章節 9: 9
Yang laughed, ducking and dodging out of the rain of pillows till Ruby and Blake ran out of ammunition. "Must have been something good to get that much of a reaction..." She teased.
Pyrrha's expression was a mix of confusion, concern, and perhaps a bit of hurt under the surface. Blake's eyes met hers, and Pyrrha flushed, looking away.
Blake winced and crossed her arms, not knowing what to say to diffuse the situation.
Yang noticed the tension in the room and hesitated. "Eh, I'm just kidding, you know that." She glanced at Pyrrha, then Blake, then sighed. "Right. I'm going to take a shower, and let you three figure this out."
Ruby growled. "Nothing happened, Yang. Stop teasing us every chance you get!"
Yang glanced over her shoulder at her younger sister. "Sorry... sorry. You know I don't mean any harm."
Ruby grimaced. "Yang..."
Yang paused in the doorway to the bathroom, and sighed, facing her sister. "Sorry Rubes." She nodded to Blake. "Sorry Blake. Too far, I guess?"
Blake frowned, then sighed. "Forget it, Yang. You're right. I do know you don't mean anything by it. She stood, then wrinkled her nose. "Hey, Pyrrha. Can we talk?"
Ruby looked from one of her potential girlfriends to the other, looking worried. "Please don't fight..."
"We won't." Blake assured her immediately. "Right Pyrrha?"
Pyrrha gave the most calm, professional smile she could. "We already promised we wouldn't Ruby. We're just going to talk."
Ruby looked worried, but nodded.
Blake went to the door, and gestured to the hall outside. Pyrrha nodded and went out first, Blake following her, and turned around as Blake shut the door to their dorm room behind them.
"Ruby gave me a backrub. And a foot massage." Blake explained without preamble. "I was returning the favor."
Pyrrha licked her lips nervously. "I see."
Blake looked a bit apologetic. "We never really talked about... well, we kind of did, but..."
Pyrrha blinked, looking a bit confused. "What are you talking about, Blake?"
Blake looked confused herself, then she frowned. "You know, when we talked about boundaries. What would be acceptable between us and Ruby."
Pyrrha blinked again. "Oh. Yes. I remember."
Blake wrinkled her nose. "You said that if I did something... intimate, that you should get to do that too. We were talking about kissing, but..."
Pyrrha nodded slowly. "Yes. I suppose that a backrub would qualify, wouldn't it."
Her tone was a bit flat, and Blake frowned. "I'm not going to apologize... Ruby initiated it, and..."
Pyrrha quickly shook her head. "I wouldn't expect you to apologize. I... I don't feel as if you've done anything wrong. I just..." She sighed. "I am jealous. Amazingly jealous." She looked down at her hands, causing Blake to do the same. Holding her palms upright, both girls watched Pyrrha's hands shaking slightly.
Blake hesitated a moment, then took Pyrrha's hands in her own. "I'm your friend, Pyrrha. I'm sorry that this is hurting you."
Pyrrha shook her head, and was astonished to feel tears in the corners of her eyes. "It was just a backrub. Why am I... why am I crying?"
Blake pulled Pyrrha's hands towards her, then apart, then stepped into the taller girl and put her arms around Pyrrha's back. "Because you're jealous, and worried, and you won't let yourself be angry at me, so all you have left is being sad."
Pyrrha chuckled softly, the tears starting to flow. "Oh, I'm angry at you. I don't WANT to be angry at you, but I am."
"That's fair." Blake muttered. "I probably deserve it."
"Ruby initiated it." Pyrrha said softly. "Right?"
Blake nodded against Pyrrha's shoulder. "Yes. Yes, but I could have said no... or that it was too fast."
Pyrrha shook her head. "It doesn't seem too fast to me. You haven't even kissed her yet..." she hesitated. "Have you?"
"No." Blake said quietly. "I want to."
Pyrrha chuckled. "Obviously."
Blake sighed. "Pyrrha... I nearly took things further. If you and Yang hadn't come in when you had..."
Pyrrha put her own hands on Blake's back. "Why are you telling me this, Blake?"
Blake shook her head. "I don't know. Because you're my friend? Because I feel like I owe you the truth? Because I don't want to lie to you. Because I've lied too much, and it hurts me to lie to people I care about?"
Pyrrha smiled softly. "I appreciate it. Although perhaps you don't have to tell me the details."
Blake swallowed. "It was... just a backrub. I just... I wanted so badly to pull Ruby's shirt up."
Pyrrha blushed crimson. "OH!"
Blake was blushing too. "I just... her back. It's so soft... and with those tight little muscles. I wanted to touch them directly."
Pyrrha swallowed. "Well, I... yes..." She coughed. "Blake, while I do appreciate the honesty, perhaps you could leave out your mental processes when it comes to your attraction to Ruby?"
Blake buried her face in Pyrrha's shoulder. "Sorry! Gods... I'm so messed up."
Pyrrha awkwardly patted Blake's back. "There there..." She said automatically.
Blake choked on a laugh. "Pyrrha... you're not supposed to be comforting me. I'm your rival, remember?"
Pyrrha chuckled lightly. "I think we threw out the rulebook when we agreed to be civilized about this. And... and I truly don't want to ruin our friendship."
Blake swallowed, looking up at Pyrrha's face finally. "Don't you mean the team?"
Pyrrha shook her head. "No, our friendship. I really like you Blake. It makes you being interested in the girl I'm attracted to very confusing... but I do."
Blake chuckled. "Confusing is the right word for it."
Pyrrha sighed. "If we're confessing things, Yang has... caught my attention. The last two days in particular..."
Blake raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" She started to grin. "I see! Hot for both sisters, huh?"
Pyrrha groaned softly, lowering her gaze. "It is ridiculous. I am ridiculous. I am uninterested in romance for my entire life, but in a matter of days I have fallen for not one, but two girls. And sisters."
Blake chuckled. "Could be worse. They could be twins."
Pyrrha rolled her eyes. "Wouldn't that be a cliche."
Blake swallowed, and slowly pulled away from Pyrrha, putting her hands on the larger girl's shoulders for a second before stepping back completely. "So... you should let Ruby give you a backrub. Next week maybe, during your date."
Pyrrha nodded slowly. "If she is interested. I wouldn't want to push her."
Blake chuckled. "I think if you offer to give her one in return, she'll be more than willing."
Pyrrha wrinkled her nose. "Unless she's already chosen you?"
Blake hesitated. "We... we should let Ruby tell us that, I think. You're right, we shouldn't push."
Pyrrha sighed. "I regret so much agreeing to date Ruby second. Not that going out with Yang wasn't..."
Blake looked curious. "So... things are going pretty well between you and Yang?"
