Velvet was depressed. Most people wouldn't have noticed that something was wrong with the young faunus. She laughed at jokes, she smiled when she passed friends in the hallway, she made smalltalk. But there were signs. She would stare into space instead of take notes in class, and something in her smiled felt forced. Like she was giving off the appearance of being alright, rather than actually being alright. Most people wouldn't notice.
But Coco Adel wasn't most people.
Coco noticed every little sign that her teammate was giving off, and it was killing her inside. She was upset whenever her friends were having a rough time, for any reason, but this was worse. It was killing her because she knew Velvet's depression was her fault.
Team CFVY had been on a mission with Professor Majorelle for the past week. The mission called for them to clear out an outpost overrun with Grimm on the edge of Mountain Glenn. The area had been relatively quiet as of late, so the time seemed perfect to sweep the area for any equipment or supplies that had been left behind in the rush to abandon the outpost.
The mission was supposed to be rather easy, especially for a team as skilled as CFVY. Instead, the mission went to hell almost immediately, as their missions seemed to do on a regular basis. Their transport was attacked by a swarm of griffons, forcing them to land in Mountain Glenn itself. Their transport was further damaged as CFVY regrouped, ultimately forcing them to abandon the transport.
They were forced to walk to the outpost, fighting an endless supply of Grimm along the way. They finally made it to the outpost and holed up inside, waiting for evac. Unfortunately, a flock of Nevermore had been sighted in the area, so sending a ship was out of the question until they either left, or were taken care of. After three days of waiting, CFVY voted unanimously to take them out.
Needless to say, the team was beyond exhausted when they finally returned to campus, Professor Majorelle being no exception, having fought alongside her students. Team CFVY finally arrived in their dorm room somewhere around 4 AM Saturday morning, and slept for nearly twelve hours.
Velvet had woken up only after Coco had ripped the sheets from her bed and pinched her cheeks.
The faunus sat up in bed, eyes still closed and hair a tangled mess. "Coco? Whahappen?" She wasn't the best first thing in the morning.
Coco, on the other hand, looked as though she were ready for a photoshoot. "We're going out for dinner, so get your cute little butt out of bed."
Velvet glanced at the clock on her nightstand. It read 3:25 PM. "But it's not even dinner time." she pouted.
"Late lunch then, same thing." Coco crossed her arms. "C'mon, we're all hungry and there's a nice new cafe in town. It's nice, but not so fancy that Fox will complain the whole time."
Velvet was about to protest, and ask for her sheets back, when her stomach growled. She hadn't eaten since before getting on the ship headed back to Beacon. Late lunch/early dinner didn't sound too bad, she had to admit.
Yatsuhashi unfolded the room divider for some privacy as they changed. It didn't block half the room, but the boys respected the girl's privacy, and the girls did the same. Plus it saved them the hassle of splitting up between the dorm and the bathroom when they changed.
Coco had picked out a black turtleneck, brown jeans, and black boots, and a black leather belt with gold studs for herself (as well as her customary beret and sunglasses). Velvet tried to go with something simple, but Coco wouldn't hear of it. After a bit of arguing, they compromised, and Velvet wore a white longsleeve shirt with horizontal yellow stripes, yellow skirt, and white slip-ons. Velvet didn't like how the shirt's wide collar bared her shoulders, but Coco just laughed and quickly kissed her cheek. That always did the trick.
Velvet slipped a necklace around her neck when Coco wasn't looking. It was simple, but it had more sentimental value than almost anything else she owned. It consisted of a thin gold chain with a stitched golden heart, her personal symbol, hanging from the chain. Coco had given it to her on her birthday her first year at Beacon.
Yatsu unfolded the screen to reveal himself and Fox in what he called their "fancy" clothes. Yatsu wore a burgundy button-up sweater with a black shirt underneath, brown trousers, and black leather shoes. Fox wore a red button-up shirt with black sleeves and collar, black jeans, and red sneakers. Coco began to argue with Fox's choice of shoes until the blind boy sighed, and left the room without a word. Coco chased him down the hallway, criticizing his footwear the whole way.
Yatsuhashi gently nudged Velvet as they followed their teammates. "You look nice."
Velvet blushed at the compliment. "Thanks, Yatsu. So do you. I just wish Coco wouldn't spend so much money on clothes for me all the time. It's sort of embarrassing."
