A Very Merry Christmas: The Warm Beginning of a New Year
Morning had finally come. The sunlight broke through the windows filling the room with its illuminating beams.
I instinctively shift in the bed turning to face the wall, trying to avoid the warm light threatening my comfortable sleep. Mornings are definitely not my thing. I'd rather be left in my nice comfortable bed.
Of course other people have different ideas this Christmas morning.
"Ace… Ace wake up." I hear Matt say breaking the tranquility of the room. He starts pushing on my back, in attempt to get me up.
"No. I'm sleeping." I grumble, pulling the covers over my head.
"Ace it's time to get up. We have to go meet up with the others."
"Go away Matt."
"If you don't get up on your own I'm going to have to make you myself." He threatens.
"Bite me." I sigh burying my head into my pillows.
"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you." He chuckles.
"Ace still not up?" I hear Dez ask Matt.
"He's up but he's being lazy and refuses to get out of bed."
"I don't think I know anyone that sleeps more than him."
"Don't worry. I have experience getting him up." Matt says confidently.
I hear Matt whispering something into Dez's ear. Even with my enhanced hearing I can't make it out. Doesn't matter though. Nothing Matt can do will get me up right now.
It's then I hear both of them walk up to the bed.
"On three then." Matt says.
"One… Two… Three!" The both shout in perfect sync.
I feel the bed being flung upward on one side, causing gravity to slide me off the bed and dropping me onto the floor.
Okay, almost nothing he did was going to get me out of bed.
"Alright! I'm getting up!" I shout in annoyance from my position on the hard floor.
I can hear both of them laughing with each other at my expense. I poke my head over the side of the bed with a frown.
"You know that counts as mutiny in my book." I state, glaring at them before letting off a long yawn.
"I warned you." Matt says shrugging.
"Dare I ask what time it is?" I question, folding my arms.
"7:30 in the morning." Dez answers with a grin.
"I was afraid of that." I groan.
"Well I know what will make you feel better. Opening presents with your friends. Come on. Zweii's already up and going." Matt says leaving the room in a hurry.
I shake my head with a smile at his eagerness. Better get down there I suppose.
As I make my way to the Ballroom, I see Ruby and Nora flying down the hall, catching up with Matt. I see their respective teams slowly follow after. Weiss and Pyrrha both looked half asleep, no doubt having been subject to similar rude awakenings.
"You too?" I ask as they walk up beside me.
"Ruby insisted on being up early so we could get there first. Such a child." Weiss sighs.
"You're lucky. Nora barely slept all night. She was way too excited." Pyrrha says with a yawn.
"I can beat that. Half my team catapulted me off my own bed."
"I'm so sorry." Pyrrha apologizes.
"One thing's for sure. I'm getting some coffee before any of this." Weiss states.
"You said it sister." I say in agreement, giving the ivory haired girl a tired fist bump.
"Coffee sounds like a grand idea." Pyrrha adds.
After acquiring our drinks, we join up with the rest of the group. They were gathered around the tree in a half circle arc. Each of our teams were sat next to each other with spots left vacant for us to fill. Shadow sat on the far end of my team.
I take my seat next to my partner, carful as to not spill my coffee. I take a small drink from my mug before placing it out of the way.
"I figured you children would be up this early." We hear Ozpin state as he walks in with Glynda.
"Good morning professors." We all say greeting them politely.
"You weren't going to start without us now were you?" He asks jokingly.
"Of course not. After all, we're all family this year." Matt answers.
"Yeah. Oz is the fun coffee loving uncle, and Goodwitch is the stern but cool aunt." Yang mocks. This causes us all to laugh.
I can see Ozpin wearing a bright smile, while a completely stunned Goodwitch stood next to him gawking, with a slight blush on her cheeks.
"Well now that we're all here, I suppose we should get started." Jaune states.
"Yeah but how are we going to do this?" Ren asks, bringing a very good point to our attention.
"I propose we go in order of how we are seated, starting here with Blake, who will give her presents to their respective recipients, and ending with Matthew." Weiss says pitching her idea.
"Sounds good, but why do you four get to start?" Dez asks.
"Because it was my idea." Weiss states smugly.
"Fair enough." Dez replies. "Alright Blake, get us started then."
The Faunus girl nods and moves to the tree pulling out the gifts for her team.
