Disclaimer: All characters belong to Rooster Teeth Productions
Co-authored with ToxicExotic
A Trip Downtown
The house was much louder than usual as Blake woke up. Though it had only been a week, she had grown used to the more quiet atmosphere the house tended to have in the morning. There was no shouting in the hallways as students ran past, no random gunshots or loud crashes; sure, there was the occasional Grimm growling outside, but that was it. However, it seemed those days were over, as a loud, thumping echoed into her room.
"Yang Xiao Long!" Blake let out a groan at Weiss' shout as she turned over in her bed and pulled her pillow over her ears. "Do you have any consideration for other people?"
"Of course I do," Blake heard Yang reply, her ears also picking up on a chuckle. "Why do you think Coco is in here with me? We're saving everyone time here, Weiss."
"W-What!" Weiss cried and banged on the door again. "I swear to Oum, if you two ar…"
"Relax, Snowflake." Coco's voice laughed. "We'll be out in a minute. Yang's just got one more spo…"
"DON'T!"
Weiss' objection cut Coco off, and Blake heard the two girls laughing as loud footsteps walked away from the bathroom. As she let out a deep sigh and sat up in bed, she heard Weiss spout off something in Atlesian from downstairs and tossed the pillow aside since it was clearly too thin to actually do anything. The fact that she wasn't able to relax in bed for longer since Weiss was demanding they go to Vale's mall was a little irksome; but at the very least, it meant she would get to find a gift that could potentially make her girlfriend very happy. So stretching her arms and letting out a loud groan, she slowly removed herself from her quilt and stood up.
Since she'd showered the night before, she decided against waiting for the room to be available, as it was more than likely all the hot water would be gone once Weiss was finished. Despite her condemning how long Yang took, the heiress was just as bad; because, just like Yang, she spent ages grooming her hair. So instead, she quickly changed into some clean undergarments before she threw on a pair of short shorts and a t-shirt for breakfast, then exiting her bedroom.
She was actually rather lucky to have gotten a room to herself due to the house almost being at capacity. With only three rooms, the space had finally become a little limited. She had previously been staying in Yang's room on her spare bed, as both Ruby and Yang had two beds in their room for some reason, but once Coco had arrived, the beds had been pushed together and the three of them had claimed the room. Blake, not wanting to share a bed with them, had thought she would be spending the rest of the vacation on the couch, since it would feel weird to sleep alone in the same room as Ruby, but Tai had practically ordered that she take his bed. She tried to politely decline, but he wouldn't have it and said he was more than happy to relive his teenage years.
A loud yawn escaped her as she walked into the kitchen and saw Ruby sitting on the counter with a wide smile on her face as she talked to Weiss in Atlesian. Though her accent and pronunciation still sounded off compared to the heiress, she had come a long way since Weiss first began to teach her; not that Blake understood it at all. "Morning, Blake." The girl said happily as she saw her.
"Mornin'." She mumbled in return, making her way to the fridge and taking a carton of orange juice. Since it was almost empty, she forwent the glass and took a swig straight from the carton, earning a disapproving look from Weiss. "Was almost starting to think I missed all the morning noise."
"Yes, well if that dolt didn't spend so long in the shower, I wouldn't have to create noise to…"
"Yeah, yeah," Blake interrupted with a wave of her hand and accepted the toast Ruby handed to her while giving her girlfriend a morning kiss. "Faunus hearing, remember?"
"Right."
The heiress said sat down at the table where her own food was, and Blake let out a breath of relief as Ruby's arms wrapped around her waist from behind. As she slowly munched on the food, she felt Ruby's chin rest on her shoulder and held up the slice of toast for the girl to take a bit. "Where's Velvet?"
"Patrolling with Dad," Ruby replied with her mouth full, her partner shooting her a raised eyebrow. Clearly the reaper saw it as she quickly finished and swallowed the food. "Sorry. They should be back soon."
Blake gave an understanding grunt and kissed the girl on the cheek before she moved to sit down. Standing so early in the morning was way too much effort. "So how was your first night here?" She asked her teammate, who was idly picking at the frills of her nightgown's neckline.
"The bed is at least more comfortable than Beacon's." she shrugged. "And definitely beats being stuck in Atlas with my father and arrogant little brother."
"I can see that," Blake hummed, and took another bite of the food. Weiss didn't talk about her brother much, or even at all, so Blake had always assumed their relationship was strained. Apparently she was right. "And for what it's worth, since I didn't say it yesterday, it is good to have you back."
"It's worth a lot," Weiss reassured her, though her eyebrow raised and Blake realised she had just committed the cardinal sin of talking with her mouth full.
However, she was not Ruby and simply raised her own in return causing the heiress to shake her head. Though Weiss expectations regarding manners had caused a few altercations at first, especially with Yang who thought the girl was being rude to Ruby, it had quickly been understood that it was a part of Weiss' upbringing she hadn't been able to shake off. She had tried for a while, but that need for some form of propriety always returned; but that didn't mean Blake was going to follow it. While Ruby actually seemed to appreciate it and listened to her partner, she and Yang quite often opted to just ignore it.
As she gave the heiress a small smile, her ears caught footsteps on the stairs, and a couple of seconds, Yang and Coco appeared in the doorway. Yang seemed to be mostly dressed, though her jacket and belt were missing, leaving her in nothing but her yellow crop top and black shorts. Coco on the other hand hadn't even bothered, and strolled into the kitchen with a brown towel around her chest and waist. None of the team were particularly new to Coco's complete lack of shame when it came to her body, but Weiss still rolled her eyes and let out a deep sigh.
"There ya go, Schnee," Coco grinned as she wiped the strand of caramel hair out of her eyes. It was rare to see the leader of Team CFVY without her sunglasses, so it almost made Blake smile to see how much happiness was in the girl's eyes. "Shower is free."
