Yang's timberlands kicked up dirt with each energetic step, as she bounded up the hill, enjoying the fresh air of nature, and the woods that contained it. Reaching the peak of the tree-lined slope, she turned to face her partner, who was clearly not enjoying
their hike as much as she was.
Blake was several feet behind Yang, feeling quite irritable, as she removed a thorn branch from her hair.
She placed her hands on her knees and doubled over, exhausted.
"How much farther?" She breathed, barely above a whisper.
"I don't know how much longer I can do this..."

Yang looked down the slope at Blake.
"We're just about there. Yang in there Blakey." She laughed.

The faunus was not amused. Gritting her teeth, she muttered, "When you said the campsite was but a small hike away, I was expecting a simple stroll through the woods."
She looked down at her black jeans, which were streaked with dirt.
"I was woefully unprepared for..." Blake gestured all around her. "This." She finished.

Yang paused, taking in the woods Blake had just spent the last minute criticizing. It was really quite beautiful, to her at least.
She was certain Blake appreciated the forest's tranquility as well, but, as the raven-haired girl had already stated, she wasn't particularly dressed the part of an "avid hiker".

While Yang stood there, suited for woodland adventure, sporting denim shorts and a red yellow flannel, Blake was trying not to trip over twigs every other minute, her converses poorly tailored for that terrain.

Yang readjusted her ball cap, so that it sat perfectly with her precious hair. Motioning for Blake to follow, she made her way deeper into the wood.
Blake sighed, crossing her arms over her black denim jacket disapprovingly. Yang had promised a lovely campsite were they could just relax together, free of the unwanted interventions of life.
"I did not sign up for this..." Blake muttered under her breath, treading after her blonde partner, stumbling awkwardly as she went.

"This is it," Yang stated proudly, motioning to the clearing that lay before them. "I scouted this camp sight last week," she said. "I thought you'd appreciate the scenery..."

Blake couldn't help but smile at her partner's earnestness. Their current surroundings were, in fact, rather lovely. On all ends of the clearing, stood a multitude of birch trees, their red leaves providing a brilliant aesthetic to the area.
"It's..." Blake paused. Yang was beaming at her. "It's lovely Yang." She continued. "Really."

The blonde seemed satisfied. Smiling to both Blake and herself, Yang knew their weekend was getting off to an excellent start.
"I'm glad you like it." She said, setting her pack onto the soft ground. She removed a large sack from it, its contents clanging loudly within.
"Let's get these rods together shall we?" Yang suggested. "I didn't see any rain in the forecast, but we should get this tent up just in case."
Blake obliged, getting on her knees, the earth below her soft enough to kneel upon. She was about to begin perusing the tent manual, before it was snatched away from her.
"The fuck, Yang?" She said, mystified.
Yang tossed the pamphlet to the ground. "We don't need the manual Blakey. I've gone camping enough times before this to know how to assemble a tent."
Blake sighed and rolled her eyes, partly due to Yang's stubbornness, and partly due to the use of "Blakey."
It was a pet name the blonde had been using for several weeks already, and she showed little to no signs of growing weary of it.
It was okay, really, although the faunus was not particularly fond of the nickname's use when among other company.
Getting to her feet, Blake removed her denim jacket, revealing the grey tank beneath. "Fine." She submitted. "We'll do this your way."

Yang's "way" as it turned out, consisted of several botched attempts to set up the frame, misplacing the pegs, and Blake tripping over the tent sheet chest first into a pile of mud. Needless to say, by the time the pair had completed the task, Blake's
patience was at an all time low.
Yang, however, didn't seem to mind the shenanigans, and delighted in the tent's completion.
"It's so COZY!" She squealed, clambering into the flap that served as a door.
Blake smirked, wiping her dirty hands on her filthier jeans. "It sure is." She responded. "Could have been a bit more efficient though."

Yang scoffed. "Meh. What difference does it make really? We got ourselves a little outpost."
She poked her head out of the tent, golden hair somehow unscathed from their struggle.
"And we got it all to ourselves."
She said flirtatiously, violet eyes bearing into Blake's.
The faunus giggled a bit uncomfortably. It was good, to finally be with Yang alone, away from the distractions and needless interruptions of the beacon dorms.
She and Yang had planned out this trip for weeks, in hopes of spending some quality time together.
Only now, covered in mud and truly exhausted, the though of spending all this time with Yang seemed daunting. Even without the judging eyes of those at beacon, she felt a bit nervous about being with Yang. Even there, deep in the forever fall forest.
She glanced at the birches. She felt as if the trees were watching her, as if they were talking, whispering, much like the other students back at school.
The two had tried keeping their relationship under wraps, going to great efforts to conceal it. They did not wish to be bombarded by the usual slew of questions and interrogations that usually were synonymous with romantic relationships at beacon.
And so, they would only meet under the privatest of circumstances. In janitorial closets.
In dark bars throughout vale. Sometimes, they dared, in their very dormitories, when the two were certain their team members were to be absent for some time.

