Lessons Learned

EARLY RELEASE FOR HIGH-PLEDGING PATRONS!

Commission for antonslavik020! This was a fun little idea~ Yang and Ruby have a deliberate age gap for this!

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

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													Lessons Learned

Yang had a lot of work to do as a single parent.

Well, maybe not a literal parent, but all things considered, she had a lot of work to do.

Being twenty-three herself, Ruby was her younger sister by eight years. At the fresh age of fifteen, her little sister was just getting used to life as a high school student.

High school was a time of Yang's life that wasn't so far behind herself, and enough of the things she remembered were still relevant even nowadays, so she was able to help Ruby out a lot with her homework, assignments, and just survival in general.

With their mother gone and their father having gone AWOL years earlier, it was up to Yang to provide and care for her little sister no matter the cost – literally.

The only way they'd survived financially until now was because of some assistance their Uncle Qrow had given them, and because Yang herself worked two jobs and Ruby did some tutoring of younger kids after school when she could.

Yang felt she'd done a pretty good job of raising Ruby all this time. They were both happy and healthy, and they hadn't grown apart over the years.

Yang's greatest fear had always been that Ruby would start to resent her for "taking place" of her real mother, but Ruby never acted that way towards her. Yang was her sister, and Ruby always made her feel like she was.

It was almost difficult to tell that they even had the arrangement of a parent and child dynamic. To everyone else, and to each other, they just seemed like sisters who were extremely close despite the age difference.

The sisters took on responsibilities of chores, cooking, and buying supplies together. The only thing that suggested Yang was more of a caretaker than a sister was that she drove Ruby everywhere she needed to go, and paid for bills.

And, well... perhaps there was one more thing.

. . .

The first time a six-year-old Ruby had gotten off the bus and rushed over to her fourteen-year-old sister exclaiming, "Yang! We have parent and teacher conferences this week!", Yang had nearly wet her pants.

She'd had no idea what to do about that, considering Ruby and herself really didn't have any parents in the picture.

But at the time, and until Yang had been eighteen years old and a legal adult, their Uncle Qrow had helped to take care of them. However, once his work demanded his attention, he'd left the girls to live on their own once Yang had turned eighteen, and from then on she'd raised Ruby mostly by herself.

So she'd gone to her fair share of parent-teacher conferences for Ruby's sake within the past five years. She knew how they worked by now. She'd be the youngest and best-looking person in the group to enter the classroom and hear the teachers gab on and on about the current school curriculum and how they were striving to improve the children's education.

Yang hardly cared about all of that mumbo-jumbo. The most important things to her were the one-on-one meetings with Ruby's teachers to see how her little sister was fairing.

Yang had raised Ruby in an environment where she didn't have to hide how she was feeling. She wanted Ruby to be able to talk to her about anything and feel comfortable.

But realistically, Yang knew her little sister might've been keeping a few things hidden, things she might've hinted at to her school teachers rather than to her big sister. So Yang took the conferences very seriously – for Ruby's sake.

And even though she was going to be the youngest and best-looking adult there tonight, Yang made sure to dress formally that evening, putting on a nice blouse and a knee-length skirt to look professional. She pulled a small section of her hair back into a ponytail and left the rest of it down, and she even slipped on a fancy bracelet.

Ruby peeked into her big sister's room and knocked on the open door. With a grin, Yang waved her in.

"Come on in. I'm almost done."

Ruby walked in with Zwei waddling behind her and had a seat on Yang's bed.

"You look nice," she complimented.

Yang flicked her hair over her shoulder.

"Don't I always?"

"Ugh, Yang, we haven't even left yet and you're already embarrassing me..."

"Sorry, sis. It's part of my job. You know that."

Ruby grumbled and flopped onto her back on the mattress. She'd changed clothes from the ones she'd worn at school earlier today, because she'd be going to the conferences with Yang tonight also. Yang didn't like to leave her home alone at night, so Ruby was going to wait in the school hallways while Yang talked to her teachers.

As Yang finished prepping herself in the vanity mirror, she asked her little sister about who she'd be meeting tonight.

"So, how are your teachers? I know you've told me about a few of 'em before."

"They're good," Ruby replied, sitting up when Zwei jumped into her lap. "They're all pretty nice."

"How 'bout that new English teacher you were talkin' about? How's she?"

"Miss Schnee? She's a great teacher. Strict, but great. Though it's a little weird because of how young she is. I swear every boy in our class has hit on her at least once and it's creepy."

