Hi! Long time no see!

I'm really living up to my username right now, more so extremely LazyKatze than just LazyKatze. School, sports, and this whole national novel writing month (NaNoWriMo) wound up with me not doing anything fanfiction-wise. This chapter will be the beginning of me trying to write more often, so yay (hopefully :P)! I'd like to thank Elfenlied1012 for being a great friend, my best friend really, and helping me through the writing process as well as looking this chapter over! Hope you enjoy the chapter :)

-LK

The restaurant was nothing too fancy, certainly not a suit and tie kind of place. Still, Yang was dressed up nicer than a sports bra and khakis, choosing instead to wear a simple dandelion sundress that accented her best features. The thin spaghetti straps not only gave her toned muscles a time to shine in a more civilized manner, but also kept her cool in the sweltering heat. Mascara and hints of makeup donned her face, not Yang's forte, but she knew how to apply it to look hot. A thin gold chain hung around her neck, this little pendent of a flaming heart. The blonde glanced down to her phone, checking the time once again and chuckling at the dorky face of her little sister set as the background. The numbers over the teen's head read nearly half past seven. Blake was late.

"Of course she wouldn't show up," Yang whispered to herself amused. This stupid plan of hers was destined for failure, but that didn't stop her from hoping.

She glanced around, checking out the establishment. Seated in the center of the floor, the tables around were all empty save for one. Business was slow for the Italian restaurant that night, the only other voices belonging to a pair of brunette girls giggling about something shared between themselves. Lights dimly illuminated the room, and a candle flickered in front of the fighter. Green plants sat nestled on window sills and in corners, bringing some life to the atmosphere. Having gone on plenty of dates here before, some of the relationships lasting longer than just a single meetup, this was definitely Yang's top choice, especially with the excellent food, service, and being easy on her wallet.

The waiter up front's voice echoed through the room, rehearsing a practiced and overused greeting. To Yang's excitement, Blake's muscular frame was the one pushing past the man, heading directly towards the table for two. Wearing a black suit and tie, something that was almost unexpectedly expected, her hair was let loose, long black locks spilling over her shoulders. Her attire was similar to that of the day of the attempted assassination, aside from the lack of gloves, mask, and huge-ass knife. That, and an added bow atop her head, covering those adorable cat ears.

"About time! I thought you'd never show," Yang commented with her smirk on fire as Blake sat down.

The faunus snorted, clearly not amused, but still uttered, "Hello."

The fighter tilted her head, resting it lightly on fingertips. Eyes trailed up and down the date before she spoke again. "You're looking wonderful tonight as always."

"Thank you." The curt reply didn't sound too thankful.

Releasing a tiny, almost invisible sigh, Yang paused her attempts to start a conversation as the waiter made his way over to their table. The man introduced himself, fake and over enthusiastic, before asking the two what they would like for drinks.

"Strawberry sunrise, please. No ice," the blonde asked, quickly adding in, "Oh! And with one of those little umbrellas, too!"

He marked the request down on his notepad before turning towards Blake. "And you?"

"Just water, please."
With a nod and the promise to return with drinks soon, Blake and Yang were once again alone. The candle flickered between them, Yang's smirk and Blake's stone cold stare polar opposites.

"Sooo…" Yang drawled, "What do you do for work?"

She blinked. "I'm paid to dispose of unwanted objects," Blake responded dryly.

"Ouch, I'm unwanted? And also an object? The object of your affections, you must mean."

The raven haired woman ignored the jest, instead directing the question back, "What do you do?"

"Oh, I'm an MMA fighter," she explained, giving a quick flex of her muscles, "Professionally, of course. I'm actually in the top ten of the tournament hosted here in Vale!"

"Really?" Blake raised a brow, the snippet of information seeming to catch her eye.

"Yeah, it's a blast," the blonde continued, "It's definitely my favorite thing to do. Well, like as a hobby and profession. Hanging out with my little sister is definitely up there. Now if I could only get her into MMA then it'd be literally the best thing in the world!"

"You have a little sister?"
"Yep! Her name's Ruby. Sweetest little thing to ever exist."

"How old is she?"
"Sophomore in highschool, so like sixteen. Her birthday's on November 5th, so she just barely missed the cutoff."

"I see. Must be nice."

"Do you have any siblings?"
"No, but a few kids I grew up with I considered siblings."

"Oh, that's cool!"

"I guess."

The waiter chose that time to return, drinks balancing on a round black tray. The lack of customers made service speedy, however the blonde grimaced at it; she had finally been getting somewhere with Blake. "Here you go ma'am," he smiled, placing this explosion of color they called a drink down, the vibrancy amplified by blandness of a glass of ice water.

