I'm baaaaaaack!

Yup, I am back from my hike and ready to jump into this writing game again. I've actually been back for about three weeks now. What was I doing during those three weeks instead of updating anything? Your guess is as good as mine.

Anyway, yeah, for those who don't know, I've come back from doing the Pennine Way - a 268-mile hike through Edale in England to Kirk Yetholm in Scotland. Took me about two weeks to finish and I spent most of the days camping out. One of the toughest things I've ever done in my life. I could tell you the story of how I climbed up the side of a waterfall, drank at the highest pub in Britain, and wild-camped between the border of England and Scotland atop a misty mountain.

Instead I'm gonna tell you the story about a woman falling in love with a teenager because he gave her some money.

Some things in life never changed. Some people never changed too.

It filled Winter with delight to see that Weiss was one of those people.

Despite all that had happened, all that she had suffered through, Weiss still remained true to herself. That wasn't to say she hadn't changed at all; on the contrary, her hardships had shaped her into a fine young woman that Winter was proud to call her sister. But at her core, she was still the same girl Winter had grown up with and loved.

Change was inevitable. But it was nice to see some things stay the same.

Like Weiss' enthusiasm to see her again.

"-my summons have gotten stronger than ever," Weiss spoke. She took excited sips of her tea as she recited her tales. "You should've seen me at Haven. The Lancer Queen I summoned was incredible. You would've been so proud."

Winter listened to her stories with a smile. The two were sat in a small study in a private part of the Schnee mansion where they knew no one would disturb them. It was somewhere they used to retreat to when they were younger to get away from it all. Being there again with Weiss brought back pleasant memories, something Winter had few of regarding her childhood.

She didn't know how long the two of them had been sitting there for. Over an hour at the very least. It was amazing how quickly time passed when you were having fun. It was no secret that Weiss wasn't too thrilled about being back in Atlas again. She was here on a mission. There would be no time for a homecoming party, not that she expected to have one waiting for her when she returned.

But at least it meant they could see each other again. After everything that had happened recently, the two were in dire need of a reunion.

"And that wasn't the first time," Weiss went on. "I used my summons in the battle at Beacon and to escape the Branwen tribe. Well, with help from Yang of course."

"I still cannot believe you were captured by bandits," Winter muttered. The story had made her blood boil when she first heard it. "I apologise for not being able to help. Communication has been difficult these days. Had I known, I would've brought the fury of the Atlas military down upon them."

Weiss waved off her apology. "There's nothing to apologise for. I knew there would be risks when I left. Besides, you even said to me once that you wouldn't always be there to save me."

"That doesn't mean I would stand by while you were dragged away by those savages…" She let out a sigh. "Well, I suppose there's no point in fretting over it now. You're free from them. That's what matters."

Weiss nodded in agreement. A mischievous look came across her face. "Last time they got lucky. I assure you, if they tried taking me again it won't be as easy as before."

As if to prove her point, a summon of a knight grew out from behind her and stood by her side. She had summoned it so effortlessly as well. Winter didn't hide her pride as she looked at the sight before her. To think only a year ago she was struggling to summon something as small as a butterfly. Now here she was summoning towering knights like it was nothing.

Her sister's resolve was incredible. Had she chosen to follow in Winter's footsteps, she would've made an excellent soldier. But Weiss had chosen her path and Winter respected it. The Grimm would definitely have something to fear with her on the front lines.

"Impressive," Winter commented. She was always quick with her compliments, but they always had a strong effect on Weiss. "You summoned that easily enough."

"I've had a lot of practice," Weiss said. It was hard to ignore the satisfaction in her voice. Winter had always warned her to be wary of pride, but in this case, it was well earned.

"There used to be a time when you didn't believe you were capable of summoning anything," Winter said. "You were quite insistent about it. Do you finally have more faith in yourself?"

"I have always been confident in my abilities. But I'll admit, performing summons was something I found difficult. I probably never would have mastered it had it not been for your help."

Winter shook her head. "I always knew you could do it, Weiss. I merely gave you a push in the right direction. As for mastering it, that was all your doing."

Winter easily spotted the slight flush on her cheeks on her otherwise pale complexion. Her little sister quickly averted her eyes.

"W-Well I suppose it was inevitable," Weiss stammered. Praise from her older sister was never something she could accept stoically. "After all that had happened, I had no choice. It was either master them or die."

