Specialist Rose

10)The Next Step

Yang POV 

Yang awoke to her obnoxious alarm feeling groggy the next morning. It was understandable as she had gone to sleep angry and still in her dayclothes. Reaching for her scroll she saw the call app was open and memories of the night before came flooding back to her. Yang burst into tears when she remembered what she had done. Of course Yang wanted her sister to come home. In fact Yang missed Ruby during the school year than Ruby missed Yang. Yang curled up on her bed and continued to sob for what had happened. She knew how badly this rift was effecting their already broken family and she had only made it worse. Surely she could make it right? There was no way Ruby actually believed what Yang had said.

In Atlas Ruby had gone about the last 2 days in a sort of trance. As if she were on autopilot. She went to school, went to work, went to bed and repeat. Everyone was worried sick about her since they had never seen the easy going, happy and energetic Ruby so lethargic. On the third day of her walking death mode she was eating lunch in the courtyard as she had been made to when her scroll rang. Ruby looked at it and her trance was broken. She leapt backwards off of the bench and dropped her scroll in the process. Everyone looked over to see what had happened but when they saw who was calling froze. 
"Somebody answer it!" Ruby cried whilst scooting back as if the scroll were going to attack her. 
"What do we say?" Flynt whispered at Reese, Neon, Penny and Colbolt. 
"We should answer it and tell her to get lost then really quickly hang up!" Colbolt answered.
"We could say, Salutations- Ruby cannot come to the phone right now and then hang up!"
"Guys we are running out of time!"
"Oh, you morons give that to me. Now shut your traps!"
Reese snatched the scroll in her aggressive manner but put on a posh sounding voice to finally answer the phone.
"Hello Specialist Rose's Scroll, how may I help you?"
"What the hell? Is this a receptionist? Where is Ruby?!"
"I'm afraid Specialist Rose is in a classified meeting with General Ironwood and the Ace operatives of Atlas at the moment but I can take a message? What is the name?"
"My name is Yang Xiao Long and no you can't take a message. How long until Ruby is out of her dumb meeting? I need to talk to her!"
Ruby had made a signal that she wanted the phone and Reese decided to wrap it up.
"Well I- Oh. Here she is now. Specialist Rose! You have a phone call! Someone named Bang Chow Snog? Ma'am Yes Ma'am." With that Reese handed a pissed Yang off to Ruby. Luckily Ruby decided to  play along and put the scroll on speaker.
"Hello Specialist Rose speaking."
"Ruby? Finally! Cut the specialist crap. Your Birthday is the day after tomorrow and we want to know when you will be home so dad can pick you up from the station."
"Home? I'm not coming home Yang."
"Don't be ridiculous of course you are coming home. What time?"
"No time. I'm not coming home Yang."
"Yes you are lest I have to walk to Atlas and drag your butt back home myself!"
"I'm not coming home for my birthday or Easter Yang. To quote yourself 'not now or ever'. I'm celebrating my birthday here and backpacking around vacuo during Easter. Then I'll see about a quick visit. I'm not coming Yang and you can't make me. Don't forget this is what you wanted!" 
With that Ruby quickly hung up the phone and focused on trying not to cry. She had forgotten that this would be yet another birthday spent without her mother and her first one away from home and without her sister. She looked up to see her friends and winter and marrow who had joined them just in time to hear the phone call. 
"What?"
Neon took a deep overdramatic breath before practically shouting,
"It is your Birthday the day after tomorrow and we didn't know?!?!?!?!?!!"
"Truth be told I forgot about it myself."
"Well there is no time to waste! We need to go book a hall and send out invitations and make a giant cake and-"
"No, no hall, no party. I'm not celebrating my birthday." 
"WHAT!"
Winter decided to step in at this point. She spoke up softly,
"Ruby, I understand that you lost your sister but that isn't a reason to call off your birthday all together."
"No Winter. It's another birthday without mum, dad can't make it out here, I won't have Yang and nobody knows where uncle Qrow is. I would rather just skip my birthday this year." 
Just then the bell sounded and Ruby walked to her next class.