Of Sunsets and Night Skies
Chapter Two: Comfortable Scents
It took everything she had to approach the thing. Trembling in fear, she had begun by walking wide circles around it. It stared at her, head tilted to the side as it followed her every move with those beady little eyes. When she narrowed the gap between them just the slightest bit, it sat back on it's haunches, as if they were playing a game.
Her ears twitched beneath her ribbon at the movement, and she inhaled deeply to calm herself before approaching the offending animal slowly once more.
"Eaaaaasy, Zwei." She crooned, the tremor in her voice giving away her apparent nervousness.
The dog responded to the sounds by tilting it's head the other way, and at no sign of an impending attack, Blake slowly withdrew a few treats from the bag in her hand. Immediately the dog pushed itself off it's haunches, straightening up on it's four furry little legs.
Blake dangled the treat out in front of her as far as she could reach, feeling the hairs on the back of her neck stand up as the animal slowly approached her. Slowly moving the treat toward her bed, she gently coaxed the animal up onto her bed. When it hopped up, she grinned, tossing the treat at the dog and watching it devour the foul smelling brick happily.
"Good...dog." She said, before tossing it another one for good measure. Wrinkling her nose at the crumbs left on her bed, she slowly retreated to Weiss' side of the room, and tucked the bag of treats back in her drawer.
That was weeks ago, Blake remembered. Now, with constant training, Zwei's favourite place to lay and sleep was on Blake's bed. The others had no idea how or why Zwei started sleeping on Blake's bed, and Blake herself offered up no reason, instead merely watching as Weiss gently scolded the dog before picking it up off Blake's bed and setting it on the floor before casting Blake an apologetic look.
Now, they were heading back to their room after a long training session, and bumping shoulders beside her was Yang, yawning loudly as tears formed in the corners of her eyes.
Heart pounding in her chest, Blake decided that tonight was the night. She would definitely summon up the courage to act tonight, and nothing would stop her. Brushing a strand of hair behind her ear, she waited patiently as Weiss unlocked the door.
It was late; as Blake had planned, pushing their workout furth and further into the evening until even the ever-energetic Yang was begging for rest. Ruby was standing closer to Weiss than usual, letting her head fall onto Weiss' shoulder every time they came to a stop. For her part, the heiress was too tired to protest, and let the girl nod off on her.
Pushing open the door, Weiss entered with Ruby close behind her. Yang stood back and motioned for the raven-haired girl to enter before her, and Blake nodded her thanks as she stepped across the threshold. Just as she had hoped, Zwei was curled up on her bed, crumbs littering the blanket around the small animal as it slept away.
"Ugh, Zwei...again, really?" Weiss mumbled.
Feigning indifference, Blake waved it off nonchalantly.
"Just let Zwei have it tonight." She said.
Immediately three pairs of eyes turned to her in surprise, but Blake had already thought up the perfect excuse, having anticipated this reaction.
"The sheets already smell like dog." She said. "I'm not sleeping there tonight, and I'm definitely not staying up late enough to do laundry. I'll do it tomorrow, meanwhile, he can sleep out the night there."
Weiss raised an eyebrow, but otherwise said nothing. Ruby, on the other hand, opened the fridge, looking at Blake as she did so.
"So where are you going to sleep?" She asked.
This, Blake didn't have an answer to. Not that she hadn't anticipated it, but she couldn't think of something that made sense. It was better just to wing it, she had decided.
"I don't know." She replied honestly. "Preferably somewhere that doesn't smell like dog."
Ruby looked up at her own bunk, then her shoulders drooped. "Ehh, I've had Zwei in my bed before, mine's out."
Weiss nodded. "Mine's a no go too, Zwei used to live on my bed." She shrugged apologetically. "Plus, I don't share blankets very well."
Ruby shot Weiss a look over the top of the refrigerator door, but it's effectiveness was diminished by the fact that her mouth was full of banana bread and crumbs littered her cheeks.
Blake turned to Yang, but Yang was already pulling herself up into her own bunk, laying down with her back to the group.