Winter closed her eyes sadly as the harsh truth of reality made itself known again. With how cheerful Weiss was, it was easy to forget she had survived the Fall of Beacon, being held hostage by the Branwen Tribe, and the battle at Haven Academy.

One of those fights she almost didn't survive…

"You've endured much, Weiss. You've probably seen more combat than I have in my entire military career." She let out a small chuckle. "I don't know whether to be envious or not."

Weiss shrugged. "I wouldn't feel jealous if I were you…" she muttered.

Out of the corner of her eye, Winter saw her idly scratch the side of her stomach just above her waist. She had been doing that a lot recently. Winter knew all too well why…

"You really shouldn't scratch it like that," Winter gently reminded her.

Weiss looked confused until she looked down at her fingers. Her confusion was replaced with surprise. "Oh. I didn't even realise I was."

"How is your injury these days?"

Weiss sighed. "Better than what it was. Aura cleared up the worst of it, but it still stung a bit during those first few days. Now it only slightly itches. I feel no pain though."

"You're not just saying that to sound brave, are you? If you are still hurting-"

"No, no, of course not," Weiss said. "I'm honestly fine, Winter. It just itches every now and then, nothing more. You'd know I'd tell you if it did hurt."

Winter gave her a gentle smile. "I know you would. Forgive me, it's just after knowing what happened… I just want to make sure you're okay."

Winter was no fool. That spear should've killed her, going by what her friends told her. Ever since then, she had been keeping something of a close eye on her sister. She'd be damned if she let something like that happen to her again on her watch.

"I assure you, Winter, you have nothing to worry about," Weiss insisted. She looked at the spot where she had been hit again. "I still haven't properly thanked Jaune for what he did," she sighed. "I'll have to do something nice for him soon."

Jaune…

"That was the boy who healed you, yes?" Winter asked.

"Yes, that's him. By using his semblance, he channelled his aura into mine, healing the wound. Heh, he picked a good time to discover his semblance. I wouldn't be here had it not been for him."

Weiss had picked a fine group of friends to travel with her. Winter had been worried for her sister when she first set off to Beacon. She would be the first to admit that the Schnee's could be… icy when dealing with people. It made making close friendships difficult. She was worried that her sister would spend her four years friendless.

It filled her with relief to see that this wasn't the case. Not only had she made friends with lots of people, they were the kind you'd keep for the rest of your life.

"He's the blond one with the armour, isn't he?" Winter had made an effort to get to know Weiss' friends as well as she could. They were a colourful bunch. Literally. Every one of them dressed in their own colour scheme that they looked like an artist's paint palette.

"That's him."

Winter smiled. "I suppose we could call him your knight in shining armour then?" she joked.

Weiss groaned and put her face in her hands. "Please, don't you start too. Yang's teased me enough about that."

Easier said than done. Unfortunately for Weiss, it was her duty as her older sister to give her a bit of teasing. There were some childish pleasures too tempting to pass up, even for her.

"Romantic, isn't it?" Winter teased. "A dashing young hero rushing in to save his lady-in-waiting. It's like something out of a fairy tale, wouldn't you agree?"

Weiss groans came out muffled from within her hands. "Gods help me if he hears you saying any of that. The last thing I need is him flirting with me again."

That would be amusing to see. The boy didn't strike her as the confident romantic type, and yet he had apparently flirted with Weiss on many occasion back at Beacon, much to her sister's annoyance. There was no word of him overstepping his boundaries though, so it all just sounded like typical teenage drama to her. Still, she wouldn't have minded seeing his attempts at wooing her. It would have given Winter a good chuckle, no doubt.

That said, there were worse admires she could've had. The boy was handsome enough in his own right. She definitely approved of his hair and eye colour. It reminded her of a certain someone in her life…

A shudder of pleasure shuddered through Winter for a moment. She had to keep calm. It was Weiss being put on the spot, not her. And she had plenty more teasing to do.

"There's no need to feel embarrassed about it," Winter carried on. "I'm sure lots of girls fall in love with their heroes. You can be honest with me."

Weiss looked like she was in agony. "Please, just stop. I'm hardly going to turn into some starry-eyed fool just because of what he did for me. Jaune's a dear friend and I owe him my life. But I'm not about to fall head-over-heels for him anytime soon. I mean really - who falls in love with someone over one good deed they did for them?"

An image of titan amongst men clad in a stunning red cape flashed in Winter's mind. Her chest suddenly felt too small to contain her rapidly beating heart. She quickly recovered before Weiss could see her reaction.

