One month, not too bad considering I had to rush a lot of work and balance out my life.
Most of you told me you liked the previous chapters while others thought it was weird and hated Blake for it.
Uhh... okay, weird to have a mixed response for once, but I'll take it!
Enjoy!
"Heh... what a weirdo." The tall teenager snickered like a hyena while being surrounded by four or so others just like him.
"Freak!"
"Bastard!"
"Kick his face in!"
"Just look at him squirm on the floor! Hah. Pathetic!"
"Fuck 'em up real good man!"
"Make sure to grab his wallet! Maybe you can finally win that busty chick over when you treat her out for dinner. If you catch my drift."
Trust...
Wasn't something that should be given to someone easily.
...
I had to learn that the hard way.
"Urrrgh..."
"Wha-? Looks like he still has fight in him yet."
"Stop... "
"... Is he... begging?"
"Telling you... Not... begging." I snapped back.
I felt a knee bury itself in my midsection, before an elbow cracked my shoulder blade and caused me to tumble flat on the ground.
A sole permanently planted itself on my back to stop me from getting back up.
"I'll be the one deciding when I'll sto- Huh...? Yeah... yeah. That could work."
I looked up defiantly.
"Tell you what. We'll stop once you use all the money in your bank account to treat us to that new arcade that just opened up..." The delinquent grabbed a handful of my hair to lift my head up to meet his sights. "Whaddaya say?"
"That's my money for the month... So... "
"So... " He raised his leg to make sure I had a good view about what was what about to befall me by twisting the soles of his shoes threateningly. "That's a no then?"
...
And thus, I trusted no one.
"Look, he's tearing up!"
"Crybaby!"
"Worthless piece of shit!"
Not even myself.
"Wise of you to assume these tears shed are of my own... Or better yet..." Darkness clouded the edges of my vision. "Meant for me."
"Check out Mr tough guy!"
"What is this guy talking about? Hah!"
"Grk..."
"Spread his legs wide open for me... I'm about to end this."
"Hold him still."
But...
"Do you have eyes? I am holding him s- Stay still-! Ugh!"
"Wait... who are you-? Why-! AAAAARGH!"
"My arm! My fucking arm!"
"I can't feel my legs!"
"Ugh!"
"Fuck!"
...
...
"Are you... okay?"
"Sort of..."
Just like everyone else...
...
"You didn't have to do that..."
I was doomed to repeat it.
"They deserved it. You really okay?"
"I'm... fine. Why'd you help me?"
Was it a blessing or a curse? I have no idea.
Was I really so susceptible as to trust everybody I meet?
Maybe.
...
But...
"Self-satisfaction of seeing assholes like them suffer."
"How can you be so sure that it wasn't me provoking them to beat me up?"
Maybe.
Just maybe...
That wasn't such a bad thing at all...
"..."
"Are you serious...? Who in their right mind would do that?"
Someone who has no control of his actions...
Someone... who wasn't himself.
...
"What're you gonna do now?"
"I think I'm free for the rest of the day... Where do you wanna go?"
Streaks of light split my vision in two as my eyes burned to let the brightness in bit by bit.
Slowly and painfully, my eyelids fluttered open.
The muscles from head to toe were tense and aching, while the first breath I took felt heavy and musky like I was breathing through a pillow stuffed with sand.
"Ugh..." I grabbed onto my skull which felt like it was pulsating- no, pounding and beating the side of my head. My vision was blurry and faint traces of distant ringing echoed in my ears. "What... happened?"
"You kidding?" An all too familiar, unamused copper-skinned woman had her arms crossed on a door frame. "You nearly died..." Even through amber eyes, I can see Evans glaring directly into my soul. "Again."
Oh...
Right.
"I... have no... recollection." I tried.
Her glare told me she saw right through me.
"I hit my head really hard?"
Her glare hardened to steel.
"Well, I'm still here aren't I?" I brushed off, causing her to shoot a disgusted scowl, roll her eyes and click her tongue. "And looks like you patched me up," I added after a quick glance downwards at my mummified torso. "So I don't see the problem."
"Do you have... ANY idea how much you made us worry?" She pointed at me accusingly, causing me to somehow shrink a little despite being laid flat in bed. "I won't always be here to do this!"
"Hey hey," I held out both hands in front of my chest. "No need to shout."
Instead of responding with words, she threw her arms up in the air, and then pointed towards the side of the bed.
I stared at the tip of her finger and slowly traced an imaginary line to see...
Dark hair spilling over the edge of the bed and cascading down to the floor, while familiar feline ears poked out of the sides.
Her neck was pale as snow and her whole body was lax to near lifelessness, the entirety of her face buried into the mattress without any sign of waking up any time soon.
