A/N: Just to lay out the setting. This takes place after the Second Dragon War, with an already-married Arkos (fem!Jaune), a mated Freezerburn (dragon!Yang and elf!Weiss), and an adventurous Ladybug (dragon!Ruby and faunusTail!Blake). Ember Legacy just wrapped up a couple weeks ago.
Days of Yule
Chapter 6: Beware Dragons Bearing Gifts
Lady Pyrrha Nikos, a Knight of the Order of Artemis, stood on the balcony of her bedroom overlooking the courtyard below. The chapter house for the Mistralian Knights was modest enough compared to others, but it served as a defensive bastion as well as a place of respite for those of her Order. Last night's snowfall was just enough to leave a dusting, accentuating the boughs and wreaths strung about the keep. Her bright emerald eyes squinted slightly against the harsh glare of sunlight off of the frozen tableau as the cloud cover momentarily broke.
Unusually enough, for her, today she wore an elegant, long red gown instead of her typical ornate armor. Due to the cold, though, she had wrapped herself up in a white woolen shawl which bore the symbol of her Order, a black crow clutching an arrow.
Her thoughts drifted to her dear friends as they often did during the holidays. Nebula and Dew were still back in Vale, their duties making it difficult to answer her invitation for the celebration. She'd heard from Yang and Weiss, at least, they would be arriving today. From the others, however, there had been no word yet.
"My Lady," a cheery voice called from inside her chamber. "You'll catch a cold if you remain out there much longer."
Smiling, Pyrrha turned and walked towards her wife, dropping the shawl on the bed as she passed it. "My apologies, My Lady," she returned. "I did not mean to concern you over my well-being."
"Oh, but I always worry about you," Lady Jeanne D'Arc smirked as she wrapped her arms around the redhead's neck. "I worry I do not give you nearly enough attention."
"Well, then, perhaps we should attend to that," Pyrrha breathed against the blonde's lips.
The two of them stood there in each other's embrace, tenderly sharing a kiss that would have certainly evolved into something that required far fewer clothes were it not for a sharp rap against the door.
"My Ladies!" a voice called out. "You asked me to remind you of the hour!"
Pyrrha sighed affectionately as she leaned her forehead against the slightly shorter woman's. "Perfect timing as always," she mumbled with feigned irritation.
Jeanne giggled lightly, leaning up to kiss her on the nose before turning her head. "And we do thank you for that, Novitiate Garnet!" she answered in a clear, ringing voice. "We shall be down momentarily!"
"Tonight," Pyrrha warned as she strode towards their closet to retrieve her slippers, "you are all mine. No interruptions."
"I look forward to it, my love," Jeanne smirked. "For now, though, we need to get ready. How do I look?"
The redhead stood and gazed over at her wife. Jeanne was dressed in a gown a brilliant shade of blue that came close to mimicking the color of her sapphire eyes, along with golden accents and a gold rope belt that looped around her trim waist. The clothing did nothing to conceal her shapely curves that were backed up by the taut muscles she so admired and enjoyed exploring.
"You take my breath away, as always," she murmured.
Jeanne's eyes lit up as she gave a pleased little laugh. "Such a flatterer. I really am happy you wore the red, it looks so much better on you than the white."
"Well, the white is a bit too… formal, in any case," Pyrrha agreed. "Particularly with the crest emblazoned on each side."
"You are the headmistress of the Mistralian chapter," the blonde reminded her humorously.
"Yes, but today is for our friends. Our family."
"And I wholeheartedly agree. Shall we go ensure our sisters have made the necessary preparations?"
"We shall." Pyrrha grandly gestured towards the door. "After you, My Lady."
"Why thank you, My Lady," the blonde giggled, dipping into a quick curtsy before opening the door leading from their shared chambers.
Halfway down the spiraling stone staircase, however, a loud clang resounded throughout the keep as the front door was rather aggressively knocked. The couple grinned at each other and quickened their pace to reach the foyer.
"We have it, Novitiate Garnet," Jeanne assured the squire as the former Valesian veteran guardsman made to answer the door. "We are expecting their company, after all."