Pyrrha grimaced. "Very. We... Yang is very fun... and flirty... and I like it. And she's powerful, and confident, and I like that too."
Blake nodded thoughtfully. "I can see it..." She hesitated. "Maybe you and Yang could...?"
Pyrrha sighed. "It would be easier. And... if I was a better person, I'd call off my date with Ruby and just see how things go with Yang... but..."
Blake raised an eyebrow. "But you still have feelings for Ruby and you want to see where those go?"
Pyrrha sighed. "Yes."
Blake shrugged. "OK." Pyrrha blinked at her, looking surprised, and Blake shook her head. "That's what we're trying to figure out, right? Maybe after you go out with Ruby, it'll clear your head as to what you want, since you'll have some experiences to compare."
Pyrrha sighed. "Perhaps."
Blake winked at her. "Or maybe after our date in two weeks, we'll both fall madly in love with each other and forget all about our partners."
Pyrrha giggled. "Anything is possible, I suppose."
After several long moments of silence, Blake sighed and nodded toward the door. "Let's go back in and... maybe talk to Ruby a bit?"
Pyrrha nodded. "Perhaps we should talk to HER about boundaries? Now that I've had some time to think on the matter, I don't think we should have agreed to anything without her input."
Blake tilted her head. "How so?"
Pyrrha wrinkled her nose. "Well, agreeing that, if you kiss Ruby, I should get to kiss her too... that kind of feels like we're crossing a line. Ruby should get to make those decisions, shouldn't she?"
Blake winced slightly. "OK, yeah, when you put it that way, I get where you're coming from. We can't agree to that sort of thing without her permission."
Pyrrha nodded. "I still think it's... well, not a terrible agreement, we just... we should have told Ruby about it as well."
Blake grimaced. "Wow... that's going to be a really awkward conversation."
Pyrrha sighed. "Very much so. But... I think it's better than making agreements about her behind her back."
Blake sighed. "Can we go back to fighting over her like two normal people?"
Pyrrha chuckled. "That would be less awkward. But to be honest, I prefer feeling awkward to losing a friend. Or more than one."
Blake moaned. "Fine. Yes. OK. I feel the same. I just wish we could be civilized about all this without my feeling like my face is going to spontaneously combust from embarrassment every five minutes." Pyrrha chuckled some more, then reached for the door to their dorm room.
When they entered, they found Ruby pacing back and forth across the room, looking agitated. Yang was sitting on Blake's bed, in her night clothes, toweling off her hair. As they entered, Ruby spun to face them, looking frantic.
"Backrubs are perfectly normal!" She told them earnestly. "I used to give Yang backrubs all the time!" Pyrrha and Blake stared at her, nonplussed, and Ruby went on quickly. "It's totally a thing sisters do. It's not weird or anything!" She gestured to her older sister. "Tell them Yang."
Yang shrugged. "Eh. It's really not that big a deal. I used to give Dad backrubs too, when he got back from work."
Ruby waved her hands at her sister emphatically. "There, see? Totally normal."
Pyrrha blinked. "Well... you're not wrong, Ruby..."
Blake blushed. "I think it's a bit different when you give one to your girlfriend, then to your sister, or a parent, though."
Yang chuckled. "You're not wrong either, Blake."
Ruby shot her older sister a betrayed look. "Yang! I thought you were on my side!"
Yang threw up her hands. "Hey, truth is truth, Rubes. Me giving you a backrub is just... family. It's comforting, like a hug... but giving a girlfriend, or a boyfriend a backrub... that's a whole different bit of terrain."
Ruby swallowed. "Is it?"
Blake looked curious. "Well, if you're saying that you felt the same way giving me a backrub as you do when you give your sister one... then maybe that tells you something?" She smiled, but inside her chest was starting to hurt. She didn't want Ruby to think of her like a sister. She wanted more than that. But she couldn't come out and say it. And maybe it was for the best if Ruby did feel like that about her? It was early days still, it wouldn't hurt so much if Ruby figured that out now. It'd be so much worse if they dragged things out and Ruby didn't feel that way, right?
Ruby opened her mouth, then closed it. She chewed on her lip for nearly a minute. Blake swallowed nervously as hope and dread fought for dominance.
Ruby lowered her eyes. "No... it... it didn't feel like it does with Yang."
Yang's eyes twinkled. "Yeah... I wouldn't think it would."
Ruby started to blush. "I liked it. I like it when Yang gives me a backrub... but I don't get so... nervous and..." She trailed off, going bright red. "It was supposed to just be nice..."
Blake blushed as well. "It WAS nice."
Ruby nodded. "Yeah, but..."
Blake shrugged, smiling. "It was way more than just nice, Ruby. I thought I was going to pass out a couple of times."
Ruby sagged. "Oh my god. I cannot talk about this with my sister in the room!"
Yang snorted and chortled and slapped a hand over her own mouth in order to stop herself from laughing further. She waved her other hand toward Ruby weakly.
"Sorry... sorry..." She snorted again and rolled over on Blake's bed, putting her back to the room and burying her face in the mattress while pounding one fist on the bed next to her head.
Ruby groaned. "I can kill her right? We'll make it look like a training accident."
Blake grinned. "Totally justified."
"I will help you bury the body." Pyrrha assured her with a perfectly straight face.
Yang shot up. "Hey! Low blow P-money!"
Pyrrha raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps if you stopped calling me P-money..."
Yang blinked. "Ah. Don't like it?"
Pyrrha sighed. "I find that I don't. I wasn't sure, but..."
Yang shrugged. "Sure, sure. I'll come up with something better."
Pyrrha smiled. "That would be appreciated." She went to sit on her own bed, then steepled her hands and gazed thoughtfully at Ruby. "Ruby... perhaps...?" She frowned, wrinkled her nose, then shook her head, then focused on the small girl again. "Perhaps this is enough. You obviously share stronger feelings for Blake then simple friendship..."
Ruby frowned. "What are you saying?"
Pyrrha shrugged. "Perhaps our... experiment has gone far enough? You have determined that you have feelings for Blake, have you not?"
Ruby blushed. "Maybe...?"
Pyrrha raised an eyebrow. "I think you do know how you feel for her, Ruby. Please do not feel you have to deny your own feelings in order to spare mine."
Ruby frowned again. "I'm not doing that. OK, yes, Blake... I like Blake. And not like a sister. But I haven't been on a date with you yet. Not just you and me."
Pyrrha nodded slowly. "True, but is that necessary? You've found you are attracted to Blake, is that not enough?"
Ruby grimaced. "I said I'd go out with you both. I don't want to go back on that."
Pyrrha shook her head. "You do not need to do so simply on my account..."
