Dancing Petals

Weiss looked out to the main ballroom, every wall covered by expensive decor. To most, it seemed beautiful. Perfect, even. But to her, it just looked wrong. The laurels hanging from the walls were distanced just far enough apart to be noticeable. Surely anyone with a critical eye would see how jarring the empty space looked. And she couldn't even be started on the table layout. It was far too claustrophobic; everyone sitting in those seats was certain to feel great discomfort. And the choice of flowers...

One of the servants—her assistant Christa—interrupted Weiss' thorough critique. "You look displeased, miss. Are you still not sure about the layout?" she said.

Weiss couldn't help but feel a tinge of guilt pull at her conscience. She'd been working her servants for several hours trying to put together the perfect ballroom, only for her to go back on several aesthetics because of a few small problems. She was being far too critical. They deserved better, Weiss thought.

Weiss took in a deep breath. She needed to let it go.

"It looks lovely," she said, plastering a soft smile on her face.

Christa looked to Weiss with a furrowed brow. "And you're certain? I've known you long enough to see when something is bothering you."

"No, I'm fine. Thank you for your concern Christa," Weiss said.

The servant nodded submissively. "Very well, miss. Whatever you wish."

Christa walked away to resume her task. When she was a fair distance away, Weiss sighed in exhaustion. This whole event really has been getting to her lately. There was an indescribable pressure that weighed on Weiss' mind, some of the most powerful men and women on Remnant were going to attend this ball.

While most see it as a night to relax and celebrate, those of higher class see it as an opportunity to establish connections. They see a chance to get ahead of the competition, to strategize and to sabotage.

Weiss hated it. It disgusted her how their venomous words were so thinly veiled with backhanded compliments and blatant bragging. Even from childhood, she never liked going to the various parties the SDC—along with its rivals and allies—would throw. She may not have been able to pick up on the backstabbing and plotting then, but she can't say that she particularly enjoyed the people there.

What bothered her most about all of them, especially as she got older, were how many heirs of smaller dust distribution companies she was introduced to by her father. They always had the same shallow pickup lines, the same smug attitude, and a sense of entitlement that she secretly loved to completely undermine.

Her father tried so desperately to find a male heir to the company, hanging onto ancient sexist beliefs that pervaded high society. He could not fathom the mere concept of a woman being anything more than a trophy. And that isn't to mention his distaste for the lower class.

That thought ironically brought a smile to her face. Father's reach into her psyche may have been deep, but it did not stop her from marrying someone she truly loved. Not only did she end up marrying someone of a much lower class, but she was also a woman. A sweet, obnoxious, dependable, and sometimes infuriating woman.

Her name was—

"Ruby Rose has arrived~!"

Weiss' train of thought was thrown out of the proverbial window as Ruby came crashing into her vision… and body.

"Agh!" Weiss cried as she was tackled to the ground with the force of a wild Boarbatusk. Ruby had wrapped her arms around the smaller woman, burying Weiss' face into her chest. Despite being tackled to the ground, Weiss could hardly complain.

"Didja miss me?" Ruby asked.

"Mph," Weiss tried to speak, but with Ruby on top of her, all that came out was a muffled attempt at speech. Weiss pushed her partner off of her. She groaned with the effort of dragging her body off the ground.

Ruby regarded her with the same silver puppy eyes, asking once more.

"Didja miss me?"

Weiss smiled. "No," she said, before planting a small kiss on the red-caped huntress' lips. Ruby giggled, delighted to receive her small gift. The two stood back up, beaming at one another as they usually do when seeing the other after a long absence. It had been a rough day, after all.

Weiss sighed for the hundredth time today, out of contentment and exhaustion. "You want to go grab some coffee in my study? I think I need to get away from the decor."

Ruby's smile softened. "I'd love to!" she exclaimed.

Her wife's boundless exuberance never ceased to amaze Weiss. Even now, she felt her spirits lifting from the slog that was the rest of the day.

They made their way through the maze-like corridors of the Schnee Manor. While Weiss was rather indifferent to the many sculptures and paintings that served to either complement or accentuate the signature whites and blues of the Manor, Ruby took the time to appreciate each piece. She supposed it made sense. Ruby hadn't raised around such grand monuments like Weiss was. She was simply more accustomed to the presence of these eccentric works of art, while Ruby only recently moved in with her.

