IMPORTANT LIFE UPDATE THINGY: From Wednesday Feb. 18 to Monday Feb. 23 I will be vacationing in Orlando, Florida. My family has a lot of things planned, so it is unlikely any chapters will be posted during that time. As of such, I am going to try to marathon as many chapters as I can during these next few days.
Because of this "marathon schedule", chapters may not be as long or as in depth as they normally are. Please be considerate in the reviews.
Anyway, onto the chapter.
It was a day like any other when Blake's pregnancy caught up with her.
In Goodwitch's sparring class, Blake and Weiss had both volunteered to be combatants - Weiss because she wanted to improve her skill with Shock-element Dust and Blake because she really needed to hit something.
As always, Goodwitch demanded for the match to begin, and the two combatants took their stances.
Conjuring a glyph beneath her feet, Weiss was the first to move, and everyone looked in intrigue as the silver glyph turned a vibrant yellow and sparks ran up the Heiress's clothing and blade. She channeled it all away from her, in a concentrated arc towards the Faunus.
Blake expected that, however, and created a shadow to push her out of the way. The second the lightning struck, the clone disappeared into cinders, but Blake was ready. She rolled under the Heiress's guard and swept the mage off her feet, giving Blake an opportunity to strike her with Gambol Shroud's hilt.
Unfortunately, Weiss was too fast and managed to conjure a glyph, launching her away. In midair, she created another glyph, this time a cyan one at the tip of her sword, and pointed it directly at the Faunus. A spire of ice came from the ground, trapping Gambol Shroud within it mid-swing,
Blake struggled and struggled against the ice, but it was thick enough so that it had the consistency of steel. She could not break it, no matter how hard she tried or how much aura she expended, and made a mental note as Weiss landed behind her.
Because of her Faunus heritage, Blake clearly heard the sound of electricity sparking behind her. The hair on her neck stood up from the air's ionization, the sign of another powerful Shock-element attack.
Blake jumped up, using Gambol Shroud's hilt as a lever to propel herself upwards, leaving behind a clone to take the arc of electricity. In the brief moment between the hit connecting and the clone being incinerated, however, the clone had managed to use the heat of the lighting to melt the ice and toss the real Blake her blade. Catching it in midair, she registered in her peripheral vision a bright yellow light, indicating more lightning was coming.
However, just before she hit the ground, a wave of vertigo struck her. She landed and stumbled, and between the spinning of the room and the feeling in her stomach, she barely registered the bright sphere of ball lightning approaching her at breakneck pace.
It struck her right where her neck met her chin, causing her hair to stand up on end and knocking the cat Faunus back. She hit the ground hard, a loud crack echoing through the air, and skidded an extra two meters after impact.
Blake lay on the ground, sparks dancing along her clothing and wisps of smoke exiting her nose and mouth. A small bit of dried saliva hung from her mouth under her chin, and a thick red welt was forming on her neck where the blast had struck her.
"Blake!" Weiss yelled, and joined Goodwitch in running towards the Faunus's limp body. The two mages examined her in concerned fashion, checking her pulse, feeling the welt, and, most of all, trying to confirm that no damage had been done to the baby.
"I'll take her to the infirmary. You stay here." Goodwitch spoke firmly, carrying the unconscious Huntress in her arms.
"Yes, ma'am." Weiss said sadly, and watched dejectedly as Goodwitch raced out of the classroom, Blake in tow.
"NURSE! NURSE!" Goodwitch yelled upon entering the infirmary, beckoning the nurse over, "Blake Belladonna's been hurt!"
"What happened?" the nurse asked, placing Blake on a stretcher.
"She was electrocuted in a duel with Weiss Schnee." Goodwitch explained, "Weiss assumed she would dodge, so she charged a powerful attack based on Shock-element Dust. It struck Belladonna in the neck - right where you see the red mark."
"I see." the nurse said, "The best way to deal with this would be to-" she began, inspecting the Faunus's body, but stopped when Blake opened her eyes.
