was high, not quite sweltering but high. Moreover, there was a ton of wildlife along the riverbank.

One of the perks that came from being a huntress, even a huntress-in-training, was leaving the kingdom limits and entering into unspoiled nature. Over time, the cities that made up each of the four kingdoms had taken over almost all of the land safe from the Grimm. That's not to say there were no trees, but large untouched forests like Patch's were something you just didn't see within kingdom limits.

The deer that occasionally stared at the two as the kayak glided by were fascinating, or the large century-old trees that occasionally dotted the forest fascinated Pyrrha. Even the vines that snaked through some of the denser parts of the tree line drew Pyrrha's eyes – so much so that she sometimes forgot to paddle.

Suddenly Ruby stopped alternating her paddling, causing the kayak to turn. "Ruby?"

"Don't worry, just taking a detour!" Said detour led the two into a narrower waterway that branched off from the one they were on.

The first thing that Pyrrha noticed was the noise. What had been a low din from the stream started to overpower her ears as the flow of the water sped up creating a low roar. The second thing that she noticed was the dark blue water becoming increasingly white. Going around a bend, Pyrrha could see what was creating such a change.

The river's current was carrying the kayak towards a series of rather vicious looking rapids.

I may be no expert on boats, but aren't rapids bad? At the very least it was concerning. "Should we be going this way?" Pyrrha yelled to be heard over the rapids.

"It'll be fine!" Ruby shouted as she frantically paddled either side of the boat, keeping it from flipping around. "Just keep paddling, I'll keep us from tipping over and it'll be fineee!"

Ruby had made a mistake.

Everything was not fine. In fact, it was the opposite of fine. In truth, Ruby had never done this before. Not kayaking, no, she hadn't been lying about that. Knowing what she was doing in the rapids? Not so much.

When they'd just gotten on the river, Pyrrha seemed to be enjoying it, and everything was good. Then she'd gone quiet, even setting down her paddle. Clearly, just normal kayaking was too boring for Pyrrha! Plus, Ruby kinda maybe sorta wanted to impress her friend.

I've never taught someone how to kayak or actually go through rapids before… but I did a good job with the first one, so it can't be that hard, right?

Yet as Ruby tried to keep the kayak straight, it occurred to her that perhaps there'd still be time to back out. But then Pyrrha will get bored again. The indecision made its own choice as the two got close enough to the rapids that there was no turning back.

"Ruby what should we do?" Pyrrha yelled from behind her. "What do you need me to do?"

"Um….uhh…." It was hard to give an answer when one had no idea what to do. "Just… um…. keep the boat… stabl-"

WHAM

Ruby was dunked head first into the river, Pyrrha joining her moments later. The current carrying them along with the now wrong side up kayak. It took a few seconds for Ruby to get her bearings.

Much to her dismay, they hadn't been able to even make it past the first set of rapids without the boat flipping over. On the flip side, Ruby was extremely thankful she'd paid extra for the waterproof bags to put all their stuff in when she'd rented the now capsized vessel.

Is Pyrrha okay?

Straining around, it didn't take long for the small teen to notice the red hair and the body it was attached to, floating a half dozen feet away. At least the lifejackets work, Ruby idly noted as she bobbed up and down in the river.

Swimming towards Pyrrha, Ruby yelled, "Hey Pyrrha! Are you okay?"

The girl in question gave a small wave towards her. "I think so! You?"

"I'm good!" Ruby jerked her head towards the now upside down kayak. "We should probably get that onto the shore first."

It didn't take too long for the two to push the kayak to the sandy shore and finally getting out of the water. Ruby's muscles ached from the exertion, but at least they weren't in danger anymore. She plopped down onto the ground to give her legs a break.

"That was… eventful." Pyrrha commented while checking to make sure their stuff was still in the kayak. "Is it usually that lively?"

"Nope." The younger teen shook her head. "I'm just glad you and Zwei are oka- Zwei?" Ruby realized she hadn't seen him since they capsized. "Zweeeeiiii?!"