She gives a large golden bag to Yang and a red box to Ruby. Oddly she doesn't give anything to Weiss. Instead she whispers something into her ear and the heiress nods with a smile.
"I hope you like them." Blake tells the other two, who already have begun unwrapping their gifts.
Yang pulls out a new jacket with her name sown onto the right side of her chest. On the left was her symbol. On the back in bold flaming letters it said "I Burn".
"Blake this is awesome. Did you get this custom made?" She asks as she examines the clothing more.
"I did." She answers simply.
"Oh Blake! You're the best partner I've ever had."
"I'm the only partner you've ever had." She corrects, rolling her eyes. "I'm glad you like it."
Ruby pulled out a book out of the scraps of red paper that had been concealing it. Her eyes went wide when she looked at the title.
"Wow Blake. Thanks so much!" She says hugging the ebony haired girl.
"You're welcome Ruby. I remembered how much you said you loved those old fairytales Yang used to read to you, so I found the largest collection behind a hard back cover."
"Alright! My turn!" Yang says quickly grabbing the presents for her team. She hands both Blake and Ruby small boxes. Again no gift for Weiss.
Blake opens her box and pulls out a small black and gold ribbon. She stares at it before looking at Yang who's smiling warmly at her.
"It's a new bow. You know so you have a little more variety." She says before putting on a more serious expression. "But I don't want you wearing it because you think we want you to. We love you for who you are Blake. Maybe one day you'll be able to go without the bow."
Blake starts tearing up, giving Yang a hug.
"Thank you Yang. It's wonderful." Blake says happily.
What a thoughtful gift for Yang to give her. The bow is nice, but the compassion and understanding is probably worth so much more to Blake.
"Yang!" Ruby shouts excitedly drawing our attention. "You got me the newest Achievemen album?!"
"Yep! Merry Christmas little sis!" Yang answers giving Ruby a huge hug.
"Yang… Need… Air." Ruby croaks in the blondes strong embrace. Yang lets her go scratching the back of her head with a grin.
"I believe it's my turn then." Weiss states calmly retrieving three large bags. She hands the first to her leader.
Ruby pulls out the paper and her jaw practically hits the floor. She pulls out a large package of the finest grade of black dust. It's exceedingly powerful and very expensive.
Ruby pulls out another box filled with silver bullet casings. Attached to the front of the box is a 3 year subscription to Weapons Monthly.
"Oh my Dust! Weiss, this is incredible. The dust alone must have cost a fortune!" Ruby cries in delight.
"A small amount to me really. You forget I am the heiress to the richest dust company in Remnant." She scoffs.
"Yeah I know. It's just that most times I don't see you that way. I just see you as my best friend Weiss." Ruby says sincerely.
Weiss gives her a curt hug for her words.
"And that's what makes you my best friend." Weiss smiles.
She turns her head slightly unnoticed by anyone, giving me a quick wink. I nod in response. She really has come a long way since our talk.
"This one is for you Yang." She informs the blonde.
Yang unwraps a large supply of hair care products. A very nice brand in fact.
"Aw Weiss! You do like my hair!" Yang teases.
"If you insist on keeping that mop you pass off as your hair, then I will see that you take care of it properly." Weiss informs.
"Thank you very much. That was real Weiss of you." Yang sneers.
"Way to kill the moment Yang." Ruby deadpans.
"Finally this one is for Blake." She says handing out the final gift.
Blake sifts through the paper finally finding her prize. She reveals a collection of four books.
"Weiss, this is the complete set of my favorite book. Thank you." She says with a smile.
Weiss frowns a little.
"Not the complete set. I couldn't find one of the books in the collection." Weiss admits.
Blake looks at her with a confused expression.
"But there are only four books so far." She states.
"Look at the last book."
Looking down at the fourth book, Blake's eyes go wide as saucers.
"This is the fifth book in the series. It's not supposed to be available to the public for another year!" She states in disbelief. "How did you get this?" She asks.
"I have connections. It's even autographed by the author." Weiss says with a smile.
"But if you got this one, which one did you not find?" Blake asks.
"The third one. It's the most popular in the series and nobody has it. I'm sorry." Weiss says.
"It's still a wonderful gift Weiss. It means a lot to me coming from you."
"Oh Weiss, Blake. Have I got a surprise for you two!" Ruby says zipping over to the tree and pulling out a black box with a red ribbon.
