A birthday request fic for DarknessReaper424! Happy birthday, I hope you like it!

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

Wet Fur

The rain came down out of nowhere, pelting countless cold droplets onto the soft soil of the earth and making it swell.

Unsuspecting students who had been enjoying their lunches outside shrieked and groaned before hastily retreating back inside the school building. However, two certain students were not so lucky as to have a fast dash back to shelter.

Blake and Velvet had been unlucky enough to be sitting in the nearby forest for their lunch that day, enjoying the warm sunlight and the rustle of the breeze through the trees. Even though they had sensed the unfavorable and sudden shift in weather before any of the human students could, the two of them had not packed their things quickly enough to avoid the downpour.

"Oooh...!" Velvet cried out in frustration as they began running back toward Beacon. "And we'd just gotten settled to relax a bit!"

"We'll just have to try again tomorrow." Blake replied.

They attempted to stick to the driest patches of grass to avoid splattering puddles onto their uniforms. But at one point, Velvet's shoe sunk into the swampy water and she stumbled forward. Blake's quick reaction time as she reached out to steady her was all that saved the brunette from tasting mud.

"Thank you."

"Don't mention it."

Blake took the girl's hand from there and led her along as they ran to the building.

When at last they arrived in the lounge area, they were in much the same state as the rest of the students there, only a bit more waterlogged.

"Oooh!" Velvet thumped her foot against the ground in a rare display of frustration. She then sighed and looked up at Blake with apologetic ebony eyes. "I'm sorry our time together got ruined, Blake. We can try again tomorrow, can't we?"

Blake was still trying to fight back the amused smile from seeing Velvet stomp like that.

"Of course. So don't worry about it." She took Velvet's hand again, feeling cold, clammy skin meet her own. "Let's go dry off."

They headed over to one of the free couches in the lounge area. With the drastic change in weather and rapid drop in temperature due to the rain, someone had already started a fire in the hearth. The room was feeling warmer already as the two girls shook themselves off, excess drops of water flying off their bodies.

"I wonder if our teammates got caught in it." Velvet looked about the room, but saw none of hers or Blake's team.

"I'm sure they're fine. They probably went to the indoor cafeteria." Blake flicked an ear, sending another drop of water to the floor.

Velvet reached up and pulled one of her long ears down, observing how the fur had darkened in color from the dampness. She rubbed her hands over it in an effort to smooth it out and get it dry.

"May I?" Blake inquired with a glance at Velvet's other ear.

The brunette nodded. "Please..."

Blake reached up to Velvet's other ear and gently began running her nails through the matted fur to dislodge the water there, patting it out gingerly and uncurling the matted fur.

When she had finished tending to Velvet's ear, Blake began the same process on the girl's long, chocolate-brown hair that was still dripping wet. She ran her fingers through the locks that had been wetted into sections by the rain, smoothing it out until it dried a bit more with the help of the fire's heat.

"Thank you." Velvet said again with a smile.

She then got up from her seat, indicating for Blake to stay put.

Velvet maneuvered around the couch to stand behind her friend, digging into her blazer's pocket to retrieve a small, folded brush. She opened it and slipped her left hand beneath Blake's tresses while slowly combing through them with the brush in her right. The onyx-haired girl's uniform was chilled as it stuck to her back, and Velvet was sure to rub her palms there briefly to warm her up.

Blake leaned back against the cushions, closing her eyes as Velvet dried her hair, combing through it lightly. When the bristles went near her ears, the pressure decreased as not to hurt her, and Blake counted her blessings about how wonderful it was to have another Faunus companion as close as Velvet.

There were some things - some little Faunus ticks - that humans simply could not understand. Blake never held that against them; this relationship with Velvet was just nice to have.

Blake felt the faint beginnings of a purr rumble in her throat and tried her best to swallow it down. But combined with the fire's warmth and Velvet's motions, she found it impossible.

Velvet chuckled a bit as she continued to work, watching Blake's ears swivel about happily, her own ears twitching in amusement. When the back of her hand brushed against Blake's shoulder blades, she felt the vibrations of her purr and smiled. Velvet was a bit reluctant to stop brushing if these were the reactions she got from the classmate who was usually so stoic, but after a few more minutes, she let the silky strands of Blake's hair slip from her fingers.

"There."

She folded the brush again and placed it back into her pocket before skirting the edge of the couch and sitting beside Blake once more.

"Thank you." Blake blinked appreciatively at her.

"Don't mention it!" Velvet replied with an amused gleam in her eyes, their roles reversed now. A stray raindrop fell from the ends of her bangs then, landed on her cheek and slid down a few inches.

Blake leaned forward slightly and kissed it away, letting her lips linger a few seconds. Velvet shyly returned the gesture before they parted, blushing ever so slightly.

"So..." Velvet shuffled her feet a little. "We can... meet up again tomorrow, correct?"

Blake smiled, one that reached her golden eyes, and nodded.

"Of course."

A/N: Well, not much, but I hope you enjoyed!

Please review!