Vacation Days (ch3)

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

Third chapter focuses on Ruby and Pyrrha! But unlike the other two couples, they aren't together (yet) in this fic. Will they get to that point?

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

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														Chapter 3. The Ocean

Ruby watched in dismay as Yang and Neo took their leave from the beach before their group could even begin to celebrate and play.

While Nora, Ren, and Jaune were preparing for the game of volleyball at the net a dozen or so feet away from where they'd all laid their towels, Ruby was calling out to Neo, hoping she would feel better soon.

"Ugh, that stinks..." she mumbled. "I hope she's okay."

The things she said were meant to be to herself, but the last remaining member of their group suddenly appeared at her side, placing a hand on her shoulder, making her jolt.

"I know," Pyrrha sighed quietly. "But Neo's got your sister to take care of her. I'm sure she'll be fine, Ruby. If you think about it, it's best this happened right away rather than halfway through our vacation or at the end of it! At least this way she can recover as soon as possible and then be back in business sooner!"

Pyrrha offered a smile that was brighter than the sunlit sand underfoot, and Ruby had to look away with how blinding it was.

"Yeah. I guess you're right, Pyrrha."

"It'll be all right. Don't fret." Pyrrha looped her arm around Ruby's shoulders and turned her around to face the volleyball court. "For now, let's just focus on enjoying ourselves! We're on vacation, after all!"

Ruby was swept away alongside her, over the scorching sand and to the wide space around the volleyball net.

There was a tall chair right beside the net halfway across the court for the scorekeeper to sit in, but the five of them hadn't decided who was going to do what yet. Nora was already loudly proclaiming what she wanted to do.

"I definitely wanna play! Gotta work up a good sweat!"

Ren shrugged and headed for the chair.

"I can keep score."

"Oooooh no ya don't, mister!" Nora grabbed him by the scruff of his t-shirt and dragged him back across the sand. "I haven't seen you move since we got here! You need some exercise, buster!"

Pyrrha was trying to hide a giggle behind her hand, the sound of which sent a little tingle up Ruby's spine.

While Nora pulled a reluctant Ren over to one side of the net, Jaune approached Ruby and Pyrrha.

"Hey, so uh, do either of you guys wanna keep score? Or would you rather play?"

Pyrrha hummed thoughtfully.

"I think I'd like to play to start! What about you, Ruby?"

"Huh? Oh, um... Y-Yeah, I'll play too!"

Despite the initial stammer, she ended with an energetic bounce as the competitive spark was lit within her eyes.

Jaune sighed in relief.

"That's perfect. I didn't really wanna play, anyway. I have a um... tendency to get a ball to the face in these kinda games. Didn't really feel like bleeding all over the beach today."

As he retreated to the scorekeeper's chair, Ruby and Pyrrha took up the side of the court opposite Ren and Nora. Ren had the ball in-hand and was getting ready to serve it.

The players kicked off their shoes and flip-flops so they wouldn't get themselves caught in the sand while playing. For now, they all kept their outer layer of clothes on, though as the game progressed underneath the sweltering sun, they perceived they'd be down to their swimsuits before long.

While Nora paced back and forth like a hyena at the front of the net on her side of the court, Ruby found Pyrrha beside herself again, leading her to a mirrored position.

"Here," Pyrrha said, placing both hands on Ruby's shoulders and guiding her forward. "Let's try this to begin and see how it works! You take the front and I'll cover the back."

"Oh... okay!"

Ruby came to a halt once Pyrrha let go of her. Her shoulders were still warm from where her hands had made contact, rather than from the heat of the sun. She didn't look behind herself, but she could imagine Pyrrha taking up her stance to begin the game.

By now, Jaune had settled into place at the high seat of the chair.

"Okay!" he called out. "Players ready?"

"Ready!" Pyrrha and Ruby chorused.

"YEEESSS!" shouted the final girl of the group.

"Begin!" Jaune declared.

Ren served the ball, sending it neatly over the net. Ruby darted after it to send it back. Pyrrha clapped for her.

"Nice job!"

Ruby paused to look back at her.

