Slap

The sound of skin-on-skin echoed throughout the dreary office, which Weiss had come to fear throughout her adolescence. Seeing this room meant meeting with her father, and meeting with her father never meant anything good. Jacques Schnee was never one to mince words, he almost always got straight to the point.

Especially with his youngest daughter.

Slap

Another dull echo seemed to reverberate from every wall within the room.

"Do you even know how preposterous you sound!?" There it was, that venom that seemed to ooze from every word he spoke to her. Now in full force, she could almost feel it eating away at her constitution. Weiss would never cry though. At least, not in front of the man she called father. "Give up on the position as leader of the Schnee Corporation for such a lousy, ludicrous dream?"

"I never claimed I'd be giving up my role as heiress to this company, father," Weiss said it much softer than she meant to, losing her confidence when faced with her father's outburst. "I simply wish to get my own experience. When my time comes I will take my seat at the top." She said, petering out with every word, Weiss knew she couldn't hold her ground well under her father's gaze, Jacques looked at everyone as if they were nothing more than an insect to him. Just a pest.

A distraction.

And distractions weren't something he was very fond of.

"And what could you possibly know about running a business by yourself? You've barely taken the time to study my teachings about how a real company operates." Her father emphasized 'real', as if her ideas and desires were nothing more than delusions. The heiress knew she was far from delusional.

Weiss knit her eyebrows and tried her best to calm the anger pulsing throughout her body before answering. "I know plenty more than you believe, Father." Based on the look now adorning her father's face, Weiss' attempts to hide her anger had been futile. Within seconds his face became stoic as he quickly began to raise his hand yet again.

Weiss knew the ivory strands that had fallen out of her ponytail would do little to protect her sore cheek. Still, she only elected to sit and wait for her father to discipline her for her improper behavior. Such was the upbringing of a Schnee, you were either perfect or put in your place.

Weiss shut her eyes tightly after one last glance at the man's cold, heartless eyes. You could look at them for hours and still never see a glint of warmth from within. The heiress would know, she'd tried for years. Her eyelids squeezed even tighter as she braced for the pain.

…

…

…

Weiss awoke to the dark atmosphere of her room, bringing a hand up to her cheek quickly, but feeling no lingering pain.

"…Just another dream." The heiress muttered, moving to let her legs dangle off her bed for a moment before rising and accepting the arrival of a new day completely. Sleeping had become more of a hassle than what it was worth to her, either waking up in the middle of the night or suffering through those lingering memories that still haunted her dreams.

Weiss stretched, letting out a less-than-proper yawn before looking over at the clock on her bedside table. It read 7:16 am, meaning Blake was probably already at the café. The white-haired girl figured she should probably get a move on herself, lest she set an example of coming in late.

"Not that I have a scheduled time I must appear anyway." Weiss thought aloud, opening the curtains and basking in the dim light of the early morning. It was raining outside, the droplets almost obscuring her vision of Café Schnee just a few blocks down. It was quite easy to spot just about anything in the city from her penthouse on the 20th floor. The heiress made a mental note to grab her umbrella before walking into the bathroom to begin her morning routine.

…

…

…

As Weiss exited the lobby and opened her umbrella, she noticed that the rain had picked up quite a bit. The droplets made heavy splashes whenever they reached the ground. The white-haired girl took a moment to look up and examine the peaceful sound of the heavy rain hitting her umbrella. The umbrella itself was white with floral designs near the edges, not exactly Weiss' style, but her go-to one had been left in her office for quite some time now.

As the heiress made her way to Café Schnee, cold winds blew water just under the protection above her, reminding her winter was still coming, it just hadn't yet arrived. Weiss reached the door to the café, closing her umbrella and shaking off the excess water droplets that had accumulated before entering.

"Good morning, Weiss," Her dark-haired employee welcomed her with a soft smile. "Want me to grab you something to warm you up?" Blake asked, noticing her boss shiver as she made her way behind the counter.

"Tea would be wonderful," Weiss replied, before letting out her second loud yawn of the morning, still visibly tired. "Make that a chai latte." Both girls giggled at the display before Weiss made her way back to her office.