Ruby shook her head. "No. I want to. Yes, I like Blake. And... I'm pretty sure she likes me. But I know you like me too, and we haven't had a chance to figure out how far that goes..."
Pyrrha frowned. "I... are you sure?"
Ruby nodded firmly. "I... I want to have at least one real date with you, Pyrrha. Maybe I'm being selfish, and maybe it's not fair to Blake. But if we don't, we won't know, and we'll always wonder... and maybe it'll be awkward for us to have a date and then break up, and maybe we'll find out that we really, really like each other better than anyone else... and we won't know unless we try, will we?"
Blake nodded. "Pyrrha, I want you to go on that date. Ruby's right. If you don't, you'll always wonder. And... as much as I may want Ruby to myself, I want you two to both figure out who you really want. I want both of you to find the person who will make you the happiest. We've come this far, let's not chicken out now."
Pyrrha sighed. "Well, to quote someone I respect very much, that is about as much self-sacrifice as I can manage. Yes, I'll go out with you next weekend, Ruby."
Ruby beamed. "Cool."
Blake took a deep breath and nodded. "You two have fun. And don't hold back on my account."
Pyrrha looked at Blake curiously. "What about our... agreement?"
Blake chuckled. "Honestly? Forget it. Whatever Ruby's up for is fine with me. Seriously, I won't get mad."
Ruby looked from one girl to the other. "What agreement?"
Pyrrha blushed. "Well, Blake and I had... tentatively agreed to certain... guidelines about... er... intimacy."
Ruby started to turn pink. "Um... you mean kissing and stuff?"
Pyrrha nodded quickly, fighting down her own blush. "Yes. Kissing and stuff. And... well, I believe we have come to the conclusion that we can't make those sorts of decisions for you."
Blake nodded. "You have to choose for yourself, Ruby."
Ruby blinked. "Choose?"
Blake swallowed. "About how much... about how far you're comfortable going. With... er... physical intimacy."
Pyrrha nodded quickly. "Yes. We don't wish to pressure you."
"At all." Blake agreed.
Yang had turned back to face them, her face turning attentive. "Huh." Blake and Pyrrha turned toward Yang, both of them starting to pale. Yang just shrugged. "Nope. You're good."
They both sighed in relief, turning to Ruby, who's bright blush had turned her ears pink and colored even her neck a darker shade. "Oklet'schangethesubjectreallyquickandnevertalkaboutthisagainfortherestofourlives." Ruby blurted out too fast for them to quite make out.
"What?" Pyrrha found herself asking, almost against her will.
"Can we... change the subject?" Ruby asked weakly. Everyone nodded in agreement, and by mutual agreement, everyone started getting ready for bed.
/-/
The next morning, on the way to their first class, Ruby purposely walked next to Blake in order to take her hand. Blake blinked at the contact, but squeezed Ruby's hand on the way to class.
Pyrrha looked thoughtful, glancing at Yang. "Would you like to...?" she said, holding out a hand tentatively to the buxom blond brawler.
Yang blinked. "Huh." She grinned, and took Pyrrha's hand. "Sure."
From the outside, there didn't seem to be much change in their dynamic. The four girls had been close from the first week, and had made a point of sitting as a group or in pairs during classes since the very beginning. At lunch, they sat as a group just as they always had. But if you paid close attention, there were hints that things were changing.
Blake wondered, as they ate lunch with team WNJR, if any of their friends had noticed the differences yet, or if they would guess the truth about what was going on between the members of team RPBY. Surprisingly, it didn't seem as if anyone had.
"I have managed to procure a high quality lightning dust crystal for Magnhild, Ruby." Weiss said calmly, looking mildly pleased with herself. "I believe you were interested in helping with the modifications?"
Ruby beamed, turning to Weiss with interest. "Oh yeah! I drew up a couple different blueprints that could do the trick." She looked at Nora. "Want me to come over to your dorm after classes so we can go over options?"
Nora grinned. "Sounds like a plan. I can't WAIT to try her out once we get her finished." She enthused. "This is going to be awesome."
"Oh yeah it is." Ruby agreed.
/-/
When Ruby got back from team WNJR's dorm later that evening, she was smiling ear to ear. "Oh, this is going to be so cool."
"No Rubes, tell us how you really feel." Yang joked.
Unable, or unwilling to discern any possible sarcasm, Ruby complied eagerly. "Nora, Weiss and I have figured out which design we're going to use, and Weiss is getting the extra parts we need. We should be ready to get to work on it by this time next week. Nora is going to kick so much ass!"
Yang chuckled. "Well, that's awesome, sis. So, any good ideas for the rest of us?"
Ruby frowned. "Well, making Ember Celica better is pretty hard, Yang. It already suits your fighting style so well, and there isn't really room for any major improvements. The only thing I could think of for you is making them bigger... maybe upgrading them to grenade launchers, and giving you some extra body armor? With your strength you could handle the weight."
Yang wrinkled her nose. "Maybe, but all that weight would slow me down some, right?"
Ruby nodded. "It'd be a trade off. Magnhild should be relatively easy to upgrade, and with Nora's semblance, it should give her a big power up. But as for the rest of us..."
She pointed at Pyrrha. "Actually, I was thinking about your weapons. Have you thought about using some weapons that are specialized for use with your semblance? Because right now, while you're pretty much unstoppable against humans with metal weapons, you don't have as much stopping power against Grimm."
Pyrrha, who'd been laying back on her bunk, reading a history textbook, looked up. "I suppose that's true, Ruby. But what did you have in mind?"
Ruby grinned. "How about limpet mines!"
Pyrrha blinked. "Er... what?"
Ruby shrugged. "Well, you can use your semblance to move metal objects, right? Couldn't you float a mine over to a Grimm and stick it to them?"
Pyrrha blinked again. "Probably?"
Ruby grinned. "So if you carry a few metal mines with some adhesive, you could attach them to any really big Grimm we encounter without having to get really close. Right?"
Pyrrha blinked. "Do you think it's likely we'll encounter many Grimm that large?"
Ruby thought about the Grimm Wyvern, and about the Atlas Paladins they'd had to face on the final day of her previous timeline. "Well, we already fought that huge Nevermore. And that's not the only type of really big Grimm. I'm not saying you'd use them for every fight, but... it's good to have contingencies."
Pyrrha looked thoughtful. "Well, I can't argue that, although I'm not sure how safe it would be carrying heavy explosives around with me all the time."
Ruby's face fell. "Oh yeah. I hadn't considered that."
Pyrrha smiled gently. "I'll keep it in mind though. I can see the use. Certainly, if we are assigned a mission where we're likely to encounter larger than average Grimm. Perhaps we could prepare a few for such an occasion? I could leave them in my weapon locker where they'd be safe, and summon them in case they're needed."
Ruby's smile brightened again. "That's a good idea!"
