Didn't think I'd get around to a Christmas fic this year. Luckily I proved myself wrong.
A/N: This is a normal life AU. Ruby and Weiss are a bit older and live together in a small house.
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. Inspired by the song Mail Myself To You (after that line Ruby said "We mail ourselves there!") This idea just spawned from that line.
Mail Myself To You
It wasn't easy being alone, and no one knew this better than Weiss Schnee herself.
The statement held even more truth around the holidays – Christmas in particular.
She and her girlfriend lived together in a small house her father had bought for them. It was a very humble home, consisting of only a ground-level floor and a basement, and all the necessary rooms.
But Ruby had made herself scarce this holiday season by no choice of her own; her job as a game designer was presently keeping her away on a week-long overnight training regime. It had started three days ago, and would continue on for four more, despite the fact that today was Christmas Eve.
Weiss had remained home alone all the while. She'd call Ruby every morning before work began, and every evening before she went to bed. She'd scold her girlfriend for staying up too late or warn her about eating too many sweets before she went to sleep. Ruby always simply chuckled and promised Weiss she'd take care of herself for the remaining few days until she could come back home.
It was hard for the both of them; this was the first time they'd been separated for so long due to work-related reasons.
Normally, Ruby's work building was only fifteen minutes from home, but now she'd been sent out of state for a special program.
Ruby temporarily slept in a room provided for her by her superiors, a room Weiss had insisted upon seeing through pictures on her cell phone. She'd initially declared that if she deemed the space to be insufficient for her partner, she would have a talk with whomever was in charge to demand Ruby be moved to a better-suited room.
But on the first night, Ruby had claimed she was perfectly fine where she was, warm and comfortable and cared for, though she missed Weiss terribly.
And Weiss was no better. The house she'd lived and slept together with Ruby in for the past year was now painfully quiet. She could turn up the heating, but the bed was cold every night and even more so every morning. It was too big for just one person, especially Weiss.
The first night alone had been the absolute worst. She couldn't stop thinking about Ruby traveling alone by plane to get to this new place, walking the streets alone to find her hotel.
Constant tossing and turning and whimpering had ensured Weiss hadn't slept for more than an hour. She'd yearned to call Ruby, but didn't want to wake her or cause her to lose sleep during this important time for her work.
Ruby had eventually messaged her that she'd arrived safely. But little did Weiss know her girlfriend had failed to sleep that night as well.
And each following night, their separation only got more and more unbearable.
Weiss never had Ruby off of her mind for more than a second, though. The house was filled of constant reminders of the other person who lived here, little things Ruby had been bringing home for a year now.
Brief letters and notes Ruby had written lined the tops of the dressers, tiny knick-knacks she'd bought in town on the counters, and origami animals she had crafted sat on the shelves. She sometimes even sent Weiss things in the mail with the return address being her work building's office.
Naturally, Weiss always chided her about it.
"Why don't you just bring them home with you in the evening and hand them to me when you walk through the door? Don't waste your money buying stamps for something you can accomplish for free, you dolt."
But Ruby only giggled and shook her head.
"Nah, it's way more fun this way! Writing letters to you gives me something to do in my break time if my phone's dead. Plus, isn't it more fun for you to get something from me in the mail when I'm not at home?"
Weiss had to admit it was quite nice at the time.
But that was when Ruby worked several minutes away and came home every night.
Now, she was several states away and wouldn't be back for days.
But despite the fact that Ruby's work had pulled her away from her loved ones at the most familial time of year, Ruby did her best to keep close despite the devastating miles separating them.
In the past three days alone, she'd mailed Weiss several letters and sent her little gifts from the foreign state.
Yesterday, she had even sent an order for Weiss to be brought a bouquet of white and red roses signed with a letter from Ruby, promising she'd be home soon.
It had been very difficult for Weiss not to cry in front of the mailman as she'd accepted the flowers, but the second the door had closed, she'd burst into tears.
Ruby was doing so much for her, to keep in contact and make Weiss feel as loved as possible this Christmas.
On their nightly call last night, Weiss had thanked her profusely, called her a dolt a few times for making her cry, and then insisted Ruby ask for something in return, something Weiss could send her.
Ruby's only request had been a few homemade cookies.
"Consider them sent," Weiss had told her.
It was the very least she could do for her.
Ruby had told her she needed to be up early tomorrow for work, and so had hung up shortly afterward, reminding Weiss she loved her. Weiss had repeated the words back to her before closing her phone and getting ready for bed herself.
. . .
