There was nothing more daunting than trying to get Ruby on task during the day when she was eagerly anticipating the moment the final bell for the afternoon rang. Weiss looked to be close to either tearing her hair out or possibly fitting her partner for a straightjacket, but after the umpteenth time smacking the small brunette on the head with a pencil from where she sat behind her in class, she finally gave up.
"That's it," the heiress huffed, sitting back with her arms crossed. "She's your problem now."
The 'your' was directed to both Pyrrha and Blake who were ensconced on either side of their girlfriend. To be fair, they were doing an admirable job of keeping her in the chair and out of their laps, where the energetic teen desperately wanted to excitedly cuddle in anticipation of their Valentine's Day activities.
Not that she'd been told what they were yet. And that mystery was possibly making her even more of a handful than usual.
Blake sighed affectionately, glancing over Ruby's head and at the taller redhead on the other side. She felt her cheeks blush slightly, as they did every time she'd seen Pyrrha since the night prior, but it was made manageable by the return blush on her friend's face.
She still wasn't sure to make of what happened. But, she certainly wasn't going to run from it, and neither, it seemed, was Pyrrha.
We'll figure out what's going on between the two of us later. Right now, this day is about Ruby.
Well, Ruby and us.
"Shall we give her a hint?" she mouthed to the redhead.
Pyrrha inclined her head slightly, her emerald eyes twinkling as she yet again fended off Ruby's attempts to lean up against her and give her another excited hug.
The Faunus girl took her pencil and poked the eraser end of it into Ruby's side.
"Psst."
Wide silver eyes, full of mirth and unbound joy, turned to face her eagerly.
"Would you like a clue?" she murmured quietly.
Blake didn't think it was possible for Ruby to use her semblance in the simple act of nodding her head. Evidently, she now knew better, as she blew a few rose petals off of her nose where they'd landed.
"Well, all right then," she smirked. "It's actually four different activities."
Ruby brought her clasped hands to her mouth to stifle the ear-splitting squeal that likely would have threatened to shatter the windows of the classroom.
"And the first one…"
The brunette leaned forward, eyes wide and shining brightly.
"...is outdoors."
Ruby sat back once more, bouncing up and down in her seat as she mentally ran through all the different activities that could take place outside.
Blake glanced back to see Yang with her head down in her crossed arms on her desk, shoulders shaking in mirth at her sister's antics. Weiss just rolled her eyes, though she couldn't keep a smile from her face.
"I suppose she's like this around Yuletide as well?" the heiress murmured.
Yang nodded her head without raising it up. "Worse!" her muffled voice proclaimed.
When the late afternoon bell finally rang, Ruby was the first to spring out of her seat, grabbing hold of her girlfriends' arms to drag them off to their rooms. "C'mon, we gotta get changed!" the brunette whined at their languid pace.
"But Ruby," Pyrrha protested, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "I'm just sooo tired, it's been a looong day…"
"Maybe we could take a nap in those comfy library chairs beforehand," Blake mused, unable to keep the small smirk from her face.
Ruby stopped and turned to the two of them, her brows lowered dangerously. "I will pick you both up at the same time and unceremoniously carry you over my shoulders and to the rooms using my semblance," she threatened. "Don't think I won't!"
The redhead finally snickered softly. "Alright, little rose, we'll stop teasing you."
"For now," Blake amended, smiling at the nickname. Somewhere along the line both she and Pyrrha had adopted the use of 'little rose' for their girlfriend. Ruby hadn't objected, if anything her hugs were always tighter afterwards, so they assumed it was okay with her.
The three of them arrived at their rooms, Pyrrha giving Ruby a hug before turning towards JNPR's dorm. The redhead hesitated and then took a step towards Blake, smiling bashfully as she gave her a quick hug as well.
"See you soon," Pyrrha murmured before slipping into her room.
"Blakeeeyyy…" Ruby whispered.
"Hmm?"
"You're blushing."
"Am not."
"Are so. You're adorable."
Blake let out a small huff of indignation, refusing to answer as she hustled inside to change.
The three of them reconvened out in the hallway again, dressed fairly casually for the outdoors on the seasonably cool day. Pyrrha had on jeans that (in Blake's opinion) showed off her long legs rather admirably, as well as a long, soft red sweater with a wide turtleneck collar. Ruby was in her jeans as well and a long-sleeved back vee-neck shirt under her usual red cloak. Blake, meanwhile, wore a long black skirt with a snug dark purple sweater.
