Author's Note: Alright, well, so much for switching to Aftercare.
As for my reasoning, unfortunately I don't think I'll be able to continue it, at least not right now. Long story short, volume 6 and the fandom in general kinda killed my desire to write the Blake and Yang scenes, and since they're an important part of the story, I can't exactly go on without them. So for now it'll be back to OLC, with planning for another fic in the background.
But that aside, enjoy!
One year, six months ago
Weiss awoke to a cold bed... and a pounding headache. The former was not surprising, given the fact that she was in Winter's hotel room - though the same would still be true even if she was back in Atlas - and the latter was an unfortunate consequence of having gone out drinking alone the prior night. Gods damnit I am never drinking that heavily again... Wait a minute... How did I get back to the hotel? Weiss wondered to herself, her eyes still closed as she enjoyed the comfort of the bed, having no desire to get up. Attempting to go through the events from the previous night, she was only able to recall bits and pieces after a certain point, thanks to the amount of alcohol she consumed. Weiss remembered taking a cab to some small bar, meeting and flirting with a really hot waitress as she quickly got shit-faced drunk, but... sadly none of those memories were of how she got from the bar back to the hotel.
Bringing a hand up to her face to wipe the sleep from her eyes, Weiss observed her surroundings. Thankfully the lights were off, so she did not have to suffer, but at the same time... she did not recognize the room... and a pang of fear suddenly shot through her. Brick walls, band posters, shit everywhere... This was definitely not the hotel room. Shooting up from the now-unknown bed, she frantically searched the room to attempt to find some kind of familiarity, anything at all. Unfortunately there was nothing she could see. Weiss had just been sleeping in a bed she did not recognize, in a room she did not recognize, likely in an apartment or house she did not recognize. Then she noticed something - not about the room, but about herself. She was currently naked, which certainly confused her. What possible reason could there be for her to-
Wait a second.
Did she drunkenly sleep with someone? Oh shit... Throwing the covers off, Weiss crawled to the edge of the bed and found what appeared to her clothes and underwear from the prior night strewn all over the floor, along with a fair number of other articles of clothing. Son of a bitch. Quietly jumping out of the bed and steadying her somewhat wobbly legs, she collected her clothes and quickly threw them on - but not too hastily to forget to cover the scars along her thighs. She could only hope that they were not noticed at any point. Feeling her heart beginning to pound in her chest, she approached and slowly opened the bedroom door as quietly as she possible could, revealing an empty hallway. Taking a moment to listen, it did not sound like anyone else was around - a huge relief - which slightly eased Weiss' fear of having to confront the person she fucked the prior night. Thank gods. Slowly making her way down the hallway toward what she hoped was the exit, she found herself passing a kitchen, where she stupidly decided to turn, laying her eyes upon the very thing she dreaded seeing; the woman she slept with - at least that was who she thought it was - who appeared to be just about to toast couple pieces of bread, wearing only a band tank top and a pair of black panties. After staring at her for a couple seconds, Weiss' eyes widened. It's the waitress from last night... Damn, she really is as hot as I remember.
Upon noticing the heiress, the woman offered a small grin. "Hey, sleep well last night?"
Weiss blinked. "I, um, good... I slept good- I mean well... I slept well..." She stammered. "So what... happened last night? I don't really remember much..."
"Well, you stumbled into the bar already tipsy, got drunk off your ass, batted your lashes at everyone - fucking entertaining by the way - then you started throwing the cheesiest lines at me." Vernal laughed. "I thought, nah she's just drunk, but you kept at it every time I walked by, I figured hey, this girl's cute, haven't gotten laid in a while, so one thing led to another and bam, here we are."
Weiss did not respond, instead she merely continued to stare at the woman in front of her in near-horror, not able to believe what she was hearing. Oh gods what have I done... All Weiss had wanted to do was have a little drunken fun as a part of the last hurrah that was coming to Vale with Winter, but like the fucking moron she was, she ended up having a one-night stand with some stranger she met at a bar. Now what am I going to do? She wondered to herself, already feeling her heart rate beginning to increase. Did this woman want her to leave? Did she want her to stay? What even was her name? Shit now she's staring at me...