Presently, it was Christmas Eve morning. They were only halfway through all of this; Weiss didn't know how she was going to survive these last several nights without her girlfriend.
But she couldn't afford to think about all of that now; she had a specific task set in mind for today.
She knew that if she finished baking Ruby's requested cookies early, packaged them up, and sent them out with a "priority delivery" stamp when the mailman came along this afternoon, they would reach Ruby for Christmas tomorrow. She was intent to make that happen.
Weiss slipped herself out of bed, smoothing out the covers behind her and pulling her white bath robe around her nightgown. She stepped into her slippers, but before she left the room, she checked her phone for any messages.
There were none, not even a peppy "Good morning!" from Ruby like there usually was. It sent a prickle of worry through her chest at first, but she recalled that Ruby had said she had a very important evaluation she needed to get an early start on today.
Weiss longed to text her "good luck", but was worried Ruby might have forgotten to turn her phone onto silent; Weiss didn't want to send her a message that could potentially disrupt something and thus result in Ruby's penalization.
So she left her phone behind, scurrying to the kitchen to pre-heat the oven. She rummaged through the cupboards and pulled out the necessary ingredients and supplies.
When all she could do was wait for the oven to finish pre-heating, she retreated to the bathroom to freshen herself up before changing clothes.
In all the days Ruby had been away, Weiss only wore things her girlfriend had bought for her, and today was no different. She pulled on black leggings and a white mini skirt before wrestling her way into the itchy, static-ridden Christmas sweater Ruby had chosen for her. It was red and adorned a white snowflake pattern horizontally all around.
After a few minutes, Weiss got used to the strange fabrics against her skin and focused more on the cozy warmth it provided. She hugged herself for a quiet moment, imagining it was Ruby.
She then went into the living room and turned on the little antique radio there, letting the calming tunes of classical Christmas songs fill the house. She had invited Yang and Blake over later this evening, and wanted to provide a proper atmosphere for when they exchanged gifts.
And with any luck, those two would wear Weiss out enough to have her fall asleep without question, so she might sleep deeply for the first time in three days; she just needed to be certain she called Ruby first.
Peeking past the curtains, Weiss found it was snowing outside, a somewhat rare occurrence this time of year, despite the season. It wasn't common to get a white Christmas, but this year it was guaranteed. Weiss just felt guilty that her girlfriend wouldn't get to enjoy it together with her.
She turned back around, her eyes catching sight of the medium-sized Christmas tree Yang had helped them pick out several weeks ago, now lined with various-colored lights and ornaments.
In their bedroom, Weiss had set up a small, purely-white tree with white lights around it, though she refused to turn in on when Ruby wasn't there. But this one in the living room she plugged in to give off more of that Christmasy feeling.
She then went to the small coffee table by the couch, where the roses Ruby had sent her now sat in a vase. Weiss adjusted them a bit, bending down to breathe in their scent - Ruby's scent.
By then, the oven was pre-heated, and Weiss returned to the kitchen, tied her hair into a ponytail and began preparations for baking. She no longer required the assistance of the instructions; with Ruby Rose as her girlfriend, she'd memorized the recipe for chocolate chip cookies many many months ago.
She cracked the eggs, cut the butter, poured the flower, sugar, baking soda, and everything else before blending it all together. Once it was a good texture, she tore open the bag of chocolate chips and mixed them in, humming along with the tune drifting in from the living room.
She'd made enough for a full batch, enough to send Ruby half and keep the rest here for when she entertained Blake and Yang tonight.
She laid out the cookie sheets and began molding the batter into little balls, placing them in orderly lines until she'd filled two trays. She slid them into the oven and set them to bake for ten minutes.
During the time she waited, she got a small container to put the cookies into as well as a box to mail them in. She found the sticky note where Ruby had written the address of the hotel she was currently staying at and wrote everything out accordingly. She also brought a red ribbon to tie around the container once the cookies were in place.
Weiss went to the kitchen counter and tore a piece of paper out of a notebook, writing out a small letter to Ruby to send along with the cookies, signing it with a small heart and a snowflake.
After all of that, she still had five minutes left before the cookies were finished, though the tantalizing aroma was already wafting throughout the house. Weiss decided to prepare some hot cocoa in the meantime until the cookies' timer went off. She slipped an oven mitten onto her hand and pulled out the trays one at a time.
The cookies were perfectly shaped, the chocolate chips melty and gooey. Even Weiss had to admit how scrumptious they looked.
