The silence that followed Salem's exit, still laden with a living woman in her belly, was unbearable.
The hanging threat upon Oscar's life… and indeed, all their lives.
Salem had said it was painful. Poor Neo, whatever sins she had to her name, was still alive and slowly dying where no light or comfort could reach her.
Oscar, since paralyzed with shock, flashed bright green. "Ruby… I want you to know… none ever reached as far as you just did. It feels right now as though you've failed… but not even I managed to make her question her own convictions. That she let you try to heal her of her corruption… I'm only sorry that it wasn't a success… You have nothing to be ashamed of."
Ruby's eye met his own. She didn't feel any less awful, although she appreciated his words.
"Hey…" Yang said, stirring suddenly. "The hell is that supposed to mean? You're talking like we're giving up! Like we're just gonna sit here and wait for her to come throw us back like milkshakes or some crap! You heard her, we have a few hours! Let's blow this heap!"
Weiss perked up slightly. "We… could steal that airship we came in on?"
Blake shook her head. "Does anyone know how to fly it? Because Maria's going to be holed up at the school waiting for us to come back, and Oscar's last shot was a crash landing."
"Who CARES?!" Yang burst. "We wing it! What other choice do we have?! Better down in flames than down her hatch!"
Oscar's head nodded. "Of course, Yang… we're just being pragmati—"
"Nah, screw pragmatism!" she shot back. "Uncle Qrow is dead! Jaune? Ren, Nora? You think they'd want us to be 'realistic' and just roll over?! To hell with that!" she argued, eyes glassy as her voice broke. "Besides, we're the last shot, aren't we? Without us, there's no one else to stop her!"
Ozpin sighed. "James and Glynda will fight on… but as we've established, I've been less than honest about what they're truly up against."
"Yeah, thanks again for that one," Yang deadpanned.
"Yang!" Ruby admonished at last. The others turned to her, Yang especially floored as her own name rang against the stone walls. "You're right, we're not giving up. But if we don't find a way—"
"But we will—"
"IF WE DON'T FIND A WAY," Ruby insisted, "...if we don't find a way out in time… this is Oscar's last few hours alive. And our last day."
Ruby caught Ozpin's discerning eye.
"Oh! Not to leave you out of—"
"No… no, Miss Rose, you're not wrong," Ozpin said, a distant smile on his face. "That I might die is no tragedy. I'm quite prepared for it. Accustomed to it even. Oscar is the true victim here… and barring any place I can be of use, I'll relinquish command to him until the time comes."
Weiss shook her head slightly. "Wait, you have magic! Can't you… blow open a wall, unlock a door? Anything?"
Ozpin gave a breath of laughter. "Perhaps under other circumstances. But these walls are held together with farm more than stone and mortar, and Salem lived with me for several of my lifetimes. She is acutely attuned to my magic. I dare not even test her bounds unless we're certain, lest we alert her. Ideally, a subtler solution would be best."
"And she'll never stop chasing us," Blake added. "The second she knows, she'll send every Grimm for miles at us.
"We have my eyes," Ruby suggested, "but I don't know how much I can use the Light before I'm flat on my back…"
"Guys…" Weiss broached. "That's all well, but we're forgetting about Oscar."
"Right," Ozpin said, "I'll take my leave then…"
Another flash and Oscar was back, eyes blinking rapidly as he rolled his shoulders.
Yang sighed. "Okay… so anybody have any really unambitious bucket lists to check through? Oscar, anything to get off your chest if we don't… y'know… make it?"
"Er…" Oscar intoned, put on the spot.
Yang hummed, expression not changing. " 'Make it,' " she said, grimacing. "Actually, I hate to take her advice… but… anyone here still a virgin?"
"Uhhh…!" Oscar uttered, catching Yang's eye and blushing as he gave a slight nod.
"Yang…!" Weiss hissed.
"What?" Yang asked. "You want to die all pure and junk?"
Weiss might have breathed fire. "I am not a virgin!"
Yang snorted. "Seriously? Okay, spill it… Who?"
"It was… the night of the dance," Weiss admitted, flushed crimson.
"Oh my god, you put out for Neptune?!" Yang laughed.
"I'll have you know he was a complete gentleman!" Weiss shot back, a deeper red.
"Yeah, goofball gentleman," Yang clucked. "You have him again before we left Mistral?"
"Shut up!" Weiss cried. "Okay then, how about you?"
"Aw, nobody you know," Yang sighed, the most at ease she'd been all day. "Had a few conquests in Vale… With a bod like this, it's not exactly hard… just… nothing really ever stuck after round one, know?"
Ruby slumped. "Are we seriously talking about this…?"
Yang's expression fell slightly. Her eyes shifted to Blake. "How about you, any saucy stories?"
Blake grimaced. "Plenty experienced there… Adam and I met shortly before Sienna took over six years back… I was smitten with him… and… a year later, we started meeting and… getting physical…"
Weiss' fingers fluttered, and she mouthed silent words as she did the math in her head. "Hold on… So five years ago… Blake, you're barely eighteen! So you were thirteen, and he…"
"Seventeen, when we started."
"Oh my g— Blake what the hell!"
