"Oscar, go out and explore the boat." Qrow says as I laid on the bed. "It's not often you can stay on a cruise for so long."

"But-"

"No buts, go out and have fun. Be a teen. Hang out with other kids. Be normal for once."

"There's nothing normal about sharing a soul with a professor."

"Oscar, you know what I mean. Go have some fun with the other teens your age. Be with others. Go ahead."

"Alright then..." I walked outside, closing the door behind me. I took a deep breath, breathing in the salty air and feeling the breeze of the ocean. I open my eyes, seeing the sapphire crystals of the ocean.

"Oscar, come join us!" I hear Ruby's voice shouting from the left. I turn to see her waving her arms in the air. 

"Coming!" I chase after her to the front of the boat.

I see the teams standing in front, overlooking the sea. "Oscar, glad you could make it." Nora pulls my straps and hauls me to the front of the ship, right next to Ruby.

"R-ruby!" I say as she turns to me.

"Hey Oscar. Can't believe it, I'm on a cruise ship! Ah!" She screams in joy. "And I get to see the front of the cruise! Oh, I can see the ocean! Ah! This is amazing!"

"Heh, glad you're having fun." I leaned against the rails. It's truly a beautiful sight. The sun was about to set, so the sky was painted orange and pink, the darkness settling down with its army of stars and the leader, the shattered moon.

"Eh? Aren't you having fun as well?" Her silver eyes just staring into my eyes.

'Oscar, better get yourself out of this mess.'

'I'm thinking.'

'That's not a good plan, especially when surrounded by her team.'

'I'll figure out another way.' "No, I am, it's just... I have no words to explain what I'm feeling..."

"What do you mean?" I see Jaune turn his head towards me, giving me a stare.

"I-I... I just meant that I don't know how to express my feelings... to be here... you know, going to a different place."

"I know what you mean, Oscar. It was scary for me to leave Beacon and here. Now, we're going to Atlas... I'm scared as well."

I see Jaune look away, pleased that I didn't express my feelings for her. Seeing how close the team members were, makes me jealous, especially that Jaune boy. From time to time, I see him look towards me, giving me looks. Does he have feelings for Ruby as well? Or is he just overprotective? "Ruby, I bet there's nothing to be afraid of."

"Eh? What makes you say that?"

"You have your whole team again, and now, I'm feeling quite close to you guys. Thanks for taking me in."

"No worries." Suddenly, the floor shook and we started to move. "We're finally moving?!" 

We spent about a full hour just sitting and watching the ocean. Everyone else left me and Ruby on the deck, alone. Thanks to the captain, we're the only ones here. 

'Oscar, you can make your move, this is making me gag just a bit, so I'm going to leave you for now.'

Ruby suddenly falls backwards into my chest. "Ruby? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine... just... exhausted..."

"Exhausted? Heh, how is that possible? I know we did some small packing, but still, we didn't do that much today."

"I don't know why... but I'm just am..."

"Hey... Ruby?"

"Uh huh?"

"Tell me... what are you planning tonight?"

"Eh? Nothing much..."

"Oh, so, you're not planning to eat dinner with any of your team members?"

Ruby shakes her head. "No... I kinda want to be left alone... just for awhile."

"Sorry..."

"What are you sorry for? You did nothing wrong."

"No, I was trying to see if we can eat together. If you want to be left alone, I'll let you be."

'See, now that's being considerate of her.'

'Ozpin, I know you're a teacher, but please, shut up.'

"Eat? Together? I don't mind that, but... do you mind if you don't speak to me?"

"It doesn't matter to me, but why do you want to eat in silence? Aren't you glad that your team members are back and safe?"

"I'm glad, but... so many things are going on, I just need silence."

"If that's what you want, then, I'll leave you alone."

"Oscar... can I say something?"

"Say whatever you want. I don't mind what you say."

"You're... very kind to me... why?"

"Because I think you're a great leader. I want to learn from you, Ruby. I think that's why."

"Really?"

I nod, "Ruby, you're pretty amazing." The moon came out from the clouds, the bright light came into her silver eyes. They gleamed brightly, my heart started to pound and my cheeks grew warm. "H-hey... wanna go eat?"

"Sure." She says smiling. "Let's go now."

'You should have asked her something else, Oscar.'

'Ozpin, this is my life.'

'And I'm sharing a soul with you. It makes us one. Don't ever forget that.'

"Come on, Ruby." Her arm was linked up with mine as we started to walk to the dining room.

The dining room wasn't that fancy, but it had candle-lights lit everywhere. The tables had white tablecloths and a lone candlelight. Jaune, Nora, Ren, Yang, Black, and Weiss were sitting at a table in the corner, laughing and having fun. Ruby took her seat to the nearest table and I sat across from her.

"Hey there. What do you want to eat?" A waiter comes by, holding a notepad and a pen in his hands.

"Maybe some noodles." Ruby replies as he swiftly writes it down on his notepad.

"Alright, and what about you, sir?"

"Noodles as well."

"It'll be right out soon." He walks away, leaving me and Ruby alone. She was forcing herself to smile and looking at me. 

'Her eyes, look carefully at them.'

I listen to him, looking into her silver eyes. I heard from Ozpin that she has a rare trait, silver eyes. Ever since I heard that, I've been afraid to directly look into those eyes. Unlike the usual times I seen her eyes this close, they were sad. "Ruby, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. What makes you say that there's something wrong?"