There was a bittersweet smile on her face as she began picking them off the trays to let them dry on a cooling rack.
"Such a shame..." she sighed. "They'll be cold and stiff by the time they reach her..."
After that, she had enough batter left for two more trays, and slipped those into the oven as well before setting the timer.
Not a second later, the doorbell rang, and Weiss jumped in surprise.
A deep voice called out, "Delivery!"
Weiss shot a glance at the clock. It was only 9AM, and the mailman usually came by at noon.
"Goodness, he's early!" she mumbled to herself before calling out louder. "One moment, please!"
She quickly slid the finished cookies into the container, tied it with the ribbon, packed it in the box with the letter, taped it shut, and stuck a stamp on the corner.
Weiss rushed to the front door, running a hand through her ponytail just to make sure it wasn't too frazzled as she opened the door.
Delivery, huh?
She briefly wondered what little part of herself Ruby had sent her today.
It certainly wasn't anything Weiss had been expecting.
This gift wasn't wrapped, save from a big red bow on top of her snow-covered head, red fuzzy earmuffs, a brown trench coat and boots, and the red scarf Weiss had given her two months ago...
And those silver eyes-
"Merry Christmas, Weiss!"
Ruby beamed a smile brighter than the sunlight that was currently reflecting off the freshly-fallen snow.
The box of cookies fell from Weiss' hands and landed softly onto the snowy steps leading to the door.
"Ru...by...?"
Her voice was small and thin, cracked and wavering, weak with poignant emotion. A hot stinging rushed up behind her eyes as Weiss brought her hands to her face.
"The one and only!" Ruby confirmed with a trademark salute. "And well... I couldn't exactly mail myself to you but... I took a plane! And I see you're wearing the sweater I got you! It's nice and comfy, isn't it? I hope you-"
"Ruby!"
Weiss' voice rose an octave, cutting her off. Ruby couldn't tell if she was happy or angry. Probably both.
And she could understand that; she'd deliberately lied to Weiss, after all.
Weiss shook her head before looking up at her again, and the tears were already dripping down her face.
"Ruby, you- you complete and utter dolt!"
Without warning, Weiss threw her arms around her girlfriend, tackling her off the steps and down into the snow.
"Whoa, Weiss-!" Ruby caught her quickly in a tight hug just before her back sunk into a snow bank on the front lawn. Weiss had buried her face in her girlfriend's red scarf and was sobbing softly, repeating her name over and over.
Ruby laughed lightly.
"Merry Christmas," she said again.
"Idiot!" Weiss huffed, finally lifting her puffy, red face up. "What about your work? What about your evaluation today? What about-"
"Weiss, Weiss!" Ruby reached up with her gloved hands to tuck her flustered girlfriend's hair back behind her ear. "Come on. The program was never a week long – no workplace would hold such a long program over Christmas! It was only three days and ended last night!"
Weiss was incredulous, shock written clearly on her expression and in her eyes.
"But... your evaluation-"
"Oh, that? Weiss, I only told you I had to go early last night so I could wake up to catch my flight this morning!" She leaned forward a bit and lightly bumped her forehead against Weiss'. "My real 'evaluation' today is seeing if you approve of your Christmas present!"
Weiss sniffled, trying to keep her jaw from hanging open, her hair and sweater already covered in snow. And her tears fell just as quickly as the flakes did.
"Why you... you planned this from the start, didn't you? Telling me you'd... that you'd be gone for a week when in reality it was only for three days..."
Ruby's smile faded for a moment.
"Yeah..." she mumbled guiltily. "I'm really sorry I had to lie to you... but I just..." Her shimmering silver eyes were now also letting the tears rise up, and her lips contorted into a wobbly smile as she tried not to cry. "Weiss, I just... wanted to see you like this. S-See you happy when I came home early... Please d-don't... don't be mad at me..."
Weiss bit her lip to keep it from trembling anymore than it already was.
"Y-You idiot..." She laughed, blinking more tears away. "How could I ever be mad at you? You've given me... the best Christmas present ever, Ruby." She reached up with her cold fingers to wipe Ruby's tears away, but like her own, they just kept coming.
"O-Okay..." Ruby sniffled. "S-Sorry, I don't know why I'm c-crying so much, I just... I really, really missed you, Weiss..."
"Dolt..." Weiss sighed, and her breath rose up in a little white cloud. "I really, really missed you, too."
She leaned down over her girlfriend and kissed her at long last, for the first time in almost four days.
Ruby had probably called a car service to drive her all the way here from the airport, and her lips were chapped and cold by now.