Hunched over with a wooden stool pulled to rest on the side of my bed, was no other than our resident cat faunus herself.
"More of a reason not to shout." My voice turned into a hoarse whisper and nodded towards Blake, pulling the blanket over her shoulders that, somewhere during all this, fell on the floor.
Poor girl must've been tired after encountering the White Fang like that.
"Look closer dickhead."
I took one glance at the back of her head.
She was still in her combat outfit, but nothing else was out of the ordinary.
Silky raven hair that smelled fresh of lavender, her breathing at a steady pace like any normal sleeping person would.
I shot him a puzzled look.
Both a shoulder and an eyebrow rose and fell in sync.
"Look. Again." She gestured impatiently at the sleeping faunus.
Raising a brow, my eyes slowly roved down and scanned at the cat faunus who was my...
Friend?
Close friend?
Girl...friend?
I don't even know really.
A few weightless words blurted in the heat of the moment didn't mean squat if it isn't accompanied by actions.
It was too early to say we are a thing.
We hadn't had a chance to be romantically involved, more so go on a proper date.
And with too much to do, I couldn't even come to think of an opportunity as to when we could do something like that.
Blake must've realized how focused I was attempting to keep us all out of harm's way, which may or may not be the reason why she went to deal with the White Fang threat alone.
With Adam presumably on the loose and the Relic of Knowledge still locked behind doors, something trivial like that happening wasn't going to be anytime soon.
I shook off such distracting thoughts and squinted my eyes to focus on what Evans really wanted me to see.
I gently reached down to slowly poke the side of her cheek.
She let out a slight groan, but to my relief, it wasn't a pained one.
Came out in way better shape than I did, in any case.
I couldn't help the sigh that slipped past my lips, knowing that she wasn't harmed in the slightest even after the shit hit the fan.
Or... maybe I was just happy that she decided to stay after all this.
A few more times of continuous poking just got her to raise her hand to swat the disturbance away, before it slumped back down.
At that moment, it's safe to assume that she was pretty much out cold.
Slowly, I applied more pressure on my finger, enough to tilt her head at a slight angle.
A purple-shaded gleam that spread across her face caught my attention.
Ah...
That's what he wanted me to see.
Her orchid eyeliner trailed all the way down the sides of her face, soaking up the once white bedsheets with a puddle of dark ink that spilled to the sides of the bed.
Tear stains...
Dark circles underneath her eyes...
Probably red-rimmed beneath those eyelids as well...
Ruby, who I hadn't realized was there until I heard a light and shaken snore, was on the opposite side in no better condition.
After taking another glance at the room, I realized that almost everybody minus the boys was present, most having fallen fast asleep on each other's shoulders, with the bags under their eyes telling me they didn't have an easier time resting either.
Yang had her chair pulled up on the wall near the foot of the bed, splaying her crossed feet out in front of her with the chair's backrest facing me, leaving little to no space for people to pass without getting through her first.
It was as if she was attempting to keep Ruby out of reach from something...
Or someone.
"They cried themselves to sleep." Amber explained unnecessarily as she nodded towards the two girls at my sides. "You were out for three days straight."
Three days?
"Do you really want to keep doing that?" She asked with the roll of her eyes. "They're gonna run out of tears at this rate."
"Someone had to take the fall." My face turned deadly serious. "Adam isn't an opponent we can ignore." I stared into his eyes. "You know this."
"Yeah, but at least wait for Qrow to come and back you up?" She rasped, finally allowing her voice to dip down to a more subtle volume. "At least someone on par else stronger to handle the job with little to no casualt-."
"And risk him running away without giving him a good first impression to remember for months to come?" I asked sarcastically. "Qrow doesn't have the guts due to Summer, and Raven wouldn't even bother batting an eye at such trifling matters that don't concern the safety of her tribe. You know this."
A hiss escaped my lips as I wriggled to get my body out of the bedcovers.
Both Ruby's and Blake's heads dipped a little as their ears passed the road bumps that were my knees, but luckily the rustling and squirming didn't seem to bother them at all.
I struggled to sit upright but eventually managed to drag myself up when it was clear Amber wasn't going to give me any support this time around.
"Besides," I cracked my neck. "Both Qrow and Raven are busy saving the people on that list. They won't be back for a while, with tonight probably being their earliest convenience."
She gritted her teeth in frustration as she tried hard to find a loophole, an alternate solution with the path that has the least resistance.
"So unless you have a good excuse in mind to come to your little dorm all bruised battered and bleeding with your real body without drawing suspicion," I paused, letting his pondering expression turn into a defeated glare. "I was a necessary sacrifice, the only logical solution."
"Both Team RWBY and Team JNPR wouldn't come out unscathed, even if we sent someone as powerful as Yang or Pyrrha." I added on. "Adam uses his own Aura to penetrate others. No amount of Aura can outtank that."