Blake opens it causing both her and Weiss to look at its contents, then Ruby in shock.
"The third book! Where did you find this?" Weiss asks in amazement.
"It was the last one in the store. It pays to have speed as your semblance. I wouldn't have been able to scoop it up in time without it." Ruby explains happily.
"Thank you Ruby." Blake says holding her new book closely.
"And for my awesome big sister Yang, I got you this." Ruby says pulling out a small heart shaped locket. Yang opens it to find a picture of the two of them together at home. Yang's gaze moves to the other side which held a short inscription.
"No matter how much we grow and change, you will always be my big sister, who I love with all my heart. –Ruby." Yang quotes, reading the text.
"I love it Ruby. But not as much as I love you." Yang says giving her sister a more tender hug.
"Merry Christmas Yang." Ruby says softly.
"That was a very thoughtful gift Miss Rose." Ozpin says grinning at the young leader.
"And we saved the best gift for last." Ruby says running behind the tree and walking over to Weiss with the last gift hidden behind her back. Yang and Blake joined her at her sides.
"Weiss, we really didn't know what to give you for Christmas but I think we came up with a pretty good idea. It's not much, but…" Ruby says starting to explain before Weiss cuts her off.
"You have each already given me more than anyone else. I will like whatever you give me." She assures them.
Ruby pulls out a stocking with "RWBY" embodied on to it. She hands it to Weiss, who reaches a hand in to pull out a white picture frame, decorated with snowflakes. It held a picture of all four of them together.
"No matter what, we hope you always see us as your friends and more importantly your family." Blake says.
"We're always here for you, whenever you need us." Yang adds.
"Sorry if it isn't the best present ever." Ruby says nervously.
"It's perfect." Weiss whispers. "Thank you. All of you."
They end their gift exchange with a group hug.
That means it was the start or JNPR's gift giving. Strangely enough, Ren and Nora both stood up to retrieve gifts.
"Nora and I bought each of your gifts together." Ren explains.
"These are for Jaune." Nora says handing the blond knight two gift cards, one from each of them.
"We weren't sure what you would want. Figured this was the next best option." Ren states.
"Thanks guys. I'll put them to good use." Jaune says in appreciation.
"This if for you Pyrrha." Ren says handing her a gift.
Out of a box, she withdraws a bronze necklace with an ancient look to it. Around the necklace was orangish-red gem stones, five in total.
"It's lovely. Thank you both." Pyrrha smiles warmly.
"They're real by the way. The gems on the necklace are Imperial Topaz." Ren states.
"Those are only mined back home in Mistral." Pyrrha says impressed.
"Yep! We thought they would remind you of home while you're here." Nora says.
"That was very thoughtful."
"Ren, we all got you something together." Nora says happily.
They each grab the green clad warrior's gifts and handed them to him. A new set of cooking supplies. No doubt Nora's idea.
"Much appreciated." He says simply. "I'll be sure to use them soon." He says with a grin.
"And for Nora, we all got you these." Jaune says as they reveal their gifts. Plush Grimm dolls, one of an Ursa, one of a Beowolf, and one of a Nevermore.
She hugs all of the dolls close to her squealing in delight.
"There so soft! Thanks guys!"
"Jaune, this is my gift to you." Pyrrha says holding out a bag for her partner.
Jaune pulls out a new two piece, black and orange pajama set.
"It's time you got some new pajamas Jaune." Pyrrha giggles.
"What's wrong with the one I have now." He asks obliviously.
The sound of Ren's hand smacking his forehead resonated through the room.
"Three little words Jaune. Bunny. Footed, Onesie." Nora says, giving him the perfect reason as to why he needed a change of wardrobe.
"Okay I get it." He says blushing. "Thanks Pyrrha."
"You're welcome Jaune."
"I… I got you this Pyrrha." He says nervously, handing her a pot with a red ribbon around it. Planted within it was a red poinsettia plant.
"Jaune it's…" Pyrrha starts.
"I know. It isn't a whole lot. I just couldn't think of anything to give to someone as amazing as you. Someone like me should only be able to dream of being partners with you. I'm sorry."
"Jaune, don't even think like that. I love it. You know why?" She asks sweetly.
"Uh…"
"It's because you gave it to me as a friend. That's all that matters." She answers.
