"It's okay, Yang, you don't have to worry." Ruby's voice echoed in her empty room, where some balloons and streamers hung from the ceiling. "Yeah, I'll be fine." A table with several cups and party hats rested on one side of the room.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Weiss." Ruby placed a smile on her lips, but the little strength behind it was noticeable. "Yeah~ I won't do anything crazy." Despite wanting to sound calm, her tone came out slightly forced.

"Goodbye~." Ruby waved as she sat on her bed. In front of her, a large banner with the words "Happy Birthday" gently fluttered.

Ruby fell silent in her room as she set her scroll aside. A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she removed the little witch hat from her head. With her eyes closed, she let herself fall back onto the bed.

"I guess more cake for me," she tried to speak in a cheerful tone, but all that came out was her tired, low voice. Her eyes scanned the room, filled with both Halloween and birthday decorations, decorations that had taken her hours to make.

"Come on, Ruby, don't be sad," she told herself, trying to find comfort in her own voice. "You'll see them tomorrow. Celebrating your birthday two days in a row could be fun," she thought, trying to cheer herself up a bit. However, that spark of joy felt dim against the shadow of her nostalgia.

As she looked at her reflection on the TV, images of her and her friends during the happy days at Beacon began to appear in her mind. "If only..." she whispered, feeling the weight of loneliness pile up in her chest. "If everything were like before..." The turned-off TV became a mirror of her melancholy, and she remained silent, caught between what had been and what was.

At that moment, the sound of knocks on her bedroom door pulled her out of her thoughts. "Yes?" she asked, looking at the door.