After passing many more works, they finally arrived at Weiss' study.

It was a rather plain room, at least by a Schnee's standards. The orange afternoon light shone through large windows behind an oakwood desk. On top of the desk was a pile of assorted company documents, along with a picture of Weiss and Ruby's wedding day, framed with actual rubies.

As Weiss went over to the coffee machine, she grabbed the picture, running her thumb over the jewels that encased it. She couldn't help but admire this precious memento every time she walked into her study.

The photo showed Weiss and Ruby just as they kissed at the end of their vows. The pair were leaning into each other as the picture was shot, their arms holding each other closely. Weiss wore a flawless white tuxedo with a crimson red tie, and Ruby adorned a beautiful black sleeveless dress, lined with glittering red accents.

She set the photo back down, seeing Ruby's smiling face in the reflection of the picture. Ruby swooped over to kiss Weiss on the cheek.

Weiss cracked a small grin. "Dolt," she said, returning the favor. Weiss grabbed herself a cup and put it under the coffee machine. She prepared herself and Ruby two different cups, her having straight black coffee while she filled Ruby's with copious amounts of sugar, just the way she liked it.

She handed the steaming cup of mostly sugar and very little coffee to the brunette, then settling down on a couch by the wall. She placed her steaming hot cup on the coffee table.

Ruby grabbed a chair from the other side of the room, dragging it over beside the table. With more excitement than Weiss felt was really necessary, she plopped herself down and set her cup on the table.

They shared bits of small talk, mainly about Ruby's hunt. She recounted her (greatly exaggerated) tale of how she took down a nest of Ursae all by herself. Weiss felt herself zoning in and out of the story, taking small sips of her coffee as Ruby excitedly spoke.

Normally, Weiss would be entranced by Ruby's story, or at least she'd try to be. But today she found it particularly difficult. Thoughts of the Ball and the preparations crept into her mind constantly, not allowing her any room to breathe in her own mind.

"Weiss, you look like something's bothering you." Ruby's sweet voice cut through the fog of her mind, bringing her back into reality, her normal look of optimistic excitement replaced with one of worry. Weiss took a deep breath.

"It's really nothing, just having a rough day is all," Weiss said.

"It's the Ball, isn't it?"

Weiss nodded. "I'm very… tense right now," she said. "The Schnee Ball is the biggest event of the year. If I don't do it just right, I'll be the laughing stock of all of Atlas. It's no secret that most of the upper class despise me as it is. This would just be another reason for them to tear me apart." Weiss sighed. "I… know, I shouldn't be stressing myself out over the whole ordeal, but I have a standard to meet. I feel like I could be doing much better."

Ruby hummed, looking at Weiss with a curious eye. "Things seem to be going well last time I got a close look. I mean, it looked like the ballroom was coming along pretty great!"

"It could be better," Weiss said.

"Maybe, but you're still really on top of all of the invitations and other bitty-bits!"

"Perhaps…"

"You're just overthinking the whole thing," Ruby said, reaching over the table to cup Weiss' cheeks in her hands. "You gotta simmer down, take a break for the rest of the day! You've earned it."

Weiss was about to immediately reject this proposition. There was still so much work to be done! Yet, she found herself unable. Ruby looked at her with such worry and care that she would have felt awful insisting to continue.

"Alright then… I guess I can take the rest of the day off," she said.

Ruby's smile returned in full force. "And anyway, who cares about what those uptight nobles think about you? You're ten times better than they are."

Weiss smiled softly. "That we can agree on."

The two finished their coffee, still talking idly about their day. Ruby noticeably toned her excitement down a notch, something Weiss very much appreciated. It's not that she didn't enjoy her wife's upbeat nature, but she had to admit that it could get to be a bit tiring, especially when she isn't in the best mood.

Before they got ready to leave the study, Weiss shuffled over to her desk and phoned Christa, informing her that she was taking the rest of the day off. After the call, right as the two were about to leave the study, Ruby snapped her fingers.

