From her seat on the long bench at the entrance of the lobby, Weiss watched as Ruby hopped over the check in desk and started rooting around through whatever she could find.

It was good fortune that they'd found this abandoned hotel with a few busted windows – far from the sounds of battle that raged on a few dozen miles south of here. For Weiss and Ruby, it wasn't their battle but one they had been tasked with scouting. So far, all they'd learned was that the Grimm in this area far outnumbered the hunters and a quick report to Winter would have Ironwood sending soldiers to help out.

That was the hardest part for Ruby, to see a battle that needed fighting and telling her no. It wasn't anything they could do – there were too many Grimm and two huntresses, even ones as skilled as them, couldn't change what was happening.

No, they had to let the military and those running this war do their thing. Weiss and Ruby would go where they were told and do what they needed to do. They were already given missions on their own and eventually the fight would come to them – for now they waited and tomorrow they'd return.

Tonight though, Ruby was struggling because she couldn't do anything when she knew something needed to be done.

So Weiss said nothing as Ruby rummaged through the abandoned hotel lobby.

Only when Ruby knocked something over loud enough to make Weiss jump did she finally decide to speak up. "Ruby? What are you looking for?"

"I don't know," Ruby said as Weiss continued to stare at her back and watch her pull things out of drawer after drawer. "I thought there might be some cookies or something."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "This hotel has been abandoned for months – no chance there's any food left." Ruby's shoulders slumped. "Besides, why would there be cookies in a hotel lobby?"

"I don't know," Ruby gracefully hopped over the counter again. "Maybe they give you a cookie with the key to your room. That's what I'd do."

She watched Ruby slowly pick up her pack and carry it over to lay next to Weiss' at the foot of the bench. Ruby then gingerly sat down and Weiss felt the tug of compassion course through her.

Without even thinking – she reached out and started to gently rub the back of Ruby's neck. "Your hip still bothering you?" Ruby answered with a non-committal grunt. "I'll take that as a yes." Weiss knew Ruby hated admitting she was in pain – she hated admitting she was injured or upset or…anything.

Still, Weiss was not afraid to push the subject. It made no sense to her for someone to suffer in silence. Not when she was so willing to help.

Silence fell over them for a while as Ruby settled in a bit closer to Weiss on the bench and laid her head on Weiss' shoulder. It was comfortable and uncomfortable at the same time. The closeness and Ruby's presence was as calming as ever, but this bench was brutal and the silence was unsettling.

Without thinking, Weiss lifted the cover off the grand piano in front of them – a truly amazing instrument – and admired the pristine condition of the keys.

"Play something," Ruby spoke through the quiet and Weiss glanced down to see her eyes barely open.

"It would be far too loud."

Ruby scoffed. "No it wouldn't. We haven't seen any Grimm for miles, let alone people. Play for me."

"Ruby," Weiss sighed. "I don't want to risk it."

"Just play a quiet song,"

This girl was painfully persistent. "I only know one quiet song."

"So play it," with that, Ruby looked up at her with those damn silver eyes and smiled. "I wanna hear you play."

Knowing that Ruby wasn't going to let it go, Weiss felt compelled to explain her one quiet song. "It's my bad day song, Ruby."

This made her girlfriend sit up a bit – worry in her eyes. "Your what?"

Weiss chewed on her bottom lip. "You know…those days when I wake up and I don't say much? Back at Beacon when I would study hard and focus and not really talk to the team. When I would go to bed early or be in the library all night?"

"Your frowny days." Ruby said and Weiss quirked a brow in confusion.

"My…frowny days?"

Ruby nodded slowly. "That's not the official name, obviously – but that's what I called them. I would always notice them because you would hardly even scold us for things. The first day you had one at Beacon scared me cause I thought you were broken. I didn't like it, but once I figured out it was just you having a rough day – I used to do what I could to make you feel better." Now Weiss was even more intrigued and she kept silent to let Ruby continue. "I'd clean the coffee pot for you or make sure your shampoos were easy to grab in front of all Yang's hair things. I never—I never really knew what to do to make you feel better so I'd try everything. Fluff your pillows or make sure we had fresh ice cause I knew how much you liked ice in your drinks…even though you can like…make ice with your glyphs – but you didn't want frozen drinks so you only needed a little ice and I –"

Weiss cut Ruby off with a firm kiss that made Ruby gasp a bit in her mouth. It was the best feeling. To kiss Ruby and silence her, yet excite this bubbly girl even more. Weiss could feed off of Ruby's energy for the rest of her life and never need anything else.

When Ruby's hands touched her sides and then quickly pulled away, Weiss grabbed them and put them back. Ruby giggled a bit against her lips and they pulled away, both panting for air and Ruby looking up at her shyly.