"And working together in a team doesn't do you fancy?" She challenged. "It was ten against one. Twelve if Sun and Illia had wrapped up earlier."
"He'll either hold one of us hostage, most likely Ruby, who'll probably freeze like a deer in headlights, and use that to escape. Or worse," I added. "Either get a limb nicked off or this-" I pointed at my blood-soaked bandages. "Happening to her the second time this year." I shrugged off. "They're not ready."
Her shoulders finally relaxed as she let out an unsatisfied sigh.
She'd finally given up.
His signature smug wasn't projected on Amber's face, and her lip was drawn into a thin line.
Her expression, while seemingly flat to others, was very much readable to me.
Desperate.
Defeated.
At a loss for words.
He knew I was right.
"That edgelord knows your face now." She pointed out. "He'll find you."
"You think I don't know that?" I scoffed and crossed my arms.
Doing that must've pulled a muscle because, at that exact moment, I felt the gaping hole that Adam left behind which surged with a burning sensation that quickly spread like wildfire throughout my ribs.
My nerves decided to helpfully support that thought and amplified the pain, reminding me of how painful Adam's Aura-induced stab was.
The moment my back touched the pillow, the other side of the wound also flared with a sharp pain that felt like a bad sunburn that launched me forward to avoid any further damage.
"The whole plan relies on him not having one. He won't be able to take us down one at a time this way... " The bedsheets were lightly pulled up as I curled my fingers, grasping tightly like my life depended on it. "Not if we find him first."
"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much about that. He'll find you."
I stared at her when the serious expression she tried so hard to retain cracked. "What did you do?"
"Let's just say... I took an eye for an eye a bit... literally."
"I don't like the sound of that." I shuddered at the niggling feeling Evans isn't telling me something.
The self-satisfied smirk she kept on her face didn't help ease any doubts I had.
And it doesn't seem like he'd spoil the surprise for me.
It was just like him to do that.
"You shouldn't." She agreed with a solemn nod.
"You didn't offer Amber's body for him to toy with so that he'll leave us- more specifically Blake, alone did you?" I grimmaced.
"Seems like you slept well enough if you get to joke like that." She sighed as a small smile graced her lips. "Though what I was doing in your dreams, I have no idea." Her eyes slowly roved below the waistline before raising a brow. "Nor do I want to."
"No connection." I rolled my eyes, before my cheeks burned bright red at the thoughts of what would happen then and there if both Blake and Ruby had woken up at this exact moment and misunderstood or get confused at the situation respectively.
"It's all natural," I coughed into my fist. "I assure you."
"Suuuure..." Amber drawled as she lifted her arms and stretched.
"Just... a blast from the past." I admitted finally after a full minute of silence as I gazed out the oriental-shaped windowpane.
A gentle gust blew the hair on my face as the smell of fresh mint gardens that decorated the balconies wafted through the afternoon breeze.
The rays from the setting sun had yet to fade, and instead, the big dot of orange that turned the air arid resided over the pinnacle of Haven Academy, giving view to the plaza below that was currently under construction from the bout I had with the Albain brothers.
They didn't hold the charges against us, which was great considering we probably couldn't afford to lose any more time at the moment.
Tree branches rustled while the wind that blew through the leaves hummed a lovely tune. Petals from what looks to be a cherry blossom of some kind wafted down and somehow managed to balance themselves on the edge of the window sill, before toppling over and drifting into the unknown below.
Shadows moved on the edge of my vision, causing me to look further down and hone in my vision at a scene unfolding before me. My lips slowly drew down to a frown.
"You know, that fateful day... The day we met." I specified, my brows furrowing. "Do you regret it?"
"What's with the sudden million lien question?" Amber raised her brow curiously. "Would you rather I drank a flute of champagne before joining them in beating the ever-living daylights out of you instead?"
"No... it's nothing." I admitted. "It's just that if there were more people like me," My eye flicked in her direction before turning back. "Would you have done the same?"
"Hmm..." She stared out the window.
Once she saw what I was staring at, her throat let out a low rumble that almost made it sound like a purr.
If I didn't know any better, it might as well have been mistaken as somewhat seductive.
Unfortunately, her expression didn't support that fact and I knew him all too well.
It was more of a frustrated growl.
"Ah, well, this looks familiar." She cracked her knuckles.
On a playground, where a small wolf faunus was being ridiculed by four or so others for having sharp ears and a tail if the way they were pulling at both external features were anything to go by.
"What a coincidence." Then, as an afterthought, she added. "You think laws for child abuse transfers over from Earth?"
"I would assume so." I nodded without altering my line of sight as the younger boy was kicked in the core even as he was downed. "Not like you'd listen to my advice if I'd say no."