"There!" Pyrrha pointed downstream, Ruby's eyes frantically darting towards the direction. Bobbing up and down in the river, wearing an orange lifejacket, was Zwei. Unfortunately, he was getting farther and farther away from the two as the current carried the corgi at an alarming rate.

Ruby started running at full tilt towards the dog. "Zweeeeeeei!" Zwei spun his head around to face her, his small legs uselessly fighting against the current. He can't get to shore, if we don't grab him, he'll be… gone.

Ruby Rose was not going to lose another member of her family. I can't lose another, not like…

Her legs groaned in protest, still aching from swimming to shore, but Ruby didn't care as her gut tightened. I have to save Zwei! Sand gave way to stone as Ruby's bare feet darted across hard-edged rocks. Her aura dampened the pain, but she used most of her aura to augment her speed.

By the time that Ruby was even close to Zwei, it hurt to breathe. The teen was painfully out of breath, her mouth opening and closing like a fish, trying to gulp down as much air as possible. It didn't matter; anything to save Zwei! Steeling herself, Ruby burned through another sizeable chunk of aura in a burst of rose petals, launching ahead of the carried-away corgi.

"Zwei, I'm gonna get you!" The dog barked back at Ruby. Except I don't know how. While Ruby could dive back into the river, her legs were so tired that she too would probably get carried away when she got to him.

She found her answer at a bend in the rushing river: an old tree trunk lying nearby. If I push it across the river, Zwei could grab on to it! Even better, Ruby's arms weren't as tired as her legs were. Grabbing onto the log, Ruby pushed with all of her might.

It barely budged an inch.

Ruby wilted at the lack of movement. It's too heavy to move! It didn't matter, Ruby was going to save her Zwei, even if it killed her!

Thirty seconds later, she'd moved it about six inches. Just need to push it another ten or so feet! If only Yang was here, or Nora, or maybe- Ruby's eyes widened. Or Pyrrha! Looking back, there was no sight of her friend. Grimacing, Ruby went back to pushing the log out onto the water.

It wasn't much longer until Zwei came into sight, struggling in vain against the current with his stubby little paws. Fortunately for Ruby, help soon arrived.

Pyrrha was sprinting faster than Ruby have ever seen her go, jumping over logs or rocks without being phased. "We need to push this across the river!"

"Understood!" The tall red-head nodded before grabbing onto the log with Ruby.

SCRUNCH!

The log didn't just budge. When they heaved at it together, it rocketed – comparatively - towards the river, just in time for Zwei to be caught by it. With his lifejacket prevent him from going under the water and the log stopping him from drifting downstream, it was a simple matter for Ruby to crawl across the tree trunk and gingerly snatch him up from the river.

The very moment that Ruby was on dry land, she hugged her soaked corgi with a Yang-like grip. "Zwei! You're okay!" Zwei licked her nose in response. A tightness that'd been building in Ruby's gut finally loosened. He's okay now, he's okay now.

"I'm sorry I couldn't here sooner." Pyrrha's gentle apologetic tone roused Ruby from her embrace. "You're really, really fast!"

"I'm just really happy that you got here, if you hadn't…" Ruby trailed off, not wanting to finish the thought. "Plus you were going really fast yourself! Plus, Zwei's fine, see?" Ruby took a step forward to put Zwei in Pyrrha's arms…

…or would have, if the step hadn't been pure misery.

Sharp jabs of pain shot through her foot causing Ruby to lose her balance. Ruby would have careened into the slippery rocks that she'd been standing on, had it not been for Pyrrha's timely catch. Pyrrha scooped Ruby up into her arms. "Ow ow ow!" Ruby's eyes were squeezed shut as she suddenly became aware of tremendous amount of pain both of her feet were feeling.

Pyrrha carefully set her down on the tree stump before Ruby got a good look at the soles of her feet. Nearly fifty or sixty cuts covered the bottom of them, blood freely flowing from them.

It took Ruby a moment to dimly remember why. It's probably from running on sharp rocks. "How come your aura isn't healing them?" Pyrrha worriedly asked.