"Hey, you okay over there?" The woman asked, pulling Weiss from her unpleasant thoughts. "You're spacing out on me."
In her infinite wisdom, Weiss responded with the only thing that came to mind. "No, no not in the slightest I... I just wanted to have an enjoyable night alone before I... go back to Atlas..." She admitted shakily. "Instead I got drunk and slept with a stranger and I don't even remember any of it! I mean for gods sake I don't even remember your name!"
The woman just slightly chuckled in response. "It's Vernal. And you're... Weiss Schnee right?" To which the heiress nodded.
"I just..." Weiss started with a sigh. "Alright, was this just some lust-driven fling? Like do you want me to leave now? Or am I allowed to vent about how honestly fucked in the head I feel?"
After a moment of likely pondering her answer, Vernal shrugged. "I've got the day off, so sure, step into my office." She suggested, gesturing to the couch in the living area. "Couch is better for emotional shit."
"Okay..." Weiss nodded as she followed the other woman into the fairly messy living area and joined her on the slightly worn-down couch.
"So what's got you down sweet cheeks?" Vernal inquired, certainly making herself comfortable as she draped an arm around the back of the couch, waiting for the other woman to start.
"Gods... where do I even begin?" Weiss wondered, hardly realizing she had spoken out loud. But it was a start, so she continued. "My father is a controlling... asshole... He continually takes my freedoms from me the moment he doesn't approve of my actions. Like I was dating this Faunus girl in high school, Neon." Weiss grimaced, clenching her hands together. "She wasn't the most professional person around, but she made me happy, but of course my father didn't like her, so he threatened to have her expelled if I didn't dump her! We hadn't even been dating a month!" She felt a lump in her throat, and forced herself to take a sharp breath. Her shoulders fell with a sigh, as a familiar ache settled in her chest. "Everyone avoided me after they found out what happened... so I had to spend the rest of my time at that hellish school alone... What kind of father does that to his daughter!?"
"A pretty shitty one from the sounds of it." Vernal answered.
"Oh you don't know the half of it." Weiss continued. "When I turned eighteen, my father forced me to go out with this guy he handpicked from a group of suitors, which honestly didn't bother me that much until I learned I was required to have sex with him at the end of the night. All because my father approved of him." She let out a frustrated sigh. "I lost my virginity to some stuck up rich guy that I didn't even know."
"Sucks." Vernal commented. "Beats getting fucked at a party by some jackass who thinks it's alright to shove his dick down your throat just because you gave him some foreplay out of obligation. Stupid son of a bitch was lucky he got away with only a broken nose. Hell I don't even remember him finishing me, had to do it myself when I got home."
"I suppose it does..." Weiss mumbled. "It's just the whole thing left me with such a sour taste in my mouth." She sighed again. "At least my first time with a woman was better..."
Vernal quirked a brow. "Oh yeah? Do tell."
"Well... it was a few months after my I turned eighteen. By that point I had lost all of my school friends due to the Neon incident, I was a social pariah, no one wanted to be seen with me, hell the only person who even talked to me was one of our maids, Violet." Weiss explained, a small smile spreading across her face. "She would sometimes spend hours speaking with me. She was so nice, so intelligent... so beautiful... I couldn't help but fall for her. So one day I just... took a chance." Her smile quickly grew. "Nothing could describe how wonderful she was, I was a virgin, and she was... well... appreciably older than me... but sadly our happiness did not last, thanks to that... asshole I call a father, who fired her the moment he found out, and threatened to sue her for sexual assault if she ever breathed a word or tried to contact me again..."
"That's rough." Vernal admitted.