"Look, nobody regrets it more than me!" Blake said. "I was a young girl, he was tortured and gorgeous, and he wanted me. I thought I was in love, and… y'know… the whole forbidden love thing… Look, I was an early bloomer anyway! Reading has always been my hobby, and books are a quick shortcut to a sexual awakening… Except for in Ruby's case, apparently…"
Ruby shrugged. "I mostly read fantasies and adventure novels…"
Yang sneered. "Wow, much as I want to throw up now, I no longer feel any guilt about putting Adam on ice. He was bad before, but total pedo creepy—"
"Okay!" Blake groaned, her ears folding angrily. "Focus, guys! So what are you getting at, Yang? We pair off two people with no feelings for each other, turn around and just plug our ears?"
"Yeah, you go from 'never say die,' to full 'last blaze of glory,' stuff," Weiss noted, no less comfortable.
Yang shrugged. "If you don't want to, then don't… But if we don't figure this out in time, Oscar's the last shot anyone in this room has at feeling a man's touch, so to speak… Oscar, if nobody else volunteers, I'll help you out, 'kay?"
Oscar went puce. "Um, whoa! Don't I get a say in this?"
Yang's face went blank. "What, you don't want to shack up with this?"
Weiss' eyes widened. "Uh… Yang… you called Adam a creep… How is this better?"
"What? I'm not forcing myself on him… and he's not that young."
"Yang, I'm not seeing the difference," Blake droned.
"Besides, do you have… protection?" Weiss asked.
"What's it matter? If we don't get out of here, who cares?"
Weiss blew a hair out of her face. "I think you're also forgetting the major detail of the whole 'Ozpin' thing…?"
"Oh," Yang croaked, her pupils shrinking, "Oh god… right… What am I thinking?"
Weiss' nostrils flared. "Well somewhere your thoughts went from your spleen to your clitoris, so…"
A green flash overtook Oscar. "I know you've little reason to trust me," Ozpin said, "but don't let that deprive Oscar of a life experience… particularly one he's too shy to admit himself quite keen on— SHUT UP!"
Ozpin's calm cadence suddenly swapped to Oscar's, but only for a moment.
"Excuse him… I know it's not my place, but Miss Xiao Long, it's not your company he wishes to keep, flattered as he is— STOP TALKING, NO NO NO NO— But I'll let him arbitrate that… I can effectively lock myself deep in Oscar's thoughts. I'll be unreachable, and incapable of entering into any… experiences he may have at the time. What you do with the next two hours will be entirely up to he, yourselves and the four walls."
Another flash and Oscar was back, clutching his head. "Gone again… like before.."
Yang realized she was holding her breath and let out a heavy sigh. "So, a holdout, huh?" she asked. "So that's new for me... Alright then, stud, who's caught your eye?"
Oscar chewed his cheek, eyes looking every place but at a person. "I… I've been… I haven't…" He took a deep breath. "I haven't been able to get you out of my head since you walked into the room back at Mistral… Ru...by…"
Yang and Weiss' mouths turned into enormous 'O's, staring between each other and Oscar. But Ruby's eyes practically sparkled, her mouth shrunk, her nose reddening on the spot. "M...Me…?"
Oscar found her eyes and shoved his own to the floor. "Y-you're incredible… You're inspiring… you're beautiful… I've never met anyone like you… and I'd never expect someone like you to even notice someone like me, an—"
"You're wrong…" Ruby said, meekly, chin down.
Oscar's eyes bulged. "I'm… I'm… what?"
The others expressions became still more comically floored.
"Oscar… you're just as inspiring to me," she clarified, the redness reaching her ears. "Being a Huntress, a hero… it's all I ever wanted to be. I worked my whole life to get this far. For me, hearing the world needed a few people who could brave the storm… It was an obvious decision. We lost people. Friends… There was no other choice to be made!
"You… Oscar, you're a boy bounding in off a farm to answer the same call, with no proper training, no friends or family tied to Huntsmen, no people to honor by furthering their fight! But you still left your life to fight with us, because it was the right thing to do…!"
"And… y'know… Ozpin kinda needed to be here…"
Ruby smiled, shaking her head. "Oscar, when I see you facing the same dangers as us, I feel convinced to fight even harder, because if you're brave enough to wade into the darkness… what excuse do the rest of us have?"
"I-I mean…"
"Plus you're… really cute," Ruby admitted, going cherry red. "Like… you're adorable…"
Oscar looked as though he'd downed a bottle of malt liquor. "I'm… I'mma…"
Though their bonds were still locked behind their backs, Ruby motioned to her corner. "Oscar… you want to sit by me…?"
"Y-yeah!" he spluttered, shuffling over as well as he could manage. She'd sat upon her knees, and he took up a pretzel style in front of her.
Yang, meanwhile, scooted over near Blake. "Well this is nice and neat, huh?" she opined, big sister instinct taking root. "Two lovebirds with one bone…!"
Weiss raised her eyebrows. "You realize this is Ruby we're talking about? You expect two dorks who just learned they're compatible to jump on each other and do the deed?"
Yang's smile vanished.
"So, uh… hehe…" Ruby broached. "...how did you want to… Oh! First we'd need to… M-my undies can… but your belt, we'd have to…"
Oscar sighed. "Ruby, hearing what you said… I could leave the world happy, just knowing that. We don't need to rush, or act like we need to catch up on a lifetime's worth of experiences… If it's alright, I just want to sit with you…" he said, looping his bound arms under his backside, then leaning back to raise his legs until he managed to loop over those as well "...and maybe hold your hand…?"
