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Weiss Schnee was not panicking.
No, she was simply… recalibrating. Mentally preparing herself for a change in mission parameters. A shift in expectations. A descent into something that could only be described as the most humiliating operation of her life.
It was just supposed to be reconnaissance. Discreet. Professional.
Not...this.
The lobby of the Silverleaf Summit Retreat was aggressively romantic. Everything...everything...was some shade of blush pink or champagne gold. A roaring fire crackled beside a velvet loveseat (not two chairs, no...just one). A trio of swan-shaped ice sculptures presided over the front desk, surrounded by vases overflowing with rose petals and elaborate sprays of rare orchids and blue delphiniums.
Weiss barely heard the concierge’s words over the blood rushing in her ears.
"…and since you two are just the cutest," the woman behind the counter cooed, pressing her hands together under her chin, "we’d love to upgrade you free of charge to our Honeymoon Suite. It comes with a private fireplace, scenic balcony, and complimentary rose petal turndown service every evening."
Weiss opened her mouth to object.
Ruby beat her to it. "Sure! That sounds great!"
Weiss blinked. "Wait...!"
But Ruby was already leaning casually on the counter, beaming. "We really appreciate it. Right, Weiss?"
"Wh...yes, but...I mean, no! I..." Weiss floundered as the concierge giggled.
"And you’ll also want our Premium Lovers Package, I assume?" the woman continued, pulling a glossy pamphlet from behind the counter. "It’s a favorite with all our huntsman couples. Daily activities include a couple’s massage class, private two-person hot spring access, and of course, our famous Romance Under the Stars dinner experience...complete with fondue and a shared heart-shaped entrée."
Ruby’s eyes lit up. "Oooh, that sounds fun! We’ll take it!"
Weiss made a small, strangled noise that may or may not have been a plea for mercy.
"Wonderful," the concierge chirped. "The massage class is actually starting in just ten minutes! If you head down the hallway to your right, you’ll catch it in time. We’ll have your bags delivered to the suite."
Before Weiss could summon the will to flee, Ruby had already laced their fingers together.
"C’mon, Weiss!" she said, tugging her gently along. "It’s team bonding!"
Weiss stumbled after her, stunned, lips still parted in disbelief. Her fingers were warm where Ruby held them...too warm. Dangerously warm.
Her thoughts tangled into a knot as they turned the corner into the spa hallway, romantic violin music wafting from somewhere ominously nearby.
This is fine, Weiss told herself.
This is manageable.
I am composed. I am capable. I am...
Oh no.
Oh no no no no no.
---
The spa smelled like lavender, sandalwood, and danger.
Warm, fragrant air enveloped them the moment they stepped inside—thick with the scent of blooming petals and something heady that made Weiss’s pulse skip. The gentle sound of trickling water mixed with low, melodic chimes in the distance, giving the impression that time itself had slowed to a sensual crawl.
Weiss followed Ruby through a softly lit corridor lined with candles and floor cushions, every step making her acutely aware that she was, in fact, still holding Ruby’s hand. She tried to let go...casually, naturally, without suspicion...but Ruby only adjusted her grip like it was the most normal thing in the world.
It was not.
"Welcome, lovebirds!" the instructor greeted as they entered the massage room. A serene woman in flowing robes gestured toward two padded mats on the floor, side by side, surrounded by bowls of flower petals and little bottles of ominously labeled oils.
Weiss took one look at the setting and seriously considered throwing herself out the window.
"Please remove your outer layers and get comfortable," the instructor said with a peaceful smile. "Today we’ll be practicing touch-focused trust techniques. Start by selecting your favorite scent from the couples’ harmony tray."
Weiss blinked. "I’m sorry...the what?"
Ruby was already kneeling beside the tray, picking up vials and sniffing them enthusiastically. "Ooooh, Weiss! This one smells like vanilla and snowberries! It kinda reminds me of you... soft but sharp, y'know?"
Weiss’s brain short-circuited at the idea of Ruby associating her with snowberries. "I... that’s fine."
Moments later, she was kneeling behind Ruby, warm bottle of oil in hand, doing her best not to stare at the soft, newly exposed curve of her back...bare now after Ruby had so casually slipped off her shirt and undone her bra.
She was going to die. She was going to die right here, in this spa, surrounded by flower petals and horny essential oils.
Her hands hovered for a moment before she slowly, carefully pressed her fingertips to Ruby’s back. The oil glided smoothly over warm skin, and she began rubbing in small, practiced circles—mechanical at first, then softer, as Ruby let out a low, breathy moan of approval.
"You’re good at this," Ruby murmured after a long moment, her voice thick with drowsy contentment. "You’ve got magic hands, Weiss."
