In this episode, A Night Off, things start off with RWBY and JNOR being given the night off to enjoy themselves one last time before the election and when Atlas undoubtedly changes the next morning. Pairing by pairing, everyone splits up, including Ruby, who decides to tag along with Ren and Nora.

Even though Weiss doesn’t shy away from expressing her annoyance of Ruby going to Robin’s political rally/victory party, Ruby simply shrugs it off.



Her justification?



“Penny is going to be working security.”

Wherever Blake goes, Yang follows. Wherever Ren goes, Nora follows.

Jaune and Oscar are a bit cut off from the other half of their team, so it’s understandable that they pair up. That just leaves Ruby and Weiss, with the latter being wholly uninterested in going to Robin’s event.

Which just leaves Ruby.

Her reason for going isn’t something that sounds terribly exciting. It’s not a night at the dance club with team FNKY or a movie, but simply the chance to see Penny, who is actively working at the event and is most likely unable to freely wander about as a regular attendee. So essentially, Ruby understands that she may not be able to spend a casual night with the person she wants to be with, like all the other couples, but she chooses to do this anyways.

When Ruby enters with Ren and Nora, she gets instantly spotted by Penny, which should surely indicate that Penny is actually doing a pretty good job of security, as she’s seeing who’s coming and going, right?

Yes and no, because although she did instantly spot three newcomers, she gets a call from Marrow shortly after where he asks “Penny, where’d you go?”

This actually reveals that Penny’s not supposed to be just making the rounds though the attendees, but actually back stage where Robin and her inner circle are. Which seems to suggest that Penny was purposefully floating around near the entrance, away from her post, in the hopes of spotting Ruby if she came.

And when Penny begins to return to her post because her absence has been noted, Ruby literally clings to her arm and begs her to “please don’t leave me.” It’s a line that works in the moment and in general. For obvious sad reasons.

They get backstage and encounter Marrow, who although is pretty silly, is the most vocal about Ruby and company among the entire Ace Ops. He’s quick to show his surprise and annoyance that Ruby is there with Penny and asks, “what are you doing here?” Seeing as how she’s encountered this kind of annoyance already with Weiss, Ruby once again justifies her presence calmly and cooly:

“Just uh, hangin’ out with a friend while she’s on the job .”

With Penny’s silent approval for the two of them to continue to tag along together and Ruby’s unwillingness to sit between Ren and Nora’s bickering, Ruby now understands that she does continue to be with Penny, even if she’s working. This validation manifests into a sort of confidence that Ruby shows by answering Marrow’s question casually by stating that she’s spending time with Penny and doesn’t shy away a bit from mentioning that Penny is “on the job.”

This is a pretty bold statement to say to someone like Marrow, an Ace Op. This new air of confidence and charisma that Ruby shows here is quite surprising and admirable. She plays his question off as easily as she did with Weiss, someone she’s had seven and a half volumes to get comfortable around.

Of course, Marrow eventually gets serious (mostly due to a somewhat heated conversation with Robin and her subordinates), and tells Ruby “to scram…”

At this point, Ruby knows not to press her luck and cuts her loss. But not before:

1. Blowing a raspberry

2. Looking gleefully back at Penny for further validation

3. LOVE IS STORED IN THE GIRLFRIEND

Ruby’s in such a good mood that she got to be with Penny, even if for a bit, she can’t help but sneak one last glance back at her with those small smile of hers

This episode might have ended on a frightening note, but at least in the calm before the storm, RT crafted a truly wonderful, charming, and layered sequence where Ruby and Penny continued to show their excellent chemistry together.