Indeed, Oscar had managed to bring his hands to his front side, finally of some use to him.
Ruby prepared to take it, cooing at his utter sweetness… until Yang's boot struck between Oscar's shoulder blades.
"Oaoof!"
Oscar landed on the crimsonette, bowling her backwards. The boy found himself caught up in the ruffles of her skirt, and his extended palm on something soft… and compromising.
Ruby stared between his face and his hand, feeling a distinct tingle in her chest, linked to tingling… elsewhere.
Oscar sat up immediately, removing his hand as if burned. "OH…! Ruby, I'm sorry, it was an acci—"
His words were lost as she made a herculean effort to sit-up and reach him, puckered lips pressing against his, her eyes slammed shut.
It had lasted only a second, and she rolled back against the hard ground, staring up at him pleasantly flushed.
"You guys better be looking the other way!" Ruby cried past him, and they promptly heard a shuffling.
"Have fun, sis!" Yang called, following Oscar's example and slipping her arms underneath herself.
"Oh my god, they're really going for it, aren't they?" Weiss realized suddenly. "Is no one else really uncomfortable with this? I don't want to hear your sister losing her virginity!"
Blake joined them to search every crack in the walls. "Then distract yourself. We all deserve at least one last bit of joy… Let them have theirs."
Ruby's demeanor melted as she looked back at him. "Oscar… come here…"
"...O-k-k-k...kay…" he agreed, looming steadily over her. "Your hands are still behind your…"
She shrugged. "I trust you… Besides, it's quirky that way…"
"Kinky!" Yang corrected, "Proud of you!"
"Ignore her…" Ruby groaned. "You want to… get closer…?"
Oscar nodded, gently settling onto her, his manacled hands above her head. She lifted her knees, gently funneling him between them. Face to face, she smiled softly up at him. "So… what now?"
"Uh… what?"
"What are you going to do?" she clarified.
"I… I'd like to kiss you…" he said, leaning closer.
"Yeah…?" she asked, raising her head.
"Y...yeah—"
He was cut off as her lips found his, and he sank down with her, breaking away before he pressed in again. Her kisses were brief, puckered pecks, as a parent might give her child on their way to school. Nearly innocent. She smooched away at his lips and cheeks in equal measure. Oscar had never experienced anything like this, but even he suspected himself more privy to this aspect of courtship.
Although what was occurring from the neck down was another story. Oscar had been hugged by Ruby before, and he knew enough that despite her frequent naivete, she was surprisingly developed physically for one so young.
As such, chest to chest with her bosoms and soft belly was dreamlike, and she was clearly enthusiastic about it, because all of the above were intent on gyrating under him to rub her body against his.
He tried to match her, even as he sought a more proper kiss, though cautious of his hips. Her knees had trapped him, and it was only the fluffy cloth and frill of her signature skirt that kept his real thoughts at bay.
He finally managed to pull her bottom lip into a full-mouthed kiss, and she cooed as she melted into it, catching on rather fast and following his lead.
Oscar noted that Ruby never wore lipstick, or gloss, or anything to accent her appearance. And that made this moment all the smoother and sweeter.
She broke away only to catch his eye, giving him a bashful command: "Lift my skirt…" she whispered.
"Lift…?"
"It's in the way," she clarified, leaning in to hide her face in the crook of his neck. "Come on, we can't both be shy…!"
He nodded, bright red as he pressed up enough to lower his hands between them. He clasped the hem and tugged up, revealing a sea of bright red. Ruby giggled at his confusion.
"You'll have to undo the hooks," she explained. "A combat skirt has a layer to keep naughty boys from looking up it… but I don't think you're a naughty boy, so…"
He nodded shakily, fumbling with the clasps looped into the skirt's underside. Meanwhile, Blake's ears twitched as the others continued searching the walls.
"Your sister is being…" Blake began, searching for the right words, "...surprisingly forward with him."
Weiss turned. "Ugh… you're listening?"
"These ears aren't for decoration, Weiss," Blake groaned, pointing. "I can't really help it."
"She's too shy to make a move herself," Yang explained. "But yeah… she must really like him."
With the anti-upskirt tech removed, Oscar was face to face with her again, the skirt itself bunched-up at her belly. His hips hovered over hers nervously. She kissed him, giggling. "Come here…"
"W-what do you mean? H-how much closer could I—"
Ruby briefly rolled her eyes, before her legs lifted and her boot heels hit the small of his back.
"Oghff!"
Oscar felt himself fall flat against her, eliciting a gasp. Her eyes went unfocused, staring passed him as she went red. He analyzed his position. He could feel himself on the soft flat of her hips. Warm… so incredibly warm…
He felt her breathing deepen. "I-is that…?" she asked.
He knew exactly what she was asking after, but pulling away, her boots only pressed harder into his back. Likewise, her hips rose to brush against him, and she gave a shudder before her eyes closed and she reached in to kiss him again.
He followed her motion, and she groaned as his own hips ground into her. They carried on. She squeaked into his mouth with every little motion as they touched. But eventually she broke away, nuzzling into his cheek.
"What are you gonna do next?" she whispered.
"N-next? I'll… kiss you?"
She chuckled against him. "And then…?"
"I'll… touch…"
She mewled into his neck. "Where are you gonna touch…?"
