Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY nor any holdings associated with the title.

This work may contain moments of dark/dirty humor and canonical divergences.

Ledge for Lovers

They'd almost done it again, ruined something for her.

Velvet was trying as hard as she could to soak in Coco's reassuring presence, but as they walked through the forest towards their destination, she just kept going back to that interaction back at Beacon. Coco had been having some kind of altercation with two members of Team CRDL. Velvet almost froze at the sight of them, as she'd been so focused on finding Coco that she'd been unprepared for interaction with some of her old bullies.

She might have even tried her normal routine of giving them as wide a berth as possible had her Girlfriend not been there, but she was, and so Velvet had done something she'd never done before. She'd mustered up every ounce of courage, swallowed her raging anxiety and called out to her. From the tail-end of the conversation she managed to catch, Coco must have heard them talking badly about her, and being the confident, protective type, of course she immediately took issue. And Velvet wasn't about to risk having Coco get in trouble with Team CRDL because of her again.

Back before Coco had managed to convince her that she wasn't as unapproachable as she had assumed, Velvet didn't want any of her team knowing about her problems with Cardin or his teammates. She'd assumed they'd reprimand her for letting thugs like them make a fool of her, and couldn't bear the thought of them realizing what an easy target she was. But she couldn't just not show up to lunch, or avoid the classes where her tormentors would frequent. As long as she could just get away from her team, they wouldn't be able to see how weak she was. But Cardin, when he found out how easy it was, he'd always find her.

And once Coco found out, of course she'd rally the others to make a point about what happened to people who threatened her friends. As touched as Velvet was to see them going out of their way for her, she didn't want them having to get into fights for her. Luckily, by the time the two teams were face to face, Cardin already seemed caught up with something. His entire team had gone from group bullying to constant infighting, and that arrogant demeanor of his had crumbled into raw agitation.

She'd heard that something had happened with his team on a class outing that had turned them against each other, and the result of it was bare for anyone to see. Cardin didn't even have the patience to try arguing with Coco's demands when he was finally confronted. In fact, Velvet could somewhat remember his teammates arguing with each other even then. Whatever the case, it had been a while since she'd actually had to get close to them, so she'd surprised even herself when she managed to talk back to two of them.

But she had, and now despite being on the way to a well-timed, well thought out and exceptionally romantic picnic with the girl of her dreams, she couldn't stop thinking about them.

Velvet squeezed Coco's hand a bit tighter, garnering her attention for what must have been the third time. Though she smiled at her, Velvet knew that she must have been thinking about the same thing. How did she know? Well, Coco was able to chat easily almost anywhere and about almost anything. But despite being on their way to a wonderful meal together, she'd hardly said anything.

And without Coco's relaxing banter to drive away Velvet's anxiety, she saw only one option: she'd have to start the conversation herself.

So, with a careful breath, she said "S-So...crazy weather, right?"

From the look of confusion Coco gave her, Velvet knew she had failed immeasurably.

But like a beacon of light, Coco snickered and smiled at her verbal grasping "You noticed it too? Thought it was just me, but I've been noticing quite the romantic mood around here."

Velvet had to keep her lips shut to muffle the embarrassed squeal trying to fight its way out. Coco noticed... of course Coco noticed. This side by side walk through the woods at this specific time of day. Velvet knew that this picnic had to be beautiful, had to be memorable and cherished. It would be just them, relaxing on a cliff with a modest meal... together... alone.

"Yes!" she finally managed to respond before tempering her volume and doing her best to maintain eye-contact "Do you like it? T-the mood I mean."

Coco gave a hum of thought before reaching up to adjust her sunglasses "Well if you're asking if I'm feeling like cuddling up any time soon... we're getting there."

Velvet desperately tried not to focus on the idea of actually cuddling with Coco, but her mind was adamant in its rebellion. She couldn't let her hopes get ahead of her, the last time she did was during the ear-incident. Despite how Coco seemed to brush it off, Velvet was determined not to overstep her boundaries again. But if Coco smiled and teased her like that... well, Velvet was ready to admit that there was no harm in hoping.

Coco gave a whistle as they finally pushed through some bushes to a fairly familiar ledge. Right here was where they'd actually assembled as a team for the first time after initiation, where they'd climbed out of the Emerald Forest on their first step to truly becoming Huntsmen. And Coco just so happened to mention that she really liked how relaxing the view was after initiation. Coupled with the low wind at this time of day, the sheer ambiance, and the low possibility of being discovered by someone, it was perfect.

Despite the importance of this occasion, Velvet tried to make it simple. The scenery would do most of the work, the picnic itself would just be a standard affair. Even so, she darted forward and began setting up with a near-maddened amount of precision. Every corner of the blanket she brought had to be in just the right position, the basket set in the middle to weigh it down just in the off chance the wind decided to bring its terrible inconveniencing down upon them. Truly, this specific ledge would offer no protection if the elements suddenly decided to turn against them.

