Weiss

The sun was still low in the sky as Ruby and I reached the top of the city walls. It was just peaking over the top of Beacon's spires. We'd left early in the morning, eager to get to our new mission. Ruby seemed to see it as making amends for Blake's condition. I wanted something to take her mind off our injured comrades.

We gazed down at the forest from our place up on the wall. Two guards had come with us, with ropes to lower us down.

"So there was no sign of any gaps or cracks in the wall on the inside?" I asked them. They both shook their heads.

"No Ma'am. The wall was intact on the inside." One of them answered. I looked down at the base of the wall, wondering what there could be for us to find. If there was no crack on the inside, then why would there be anything wrong with the wall on the outside?

Ruby and I shared a thoughtful look; she was probably thinking the same thing. I let my gaze linger on Ruby a little while longer after she looked away. Ever since our… meeting… in the shower two days prior, I'd been struggling to hold myself away from Ruby. I didn't know what to do anymore. I wanted to hold myself back, I didn't know how she felt about me; I wanted to throw myself at her, and she was definitely sending me hints towards that direction. But I didn't know if she had the same feeling as me.

But she was definitely trying to get closer. Our evening in Blake's ward in the infirmary had proven that. She'd snuggled up to me for the entire time we were there, and I'd furiously fought the urge to wrap my arms around her the entire time. I didn't want her to realise my feelings if she didn't reciprocate them. But why would she be trying to get so close if she didn't feel the same way? I wanted to tear my hair out. All this second guessing was driving me crazy.

Just find a way to ask her, I told myself, you don't need to tell her your feelings. Just ask her how she's feeling. It was a good idea, but it would sound strange… "So Ruby, how do you feel about me?" I mentally shuddered. No, that would never work. "So Ruby, I feel like we've been getting closer…" Nope. No way in Hell. "Ruby, you know, if you ever need to talk about anything, you can talk to me." Maybe… Probably not, she had Yang for that. She'd have no reason to confide in me. Unless she does feel the same way…

"So where should we start?" Ruby asked. I nearly leapt out of my skin. I'd been so caught up in my thoughts that I'd almost forgotten she was there. I focussed on the situation at hand. We had a job to do. There's no time to be worrying about your relationship with Ruby right now.

"There's no sense in dilly dallying, we might as well just go down there and start looking around." I replied. Ruby nodded.

"Okay, we'll just drop down from here." She said to the guards. The guards hurried to attach the ropes to pulleys and get them ready for our descent. We hooked ourselves up as soon as they were ready and began rappelling down the wall.

We hit the ground at the base of the wall and drew our weapons. I watched our surroundings while Ruby unhooked herself, and she kept watch while I did the same. There were no signs of Grimm anywhere near us. I wasn't sure if that was strange or not. We hadn't been told how often Grimm came near the wall.

I looked in either direction along the wall, wondering which way to start searching. It all looked exactly the same. I looked at Ruby, who shrugged and headed off to our left, eyes on the face of the wall. I followed after her, keeping my eyes on the forest.

We walked for what seemed like hours, trekking through a never changing landscape of crimson trees. I stayed watchful as we walked, my eyes focussed on the trees around us, searching for any sign of movement. I looked over my shoulder now and again to look at Ruby, making sure she was still there. I hadn't heard a peep from her since we'd descended into the forest.

She was still there every time I looked, but she was always facing the wall. I couldn't help but wonder if she'd found anything. But at the same time I knew that if she had, she'd probably have told me. I did my best to suppress my curiosity, focussing on the forest around us.

We'd been walking for at least an hour, maybe even two. But there was still no sign of any movement in the forest around us. Something was definitely strange about this now. We'd spent hours in a forest known for being filled with Grimm, and we'd yet to even hear one in the distance. I had expected to at least have had an encounter with a few Beowolves or a Boarbatusk within the first hour.

I looked up, at the top of the wall. I could just make out the guards that had lowered us down at the top. They were following along the wall with us, ready to drop their ropes down to help us up at any moment. I sighed, turning back to Ruby.

"Ruby," I called out to her. "Should we turn back? We might be able to find something in the other direction." I turned to face the forest while waiting for her answer. She was silent for a moment before answering.

"Yeah, I guess so." I heard her call out. "There doesn't seem to be anything here…" There was something in her voice that worried me. She seemed distracted, conflicted. I stole a glance at her, checking to see if she was okay. She was gazing up at the wall, her back to me.

I glanced back at the forest one last time, turning to walk over to Ruby.

"Ruby…?" I called her name as I reached out to touch her on the shoulder. She jumped, spinning around and raising Crescent Rose. I ducked, bringing Myrtenaster up to guard my head. "Ruby! What're you doing?"

I heard Crescent Rose crash to the ground. I looked up at Ruby. She was hugging herself, tears streaming down her face. I watched in disbelief as she fell to her knees, sobbing. I stood up, taking a step towards her.