"You totally made that rhyme on purpose," Yang grinned, her arm around the fashionista's shoulders.
"Thought it would bring a smile to your face. Totally worked."
"Mhm," Yang hummed and leaned down to kiss her smirking girlfriend.
A loud groan issued from Weiss' side of the table as the heiress stood up. "I'm going to have a shower before I throw up. You two better have cleaned up and left me some hot water."
"We both made sure other was clean, if that counts?" Yang grinned and attempted to poke Weiss as she passed, only for her hand to be slapped away with a scowl before the girl left the room.
The pair laughed at each other and Coco sat down at the table while Yang moved to make them something to eat. "Velvs not back yet?" Coco asked as she adjusted her towel.
"Nope," Ruby replied as Yang pushed her off the counter and tossed her a pack of cookies from the cupboard. "She should be back soon though."
"Gotcha." Coco nodded and turned to Yang. "Where's your Scroll? I wanna call her."
"Should be on the couch. Tell her she missed... A very cleansing shower."
"Gotcha," Coco grinned and stood up. "I'm gunna get dressed too before Weiss explodes. You should as well, Blake."
"Mhm," Blake hummed as she was drinking and gave a short wave.
Once she had drank enough, she passed the remainder to Ruby who took it happily. Out of the corner of her eye she saw that Yang was busy getting ready to cook some eggs, so as Ruby's hand gripped the carton, she slipped her own to the girl's wrist in pulled her in and placing her lips on Ruby's; enjoying the feeling of Ruby's forming smile. The kiss only lasted a second or two, but it was nice nonetheless; and as she stood up and pulled away, she stuck her tongue out and caused Ruby to giggle slightly.
"Coco is right," Blake she said with a stretch to show off as she knew Ruby would stare, which she did. "If I'm not dressed by the time she gets back down, Weiss will give me a bigger headache than when she arrived."
With one last look at her grinning girlfriend, she gave her a flirty smile and made for the door so that she could get dressed. As she was leaving however, she heard the tiniest of chortles come from Yang and focused her hearing. "I totally saw that." The girl said, and Blake felt her cheeks warm happily as she made her way to her room.
"I hate the city." It had only taken five minutes for Blake to miss the peace and quiet of Patch. The very moment they arrived in Vale, they were greeted by the honking of cars, loud voices, and every other sound that accompanied a bustling city. "Why is it always so loud?" She scowled and adjusted her bow.
"Probably because a lot of people live here," Yang laughed, her hand in Velvet's right as they all walked towards the mall. "Shouldn't you be used to the noise, didn't you say Menagerie was cramped?"
"With people." Blake sighed as a loud car horn issued off to the side and made both her and Velvet jump a little, though Velvet less so. "We don't have cars, with stupid horns. Purposefully."
Even without the sly, judgmental looks, being a Faunus in a city had many downsides, and those downsides were often different for each Faunus. For those with horns or tusks, the packed streets were a nightmare as there was always a chance of catching someone with them. She couldn't count the amount of times she had heard from other Faunus that they had been involved in altercations because they accidentally cut someone, or had their antlers get tangled in someone's hair. For those with tails, there was the ever present worry of it being trodden on by accident, though sometimes not so accidentally, or getting caught in a door. But for Faunus like Blake and Velvet, who had traits that offered some kind of sense advantage, cities sucked for a whole other reason.
Though everything was loud for humans, for Blake and Velvet they were so much louder. The car horns sounded like raid sirens, the slamming of a door sounded like a miniature explosion, and the shouting always sounded like the person was right next to them. Though she didn't have experience with it, she had heard from those with heightened senses of smell that the experience was just as awful. The stench of sweat, perfume, pollution, and the varying other smells an almost constant and borderline overwhelming. It was part of why Menagerie had opted against vehicles, and tended to build their pathways so wide. It was a small show of consideration for people's traits, so that, while still a little cramped, people could move a little more freely.
She didn't expect Vale to do that however, and she knew it would be unreasonable to expect them too, so tightening her hand on Ruby's, she let out a sigh and adjusted her ribbon again. "You okay?" Ruby asked gently.
"Yeah," She breathed in response. "Just can't wait to get to the mall. It might be full of people, but at least they soundproofed the building to keep the horns out."
"Vale's council have been taking a lot more steps lately to make the city more Faunus friendly," Velvet said with a smile. "The mall was actually designed by a Faunus, and he made sure to make it so things were easier for those with hearing and smelling traits."
"Is that why it always smells like strawberries?" Weiss asked, receiving a nod from the girl. "Huh."
"It's more than Mistral do, anyway," Velvet sighed.
"Please remember that your partner, our friend, is from there," Coco said firmly, her hand holding Velvet's left.
"I know," Velvet replied, her ears folding slightly at the tips.
"Anyway, what d'you lot want me to buy y…"
"It's supposed to be a surprise," Weiss cut Coco off with a scowl.
"Calm down a little there, Weiss," Yang replied immediately. "Why is this so important to you anyway?"
"I… Just like it!"
Blake was sure everyone could tell that was a lie, but no-one called her on it as they knew it would do nothing but sour the heiress' mood. Even Yang, who normally called the girl out on everything, decided to just give a small shrug instead.
"What's up there?" Blake whispered to Ruby, knowing that if anyone knew then it would be her.
"Huh?" The girl started a little as she had been staring at a bakery across the street. "Oh," She leaned in a little closer. "She used to spend Christmas with her grandfather. But he passed away a couple of years ago, and her father…"
"Isn't the Christmas sort, got it." Blake finished the sentence, receiving a nod in return. She knew just how much Weiss respected the man who had founded the SDC, so hearing that they would spend the day together made it easy to see why she loved the holiday.