"Probably 'cause I used all of it to catch up with Zwei." Ruby sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "Whoops."

"We need to get you first aid, now!" Pyrrha stood up and took a step towards where'd they came from before stopping with a shudder. Now that Ruby wasn't so focused on rescuing Zwei, she could see the long trail of blood leading up to where she was now. Turning back around, she found a worried Pyrrha. "Does the kayak have a first aid kit?"

"I think so?" The safety lessons Ruby had gotten when she'd first started had been so long ago, it was quite fuzzy. "It should be in the front of the kayak."

Pyrrha nodded before kneeling down next to her. "Okay, grab on to me."

"Buh-wha?"

"You're in no condition to walk, and it'd take too long to go to the kayak and come back. Plus, it would be bad to leave you alone, so I'm going to carry you."

"A-a-are you sure?" Pyrrha raised an eyebrow, giving Ruby a clear answer. "O-okay." Weakly, Ruby wrapped her arms around her friend's neck. Ridiculously muscled arms securely wrapped around Ruby's legs and back, heaved her up as if she was made of air before turning around and breaking into a jog towards the kayak, with Zwei leading the way.

As Pyrrha jogged towards the kayak Ruby gave a sleepy yawn.

"Are you tired?" Pyrrha asked while they kept following the blood trail, which grew fainter as they got closer.

"Yeah. All that swimming and kayaking and running was a lot of work." Ruby's head rested on the crook of Pyrrha's neck. "I kinda wanna take a nap." Even in the dimming light, Ruby could make out a frown crescenting on Pyrrha's face. "Or I could stay awake!"

"If you could, that'd be really good, Ruby." Pyrrha glanced at her - or as much as she could, given how close the two were. "You might be more tired from the blood loss more so than anything else."

"Oh. Okay then." Pyrrha gave her a small smile as they continued their trek. "Didja ya have fun? I mean, before we sorta, uh, flipped over." Ruby felt guilty about the rapids still. I was just trying to make sure she was having fun like a good best friend, but instead I nearly lost Zwei and cut up my feet pretty badly. I think that counts as a fail.

"I did!" Pyrrha's words surprised Ruby. Even from the small glimpse of Pyrrha's eyes, Ruby could have sworn her eyes were shining, barring any doubt about her sincerity. "A bit more intense than what I expected on my birthday, but tha-"

"IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY?!"

Ruby's head shot up from its resting place causing her to nearly fall out of Pyrrha's arms. Her eyes were wide with panic. I was trying to be a good friend and show her a good time, but I didn't even realize it was her birthday? "Oh crap! We could have done something interesting if I knew that, instead of lame kayaking, um... Maybe if we call Dad now, we could still get back to town in tim-"

A soft touch to her shoulder stopped Ruby, drawing her attention to its owner. "Ruby, I'm perfectly happy right now, being here, with you." The beaming smile and twinkle in her eyes were proof enough. "In fact, besides my best friend nearly bleeding out, this has been the best birthday I've had in ages."

Despite everything that had happened, Ruby let a goofy grin stretch across her face. Pyrrha still had fun at least. Yet Ruby wanted to do something better then have Pyrrha carry her around for her birthday. "But tomorrow we'll do something awesome! I promise!"

Pyrrha gave her a concerned stare. "Is it going to be safe?"

"…maybe?" Ruby wilted under the emerald eyes' gaze. "It won't be anything dangerous like this, I swear!"

"Then I'm looking forward to it! Today was still fun, though. It was just scary when we capsized." Pyrrha's smile compressed into a thin line. "I just hope I did nothing wrong."

Ruby felt a very distinct pang of guilt. "Uh, funny story that, um." The taller redhead stared curiously at her. "That, um, well, it may have been my fault completely."

"No, no, no. You tried you're best!" Pyrrha shook her head, her long crimson hair swishing across Ruby's arms. "Sometimes things just go wrong, and there is nothing we can do about it. Even though you've done this before.-"

"I actually kinda-sorta haven't?"

"Come again?"

