In The Name Of Love (ch5)

2-DAY EARLY RELEASE FOR ALL MY PATRONS! THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Now Blake and Weiss must compose themselves to take Ruby and Yang on a tour of Vale! Hopefully they can manage it.

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

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														Chapter 5. The Tour

It took a few minutes for them to get their bearings.

For a good thirty seconds or so, Blake and Weiss simply stared at one another in utter disbelief, kneeling on the floor behind the counter because they'd lost the strength in their legs. Weiss' mouth was hanging open, and Blake felt like she'd been numbed somehow.

"Did... did that really just happen...?"

"I... I'm not entirely sure..."

Slowly, Blake reached out and took Weiss' wrist, then gradually helped her stand. They staggered a little on the way up, still dumbfounded.

"Um... Weiss? W-What did we just agree to do, exactly?"

"A tour," she murmured. "Give them a tour... of Vale."

"A tour," Blake parroted. "But there's... not really anything to do or see here."

"My thoughts exactly."

"And if you think about it... isn't that almost... kind of like a... a... date?"

The second the word came out of her mouth Blake felt a tingle shoot up her spine. At the same time Weiss reached out and grabbed her friend's face sternly.

"What on earth are you talking about? In no way could this possibly be a date! We are merely giving them a tour of the town, Blake. Don't be ridiculous."

"But Weiss, she gave you her number."

Weiss shrieked softly as she scrambled for the napkin that was in her pocket. She glanced it over and re-read it a dozen times.

"Is this... a legitimate number? It doesn't look fake..." She folded it carefully and tucked it back into her pocket, then looked back up at her friend. "Blake... this might be a date..."

"Oh my god..." Blake buried her face in her hands and bit her lip. "No way... no way, no way... With Ruby Rose... This can't be real-"

Right on cue, the bells to the café rang as more customers entered, effectively snapping both baristas out of their trance.

Blake and Weiss scrambled to greet the next wave of customers with tight smiles. They were forced to get back to work with the thoughts of Yang and Ruby in the backs of their minds for the remainder of their shift.

This time, it wasn't just Blake who was distracted enough to switch up orders and nearly drop things, but Weiss had fallen prey as well. They hardly got through three customers without one or both of them making some kind of minor blunder and needing to apologize profusely.

By the time Coco and Velvet arrived to take over for their shift, Blake and Weiss were a mess.

"Yeesh," Coco scoffed. "The heck happened? You two better clock out before we start losing business."

"Sorry," Blake said. "It's been an... interesting morning."

She and Weiss clocked out and hung up their aprons while the other girls took over. They wished each other farewell for the day and parted ways.

Even though Weiss and Blake have had several hours to recover from the shock now, as soon as they stepped outside into the daylight, they were hit by the disbelief all over again.

"So..." Blake mumbled. "W-When should we tell them we can give them a tour? I don't think we should make them wait too long."

"Agreed. Clearly we can't do it today. So perhaps... tomorrow after our shift?"

Blake gulped. Tomorrow seemed way too soon. But at the same time, she couldn't wait for this to happen. She'd get to go around town with Ruby Rose casually, almost as if they were long-time friends. And she'd have Weiss with her to help steady her and keep her from lapsing into a nervous coma.

/Tomorrow... Will I be mentally and emotionally prepared for tomorrow...?/

After a few minutes of walking and pondering, she realized Weiss was still waiting for a response. After drawing in a deep breath, Blake turned to her with determined eyes.

"Okay. Let's take them tomorrow after work."

Weiss looked equally as nervous as Blake felt. They paused at a bench on the sidewalk and sat down so Weiss could take out her phone and the napkin Yang had given her. Her hands were shaking a little as she unfolded it and typed the number into her phone. Blake put a hand on her shoulder for support as Weiss sent out a message to Yang:

//Hello, Yang. This is Weiss. Blake and I would be available to take you and your sister on a tour of Vale tomorrow afternoon at 3PM. Is this optimal for you?//

Weiss sent a timid glance to Blake who just shrugged and nodded. Weiss hit SEND, and then they waited.

