The Vytal Festival was in full swing. Spectators and travelers milled about the festival grounds surrounding Beacon, to and fro, soaking in the energetic atmosphere brought by the main events. For most, the festivities were enough to distract from the weight of the world's negativity. It reminded them that the diverse cultures in the kingdoms of Remnant could come together, and put aside their differences. But despite the enlightening lure of the fair and its spectacles, some hearts were heavy with uncertainty, still.

Ruby followed Weiss across Beacon's campus with less pep in her step than usual. The fair was fun, and the fights had been mostly in RWBY's element, but she couldn't embrace it all in its deserved brightness. As they passed stalls and booths, she didn't take the time to mingle with the diverse vendors. As they passed artisans and students, she didn't stop to admire the wide array of weaponry being touted for all to see.

"FACE PAINT!" As her pace slowed to a stop, a loud shout turned Ruby's gaze toward an artsy booth in the heart of the fairgrounds. The wall of the booth was adorned with paintings and drawings of creatures of grimm – some frightening, some cutesy, some minimalist. "Scare the dust off your friends, or be everyone's favorite eyesore! With no permanent damage to the face!". As one vendor yelled his shameless promotion, the artist of the duo was at work, painting the face of a fairgoer to resemble some as of yet unclear species of grimm. In its early stage, the look was unremarkable. It was unpolished. Underwhelming.

Subconsciously, Ruby touched her own hand to her face, rubbing the smooth skin, likening it to the general look common to all grimm. Without markings, their faces would all look plain. Unremarkable. Underwhelming?

Having noticed that her girlfriend had begun to lag behind, Weiss backtracked to retrieve the normally vibrant red menace, rolling her eyes humorously.

"Ruby?" the heiress called.

Ruby's attention snapped back to her partner. Realizing she'd stopped moving, she shook off the shock back to reality, and jogged to meet the call halfway.

"Sorry, Weiss! Guess I got distracted…"

The leader's aversion and nerve had not gone unnoticed. Over the past few hours, Weiss had internally grown concerned that something was wrong. They'd passed far too many weapons and sweets in relative silence. There'd been no excited shrieks. No swooning. Little particular interest in any of the festivities.

"Ruby, is there a problem?"

Preferring to avoid the question, Ruby gave her best impression of nonchalance. "A problem? N-no, nothing's wrong. I might just be tired, is all." She took a deep breath, and shut her eyes for a moment, rubbing the back of her head. To any other person, the excuse may have been convincing enough. To her teammates, it was a nervous habit.

Weiss's face turned into a slight frown, and she knowingly took the other girl's hand. Their fingers interlocked in a rare show of public affection. As Ruby looked at their joined hands and registered the gesture, she was forced to surrender a small smile. The small interaction wasn't much, but it was enough for them in the moment.

Deciding they'd had enough for the day, Weiss led them away from the fairgrounds, toward Beacon's main campus. After a long day of action and festive excitement, neither of the two would mind unwinding, and cuddling up in bed for an evening power nap. They made their way into the dorms' wing, and enjoyed what they could of the short journey, paying little attention to the other teams heading in or out. Their pace stayed at comfortable stroll.

Weiss's displays of affection were not so prolific as the rose's own, but when they happened, they were always so considerate. If Ruby was feeling downtrodden, there was a good chance she could find comfort in her girlfriend's consolatory arms. She was sweet like that, Ruby thought. A solid block of ice, on the surface. Cold in more ways than one, often no-nonsense, and sometimes hard to crack quite right. But on the inside, she definitely hid a warm center. She could love, and be loved. However she felt she needed to act, Ruby knew the heiress had her reasons.

By the time they'd arrived back at the room, Ruby had become lost again in her inner musings. Weiss ushered them inside the room, and shoes and skirts were quickly shed in favor of cozy loungewear. Wasting no time, they slipped under the cover of the lower bunk, and embraced snugly, Ruby's head resting upon Weiss's chest. The room was mostly quiet then, save for rhythmic breathing, and the white noise of the air conditioning. The sun had begun to set, leaving the dorm only a dim glow of light.

They spent the better part of an hour like that, stroking one another, and letting some of the day's tension wash away. Before they could dose off, Weiss broke the silence first.

"Hey," she spoke quietly.

"Hm?" Ruby responded, her eyelids only partially open.

"Are you going to tell me what's wrong?"

There was no immediate answer. She only continued to stroke the skin of her partner's arm.

"Hey –" Weiss lifted the younger girl's chin and shifted her own position, bringing their gazes to meet "– dunce, I'm here for you, you know."

Ruby made a light sound at the nickname. It was mostly under her breath – just audible enough to be considered a chuckle. "Hmph. Dunce. It's been a while since I've heard that one." She adjusted her position, to have their eyes level.

"That could easily be rectified."

They both leaned in, and their lips pressed together in a quick but gentle kiss, barely longer than a second.

"Really though, Ruby. What's wrong? It's quite easy to tell when you're not yourself." She stroked Ruby's hair, trying to provide whatever comfort she could.

Still, Ruby hesitated to be upfront. "It's just –" she racked her brain, trying to find the right words "–I don't..."

"You don't…"

Ruby took another deep breath, and settled on being direct as always. "Weiss, why do you love me?"

Weiss's eyebrows raised, and then rested in a small frown. It was rare for Ruby to take such a tone, and it never sat well with her team.

"Sorry, that came out harsher than it was supposed to. It's just, I'm not sure why," she began. "I know you love me. You've made that plenty clear already." At the memories, both girls showed the slightest shade of pink. "But, maybe Winter was onto something, earlier."

"Ruby-" Weiss started to counter.

Ruby didn't let her finish. "You were the same way when we first met, you know. You didn't think much of me. You thought I was barely worth the time. Like I was nothing special. At one point, I was even starting to wonder if you were right."

At the interruption, Weiss felt struck. She'd promised one night that she'd work on being the best teammate ever. And her attitude had improved much since then. Although she herself still sometimes scoffed at the way she'd treated Ruby in the beginning, it was worse having it thrown back at her that way.

Seeing the look on Weiss's face, Ruby realized she'd once again made it sound worse than it was. She cupped her girlfriend's cheek in her hand. "I don't hold any of that against you, Weiss. I know you've gotten better." She nuzzled her forehead to accentuate the point. "In times like these, I'm just not sure why you chose someone like me."

For several moments, there was more silence between them. Still in their embrace, Weiss could not find the perfect words, and so resigned to trying to ease Ruby's worries by putting more effort into her affection. Actions spoke louder than words anyway, they say.

Lying on their sides, they cupped each other's free cheek, and stroked and kissed until Weiss did find something worth telling.

"Ruby, if anything, understand that you are special to me. Frankly, you're an amazing person, and you have the potential to be one of the best huntresses in all of Remnant." Weiss concentrated on those silver eyes as if she might plunge right into their depths someday. "Winter's just being the perfectionist we were raised to be." As quickly as they'd came, the heiress tried to expunge the bothersome aspects of her childhood memories. "But, even if Winter never gets it, I do. It's not going to change the way I feel about you. I promise."

With that, they returned to their original embrace, Ruby resting her head on Weiss's chest, and both content to let the thoughts and emotions simmer. If there were still uncertainties to be dealt with, they could be dealt with tomorrow. They cuddled as closely as possible, and fell asleep in each other's arms.