"Would you though?" She raised a brow.
"What?"
"Say no," She pointed out the window. "To that?"
My lips twisted into a cruel smirk.
"Just don't break any limbs." I snickered without a second thought.
"They're young and Aura exists for a reason here. They'll recover." She smirked back as she turned on her heel and headed out. "Twenty lien says they'll resist."
"Double says they'll stare and try to negotiate with a booty call." I called out.
"Triple says I'll kick their asses before they get a chance to catcall!" I heard her call out behind her as the falling footsteps sounded more and more distant.
I chuckled as my hands roved down to stroke Blake's ears.
I can see the small twitch on her lip as a small smile slowly formed on her face.
She started to snore as she drifted into a peaceful slumber.
"Thank you."
Tormented screams filled the air and reached my ears like a sweet lullaby.
Shift
"I have a lot of explaining to do," I said with both arms lifted up. "I know."
"What was that?!" Ruby cried with tears threatening to spill out of silver orbs.
"You could've died!" Blake echoed.
"You said you could handle it!" Yang chipped in.
"I technically did." I shrugged. "I never said I could face him alone and win, only that I could handle the White Fang."
They didn't look impressed. Even Pyrrha, who's the biggest hypocrite of the bunch if the way she gave me that fed-up look was anything to go by, looked like she was about to impale me to the wall with Milo and continue the rest of the journey without me.
"I did disperse them enough for both teams minus Weiss to take them down didn't I?"
"Okay, that does it." Yang shot up from her couch and crossed her arms. "Blake and you can't ever leave our line of sight. Ever."
"Technically Blake still could use her semblance and leave a shadow clone in place to escape." Dwiki pointed out.
"Should we put a bell on her or something?" Nora suggested. "It would look soooo cute!"
"No!" Blake scowled Nora, before steeling herself at Dwiki who looked lost in his own thoughts when he stared back, either not taking the hint or succumbing completely to his healthy teenage imagination.
Kevin and Derrick both leaned as far away as they could when drool started to trail down the edge of his lip and dripped down to his lap.
"That goes against the stereotype." Kevin countered, causing Dwiki to snap out of his thoughts and stare incredulously in his direction. "Also I don't think our boy Louis would appreciate you staking the claim and putting tight bonds on the li'l kitty cat before he does."
My eyes strayed as far away from Blake as humanely possible, and she no doubt did the same.
Was it just me or did the room just get hotter?
Do bells even come in human size?
No.
But she'll look cute with a choker on...
Bad Louis!
Get that mind out of the gutter!
"That was... straightforward." Yang admitted with rosy cheeks of her own.
"Nobody is putting anything on anybody."
The door slowly creaked open as Evans in the form of Amber strutted casually into the room.
Everybody stared at her incredulously.
"What?" She raised a brow, casually wiping blood off of her knuckles and ignoring Dwiki's desperate pleas not to use his clothes hung nearby the door.
Yang inched closer to Ruby and tilted her body towards her in a way that would block incoming harm, while both Pyrrha's and Ren's shoulders seemed to have stiffened, eyes desperately darting around as if they just realized they didn't have their weapons nearby.
Jaune raised a brow but wisely chose not to question it, all while I leaned forward, closed my eyes and sank into my linked fingers before me.
"Nice of you to join us when we needed you most brother." I chuckled. "Here I thought the topic was getting out of hand."
Blake scooted a little bit closer to my side.
Did I miss something...?
Why were they all so way around him?
"Louis and the rest of you dispersed the splinter group and no doubt the memes or, more commonly known as news, of Adam being scared shitless by a regular human of no known status will spread through the ranks." Amber explained. "Blake was only there to clean the mess she felt she was responsible for via the White Fang."
Blake's head bobbed up and down furiously, all too happy to agree.
"So as long as Adam is the only threat left to deal with, she has no reason to split off anymore." Amber's eyes slowly roved to Blake. "Or I hope that's the case."
"That is very much the case!" She gushed.
"Gee, I wonder whose fault that is..." The blonde brawler glared his way, before flinching at the sight of his fingers.
Her arms seemed to tighten around Ruby's wrist, and I sent a concerned glance the reaper's way when she didn't seem to whine about breaking her arm where she did before.
That white-knuckled vice looked way too tight to be comfortable.
"Anyway..." Amber carried on and ignored it when the looks they were sending her switched from cautious into somewhere between mortified and speechless. "I've arranged it so you could retrieve the Relic of Knowledge come the morrow."
"What did you tell them?" I raised my brow.
"That I know of Raven's whereabouts and that we could possibly strike a deal." She snickered. "Even if Em or Merc caught on, I doubt they could run all the way to Haven to grab it before you do."