"Oh, th-thanks!"

But she'd gotten so caught up in thanking Pyrrha that she'd momentarily forgotten about the game they'd just started.

Nora returned the ball with a fist that sent it shooting down over the net like a comet. Ruby didn't realize it was within her range until it had already plowed into the sand to sit buried halfway. Jaune called the point, and Nora gave a victory cheer.

"Yeeeeaahh, in your face!"

"Nora!" Pyrrha chided her. "That was too hard! You could've hurt her! Ruby, are you okay?" She put a hand on the brunette's shoulder once again. Ruby jumped.

"Huh? Uh, oh yeah! I'm fine, I'm fine! Totally fine!"

"Thank goodness." Pyrrha coaxed her back a few steps, then crouched down to dig the ball out of the sand.

Meanwhile, Nora ducked under the net to apologize to Ruby.

"Sorry! I'll tone it down a bit!"

"It's okay!"

Pyrrha retrieved the ball, then covered the hole it had left behind so no one would trip.

They commenced the game, and from then on, Nora hit with less enthusiasm so as not to deflate their only ball.

They played for about fifteen minutes, and the teams were just about evenly matched, with Nora and Ren ahead by only two points.

At that time, they paused to get drinks from the water bottles they'd brought along in their bags, and shed their outer clothes. The boys were down to their trunks, while Nora sported a pink, frilly bikini.

Ruby had stepped out of her shorts and was just pulling off her own t-shirt to reveal her suit, which resembled a pink dress-like piece with strawberry patterns that fell down to her thighs.

Beside her, Pyrrha had just tossed aside her shirt onto her towel, and now stood in a very fitting red bikini that matched the color of her streaming ponytail. With the sun gleaming down on her to catch the shine of the sweat and sunblock mixed onto her tanned skin, Ruby found herself gawking for a little longer than she thought she should be.

She was just thinking she should say something by means of a compliment to Pyrrha's outfit when the taller girl beat her to it.

"My, my! Ruby, your swimsuit is quite charming! It suits you! Oh! That was kind of a pun, wasn't it?"

Pyrrha went off chuckling merrily to herself, finding great humor in her own unintended joke. Ruby could feel warmth spreading across her face, and she grabbed a tube of sunblock to dab it over her cheeks.

"Thanks! I um... I really like yours too, Pyrrha. It's pretty."

"Why, thank you!"

As Ruby put down her sunscreen, Pyrrha reached out to take both of her hands and lead her back to the volleyball court.

"Now then, we've got some points to make up!"

Now that they had all refreshed themselves and taken a moment of rest, they all seemed to be even more energetic than before. Or, at least the girls were, anyway.

Luckily for Ren, his teammate was so into the game that she set off and sent back about 95% of the hits on their side of the court, allowing him to enjoy a rather easygoing game.

On the other side, Pyrrha and Ruby were taking the hits about 50-50.

Now that Ruby had gotten used to Pyrrha's appearance in her swimsuit, she could focus a bit more on the game at hand. She put all her spunk and energy into it, laughing and squealing along with her friends whenever someone just barely made a save, or praising them for a good hit.

She really liked it whenever Pyrrha passed the ball to her, because it felt good in knowing Pyrrha was relying on her to get it over.

Likewise, it was nice for Ruby to be able to pass the ball to Pyrrha and watch her send it over with an elegant jump in perfect form.

But by far, Ruby's favorite times were the instances when Pyrrha would praise her outright for a job well done.

Of course, Ruby always got a little giddy right afterwards, and sometimes she'd space out and miss the next hit.

But they managed to work their score up until the point when they were tied with Nora and Ren (or more accurately, just Nora).

At that point, all the girls were panting and getting weary, and Jaune was nursing a slight bloody nose from being hit by a stray ball despite his non-active position in the game. Only Ren was barely fazed by the drawn-out game, thanks to his partner's doing most of the work for him, and happily so. Nora had the ball in-hand and was huffing, her bangs dripping sweat.

"All right, you guys... this is it. The final serve! After this, no matter who wins and who loses we're all goin' into the water!"

