Midwinter, Part III

This ... this is nice, Yang thought as she stared up at the ceiling, watching her fan turn in slow, sweeping circles. There was a peacefulness to it, especially with how still everything was this early in the morning. As far as she could tell, no one else in the house had woken yet. No noises came up from the kitchen below, no floorboards creaked as people moved down the halls, trying to keep from waking anyone still asleep. There wasn't even the familiar hiss as water moved along the pipes while someone ran a sink or started a shower. It was simply quiet. Even the weather had conspired to give everything that still, calm feeling—everything outside was blanketed in a thick layer of snow that Yang could just barely see through the frosted-over glass of her bedroom window. What she could make out was coated in fresh, untouched powder that painted the whole world white.

Kinda like me. She smiled and looked away, careful to keep from jostling the head currently nestled comfortably against her shoulder. Long white hair splayed out across the bed, shifting this way and that as Weiss moved in her sleep, fanning out until it spread over the taller body that had slept beneath the heiress. One pale arm lay limply across her chest, the other tucked in tight against her side. The air filled with the soft sounds of Weiss breathing in and out, a slow, rhythmic sound that would have lulled Yang back to sleep if she wasn't enjoying this moment as much as she was.

Until recently, their nights together always ended with Weiss waking early, sneaking back into her own bed to keep Ruby and Blake from finding out. It hadn't worked, but it still wasn't until the last couple weeks that Weiss actually stayed in bed with her. Even then, the normal hustle and bustle at Beacon, and the difficulty of getting all four of them in and out of one shared bathroom, meant that there wasn't usually a ton of time to relax. Weekends were no better, with Ruby in the room with them, and other packed dorm rooms on either side, Beacon simply wasn't designed to allow for students to sleep in.

Add Weiss being an early riser and this might be the first time in a long while I've gotten to do this. Yang closed her eyes and smiled, one hand sliding down to run absently through those long strands of white. They needed more of this. More calm, slow mornings, whenever Yang could manage to find them. A chance to breathe, to rest. She needed this, and to be honest, she was pretty sure Weiss did too.

The arm around her middle suddenly tightened, squeezing her side as Weiss burrowed deeper into her shoulder, eyes pressed against the thin cloth of her shirt. After a second, she relaxed back against Yang, although her left arm stayed where it was, hugging her across the ribs.

A small, satisfied smile curling across her mouth, Yang lay there for a good long while, staring out the window at the snow-covered path outside. She watched as the first few winter birds began to stir, their sparse chirping a harsh contrast to the continuous birdsong she knew would fill those woods come the spring. She listened as first Blake, her footsteps barely a whisper on the carpet outside, then Ruby (who at least remembered to skip the second step from the bottom that always squeaked) snuck downstairs and began their own morning preparations. Quiet murmuring joined them as Taiyang headed down as well, and soon the sounds of three people trying their best to be quiet were joined by the 'ting' of the coffee maker and quiet clanging of dishes and bowls being taken down, ready for whatever her dad planned for breakfast.

Only when the noise finally began to reach the level of a normal morning in the teenager-packed halls of Beacon, did Weiss start to stir. "Morning, sleepy-head," Yang drawled, sweeping some of the white hair out of Weiss' face as the shorter girl pushed herself groggily off the bed.

Weiss blinked blindly for a minute, before raising one hand to rub sleepily at her eyes. "What time is it?"

"Ten," Yang answered and nodded over towards the clock. "We were up late. Didn't feel like waking you."

"Small blessings," Weiss mumbled, still half-asleep. She blinked again, and finally her eyes focused, coming to rest on the blonde lying beneath her on the bed. Then they dropped, looking down just slightly as she leaned in, her body pressing down atop Yang's.

Taken by surprise, Yang wasn't prepared for the moment when Weiss' lips found hers, or for the way that small, slim body somehow managed to pin her down, trapping her with its weight as one hand came up to cup her cheek. It's odd, she thought as Weiss pushed a little bit closer, warm breath mingling with hers. This is pretty damn far from our first kiss. I should be getting used to this by now. But the heat that Weiss' kisses brought still swept through her, running down her veins like fire until every inch of her was tingling with the sheer joy of it. It was heady, and breathtaking, and not for the first time, Yang wished it never had to end.

Eventually, to Yang's eternal dismay, it did. Her eyes opened—she couldn't even remember closing them—just in time to see Weiss grimace slightly as they came apart. "Morning breath," she said softly, answering Yang's questioning look.

