It was one of the coldest days of the year. Summer watched as Ruby and Yang huddled together by the fire under one of the thickest blankets in the house. Ruby had already fallen asleep, and Yang was preparing to nod off as well. Their closeness to the fire blocked Summer from the warmth, so she was forced to do what she could with the mug of hot coco that she pressed firmly between her frozen palms.
"Are they asleep?" Tai peeked his head from the kitchen where he was finishing up some dishes from the night's dinner.
"Just about," Summer responded. "Tomorrow being the winter holiday, they're going to need their rest."
"Have you mentioned your new mission to them yet?"
"No. I couldn't do that to them this close to the holidays. It'll have to wait until after the new year has started."
Tai came over and sat down next to her. "Are you sure you don't need me to go with you? I can ask Peach to watch them and you can have an extra set of hands with you."
Summer leaned her head on his shoulder. "I'm sure I'll be fine. Besides, Qrow is going to be there to watch my back."
"With his bad luck, wouldn't you be watching his?"
"He promised not to intervene with the mission." Tai frowned. "I'll only be gone for a couple of days, Tai. Trust me, I will be fine."
"It's not that I don't trust you. It's that I don't trust the people being sent with you."
"Qrow is an excellent fighter and…"
"He's not much of a good luck charm," Tai muttered.
"Tai!"
"Yeah, I know. I just…" he looked into her eyes. "I'll miss you. The girls will miss you."
"The grim attacks have become too much these last few days, someone has to help."
Tai scowled for a moment before he took a deep breath and relaxed. "Yeah, you're right. And I know you're strong." He looked over at his two daughters that were now both sleeping by the fire. "I just don't know what I would do if I lost you."
Summer took her mug in one hand and laid her free one on Tai's cheek and gave him a reassuring kiss. "You won't lose me, I promise."
Tai could not help but just smile back at her, then reverted his gaze back to his snoring children. "We should get them upstairs."
"Nah, let them enjoy the fire a little longer." And they watched as the fire crackled in the fireplace as a peaceful silence fell upon the Xiao Long household.
A/N: This one's a little short, but that's mainly because of the fact we do not know too much about Summer Rose as a character. So, just like Georgia from RvB, she ends up being a little bit of an OC for anyone who writes her and I feel I could not do her justice in my writing. However, Twelve Ships of Christmas is still twelve ships and I wanted her to be a part of it, however big the role was.
I hope you enjoyed this short little chapter. Don't forget to leave a review and let me know what you think. Also, follow this fic for regular update notifications, and like this story if you are really enjoying it.
Don't forget, all of these are 100% my biased opinion on shipping between RvB and RWBY so don't be upset if your favorites aren't mentioned.
I love all the support you guys give and it motivates me to write more. That being said, I will see you all in the next one!