Hand in hand once more, the trio set off for the airbus to take them into Vale.
"Sooo…" Ruby drawled eagerly as they walked through the streets in the town. "You guys gonna tell me what the first stop is?"
"Hmm…" Blake mused. "I suppose I can tell you that it… is… in this direction."
Ruby rolled her eyes humorously. "You are such a dork."
Pyrrha giggled merrily. "She's got you there."
Shrugging unconcernedly, the Faunus girl just gave her girlfriend's hand a little squeeze. "Well, she's not wrong."
Finally they arrived at the park downtown. There weren't many pedestrians out, the weather not quite having warmed up enough, but that was fine for the girls. They headed inside and strode down the path, heading straight towards…
"No. Way." Ruby looked between her two girlfriends excitedly. "Are you serious? We're really going on a merry-go-round?"
"That's the first stop, yes," Pyrrha smiled.
Ruby let out a soft squeal as she bounced on her toes. "Oh my Oum, you guys are the best! How did you know that I love these things?"
"Well," Blake grinned. "I might have overheard you talk to Yang about it once."
The brunette turned to her incredulously. "Really? When was this?"
"Um," the raven-haired Faunus blushed. "Maybe… perhaps… about four months ago?"
"And you remembered all this time?"
Blake nodded, unable to meet her girlfriend's eyes. "I might have been paying particular attention as to what made you happy… just, you know… in case, someday…"
"Like today?" Ruby smiled, slipping her arm around Blake's waist.
"Yes," she smiled back. "Like today."
Pyrrha leaned in and wrapped her arm around Ruby, coincidently brushing her hand up against Blake's side and sending a small involuntary tremor through her body. "If you couldn't tell," the redhead smiled. "This portion of the day was Blake's idea."
"Hey," Ruby said seriously as they moved through the short line waiting to board. "I really don't care too much who gets credit for things, you know? I'm just… I'm so happy that the both of you came up with stuff for today, and that we're doing it together. I'm really…" She sighed, her silver eyes shining with emotion. "I'm just really, really happy to be with you both."
"Same here," Blake murmured, bending down to kiss the top of Ruby's head. Pyrrha nodded and gave the petite girl a one-armed squeeze before separating in order to board the merry-go-round.
Ruby chose a black stallion to ride, while Pyrrha sat on a unicorn to the one side of her and Blake a lion on the other. The three of them gleefully laughed and cheered once they were off, enjoying the simplistic but entertaining time together.
After the ride, they headed out of the park and across the street to where a small novelty shop was set up. It catered mostly to tourists, which were few and far between around this time of year, so they had the place to themselves. In the back was a small photography booth with numerous and assorted props to wear, huge sunglasses and odd hats and wildly-colored feathered boas. The three giggling teens tried all of them on, taking numerous pictures that they received in long strips showing the three of them goofing off. Blake's absolute favorite was one with no props whatsoever, but had Blake and Pyrrha cheek-to-cheek with Ruby's chin resting at the junction over their heads. She had to stand on the bench to do so, and the look of adoration on all of their faces was rather breathtaking.
While Ruby and Pyrrha laughingly set the props back to order, Blake slipped over to the proprietor and asked if she could have three larger copies of that picture done. He obliged, heading into the back to take care of it while the other two walked up.
"Whatcha doin', Blakey?" Ruby asked cheerfully.
"You'll see," she replied with a mysterious smirk.
Soon enough he returned with the three photos, which she paid for and then handed out.
"To commemorate the day," the Cat Faunus explained gently. She was taken aback as both Ruby and Pyrrha tackled her into a tight hug, but clung to the both of them in return, chuckling lightly.
"Okay!" Ruby chirped, brushing away a stray tear. "Where to next, girls?"
"Next is dinner!" Pyrrha proclaimed, carefully tucking her photo into her purse. "Just a short walk away, enough to work up an appetite."
Truthfully the fifteen minute walk wasn't really all that strenuous for the trio of huntresses-in-training, but it was highly enjoyable nonetheless as they window-shopped along the way. Pyrrha paused to admire an evening gown in one window, blushing when both Ruby and Blake told her how beautiful she'd look in it, and Blake peered avidly into a bookstore window to see what the new arrivals for the week were. She resolved to return at some point that weekend to pick up a new offering from one of her favorite authors.