"I went through the rapids like once, when I was little with uncle Qrow and Yang, I don't really know how to…"

Her mouth quirked into a confused frown as Pyrrha's head tilted. "Then why would you-"

"Because you looked really bored when we were going on the peaceful part of the river, and I didn't want to bore you and it looked like you fell asleep, so it was obviously really boring, so I thought 'hey, I know how to make it really interesting, let's go through the rapids!'"

Pyrrha paused in her trek and stood silent for a moment, the gears in her head slowly turning as Ruby's ramble ended. "Wait, you thought I was bored?" Ruby slowly nodded, her eyes downcast at that. "I wasn't bored at all."

"I know that now, it's just... I was really worried that you were and-"

"Ruby." Pyrrha spoke firmly, catching Ruby off guard. Pyrrha seemed to have surprised with her own tone, as she continued with a softer voice. "I'm never bored when I'm with you! It's always an adventure and I always have fun. Like the Vytal festival! Just because I'm quiet doesn't mean I'm bored."

"Oh." Ruby sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "I really screwed up then, didn't I?"

"Perhaps? Just, remember that I do have fun with you, okay?" Ruby lamely nodded. "And please, please promise me you'll never do something like that again Ruby." Ruby could have sworn that there something other than the spray of the river fell onto her face.

"I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you."

Warmth.

Ruby didn't know if it was because she was no longer panicking, or because both she and Pyrrha were wearing nothing but soaked swimsuits while she was being held against Pyrrha's chest, or even the blood loss, but she felt different.

The only way Ruby could describe the feeling: a sudden rush of heat. Not in the sense of putting on a blanket, or sitting in the sun, or… it wasn't something tangible, but she could still feel it within her somehow. She definitely felt something. Ruby became acutely aware of all the points of contact she had with Pyrrha. Her focus was dragged onto those points while heat rose in her cheeks and she didn't know why.

Try as she might, she could not focus on anything else, the warmth flowing through her body until it felt like she was enveloped in it. It wasn't until Pyrrha gently set her down at the kayak that the influx of warmth slowly ebb away, the bright ruby red blush following suit after.

Even long after the sensation had faded and the two had made it back to civilization, Ruby could still remember with vivid detail that feeling.

What was that?!

Editor: ASouthernRussian

AU: That, my dear readers, is a very good question.

Let it not be said that nothing is happening for Milk and Cereal in this story, because stuff is now happening. Though, in my outline this was supposed to be next chapter (which is now two chapters from now), but then again, that chapter was originally this chapter. My outline is confusing sometimes.

Side note, Pyrrha turned 18 in chapter 18. So that's funny.

I hope everyone had a good holidays!

I'm really sorry that I didn't get this done and posted on January 1st like I had planned. I technically had it done but was still editing, but this chapter needed a LOT of editing because of how much I started to rush it at the end. For the sake of my editor's sanity I'm not going to do that again, that's for sure!

I'll be honest, writing this chapter was just a mess; I went from going to do a short, 3,000 word fluff chapter, to 8,000 word to about 6,500 (5,100 outside of the two omakes and author's note).

OKAY SO HAPPY PYRRHA IS NEEDED BECAUSE CANON, SO LOOK HOW HAPPY SHE KINDA WAS THIS CHAPTER? I SUPPOSE? Yeah, she was mostly happy. I'd call this a happy chapter… what about you guys (and gals), was this a happy chapter for Pyrrha? Man I just want happy Pyrrha in canon, but that is a pipe dream amongst pipe dreams at this point, ain't it? I need to write more Spoon Equality this week for happy Milk and Cereal.

So in-between this chapter and chapter 17, Acceptance got put up for Fanfic of the year on the RWBY subreddit! The voting ended on January 2nd. Acceptance got second place, first place being Remnant's Reclaimers! So that's a neat little thing, I mean have you seen how popular that story is? I'm surprised and honoured I got ranked as highly as I did (and was the first fic nominated. You know how you are who did that and thank you again! :P )

Now on to more story-relevant business, release schedule.