Pyrrha was positioned at the back once again, and Ruby heard her friendly, competitive response.

"That sounds like a grand idea."

Ruby clapped her hands.

"Bring it on!"

Nora did as requested and served the ball.

Ruby watched it like a hawk would a sparrow and chased after it. She smacked it up before it could hit the sand, just long enough for Pyrrha to send it back over. Nora darted over and punched it back.

At that point, Ruby and Pyrrha were both so fixated on the ball that they didn't look anywhere else.

"Got it!" they both cried.

And just like that, they both managed to reach out and hit the ball together.

But of course, it resulted in them colliding shortly afterwards, crashing into each other with short shrieks as they fell into the sand.

Nora was too busy watching and snorting at their display that she missed the ball. Jaune called out to stop the game.

"And final point goes to Ruby and Pyrrha! Good job, you guys!"

"Are you two okay?" Ren called over.

Ruby moaned and opened her eyes, immediately aware of the fact that she'd landed right on top of Pyrrha. Her friend's hair was coated with sand now, and the stuff was sprinkled all over her face and skin.

The heat of the sun, coupled with the sweat from their intense game, now combined with the body heat between them in addition to a flustered blush, all of which resulted in Ruby ironically freezing up on top of her.

"Ohmygosh! Pyrrha, a-are you okay?"

The taller girl fluttered her eyes open, squinting at the sunlight until she met Ruby's gaze.

"Oh, yes!" she gasped. "Yes, I'm fine! And did you hear that, Ruby? We won!" Pyrrha sat up, keeping Ruby in her lap for a moment. "We won!" she cheered again.

With that, Pyrrha was up on her feet again, holding Ruby tightly in her arms. She lifted the smaller girl up off the sand and spun her around once. "That was amazing, Ruby! Wonderful job!"

Ruby was in a daze, less from being spun around and more from the fact that she and Pyrrha were in such close contact with one another, with so few articles of clothing in between them. She gaped like a fish out of water as Pyrrha put her back down to stand on her own two feet, though Ruby almost staggered.

"Good game!" Pyrrha called over to the others.

"Yeah, same to you guys!" Nora replied. "Next time, we'll get you, though! Right, Ren?"

"Sure."

"Good!" Nora cried. "Now it's into the water, all of you! Time to cool off, gang!"

With that, she looped her arm around Ren's and tore off towards the ocean with him.

Jaune was still holding his bloody nose, though most of it had stopped by now.

"I think I'm just gonna sit on the towels," he said.

Pyrrha nodded.

"Yes! Please, take care of yourself. There should be a frozen water bottle in one of the bags. Use that!"

"Thanks."

As he headed off, Ruby remained at Pyrrha's side a little awkwardly.

"Um, so..." she began. "Do you wanna go to the water, too?"

"Yes, of course! I'd love to! I really need to cool off!"

"Yeah... me, too."

"Then let's go!"

Pyrrha offered out her hand and presented Ruby with another beaming smile.

Ruby smiled back, though she found she couldn't look directly into Pyrrha's eyes for too long.

Together, they started off towards the water.

Ruby could feel the hot sand underfoot gradually becoming cooler as they neared the shoreline. When the bubbling foam of the thin waves finally reached her toes for the first time, she let out a long sigh.

"Aaaah, it feels so nice~"

"It really does. Shall we go in a bit deeper?"

"Yes, please!"

Her hand was still in Pyrrha's, and Ruby stuck close to her side as they waded in up to their ankles, shins, knees, and eventually to their hips. The waves farther out were more intense, but to where they were standing now, the water only shifted and heaved a little bit, making them bounce where they stood.

Ruby chuckled as she got used to the feeling of being in the ocean. She and Pyrrha released one another's hands so they may cup the seawater into their palms and splash it onto their shoulders and necks.

Pyrrha twirled around a few times, the ends of her ponytail dragging at her hips in the water.

"It's so wonderful! I love the ocean!"

Ruby realized she'd been staring again and quickly looked away.

"Yeah! Me, too!"