"I've got just the thing that'll cheer you up!" she exclaimed. "I'm going to be taking a small assignment later tonight. Just a few stray Beowolves near a small mountain town… Cascade Village, I think. Why don't you come with? It'll help you get your mind off of the Ball. Yang and Blake are there too! Maybe we can grab some food after."

Weiss considered it for a moment. Despite having to run a major dust corporation, often she had time to go on smaller hunts with Ruby. It helped her stay in shape and was a great way to break up the monotony of sitting in an office looking at shipping reports and contracts. And she certainly wouldn't complain with a small night out with Blake and Yang. The opportunity was perfect. She already took the rest of the day off, why not?

But then again, it was going to be work. She was wound-up and exhausted already. A hunt might only make things worse.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I don't think I'm up for a hunt today," she finally said. "I think I just need to take the rest of the day to wind down."

Ruby's smile faltered, but only for just a moment. "That's alright. You wanna do anything else before I have to go?"

"I think I'm just going to go for a walk alone. You probably need to catch an airship pretty soon."

"You sure? I still have some time." She was still smiling, but her eyes held a dejected look.

Weiss nodded. "Sorry, Ruby. I'll make it up to you when you get back tonight, okay?"

"Okayyy..." the redheaded huntress replied. The two parted ways outside the door, Ruby heading to the master bedroom to get ready for her next assignment, and Weiss going nowhere in particular.

Weiss felt guilty about pushing Ruby away like she did. But she wasn't in a particularly great mood tonight. She probably would have just been a burden...

After a few minutes of wandering through the corridors of the manor aimlessly, she decided that she might as well do something with her free time. She faintly realized that despite all of the preparations for the Ball, she was so swamped that she never got the chance to actually dance a little.

With that thought, she headed to the dressing room.

Ruby's steps echoed through the halls of the manor as she made her way to the master bedroom. The more she thought about Weiss, the faster her steps became. Was she just worrying too much? After all, Weiss was just having a rough week. Why was Ruby worrying so much? What's there to even worry about?

Nothing. Nothing at all.

After basically jogging through the halls, she finally made it to the master bedroom. Inside the room was an ambiance that was completely contradictory to itself. There was a huge amount of space. The bed itself was fit for queens and kings. And amongst all of the expensive furniture and regal designs, it was a total mess. Ruby's dirty laundry was haphazardly scattered about. Her makeshift workbench sat in the corner of the room, away from everything else. It didn't look the prettiest, covered in screws and tools used to maintain Crescent Rose.

Normally the room would be spotless, Weiss would make sure of that. But she'd been so swamped with preparations she hardly had the energy at the end of the day to pick it all up.

Weiss pushes herself so hard all the time… she never gives herself any room to breathe. If it were up to her, she'd be working herself to the very last breath. The Ball was just another project to her to work senselessly hard on. Poor thing.

Aaaand there she goes again worrying too much! Weiss is fine. She is just. Fine.

Ruby shook her head, exasperated by her excessive concern. She needed to get ready for her hunt.

She spent the next twenty-or-so minutes sharpening and polishing her Crescent Rose, hoping to get her mind off of her wife. Her dexterous hands ran across the worn red metal, wiping dust and Grimm remains off the steel scythe blade. Ruby found maintaining Crescent Rose to be therapeutic. She could distract herself from whatever was bothering her at any time and just focus on her creation.

After a job well done, she looked over her treasured sniper-scythe. Satisfied with her work, she slung it over her shoulder and grabbed a pack of dust ammunitions. She was eternally grateful that she was married to Weiss. As the wife of the CEO, she had no problem getting her hands on free dust.

Not that she married Weiss for her money! It's just a really nice bonus.

She shuffled over to the window overlooking a cliffside the manor. The sky was laced with hues of purple and orange as the sun dipped below the horizon. Clouds were colored a brilliant yellow by the rays of the sun.

The view was beautiful. Ruby loved this time in the day; it evoked long treasured memories of watching the sunset with Mom. Before, it was a melancholy feeling. But now when Ruby looked back on those memories, she remembered them for what they were, not what they could've been.

...hold on a moment. The sun wasn't supposed to begin setting for at least another hour.