"Alright, let's get this over with."

…

…

…

Weiss had just finished the last of payroll when she heard a knock at her door. "Come in." She said absentmindedly, still organizing the pile of paperwork yet to be finished.

"Hey Weiss, those regulars from yesterday should be here any minute now, I figured I'd give you a heads up," Blake said, earning a bit more of her boss's attention. "Also, Velvet just arrived, is it alright if I take my break a little early?" The Faunus asked, a mysterious pink hue dusting her cheeks as she finished the sentence.

Weiss didn't know what had flustered the girl but nodded her head in acceptance nonetheless. "I suppose I'll head out onto the floor and make sure that Ruby girl doesn't give Velvet a heart attack with her seemingly boundless energy." Blake shot her boss a smile before walking off toward the back. Weiss soon arose and made her way towards the front of the store where she found her other Faunus employee.

"Good afternoon Weiss, I trust you enjoyed your little getaway?" Velvet spoke softly once she caught her boss's eyes. Weiss simply hummed and nodded her head in agreement and made her way toward her employee. She vividly remembered the mess that became of hiring the bunny-eared girl, specifically with her father.

Disgusting.

Trash.

Nothing but animals.

All phrases Jacques Schnee had tried to shove down her throat before he eventually gave up on the argument. He simply wished her luck running a 'fancy petting zoo'. Though she had gotten her way in the end, the quip still made Weiss' blood boil. It hadn't been so hard with Blake, as she kept her ears hidden in her signature black bow. Velvet, on the other hand, wasn't so easy to hide from plain sight.

Not that Weiss would've wanted the girl to hide her true self anyway.

"I met our… eccentric regulars yesterday, anything I should know about them?" Weiss asked, receiving a small laugh from her Faunus employee.

"Well the sisters seem to come just about every day, they may be a bit on the louder side, but they really do seem to be good people at heart," Velvet said with a smile. Weiss realized the two sisters in question didn't seem to look alike at all, she only pondered it for a moment though. Everyone has their own situations

She knew that firsthand.

"I'm actually surprised they haven't shown up yet," Velvet said, lightly tapping her finger on her chin. The two continued to converse in between serving customers for another 15 minutes when suddenly, the door to the café nearly burst open.

On the welcome mat were the regulars Weiss had been expecting. The two sisters were both sitting there drenched from head to toe due to the weather outside. The blonde began to wring out the sopping parts of her clothes while her younger sister simply shook herself off, letting the soaked red strands of hair fly to and fro. It was actually quite an adorable scene to watch.

Objectively adorable, obviously.

Like a dog.

A really adorable dog.

Somewhere amidst this Blake had come up to the front, only to pause for a moment, and quickly turn around. She came back with towels from the back for both the girls, which they each took gratefully.

"Thanks, kitten, you're a lifesaver," Yang said, going in for a mock hug which the ebony-haired girl dodged with ease. "Fineee, I'll try to dry up a bit first." All three of them shared a laugh at that, bringing Weiss back up to speed. She quickly noticed both sisters were shivering and immediately got to work on some hot drinks for them.

Once both drinks were finished- a hot chocolate (with marshmallows) for Ruby and a caramel latte for Yang (Weiss couldn't remember what the girl had gotten last time)- she brought them over to the table the sisters had found. Weiss noticed Blake was accompanying them as she placed the hot cups in front of the sisters.

"Drink up quickly, I wouldn't want you two catching a cold." Weiss nearly ordered, but the worried expression adorning her face told a different story. Both girls gave their thanks before taking their first few sips. "What brought you two out here in weather like this? With nothing to protect yourself from the elements, nonetheless."

Weiss was right, both girls seemed to be wearing nothing more than thick sweaters and jeans, not a raincoat in sight.

"We were trying to wait out the rain before I made my way to work, unfortunately, it just kept coming down." Yang took a large gulp before continuing, smiling contently before speaking. "Rubes here lost her jacket somewhere on the site."