The tall boy shrugged. "She likes doing it. And she likes you. Quite a lot."
"I like her a lot too." Velvet blushed. It was still hard for her to admit her feelings openly, even when it came to her feelings for Coco. "I… I love her."
Yatsu smiled and patted her on the head as they caught up to their teammates.
They made their way into town, and followed Coco's lead. The streets weren't very busy, since they were out before the dinner rush. And most people have them a wide berth as the travelled down the sidewalk. "The benefit of a confident strut," Coco had once said. "And a very tall teammate," she added after a moment.
They finally found the cafe. It didn't look like much from the outside, just another brick building with large windows and a wooden sign above the door. Velvet read the sign a few times, but gave up on pronouncing the name. She guessed that this place was a bit fancier than Coco had let on at first.
They entered, and Velvet walked up to the concierge at the desk, a young woman with her hair in a tight bun and a false smile plastered on her face. "Um, hello," Velvet started. "We have a reservation. Scarlatina, party of four."
It had become a rule that any reservation be made under anybody's name except for Coco's. Last time they made a reservation under 'Adel,' they found themselves at the nicest table in the restaurant with a bottle of wine costing 300 lien presented as "compliments of the house, for Miss Adel." Coco found the ordeal far too embarrassing to ever risk repeating.
The concierge glanced briefly at the book set in front of her. "Hmm, I'm sorry but I see no such reservation." She looked back up and smiled, not making eye contact with Velvet.
Velvet frowned. "Really? I'm sure I called ahead…"
"Are there any open tables we could have, without a reservation?" Coco asked.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, but there aren't any open tables."
Yatsu scanned the room. From his position, he could see at least six empty tables. "And all those empty tables? Are they reserved?"
"I'm sorry, but we just can't offer any tables to…" she shot a quick glance at Velvet, "your group."
Coco suddenly noticed a sign next to the concierge desk. It displayed a black circle topped by two triangles, crossed by a red X. The international symbol than meant "no faunus allowed." Coco felt her fists clanch at her side as she stepped forward.
"How dare you treat my friend, my teammate like this?" She asked the woman with quiet malice. "She has done nothing to deserve this kind of treatment! I demand to speak to-"
She was interrupted when Fox gripped her shoulder and forced her to turn around. He pointed at the window. Coco looked just in time to see Velvet run down the street. Coco immediately pulled away from Fox's grip and ran out the door. "Velvet!" she called to her retreating teammate.
Velvet either didn't hear her, or didn't care. She ran down the sidewalk faster than Coco could follow, and turned the corner. Coco struggled to keep up. She followed her around the corner and down the next street. She followed when Velvet turned another corner, and crossed a street, always running, not letting anything stop her. Coco forced herself to keep going, dodging pedestrians and shouting for her teammate to stop.
Eventually Coco found herself in a park. Velvet had run down a winding path, losing Coco in the tangle of bushes and trees. Coco continued, calling Velvet's name all the while. She found her when she stopped to catch her breath. As she leaned against a tree to collect herself, she heard the unmistakable sounds of Velvet crying. She pushed her way through a large bush to find Velvet sitting on a bench alongside a path she had somehow missed.
She didn't say anything as she walked over to the faunus and sat down next to her, dropping her sunglasses into her purse as she sat. She made sure to give her enough space. Sometimes Velvet needed a hug, sometimes she just needed breathing room. Coco would provide either. Velvet slid close enough to throw her arms around her leader and bury her face in her shoulder. Coco returned the hug, stroking her back and telling her it was okay.
They sat like this for maybe ten minutes. Maybe an hour. Coco didn't try to keep track of the time. Eventually Velvet pulled away, wiping the tears from her eyes. "I'm sorry, Coco."
Coco was taken aback at this. "What for?"
"I ruined your shirt."
Coco glanced at the wet spot on her shoulder before smiling. "Coco, the shirt's fine. And even if it wasn't, so what? You can destroy my entire closet if it'll make you feel better."
Velvet giggled, despite herself. "Thanks." She sniffled. "And I'm sorry about running like that. I know you want me to assert myself, but…"
"Yeah, I know. People suck." Velvet had, despite Coco's feelings on the matter, come to accept that there would always be small-minded, terrible people in the world. She could deal with their intolerance most of the time, but when it came to institutionalized racism, well… that was harder to take.