"Every time I find something that makes me happy, my father rips it away from me." Weiss murmured. "I mean he didn't even let me choose a university to go to! Fortunately I was able to defer it due to some... issues I started having after graduating high school..." She explained, bringing a hand up to her thigh. "But I was still forced to take a job at the SDC, working under my father. Thankfully it wasn't the worst experience I've ever had, and it gave me the chance to be around my sister more, which was really nice. She's been the one silver lining in all of this..." Her gaze fell once more. "I'm just so... tired of everything, the loneliness, my fathers control, my entire life. The only good thing to happen to me of late is this trip, and even then it's technically a business outing! I'm surprised I was able to convince father of its merit. Perhaps he thought I would gain experience... I suppose he wouldn't be entirely wrong." Then she sighed once more. "Sadly, I only have another day here before I have to go... back to that... cage of a house... I wish I didn't have to."
"So don't."
Weiss blinked. "What?"
Vernal shrugged. "You don't like it, leave."
Was Weiss hearing that right? "I can't just leave!" She insisted.
"Why?"
"Because I have... responsibilities!" Weiss attempted to defend.
Vernal rolled her eyes. "That you hate, so fuck 'em. What do they matter?"
"They, they... I... how..." Weiss stammered, trying to find any kind of justification.
"Well it's not like daddy can do anything, just don't go home." Vernal suggested.
"But... where do I go?" Weiss asked.
"Won't your sister let you stay?" Vernal wondered.
Weiss sighed. "She'll just tell me to go back until my education is done..."
"Friends?"
"I don't wanna force myself on them." Weiss mumbled.
Bringing a hand up to her chin, Vernal looked over at the rest of her apartment. "Alright fine, crash on my couch. You got money?"
"What? I uh I... I have a personal account." Weiss hesitantly informed.
"Can anyone touch it?" Vernal inquired.
Weiss shook her head. "No, I don't think so... maybe."
Vernal let out a small sigh. "Make a new account and transfer your shit. Help pay for food and you can stay here."
Weiss could not believe what she was hearing. "Uh... Vernal I... really?"
"No, I said it all for kicks." Vernal joked.
Weiss immediately froze. Oh... so she wasn't really serious... She could already feel her eyes tearing up. I guess ending it doesn't seem so bad...
Vernal's eyes widened. "Shit no, no I'm kidding! You can stay I mean it, seriously." She shook her hands in panic
It took a moment for Weiss to realize what the other woman had just said. After years spent alone, her life controlled by her father, there was a way out of it all. A way out of her father's grasp, out of her shitty job, out of her shitty life... And it was being offered to her by a complete stranger. This time Weiss was unable to stop the tears from flowing down her face as she practically tackled Vernal with a hug.
"Thank you..."
Present day
What a lovely start to a morning.
Not only did Weiss awaken cuddled up to Vernal's chest - one of her favourite positions to be in - but she was cuddled up to her naked chest. Which of course, made it even better. Normally Weiss was not one to objectify other people - unless she was drunk like the prior night - but she would safely say that she loved her girlfriend's breasts any day. They're certainly better than the bug bites I have. She thought to herself as she tightened her hug around Vernal, snuggling as close as she could to her warm body. I wish we could cuddle more often...
Rather than opening her eyes and sitting up - as she had zero desire to do either given how comfortable she was - Weiss instead reminisced about the amazing birthday party the occurred last night. What a perfect day... Teased mercilessly by her girlfriend throughout the afternoon and evening, surrounded by loving friends, the closest thing she had to a family aside from Winter, and of course receiving some of the best sex of her life after coming home... She could not have possibly asked for a better day.
But at the same time... it also left Weiss wanting more. Not in regards to her friends, if anything she should be doing more for them, rather... with Vernal. Of course Weiss could never repay her for what she did when they first met, but it was times like this, after a day of being showered with attention, where something felt like it was... missing. She and Vernal had been dating for over a year, and there was one word that she could not recall ever having been said. Well, at least in the way she wanted. There had been plenty of times where her girlfriend had said she loved her big baby blue eyes, or her small pale ass, or that thing she did with her tongue when eating her out... But never how she loved her.
So... maybe it was time to break out the L-word... and not lesbian. Weiss had broken that out a while ago... technically. Asking to rent out Summer's husband for the night did not count. She was drunk. Very drunk.
