Two months had passed since Blake had taken up the mantle of matchmaker. The time since then had been full of assignments and combat exercises, with the occasional slaying of Grimm to add some flavor to the mix. Despite it all, boredom had managed to claim Blake Belladonna once again.
Blake sat on her bed, hidden in the shadow of the additional bed over her, and watched her two teammates, Ruby and Weiss. They were studying, but they took the time to share little displays of affection. Ruby would sneak a kiss when Weiss was deep in thought, and the heiress would return the favor when Ruby got a question right. Blake felt her heart flutter, not out of embarrassment, but pride. It made her feel good to have helped the two find such happiness with each other. All of the pain she had gone through was worth it.
Thinking about the old scars made Blake wince. Yang had shown the lengths to which she would go to protect her sister, and it was all because Blake had to go and play matchmaker. She rubbed her eyes. After a week of intense sparring matches, the fiery blonde had managed to calm down and go back to her usual, bouncing self. She had even sat down one night to reassure Blake that everything was water under the bridge, but Blake remained unconvinced.
There were times where she had noticed Yang ignoring her, especially in the morning at breakfast. What if Yang still harbored some sort of distrust? She had meant to ask Ruby about it, but she also didn't want to involve the team leader in such a petty affair. Blake looked out of the window at the dull, overcast sky. There had to be some way to get back on Yang's good side.
Her ears perked up as an idea struck. She remembered a time where Yang was able to laugh off an old woman in town who had said that the amount of cleavage the blonde often displayed was scandalous. Blake had bristled at the words, but Yang had handled it well. If her partner could shrug off the harsh words of a stranger, then surely someone closer to the blonde could get away with something else. If nothing else, Blake knew that Yang had a pretty thick skin. Blake smirked and found her mind was running wild with possibilities. After a minute, she decided that she would play a harmless prank on the blonde. After all, there was nothing like a little bit of humor between friends, right?
The rest of the plan hit her immediately. Blake looked at the clock and saw she had an hour before Ruby would gather the team for dinner. She hopped off her bed and walked out, unnoticed by the two lovers. She needed to make a purchase.
Time had flown, but Blake managed to be in the dorm before Ruby loudly proclaimed that it was time for dinner. She had made it a rule for Team RWBY that all members were required to eat the major meals of the day in each other's company. No one had ever objected about the plan.
As the team marched to the cafeteria at their respective paces, Blake felt the bottle of hot sauce in her pocket. Yang and Ruby had run ahead, as usual, leaving her alone with Weiss. The heiress looked at her.
"What's got you so excited?"
Blake realized she had been smirking. "Nothing," she said.
Weiss raised an eyebrow. The two had arrived at the cafeteria and Weiss decided to let the issue drop. The heiress grabbed a tray and handed one to Blake, who accepted it with a nod. As the two walked down the line, serving themselves to the wide array of food available, Blake found that her hands were actually shaking. Was she afraid? Nervous? She gripped the edge of a plate and put it on her tray without looking to see what it was.
"Oh, that's healthy for you," Weiss said.
Blake could hear the sarcasm dripping from each word. She looked at the piece of chocolate cake with lemon frosting her hands had spirited onto the tray. With a shrug, she said, "I like something sweet here and there. Besides, I'm not the one who ate that box of donuts."
"Ruby ate most of them!" the heiress scoffed.
"Doesn't mean you didn't have one or two or five," Blake teased.
"How dare you! I will have you know that I have never eaten so much junk food in my life." Weiss' words didn't carry the same bite as they used to. Blake was glad that the heiress had finally mellowed out. It just made it more fun to tease her.
"Maybe not on your own, no. But I've seen what effect Ruby has on you."
Weiss had finished selecting her food and looked over at Ruby and Yang. Her icy eyes glazed over and her features thawed. "Don't I know it? That girl will be the death of me," she said.
Blake rolled her eyes and hefted her tray. "Come on, lovergirl. And I hope you're drooling because of the food."
"Drool?" Weiss touched the corner of her mouth before noticing Blake's growing smirk. Her expression hardened and she said, "Oh ha ha. When is your next comedy tour? I'd love having front row seats."
Blake only smiled and they walked towards the table where Ruby and Yang sat. Blake's eyes flickered to Yang's tray. The blonde brawler had settled on a piece of grilled chicken breast as her entrée. As far as Blake was aware, the chicken looked a little too dry and needed a good dousing of hot sauce. Then she switched focus from the chicken breast to Yang's breasts. She hated how often her eyes always went there instead of any other part of Yang's anatomy, but how would it be possible to not notice them? It didn't help that her partner displayed them so prominently. Blake shook her head and sat next to the blonde. If she couldn't see the object of her desires, she couldn't fuel her voyeuristic yearnings.
