Apples… that's something Weiss hasn't had in forever since the war had begun.
Weiss was walking past rows of shops people had set up in Vacuo, heading back towards home after doing some errands.
Having something juicy sounded amazing, especially now that she lives in the hottest, miserable place ever. Weiss will remind herself to thank the old lady that she came across this morning next time she sees her.
“Darling… You are Weiss Schnee, correct?”
“Yes ma'am, can I help you?”
The lady chuckles, holding up a small basket of beautiful crimson red apples. “You've been working so hard, it's unfair that the world has been unkind towards you. I think you're doing a great job…”
That made Weiss's day, as she's been in constant despair that the world currently hates the Schnee, and she couldn't blame them.
But god it was getting annoying…
I'm not my father.
“Ooo! Whatcha got there?” Ruby had abruptly appeared out of nowhere, scaring the life out of Weiss. Placing a hand on her chest, she took in a breath. Petals that came with Ruby soon dissipates.
“Ruby, what have I said about doing that?! One day, you're gonna give me a heart attack… and I'm going to haunt you for the rest of your life.”
Ruby only gave a big grins, looking down at Weiss who soon smiled back. They both gave each other a quick kiss.
“Some elderly woman gave me these apples as a gift for the hard work my family and I have been doing.”
“Ohhh… see? I told you not everyone hates you!”
“I'll admit, that did make me feel better, knowing that there's still people out there that understand our situation.” Weiss picks an apple out of the basket, looking at the shiny surface of the fruit.
“You know what we should do with this?” A grin grew on Ruby's face. “Apple pies!” She sang.
Weiss quietly groaned, her shoulders slouching. “It's way too hot. I don't want to use the oven… we are in a desert, remember?”
“We have vanilla ice cream…?”
Weiss's eyes lit up, before walking past Ruby. “Apple Pie it is.”
Ruby held a fist with a satisfied noise. “Yes!” before she ran after Weiss, chatting on the way back to the home Team RWBY temporarily lived in.
After gathering up all the ingredients, Ruby grabbed the recipe that she was given by a friend, starting with the first step.
Ruby grabbed five apples from the basket, washing them before slicing them up with a knife with ease.
Ruby called herself the master with any sort of weapons, it was a skill she is proud of.
Cooking however? Well… Ruby likes to believe that she’s getting better at it. As far as she knows, no one has gotten food poisoning from her food!
Ruby thought back to Beacon when Weiss had gotten sick one time… and Ruby offered to make dinner…
I'm so sorry Weiss! I've learned my ways now.
Ruby was so focused on cutting away that she didn't notice Weiss sneaking up from behind.
For their safety, Weiss waited till the knife wasn't in Ruby's hand. Once Ruby set down the knife to grab the whole apple, Weiss seized the opportunity.
She jabbed at Ruby's sides, “Boo.” Ruby let out a yelp, her eyes flashed for a split second, causing Weiss to laugh. “Oh my god I got you good!”
“Weiss….!” Ruby whined as she looked over her shoulder, seeing Weiss's laughter dying out, to which Ruby couldn't stop the grin that formed on her face. She watched
Weiss reached for the last apple from the basket, taking a big bite out of it.
“Hey, I was gonna eat that!” Ruby pouted, making Weiss stick a tongue at her. It was wonderful to see Weiss be playful and happier. Lately, ever since they got together, the depression that fought them both was getting numbed away, as they had each other's side.
Weiss felt so loved and happy with Ruby, and she felt the same way with Weiss.
Ruby smiled, looking back at her work, only to be left with confusion.
What…?
The apple in her hand is fading away into black specks, disappearing into thin air, as the chopped apples in the bowl did the same.
Why does it look like when a… Oh…
Ruby's heart started to race.
…
It looks exactly like when a grimm dies.
…
Weiss!
Ruby's face went pale, dropping anything she had in her hands. Immediately rushing out of the kitchen to scream out Weiss's name. “WEISS DR-” Drop the apple, is what Ruby wanted to say…
But she remembered that Weiss had already taken a bite out of the apple.