I'm going to shoot for something like February. Hopefully. The first Friday of every month is what I like to do, and in this case, it gives me four weeks still, which is what I usually do nowadays. Failing that, there WILL be a chapter on the one year anniversary of this story, albeit, I'm hoping for it to be chapter 20 instead of chapter 19.

I ACTUALLY RESPONDED TO ALL THE REVIEWS LAST NIGHT! So at least I did that right this time around. Really sorry about being so late on that; real life (finals + working at a movie theater for star wars release) severely drained me over the course of the last month.

I have two omakes today; another omake from Super Saiyan Cyndaquil with a bit of crossover from the story I help him on, Spectrum, as well as a Omake that is somewhat inspired by a conversation with him.

Thank you all for reading and putting up with me for as long as you have, it about to get good :D

P.S. Have a great day too! :D

Omake I:

"So whatca ya get for your birthday?"

"Well, I got something from each of my teammates." Pyrrha reached into her luggage before pulling out three packages.

"Oooo." Ruby's eyes widened. "What kind of awesome stuff did they send you?"

"Well, Ren gave me a book on origami." Pyrrha pulled out a huge tome from a box. "Nora and Jaune's gifts were a bit… odd."

Ruby titled her head. "How do ya mean?"

"Well." Pyrrha awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck. "Jaune gave me this…" The tall redhead handed Ruby a box.

Curious, Ruby opened the box as Pyrrha sheepishly watched. "A pair of gloves?" To be fair, they were really, REALLY soft gloves, so soft that Ruby started to question how much they cost. "They're so soft!"

Pyrrha nodded. "That's what I thought too. The card that went with it said 'for whenever a gentler touch is needed.' I suppose I'll have to ask him about it when we go back to Beacon."

"How about Nora's gift?"

"That one is even more baffling." Pyrrha gingerly picked up the box with two hands, before handing it to Ruby. "Careful, it is really heavy."

Pyrrha hadn't been wrong, the box must have weighed a good thirty pounds, nearly pulling Ruby face first with the ground, only honed huntress reflexes stopped her from dropping it, instead setting it down roughly. Even more curious then the last box, Ruby slowly pulled off the top revealing, well, she didn't quite know what it was.

It was made out of pure metal, with bits of red dust infused into the spikes jutting out from every conceivable angle. The metal itself seemed to be almost like it was in the shape of a… hand? "I think this is supposed to be worn, I think?"

Several minutes later, Pyrrha's right arm was now clad in a wicked looking obsidian black gauntlet, almost as if it was glowing with malicious intent – as well as dust. Pyrrha was now admiring the contraption in a bit of awe, same as Ruby. "I just wish I could find the card for it." As the two redheads admired it, a small piece of paper fell off of it, having been trapped between the spikes. Even though Ruby rarely saw Nora's hand writing, there was no mistaking it as anyone's but hers.

"Huh, 'for when you need to smack a bitch'. I wonder what she means… what do you think Pyrrha?"

Omake II – Guest author: Super Saiyan Cyndaquil:

Velvet loved travelling.

It could be said though that her boyfriend, most certainly did not.

Jaune staggered off the train and into the station of his hometown in a panic, hands clamped over his mouth and eyes nearly bulging out their sockets as he bee-lined for the nearest bathroom.

How he managed to do that without slamming into a single person astounded her. He usually described his hometown as quaint, but that wasn't the initial impression it gave as dozens of people formed an indistinguishable mass as they boarded and and unboarded from several different platforms.

Over the dull roar of the crowd, she heard the soothing melody of a guitar being strummed. In a way, it reminded her of the way Jaune played… rather that was because it was a tune she heard from him before or the style was similar she couldn't say. Either way, she followed the melody, curious to find the one producing it.

Her rabbit ears twitched as they guided her to a pillar located near the entrance to the station. Leaning up against it, one leg forming a triangle with the floor, the other spread straight out; was a young woman with shorter, dark purple hair. Covering her ears were a pair of headphones and a couple travel bags were piled next to her. The guitar she strummed looked older, worn out from years of use.