They both stared at her phone in silence for a minute, wondering if Yang would ever reply, or if it was actually a false number.

When the phone did actually ring, both girls jumped anyway. Weiss frantically clicked and opened the message:

//No need to be so formal and sure tomorrow at 3 is peachy! Guess we're gonna meet at the café right? See you then!//

Blake's eyes scanned the message in silence. Though it was a conversation between Weiss and Yang, the implications for Blake made her heart flutter.

/Ruby's coming... I'll get to show her around town.../

"Blake!"

"Huh?!" She yelped when she realized Weiss had been calling her and quickly snapped herself out of her trance. Weiss' eyes were somehow both serious and panicked at the same time.

"Tomorrow at 3. We're meeting them tomorrow at 3, Blake. We've got to get home, shower, and find something to wear!" Weiss jumped up from the bench in one fluid motion, but a second later she nearly swayed. Blake had to stand up to catch her.

"T-Take it easy. W-We don't have to be so nervous about this..."

"You're... You're right..."

They said as much. But by the time they each got to their respective houses, both girls nearly suffered breakdowns with how nervous they were.

Blake showered first and foremost, using a little extra shampoo and conditioner just for good measure. As she changed into her pajamas, she skittered around her room pawing through her drawers and closet, trying to find an outfit for tomorrow. She texted Weiss to check on her and then asked her for advice about what clothes to wear.

//Not too formal, but not too casual!// Weiss advised. //We don't want them to think we've assumed this is a date, but we also don't want them to think we aren't interested!//

It definitely occurred to Blake that they were both entirely over-thinking this and making a mountain out of a molehill. But she couldn't help it.

Maybe if things went well tomorrow she could become friends with Ruby, and that's all Blake really wanted. To get to know her as a person, not as an actress. She wanted her feelings to be undoubtedly for Ruby Rose.

Eventually, she decided on black jean shorts, a purple blouse, and a dark plaid button-up shirt to top it all off. She laid all of this out in preparation for tomorrow before eating dinner with her parents, informing them she'd be staying out tomorrow.

By the time Blake got back up to her room and checked her laptop, she saw that Ruby Rose had made another post on her account:

//"*YangXL just confirmed we're getting a tour tomorrow from some of the locals! I can't wait! #ValeHype #Adventure"//

Blake put a hand to her chest to calm down her heart as she liked the post and closed her laptop. She wanted to get plenty of rest for tomorrow, so she went to bed early.

But of course she was so nervous and excited it took several hours for her to get even a wink of sleep.

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The next morning Blake was too jittery to be tired or hungry. She changed into her outfit and skipped breakfast before going to pick up Weiss, who was dressed in a very nice sky-blue dress with a white bolero on her shoulders. They grabbed hands in a display of camaraderie.

"We can do this."

"Right."

They made the ten-minute walk to the café and began their shift, surprised at how efficient they were today in spite of what the afternoon would hold. They handled themselves with poise and professionalism right up until 3PM.

Almost on the dot as Blake and Weiss were clocking out and hanging up their aprons, the bells jingled at the door.

Yang was wearing a yellow tank-top, orange scarf and brown shorts, in addition to the usual shades, automatically drawing the attention of everyone in the shop. Ruby was next to her dressed in a ruffled red polka-dot dress, brown boots, and a tiny red ribbon clipped into her hair.

Blake and Weiss barely had time to inhale before Yang's cheery greeting filled the café.

"Afternoon, you two! My little sis and I are ready for our tour!"

"Yang!" Ruby swiftly turned back to nudge her sister in the gut. "You were the one telling me to try not to draw attention to ourselves!"

"Ah, right, right. My bad."

By this point they'd made it to Weiss and Blake, who were both still trying to convince themselves of reality. Weiss recovered first and cleared her throat.

"Yang, and... Ruby, was it?" she inquired, trying to sound casual. "Blake and I are very excited to be showing you around town today."

