En Garde! A RWBY White Rose Fanfiction

Chapter 9: Something Else

"You didn't have to do that."

Ruby felt Weiss' icy glare from across the hall before she'd even started coming over. Still, Ruby wasn't exactly prepared for a conversation. She hesitantly turned around. "Do what?"

Weiss covered the distance between them so that Ruby was against the lockers. The little brunette felt her heart jump in her chest as those cold blue eyes threatened to drown her.

"Look, I really don't know what I did," she repeated. Weiss frowned. "You're lucky you aren't in a hospital!" Ruby chuckled. "Abs of steel." She patted her stomach and ruined it with a sharp groan.  "You're sure you don't need a nurse or anything?" Weiss persisted. Ruby waved her hand. "I'm fine, really. It was just a game of dodgeball, not a war scene."

"Just a game of dodgeball? Then what explains you coming in like a flesh shield and blocking Cardin's throw? I can take a hit!" Weiss fumed. Ruby blushed and shrugged. "Well, he looked kinda tough, and you didn't seem prepared, and you have better aim than me. It made more sense to 'take one for the team'."

Yang would've been so proud.

"You're hopeless." Weiss huffed and left Ruby to wallow in her self-inflicted pain.
•••
"Ruby, what the hell?!" Yang was inconveniently passing by while Ruby was in her room changing into her pajamas. She scrambled to pull the rest of her tank top over the giant bruise on her stomach and stood at attention . "That's another one for the swear jar!" Yang shook her head stomped through the doorframe. "Later," she growled. Ruby cowered as her overprotective sister grabbed her and lifted up her shirt just past the torso. "Who did this and where can I find them?"

Ruby sighed. "It was an accident, Yang." "That's what they all say," she barked. "No, really!" Ruby persisted. "I was playing a game of dodgeball and I blocked a throw-"

"Oh, that is so like you," Yang teased. "You really gotta start thinking for yourself sometimes." Ruby ran a hand through her hair. "Well, I know I do stupid things for people a lot, but it was different this time. Weiss was about to-" "Stop right there," Yang interrupted. "The same Weiss you told me about yesterday?"

Ruby felt her face heat up as she looked away from her sister's curious gaze. "Yeah," she responded. Yang burst into laughter. "I said to go up to her and do some small talk with her, not sacrifice yourself for her!" The ridiculousness of her little stunt had finally been cemented into her brain, and all Ruby could do was realize how right Yang was. She wouldn't have jumped in the way of just anyone. "She seemed like she was in trouble," Ruby muttered.

Yang stood upright. "Well, you're gonna be in trouble soon too, because I signed us up for a Tae Kwon Do class tomorrow evening, and you're coming with me no matter what."
•••
I think I'm gonna hurl, Ruby thought as she braced herself for another punch. This guy wasn't holding back at all. "Alright, that's enough," the Tae Kwon Do instructor called. Ruby relaxed and let her padded hands drop to her sides. The blond boy across from her rolled out his shoulders. "You're quite the bruiser," Yang commented from next to her. "What's your name?" "I'm Sun," he replied, swishing his Faunus tail back and forth. "Are monkeys supposed to have super strength or something?" Ruby asked. Sun laughed heartily, showing two ever-so-slightly pointy canine teeth. "It's called working out, Little Red. You should try it sometime." Ruby fumed in embarrassment. "I'll have you know I've played just about every sport on the planet," she countered. "...Except curling. Is that considered a sport?" Both Sun and Yang shrugged.

"Anyways, I just have a little injury. Gimme a week and you'll be the one begging for mercy," Ruby taunted. The monkey Faunus just chuckled again. "That so? I don't see a mark on your body." Ruby lifted her shirt up a couple inches. "Damn!" he hissed. "That has to hurt. Someone mistake you for a piñata or something?" Yang went behind Ruby and squeezed her shoulders. "She was trying to save her girlfriend from complete obliteration during a dodgeball game," she teased. The tone she used made Ruby want to climb into the deepest, darkest hole and never resurface.

"You swing that way?" Sun grinned at the internally suffering brunette. "Wouldn't have guessed. I'm bisexual myself, but I think everyone is, even if it's just a little bit." Ruby smiled at him for understanding, but she lashed out at her sister. "First of all, Weiss isn't my girlfriend. We just met a couple days ago. And second, you're totally jumping to conclusions!" Yang smirked. "Am I? I could just be teasing you to see if the denial factor kicks in." Ruby responded by leaving the conversation altogether, leaving the two golden-haired teenagers laughing.
•••
Weiss stared at herself through the glass mirror in her bathroom. Mirror, tell me something. Who's the loneliest of all? It has to be me. She pulled away and got into bed. Nobody's ever gone through the trouble of doing something nice for me unless I asked them to. What she did was...crazy. And why Ruby Rose, of all people? First, she ruins my life, then she comes back to haunt me, and now I feel like I owe her something.

It wasn't entirely Ruby's fault. She just happened to be fencing Weiss due to coincidence, and she knew that. She still couldn't help but blame Ruby for ruining her streak. And she had to keep reminding herself that the little brunette had no idea what she'd done, since her dad went to extreme measures to cover the whole thing. Word had leaked out, but not to many and not for long. If Ruby was aware of her success, she surely didn't show it.

Yet, it seemed as if they'd known each other for a while before they'd even met. The way Ruby always knew just how innocent to act around her, the familiar flow of sterling silver that pooled around her pupils, her annoyingly energetic but humbling voice. Weiss reasoned that it was simply because she'd happened to eavesdrop on her and her blond-haired sister after their match, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something more was going on. She just couldn't tell what.