Blake looked curious. "Got any ideas for me, Ruby?"
Ruby blushed. "Er... actually, I thought both you and Ren could use some Limpet mines too. Ones with timers. You're so agile, you could slap one on a Grimm, then get clear and BOOM!"
Blake blinked. "Er... huh." She looked thoughtful. "Actually, yeah. Gambol Shroud isn't really high on damage output. Ren's pistols are pretty low caliber as well. Some pinpoint explosives could be useful for emergencies. I could have taken out that Nevermore with one pretty easily."
Yang was chuckling. "Is high explosives your answer for everything, Ruby?"
Ruby pouted. "No..." Her face cleared. "Actually, yeah, Pyrrha! I've got some other ideas too! Maybe a bunch of knives... with a high ferrous content. All streamlined and stuff without normal handles so that they'd weigh less and your opponent wouldn't be able to use them against you! You could fly them around..." She made flying motions with her hands. "All zoom, and whoosh, and... phwaa..." She made a pushing gesture. "Like, throw a bunch of them all at once from all different angles so people couldn't block them all."
Pyrrha blinked. "Well... that does sound effective, but wouldn't that reveal my semblance to everyone who saw me do that?"
Ruby frowned. "Oh yeah. I guess we should save that one."
Pyrrha chuckled. "Yes, perhaps if my semblance ever becomes well known, I could start using it more in combat. It does sound like an effective idea."
Ruby nodded with a smile, but inwardly, she was sighing. Cinder Fall found out about Pyrrha's semblance, and used that against her to kill Penny. Ruby thought with a sigh. Pyrrha holding back with her Semblance might be the difference between her beating Cinder and losing to her. But how do I convince Pyrrha to stop holding back?
Ruby didn't have an answer and she had trouble falling asleep that night.
The next day went by in a similar fashion. They had reserved an empty combat room for team training again, and they worked on a mix of different things, unarmed combat for Ruby and Weiss, led by Pyrrha, and team tactics with Blake, Yang, Jack, Ren and Nora. Blake and Yang were practicing some of the combo moves that Ruby had suggested that they try out, while Jack, Ren and Nora were figuring out different team attacks they could do in pairs or as a group. Pyrrha took Ruby and Weiss through some katas, gave them advice on their stances on on proper form for some kicks, then had them spar. Ruby was doing a lot better than she had been at first, and was able to use her semblance in combination with her unarmed attacks a lot more effectively than before. Weiss hadn't lost any ground with using her glyphs, but Ruby was able to out-maneuver her seven times out of ten in their spars to land telling blows. Ruby started using her semblance to add momentum to some of her attacks, and even Pyrrha was starting to have a little trouble keeping up with the small girl at her full speed.
They broke up to go to their separate dorms after a very productive session, and Yang jumped at the chance to grab the first shower, and the other three girls worked on their homework while waiting their turn.
By the time Blake, who had been the last to use the shower, had come out of the bathroom, wearing her Yukata and toweling off her hair, everyone had finished their homework for the following day. Ruby was reading a comic book, and Yang was playing a game on her scroll, but Pyrrha was looking at Blake, her face an odd mix of uncertainty and determination.
"What's up, Pyrrha?" Blake asked, knowing that the Mistralian girl would most likely dither for hours trying to bring up whatever it was she wanted to say, and deciding to help.
Pyrrha licked her lips, glancing from Ruby to Blake. "I was wondering. Could I perhaps... borrow the book you and Ruby were reading to each other?" Blake blinked, then glanced at Ruby, who sat up, looking curious.
"I don't mind, Pyrrha." Ruby said. "I've got it here somewhere..." Ruby hopped down out of her bed and went to one of the bookshelves that were mainly filled with Blake's books, finding the book in question, then handing it to Pyrrha.
Pyrrha accepted the book with a smile, and opened it to the first page. "May I ask, how far you and Blake have gotten so far?"
Ruby nodded to the book. "Blake dog-eared the page. We were in chapter 2, I think?"
Pyrrha smiled and started to read to herself.
Blake went to her own bunk and sat down, pulling the novel she'd been in the middle of reading off her bookshelf and opening up to where she'd left off. She thought about asking why Pyrrha wanted to read the book she and Ruby had been reading to each other, than decided not to bother Pyrrha with the question. If it was important, Pyrrha would mention it. Perhaps she just thought the book sounded interesting, and wanted to read it for herself?
/-/
The next day was a quiet one. Yang got matched up against Weiss in combat class, and won handily, although not without getting tossed around the ring a bit by Weiss's glyphs. Weiss took her loss well enough, and both girls got applause for their performance, and lots of support from their respective teams. Miss Goodwitch was also pleased, telling them that they'd both shown marked improvement since they'd started training under her, and giving some advice to Weiss to work on her counter attacks more.
They got back to their dorms relatively early that night, not having a team training session planned that evening, and Pyrrha picked up the book she'd borrowed from Ruby, paging it open to where she'd left it the previous night, which appeared to be where Blake had marked the page after they'd finished.
Pyrrha licked her lips again, then cleared her throat, looking nervous but determined. "Blake... Ruby, would you like me to read aloud from where you two left off?"
Both Blake and Ruby looked at Pyrrha in surprise.
"Oh." Blake commented. "That's why you wanted to borrow the book. You wanted to catch up with where we were at so you could offer to read to us tonight?"
Pyrrha nodded, blushing lightly.
Ruby grinned. "That sounds great, Pyrrha. Want me to give you a backrub while you read?"
Pyrrha's blush went from light pink to deep red in an instant, but she nodded quickly, and Blake chuckled to herself.
Pyrrha sat on the side of her bed, and Ruby went over to climb into bed behind Pyrrha.
Yang raised an eyebrow, then grinned. "I'll get her feet."
Pyrrha blinked, looking surprised, but didn't resist as the two sisters placed themselves on opposite ends of her, Ruby sitting next to her in the bed so she could reach her back, and Yang sitting on the edge of the bed and propping Pyrrha's feet up on her thighs. With practiced ease, Yang started removing Pyrrha's shoes.
Pyrrha started blushing furiously. "What... what are you doing?" She squeaked, going stiff.
"Well, I can't give you a proper foot massage if you've got your shoes on, Pyrrha." Yang told her matter-of-factly, tossing Pyrrha's shoes one by one on the floor, then reaching up Pyrrha's legs to get a hold of the top of her long stockings. "These should probably come off too." She said, eyes twinkling.
Pyrrha was blushing brightly, looking like she didn't know what to do, and Yang caught her younger sister's eyes, then winked, nodding at Pyrrha.
Ruby blinked in confusion, then grinned in understanding, and then, without warning reached around for the buttons of Pyrrha's school jacket, undoing them and starting to ease the jacket off her shoulders.