It's too late.
Weiss turns around, staring at Ruby with wide eyes, a hint of confusion in those beautiful blue eyes.
Standing there holding the strange apple. Her lips parted,
“Ru-” The effects were hitting Weiss. “–by…”
Weiss heard the panic and urgency in Ruby's voice when her name was screamed out one last time as her own body began to go limp, hitting the ground with a thud.
The apple rolled away from Weiss's hand as she laid there, unconscious.
No matter how many times Ruby said Weiss's name, she wouldn't wake.
Why?! Why won't she wake? She's breathing perfectly fine, her aura is fine… No fever, no strange symptoms…! Why is she not waking up?!
Weiss hasn't pushed herself to exhaustion in a very long time. There's no reason for her to do so now… why… why?!
Weiss! Weiss! Wake up! What's wrong?! Weiss!
Ruby shakes her girlfriend's body. Nothing. What happened?! What's going on?! Come on Weiss…! Weiss, just wake up! We just got together!
Ruby cradled her girlfriend, holding Weiss up against her chest. Weeping as she rocked back and forth, not able to think straight on what she should've done during a situation like this.
Someone help… someone help her…
It was when Yang and Blake returned home only to find a very distressed rose cradling a princess in her arms.
Actions were taken, but Ruby refused to move nor let go of Weiss, afraid that if she let go, Weiss would never come back.
Why does this always happen to Weiss…?! Weiss doesn't deserve it…! She deserves nothing but everything great.
Weiss suffered so much… And yet she does so much for people she cares about. Weiss deserves better…
Why her?
…
Why not me? I would happily take away anything that's painful or hurting her.
“She's alive–” Ruby sighed in relief when Klein said the word she's been waiting for.
“–but she's not waking up. She's not showing any odd signs. She's in good condition, so I'm struggling to figure out what's going on here…”
Ruby is staying with Weiss who's being examined by Klein while Yang and Blake went out to see if they could find the woman who gave the basket of “apples.”
“So… she's okay? No signs of exhaustion? Maybe she's allergic to apples?” She checked, getting a no from Klein.
“Let's give her a day. She'll be up by tomorrow I'm sure.” Klein pats Ruby's shoulder before leaving the room.
Ruby leans over the bed Weiss rested on. Her skin is pale, but not in a bad way. Her shoulder and cheeks are still faintly pink from her sunburnt.
There's no bag under her eyes.
She's breathing perfectly fine.
Klein said she's perfectly fine.
What the hell were those apples?
What if she's...
No. I'm just overreacting.
Ruby stares at the green earring on Weiss's ear. The last thing they have left of Penny. Ruby held her own green earring, fidgeting with it.
I'm just like this because we lost a lot of people. Thinking of the worst things before the good things.
Weiss is fine.
Ruby takes in a deep breath, before exhaling. She stands up to leave the room, closing the door behind her.
“Oh Weiss~ I brought you your favorite breakfast meal! And Yes, I followed the instructions! Yang watched me!” Ruby enters the room with a tray.
It's the next day, a beautiful cool morning to start today off. Ruby enters with a smile, waiting to see if Weiss would shift or wake up.
But she doesn't. Ruby only chuckles, setting the tray on a table before going over to the bed. Gently shaking her shoulder.
“Hey, sleepy beauty! It's time to wake up.”
Ruby waited to hear Weiss either say “No… 5 more minutes…” or “Ughhhhh You're so loud.”
. . .
Man, Ruby doesn't remember Weiss being a heavy sleeper. She shakes her shoulders a bit rougher this time.
“Hey, Weiss? Snowflake? Cutie? Princess?”
. . .
“S- Shortie? U- Uh… Short Queen…? Uh…”
Ruby was thinking of nicknames that Weiss would hit her for.
Weiss doesn't even twitch. Her smile fades away, this isn't normal. Weiss isn't a heavy sleeper. In fact, she's a light sleeper, for many reasons.
