Hello, there! This is going to be a series of short stories for the random ideas about White Rose and Bumblebee I get in my head when I'm not writing Wedding in the World of Snow, not in any particular order or time period. But, I am also looking for scenarios to test my writing a bit! So, if you've got an idea for something you'd like to me to try out, just send me a PM and I'll see what I can do! For those that may be worried about my other story, I am currently writing the next chapter and this won't affect that. It's just for fun. In any case, enjoy!

-Tell Us a Story-

It had been just a simple camping trip, just supposed to be all good fun. Ruby particularly liked the idea that she would be able to both spend some quality time with her friends and girlfriend, as well as gorge herself on marshmallows and hot dogs. Though, her sister's snickering when she quickly shoved one straight into her mouth had forced her to slow down. The suggestive grunt she made in response certainly hadn't helped matters, either. Weiss had rolled her eyes before chastising her for doing 'so completely revolting' while they were trying to eat, giving no results. Blake had been the one to finally halt the blonde's sounds by folding up a hot dog bun in a rather lady-like shape before teasingly jabbing her tongue between the two sides, drawing a blush from the brawler and ensuring that she made no such sounds for the rest of the night.

With Weiss quietly complaining that 'her appetite was ruined', they had all decided they had eaten enough and moved on to what Yang had called 'main event'. Scary stories. Now, Ruby was the kind of girl to enjoy a good scary story when she heard it, but she was also the kind of girl to cower under her blankets afterwards. Yang knew this for a fact and, therefore, put RWBY's resident storyteller (and romantic accomplice) up to the stand.

"So, Blake-y, what've ya got for us? Give us somethin' EXTRA spooky~ to sleep to, tonight."

"Well, your need to make inappropriate noises to your sister while she's eating is rather frightening, if that's what you were looking for." Weiss interrupted, crossing her arms to her chest as she glances at the brawler with unimpressed eyes.

"Har-har, Weiss. At least she was mowin' it down.. I noticed how you were takin' teeny-tiny nips at that thing.. Too big for ya?"

"You shut up! Why must everything be about-"

"I have a story..." Blake had said in a creepily low tone, her voice monotone as she looked over her two bickering teammates. "…to tell."

Ruby probably should have realized from both the sound of her voice and the fact that Yang and Weiss had immediately stopped arguing to stare at the cat faunus that she was doomed, but curiosity had seen her eyes widening eagerly to hear Blake's story. "Tell us, Blake!"

"If you're sure… I wouldn't want those with… fragile constitutions to hear this tale.." Blake rasped, causing the majority of her team to look at each other.

"Oh, please. I'm sure we can handle a silly scary story, Blake." Weiss huffed, rolling her eyes.

"Very well. You asked for this, remember. This is a tale of terror and the price of beauty… The tale of the Kuchisake-Onna…" Blake started, already creeping out Ruby with her voice. "Long ago, there was a beautiful mistress who called the land of Vale her home... All who had ever seen her had been enraptured by her presence, her beauty the capturer of many a heart. She had a symphony of black hair that shined silkily in the sun, pale skin fair enough to make even the softest of snow look petty and worth little attention, and strawberry-red lips that parted in the gentlest of ways… She was perfect in every way."

Ruby couldn't help but look at her girlfriend as Blake described the mistress, slowly snaking her fingers to intertwine with the heiress' with a shy smile. Weiss had looked over to her, blushing before silently allowing the hand-holding to happen.

"She was naturally beautiful, but, alas, she was married to a very jealous and brutal man. He didn't like the whispers, the admiration that she drew without effort. He was insanely jealous of any other man that spoke to the mistress, often acting out in rage to get them away… Over a period of time, he became convinced, OBSESSED, that she was cheating on him with another man. He wouldn't allow this. Her beauty was his and his alone. If he could not have it, no one would. One fateful night, in a fit of rage, he trapped her in a room as he drew his sword…"

Ruby had gasped quietly, finding herself grasping Weiss' hand a little tighter in response and covering her mouth with her free hand. Weiss, herself, had gripped back and watched Blake intently as she continued.

"His rage at its peak, he used his sword to slit her lovely mouth from ear to ear and disfigure her… All the while screaming, 'Who will find you beautiful, now?! Who will find you beautiful?!'. By the time he was finished, she was no more… No more would her beauty grace the land of Vale."

Yang blinked a few times, chuckling a bit nervously from Blake's eerie delivery. "Heh, wow.. Well, wasn't that a thing-"

"I didn't say I was finished, Yang."