After that heart felt sentiment it was finally our turn to give out presents. I was the first to start. I walk up to the tree and get each of my teammates their gifts.
"Zweii, These are yours." I say offering him his bag.
He opens the bag and pulls out his first gift.
"Armor polish?" He asks with a grin.
"Can't have my partner's armor getting rusty and dull now can I? Speaking of dull there's something else in there as well." I tell him.
He then pulls out a long block of a grey stone. The stone itself was rough and gritty, perfect for sharpening blades.
"A portable whetstone! Nice. We have an old fashioned one back home but its way too big to carry around. Thanks Ace."
"No problem. Dez this is yours." I say handing him his gift. He unwraps it curiously.
"A new quiver. It's a bit bigger than my current one." He says examining it.
"Don't forget what's inside the quiver." I grin.
He pulls out a new set of arrows, but these were a little different then his usual projectiles.
"Stainless steel tipped arrows. Designed for puncturing tough armor, serrated edges for added damage, and perfectly reusable." I state describing their qualities." I know those Dust arrows aren't cheap, so I made you some new ammo."
"You made these?" He asks.
"And the quiver." I say with a hint of pride.
"Their incredible. You really are a master of your craft." He says looking down the shaft of one of the arrows.
"I try. And here's Matthew's gift." I say handing my friend his present.
He quickly unwraps it and his eyes light up.
"The new game I wanted. You knew exactly what to get me." He says satisfied with his gift.
"Of course I did. You wouldn't be quiet about it so it wasn't hard."
I walk up to Shadow and give him a pat on his head.
"I didn't forget about you boy." I throw him a small ball, which he chases after and brings back, wagging his tail.
"And I have one last special present." I say pulling out a box. I walk over to Ruby and hand it to her.
"For me? Why?" She asks quizzically. Of course I wasn't going to tell her the one hundred percent true reason but that didn't mean what I would tell her would be false.
"Because, aside from my team, you were the first person I became friends with here at Beacon. That night we met in the forest, you told me for the first time I looked like a hero, despite what I wore. I don't know if that's true, but it still meant a lot to me. Then you did something special. You promised me, a complete stranger, your friendship. I just wanted to thank you for that."
She nods with a smile before opening up the gift. She pulls out a large book. On the cover was everyone's symbols.
"What is it?" She asks.
"Open it up." I reply simply. She does, flipping to the first page.
Inside were different photos of our various exploits.
"These are pictures of all of us! It's a photobook." She says in excitement. "Oh, this one is of us during the Halloween party. And this one's from yesterday at the snowball fight." She says pointing out a few. "How'd you get these?" She asks.
"Ozpin let me get them form the security footage. I tell you that was a lot of sifting through data to find them. A few were just off my scroll. But there's even more space for new memories."
"Thanks Ace." She says to me.
"Merry Christmas Ruby."
"My turn." Dez says picking up the last of the packages under the tree. Odd seeing as there are still two more members present that have yet to give gifts.
He hands the first to Matt.
"A new controller for the game console and it's the one I've been wanting. Thanks Dez." Matt says giving him a high five.
"And these are for you two." He says handing me and Zweii a box each. I open mine and find a well-crafted, wooden wolf statuette. Zweii pulled out a similar object but it was a dragon.
"Dez these are really neat. Where did you get them?" I ask.
"I made them. Carved them myself." He answers.
"You made these?" Zweii asks in disbelief. "I never figured you for a whittler."
"Well work wasn't always plentiful when supporting my family so I made these on the side to make some spare Lien." He explains.
"They're great. Thank you." Zweii and I both say.
"Guess it's time for my gift." Zweii says. "Actually it's a gift for everyone and I can't quite give it just yet." He says cryptically.
"Are you going to tell us what it is?" Matt asks.
"If you give me a moment to do so." He replies. "I invite all of you to a special firework display I've put together for New Year's Eve. Of course that means you as well professors." He explains.
"Where'd you get fireworks?" Jaune asks.
"Well we all have our hobbies. Ace is good at making armor and weapons, Dez is good at wood sculpting, and I happen to be proficient in making pyrotechnics."
"Now that is an impressive talent." I state.
"I hope everyone will be in attendance. I promise it will be worth seeing." Zweii says.
"So what about you Matt? Did you do anything special for a gift?" I ask him.