"Y-your…"
She nodded. "Uh huh… What are you gonna touch it with…?"
"I-I-I…!"
She wormed her way up, and whispered directly in his ear as he shuddered. "Take off your pants…"
Oscar barely noticed the enormous, embarrassed grin plastering Ruby's face as she squirmed away from his gaze at her own suggestion. He was too busy sitting in utter shock, giving the barest twitch of a nod before he leaned back, his belt clinking as he unbuckled it.
Ruby bit her lip as her cheeks reddened. "Oh my gosh…!" she breathed. Her hands fiddled behind her as she lifted back the hind side of her skirt. She hooked under the waistband of her panties and tugged.
She barely looked up when she heard the zip and rustle of Oscar's pants. Then she glanced down as he stopped, shivering, and saw…
Ruby's eyes rolled high, face going absolutely scarlet. "Oh my GOSH…!"
"U-um… so…" Oscar stammered, leaning forward. "Now…?"
"Come here…!"
Oscar obeyed, lifting his shackled hands over her head. She lifted her own, and continued lifting her back as he slipped his hands behind her. He found her own hands at the small of her back, and she clasped his sweetly.
"You ready…?" she asked.
"M-me? But you…"
She reached up and kissed him. "I'll be fine… just take it slow… You know what to do, right…?"
His lips slammed shut. He nodded, not meeting her eyes.
She sighed happily, coming cheek to cheek with him. "Whenever you're ready…"
He took a breath, and fidgeted with his hands behind her, lowering his hips.
Both gasped as he felt the heat of her bare skin below, and she felt something soft and firm nudge her delicately.
"L-lower…!" she told him.
Oscar obeyed, pulling back until he felt something squishy and velvety. He pressed into it.
"Mmmmf!" Ruby moaned, biting her lip to keep silent as Oscar prodded her sacred nub.
"A-are you hurt?! I'm sorry… I—"
She shook her head. "No, too good…!"
"Oh… okay," he said, then pressing more firmly.
Ruby's back arched as her hips stabbed at the sharp sensation, and she screamed into his neck to muffle the sound.
"LOWER…!"
"Huh…? But you said it felt—"
"Yesbutit'snottherightplaceLOWER!"
Startled, she felt the tip drag down again…
Oscar, attempting to comply and not blow the whole arrangement, felt himself catch once more on some part of her sticky flesh. He saw her eyes were suddenly like saucers, and made to apologize and continue lower… but as he tried, one of her hands squeezed.
"R-Ru…?" he stammered.
"Th-there…" she told him.
"Ok-kay… Do you want me to…?"
She gave a small but definite nod, closing her eyes and pursuing her lips expectantly.
As he sank into the kiss, Ruby felt the soft firmness at her valleys below press slightly with his shifting, and moaned into his mouth. She felt him shiver, and she did likewise. Ruby Rose was not a sexual being like her sister. The only real contact she had with her inconvenient crevice was her monthly bill, and otherwise she'd only masturbated a few times ever, and largely in the past year.
...The past few months, in fact.
So feeling foreign flesh try her little ring was odd, and intense, but it had only been a moment.
Their kiss was shallow, until she felt him squeeze her hand. She squeezed back.
"MmmmmmmmMMMPH…!"
In a slow, but deliberate motion, she felt the intruder surge inward. Her little ring suddenly throbbed with heat, pain and that soaring sensation like pure sugar. She could feel her insides, glued together from neglect, gently splitting to house his tip. He was inside her…
A slip past the vice-like entry, and he was inside her…! 'That was it,' Oscar thought, as Ruby's body tried halfheartedly slamming its door on his metaphorical foot. Otherwise, he felt her flesh suckling on him, as inviting a kiss as what her mouth was enjoying with him. She was so warm inside… He wanted more of her heat.
Blake's ears perked as she, Weiss and Yang examined every hinge and bolt in the entrance for weaknesses. She flushed pink. "Uh… Yang..?"
The blonde was frustrated, tapping every broad bit of steel. It was all solid. "Come on, there's got to be some… What, Blake?"
"J… Just thought you should know, your sister's not a virgin anymore."
Weiss groaned. "You're sharing this why?"
Yang blinked. "Well that was… quiet… Guess it's not like he'd be that big, huh?"
Weiss' face told a thousand tales. "And why are you interested?!"
"She's my sister."
"Exactly!" Weiss blurted. "You should want to destroy Oscar, not cheer him on as she's defiled!"
"As a little sister yourself, I think you're projecting, Weissy-hot…"
"Ugh…!"
"Mmm…!" Ruby moaned, eyes snapping open, breaking the kiss as she felt the warm intruder wedging her apart on the move. "Aaauh…!" she quailed, as the pressure filling her ramped up at a startling speed. Her tense gates slickened the mass manifesting between her legs as it fed itself inside, and as wondrous as it was she felt a tinge of fear from the pressure, and the tension as she felt it widening.
But in seconds she felt his thighs settle against her own, and knew the mystery was over. This was all of him. She'd taken all of him. She would have sighed in relief, but her breath still hitched as she worked to keep herself from squealing. Still, she was relieved to know there was an upper limit to the explosive sensations, as she tried adjusting.
Knowing how small her little lady tunnel was, she was astonished to find it felt like she'd been filled with a baseball bat. She throbbed around him, and the ring of her entrance did likewise, if in complaint from being so put to work after all these years of virginity...