It took them another fifteen minutes to reach the mall, but once they did, both herself and Velvet let out a sigh of relief. The sounds of people shopping were still everywhere, but without the car horns and everything else, she found herself able to relax a little. Letting out a happy breath, she put an arm around her girlfriend and followed Weiss deeper into the shopping centre. It was actually quite large with four different floors. Escalators criss-crossed each other as they led upwards, and a few elevators sat on either side. Though the second, third, and fourth floors were mostly just stores, the ground level had quite a few lounge areas.
A large fountain sat in the very centre of the mall with chairs surrounding it. On the opposite side of the entrance was a large food court, not quite as large as the one next to Beacon, but still with plenty of food vendors to keep everyone satisfied. As Weiss had pointed out earlier, the faint scent of strawberries could be picked up in the air.
The first place they visited was the general store near the entrance so that Yang could pick up a drink, but when they finally exited the store, the blonde looked around the busy mall, and then at their group, and let out a sigh. "This is gonna take forever if we don't split up," she said.
"Yang is right," Coco agreed. "Why don't me, Yang, and Velvet go do our stuff, and you three can do yours?"
"Actually…" Velvet said quietly from between the two girls. "If we're going to do this, I want to keep mine a surprise."
Yang and Coco looked at the rabbit Faunus with amusement, but gave a quick nod. As they did, Blake looked at Ruby and realised that she too wanted to keep whatever she found a secret. She was fairly certain where she was going to find something for her anyway, but the surprise would at least be nice.
"I do too." She declared, earning a small pout from her girlfriend. Rolling her eyes playfully she glanced at Velvet. "Wanna swap?"
"Sure."
They all exchanged a quick kiss and split up into their groups, but as she approached her partner and the other team leader and turned back to Ruby, a hand slipped around her waist and Coco let out a mischievous chuckle.
"Looks like you're with us now." She said in a flirty voice. The action immediately earned the stink eye from Ruby, and Coco let out a loud laugh as her arm pulled away. "Relax, Red. I already got my girls. I'll let you keep yours."
"Riiight," Ruby scowled as Velvet let out a soft giggle, clearly amused by the playful flirting. "Should we meet up here in about… ninety minutes?"
"Sounds good to me," Blake smiled.
"Us too," Yang and Coco replied.
"Alright," The reaper said with a smile of her own as Weiss and Velvet began to walk away. "Uhhh… Have fun."
The girl looked around to see her friends were already walking, and with a quick call out for them to wait, jogged to catch up. Blake shook her head and turned back to her partner, the blonde arm slipping around her shoulders.
"Weapon shop?"
"Yup," She replied.
"Ahhh, look at this one!"
Yang's excited voice carried through the almost empty store as she inspected a camera that was on display. While Blake had already picked a simple battery pack for Velvet since she didn't have much money, at least not anymore, Coco and Yang were still messing around with a camera. The blonde seemed to have found herself amused from looking at the pictures that previous visitors had taken of themselves, and was determined to get them to look too. Clearly interested, Coco looked over her girlfriend's shoulder and let out a hearty laugh at whatever Yang had found.
"Aren't you supposed to be looking for a gift?" She asked the pair.
"Huh?" Yang asked, not bothering to look up from the camera as they chuckled at more pictures. "But we already decided before we left the house."
"Yeah, Velvs has been a little grumpy about her favourite lens filter getting scratched, so we're getting her a new set for Anesidora."
"So why are we still hanging around?"
"Because…" Yang grinned mischievously and gave Coco a knowing nod. "... It's picture time."
"N…"
It was too late. Coco's arm had already hooked around her neck and dragged her between them. With how the older girl swung around Gianduja with a single hand, Blake knew she wouldn't be able to free herself from the brunette's clutches; a fact that was only cemented further as Yang's arm slipped around her waist. The blonde picked up the camera from its stand and the both of them squeezed in closer. However, though she may have been caught, Blake was determined not to give them the smile they wanted as she wasn't fond of her picture being taken; but that was quickly rectified too as Yang's fingers tickled her side and her lips pressed against her cheek.
A small grin was pulled from her as she tried not to laugh under her partner's actions, and the bright blue flash caused her eyes to burn for a second. She heard Yang and Coco laughing as she rubbed her eyes free of the spots and the camera was placed back onto its stand. By the time her eyes finally corrected, the pair were already walking to the counter and Yang looked back to stick her tongue out, causing Blake to roll her eyes.
A sigh escaped her as she approached them, but it was mostly just to cover a happiness that she definitely wasn't going to show Yang, should she just encourage the brawler even further. She placed the battery pack on the counter as Coco ordered the lenses and handed the girl the money.
"Assholes." She mumbled grumpily.
"Don't be a sour puss," Yang grinned, like at the fact that she knew she was one of the few people in the world who was allowed to make cat jokes, and turned back to the girl behind the counter. "Hey, what are the odds you could print off the picture we just took?"
"Umm, I'm really not supposed to." The checkout girl replied politely.
"Aww come on, Gorgeous," Coco grinned and turned on her flirty voice as she held up her Scroll to show the Beacon pass, causing Yang to chuckle a little. "Not even for some huntresses in training?"
The girl inspected the pass for a couple of seconds, but finally gave a humorous shake of her head. "Fine… But I'm telling Velvet you were flirting with me."
Coco was clearly taken aback by the mention of her girlfriend's name, but she quickly recovered and leaned against the counter with a grin. "Didn't know our cute little bunny liked to brag about me? Did you, Yang?"
"Learn something new everyday," Yang chuckled and slipped an arm around Coco. "She brag about me too?" She asked hopefully.