“Come on Weiss, stop sleeping! You slept all day yesterday! Well, half a day! But you don't need any more sleep! This isn't funny!”
Ruby hopes it's just a prank, but Weiss would never do a cruel joke like this on her, which only makes Ruby's worry and stress skyrocket.
“Weiss! WEISS!” Ruby shouts, holding Weiss's cheeks as she repeats Weiss's name. What is going on?!
I- Is she alive?!
Ruby quickly checked for a pulse, relieved to find a normal pulse. So.. why isn't she waking up? Did the apple poison her? What did it do to her?
Ruby left to go fetch Klein and report the issue once again.
Once again, a checkup was done, and the answer is still the same. Weiss is in good condition.
“Why won't she wake up?” Yang crosses her arms. Blake held her chin.
“We weren't able to find the old woman Weiss talked about, nor does anyone know about the… strange apples. It's not like we can examine the apples as they have already disappeared.” Blake ends with a sigh, stumped.
“So what? She's just getting her really good beauty sleep?” Yang jokes, only for Klein to nod.
“The apple must have poisoned her into falling into what seems like a comatose-like state.”
Ruby blinks. What?
“Coma…?”
“This is just a theory, as I still can't confirm the problem. I wish I knew…” Klein says, thinking back to all the training he had in hopes to find a solution for this.
Ruby looks back at Weiss. She looks so peaceful in her sleep… her health isn't in any danger, for now. If she truly is stuck in a sleep state, her body won't be able to get what she needs, and that's when it starts to get serious.
Something Ruby hopes it never comes to that. All they can do is hope that Weiss will wake up soon and that she'll be okay.
But to Ruby's dread, it's the same condition the next day. Weiss isn't okay. They can confirm that this is serious and an emergency.
Ruby took a seat by Weiss's bed, only able to stare at Weiss.
What am I supposed to tell Winter? Or Willow? Whitley?
Oh hey! It's nice to see you by the way Weiss is stuck in a coma and we don't know when she'll ever wake up! Hell, she might just never!
Ruby hits herself in the head. What an awful thing to say.
“Ruby quit biting your nails.” Yang snaps Ruby out of her thoughts, noticing her bad habit and setting her arms back on her sides.
“Sorry.” I thought I stopped doing that a while ago… I am really stressed out huh…
Yang placed a hand on Ruby's shoulder. “Hey, She's gonna be okay. We know for a fact she's not dying or hurt. Weiss just won't wake up, and we're trying to figure it out. Blake just left to go ask questions and find some help. I'm going to do the same in a second. Will you be okay?”
Ruby takes in a breath before smiling at her older sister. “I'll be okay. Thank you.” I'm not okay.
“Okay, contact me if you need anything.” Yang soon leaves the room. Ruby's smile quickly disappeared as she placed her elbows on the bed, holding her head.
Why is this happening to her team? They can't get a damn break.
I thought I was finally going to be okay… that I can take a deep breath and wake up in the morning not screaming from nightmares.
I thought that we would be okay. That things are finally getting better…
This…
Ruby stops her mind from going too deep. Damnit, she's picking at her skin.
Ruby grabs a pen from the table to click at it. Not the greatest thing to fidget with but better than using her own body.
What do I even do?
. . .
Weiss has her daily skin care… maybe I can just add lotion to her skin.
She'd be happy… if she wakes.
Ruby sighs.
Fuck. I'm trying not to get depressed or negative about this, it's harder than I expected. How can I be positive about this?
My girlfriend got poisoned by an apple and is stuck in a slumber where I don't even know if she'll wake up!
I'm going to end up harming myself if I don't do something now.
Ruby stood up to get the lotion from Weiss's room.
I just need to distract myself before my mental health comes back to haunt me.
…I talk a lot to myself in my mind.
Right, I need to remember to contact her family. Don't forget, Ruby… this is her family. They need to know.
Ruby is lost in thought as she's applying lotion to Weiss's skin.
I hate this feeling. I was on meds for… whatever I have. But ever since things went down, I've been unable to get the medication that I need. The… Ever After was the worst.