"Sorry."

"Not you," Weiss said, shaking her head before leaning in to kiss Yang again. "Me."

Yang couldn't help but grin as Weiss pressed into her again. "Didn't even notice."

One more kiss, this one shorter but no less distracting than the last, and then Weiss relaxed, lying back down on the bed with her face buried in Yang's chest. "Thank you," she said softly, vibration spreading to Yang's torso as she spoke. "For last night. For everything."

Still dazed from Weiss' version of 'good morning', Yang just chuckled feebly. Reaching down, she wrapped her arms around the smaller girl, pulling her into a close, tight hug. "You really don't need to thank me."

"Yes," came the muffled voice against her shirt. "I really do."

"Well, you're eventually gonna have to get used to it. I'm not stopping anytime soon."

Weiss' laugh was as feeble as her own, both of them half-playing it off as some sort of joke and knowing, deep down, it was anything but. They lapsed into silence, Weiss lying atop her while the odd noise crawled its way upstairs and through Yang's bedroom door.

"Yang?" Weiss' voice when she finally spoke was soft, and for her, surprisingly unsure. "Is it alright if I ask for something selfish?"

"Absolutely."

"I don't feel like sharing you today."

Yang blinked. Blinked again. Then raised her eyebrows as she shifted to stare down at Weiss, a wry smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. "Do you normally feel like sharing me? 'Cause, I mean I'm not entirely against the idea, but we should probably talk about it first."

"Not that. I mean, I ... I want you to myself." Weiss said, then sat up just enough to look Yang in the eyes. Leaning to the side, she fell onto the mattress, head resting on the pillow as she stared up at the blonde. "I don't want to get up. I have zero interest in dragging myself out of bed, and the last thing I want right now," she blushed slightly. "Is to be anywhere other than right next to you."

Yang rolled over on her side so she could face her, a sheepish grin steadily spreading across her face. "I think I could get talked into that." She leaned in and gave Weiss a short kiss on the forehead, taking the opportunity to breathe in the scent of her hair. "Might take some convincing."

Rolling her eyes, Weiss threw one hand behind her neck, and with surprising forcefulness pulled Yang close. The next several minutes were occupied by a veritable essay on exactly why Yang should, and would, remain right there, as long as the two of them could manage it, complete with several well-annotated paragraphs from Weiss' tongue and a conclusion that left Yang staring at her, enraptured, completely and utterly speechless.

She was even more impressed that Weiss had done it without uttering a single word.

Slowly, they relaxed back into silence, dozing while the sounds of breakfast and the smell of cooking meat wafted steadily up the stairs. Eventually the chatter below began to rise, growing more and more audible as, one by one, the folks below decided it was well past time for the two layabouts upstairs to stagger their way down. The scents and noises weren't quite enough for Yang to guess what her father was throwing together, but whatever it was smelled divine.

"You hungry?" she eventually asked, a not-insignificant part of her hoping the answer would be yes.

Weiss had moved up to bury her head against Yang's shoulder, hiding her eyes from the sunlight slipping through the window. "Not enough to want to leave."

"Gotcha." Yang chuckled and shook her head, a crooked smile spreading across her lips. Reaching over to her nightstand, she pulled her scroll from its charging dock. Trying to keep from moving Weiss too much, she typed a quick message then tapped the screen. A quick whooshing sound slipped from the scroll's speakers and a few seconds later, a thumbs-up sign appeared in the chat. Shaking her head, Yang clicked her scroll off and set it back on the nightstand.

"What was that?" Weiss asked.

"Just telling my dad not to expect us for breakfast." Yang grinned, and rolled over to bury her nose in her girlfriend's shoulder. Gods, she hadn't even showered yet and she still smelled of lilacs. It wasn't remotely fair. "That I'm planning on spending the day alone with you."

"You did what?" Weiss was sitting up now, eyes narrowed as she scowled at Yang. "Yang Xiao Long, you do not tell your father when I am naked in your bed!"

"I didn't say you were." Then she grinned, and gave a short glance down at the too-large-for-her dress shirt Weiss had borrowed to sleep in. It fit Yang, which meant Weiss had to roll the sleeves up or they slid down to cover her hands, and the hem hung down around her thighs. She'd left a number of top buttons undone, giving Yang a very pleasant view as she sat up. "Plus, you're not technically naked."

