Warmth in Winter

Chapter One

Disclaimer: RWBY is the intellectual property of Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth. I claim no ownership.

On bench on Beacon grounds, there sat one Weiss Schnee. She was clothed in warm, but professionally stylish clothing and enjoying the last hours of Fall's display.

Winter had arrived in Vytal. The cold temperatures of Fall had begun to drop even further and snow was expected to appear within the week. As it were, though, the ground was currently covered in the dry leaves.

And that was just fine for Weiss. As long as there was no snow, it wasn't 'officially' Winter. Weiss hated Winter.

Winter represented lies. It represented polite falsities and bitter reality. People claimed to love Winter, but when the snow arrived they always retreated to the warmth. They were hypocrites in Weiss' eyes. Nothing but liars who put on a show of loving Winter, but the moment the biting cold appears, they turn tail and run. They don't love Winter. They don't even really care about Winter. They just like how Winter looks from afar.

But Weiss loved snow. It may sound paradoxical, but she did.

If Winter was lies, then the snow was truth. It chased away the liars. It never changed just because people didn't like it. Snow would always be a part of Winter. One could never change it no matter how hard they tried.

"Hey! Weiss!"

The ivory-skinned girl turned to look at who had called her. It was Ruby, who looked a tad under-dressed for the season. The only sign that she was even aware of the temperature was the red scarf wrapped around her neck and the red mittens that covered her hands. In each of those hands was a steaming mug. Ruby quickly approached Weiss and thrust one of the mugs in her face. Small, white marshmallows floated on the surface and the sweet smell of chocolate wafted into her nose.

Of course she would make hot chocolate. That girl's sweet tooth was insatiable.

"And what is this for?" Weiss inquired, quirking an eyebrow at her leader.

"Because hot chocolate is warm and it's cold out here?" Ruby half-asked, half-stated, as though confused why Weiss would ask such a question.

Seeing that that line of questioning would get her no where, Weiss changed her wording. "I mean, what are you doing out here?"

"Oh, Blake told me you went out for some alone time, so I decided to give you some company," Ruby said with a perky grin. There was zero trace of sarcasm in her voice and her face was as obliviously sincere as ever.

Weiss' face, on the other hand, was deadpan. "So you came to give me company during my alone time," she stated slowly. There was no need to ask.

"Yep!" the petite preteen responded obliviously. Then her brow furrowed and her smile turned into a contemplative frown. Finally comprehension seemed to dawn on her face. "Ohhhhh..."

The Schnee heiress rolled her eyes and gently grasped the hot mug in front of her. "Well, you might as well give me company since you're already here."

Ruby grinned and promptly took a seat next to Weiss. Rather than immediately jumping into conversation like she normally would, she began drinking from her cup of hot chocolate. It seemed Ruby was starting to get a grasp of how to act around Weiss. As Weiss began carefully sipping from her own mug, she noticed something. Rather than the numerous small marshmallows that were in her own mug, Ruby seemed to have one large marshmallow sitting in the steaming chocolate.

"Ruby," she began, seizing the topic the observation had offered. "Why did you get me different marshmallows?"

Despite her innocent intent behind the inquiry, it still came out as slightly snooty. Ruby, though, didn't even bat an eye. She just responded as though anyone else had asked the question without sounding stuck-up.

"Well, I figured since you're all gamey and stuff, I'd get you the smaller ones," she remarked.

"I'm game- ? You dunce, the word is 'dainty'!" Weiss snapped. There was no real heat behind her words, though. "And I am not dainty. I'm refined."

Weiss didn't really care all that much. She did, in fact, prefer the smaller marshmallows. She wasn't even really mad about being called dainty. And Ruby seemed to understand that on some basic level. She didn't snap back at Weiss. She didn't glare at her. She didn't even look put out. All she did was shrug and smile sheepishly.

For Weiss, it was among the greatest combination of gestures anyone could ever offer her.

One could never change how snow was. You could either accept it, or leave it. Most chose to leave it. But that was just fine.

Weiss drank a little deeper from her hot chocolate now that it had cooled off a little. She also hoped to combat the smile that threatened to appear on her face as a result of the girl right next to her.

Those who left the snow just make the ones who accepted it all the more special.

A/N: Just the start of a four-parter I'm writing in between Heart's Desires. I wanted to make something for the holiday season and voila, this came up. This chapter is mostly friendship but I suppose it could be construed as Pink if you believe really hard.

Next up: Blake and Yang.