Chapter One: Reflection
Rapid breath. A heart beating so fast. Sweat rolling down one cheek in a vain attempt to stall the terrible burning.
Nothing quelled it. Trying to smother the flames only stoked them.
He looked over at her in the center of the fog, her face so flushed… she was so overcome her mouth was held open, her eyes slowly rolling backwards. The sheen of her sweat only enhanced the sight as she drew so very close to-
Oscar felt it. Nothing could stop it.
He didn't want to stop. He was right where he wanted to be. There was nothing else in the world but this.
One more push. One more-
The stay in the house had been quite nice: everyone was making him feel welcome, and Oscar was getting a little more accustomed to the thought of leaving his aunt's home and following the advice of a crazy old man voice in his head. Meeting some people closer to his own age who'd also decided to pursue a dangerous course as well as finding someone powerful and capable like Qrow to watch over him had done wonders in providing reassurance.
Though there were certain… hiccups.
Such as a kind redhead constantly referring to him as "cute boy Oz".
While Oscar wasn't thrilled to be constantly reminded -or even mistaken for- the man in his head, he didn't exactly mind the fact a pretty girl thought he was cute. Training with her -and another pretty girl even closer to his own age- certainly had plenty of… upsides.
And after a day of training with two cute girls in short skirts, Oscar's mind would occasionally… wander.
Oscar…
"I know, I know," Oscar mumbled, trying not to stare. "I'm sorry."
Ozpin understood. Oscar was a teenage boy, and he was true to his nature. This wasn't the first time he'd reincarnated after a shorter life than intended, and run into people he'd met as children and seen grown to adulthood. He had no real control over what soul would prove compatible with his own: sometimes they were boys younger than Oscar, and sometimes they were men already committed to a loved one, or married with children… and not willing to give up on that feeling just because Ozpin had other duties that would command their attention.
It'd be easier to simply kill off Oscar's hope now and get him to focus on carrying out his mission to safeguard the world from Salem and her plans… and while he was at it, keep a respectful distance from his former students. They may have grown to adulthood -for the most part- but they had grown far too soon, and Ozpin had no wish to detach them from a time when he remembered them causing havoc at his academy in the zeal of youth. He didn't want to forget they were children.
Oscar just needed something to keep his attention. His mind would be easily swayed in this time of his life, and Ozpin was certain that something happened to Leonardo that required his personal intervention, lest another huntsman academy fall into Salem's hand. That was far more important than chasing skirts, and Oscar was a good enough person not to place such simple desires ahead of the fate of so many others in need.
Come, Ozpin suggested. We should focus more heavily on your Aura. I have quite a few techniques for improving your control.
Oscar managed to tear his eye from Nora when he saw her go to interact with Lie Ren; another boy clearly being the target of her interest helped deter him from pursuing her… even if it didn't completely dull his interest.
"Yeah," Oscar nodded. "Yeah, sure."
It was always going to be an uphill battle fending off Oscar's chaotic and unpredictable hormones. Ozpin thought he had it managed at first, until two other beautiful women suddenly made the rented house their home.
Weiss Schnee: a beautiful girl from Atlas with piercing blue eyes and long white hair. Yang Xiao Long: a tall, flirty blonde with a penchant for tight clothing.
Oscar was having a hard enough time focusing when he was attacked by Nora's hugs every day or Ruby reached over to take hold of his wrist and dragged him off with her. Before he'd had only two to trouble his thoughts, but now…
Ozpin constantly tried to reassure him. Oscar, I know this is difficult for you…
Maybe he was taking the wrong approach in coddling such thoughts. He'd spent a long time trying to peacefully integrate and build a rapport with Oscar, but it may have been necessary for him to be… blunt.
Oscar, this fight against Salem will see many people -men and women- who will fight alongside us. You must be able to set aside these thoughts and guide them as impartially as you can.
Oscar stepped away from gawking at the girls and into the hallway towards his room so they wouldn't be overheard. "I get it," he murmured. "I really do- I'm not… I'm not trying to just… stare."
I know, Ozpin allowed. I do not blame you for feeling what you feel- and in time we may be able to find such peace and contentment and chase that life…
It wasn't the first time Ozpin had lied to him. It probably wouldn't be the last.
For now, you must focus on your training and prove yourself a worthy ally to them, Ozpin explained. You must earn their respect before you even consider such… matters.
