After their father's attempt at banning it, Yang tried to stop kissing Ruby in front of him. It wasn't an attempt to deceive him - she just knew that it bothered him, and she wanted to be respectful. She couldn't stop kissing Ruby - it wasn't physically possible. At times, the love she carried inside for her baby sister bubbled up and overflowed so much that she felt she the only way to fully express it was with kissing. Nothing in the world made her happier than Ruby, and she needed the freedom to share that love. To Yang, kissing Ruby was as reflexive as breathing, and she couldn't even imagine how to stop.

As the months passed, Ruby started spiriting her big sister away to private places with the sole intention of kissing her and doing nothing else at all. Yang resisted a little, but only on the basis that they might get into trouble - not on any real objection to the acts. She enjoyed it just as much as Ruby did, and besides, the younger girl would not be put aside in this. She pouted, pleaded, and persuaded in any way she could to convince Yang to indulge her, which she always did eventually.

It wasn't as though Ruby was a spoiled little brat going around constantly demanding things of others. Rather the opposite, in fact. Ruby was the sweetest, most adorable girl in the whole world. Yang adored her old soul and her strong, adventurous spirit. Sure the girl was socially awkward at times, but she was full of love. She was kind, giving, and she loved helping people. That generous nature was one of the things Yang loved most about her. Ruby's heart was so pure and gentle that, in a way, she often felt obliged to give Ruby whatever she asked for whenever she asked for it. She knew she wasn't the only one who felt that way. Everyone in their family adored Ruby. Yang was just the one lucky enough to be around her the most.

Whenever she was certain that they wouldn't upset their father (or uncle, depending on who was around), Yang thoroughly enjoyed their little trysts. When they cuddled, Ruby wrapped herself around Yang like a little safety blanket, making the blonde feel completely warm and safe and coddled. Ruby's kiss made her feel the same way, only . . . more. Yang didn't know the words, but it was good. It didn't make her afraid. It made her feel the opposite of afraid - not safe - something else. A feeling that told her that as long as Ruby loved her, nothing else even mattered. It healed her broken little heart each time, and she would let Ruby kiss her as much as she wanted for as long as she wanted for the rest of their lives together. The poor girl had barely even known her mother. Since Yang had lost two mothers, and she knew the pain of it, she couldn't deny Ruby any kind of affection, even if others might frown on it.

She wasn't sure when it had started - it must have only happened in tiny increments - but about two years after That Day, it dawned on Yang that their kisses had gotten considerably longer, and so did the amount of time they spent doing it. She didn't mind in the least - in fact, she downright craved it by now - but since she was so afraid of getting into trouble for it, she wondered how bad the consequences could really be. Why did everyone think it was so improper? She debated about whether or not to bring up the subject with her father again. Eventually, in order to avoid another incident, she went to the library and researched what she could.

The only mildly logical reason she found against it was that too many people thought it was gross. Beyond that, she still had no idea why it was "wrong." She resolved that - whatever it was - it couldn't be that bad. Her father was a reasonable man, and now that she was older and had done the research, she felt confident that, if it came down to it, she would be able to talk things through with him. In the mean time, she would just have to treat the situation like any other thing that people thought was gross: Do it in private, don't talk about it, and don't feel any shame. She loved Ruby, and Ruby loved her back. She felt certain that it was the rest of the world who must be wrong for despising their siblings. How could love ever be wrong? She fully intended to continue unhindered in pouring all of her love into the most wonderful girl in the world.

. . . . .

On Ruby's 14th birthday, after all the celebrations had been had, the birthday girl vehemently insisted that Yang retreat with her to her bedroom where they could be alone. Yang willingly obliged, as usual. She knew what her sister wanted. When they got there, she let Ruby tug her to the bed where they sat on the edge, side-by-side, like always, and she wrapped her arms warmly around the little redhead.

"I love you, Yang," Ruby sang invitingly with a cute little self-satisfied smirk on her face.

If anyone else had ever looked at her like that, Yang would have probably knocked them into the next room, but on the face of her adorable little sister, that smirk was almost irresistible. Almost. Yang was already planning to resist a little tonight - purely for entertainment purposes. She grinned back. "I love you, too, Ruby." She brushed the hair away from Ruby's forehead and kissed it. "I hope you had a good day today."

Ruby squeezed her enthusiastically. "Yes! It was sooo great! I can't believe you went to so much trouble for me. You're the best sister ever!" She kissed Yang hard on the lips a couple of times.

Yang chuckled and kissed Ruby's forehead again. "Well, you deserved it because, actually, you're the best sister ever." She nuzzled the younger girl's nose.

"Awww," Ruby squealed happily as she bounced up and down and shook Yang wildly.

The older girl laughed. "I think you ate way too much cake today, baby sister."

Ruby shook her head. "No. I'm just ridiculously happy! I think I might be the luckiest girl in the whole world. I have you and Dad and Uncle Qrow and Zwei and a really long list of other people that love me, and I just feel a little overwhelmed right now. I'm so happy! I just don't even have the words to say how much!"