She looked at the clock. 5:32.

Five thirty two. As in, thirty minutes since coffee with Weiss.

Her hunt was scheduled at 7:30. And Cascade Village was all the way in northern Atlas.

Oh god. She's going to be late!

Ruby shot out of the door with the speed of a panicked Beowolf, using her semblance to race down the halls. Ruby left numerous rose petals in her wake, startling maids and butlers as she flew past them. She needed to be on the airship in less than thirty minutes. Considering that she was a less than stellar driver, it would probably take her about ten minutes to get down to the airport.

But wait… what about Weiss?

"AH!"

Ruby's small lapse in focus caused her to slam head first into a decorative armor set. The rebound of the collision knocked her off of her feet; Ruby fell hard onto the ground. Flat against her back, she brought her hand up to her head, rubbing the spot where it connected with the armor piece.

As she was beginning to get back up, she heard the distinct sound of metal creaking.

"Huh?" She looked up at the armor… now toppling down toward her.

"EEK!" She yelled, quickly scurrying out of the way.

The armor broke apart into pieces on the floor when it landed. The helmet rolled off to the distance, completely separate from the rest of the once artful masterpiece. It smacked against the wall underneath a window.

Okay, pick it up and put it together right now, and nobody will notice a thing, Ruby thought. She crept over to the wall and bent down to pick up the helmet. When she stood back up… something caught her eye outside of the window.

It was one of the many courtyards surrounding the Schnee Manor. Beautiful sculptures and statues dotted the stone landing. Against the light of the setting sun, it was an astonishing sight.

But that did not even come close to the most mesmerizing thing captured in her vision.

Weiss was dancing at the center of the yard, clothed in an elegant Schnee blue gown. Her alabaster hair was let down in a beautiful stream of silver, glinting in the sunlight. Her body seemed to move as though it was completely weightless, like air. Ruby was so entranced by her otherworldly beauty all else seemed to fade away into her mind. There was only Weiss.

Again, Ruby's sense of time was entirely lost. Again, she fell completely, madly in love with Weiss.

"What happened here!?"

Ruby jumped nearly ten feet into the air, startled out of her mind by a maid who came around the corner. The maid was holding the severed arm of the armored body in her hand, shooting accusational daggers at the red huntress with her eyes.

"AH! I-IswearIdidn'tmeantoohmygosh!" Ruby rapidly fired out, losing her grip on the helmet, squealing as it crashed to the floor. She closed her eyes and held her hands out in front of her defensively, flustered beyond belief.

The maid simply sighed. "Mrs. Rose, please watch where you're going. I knew it was you as soon as I saw rose petals whisk past all of us. I'm sure you're in quite the rush, but we can't afford to replace an infinite number of these."

Ruby bowed down, holding the helmet out in an overly exaggerated motion. "I'm so sorry! It won't happen again, I promise!"

The maid pinched the bridge of her nose. "I'll hold you to that, miss." The maid walked over to Ruby and snatched the helmet out of her hands. The maid then gathered all the pieces and carted them away, calling for a replacement.

Ruby sighed in relief. She looked back at the window. She wanted more than ever to go and dance with Weiss herself, but she had an assignment to take care of.

Unless…

Ruby recalled that Yang and Blake were vacationing in Cascade Village. She didn't want to impose, but she didn't know if she could even make it now with all the time she'd wasted. She whipped out her scroll and dialed Blake's number.

After a few rings, Blake's voice came through.

"Hello?"

"Blake! It's Ruby."

"Ruby! To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I'm calling in a solid."

Blake audibly groaned on the other side of the line. "Does it have to be today? I'm out with Yang on vacation, Ruby."

"Please? I'm kinda pressed for time right now."

A pause. "Alright… what do you need?"

"I'm supposed to be taking a job close to the town you guys are staying in. But I kinda messed up and now I don't know if I can make it."

"A hunt?"

"It's just a small Beowolf nest."

"Really? Doesn't sound too bad. Why do you need me to do it?"

"I'm still at the manor, I missed the airship."

Blake hummed in understanding. "I'm not surprised."

"Hey!" Ruby indignantly yelled.

"Anyway, we did bring our weapons. Just in case Yang got bored."