That was sound advice, at least.
"Yeah," Oscar dismissively replied before tuning out.
He stepped into his room and started his cane practice, working on the arc of his swing. Ozpin thought he could offer some advice on improving Oscar's form, but there'd be a better time to make his recommendation.
Ozpin fell quiet and left Oscar to his thoughts. Though he didn't fail to notice Oscar had a new source of inspiration for improving his technique… the adulation of the beautiful girls he'd be traveling with.
Oscar frantically covered his eyes as he skidded backwards from the door. "I'm sorry; I thought no one was in here!"
She'd reacted quickly and covered up. But Oscar had seen… more than enough.
He couldn't see Yang's face, but Oscar had the distinct impression she was glaring at him. "Well, maybe you should try knocking..."
She murmured something unintelligible and gathered up her towel. Apparently she'd been working on her long mane of hair, hence why her towel had been… elsewhere.
Oscar merely mumbled "sorry" a few more times as Yang stormed past him. Suddenly the grime attached to his body after training behind the house wasn't what made him feel so unclean.
Or so… uncomfortably tight.
Ozpin wasn't sure what to tell him. It was an understandable accident, so he couldn't really scold Oscar, but the thoughts welling in the boy now were exactly what he didn't want Oscar to be dwelling on.
Oscar stumbled towards the shower now that the bathroom was available. Warm water might cleanse these troubling thoughts from him…
...or give him a way to stifle the noise.
Ozpin had been here many times before. It never got any easier to witness. He'd never learned any truly effective method to dissuade a boy from being a boy.
He tried to pretend Oscar was alone.
Rapid breath. A heart beating so fast.
Not his. He felt… nothing coming from within. The pounding heart…
The image was hazy. Just… someone, some feminine form, grayed out save for piercing red eyes…
The breathing was hers', hot on his face. But it didn't deter him to stop. It compelled him to press on, so that those breaths would be laced with grunts and cries; that she would shed all inhibition and give herself over to the feeling and live nowhere but this singular moment.
The beating heart he felt through the tips of his fingers, pressed to her soft flesh… chasing after the pulse and savoring the warmth of skin and flesh…
To a breast… not one he could clearly see, but one that felt so real… so warm and so soft… and compelled to grip tighter when another palm rested against the back of his hand, pushing him, guiding him to hold her only firmer.
Nothing in the moment but her and him. Nothing going on anywhere else in the world.
Just this beating heart and these rapid breaths to remind him time flowed at all, but only for them. Only in pursuit of an even greater pleasure, mere moments from-
Nothing.
A gasping breath as he roused awake, his hand outstretched in the air. Oscar took several moments to blink and glance around, to remind himself where he was and how he got there.
The guest room of the Huntsman's house. Far better quarters than he'd known on his aunt's farm, but… still empty black. The only warmth he felt now his own sweat stained in his bedsheets.
A dream? It had felt so real…
It must've been. He didn't know the woman… it might have been Yang he had pictured, but why was the image so gray? He had seen Yang's bare breast and in his extended time in the shower imagined taking hold of it and hearing her thundering heart, but it had never been so vivid to him as to feel real amidst the splashing water and the steady sound of its spray.
Just a wish… just a passing thought… one no one needed to know, and no one would ever inquire of him. Oscar finally allowed his arm to lower and spent several seconds staring up at the gray smudge of the ceiling, collecting his breath, letting his own heart steady.
"Oz?" he asked the empty black.
Nothing.
Did Ozpin sleep too? Or was he attempting once more to give Oscar privacy following this embarrassing moment?
Oscar tried several times to roll about in bed, to find a comfortable groove and fall back to sleep. But the image continued to reach to him every time he closed his eyes, picturing that hand covering his own and hearing that thundering heart, feeling the warmth of bare flesh in his hand…
The others were asleep, he presumed. There might've been someone keeping watch, but… what possible reason would they have to come check on him?
Nora had already demonstrated a fondness for him, but despite her general… lack of personal space during the day the nights had been untroubled. She seemed content to stay in her room with Lie Ren and Jaune Arc, the latter her dear friend and the former…
Nora was very affectionate and generally friendly with everyone. But as often as she'd surprise Oscar with an embrace, she was much more likely to pounce on Lie Ren. She might've given out hugs to all her friends, but she held onto him far longer, and much more for her own sake than whatever comfort it brought him. Oscar didn't know if they were a couple or Ren simply resigned himself to her constant glomps, but… they had something. There was a deeper bond, and it seemed they'd lived with one another a very long time.
