Sorry for the long wait! I've had so many other fics to update and post but I never forgot about this one! Again, thank you to jefardi!
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.
Chapter 5. A Frightening Bug
Blake woke early the next morning in time with her nocturnal clock.
It was still dark outside, and her ears flicked at the sound of rain. She checked on Ruby and Weiss who were still asleep at her side, and carefully uncurled her body from around them. The two smaller animals cuddled closer together as Blake's warm body left them.
The cat stretched her legs out before shaking herself and then hopping up onto her favorite window sill. Peering outside into the yard, she noticed there were no birds flitting about in the downpour, but there were a few drenched squirrels in the yard and even a raccoon across the street rummaging through the garbage bail.
Blake felt her fur raise up a bit at the sight of it, not because she feared it, but because she knew raccoons would tussle with outdoor cats.
In her time with the stray clan, she'd fought them herself, but their claws were as sharp as any feline's.
Despite his sour attitude and the brutal path he'd chosen in life, Blake was still concerned about Adam. He was like a brother to her, and she just wanted him to live a long, happy life. Living as a stray wasn't the way to do that.
But she couldn't forgive him for hurting Weiss and threatening her friends.
Even so... she found she couldn't hate him.
Small sounds from the floor alerted Blake's attention back to her companions.
Ruby had woken and was trying to convince Weiss to come sleep beside her with Yang. But the little bird refused and simply fluffed herself up on the floor. Ruby whined and refused to leave her all alone.
That was when Blake jumped down to intercept things.
"Good morning, you two. It's still a bit early though. You should sleep until the humans wake up."
"I want to," Ruby wailed. "But Weiss won't come near Yang."
"Because she could easily roll over and crush me!"
"She won't!
"How can you be so sure?"
"Hey, hey," Blake soothed them both with a lick. "Ruby, you go back to sleep with Yang. I'll take care of Weiss."
The mouse looked from the cat to the bird and back again before slowly scurrying across the carpet. She climbed up Yang's side and settled on her flank to doze off once more.
Blake ushered Weiss to follow her into the kitchen. The bird hopped after her, not willing to risk using her wings.
When they were far enough away, Blake sat down and curled her tail around her paws.
"You don't like Yang, do you?"
Weiss gave herself a shake.
"It's not that I don't like her. She's just... intimidating."
"I understand. She's big to me, which is even bigger to you."
"She's very energetic. I just fear she might go overboard."
"And if that happened, she could easily hurt you or Ruby," Blake finished. "I know. I was worried about the same thing. I plan to talk to her later."
"Thank you, Blake." Weiss dipped her head. "If she's going to be living with us from now on, I know I'll feel a lot better if she's accustomed to being around smaller creatures."
"I get it."
Weiss was very delicate and very small, and hurt on top of all that, so Blake could understand why she feared Yang's size. She flicked an ear before changing the subject.
"How's your wing today?"
Weiss sighed and tried to stretch it out, but it could only go half the length as her uninjured one.
"It's still sore. I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever be able to fly again..."
Blake made a sympathetic sound. She wasn't sure if Weiss' wing was merely sprained or broken altogether. Moving it only ever seemed to cause her pain.
The cat moved closer to the bird and bent down to lick her head.
"I hope it gets better soon."
Weiss whistled another sigh.
"Blake?"
"What is it?"
"...Could you take me to the window, please?"
Blake nodded her head.
"Sure."
Weiss hopped onto her back, and Blake carried her back to the living room. She jumped smoothly up onto the sill and let Weiss slide off.
"Thank you," she chirped. "I'd like to be alone if that's alright."
Blake nodded again and jumped back down.
From the floor, she could still see out the window at an angle. The drizzle had started to slow, and she could see the shapes of birds flying overhead now.
All kinds of them were waking and foraging for seeds that had fallen from plants in the rain. Sparrows, starlings, robins, bluejays and many others fluttered down to perch in the bushes and hop through the mud looking for insects. She could hear their chirps very clearly, and knew Weiss could too.
From the floor, Blake watched the little white bird sitting still, looking so forlorn, so lost.
Blake knew she wanted to fly again. Flying was freedom to a bird. Flying was life itself. To be denied such a thing was torment.
But Blake knew she was helpless with this.
Ears drooping, she turned around and let Weiss be, padding instead across the room, past where Yang and Ruby were sleeping.