"That." Weiss reached blindly around for something, found the pillow, then turned and smacked Yang upside the head with it. "Is not." She swung again, catching Yang on the shoulder. "The point!"

"Weiss, this is my dad we're talking about," Yang said, arms up to shield her head, fighting to speak while her sides seized with laughter. It was hard to take Weiss' anger seriously while being battered with a pillow. "He was always gonna notice if we never came down."

"Not helping!"

"H-he won't mind," she managed, still laughing.

"I mind!"

A heavy fist wrapped on the door. With a furious, red-faced scowl, Weiss yanked the covers up to her chin, tucking her knees in as she tried to bury herself beneath the comforter. Lips pressed tight to hold back her laughter, Yang pulled herself out of bed, fixed one sleeve on the t-shirt she'd worn to bed, then went to the door.

A minute's conversation, one passed tray, and one half-shushed and exasperated cry of 'Dad!' later, and she was back, carrying a tray laden with breakfast.

"What did he say?" Weiss asked, her voice sullen.

"Nothing," Yang said, not looking at Weiss as she laid the tray down on her nightstand. Even looking away, she couldn't entirely keep the blush from her face.

"Yang..."

"Seriously, Weiss. It wasn't anything-"

Yang trailed off when she looked up and saw the scowl on Weiss' face. Sighing, she rubbed at her face and sank back onto the edge of the bed. "He said it's fine. That spending Midwinter's eve in bed with a lover is a Xiao Long tradition." Her cheeks went a little redder as she reached up and ran a hand through her hair. "And that he won't expect us for lunch either."

"... I really hate you sometimes.

"That's okay." Yang shrugged and tugged at the blankets Weiss was hogging. "I love ya. And I have fresh bacon-and-cheese waffles."

With an annoyed pout, Weiss let go of the edge of the comforter. "... come here."

Grinning, Yang slid back under the covers, propping herself up against the pillows before pulling Weiss up into a sitting position beside her. "For the record," she purred as she passed Weiss her plate of bacon-and-cheese-filled deliciousness. "You're cute when you're flustered."

The day passed without incident. From what Yang gathered later, Taiyang took Ruby and Blake out to see some of island, the two locals acting as tour guides for a rather intrigued Blake. For so small an island, Patch had quite a lot to see. The cliffs overlooking the island beaches were a favorite of Ruby's, and while the ocean water was a frigid, ice-cold death sentence this time of year, the view from the bluffs was still an amazing sight. They took lunch in town, before Ruby dragged Blake and her father off to one of her favorite skating ponds, where father and daughter spent an afternoon trying to teach their Faunus friend how to skate.

For their part, Weiss and Yang spent the morning in bed, dozing for a little while after breakfast until the bare beginnings of restlessness set in, quickly remedied as Yang convinced Weiss to find something resembling pants, before carrying her reluctant girlfriend downstairs, plopping her on the couch, and pulling up one of those cheesy-yet-charming holiday flicks Weiss had complained of the day before. A new take on an old classic filled the screen as Weiss found herself drawn back into the ring of Yang's arms, her head tucked snugly under Yang's chin as they lounged, propped up on cushions and buried beneath as many comforters and blankets as Yang could find.

"Weiss," Yang asked, as one protagonist gathered her elderly neighbors for a holiday dinner. "What is being with me like?"

Caught off-guard, Weiss blinked, then struggled against the blankets as she turned to look up at the blonde. "I'm not sure I know what you mean."

"Just ... one of the few times I got Dad to talk about my mom, he said being with her was like driving a stock car juiced with rocket fuel." A brief smile flickered on Yang's face at the memory, but Weiss noticed it never touched her eyes. "Everything was intense. They'd fight or argue or snap at each other and then she'd kiss him out of nowhere. She either hated him or wanted him or seemed colder than she had before they started dating. It was just emotion and passion, and he couldn't help but get swept up in it."

At a loss, Weiss just nodded. Off-hand, it sounded like one of Blake's 'secret' romance novels, which probably weren't the healthiest example of a relationship. But now didn't seem like a good time to make that comparison.

After a second's pause, Yang grabbed the remote, thumbing the pause button before she breathed and started again, a hint of a tremble in her voice. "But with Summer, everything was just easy. They fit. She was someone he knew he could rely on, someone who was always there, always steady. Definitely not as volatile, but," Yang stopped for a second, looking like she might trail off, until her jaw clenched and she forced the words out. "He didn't say it, but I think it wasn't as exciting either. He loved her, but it was a different kind of love than what he had with Raven, and I think ... I think sometimes he missed her. What they had. Still does, probably."

