The yellow and black motorcycle's engine roared down the road, before screeching to a halt in front of the large, cast iron gates. The bars were thick and black as night, only decorated with a gleaming snowflake emblem and a cursive script 'S' underneath it. Yang Xiao Long flipped the kickstand on her motorbike and hit the buzzer to be let in. She hummed a random tune to herself, waiting for someone to get back to her on the intercom. She didn't have to wait long before she heard Weiss' voice.
"Yes, who is it?" her sister-in-law asked.
"Uh, hi. I'm with the Forbidden Dreams Stripper Agency. I'm Officer Hotbody! I have a Tittygram for a...hold on...a Weiss Skuh-nee? Is she available?" Yang said with a grin. She swore she could audibly hear Weiss' eyes roll in response.
"Hello, Yang. I'm opening the gate now." was all Weiss said in response before a loud buzzing sound was heard and the huge gate slowly swung open. Still smirking to herself over her joke, Yang hopped back on her motorbike and zoomed up the twisty-turny driveway to the front door of Schnee Manor. The actual mansion was a massive, a sprawling labyrinth that dated before the Great War, it's imposing facade made of brick and mortar.
Shutting off her bike, Yang unfastened her helmet, shaking her head to let her long, golden locks flow freely like fire burning from a comet. Slinging the helmet under her arm, she loudly rapped her knuckles on the front door, knowing full well there was a doorbell. From the other side, she could hear the distant, muffled voice of Ruby yelling "COMING!" and the sound of high heels awkwardly clopping against a hard floor.
"Hi, Yang! Thanks for making it!" Ruby smiled, as she swung open the front door. She was clad in an ankle-length scarlet dress with a knee-high slit. Black pumps complimented the outfit, though Yang could tell her little sister was still not entirely comfortable in 'lady stilts.' "Thanks for coming on such short notice! Weiss and I really, really appreciate it!" Ruby managed to awkwardly wobble over to Yang and the two sisters shared a hug.
"No problem, Rubes. You know I would never turn down an offer to babysit. Now! Where is that little rugrat?"
"Auntie Yang!" cried a tiny voice as an adorable little girl barreled down the main staircase and right into Yang's arms who picked her up for a bone-crushing hug. "You made it, you made it, you made it!" the little tyke said. She was seven years old, her eyes Ruby's silver, but she had Weiss's cheekbones and fair skin. Her hair was white with streaks of red and though she was short, she was full of boundless energy. Her name was Willow Summer Rose-Schnee and she was Weiss and Ruby's daughter.
The actual pregnancy was nothing short of a marvel in medical technology. The specifics of it were over Yang's head, but from what Ruby explained, it basically involved taking the DNA from one partner's egg and turning it into sort of 'synthetic sperm' to impregnate the other. Ruby had volunteered one of her eggs, leading to Yang joke she was Willow's 'Dad', though no one found that funny but her.
"She already had a bath, dinner is the oven staying warm. She is to be in bed no later than 9 and if she eats all of her dinner she may have exactly three chocolate chunk cookies for dessert." Weiss ordered, throwing on her fur coat. "The fundraising gala is expected to end around 10, so you figure with traffic, we should be home around 10:30 to 11."
"Gotcha!" Yang said with a faux-military salute. "I aim to give my niece the most absolutely boring night ever, no problem." Weiss sighed and helped Ruby into her black peat jacket.
"Just follow the rules, please. That's all I ask." Weiss said. Ruby gave a nervous smile, not wanting to get caught between her sister and her wife.
"I'm sure she'll do good, right Yang?" Ruby said, but Yang was too busy telling jokes to Willow.
"...and so the bartender says, 'Whiskey? I barely knew her!" Willow broke out into hysterical giggles, along with Yang, causing Weiss' eye to twitch in anger.
"Stop telling my daughter lewd jokes!" she yelled, before Ruby slid herself between the two women, taking her wife by the arm.
"C'mon, Snowflake. Klein has the limo waiting outside and you don't want to be late to an event you're hosting!" she pleaded. Weiss sighed dejectedly but kept her ice blue eyes locked on Yang.
