Are you more surprised than I am? Probably!

Winter that night found herself to be in another predicament.

The CEO of the Atlas Military decided to go back to her hotel. She really needed a drink. The elder Schnee felt as if tonight is a good night to forget.

All the bars that she passed either smelled of drugs, cigarettes or just plain booze. Winter absolutely despised all three. All she wanted was a nice, cold drink.

Upon entering the front hotel doors, there happened to be an unaccompanied bar still open in the main lobby to her left. Winter was relieved. Taking a seat at one of the few barstools, an older man who seemed to be in his 50's gave her a look.

"An officer like you doesn't come around to this side of the hotel. What'cha need?" he spoke, a thick Mistralian accent clearly present. Not expecting it, Winter's brows rose. She shifted her eyes to the man.

"An officer like me needs an extra strong drink. How about a long island iced tea?" she said. The idea of a mixed drink with a bunch of the strongest drinks she could think of at the moment sounded delightful and rebellious.

'Rebellious. Ha! Since when did I get so rebellious?' Winter thought. Another thought popped in her head. Yang.

Winter groaned under her breath silently. She chastised herself for even doing something like this. She was raised to be sophisticated, reserved and refined in nature.

But sometimes she needed to act like a human she truly was rather than a robot that she is in the military.

Uncharacteristically, the elder Schnee decided to relax all the muscles in her body and put her head in her hands on the counter in shame. In the background she could hear a small snicker from the bartender, but she paid no mind. A few seconds later she heard the sound of glass and liquid being poured. Thank dust.

Winter hated the idea of drinking to forget all the enraging embarrassment and frustration she endured today but it also seemed so enticing. No wonder it was common to see grown men do these things.

She needed to get out of Vale! Unfortunately, that backfired on her as she intentionally took her time here at Beacon and now it seemed there were more things on her list than she started out with. Ironwood seemed a lot more adamant with concerns to the military with the Vytal Festival coming up as well as even Ozpin contacting her for a few favors here and there. Her original plan to leave Beacon as soon as possible an hour ago was diminished when Ironwood admitted that her services here mattered greatly then somewhere else on Remnant.

If anyone saw her now, they would be highly disappointed. Not only with her disheveled appearance but the swirling, contradicting thoughts going inside her head.

'Screw them.' Were the next words that came into her skull. Where did she get these expletives from anyways?

Yang.

Rather than being immature in trying to forget the enraging yet fetching of a certain tall blonde she decided to face the issue head-on.

'Okay' Winter started in her head, 'Why do I seem to forget my years of military training and experience and act like an imbecile every time I'm around her?'

Before she could think any further, a beautiful glass of iced dark liquid was in her range of view. Winter couldn't help the small smirk dawning on her face.

"It's on the house."

Looking at the bartender again, Winter gave him a stern look. "I beg your pardon? I may seem inane at the moment but that doesn't mean I forgot my manners. Here," she said. With his generous move she decided to be a little generous herself. She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a hundred lien.

The only thing she could see was the bartender's eyes bulging in stunned shock, not knowing what to say. She didn't want to talk any further.

Quickly, Winter took the glass in her hands and swallowed the rather large drink in one swift motion. The burning of her throat, her body feeling warm, her head getting heavy already were all expected.

Winter welcomed it all in greatly.

She looked at his name tag. It read, 'M. Albarran.'

"Do you mind, Mr. Albarran, if you can make me another one?" She asked.

"Of course, Ms. Schnee." He replied. Figured.

It was hard for Winter to ever go anywhere without being unnoticed as who she was. Her physical appearance in general wasn't helpful either.

"Winter!"

For dust's sake. Winter resumed her typical cool stature as she turned to her right. Luckily, it was only Ruby and Weiss.

Weiss seemed out of breath. "Dear sister! I was worried sick about you!" Her chest was puffing in and out, which indicated to Winter that she was non-stop running until she reached the bar. Ruby was in slightly better condition, but Winter assumed that was because of her semblance.

"Yes, Weiss. I had something to discuss with Ironwood."

Winter may have used it as an excuse to get out of the earlier situation however Ironwood did end up calling her for updates on her mission.

Ruby was the one to answer now. "Then how come you are here alone?" she asked. She took a glance around the area. It was only the three of them and Mr. Albarran in the whole small section of the bar. "Where's Ironwood?"

Winter turned away from the girls, facing the counter once more. "He's in his office."

"Didn't you have to meet with him?" Weiss asked this time.