They found themselves mostly alone together, with Nora and Ren off together further down the shore. Ruby was glad to stay close to Pyrrha.

They spent a few minutes in the water cooling off and bouncing in the weaker waves.

After a time, they decided to come out and let the sun dry them off for a bit. They sat at the water's edge and started collecting sand for a castle.

Ruby had always been an expert at building things, and her sandcastle-constructing skills were second to none. Pyrrha only made basic shapes and then had Ruby add in details.

The final product was a castle with two levels and several parts, all complete with roofs and spires and little windows. They decorated the final product with tiny sea shells they found nearby, some white, some yellow, some tan.

After that, they both got lost in looking at the various beautiful shells that washed up on the shore and got into the activity of collecting as many as they could before the tide carried them away again.

Sometimes they jumped into the water to catch them, and other times they simply picked them up off the sand.

Some of the more colorful shells had little crabs in them, and they were both careful not to disturb those. Rather, they watched them burrow into the sand before the next wave came.

The two girls ended up going for a walk along the shoreline. Again, Pyrrha took Ruby's hand without really thinking, and Ruby accepted without really minding.

They observed the little crabs, laughed and squawked at the seagulls, and picked up as many shells as they could hold in their free hands.

At one point, they stopped to rest for a moment. A sudden gasp from Pyrrha got Ruby's attention.

"Look! Out in the distance!"

Ruby squinted, looking out over the haze of the far-off waves. There were a few ships cruising by, but Pyrrha was indicating something else. When Ruby looked closer, she could see several things jumping out of the water.

"Dolphins!" she cried. "Oh wow! I haven't seen them in years!"

They stood together, each with one hand full of seashells and the other curled in their friend's hand. Both of them were all smiles and giggles as they watched the dolphins.

By that time, the sun had started to shift, and the deep blue of the sky was beginning to turn purple and pink with the approach of sunset.

But despite the beautiful scene before her, Ruby found her eyes straying from the dolphins to look at something even more stunning.

The light was shining off of Pyrrha's golden skin, her red hair even more striking than the colorful clouds above. Her eyes were sparkling like the ocean itself, and were twice as lively.

Ruby felt her chest grow warm again, and she curled her toes into the sand.

/Oh gosh... I think I.../

Just then, a familiar shout of their names sounded from the side.

"Pyrrhaaaa~" Nora called out. "Rubyyyy! Time to head back, you guys!"

"Oh!" Pyrrha pulled her gaze away from the dolphins and waved awkwardly back to her friend with her hand that was full of shells. "We'll be right there!" She turned back to Ruby and smiled kindly, giving a gentle tug to her hand. "I can't believe the day's almost over already! But I had a wonderful time! What about you, Ruby?"

Ruby blinked and quickly shook herself off.

"Yeah! I did, too! I had a whole lotta fun today, Pyrrha!"

"I'm glad! It seems like we all did!"

"Yeah..."

As they started walking back toward their towels and their companions, Ruby couldn't keep her eyes off of the sway of Pyrrha's ponytail. She kept stealing glances to the side, to the point where she might've kept walking down the beach all evening if Pyrrha hadn't stopped her when they'd reached their towels.

There, they let go of each other's hands, and Ruby found she instantly missed the feeling of Pyrrha's.

At the very least, Ruby had come to a very important realization for herself today.

/I'm... in love with Pyrrha.../

Now that she knew for sure how she felt, it seemed pretty obvious when she reflected on things.

She just didn't know if Pyrrha liked her back in that way.

Ruby had no idea how to go about finding the answer to that question, or how to go about revealing her own feelings for her friend.

But when Pyrrha smiled back at her again, Ruby felt a calmness wash over her, just like a wave.

She smiled, too.

Whatever feelings she was struggling with, she could handle some other time.

Right now, it just felt good to finally know, and that was enough.

As they packed up their things and stepped back into their flip-flops, the group of five started heading off the beach, and Ruby was happy to find Pyrrha walking at her side.

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A/N: Don't worry, there will be a sequel where Ruby and Pyrrha get a resolution of sorts~
Read on to the epilogue to wrap things up!