Blake went on her morning routine, scouring the house for any unwelcome guests. She didn't mind mice so long as they stayed in the basement and kept out of trouble, and what she was really hunting now were bugs.
Unlike Ruby and Weiss, Blake wasn't scared of them. Hunting them was the perfect way for her to channel her natural desire to stalk prey, and she was also keeping her humans and companions safe from potential bites. She didn't even mind the beetles, as they were slow-moving and harmless, and she left the spiders to take care of the other pests.
Blake hunted the fire ants and cave crickets, and while those weren't common things she found, she still wanted to make sure there were none around.
But this morning, Blake's ears flicked at an annoying buzzing sound.
Flies were always fun for her – they were harmless but fast, so she could enjoy herself with pouncing and jumping at them without having to worry that they might cause trouble if she missed.
She followed that sound into the laundry room and could hear the body smashing itself against the screen of the window. Blake hopped up onto the dryer, wiggling her haunches as she narrowed her eyes and prepared to leap at her prey.
But she froze instantly when she caught sight of the insect.
Rather than a harmless fly, this tiny menace was an angry hornet.
Blake hissed instantly, ears going flat and fur fluffing up. She couldn't afford to take her eyes off of it, lest she lose it, but she couldn't take care of this by herself.
So she growled low and loud, yowling and hissing in hopes to rouse the others.
Luckily, Yang must have heard, because there was a fast flurry of pawsteps from the hallway. Blake didn't tear her gaze from the wasp as she heard Yang rush to the door.
"Blake!" she barked. "What's going on?"
"There's a hornet," Blake hissed. "Go wake the humans."
"A hornet?" Ruby squeaked fearfully.
"Yes, now hurry-!"
Blake's warning cut off into another spitting hiss as she watched the hornet dart away from the window. It was fast, but she kept her eyes on it as it buzzed around the room. It swooped toward her, and she jumped off the dryer growling.
The wasp flew at Yang next, and the dog yelped, backing away, turning around to shield Ruby from the stinger.
But just before the insect could reach Yang, Blake jumped up and swatted it away, the pad of her paw just barely missing the stinger.
"Go!" she hissed. "Get Weiss, too! It'll stay near the windows, so make sure to avoid them. I'll keep an eye on it, but hurry!"
With an affirmative grunt, Yang nosed Ruby onto her back once more and hurried off into the living room.
Blake kept her eye on the hornet, following it back to the window, hoping it would stay there. But it flew at her again, chasing her out of the room. She lost it for a minute, then listened for its wings, following it into the bathroom now.
Blake bumped her back against the door, trapping both herself and the bug inside, hoping Yang would hurry. Her eyes narrowed to slits as she focused on it. It landed on the screen then crawled up to the glass portion of the window.
Blake lashed her tail, waiting.
Only a minute later, there was stomping on the steps as Yang hurried back down, and Blake heard their humans asking what was wrong. The cat let out a hiss to indicate where she was, and once her humans arrived and opened the door, they saw the problem.
Blake hurried out, taking shelter behind Yang and growling once more.
"I hate those things so much..."
"Don't we all?"
Their humans managed to catch the wasp in a net, and eventually brought it outside to release it.
At last, Blake let out a purr of relief as her humans pet and praised her for her work.
Yang retreated to the living room where she'd stowed Ruby and Weiss under the couch to hide. She reassured them the wasp was gone, and the two cautiously crept out.
The stress of the eventful morning started to fade away as the four of them were brought into the kitchen for a congratulatory breakfast.
Afterward, the humans scooped up Weiss and Ruby and brought them to the bathroom sink for a bath, leaving Blake and Yang alone together in the living room.
Blake was in the middle of grooming herself when Yang sat down beside her.
"Hey," she said. "You were awesome this morning, Blake."
Blake flicked an ear and shrugged.
"Just doing my job. Hunting bugs is all the humans ask of me in return for all they do. I'm glad to do it. Thanks for your help too, Yang."
"Aw, I didn't do anything."
But her tail wasn't wagging like Blake thought it should've been.
"What's the matter?" she asked.
Yang huffed, shoulders slumping.
"It's Weiss. I don't think she likes me. When I told her she needed to hide, she wouldn't let me touch her to help..."
Blake gave a sympathetic grunt.