Oscar was deep… Ruby was like an ocean inside, with waves of slick, hot velvet gripping him in ripples. He could have kissed her, linked like they were, for hours.
But Ruby broke from it, shaking like a twig, eyes rolling back and closing as she squeezed him. Breath ragged, her eyes opened and locked with his.
Somehow, in her haze she felt his hand squeezing hers again. There was a nervous tinge at the idea, but she knew exactly what he was asking… She slowly nodded.
"Auuuugh…!"
Electricity ran up her spine as he drew out of her, stretched-out muscles singing as they slackened in her belly… and then he slowly plunged back in.
"Aaaa— Au-ahh…!"
She swam in dopamine as he bottomed out again, her limbs twitching as he paused.
"Mmmmdon't stooop…!" she groaned, blushing as she realized the thought had actually escaped her lips. She didn't regret it though… Oscar was keen to obey.
His pace increased dramatically, and as such her euphoria couldn't fade. She squeaked and chirped with every thrust as her innards were jostled and jammed.
Ruby didn't like to acknowledge the sexual things she heard in movies, and for a long time she thought the whole affair was gross. But she had to admit, as Oscar was ever coated in her nectars, the term "polish his pole" felt ever more applicable…
Likewise, Oscar delighted at his crush mewling beneath him. The idea that he could inspire such feelings in her was sweeter even than her soft, supple flesh as he dipped into her honeyed heaven.
In fact, it was all too much… too wonderful, and he couldn't find it in him to resist.
"Nghh! U-ughhhhhh…!" he groaned, locking his hips into hers as his nerves exploded, hands digging into her waist as he rode out the storm of his own making.
Ruby heard Oscar, slightly confused as he slammed into her and stopped. The cutout to her tap of pleasure awakened her from her addled state enough stare down herself, even though she couldn't actually see past her bunched-up skirt.
The only sensation she could feel in it all was a throbbing inside, beating like her heart, but out of sync with it too. A warmth was seeping through her, utterly unfamiliar. Oscar was gasping on top of her.
"Oscar…?"
"I… I'm sorry, I…"
"Hey!" Yang shouted from across the room, suddenly incensed. "Don't think you're done, kid! She hasn't had it yet!"
"O-okay, yeah, I can…" Oscar stuttered in panic. She felt him slide, suddenly unbelievably slick inside her.
And then it clicked with her, exactly what just happened. Oscar had popped inside of her… filled her with his…
She practically glowed red as she tried to think of a more polite word, but 'baby juice' was all that came to her, and it was somehow worse.
But all thought was obliterated as Oscar leaned in and kissed her, and she moaned into his mouth as he began thrusting again and again…
"Oh eww!" Weiss commented, nose wrinkling. "I can smell… her…"
"Focus on the task at hand, then," Blake told her, her own face flushed. "But… seriously Yang? If we do get out of here, Ruby could be pregnant."
"Yeah," Weiss agreed, "and you think she's the type to get rid of it? That girl is way too romantic for that."
Yang growled. "Look, we'll cross that bridge when it comes! I just…" She calmed down considerably, taking a breath. "I just don't want her to miss out, okay? If we really can't save this…"
"Well you're gonna have to cross it," Weiss said with a huff. "Because we're getting out of here."
Yang's eyes met hers, and she offered a smirk.
"OOOOOOOOGHHHH…!"
It had been two hours. Ruby climaxed for the third time, straddling the boy as she rode him. Oscar had tired out after they'd made love several times, and so they flipped sides to let her try. Both of them were sticky.
Ruby cooed as she lifted off him and he slipped from her insides. She got on her side, cuddling up to the boy with a giggle. "I think I really like this whole thing…"
Oscar, still dead exhausted, turned slowly to look at her with exasperation. Ruby's enjoyment couldn't have been less of a mystery to anyone in the room. Weiss might have caught a whiff of her sex before, but Ruby's feminine musk now pervaded the entire hall, and all of those not directly involved were quite busy pretending not to notice.
But suddenly there was a green flash, and Ruby stared back into eyes that weren't certain where they were. "Did I come at a bad time?"
Ruby, though quite hidden from the waist down, scrambled to slip her underwear back on, blushing all the harder for the 'squish' she felt once she had. "Uh…! N-not as bad as it would have been a minute ago…"
"Oh…" Ozpin said, suddenly aware of his exposure, and its wetness in the cool air. "I must admit, I hadn't in my wildest expected you'd use the time to this… extent."
"We, uhhhh…"
Ozpin immediately turned away, fastening Oscar's pants and trying to ignore the young woman's excretions on his… person. "So, might I ask what we have?"
Blake's ears actually perked up, and the others smiled at each other. "We have this spot." Blake said, tapping her foot towards the middle of the room.
"Yes?" Ozpin encouraged, not following.
"It's a blind spot between these Aura crystals," Weiss explained. "We can actually regenerate here."
"Yeah, we build up," Yang added, "kick my semblance into high gear, and break for it!"
"Wait, your semblance?" Ruby asked "But doesn't that mean..."
"It means these two are gonna rough me up some, and then I put my foot through one of these walls."
"Personally, I'd recommend the door," Ozpin opined. "You're likely to only have one shot at that."
Weiss nodded. "And then straight for that airship. I remember the way well enough."