If Jaune was the one keeping watch, might they have…?
Would it be like his dream, with Ren lying on his back in bed, reaching up to feel her thundering heart? Would Nora press her palm to the back of his hand and bid him to squeeze tighter against that warm, soft skin?
Nora was shorter than Yang. Shorter even than Ruby. But in the chest… region she was blessed.
Oscar never saw her change. He hadn't found her at an inopportune moment. He'd only had to imagine from what her tight shirts and short jackets tried to contain. He'd imagined it before, trying to perfectly picture what all waited under a few layers of thin fabric.
He could see it clearly. Lying on his back, watching her start to move up and down… if he didn't grab her himself she'd reach down and encourage him.
Red eyes turned blue. A gray shimmer became a mane of vibrant orange hair and an already red face growing even more flushed.
Oscar's hand slid under the covers. He began a slow motion…
Slow only at first.
Just the empty black, he reminded himself. Just him alone with his thoughts while everyone else slept.
Just him and Nora Valkyrie in that fleeting… wonderful moment...
Training again. He'd barely slept and they expected him to fight? At least he wasn't matched up with Yang… she might've tried to exact a receipt from him for his misdeeds.
No, Ruby was his sparring partner again. Ozpin was trying to counsel him, to remind him to learn from the last time they'd clashed, and how Ruby had exploited Oscar's hesitation and defeated him after he tried to apologize for successfully landing a hit on her.
She was so fast. The strands of red hair on her face whipped her cheeks. Aided by her Semblance, she moved faster than the pace of her own breathing.
Seeing her head rock back and forth… seeing her cheeks flush ever so slightly as she exerted herself…
Oscar, focus.
Right. Still had to get through the fight… even if…
He didn't know if he had a Semblance to call upon. His Aura reserves were becoming more natural to manage, but he'd yet to experience the manifestation of his soul appear as some tangible effect. Ruby's speed was something he could clearly observe… all Oscar had to utilize was Ozpin's cane and trying to repurpose the muscle memory of a body very different from his own.
Ozpin had been tall and lanky. He'd been in that shape for decades, all but forgetting what it was to be a boy Oscar's height. There were some in the world taller and more imposing, but he hadn't remembered what it was to be short.
On the last night he could still remember, he'd wished to be smaller. It was easier to transport less mass than the tall man he'd grown to be, when he flung himself at Cinder Fall, encircled by a magical barrier…
Magic.
Somewhere in his soul, Oscar had that. Whether his Semblance was in there too, at least he knew the magic was real.
Recalling Ozpin's memories was harder than recalling his recent dreams. But somewhere in that hazy melange of thought, he could recall the powerful moments of emotion.
Using defense to try and outlast Cinder Fall's relentless attacks.
Trying desperately to shackle the brutish Hazel, only for him to wrench free of whatever manacles Ozpin conjured, as he felt no pain in cutting his wrists to the bone to escape his binds.
Carefully imparting suggestions to Summer Rose and Raven Branwen. Nothing that would overpower their strong wills, only guide them away from their own instinct towards what appeared to be rational thinking… towards what best suited Ozpin's agenda. Agency, perhaps, but with a flashing light to point them down the path he intended them to walk.
She was too fast to craft shackles to bind her. Oscar wasn't sure where to begin in setting up some sort of magical barrier to try and outlast her punches and kicks.
But a suggestion? He may not have been able to persuade her to stop, but if he prompted her to attack… at certain times and certain places he could predict…
Raven Branwen already had the resonance of Ozpin's magic in her. She was easy for him to manipulate; to mistake the voice in her head for memory or her own twisted perception of Ozpin. For Summer, he'd used only a soft whisper… a prodding in a voice without a pitch or tone, one she would mistake for her own thought.
In Ozpin's memories he was close to her. They had a bond of kinship; a mutual respect and a shared goal of putting a stop to the machinations of an evil witch. All Ozpin had done -or so he assured himself- was offer her advice that kept her on a clear trajectory.
