The dingy Mistral inn wasn’t the greatest place to stay, but with money stretching thin, it was their only choice. The innkeeper understandably didn’t have any seven-person bedrooms; the only vacancies he’d had were two-bed rooms, but Jaune refused to pay for a fourth room, so he settled for sleeping in the bathtub of Nora and Ren’s room.
Blake and Yang had retreated to their first-floor room for the night, leaving Ruby and Weiss to find their upstairs place on their own. Once settled, Weiss had immediately taken a long shower, eager to wash the dirt from her hair. When she got out, Ruby took her turn.
Weiss was still brushing her long hair when Ruby emerged from the bathroom in her favorite pajamas. She was struggling with a stubborn knot in the middle of her back, determined to detangle her mane before she laid down to muss it all up again in her sleep.
“Do you want me to get that for you?” Ruby asked her. Weiss looked at her scornfully.
“Like you have any idea how to brush hair. You’ve never touched a hair brush a day in your life!” Weiss resumed her battle, making no headway.
“That’s not true,” Ruby protested. “I used to brush Yang’s hair all the time. After my mom died, nobody else would do it,” Ruby trailed off, remembering the time her mother showed her how to braid using her sister’s hair. Weiss looked at her partner contemplatively; she rarely talked about Summer Rose.
“You’re never gonna get that on your own. Just let me help,” Ruby insisted, and Weiss obliged with a sigh.
Ruby’s touch was surprisingly gentle as she patiently worked through Weiss’s hair. She gripped above the knot to prevent her tugs from yanking Weiss’s scalp, and within several minutes Weiss heard Ruby utter a satisfied noise as the brush finally ran smoothly from roots to tips. Weiss exhaled with relief and reached her hand out for the brush, but Ruby kept brushing her hair, searching for any other kinks that might bother the heiress.
With the biggest knot gone, the sensation of the hairbrush dragging along her scalp made Weiss feel strange. It was tingly and odd to have someone else doing her hair. Nobody had touched her hair since she was young.
After several minutes of absentmindedly enjoying the feeling of having her hair groomed, Weiss heard a soft thump and then felt Ruby’s hands in her hair, gathering it loosely. Ruby’s fingertips brushed the back of her neck faintly as she pulled loose strands into her grip, causing a shock of electric sensation to jolt down her spine.
“What are you doing?!” Weiss accused, more aggressively than intended.
“I just wanted to see if I can remember how to braid,” came the innocent response. Ruby was completely oblivious to Weiss’s tone of voice. “Besides, this will keep it from getting all messed up again in your sleep. I never got why you slept with your hair down.” Ruby left no room to argue, but Weiss didn’t feel like protesting anyways; her partner’s gentle hands felt surprisingly relaxing, a welcome break from the unpleasant journey to Mistral.
“Fine,” she sighed, “make it quick.”
Ruby separated Weiss’s long white hair into three sections, carefully pulling every stray hair into her hands. She began lacing Weiss’s hair in a simple braid, her fingers tugging and smoothing the strands with practiced skill. As she worked, she listened to her partner’s breathing grow deep and steady.
Ruby spared a glance at the side of Weiss’s face as she guided the braid towards her left shoulder; her eyes were closed, highlighting the scar that ran across her left eye. Not for the first time, Ruby wondered how she got it, but she didn’t dare ask. Instead, she cautiously stood and moved to sit in front of Weiss so she could continue braiding her hair over her shoulder. Yang had never liked centered braids, preferring the braid to sweep over her shoulder; Ruby had automatically styled Weiss’s hair in the same fashion, but the girl’s locks were so long that she would have a hard time keeping it smooth and neat without braiding from the front.
Weiss opened her eyes as Ruby sat in front of her, watching the younger girl’s fingers deftly twine her hair into an organized knot. As the lengths of hair left to braid shortened, Ruby picked up her pace, flawlessly braiding all the way to Weiss’s perfectly-maintained ends. She took the hair tie that Weiss offered her, tying her hair off with a sense of finality.
Ruby leaned back to examine her work; it wasn’t bad for her first attempt in years. A few strands of hair hung at odds with Weiss’s bangs, and she leaned forward to tuck them into the braid. As she did so, her fingertips made accidental contact with the scar that adorned the heiress’s face. Weiss recoiled at the touch, and Ruby immediately withdrew her hand apologetically.
“Uh, well it looks good! You look like a proper princess now,” Ruby joked feebly, trying to cover up her mistake. “Well, I’m going to—”
“It’s okay, Ruby.” Weiss’s words came out quiet, but firm.
Ruby stammered, “W-what?”
“I got it while training. My father wasn’t happy that I was choosing Beacon over Atlas. He gave me a challenge, telling me he expected me to win if I really intended to go to Beacon. He genuinely thought I would lose. And I almost did.” Weiss had a faraway look in her pale blue eyes, as if she were in a different place entirely.
“That’s awful, Weiss.” Ruby said quietly, looking at the slash of dark against her friend’s porcelain skin.
“He didn’t even bother to show up. He never did. He was always too busy,” she spat the last words bitterly, her expression darkening to something between hatred and hurt. Ruby just looked at her, unsure what to say.
Weiss stood abruptly and cleared her belongings off her bed, prompting Ruby to move to her own side of the room. Weiss crawled into the depths of her bed and rolled over on her side, facing the wall. Ruby turned the light off and got into her own bed, shuffling around until she felt comfortable.
In the silence that stretched between them, Ruby couldn’t help but wonder why Weiss had finally told her about the scar. She had never even mentioned it before, and the other girls had followed her lead. She wondered if Weiss was embarrassed by it.
Feeling a sudden rush of love and sympathy for her partner, Ruby spoke.
“Weiss?”
“What?”
“You’re beautiful, scar and all. You know that, right?”
A long moment of silence passed, and Ruby began to worry that she shouldn’t have said anything.
“Thank you, Ruby.” Her voice took on a peculiar tone, but she said no more, so Ruby rolled over and tried to sleep.