"Thank youuuu!" Yang sang, sipping from her brightly hued drink. A squeal of delight came from her lips, and while grinning wildly at the waiter she asked, "Every time I come here I always get this drink, but I've never asked what's in it. Could you tell me, or is it a chef's secret?"

The man, seemingly asked this one thousand times, tapped his chin with each item as he spoke the long, long list of ingredients. It definitely didn't have any alcohol, too much of everything to even let a smidge of it get in. The bright orange and pink drink was home to dozens of fruits and sugars. Yang could cheat on her healthy regime just for today. It was a date, she's supposed to treat herself! Eyes trained on the waiter and glass on the table, when there was a flash of black out of the corner of her eye, Yang didn't flinch. Wrapping up the conversation with the waiter and ordering their food, she turned back to look Blake.

The faunus's expression was the same as before, a cool stare watching the lilac eyes. The gaze never flickered towards the glass, and Yang realized how truly professional this woman was. If she herself has ever slipped poison into someone's drink she wouldn't be able to keep her eyes off of it. Swirling the liquid around a bit, she lifted it off the table and into the air towards her date.

"You have to try this Blake," Yang cooed, "It's so good!"

She pushed the glass away. "I'm fine, thank you."
"Oh c'mon. It's non-alcoholic if that's what you're worried about." There was another gesture with the glass.

"No, really, I'm fine," she spoke.

"Alrighttt," Yang whined playfully, not bringing the glass to her lips and instead placing it down in front of her. There was the faintest flicker of confusion in Blake's eyes, but Yang ignored it. She wanted a nice date and she damn well was going to get one. The assassin could try to kill her as many times as she wanted, it didn't matter. "So, do you live in the area or did you travel for business?" The blonde said the last word with a little grin.

Blake didn't find it as humorous. "Business, mostly."

"Oh cool, how long do you stay usually?" Yang asked.

"Until my job is done," she replied coolly.

"So do you think you'll be here long enough to go on another date?"

The hitman raised a brow. "It's not even twenty minutes into the first date and you're already planning for a second one?"

"Of course!" Yang laughed, leaning into her palms and blinking up at Blake. The posture's revealing nature was intentional, and two beacons shone up and caught the raven haired beauty's eyes like two spotlights on the clouds. The flick of amber eyes downward at the monstrosities and the clear attempt to refrain from ogling them was evident.

"S-so," Blake's stutter and adjustment of her tie was adorable and seeing the stoic woman falter even so slightly was even more so. "Where'd you boob the necklace?" she asked, "Wait, shit, no, I meant buy!"

With a simple Freudian slip, Blake's attempt to be a badass hitman began to unravel. Yang's face went red with laughter, hiccuping little bursts that shook her entire being while the hitman's cheeks turned the same shade, however not from hilarity and instead from embarrassment. The blondes eyes began to water, the stifling of her laughter for the sake of the two other patrons failing and coming out as this muted cough.

"It's not that funny," Blake breathed, "Stop it."

"'Not that funny'? It's fucking hilarious!" The outburst of giggles began to quiet, but Yang saw amidst her fit the faintest fidget and smile from the once aloof woman.

She clicked her tongue. "Laughing at the expense of others is never funny."

It almost seemed like she was serious until the edge of her lips pulled themselves into this teasing half smile. "I'm not laughing at you, I'm laughing with you!"

"That's so cliché."

"I'm aware," Yang grinned. "So, what kind of laughing is allowed?"

Blake paused for a moment, almost like she was sinking deep into her mind to find out the true answer to this silly little question. "Hmm, if I had to say it would be the laughter from silly jokes or stories."

"Silly jokes?" the buxom woman asked, "I can make some good puns!"

"No," Blake stopped her, "No, those don't even count as jokes."

Yang put a hand over her heart in mocked pain. "I… I'm hurt. I don't think I can continue this date any longer. You've hurt me too much already."

She laughed at that, this sweet thing that jingled in her ears and caused the blonde's heart to tighten.

"You can't punish me like this!"

The laughter turned to a groan and the roll of amber eyes, but still there was a look of amusement. "That was terrible."

"I'm just going to take that as a compliment," Yang replied.

"It wasn't one."
"Nah, it totally was a," she paused for effect, "compunment!"

"Okay, the other one I can respect because it made sense, but this one was just forced," Blake commented with a shake of her head.

"Yeah, I'll admit that one was bad," she laughed.

