"Are you ready to order?" he asked. "If you need more time to decide on some snacks, I can get you your drinks first."
Weiss recovered immediately. "Yes, I suppose that would be a good idea. I'll have a cappuccino please, but with cinnamon if possible, and if you could perhaps provide a double of espresso that would be appreciated. Do you have semi-skimmed milk? I'd prefer that if possible."
Ruby bit her lip at the complicated order, but Jaune dotted it down on a little notepad and nodded. "Not a problem."
"Thank you."
"Uh…" Yang looked down at the menu and Ruby supressed her glee. Much like her, Yang wasn't one for coffee, and definitely didn't know what any of the crazily named drinks were. Sure, she could have asked for help from Weiss, but that wasn't a Yang thing to do.
Ruby could have helped, too – but why do that? Revenge was going to be sweet, frothy, and topped with chocolate sauce.
"I'll just have a normal coffee," Yang said miserably. "Blake?"
"A black one for myself, thank you."
"I'll have what I had the last time!" Ruby chirped. She tried to make it sound casual, but her glee bled through and Yang narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Thanks, Jaune!"
"No problem, Ruby. I'll be back in a moment."
Ruby watched him go with a smile, and then turned back to her team with a wide smile. "So, what do you think!?"
"Without having so much as sampled a drink, I can't tell," Weiss growled. It only took a single look at Ruby's expression for her to cave. "You're insufferable. Fine, he seems polite and friendly, and the menu looked appealing, I'll freely admit. We have a professional barista back home, and I've not had a good cappuccino since then. If he can make it well, I'm sure I'll approve of this place."
"A barista?"
"Think of it as a bartender for coffee," Weiss explained. "They mix and serve drinks."
"Not exactly hard with coffee," Yang sighed. "You just pour hot water on powder and throw in some milk. Ugh, I can't believe you brought us here, Rubes. You hatecoffee."
"It's a little more complicated than that," Weiss said, "or at least for real coffee. I'd rather not drink that instant filth, thank you very much. I prefer my coffee in bean form."
"I prefer my coffee in bean form," Yang mimicked. "Sheesh, do you even listen to yourself?"
"I'd like to, but my ears are usually filled with yourprattling. Don't whine to us because you ordered something you don't like. I can't believe I'm about to say this, but maybe you could stand to be a little more mature like Ruby."
"Yeah, Yang," Ruby said gleefully. "Be more mature like me."
"And you instantly ruined it," Weiss sighed.
She went ignored, of course.
Yang scowled at Ruby and mumbled something under her breath. If there'd been anything to flick her way, then she'd have likely gone with that, but short of a glass vase, there wasn't much in the way of ammunition. "Laugh while you can," she said instead. "You're in the same boat as me, and I'll be the one laughing when you're struggling to force down that crap."
"Here you go," Jaune said, stepping back with a tray held in both hands. He didn't seem confident enough to balance it one-handed like she'd seen some people do, but that was fine. "A black coffee for Blake and a cappuccino for you, Miss Weiss – cinnamon as requested, and double espresso with semi-skimmed milk…"
"Thank you," Weiss said, accepting it with a sophisticated air. She sipped at it and paused, eyes widening. Ruby held her breath, but the heiress quickly nodded. "It is acceptable, thank you."
Acceptable…?
Acceptable!?
Weiss had never called something acceptable before! That was incredible!
"Glad to hear it. Here's your coffee, Yang…"
"Gee, thanks," Yang said glumly.
"And here's your Frappuccino with cream and chocolate sauce," Jaune finished, placing the familiar dessert glass before Ruby and digging a blue straw into it. "Enjoy."
Ruby grinned
Yang's jaw hit the table.
"Wait, what?" Yang cried, sounding betrayed. "What the hell is that!?"
"It's my coffee," Ruby said innocently. Then, just to rub it in, she leaned down and bit off the top, smiling with cream and chocolate sauce around her lips. "Hmm… it's so good!"
Yang's eyes remained locked onto it. She looked down to her own drink, black and boring, and then to Ruby's – and even to Weiss' creamy mug. "I… but I… what… I don't…"
"Drink your coffee, Yang," Weiss said. "It's rude to stare."
"Yeah, Yang," Ruby said. "Drink your coffee. You ordered it, didn't you?"
"You suck, Ruby," she hissed, and then turned to Jaune. "Uh…"
His face fell. "Is there a problem?"
"No, no – at least not on your end. I uh… I guess I ordered the wrong thing. Sorry about that. Can I have what Ruby has?"
"Oh, sure, I guess I'll replace that on-"
Ruby glared at Yang and made ready to kick her under the table if she accepted. She needn't have worried, though. As teasing as Yang could be, she wasn't mean – and quickly downed the coffee in a single gulp. "No need," she said, wincing. "I'll pay for both. I just… that thing, please?"
Jaune stared at her, eyes wide. "Y-Yeah, sure. One second."
"I hate you, Ruby," Yang groaned when he left. She stuck out her tongue and wiped it with the back of her hand. "Oh God, it tastes so bad. Who drinks this stuff?" She clenched her mouth shut and cringed at the after taste. "Ugh, I don't know what you're smiling at, Blake. These two tricked you, as well."
"Did they…?"
"You have a normal coffee, too."
Blake smiled. "I like black coffee."
"Ugh, you all suck. You all suck so hard!" Yang glared at them for a few seconds, but her face lit up when Jaune returned. He also brought a glass of water with him, which he offered first so she could wash the taste out of her mouth. Yang's cheeks darkened a little. "Heh, I uh… I guess you overheard, then?"
"No, but I'm not blind." He laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "Not everyone likes coffee. My youngest sister certainly doesn't. You didn't have to drink it if you didn't want it."
"I ordered it, so I drank it." Yang finished the water and tentatively sipped at her new drink. Her face lit up a second later, and if she'd had a tail, it would have been wagging behind her. "I'm not the kind of girl to back out on something. Besides, this makes it all worth it!"
"I'm glad to hear it." Jaune laughed, but paused and looked over their heads. "Oh, please excuse me for a second. I need to serve some other people."
He darted off to another table, leaving the four alone.
Ruby waited for her teammates to say something, but her patience wasn't infinite – or even any good at all. She started to vibrate when they continued drinking, until she eventually lost it entirely and slammed her glass down.