For Ruby… save perhaps Nora, she was closest to Oscar. She interacted with him often, had some interest in his goings on… he may well have listened to Oscar's advice only because of those fleeting moments of camaraderie, even friendship.
He just needed her to strike to the left… to give him an opening to counter her.
No, he couldn't phrase it like that. Attacking that flank had to seem like a good idea. Seem like her idea.
His pitch was too loud. He wasn't sure how one spoke when trying to address someone else's mind.
Attack the left!
Like he shouted at her. More finesse.
Attack… the… left…
Too slow. Like he was trying to instruct someone when his previous attempts to explain -or lecture, it might've seemed to Oz- had already failed and he spoke condescendingly slow.
Oscar told himself he was trying to talk to Ruby. Just like… just like he'd done a few times already, before it became harder and harder to meet her gaze.
To just talk to her like a friend and not… not whatever else he pictured in the darkest corners of his head.
Attack the left.
Almost right.
Almost…
She moved to attack with her right hand, aiming for Oscar's left. He swiftly ducked under her arm and kicked her midsection, pushing her away and putting distance between them.
Had she-?
No, surely just a coincidence. Just coincidental timing…
Unless…
That didn't work. Try right.
Not too loud. Just a logical second step.
Ruby's left hand flew to his face, accelerated by her Semblance. If Oscar had been blind to its arrival she'd have knocked him for a loop.
He lifted his wrist to catch the hit, keeping the impact far from his face. Ruby looked on, stunned to have been countered twice in a row. Oscar took a moment to take in the sight of her confused, flushed face…
...before she used her still free right hand to hit Oscar's unguarded left flank and drive him into the dirt. Any thought of trying to influence Ruby's strategy was replaced with spitting out the flecks of dirt lining his teeth.
Oscar took a few seconds to shake loose the cobwebs dotting his skull now, peering back up towards the triumphant Ruby, any confusion at Oscar reading her moves swiftly set aside in the high of victory. Oscar slowly regained his bearings, looking up…
He couldn't see quite up her skirt. The crinoline obscured so much. But seeing some bare thigh above the cut stocking… well…
There were worse things to see after falling flat.
You did well, Oscar, Ozpin noted, not even taking the time to scold him. Keep it up.
Yeah… he could try that again…
He could be a better fighter. Ruby, Nora, Yang… they'd all appreciate that, wouldn't they?
Another long shower. Something about the bare skin of thighs and the way legs ground so closely together.
A quiet meal with the others. Ren's food was delicious - no wonder Nora liked him so much. Weiss spent most of the meal trying to fix Ruby's posture and eating habits - and this was the person she swore was her best friend?
Winding down. Lying in the dark of his room and staring at the ceiling, the only light a thin sliver from the hallway, piercing the crack of his open door.
No recollections from Ozpin. Maybe he was already resting if he were allowing Oscar such blissful quiet. Or maybe he'd become better acclimated and Oscar could tune out Ozpin's thoughts to some degree…
The memories that he'd briefly attuned to now seemed so distant. The memories of that life seemed very hazy… earlier today he knew what Raven and Summer's faces looked like in detail. Now he only knew they bore quite a bit of resemblance to Yang and Ruby. They had some different tones in their voices, but he could not recall what the distinctions were… maybe Summer was higher pitched like Ruby was?
Cinder… Hazel… he could barely picture the former, but his own recollection of seeing the latter mingled with Ozpin's memory and made the image all the clearer. Oscar thought of the others, comparing what he could from his interactions to the recollections of Ozpin's mind.
Nora, Yang, Weiss, Ruby… they all wore different outfits before, months and months ago when they attended Beacon. They had uniforms with flattering skirts… Weiss and Nora never bothered with tights and stockings; they always showed their bare legs. They had a confidence that Ruby lacked, insisting on full tights… something changed to bolster her own sense of self-assurance during her time on the road.
Ruby… had he really persuaded her to act when he whispered the suggestion? How had he even managed to reach her thoughts? Could he have seen more of her mind if it were open to him? How did he even begin to understand how that worked?
Oscar had heard of incredible Semblances, even in his isolated farm. He'd seen Ruby's legs move faster than sound could match and saw Qrow transform into a bird. Ozpin himself had used Oscar's mouth to explain -to an extent- the distinction between the different kinds of power, though he'd clearly only told Yang what she needed to know rather than all he knew.