"Not this time, no. I did advise how it was simply a call. Nothing more." Winter noticed her tone was icy and cold. Straight to the point.

There was a sigh. "Winter…we wanted to apologize."

Winter could see in her peripheral vision that Ruby was looking down at her shoes. Her hands were shyly clasped behind her back, black hair dangling in front of her face. For the first time Winter would admit that the action was cute. She reminisced about a similar action she once had with Yang a month back.

"Ms. Rose, there is nothing to apologize for. I was the one acting abysmal over these treacherous feelings for your sister."

Ruby shook her head, looking Winter right in the eye. "But we embarrassed you! We never should've acted the way we did. We should've been more supportive. Dust, you had the courage to even confess to us! That's outstanding! We–" Ruby rambled, but Weiss signaled for her to stop. The little red's emotions flashing from guilt to appreciation to excitement almost made Winter get whiplash.

'It's the drink making me feel this way...' Winter blamed. It was also somewhat hard to focus on Ruby.

"Anyways, Blake and I wanted to apologize." Ruby stated. Winter assumed the black-haired girl was still with Yang.

"I appreciate the apology," Winter replied. She felt as if they didn't do anything wrong in the first place but figured they wouldn't stop pestering her if she didn't accept.

The mood seemed to have turned serious all of a sudden. Adamantly, Weiss shook her head and grabbed Winter's arm tightly. She pulled Winter towards herself and Ruby. "Winter…Your feelings for Yang are not–" she paused. "Treacherous…"

Was Weiss concerned about Winter's feelings as if she was thinking that liking another girl was wrong?

Winter simply clenched her teeth. "Weiss, my job and responsibilities as a CEO come first–"

"Do you like Yang or not?" Weiss interrupted. Her face was stern and in no mood to leisure around. It could almost make Winter run for her money.

"My feelings for Yang are simply–"

"Do you like Yang or not!" Weiss shouted this time, her fists clenched in frustration. Her little sister seemed to be looking concerned and distressed. Winter was stunned.

"I–" was the only thing that came out of Winter's mouth. Despite all the things Winter seen, heard, touched and experienced, nothing seemed to compare to her sister's face. It showed pure genuine concern. She grumbled ever so slightly, "Very much so."

"Then Project Elderburn is a go!" Ruby chirped excitedly.

Winter didn't know what to expect but realizing that her little sister and friend cared enough about her to run all this way from their school within the hour of her absence was definitely noteworthy and noble. Any of her so-called comrades in the military wouldn't bat an eyelash if Winter went missing for weeks.

Then it hit her. "Project…Elderburn?" Winter repeated.

Ruby giggled. "Yep! It's the name I came up with to bring you and Yang together!"

"How…creative."

Weiss adorned a smile for the first time that evening. "Come on, my dear sister. Time to get you ready for phase one." She grabbed Winter by the arm and the three were moving towards the door.

Winter noticed how the second long island iced tea was sitting there, unused. She never noticed how it got there. She chugged the whole thing once more, just like the first. The burning in her throat was welcoming once again.

Who knows when it might come in handy?

Slam!

Yang was flabbergasted to say the least. Her body was in pain, but it didn't compare to the pain she just had with Winter basically dissing her.

"Well, shit. What's up with her?" Yang asked, dropping her boxing bag off by the foot of Blake's bed. Her voice was still rattled from the match she had.

Ruby nervously giggled, she was all fidgety and not looking her sister in the eyes. "Oh! Uhhh, she got a call from Ironwood. Hehe. You know, the usual Winter stuff."

'Ruby was never a good liar. What is she keeping from me?' Yang thought.

Yang narrowed her eyes in suspicion. She knew Ruby wasn't telling the whole truth, but the blonde felt no desire to ask right then. Her aura was still depleted, and she wanted to take a nap.

Weiss coughed into her hand. "Indeed she did. It sounded very important so it's best if we leave her alone." She explained, clicking away on her scroll. That's odd. It was a Sunday night; Weiss always had gone over her homework.

'Since when does Weiss excuse herself from being nosey in her sister's business? That's all she's ever done since Winter's been here.' Yang started to feel that something was fishy here.

Blake of all people just shrugged when Yang turned to her. "It's none of my business." And resumed reading.

Yang sighed in relief. At least Blake seemed to be acting normal.

"Well, if no one is going to take action, then I will!" Yang suddenly said, a small burst of energy willed up inside of her. She started to rummage through her clothes to change into something comfortable and with going outside.