"Of course, My Lady, Headmistress," the rangy raven-haired woman replied easily, backing off with a bow. "I'll just make sure the food preparation is going well, then?"
"Thank you, Garnet," the redhead replied hurriedly as she strode towards the door. Both women broke out into giggles as they made a race of it, Jeanne winning by a hair's breadth as she usually did. Together, though, they each took hold of one of the double doors and flung them open wide.
Facing them were an odd pair if one were to come upon them unexpectedly. The first was a tall, muscular, and buxom blonde, clothed far more scantily than the weather outside would suggest. While the other, much shorter and more slender, was wrapped up in white furs that allowed only her pale blue eyes and the tips of her Elven ears to show.
They were, however, dear enough friends to be considered family by the pair of Knights.
"Yang! Weiss!" the redhead laughed gaily, wrapping the blonde up in a tight hug. "My Oum, it's been too long!"
"Yeah, sorry, we keep meainin' to visit," the woman chuckled abashedly, switching with her mate to embrace Jeanne. "Princess, here, decided to go on an organizational kick."
"Yang, your horde has been untouched for almost an entire century," the platinum-haired Elf grumbled good-naturedly. "I mean, honestly, there were moldy spools of cloth in the rear of your cavern!"
The Gold Dragon chuckled once more, rubbing the back of her neck. "Always meant to clean out the corners back there," she mumbled.
"Well, you are here now," Jeanne declared, wrapping an arm around the diminutive Mage's shoulders and steering them inside. "Happy Yule to you both, and thank you so much for visiting us. Oh! And for the wedding gift, truly that was so very lovely!"
"We enjoyed the honeymoon immensely," Pyrrha agreed, closing the doors behind them. "Both of us had always meant to visit Atlas, but I had no idea there was such a nice hotspring spa there."
"Well, Yang and I… er… took a break from our cleaning," Weiss grinned, blushing lightly and pulling the furs from around her face and neck. "We went up to visit my family and stopped there on the way back. It was quite relaxing and I immediately thought of you both."
"So, you went to see your family in Evereska?" Pyrrha inquired. "How did that go?"
"Contentiously," the Elf replied tersely.
"What she means is," Yang laughed, "lotsa yelling, threats, and attempts to chain her to a wall to prevent her from leaving again."
"Oh, my," the redhead breathed, her eyes flickering between the amused blonde and chagrined Elf. "Er… what did you do?"
"Took me transforming into a Dragon right in the courtyard to get 'em all to settle down," Yang smirked.
Weiss let out a huff, though her eyes were twinkling with humor. "The great big oaf threatened to roast the entire city if they didn't calm their tits, as she so colorfully put it."
Jeanne clapped a hand to her mouth, eyes crinkled in mirth, while Pyrrha worked very hard to keep a level expression.
"Oh, but you shoulda seen it," the boisterous blonde grinned widely. "All these uptight Elven elders, all lined up and frothing at the mouth, and then, bam, one big-ass Dragon is starin' them in the face. Three of them passed right out, two ran, while the rest just stood there with their mouths hanging open."
"It was impressive, truly," Weiss snickered. "And then I gave them my regards, hopped upon her back, and we departed."
"Don't forget your parting gift," Yang mischievously reminded her mate.
"Yang, no, that was… a poor decision…"
"Oh, I think it was perfect."
"No, it really wasn't, I acted in haste and my temper got the better of me…"
"Oh, now this I have to hear," Jeanne gasped, wiping away the tears on her cheeks. "Please, what was it?"
"Well…" the Gold Dragon drawled, the corners of her mouth twitching furiously.
"Yang…" her mate warned.
"It was a giant hand, made outta ice, two stories high and right in the middle of the courtyard..."
Pyrrha frowned slightly. "That doesn't sound so-"
"...With only the middle finger extended," Yang finished with a wide grin.
At that, they all lost it, collapsing against each other as streams of mirthful tears streaked down their faces.
"Oh my Oum, Weiss," Pyrrha squeaked out through her helpless laughter.