"If I had little signs that they use in those dancing competitions I would give it a one," the faunus laughed.

"Alright then," Yang began, "You tell me a good joke!"

Blake froze up. "Uh, tell you a joke?"

"Yep!"

"Uh," she paused, "well, uh, there was, uh…"

"C'mon, you can do it!"

"Well, uh… oh, here's one! How do you instantly drop 100 IQ points?"

Yang cocked her head, "How?"

"Dye your hair blon—" her eyes widened, "Wait no, I mean—"

There was a moment of silence, the two locking eyes. That is, until the mane of golden hair spilled over the table when Yang's forehead made contact with the polished wood surface, laughter shaking the furnishing and threatening the drinks to spill. The alabaster skin of the beauty had flushed a great shade of ruby. The guffaws echoed throughout the establishment, and the two brunettes who had been quietly chatting gawked at the scene, the beautiful woman's body shaking in these spasms and the handsome one trying to sink into her seat to be as small as possible.

"Just," more laughs, "That was terrible!"

"Stop!"

"M-Making a blonde joke," she sucked in a breath, "to a blonde!"

"Stop it, I'm aware! I never said I was good at jokes!"

"Oh man," Yang's outbursts began to subside, and she collected herself, leaning back in the chair and wiping her watering eyes. "You've clearly not been on many dates have you?"

"I-I, what?! I've been on plenty, thank you," Blake defended herself, albeit meekly.

"You should know it's part of date etiquette to not insult your date, right?"

"Well of course."

"Yeah, that's date number two!"

That elicited a chuckle from the red faced woman. "I knew that one."

Yang didn't respond, choosing not to get too deep into the conversation as she noticed the waiter exiting the kitchen with their meals in hand. He arrived at the destination, placing the two plates of food in front of them before taking off. What he was hurrying to Yang had no idea, what with the restaurant practically devoid of life. Yang grinned, having gotten a heaping dish of pasta, sauce poured on and not one, but three meatballs nestled inside. Blake had gotten a simple ravioli in the restaurant's homemade alfredo sauce.

The two fell into a silence, Yang nearly inhaling half her plate in this hungry frenzy. She attempted to be as lady like as possible, but having barely eaten that day this meal was almost orgasmic. The sauce, the noodles, the parmesan, all of it was fantastic. Blake seemed to be enjoying her food as well, equally as silent and chewing on one of the pieces of cheese filled pasta. She ate neatly, avoiding dotting her all black suit with the off white of the alfredo. Yang found herself just watching the raven haired woman, noting just how perfect and precise everything she did seemed. So different from when she was hiding herself in embarrassment, like a wall had come up. A wall that Yang wanted to break down like a wrecking ball.

"I love the food here," she commented, "Easily one of my favorite restaurants in Vale."

"It's not half bad. I have to say I'm enjoying it so far," Blake replied.

Yang smiled. "That's good, I'm glad it wasn't a total failure!"

"Yeah." Blake took a few more bites of her food and so did Yang. "Can I ask you something?"

"Ask away!"

"Do you live with your sister?" she queried.

Yang shook her head. "Nah, she lives with my uncle. It's easier for her, what with school and everything, but I spend enough time at his house that it's like I live there." The blonde chuckled.

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, I love spending time with that goofball, cutest little dork out there. You should see her hair though, dyed the tips red recently and it looks hella good," she gushed, "Oh! I'll just show you a picture, she's my background right now actually." Yang whipped out her cellphone, just clicking the button and having a familiar goofy photo of her younger sister to pop up.

Blake's eyes traced over the image, taking it all in. "It does look nice."

"I know, right?" Yang replied.

"Does she have naturally black hair?" the faunus asked.

"Yep!"

"And you're naturally blonde?"

"Yeah," she hummed, noting with a smirk the question that hung in the air, "We have different moms, if that's what you're wondering."

"Oh, that explains a lot," Blake muttered.

Yang laughed. "While she's technically my half-sister to me she's just my sister."

"That's sweet."
"Thanks, I try." Another boisterous giggle.

There was a beat of silence before Yang spoke again. "So, where'd you grow up?"

Blake's hand paused, ravioli wiggling as the fork hung in the air halfway to her mouth. "All over really."

"But you said you were close with kids around the neighborhood?"

"Not around the neighborhood. They lived with me."

"Ah I see. Are you still close with them?" It may have just been Yang's imagination, but the ribbon of the black bow atop Blake's head appeared to twitch ever so slightly. She shrugged it off, however, leaning on a hand while taking another bite of sauce drenched noodles.