Weiss dropped the bottle.
It rolled across the mat, rattling as it hit a wooden tray leg. She scrambled to grab it, muttering something that might’ve been an apology or a prayer, and hastily resumed her task, now careful to keep her gaze focused on *anywhere but Ruby’s bare shoulders.*
This was fine. This was team bonding.
This was not a disaster.
Ruby sighed again, leaning into her touch.
Weiss forgot how to breathe.
---
They were guided through another soft-lit hallway, this one made of warm wood and misty glass doors, to a secluded hot spring tucked behind a bamboo gate. It steamed invitingly in the moonlight, framed by smooth stones, frosted pine trees, and lanterns casting golden reflections over the water. The scent of pine mingled with the mineral-rich steam, creating an atmosphere that was far too intimate for what was supposed to be a reconnaissance mission.
Weiss was just starting to catch her breath when she saw the sign.
**"PRIVATE COUPLES SPRING - CLOTHING PROHIBITED."**
She stopped dead. "I... excuse me, what?"
"Oh wow," Ruby said, having already removed her shirt and tossed it to the side. "This looks amazing."
"Ruby!" Weiss's voice broke halfway through her name.
But Ruby was unfazed. Her shirt was off, her pants already kicked aside, and before Weiss could formulate a proper sentence, she was stepping into the water with a contented sigh, completely bare. The sight lasted only a moment, but it burned into Weiss's retinas like a solar flare.
Weiss turned around so fast she nearly slipped on the smooth stone path.
She could *hear* the water lapping gently around Ruby’s body. She could *feel* the heat rising from the spring... and from her own face. Her heartbeat thudded painfully in her ears.
"I’ll... just be a second," Weiss croaked, not recognizing her own voice.
She stood there, frozen, eyes fixed on a very neutral rock for several long seconds, willing herself not to spontaneously combust.
This is a mission, she reminded herself. You are a professional. You are above distractions. You are above... whatever this is.
She peeked over her shoulder. Ruby was floating on her back, eyes closed, hair fanned out like a halo, totally at ease and bathed in golden light like some kind of water goddess. Her pale skin shimmered against the surface, and her expression was so soft, so peaceful, it made something in Weiss's chest ache.
Weiss made a noise that was half whimper, half surrender.
She stripped quickly, folded everything with military precision to pretend she was fine, and slid into the water with her face burning hotter than the spring. The heat wrapped around her, easing the tension in her shoulders but doing absolutely nothing to cool the turmoil in her mind.
Ruby cracked one eye open and grinned. "See? This is nice, right?"
Weiss gave her a thumbs-up. It was all she could manage.
They soaked in silence for a moment, steam curling through the air like lazy spirits. The water was nearly too hot, but Weiss welcomed the distraction of physical sensation. Anything to keep her thoughts from looping back to the soft curve of Ruby’s smile.
Ruby stretched, arms gliding along the surface with quiet grace. "Mmm... I could fall asleep in here."
Weiss, watching her chest rise and fall with each slow breath, felt a sudden dizzying rush of affection, panic, and sheer helpless attraction.
She thought she might faint.
Or melt.
Possibly both.
---
The hostess led them up a winding staircase to a private balcony wrapped in fairy lights and soft music. A small round table was set for two, but instead of chairs, there was a velvet loveseat...plush, heart-shaped, and aggressively red.
Weiss stared at it like it might bite her.
“Ohhh,” Ruby breathed, stepping forward. “This is so pretty…”
Weiss was inclined to disagree. It was less “pretty” and more “a direct assault on her mental stability.”
She took a seat stiffly, perching on the edge of the loveseat like a bird ready to flee. Ruby plopped down beside her, cheerful and relaxed, their hips brushing as she leaned to admire the view.
The server arrived with the appetizer...a fondue set in the shape of a heart, with neatly arranged strawberries, marshmallows, and cubes of spiced bread.
“Perfect for two,” the server said with a wink. “Nothing brings hearts together like melted chocolate.”
Weiss opened her mouth to object, but before she could speak, Ruby dipped a strawberry into the fondue, turned with a grin, and offered it to her.
"Open up, partner."
Weiss hesitated while Ruby patiently held the strawberry out.
She leaned in slowly, her lips brushing the strawberry just a little too close to Ruby's fingers. The taste of warm chocolate and fruit flooded her senses, and she let herself linger for half a second longer than she meant to. When she finally pulled back, Ruby reached out and gently wiped a smear of chocolate from the corner of her mouth with her thumb... soft, deliberate, and so casual it made Weiss's heart lurch. Ruby's touch lingered for just a beat before she licked the chocolate off her own thumb, completely unaware that Weiss had forgotten how to swallow.