"No, no, it was a terrible thing for me to do," Weiss protested in between her giggles. "Really, it was so indecorous…"
"And the perfect way to tell 'em all to fuck off," Yang snorted.
"I have to agree with Yang," Jeanne snickered. "Too perfect."
"Jeanne!" the redhead admonished lightly.
"Well, it was!"
"Alright," Pyrrha sighed humorously, shaking her head. "Well, allow us to show you all to your quarters-"
She broke off at a sharp scream that came from the hallway leading to the inner courtyard. "Dragon! A Dragon is attacking!"
"Oh, nice, sounds like my sis is here!" Yang chirped.
"Oum's bloody ballsack," Jeanne grumbled, striding towards the open doorway at the end of the hall, the rest on her heels. "Novitiate Iris! Did we not already discuss who would be visiting today?"
The skinny brunette teen, clad in the usual rudimentary armor common to squires, jumped slightly as the Knight bore down on her outside the keep. "M- My Lady!" she squeaked. "A- A thousand apologies, I just… just…"
"Got overly excited," Pyrrha sighed humorously, walking up to stand at her wife's shoulder. "It's quite alright, Novitiate, but perhaps you should retire inside and assist with the last-minute preparations."
"Y- Yes, Headmistress!" With that, the squire turned and fled inside, round shield bouncing on her back and sword rattling at her side.
"She's a bit… enthusiastic," the redhead apologized to her grinning friends.
"Pain in the ass, if you ask me," Jeanne grumbled. "There's a reason no Knight would pick her up."
"Now, Jeanne," she admonished gently. "You were quite the handful yourself if you recall."
"What?" Her blonde wife recoiled from her, aghast. "Are you suggesting I was as bad as Iris when I was her age?"
"Of course not, dear," the redhead murmured with a small smile, turning to watch the rapidly-descending Silver Dragon as it plummeted towards them. Her eyes narrowed as she noted the speed of the enormous argent form, but then just above the walls the figure shimmered and turned into a red-clad brunette. The transformed Silver spun and landed in a crouch before reaching out to catch another figure, this one bound tightly in black furs.
The four walked over towards where the newcomers, giggling and gasping for breath, were trying to straighten themselves out.
"Always gotta make an entrance, Ruby," Yang called out humorously. "I'm surprised you got kitten there to do something like that."
Ruby laughed as she sprang forward and wrapped her sister up in a hug. "Oh, yeah, Blakey is all sorts of adventurous," the brunette giggled.
"Ruby…" the Cat Faunus chided with a blush, enfolding both Weiss and Pyrrha in a hug. "Hello," she finally greeted them softly. "I've missed you all."
"And we missed you, too," Jeanne agreed, stepping in to fill the void when the others switched off. "I understand you've been doing quite a bit of traveling, though?"
"Indeed," Blake smiled. "And quite a bit of excitement along the way."
"Oh? Do tell," Pyrrha laughed, linking her arms with the raven-haired Rogue as they all made their way back inside.
"Well, there was this one rather wealthy Marquis who mistreated his subjects, really didn't deserve all of those riches…"
"Wait, wait, wait," Yang protested from where she brought up the rear. "All this time, have you two been burglarizing the breadth of Remnant?"
"I do like to keep my cute little Rogue happy," the brunette snickered. "Plus, y'know, I'm a Dragon. I like the shinies, so it's a win-win."
The Gold opened her mouth to protest, but then shut it with a shrug. "Okay, yeah, can't argue with that logic."
The three couples separated for the travelers to rest up after their journey and make use of the chapterhouse's warm enchanted baths, while Pyrrha and Jeanne scurried about to make last-minute preparations. Eventually, they reconvened in the main hall.
Blake's amber eyes shone brightly as she turned in a circle while walking through the hall, her deep purple gown shining as it caught the light. "Oh, this is so very lovely…"
"Yep, these are some of the nicest decorations I've seen in awhile," Ruby grinned. She wore a strapless red and black dress, though she retained her clunky black boots. Her red-tipped hair, however, was pinned up at the sides. "This is a huge hall for just the six of us, you expecting more?"
