En Garde! A RWBY White Rose Fanfiction

Chapter 47: Living Without

"Pyrrha!"

Weiss caught up with her childhood friend just before she went into her next class.

"Yes, Weiss?" Pyrrha looked surprised, since Weiss never chased anyone down before... Well, except maybe Ruby. But she had no idea.

"We need to talk later. Are you staying after school?"

The redhead nodded. "Actually, yes. I have track practice. What is so important that you felt the need to come all this way for? Your class is on the other side of campus."

"I... just wanted to be sure," the heiress answered hesitantly, as if she was uncertain of the reason herself. "See you after school, then." She couldn't stay any longer, as she had to make the long walk to class.

Pyrrha sent her off with a thoughtful expression, curious about what she'd hear from Weiss.

•••

Two hours later, Weiss met Pyrrha at the locker room. "Thanks for meeting with me," she said.

"It's nothing," Pyrrha replied. "But we only have a few minutes to talk."

"That's all I need." Weiss knew what to say, but the words were suddenly lodged in her throat.

"This is going to sound sudden, but what do you do when you... like someone, but don't know how to tell them, or you're afraid of being rejected?"

Pyrrha's eyebrows rose. "Is it that obvious?"

"What?" Weiss paused a moment to think. "Oh right, Jaune. Sorry, I didn't-"

"So you weren't talking about me?... Oh my, Weiss!" Pyrrha broke into laughter at the mere thought of her icy friend having affections for anyone. Weiss had never talked about her love life until that moment.

The heiress' cheeks were tinted pink. "Just answer the question... please."

Pyrrha calmed down to respond. "I think you already know the answer to that. I keep my distance and hope the right opportunity comes along. But, if you can help it, I don't recommend it. It's a miserable way to live."

"Right." Weiss stared solemnly at the ground. Was there really no solution that didn't involve humiliation?

"If you don't mind my asking," Pyrrha spoke up, "how long have you felt like this?"

"About a month," Weiss muttered.

"Then perhaps it hasn't been long enough." Pyrrha rested her hands on Weiss' shoulders. "It takes time to learn about a person and decide whether or not they're right for you, and it's completely normal to be unsure at this point in time. Before you follow through with your feelings, ask yourself whether you think the person you like is someone you can live with, or someone you can't live without."

"Is that how you feel about Jaune?" the heiress asked, lifting her head.

Pyrrha bit her lower lip. "I'd like to say I think of him that way."

"Then perhaps we both should follow your advice," Weiss suggested with a weak smile. She waved goodbye and walked away, leaving Pyrrha with two minutes to get ready for track practice.

•••

The next day, Ruby and Weiss ended up next to each other for warm-ups in gym class.

"Have you been practicing lately?" Ruby's mentor pried, stretching her legs.

Just like she always did, the clever brunette put on a guilty face and looked away. "No," she lied, hoping to hear the words she always expected next.

"You're worthless, aren't you?" Weiss shook her head and transitioned to the other leg. "Then I suppose I have to force you to practice this evening."

Ruby smirked slyly, as Weiss wasn't looking. "Yeah, you might have to," she agreed. Tricking Weiss, she soon learned, was far easier than it seemed. All Ruby had to do was act pathetic and innocent, and Weiss would believe whatever she said. However, she saved the act only for situations such as this.

"My house at five," the heiress sighed. While it was easy for her to appear annoyed with her student, anxious butterflies disturbed her system.

Ruby nodded. "I'll have Yang bring me over."

"And don't forget your shin guards like you did last time," Weiss warned her. "I only have one pair."

"I won't," Ruby giggled.

•••

Weiss expertly lunged forward, catching Ruby off guard and driving her closer to the edge of the mat. A bit of fancy footwork and a well-placed jab sent the flustered brunette tumbling to the ground.

"It appears you forgot our last lesson," the snark heiress observed. "Light on your feet, lighter on your focus."

"But I thought I was supposed to focus!" Ruby whined.

"Not like you've recently been doing." Weiss offered her hand, pulling her student back onto her feet. "You're putting all of your concentration into your strikes. If you don't pull out and take your surroundings into account, you'll end up regretting it."

Ruby frowned, her attempts to impress Weiss having done the opposite. "Fine," she gave in. "I'll try again."

"Good."

The pair faced off once more. Ruby took her mentor's advice and used her peripheral vision. How hadn't she noticed the way Weiss' free hand clenched and unclenched as if it had a mind of its own?

The clever heiress smirked at her successful diversion and waited a second before stabbing at Ruby again, this time directly tapping her padded torso.

"Hey, that wasn't fair!" Ruby complained.

Weiss stood straight and winked. "Don't forget that your surroundings can often be just as distracting."

Ruby grumbled in frustration and got back into position. She wasn't going to let Weiss get the best of her a third time.

Round three consisted of balanced movement and careful exchanges in advances between the two. Weiss waited until Ruby got comfortable to launch a surprise attack.

The plan backfired when she miscalculated Ruby's next move. Weiss thrust forward aggressively just as Ruby was edging backwards, so the heiress missed her mark and lost her balance. Ruby immediately dropped her rapier to stop Weiss' fall. They stayed still in mild shock for a moment, Ruby with her arms supporting Weiss' shoulders and Weiss facing the opposite direction she was facing just seconds ago.

The brunette's slightly labored breathing was warm and tickled Weiss' ear. She could feel her rescuer's heart pounding with the adrenaline that helped her fight. Her arms were firm, stronger than Weiss remembered them being, but having the same pale skin as always.

Blake's words suddenly echoed in her head. "She's the only one who affects your mood, and she does it pretty well." When she said that, Weiss thought she was talking about the day Ruby had confronted her about the secret of her father's punishment. There and then, she realized what Blake truly meant.

Weiss regained her composure before Ruby recovered and struggled back to standing on her own. She turned to the girl who instinctively saved her from potential scrapes and bruises.

Apparently, Pyrrha was right. There was no way she could imagine living without Ruby.

AN: one down, one to go! Looks like I'm going to bed at midnight again lol