"Wow, Yang, really tired eh?" Ruby mumbled, following Blake's gaze.
A soft groan was heard, and then silence for a few seconds.
Weiss' gaze slid from Ruby to Blake for a split second, and just as she was about to re-offer to remove the offending animal, Yang's soft voice cut through the air.
"If you're gonna sleep with me, get in here." She said, pulling back a corner of the blanket, not bothering to turn over and face the three girls still in the kitchen.
Blake could barely contain her excitement as she hauled herself up onto the top bunk above her currently canine-infested bed, and with her heart hammering in her chest, she slid under the blankets. Yang dropped the blanket, her back to Blake, and her hand returned to her side.
Blake's sensitive ears could hear Ruby snickering softly, and then suddenly silenced as Weiss hissed at her. Ignoring them, she shivered softly as she pulled the blankets tighter around her, rubbing her legs together as she tried to create some warmth.
"Cold?" Came Yang's sleepy voice, and Blake opened her eyes to stare at Yang's back, inches from her.
"Mmmm...a bit." She muttered softly in reply.
Heaving a tired sigh, Yang slowly rolled over until she was facing Blake. Their eyes met as Yang nuzzled into her pillow, getting comfortable, before she spoke again.
"Turn around."
"Huh?" Blake asked, heat stealing over her cheeks as Yang studied her closely.
"Turn over." The golden-haired girl reiterated, raising her hand and making a spinning motion with her finger.
Blake complied, turning around and sliding her arm underneath the pillow they shared, wondering what was going through Yang's head.
Now facing away from the wall, she could see Weiss tucking herself into her own bed across from her, and Ruby had climbed onto her bed at the top of the bunk. She was currently leaning against the wall, "reading" a book as she kept sneaking looks over the top at Blake and her sister, Yang.
Suddenly, there was an arm around her waist-no, her hips, as Yang reached quite low around her hips and pulled her roughly closer. Blake let out an embarrassed squeak as Yang tightened her grip around Blake's hips, fingertips digging into her soft skin as she pressed her chest against Blake's back. Burying her nose against Blake's neck, she inhaled deeply, slowly, before waves of heat began rolling off her skin, courtesy of her Semblance.
"Now, go to sleep...Blakey." She murmured, lips tickling the back of Blake's neck and sending a very different kind of heat through her body.
An uncontrollable tremor rippled through her body, and by the way Yang's lips curled into a smirk on the back of her neck, Blake knew that Yang had felt it.
Her embarrassment level was exceeded only by her relative comfort as heat pooled through her body, soothing her aching muscles and lulling her to sleep.
Just before she nodded off, she was faintly aware of Ruby squealing in delight; which was quickly silenced with a swift kick to the mattress from the girl in the bunk below her.
Ruby leaned up against Weiss' shoulder as they both sat on her bed, and in a rare moment of peace, Weiss didn't shy away from Ruby's touch. Raising a cup of hot chocolate to her lips, Ruby hummed softly.
"I wonder how Yang is sleeping through that right now." Ruby muttered, taking a sip.
Blake had somehow shifted during the night, and was now facing Yang, pressed as close to her as the lithe Faunus could get. Her forehead was pressed against Yang's throat, and emanating from the raven-haired girl was the loudest purr any of them had ever heard.
"She woke us up, that's for sure." Weiss agreed, reaching over and taking the cup from Ruby's hands. Raising it to her lips, she took a sip, shooting the dejected girl a sly look.
Ruby frowned, then grabbed the cup back, holding it close to her chest as she shied away from Weiss.
"Really?" Was all Weiss had to say, folding her arms over her chest and raising an eyebrow in disbelief, before Ruby was pressed back to her side.
"That's what I thought." The smug heiress said, putting an arm around the girl.
"Seriously, how is she still asleep?" Weiss whispered.
"I'm not." Came Yang's soft, sleepy voice from the top of the bunk. "But she is, and if you wake my partner, there will be hell to pay."
Author's note: I'm really starting to thoroughly enjoy the Bumblebee. Reviews, thoughts, criticisms, prompts, it's all welcome. Hope you enjoyed.