"If you are the hotheaded one with a heart of gold, then yes." The girl chuckled as she pulled a pack of lenses from under the counter as Yang performed a small fist pump and hissed a silent "Yes!"
After almost five minutes of Coco and Yang flirting with both each other and the cashier, something Velvet didn't seem to mind even when she was around, the three of them left the store with their gifts in hand. Thankfully, the twenty minutes they had spent in the photography store had been enough for the third floor to become less crowded, so they were able to move with a little more ease as they made their way to the weapon shop on the other end. While they had originally intended to go there first, the photography store was much closer and they had opted for that instead.
As soon as they arrived and walked through the doors, the familiar smell of dust and oil greeted her nose. On one side was a row of multicoloured pipes with Blake knew held various forms of dust, while shelves stood on the other side, each filled with magazines and books for pretty much everything a huntsman or huntress could need. At the very back was a whole array of weapon parts, from triggers to casings, stocks and scopes, pretty much anything to make any weapon you wanted; even a few types of ingots should your weapon have a blade. Iron was the cheapest, and most used, but they also had steel, and even a couple of a special material from Atlas called Dustal that, while extremely expensive, was designed to mimic dust properties. She had only ever seen two people use such a material, and that was Reese with her hoverboard, and Neon with her nunchaku.
"You know, I've done it so many times now," Yang grinned and walked over to the shell casings to pick up a box. "But walking in here without Ruby is always weird. Lacks the…"
"Squealing?" Blake smirked as she knew just how much her girlfriend loved weapon stores. "I'd forgotten what it sounded like too."
"And drooling," Coco quipped and strolled over to the magazines. "She still owes me for that magazine I had to buy because she drooled on it."
Chuckling at that, as Ruby now kept that very specific issue safe since she still had to pay for it, she made her way to the counter and gave the elderly man behind it a smile. She knew the man owned numerous businesses around Vale; so the huntsman that she could hear shifting his weapon slightly in the backroom was likely someone he had hired for protection. It seemed that a couple of Dust and weapon stores in Vale had tightened their security a little after the Vacuo robberies.
"Hello." She greeted him warmly, earning a mumble in reply that even she couldn't make out. "Do you have any new parts in for high caliber sniper rifles?"
"Mmm? Mhm." The incoherent mumbling was pretty much all the man ever said, but it didn't matter since he pointed to a section in the corner where a bunch of boxes were stacked on top of each other.
"Thank you."
Blake made her way over to the boxes and scanned through them. Fortunately, she could avoid anything that was designed to reduce recoil as Ruby would likely take it as a personal insult if she were to receive something that removed her ability to bounce around with her beloved scythe, but there were still quite a few options. She also knew to stay away from anything that would be used for the scythe functionality as the reaper loved to customize that herself, so she settled herself into looking at stocks and bolts. They may not have been the most glamorous parts, but she had seen Ruby gush over them enough times to know they would still be appreciated.
Finally, after sifting through the new releases for a while, Blake picked out a new bolt from Vacuo that was a little thicker, but was grooved for a better grip. After that she abandoned the new releases after seeing all the stocks were not the type Ruby would use and went to the old section, quickly finding what she needed. She knew that the speedster had a few of them back at the dorms, but with just how much she tinkered around with her sniper-scythe, a few more wouldn't hurt. She also picked up a few casings and a magazine as she passed them since she knew one had been lost while they were protecting Pearl's funeral.
"You got everything?" Yang asked as she approached the counter.
"Yup," She held up the boxes and Yang helped her with a few. "You?"
"Nah, gunna see if there is a nice combat skirt or something when we pick up Weiss' stuff. We can go halves on Weiss' if you're a little short?"
"Thanks."
"No problem," Yang said with a nod, watching closely as she took out her wallet and pulled a few of her very limited Lien card outs. "Blake, I'm sure your…"
"No!"
"Okay." Yang sighed.
"Alright," Coco said, breaking the silence before it even began. "Got her Master's Guide, What's New?, Steel and Seal, and Uniquities: How To Maintain Your Garden. Last one is a joke, but she should get a kick out of it."
"What's a gardening magazine doing here?" Blake asked as she focused on paying the man since she sensed Yang's eyes were still on and didn't want to discuss that topic.
"Special edition of a unique weapon's magazine." The blonde explained with a sigh, clearly getting the message. "Guess this month's is on weapons that are also gardening tools."
"Mhm," the man behind the till hummed as he passed Blake her change with a bag and began to scan Coco's stuff.
While Coco checked out, Blake glanced up at her partner and gave her a smile. She appreciated the girl trying to help, but that wasn't how she wanted it to be whe… If she called them; and she certainly wasn't ready for it. Thankfully, Yang smiled back and Blake let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.
"You two ready to get Weiss' stuff?" Coco asked as she put her stuff into her bag.
"Lead the way, Miss Fashion Queen." Yang grinned.
Ruby let out a loud groan as they exited the bookstore into the throng of people. They had spent forty minutes in there looking for a gift for Blake, and while both Weiss and Velvet suggested things, the former getting more and more impatient, none of them felt right since she didn't want to get something Blake wouldn't enjoy reading. She knew Blake liked mystery and romance, but the girl not only owned a lot of books, she was very particular about what she liked. It wasn't uncommon to see her finish one and let out a sad sigh as she put it aside, and Ruby didn't want to be the cause of one of those sighs. And so, she'd left with nothing, and decided to try and find something else for her girlfriend while they looked for Coco and Yang's stuff.
Her best hope was the clothing store they were headed to for Coco, where she could maybe pick up a pair of boots or a catsuit if she could afford it. She could even buy the girl a combat skirt, but she was genuinely unsure if Blake would wear it since the girl tended to like tighter clothes.