Yang stretched her arms over her head with a sigh. "Alright, no pulling punches," she ordered, standing straight and offering her chin. "So Weiss, what are we talking with Neptune? Bratwurst, or cocktail?"
"I beg your pardon?!"
"Either way, surprised you sacked him at all; didn't think he swung that way. I mean, he is deathly afraid of getting wet."
Yang's head swung as Weiss' fist connected with her jaw. The blonde only shook herself a bit before bobbing on her toes. "Oh come on, I bet your daddy spanked you harder than that…"
Weiss leered, blushing. "For the record, I know what you're doing… You're still a twat for it though…"
"O… Ozpin…?" Ruby asked, distracting herself as they all waited, Yang being repeatedly struck by Weiss and Blake, who in particular seemed conflicted over it.
"Hmm? Yes?"
"I…" Ruby began, feeling foolish. "You've… died before, right?"
Oscar's eyes softened, nodding to himself imperceptibly. "Yes."
"And… in Jinn's vision, you mentioned…"
"...The Afterlife?"
She nodded, feeling dirtier than at any point in her escapade with Oscar. "I just… what's it all like?"
He sighed. "Dying itself can be… terrifying, at least at first. You know you're fading, nothing feels right, and all your mind wants to focus on it. Humans are unique in their capacity to recognize death when it comes for them.
"Death, however, is remarkably oversold. The last moments are as gratifying as surrendering to your pillow after fighting all day to remain in the waking world."
Ruby couldn't help but smirk, though she wasn't wholly reassured. "And the…?"
"The Afterlife is at once as splendid as could be preached in any gospel… and also terrifically mundane. All reality is laid bare, surrendered to the every whim of yourself and others. Your will creates and reforges your surroundings from moment to moment. You're capable of doing or experiencing quite literally anything."
"Hmm," she sighed, trying to conceive of it. "And the mundane part…?"
"After a while, your imagination begins to fail itself. Faced with the ability to do anything, even the ethereal mind runs out of ideas. This is, at first, easily alleviated by taking part in the paradise of others… but eventually you crave risk, challenge. Humans thrive under adversity, Miss Rose. In the Afterworld, while our whimsy can conjure situations to limit or challenge us, it is inescapable to know we can come to no true harm, and that no scenario we place ourselves in cannot be swiftly defeated with but a desire. Ultimately, a game isn't fun if you know you can only let your opponent win…"
Ruby and Oscar felt at once relieved and discouraged. It was bitter medicine to know even paradise lost its luster.
"Okay…!" Yang groaned, half woozy. "I think… I think that's the best we can do without breaking my Aura all over again."
Weiss nodded, looking to the others. "I bruised my knuckles… Are we ready to go?"
Ruby and Oscar shot up to their feet. "Yes," Ruby said. "We only get one shot at this, sis…"
"Yeah…" Yang said simply, hesitating before she blinked, eyes burning red.
With a dash, Yang threw her punch, the steel door buckling like it wasn't there at all.
...On the other side was a dark green wall… or what looked like one.
Startled, Yang swung again, but a huge arm shot out and held her fast. "She said you might try that…" Hazel Reinhardt grumbled, before tossing her back inside with a grunt. He turned to heft a stone slab in front of the doorway.
"Wait, PLEASE!" Blake shouted.
"We'll DIE!" Weiss added, devastated by this turn of events.
Hazel didn't respond, and Yang lost all composure, bursting into tears and hammering on the slab with her bare fists. The knuckles of her left were quickly turning red.
"It's miserable, isn't it?"
Everyone turned. The door to the rotunda had opened without their notice, and Salem's red eyes fanned over them all… but they held on Yang. "The lingering hope you let yourselves have. Foolish."
Ruby looked to Salem's flat midsection. "Neo… she's…?"
Salem idly swept a hand over herself. "Gone. What were you expecting? Come, Ozma…"
With a gesture, Oscar cried out as he was tugged by some invisible force. Ruby reached for him, too late.
"SALEM, WAIT! DON'T DO IT!"
She couldn't share a single word with the boy before the door shut on her, and Oscar disappeared with the old Witch.
"I've wanted you like this for a great while, my love… Stop hiding behind the boy." A clawed hand hovered over Oscar's face, and the farmhand felt his consciousness forced to take the back seat.
"I'm not hiding," Ozpin sighed. "The 'boy' has precious time left… Am I to take from him what both of us have been given in such tragic abundance?"
"You're the one who doomed him," Salem retorted. "Though, rid of you, he's unlikely to have much life left regardless."
"It surprises me that you care," Ozpin seethed. "So keen to judge me for the people I've failed, when you never cared for the ones who came after."
Salem leered. "I don't care. None of these neuters left after can mean anything after my beautiful children… You're the one whose heart hammers every time you think on your sins against that rabble, even as you carry on treating them for pawns… Pathetic, how well my needling works on you…"
"Perhaps I was wrong," Ozpin suggested. "I was so afraid of how willing you were to do harm, and the influence you could have on our girls… But I never imagined what you would do in your fury…"
"What I…?!" Salem began, eyes widening in anger. "You had already poisoned them against me, and so they were already DEAD! Like every ignorant you spur to your heel!"
"You ignore your part in it," Ozpin stated, shaking Oscar's head. "Is this mourning, then?"
