Disclaimer: RWBY and all affiliated characters/titles belong to Rooster Teeth, those wonderful geniuses.
Yang threw the bike's cover up and over her precious motorcycle, covering it to protect it from dust and dirt and any possible water that might leak through the parking structure if it decided to rain. Nora helped her strap it on and once they were finished they headed for the exit.
"So did Ren ever get back to you?" Yang reached over and grasped Nora's hand as they walked.
"Yeah, I think he was meditating this morning since the room's empty. But he said he's up to hang out." Nora smiled and rubbed at Yang's thumb with her own.
"Awesome," they exited into the courtyard and Yang shielded her eyes momentarily from the sudden sunlight, "We're not like interrupting are we? I know he likes to have time alone." Nora shook her head.
"Oh no, no. I'm sure he's been up for a couple hours already and done all his stuff." Nora moved in front of Yang and spun around walking backwards in front of her and grabbed her other hand. "So are we gonna go anywhere or just hang out in the dorms?"
"I don't know. Did you have anywhere in mind?" Yang smiled, Nora was still in a wonderful mood since that morning.
"Well we do have to go the gym. Wanna take Ren and Ruby with us?" Nora snickered evilly.
"I'm not sure that's a good idea. Ruby sorta hates the gym. She says it smells bad." Yang laughed, she knew Ruby would never go for that idea."And she doesn't like using the locker room showers or keeping her clothes in the lockers. She's kind of weird about that stuff."
"Oh my Oum she is perfect for Weiss." Nora spun back to Yang's side and continued walking normally.
"We could play a game or something, like frisbee or catch or hide and go seek or something silly like that." Yang offered.
"That sounds awesome. I haven't run around just for fun in so long." Nora clenched Yang's hand in excitement at the prospect.
"Alright," Yang said excitedly. It had been so long since she had really just played and it seemed like a fun way to spend the afternoon, "You have to promise not to get any of your sloths to help you if we play hide and go seek though."
"I make no promises." Nora leaned up and kissed Yang on the cheek and then went sprinting off towards the dorms. Yang just laughed and lumbered off after her, not even bothering to try and keep pace as she knew there was no chance.
She reached the dorms and was surprised to see Nora nowhere in sight. She knew Nora was fast but Yang didn't think she had fallen that far behind. Usually she waited outside of wherever they were headed when she ran ahead like that. Yang glanced around the outside quickly and decided that Nora must have been too excited and continued inside without her. It's not like she didn't know where she would be going. Yang moved through the double doors and headed for the stairs but found herself tackled to the floor.
"Sneak attack!" Nora bellowed and Yang collapsed under her weight as the demonic, loveable little redhead came flying off the doorjamb where apparently she had been balancing, lying in wait for her blonde girlfriend. Yang rolled over and found Nora straddling her in the middle of the hallway with a very triumphant grin on her face. "Gotcha. You're gonna have to run faster than that to keep up with me," she stuck out her tongue.
"Oh yeah you got me alright. This is just terrible." Yang ran her hands gently along Nora's legs, just barely sliding her fingertips under the hem of her shirt as she reached her waist. Nora's tongue got sucked back in her mouth and she changed her face from a playful grin to a lustful smirk. Nora leaned down and Yang lifted her head just far enough from the floor to meet her and their lips sealed against each other. Yang kept her hands on Nora's legs and Nora dropped her hands to either side of Yang's head to support her weight as they deepened their kiss.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." A voice cried out and Yang pulled away from Nora as she recognized the very distinct accent ring out from the top of the stairs. "Oh no, I'm so sorry." Velvet spun around and held her hands up to her eyes so she definitely couldn't see any more of what she had just seen.
Nora jumped hurriedly off of Yang and they both rushed to their feet, straightening their clothes and attempting to look as much as possible like a couple who had not just been passionately making out on the floor.
"Hey Velvet, sorry about that." Yang called out to the girl who still had her back turned. Her large Faunus ears swayed slightly as she turned slowly around to face them again. She didn't pull her hands down from her face yet but instead separated her fingers slightly so that she could peer through the cracks to see if they were decent.
"Yeah sorry. I caught her by surprise." Nora slugged Yang in the shoulder playfully and Yang blushed just a little, more embarrassed that she had been caught off guard than anything else. She had gotten so caught up in the moment she had completely forgotten that they were wide out in the open.
"No it's okay," Velvet stammered out, finally lowering her hands from her eyes. "I just- I shouldn't have- I'm sorry that I-" Velvet floundered about, trying to find something to apologize for even though Yang and Nora were obviously the only ones at fault here.
"Velvet seriously it's fine. We're sorry." Yang started up the steps. It was rather awkward talking to someone from like thirty feet away and they needed to get up to their dorms anyways.
"Besides, it's nothing we haven't seen Coco do to you before." Nora teased as they made their way closer to the second-year girl. Yang watched as Nora's comment reached Velvet and her ears visibly drooped and her eyes fell to the floor.