"You should have just picked something." Weiss said as they weaved through the heavy crowd. With most of the popular stores being on the second floor, it was almost always the most packed. "Blake will read practically anything."
"It's not about what she'll read," Ruby mumbled. "I want her to like it too."
"Well, I'm sure you can find something while we shop for Coco," Velvet said kindly. "Or maybe from Roman's when we go for Yang's gift. They do a bunch of cute cosplay stuff too, and they may have something from that ninja series Blake loves."
"Maybe," Ruby hummed and found her mind drifting to what her girlfriend would look like in cosplay. Feeling a blush creep at her cheek, she shook her head slightly to push the images away.
"Ugh," Weiss scoffed with an upturned nose. "I can't believe you are dragging me to that… debaucherous store."
Ruby had no idea what debaucherous meant, but Weiss frequently expressed disdain for stores so she simply shrugged it off as another one that the heiress didn't approve of. Velvet obviously did too, as she rolled her eyes and said nothing more on the matter.
A minute later they had entered a clothing store that they knew Coco loved. The place was huge, and, from the look of the price tags she glanced as she walked past, way beyond her price range. It wasn't surprising as the store was one of the leading fashion stores in Vale. Thankfully, everything they would need was in one section of the store, so they made their way to the back where the brown and black clothes were hung and began to skim through what was there.
She scanned through the clothes with mild interest since she wasn't really too sure on what Coco liked to wear. While she had noticed the girl seemed to like loose fabric from the loose frill around her neck, the scarf she always wore, the hip cape, and even the tassels that hung from her knees, they all seemed to be precisely placed; and Ruby knew that was because the girl had made all her combat gear herself.
"You should just get her a shirt," Velvet said sweetly as she strolled up to her side. "She really is quite particular about her other stuff. Even I have trouble."
"Oh! Okay… hooooows... this?" She held up a really nice looking caramel shirt and received a nod. However, her smile quickly dropped as her eyes caught the price tag and saw that it was 130 Lien. "M-maybe if I saved up for a y…"
"I will pay for you," Weiss interjected. "And don't bother arguing. We spent long enough in that book store, and you know how I despise indecision."
She knew her partner would not budge, so gave a nod as Velvet reached out for the shirt and looked it over.
"I like it," She smiled and ran a finger over the smooth material. "Always hard to believe that something this beautiful can come out of Mistral though."
Ruby averted her eyes at the comment, but by averting them to her partner, she saw Weiss' eyes lock onto the Faunus while she looked through the pants section. Her blue eyes held a curiosity that Ruby normally only saw in class, and she almost looked like she was about to say something. Obviously she was unable to hold it, and as she picked up what looked to be a nice pair of black dress pants that faded to a darker black at the bottom, she let out a small hum.
"You know…" She said cautiously, pretending to inspect the fabric. Though Weiss was usually rather abrasive in her approach, she could occasionally be respectful; to her friends at least. "... I have never asked, but what is your issue with Mistral?"
Velvet put the shirt back down and picked up a sealed one as she looked at Weiss. "It is a city that revels in the oppression of Faunus." She said simply.
"Atlas does too," Weiss replied, clearly not satisfied with that answer alone. "Yet I never hear you lambaste it."
"Mistral is worse than Atlas," Velvet replied, a slight bitterness to her voice that intrigued even Ruby. "Sure, Atlas is terrible; but Mantle has enough issues that Faunus can make a life there that isn't too different from a human's. And those that live in Atlas itself are generally respected anyway."
"But Mistral has no such thing. From top to bottom of that mountain, Faunus suffer and it's incredibly difficult to make any kind of life there. More shops refused to serve us than those that accept us, work is mostly restricted to dust factories or labor, and there have been numerous reports of Faunus horns and tails being sold on that horrible black market of theirs." Ruby felt her stomach churn at that little piece of information. "It's so bad that it's ingrained itself into their everyday speech. Even Yatsu and his parents, who don't view Faunus like that, speak in such a way because that's just how things are there."
"I…" Weiss paused, her brow scowled and her eyes contemplative. "... I didn't know things were that bad in Mistral. I thought that with the appointment of Headmaster Lionheart that things were changing."
"Maybe they are," Velvet shrugged and placed the shirt and a chocolate brown belt into the basket on her arm. "But even still, Lionheart was mostly appointed due to Professor Ozpin. The council still has the final say on all official huntsmen jobs, and Menagerie feels that more than anyone."
"Menagerie?" Ruby asked, a little confused.
"Menagerie is a new kingdom." The Faunus explained politely. "It doesn't have an academy, or even a combat school yet. They rely on Haven and the Mistral huntsmen for assistance. Unfortunately it's very rare for any request from them to gain any kind of urgency, and a lot of people don't even feel comfortable reaching out anyway."
"Oh… That is bad," Ruby agreed sadly. While she still didn't agree on Velvet's outlook on Mistral as a whole, she could certainly see how parts of it were rather off putting. "Huntsmen should be helping everyone."
"Yes… We should," Weiss agreed too, receiving a smile from the older girl.
"I believe that too," Velvet smiled and passed the shirt to the heiress' waiting hand. "Which is why I want to travel to Menagerie when I graduate. I want to help the people there, and maybe even open a combat school one day so that I can teach anyone who wants to learn how to defend themselves and others. My semblance is rather good for teaching different combat styles, after all."
"That actually makes a lot of sense." Weiss hummed as they all began to make their way to the counter, where a middle-aged lady greeted them with a smile. "I assume Yang and Coco know your goals too."
Velvet's face dropped for a moment as she passed the belt to the woman. It was clear that the question troubled the girl slightly as her ears folded and a deep sigh escaped her. Silence filled the space between them all for a while, and Ruby shared a worried look with her partner. It was only once all of them had been served and were making their way back out of the store that the Faunus finally replied.