"You think I have no heart?!" Salem demanded, looming. "I see our daughters' ghosts ripple throughout the ages, and even used against me as another skin cloaks itself in the power we gave them! You think I, not disgusted to look upon Cinder, wearing the soul of our little one?! Yet you demand I countenance this monstrosity to reach your trinkets… And I am the unfeeling?"
"Yes, I had hoped it would dissuade you," Ozpin admitted. "But to say I forced your hand… you truly are incapable of looking inward, to mending your own ways…
"But how can I blame you? I robbed you of any call you had left to be reasonable… and for that, generations have suffered."
Salem scoffed. "An admission of failure… I suppose that's as near to my desire as could be had… Now shall we become one, for the last time?"
"Wait…" Ozpin asked, closing his eyes.
She raised a brow. "Were you not the one spouting off about an overabundance of time?"
"No, I was," Ozpin agreed. "But the boy is blameless in this. I'm certain the fate you have in store for me precludes my reincarnation… and I'm prepared for it. I was prepared the moment we were captured.
"But Oscar has not shared in my sins, nor does he deserve my fate. I don't expect you'll let him survive… but spare him the worst."
Salem fixed him with a long, piercing stare. A hand reached out to palm the boy's cheek… which shifted to cover his mouth. "As you wish…"
"G-good… goodbye, Oscar…"
Oscar Pine screamed into the hand as it pried his mouth open, and he felt something awful and wrong as every nerve ending flowed up and out. It felt like his skin was being flayed off. He convulsed, barely aware of his surroundings.
And then it was over.
In an instant, he had only the phantom of the pain in him as he fell back. Above him, Salem's fist shuddered as it clenched, a green glow around it receding as she sighed.
Oscar shivered uncontrollably. He felt nauseous… empty… and utterly alone. He barely could remember what he was doing there.
"You're free, boy," Salem told him.
"W-what did you do…?" Oscar asked. "Why do I feel so…?"
Salem paced idly, calmer and quieter than even she generally was. "I've spared you… It wasn't simple, of course. It was beginning to muddle, that line where he ended and you began. I had to take a bit more of your soul than his. Couldn't risk missing anything. But congratulations, child: you're free from his curse, and entirely yourself now."
Oscar couldn't help it. He almost felt betrayed. Cut away completely, forced to eek out the remainder of his time alone. The one consolation in all of this was he wouldn't die alone… "I-I… feel sick…"
Salem nodded. "Yes… Sadly, there's no point saving you beyond this. What's been done to your soul is beyond mending. So torn, you'll not last. But all will be well in the hereafter… Now come…"
Salem's form shot up again, the same size as when she consumed Neo. He vaguely recalled how he and the woman were roughly the same size with a chill. His shackles dropped off and his clothing shredded like paper around him, suddenly freezing.
He felt himself lifted to his feet, but unable to support himself. It didn't seem to matter to the Queen, who readily supported his spine and cupped a hand under his backside, pressing him against her… surprisingly warm body.
As much as she had labored to rid him of Ozpin's person, Oscar felt a flash of memory. A flash of the love Ozpin felt as they bore their four children… It brought him immediately back to not hours ago, happily conjoined to Ruby as she lay beneath him…
The thought was enough to accompany him, as he was raised up, a waft of breath upon his face. He was still terrified… but at least he should get out of the cold…
Salem's lips engulfed the boy's head down to the neck, guiding him to the pit of her throat until she'd sealed them upon his shoulders. He only groaned in her mouth as she slathered his head and hair. The lacking resistance was convenient, but curious to her.
She swallowed.
'Mmm-mmph…!' Oscar groaned from her esophagus, twitching in surprise, and for a moment Salem was certain the lad would realize his situation and fight her. It had happened before, as her throat was stronger than it seemed, and infrequently a wakeup call for victims who thought themselves brave or resigned.
But even as his sternum settled onto her tongue, teeth threatening to graze his navel, he seemed to settle rather than panic. Probably he understood he was already fading. No point fighting the inevitable. With such compliance and no womanly hips to work past, she could finish him rather quickly… if she chose.
Though as much as she could imagine savoring him, she did have an awful lot to get to today. It wasn't nothing for her to devour so many and digest them so fast, and as such she didn't do it often. In fact, Cinder only knew about this penchant of hers because of what she'd done to Cinder's predecessor, having failed one too many times. Perhaps this was why dear young Emerald had regarded the Queen with such fear.
Either way, Ozma was already gone, victory assured. She could afford to indulge this base instinct for a day…
The boy groaned as she worked his ribs down, arms stuck, but placid. Her lips glided over his smooth midsection as her hands held under his knees.
And then, taking another deep swallow, she felt something hook her bottom lip as she drew in his hips.
Oh dear.
Well that might be another cause for the boy's calmness. She let her mouth yawn wide to admit him down to his buttocks, his head oozing down below her chest. She let her tongue press up.
"Mmmmmm…" he groaned within.
Ozpin's thrall was rigid in the loins, his hips worming between her jaw and pallet in the first selfish act he'd made so far.
She… humored him, lavishing him with her tongue to prepare him for descent, but subtly running over his virility. She was forced to linger, though, as she detected an abundance of another flavor there.
Salem did not particularly abide women lying with women, but having consumed a number of nubile maidens —of the non-magical variety— she was quite aware of the flavor of a woman's carnal essence.