She paused for a moment and wondered if she should acquire some rocks to pin it down just in case, maybe even grab a sufficiently large branch of leaves to cover them with. As her eyes darted to the nearest trees searching for one that might offer suitable protection, she flinched as something plopped down on the blanket. Head immediately jerking towards the sound, she found her heart rate calming down once she found Coco stretching out upon the soft fabric beneath them.

"You need help setting up or..?" Coco asked after reclining a bit

"No!" Velvet was quick to shout before catching herself and sealing her mouth shut for several moments, after which she whispered "Just- please get comfy."

Coco gave her a look before shrugging "If you say so."

Abandoning her preparatory measures, Velvet scooted over to her basket and immediately dug through it, using her search to mask the expression of embarrassment spread across her face. She needed to put her faith in the setting, she'd looked up weather patterns extensively just for this occasion! Even so, that meant Velvet had to focus on making sure she herself didn't somehow cause this entire venture to fall flat.

Looking over the provisions she'd prepared, Velvet found herself biting her lip. A blanket and a meal, that was what their first date was. But so far it just wasn't like the picnics in her stories. Well everything else was, Coco was as charmingly relaxed as usual and she knew for a fact that most couples would kill for a setting like this. But Velvet felt so on edge... her breathing becoming uneven as she realized once more that she was the only thing out of place here. Her offerings were paltry compared to the feasts laid out by the lovers in her stories, consisting of two thickly packed sub-sandwiches and chilled thermoses filled with soft drinks.

It was pathetic, but... she didn't know what else to do. All her other recipes wouldn't survive the trek here, and the ones that did wouldn't be able to maintain their alluring appearance. Of course, the sheer quantity of things in the subs could constitute a meal on their own, but Velvet had robbed Coco the benefit of a choice. Velvet's face tightened up, but she forced herself to press on. After all, that was something Coco always loved about her.

"I'm not much of a chef... but."

When Coco glanced over to the well-wrapped sub offered to her, the confused look she gave nearly caused Velvet to panic. But Coco merely leaned up with smile "Vel, what are you talking about? You've made those for the team before, we all loved them."

"Yes, b-but for a first date to be just this." Velvet tapped her fingers together once the sub was taken from her "Its... p-pretty small."

Coco lowered her glasses at that and sat up properly as she began unwrapping the sub "How are picnics usually supposed to go?"

That gave Velvet pause, she looked up as her girlfriend explained, "Hard as it might be to believe, none of my exes ever took me out into the woods for meals. There's not much I could compare it to in that department."

"Do you... like it, then?" Velvet asked carefully

"Well, we've got a good location." Coco took a bite of the partially unwrapped sub and chewed for a moment before "A delicious little meal, probably topped with affection."

"That's p-probably just the mayo-" Velvet was interrupted as Coco's free arm found its way around her waist and pulled her into a side hug.

"Enjoying it with a downright adorable girl like yourself." Coco continued "Not much I could complain about here, Vel."

Ah..." Velvet tensed up, uncertain whether she should simply enjoy the contact or work to return it. Should she hug back? Recent events haven't shown her attempts at physical compassion in a flattering light. What if she ended up holding her in an awkward way?

Luckily for her, Coco gave her some space to focus on enjoying her sub. Velvet couldn't help but soak in the pride which came from seeing Coco enjoy her fixings, the smile on on her face causing Velvet to revel in a form of self-satisfaction she often wasn't allowed to indulge in. Yes, she'd made the same thing for her whole team beforehand, several times in fact. But they were a couple now... it made sense that this just felt better, right?

"You gonna have any?" Coco asked after swallowing another bite.

Velvet realized she'd been caught staring once more, and hurried to pull out the sub she'd prepared for herself "R-Right."

And so they ate in silence, letting the sheer atmosphere meld well with the flavor of Velvet's subs. It was only when Coco was halfway through her sub that Velvet revealed the necessary concession of the evening: a thermos full of Lili Fizz.

Perhaps the most difficult part of her picnic to put together, Coco's preferred drink didn't mesh well with the scene whatsoever. It was flashy and cheap without any heart put into it, and made Velvet's stomach churn just remembering how it tasted when she tried it. But Coco seemed to just love the stuff, as she seemed to grab a bottle after every class and training session.

Despite her personal distaste, Velvet had to admit that as she watched Coco take a large swig of the manufactured fluid, it looked downright appealing. But that was just how Coco was, making even something as horrid as Lili Fizz seem delightful to any onlooker.

Finally the subs were consumed, stomachs were filled, and Coco reclined on the blanket after they were done packing away their garbage. It still wasn't big by date standards at all, but Velvet was positively gleaming with warmth by the end of it. Occasionally she worried the silence would get awkward, but a single look at Coco's smile would rid her of those concerns immediately.

So as she was relaxing in the afterglow of what she assumed was a perfectly relaxing first outing, she was unprepared for the sudden question Coco posed to her.

"I'm still Coco to you, right Vel?"