"Ugh..." she groaned quietly, "Professor Goodwitch? Nurse? What...ugh...what happened? Why is my throat so dry-" She was cut off by a brief bout of coughing, smoke and embers exiting her mouth with every cough.
"Weiss Schnee shocked you." the nurse explained, "I wasn't there, but can I ask, Ms. Belladonna, why didn't you dodge?"
"I had a bought of vertigo." Blake croaked in a raspy voice, "One similar to those I came to see you about two months ago."
"I see." Goodwitch mused, "Well, Ms. Belladonna, when the nurse finished inspecting you, I'd like you to join me in Ozpin's office. Until then, I have a class to teach." With that, Goodwitch turned on her heels and walked out the door.
The nurse thoroughly inspected Blake and the fetus inside her, making sure none had suffered any serious harm. It was likely that the burn on Blake's neck would take a while to heal, but the fetus was unharmed due to a split-second (and likely instinctive) application of Aura. Knowing that she was unharmed made her feel good, though, Blake did have a headache and incredibly dry throat from the heat of the blast.
After all was said and done, however, Blake found herself slowly walking up the stairs to Ozpin's office. She already had an idea of what the headmaster was going to say, and she dreaded it deeply.
Knocking on the door, she recoiled slightly as it opened automatically at great speeds. She still felt a little disoriented after the shock, however, having been given a drink of water and minute to rest in the infirmary had helped her greatly.
"Hello, Ms. Belladonna." Ozpin said, "Please, sit down." He was sitting at his desk, facing away from her. Goodwitch stood next to him, though, it was evident from the closed scroll in her hand and the direction she was facing (looking Blake dead in the eye) that she had not been talking to Ozpin for several minutes.
Ozpin spun in his chair so that he was facing Blake, and rested his arms on the table. His cane fell gently out of his hands so that it was leaning against the arm of the chair, a feat of dexterity that briefly surprised Blake. "The professor here was just telling me about the events that transpired in your combat class. Would you like a drink?" Ozpin said, gesturing to the teapot to his right.
"No, sir, I had a drink in the infirmary." Blake responded curtly, resting her hands in her lap.
"Shame. I was hoping to use that thing, hasn't gotten drank out of in ages." Ozpin joked, causing the Faunus to bite back a grin. "Ms. Belladonna, you are not the first, nor, I suspect, the last, student to become pregnant at Beacon." Ozpin inflected staring at the student, "Because of this, we have established a procedure and set of rules to follow in these cases."
Blake nodded. She was vaguely familiar with these things, though, as she had never expected herself to become pregnant, she had not read them.
"At the start of the second trimester, about 14 weeks after conception, we place students on a no-fighting roster." Ozpin said calmly, "This means that students may only observe in fighting classes, not participate, and that the students team will be suspended from away missions requiring four or more people."
Blake felt her stomach drop - her predictions had been right. She was going to be placed on a no-fighting roster, no matter how much she pleaded or begged. She was going to be banned from combat.
"You are only thirteen weeks in, if you indeed become pregnant at the dance," Ozpin continued, "Under normal circumstances, this would mean you would have one more week before you are placed on the roster. However, in light of today's events, Professor Goodwitch and I decided to...expedite the process, ever so slightly."
Rage soared in Blake's mind. How could he? her hormone-driven thoughts yelled, Why would he?!
"Thank you, professor." Blake muttered, a cold rage obvious in her voice. The room shook slightly when she spoke, a sign of her Aura building. "I'll be sure to remember that." She turned and walked out of the room, her heels clicking on the tile.
"She took that rather well." Ozpin joked, standing up from his chair and walking to look out the windows in his office.
"She most certainly did not." Goodwitch replied, joining him in his position, "Did you feel that Aura? I had no idea students were capable of that."
"There is an old urban legend," Ozpin stated, "that says that a pregnant woman is capable of accessing her unborn child's Aura. The greater the addition of Aura, the greater the potential of the child."
"And?" Goodwitch asked.
"And if that legend is to be believed, then the child Ms. Belladonna has inside her will be a very powerful Huntsman or Huntress someday."