From the second Weiss took her first step into the train station, she wanted to leave. With every passing moment, she felt a tug behind her heart. As if her very soul was trying to pull her back to Mistral. To keep her here on Anima. She barely registered the other passengers, the long line at the ticket counter, and quickly shoved the ticket Qrow handed her into her pocket. All they had to do now was wait.

Finding the first bench closest to their terminal, Weiss sat at the edge, boxing herself off with her luggage. She sighed and fiddled with the suitcase on her lap. Sitting still was proving to be a bit of a challenge. She kept changing her focus from her belongings, to the various passersby, to the screens with departure times overhead. At the moment, she was alone. Bringing attention to this fact only made her fidgeting worse. Blake had left with Ilia and Sun, the remains of Team JNPR and Oscar were still in line for their tickets, and Yang had gone to secure her bike on the train. In her restlessness, Weiss had begun looking for signs of Ruby.

Her energetic leader had said something about where she was going to her before flying through the terminal in a burst of rose petals—effectively startling some bystanders in the process—but it was too fast for Weiss to completely catch what she was saying. Ruby had been gone for a few minutes now. A few long, slow, agonizing minutes. Weiss let out a small sigh and fidgeted with her suitcase fastenings.

Atlas. Of course it had to be Atlas. Around her team, Weiss had put on a brave face and took all the information Ozpin had given them in stride. But no one said she had to like it. She wrinkled her brow and made a small noise as she stared down her hands on her luggage. Would her father be looking for her? Could Winter help her? Was Klein okay? With each new thought, she felt her stomach start to twist and turn. Her bold escape, all in vain. And after she had gone through so much trouble to leave…

A small gust of wind had her look up just in time to see Ruby slide to a halt in front of her. A few rose petals delicately floated around them before settling around the two girls feet.

"I'm back!" Ruby announced with the big sweet smile Weiss loved so much.

Lightly brushing a couple stray petals off her arm, Weiss returned the smile. "Where did you take off to, Ruby?"

"Uhh, to get something? I said I was gonna be right back."

"Oh, that's what you said? You were so excited, it sounded like gibberish."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Ha ha," She stuck her tongue out at Weiss before brandishing a thin box she had been holding behind her back. "I was just being the best leader, partner, aaaaand girlfriend ever, and got you something!"

Weiss looked between the box that clearly came from some gift shop the station had and Ruby, a light blush forming across her cheeks. Ruby lightly shook the gift and held it closer to Weiss, who accepted it gently. With the gift successfully delivered, Ruby began bouncing in place.

"Open it, open it!"

Weiss carefully undid the baby blue ribbon that held the box together and opened it slowly. She let out a small "Oh!" of surprise before lifting the contents out. A brilliant red scarf unfolded itself in her hands, one end of it almost hitting the carpeted floor. A white snowflake similar to her family crest was embroidered on the other end in her hands. Weiss turned it over to examine it before looking back up at Ruby. The younger girl was grinning ear to ear now, still bouncing in place.

"Do you like it?" she asked, trying to still herself. And failing. It was a sight to make Weiss' heart melt.

"Of course. This was very sweet of you," Weiss answered, looking back down at her new scarf, "but you didn't need to do this."

Ruby scoffed playfully and waved a hand. "Of course I did! It's snowy and cold out. I thought it'd be perfect to help keep you warm!" She held up a corner of her cloak and pointed to it excitedly. "And look! Now we match!"

A familiar warmth washed over Weiss. The same kind as whenever she saw Ruby do something particularly adorable. The kind that always without fail made her heart skip a beat or two. The reminder of how much she loved her.

"You're too sweet," she said, holding up the scarf once again.

Weiss had barely started getting it around her neck when Ruby popped closer to her, taking the fabric from her hands. She said a quick and peppy "Let me help!" and before Weiss could do or say anything, Ruby had already knelt in front of her and started delicately wrapping the scarf around her neck. She hummed a tune as she finished tying it up so it wouldn't unravel and sat back an inch, beaming with pride.