"Yes, but it's a surprise for all of you later tonight." He answers. "Speaking of which I need to get back to working on it so it's ready. Ren, I could use your assistance if you aren't too busy."
"Sure, I can help." Ren says getting up and following him.
"Awesome. See you other guys later." He says leaving with his newly acquired partner.
"Well I guess that's the end of our gift exchange then." I state.
"Not quite." Ozpin states. "We have a gift for all of you. The communications tower is fixed and fully operational. You can call home now. I'm sure your families must be wondering where you all are."
"That's great news!" Ruby exclaims. "Now we can call Dad and Uncle Qrow."
"I should call my folks and let them know I'm okay too." Jaune says.
"Well I'm sure everyone has a lot to talk about with their respective families. We should all call them, and meet back at the dorms until Matt and Ren are done with whatever surprise Matt has in store." Zweii suggests.
"Yeah but who is going to call their families?" Dez wonders.
"I will!" Nora shouts. That was a pretty obvious guess.
"And I will call Matt's family." I say.
"Alright, well that takes care of that." Yang says.
"See you guys after I call home." I say walking off.
"Yep. We can do something when we are all done taking care of business." Zweii replies.
"After we come back for our gifts. We really should clean up the mess." Dez states looking at the scrap covered floor.
"Agreed. See you in a while then." I say before steeping out to make my calls.
I pull out my scroll and dial home. After a few rings the answering machine turns on.
"That's weird. They should be home." I say to myself. Mom manages the phone while Dad works so she should have picked up.
I try again, yielding the same results. This time I leave a short message telling them I'm okay and wishing them a Merry Christmas.
"Well might as well try Matt's parents." I say dialing in a different number. The scroll rings a couple of times before I get an answer.
"Hello?" Came the short greeting from the other side of the line. It's a surprise as to who it is.
"Ashlynn? Is that you? This is Ace." I ask the younger Erthanos sibling.
"ACE!" She shouts excitedly. "Where on Remnant have you and my stupid brother been? We've all been worried about you two!" She states angrily.
"Sorry about that. We missed the flight home for the holidays and we've been stuck here at Beacon in the meantime. The communication tower got knocked out because of the storm so we haven't been able to call since then." I explain.
"Oh okay. That would explain it. Well as long as you two are okay then there's nothing to worry about."
"Hey, you wouldn't happen to know where my parents are would you? I called home but there was no answer." I ask.
"Sorry Ace. They aren't there right now. They had a supply shipment come in early and they went to get it. Last we checked they were staying at a hotel for a little bit."
"Oh. Well I left a message for them so they would know where we are."
"So was it just you and my brother that were left behind?"
"No the rest of my team as well as two others and two of the professors stayed behind as well."
"Matthew is part of your team? What dumb luck is that?" She laughs. "I bet he isn't making your leader's job very easy."
"Funny thing, I'm his leader." I inform her.
"You were made leader!? That's excellent news. Your parents are going to be so happy to hear that. Has he been giving you grief?"
"No more than usual, though he still isn't making my mornings to great."
"Typical. And people are amazed to hear that I'm the kid sibling." She sighs.
"Only by a year and a half." I chuckle. "So what are your parents up to?"
"They're off taking a walk. They'll be back soon."
"Huh. You'll have to pass on my love then."
"I'll be sure to let them have it. Tell Matt his sister says hey for me."
"Will do. Hope we get the chance to see you all soon."
"Me too. We have a lot more catching up to do. Talk to you later Ace."
"Goodbye." I say before hanging up.
I walk back to the Ballroom and find the most of the others already picking up things and relocating their gifts. I grab mine and walk with Shadow back to the dorm room. I place my gift from Dez on the nightstand.
Shortly after, Zweii and Dez walk in and unload their stuff.
"So you get in touch with your family?" Zweii asks me, placing his own statue next to mine.
"No, but I got in touch with Matt's little sister. My parents had to go attend to some work related business so they aren't home." I answer.
"That sucks." Dez says sympathetically.
"Eh, it's what they do to put food on the table. Can't really fault them for that."
"But doesn't that bother you in the slightest?" Zweii asks.
"Yeah but what am I going to do? Tell them to quit their jobs because I think they work too much?" I ask sarcastically. "Believe me its fine."
"If you say so. Now what are we going to do until Matt calls us?"
"I vote we kick back, relax, and watch a movie." Dez suggests.