"No shenanigans, Yang. No. Shenanigans." she warned with ice-cold fury and shut the door behind herself and Ruby. Yang stuck her tongue out, making Willow giggle with delight.
"C'mon, pip-squeak, let's see what's for dinner," she said, keeping Willow hoisted at her hip. "I can't believe Weiss cooks. When we were in school together, she couldn't even boil water without burning the campus down."
"Mommy usually cooks dessert, but Mama sometimes has Mr. Klein help her in the kitchen," Willow said.
"Wait, which one is Mama and which one is Mommy? I get confused."
Willow blinked for a second, as she had never really been asked this before and struggled to explain it to Yang at first.
"Um, Mommy is your sister and Mama is Aunt Winter's sister." the little one said.
"Heh, figures Rubes would be the one in charge of sweets. Okay, let's see what's for dinner, shall we?" Yang said, gently placing Willow down on the tiled kitchen floor. The little tyke was wearing a two-piece flannel PJ set of her favorite comic book character, 'Wondrous Woman'. It was bright pink and black with Wondrous Woman's Shield of Justice on the front and various stars and lightning bolts in a repeating pattern all over. Yang opened the oven and pulled out the large porcelain casserole dish, wrinkling her nose in disgust at the sight within. "What in Remnant is this slop?!"
"Oh, that's Mama's Three-Bean Casserole. She calls it 'brain food' and says it helps make people smarter by giving them good food." Willow stated matter-of-factly. "Mommy and me don't like it, but sometimes Mommy will sneak me cookies when Mama isn't looking."
"That's my sis!" Yang said with a laugh, before pushing the dish back in with the tips of her pinkies like it was a failed lab experiment. "Okay, first thing, we are not eating this Grimm crap." Taking her Scroll out from her back pocket, Yang scrolled through her contacts until she found who she was looking for. "Hi, Crazy Ernie's Pizza? Yeah, I need two large meat bonanza pizzas, an order of wacky garlic bread and two 2 liters of People Like Grapes. The address? Schnee Manor. ...no, this isn't a joke! Yes, yes, I'm aware this address normally doesn't get pizza deliveries, but there's a big tip for you if you do! The credit card? Uh...one sec..." Putting her phone on mute, Yang leaned into Willow and whispered, as if somehow her voice could override her Scroll's mute. "I don't suppose Mama has a stash of Lien somewhere, does she?"
Willow bit her bottom lip, a nervous habit she got from Ruby, and debated if she should say anything. But Mama had said it was only for emergencies, right? And not having food is kind of an emergency? So there shouldn't be an issue.
"Mama keeps an emergency credit card on the fridge..."
"Score!" Yang said with a pumped first and easily snagged the tiny piece of plastic and unmuted her phone. "So you guys take First Bank of Atlas, right? GREAT! The name is Weiss Schnee and the number is..."
The all-white stretch limousine silently cut through the inky black Atlas night, twisting and turning through snow covered roads towards the fundraising gala being held at the ballroom at the Grand Majesty Hotel in Atlas' capital. Weiss and Ruby sat quietly in the back, Ruby's hands neatly folded in her lap while Weiss stared out the window. The silence was unusually awkward as Ruby had expected there to be some conversation between the two. Finally, unable to deal with the crushing silence any longer, she cleared her throat and spoke.
"Is something wrong?" she said. Weiss snapped back to reality, turning to face Ruby and blushing slightly.
"Sorry, hun. I sort of zoned out there." the SDC CEO sighed. "I just have a lot on my mind tonight."
"Are you still upset about Yang babysitting? I know she's a bit rough around the edges, but she'll be fine! Willow is in good hands." Ruby pleaded, taking Weiss' hands in her own. It was a simple way Ruby would comfort Weiss when her wife was getting upset about something and it usually worked, but this time Weiss just gave her head a sad shake.
"I wish it was that, but I just dread formal events like this. When I was a little girl, Father would drag me to these things and introduce me to every single person in attendance and especially if they had a boy around my age. I just have a lot of bad memories on these sort of things..." she lamented. Ruby clutched Weiss' hands tighter and gave the back of them a soft kiss, her silver eyes never breaking contact with Weiss' ice blue irises.