"O-Oh. W-Well, by all means.."

"Years and years later, a young girl was walking slowly down a rather abandoned path in her town. She was humming the latest pop song, of course, her mind solely focused on getting home and getting started on her homework.."

Ignoring Yang's playful utterance of 'nerd', Blake had dropped her voice even lower. "She suddenly heard a noise in the shadows, turning to look and see what it was… Out of the shadows stepped a beautiful woman, with silky black hair, fairer skin than the whitest of snow… and a black scarf covering her mouth."

Ruby gasped a quiet 'no..' in response, her grip on Weiss' hand causing the pale girl to look at her girlfriend. "I-It's just a story, Ruby."

"You'd like to think so, wouldn't you, Weiss?" Blake murmured, letting the creepiest laugh any of team RWBY had ever heard. "The woman took a few steps forward toward the girl, her eyes slightly pleading… She whispered in a low, soft voice… almost so soft that the girl didn't hear what she had said… 'Am I beautiful?', the woman had whispered. The girl took a second to look at her, the woman undoubtedly being incredibly so. She had answered with a confident 'Yes, you are, Miss. Very!'. The beautiful woman had stared at the girl after that, a soft hand moving to unravel her scarf…"

Ruby squeaked, attaching herself to her girlfriend's arm not unlike an octopus. Weiss tried, in vain, to keep the anxious look off her face and continue looking unaffected. Even Yang had been looking a little worse for wear, biting at her lip and playing with small loops of blonde in her tanned fingers.

"As her scarf blew away in the wind, her face was fully revealed. It was disgustingly marred, a horrible slit slicing her from ear to ear in a sick grin. It was as if an entire section had been hacked away in the most terrible of fashions. She spoke again, her voice eerie as her twisted mouth opens with her words.. 'Am I beautiful, NOW?' she whispered, a terrible hiss escaping her." Blake's voice had come out in a haunting whisper (as well as letting a low hiss escape) as she spoke for the woman, making her captive audience shiver.

"The girl was horrified by the woman's appearance… For, her scars were the most hideous thing the girl had ever seen in her life. But, she didn't want to offend the woman. Especially with the awful sounds coming from her.. She stuttered out a quiet, almost gasped 'Yes'. Upon hearing this, the woman let out a horrible screech and through herself upon the girl. She produced a blade seemingly out of nowhere and began to carve into the poor girl's face, slicing until she was as beautiful as her… The poor girl was found the next day with a slit cut from ear to ear, gaining the perpetrator the name 'Kuchisake-Onna', or 'The Slit-Mouthed Woman'.. Several more women have been found this way since then, the killer never caught or even seen... Who knows who could be next?"

The RWY of team RWBY collectively gulped as Blake neared the end of her story, grinning maliciously at her teammate's response to her story. Her chilling portrayal had all of them glancing nervously over their shoulder, praying there wasn't something behind them.

"They say that the vengeful spirit of the Kuchisake-Onna still roams Vale, lamenting over her lost beauty and sharing her pain with those who cross her. So… Listen, friends, and listen well… If you hear the soft words 'Am I beautiful?' at your tent, tonight.. Know that the Slit-Mouthed Woman has come for you, to make you as beautiful… as SHE is."

There was a long moment of silence before Yang had finally spoken up, muttering a quiet 'Well, SHIT, I'm havin' nightmares, tonight.' Weiss had seemed to recover a bit, giving a quiet 'Wasn't that bad' in response. There had been a shaky agreement between the listeners that they had listened to enough scary stories and would go promptly to TRY to get some sleep in their respective tents.

That brings Ruby to her current predicament. Here she is, Ruby Rose, the youngest huntress-in-training ever at the most prestigious school in Vale… and she's quivering like a child, taking nervous glances back at the tent entrance whenever a light breeze happened to move it. Her blankets are pulled tight to her body, somewhat over head as tiny whimpers escape her. She doesn't want to be alone, right now… But, she certainly doesn't want to make the long trip over to Yang's tent. Even if she DID, she would have to deal with her sister's comments in the morning. Weiss' tent was next to hers… But…

"W-Would she get mad if I tried to get in? I-I mean… We haven't got past hand-holding, yet… What if she-"

An eerie scratching at the back of her tent is enough to send her bursting out of her tent and directly into the white tent next to hers, rose petals flowing off her body when her semblance is used to spend as LITTLE time in the open as she can. As she moves into the tent, she sees Weiss bundled neatly in a pile of blankets. If she wasn't so panicked, she might have squealed in adoration.