"Now that's an idea I can get behind." I say lying back in my bed.
After Zweii sets up an action movie on Matt's portable television, we all settle in, waiting for Matt's surprise to be complete.
"Hey Ace?" Dez says drawing my attention from the movie.
"Yeah?" I reply simply.
"That was our last movie. We've watched all of the few we had." He says in a very bored tone.
"Yeah, it was. I wonder what's taking Matt so long. We've been watching for hours. It's already getting dark outside"
"Yeah and I don't know about you guys, but I'm getting pretty hungry. Those few snacks we had aren't very filling." Zweii informs.
"Maybe we should go check on him." Dez says getting up and stretching.
"We don't even know where he went." Zweii argues.
"Good point."
As we stood around trying to figure out what to do, a few knocks could be heard on our door. I open the door to find Ren waiting with the others. Glynda and Ozpin were also present and accounted for.
"Matthew sent me to get you guys. He's ready." He informs us.
"About time." Dez huffs.
We follow Ren as he leads us all to the cafeteria. It's then I wonder what Matt could have been doing in here for so long. When we walk in we find Matt standing in front of a collection of tables that had been arranged to seat all of us comfortably. I don't even believe what I see on the tables.
Plates of food covered the table, elegantly displayed in a mouthwatering display. Fresh tossed salad and other steamed vegetables filled sizable bowls. In a few trays were your classic assortments of fruits, cheeses and crackers, as well as bread rolls.
And then there were the main dishes. Ham, beef, corn on the cob, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, seared fish, and of course turkey accompanied by gravy and stuffing.
There were several options to choose from for beverages ranging from water, tea, juice, and even a few pitchers of soda.
Lastly were the sweeter dishes, most likely intended to be saved for dessert. Sweet rice with brown sugar, pumpkin pie topped with whipped cream, chocolate pudding, and festive holiday cookies.
"What is all of this?" I ask astounded.
"My surprise for all of you." Matt says with a grin. "A Christmas feast."
"You and Ren, made all of this!?" Yang asks gawking.
Ren shakes his head with a smile.
"Actually Matthew made every last dish. I just helped setup and put on some finishing touches." He explains.
"Matt, since when do you cook?" I ask with interest.
"I started learning a year ago. I figured if I was going to become a Hunter, I should learn how to cook, for when I'm out in the field." He explains. "I took a few lessons, and not only found I enjoyed it, but also that I was actually pretty good, if I do say so myself." He says with a cocky smirk.
"That's… Actually very well thought out… And weird coming from you."
"Thank you very much. Now let's eat. Don't let my gift go to waste."
We all take our seats on either side of the table, Ozpin and Glynda sitting at the head of the table. After grabbing our food we begin eating. It doesn't take long for us to find out that Matthew wasn't joking about his culinary skills.
"Matt. I hate to say this, but you really are a great cook. This food is phenomenal." I compliment after taking a few sample tastes.
"I'm glad that you like it." He replies.
"I must say your salad is rather good. It's so fresh and crisp." Weiss says before continue eating with a look of satisfaction.
"Yeah and this turkey is so good!" Nora says readily consuming her portion of the food.
"No joke. This stuff is to die for!" Yang says in agreement.
"Hmph. I'll be the judge of that." Glynda scoffs. "It can't be that good."
She cuts up a small piece. As soon as it hit her taste buds, her expression of doubt quickly shifts to one of astonishment. Matt stares at her with the same cocky look from before.
"Well?" He asks, patiently awaiting her judgment.
"I stand corrected." She says softly, quickly preparing another piece for consumption. "You did a surprisingly good job."
"I must agree with Glynda. This is one of the finest home cooked meals I've had in a long time." Ozpin states raising his glass. "I propose a toast. To Mister Erthanos, for preparing us this wonderful banquet."
"To Matt!" Everyone shouts in unison. He gives an over exaggerated bow in response to the praise.
"You think that's good, just wait until dessert."
"I don't think we'll have to wait too long." I state looking around at everyone as they start to finish their dinner.
Sure enough, after everyone else had their fill of Matt's main course, dessert followed soon after. Every bit of it was as good as the actual meal. Matt really worked hard on this and it definitely showed.
"Oh man. I'm so full; I don't think I could eat another bite if I wanted to." Yang moans stifling a belch.