Yang melted at Ruby's words and answered earnestly, "I'm really glad. You deserve every bit of love that you get and more."

Ruby smiled and closed her eyes for a second. When she opened them again, Yang felt like prey in the sights of a hungry predator. It jolted her, and her adrenaline raged.

"You think I deserve more, huh?" the younger girl breathed sensually.

Yang opened her eyes wide, took a deep, shaky breath and raised her brow. "Maybe." She desperately hoped that her voice didn't sound as weak as it felt.

The hunger in Ruby's eyes intensified. "Weeeeell, there is one more thing I want," she purred.

"Oh, yeah?" Yang didn't want her desire show too much before she was ready for it to be seen, but she was afraid she was failing miserably.

"Yep," Ruby said, popping the 'P,' and leaning in closer.

"And what would that be?" Yang asked teasingly.

With a whisper, she answered, "You know."

Yang let the corner of her mouth turn up a bit and didn't lean in to take the kiss being offered to her. "Do I?"

"Yang," Ruby growled, her eyes narrowing, "You had better kiss me. It's my birthday, and you've barely kissed me all day!"

"Yeah, but that's because there were so many people around all day!" Yang defended.

"Okay," Ruby said slowly, "Well, all the people are gone, so what are you waiting for?" She lifted her hands to wrap around Yang's head and pulled her forcefully down.

Put in that way, how could she resist? Yang relented from her teasing and gave Ruby what she wanted. Honestly, she was just as eager for it as Ruby was, but she refused to rush. She kept her touch firm and steady, but slow - forcing her little sister to follow her speed. She was certain that in these times, she could feel the warmth of their souls winding and moving together in a caress of pleasure beyond description. In these moments, it was what she lived for.

Yang sighed in contentment, and Ruby took her opening to introduce a kiss of a whole new kind. When Ruby's tongue caressed hers, it shocked her to the core. Her entire body felt electrified from the pleasure of it. But fear got the better of her. "Ruby!" she exclaimed in a panic, pulling back from their embrace. "Where did you learn that?"

Her little sister peered skeptically back at her. "Uh . . . Life?" she answered patronizingly.

Yang shook her head, trying not to panic. "You don't know what you're doing."

Ruby looked like she might cry. "I'm sorry! I can learn to do it better, I swear!"

Yang didn't understand her sister's response right away, then, "Ruby! That's not what I meant!"

"Well, what do you mean?" Ruby whined.

Yang sighed. Her stomach ached from the war raging in her heart. "I mean, you don't know the consequences of what you're doing!"

"What consequences?" Ruby dismissed fiercely. "The consequences of being happy?" She scooted herself closer to Yang to re-close the gap between them.

"No!" Yang insisted, trying and failing to push Ruby off of her. "I mean we could get into more trouble than you could ever imagine."

"I know what you meant, Yang" Ruby answered sagely. "You don't seem to get my meaning."

"I guess I don't," the elder girl frowned. "Care to explain?"

Ruby nodded. "I mean, I'm completely in love with you. I want you. I want to kiss you all the time. I know why you're afraid, but I'm begging you to forget all that! You know, I tried to talk to dad again about why he wanted to ban us from kissing. He told me it was wrong, but he couldn't tell me why. Every time I asked him 'why' he told me, 'It just is.' If that's all the reason he can give me, then I don't care that it's wrong. Why should I?"

Yang's eye's widened. "There's more to it than that," she tried to explain.

"Yeah. I know," Ruby answered firmly. "I know all about it, and I don't care about any of that stuff."

Yang frowned. "You should."

"I don't." The look in Ruby's eyes was so ferocious that it startled Yang into submission. "Don't you love me?" the girl pouted.

"You know I do," the blonde answered in a whisper. "But I don't want to get caught. We'll get into so much trouble! As much as I ordinarily wouldn't care about trouble, I do in this case."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "We're not gonna get caught! We're trained to hear people coming from a mile away! Dad can't even walk up the stairs without us hearing him! No one is going to catch us!"

Yang was silent for so long that Ruby just grabbed her and started kissing her again - tongue and all. It took her breath away, but it didn't make her want to stop to breathe. Her hands shook with adrenaline, but she wasn't afraid. She never wanted it to stop, and Ruby seemed to want the same. They lost track of how long they were kissing, and when they heard the sound of their father calling for them, they shot apart like rockets.

Ruby giggled mischievously at her.

Yang couldn't help but chuckle in return. "I love you, Ruby," she said, shaking her head in amusement.

Ruby grinned and kissed her one last time. "I love you, too," she answered with so much affection that it made Yang's heart ache.

From then on, Yang felt a new kind of affection for Ruby. Their shared secret of forbidden love seemed to draw them impossibly closer. In fact, Yang felt a great deal better about herself now - as though she had settled more into who she was destined to be. It may not have been what the world expected or accepted, but it certainly felt right.