"Not particularly," the assassin replied.

There was a loud squeak, wood scraping against earthy tiles accompanied by panicked words. One of the two brunettes who shared the dining area with Blake and Yang was on her feet, chair pushed out behind her and muttering words furiously in a hushed tone. Long, chocolate hair hung haphazardly, messy from the sudden leap out of the seat. Two long ears, a lighter shade of chestnut than the strands below, marked the blushing girl as a bunny faunus. A pair of nearly black irises flickered over towards the bumble bee girls, the tint of crimson turning to an even darker hue. She spun on her heel, pushing her chair in and strutting off out of view.

Yang turned back towards her food, almost sighing aloud when she realized turning away hadn't been the best idea. There was no possible way to be entirely sure that Blake hadn't poisoned her food, but there was also no way to be sure that she had aside from eating it and dying. The pasta was only three fourths of a way done, but the serving was fairly large and would have been enough to eat for lunch the next day. Risking death just for something delicious to fill her belly was incredibly irresponsible, tempting, but still irresponsible. Lilac eyes scanned the meal as quickly as possible. No visible differences stood out, like in the vibrant drink still swirling around her cup albeit subdued from the melting ice diluting it.

The diamond smile on Yang's face didn't falter, and she immediately commented, "I wonder what that was all about? The one with the curls must be a damn good flirt to get her date to storm off as red as Clifford, and I don't know if I'm comfortable with her being better than I am."

Blake laughed.

"I think I'll have to fight her, reclaim my title and everything."

"You may have an unfair advantage," the raven haired woman noted.

"Maybe just a little bit," Yang grinned.

Lifting another white dripping pasta to her lips, Blake took a small bite, licking her lips but missing a small bit of alfredo in the corner. The fighter took this as her chance, gripping the cloth napkin that was nestled between the table and her plate, leaning slightly over the surface and reaching an arm towards the beauty across it.

"You have a little sauce right here," she whispered, gently wiping it away with a signature smirk on her face.

Blake just sat there with a thin brow raised, and it may have just been the lighting but it seemed as if there was a faint tinge of red creeping across her normally alabaster face. Something about the world around the two woman changed at that moment, suddenly it was just them in the room, eyes locked and a blanket of intimacy wrapped around them. Despite wanting to savor the atmosphere, Yang stuck to her original plan, and while going to return her arm back to her side she let it swing too wide, clipping the rim of the glass. With a crash and splash, neon liquid poured onto the plate of pasta and over the edge. Droplets dribbled onto the yellow sundress. The entirety of the table was gone, and the spell was broken, but the poisoned food was ruined and wouldn't even be considered edible anymore.

"Shit!" Yang let out, mocking anger.

"Oh no," Blake said, flagging down a waiter who had heard the crash, "Could we have something to clean this up, please?"

"Yes, yes of course," conceded the man as he rushed into the back room to work with her request, returning with a handful of cloth napkins. He helped to wipe up the mess, and Yang tried to help but he put up a hand. "You should go clean up your dress before the stain sets in. I've got this don't worry."

The blonde rose to go into the bathroom, Blake following suit. They walked side by side into the snug, three stalled bathroom. Yang started running the water, but stopped it after a moment and looked at the stoic hitman beside her. "I'm assuming you didn't follow me in here to clean your own jacket or to help me."

"No, no I didn't."

"Damn, I even spilled my drink to avoid that stuff you put in it, but look at me," a hand gestured towards the area around her, "I still managed to get cornered."

"So you did notice," Blake commented cooly, expression stoic.

Yang laughed at that. "Are you kidding me? You were more obvious than those two brunettes eye fucking each other!"

The hitman snorted, the tension broken for only a moment. A knife appeared from thin air, having been hidden somewhere within the confines of the black suit. Taking a step towards Yang, a light click of dress shoes on the linoleum floor and a dragging sound as she dove down and slid, aiming for the stomach of the seemingly unprepared blonde. Primed for this attack, the mixed martial artist kicked her leg up, hitting the back of the hand holding the blade and twisting out of the way. Momentum still carrying Blake forwards, Yang took the chance to bring a closed fist down towards the beautifully apathetic face. It never made contact, dodged with a simple jerk of the head.

Pivoting on her heel, Blake swung the knife upwards, Yang edging backwards to avoid each slice. With a deep breath, she felt herself getting into her fighter's trance, this hypersensitive state she found herself sinking into during every match. Each subtle movement, each flicker of the eyes, each strike aimed towards her she reacted to. MMA wasn't just brute strength like many people believed, there was more strategy to it, more paying attention to the fine details. The dagger blurred in flurried strikes, Yang dodging with centimeters to spare. In return she shot back punches and kicks, aiming for all parts of the woman's body. Still she found herself being driven towards the crimson of the closed stalls.