"And if they find out...?"
"Raven's a bandit Lou." The ex Maiden deadpanned at me. "I doubt they would lay it all on me if Raven decides to go back on her word."
"And Watts?" I pointed out.
"Should follow more logic than feeling." She shrugged. "It's not like him to follow his guts as long as it's in his- or more specifically, the Queen's, favor."
"Qrow and Raven have yet to return." Derrick said. "If they're not back by tomorrow morn we're doing this without them. Even with Evans's help, we should still err on the side of caution."
"For now, rest." Kevin dismissed. "Big day tomorrow. And don't worry about them slipping away again." He added, jabbing a thumb at the both of us. "The only place they'll be slipping into is each other's rooms."
"Pffffft!"
Dark coffee ran down Dwiki's unamused face.
"What?" He smirked. "It's true."
"No! It's not!" I glared his way.
Blake nervously looking away didn't do anything to calm my nerves.
Right...?
"I'll be in the guest room if any of you need me." I said quickly, before I got up and briskly walked away.
I didn't see Blake shuffling uneasily behind me.
Nor did I see someone meeting her eyes and giving her a grin.
Shift
I heard three soft knocks land themselves on the door to my room.
"Come on in."
Long, raven hair graced the edge of my vision, before feline ears poked through the door, flicking left and right as if to detect whether or not anyone else is in the room.
My heart hammered against my chest as blood immediately rushed to my cheeks.
And elsewhere I would rather not disclose.
Keep your thoughts straight!
Keep your thoughts straight...
I said thoughts! Not muscles!
I rushed to quickly grab a blanket and pulled it over my waist.
"I-is it a bad time?" Blake called out. "I... I could come back another time if..."
"No!" I nearly shouted. "No no, I... it's nothing. Just... close the door behind you and lock it please?"
Then I realized how wrong that sounded.
"Or leave it open!" I followed up after I heard a gurgle erupt from her throat. "Or ajar, anything that makes you comfy."
"O...okay..." She muttered under her breath as she quickly poked in her blushing face and peeked through as if to confirm I was clothed, before letting herself in completely.
And closed the door behind her.
Think straight...
Look into her eyes.
Think straight...
She stayed quiet as she meekly sat down to the bed across from me and stared down on her lap for what felt like the longest time.
"Uh..." I cleared my throat when Blake didn't look like she was about to start. "What is it?"
"m..."
"Come again?"
"... m'... stupid... rry..." Was all the jumbled words I could get out of her even though she was no less than a few meters apart.
"You're gonna have to speak up." I smirked. "I don't have sensitive hearing like you do."
"... Right." She smiled and wiped the tears out of her eyes with the palm of her hands. "Sorry, force of habit."
She sniffled, and then steadied her breathing before looking into my eyes.
"I was being stupid... thinking I could survey the White Fang alone as I usually do and solve everything by myself..." She said in a shaky voice, before looking at my midsection, and stared at it as she let out a shaky breath. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be." I shrugged off. "I did say that we'll be there for you. And we were."
"Still," Her shy demeanor died an ugly death and an annoyed scowl replaced her features. "What you did was more stupid."
"It worked." I countered.
"You blew up a warehouse!" Her arms flailed in the air. "In the middle of Mistral!"
"Yang and I tore through a plaza and I don't see you complaining."
"That was because it was mostly due to Corsac and Fennec!"
"Uh, no. Pretty sure that was mostly us." I admitted with a sheepish shrug. "Or more specifically, our attempts to attack them and missing."
"You..." She shot up and clenched her fist.
She took one step toward me, which was more than enough to make me take a step back, only to realize I was sitting on the edge of a bed.
"Hey hey," I waved down. "Calm down now, no- Mmrh!"
Her lips slammed into my own.
The moment my eyes snapped open and I saw her face in front of me, I couldn't help my mind from feeling clouded and hazy.
The way she took initiative, the way she dominated my mouth, I felt stunned and helpless as she climbed on top of me, rode me down till my head hit the edge of the bed, and nearly rolled off if it weren't for her arms securing my shoulders in place.
The scar Adam gave me burned painfully, but it was muted almost immediately by the way she put her legs on either side of my hips and wrap her arms around my shoulders, squeezing it into a deadlock I can't escape from.
Not that I want to.
My arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her in as she deepened the kiss, made easier by her taking full control, and I let ecstasy flood my mind while I felt her soft, full, and experienced tongue.
Every breath I took in felt like fresh steam and sweetened nectar flooded my tastebuds.
She pulled away before I fully succumbed to taking it further.
The haziness in her eyes told me she only stopped because she was as out of breath as I am.