"That's still so cool,"

Weiss felt herself flush. "You dolt," she quickly kissed Ruby again. "It's just kissing."

Ruby shook her head. "Huh uh – it's kissing Weiss! That's like…stealing from the most expensive cookie jar and getting away with it, only better!"

"Glad to know I'm better than cookies," Weiss smiled as Ruby's thumb ghosted across her cheek. "So you still want to hear my sad song?"

"O—only if you want to play it. You never told me why it's your sad song."

Pulling away from Ruby, Weiss situated herself more towards the piano and settled her hands on the keys. She knew which ones to press by heart. "When things would become hard – if my father would lash out or…simply ignore me and Winter was around, this is the song she would play for me." A lump caught in Weiss' throat and she swallowed it down like poison. "It was a song my mother taught her."

Weiss' mother was a subject Ruby never dared bring up. Weiss knew Ruby was curious, of course – it was only fair. However, Weiss had no real interest in getting into the subject simply because she was almost as in the dark as Ruby was.

The truth is – Weiss simply never knew her mother. Only stories from Winter, and a dark look in her father's eyes at any mention of her.

"I suppose you could say," Weiss looked over at Ruby and reached out to pick up a bit of her cape. She then held it up and tucked it into Ruby's arms. "It's the only thing of hers I have left." Seeing the look of understanding in Ruby's eyes and the way she held her cape so tightly – Weiss felt sincerely understood. "Still want to hear it?"

"Yes."

Weiss smiled and draped her fingers across the keys – they were cold and slightly dusty, but felt familiar. The moment she pressed down, it felt like the world slipped away.

"You are my sunshine

My only sunshine

You make me happy

When skies are gray

You'll never know, dear

How much I love you

Please done take…my sunshine…away."

Weiss sat, as she always did in a restaurant – with her napkin in her lap and her elbows off the table. It was the acceptable posture for public dining and the way she'd been taught her whole life.

However, when she looked over at Ruby she was met with the sight of a girl who had pulled over a chair from another table to put her feet on, that was also thumbing through her scroll and chewing on a straw.

She set in a deep glare at Ruby, hoping that her partner would realize the error of her ways and shape up. However, when Weiss looked around this restaurant Ruby had chosen – she realized she was the one out of place.

The tables were misaligned and the place was loud, far louder than any Weiss frequented in Atlas. There were monitors showing various sporting events and even a few screens on a station dedicated to showing classic Vytal Festival Tournament matches from years and decades past.

Weiss felt out of place, extremely out of place and she couldn't help but be nervous at the boisterous patrons and the fact that the menu had so many pictures on it.

"R—Ruby?" She called out and was met with silver eyes. "What did you say the name of this place was?"

Ruby grinned. "Boarbatusk's Breath." Weiss' nose crinkled involuntarily. "They serve the best barbecue in Patch!"

Looking down, Weiss noted the button down white shirt she had chosen and realized it was the first of many mistakes. "Ruby," she said in that tone she always saved for when Ruby's antics pushed her just a bit too far.

To her credit, Ruby seemed to pick up on this. "You want to go somewhere else?" She asked and Weiss was granted the gift of seeing the kind heart she fell in love with years ago.

Now the kind heart that is your friend. Your friend. Just your friend.

"N – No. I can do this. It's fine." When they were together, Ruby was always quick to make sure Weiss was happy. Now they were just friends and Weiss didn't want to be coddled or treated with any special care. Mostly because she didn't want to let Ruby do things for her.

She was having a hard enough time denying the fact that she was still insanely attracted to this girl.

When Ruby nodded and smiled just a bit, her hair falling over her face ever-so-slightly – Weiss' throat caught. Ruby seriously needed to stop being so cute.

Another perk of the meal was that Weiss was fairly certain Ruby wouldn't be as attractive covered in sauce and stuffing her face with whatever slop was coming.

"So…" Ruby spoke up as she picked at the table with her fingernails – a habit Weiss tried and failed many times to break her from. "Your um…your friend is cute."

Weiss looked up at Ruby – her mind racing at the words that she just heard. "Violet?"

"Yeah, she's cute – kind of young though." Ruby shrugged.

"She's three years younger than you."

Ruby wouldn't look at her. "Five years younger than you."

"Are you jealous?" Weiss couldn't believe she actually had to ask but the way Ruby was acting – she'd seen before and it was both adorable and irritating. Jealous Ruby was…a unique experience. Though it was different when they were dating – now it was just strange.

The question seemed to upset Ruby. "Of course not, Weiss. I'm glad you've found someone."

Oh for the love of…

"Ruby I'm –"

"Good afternoon, ladies – Ruby!" The older gentleman, with his tight fitting white apron and incredibly baggy black pants, lit up like a firework at the sight of Ruby. Before Weiss could even register what was happening, he was picking Ruby up out of her chair and squeezing her.

