"Do we want oranges?"
"Not that one," Qrow swiped the bright orange sphere from Yang's grasp. "It's gonna get moldy soon. It's too soft."
Yang's face twisted in disgust. "Ew, gross."
Briefly, Blake stared at the bright fruit. "Doesn't Ruby like oranges?"
Yang only shrugged. "Sometimes."
Confused, the faunus asked. "What does that mean?"
"It depends on her mood," Yang said evenly.
"What? That makes no sense," Blake said, even more, bewildered by her reasoning. "What mood does she have to be in to eat oranges?"
"In a…" Yang trailed off with the smuggest grin Blake had ever seen. Her cat ears that were covered by her bow folded on top of her head as she braced herself. "... sour mood."
This was immediately followed by a knee-slap as she laughed joyfully from her own joke. Blake only sighed and looked to Qrow for a reaction. He didn't look happy or amused in the slightest. They should be used to this, but nope.
This whole time, Qrow had been growing impatient. This was supposed to be a short pitstop to buy food and materials to repair their ship. Then it was back to the lovely sea. Instead, his crewmates- Yang- wanted to goof around. That was probably the tenth pun she cracked in ten minutes.
Fed up, Qrow grabbed a few of the delectable fruits from the stand. "I like oranges, so I'm getting oranges. Was that so hard?"
With a mischievous grin, Yang wryly said. "I see you want to be fruitful. You're hurting my peelings."
With every pun, they suppressed annoyed groans. They had to make her stop. Maybe they should hit her. In the head. With a brick. Anything. Anything!
"What?" Yang asked, egging them on. "I'm being orange-inal."
"Yang," Blake addressed in a frightening, yet somehow doting tone. "You know I love you, but the puns have to stop or we might stab you."
Lilac orbs widened to the size of dinner plates. Not from the obviously idle threat. Her girlfriend had said that so casually and so suddenly. Yang went quiet as she stared at her girlfriend. For once, she was speechless.
"What's wrong?" Blake asked, worried that she was finally speechless.
Everyone knew such a feat was probably not possible. Wondering what she said, Blake backpedaled her thoughts.
"Did you just say you love me?" Yang asked, hoping she wasn't hearing things.
The affectionate phrase sort of slipped out. Blake wasn't thinking when she said it. It came so naturally. Like how the sun rose and fell every day.
Heat rushed to the faunus' cheeks as she scrambled for words. Any words!
"I- I did," Blake confirmed, meeting her astonished lilac gaze. "I thought it was obvious?"
"You've never said it out loud!" Yang exclaimed as she draped her arms around her shoulders. "I love you, too!"
From the sudden embrace, Blake's heart swelled as she returned the hug. Warmth sprouted between them as they held each other tightly. It made her heart skip a beat when Yang said- declared- it back so quickly like she didn't even have to think about it.
Even though it was nice to hear, Blake wished she'd done that more romantically rather than it being a slip of the tongue. Despite herself, the faunus buried her face into Yang's shoulders. The sweet scent of lemonade enveloped her senses. It was the smell she'd definitely grown to love.
"I didn't notice," Blake replied sarcastically in a whisper.
That earned a slight chuckle. Blake felt the tiny vibration as they held each other.
"How sweet," Qrow said evenly and then looked away out of embarrassment. "God, this is so cheesy," desperately wanting to change the subject, red fruits caught his eye. "Anyone want strawberries?"
Briefly, Yang lifted her head to answer him in a chipper tune. "Ruby loves strawberries no matter what her mood is!"
After playfully rolling his eyes, Qrow tossed several of the red orbs into the bag. Around them, dozens of conversations lingered. The occasional hooves met the dirt and grass. Vendors scoured the area and repeatedly called at people to check out the merchandise. The crew still had no idea what this place was called. Nor did they care.
After purchasing food, the group wandered down the meat section of the street. This is where they usually go overboard. Meat was practically their lifeblood. Like their lives depended on it, Blake darted to the fish aisle while Yang drooled over a bright red steak.
"We need this," Yang held it up for her uncle to examine it. "Look at it! Look at it!"
It was like a child begging for presents before Christmas.
Qrow only rolled his eyes. They'd always gotten all the meats. It's not like he's ever denied her a delicious steak.
"We'll get it, firecracker. As long as you keep the puns to yourself."
"Pft," Yang dismissed with a wave of her hand. "Everyone knows steak puns are rare, medium, or well-done."
In response, Qrow flicked her between the eyes.
"Ow!" the blonde yelped out of reflex.
"Oh, shut up, that didn't hurt," Qrow said in annoyance.
In a rush, Blake showed them the delectable salmon. "C-can we please…"
Drool was dribbling down her chin.
"Woah, Blakey," Yang said in amusement. "Settle down."
Jokingly, Yang wiped off her girlfriend's drool. That seemed to snap Blake out of her trance.
"Throw it in," Qrow said.
Happily, Blake tossed the salmon into another bag.
"Woah," the blonde said in glee. Her hand was on her girlfriend's back, and it was vibrating enough for her to feel it. "You're purring in delight."
Instantly, Blake stopped in her tracks. Something had clearly caught her eye.