And now, they were together, in the woods, alone. It was gratifying and terrifying to Blake all at the same time.
Yang noticed the look of distress in her partners's eyes.
Her smile fading, she questioned, "You alright there, Blake?"

"Yeah. Sure." Blake responded quickly, the anxiety in her voice clear as day. "Just a bit tired is all."

" Well then come on in here, kitten. It really is cozy!"

"I'm filthy"

"So?"

"And I smell."

"Blake, we've been over the whole self derogatory statement thing haven't we?" Yang joked.

Blake smiled weakly. "I really should clean up." She said. "I wouldn't want to paint the tent in mud, would I?"

Yang nodded. "There's some running water roughly 500 feet from here."

"400," Blake corrected.

"How did you-"

Blake pointed to her head, her bow twitching.

Yang understood. "Gotcha, kitty."

"From the sounds of it," Blake began, "The river should be about a ten-minute walk from here."
She looked to Yang. "Would you mind if I-"

"No problem," Yang responded. "Take your time. We can pick up after you're all..." She paused briefly. "Cleaned up."

Blake smiled again, and at that, turned towards the sound of rushing water, her faunus ears guiding the way. Yang watched her go, eyes glued to her girlfriend, until she vanished into the trees.

Upon reaching the brook, Blake took a moment to breathe. She had never told anyone, but washing herself had always been one of the trickier parts of the day, as she truly abhorred sudden sprays or splashes of water, making showers difficult, and baths
as well.
She could stand to be submerged, but it had to be gradual, and on her own terms. Few things made Blake more irritated than being taken by surprise by water, a trait of hers clearly attributed to the "cat" in her.
Standing on the very banks of the rushing water, Blake began to disrobe. She could her the gentle chirp of crickets, the chirps and hoots of nighttime birds, accompanied by the gentle swaying of branches in a breeze. It was truly serene, yet she still
felt quite self conscious, undressing before the "whispering trees".
It felt as if they were watching her.
It was a fairly warm night, yet Blake still shivered a bit, standing before the waters, exposed as she was.
She maintained her bow, however, to prevent her sensitive ears from getting too wet. That was another great discomfort of hers.
She peered at the water, the moonlight reflecting herself in it, resembling a grandiose oil painting. She inched toward the edge of the water, the cool slick surface beneath her feet sending shivers up her back. She dipped a foot in, before retracting
it almost immediately. It wasn't that it was cold, in fact, it was almost warm. Rather, this was simply an almost pitiful routine of hers, as she spent the first few moments of her baths attempting to coax herself to settle beneath the waters.

"Water too cold for you, Kitten?"

Blake's head shot around, only to find Yang standing there, but a few feet away. She had left her cap behind, allowing her golden hair to sway synonymously with the night breeze.
The dark-haired girl instinctively flung her arms around herself, her legs crossing as well, a shy attempt to cover herself.
"Yang!" She cried in surprise. "Can't I get a bit of privacy?"
She enunciated the last word with great emphasis.
Yang chuckled, her lips spread in a grin, almost tauntingly.
"You expect me to sit back at the campsite with THIS image in my head?" She challenged mockingly.
"You know me better than that! If course I wouldn't have been able to resist THIS."

Blake's face was flushed, but her arms fell away from her chest, allowing the pale moonlight to shine onto her equally pale breasts. She motioned towards the water. "Well, since you're here, and unlikely to leave-"

"I wouldn't want to miss this!" Yang interjected.

"Right," Blake continued. "Think you could give me a hand here?"
She motioned to the brook once more.
The Blonde nodded gleefully, approaching the nude faunus.

"Course. I'd be glad to help." She answered, her violet eye's catching the moonlight as well.

Holding onto her partner's steady grip, Blake reattempted to test the water. Once again, she withdrew her foot almost immediately, curling her toes at the rejection.
Yang giggled, as this was certainly quite fun to watch. She delighted in all of her girlfriend's cute quirks, especially the ones that pertained to what Yang liked go refer to as "The kitty side."

"Sorry." Blake professed, feeling a bit awkward involving Yang in this.

Yang just smiled. "Don't be, Blakey. This is fun."

"For you maybe."

"And?"

"For me it's embarrassing. I can't even take a bath without having to convince myself to do so."

"Then allow me to make it easier, kitten."