"Boys," Yang groaned. "Well, as long as she's nice to you and she's a good teacher."

"Mmhm. I like her a lot. She teaches really well. Though most of the older teachers like to drone on a lot."

"Welp, that's old people for ya."

"Yang, don't stereotype."

"Am I wrong, though?"

"...I guess not."

"See?" Yang reached for her lipstick and applied a bit. Ruby quirked an eyebrow.

"Are you going to the conferences or going on a date?"

"Hey, you never know, Ruby! Might meet someone cute!"

"Ugh, Yaaaang-"

"I'm kidding!"

And at the time, she really had been kidding.

But as soon as Yang had driven her little sister to the school and reached the classroom of the one and only Miss Schnee, things were different.

Since she'd grown up raising Ruby on her own more or less, Yang had never really had the time to do most of the things normal girls her age got to do.

Well, she'd developed plenty of crushes on plenty of people over the years, but she'd never had the time, energy, or resources to pursue them. But even so, she still knew what it felt like when she was attracted to someone.

And that feeling hit her like a ton of bricks the second Miss Schnee called her into the room.

"Miss Rose-Xiao Long?"

Yang hadn't looked up at her right away. She'd been sitting in the chairs lining the hallway with Ruby, playing word puzzle games together. When she'd been called, Yang stood and kissed her little sister's head.

"Last teacher of the night! I'll try to be quick, okay?"

"Okay. I'll be here."

"Atta girl."

Only then had she turned to look at the source of the English teacher's voice.

Ruby hadn't been kidding when she'd said she was young. She was very young, probably Yang's age, a refreshing sight after all of the older people Yang had met with tonight. And on top of that she was petite, and several inches shy of Yang's own height.

Her skin was pale and perfect save for a light scar over her left eye. She was dressed in a long, formal blue dress with her luscious white hair pulled back into a high ponytail. Somehow, the more adult attire didn't seem to suit her when she still had such a youthful face. She looked like she should be Ruby's classmate, not her teacher.

Yang thought she'd look better in shorter party dresses and mini skirts. But she quickly realized that was a totally inappropriate thought to be considering right now, and she shook her head to clear it as she stepped into the classroom.

The other girl was already walking back to her desk, filing through papers in her hands. As she walked, Yang couldn't help but let her eyes be drawn to the girl's slender frame, but again she had to right herself.

/Focus! I'm at a conference, not on a date!/

Yang took the designated seat on the opposite side of the teacher's desk and faced her. When the white-haired girl looked up at her next, that was the first time they made eye contact. Hers were a dazzling blue, and Yang wanted to get lost in them...

"My apologies," the teacher said with a dip of her head. "It's been a long day and an even longer night. My name is Weiss Schnee. You're Ruby's legal guardian, I presume?"

Yang was silently marveling over Weiss' name in her mind, but she straightened up to respond.

"Yes. My name is Yang Rose Xiao-Long. I know, kind of a mouthful, huh?"

"That's quite all right," Weiss smiled. "Well, I've got only good things to say about her. I'm sure it's all the same things you've heard from her other teachers. Ruby is a bright, enthusiastic girl who shows many signs of promise in her academic future. She can have a bit of trouble listening sometimes, but other than that, she's an excellent student. Her writing has improved a great deal since the start of the school year, and bit by bit she's starting to break out of her shell."

Yang put her slight crush off to the side for a minute as she listened to the praise Ruby was receiving. She couldn't help but smile in relief at Weiss' words.

"Thank god. I mean yeah, most other teachers said the same thing about her being a great student. But I'm glad you mentioned the last thing, that she's breaking out of her shell. I'd always been a little worried. There's only so much I can do for her as her older sister, y'know?"

Weiss' eyes widened a little bit.

"Oh? So you are her sister then? I'd wanted to be sure." Weiss rolled back in her chair and opened one of her desk drawers, then started pawing through the papers inside.

Curious, Yang leaned forward a bit until she'd finally found what she was looking for.

"You know," Weiss said. "On the first day of class, I had the students write about someone they admired in their lives. Teachers, parents, friends, role models – anything. And Ruby wrote a very lovely and heartwarming paper about you."

Yang felt her jaw drop before she could prevent it.

"M-Me? She wrote about me?"

Weiss nodded with a smile.

"Would you care to look it over?"

Yang swallowed, but accepted the paper.

She read it for a moment, and Weiss was quiet as she did so.

In only seconds, Yang was tearing up, reading about all the things Ruby had written about her. They were all things that were implied in life, things people were often too shy to say out loud, but things that were nice to hear nonetheless.