"Maybe you shouldn't have had so much stuffing then." Blake says wiping her mouth clean of any lingering food.
"I can't help it if Matt turned out to be a real iron chef." She mumbles.
I turn and see Ruby and Nora sitting back to back on the floor. Apparently their binge on Matt's desserts was affecting them poorly as they moaned, caressing their sweet filled guts.
"Too many sweets girls?" Pyrrha laughs.
"There's no such thing as too much sweets." Ruby declares before looking ill again. "Well… Maybe this time." She admits.
"I think we better get you to bed sis." Yang says helping her younger sister up. "Do you mind if I take her to our room?" Yang asks.
"Yeah, don't worry about it. We can clean all this up no problem." Matt answers.
"Come on Nora." Ren says hoisting the bubbly girl onto his back. "You should turn in for the night as well."
"Alright." She yawns. "See you guys later." She says lazily before passing out on Ren's back.
After cleaning up the rest of the food and silverware, we said our goodnights to each other before returning to our rooms for the night.
The next few days were rather uneventful but of course never unenjoyable. We spent our time playing games inside or enjoying what was left of the snow outside. We also enjoyed the leftover food from Matt's feast. It wasn't all fun and no work though. After all we are Hunters in training. We spent decent time in the training room, to keep up with our lessons and improve teamwork.
Finally the night of Zweii's firework display had arrived. New Year's Eve. With the final preparations taken care of, Zweii had ushered us all to the Ballroom balcony. It was a great spot to watch the show from. You can see most of Beacon from up there, even Ozpin's tower.
I climb up to the higher roof top to get a better viewing area. I sit down, looking to see everyone talking with each other below. As I watch them talk and have a good time, it makes me realize how lucky I am to have them as friends. It's like Pyrrha said. We're like family now, and no matter what, we stick together.
"Alright everybody listen up." Zweii says getting our attention. "It's almost midnight and you know what that means. It's time for me to give you all a proper sendoff into the New Year. So sit back and enjoy the show." He announces pressing a button on his scroll.
The button sent out a signal, activating the firework charges laid out behind the tower. With the sound of faint booms in the distance the night sky was soon illuminated by a red burst of light. Soon followed many other bright colors and even mixed colors of gold and silver.
It was truly marvelous seeing the orange streaks ascending to the heavens before exploding into color. So marvelous I didn't notice my visitor.
"Mind if I sit here?" I hear Ruby ask as she comes closer.
"No, not at all." I reply, motioning for her to sit down.
"It's nice up here. Really good view." She says making conversation.
"Yeah it is nice."
She yawns slightly covering her mouth with her hand.
"Tired?" I ask.
"Yeah. It's a lot later than I usually stay up for." She answers briefly.
We return our attention to the firework show and watch in silence. The simple bursts of color were turning into more intricate designs. I see a Beowolf as well as the other Grimm creatures fill the sky.
"Wow. He did a great job on those fireworks." I comment.
"He sure did." Ruby says in agreement.
I red burst illuminates the sky, but on closer inspection, we realize it was no simple burst. It was shaped like a rose.
"That's my emblem!" She says pointing in excitement before a silver burst forms my own.
"He made each of our emblems it would seem." I comment as Jaune and Blake's soon followed.
There was another brief silence before Ruby spoke up again.
"I really like the present you gave me." She says seemingly out of the blue.
"Oh, good. It was no problem. I just wanted to thank you for, well, everything."
'Ugh! Why can't you tell her? Why can't you tell her the truth?' I mentally scold myself.
I look away, hiding my frown as the girl of my dreams watches the show in front of us.
'Tell her… TELL HER RIGHT NOW!'
I prepare my nerves as the final fireworks begin to light the sky for a resounding finale.
'Here goes everything.'
"Ruby… I've been needing to tell you something. I… I just wanted to tell you…"
My confession is cut short as I hear a soft breathing next to me. I look over to see Ruby had fallen asleep. I smile a little at her sleeping figure.
'At least I tried.'
"Happy New Year Ruby." I whisper as the last firework fades from the sky.
A/N: Bam! Three in month. I think that deserves a medal. I hope to keep my promise and get the next chapter out by Saturday and begin updating weekly for a while. Thanks for the continued support guys. Every Favorite, Follow and Review are greatly appreiated. I'm so happy to have over 5000 Views for my little project.
Hope to see you guys next week!