"I just… it's hard, you know? I thought that if I came to Vale, to Beacon, things would be different. But no matter where I go, there are still people who can't look past my ears." She tugged absentmindedly at one of her drooping ears as tears spilled down her cheeks once more. "I wish… sometimes I wish I was human. Then I wouldn't have to-"
"No!" Coco leapt from the bench as she shouted, startling Velvet. "Velvet if you start to think like that, then they win! If you let them think you're somehow worth less than a human just because of those," she said as she pulled Velvet's hands from her ears, "then you make it true. You're the kindest, most beautiful girl I know, and those ears on your head don't change that, one way or the other."
Velvet looked away as a deep blush colored her cheeks. "But you always say that my ears are cute. So… if I didn't have them you wouldn't think I was so… beautiful," she said quietly.
Coco smiled, squeezing her hands. "You got me there. So don't you dare say you don't want them."
Velvet didn't say anything. She just pulled Coco closer and hugged her tightly around the waist. Coco slid her arms around Velvet's shoulders in response, a smile on her face.
After a while, Velvet was ready to find Fox and Yatsu. They made their way through the park, hand in hand. They eventually found a fountain they had passed on their mad dash into the park. There were a few couples in this area, holding hands or embracing. Coco could see why. The light streamed through the trees and reflected off the water in the fountain, making it sparkle. It was beautiful.
"Oh, Velvet. Before I forget."
"Hmm?"
Coco pulled Velvet in for a kiss. Velvet momentarily returned it before quickly pushing away, cheeks flushed pink. "Coco!" she said in a harsh whisper. "Someone'll see us!"
"I don't care," Coco responded in a serious tone. "I love you, and I want everybody to know it. I want people to be jealous of how lucky I am to be in love with such a wonderful woman."
Velvet glanced around at the couples in the area. Nobody seemed to be paying them any mind. She wanted to kiss Coco. She always wanted to kiss Coco. They'd been dating since near the end of their first year at Beacon, but they'd been taking things slowly, at Velvet's request. She'd recently worked up the courage to hold hands in public, but kissing in public was… something else entirely.
And kissing was as far as they had gone, which Coco was ashamed to admit made her a bit frustrated. But she had promised to wait, and that's what she would do, no matter how long Velvet wanted to wait.
Coco looked away bashfully. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have tried to push it. I didn't mean to make you uncomfor-" she was cut off by Velvet pressing their lips together once more. Velvet's arms encircled her waist, pulling her close.
Coco responded, putting her arms around Velvet's shoulders once more, holding the girl she loved close. Her eyes shot open when Velvet's tongue swiped across her lips. Coco opened her mouth to accept the probing tongue, and mentally thanked any god she could think of for finding such an amazing girl.
Someone cleared their throat nearby and the girls shot apart. They turned to find Fox, standing with his arms crossed in mock annoyance. "Planning on ditching your team for some alone time?"
"N-n-no we were-" Velvet started nervously.
Yatsu patted Fox's head, eliciting a groan of annoyance from the shorter boy. "Fox is just grumpy. So, where to now?"
"Food," Fox replied shortly.
"Well I know a good place nearby," Yatsu said. "It's not nearly as fancy as Mer Tab… Mayer Table… whatever that place was called. But they make great tea."
It turned out to be a ramen stand. But the food was good, and Yatsu was right about the tea.
Coco thought Velvet had put the unpleasantness behind her, but it seemed to be nagging at her. It was like a storm cloud that followed her wherever she went. Apparently she'd opened up to Blake (who Coco wasn't supposed to know was a faunus, but Velvet had let it slip one day), and that made it come back in full force.
Coco knew that Velvet wouldn't blame her for it, even though it was her fault they went there in the first place. It was Coco's fault for not checking ahead. It was her fault that her girlfriend was so depressed.
After three days of Velvet forcing smiles, Coco had enough. She had to do something.
She was alone in the cafeteria, sipping on a cup of coffee and trying to come up with a plan when opportunity presented itself.
"I hear there's a really nice new place in town! Fancy, but not too fancy, and amazing food!"
"Eh, I dunno Weiss, 'fancy' and I don't exactly get along."
"Oh hush, you'll love it."