"You... just seem... a bit off."

"Off? How?"

"You don't seem cheerful as your usual self. What's wrong? Tell me, it's okay to tell me."

"Oscar... can I tell you later? Just... meet me in my room later on, okay?"

I nod. "Of course, I just want to help."

"Thank you..."

We ate in silence, after all, that was the deal. She quickly ate and left me alone. Since Blake was the one who helped save the ship and the members, everything was free. I felt stares from the other team on me at every second. I felt that they still couldn't trust me; the only thing that they believe about me is Ozpin. They don't want me around, I'm not like them... How can I? I'm not a huntsman, I'm only training so Ozpin can face Salem. There's no true reason why I'm here.

I made my way to Ruby's room, knocking carefully. "Ruby? It's me, Oscar. You told me to meet you here to talk."

The door unlocks and opens. Ruby was leaning against her door, her eyes were about to tear. "Hey... come inside..." She opens her door wide enough to get inside.

"Ruby-"

"You can take a seat there." She points to a chair. I listen to her, sitting down. "You wanted to talk? Fine, let's talk." She then sits on her bed. "What do you want to talk about?"

I sigh, "Ruby, I'm worried for you."

"And I'm worried for us."

"Us?"

Ruby nods. "I lost my team members at Beacon... and we have a dangerous job to do. It just makes me wonder, how far can we do this? How far can we take this? To take in the pain and sorrow of losing a friend. I try to be optimistic, but it's not helping me..." Her voice starts to crack. "I... don't know..." Tears start to fall; Ruby trying to wipe them away. "I lost... my... friends... I want them back... but we can't bring people... back from the dead..."

"Ruby..." I make my way to her, ignoring Ozpin's words of wisdom. I kneel down in front of her, my hands on both sides of her head. My thumbs wipe away any tears from her eyes. In a calm voice, "You can handle this. I may not know you best, but I can tell that you won't give up."

"Oscar..."

"Listen to me. You're gonna be the best huntress the world has ever seen. And for those who fell at Beacon. Pyhrra, Penny, fight for them. When we defeat Salem, they'll live in peace. Don't ever give up on them."

She wipes her fresh tears from her eyes, giving me a smile. Her silver eyes glinting in happiness. "Thank you..." Unexpectedly, she falls from her bed and onto me. I felt her arms wrap around me; I was stunned, I didn't know what to do. But lingering there for seconds made me wrap my arms around her. I held her tightly.

"Ruby, your team is here. Your uncle is here. We're all here for you. And I bet Pyhrra and Penny are watching you, cheering you on to keep moving forward. And to never look back."

"Oscar, thank you... for helping me." She leans back. "You're the first person that I ever did this to..."

"Did what now?"

"Share what I personally felt..."

"Why didn't you talk to your sister? I mean, she's the closest person you can talk to. And you have your uncle."

"Yeah, I know. But they're always worried for me. I don't want to talk to someone that's always going to be worried about me. Oscar, I know we don't know each other that well, but I can say this... I trust you. And you were here to support me. Unlike anyone else. Thank you."

"Anything to help you, Ruby. I want to help others."

"You sound that you doubt yourself."

"That's true, I do."

"Why? We are putting a lot of faith and trust into you. Why are you doubting yourself?"

"To be completely honest, the only reason that you're treating me like this is because my soul is connected to Ozpin. You're treating me this way because you don't want to disrespect Ozpin. I wish you guys would treat me like each other, or treat me like I'm a beginner. I'm beginning to hate this formal treatment, I just want to be respected however you all are being treated."

"Oscar, this is the way we treat each other. It's just... that we don't know you too well. I mean, I feel that we have a connection or something, but still... we haven't fought with each other, except for the fight in Haven Academy. You haven't fought Grimm, not the kind we fought."

"What are you telling me? I need to fight with you more?"

She nods, "Of course. You'll fit in, you already fit in, you don't need to try." She smiles, "And the key to truly fit in is to join us in conversations. I know we're pretty close and all, but you don't know half of the jokes we have and share with each other."

"Jokes? What kind?"

"Oh, we have so many." Ruby starts to giggle. "Tomorrow morning, ask Nora about the dance at Beacon. Don't be ashamed to ask her in public. You'll understand."

"Alright then. Are you feeling okay now? I don't want to head to bed if you're still feeling down about our mission."

"It's fine, I understand what our mission is and the cost. That's not going to stop me from fighting."

"I wonder why... tell me, Ruby, why did you become a huntress? Your real reason."

"That's easy. When my mom read me stories about heroes, I wanted to be just like them. I understand now how it's going to be impossible to be the true heroes in fairy tales, but it doesn't mean that I'm gonna stop. I still want to protect innocent people and save them from harm, like those heroes."

"Okay. I see your passion is strong."

"Heh, well, I'll see you in the morning, Oscar. Good night."

"Good night to you as well, Ruby." I close the door behind me, sighing. I looked up to the moon, seeing the usual shattered pieces, taking a deep breath.

'Well, I did not expect that from you, Oscar. Well done.'

'Thanks Ozpin.' I made my way into my room. It wasn't much, but it was pretty eventful day. Hopefully, just hopefully, I can confess my feelings to her. I want her to accept me as one of her trusted friends. " 'You don't need to try', eh? I'll listen to you, Ruby." Ruby Rose, I'll do anything to help you. I hope you understand.