"They know," She mumbled and looked at the ground as they walked. "Coco is all for it, she is actually quite excited. But Yang…"
Velvet paused and both Ruby and Weiss let out a breath as they both knew the issue. It was Weiss who finally said it. "Yang wants to explore."
Velvet nodded and Ruby could see a little worry on her face. "We've been talking about it a lot lately. And I know there is still a few years to make those decisions, but at the very least we're going to be separated for a year, since she's a year behind."
Ruby knew how the girl felt. Before she herself had been accepted into Beacon early, the thought of not seeing her sister everyday had made her feel rather sad at the time. And it wasn't just Yang anymore. She'd missed Weiss terribly during the week she was gone, and that day she called her out of the blue after the funeral had been a very needed conversation. Blake, she couldn't imagine not seeing anymore. Not only was the girl one of her best friends, but they were dating and finally in a place that she was thoroughly enjoying. The idea of not seeing a person you care for so deeply was not an idea she was fond of.
But from how it sounded, that was a very real possibility for not only Velvet and Coco, but her too. Velvet and Coco were obviously leaving for Menagerie in two years, and since Ruby believed that the trio were going to last, that meant Yang would be leaving in three. What her sister was going to do then, she had no idea. Weiss was right in that Yang's heart was set on exploring, even Ruby knew that.
"She could stay in Menagerie, and travel for work," Ruby said with a heavy heart as she knew such a scenario would mean she wouldn't get to see her sister much. "But if you're worried about her calling things off, I don't think you should be."
"I agree with Ruby," Weiss chimed in and looked around her cautiously as they walked towards Roman's. "You three are a great couple. Even if you are annoying, and occasionally rather sickening, from time to time."
"Thanks… I think," Velvet replied with a chuckle. "I really hope it works out like that too."
Ruby gave the Faunus a smile as they finally arrived at the store, but before they could walk through the door, Weiss stopped in her tracks. Turning back to her, she raised an eyebrow as she saw the girl eyeing the store's name. A disapproving scowl painted her pretty features, but she shook her head and walked into the store ahead of them. She still wasn't sure why Weiss didn't like the store, but with a small shrug, she followed Velvet inside.
Ruby had seen the store a couple of times, but had never actually been inside. It had nothing to do with weapons, or combat skirts… Dammit! Ruby thought to herself as she remembered that she had forgotten to look for a gift for Blake in the clothing store. Unfortunately, she looked down at her watch to see that they only had ten minutes left before they had to meet everyone back at the food court, so knew she would have to find something for Blake before leaving the store.
However, that task looked like it was going to be a rather difficult one as the walls and shelves were lined with the most random assortment of items. Shirts with random phrases and images printed on their fronts lined part of one wall, and the rest of the wall was adorned with glasses with the same type of things on them. On another there were prank items and various gag gifts, ranging from hand buzzers to giant condoms. A selection of books that didn't look like they were intended to be read sat beside them with stupid names such as Insult Diary and 100 GREAT PUNS THAT EVERY PUNS THAT EVERY PUN MASTER SHOULD BE PUNISHED FOR NOT KNOWING. The latter item was the one Weiss made a beeline for.
Plenty of other items lined the shelves too, from foul tasting gum to fart spray and even a few board games that didn't look too bad. Just as Velvet had said, the opposite wall was lined with cosplay items. False cats ears, outfits from numerous shows, and fluffy tails hung from the wall. Next to them seemed to be another part of the store that was blocked off from the rest of the store by a curtain of beads, and though she couldn't see what was behind it, she could see a few more items.
Overlooking the whole store was a rather small, bored looking, goth girl with pigtails sitting behind the counter who was paying more attention to her Scroll than what was happening; though her emerald green eyes did flick over to her and Weiss momentarily as they entered.
As Velvet moved away to check the joke items with Weiss, Ruby roamed towards the cosplay area since she knew gag gifts weren't exactly Blake's thing. She wasn't exactly sure what she was looking for though, but she knew Blake wouldn't be interested in anything there. But as she scanned the cosplay items, she saw nothing that Blake would like. She didn't need cat ears as she already had her own rather cute, real ones, and Ruby figured that either those or a tail would be terribly offensive. There was a ribbon, but she would honestly rather Blake wasn't wearing them in the first place since she had actually liked seeing Blake have her ears out so comfortably over the past week.
However, much to her dismay, she heard Weiss call out to her a couple of minutes later and realised she had wasted ten minutes looking at stuff. "Ruby!" The heiress yelled impatiently from near the counter. "Will you just pick something already? We have to go!"
"Ahh!" Ruby breathed, panicking a little.
Weiss was right, she just had to choose something. But what? She asked herself as she frantically looked around. But nothing felt right. There was nothing that looked like something Blake would even like, and she wasn't even sure if the girl liked to cosplay. However, that was when she saw it. Just behind the beaded curtain was a clear plastic package with what looked like a piece of black clothing inside, but the small image in the corner showed a dark-skinned girl wearing a dress, so Ruby assumed that was what the fabric was. The most important thing though was that the label said Ninjas of Love.
Even though the books had been a little too sexual in parts for her liking, to the point where she had thought the books might actually describe it on the very rare occasions she had looked through them, she knew Blake loved the series. And with nothing else in sight, Ruby knew she wouldn't find anything better. So she reached through and quickly snatched the dress and ran back to place it on the counter. Before she could even pull out her wallet, Weiss handed the disinterested checkout girl her card and the dress was slipped into the bag with the rest of the gifts.
"About time!" Weiss breathed and accepted the bag from the girl. "Now can we leave this lubricious store?"