"Well that was then and this is now! He's dead and you're in charge and you're gonna make the SDC better and make it stronger! I believe in you, Weiss. If anyone can turn this company around, it's you. Tonight, every rich guy and rich lady in attendance is gonna see a kick-butt lady of class and sophistication and they'll be begging you to take their lien!" Ruby beamed. Weiss could only smile back, always captivated by her wife's never sending sense of optimism.
"Always the optimist." Weiss finally said, giving Ruby a soft kiss on the lips. "Let's hope you're right. Old money is set in their ways and a lot of them are already grumbling about the SDC's new pledge to help Menagerie. Anyway, we're almost there so be prepared for lots of photos and paparazzi."
"No prob, Snowflake!" Ruby cheered. "And I know you said it wasn't an issue, but I know you too well. Don't worry about Yang and Willow. They're going to be fine!"
...and the Grimm was huge, just massive and it got right in my face, roaring so loud I almost went deaf. And you know what I did?" Yang imparted to a wide-eyed Willow. The tyke was nibbling on a slice of pizza, her silver eyes locked on to Yang as her aunt breathlessly told the story about how she single-handedly took down an Ursa Grimm.
"What did you do then?" she queried. Yang just grinned.
"Simple! I punched it right in the face! And I punched it again and again and again and finally made its head explode with a point-blank blast from Ember Celica! It was awesome. The shot rang out and KABOOM, it's head exploded like a balloon! You should have seen it, pip-squeak." Willow just stared in wide-eyed wonder and slurped loudly on her grape soda.
"Being a Huntress must be very exciting. I know Mama wishes Mommy would give it up, but she said she doesn't want to." the little one said. "Sometimes Mommy comes home with cuts or bruises and it makes Mama sad."
"Rubes, er, Mommy, is one of the best Huntresses out there and she graduated top of her class in weapons skills. You've seen her use Crescent Rose, right?"
"Her big hook blade weapon? Yeah! She's really good at it. She moves so fast I can't see her sometimes."
Yang smiled at this and shoved another chunk of wacky garlic bread in her mouth, before licking her fingers clean. This was followed by an ear-shattering burp that rattled through the living quarters and made Willow laugh with delight.
"You're silly!" she said.
"No, I'm Yang!" was the quick reply, making Willow giggle even harder. Aunt and niece sat there in the living room, munching on their greasy feast and watching whatever loud cartoon show it was that Willow enjoyed. Everything seemed to be going okay for Yang, the night going off without a hitch until Willow's child enhanced curiosity poked through again.
"Hey, where's Auntie Blake? Usually, she always comes over to visit." was all Willow said, but for Yang, it was like a punch in the gut.
"Oh, uh, Blake? She...couldn't make it tonight. She's busy at home." Yang blurted out, shoving another chunk of garlic bread in her mouth. But Willow was too much like Weiss, in that should see right through Yang. The look she gave was one hundred percent Schnee and the next generation heiress was not having it.
"But Auntie Blake always comes over. You guys are always holding hands and kissing and now she's not here. Did you have a fight?" the youngling said while dining on a slice of pizza. Yang's face flushed and she wasn't ready for this kind of interrogation from someone who wasn't even in their double digits age-wise.
"You sure are nosey, you know that?" she snorted derisively, taking a sip of her soda. But Willow was not to be denied.
"And you're not answering my question."
"Gods, you're so much like Weiss sometimes it's painful!" Yang exasperated, throwing her hands in there. Willow just grinned, now sitting cross-legged from Yang on the fluffy white couch in the living quarters. "Fine, if you must know, Auntie Blake and I are having some problems lately, ok? Just...problems. Nothing serious, but we're giving each other space."
"So you broke up?"
"WILLOW SUMMER ROSE-SCHNEE!" Yang bellowed, her eyes now flashing red. "I don't know why you're suddenly so interested in my love life, but enough is enough!" Willow visibly shrank into the couch, her eyes glimmering on the edge with tears.
"I-I'm sorry, Auntie Y-Yang..." she whimpered. Yang visibly deflated, her eyes reverting back to their normal violet. She sighed, mentally cursing herself for losing her temper like that.