"I'm really sorry I've gotta go." Velvet rushed down the stairs past them and out the front doors.
"Oh c'mon Nora you know how shy she is." Yang turned on her girlfriend as the other girl ran out.
"I was trying to make her laugh." Nora watched as she left as well, "She just saw us kissing. I was trying to ease the tension a little." Nora made little circles with her index finger and thumb and started breathing in and out slowly, mocking Ren's meditation. "Oouuummmmmmmm"
"Alright, that's it. Up to the room with you." Yang swooped down and swung Nora up on her shoulder. Nora kept her eyes closed and continued her 'meditation humming' all the way to the dorm's front door. Yang set Nora down on her feet and went to knock but the door swung gently open and revealed a waiting Ren.
"You know Nora. I shouldn't be able to hear you meditating from downstairs."
"I just meditate harder than you Renny." Nora leaned over and poked him in the nose, "Boop." A small smile spread across the boy's lips and he stepped out into the hallway.
"So, we are also having your sister join us?" Ren turned to Yang.
"Yep, that's the plan," Yang turned around in the hallway and rapped on the Team RWBY door with the back of her fist, "Alright Rubes, let's go." There was no answer, no hurried sound of cookie boxes being put away of flash of rose petals under the door. None of the things that usually indicated Ruby was running late and trying to hurry to catch up. "C'mon Rubes." Yang reached down and opened the door and saw possibly her worst nightmare. Standing in the room was not one, but two platinum white, perfectly maintained, Schnee ponytails. As the door swung open they both turned to face her.
"Oh Yang, I thought that was you." Weiss said, using a formal voice Yang and the rest of Team RWBY rarely heard from her anymore, "Sister this is Yang. My partner's older sister. Yang this is my older sister, Winter."
"Hey Yang," Ruby leaned out from behind the two Schnee girls and waved emphatically, "We're uhh, giving Winter a tour of the dorm room. It was pretty short."
"Hello Yang, Xiao Long is it." Winter's words implied a question but her tone held no hint of confusion. She extended a slender, nearly porcelain white hand out for Yang to shake. Yang stepped forward to meet her and shot her hand forward and gripped Winter's hard, intending to show the taller Schnee sister exactly who she was and was surprised when the girl's visibly smaller hand refused to give in the slightest. Yang plastered on a big smile for her and laughed.
"That's me, the one and only," Yang pulled her hand away, breaking the handshake and moved back a step to stand back with Nora and Ren.
"So I've heard." Winter turned to the other two. "I'm sorry, I don't believe I know either of you."
"Nora Valkyrie," Nora nearly shouted and Yang grinned internally. She was sure the Schnee wouldn't know what to do with her. Nora reached forward and gave Winter a hard handshake as well but didn't break it immediately. "I'm Yang's girlfriend, so kinda like a big sister for Ruby too." Winter looked at her silently for a moment and then over to Ren, Nora did not release her hand but continued pumping it up and down.
"Lie Ren," Ren bowed his head ever so slightly and made no move to extend his arms from where they were clasped behind his back. Nora was still shaking with Winter after all.
"And he's like my brother, because I mean we've known each other basically forever and ever." Nora's voice drew Winter's attention back. The older Schnee girl looked down at their still clasped hands in puzzlement and finally pulled her hand away with a polite smile and a nod.
"It's a pleasure to meet you both." Winter turned back to Yang, "And to finally make your acquaintance. I've heard a lot about you and your sister."
"Oh really," Yang looked to Weiss, "Dang Weissy that's so nice. You didn't have to tell her about me." Weiss smiled nervously and Yang looked back to Winter.
"Oh no, I heard about you all on my own. Just know that if your recklessness gets my sister harmed in any way you will have graver concerns than explaining it to Ozpin." Winter's words seemed to stab at Yang and she was sure she felt the room drop a few degrees as she spoke. "Weiss, I only have a little time left. I would like to speak with you alone for a little while." Winter turned to her younger sister.
"Oh yes of course sister," Weiss stepped forward and would have run right into Yang on her way to the door had the blonde not made way for her. "I have a very nice spot where we can talk privately." Winter moved to follow her out of the room.
"It was a pleasure everyone." She looked to the three of them in one motion and then specifically at Ruby, "Ruby." Winter gave the little brunette a small dip of her head and then filed out behind Weiss, closing the door with a solid thunk.
There were a few moments of silence finally broken by Nora chattering her teeth together and rubbing at her arms like she was cold.
"And I thought Weiss was the Ice Queen. That girl makes her look warm and snuggly." Yang moved over to Nora and rubbed at her back with both hands, warming her.
"She was quite direct," Ren moved further into the room, standing between Nora and Ruby so their group made a small half circle between the beds.
"She's not that bad guys," Ruby moaned out, "She's just really proper. Weiss was just like that when we met her."
"Ruby, even Weiss was not that bad." Yang laughed, she didn't think those were words she would ever say.
"Wasn't her coat really nice though? It just needed some little pink stripes on the collar instead of those little black bars." Nora said cheerfully.
