"How much time do we have?"

Casually, Yang glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. "About an hour."

In relief, Blake lightly sighed. "That's more time than I thought we had."

"We did good, partner," the blonde sent her girlfriend a sunny smile. "The cake looks great so far. Besides, Rubes isn't picky. She'll love whatever we give her."

Fondly, Blake held onto her arm. "You're right. She'll love it."

The delicious aroma of sweetness filled the room. The couple had been in the kitchen for a couple of hours and loved the smell. They couldn't get enough of it.

The only reason they were hard at work… the reason they were covered in flour...

Was because today was finally the day.

Ruby's birthday.

To prepare, Weiss took Ruby out to town. Wherever to get her away from Beacon. Weiss' job was to distract her so Ruby didn't ask many questions. Of course, the leader was more than happy to go on a date on her birthday.

Meanwhile, Blake and Yang were responsible for baking the delectable chocolate cake. Luckily, headmaster Ozpin was more than willing to let them use Beacon's kitchen when no staff was around during the holiday.

On the powdery counter, a large plastic bowl was resting on granite. Leftover ingredients were mixed in like eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and chocolate. A few minutes ago, the chocolate cake was placed in the oven to bake. At this rate, it should be finished by the time Weiss and Ruby get back.

Slowly, the cake was rising. The couple couldn't wait to put the icing on it. That was the best part.

Happily, Yang glanced inside the oven. "Looks nice and moist."

"Must you say that word?" Blake quipped.

Yang cleared her throat to correct herself. "Looks nice and not-so-moist-and-instead dewy."

"Better," the faunus said jokingly. "I'd eat it."

"At least it looks edible," the blonde said giddily. "That's a good thing. We did pretty good!"

"Proud of you," Blake said after she pecked her cheek. "It seems like just yesterday you were struggling to make toast."

"I still do," Yang replied with a grin and blush.

Together, the couple leaned over the bowl that contained leftovers. Unable to resist the chocolatey goodness, Yang brushed her finger inside the bowl. When there was a good amount of chocolate dripping off her finger, she sucked on the sweetness.

"Sooooo good."

The taste practically had her melting, which left Blake to stare at her with a blush. The blonde held up the whisk when she noticed her eyeballing the sugary delight.

"You know you want some."

As Yang slowly inched the whisk closer to her face, the faunus sniffed the mouthwatering deliciousness as it wafted into her sensitive nose.

"Yeah. Yeah, I do."

In no way was Blake going to fight her on that. It was too much to resist and she gave the whisk a hesitant lick as her girlfriend held it up for her.

"Well?" Yang asked in anticipation.

Curiously, cat ears flicked. "How are we such good chefs?"

"I don't know how we do it," Yang agreed with a wink. "It was a… piece of cake."

From the lame pun, Blake kissed her on the lips. Despite the faunus giving her crap about her jokes, she secretly loved the puns. Not that she'd ever admit it. Every time Yang made a pun, she received a kiss, so she wasn't planning on stopping anytime soon.

When the couple separated, both girls adorned blushes.

In response to the pun, Blake playfully rolled her eyes. "You bake me crazy."

"D-did you just…"

"Tell anyone I just said that and you'll never see the daylight again," the faunus warned jokingly.

"Oh, kinky."

"Let me get this right," Ruby said, intrigued. "You like salmon, catfish, bass, shrimp, and basically every other seafood, but you don't like sushi?"

"That's accurate," Weiss nodded in affirmation.

"But that makes no sense!" Ruby yelped. "Sushi is yummy! It's not even that different from other fish!"

From her reaction, Weiss let slip a giggle.

The white rose pair had just eaten at Ruby's favorite restaurant. Of course, Weiss had paid, stating that it was Ruby's birthday and that the date was her idea. Ruby tried to protest, but ultimately relented and claimed that she would pay for the next date.

By now, the white rose pair was just walking around town. A while ago, their hands had connected and they had no interest in breaking the hand-holding contact. It was reassuring and pleasant to be reminded they shared a mutual feeling of affection.

The leaves changed color and fell from the trees. The occasional breeze grazed their cheeks.

"I don't know about you, but I don't like my food raw," the heiress reasoned. Just thinking about sushi disgusted her. "I prefer it cooked."