Unwrapping her arms from around Vernal, Weiss slowly lifted herself up into a sitting position. As she gazed down at the sleeping form of her girlfriend, a smile spread across her face. Vernal could sometimes be so... stern when she was awake, that she almost looked like a completely different person when asleep. She was beautiful. Sadly Weiss could not accomplish her goal without her awake.
Reaching down to gently caress her girlfriend's cheek, Weiss spoke softly. "Vernal... baby..."
The sleeping woman soon stirred, bringing a hand up to rub the sleep from her eyes as she looked up Weiss. "Ngh... what is it..."
Weiss took a deep breath. She wanted to take things further with Vernal in their relationship, and this was the way to do it. All you have to do it say it. She told herself. "So... we've been dating for quite some time now, and I've been thinking that maybe we should... take things to the next level... and..." She trailed off, nervous to actually say those three specific words. You can do it. So she took another deep breath. "Vernal, I... I love you."
Vernal just offered a small grin as she stared up at her girlfriend. "Yeah, I know snowflake." She responded before turning over to go back to sleep.
It took a moment for Weiss to register what the other woman had just said, but once it did, it just echoed in her head. It took a lot to put herself out there like that, and all she got for a reply was... Yeah, I know? No I love you too? Or even a me too? Did that mean... Vernal did not love her back? No, no of course she did... She was just... tired is all. Yes, yes that was surely it... Right? Unfortunately that did not do much to settle her doubt.
"Oh... good..."
Ngh, where am I?
Well, I don't feel any lumps, so there's no way I'm in my apartment... Although this pillow does feel kind of familiar...
Eh, whatever... I'm comfortable, so I don't care.
Turning onto her side, Cinder reached up to adjust the pillow under her head, wanting to savor the solace they offered, but her fingers sunk into something that was definitely not what she expected. Pillows did not have the same texture as jeans, nor were they this firm - They were fluffy, not squishy. Wait a second. Cinder gave the foreign object another couple squeezes, which unfortunately caused her to realize what exactly she was currently touching, as well as what her head was lying upon. Oh gods... Please let it not be that...
Slowly retracting her hand from the soft surface, Cinder turned her head to face upward and hesitantly opened her eye, hoping to the Maidens that she did not find anything aside from a ceiling. Sadly her hopes were all for naught, as when her eye was open, she was met with the smirking face of her boss staring down at her. Cinder had her head on her lap. She had her head on her boss' lap... Fuck me.
Raven's smirk only grew as she noticed the near-horrified look on Cinder's face, leaning back to drape her arms over the back of the couch. "And here I thought groping was reserved for after you buy me dinner."
Cinder was truly at a loss for words. All she could manage to do was continue to stare up at the older woman from her position on her thighs, silently panicking about what she might had done in her sleep, and what her boss now thought of her. Oh gods what is wrong with me? This is so weird! After a few moments, she took a shaky breath. "How... exactly did I get here?"
Raven let out a chuckle. "Oh what a story that is." She grinned. "After the party you seemed pretty tired - understandably of course. Having to be social for that long is pretty exhausting. I brought you up here to let you crash on the couch, but by the time we got inside the apartment you were practically hanging off of me."
I don't like where this is going.
"I walked you over and attempted to get you to lie down, but you were very insistent on clinging to me." Raven continued. "So I tried sitting down to coax you to get off of me, but sadly that just resulted in you essentially pinning me down with the use of cuddling. The best I could manage was letting you snuggle into my lap, so I just gave up and slept on the couch with you." Then she smirked. "I'm glad you found my thighs so comfy. I've been told many times how great they are."
At this moment, Cinder wanted to die out of embarrassment, but that did not stop her from opening her stupid mouth on an impulse. "I suppose they were quite comfortable..." Which easily not a lie. She had slept like a baby. No waking up in the middle of the night, no nightmares, nothing. And they were so soft... just like Emerald's...
"What are ya thinkin' about?" Raven wondered, pulling Cinder from her thoughts. "Looks like something's on your mind."