"So you'll do it?"

"Well… I guess it's better than a movie. What do you say, Yang?"

Ruby heard a soft 'YEAH' on the other side of the line.

"That settles it then. Send me the details over text."

"Oh my gosh, thanks Blake. You're the best. And tell Yang I said hi!"

The scroll clicked, ending the call. Ruby used her semblance on her fingers to type the message at record speed, quickly jetting back to the bedroom, this time definitely not knocking anything over.

Where did she put that dress again…?

Weiss looked to the sunset, basking in the glorious light peeking over the hills. The afternoon chill of Atlas stung at her cheeks, but it didn't bother her in the slightest. No, when she was in the cold, she was in her element.

Many times throughout her teenage years, she came out to this very balcony to train with Winter. But even before then, this was where she practiced her dancing. While she was known much more widely by her singing talent, early in her childhood she placed almost as much—if not more—emphasis on her dancing. When it became clear to her father that she was not the perfect dancer, he instead forced her to focus on her singing lessons.

Every once in a while, she would sneak out late at night to dance in this very spot. Whether it was out of a need for self-expression or just defying her father, it became somewhat of a therapeutic experience for her. She rarely felt the need to do it anymore, but it's always a good way for her to relieve some stress. Aside from… well, Ruby wasn't always around.

Weiss closed her eyes, slowly beginning to move into her rhythm. Starting out with slower, more deliberate steps, she carried her body along with graceful, smooth movements. Adding in a twirl here and there, she moved in unison with a song her mother used to sing when she was a small child. She hummed as she danced along, tuning out the rest of the world.

All that she could hear was the sound of her own voice, along with the wind that howled across the courtyard. The world for a moment seemed still. Thoughts passed through her mind, coming and going with her steps. Thoughts of the future, the world around her, her family.

She felt lonely. Despite being surrounded by people she loved—people she can call true family, there were days where she felt lonelier than ever. Maybe it was who she was naturally. Ever since Beacon, she'd earned the nickname Ice Queen. While it was mostly used nowadays by Yang and Blake jokingly, she felt that there was a lot of truth to that name. She felt that her heart was of ice.

Weiss stopped for a moment, opening her eyes. She looked to the sun, now just barely above the horizon.

"Room for one more?"

Weiss turned around to find Ruby standing before her, illuminated by the rays of light streaming through the sky. She did a double-take, suddenly realizing what Ruby was wearing.

Clad in the same black sleeveless dress that they wore back on the day of their wedding, she looked absolutely incredible. The way that the slight curves of her body fit the dark fabric, how her eyes glinted with the light of the sunset in the warmest and inviting way.

Ruby was beauty incarnate.

"Are you just gonna stand there, or are we gonna dance?" Ruby asked with a light smirk on her face.

Weiss realized that she'd been completely dumbstruck by Ruby's presence, forgetting to function like a normal human being.

"I-I…" Weiss tried to speak, failing miserably.

Goddammit Weiss, you useless lesbian, say something!

Ruby giggled. "I'll take that as a yes?"

"A-aren't you supposed to be somewhere?" Weiss stammered out.

Ruby shrugged. "I got Blake to do it."

Her heels clicked as she walked up to Weiss, hooking her arm around her waist and locking their hands together. "Besides, the only place I'm supposed to be is right here."

Yep. That did it. Weiss, you've been swooned.

The two started rather awkwardly. In spite of her incredible ability to bend Weiss to her will just now, she stumbled a few times during their dance at first, clearly struggling with the heels.

It was Weiss' turn to giggle this time, clearly taking delight in Ruby's missteps.

Ruby's face was painted with an awkward grin as she looked to Weiss.

"Guess I'm still not great at dancing in heels, huh?"

"Sure you are. Just… focus on me. Don't think about the heels," she said.

Ruby smiled more genuinely. "I think I can do that."

This time, Weiss took the lead, gently guiding Ruby along the ground. Their movements were in perfect sync, two parts of the same whole. The two circled around each other, fixed upon the eyes of their better half. The slight howl of the wind accompanied the sound of their steps, slowing down the world once more, giving way to the most important thing to either of them.