"W-Weiss? Are you awake?" She whispers, slowly inching her way toward the pale girl that faces slightly away from her. Her whisper draws a surprised shriek from the girl that makes her jump.

"I-I am now." comes Weiss' voice, managing to sound quiet and calm despite her shriek of surprise.

"S-Sorry…"

"N-No, it's fine. What's the matter?" She asks with a sigh, sitting up and turning to face her girlfriend. "And, why did you feel the need to throw my tent open to let the cold air in-"

"W-Weiss, can I sleep with you?!" Ruby suddenly blurts, her eyes wide as she swears she hears another scratching sound outside.

A deep flush comes to Weiss' cheeks as she stares at her girlfriend, her mouth falling open in shock. "I-I, what? Ruby, I-I don't know about that-"

"P-Please, Weiss, I can't take it anymore!"

The heiress' jaw drops even further as she hears what Ruby says, her entire face turning a shade of crimson not unlike Ruby's cloak. She clears her throat quietly, taking a moment to compose herself before answering. " *Ahem* Ruby, I-I really don't think we should be doing that here. Your sister's here and we haven't been going out long enough.. Besides, I wanted our first time to be special and certainly not in an indecent place such as a tent on a camping trip-"

"C'mon, Weiss, I'm terrified!" The girl whines, looking pleadingly at her.

That had certainly confused Weiss. "Um. What?"

"I know it's stupid, but that story Blake told us is scarin' the crap outta me! I promise I'll be real quiet, Weiss, you won't even know I'm there! I just don't want to be all alone in my tent when there's a crazy lady with a blade coming after my face!"

Weiss blinks a few times, her mouth opening and closing as she repeatedly tries to say something. "I, wait… You meant sleep as in… just sleep in the same place?"

"Um… yeah? Why, what were you talking about?" Ruby asks, raising her eyebrow curiously.

"I-It doesn't matter, you dolt, you can stay if you must!"

"Thanks, Weiss!" The redhead replies, wrapping her girlfriend in a big hug that makes the pale girl stiffen a bit. "I love you!"

"I-I love you too, you idiot."

There's a moment of silence, with the shorter girl snuggling into her pale-skinned girlfriend whilst cooing appreciative words. "It's just a story, you know. There's not a REAL spirit like that."

"I know, I know, but I can't help thinking about it… When I close my eyes, all I can think about are those whispering words and that woman slipping into the tent.. Then, when I open them again, she'll be on me and slashing and cutting and-"

"R-Ruby."

"Yes?"

"Please, stop talking." Weiss replies, looking noticeably uneasy and paler than normal.

"Are you scared, too, Weiss?"

"N-No, you dolt! It was just a stupid, silly story that Blake made up! I just don't want you to scare yourself by talking about it!"

Ruby smiles softly, wrapping her arms protectively around Weiss and giving her a quick peck on the cheek. "It's alright, I'll give you a big Ruby hug to chase away all your fears.. As.. As long as you give me a Weiss hug."

"O-Okay…" Weiss murmurs in response, slowly wrapping her arms around Ruby.

Ruby squeals quietly at the look on Weiss' face, her mind freed from the panic she had earlier. "Thanks, Weiss." She says quietly. "I feel much better, now."

"S-So do I."

"Hm. Let's get some sleep. Wouldn't want to be cranky in the morning, right? Besides, Yang said we were going down to the lake, tomorrow. So, I can't wait for that!"

Weiss lets a small smile slip to her face, nodding slowly. "Yes, Ruby. I look forward to it, as well."

"And, you can see the swimsuit I brought for the occasion-"

Weiss cuts her words off with a light conk of her fist on Ruby's forehead, her cheeks dusting with pink. "Yes, I'll see it. In the morning. N-Now, go to sleep, you dolt."

"Okey-Dokey!"

As they both slowly lay down, wrapped in each other's arms, they feel a pleasant calm come over them. They no longer thought of the Kuchisake-Onna, or anything of the sort. Even if there WERE such a spirit, they would protect each other. There was no need to be scared.

Two tents over, Blake lets out a quiet sigh as a certain blonde holds her tightly around the waist. She squeaks a bit when she hears a scratching outside the tent, squealing that the 'crazy lady was coming for her mouth'. Blake has to grin, though. For she knows the truth. As scared as Ruby is of scary stories after the fact, Yang was ten times worse.

"Yang, I warned you not to let me take control of the scary stories."