"I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss the idea," Winter warned her. "The heart is a fickle instrument. It can easily be swayed by such acts, no matter how disciplined you believe yourself to be." A look of nostalgia came over her as her mind slipped back into pleasant memories. "Why, I remember the time I myself was rescued."

Weiss snorted. "You? Needing rescuing? I find that hard to believe."

"Nevertheless, it's true. I found myself in a dire predicament until a noble man stepped in and saved me from my crisis. Without making too fine a point about it, it was… breathtaking to say the least."

It had been almost two years since her fateful encounter with the intimidating but righteous HuntsMan, and yet her feelings for him remained. If anything, they were stronger than ever. There was so much crisis in the world now, what with the Fall of Beacon and the new threat of dark magics being revealed. The world needed a hero to guide them into the light. It needed the HuntsMan.

He had survived the attack in Vale, no doubt. An army of Grimm and a woman with godlike powers was hardly enough to best the likes of him. She just wondered what he was doing right now. There had been no sightings of him lately, not even from her HuntsMan fanclub forum, which she was the proud owner of. He was probably in some unknown location planning his next move to save the world. That certainly sounded like him.

"-nter! Winter!"

Winter blinked. Weiss was looking at her with worried eyes. "Ah, sorry, Weiss, were you saying something?" Just how long had she been daydreaming for?

"I was trying to get your attention. You trailed off all of a sudden and-" Her eyes narrowed. "Are you… drooling?"

A sudden rush of embarrassment surged through her as Winter quickly inspected her mouth. To her shame, she felt a thin line of drool leaking out of the corner of her lips. It was small, but clearly enough to draw Weiss' attention. She wasted no time quickly wiping it off.

How humiliating to be seen by her little sister in such a state. But she couldn't help herself - the HuntsMan just brought that side out of her. The fact that he could make her so weak even when he wasn't in the room spoke volumes of his power.

"I apologize for that, Weiss," she said, trying to compose herself again.

"It's… fine?" Thankfully, Weiss sounded to baffled by the sight to comprehend what was going on. "I guess you weren't kidding about what you said. Whoever this man was, he means a lot to you…"

Winter couldn't start thinking about the HuntsMan now. That moment back there had been a warning. If she thought about him again, she probably wouldn't be able to control herself.

"He was," Winter said. "Take me as an example then. Your desires can control you at any time if you're not careful."

It was a good lesson for her little sister. Winter's feelings for the HuntsMan may have clouded most of her thoughts, but she was still mature enough to cope with them. Weiss was still a growing girl. She may not be able to control herself as well as her if she fell prey to her desires.

Weiss chuckled. "I appreciate the advice, but I don't think I have anything to worry about. Jaune is honestly not my type. I don't mean that as an insult to him, I just don't feel any chemistry between us. He's a friend, and no amount of life-saving deeds can change that. Besides, I'm a little too busy fighting to save the world to worry about romance."

Winter was proud to hear that. At least she had her priorities straight. She had undoubtedly learned her sense of duty from her, of course.

"Completely understandable," Winter nodded. "Still, once the fighting is over, things might change. And you could do worse than him - he seems like a decent boy."

"He is," Weiss agreed, "and he's matured a lot since Beacon. But I really can't see myself romantically involved with him. Plus, it doesn't help that when I see him, I'm sometimes reminded of all the times he tried flirting with me. That's a real turn off."

Winter was quite aware of that. Weiss' friend Yang had a fun time embarrassing both her and Jaune about his different attempts at winning her heart. One of them involved something about a pineapple and a gorilla. She'd have to ask her how exactly that worked.

"Not only that," Weiss continued, "but he had other habits that were too ridiculous to make him attractive. Why, I remember this one time when I caught him..."

She covered her mouth to hide her giggle.

"What is it?"

"Oh no, I shouldn't repeat it," she said in between giggling. "It's far too silly."

"I won't repeat anything outside this room." Winter was curious now. If something could make a Schnee laugh, it had to be good. "Come now, you can tell me."