Weiss dropped her fork.
Next came the entrée... a delicately arranged heart-shaped tart made of flaky golden pastry, filled with warm brie, caramelized onions, and thin slices of pear, all drizzled with a balsamic glaze. It sat nestled on a bed of microgreens, looking far too elegant to eat. Weiss tried to focus on the aroma, on the balance of savory and sweet... anything other than the way Ruby’s knee kept brushing against hers beneath the table.
They both reached for a bite at the same time. Their hands met. Ruby giggled.
Weiss’s breath caught slightly... not quite a gasp, but close.
Dessert arrived on a silver tray: a rose-shaped mousse with tiny glittery sugar petals. The server beamed. “A special dessert for a special couple.”
Weiss’s voice wobbled. “We’re not...”
“Thanks!” Ruby cut in, smiling wide.
The server left. Weiss turned to Ruby, fully prepared to lecture her on letting people assume...
And then Ruby gently nudged the mousse toward her. “You can have the first bite. I know how much you love rose flavor.”
Weiss’s brain briefly shorted out. She accepted the spoonful in stunned silence.
Romance Under the Stars. Indeed.
---
The moment Weiss opened the door to their suite, she knew she was doomed.
The room was ridiculous. The heart-shaped bed was even bigger than she feared, covered in rose petals and surrounded by soft, glowing lights. A bottle of sparkling cider chilled in an ice bucket. Romantic music drifted gently from hidden speakers.
The entire room smelled like roses.
It also smelled like Ruby.
Weiss stood in the doorway, blinking slowly. “I’m going to take a shower,” she said, her voice a little too high-pitched.
She made a straight line for the bathroom before Ruby could reply.
Inside, things got worse.
She took a long, scalding shower... partly to wash off the day's sweat and partly to regain control over her spiraling thoughts. It didn’t help much.
Steam clung to her skin as she stepped out and instinctively reached for a towel... thankfully, one hung nearby on a heated rack. She dried off briskly, more to have something to focus on than anything else.
Hanging nearby were two matching silk robes in soft blue, elegant and clearly expensive. Each had a simple stitched emblem over the chest that read: *Forever Yours.*
Weiss stared at them for a long time.
She reached for her regular clothes out of habit, only to find them missing. Ruby must have sent them off to be laundered while she was in the shower.
Which left... the robe.
She slipped into it with the resigned dread of a woman signing a confession under duress, and stepped back into the bedroom to wait.
Ruby had gone into the bathroom humming and chatty. Weiss tried not to think about that. She sat stiffly on the bed, trying to ignore the rose petals crinkling beneath her.
Then she saw it: a glossy pink card sitting neatly on her pillow.
“HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW YOUR PARTNER?”
Weiss picked it up with suspicion... and froze when she saw Ruby’s handwriting filling in the blanks.
Favorite tea? Dusty Rose.
Favorite color? Not white, despite her clothes. It’s soft blue.
Secret habit? She hums when she’s focused.
What do they mean to you?
That last one took up the most space.
"Weiss means everything to me. Sometimes I think she doesn’t even realize what she does to me. She makes me feel brave... like I can stand taller just by being near her. When she looks at me, I forget to be scared of anything. I don’t need to be stronger when I'm with her. I just want to be someone worthy of standing by her side."
Weiss clutched the card like it might explode. Her face burned.
The bathroom door opened. Ruby emerged in a cloud of steam, towel wrapped around her hair... and nothing else. Her skin glowed from the heat, still damp in places, with water tracing lazy paths down her collarbone. Her legs were bare, long and graceful, and the curve of her hips was unmistakably visible in the soft lighting. Weiss’s eyes caught on the gentle rise and fall of Ruby’s chest before she wrenched her gaze away, heart pounding in her ears.
Weiss opened her mouth. Closed it. Tried again, voice squeaking, "Y-you forgot your robe."
Ruby blinked, looked down at herself, then laughed sheepishly. "Oh! Right. One sec."
She padded over to the bathroom door, snagged the matching silk robe from the hook, tossed her hair towel on the floor, and slipped into it with a relaxed shrug before joining Weiss on the bed. She sat down like nothing was out of the ordinary, legs curled up beside her.
"Hey Weiss," Ruby said softly, voice unusually serious. "I know we came here on a mission, but... it hasn’t felt like one. Not really. Everything we did today, all the ridiculous romantic stuff...I didn’t want it to end. I liked holding your hand. I liked seeing you laugh. And when I look at you now... I don’t think I’ve ever felt closer to anyone in my life."
Weiss opened her mouth to respond... and found nothing came out.