"There! All set!" She looked at Weiss for a moment longer before her smile fell halfway. "Wait, hold on..."

"What? Does it look bad?" Weiss looked down at herself, looking for the problem.

When she turned her head back up, she was met with the other girls face mere inches from her own. Ruby giggled and moved closer, kissing her for a long moment before backing up and standing straight.

"Now the look is complete," she said with that ridiculously adorable smile of hers.

Weiss' cheeks were warm. She was certain that her face was probably close to matching her new scarf at this point. But she rolled her eyes with a smile.

"You're such a dork," she sighed, shaking her head slowly. The warm emotions quickly faded as one particularly annoying thought invaded her brain. "And… don't kiss me in public. Please." Ruby's face fell and Weiss immediately regretted her choice of words. Faster than she'd ever moved in her life, she backtracked with a light stutter, "I-it's not because I don't love you. I do. And I don't care if people see. Well, most people. I just..."

She took a second to look over her shoulder for any hint of yellow among the other passengers. There was none and Weiss felt a small bit of relief as she turned back to Ruby, reaching up to massage her temples. "If I have to hear Yang sing that annoying song one more time..."

She could hear the blonde's voice echo in her head as she spoke. She'd heard it enough times over the past two days whenever she tried to show Ruby even the tiniest bit of affection.

"Weiss and Ruby sitting in a treeeee..."

At the mention of her half-sister's name, Ruby stood rigid and put her hands over her mouth.

"Ohmigosh Yang! I totally forgot I needed to buy her something too!"

Weiss let her hands fall to her lap. She raised an eyebrow at Ruby.

"...What?"

Ruby smacked herself on the forehead. "Her birthday's coming up real soon. And with all this crazy stuff happening, I totally blanked on getting her a gift!"

Familiar voices pulled both girls attention away to see Jaune and Nora ahead of Oscar and Ren, Nora waving her arms excitedly as she talked to her team leader. Weiss was able to pick up the tail end of the hyperactive girls story as they got closer.

"...And that's exactly why that kind of upgrade would be perfect for you!" she finished with a light squeal of joy, "Think about how COOL you would look!"

"Nora, I appreciate it, but that kind of blaster would probably shatter my body if I even thought about using it," Jaune sighed.

"Not after I help train you up!"

Weiss looked back at Ruby, not surprised in the slightest over the twinkle in her eyes over hearing about some sort of weapon upgrade. She did return the older girls gaze and grinned.

"I'm gonna go grab Yang that thing. Now that our friends are here, I feel better about leaving. I'll be right back!" And with a quick wave, Ruby vanished in a tornado of rose petals, tearing off to probably the same giftshop she had gotten the scarf from.

With a final heave and a heavy thud, the last of Team RWBY's luggage was safely secured in the train car. Yang dusted off her hands and let out a low whistle.

"Alright! All that's left to do is enjoy the trip!" she said, beaming at her teammates.

Ruby let out a cheer and jumped on a top bunk in their shared room, bouncing lightly on the mattress. "This is going to be awesome!"

"You have to be five years old," Weiss commented, settling on the bed under Ruby's.

Ruby leaned over the frame and stuck her tongue out at her. "Of course it's awesome, Weiss! I haven't been on a TRAIN before!"

"Yes you have. In Mountain Glenn, remember?"

"That doesn't count!"

The team laughed at Ruby's outburst while the leader herself fake pouted on her claimed bed. Yang was the first to speak after they all calmed down.

"I don't know about you guys, but all the lifting and strapping stuff in has me starved. I'm gonna hit the dining car," she said, giving her stomach a light pat.

"I'll go with you? I could eat too," Blake chimed in.

Yang's smile fell a fraction as she shrugged one shoulder. "Sure, I guess. Company would be nice. You guys coming too?"

Weiss shook her head and held up a hand. While she hadn't really eaten anything, the nerves of being on a train hurtling her back towards Atlas killed any chance of an appetite she might have. She was surprised to hear Ruby decline the offer as well, turning her gaze upwards to the bunk above her as she listened.