"... very well." Weiss quickly looked around to make sure no one else was listening. When she saw the coast was clear, she spoke up again. "You didn't hear this from me, but one time when I was walking through the hallway at Beacon, I saw Team JNPR's door open slightly. Normally I would've just walked passed until I heard strange dramatic music coming from inside. So - in honest curiosity - I peeked through the crack…"

She started giggling again. "Oh, you should have been there! There was Jaune, prancing around the room, throwing punches and kicks, pretending to take down foes. He even named the moves he was doing. He then started making big speeches about how he was the 'instrument of justice' and the 'protector of Vale' or something along those lines, all the while this dramatic movie score played from his scroll. I had to leave before I… before he heard me…"

Weiss couldn't control herself any longer. She nearly fell off her chair from how hard she was laughing. The table shook when she hit her fist against it in a most uncouth manner. Winter had to hold the tea set steady to stop it from falling off. Weiss had to be careful - if any of the staff heard her, they would've thought she had gone mad. After all, when was the last time they ever heard a Schnee laugh in such a way? Her mother's drunken laughter didn't count.

The older Schnee watched her sister in amusement. The story wasn't funny enough to get such a strong reaction out of her. Weiss was right - she needed to have been there to appreciate it. As such, all she could offer was a smile.

"That's quite adorable," Winter said. Her calm voice was barely heard over Weiss' laughter.

"He was… he was like something out of a comic book!" Weiss said, struggling to make herself clear over her laughter. "And oh dear lord, the costume he was wearing! That's right - he even wore a costume! He was wearing a red cape - probably Ruby's, I never found out - a cheap tiara and his silly Pumpkin Pete hoodie!"

She took a moment to wipe away the tears in her eyes. "I couldn't look him in the eye for a week after seeing that. Not that I ever took him seriously before, but it was hard not to burst out laughing whenever he was around. It still is a little to this day."

As Weiss resumed cackling like a hyena, Winter almost felt the need to defend the boy. Weiss' description of his costume was identical to that of the HuntsMan - a noble hero who deserved to be only spoken about with respect. Winter could completely understand why anyone would want to dress up like him. Jaune was probably a fan.

She reckoned he'd do a good job impersonating the HuntsMan. While he lacked the dangerous edge he possessed, Jaune sounded like he had the costume sorted. He had the right hair and eye colour, the right height, even his voice sounded similar. They even shared the same skin tone.

In fact, if she didn't know better, she'd say he was the Hunt-

…

The gears in Winter's started to turn. Weiss' laughter drowned out as the final piece of the puzzle was fixed. Winter's chest felt two sizes too small to contain her heart that was beating so hard, it threatened to burst out of her body.

The HuntsMan… Jaune Arc...

She took a deep sharp breath and everything became clear again. She had to get a hold of herself. Getting too excited now would be pointless. She needed stronger evidence that the man of her dreams, the hero who she may or may not have been desperately trying to find the location of… walked the grounds of her own humble mansion…

"Weiss," Winter said, keeping her voice even. She couldn't afford to give anything away. "How long were you watching him for?"

Weiss met her frosty gaze with a grinning face, completely unaware of how dire the conversation had become. "For as long as I could. I would've recorded the whole thing had my scroll not been charging at the time. But I won't be forgetting it anytime soon."

"I see. And when he was doing this little act… did he call himself something else?"

"Huh?"

"He was pretending to be a superhero, wasn't he? Did he give himself a superhero alias when doing this roleplay? Something other than Jaune?"

Weiss frowned. "Um… let me think…"

Winter held her breath as Weiss tried to remember if he did. Had Weiss been looking at her sister's face, she would've noticed the supernova of anticipation exploding within her behind those cold blue eyes.

The more she thought about it, the more Winter's body tensed. The room felt like it was shaking. She dare say she even felt a drop of sweat running down the back of her neck.

This accursed waiting game! It was too much for her!

"No, I don't think he-" Weiss' eyes suddenly lit up. "Oh wait, now I remember! Yes, he did give himself a stupid name. I think it was… the HuntsMan or something?"

A ray of sun broke through the window and shone against her back. Winter felt she would've been just as warm with without it.

Weiss laughed again after seeing Winter's frozen, expressionless face. "Yes, I know - really imaginative name. I think 'Bargain Bin Boy' would've been more appropriate. The only thing that needed rescuing was his terrible fashion sense."

Winter was unable to respond to Weiss' blasphemy. Come to think of it, she had nothing else to say to her little sister. She had more important things to do. A sense of purpose flowed through her. Her body started to rise out of the chair.

Get to him! That was the order that was replaying itself in her head. It was commanding and dominant, as if spoken by General Ironwood himself. She felt powerless to resist.

"Would you excuse me for a moment?" Winter said calmly, already out of her chair and making her way out of the room. Her destiny awaited her just a few doors down.