Weiss was a moment away from throwing this giant space intruder on his ass with a glyph when she heard the delightful sounds of laughter coming from Ruby.

That was when she saw Ruby hugging him back. "Petrie! It's good to see you!" Ruby said through a laugh as she was put back down in her seat.

"You too, kid – you look good. Way better than the last time I saw you."

Weiss noticed the way Ruby looked at her, and then back to this man – as if he was sharing some secret that Ruby didn't want shared. "Yeah, well…I uh…I'm glad I haven't had to do any business with you other than eating your amazing barbecue!"

Petrie grinned from ear to ear. "We've missed seeing you here, Ruby. Your Uncle was in a few weeks ago – said you were hunting."

"Yeah, Death Stalker nest, nothing major."

Nothing major? A nest of Death Stalkers?!

Ruby refused to look at Weiss while she spoke to this man.

He patted her back boisterously. "Well you know your meals are covered here."

"Petrie…" Ruby threatened weakly with a finger point. "I'm paying and that's that – we've had this discussion a thousand times."

Weiss watched this large, joyous man, give Ruby one of the most appreciative looks she'd ever seen.

"Some day you're going to have to let me and my family properly repay you, Ruby."

In turn, Ruby surprised Weiss even more by how graciously she waved him off. "It's my job, Petrie – you paid for my services and I did my job. You make amazing food and you treat me well whenever I show up – that's all I need."

With his hands suddenly behind his back, Petrie bowed at Ruby and Weiss saw her flush a bit. "It is my honor, Ms. Rose. Now, what can I get you and—oh?" That was his reaction the first time he actually noticed Weiss sitting across the table. That was also when Weiss noticed the cat ears perk up atop his head. "A companion?"

The suggestive look he gave Ruby made Weiss want to tackle him to the ground – or try to – he was a large man.

"This is my friend, Weiss." Ruby introduced her and the word friend sounded like a cat barking, but Weiss shook the man's hand nonetheless.

"Hello, Weiss – it's a pleasure to meet you. Any friend of Ruby's is considered a special guest in my restaurant."

Weiss wondered if this man knew who she was – who her father was or where she worked. Then a part of her saw how happy he was with this life. How easily he showed affection and how often she smiled and suddenly she realized that even if he did – he probably wouldn't care.

More often than not, Weiss worried about the weight of her name more than others. "Thank you," she gave her best smile and Ruby seemed happy with the interaction.

"So, what are we having?" Petrie asked and Ruby never even looked at her menu.

"Give us two racks. Oh! And a chocolate shake for me! Weiss, you want a shake? They're ridiculously awesome."

Weiss sat up a little straighter in her chair. "I'll pass on the shake, thank you. Lemonade please, and go light on the sugar if you can." Weiss gave the man her menu and ignored the snicker she heard from Ruby across the table.

"Of course," he bowed and gave Ruby a slight wink. "Your beverages will be here shortly." She watched him give Ruby's shoulder a squeeze before taking his leave.

Weiss couldn't help herself – that interaction and the way he looked at Ruby, spoke to her, it carried so much history. She wanted to ask, she had a thousand questions – before she could get to even one, her scroll buzzed.

You okay? Need me to come pick you up? Hide a body? Buy you a dozen pairs of shoes?

"Violet," she sighed and shook her head. As she started typing her response, she looked up as Ruby's chair scooted back.

"I'm going to uh…go use the restroom. Don't drink my shake." Ruby tried to smile but it was faded and empty. That's when Weiss connected the dots of what Ruby thought with Violet and now the message and…

"Dammit."

The fortunate thing about eating messy barbecue was that it left very little time for conversation. So that meant the awkward silence that filled the entirety of the meal was easy to ignore because they were both eating. However, in the car on the way home – the only excuse for the silence was that Weiss was on her phone. Except she wasn't doing the "work" she'd said she was doing – instead she was merely scrolling through her photos without really paying attention.

Weiss wasn't entirely sure why they weren't speaking. Mostly because Ruby had seemed upset when talk of Violet came up – but Weiss couldn't help but wonder why it mattered. They'd been separated for so long now, why would Weiss having a new woman in her life affect Ruby so much? Did Ruby still love her? Did Ruby think about her as much as Weiss did?

First of all, Weiss – you don't have a new woman in your life. You have a smart ass assistant who turned down your creepy offer to bathe together.

It was strange to see Ruby driving – to see Ruby as this adult who lived her own life and took care of herself. Not that Weiss doubted Ruby's ability to take care of herself, but Ruby had always just…had someone watching out for her. Whether it was Summer and Taiyang, or Yang and then Weiss herself.

Now Ruby was an adult, who drove and went on solo missions and had weird…emotional connections with random chefs at local restaurants.