Yang wanted no secrets, but Ozpin had merely humored her. Oscar wasn't yet sure if that was wise, but when he thought of Yang, at times Oscar might've been too eager to share all he knew with her… or with Weiss, or Ruby, or Nora… all just to have all their attention directed at him.
When they waited for sleep to find them, did they have such thoughts? Had someone caught the eye of Ruby, or Weiss, or Yang and they wished for the same audience, the same feeling of appreciation Oscar wished for now?
Nora certainly did. She thought of Ren… she wished for his eye to ever fall on her, and she worked every day, training long through the day, all to sculpt herself, to be more appealing to him…
…
Did he know that, or was that just… just his own attempt at comprehending her? Was that just the conclusion he'd reached or-
He paused his thoughts at the sound of humming as Nora passed by his room. Given her relative lack of respect for boundaries, she could easily bound inside and hug him… right when he was thinking some particularly indecent thoughts of her. Oscar hastily pulled the covers over himself so if Nora did barge in he could conceal anything that might've… formed.
She paused outside his room, but only briefly. Maybe she peered inside and thought him asleep and moved on… past Oscar to the hall bathroom, though when she swung the door open Oscar noted he didn't hear it close.
Curiosity got the better of him. He slid out from under the bedsheets and walked over to peer through the crack of his door, looking out to the hall, towards the bathroom they all tried to share…
He saw Nora standing at the counter, appraising herself in the mirror. She was there only briefly, turning to a nearby cabinet and digging out a towel… before pulling on the sleeve of her short blue bomber jacket, shedding the garment… and down to the buckle of her pleated skirt. Oscar could scarcely even draw breath when he saw her wiggle her hips ever so slightly and slide it down… exposing more of those hips, the shapely fair skin and the thin, pink fabric of… he'd speculated, but never dared to look and confirm it…
He couldn't even think the word. He knew she was wearing something under that skirt, but in his mind it hadn't been quite so… pink. Or lacy. It covered most of her bottom, but what cuts of her cheeks he could see…
Oscar told himself to look away. He told himself this was a shameful thing to do, to watch her in this exposed, vulnerable moment…
He couldn't look away. He hushed the unhelpful thought and just continued to peer between the thin cracks of two doors.
Nora had already taken off her shoes when she came in from the backyard, but now she was relieving herself of her pink socks, before reaching up to the large white top, latching her hands to the bottom of the fabric and pulling up over her head… actively having to put some effort in when the garment reached her chest and needed to move past her…
She wore pink there too. It suited her so well. And the flesh he could see uncovered by the fabric, the way her chest rose and fell as she drew breath and he could see the tiniest signs of little red freckles… and more than that, see the… girth of each of her breasts. Oscar pressed a hand down on the crotch of his jeans, as though trying to force himself not to be aroused.
Ozpin had to come out and scold him now. Or… or he had to wake up.
Nora reached behind her back, her hands searching for something on the top of her undergarment: something nestled in the soft fabric; Oscar saw a glint of metal, like a tiny hook of some kind. The straps holding it in place fell away and Nora reached up to the cups covering her breasts, pulling them away-
Oscar reached his free hand up to cover his mouth. Even with the distance, even distracted… Nora would surely have heard him gasp. She might even have heard his labored breathing.
He could see her chest in the mirror; see what those cups had tried to cover. They… she… was magnificent. So… round and full, not quite as big as Yang's but-
He really felt bad he remembered that detail.
But that doubt vanished quickly when Nora set the top aside and reached down to the underwear, sliding two fingers from either hand on the straps above her hips and tugging down in one fluid motion…
Oscar actively bit down on one finger. If he thought Nora's chest was impressive… her buttocks were just as perfectly round, so proportional to her long legs. Whatever fat Nora consumed in her hearty meals, it seemed to go to all the right places. Oscar's crotch was getting so tight as to be painful, though he continued to try in vain to push against the erection he could no longer control… he'd have to relieve that tension, but not yet. Not now. Not until he burned this all into his brain, because he'd never get to see it again… he wouldn't be so lucky twice...
Nora set all her clothes in a neat pile on the counter, lifting the towel in one hand and heading for the shower stall. No curtain… if she went in there now, Oscar could see her through the reflection on the mirror…
He heard her turn on the water. Heard the glass door slide along its metal latch and heard droplets hitting tile and glass replaced by droplets hitting her soft flesh. Through what he could see of her reflection, she seemed to simply enjoy standing in the path of the stream, enjoying the warm water… enjoying the aches of the day being slowly washed away.