Weiss was intent to warm them up.
And Ruby was eager to let her.
She squeezed her arms around Weiss in a tight embrace, tasting her sweet, warm breath as their chests pressed together, trapping an intimate warmth between their stomachs. She pet her fingers through Weiss' long, white hair that was starting to form little crystals, and she felt Weiss doing the same for her.
When at last the older girl pulled away, both of them were pleasantly breathless, and the tears had stopped and dried. Even so, Weiss leaned down again to press a kiss to both of Ruby's cheeks, then her nose, her forehead, her hair, and anywhere else she could reach.
"I love you, you dolt," she murmured into her earmuffs. Even so, Ruby heard her loud and clear.
"I love you too, my little snowflake~"
She pulled Weiss down for one more kiss in the snow, realizing now just how badly she'd missed this feeling the past few days.
After another minute, Weiss broke the kiss as Ruby sat herself up. The red bow had fallen off of Ruby's had, and Weiss plucked it out of the snow and put it back in place. Weiss dusted her off as best she could as Ruby did the same for her, the younger girl darting in every other second to peck her cheek or temple.
There was a brief moment of silence when their eyes met, silver like the shining snow at midnight, and bright blue like the winter sky during the day.
They didn't have to say anything.
The snowflakes continued dancing around them as Ruby pulled Weiss into a tight, tight hug; Weiss returned the contact with equal fervor, sighing blissfully.
They pulled apart a minute later when a faint ding traveled out the open door and reached their ears.
"Oh!" Weiss exclaimed. "The cookies!"
Ruby gasped aloud in sheer excitement.
"Cookies?!" she squealed.
"Yes," Weiss said, shaking herself as she got to her feet. "I said I'd make them for you. Though I intended to mail them..." She looked over her shoulder at the box on the step. "I guess you'll just have to eat them fresh."
"Oh darn," Ruby pouted jokingly.
Weiss offered her hand and pulled her up out of the snow.
"Blake and your sister are coming over later," Weiss informed her. "They can have those. This fresh batch is just for you. And I just made some hot cocoa as well."
Ruby squealed again and spun in a circle before picking Weiss up in a hug and twirling her too.
"Did I ever tell you I love you?" she grinned.
"On occasion," Weiss chuckled. "Though I never mind hearing it again."
Ruby was about to put her back down onto her feet until she realized Weiss was only wearing her slippers. So instead, she carried her over to the front steps before letting her onto solid ground again. Weiss picked up the box of cookies and put them back inside next to the door for them to reopen and lay out for their guests later.
"Come on, then," she said, taking Ruby's hand. "Come inside before we both catch a cold for Christmas."
"Right!"
Ruby shook herself off and followed Weiss inside where she was met with joyful music and gentle warmth. She took off her boots as Weiss helped her shed her coat and hang it up in the closet. Ruby removed her scarf and earmuffs and put them into the closet as well, and at last, the big red bow came off and was placed on a nearby shelf.
When she turned around again, Weiss was before her, her eyes catching silver before traveling to the ceiling. Ruby followed her gaze and grinned. A small bushel of leaves and white berries hung above their heads.
"You got me!" Ruby laughed joyously.
She pulled Weiss in by the waist and closed her eyes, feeling Weiss chuckle against her lips as she kissed her again. And gosh, it was so warm, Ruby was already melting.
When Weiss stepped back, she was smiling almost as much as Ruby was.
Weiss then took a step forward and rested her head on her girlfriend's shoulder.
"Welcome home, Ruby," she breathed.
Ruby kept her arms wrapped warmly around Weiss as she kissed her head of snowy-white hair.
"Merry Christmas, Weiss. I love you."
They stayed that way for a moment longer, feeling each other's warmth, feeling her breathe, feeling all the things they'd been missing so sorely for the past three days.
Only when the scent of the cookies started to smell a bit melted did they part, but not before Weiss kissed her one last time.
"Now then," she said. "Let's have you taste-test these cookies."
"It's a task I will gladly accept!" Ruby declared proudly, taking Weiss' hand as they headed for the kitchen. "And then... maybe afterward-" She paused, interrupted by a yawn. "Maybe afterward we can take a nap together? Before Yang and Blake get here?"
Weiss smiled and pressed into her side.
"Of course."
A/N: I hope you enjoyed! The idea was that Ruby mailed a bit of "herself" to Weiss in all her little gifts when she was gone, but the real present was her literally showing up at her doorstep aha~
Happy holidays!
Please review!