No meds.
I felt bad for Blake and Weiss, no meds for their chronic pain. No antidepressants or something for anxiety.
There's a shortage right now for everything.
Ruby takes one look at Weiss's face before she finally breaks, tears falling down her cheeks.
This really fucking sucks…
Ruby rested her head on the mattress as she cried into her arms.
I just want this to be over. I want to live in a house with Weiss where we can just live peacefully…
Healers and professionals came to check Weiss, and none of them know what's wrong with Weiss and how to solve it.
Ruby's hope is dwindling, and she hated herself for that. I'm supposed to believe in Weiss that she'll wake up… but no one knows anything or how to help her.
Ruby held Weiss's limp hand. Her hands are small, or maybe Ruby just has big hands.
What do I do?
I miss her.
Ruby tears up, resting her head on her arm, staring at Weiss's peaceful expression.
I… I can't let her go. If Weiss is gone… I… I might just hold my breath till my body gives up.
How terrible… but at this point I don't care. I can't live without her.
That's like having a puzzle and a bunch of pieces are gone forever. The picture is never completed and forever filled with empty spots you can never replace.
Weiss makes me feel whole. A beautiful picture indeed… the prettiest of them all.
Ruby lifts her head up, leaning over Weiss as a tear drops onto Weiss's cheek. “I'm so sorry Weiss… I love you.”
She leans in to give a kiss on the lips, feeling her throat closing up even more as she pulls away. The tears become more consistent.
“Mgh… Ugh… What an awful dream…”
Huh?
Weiss shifts.
Ruby stared at Weiss in shock who just sits up rubbing her eyes before stretching. Weiss opens her eyes to look at Ruby, her expression soon filled with worry.
“R- Ruby? What's wrong?” Weiss reaches over to hold Ruby's cheeks. “Are you okay? What's g- OOF!”
Ruby immediately hugged Weiss tightly, crying into her shoulder. “You're awake…!”
“I am…” Weiss sounded confused, why is Ruby saying that? “What's going on? Oh god, did I oversleep? Noo! That's so bad for me!” Weiss groaned.
“Y- Yeah… for like…” Ruby pulls back, wiping her tears away. “–almost for a week.” Ruby smiles sheepishly.
Weiss stared at Ruby, blinking comedically. “Pardon?”
“You've been asleep for almost a week Weiss.”
“This isn't a prank is it?” Weiss frowned, getting a no from Ruby. “What… caused this? Last I remember we were making an apple pie and I was eating an ap- was I poisoned!?”
Ruby shrugs. “We aren't so sure… but I don't care, I'm just so happy you finally woke up. Kisses really do make everything better!”
“Geez. This is the last time I will ever accept gifts from anyone. Not like I'll ever get on anytime soon.” Weiss sighs sadly.
“That old woman… that gave me hope that maybe not all people hate me or my family. But nope. As usual they want us dead…”
Ruby held Weiss's hands “Weiss… they will understand at some point. They have too. They have no reason now, as you and your family have shown nothing but kindness, as you've been helping them.”
“Nothing will ever undo what my father did. He destroyed everyt-”
Ruby interrupts “Your dad is an asshole who fucking sucks. But you are not him.”
“But I have his genes!”
“Weiss you're gay, you're already fighting the genes on his side.”
Weiss couldn't help but laugh at that. “I sure he's currently rolling in his grave at the sight of me dating a beautiful strong woman.”
“Aww you make me blush! I bet he- MMPH-”
Weiss grabbed Ruby's cloak and pulled her in for a kiss.
“Thank you, my prince, for saving me from… whatever this is.”
“Of course, your majesty~”
“You guys are cringe.” Yang says from the doorway with Blake giggling behind her.
“As if you two don't say shit like this to each other!” Weiss barked back.
Ruby laughed, to which Weiss soon joined in the laughter with her team.
No more apples, I already have something like that, but a thousand times better.
Weiss thinks as she looks at Ruby.
Red and Sweet