Weiss stopped her laughing when she saw her sister leaving and looked baffled. "Huh? Where are you going?"

"There is something I must attend to. We'll continue this some other time."

"Wait, hold on! What are you talking abou-?"

It was too late. Winter was out of the study and walking down the hallway at a painfully measured pace. How tempting it would be to just activate her semblance and race down to him with the speed of her beating heart. It had been almost two years since her fateful encounter with him. She hadn't realised how long and painful those years had been until the revelation.

But she was a controlled woman. It would be undignified to rush up to him covered in sweat and panting like a dog. She hadn't waited two years to squander this opportunity. If she was going to do this, she would do it perfectly and calmly. It was a lesson she had learned early on in life. Thanks to it, she had achieved everything she could have ever wanted. This would be no exception.

Besides… there was one last test Jaune Arc would have to pass before she got her hopes up. If he truly was the HuntsMan, there was no way he could fail it. It would be the deciding factor. The make or break moment.

She pulled her wallet out of her pocket…

[/]

The Schnee mansion was awesome!

He knew Weiss didn't like it, but for Jaune, this truly was the high life. There was so much to explore, the meals they got served were heavenly, and the servants were so polite to them. They even called him sir! He hadn't been called that since that one time at the library, and even then, it had only been used in the context of, "Sir, can you please stop sleeping on the textbooks."

But the best part for him was the bedrooms. They each had their own room and the beds were like sleeping on a very healthy sheep. Granted, he didn't know what sheep felt like, but all that wool had to be comfy. That's probably why sheep were always so happy all the time. He had never seen an unhappy sheep before. How could they be, unless they got sheared?

Yup, this beat sleeping out in the wilderness any day. Camping was nice, but this was the good life. It was gonna be tough for him to leave this place and go back to finding relics and fighting baddies. That's why he wanted to make the most out of this place while he could.

He eyed his bed lovingly. So perfect. So comfy. He was half-tempted to do what Ruby and Nora did the first time they saw their beds and start jumping on them. He had outgrown that habit a long time ago… but looking at the bed now…

He looked left and right to make sure no one was around. Well, maybe just one bounce couldn't hurt? He started to take off his shoes.

Knock knock.

Aaaaand immediately put them back on again. "Uh, come in!" he called out. Confidence, Jaune! Don't let anyone know what you were about to do.

The door opened to reveal someone he really didn't expect to see. It was Winter - Weiss' older sister.

The young woman was the only person Weiss had been looking forward to seeing again when they arrived at the mansion. The first time the rest of them had seen her, it was fair to say that the specialist intimidated them all a little bit. The term 'big scary older sister' came to mind. Even though Jaune was used to older sisters, none of them had the strict military discipline and feel that Winter Schnee had. He was more used to her now, but he still felt a little bit uncomfortable in her presence, and not just because of her jaw-dropping looks.

Good God, this woman was Weiss times two in the beauty department! It was a good thing he had flirted with Weiss the first time and not Winter. Had he been stupid enough to do so, he would've ended up looking like Professor Lionheart only slightly more mutilated. Why did the gorgeous ones have to be so scary?

He was surprised to see her at his door. And what was with the look she was giving him? Her face was calm, but it looked like she was deep in thought. Her eyes were drilling into his. She didn't look angry, she just… he didn't even know what she looked like. It was unnerving.

"Oh, hey there, Winter," he said confidently enough. If there was one person he didn't want to see him jumping on the bed, it was her. "Is there something I can help you with?"

Neither were close enough to have a casual conversation. This had to be something important. He didn't know what it could be though. Things had been pretty quiet recently. Still, there was a look of urgency in her eyes. He just didn't like how it was directed at him.

She lifted her hand up and it was annoying how much that simple gesture startled him. In it was a twenty lien bill. He looked at the twenty, then back at her, then back at the twenty again.

Uh… what was he supposed to do with that? Did he drop that in the hallway? He didn't think so - he was pretty careful with money. What was going on here?

"I have twenty lien in my hand," Winter said. Her voice was calm and controlled as always, and yet it felt a little too controlled. Like she was fighting something back inside her. "I don't want to spend it as it is. Will you help me?"

Jaune frowned. "Help you?"

Her gaze felt like icicles piercing his very soul. She held out her arm a little further. "Will you break this twenty for me?"

Wait, what? That's what this was all about? This was the reason for feeling like his life was somehow on the line?