"And we're excited to be being shown around town!" Ruby chirped. "Since we got here, all we've really had a chance to do is unpack and make phone calls and-"

"Yeah, all that fun stuff," Yang cut her off. "But now we're ready to have a good time!"

"Yeah!"

The sisters shared a beaming smile, and the entire café seemed to be blinded by them.

It took Blake this long to realize she still hadn't breathed a single word since they'd come in. A glance at Weiss showed that her best friend was silently trying to encourage her to speak. Blake timidly took a step forward.

"W-Well then... shall we get started?"

Her prompting drew forth two excited replies.

"Yes, please!"

"For sure!"

And so Blake and Weiss took the lead out of the café and back into the summer sunlight.

They'd gone over what they would do during this tour multiple times already, planned out where they'd bring the sisters and in what order.

Blake was to start them off by leading them to the local park, and the walking time in-between would hopefully be filled by natural conversation.

But as soon as they started walking, Blake suddenly forgot how to talk. Especially since she was painfully aware of the fact that Ruby was staring at her now.

Blake timidly looked at Weiss for assistance. Her friend dutifully stepped in.

"First we'll be showing you the local park. It's rather historical, though it's recently had its swing set and picnic tables refurbished."

"Sounds like fun!" Yang said.

And had Ruby spoken, Blake knew Weiss wouldn't have been affected. But since it was Yang responding to her, Weiss took the blow and fell silent due to her own nervousness. So as they continued walking, Blake did her best to take over the conversation.

"S-So, you two just recently moved to Vale?"

"Sure did," Yang replied. "All the way from across the country. But I'm likin' this place a lot more already. What about you, Rubes?"

"Definitely!" Ruby agreed. "Vale's a lot smaller, and I like that! It's one of those kinda places where everyone seems to know everyone, and it's really close-knit and personable! Once we get settled in here, there'll be no strangers, only neighbors!"

It was such a pure response it had Blake's cheeks flushing. As they kept walking, she did her best not to steal too many glances at Ruby, but whenever she did, she found the brunette was still looking at her. Blake's heart couldn't handle this. She had to ask.

"U-Um, sorry. Is there something I can do...?"

When Ruby was addressed she must've realized she'd been caught staring.

"Uwah, n-no no, I'm sorry! I guess I've been staring, huh? Sorry, it's just because... you look so familiar, Blake."

"I mean I'd hope so," Yang mutters. "We go to her café every other day."

"No, not just from that," Ruby mumbled. "I feel like I've met you somewhere else... E-Either way, sorry for staring."

Blake let out a shaky breath.

"It's okay... um... a-actually, we did meet somewhere else too... a-at the grocery store last week..."

"Oh!" Ruby's cry of surprise was a little loud as it all came flooding back to her. "That's right! That was you, Blake! With the cookies! And- that means-!" She quickly lowered her voice and waved her hand at Blake in a secretive motion. "You're the one who knows me!"

Blake was almost on the verge of hyperventilation with Ruby so close to her now, looking up at her with those excited silver eyes. She felt a steadying hand on her back from Weiss and remembered she wasn't alone.

"Oh yes, indeed," Weiss said. "Blake knows all about you, Ruby. We'd been meaning to mention that to you."

"Really?!" Ruby squealed. "A-All about me? Like what?"

"Easy, tiger." Yang grabbed her little sister by the scruff of her dress and eased her back a step, out of Blake's face. "You're too intense sometimes, sis."

"Oh. Sorry."

They'd just reached the park now, but before Blake could get out another trembling word, Weiss quietly led them all to a picnic table to sit. The sisters sat down together while Weiss urged Blake onto the bench beside her before she could collapse.

"Go on, Blake. Just tell her."

"B-But-" Blake was suddenly finding it difficult to remember everything she wanted to say. Her mind had been almost entirely wiped clean due to how embarrassed she was now.

But Ruby seemed awfully excited about this news. She leaned over the picnic table so eagerly that Yang had to pull her back again.

"Blake! You know? You know who I am? About-"

"N-Ninjas Of Love," Blake blurted at long last. "I-I've... been a fan of the book series for a long time. A-And then when it got a TV show... I was skeptical they could cast someone good enough for Briar... But you..."