At that, Blake turned to look at Yang, who now wore a mischievous grin. It was then, that Blake realized Yang was her only means of support to the dry land, and that support had just grown faulty.
She barely managed to gasp, "don't even think-" before Yang let go, sending the cat faunus tumbling into the brook ass first, arms and legs flailing desperately in the air for a brief moment.
When she emerged, gasping, the shock not yet worn off, she looked to see Yang giggling hysterically, her arms on her knees.
"What. The. Fuck, Yang!" Blake growled, completely submerged in the water.
The blonde gave her another killer smile. "Was that really so bad, Blake?" She inquired, stifling her own laughter.
"Yes!" Blake responded. "That was a nasty thing to do!"

"Well then," her partner lamented. "I'll just have to make it up to you."

At that, Blake's anger almost entirely vanished, her emotion replaced with that of intrigue. She needn't have asked how Yang planned on doing this, as the blonde was already kicking off her boots, and unbuttoning her flannel.
When she had finished undressing, Yang dived gracefully into the waters to join one half bitter, half intrigued Miss Belladonna.
The water was but several feet deep, shallow enough that both could stand, the waterline just barely reaching their shoulders.
Blake bit her lip, staring at the beautiful girl before her, unsure of how to proceed. "So, do we-"

Yang cut her off. "Don't talk. Just relax."
She pressed Blake against the edge of the river, so that her back was facing her, and her arms were resting on the damp grass.
Yang dug her fingers into the faunus' shoulders, massaging them gently and lovingly, eliciting a small purr from her.
"You're pretty damn cute when you're pissed Blake," she said. "Even cuter when you're not. You really should try to not be so tense all the time. Learn to take it easy."

Blake knew she was right, and simply nodded in agreement, not wanting to ruin the moment. Yang had always been one to give excellent massages, but this, in conjunction with the soothing current of the water against her bare back, was truly something else.
After a few minutes, however she did turn to face Yang, her bow twitching. "Thanks. That-"she stammered, "That was really nice of-"

"Shhh..." Yang placed a finger own Blake's lips, before drawing in closer, the gentle slosh of the water around them providing an optimally soothing ambiance. Yang's lips found hers, and did not lose them for what felt like forever. All of the tenseness
and exhaustion had completely left Blake. All she felt now, was total bliss. And rightfully so.

After several silent minutes, in which the two spent clutching the other, kissing passionately, Yang took Blake by the arm and led her out of the brook. When then pair was back on dry land, they stared each other down, taking in the sight of the other's
dripping wet form.
Yang broke the silence. "Why don't we head on back to the tent, eh?"
Nodding, Blake smiled. "Let's."

At that, Yang scooped her partner up, and started carrying her "bridal-style" towards the campsite, not bothering to gather their clothing first. That could wait for the morning.
"Yang, I can walk by myself." Blake protested.

"You could use the rest, Blakey. Enjoy this while you can."

Looking up into her violet eyes, Blake laughed, a sound not commonly heard by many. It was a soft, sweet laugh, much like the faunus herself. It was a sound that brought joy to Yang Xiao Long.

Blake had nearly dozed off by the time they reached the tent, and was only brought back to full awareness when she felt herself being gently placed among the many quilts Yang had strewn throughout the tent floor. They provided quite the excellent cushioning,
allowing the two girls to get more comfortable.
They lay there, side by side, before Blake spoke.
"I often ask myself," she began, "how on remnant did I get so lucky as to meet you."
It was Yang's turn to blush.
"I mean," the raven-haired girl went on, "You're drop dead gorgeous. Not only that, you're kind, compassionate, and," she swallowed. "You always manage to make me laugh, and remove the edge from me. So I just wanted to say..." Blake paused again, searching
for the right words, while Yang held onto the last ones.
"Thank you," she finished. "I don't- I don't know where I'd be if I had never met you."

Yang threw an arm over Blake, drawing her in closer. "I wonder the exact same things." She admitted. "But all that matters, is that I love you Blake. Don't you forget that."
The corniness of it all made Blake smirk, blushing as well. It was almost as if it was taken directly from one of her "novels".

Still, The faunus responded, "How could I?"

"Good point. How could you forget a face as lovely as this?"

"You've such an ego."

"Hey, you said it yourself. I am drop dead gorgeous."

Blake didn't respond, as she had drifted off. Yang stared at the tents ceiling, holding her partner closer, and listened to the crickets. It was that sound, combined with the comfort of the girl beside her, that allowed her to fall asleep herself.
As she did, she pressed her lips to Blake's forehead, silently vowing to never leave the girl.
In her dreams, Blake was thinking the same exact thing.