How she was thankful for everything Yang did, how she always had so much fun with her, how much she loved her...

By the time Yang had finished reading, Weiss was indicating a box of tissues on her desk. Yang grabbed a few and blew her nose, making sure to put the papers down first so she wouldn't ruin them.

"Oh gosh... Oh wow... I was not prepared for that tonight..."

"Sorry to have made you cry," Weiss sympathized. "But I felt you should read it."

"No, gosh don't be sorry. Thank you. I never knew... I mean, I guess I always kinda knew but... you know...?"

Weiss dipped her head.

"I do. I myself have an older sister. She and I were and still are very close, and she more or less raised me herself, so I think I can understand a lot of what Ruby is feeling towards you. I myself am still having troubling telling my sister how much I appreciate her, but I'd wanted to make sure I could help Ruby tell you her feelings."

"And I appreciate that. Really I do." Yang smiled, wiping the last of her tears away. "S-So, um... Is that all? Are we done here?"

"Unless you've got any questions for me, I'd say that we are."

"Well..." Yang pondered. "I think I've found out all I needed to know about how Ruby's doing in school. But um..."

She reached into the small purse she'd brought along, pulling out a notepad and a pen, and began writing. "If you think she's struggling or anything, would you mind giving me a call?"

Yang tore out the page and offered it to her.

Weiss blinked, confused.

"That isn't necessary, Miss Rose-Xiao Long. If there was ever anything concerning me about one of my students, I would contact you privately via school email right away. Or you could always use the phonebooks to call my office and contact me."

"Well~" Yang put on a grin. "I'm sure all those things are fine and dandy. But I'd really appreciate a call or a text on my cell, if you'd want."

Again, she wiggled the paper.

Weiss was silent for a moment, until it all clicked.

"O-Oh-!" Hastily, she accepted the paper. "Right, of course! I'd be... more than willing to give you a call sometime. About Ruby, I mean."

She looked up to meet Yang's eyes with nervous excitement in her own. There was a silent, mutual message between them:

/Or even if it's not about Ruby./

Yang had taken a long shot with Weiss tonight, but the fact that she'd accepted the phone number and the implications along with it demonstrated the fact that she was interested in Yang, too.

But they could talk more some other time.

"It's getting late," Yang sighed, getting to her feet. "I should head on home, and that way you can get home, too."

"Yes. I'm just about done wrapping things up here." Weiss stood as well. Unsure of what to do, she ended up following Yang to the closed door. "It was... very nice getting to talk with you, Miss Rose-Xiao Long."

"Pleasure was all mine. And please," the blonde held up her hand. "Call me Yang."

The other girl maintained eye contact and kept her voice level.

"Then likewise, you can call me Weiss."

"Don't mind if I do."

Yang offered her hand.

Weiss paused, considering whether or not this would be proper conduct for the job. But technically, since Yang had been her last conference tonight, Weiss was off-duty now.

So she slipped her hand into Yang's with a smile.

The blonde girl grinned, bringing Weiss' knuckles up to her lips for a small kiss. Weiss let out the faintest of giggles before they parted once again.

Weiss cleared her throat and opened the door for Yang.

"Now then, please have a good night. Tell Ruby I said hello."

Yang dipped her head as she stepped out.

"Sure thing. And thanks again, Weiss. Hope to hear from you soon!" she winked.

Weiss nodded.

"You certainly will."

With that, she closed the door.

Yang all but spun around and skipped back down the hall to where her little sister was waiting. With a sigh of exasperation, Ruby got up to meet her.

"Finally! Geez, what took you so long, Yang? I was starting to think you were flirting with her in there..."

She waited for her older sister to deny it. But Yang just kept grinning.

Ruby's jaw dropped.

"Yang. Yang, you did not-"

"I mean, she didn't refuse, that's for sure! Come on, let's get to the car."

"Yang! Yang-!" Ruby shouted, racing down the hall after her. "Yang, you can not date my teacher!"

"I'm a big girl, I can do what I want!"

"Yang-!"

Yang did have to silently apologize to Ruby. Her sister would be going through a lot of embarrassment over the next few months as she got used to her sister's new relationship with her English teacher.

But Yang had a lot of work to do as a single parent.

It was about time she got her turn to fall in love.

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A/N: Initially, the customer only asked for the parent-teacher conference bit and for Yang and Weiss to take interest in each other. The whole bit about Weiss showing Yang the paper Ruby wrote about her just came to me as I was writing and I thought it was cute so I added it in~