Ruby had her own life, and Weiss felt pretty miserable that she wasn't a part of it.

With her window down, the air whipped Ruby's long hair back and she slipped on a pair of sunglasses to shield from the rays shining in the clear sky. It was a beautiful day, but also insanely hot and Ruby had mentioned on the way to the restaurant that her air conditioning didn't work – so the window was open which let in the loud roar of the truck engine and made conversation nearly impossible.

Not that either of them were really trying.

As they reached a stop light, Weiss watched out of the corner of her eye as Ruby shifted in her seat. She noticed a slight grimace on Ruby's face and turned to look at her. The movement made Ruby freeze up and quickly clear her expression.

"What's wrong?" Weiss asked on instinct. She knew it probably wasn't any of her business, but seeing Ruby in discomfort made her react.

As expected, Ruby brushed her off. "It's nothing." Ruby glanced up at the streetlight and sighed – clearly hoping for an escape from this conversation.

Undeterred, Weiss took advantage of it. "I'm not with Violet." This got Ruby's attention. "She's only my assistant – nothing more."

Weiss watched with uncertainty as Ruby gripped the steering wheel a little tighter and still wouldn't look at her. When the light changed, Ruby hit the pedal again – a little faster than Weiss would like.

"Ruby," Weiss called out and Ruby immediately slowed down. "Please talk to me."

Ruby had been so carefree before – she smiled at Weiss and teased her. She was even the one who proposed this friendship experiment. What changed?

Before Weiss knew what was happening, they turned off the main road and onto a secondary road that had a few small buildings and businesses all lined up. Ruby pulled into an empty parking lot and stopped her truck halfway in an open spot. She turned off the engine and suddenly a silence unlike any Weiss could remember loomed over them.

"Okay," Ruby said, finally and Weiss wanted to smack her for being so dramatic. "Okay – so my dad used to always tell me to take things head on. It's only a problem if you let it become one. So…we're going to take this head on."

Weiss was suddenly contemplating whether or not she should run from this truck. Head on was…not her style. "Uh…"

"Do you still have feelings for me?"

Yes, her face was absolutely on fire right now. The only explanation for how hot it felt. "Ruby I—"

"Wait!" Ruby waved her hands. "It's okay if you do, you can tell me. I won't be mad or glad or sad or anything!"

Weiss frowned. "You won't be anything?" Ruby only smiled more and Weiss decided to turn the tables. "Do you still have feelings for me?"

"No," Ruby said simply and for a moment Weiss thought she misheard or that her mind was playing tricks on her.

However, the silence that followed confirmed that Ruby had actually said that and said it so quickly and casually that Weiss swore her heart broke in her chest.

"Oh," she must have sounded sad because Ruby quickly spoke again.

"I mean of course I still care about you and miss you and all of that stuff! But we didn't work out in the romantic way and it was hard. But seeing you now, I missed you, Weiss – and I realized that the romantic stuff shouldn't get in the way of what we had before! We were partners first right? Partners and friends – that bond we had at Beacon can't be broken. That's what's important! I—is that okay?" The question was as serious as Ruby had ever asked and Weiss could feel that weight in those silver eyes staring back at her.

That didn't make it hurt any less.

Years and years of learning how to shield off her emotions and hide how truly in pain she was served Weiss well in this moment. She steeled herself and sat up a little straighter, putting on her best smile – the one she'd practiced for years – and nodded. "Of course," she answered as believably as the day she told her father she loved him before he passed away. It wasn't the truth, but it was what he needed to hear. "It would certainly make things easier for Blake and Yang and this wedding."

Ruby seemed quite pleased at this response and nodded. "Yes! Oh I'm so glad you understand! It's been so awkward and I thought we could just…push past it, but we needed to figure it out. I—I think I learned that from you," she grinned. "Planning and preparation always lead to success." She finished the sentence with a wink and Weiss dug her fingernails into her palm.

"I used to tell you that in the library back at Beacon."

"At least once a week." Ruby said with a laugh and Weiss rolled her eyes. "You were very persistent."

Weiss pointed a finger at her. "You were very good at procrastinating."

"I learned that from Yang." As she fired up the truck again, Weiss was grateful for the noise. "Come on, let's get you back to my dad's and see if the rest of team RWBY wants to do anything fun tonight before wedding stuff starts tomorrow." Ruby clapped her hands. "We're finally all back together!"

"We should text ahead and make sure those two are properly clothed and not…touching one another."

Ruby grimaced and Weiss hated how easy it was to play this game. "Oh good idea. You really are a genius, Weiss."

She didn't respond, just watched the road and let Ruby continue to chatter on as she always did.

Apparently she was wrong – she could lie to Ruby.

*ducks*