"All it takes to experience this is a near-death experience huh?" I asked huskily once I reclaimed the air from my lungs and recovered from the mind-numbing pleasure, before rolling my tongue out and lapping up the edges of my lip like it was covered in chocolate fudge. "I could get used to this."
"Idiot..." She chuckled softly, as out of breath as I am.
Then, she did the unexpected.
Her hips bucked.
"Blake..." My breath hitched as the very thoughts I tried to keep out in the first place came rushing back like a tidal wave. "I don't think..."
"Why?" She whispered in my ears as her hands slowly moved below my clothing, her sharp claws digging into flesh as she gave it a gentle squeeze. "If it fits... " She purred seductively. "I sits."
My eyes snapped open.
"And... " I sat upright, catching her off guard and causing her to let out a startled yelp. "Just like that, you killed the moment."
She tried to avoid my eyes now that I'm meeting her on somewhat equal level.
Her lips formed an adorable pout. "It worked the first time..."
I rolled my eyes as I delivered a peck on her cheek. "How desperate are you to have taken tips from a degenerate lolicon?"
She stayed silent and looked like she was about to pass out from embarrassment.
"You might've caught me by surprise first time around, and though you did look really cute in what he suggested you to do- what are you doing?" I raised a brow when she tried to lift her hair to pretend to tie a ponytail as she held her signature bow with her lips.
She stared into my eyes expectantly.
I sighed.
"If you wanted me to kiss you you could've just said so." I chuckled, before cupping her face with both hands.
The skin on her face was soft and warm, while her lips were still glistening with the mixed moisture she gathered before.
Her eyes gleamed like fresh caramel, surging my senses yearning for its sweetness even as I've tasted it not even five minutes ago.
Her cheeks couldn't get any redder at that point, causing her jaw to drop, along with the bow that spilled down her thigh before cascading onto the wooden floorboards below, before I slowly leaned forward to press my lips against hers.
There was no force.
No dominance.
No raging hormones, lust, or festering carnal desires to force one out of their comfort zones unless one or the other allows it.
I savored the feeling as I tasted the fullness of her flesh and it caressed my own, letting her lips graze mine by a few seconds before moving on the opposite side and doing the same.
There was no rush.
We had all night.
Gently, I leaned to the side and latched on to her lips, and at this rate, I had no idea if I'll ever be sated without her by my side.
She was intoxicating.
Blake replied in turn, lacing her slender arms around my shoulders before running her fingers through my shoulder-length hair, pulling me closer in yet not too far, making sure to pull for the sake of not letting go and not for more pleasure.
It wasn't heated to set a certain part of our mind into overdrive, but more caring.
Loving.
"Forgive my lack of experience." I said as I detached myself from her to look into beautiful, lidded, and hazy eyes. "How was it?"
"Never felt anything like it..." She muttered under her breath. "It was..." Her tongue rolled in her cheek as if she was trying to digest the taste of me, which caused my heart to flutter.
"Lackluster."
"Come on." I rolled my eyes and took a good whiff of her scent. "We all know that isn't the word you wanted to say."
"No..." She smirked cattishly. "I'm pretty sure I meant to say that."
"Whatever kitten." I chuckled as I pulled her face to my shoulders, gently placing one hand on top of her head and finding a base to scratch it.
The way I can feel vibrations of a low rumble tickle my collarbone told me that she enjoyed it.
Though she would never admit it.
Her warmth comforted me to no end.
"Hmmmgh... " She purred. "Nnng...Nyaa..."
"You're still trying?" I rolled my eyes, not that she could see it.
"I'm never taking tips from him again..."
"You shouldn't." I chuckled. "You're you. I love you for who you are." I heard her mewl and groan, even though it was somewhat muted by my shoulder. "Even if that you somewhat have potential to be an absolute pain."
Her ears stood up.
I can feel her eyelids snapping open to glare up into my eyes.
"Speaking of..."
Now was a good time as any... I guess.
"Tell me..." I said softly, and the way her shoulders stiffened told me she knew exactly where this was going. "About him."
This time she pushed against my chest with both arms, but made no move to get off from my lap.
She scowled at me, like a cat being woken up from its nap.
"Can't I have one peaceful day where all my problems go away?"
"It's because I want all your problems to go away that I'm asking you this." I chuckled lightly. "After all, I'm cleaning up after your mess."
"Touche." She punched my arm playfully, before flinching and tried to straighten my back upright when I gasped in pain. "Is... Are you-"
"They'll both heal, thanks to Aura." I admit. "It'll take a while, but it'll heal."
"This." She grabbed my bandaged palm with both hands, before nuzzling her nose on the back of my palm and then forehead on the tips of my fingers. "This is why I wanted to go alone..."
I just raised my brow.
"Since when were you the type of girl to take an easy way out of life?"