She was surprised she'd stumbled through that much coherently. It took another pat on the back from Weiss to get the rest out of her.

"You... you're perfect. A-And I just... I had a feeling it was you when you started coming into the café, and then I knew for sure. I just... I-I couldn't believe... a-and you-"

"All right, you've said what you needed to," Weiss murmured. "Stop now before you hurt yourself."

Evidently that'd been more than enough anyway. Ruby was bubbling with excitement across the table, her hands on her cheeks as she swooned and squealed.

"Oh my gosh! I didn't think anyone in Vale knew about that series, especially not the TV show! I thought for sure no one would recognize me here since it's such a small town, but you did! That's so-! That's so cool! I'm so happy!" She channeled her excitement by hugging Yang's arm and giggling into her shoulder. Yang patted her sister's head with a smile.

"As you can see, Ruby's thrilled to have met a fan. We'd wanted to mention it earlier but we don't exactly want the whole town knowing about us, y'know?"

"Completely understandable," Weiss said. "We don't plan on telling anyone."

"Thanks." Yang sent her a grin that made Weiss forget how to talk again. "Well now that we know that you two know us, I guess that makes this a lot easier. As you know, Ruby here is an actress. She just finished shooting the last episode of season 1 for Ninjas and now she's on break for a bit. When filming resumes we'll have to take a few flights here and there, but we plan to stay in Vale. Our dad landed a great job here, and with the pay Ruby and I each bring home, it's been pretty darn good."

Blake and Weiss listened intently as Yang told about hers and Ruby's family and personal life. But from there Ruby jumped in, still smiling.

"Yang and I had wanted to find a few people to talk to and confide in about who we were and stuff. Just in case we needed to call for help if we ever got swamped by the media or something like that. And of course someone to show us around town and to, well... maybe just be our friends!"

Oddly enough, this time it didn't take Blake any prompting to speak.

"O-Of course!" she blurted. "Of course we can!" She realized her outburst might've been a little too eager and recoiled, but Yang and Ruby only laughed.

"That's a relief!" the blonde said. "And it's bonus points since you already know who we are. We don't have to go through explaining all that."

"S-So..." Ruby released her sister's arm and leaned forward again, eyes solely on Blake. "So you're a fan of Ninjas, huh? A-And you... you think I do a good job playing Briar...?"

"Better than good," Blake said immediately. "I mean it's... it's like you are her when you get up there to film. It's incredible." She tried not to gush too much all at once, but just this much seemed to be enough. Ruby blushed again and hid her face in her hands, squealing joyously.

"Waaaah, thank you, thank you!"

"N-No," Blake said. "Thank you for doing Briar justice. From what I can tell, the vast majority of the fandom loves you, and quite frankly the rest are wrong."

"The fandom?" Ruby parroted. "Like online and stuff?"

By this point, Blake was getting too invested in talking about her favorite series now to feel self-conscious.

"Yeah. Everyone loves you and how you play her. You do a fantastic job with all the stunts. Is it true you really like to collect weapons?"

"Sure do!" Ruby grinned. "My dad finds a lot of cool stuff sometimes and we keep it all in a display case in our garage! We've got swords and throwing stars and-"

"Okay, I'm gonna cut it off here," Yang stepped in. "Once she gets going about her weapons she'll never shut up. And I believe we've got a tour to finish."

"Oh yeah!" Ruby jumped up from her seat. "Come on, I'll tell you more as we go!"

And so Weiss and Blake stood and took up pace beside the sisters again, only this time Ruby was yapping a mile a minute to Blake about anything and everything that dealt with Ninjas Of Love. And Blake was beginning to feel confident enough to throw in a comment here and there to stay engaged in the conversation.

Weiss and Yang seemed content to let their charges enjoy themselves in their own way, while the former led their group around town. Yang paid more attention to Weiss as she told her all about the small museum, zoo, and amusement park they passed by, and all of the little shops and restaurants in between.