Steam started to fog the glass of the stall and gather in the corners of the mirror. He only had so long to see this.
He could wait no longer. Surely the water would cover his noises now…
Oscar reached frantically for the buckle of his jeans and tugged them down just far enough to pull himself out, to expose his member to the air and point it right at Nora's naked reflection in the mirror.
Normally he started slow, gradually coaxing himself to life with a few gentle tugs and even a teasing retreat. Not now. He had to go fast while he could see this happen.
Did Nora ever do the same?
Did she do… whatever girls did when they needed to release their tension?
Oscar couldn't quite see her. He had no idea if his suggestion would reach her… or exactly how to word it…
He tried not to be too insistent. Or too complex. Just… just what he wanted her to do, in a way she might want to do too.
All he thought, all he wished was… touch yourself.
Nora had enjoyed the water a few moments longer. Oscar was already starting to pump himself, using his full length since he was already there. Just leveled at Nora's reflection as he prepared for her a gift.
Nora's left -right?- hand grasped her chest. Was that… was that because she was listening to his request or was she preparing to clean herself?
Oscar bid her the same thought he wished for himself. Harder. Faster.
Both Nora's hands caressed her chest now. Seeing her dig her nails into the soft skin of her breasts and leave those brief indentations, seeing how malleable her flesh was… Oscar's breathing was getting very heavy.
One hand slid between her legs. Oscar couldn't quite see what she was doing, but he imagined her hand was touching down there… did she put her fingers in right away? Or did she start with a lazy caress and a tease as Oscar might have on a more… casual occasion?
Oscar tried to stay focused. All he thought for her was more.
Nora leaned against the ceramic tiles of the shower, letting them hold up her weight. The hand on her chest mostly focused on her right breast, while the hand between her legs started moving faster and faster, up and down…
Lie Ren was a fool if he couldn't see what he was missing out on. She spent all day -every day- training, sculpting herself to be appealing to him. She tried wearing her hair a bit longer -trying to be a bit more feminine- to see if that would catch his attention…
Oscar paused again. Did… did she think that, or was he just guessing?
It didn't matter. None of the details mattered. All that mattered was this singular moment.
Nora was always pretty red-faced, but her cheeks were getting very flushed now. Even in the rapidly fogging bathroom mirror, Oscar could see she was starting to exert herself. That suited him… she wasn't the only one getting very worked up.
He felt the pressure building. He had to keep pushing, had to give the force release.
Oscar saw her hand squeeze the soft flesh of her breast. He envisioned his own hand there, as he lay beneath her… her hand not doing the work on her sex, but reaching down to take hold of his member, to caress it a moment before guiding it in…
Lying beneath her and seeing that incredible chest bounce as she slowly descended, bidding him to find release with her, not merely because of her.
He imagined she saw Lie Ren beneath her, his hand pressed to her breast and feeling the thundering of her heart. He imagined she'd had that fantasy many times before, maybe used the shower for the exact same reason as Oscar.
What was the harm…?
What was the harm if for one moment Nora pictured… a different dark-haired boy beneath her?
If she saw the ecstasy on his face as he drew closer and closer to the inevitable…
Oscar focused on her face. The thought hadn't stopped either of her hands. Her body was directing her to finish, just as Oscar's demanded of him.
He'd do it. For her and with her. He'd give her everything…
He grit his teeth and stifled the loudest moans. He was getting there…
Nora too. Even in the fogged up mirror he could see her tightening her grip on her chest and her cheeks getting so very, very red… he could see beads of sweat on her skin, even amongst the droplets of water. Her mouth was hanging open so she could let loose every pant and moan… she probably would've been very loud were she not muffled by the shower.
He wanted her to get loud. He wanted her to feel pleasure too, and know it came from the cute farmboy she hugged… that beneath it all he could be for her what Lie Ren had refused to… that he could bring her pleasure like this…
The sheen of sweat only enhanced the sight. It only made Oscar move faster. It only made him more eager to experience something… something even greater than he'd already known. Something enhanced by the sight of someone else sharing his ecstasy.