"That's a good point," Ruby admitted. "Sushi's not my go to, but I eat it when given the chance. Usually whenever I'm home whenever Dad gets it."

"Doesn't Yang like sushi as well?" Weiss asked.

"Yang and Blake go crazy for it," Ruby mentioned. "Hey, you wanna know something funny?"

"What is it, dunce?"

"Even Zwei eats it!" Ruby pointed out cheerfully. "He looks like he regrets it afterwards, though."

"The goodest of good boys likes it?" Weiss asked, shocked.

"The goodest likes it!" Ruby agreed, sharing her surprise. "He's so weird. He needs to think before he eats whatever's in front of him," she reasoned, which elicited a light giggle from Weiss.

With a smirk, Weiss squeezed her dolt's hand. That compelled Ruby to kiss her fondly on the cheek.

Unable to help herself, Weiss smiled. "Is Zwei getting pudgy again?"

It was a known fact that Zwei tended to fluctuate weight at the flick of a switch. Ruby sighed from the question.

"Last time I saw him, it was like I was watching a loaf of bread twerk."

"Oh my god," Weiss looked like she was contemplating life. "You- you somehow put it into words."

"It's true, right?!" Ruby eagerly asked.

"Yes!"

The couple shared laughter as bubbles floated in the atmosphere.

The few weeks the team did look after Zwei, he was well-behaved. Although, the team had a habit of spoiling him and sometimes overfed him. Now that he was back home, maybe Taiyang managed to make him lose a few pounds.

"Oh my god…" Ruby mumbled. "Can you imagine if Zwei fought an ursa head-on?"

"He's a brave boy," Weiss said evenly. "He would take it down with no problem."

"He'd be like a hot pocket to an ursa. Just a little snack," Ruby commented as she tried to imagine her tiny corgi battling a huge grimm.

"Don't say that dolt," Weiss said jokingly. "Zwei can beat, as you say, all the 'baddies.'"

Ruby nodded in agreement. "He's stronger than he looks."

It was then that a particularly strong breeze whipped by.

Weiss couldn't resist the urge to shiver, an action Ruby didn't miss.

"Are you cold?"

"N-no," Weiss replied, trying to resist the stutter. She had a jacket on, but that wasn't enough for someone who was naturally cold.

It appeared that Ruby was used to the cold. The leader didn't even have goosebumps. Although, she did have red mittens on.

From the obvious lie, Ruby playfully smiled. "I gotcha."

Swiftly, she took off her red cape and draped it around her trembling girlfriend. To Weiss, it felt like a warm blanket and smelled of sweet roses. It was truly mesmerizing in the best way. Her heart skipped a few beats as the warmth engulfed her form.

"Thank you, dolt."

"N-no problem," seeing Weiss like that- with her cape wrapped around her- made her blush.

In the past, Weiss wasn't comfortable with wearing her leader's red cape. Now that they were girlfriends, she allowed the courteous gesture and was left smiling widely. Never before had she been able to wear it. Until now.

Before Weiss could reply, there was a buzz in her pocket. Knowing what that meant, she quickly checked her scroll.

It was from Yang.

They were ready.

Fondly, Weiss held onto her girlfriend's arm as they walked. "What do you say we take our date to Beacon?"

Gleefully, Ruby pumped a fist into the air. "Onward!"

"Dunce."

"Surprise!"

Before, Ruby thought that this day couldn't get any better. After all, she got to spend her entire birthday with her girlfriend. It was like a dream come true. Yet, as she walked through the door to her room, she was proven that her night could get even better.

Weiss leaned into her ear when she hadn't said anything. "Well?"

Ruby's mouth was hanging open. Seeing her team surrounded by a barrage of streamers, balloons, and a birthday banner was mind-blowing and stunning. The room was decorated in beautiful colors, but it was mainly red.

In the center of their room was the chocolate cake, which already had her drooling. The smell was the first thing she noticed when she walked inside, not her friends.

What surprised Ruby the most was that she had no idea about this. Normally, someone would spill the beans.

Happiness overflowed her very being. Before Ruby realized it, her eyes watered.

From the sudden redness in her eyes, Yang was concerned. "Oh no," she mumbled. "No, Rubes don't cry! Anything but crying!"

Fondly, Weiss squeezed her hand. "Do you like it?"