Ruby however, had stopped being fully invested in the tour a while ago and was now mainly focused on talking to Blake.

"Have you read all the books?"

"Yes. At least a dozen times each."

"Oh, you beat me! I've only read them twice each. What's your favorite part?"

"Definitely when Briar saves the girl she was supposed to assassinate to make a statement."

"Ooohh yeah! Oh my gosh, I'm probably not supposed to tell you, but that's happening at the end of season one! It was one of the last scenes I filmed before coming here!"

"No way! I can't wait to see it."

"Oh, hey! Maybe sometime we can all meet up to watch the new episode or something! That'd be so cool!"

Blake nearly choked on her own air at that.

"Y-Yeah... I mean if you'd want to..."

"Of course! I'd love to watch a new episode with you, Blake!"

And there it was again. Ruby said her name in that high cheerful voice of hers, and Blake felt woozy. Luckily Weiss stepped in just then to draw her back a pace.

"Blake? It seems they've got to get going now."

"Yeah," Yang said. "Dad's expecting us home for dinner, Rubes."

"Huh? It's that late already? Aw man..."

"Don't sweat it, sis! I'm sure we'll be seeing these guys around plenty more. Who else is gonna make you those Strawberry Swirls so well?"

"Blake makes them the best for sure!"

"And Weiss makes the best iced coffees and frappuccinos."

Blake and Weiss both blushed at the praise.

"Well, keep in touch, you two," Weiss managed. "We work every morning except Saturdays."

"Perfect!" Yang clapped. "We usually have mornings free so we'll be swingin' by for sure! And I have your number now, Weiss. Is it cool if I keep it?"

That was the first time Yang had said her name all day, and it turned Weiss into a stammering mess.

"Y-Yes, o-of course..."

"Sweet, thanks!"

With that, Ruby shyly stepped up to Blake.

"Um, Blake? Would it be okay... if I had your number, too? Sorry, if it's weird then don't bother-"

"Of course." Blake instantly pulled out her phone, having Ruby do the same. They exchanged numbers right then and there, with Ruby sending a test message:

//Hi, Blake! It's Ruby!//

Blake stared at that message for a little too long before frantically confirming she'd received it. At last the sisters wished them farewell for the day.

"Thanks for the tour, you guys!"

"Yeah, thanks! Hopefully we'll see you again tomorrow! And the day after that! And the-"

"Okay, I think they get it, Rubes."

"Oh."

Blake and Weiss managed to wave back, maintaining eye contact until the sisters had crossed the street and disappeared down the road.

There was no bench this time to catch them, so they simply slumped to their knees. Blake's hands went immediately to her face, which was burning. Weiss grabbed her shoulders to support herself and to shake some sense into Blake.

"Deep breaths..." she murmured, but Blake wasn't sure which of them she was coaching. Probably both.

After a minute they both got their bearings and straightened up.

"We did it..." Blake muttered. "We... We..."

"The tour succeeded," Weiss rephrased. "And not only that, but..."

"We learned so much about them. A-And I told Ruby I'm her fan and she was so excited and cute-"

"-And Yang told me about her work and how good my iced coffees are-"

"-And Ruby likes the Strawberry Swirls I make her-"

"-And they want to meet up again-"

"-And they wanna watch Ninjas Of Love together..."

At last they fell silent, just trying to absorb it all into their systems.

This was real. They'd promoted themselves from baristas to companions in the sister's lives. And they could only go up from here. They had each other's numbers and were going to see each other as often as possible...

Just thinking about the blossoming friendship had Blake's heart doing backflips again.

But she could freak out more about it once she got home. For now she figured they should probably get up off the sidewalk. She helped Weiss to her feet and they gushed about the day all the way home.

When Blake got to her room she threw herself onto the bed, heart pounding in glee, and opened up her phone to re-read Ruby's text.

Her eyes eventually closed on Ruby's name, that four-letter word that would change her life forever.

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A/N: They did it, the poor gay saps! How, if at all, will Blake and Weiss be able to get any closer to Ruby and Yang than this?