Pyrrha froze, eyes wide as saucers as the two sisters started undressing her. Blake gaped in astonishment, then licked her lips, her imagination putting her into Pyrrha's place just long enough for a huge blush to cover her own face.
Ruby finished pulling Pyrrha's jacket off, and tossing the garment to the side of the bed behind her, reached around Pyrrha's front to start undoing the buttons of her vest. Pyrrha went very still as Yang's fingers reached up under her skirt to grab the top of one stocking and start easing it down, her breath coming out in short gasps.
Yang grinned and took her time pulling her stocking down, while Pyrrha remained still, only moving enough to let Ruby finish pulling her vest off. Her eyes were wide and she looked as if she wasn't sure to be frightened or excited. Blake was watching in a mix between jealously and awe at the display.
Yang tossed Pyrrha's stocking to one side and went back up her other leg for the second one, and Pyrrha closed her eyes, giving only a short shiver in response as Yang pulled it down.
Ruby put Pyrrha's vest down on top of her jacket, then put her small hands on top of Pyrrha's shoulders. "So... ready to start?"
Pyrrha's mouth opened and closed as if she wanted to say something, then she swallowed. Yang finished pulling off Pyrrha's last stocking, tossing it with the first, and her strong hands closed over Pyrrha's bare feet. "You still with us, Pyrrha?"
The championship fighter blew out a shaky breath. "Oh my gods and goddesses..." She said softly. Her face was pale, and her eyes met Yang's, a half wondering, half questioning look in her eyes.
Yang chuckled at her. "Were you expecting something more, Champ?" Pyrrha glanced down at herself. She was still mostly dressed, still in her blouse and skirt, and modest enough for company, if you ignored her bare feet and legs in Yang's lap, and she shook her head.
"Yang... that was mean." She finally complained.
Yang raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" She grinned. "So you did expect something more?"
Pyrrha blushed furiously and shook her head quickly, picking up the book and opening it to the correct page once again. Hesitatingly at first, Pyrrha started to read, while Yang and Ruby gave her back and feet massages.
Blake had watched the show in mute astonishment, then started to laugh. "Oh my gods, the look on your face, Pyrrha!"
Pyrrha shook her head, still blushing, and paused long enough to look at Blake. "Speak for yourself, Blake. You were starting to look pretty jealous." She winked, to take the sting out of her words, and Blake just laughed again in response.
"Yes, yes I was." Blake admitted easily. "You had us going there for a minute, Yang."
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Yang said with a straight face.
Blake chuckled, then, as if deciding something, stepped over and sat down on the bed behind Yang, where there was room. She reached around Yang's body and started undoing the buttons to Yang's school uniform jacket.
Yang grinned. "I like where this is going..."
Wordlessly, Blake helped Yang out of her school jacket and vest, then started giving Yang a backrub while Pyrrha went back to reading. Ruby and Yang kept working on Pyrrha, and the room was filled with Pyrrha's voice as the Mistralian champion read through the rest of the second chapter and started on the third.
As she finished the third chapter, Pyrrha shivered and put the book down. "Would... would anyone else like to read a chapter?" She asked.
Blake raised a hand quickly. "I would!" Ruby and Yang giggled at the cat-faunus' immediate answer.
"Well, switch with Blake then, Pyrrha." Yang suggested.
Pyrrha licked her lips, put her feet on the floor, and stood, passing the book to Blake as Blake got up from behind Yang and slipped onto the bed where Pyrrha had been sitting a moment earlier. Thinking ahead, the cat-faunus took off her own jacket and vest so that Ruby could get at her back.
Pyrrha, on the other hand, wrinkled her nose, then crawled onto the bed behind Yang, then crawled up the length of the bed to sit next to Ruby. "May I?" She said, gesturing at the younger girl's back.
Ruby grinned and immediately started to pull off her own school jacket and vest so that Pyrrha could give her a backrub.
Yang snorted and put Blake's feet in her lap, and started untying Blake's shoes as Blake got started with chapter four.
When Blake had finished with Chapter four, Ruby volunteered to read next, Pyrrha shifting over to stay behind her, and Blake taking Yang's position at Ruby's feet. Yang shifted back behind Blake, and while Ruby read, gave Blake a back massage. Halfway though the chapter, however, Yang took her hands away and reached up toward the top of Blake's head.
"Hey... Blake." Yang asked curiously. "Can I touch your ears?" Ruby stopped reading in surprise, and Blake froze. Yang went on. "If it's not OK, I don't mind, I just wondered..."
Blake shook her head. "It's fine. I was just surprised. Just... be gentle?"
Yang ran one finger down the line between where Blake's left cat ear met her head, and Blake stiffened. "I promise." Yang told her softly.
Yang started gently rubbing both ears at the base, then slowly felt along each ear with both hands. Blake seemed to be having trouble staying upright, and a faint moan came from somewhere deep in her belly.
"Ah... you like that, do you, Kitten?" Yang teased.
Blake blushed crimson. "Yang..."
Yang lifted her hands away from Blake's head slightly. "Want me to stop?"
Blake swallowed. "No..."
Yang grinned. "Well, alright then."
Ruby tried to start reading again, but was interrupted a paragraph later by a low rumbling purr coming from Blake. Ruby stopped reading, and she giggled, followed a second later by soft, silvery laughter coming from Pyrrha.
Blake ducked her head, pulling her ears out of Yang's reach, and buried her face in her hands, looking mortified. "Stop... stop..." The room went silent, and everyone waited for Blake to compose herself. Finally, Blake spoke up. "I hate it when I do that."
"Why?" Yang asked, curious. "It's adorable."
Blake grimaced, still blushing. "I sound like a cat when I do that. I don't want people to think I'm just an animal..."
Yang moved up and wrapped her arms around Blake from behind, giving her a powerful hug. "Hey, nobody here thinks of you like that. You know that, right?"
Blake took a shuddering breath. "Yeah... I know that, but..."
Ruby smiled softly at her. "You know, I hear people say that faunus are inferior somehow because they have animal traits. But that's dumb. I think the people that say that are just jealous. Faunus have everything people do, and something extra. They're not inferior, they're extra special! Having an extra pair of ears is neat, Blake. I kind of wish I had ears like yours... or nightvision. That'd be awesome."
Pyrrha spoke up next. "I think you're right, Ruby. Faunus have genetic advantages that humans simply don't. Anyone saying that the faunus are inferior is fooling themselves. If anything, Faunus are the superior species, with greater advantages than humans have."
Yang laughed. "And it's not like humans don't purr. We just don't purr as well as you do, Blake."
Blake giggled. "Are you telling me that my purring is a superior trait?"