Ruby had no idea what that word meant either, but both her and Velvet gave the heiress a nod. It may not have been the best gift, but as she had barely any time to think about what to get her girlfriend since she had never really celebrated Christmas before, she doubted Blake would blame her at all for a bad present.
With only having eaten a slice of toast for breakfast, the delicious smell of burgers, fish, and fries that drifted up to her nose from the tray in her hands caused her stomach to grumble loudly. To her side, Ruby was carrying another tray filled with salad and fruit for Weiss and Velvet, but as they walked, the little redhead would regularly reach over with a smile and steal some fries.
"So you're really not gonna admit that weapon bag was mine?" The girl asked with a cheeky smile.
"You know this conversation is what made them send us to get the food, right?" Blake chuckled in return.
"Nooo," Ruby hummed with fries in her mouth. "They sent us because you kept kissing me whenever I asked, and Weiss said it was annoying to see us so happy."
"Mhm. And I would show you how happy I am again, if I wasn't carrying a tray of food."
Ruby stuck out her tongue and Blake shook her head. "You could just admit the bag is for me."
"I have no idea what you would do with a pommel for a rapier," Blake lied and heard an amused chuckle.
At first, Blake hadn't really cared about keeping the gifts a secret; but as she saw how eager her girlfriend became when she saw the weapon bag, her mind changed as she found it to be a good excuse to tease the girl a little. Every time Ruby asked about the bag, or even hinted to know what was inside, Blake would swoop in and cut her off with a kiss. Admittedly, she was assuming that was why the girl was asking so much, but Blake was more than happy to continue their little game.
"There is also a bag from Soup as well." Blake said smugly and glanced at the reaper. "Maybe I just bought you a new combat skirt."
"You? Buy a combat skirt?" Ruby chuckled as she gracefully dodge a child who almost ran into her. "You wouldn't know where to begin."
"And what makes you think that?" She replied with a raised eyebrow.
"Well… You're like Yang," Ruby said with a wide grin. "You have yet to realise how great combat skirts are. You're still wearing your pants and shorts, and… catsuits."
"I've never seen Yang wear a catsuit." Blake giggled at the image of the blonde trying to squeeze her brawny form into one comfortably. "What do you have against them anyway? From what I saw, you quite liked mine."
Ruby flushed a deep red as they both remembered how the girl's eyes had been glued to her body that morning. She had been tempted to wear the catsuit again since she really did like that Ruby was so captivated by her body, but she had yet to fix the zip and she figured that might be a little too far. That didn't mean she hadn't been teasing her a little anyway, with purposeful stretches and the small kisses that Ruby very much seemed to enjoy.
"I did," Ruby blushed and looked down at her tray to hide it. "And it makes your bu… body look great." Blake grinned as she heard the slip up. "But don't they restrict movement by, like, a lot?"
"Hmm," Blake hummed thoughtfully. "Not really. I mean, a little; but my fighting style relies on me knowing where every part of my body is, a skirt flows as I move and could get caught on something."
"So if I bought you one, you wouldn't wear it?"
"Not for combat," Blake laughed and turned to her girlfriend suspiciously. "Did you buy me a combat skirt?"
"N-No." The girl stuttered nervously, though those nerves vanished quickly and a mischievous smile appeared on her face. "Maybe. Admit the weapon bag is mine and I'll tell you what I got you."
She flashed her girlfriend a grin and, matching the girl's mischievousness, balanced her tray on one hand while reaching out to firmly grasp the one Ruby was holding. Keeping both steady, she swooped down and pressed her lips against Ruby's to receive a soft hum in return. She let the kiss linger for a moment to enjoy the feeling of the widening smile on her girlfriend's face, but quickly pulled away and gave her a teasing look.
"Nope."
Before the girl could recover, Blake took off walking back towards the rest of the group; purposely adding a little more sway to her hips as she knew Ruby was watching.
"Wait…" Ruby called out loudly as she jogged to catch up, drawing the eyes of Coco and Weiss from the table ahead of them where everyone but Yang was sat. "Does that mean you would wear a combat skirt out of combat?"
She couldn't suppress that laugh that forced its way out of her throat as she placed the tray down on the table, where Coco immediately grabbed a burger. She turned around just as Ruby arrived and gave her a seductive smirk. "Maybe." She said simply and saw the Silver eyes light up a little before turning back to Coco. "Where did Yang go?"
"Ovatha."
"Huh?"
"Over there," Velvet translated after tapping her girlfriend's hand disapprovingly and pointing to the fountain that was nearby. At the edge of it facing away from them sat her partner with her legs folded and her eyes closed, her yellow aura shimmering around her. "She said she didn't have time to meditate this morning."
"Then she shouldn't have taken so long in the shower." Weiss scowled and reached out for her chicken salad.
"Hmm, well I should probably get her," Blake said and took a quick bite of her tuna panini. "She threw a fit last time we didn't tell her about food."
Both Coco and Velvet gave her a small wave, and she made her way over to the blonde. She knew that the girl liked to meditate every morning, and often hated being interrupted; but she also hated cold food and Blake didn't want to be around when Yang took a bite out of a cold burger. Reaching out as she got close to her partner, she placed a hand on the girl's shoulder and felt a sudden wave of worry rush through her.
She knew the worry wasn't her own and quickly withdrew her hand, the feeling immediately going away. Before she could even process it, Yang had turned on her and Blake saw the eyes fading from red to lilac.
"Sup?" She asked, a smile quickly forming on her face. Had Blake not just felt what she had, she would have easily believed it.
"Oh! Uhh.. Food." She said slowly.
"About time, I'm bloody starving." She breathed and brought a hand up to slap her shoulder. Instinctively, Blake flinched away and it earned a raised eyebrow. "You okay, Blake?"
"Ye… Yeah," She coughed and shook her head. "Sorry, little distracted."