"You want me to… give you some change?" he asked. If that was true, why was she asking him of all people? The Schnee's were loaded. She probably had a big room full of gold somewhere she could use for money. Why come to him - a simple commoner? Well, he was a commoner at least compared to her.

Her silence was all the answer he needed. It was clear right from looking at her that Winter was not a woman who liked to repeat herself. Still, what was the big deal? For something as trivial as money, he felt like the world was gonna end if he said no. Maybe this was just how the Schnee's acted with money. He'd have to remind himself never to borrow money from Weiss if she was gonna be like this.

The atmosphere was getting too tense for him. If some change was all she wanted, it was best to give it to her. Maybe then she'd leave him alone and he could feel safe again.

"Uh, yeah, I think I've got some," he mumbled, pulling out his wallet. The coins jingled inside as his fingers rummaged through it.

Winter let out a long sigh as he looked through his wallet. Come to think of it, it was really long. Like she had been holding her breath the entire time. What was her problem? If this was how the rich behaved with money, he was glad to be born a peasant. There were more dramatic things out there than lien.

Speaking of lien, he could see two ten bills in the back of his wallet. That was all he had in terms of even change. If she wanted coins, she was gonna be disappointed. Hopefully, he'd have the strength to deal with her if it came to that.

"I've got two tens here I can give you," he said, still looking down at his wallet. "I hope that's alright, cause I haven't got anything el-"

He stopped when he felt a pair of hands hold his face and tilt his head up. Jaune's breath caught in his throat. Winter had somehow silently crossed the distance between him and was now dangerously close to his face. With how tall she was, she easily maintained eye-contact with him without difficulty. His entire body froze.

Oh crap, oh crap, what had he done wrong? Did she not like tens? Were tens forbidden in Atlas? Why didn't Weiss warn him? This was the end! The end of Jaune Arc-

"Mmpf!"

His mind shut down when he felt Winter's lips upon his. The only part of him that could move was his eyes, which were getting wider by the second. They were wider than they had ever been before, and yet he still couldn't believe what he was seeing.

Winter Schnee, with her eyes close in a dreamlike expression, was kissing him!

She felt warm and cool at the same time, a perfect blend of comfort and excitement that sent his heart into overdrive. Her lips were incredibly soft and moulded perfectly against his. Had he the strength, he would've gladly kissed back. Instead, all he could do was let her work her magic while he stood still and tried to comprehend the bizarre paradise he had found himself in.

It felt like he had been standing there for an eternity. At least, that's what his lungs were telling him. He hadn't taken a single breath the moment Winter kissed him, not even through his nose. He needed to pull back for air, but another part of him wanted to stay to enjoy this desirable sensation. What a conundrum this was. Oxygen or kisses? Oxygen or kisses? Tough choice.

In the end, it was Winter who decided for them. She pulled back slowly, still keeping her face close to his. He sucked in a deep gulp of air as his mind slowly started working again. His head would have been swaying had she not still been holding it in her hands.

"Yes… you are the one," he heard her whisper. His brain was still too fuzzy to figure out what she meant by that. "Would you like to spend the night with me?"

"Wha-whuh?" he dribbled out.

"Let me rephrase the question." She undid the bun in her hair and Jaune thought his heart would explode from how breathtaking she was with her hair flowing free. She pressed herself closer to him, and Jaune was reminded of her maturity compared to Weiss thanks to two certain assets of hers pushing against his chest. "Would you like to share my bed with me tonight?"

He stopped trying to figure out what was happening anymore. This kind of luck only existed in fairy tales, and not the grim ones Qrow and Ozpin liked to spout out that usually had a dark connection to reality. His head was kind enough to start formulating a proper response to such an offer.

"Yes please," he squeaked out.

Winter seemed happy with that response despite his mousy tone. "Then let us get underway." She took his trembling hand in hers and started leading them out of the room.

"W-Wait now?"

"Right now," she confirmed with absolute confidence.

"But it's only two in the afternoon."

"It doesn't matter. Where you go, the shadows of the night follow you."

"... what?"

"I want to have sex with you this instant."

"Okay."

There would be no more questions after that. That was fine. Going with the flow was always his thing, and he very much liked where this flow was going. He didn't know where Winter's sudden attraction for him had come from, but he knew one thing for certain.

He loved the Schnee mansion!

Love is alright, don't you think?

I have one more chapter in mind for this, and then this junk is out of my life!