Yang grinned. "Heck yeah. Did I not mention how adorable that is?"
Blake raised an eyebrow. "Adorableness is a survival trait?" Ruby and Pyrrha both nodded to that.
Yang grinned. "Heck yeah it is. Ruby's right. I'd be a bit jealous of you myself, you know, if it wasn't for the fact that stupid people are a thing. Anybody in their right mind would want to be as cool as you are."
Blake chuckled lightly. "Well, if adorableness is a survival trait, Ruby must have won the genetic lottery."
Yang chuckled. "You're not wrong." Ruby grimaced and stuck out her tongue at her older sister.
Focusing back on the book, Ruby started reading again, and the room once more fell into companionable silence, save for the sound of Ruby's voice telling a tale of high fantasy.
"This is a very entertaining story!" Pyrrha commented happily as Ruby reached the end of chapter four, and Yang switched places with her sister to start chapter five.
"It's an old favorite of ours." Yang explained. "I used to read this one to Ruby when we were younger."
"Books and backrubs?" Pyrrha asked. "Is that a tradition in your family?"
Yang wrinkled her nose thoughtfully. "Our family is pretty big on the physical affection." She admitted. "I guess it's not exactly the normal thing."
"I don't know about that..." Blake said quietly. "My family was like that too. Mom is a hugger."
Pyrrha sighed softly. "My family is a bit more... formal. We don't hug, often." She sighed, then brightened. "But this is lovely." She gestured to her bed, where her entire team was relaxing. "I'm not sure what my mother would think, if she was to see us being so... affectionate." She blushed slightly. "But I don't believe I care. This is nice. We should do this again."
Ruby grinned. "Yay! Team bonding with reading and backrubs for everyone!"
Yang chuckled. "Yeah, I'm in. A little friendly cuddling never hurt anyone." Blake nodded her agreement, a faint hint of a blush tinging her cheeks, although there was also a small smile. Yang yawned. "Well, one more chapter, and I'm calling it. We've got classes in the morning." There were murmurs of agreement from the others, and Yang nodded back, then started in on chapter five.
/-/
Reading together seemed to become routine pretty quickly. The next night, after their team training with team WJNR, they'd gathered on Pyrrha's bed after changing into their pajamas and picked up where they'd left off with chapter six. Yang volunteered to read the first chapter, and Pyrrha read a second before they'd called it a night, but the next night, it was Blake's turn, then Ruby's.
It wasn't the same as when it had been just her and Ruby in the room. The sexual tension was missing. There wasn't that nearly overwhelming urge to push boundaries that she had felt when alone with their young team leader, not with Yang and Pyrrha in the room. It was a lot more relaxed. Although in exchange, she found herself feeling a lot closer to her other teammates at the same time. And she couldn't help but notice, on a regular basis, how attractive each of her teammates was.
During class and in the cafeteria, Blake kept waiting for someone to wonder at the changes in how her team was behaving, but nobody commented on it. She tried to see things from the perspective of an outsider. The four of them were obviously close. They touched each other constantly. A hand on the shoulder, a hug, holding hands... Blake was acutely aware of how much things had changed. She liked the closeness, but it was very different to her time in the White Fang. She'd gotten used to being solitary. Spending time alone was normal. But in team RPBY she was never really alone unless she made a conscious effort to do so. It was strange. She was starting to get used to it though.
Friday evening, as they went their separate ways to get some sleep, Blake turned to Yang curiously. "Yang... did you have a plan for our date tomorrow?"
Yang wrinkled her nose. "I was thinking we could head down to the ocean."
Blake blinked. "The ocean? Really?"
Yang hesitated. "Yeah, they've got shops by the wharf, and boats, and a bunch of stuff. That sound OK?"
Blake shrugged. "Sure, I guess."
Pyrrha glanced at Ruby. "That reminds me, Ruby... you said you had something in mind for our date this weekend? What did you have planned?"
Ruby grinned. "We're going to head to Patch over the weekend!" She announced cheerfully.
Pyrrha blinked. "Over the weekend?"
Ruby nodded. "Yup! We'll go to our place on Patch on Saturday, and spend the night there. I can show you around!"
Pyrrha chewed on her lip. "Oh... we'll be staying at your home in Patch? With your father?"
Ruby nodded again, then started to look worried. "Is... is that a bad idea?"
Pyrrha forced a smile. "I'm sure it'll be lovely."
Ruby looked relieved. "Oh good. Anyway, dad's looking forward to seeing us! I already told him we'll be coming so he's making us dinner when we arrive!"
Pyrrha tried not to grimace. "I hope he won't go to too much trouble."
Yang was looking surprised. "Taking a girl home on the first date, Ruby? That's bold, even for you."
"It's not our first date." Ruby insisted. "And it's not like that anyway. I just wanted to show Pyrrha what our home is like."
Pyrrha kept a professional smile on her face. "I'm looking forward to it!" She said with artificial cheer.
Yang raised an eyebrow dubiously, but Ruby seemed oblivious.
Blake shared a commiserating glance with Pyrrha, who could only sigh in resignation.
/-/
The next morning, Ruby and Pyrrha headed out to the airship docks, wearing their combat attire and each carrying a small day pack, while Yang led Blake down to the Beacon garages to collect Bumblebee.
When they got to the bike, Yang tossed Blake her spare helmet. Blake looked at it, hesitating, then, under her bow, her ears twitched.
"Do I have to wear the helmet?" She asked with a frown. "I've got Aura. A fall off of your bike won't hurt me."
Yang frowned. "Yeah, well, better safe than sorry, right?"
Blake sighed. "It's just... I assume you don't have a helmet with space for my ears?" She twitched her bow deliberately.
Yang caught the movement, then blinked. "Oh! Er... you can't just... I don't know, fold them down?"
Blake rolled her eyes. "I CAN... but it's not very comfortable. Especially not for an extended period."
Yang wrinkled her nose. "Ah. Yeah. Sorry. I should have thought of that."
Blake shrugged. "It's no big deal. And I do have Aura. I don't really need a helmet."
Yang sighed and took the helmet back. "My bad." She nodded upwards towards the top of Blake's head. "Is your bow going to be OK in the wind?"
Blake blinked. "Hmm? Oh, yeah. I tie it tight enough so that it doesn't come off in combat, so the wind from riding on the back of a motorcycle shouldn't be a problem."
Yang nodded. "Cool. Alright. Let's go?" She climbed onto her motorcycle and gestured to the seat behind her. "Climb aboard."
Blake slipped onto the seat behind her gracefully, then shifted up so that she was pressed against Yang's back, wrapping one arm around the blond brawler's waist. "Is this OK?"
Yang grinned. "Perfect." She gunned the motorcycle, and they were off.