There was indeed something on Cinder's mind, but she was a bit hesitant on sharing. Though at the same time, this was Raven, the woman who had essentially shared her entire romantic history with Summer and Tai with the younger woman. That was not a bad thing of course, though it was still a bit weird, especially when considering the length of time they had known one another. But maybe that was a sign that Cinder should be more open with her boss - not counting the time they were holding hands during her therapy session with Glynda. So she took a breath. "I... used to do this very thing with Emerald..."
Raven quirked a brow. "Oh yeah? Was she a big lap pillow fan?"
Cinder shook her head - as awkward as it was from her position - as a small smile began to spread across her face. "Actually, believe it or not it was normally her who was used as the lap pillow." Her smile quickly grew. "It was just this quiet, calming thing we did when she wanted to play with my hair..." Then she snickered. "Which was definitely something that a younger me would've never allowed to happen. To make a long story short, I was a huge bitch back then."
Raven chuckled. "Well you couldn't have been worse than me."
Cinder let out a small chuckle of her own. "Oh I assure you I could've." Then her smile somewhat faded. "But it wasn't really me, instead something I was pretending to be." She sighed. "I wasted so much of my life being someone I wasn't, when I could've spent more of it giving Emerald the love she deserved... But she still never gave up on me... Even though I was a stuck-up piece of shit who treated her like a pet..."
Likely sensing her employee's tone, Raven decided to change the subject. "So she liked playing with your hair?"
Cinder nodded - once again awkwardly. "Emerald just loved my hair in general, always telling me how pretty it was when she played with it." A small smile quickly returned to her face. "I used to tease her every time." Sadly that smile did not last. "But that was when my hair was still long and beautiful..."
"Just 'cause it isn't long anymore doesn't mean it's not pretty." Raven defended.
Raven... thinks I'm pretty? No, no she was just saying that. Cinder let out an amused huff. "I appreciate the compliment, but it's not merely the length. Ever since the fire, it's just... never been the same..."
"Hm, looks great to me." Raven stated.
Cinder felt the slightest hint of her cheeks warming in response. "Thank you Raven."
A brief silence followed, with the two women simply enjoying the silence, at least for the most part. Cinder still found it relatively weird that she was currently using her boss' thighs as a pillow. Though it did bring with it an amusing thought. What if she were to be in the same position with Salem? The mere thought of it almost made Cinder laugh out loud. What a crazy idea. She thought to herself, shifting her gaze back up toward the ceiling, where she noticed the older woman looking down at her. And now Raven's staring at you.
"Hey uh, this might be a little awkward to ask, so feel free to say no, but... you mind if I play with your hair a bit?" Raven wondered. The younger woman swore there was a slight blush tinting her cheeks, but there was a light directly above them, so she could not really tell.
Cinder blinked, a small blush tinting her own cheeks. Well, Raven was certainly right, it was quite the awkward request. But at the same time, she really missed having her hair played with... and she could not deny how good it felt... Fuck it. Looking back up at her boss, Cinder offered a smile as she somewhat awkwardly nodded.
"That would be nice."
With a groan, Pyrrha found herself pulled from her slumber by the rattling of her scroll from her night table.
Who the hell is calling at this absurd hour? And on a weekend too. It had been... a few days since Weiss' birthday party, so it could not have been a drunk call from her... hopefully. After a few moments she noticed it was ringing with an unfamiliar tone, which meant it was not someone she knew that was calling. Curious to see who it was, Pyrrha drowsily rolled over, picked up her scroll and tapped the Answer button.
"H-Hello?"
"Is this Pyrrha Nikos?" Came the caller's voice from the other side of the line.
Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Pyrrha furrowed her brow slightly. "Yes?" Looking over at her clock, she saw it was... two fifty-four in the morning?
"My name is Doctor Vauban, from Vale Memorial Hospital." The caller introduced. "You were listed as one Coco Adel's emergency contact?"
"Oh, yes, myself and my wife. Is Coco okay?" Pyrrha quietly inquired, worry beginning to creep into her tired voice.