"Good to see you here," Yang said, tapping Blake's shoulder.
"Where else would I be?" Blake picked up her fork and speared a piece of salmon. Yang said something under her breath and went back to her own meal. If they had been alone, Blake would have been able to hear what she said; but in the crowded cafeteria, all she caught was something about a pillow. Blake drank all of her water in one pull.
"So," Ruby said, voice down to an unnecessary whisper, "when do you guys think Jaune will notice Pyrrha?"
"Has it already gotten to the point where we have to fill the air with meaningless gossip instead of a fruitful conversation?"
Yang looked at Weiss. "I'll take gossip over you doting over my sister." She turned to Ruby and added, "I bet he'll notice sometime next year."
Blake waited for the three to be invested in the conversation. She heard her heartbeat in all four of her ears as she reached into her pocket. The hot sauce bottle felt like it was made of solid metal. If Yang turned out to be more easily offended than she let on, Blake could foresee some awful consequences. But if it wasn't a ruse, then everything would be great. Blake tightly gripped the bottle. What was life without taking some risks?
In one move, Blake undid the cap and upended the bottle of hot sauce on Yang's chicken. Unfortunately, the sauce stopped coming out after a few drops, forcing Blake to ignore all of the eyes on her as she shook the bottle again and again. By the time she was done, Yang looked close to hysterics.
The blonde shuddered as she tried to keep her laughter contained. The fight was soon lost and Yang reeled her head back and laughed. Like Yang, the laugh was loud and forceful. More than half of the students in the cafeteria stopped talking just to look at her. Yang doubled over and smashed her fist on the table as she tried to control herself. Blake felt her bow twitch as she flattened her ears against her head. At least her partner hadn't been offended.
Blake looked at the rest of the team. Ruby had been laughing along with her sister, although she had been inaudible over the blonde's onslaught. Weiss was stoic. She returned Blake's stare and mouthed "Ow." Yang was taking deep breaths that became chuckles as soon as the air reached her lungs. Once she managed to calm down, she looked at Blake with the biggest smile. Tears were in her eyes. She cut herself a piece of chicken that was marinated with hot sauce and popped it in her mouth.
"Nice try, Blake," Yang said, licking her lips and winking at the black-haired girl, "but I like my food spicy."
"Actually, I just wanted to make sure you couldn't taste the laxatives in the sauce," Blake said with a smirk.
"Wait, what?" The blonde's lilac irises shrank to pinpricks and all of her humor faded. "You're joking."
"Try me," Blake said. "But I'll remind you that the restrooms are a far way away."
The two stared intensely at each other. Yang was searching for any signs of a bluff, and Blake was providing none. The world had shrunk down to the young woman in front of them.
"Clock is ticking," Blake teased.
Yang bit her lip. "I'll remember this," she said before running away from the table.
The rest of the team watched as Yang ran for the door. Cardin Winchester had the misfortune of standing in her way. Yang shoved the large boy aside and he swore loudly as his dinner adorned his chest plate. Ruby looked over at Blake, who had reached over and speared a piece of Yang's chicken with her fork.
"So, did you actually do anything to it?"
"Nope." Blake took a bite. She instantly regretted it. Putting on a brave face, she choked, "Tastes like victory."
Yang figured that Blake lied about the laxatives when she didn't die on the toilet. However, sitting on the uncomfortably cold seat gave her time to think about the events leading up to her current situation.
For some reason, Blake thought that it would be a good idea to get into a prank war with her. The blonde grinned and popped her knuckles. She was more than willing to accept the challenge, and she had more ammunition on Blake than the girl knew.
By the time Yang was done, her partner would be begging for mercy. With a victorious fist pump, Yang got off of the toilet and pulled her shorts back on. Her hands were already shaking with excitement as she burst out of the stall and ran for the door.
"Miss Xiao Long," said a voice brimming with authority.
Yang immediately stopped and looked over her shoulder towards the source, hand hanging in front of the door knob. A knot formed in her stomach when she saw Glynda Goodwitch staring at her with those uncompromising, green eyes.
"Yes, ma'am?"
Glynda's left arm snapped toward the sinks. Yang followed the direction the bossy Huntress was pointing at and saw a sign that depicted three smiling soap bubbles floating over a pair of wet hands. Yang hung her head and trudged to the sink. It was better than trying to argue with Glynda that she didn't actually use the toilet for anything other than sitting. Besides, the small act of washing her hands only served to preserve Blake's dignity for a moment longer.