With her back turned, Ruby, Weiss and Blake all hastily started mouthing to each other silently on what they needed to do.

'What do we do?!' Ruby mouthed. Her face was filled with fear.

Blake pointed towards the door. 'You guys go after Winter. I'll take care of Yang.' She mouthed to them.

Weiss agreed by nodding and abruptly got up.

"You know what?" Weiss called out, hoping for Yang to hear. The blonde had clothes in her hands and turned towards her. "How about I go after Winter? She is my sister after all."

Yang snorted, "You always go after her. Let someone else chase her for a change." She smirked.

Ruby's eyes widened in realization. "You're right! Then I'll go with Weiss! I am the team leader, after all!"

Yang sighed this time, still changing into her clothes but not as eager as she was to chase after Winter.

It seemed a moot point for them, especially Ruby and Weiss, in allowing her to go alone on finding Winter. She had no idea why.

All Yang wanted was to talk to Winter about that day.

Since the accident in the kitchen, Winter keeps acting super strange around Yang. It made the blonde confused.

'What made her so freaked out? She just tripped and I took the fall,' Yang thought.

The memory was still a blur to her.

Yang stood silent. It took a lot of her willpower to keep standing there rather than run out the door. She slumped her shoulders in defeat, "As you wish, baby sis. Let me know what happened, okay?" Yang asked softly to them. "Make sure she's alright…She's my friend too, after all." The blonde added sincerely.

Internally she still wanted to go run after Winter.

Weiss, for some reason, looked like she was perplexed. Yang didn't know if that was out of appreciation or frustration. Probably both.

As Ruby and Weiss shut the door behind them, the room was eerily silent for a good thirty seconds.

"Blake?"

"Yes, Yang?"

"Do you know what's going on with Winter?"

Blake decided to act as innocent as she can. This wasn't her place or business to tell. "What do you mean?"

Yang sat at the edge of Blake's bed; her face expressed uncertainty. "Like…Winter's been acting weird since I had that concussion. I have no idea why."

"Do you remember anything from then that may have her acting this way?"

Yang shook her head. "Nope! I mean, the last thing I remember was seeing stars and Winter's beautiful porcelain skinned face."

Blake rolled her eyes at that one. There was a snicker.

"That's all you remember?" Blake pushed.

"Yup. Nothing more, nothing less." Yang replied.

"Interesting…" Blake felt as if there was more she could do. But what?

Her cat ears perked up. "Hey, I may have an idea for you. This could help you figure out what's going on."

Yang looked at her so intently as if she was about to tell her that she solved the mystery of Grimm.

"Start from the beginning." Blake said. "You know, retrace your steps. It may jog your memory."

Yang nodded, rubbing her chin in thought.

"Well, it all started when—"

A couple months ago…

Yang snickered deviously.

This is definitely going to be the perfect opportunity to one up Winter.

With her hands currently full, Yang couldn't help but be proud at the new idea she came up with this morning.

If there was one thing the blonde knew for sure, it was that Winter couldn't cook. Did she have proof? Well, no…but Yang was certainly under the impression that Winter was a very busy woman plus she was wealthy.

Yang was betting on the obvious idea that Winter relied on others to make her meals for her. Actually, she was banking on it.

The past week, the two women had a whole feud about which older sister was stronger. Which ended up where Winter and Yang took turns bench pressing the most weight.

Who won? Umm, definitely not Winter! Okay, fine…maybe she beat Yang by a pound. But still! Yang had been so determined to get her dignity back and for friendly revenge.

Yang was currently in one of the teacher's lounges at Beacon. She laid out all the grocery bags in a row on the counter. Satisfied with her work, the blonde started walking back to her dorm. She bought all the necessary ingredients for the both of them to create whatever they desired tonight.

When she walked into Team RWBY's dorm room, Yang felt nothing but giddy. "Hey guys! Guess what I did!" She hollered excitingly.

Ruby was playing a game on her scroll; Blake was doing her homework at her desk and Weiss seemed to have been doing the same with textbooks scattered all over her bed.

Weiss groaned. "What did you do now, you dolt?"

"I decided to take matters into my own hands and will be challenging Winter to a cook-off!" Yang exclaimed. She pointed to herself in emphasis.

Blake's cat ears perked up. "A cook-off? Sounds…interesting." She tried to sound optimistic for her partner but she seemed skeptical.

Ruby smiled, "I always forget about your cooking skills, Yang!" She giggled. "Knock her dead, sis!"