Velvet blinked at the question, and she looked down at Coco, who had once more reclined back on the blanket, "What?"

"Dunno, guess I just feel like we haven't really been treating each other like the same people, ya know?" Coco tried explaining "Like, I'm pretty sure I'm the same... right?"

And suddenly Velvet's afterglow was washed away by a sudden surge of anxiety. That worried and introspective tone that Coco was using... was not comforting.

"Y-yes?" she tried answering

"Like, we're just Coco and Velvet trying to have good old lovey dovey time, right?" Coco continued as she glanced over to Velvet.

"Yes..." Velvet racked her mind, trying to figure out where this topic suddenly came from. She must've done something wrong right? Coco wouldn't just pull a tonal-shift like this without reason!

"I feel..." Coco leaned up a bit "...like you're trying to change yourself a bit too much for me, Vel."

Velvet blinked, "What?"

"Don't get me wrong, I'm all kinds of proud of how much initiative your taking, but I kinda miss the things we used to do before, ya know?"

"Oh..." Velvet said slowly as she glanced down, hands shakily taking hold of the blanket beneath her "So you... you want to stop?"

"No!" Coco said quickly as she sat up and scooted over a bit "God no, Vel. I'm just getting used to being all romantic with you, I don't really want to just give up on that. I'm saying that I'd like to not have to pick one over the other."

Reaching over, Velvet had to fight to hold herself together as Coco placed both hands on her shoulders.

"I want to keep doing things we used to, along with the new dating stuff, 'kay?" she asked while nodding down at the box on her own hip "I want you to keep helping me with my baby here?"

Velvet was confused, shook her head at that, "What? B-but its fine the way it-"

"Up up up!" Coco interrupted her whilst reaching up to lower her sunglasses so she could lock eyes with her "See? This is exactly what I'm talking about honey bun."

Velvet went wide-eyed at that. This was what Coco was worried about? Velvet hadn't even noticed it. She'd been trying so hard to be a good girlfriend that their usual routine kinda played a secondary focus. She wanted to be more invested in treating Coco nicely, to make up for the not so enjoyable tendencies that she knew she'd been subjecting Coco to since they got together.

But as Velvet thought about it, the more she realized just how much she'd been letting slip under her radar in her bid to impress. Coco was the type who enjoyed all those small friendly things, she was just more used to that stuff than Velvet and her non-existent social life were. Had she... really been depriving Coco of that?

Velvet searched Coco's face, and realized that despite the smile she was wearing, this was actually something that was really worrying her. Velvet knew worry, and she could recognize it anywhere, but it was just so... so unnatural to see it showing through Coco's casual demeanor. And realizing that she was responsible for that... it hurt... badly.

"I'm sorry-" she tried apologizing, only for Coco to pull her into a quick hug.

"Aw, no need for apologies, Vel." Coco cooed "Not like I'm losing sleep over it. Just trying to lay it all out there, ya know?"

She began pulling away, but paused when she felt Velvet slip both arms around her and return the hug. Stifling her nerves, Velvet threw caution to the wind and clung to Coco with a sigh, "I- for a second I was really... really worried there... sorry."

Coco tilted her head to the side "If you say something like that while making such a cute face, you're going to make me feel kinda guilty here, Vel."

Velvet pouted at that and turned her head away whilst trying to contain her blush. But before she could calm herself down enough to offer some kind of reply, she felt something warm press against her cheek. She locked up, thoughts melting away as she struggled to come to terms with what was happening. It wasn't what she thought, right? It couldn't be! But her gaze drifted to the side, finding that indeed, Coco was planting a warm kiss on her cheek.

Coco pulled away with a snicker as Velvet brought a hand up to her cheek in surprise. She tried saying something, anything as she rubbed at the spot. The memory of Coco's lips had burned itself into her skin, spreading throughout her body until she could barely move. She needed to say something, the silence after such an act was getting to her. She moved her mouth, but the only things which spewed out were incoherent even to her. It wasn't working, everything just brought her back to that single chaste kiss.

A hand made its way around her waist and pulled her to her Girlfriend's side before she could ramble any longer. Velvet looked over to see Coco enjoying the view from their ledge before glancing back to her.

"I had a good time, Vel." Coco said with a smirk "Let's make the next date just as awesome."

AN: Full disclosure, this chapter was supposed to be the original ending of this little romp. But as I wrote out the proceeding chapters, I sorta got a couple more ideas which I couldn't help building little scenarios around as I went.

So at the moment we're only halfway through. I've got a clear idea on how I want to end this right now, but considering that this was the original ending those plans may change too. Kind of hard to believe that this supposedly small idea was originally just an outlet for fulfilling a sudden need for more awkward Crosshares.

Anyway, hope you enjoy, any and all criticisms positive or negative are welcomed in full so leave a review or comment if you are so inclined to do. Things you enjoyed about it? Things you hated about it? Any ways you feel I could improve? Expectations for the next chapter? Follow or Favorite at your leisure and I will see you all in the next installment of Trying Chocolate.