Weiss looked into the eyes of her partner, no longer feeling the crushing loneliness that pervaded her mind just moments before. All that remained was an intense warmth inside of her, one that she knew she always had, but couldn't always see.

It was moments like these where Weiss was reminded that she loved Ruby with all of her being. And Ruby loved her with just the same intensity.

They must've danced together for hours, as when they finally began to transition into a slow dance, head on the other's shoulder, the shattered moon of Remnant was high in the sky, shining in full. Weiss liked to think that the moon shone for only them that night, despite how preposterous that might sound.

They finally came to a full stop, Weiss dipping Ruby down as far as she could. The silver light of the moon reflected off her partner's eyes, giving them an almost otherworldly look.

Ruby then pulled Weiss down into a kiss. Naturally, she reciprocated, pulling herself closer to shorten the distance.

When they pulled away, they decided it wasn't enough, and went in for another. And another. And another. Before long, they became more passionate, more enthralled with each other the more and more they came together.

They pulled away one final time, looking at each other with a certain hunger in their eyes.

"Bedroom. Now." Ruby said.

Weiss could only nod in agreement. She tried to pull Ruby up but must've been far too hasty, causing her partner to lose her balance, falling out of her hands and onto the floor.

"Ack!" Ruby yelled as her butt hit the stone.

Weiss paused. Then began giggling. Then laughing.

"What's so funny?!" Ruby whined, with a tone not too different from a small child.

Weiss nearly began to tear up in laughter before finally speaking.

"I-It's just that… you were doing so well! And… hahaha!" she could barely finish before bursting out into more laughs.

Ruby tried to maintain her annoyed pout, but couldn't stop herself from laughing along with Weiss.

Ruby got back up from the ground, hooking her arms around Weiss' back, and bringing her in for a massive hug.

"I love you," Ruby said.

"I love you too," Weiss said.

The two stayed like that for a moment, under the full moonlight. It was here that Weiss learned something. She may be able to find peace in solitude, but she wouldn't find happiness alone.

The two were silent, the only noise being their steady breaths.

Weiss broke the silence. "So… uh, bedroom?"

Ruby pulled away with a playful smirk. "So naughty, Weiss…"

Weiss giggled. "Oh you, shut up."

The two ran back into the manor together, no doubt ready for a very fun—and very loud—night.

A/N

Oh my Ozpin. It has been far too long.

Hey all! UltimateRadiance here. I finally am back from the shadow realm, just in time for Valentine's!

And what's Valentine's Day without some good ol' White Rose?

This is the first chapter in what I hope to be a one-shot (maybe sometimes two-or-three-shot) series where Team RWBY defeated Salem and what life is like afterwards. I want to show that the ghost of that conflict still haunts them in some way and that they didn't get away unscathed. Though, it'll mostly just be fluff, like it is here :P

I've wanted to stray away from doing one-shots in the past, mostly because I felt like I wanted to focus entirely on my other fic, Legends of Luthoria. But those of you who are following me know exactly how that's turning out, haha.

For those of you who don't know about LoL, the rest of this A/N is in reference to it, so feel free to skip over to the last paragraph.

A dreadful combination of moving, school, and demotivation has really thrown it on the backburner. But luckily I'm through the worst of it now, so I've finally begun writing it again!

For the most part, the first quarter of the story is completely set in stone. I just have to start drafting the chapters. Luckily, Chapter 3 is about halfway done, and it'll be the first chapter to directly feature Bumblebee, so stay tuned!

Something that was really nebulous and undefined in the first rendition of the story was the magic system that Luthorians used, so I want to do a much better job of fleshing it out this time around. Hopefully I can do it justice, it's really cool!

If you're curious about Legends of Luthoria, go give the first two chapters a read. I plan on releasing the next chapter by the end of this week/beginning of the next week.

Anyway, huge thanks to Young Leuchovius, who co-authored this one-shot with me! He's a brilliant writer that only really came on board the SS. White Rose pretty recently. Go and give him some follows!

Another thanks to Useless Lesbian, who was a huge help in checking on a lot of small grammar mistakes and general wording. I appreciate it a ton!

With that, I bid you all adeiu. UltimateRadiance, signing off!