Blonde backed up against the plastic walls, a sly grin appeared on Blake's face. Lunging in with the knife, Yang caught her wrist, holding it mere inches away from her flushed cheeks. Her hands shook as they held the wrists of the assassin tightly, locked in this stalemate of strengths. The fighter's more power based training won out, her muscles urging the weapon backwards as well as the hitman.

"Nice… try Blake, but," Yang grunted through clenched teeth, "I've got a... bit more muscle on me though."

The two women continued their deadly game of arm wrestling, adrenaline pumping, hearts racing, strength waning, silence in the entire bathroom except for the groans of exertion. Amber locked onto lilac, eyes unwavering, and Yang could almost hear some epic film track playing in her head. She shifted her body, feet settling into a more comfortable position, preparing to do a mighty heave and remove the shadow like hitman off of her. Muscles ready to spring into action, Yang lurched forwards—

A roar, the rushing of water, and a squeak froze Yang and Blake where they stood. All attempts to murder and self defence were halted as the toilet from one of the stalls sputtered and gasped in the loudest fashion possible. Yang only blinked, grip loosening oh so slightly on Blake's wrists, pressure of the two arms weakening as well. There were two tiny plaps as feet hit the ground, the stall door slowly swinging inwards with this slight squeak. Bunny ears and brunette hair popped around it slowly, glancing at the two women, the knife, and the white knuckles wrapped around the sleeves of the suit. Immediately she brought her eyes down to the floor, slipping out of the small cubicle and dashing out of the bathroom.

"Excuse me, sorry!" came the short little burst, and if it weren't for the dead silence in the bathroom it would have been inaudible.

Yang dropped her arms, less concerned about the assassin standing right in front of her with a knife and more so with staring after the poor little brunette. "We… we should probably get out of here before the cops are called."

"That," Blake replied, sliding the knife into her sleeve, "Is a good idea."

The fighter sighed and stepped out of the bathroom, the raven haired woman trailing behind her. They sped walk by the table, the mess of drink having been cleaned up and a refill left in its place. Yang was almost tempted to drink it, chug it as fast as possible, but she knew there was no time as the brunette was whispering something to her date who was casting curious glances over towards them. Dropping a few twenties on the table, hopefully enough to pay for the meal, Yang raced to the front doors with Blake in tow, breaking out into a sprint once they got out the doors.

Even though it wasn't particularly necessary, the two ran fast and hard, Yang whooping and laughing as the wind buffeted her face all while clenching Blake's hand tightly. It was strange holding the hand that had grasped a weapon to end her life. It wasn't until the two were out of breath and slouched into sweaty heaps on a park bench did Yang begin to laugh again, a choked sputter that came out with each heave of her chest.

"Did, did you… did you see that girl's face?" She couldn't breath, it was too much, "Oh my god, I don't think I've… ever seen someone that shocked, holy shit, her eyes nearly popped out of her head!" Yang was doubled over in amusement, wincing in what seemed like pain, having most likely popped a few veins. Blake was laughing as well, albeit more silently.

When the giggles stopped the two fell into a silence, it settling upon them like the darkness of the night. The blonde sighed, neither moving, neither wanting to break through the sounds of the city.

"Are you going to try and kill me again?" Yang asked, a hint of humor in her voice.

Blake shook her head. "I think three's enough for one night."

"That's good, I'm a bit tired at the moment," she said. There was a pause, and the hitman took the moment to rise from her seat, silently saying that she was ready to go. "Blake."

She raised a brow in response.

"Did you at least enjoy the date?"

Amber eyes shining as they tuned in on the questioning face, pink lips lightly whispering. "I had fun."

And with that she was gone, leaving the date on the park bench alone, staring at the spot she once was. Rising slowly, Yang felt the chill in the air, and sighed. She had parked her bike right in front of the restaurant.

Hey all just a quick message from the other collaborator on this story A-rav, the author who hasn't updated any story in ages. I'm sorry I haven't updated in a long time but senior year has hit me hard and I've been swamped with my AP classes and internship. I also took part in the novel writing thing Katze mentioned and I've recently started training to compete in a Strongman competition. I'll try my best to update one of my stories soon but I won't lie it may not be for a while. Hope you guys have been well and I'll see you next time I update, hopefully that is soon.