Blake adapted to riding even faster than Pyrrha had, and Yang took them through the city, and to the south. Crossing a bridge out of the city, she drove them to the outskirts of Vale, just south of the Agricultural district, and from there along a winding dirt road, out to the coast, where a small port was.
As they came to a stop next to the wharf, Blake hopped down off the motorcycle and looked around curiously. "What is this place?"
Yang grinned. "It's a fishing village. It's kind of out of the way, so it doesn't get a lot of tourists this time of year, but there are a couple nice shops, and a pub Uncle Qrow used to take me to, and there's a place we can rent fishing poles. We could even rent a boat if you like."
Blake blinked. "Huh." She glanced at Yang. "Fishing poles? Do you know how to fish, Yang?"
Yang shrugged. "Sure. Dad taught us. It's a useful skill when you're traveling between kingdoms. Hunters have to live off the land sometimes, you know?"
Blake nodded, then smiled. "So, we're going fishing?"
Yang tilted her head to one side. "If you want to?"
Blake grinned wider. "Sure! Although you'll have to teach me. I've never been fishing before."
Yang gave her a thumb's up. "No problem. Leave it to me." She led her to a store renting fishing supplies and boats, and they went inside.
The man behind the counter looked up as they approached. "Welcome! How can I help you?"
Yang smiled and walked up to him. "We're looking to do a little fishing. Anyplace good right now?"
The man looked thoughtful. "Well, that depends on if you're wanting to head out in a boat, or if you want to fish from the shoreline."
Yang looked back at Blake. "Any preference?"
Blake raised an eyebrow. "Well, renting a boat sounds expensive."
Yang shrugged. "Yeah, a little."
Blake shook her head. "Why don't we stay on the shore then?"
The man wrinkled his nose. "Well, you could always head out onto the pier. It's a bit overfished at the moment, but there should be some still biting."
Yang raised an eyebrow, leaning in over the counter so that the man could get a good look at her cleavage. "I bet you know all the best spots though, huh?"
The man tore his eyes away from Yang's chest with some effort. "Hmm? Well... there is a good spot down by where the south Vale river enters the sea, but we've got some reports of Grimm in that area. Probably better to stick to the wharf."
Yang grinned, then cocked Ember Celica, both of her wristbands expanding into their shotgun-gauntlet configuration. "We're huntresses. We'll be fine."
The man smiled. "Well now. That's different." He went under the counter and pulled out a map of the area. Unfolding it, he pointed at a tiny island that sat in the mouth of a river bordering the south of the city that emptied out into the sea. "This is the place. We usually run tourists out to that little island during the busy season. It's private, and the fish there are always biting. Trouble is, right now there isn't enough custom to pay a hunter to clear it, so we have to leave the place alone. But... if a couple huntresses were to clear the island..."
Yang grinned. "Interesting. How do we get out to the island then?"
The man wrinkled his nose. "If you're offering, I'll take you there myself. Throw in fishing gear and supplies too."
Yang looked thoughtful. "Camping gear?"
The man nodded. "Thinking on spending the night out there?"
Yang turned to Blake. "How about it?"
Blake blinked. "You want to camp out on that island overnight?"
Yang nodded. "Sure. We'll clear the Grimm today, camp out on the island, and spend the rest of tomorrow fishing and chilling. What do you say?"
Blake chuckled, shaking her head, then shrugged. "Sure."
Yang turned to the man. "OK then. You'll drop us off today, and pick us up tomorrow afternoon?"
The man grinned. "It's a deal."
Yang stuck out her hand. "Oh, I'm Yang Xaio-Long, this is my partner, Blake Belladonna."
"Nice to meet you Yang." The man answered. "Name's Shiro."
/-/
Shiro apparently had a small boat he used during the tourist season for fishing trips. It had a machine gun cupola up on top of the main cabin, but otherwise it was a pretty standard fishing boat.
"Do you get a lot of big Grimm around here?" Blake asked curiously, nodding at the turret.
"A few." Shiro admitted. "Although the area near Vale is pretty safe, usually. But sometimes we go outside the protected area, and it's better to be safe than sorry."
Blake nodded agreeably, and went back to looking out over the rail.
It only took about fifteen minutes for Shiro to get them to the small isle at the mouth of the Vale river. As they approached, Blake noticed a number of Borbatusks coming out of a small copse of trees near the shoreline, apparently attracted by the sound of the boat's engines, and start approaching.
Yang put one foot up on the railing on the side of the boat facing the shore and pointed. "Get us right up to the shore, Shiro. We'll take it from there."
"Want me to get on the machine gun and give you some cover?" Shiro offered, already steering his boat towards the shore.
Yang shrugged. "We can handle the ones on the beach. But if you stay on the gun and give us some covering fire if anything else comes out, I wouldn't object."
Shiro nodded. "You got it, babe."
Blake bristled slightly at that, but Yang just laughed and threw him a thumb's up. The boat came in close to shore, and Yang leaped from the side, coming down on top of one of the Borbatusks with a shotgun enhanced punch that drove the Grimm into the sand and splayed out it's legs.
Blake leaped after, using a clone to launch herself farther onto the beach so she ended up landing on the back of a Borbatusk half a dozen yards away from Yang. Sinking the blade of Gambol Shroud into the monster's back between two plates of armor, she leaped from it's back and landed on a second Borbatusk, then pulled while pushing down and to the side with her legs, causing the two charging Grimm to crash into each other, knocking them both over.
Whipping Gambol Shroud back into her hands, she descended on the pair of overturned Grimm, stabbing at their unprotected undersides. She could hear Ember Celica firing behind her, and the crunch of Yang slamming into another foe.
Blake finished the second of the Grimm she'd felled just as Yang shot past her, crashing into a third Grimm that had been about to charge Blake. Blake rushed up in Yang's wake, and hamstrung the Borbatusk Yang had stopped, causing it to fall over. Yang leapt in and finished it, and the two of them leapt apart, going after the remaining Grimm on either side of them.
It was all over in just over a minute. Ten Borbatusk were scattered across the beach, the last of them already beginning to disintegrate. Shiro had maneuvered his boat about a hundred feet off shore and had moved up to his machine gun cupola, but by the time he'd gotten ready, the last of the Grimm had been defeated.
/-/
After the fight, Shiro had dropped off the fishing poles and camping supplies he'd promised before heading off, promising to return around four in the afternoon of the next day.
Once his boat was receding into the distance, Blake turned to Yang looking curious. "Did you have this in mind when you invited me out today?"
Yang shook her head, looking bemused. "Actually no. I just thought we'd go fishing or something. But this is way better, don't you think?"
Blake wrinkled her nose. "Well, if we wanted to fight Grimm, we could always go into the Emerald Forest..."