"You know where we'll be," Yang said with a wave, walking with Blake in tow into the hallway of the car. She stopped with her hand on the door, looking back at them with a playful grin. "Oh, and other people will be in this room later. So don't get too crazy!"

With a wink, Yang shut the door before either of the other two could say anything. Hopefully she got the glare Weiss sent her way. Weiss mumbled under her breath and folded her arms. Even though she knew it was completely pointless and childish to pout like a child over some light teasing. Even if said teasing was so incredibly frequent nowadays.

"Don't you have some sort of leash or gag for your sister?" she asked Ruby, looking back up at the bottom of the top bunk.

She heard her partners voice before seeing a hand wave lazily over the edge. "There's no stopping her sometimes. Last time she even thought I had a crush, I didn't hear the end of it for weeks. Now that I really do have a girlfriend..." she trailed off and ended her sentence with a sound halfway between a groan and a sigh.

Weiss nodded slowly to herself, looking back at the room floor. Her train of thought turned to Winter. Was there a time she was ever teased like that? She closed her eyes in thought, going back as far as she could remember.

No, their relationship was very formal. Close but distant. Early in life, whenever Weiss did something wrong, Winter was always there to defend her. She was always front and center at every recital. Always assisting her with studies when needed. And most importantly, comforting her whenever their father would return from work angry after a White Fang attack on the company. Weiss was very happy and supportive for her sisters military pursuit, but it also meant less time at home. Less hugs, as infrequent as they already were. Less time for play. Until the day she left for the academy. And so completely set Weiss on her path to isolation.

Now unhappy with the depressing series of memories, she let out a heavy sigh. When she opened her eyes, she was met with an upside down Ruby, a small pout on her lips.

"...Ruby, what are you doing?"

Ungracefully, Ruby descended from the top bunk and stood in front of Weiss. The pout on her face grew softer and she knelt before the other girl. Taking Weiss' hands in her own, she looked her in the eyes.

"You know we won't let anything happen to you, right?" she started softly, gently squeezing her hands for emphasis, "I promised at the station. Team RWBY is here for you. I am here for you. You're safe, Weiss."

As she looked down at her partner, any fears and doubts she had were wiped away. The past and her bad memories suddenly didn't matter. She left her muscles relax and was surprised at how tense she had been without realizing. Right now, she couldn't keep her eyes out of Ruby's. The silver sparkled in a certain specific way that boosted Weiss' heart rate. Just when she didn't think she could love this girl any more. Weiss smiled at her and gave her rougher hands a squeeze in return. Ruby closed her eyes and put that big adorable grin back on her face. Weiss made a split second decision and quickly leaned in as best she could in her seated position and lightly pulled the other girl closer. She left a warm kiss on Ruby's lips before straightening back up. Ruby's eyes fluttered open, a pink hue appearing on her cheeks.

"Sneak attack kisses aren't fair," she said, standing back up. Though there was a pout, she sounded pretty happy about it. She turned and plopped down next to Weiss, giving her a coy grin. "You know, I think I just thought of a really fun way to chase away worrying things for a while."

The smile Weiss sported fell gradually as she watched her girlfriend. Her brain started clocking into overtime as she processed what exactly the other girl just said. That… that couldn't possibly been what she meant, right? She wouldn't risk that in a room Blake and Yang would be in later, would she? She searched Ruby's face looking for some sort of hint. Ruby's eyes glinted playfully as she smiled at Weiss and… hold on, she wasn't THAT close before, was she? Weiss felt her face begin to burn. Was this really happening? Was Ruby really ready to cross that threshold? Was Weiss? Slowly, Ruby lifted a hand to reach out to her…

"Tag!"

Ruby lightly poked Weiss in the shoulder, sending the ex-heiress' thoughts to a crashing halt. She looked between her shoulder and Ruby. Her confusion must have been very apparent, for Ruby started snickering.

"I'm so sorry, Weiss! But your face right now!" she said, trying and failing to suppress her laughter, "What were you thinking I was going to do?"

Now completely, utterly, one hundred percent embarrassed, Weiss crossed her arms and pointedly turned away. "I-It's your fault for wording it weird!"