"No, just us," Pyrrha smiled warmly from where she stood at the head of the large table. Though there were rarely enough Knights in attendance to fill the room, there was still seating enough for thirty.
"There's a smaller chamber we use to dine in normally, but this one we decorated," Jeanne added proudly, glancing around at the streams of bright, colorful ribbons entwined with the evergreens and enchanted glowing golden balls of light.
"Aww, you guys are so sweet," Yang grinned, walking in with her arm around her mate's slender waist. The pair were a stunning contrast, the blonde in a dark golden dress that shimmered with bright yellow highlights, while Weiss's elegant gown was a gleaming white as pale as a fresh snowfall. The Elf wore a glittering silver headband, though her long platinum tresses otherwise draped unencumbered across her back. In Yang's other hand, she carried a small burlap sack.
"This is beautiful," Weiss breathed, her own pale blue eyes alight with joy. "Oh, and is that…?"
"Oh, yes!" Pyrrha grinned, looking over at the small blue-and-white display tucked off to the side but lit up prominently by a magical glow. "Jeanne thought you might appreciate an homage to the patron deity of the hinterland Elves, Tarsellis Meunniduin."
"That was very thoughtful of you," Weiss smiled widely. "Though, truthfully, with as much as we've all been through, I tend to give equal piety towards Oum."
"Yes," Pyrrha agreed, sobering.
Jeanne sighed softly, wrapping her arm around her wife's waist. "I miss them," she stated quietly.
"Yang, might now not be a good time?" Weiss inquired, eyebrows raised elegantly.
"Oh! Yeah, good a time as any…" With a flourish, the Gold pulled a large glass flagon covered with rope that wound around it tightly up to the neck. A seal was pressed into the side, the wax old and cracked.
"Is that…?" Ruby began with a slow grin.
"Dwarven Ale," Yang announced. "Weiss told me stories of when you traveled with Nora and Ren before we met, and as it just so happened, I had this here in my hoard. Decided to bring it along to toast."
"What an excellent idea," the redheaded Knight smiled warmly. She and Jeanne gathered up enough glasses for them all and Yang proceeded to pour the rich amber liquid out for everyone. Soon enough the six women stood in a circle, glasses held up in front of them.
"Nora and Ren were only in our lives for a brief period of time, but they'll always be remembered," Ruby stated softly. "Here's to all of those who can no longer be with us on this most blessed of days. May the ancestors watch over them, always."
"And may they always feel the embrace of Oum, the life-giver," Pyrrha added, ignoring the tear that trickled down her cheek.
Yang nodded slowly, her blonde tresses slipping from her shoulders. "To Coco, and all the Dragons who sacrificed their lives to stop Cinder."
"We will never forget, so long as we live," Blake murmured.
Weiss smiled gently, looking around at her dear friends. "And while we gather like this, we keep their memories alive in our hearts."
"Happy Yule to us all," Jeanne whispered brokenly, unabashed tears trickling down her cheeks that were reflected on every other girl there.
As one, they tipped their heads back and downed the potent brew.
Jeanne immediately doubled over, gasping for breath, much to the amusement of the others.
"Forgot how strong that drink is, did we?" Weiss giggled, her pale blue eyes twinkling.
"Ahhh, good stuff," Ruby sighed, regarding her glass fondly.
Pyrrha was laughing hard enough she could barely support her wife, who seemed on the verge of collapsing as she tried to catch her breath.
"I… hate… you… all…" the blonde Knight wheezed.
"Such a lightweight," Yang smirked.
Blake shook her head, tail twitching behind her in humor. "I am so very glad we came to visit."
"So am I, dear," Pyrrha replied in between giggles. "So am I."
Dongyrn A/N: It feels a little odd having finished this story up finally, I poured a lot of my heart into it. Thanks, kaiju62, for the Beta support this chapter!
Lastly we'll touch upon my final and still ongoing story, a RWBY crossover with the Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines video game by the name of Blood of the Rose.
Stay shiny!