"I told you I didn't lose it! I left it in a room with all my other stuff and then suddenly it was gone! I'm positive someone stole it." Ruby objected, looking towards her now-soaked boots as she muttered. "Sorry Weiss, about tracking water all over the place, this was the one place we could think of to try and escape the rain." Weiss simply shook her head and smiled.

"I'm just glad you two didn't walk in here frozen to the bone, it isn't pleasant out there today," Weiss said before turning to walk back towards the counter, not before stealing another glance at Blake. The Faunus employee was sitting next to the tall blonde of the sisters, and rather close might she add.

Suspiciously close.

Weiss would have to ask her about it later, she had a customer approaching the register and Velvet was still working on the last order she'd received in her boss's short absence.

"Welcome to Café Schnee, what can I get started for you, sir?"

…

…

…

Blake had spent the rest of her break with the sisters, her cheeks visibly reddening occasionally due to something Yang had said, which Weiss couldn't quite make out. Regardless, the white-haired girl still took opportunities to tease her employee once she had returned, despite her defending that she was still just "keeping to herself". It didn't seem that way to Weiss.

After another few minutes, the sisters tossed their empty drink cups and made their way over to the counter. "Hey, I noticed we never really paid for those drinks you brought us, w-which we're extremely grateful for b-by the way," Ruby stammered out to Weiss, who was standing just behind the counter with a soft smile and a blushing employee beside her. "How much do we owe ya?" The brunette asked, already fishing her wallet out of her pocket.

"On the house today, don't you two worry about it," Weiss answered with a nod, earning a smirk from Yang and a huge smile from Ruby.

"You mean it?! Thank you so much!" Ruby cheered genuinely, garnering the attention of a few customers still lingering in the café.

"Don't mention it, we'll see you two next time." Weiss bowed her head as she bid the sisters adieu. It wasn't until the two reached the door that she realized the weather outside hadn't gotten much better. "Hold on!" The heiress nearly shouted as she began running towards her office. The two sisters looked at each other quizzically but obeyed nonetheless.

Soon after, Weiss emerged from the back, carrying a bundled-up umbrella with floral patterns near the edges towards the two girls. "Here, take this on your way." The heiress said, handing the umbrella to the taller blonde. Yang accepted the offer and gave a cheeky smile.

"Awe Weiss, didn't know you cared that much." The blonde said, earning a slight blush from the café owner, who huffed at the comment.

"I just wouldn't want someone else to have to clean up after you guys from being out in that downpour," Weiss said defensively, but she was still somewhat smiling. "Either way, you two can just return it the next time you visit our establishment." She finished, finally meeting both their eyes. Yang nodded before shooting Blake -who was sitting behind the counter waving- a wink and walking out the door.

Ruby, on the other hand, was bouncing on the balls of her feet with joy, a huge smile brimming on her face. "You're the best Weiss! Thank you so so much! I would hug you but I'm…" Ruby's gaze shifted toward the ground as she mumbled the last part of her sentence. "…Still kinda soaked. Heh." Weiss had to fight the urge to hug the younger girl anyway.

Why?

She wasn't quite sure. The heiress simply nodded with a smile. "Have a great day Ruby, thanks for stopping in."

"You too, Weiss!" The brunette shouted as she waved goodbye excitedly and ran out of the café towards her older sister. "Yaaaang, wait up!" That was all Weiss caught before the door to Café Schnee closed, leaving her very aware of the lack of warmth residing in her body. It was strange how much she missed that sensation from the day before.

Just what had that girl done to her?

Hey there! Gosh that chapter came quick, I actually had a few days off due to a work injury so figured I'd use the extra time to keep writing.

Either way I hope you enjoy! Sorry for the short chapters, I kind of write until I find a comfortable conclusion, so pushing it any farther would probably come off as redundant, and I want this story to have meaning all the way through.

Also you probably noticed the writing style between this chapter and the last is vastly different, as I stated this was a story I started many years back, so apologies if that was a bit jarring.

Anyway, can't wait to hear what y'all think, yours truly,

Grey.