Disclaimer: I do not own MGLN or any of its characters. Which is such a shame, because we all know what would happen if I did. Hint: yuri galore! xD
Prompt: Snow Season by Lance58
Prompt Queue: Nanoha-dominant date scene by hinagiku13; Hayate sandwich fluff by Major Mike Powell III;
Fate wrapped her long black jacket tighter around herself when she felt a chill run up her spine. The tiny speckles of snow falling from the sky wasn't helping her keep warm, but she couldn't complain because she always enjoyed a White Christmas. She watched idly as people walked past her from where she stood, occasionally taking a small sip of hot chocolate to warm herself.
"Testarossa! I apologize for being late. Have you waited long?"
Turning to the sound, Fate beamed when the person she was waiting for finally arrived. "Not at all. I'm grateful that you have taken time out of your busy schedule to help me with this mission, Signum."
The pink-haired knight let a small smile take over her lips. "It's my pleasure. Master Hayate was rather pleased to let me help after I explained to her why I needed the night off."
"Y-Y-You told Hayate?"
"Of course, she is my master. I hide nothing from her."
Fate sighed. She should have anticipated as much. "Well, let's go then."
Signum nodded and followed after the enforcer, walking street after street, window-shopping. Occasionally, something would catch the blonde's eye and she would stare at an item through the window for a few minutes, then a small look of disappointment would cross her face before she walked away mumbling that it was not good enough. After the nth block that they have walked, and the xth number of times that Fate has stopped to look through a window without going into the shop, Signum could not help but give an exasperated sigh.
When the sound caught Fate's attention, she turned to see the worn look on the other woman's face. Guilt slowly rose within her as she apologized. "I'm sorry, Signum. I know this is tiring. Did you want to end this here?"
"Testarossa, do you have anything in mind? Even just a general idea of what you want to get her?" the knight asked.
"Not really," Fate answered sheepishly. "I was hoping something would jump out at me if I window-shopped enough."
"Have you ever gotten her a ring?"
"No, but I've gotten her other kinds of jewelry before. Somehow, it just doesn't feel like it's... enough."
"The thought has occurred to me that I've never seen either of you wear rings before, even though you are both completely committed to one another. A ring is not just a piece of jewelry, Testarossa. And I'm sure you understand this much more than I do, but any piece of jewelry can have so much meaning behind it if you get the right one with the right intentions and the right message."
"So, you're saying..."
"I think the reason why nothing is good enough is because nothing you've come across shows the right message that you want to convey to her. You love her. You have to get her a gift that shows her that."
"That's exactly my problem. I can't find the something that's good enough for Nanoha."
"Yes, that is exactly your problem. You are trying to get her a physical object that speaks volumes of your love for her. Unfortunately, no object exists. You've known Nanoha for about 15 years and you've been together for roughly 10, am I right?"
"Roughly, yes..."
"Ten years is a long time. A lot of gift giving for birthdays, anniversaries, and Christmas. At this point, any physical object you can give her has already been given to her, don't you think?"
"That's exactly what I've been trying to say, Signum!"
"Which brings me back to my original question: have you ever gotten her a ring?"
"I already said-"
"A ring is not just a piece of jewelry, Testarossa. Not unless you make it that way. Why do you think people use rings to bind themselves to the people they love? The ring you will get her will symbolize your commitment to her. It will be the physical representation of your love for her. When she wears that ring on her finger, it means that she knows you will be there for her in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, for poorer or richer."
Fate stood there, too shock to speak as she eyed the pink-haired knight in front of her. "Are we still talking about me? Because for a second, It sounded a little bit like you and Shamal."
"Klarwind's resting state is four rings. Shamal has enough as it is," Signum replied curtly. "But Nanoha, I think, will appreciate getting one from you."
"I don't think I'm ready to propose to her, Signum," Fate admitted. "I know we've been together for a long time and I can't see myself with anyone but her, but... I just don't feel ready."
"You don't have to propose to her. It's called a 'promise ring'. You promise yourself to her until you are ready."
"That actually does... sound like a really good idea."
"Good, because I'm tired. And I think I will take you up on that offer of ending it here today."
"Thanks, Signum."
"No problem. See you around, Testarossa," she replied as she started her way back home.
Fate waved her friend goodbye as she began contemplating what kind of ring to get her girlfriend.
~o~
"Finally!" Nanoha let out as she slumped onto the couch.
The Christmas Eve party at their house came to an end and all of their guests were finally on their merry way home.
"I thought they would never leave," Fate concurred as she sat down next to her girlfriend. "Considering how it is Christmas now and how we would probably sleep in tomorrow, shall we exchange gifts now?"
"Sounds like a good idea," the brunette replied as she stood up. "Let me get you your present. It'll only be a minute."
The enforcer gave her a gentle smile and nodded. As soon as Nanoha disappeared, Fate pulled out the present she hid in her pocket and held onto the small box, fiddling with it until the brunette's return.
"Merry Christmas, Fate-chan," she said as she handed the gift to her girlfriend.
"Merry Christmas, Nanoha," Fate replied as she accepted the gift and handed her own to the other woman. "I want to see you open yours first."
Seeing Fate's eager expression, Nanoha could not help but comply with her love's request. She took the little box in her hands and slowly removed the bow and wrapping paper. When she uncovered the small box, she turned her vision to the smiling face of the one sitting next to her.
"Fate-chan, this is..."
"Open it," the enforcer urged.
So Nanoha did. And what she witnessed when she did made her speechless as she stared at the gold-banded ring with a ruby gemstone in the middle, flanked by two smaller rubies on both sides.
"Fate-chan, I thought..."
Taking the ring from the box that was still in her girlfriend's hands, she slowly placed it onto Nanoha's left ring finger. "This is a promise ring, Nanoha. My promise to you that I am yours. That I will be with you through good times and bad. I pledge to you my loyalty, my devotion, my entire being. I love you, Nanoha. There are no words to describe how much."
"I love you too, Fate-chan," she said, her smile gentle and her eyes glistening. "You should open your present too."
Returning the smile, the blonde-haired woman picked up the present given to her and slowly unwrapped it. She was speechless when she saw that the box was approximately the same size as the one she gave Nanoha.
"Nanoha, you mean..."
"Open it," she coaxed.
Fate opened the box and saw a similar gift, but hers was a carbon fiber ring with several yellow sapphires embedded into the ring.
"This is a promise ring, Fate-chan," Nanoha said with a smile as she reached for the ring. She slipped it onto Fate's left ring finger as she stared into her lover's eyes. "My promise to you that I am yours. That I would do everything in my power to make you happy each and every day. That I will be by your side through tears and through laughter."
"Nanoha? Does Hayate know about your gift to me?" the enforcer asked.
"To be honest, I worried about what to get you, so I dragged Vita-chan into helping me," the brunette admitted sheepishly.
"I did the same with Signum," Fate confessed.
Nanoha smiled at the confession as she leaned in for a kiss.
~o~
"Good work, Vita, Signum," Hayate praised her knights. "It's about time we saw some rings on those two."
"Those two always needed a little pushing," the red-headed knight said as she flipped through the channels with a remote.
"Indeed," Signum concurred.
A/N: Sorry for the long absence, but I have been busy with a bunch of real-life stuff. In addition to that, I've been playing beta for a few people, so time to write my own stories have been scarce. I only managed to get this out because of a small muse attack and deciding it was time for "me time". Updates will still be sporadic and probably very rare. I'm currently behind in beta work. I'M SORRY! T_T
I hope this met Lance's expectations. When I think of snow season, I can't help but associate it with Christmas... so yeah. ^-^;