"What's the matter?" Yang asked. "Cat got your tongue?"
Rather than acknowledge another lame pun, the pair followed her line of sight. It was an odd placement for a bookstore.
"Go," Qrow said, knowing he couldn't keep her from her love of books. "I'll finish up here."
"Thanks!"
Like lightning, Blake was almost inside the store. She even left her beloved girlfriend behind.
"Wait up!"
"We could've gone with them."
That was about the tenth time Weiss had said that in a disappointed tone. To Ruby, that was out of the question. According to her crewmates, Weiss' wounds reopened only last night just from walking around.
"Not after last night you aren't!" Ruby blurted in finality.
Leisurely, the white rose couple were sitting on the couch watching television. As they should be, Ruby nodded to herself. There was no way she was letting Weiss exert herself in any way today. Especially not after last night.
A long, heaved sigh emanated from Weiss. "Ruby, I'm fine now. Promise."
That might be true, but Ruby was still going to make sure she didn't do anything today.
"You weren't fine last night," Ruby pointed out as she sank into the sofa. "What were you doing up, anyways?"
There was a beat of silence as Weiss watched the characters on screen. It was like she was debating what to say.
"I was conversing with Qrow. He made me some porridge."
That caused Ruby to perk a brow. It sounded like she was hiding something. "Anything else?"
"I asked for his blessing…" Weiss trailed off, meeting her surprised gaze. "He looked exactly like that."
Before she could catch flies, Ruby shut her mouth. "R-really? You didn't have to do that!"
What was her dolt talking about? Of course she did! Qrow was the man who practically raised her. The only one who was left to look after her. It only made sense.
"No, I did," Weiss firmly said. "He means a lot to you, Ruby. That means he means a lot to me. It's only natural to get his blessing."
Instinctively, Ruby reeled her in for a hug. "I have the best girlfriend ever."
That caused a sly smirk to form on her lips. If Ruby loved that, she was going to love this. All Weiss did was hand her the cape that'd been draped over her for some time now.
"Take it, dunce."
Curious, Ruby inspected her cape. To her astonishment, there were no marks on it. It shined like a crimson waterfall. A blush crept to her cheeks when she realized it smelled sweet like her girlfriend.
"The hole's gone?" the captain said in disbelief.
"It was quite easy to mend it, actually," Weiss said as she folded her hands in her lap. "Sorry I did that without your permission. You were asleep, so-"
"Nice Weiss strikes again!" Ruby cheered with glee as she hugged her renewed cape.
"If I was going to sit there, I was going to make myself useful-"
Before Weiss could finish, Ruby ensnared those lips with her own. Each pair of lips were soft, yet firm. It was heavenly as warmth budded between them. After a few moments of pure bliss, the couple separated.
From seeing how red Weiss was, Ruby grew concerned. "Is your fever back?"
"I'm blushing you dolt! We just kissed!" Weiss exclaimed, flustered. "You're red, too."
"O-oops," Ruby stammered, feeling the heat rushing to her cheeks. "Sorry, I got kinda worried there," she placed her hand on her forehead. "Yep, your fever's still gone!"
"Such a dunce," Weiss hummed in amusement.
Fondly, Ruby held her cape. "Thank you, really."
A genuine smile slipped on Weiss' lips. "You're welcome."
From how well-done the material had been mended, Ruby was curious as to how Weiss obtained her sewing skills. Sometimes, mothers taught their daughters the skill. Since Weiss' mom was deceased, that raised some questions.
"How do you know how to sew so well?"
"Winter," the ex-heiress simply said. "She taught me before she left for the military."
"Woooow," Ruby said in awe. "Your sister gets even more amazing every time you mention her."
"She is admirable," Weiss agreed with a hint of yearning.
Ruby caught a tint of sadness in her voice. "Do you miss her?"
"Very," Weiss said without missing a beat. "I haven't seen her in years. I wonder how much she's changed. Though, something tells me she hasn't. She's set in her ways. Rightfully so."
"She shouldn't change," Ruby agreed, loving that she was learning more about her girlfriend's family. "It's like Yang. She hasn't changed."
That caused Weiss to quirk a brow as she crossed her arms. "You don't want her to make fewer puns?"
"Nope!"
"They don't annoy you?" Weiss asked, bewildered.
"Sure they do," the captain replied with a shrug. "But it's what makes her, her."
Weiss muffled a giggle. "So she's defined by her puns?"
"Yang is her puns," Ruby said joyfully. "Blake is her books! And you, well, you can be your scowl!"
"Hey!"
"My bad," Ruby backpedaled. "Your cute scowl."
"Better," Weiss replied with a wide smile. "You can be defined by weapons."
"No complaints here," the captain agreed wholeheartedly.
Slowly, Weiss leaned onto her girlfriend. Ruby snuggled into her neck. The television screen had been blurry, but it was clearer since they were docked by land.
"Do you need anything?" Ruby asked, wanting her to be comfortable.
"Ruby, I can get up and get things myself."
"Let your loving girlfriend dote on you."
God Weiss swallow your pride and let Ruby care for you~
Stay dandy,
~Toto