"What?" Yellow orbs stared confusedly into my own, before widening. "No! This has nothing to do with-"
"With you being emo?" I chuckled, causing her to shrink red-faced. "This," I waved my palm in front of her face. "This could've been your head if it weren't for me."
"Stop treating this lightly!" She shrieked.
"I'm not." I shrugged, and laughed when she glared into my eyes. "Seriously, I'm not taking this lightly at all. Adam must be stopped, that, I completely agree with you."
"Look into my eyes and tell me you could beat him one on one. I dare you." I challenged.
She broke eye contact before I even finished my sentence, then proceeded to glower.
"At least give me a compliment for holding out." One shoulder rose and fell. "I can't beat him but the least I could do was cripple him. Being his partner for so long you knew how public image held him up. This might be the next best thing to beating him in a long run."
I gently rubbed her back, causing her to shudder.
She was not ready for this conversation, and never will be.
"Which is why I'm asking you to tell me about him."
She tried to compose herself.
Really she did.
Instead, she couldn't meet my eyes as she tried to gather her memories.
Painful memories, if the way her face twitched and twisted into a myriad of expressions meant anything at all.
"Stupid. Brash, young and foolish." Blake stared spouting. "Angst-filled, emotional, hateful."
"Yes."
"Acts without thinking, vengeful and really really bossy."
"Mhmm." I stroked the back of her scalp and gave it a gentle massage. "Don't keep it pent in. Let it all out."
It was but a brief moment, but her eyes gleamed as her eyes sought out mine.
Her fact looked... conflicted.
As if she didn't know which information was disclosed already or if she already said too much.
After staying silent for the longest time, she looked down again and rasped shakily.
"E...e..." Her eyes flicked up nervously, like a child with their hand caught in a cookie jar. "Easily aroused."
...
...
"Sexually active and always craving."
...
...
"Very very hormonal."
My brow arced when she seemed to have stopped to stare puzzledly into my eyes.
"What?" I asked.
"It's just..." She buried her face on my neck as she let out a shaky breath. "I expect more of a reaction than that."
"Like...?"
"W-well, I expected you to be angry." She admitted. "I expect you to be jealous, shout in my face and maybe even a few thrown objects here and there."
"You're comparing me to him?" I gasped and drew back with a hand to my chest. "Blasphemy! Why I'd never!"
Blake rolled her eyes.
"I thought I could keep my rage in but now it seems like you gave me a reason to be mad. I'm angry now, sigh." I covered my eyes with the back of one hand. "Whatever shall I do to punish you?"
"Your point?" She huffed impatiently.
"My point is," I dropped the horrible stage accent. "Unless you're still seeing each other as exes with benefits, I have no reason to harbor all those feelings at all. Besides," I added. "It's not good for my mental health."
Blake blinked owlishly as her eyes widened.
"Did Evans...?" She gulped. "How long have you..."
"Evans didn't say a word to confirm it." I said quickly before she could sneak out of the room and assassinate Amber in her sleep.
"It was kind of expected ever since I decided to be with you." I admitted sheepishly. "I know it may not be fair to you, but it's not like I expect an experienced tongue like that to be... well... inexperienced. Should probably thank him for that."
Blake grimmaced, no doubt knowing who I'm thanking.
Her expression eased as a small, half confused, half defeated, all relieved smile graced her face.
"Evans was right." She muttered under her breath.
"Oh?" I raised my brow. "Talking behind my back. That's low of him."
The cat faunus shot me a face that asked if I could make a joke out of anything, and even if I could, I shouldn't.
"What did he say?"
"That I didn't know you well enough if I expected you to be mad."
"Well, don't let him hear that." I scoffed and scratched the back of my hair. "I wouldn't hear the end of it."
"I'll... be sure to keep that in mind." She smirked. A little too slyly.
"Don't you dare use this as blackmail material."
"What makes you say I'm going to?"
"Blake..."
"I'm not thinking about doing that at all..."
"Blake..."
"Nope." She giggled nervously. "Not at all..."
"Blake."
Cheekily, she smugly sought out my eyes and lifted her chin up, leaving her mouth ajar, and closed her eyes.
The tug of her lips said she was all too happy to tease me back.
A brief peck was all that she earned.
She frowned, but didn't complain as she went back to thinking how to best describe her past lover.
"He was... selfish." Blake continued. Even after all the tension has been relieved, she still seemed to have struggles in putting her words together. "Had lots of desires and dreams that weren't even achievable by any common means, a bit whiny when said dreams don't work out..."
"Blake."
"Cruel..."
"Blake." This time she looked straight into my eyes when I held onto both shoulders.
"I want you to tell me about him, not what you hate him for."
"But he is-!"