The boy was slathered in it, basted in pungent nectars trailing to his thighs. It seemed the boy had taken her advice, and known one of those girls quite vigorously.
It wasn't done in pity either. The lucky girl's honeys ran readily, it seemed. It was love quite requited. Admitted. Fulfilled.
She felt a twinge of regret. It was hypocritical of her to take the lass' love like this… but it couldn't be helped. The boy would die, and nothing could change that.
She couldn't hear him anymore, he was too deep. Still she felt the rumble of his voice as another flavor graced her tongue, his member pounding against her muscle.
She blinked, half amused, half resigned. That's quite enough of that.
Salem seized his ankles and pitched her head up, swallowing in earnest. She got her throat around his hips, and from here the rest of him was little more than formality. His thighs were drawn down, the shapes in her neck undulating as it conformed to then. Then the knees…
Before Oscar could do more than groan in harmony with the stomach enveloping him, his feet were in her mouth. Salem could scarcely deliver the final swallow, as the boy himself pulled his legs the last of the way through, and began to settle inside.
Salem shrank back down, massaging her belly, laden with the boy. She sighed. "It's a shame. Truly. Though I cannot wholly attribute the ease of your consumption to obedience. A part of you quite enjoys this…"
"Mmm… mmmhmm," Oscar agreed.
"The girl… your love… Who was it?"
Oscar was silent a moment. "Are… you going to hurt her if I tell you…?"
Salem took a breath. "Aside from a slow and agonizing digestion, you mean?"
"Please…"
"Ah-ah-ah," Salem admonished. "No greater harm will come, but their fate is as certain as your own, child. Take heart… she'll join you in eternity soon."
"...Ruby… I love… Ruby…"
"The Silver Eyed girl?" Salem concluded, brow rising. "Yes, I suppose you would. I'm surprised a girl like her would surrender her chastity so… Humanity seems to change every time I blink.
"Settle in. I'm to understand it's easier if you try to sleep… but I cannot promise that you won't suffer."
The doors opened again, and the four ladies' hearts sank.
"O-oh no…!" Weiss moaned, slamming her eyes shut against the sight.
"Oscar…" Ruby whispered. She couldn't stop it. She stared at the lump in Salem's middle. She saw it twitch. Her friend was in there, still alive. EATEN.
Her hand covered her mouth as she collapsed onto her front, but her fingers clawed into it as she felt herself shaking, and she couldn't stop the tears. Her teeth gnashed as she noisily breathed through her nose.
"God… DAMN IT…! You evil BITCH!" Yang blurted, slamming her still-bloodied knuckles into the stone.
Salem blinked. "You were quite aware what was to happen. In fact, you're lucky the boy is so whole, while the man… Well… the man's worries are quite over, in this or any world."
Those who could bear the sight stared.
"What… what does that mean?" Blake asked, herself fighting not to let Salem see her tears.
Salem sighed. "I did what I could not to dole the same fate delivered unto Ozma. Their souls are separated again. The boy will enter the Afterlife quite normally, rather than join his captor in oblivion."
Yang growled. "If you're so worried about saving him, then why'd you still EAT HIM?!"
"Rending a soul isn't something you walk off," Salem explained, weary she had to do so again. "In doing so I saved his immortal soul, but nothing can prevent the consequences. The boy will die, regardless what happens."
Ruby couldn't help betraying a sob. He was dying… He was all alone and dying…
"Girl," Salem said unhelpfully, "the boy's lover?"
Ruby dared to look up. Salem took it as acknowledgment.
"He's still quite alive for now. I will take my leave… but in the interest of comfort… will you speak with him a final time?"
Ruby stared, on her knees now. Salem's hand beckoned her close. Ruby nodded.
Yang shuffled, ready to get to her feet, but Weiss and Blake each put a hand on her shoulders. "The hell, you want thirds?! Don't listen, Ruby!"
But Ruby couldn't ignore the offer. Shaking, tear-streaked, she walked over to Salem. The Witch put a hand to her cheek, making the girl flinch, but slowly let her ear be guided and pressed against the burgeoning belly.
Ruby listened against Salem, the rushing noises from within indiscernible. "O-Oscar…?"
The solid mass stirred against her. "Ruby…?"
She couldn't help but gasp, and her tears ran fresh. "Are… are you okay…?"
"...N-no… it's… it's dark in here, and it's starting… nggg! It's starting to burn a little… I-it's okay though. You heard what she said, nothing can stop it now. I… I have to go away."
Ruby shuddered with tears, trying what she could to hug the awkward mass. It wasn't lost on her that Oscar himself had shrunk down when Salem returned to proper size.
"Ruby, d-don't… it's okay, I'll wait for you… on the other side… however long it takes…"
"I'll find you…! I-I promise…!" Ruby said, her eyes wetting Salem's front.
"Ruby… I love you…"
She gave a loud sniff. "I-I… l-l-love you t...too…"
"That's enough," Salem said, turning to leave, and leaving Ruby to kneel there, stunned and shaking. "I couldn't keep a clear conscience without letting you both say your goodbyes."
"Salem, pl—"
The Witch turned on a dime. "Are you going to simper and winge at my feet for every life in this room, girl? Carry on and I'll silence you until your time is come…
"Also," she added, her eyes locking with Yang's, "you're next…"
The girl in gold froze. Her nails dug into her own palm, nearly breaking skin.