"Ruby…? What's the matter?" I reached a hand out towards her.

Ruby let out a piercing shriek, holding her hands over her ears. I stumbled back, covering my own. Her scream rang out, echoing through the forest behind me. Something must have heard that, I thought, examining the trees, something's got to come now. I pulled my hands away from my ears, turning back to Ruby. As I took a step towards her, she screamed again, somehow louder than before.

She was on her knees in the dirt, head tilted back, screaming towards the sky. I fell to my own knees, covering my ears once more. I crawled towards Ruby as her scream tore through the air. I grabbed onto Ruby's skirt, trying to pull her onto the ground. When she didn't move, I crawled further forward, tackling her.

We tumbled to the ground, Ruby's scream cutting off. She bucked, trying to throw me off. I pinned her on the ground, preventing her from moving. Despite my efforts, Ruby kept screaming. My ears were in agony, and I couldn't use my hands to block them, or Ruby would toss me off.

"Ruby!" I yelled, trying to reach her over the sounds of her screaming. She didn't stop, she didn't even react. She just kept screaming. I gritted my teeth, closing my eyes. Sorry Ruby. I let go of Ruby with one hand and hit her, hard. As my palm slapped into her cheek, her head jerked to the side, momentarily stopping her screaming.

I let out a sigh of relief, she'd finally calmed down. Before I could get off Ruby, I heard a sharp intake of breath from her, and she screamed again.

"Somebody stop the whistling!" she wailed, tears streaking her face. Whistling? What whistling? I put my hands over Ruby's ears, pressing my forehead to hers.

"Ruby! There's no whistling! Calm down!" I yelled.

"Noooooo! I can hear it!" Her words descended into inarticulate screaming. I felt tears welling up in my own eyes, what was happening to Ruby?

I picked up Myrtenaster, tears running down my face.

"I'm sorry Ruby…" I whispered. I swung Myrtenaster, slamming the pommel into the side of Ruby's head. She instantly fell silent, her head slumping to the side. After taking a second to check her breathing and heart rate, I gave Ruby a gentle kiss on the forehead. I shook with sobs, tears dripped onto Ruby's face, mixing with her own. I reached down, caressing Ruby's now peaceful face.

"Oh Ruby… What happened to you?" I whispered. Maybe the stress and the worry were getting to her, she was having a break down. I held Ruby in my arms, clinging to her.

Something growled in the trees behind me. My head jerked up. I let go of Ruby, spinning around to face the forest. A group of three Beowolves were emerging from the trees. I swore, reading Myrtenaster. I loaded a chamber of Burn Dust, poising Myrtenaster to strike.

The open field between the wall and the trees was an excellent battle ground, giving me all the room I needed to dive, jump, slash and burn my way through the Beowolves. These Beowolves were much smaller than the one that had injured Blake and I was fighting in a much more advantageous battleground than a dark factory. I dealt with the Beowolves with ease, leaving their bodies smoking on the edge of the forest.

I approached the wall, shouting up to the guards atop it to lower their ropes. I turned to watch the forest as they began lowering the ropes, watching for any other sign of movement. Surely the cries of the Beowolves would attract more Grimm. Keeping one eye on the forest, I hooked one of the ropes onto Ruby's belt, making sure it was securely fastened.

I heard a loud roar come from the forest and spun to face it. An Ursa was smashing its way through the trees towards Ruby and I. I sheathed Myrtenaster in a rush, tying the other rope to my own belt. I yanked down hard on the ropes, signalling the guards atop the wall to reel us in. I picked up Ruby, holding her in my arms as the ropes tightened. The Ursa had reached the end of the trees now and was charging across the open gap between the forest and the wall.

"Hurry up!" I screamed at the guards. When the Ursa was merely three metres away, the ropes jerked Ruby and I into the air. I tucked my legs up, jumping off the wall to get further away from the Ursa. The Ursa leapt, trying to chase us, swinging its paws madly. Its claws sliced through the dangling fabric of Ruby's cloak, shredding the end of it, but we were too high for it to reach us. I sighed with relief as the guards hauled us up, watching the Ursa smash against the sheer wall, bellowing in frustration.

I held Ruby to my chest tightly all through our ascent. What had happened? Why did she break down like that? I was worried about her, was she really losing it? I caressed her cheek gently and kissed her lightly on the forehead.

When I looked up, we were almost at the top of the wall, the guards sweating as the hauled us up. They collapsed on the ground as they hauled us over the lip, gasping for breath. I laid Ruby down gently and sat against one of the parapets along the wall. I leant my head back, closing my eyes. We're okay, I thought, for now at least. We still have to work out what's happening with Ruby. I looked over at her now peaceful face, wondering what had gone wrong.

"What the hell happened?" one of the guards gasped. I looked over at them, they were still lying on their backs, breathing heavily.

"I don't know," I replied. "She seemed to be on edge for a while, and then she just… Well, you heard."

"Yeah. Yeah we did. What was she screaming about?"