"Your ex, I know." I bumped my head softly against hers as I cupped her cheeks in my hand. "And you two split up on bad terms, I know. And for reasons justified, I know." I added when she opened her mouth.
"But I refuse to believe your taste in men is so bad that, despite all the negatives you just mentioned, still decide to get together for your adolescent years and bang. Even hormones won't excuse you out of that one."
She sulked my way, but didn't complain.
She knew I was right.
"Blake." I said as I pulled her close. "He's gonna come for my head sooner than later, if Evans's intel is true. I want to get the upper hand this time around, so if you want me to live, I'm going to need some info whether I like it or not."
She pushed me away.
"Is that all that this is to you?" Her lips were set into a thin line and her eyes narrowed to slits. "An information exchange?"
"No!" I shouted, and cursed myself realizing that I could've been heard by the others who were still in the lobby. "No. But it would be nice if you could give me an advantage when he decides to strike. I'm not going to push for more if you don't want to, but know that I love you, and I don't want him to bring any further harm to you or our friends."
Yellow orbs bore into mine for the longest time, before she finally closed her eyes, and sighed.
The air in the room felt heavy and it felt as if I just ruined what could've been a good night for the both of us.
We were no longer lovers in that room.
We were reduced back to teammates.
Damage is done... no use dwelling in it now...
I waited for her decision as she thought about it, biting her bottom lip.
"He wasn't always like that..."
"Fine," My tongue rolled around my cheek as I tried to find a new approach. "How about you tell me how you two got together? Hell, maybe how you two met? Maybe we can start from there."
Blake sighed.
I could understand that she really didn't want to do this.
Hell, anybody could tell how uncomfortable she was.
But she wanted me to live.
"After my dad formed the White Fang..." She started with closed eyes. "He thought I was of age and should start to fight for the same cause. He brought me to a rally."
I sat there, silently, and wondered if she was cozy enough in my lap to talk through the whole thing.
"Even after all the rallies we've been through together, he was still too scared to allow me to protest alone amongst the crowds, even if it was guarded by his most trusted men." The raven haired girl shrugged. "I was his little girl after all..."
"And you ran."
"I did." Blake nodded as she acknowledged my words. "I ran away from home like the idealistic, stubborn little girl I was seeking for justice for all faunuskind."
"And then you met him."
"Stop finishing my sentences." She snapped. "I was getting there."
"But it's so fun to see you react this way."
"One more and I won't say another word."
"Spoilsport." I rolled my eyes and patted her head as if she were a spoiled third grader. "Fine."
"And then I met him." Her narrowed eyes tracked my smirk. "It was probably the only thing we had in common at the time... both young, both stranded, both twelve-year-olds in the crowd, both fighting for faunus rights to be treated equally... or so I thought."
I nodded silently to show that I was still listening in.
"He told me one of his parents was human, the other, a faunus. The father didn't want anything to do with him the moment he exited his mother's womb and thus separated from childbirth."
Explains his hatred towards humans... I mused. Doesn't justify it though...
"A few days before we met, his mother was struck with an illness so bad that she passed. Don't worry." She added. "It was in her sleep."
"And thus, the only way he could make a living for himself at the time was to work for the very company he despised, the SDC." She chuckled at the distant memory. "He wore a mask that time too."
"He thought he looked heroic," Her mind wandered as the good memories of her past flooded her mind. "Clinging onto that signboard and waving it vigorously, tiptoeing as high as he could reach as if his life depended on it, believing for a fact that it could herald a better tomorrow."
"And you?" I asked. "What did you think?"
"Me?" She giggled nostalgically. "I thought he looked silly."
It died almost immediately as she went dead silent.
Her lips twisted into a frown full of regret.
"Then I made the worst mistake of my life..." Blake sighed.
I gulped down the lump in my throat that was rapidly forming.
I had a feeling I was crossing the border here but...
I had to know.
"What did you do?" I blurted before I could clamp my hands around my mouth.
She looked at me as if it was obvious.
"I brought him home."
Reviewer Session
Pa treon . com (/) R26
Xzoticz: Thank you person who've I've seen for the very first time but read all the way through.
Gobert600: Woah woah, calm down there. Letting go of the person you are once attached to is harder than you think.
paradox0.5white: Too bad I already named it Purge, otherwise I might consider your options.
Kage-kitsune9001: Time manipulation and reality shifting is such a confusing thing that I'm pretty sure I won't be able to insert a cameo before you dissapear, you shall forever be a cameo in the reviews tho!
lilbigstoryteller: Ah, I remember you, you said that reveal was stupid 30 chapters back. Yes I like your references, and I like your guts. Most people I saw stopped there and never continued to this point, appreciate u being here.
Justabossman: I thought you told me on discord that you read through the chapter before you commented haha, that double response was unexpected but always appreciated, thx man!