"She is stable, though in recovery." Doctor Vauban explained. "From what little we could garner she fell down a flight of stairs while inebriated, breaking her left forearm and sustaining a concussion."
As worried as Pyrrha was to know her friend was in the hospital, she was at least somewhat relieved to hear she was not in danger. "Thank you for calling, we will be over soon." She informed before hanging up. Once the call had ended, she placed her scroll back onto the night table and remained turned away from her still-sleeping wife, letting out a shaky breath and clenching her hands together as she attempted to fight back the urge to cry. Damnit... Pyrrha hated the fact that she was starting to get used to those types of calls - Ones that consisted of a very intoxicated Coco telling her that she had done something stupid and needed to be picked up. Thankfully this was the only instance of anyone else having to call on her friend's behalf, but at the same time... it meant things were getting worse.
But now was not the time to wallow in helplessness. Pyrrha had a part to play, people who relied on her, her strength, her will, as their own faded and faltered. As much as she may want to break down in tears - and she very much did considering the circumstances - she had to stay strong for her friends and family. That was what being raised to be a strong family leader meant. Suppressing all the pain and fatigue she felt in order to help those she cared about.
And right now, that person was Coco - someone who compared to Ruby and Pyrrha, not only lost friends, but the love of her life, Velvet... And ever since then, she was never the same. Though on the same note, none of them really were.
As Pyrrha continued to remain on her side in thought, she took a look back at what used to be. Before that fateful day, Coco was... a busy woman to put it simply, using practically all of her time doing one of two things: focusing on growing her modeling agency - where Velvet used to be a part-time photographer - and spending time with said girlfriend. Pyrrha actually managed a smile. To say Velvet was her other half was a bit of an understatement. Before they met, Coco had been trying to get her modeling agency off the ground, but was being held back due to a couple of her bad habits - drinking and smoking from the stress it caused. But then she met Velvet, and after a few weeks of them dating, she helped her quit - at least when it came to smoking. She still drank on occasion, but never anything heavy, only ever having a beer or two in social settings. Then when she died... Coco fell apart. Not only did she return to both of those habits much harder than ever before, but she gave up her modeling agency; her dream... just like that.
It was stark contrast from what she was told about Cinder, who despite her best efforts, the world did not allow her to move on. Compare that to Coco, who had the love and support of everyone she knew - her friends, family, employees, hell even fans - yet chose to just throw her life away. Pyrrha and Ruby tried to see her as much as they possibly good, but between how distant she was - especially at first - as well as their wedding and honeymoon a few months later, it was difficult trying to keep an eye on her. But thankfully things got at least a bit better once they returned home, with Coco actually talking to them fairly regularly again, even crashing at their apartment every now and again. Although she described it as being for her own safety, which was not exactly reassuring. As hard as it was to see their friend like that, at least there were times where Pyrrha and Ruby knew for certain that she did not have to be alone.
Letting out a tired sigh, Pyrrha pulled herself up into a sitting position before she inevitably fell asleep again. She and Ruby needed to go see their friend. Leaning over to her sleeping wife, she softly caressed the side of her face, attempting to gently wake her up. Ruby was quite the heavy sleeper, so it certainly took a little while to cause her to stir. Unfortunately once she was awake and relatively conscious, she grinned, very likely thinking her wife had woken her up for sex. Pyrrha just frowned in response, her gaze falling slightly as she shook her head.
"What's up Pyr?" Ruby tiredly asked, slowly sitting up to meet the other woman.
Pyrrha was a bit reluctant to inform Ruby what had happened with Coco, but she knew she had to. Their friend was hurt, and she needed them. So she took a deep breath.
"Coco... is in the hospital."
Author's Note: So as an announcement-type thing, I'm not exactly sure what the next little while will be for fic-writing, cause I really want to get to that "other fic" I mentioned at the end of the last chapter, but also kind of in the middle of OLC, so I'll see where that goes. Might take a break from OLC and move onto that one, might go back and forth each chapter, who knows.
Anyways, as always, your feedback fuels me!