"Don't take it personally. She's been through a lot. Big animals like us have only ever hurt her. It might take her some time, but she'll warm up to you sooner or later. In fact..." Blake smiled up at the retriever. "Let me help you with that."
Blake started giving Yang tips on grooming. Rather than letting her tongue loll all the way out in long, sloppy, spit-laden strokes, Blake taught her how to be more gentle and less enthusiastic.
"Grooming isn't the same as greeting new friends and getting all excited to slobber over them," she informed the dog. "I mean, I know Ruby likes it because she rolls on your tongue. But for a bird, it should be slow and calming. Their feathers are more delicate than fur."
Yang nodded, doing her best to copy Blake's motions. She mimicked the cat as Blake licked her forepaw, and Yang bent down to lick her own paw as well. The cat instructed her to swallow a bit more saliva to keep the drool out of her fur.
"If you drool on Weiss, she'll never let you near her again."
Yang gulped for more reasons than one.
Blake appreciated how nervous she was about all of this – it meant she really wanted to be friends with the bird.
Blake coached her for several minutes, and even had Yang practice grooming her.
It was... actually rather nice. Blake was always the one grooming others, and she'd never had anyone big enough to return the favor before.
Yang spoke around a mouthful of fur.
"Isth this okay?"
The cat purred in response.
"It's perfect. Not too wet or rough. Just make sure you're even gentler on a bird like Weiss."
Yang nodded and pulled away.
Just then, their humans brought Weiss and Ruby back into the living room, bundled up together in a soft, white towel. They put the two on the floor beside Blake and then left the animals alone.
Blake padded over to them, purring as she watched Ruby roll onto her back and sigh happily.
"That was a nice bath~" she hummed. "Blake, can you groom me a little? I'm sleepy."
"Sure."
Blake curled up next to Ruby and pulled the mouse into her paws. Weiss was already curled up in the towel, using it like a nest. The cat cleared her throat, looking pointedly up at the hesitant retriever.
"Yang? Could you take care of Weiss?"
At that, the bird jolted, eyes opening wide.
"That's quite alright. I'm just fine."
"Weiss," Blake purred. "I think Yang wants to help you relax."
"No offense," Weiss peeped. "But I'm already dried off now. I don't need dog slobber in my feathers."
The dog whimpered.
Ruby rolled over in Blake's paws.
"Aw, c'mon, Weiss. Let her try."
"I think you'll be surprised," Blake added.
The bird glanced skeptically up at the dog towering above her. Yang laid down on her belly to appear less intimidating. She gave Weiss her very best puppy dog eyes, wide and watery.
Weiss huffed and ruffled her feathers.
"Fine. Just for a minute."
Instantly, Yang perked up, tail wagging.
"You won't regret it, Weiss!"
Blake watched as Yang laid down on the other side of the towel, curling her front paws on either side of Weiss' small body. Yang bent down slowly, flashing the cat a nervous glance.
Blake nodded in encouragement, demonstrating a lick on Ruby's back.
The dog did her best to copy the motion, keeping her tongue as gentle and as dry as possible. She rasped it from Weiss' head to her tail feathers, making sure not to ruffle them.
Blake continued tending to Ruby, a purr rumbling in her chest. Ruby snuggled closer against her and sighed happily.
Both of them kept their eyes on the other pair.
Weiss was fidgeting a bit at first, making sure to keep her injured wing out of the path of Yang's tongue.
The dog was barely touching her, making very light contact with her delicate feathers. After a minute, Yang paused, sniffing the little bird.
"You okay?"
Weiss shifted a little bit and dipped her head.
"It's fine."
Yang wagged her tail happily and continued licking her.
Blake did the same for Ruby.
It was only a few minutes later when Ruby fell asleep. Blake moved over a little closer to Yang, being careful to ensure she didn't disturb the mouse. Blake pressed to Yang's side, resting her head against the retriever's shoulder.
After a few more rasps of Yang's tongue, Weiss had fallen asleep as well.
Yang was beaming with pride, and she even went so far as to groom Blake as well, passing long licks all down her head to her back. Blake purred, pressing closer into the dog's warm fur like sunlight.
Yang couldn't purr, but her tail never stopped wagging, even after she'd dozed off beside her companions.
A/N: A very thrilling, perilous morning for our little heros! And a big success for our big doggy~
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