Oscar felt it. Nothing could stop it.
He didn't want to stop. He was right where he wanted to be. There was nothing else in the world but this.
One more push. One more-
Nora's head leaned back against the tile. Her body jerked violently.
Oscar continued pumping even after the feeling hit. He had to enhance it, had to chase that high as long as he possibly could. The climax was so much greater than what he'd ever done… so much more potent and powerful as he saw Nora reach something too, even in that foggy, imperfect reflection.
The most… wonderful feeling he'd ever experienced was quickly replaced by lethargy. Oscar looked down at the floor and saw streaks of white in the carpet.
He was so reckless, so totally consumed…
He frantically pulled his pants down and smothered the stains, trying to remove as much evidence as possible. And there was a lot he'd left behind when Nora had… inspired him.
Oscar pulled his stained jeans back inside and frantically shut the door, not quite slamming it, not quite making an obvious noise for Nora to hear and possibly realize what had just happened…
Oscar slumped down, pressing his back to the doorframe, trying to catch his breath as he came down from the high…
That… that was so…
The moment was too fleeting. It was the best feeling of his life and it was over already?
And Nora… Nora would never know… there'd never be anything but the memory now, just the recollection of a hazy, foggy reflection… one that time and distance would render only foggier.
Nora shook her head, looking down as her release slowly drained alongside the omnipresent shower water, quickly removing any signs of her little burst of energy.
Such… a wild impulse, one that wasn't entirely unknown to her, but one very rare. She'd have a long shower a few times a week, but usually she planned out doing so. It wasn't usually a spur of the moment that bid her to touch herself, certainly not with such abandon as that.
Still, it was hard to argue with the results. She felt quite relaxed now… and didn't think anyone else needed the shower this late so she could savor the afterglow a while longer.
And take a moment to dwell on what she… thought. Or rather, whom she thought about.
Oscar… she had never even considered him like… like that. She really liked him, but she hadn't thought that she… liked him. Every time she called him "cute" was a sincere expression of thought, but cute because he was a young boy, not cute because she felt some attraction to him… she only had eyes for one man there.
...didn't she?
Nora shook her head. It was just a stray thought. It was a curious asterisk on an otherwise solid track record of picturing one man bringing her to such release. It was something no one would ever know nor think to ask.
Just a passing thought… she'd forget it herself and it'd be as though it never happened.
Oscar pushed his soiled jeans into the hamper and covered it with a lid, putting it out of sight and -he hoped- out of mind. He frantically scrambled back into bed and slid under the covers, trying to make sense of it all.
He did that. He compelled Nora to act like that. He'd convinced her to take not merely the simple action of choosing which hand to use, but to undertake something so drastic as… as…
Could he do it again? Could he compel her to do this again, maybe giving himself time to find a better place to see it all?
Could he do this to the others? He'd touched Ruby's mind already, he thought…
He frantically shook his head. Never again, he told himself. He could hang onto the memory and use that as his inspiration. Nora would never know he'd seen her, and he'd never dare voice that fact… it'd be as though it never happened at all.
This was the first and only time. He'd just have to savor the memory.
At least it'd help him sleep on this night.
…
Ozpin woke some time after Oscar's mind found rest. He looked over the recollection of memories, the clumsy use of powers… the easy justification for the act in the heat of the moment.
He tried to stop it before it began. But his soul found Oscar's because it was compatible with his own… it had many of the same hallmarks, many of the same familiar trappings.
He swore it was the last time. Ozpin made that promise too.
He told himself to do the right thing, not the easy thing…
But in one life or another, before or after two minds became one, the result was the same.
He was a prisoner of lust. He always had been. Ever since Salem… ever since his desire for her convinced him there was no harm in condemning everyone in the world to die. If it slaked his lust, if he could have her in his bed, nothing else mattered. There was nothing but that moment.
They were his students once. He had to try and dissuade Oscar, and not let himself be distracted… not forget the importance of shepherding and safeguarding rather than always sating his own desires and indulging his own whims.
But Ozpin faltered too… and if Oscar was so much like him…
What would he do, with such incredible power, and surrounded by the things he desired and the means to possess them?
The same thing he did in the last lifetime -and the one before that: condemn the world in pursuit of his pleasure.
Oscar was a good boy. There was still time to change all that.
There was time for Oscar not to be like him…