"Something about whistling. She wanted me to stop 'the whistling'."

"So she lost it, basically. She absolutely lost it." The other guard muttered, rolling over onto his side.

"She did not lose it, thank you very much. That's my team leader you're talking about, show her some respect!"

"Okay, okay, my apologies Ma'am. But, clearly something went wrong." He was right. I looked at Ruby again. Something had gone wrong. I felt sure it was just the stress of the last few days getting to her, so he was right in a way; she had lost it.

"Well, we won't know until she wakes up." I said, putting the matter to rest. "Send for some help, I want to get her back to Beacon as soon as possible."

I was sitting next to Ruby's bed in Beacon's infirmary when she woke. She looked around the room, squinting, looking confused. I watched as she tried to sit up, held a hand to her head and slumped back onto the bed.

"Uhhh… My head." She groaned. "Where am I?"

"You're in the infirmary at Beacon." I replied. Rather shortly. I was worried about Ruby, but I couldn't help but be a little angry. Once my initial concern had worn off, I remembered that the girl had nearly taken my head off!

"Weiss? Wha… What happened?"

"I don't know Ruby. You tell me. What the hell happened out there?" I sat back in my chair, crossing my arms. She looked up at me, blanching at my stern look.

"I… I don't know. The last thing I remember is getting to the bottom of the wall. What happened?"

"What happened? You went insane! That's what happened! You stopped talking for hours, and when I tried to see if you were okay, you nearly cut my head off!" I shrieked, losing my cool. Ruby looked up, a jovial half-smile on her face. She thought I was joking?

"Good one," she laughed. "Like I'd ever… Weiss?" Her face fell as she realised I was being serious. I glared at her as she turned pale, terror etching itself on her face. "W-Weiss… Did… Did I hurt you?"

"No, you dunce!" I yelled. I knew I should calm down, stop yelling, but I was too mad now. "But not from lack of trying! What the hell happened Ruby? First you try to kill me, and then you start screaming, about some whistling that no one else could hear, loud enough for all of Forever Fall to hear you." Ruby grew paler as I went on, looking down and rubbing her hands together nervously.

As I finished my tirade, she looked up at me, her face pale.

"Weiss…" She whispered. "Did that really happen?"

"Of course it did you dolt! Do you think I'd make this up? What do you take me for? How can you not remember?" I turned away from Ruby, refusing to meet her eyes.

"Weiss!" she yelled. I froze, turning to look at her. She was angry, looking at me sternly. "I'm sorry if I hurt you, but I really don't remember any of this. I don't remember any whistling, I don't remember attacking you. Like I said, the last thing I remember was getting to the bottom of the wall. Now, you look like your fine. You must be if you have the energy to get this angry at me. And if you're okay, then you don't have any reason to get mad in the first place!"

I slunk back in my chair, retreating before Ruby's anger. I hadn't seen her this angry at me since we'd argued in the Emerald Forest on our first day. And she was right. I knew I was being unreasonable.

"I… I know," I said apologetically. "I… I'm… I'm sorry Ruby. I don't know, it was just a very stressful morning." Ruby's face softened.

"I understand Weiss, but we're both okay right?"

"Yeah." I said, smiling at her.

"Then everything's okay." She said, returning the smile before wincing and clutching a hand to her head. "Urgh…" she groaned. "What happened to my head? It's like something's trying to get out."

"Uh… About that..." I said sheepishly. "I had to find a way to calm you down, to stop you from screaming, so I kind of… had to… knock you out."

"You what?" She asked, frowning. "So you're getting angry at me, while you're the one who nearly split my head open!"

"Uhh… Yes?" I cringed, bracing for another tirade.

Ruby took a deep breath, calming herself down.

"Okay, we're both alive, we're okay. There's no need for anyone to get angry." She smiled, showing that she'd calmed down. I smiled back, relieved. "So have you told Yang about what happened?" she asked.

"Yes, I have. She was here earlier, watching over you with me, but she's gone back to Blake's room now. She seems to spend all her time there."

"Well she can't go to classes or exercise, what else does she have to do?"

"I suppose you're right."

We sat in silence for a minute or two. We heard people passing down the hallway outside, people talking normally. Eventually Ruby broke the silence.

"Have you told Professor Ozpin?" she asked.

"No," I replied, just realizing that I hadn't. "We probably should, shouldn't we?"

"Yeah, he might have some idea about what happened."

"Should I go now, or wait until tomorrow? It's starting to get late." I said, looking out the window. "You were out for most of the day."

Ruby peered out the window thoughtfully.

"No, we can both go and see him tomorrow. I'm sure my head will feel better once I get a good night's sleep." She laid herself down, laying her head on the pillow.

"Hey, Weiss?" She whispered, looking up at me. "Can you do me a favour?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Will you stay with me tonight?" she asked, blushing slightly. I smiled down at her, feeling my own cheeks grow warm.

"Of course I will."