Weiss gasped. She turned to look up at Ruby, "Hey! Do you realize who you are talking about? Winter will definitely wipe the floor with Yang!"

The two then went on a tangent on which older sister will win. Yang couldn't help herself but smirk. This was definitely going to work.

"Who's going to judge you guys?" Blake asked.

"Why, you three of course."

Ruby seemed excited at that answer however Weiss looked suspicious. "Who says you won't try to poison mine?"

Yang shook her head. "I don't feel like having the burden of Winter's wrath on my back until the day I die."

Weiss nodded in agreement feeling the answer was truthful.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

"Haha! She's here!" The blonde whooped. She texted the older Schnee earlier to come as soon as she could. Adding on the little hint of 'Don't eat!'

Yang opened the door to see a concerned Winter. Her physical appearance screamed nothing but pure elegance and stature. But Yang was able to be around her long enough to know that her eyes showed what she was genuinely feeling...worry and concern.

"Yang? Is everything alright?"

"Why yes indeed, Ice Queen. Step on in. I have something to tell you."

Winter gave her an icy look at the name but decided to step inside. Winter looked uncomfortable, despite being in the dorm quite often.

"If this is about me beating you yesterday, you must become aware that there is room for improvement and no hard feelings." Winter explained, her tone was mutual and flat. However, Yang could tell it was filled with amusement and boast.

'You wanna play that game, huh?' Yang thought.

"Actually Winter, I decided to…" she paused for dramatic effect. "Challenge you to a cook-off!" Yang exclaimed. She pointed her finger right at Winter's…definitely not…magnificent chest. At all.

Winter leaned back from the accusatory finger, her arms still behind her back in military stance. "A cook-off? Are you mentally ill?"

She turned towards Weiss, "Did Yang ever see a therapist yet?"

"Not yet no—" Weiss started to say.

Blake was envious of how stone-cold frozen Winter's facial expressions were the entire time.

"No, you imbecile!" Yang cried, a smile still on her face. "Let's cook for the team tonight!"

"Absolutely not." Winter turned towards the door.

"What if…whoever wins gets a prize?"

Winter stopped. She kept facing the closed door. Was she hiding her face?

"What do you have in mind?"

Yang went blank. "Umm, I don't know. Whoever wins, gets to decide?" It was definitely risky and something Yang didn't want to do but the offer seemed to have intrigued the older woman.

Winter swiveled her body to look at Yang. There was the smallest of smirks. "Deal."

Weiss' jaw was on the floor. Yang could only imagine her thought process was how she'd never seen her older sister act this way before.

Yang clapped her hands together with glee. "Great! Because you're going down, Schnee." She growled. Her face darkened with determination. "Let's get to it!"

The blonde took the lead as they both left the dorm room.

Ruby, Weiss and Blake looked at each other, all befuddled. "Was it just me or were they just in their own little world?" Ruby innocently asked.

Blake snickered. "One hundred percent."

Back with Winter and Yang, even though the blonde was leading the way, Winter still kept pace. Her attitude shifted from being concerned to total competition mode.

Yang loved it.

She would admit without a doubt, but it honestly scared her, was how insanely hot Winter would become in this type of situation.

They finally reached the teacher's lounge.

Winter seemed stunned. "First year Beacon students don't have their own kitchen to share?"

Yang shook her head. "Nope! If anything, it's more fun this way."

Winter paused. "I'm going to have to change that." It was more for herself to add on the list of things she liked to do on a daily basis.

Now inside, both women didn't even say a word as they both grabbed the necessary ingredients to start their battle.

By this point, Yang was hoping that Winter would start hesitations in her movements or anything to indicate that Yang's theory was right.

So far after a while it looked as if Winter was thriving. Yang gulped.

"So uh…whatcha gonna make for us, Ms. Schnee?" She goaded.

Winter didn't have any signs of struggle. "Ms. Xiao Long, I believe a classic baked spaghetti dish will suffice." She said, just about to put the main dish in the oven.

Yang's jaw dropped. The blonde finished doing her prep-work for her meal as she decided to do hers over top of the stove. Fear started to seep into her soul. She needed to think of something. Fast.

"You know, I didn't take you as somebody who knows how to cook."

Winter raised a questioned brow. "I beg your pardon?"

"I mean…all those long hours of being in the military 24/7 and these top-secret missions must keep you busy. And well-off. It seems a little odd how you don't have someone to cook for you?"

"If you are insisting that I use my money to pay others for something I can simply do myself, you are wrong, Ms. Xiao Long." Winter said. Her tone was icier than before, and Yang took that as a good sign.