Yang shrugged. "Yeah, but that place is huge. We couldn't really just relax there. Here, once we've cleared this little island, we can relax overnight. We'll have the whole place to ourselves. Cool, huh?"
Blake chuckled. "Well, I'm not complaining. Should be interesting at least."
Yang cracked her knuckles, looking towards the interior of the small isle. "Might as well get going. We don't want to have to hunt Grimm after it gets dark."
"Darkness isn't much of a handicap for me." Blake pointed out.
Yang grinned. "That is pretty handy. Still, I want to pull my weight, so let's get this placed cleared while it's still light."
Blake nodded easily. "Sure."
/-/
It hadn't taken them long. The small island was only a few hundred yards across, and there were only a few packs of smaller Grimm inhabiting it. Deadly for regular people, but easy prey for huntresses as skilled and powerful as Blake and Yang.
When they were sure that they'd gotten the last of them, Yang lead Blake back to where they'd left the supplies Shiro had lent them, and she collected the two fishing poles and some bait.
Yang walked along the island's beach, looking for something. What it was, Blake wasn't sure, but Yang knew it when she saw it.
"There... see that calm spot behind that big boulder?" Yang pointed at a large boulder sitting several yards out from the island, a bit of froth and foam on the side that the river was coming from, and a small whirl of water on the opposite side where the current was slowed.
Blake nodded slowly. "I think so. Where the water is swirling around instead of flowing straight?"
Yang nodded. "Let's start there."
Sticking the butt end of both fishing poles into the sand, Yang showed Blake how to set up the rod and reel for casting, and then how to bait her hook.
Yang then demonstrated how to cast, sinking a line into the middle of the small whirl of water that she'd pointed out, where, she said, fish were likely to be waiting.
"It's a calm spot, you see." Yang explained. "Fish are hunters too. The bigger ones hunt the smaller ones, and those hunters often like to wait in calm places near a current, so they can watch the smaller fish go by and pounce on them."
Blake nodded thoughtfully. "And our bait looks like little fish?"
Yang nodded. "Right. So, in theory, they see our bait, and bite, thinking it's a meal, but we get to eat them instead." She grinned.
Blake chuckled. "Works for me." She pointed at a small bright round thing attached to Yang's line that was floating in the middle of the calm spot. "And what's that thing? More bait?"
Yang shook her head. "That's a bobber. It stays on the surface and keeps the bait from sinking all the way down to the bottom... and... whoops!" She suddenly started reeling in her line furiously.
Blake blinked. "What happened? Did you get one?"
Yang reeled in her line all the way, and looked at the empty hook at the end of it in mild disappointment. "Nope. Looks like something got the bait though."
She put more bait on the hook, then cast the line out again. It landed to the left of the calm spot, and Yang reeled it in immediately, then cast it out again. It overshot the mark a bit, but this time she grinned and nodded, reeling in a little bit at a time till the bobber was pretty much where it had been before.
"As I was going to say, the other reason for the bobber is that if a fish grabs your bait, the bobber will get pulled down. Once you see your bobber go under, that's your signal to try and reel in the fish. Got it?"
Blake nodded thoughtfully. "I think so."
Yang shrugged. "Well then, give it a try!"
Blake frowned, hefting the rod and reel in her hands thoughtfully. It wasn't all THAT different from using Gambol Shroud, was it? She just wanted to cast the line out and have the bait go into the calm place next to Yang's, right?
She tested the weight once more, then tried whipping the rod forward the way she'd seen Yang do it. Then she yelped as the hook got caught in her hair, pulling her long black tresses in front of her face and throwing off her aim. Yang laughed and stuck the butt of her rod into the sand again, and moved over to help Blake untangle her hair from the hook.
Yang stepped up behind her. "Here, let me show you how it's done." She stepped in against Blake's back and reached around to put her own hands over Blake's. Blake froze as the larger girl's arms went around her, and Yang hesitated. "This OK?"
Blake swallowed once, then nodded. "Yeah." Her heart was hammering in her chest. Why was her heart pounding so hard?
Yang tightened her grip on Blake's hands slightly, and moved in even closer so that she could peer over Blake's left shoulder. The bigger girl's breasts pressed firmly into Blake's back, and Blake was acutely conscious of how much of Yang was pressed up against her. She could feel Yang's breath on her shoulder and the side of her face.
"OK, we'll do it slow the first time..." Yang instructed calmly. "Just keep your arms loose and let me do the work for now."
Blake forced her body to loosen up, realizing that she'd been holding herself still, almost paralyzed with... what? Anticipation? Fear? Yang was her partner, and her friend. She wasn't afraid of her. Sure, Yang was terrifyingly strong. And she had a fiery temper when roused, but surely she wasn't scared of her. Was she scared of getting too close? It wasn't as if physical intimacy scared her, was it? Blake realized then that she was, in fact, frightened, and why. She liked it when Yang touched her. She liked the warmth, the feeling of Yang's body against hers. And at the same time, desired more. And that truly scared her. Realizing that, Blake let herself relax fully. Yang wouldn't hurt her, physically or emotionally. Not if she could help it. Blake knew that. Sure, that didn't mean she couldn't get hurt. Someone was bound to get hurt sooner or later, the way they were going. Not all of them would end up happy. But she knew that going in, didn't she?
Yang walked her through several casts, puppetting Blake's movements for her so that Blake could get the idea.
It was only after the third try that Blake belatedly realized that she'd spaced out about what she was actually trying to learn, and had instead been ruminating and enjoying Yang's warmth. "Er... sorry, Yang, spaced out there for a minute. Could you show me a couple more times?"
Yang chuckled, helping Blake reel in her line. "No problem, Kitten." She walked Blake through a couple more casts before speaking softly into Blake's human ear. "So... do you think you've got it now?"
Yang's breath across her ear made Blake shiver, and Blake could feel a tremor run down Yang's body in response. "Er... sure. I think so?" She finally replied.
Yang released Blake and stepped away, causing Blake to sigh silently to herself. Rather than let herself wallow in it, she focused on the task at hand. Casting her line out to the spot she wanted.
She made the whipping motion Yang had taken her through, and was rewarded when her line sank only a few meters away from the spot she'd been aiming for.
Yang gave her a thumb's up. "Good job, Kitten! We'll make a fisherman out of you yet!"
Blake gave her a raised eyebrow. "FisherMAN?"
Yang gave her one back. "Fishercat?" Blake's unimpressed look did not change. "Fisherkitten?" Blake closed her eyes and sighed. Where was Ruby when you needed her?
/-/
Miles away, on the airship to Patch, Ruby had the sudden inexplicable urge to hit Yang with a pillow.
每周推薦票狀態
-- 推薦票
榜單 
-- 推薦票