A few more moments filled with Ruby's laughs passed before she spoke up again. "Don't pout. I'm only trying to cheer you up."

Weiss looked over at her, her annoyance melting away. She let out a small "hmph" before reaching out and lightly pushing Ruby's upper arm.

"...Tag."

Ruby smiled wider. She reached out again, this time lightly poking Weiss' nose. "Tag back!"

Weiss smiled, raising her arm to tag her again, only to miss as Ruby hopped out of her reach, a couple petals falling where she had sat. She held her hands behind her and leaned from side to side.

"It's not a proper game of tag if you get me that easily," she taunted.

Weiss rolled her eyes before standing. She tried to tag Ruby again, only to touch more petals as the girl vanished, only to reappear near the door.

"Well that's not fair..." Weiss grumbled.

Before Ruby could react, Weiss already had an idea. She flicked her wrist on her extended arm, summoning a black glyph around Ruby's legs. Ruby let out a small squeak of surprise at her sudden immobility. Grinning victoriously, Weiss tapped her on the forehead.

"Tag~"

"Alright, alright, no Semblances!"

Weiss hummed as she released the glyph around her partner. As soon as Ruby was able to move again, she dropped into a half crouch and raised her arms up like claws.

"Gonna getcha now, Weiss!" she laughed playfully.

She let out a small "raah!" as she lunched at the older girl, swiping at her with her 'claws' to tag her. Now also laughing, Weiss nimbly jumped out of the way of the 'attack', However, she almost crashed onto the bed Blake claimed, slightly cursing the cramped quarters. While that jump was the perfect tactical move to avoid that tag, it did put her in a difficult to escape place. Something the two figured out at the same time. Ruby took advantage of the brief pause to tap Weiss on the head.

"Tag! You're it!" She bounced back, the heels of her boots hitting the base of Weiss' bed.

"Oh it is SO on now!" Weiss smiled, readying herself to follow Ruby. The room wasn't very big. Catching the younger girl should be simple enough.

Should be.

When Weiss missed her tag by only an inch or two, Ruby bounced backwards and opened the door to the car hallway before springing into the middle of it.

"Never said we were confined to the room!" she teased, swaying back and forth.

"I see how it is," Weiss laughed, taking a couple running steps towards her.

Ruby stuck her tongue out at Weiss before hopping in place once and running down the hall. Weiss skidded slightly on her pivot before chasing after Ruby, one arm outstretched. Ruby was close to approaching the next car when the door to another sleeping room suddenly opened. Two laughing children pointing toy guns at each other came running out and right into Ruby's path. Ruby was just barely able to stop herself before crashing into the children. It was bad for her, but wonderful for Weiss. Catching up almost immediately, she gripped Ruby's shoulder, spun her around, and kissed her.

"Tag," she grinned, pulling away from the stunned Ruby.

She hummed happily, hopping backwards away from her partner, enjoying the dopey look on her face perhaps a little too much. When she snapped out of it, Weiss turned with a laugh, running like a child through the train. Behind her, she could hear Ruby call out out after her. Taunts and claims of revenge mixed in with laughter. On occasion, she glanced over her shoulder to watch her girlfriend chase after her. Ruby seemed to be gaining ground with every check. Even without her Semblance she was still quick. The next set of doors led to the dining car; Weiss caught Blake and Yang sitting together out of the corner of her eye, before turning to see how close Ruby was getting.

"You won't catch me!" Weiss giggled, putting in a little more effort to outrun her leader.

"Oh yes I will!"

With a small yelp, Weiss was tackled into an empty booth, Ruby's cape and body falling over her. However, the tackle and impact wasn't enough to hurt. She playfully called out Ruby's name, pretending to be indignant about the event. Ruby gave her a devilish smile before raising her hands and pressing them into Weiss' ribs, relentlessly tickling her.

Playing games and acting like children didn't matter at this point. There was no anxiety or fear, no worries of the future, no Grimm. There was only joy and love in Weiss' mind right now. And nothing could take that away from her.