"I believe those indicate her rank in the Atlesian military as a Special Operatives Huntress." Ren said, rather matter of factly.
"Yeah, yeah. She's in Atlas's army and only got to come here to make a report to General Ironwood because he's here for all the Vytal Festival security and she's always on like super dangerous top secret missions and stuff and I'm really not supposed to have said anything because Weiss told me I wasn't supposed to tell anybody but now you all know." Ruby's thoughts jumbled out as she spoke and she threw her hood up over her head before the last words had even left her mouth.
"Well just because she's in the military doesn't mean she can go around all high and mighty. I think I should go teach her a lesson about messing with our family." Yang pushed one sleeve of the fancy shirt she was still wearing from the night before up around her elbow and turned to the door.
"Yang wait don't," Ruby threw her hood back and reached out for her older sister.
"What Ruby? Me beating up her sister is not gonna ruin your chances with Weiss." Yang looked over her shoulder at Ruby and rolled up her other sleeve, "I bet it won't even take that long."
"No Yang don't. She fought Uncle Qrow earlier. She's really really good." Ruby's words halted Yang in her tracks.
"She did what now?" Yang spun on her heel to face Ruby.
"She fought Uncle Qrow. It was kinda his fault though, I mean she started it, but it was because of him. You know how he is sometimes." Ruby calmed down as she saw her sister wasn't going to go try and fight the Schnees.
"Is Uncle Qrow still here? Why didn't you tell me he was?" Yang rolled her sleeves back down and calmed a little.
"I didn't know really. I went out with Weiss to meet her sister and then she was fighting Uncle Qrow and Ozpin came and made them stop so I came back to the dorm but then Weiss brought Winter back here to show her the room and it was really awkward because I was singing to myself with my headphones on when they came in and I didn't notice and they must have heard me sing a whole lot because Weiss had to tap on my shoulder to make me stop." Ruby threw her hood back up over her head again.
"You sing with your headphones on too? We should sing together sometime." Nora ran over and grabbed Ruby forcefully by the shoulders.
"You wouldn't be able to hear each other very well Nora." Ren stated simply and she looked over her shoulder at him without releasing Ruby.
"But we could hear the music Ren, duh." Nora stuck out her tongue and Ruby laughed, lifting her hood off her eyes but not flipping it off her head.
"Whatever, as long as she doesn't start anything I'll leave her alone." Yang huffed.
"So are we still gonna go play catch?" Nora spun around in a little circle in the middle of the room with her arms out to her sides and collapsed on Blake's bed.
"Yeah, let's go, are you ready Rubes?" Yang uncrossed her arms, Nora really did always cheer her up. Ruby looked at herself, combat boots on under a pair of her tight black leggings and a combat skirt and then up to Yang, still wearing dress slacks and fancy blouse.
"Uhh yeah, are you?" Ruby cocked her head to one side and the hood fell the rest of the way off. Yang looked down at herself and sighed, just realizing what she and Nora were still wearing.
"We gotta change Nora," Yang moved over to her dresser and started digging around for some outdoor, play appropriate clothing.
"Aww but you're bed is sooo comfy." Nora grabbed at the top blanket and rolled herself into a burrito of covers and huntress.
"Weren't you the one who wanted to play outside?" Yang turned from her dresser and saw Nora, "and that's Blake's bed." Nora sprung out of the blankets at Yang.
"Why didn't you tell me you had the top bunk?" Nora put an accusatory finger in Yang's face.
"What?" Yang tilted her head back in shock.
"That's gonna be an issue. We will definitely knock it right off those books it's on." Nora turned away and inspected the stacks of books supporting the top bunk, "Oh yeah these will not do at all." she poked at them.
"Nope, nope nope nope." Ruby pushed them both towards the door, "You get to change in JNPR's room, go on." Yang and Nora both laughed as they were forced out of the room and the door shut hurriedly behind them. They made their way across the hall and into JNPR's room which was empty.
"Huh, and here I expected the lovebirds to be in here." Yang glanced around the empty room.
"Nah, they're always training together and going on long walks at night or staying up all night whispering to each other about their families and stuff." Nora threw her hands up in the air as she talked, catching Yang's attention. She turned quickly around and found a now very topless Nora standing there with a very playful smirk on her lips.
"Oh really?"
"Oh definitely, we were interrupted earlier." Nora tackled Yang onto the nearest mattress.
A/N - Okay, the first thing I've gotta address here is that I'm definitely toying with the canon timeline just slightly in this chapter. It isn't quite the Vytal Festival yet but Qrow and Winter have already made their visits to Beacon. That's all, I just have them visiting a little bit earlier than they should have, I hope that's alright.
I hope you liked this one as it is starting to set the mood for the next few chapters, probably through Sunday's post will all be around the topics brought up here. As always please let me know how you feel about it, I always, always love to hear from you.
Thanks so much for reading and please remember to check out today's chapter of "Friends and Loved Ones" it's got a fight in it and the chapter itself is over 6k words so please enjoy.
-Zach