She turned her head to look at Ruby...really look at her. Her damp hair curled slightly around her cheeks. Her robe had started to slip, sagging slightly to reveal the graceful line of her collarbone and the smooth curve of her bare shoulders—close enough to brush. Her eyes were sparkling with innocent excitement, entirely unaware that Weiss’s heart was in freefall.
“This isn’t fair,” Weiss whispered.
Ruby blinked. “Huh?”
“You can’t just... look like that and say things like that and expect me to function!”
Ruby stared at her, confused. “What do you...”
But Weiss had already surged forward, heart hammering louder than her thoughts. “This!”
Their lips met mid-sentence. It was clumsy at first... urgent and messy and fueled entirely by panic... but Ruby only hesitated for a breath before leaning in, returning the kiss with a soft, startled sound that sent a jolt through Weiss’s spine.
Weiss’s hand gripped the back of Ruby’s robe, knuckles white, as if afraid the girl might vanish if she let go. Ruby’s fingers found her waist, then wandered higher, leaving a trail of warmth even through the silk. Their mouths moved together again, this time slower... sweeter... like they’d been waiting for this moment without realizing it.
The second kiss deepened as Weiss pressed closer, emboldened by Ruby’s gentle sigh. Her hands slid up into Ruby’s hair, still damp from the shower, and pulled her in until their foreheads nearly touched. Everything else fell away—the warmth of the room, the distant crackle of the fireplace, the velvet petals scattered beneath them.
Somewhere between kisses, Weiss mumbled, breathless, “I think I’ve lost my mind.”
Ruby chuckled softly against her lips. "Good. Because I’ve been losing mine all day... trying to pretend I wasn’t. Every time you blushed, or bit your lip, or looked at me like I hung the moon... I thought I was going to burst. I just didn’t want to ruin the moment."
They kissed again... and again. The robe slipped further down Weiss’s shoulder. Ruby’s hand brushed across her bare skin, then cupped her cheek like she was holding something delicate and beloved. The lights in the room dimmed automatically, casting everything in a golden glow that shimmered across their skin.
Somewhere between lips and laughter, Weiss whispered Ruby’s name like it was both a question and a promise... and Ruby answered her with another kiss, deeper this time.
And the rest was lost in the haze.
---
The sky was still painted in soft pre-dawn light when both of their scrolls buzzed from the nightstand, the sudden noise slicing through the thick, cozy silence like an unwelcome alarm clock.
Weiss groaned softly, arm draped across Ruby’s waist. She didn’t want to move. She didn’t want to think. Her lips still tingled from the night before, and the warmth of Ruby’s body against hers made it almost impossible to believe that anything outside their little bubble could be real.
Ruby blinked blearily and reached for her scroll, nearly knocking it off the table in the process. “Ugh... who texts at this hour... oh.”
She sat up, squinting at the glowing message and rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand. The blanket slipped slightly down her chest, but she didn’t seem to notice.
Weiss buried her face in the pillow. “Tell me it’s not the Headmistress.”
“It’s the Headmistress.”
Weiss let out a muffled scream that was half frustration and half resignation. The universe clearly had no intention of letting her have even one uninterrupted morning of bliss.
Mission status: canceled. No credible threat detected. Situation classified as a miscommunication involving an overly enthusiastic couples retreat marketing campaign... apparently aimed at 'elite huntress duos'. Cult rumors originated from... a decorative fog machine and poor lighting .”
There was a long silence.
Weiss slowly sat up, hair an utter mess, blanket bunched around her waist, expression somewhere between horrified, betrayed, and vaguely homicidal.
Ruby tried to look serious. She pressed her lips together. Her shoulders trembled. She failed.
“They sent us here,” Weiss said slowly, voice tight, “to be seduced by scented oils and fondue... because of fog machine rumors?”
Ruby shrugged, grinning. “I mean... it worked.”
Weiss stared at her, deadpan. “We were completely naked in a hot spring. I gave you a massage. You fed me strawberries.”
Ruby leaned in, nudging her shoulder gently. “And we kissed. Multiple times. So, really, it was a very successful mission.”
Weiss narrowed her eyes.
Ruby, undeterred, wiggled her eyebrows. “So... wanna stay another night? For, you know, research purposes. Very important... follow-up data collection.”
Weiss groaned dramatically, flopped backward into the bed, and threw an arm over her eyes. “I cannot believe I let you talk me into this... Actually, no, I can. This has you written all over it.”
Ruby beamed and scooted closer, resting her chin on Weiss’s shoulder. “And you loved every second.”
There was a pause.
Weiss peeked out from under her arm, lips twitching. “You’re impossible.”
Ruby smiled wider. “You like that about me.”
Weiss sighed but didn’t argue. Not this time.