Slowly, Weiss slid her hand over Yang's. It was impossible not to notice Yang's flinch when their hands met, but Weiss squeezed down too fast for Yang to pull away. "Where's this coming from?" she asked, never taking her eyes off the blonde.

"I just," Yang stopped and bit her lip. "I know we fight sometimes and maybe I tease you a little too much and ... I don't want us to turn out like them. I guess being here just got me thinking. About them, and her, and what Dad said. And maybe we are a little like them in a couple ways, but I don't want to be like my mom. I-"

"Yang." Weiss cut her off. Before she could start again, before Yang could start working herself into a state, Weiss pushed herself forward on the couch, and kissed her. This time, she expected the flinch. Pressing closer, she reached back and pulled the blankets up over their heads, until they were completely covered. Shifting slightly, she found a nicer position and cuddled in against Yang.

"You're warm," she said, speaking the moment her lips left Yang's. "Like this—that feeling you get when you pull the covers up and everything is cozy and still. This is what being with you is like." She was glad it was dark beneath the blankets; this way there was no chance of Yang seeing the heat rushing to her face. "You make me feel safe. Even when we bicker, or when you decide you want to annoy me, that doesn't change. It was one of the first things that made me realize how I felt about you."

Yang chuckled weakly in the darkness, but the arms that wrapped themselves around Weiss' back were solid and sure. "Glad I can be your safety blanket, I guess."

"Yang," Weiss' voice was firm. "With the family I grew up in, safe is a very good thing. I meant what I said. Seeing how you were with Ruby, how close you two are, how you always make an effort to be there for her, to support her—it was nice change. Frankly, I was a good bit jealous of her for a little while."

"Really?"

"I told you I wanted bunk beds as a child. I love Winter, I just wish we were closer. That our father had given us the chance to be closer. I even wish my relationship with my brother was more like what you and Ruby have, despite how much like father he's become."

"I'm sorry."

Growling under her breath, Weiss pushed herself up, letting the light in as she knocked the top of the blanket free. "For the record, I hate hearing you apologize when it's not your fault. And the fact that that is my biggest complaint about our relationship should tell you something." Weiss moved until she was settled back against Yang, her head tucked snugly beneath Yang's chin.

"And I wouldn't worry. With my sister and your uncle dueling in the middle of Beacon, not to mention the rest of our families, I doubt either of us will lack 'excitement' anytime soon."

Later, after the others came home and Yang and Weiss finally made themselves presentable for dinner, the two of them eventually retired back to their nest on the couch, settling in while Taiyang leaned back in his armchair and Blake and Ruby shared the loveseat. The evening ended in a series of holiday films, telling stories of redemption and family and most importantly, love.

It was just as an old miser threw open a window to face a new dawn, that Yang heard the slow, soft rhythm of a sleeping Weiss breathing atop her chest. Signaling to her dad, she pointed to Weiss and shrugged her head to the side in apology. Nodding, he reached down and lowered the volume, letting the movie run its course before switching it off as the credits began to roll.

"Psst. Dad," Yang whispered as Blake and Ruby clambered out and started to make their way upstairs.

"Yeah, Yang?"

Glancing down at her girlfriend, Yang smiled to herself. "Can we get another blanket? She gets cold."

After a moment, Taiyang came back, a heavy quilt resting in his arms. Setting it aside, he reached down for Yang's hands and lifted, helping ease her forward before lying back length-wise on the couch. Moving slow, they managed to do it without waking Weiss, still tucked up against Yang's shoulder. Grabbing the quilt, he threw it over the two of them, laughter twinkling in his eyes as Weiss scooted even closer to Yang in her sleep.

"You two have a good night," he said, and winked down at his daughter.

"We will, Dad. Thanks."

Author's Note: As usual, please leave a review or comment if you can. (A) It makes my day and (B) it sometimes gives me idea about what you guys would like to see and any mistakes I might need to fix. If you have any questions, comments, critiques, or even just want to say 'hi,' PLEASE put it in a review (I respond to almost any question) or in an ask on tumblr (you can find me as 'Redsuitwriter'). I also put sneak peeks for my stories on tumblr, so you can find extra content there.

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