"Is that even a question?!" Any traces of tears vanished as Ruby reeled her girlfriend in for a tight hug.

"Aw," Yang couldn't help but coo.

Right after, Ruby bolted to her friends and tackled them in a hug. This earned multiple yelps and laughs as she wrapped her arms around her team. Happily, the three members returned the embrace and stayed there for a few seconds.

When they separated, Blake said. "Team JNPR's coming, by the way. They're running a little late."

"It'll be a party," Ruby said with a grin.

"So, Rubes," Yang said, cutting to the chase. "When do you want to open your presents?"

The mention of presents had Weiss' eyes go wide. Yang didn't miss this and sent her a smug smirk. The blonde had been dying to see her final product. Weiss knew she couldn't count on Blake to not tell Yang, but it was worth a try.

Yang knows, not that I'm surprised. It's okay, Ruby will like it, Weiss kept telling herself. But what if she doesn't…

"Weiss!" Ruby exclaimed, which caught her attention. "I wanna open yours first!"

This was it. The time had finally come.

"O-okay."

"What'd you get dear old me?" Ruby asked teasingly.

"That's a secret, dolt."

"Where is it?" Ruby was practically bouncing up and down. "Wherewherewhere?"

Earlier, Weiss placed her gift bag with red and blue stripes on the table, so she went to fetch it. She came back and held it in front of her. From the sight, silver eyes went wide.

"Weiss, I love it already!"

That earned a few giggles from the bumblebee pair.

"Ruby, you haven't opened it yet."

"I don't need to to know it's awesome," Ruby stated, which earned a tiny smile.

Eagerly, Ruby tore out the red and blue tissue papers and pulled out the first thing her fingers touched. It was a warm box that was labeled 'Subway Cookies.'

"My favorite cookies in the world!" Ruby beamed as she opened the box. There were four decently large and delectably warm cookies inside. "And they're all chocolate chip!"

"Your absolute favorite," Weiss pointed out.

"Best present ever!"

"There's more," Weiss informed, which caused silver eyes to widen even bigger.

"No way!" Ruby yelped, exasperated that there was a part two.

Like that wasn't possible.

"Way," Weiss replied with a grin.

With glee, Ruby yanked out the next thing she touched. It was a soft, wool material. The red fabric poured out of the bag.

"Ohmygoshthisfeelssosoftkindalikeachinchellahowsthisevenpossiblewhere'dyougetthisits-ohmygosh…"

Based on the twinkle in those silver eyes, Weiss knew she had nothing to worry about. Her dolt absolutely adored the gift. "It's a blanket."

A very large, warm blanket that resembled a red waterfall. There was a white rose that fit perfectly in the middle of the intricate design. The image covered most of the space and was surrounded by blazing crimson.

"Holy shit," Yang breathed from the fantastic art piece.

She knew her teammate was working on a blanket, but didn't realize she had this kind of skill. It was obvious that the project had taken many arduous hours to complete.

"Woah," Blake murmured, her jaw hanging open. "You made that?!"

"You of all people know that, Blake," Weiss replied with a smirk.

All Blake could do in response was gawk at the beautiful blanket. Ruby held a similar reaction and ogled at the present made specifically for her. Her heart fluttered and beat rapidly from the thoughtfulness.

Weiss explained the gift. "It took me several months to make. I thought you'd like the combination of our emblems."

"I love it…"

It looked like Ruby was going to cry tears of joy, so Weiss wrapped her in a hug from behind. Her head fit perfectly into the crook of her girlfriend's neck. When Ruby felt the loving contact, she cuddled the blanket and looked over her shoulder to see her girlfriend's flustered face.

"I really, really love it," Ruby said genuinely. "I love…"

Azure and silver eyes intermingled.

This is no time to be nervous, Weiss told herself. You've said it a million times in your head.

"I-" Weiss stammered. "I love you."

From the confession, Ruby's heart grew times a thousand. It was true the white rose couple were girlfriends, but this was the first time one of them said the big 'L' word. It felt her heart would leap out of her chest.

Fondly, Ruby closed the gap between them and planted a kiss on her lips.

The bumblebee pair could only smile from the scene.

When the couple separated, Ruby said. "I love you, too, Weissy."

"Dolt."

Was that gay enough? Jk it's never gay enough.

Remember to stay dandy,

~Toto