"At least I cooked for my sister." Yang chimed. She side-eyed Winter to gauge her reaction.

Winter seemed to have stopped what she was doing as she turned towards Yang, her face filled with defiance. She marched right up to the side of Yang right in her personal bubble. Despite being the tallest on her team, Yang always found it refreshing looking slightly up at Winter.

"You of all people know how much Weiss means to me. If given the opportunity, I would've absolutely cooked for her when I still lived in the mansion." Her tone was cold and flat once more. The emphasis on the last word of that sentence said so much more that Yang felt bad for trying to stir her up.

"At least you were able to live in a mansion." She piped back.

Yang now decided to face Winter. She faked being frustrated and upset in order to not foil her plan.

Winter's jaw clenched. "At least your father loved you and took care of you." She tilted her chin up in defiance.

At this point, now all the bets were forgotten as both women stood facing each other face to face. It was silent among the two women and all of a sudden the atmosphere felt heated. Winter seemed frustrated and irked but Yang could tell there was still slight amusement in her eyes. The blonde had to admit she got what she wanted but still it wasn't a good feeling. If anything, she angrier at herself. She didn't want it to get to this point.

However, Yang stared into deep azure and she realized just how lucky she was in this moment.

Out of nowhere Yang had a sudden urge. "Let me take care of you then." Her tone was soft.

Yang saw Winter's jaw go slack as she was in awe. Stunned, even. Unexpectedly, Winter's posture suddenly relaxed and she licked her bottom lip.

"Yang, I—"

Winter suddenly tried to take a small step forward towards Yang when out of nowhere she yelped. Yang watched as Winter uncharacteristically slipped on what seemed to have been a banana peel. In one swift motion, Yang grabbed Winter's waist to stop her but the force was still too strong. Thinking fast, Yang quickly maneuvered her body to take the hit of the fall.

Her aura was a second too slow to embrace the impact. The last thing she could remember was her head hitting the concrete floor with a loud thud! Her body felt all tingly, weird sensations spreading throughout her body.

As she looked up into scared azure eyes, she realized she could stare at them for the rest of her life.

Seeing stars, Yang's vision went dark.

Present...

Blurry images racked Yang's mind after that last thought but that was all she could remember.

"That's all I remember."

Blake shook her head. "You know, you didn't have to tell me about Winter being hot when she's competitive."

Yang barked a laugh. "But that ruins the fun, Blakey!"

"Sounds like to me that you guys are pretty comfortable with each other." Blake commented.

Yang grinned happily as she nodded, "Absolutely! She may drive me nuts with all this older sister nonsense but she's definitely a keeper."

Blake smirked. "A keeper of what?"

The blonde realized what she said. "Oh…Uhh, of being my friend?"

Yang never even considered what her and Winter's relationship was. Earlier, she did call Winter a friend to Ruby but the actual idea never occurred to her. All of a sudden she could feel her heartbeat racing. Plus, Yang instinctively didn't like the feeling of calling Winter her 'friend.'

'I mean…I guess we are? It's not like she swings that way anyways,' Yang thought. There was a slight optimistic thought that ran through her head, 'What if she did? You would jump on that opportunity in seconds.'

Yang stomped that thought to the ground.

It was impossible.

Winter was a Schnee! She was raised to be against that type of stuff. Not only that, but she's a ranked military officer with high responsibility of protecting her citizens! She wouldn't ever have any time for romance with anyone. Boy or girl.

The blonde felt her whole body hurt at the realization.

"Yang…are you alright?"

Yang flinched at Blake's soft words. She didn't realize how she started to grimace.

"Yeah…I'm okay." She responded. The blonde plastered on a grin to reassure her best friend. "Thanks Blakey for helping me! Nothing seemed to happen right away but it for sure made me realize I need to keep my brain running to get those memories back!" She happily said.

Yang hoped that her ruse worked.

Blake stared at her with a longing look that just said, 'Yang, I'm here for you. Please don't hold these feelings back.'

Yang climbed into her bunk and decided to curl up into a ball. The aura depletion from her workout hit her like a semi-truck and her eyes grew heavy.

Maybe this nap can help her quench these upcoming feelings for a woman she knew she will never have.

It's literally been years! Not quite sure how I was able to end up with this chapter, but I do seem to have more ideas to come involving this story. Keep a look out! I've noticed that even to this day, there are followers who keep encouraging for me to continue this. And for that, thank you!