"I bet." The blonde laughed. "Anyway, I'm starving. Let's go."
Before she could answer, Yang walked past her and Blake turned to watch. With the exception of the funeral, the girl had seemed so happy lately with both Velvet and Coco being at the house. She knew that the girl certainly had her own issues, and had even confided that she was thinking about seeking her bandit mother at some point, but she doubted that was what was bothering her. However, Yang was a rather private person herself regarding certain things, so letting out a small sigh, Blake made her way back to the table and made a note to ask Ruby about it later, hoping that she could offer some insight on her sister's troubles.
Though the house barely looked any different, Blake couldn't help but to note that Weiss' mood had certainly improved. There was no tree since there was nowhere to get one in Vale, especially not so late, but the heiress had bought a couple of packs of tinsel, and was joyously engaged in hanging it around the room with the help of Yang and Velvet. As they worked, the snow-haired girl happily hummed to herself and the sound was actually rather soothing to Blake's ears after the ordeal that was downtown Vale.
It was one of the things she actually really liked about Weiss. Though she was certainly rather guarded with her emotions, the humming, and even singing on occasion, was always a clear sign that she was happy. So as she sat on the couch with Ruby and Coco, the other two girls chatting happily about Coco's weapon, Gianduja, she let herself watch her friend enjoy the moment. However, she was also watching Yang.
She had been watching her partner carefully out of the corner of her eye ever since the fountain, and had noticed stuff she wished she had earlier. Whenever the blonde was talking to someone she was happy and smiling, the smile that painted her face effortless and believable; but when there was no attention on her, when people were looking away, the smile would drop. Not by much, but it was noticeable when Blake paid attention. And from the way her eyes would flick to Velvet, Blake had to assume it had something to do with what Ruby had said about the Faunus girl's goal of moving to Menagerie after school. Though even knowing that, she had no idea how to help, and that irked her since Yang was always trying to help her.
"You okay?" She heard Ruby whisper and felt a hand slip into hers. As she turned to look at her girlfriend, she saw the silver eyes track where she had been looking. "Worried about Yang?" Blake looked at Coco to see the girl was cleaning her weapon before she nodded in response, deciding to be honest. "We'll talk to her tomorrow."
"Weiss will kill us if we ruin the mood tomorrow," Blake breathed, and slumped back into the couch, the back of Ruby's head fell against her shoulder as she leaned back from her crossed-legged position. "Day after."
"Okay."
Blake looked down to see Ruby smiling gently up at her. Though she was still a little worried about her partner, she couldn't help but smile in return as she stared into the pools of shining silver. Snaking her arm around her girlfriend's waist and resting her hand on her stomach, she leaned down and pressed a grateful kiss on the girl's lips.
"Ugh," They heard Weiss groan loudly from the other side of the room. "Do those two ever stop?"
"Nope," Yang chuckled, the sound feeling a little hollow to Blake now. "Pretty much all they have been doing for the last week."
She pulled away and stuck her middle finger up at the blonde as Ruby stuck her tongue out, the blonde returning both while Weiss rolled her eyes. She knew Weiss' remark was only in jest, but to annoy her more Blake pecked Ruby again and sent the heiress a smug look. All she received in return was a scoff as the snow-haired girl returned to hanging the decorations, the sound of humming restarting almost immediately.
Raalm's Notes
Hello everyone, longer chapter today, so I hope you enjoyed it. Mostly some fluff and them picking out presents for each other, but also some other stuff. We wanted to touch upon being a Faunus a little further, as it's a big part of Blake's past in this story, and Velvet has her thought too. Hopefully everything there was good. There is also some stuff here for Yang, Coco, and Velvet, as you all know I like to explore side characters too. Another thing you will note in this series is the mention of aura techniques a lot too. There are apparently loads of aura techniques in the RWBYverse, yet we never seen them, so I like to bring them over a little. Blake feeling Yang's worry through her aura as she meditated and reflected on things was one of those, though Yang may not be aware it happened. Also, Weiss is back... and she is so much fun to write :P The is also a cameo from one of Toxic's favourite characters, if you can spot it :P
But yeah, that's pretty much it from me. Hopefully you enjoyed the fluff, and the little bit of drama. And I hope you see you next chapter which should be up on the 17th of February :)
The Warmth That Changed It All update: I know we have a few cross-readers here, so wanted to update you on something. I somehow screwed up the upload schedule, no idea how since everything says we should be on track, but apparently not. So the next Warmth chapter will be going up a day early to get up back on schedule, which will be the 12th of February.
Toxic's Notes
Heyo, Toxic here, working with Raalm has been such a pleasure and honestly if I didn't reach out to him I don't think this story would have happened. Its hard to believe its been close to a year, may 12th was the last time that chapter 25 was opened by me, so that's what I'm going off of. And he's been a constant friend through most of it, I won't lie though it did start off a little weird bc we didn't know how to work together yet, now though its unreal how we are literally the same person. Like ya'll have NO idea how weird it is, I think the only time that we disagreed on something recently was for Green Glass, I wanted to keep it first person and he was in full delete mode, I told him to rewrite a bit in third and see how it sounded, and I said, "Nope go back its so much better in first." It's honestly unreal at how much editing has changed my life, even if its only for Raalm, you may see my name on other works but those authors never really clicked, they never really engaged other than to get their work checked, and that, that changes a lot as an editor, like the ability to do the things that I do with Raalm on a daily basis is such a game changer. Sorry for the rant, and I realize this is probably my longest note, but one more thing real quick, Thank you so much for reading these stories, yes you, the reader, bc you are awesome, and dont let anyone else tell you otherwise, even yourself, bc you are capable of so much even if you only impact one person in a positive manner in you entire life, you still did something and you impacted that person in a positive way.