"I'm sorry, pip-squeak," she sighed with guilty inflection. "It's just...it's just been super stressful for me lately. Never fall in love, lemme tell ya. It'll save years of stress and keep you healthy and happy." Willow sat back up, still keeping a cautious distance from Yang, her tiny legs dangling over the couch and unable to fully touch the floor.
"But you still like like her, right? Just tell her how you feel." Willow said, frowning as her collectible 'Wondrous Woman' cup was now empty of soda. "It doesn't sound hard..."
"You watch too many sappy romantic comedies with Rub-I mean, Mommy. Life isn't like that." Yang protested, searching for the bag of hot pepper flakes for her next slice of pizza.
"Is it? I mean, I dunno anything about having a boyfriend or a girlfriend, but Mama always said you shouldn't hide your feelings, that it just makes matters worse." Willow offered innocently. Yang slumped down in on the couch and mulled over everything. Maybe she had been taking this the wrong way?
"Pip-squeak, I am so glad you take after your Mama when it comes to common sense!"
Home sweet home." Ruby yawned, stretching her lithe arms. It was a quarter till midnight and the whole gala had run longer than anticipated. Some of the 'old money' that Weiss had warned Ruby about were not happy about the partnership with Menagerie and even less happy when Weiss presented the Menagerian diplomat a check for one million Lien. They grumbled and soon walked out with Ruby sticking her tongue out at them as they left the ballroom. Those that were left, which was most of the audience, applauded the decision.
"I have never been so glad to be home," Weiss said with tired eyes. "All I want to do is change into my PJs and fall asleep."
"Here, here." Ruby agreed, giving Weiss a sweet peck on the cheek. Weiss thanked Klein for his service, tipped him extra Lien for staying out later than agreed, and watched as he pulled off to the guest house on the Schnee compound where he lived.
"Be quiet when entering, Ruby. I don't want to wake Willow up." Weiss whispered, pushing the door open. Instead of Yang sleeping on the couch or watching TV quietly, they were greeted with chaos. Empty two liters of soda littered the floor, along with several greasy pizza boxes stacked on top of one another. Couch cushions had been pulled from the couch and stacked to resemble a "fort", behind which was Willow in a pink princess dress and holding a foam rubber sword.
"Do you dare challenge Princess Powerslam the Awesome?!" she yelled, waving her 'sword' in the air. On the other hand of the living room was Yang, wearing her bike helmet as if it were a golden crown.
"Oh, I dare! Yang the Barbarian shall have your head, Princess Powerslam! EN GARDE!" and charged at the fort, easily pinning Willow to the ground and tickling her all over. "Surrender at once to Yang the Barbarian or else I will increase the power of my tickle spell!"
"N-N-Nevvveerrrr!" Willow laughed, tears in her eyes from such joy.
"A-HEM!" Weiss scolded, clearing her throat. The entire room stopped and both aunt and niece looked over to see a blushing Ruby and a very upset Weiss.
"I'm not going to ask about the pizza or even the soda, but why is she not in bed? How much caffeine has she had, Yang?!"
"Uh, I dunno...seven?"
"GET! OUT!" Weiss barked, pointing towards the door.
"Geez, no need to get your panties in a bunch, Ice Queen. Willow? Take care, pip-squeak. And thanks for the girl talk. Let's hang out next week, shall we? And Rubes? Don't be a stranger, let's go clubbing sometime soon!"
"OUT!" Weiss ordered.
"Read between the lines!" Yang smirked, flashing up her three fingers to Weiss. The door unceremoniously slammed behind her and locked in place.
"So...that was a success!" Yang said with a smile. She climbed back on Bumblebee when she thought back on the girl talk she had with Willow. Maybe she was looking at this from the wrong angle? Grabbing her Scroll, she browsed her phone book until she found Blake's number and began composing a text.
'Hey Kitty-Kat, do you want to' she started typing, before deleting it and grunting in annoyance.
"No, no, Blake always said I never take anything seriously..." she muttered to herself, so she started over again.
'Hey Blake, I know you're probably busy sleeping or whatever, but do you want to grab a cup of coffee tomorrow? Just to talk.'
"Perfect." Yang though, hitting send and speeding down the driveway as the big iron gates of Schnee Manor opened up and let the blonde hair bruiser speed into the night.