Coco turned to see Weiss and Ruby arguing at their own table. She hadn't spoken to them much, but Velvet had a class with the freshmen and said they were good people. They also knew about their teammate being a faunus, and the revelation had apparently made Weiss reject her previously racist attitude. She was also a bit of a gossip, Coco had heard.
Jackpot.
Coco turned in her seat to face the younger girls. "Are you talking about Mae'r Tabl Dawel? Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop."
"Oh, hello Coco. Yes, that's the one," Weiss responded enthusiastically. "Do you know it?"
"Yeah, I ate there over the weekend," she lied. "It was really good."
Weiss turned triumphantly to Ruby. "You see? Coco liked it."
"Except for the cockroach in my salad."
Weiss' head snapped around so quickly Coco was afraid the girl had just given herself whiplash. "The what?"
Coco calmly sipped her coffee. "Yeah, can you believe it? I mean, they comped the meal, of course. But still." She took another sip. "An entire cockroach."
Coco left the cafeteria, smiling at the memory of Weiss' stunned face. Coco, as a rule, hated gossip and avoided it whenever possible. But she knew the power her words commanded. One of the perks of coming from a rich and famous family, she supposed. She would speak, people would listen, then they would repeat. Simple, effective, and evil.
It felt good to use that power for justice.
A month passed before the small seed she planted finally bore fruit.
She had spent the month doing anything she could to cheer up Velvet. Impromptu shopping trips, a box of chocolates or two (or three), movie night complete with cuddles under a heated blanket, the works. Velvet was finally back to her old self. With the added perk of being able to kiss Coco in public without being too embarrassed.
Well, she was still embarrassed. But she didn't let it stop her from kissing Coco any longer.
Coco was studying at her desk when she learned the news. Velvet had entered the room and sat down on Coco's bed.
"Hey Coco, remember that restaurant?"
"The ramen place?"
"No the… other one."
"Oh, Mae'r Tabl Dawel? Yeah, I added them to my list. Why?" Coco's 'list' held the names of anti-faunus establishments or individuals. It was, sadly, a rather long list.
"Well you should cross them off. They got shut down." Velvet's smile was the very picture of schadenfreude.
Coco turned away from her textbook and faced her girlfriend. "Oh really? What happened?" she asked with perfectly feigned ignorance.
"Well apparently a bunch of people found cockroaches in their food, and rats in the bathroom."
Coco mentally sighed. The evil power of gossip, she thought. "You're joking."
Velvet shook her head. "Nope. So people didn't want to eat there, obviously, and they went out of business."
Coco allowed herself to smile. "Well, what goes around comes around, I guess." She turned back to her textbook.
Velvet got up and crossed to her own bed. She slipped out of her jacket and vest, tossing them into the nearby laundry basket. "How strange that this happened right after we went."
Coco hoped she didn't tense too visibly. "Yeah, strange." She did her best to not look at Velvet.
"You didn't have anything to do with it, right?"
"Of course not. I put that place out of my mind entirely."
Coco heard the door lock. "Hmm… well I suppose I believe you."
Coco sighed in relief. She heard the mattress to Velvet's bed squeak slightly as the faunus sat down. "Coco?"
Coco turned and immediately turned bright red. Velvet had divested herself of her uniform, and sat lightly on her bed, clad only in her white underwear. Her cheeks matched Coco's in color and shade. "Could you… turn off that light?"
Coco obliged, turning off her desk lamp and bathing the room in darkness. Velvet had turned off the overhead lights when she locked the door.
"Thanks. Um… I don't know what to say…"
Coco stood from the desk and hesitantly made her way towards Velvet's bed. "Are you…" she swallowed a lump in her throat. "Are you sure?"
Velvet paused only for a moment. "Yes."
Coco kissed her, and fell into the bed.
"I love you."
Fox rattled the doorknob. The door didn't budge. He tried again. Nothing.
He pulled his scroll from his pocket and swiped it at the lock. The door opened a fraction of an inch before slamming and locking again.
Was it broken?
Again he swiped the lock and tried the door, only to meet resistance. He pushed against the door with his shoulder.
"Damn it, Fox! Take the hint!"
Fox stopped. "Coco? What's going on?"
"Nothing! Everything is fine!"
"Velvet? What are… oh."