Yet is sounded absolutely beautiful and Velvet couldn't help but be mesmerized by the girl's fingers as they gently strummed the instrument. She couldn't say for sure how long she watched her play, but after a while, the music slowed to a halt. As it did, one red eye cracked open and looked up at the rabbit faunus.

"...Can I help you?" She asked, not in a way that sounded cruel, but certainly suspicious.

Velvet quickly shook her head. "N-no. I was just enjoying your music while I wait for my companion. You play… really well."

The glare the woman was giving softened as she opened the other eye. "Thanks. Most people only come by to tell me to stop." She gave a small smile. "I'm waiting for someone too. If you want, I'll play a little more while we wait."

Velvet nodded enthusiastically. Before she could say anything though, another shout interrupted. "Amethyst!" A girl a couple years younger than Velvet zigzagged through the crowds as she raced up to the older woman. "I found you!" The short red-head with bounding pigtails stopped just in between them, clasping her hands together and yellow eyes shining with unbridled excitement.

"Rouge?" The girl Velvet now knew as Amethyst titled her head curiously. "What're you doing here? Shouldn't you be at home?"

"I couldn't wait to see you and big brother again! I decided to come meet you both!" Rouge's eyes began darting around as if looking for someone else. "Is he not here yet?"

Amethyst shook her head. "His train should've got here by now. I was playing the guitar so he'd find me. You know Jaune though; he'd get lost in his own room."

As the familiar name left Amethyst's mouth, everything clicked in place. "Wait, are the both of you Jaune's sisters?" No wonder this girl's guitar playing sounded just like his. He had mentioned that one of his older sister's taught him.

The two looked surprised for a second, before the younger girl was suddenly right under her nose in a blur, yellow eyes practically sparkling as she looked up at her. "You're Jaune's girlfriend!?" She about squealed, suddenly wrapping Velvet in a tight hug. "I've heard so much about you!"

Velvet didn't know how to react, constantly glancing down at the excited girl and her older sister who merely gave a roll of the eyes while wearing the same small smile. Awkwardly, she returned the hug, gently patting at the girl's pink sweatshirt. "It's nice to meet you. Umm… I'm Velvet Scarlatina; Jaune's girlfriend."

Rouge darted back a small step at her affirmation, eyes darting up and down as she took in her appearance. "You're so cute! I love your ears." Velvet felt herself blush, rabbit ears twitching at the praise.

"Tha-"

"How did you and big brother meet? Oh, are you a Huntress? Did he confess or did you? I've been waiting for so long to meet you. I have so many questions-"

"You've already asked plenty, you dork." Rouge gave a small 'eep' as Amethyst chopped her lightly on top of the head. "Sorry about her." Velvet hadn't realized how tall the older girl was while she was sitting down, now having to look up at her. "She's always been pretty attached to her older brother, and he's always been rather doting on her. As you can see… this is how she turned out."

Velvet quickly shook her head. "I don't mind. It's very… sweet." Although she did have to admit it was a little unnerving how different these sisters were, not only in looks but in personality as well. Were all Jaune's sisters this diversified?

"Ah, there you all are." All three girls turned to Jaune as he strolled up to them.

"Big brother." Rouge grinned happily as she tackled into him. He didn't even stumble, merely returning the hug without missing a beat.

"What's up, Rouge?" Unlike Amethyst, he didn't appear surprised at all that she had come to meet them. "I see y'all have met already. How was your trip, Amethyst?"

The purple-haired girl gaze a lazy shrug. "Pretty cool. I'll tell you all about it on the way home. Shall we get going?"

He nodded as Rouge pulled away from him. Velvet fell into pace with the three of them as they began walking towards the exit of the station; fingers interlacing with Jaune's as they held hands. "How far away is your house?" She asked curiously.

"About an hour on foot." Jaune replied, almost nonchalantly.

"...Wouldn't it be better to just get a cab?"

"No!" All three siblings shouted simultaneously. Apparently no matter how different they were, they all shared motion sickness in common.