Ruby would alternate between skipping off to one side of the road or the other, and holding the hands of her girlfriends while walking in between. Sometimes she'd slip her arms around them and pull them in against her sides, happily relishing in their closeness.
Eventually they arrived at their destination, a small cafe simply called 'Taste'. It had outdoor seating which was deserted but also a small indoor area with tables. The trio managed to secure a table inside but by the front window so that they might watch the foot traffic as it went by.
"So what should I get?" Ruby asked curiously, peering at the menu in front of her.
"Anything you want, dear," Pyrrha replied warmly. "Though we already have dessert picked out for you."
"Oh, really?"
"Mmhmm," Blake murmured. "It's the reason we came here. You'll see."
Blake and Pyrrha each enjoyed a nice salad, though the Faunus added salmon to hers, while Ruby settled on spaghetti and meatballs. The diminutive girl's eyes widened as she saw the size of the portion she was served.
"These meatballs are the size of my fist!" she whispered excitedly.
As the dinner progressed, the three of them talked idly about mostly nonsensical things, some of which was just to catch up with each other, while others were to get to know one another a little better.
"Favorite color," Blake murmured before taking another bite of her salad.
"Pfft, easy one," Ruby declared. "Red, of course."
Pyrrha nodded. "Red for me as well."
"Well, mine would actually be purple," Blake said.
"Really?" the brunette questioned. "Not black?"
"I like wearing black," she replied evenly. "But my favorite is purple."
"Hmm, okay then, my turn…" Ruby looked between her girlfriends with a mischievous gleam in her eye and a smirk on her face. "Favorite sleeping position."
"Um," Blake blushed lightly. "On my side."
"Yes, same here," Pyrrha murmured, also with a slight flush to her cheeks.
"What a coincidence," Ruby replied, her grin widening. "Me too. I'd say that bodes well for the future, wouldn't you?"
Both of the other girls' blushes intensified as they were unable to meet any of the other's eyes, while Ruby just giggled merrily to herself and dug back into her spaghetti.
She's doing it again, Blake thought to herself ruefully. Only this time, I know she's doing it on purpose, that adorably devious little girl...
Once their plates were carted away, Pyrrha motioned for the waitress to bend down so that she might whisper the dessert order. Ruby tried to slyly lean in, but was stopped by Blake's hand yanking her against her body.
"Don't you want cuddles, little rose?" she asked innocently.
Ruby stuck her tongue out. "Of course I do. I also wanted to eavesdrop."
Blake laughed and gave her a warm hug, releasing her when the waitress returned once more. She placed a plate in front of Ruby, containing a three-scoop ice cream sundae with chocolate fudge sauce and a cherry on top. But the crowning glory was the chocolate chip cookie bowl.
Ruby's eyes were as wide as saucers as she looked up at the grinning girls. "Best. Girlfriends. Ever," she breathed.
Both Blake and Pyrrha shared a laugh as they picked up a spoon, the waitress having supplied one for each of them. "I just want a little bit of the ice cream," Pyrrha admitted.
"Same for me," Blake added.
"Oh," Ruby said nonchalantly. "Are you sure you don't want my cherry, Blake?"
She'd just brought the spoon up to her mouth when Blake dropped it in shock, thankfully missing her sweater.
"No?" the brunette smirked. "What about you, Pyrrha?"
"Er…" The redhead was blushing furiously, and quickly stuffed her spoonful in her mouth so that she wouldn't have to respond.
"Ruby Rose," Blake intoned dangerously. "You are a very bad girl."
The brunette shrugged unconcernedly. "Eh, having a sister like Yang, I pick up a few things."
"But… But…" Pyrrha sputtered once she'd swallowed her ice cream. "Ruby, I've never heard you… I mean…"
Ruby chuckled lightly as she finished her bite of dessert. "I've never said that kinda stuff, but it doesn't mean I don't think about it. I mean," she amended hastily. "It's really gross thinking about other people, you know… And listening to Yang flirt, or thinking about her doing…" She let out a small shudder. "But now? I have two gorgeous girlfriends."
"And you think about us… and…?" Blake trailed off uncertainly.
Ruby blushed brightly. "Well," she mumbled. "I mean, have you two looked at yourselves? You're both really, really hot!"
Both Pyrrha and Blake blushed brilliantly enough to match as Pyrrha cleared her throat. "Yes, well… I suppose I would have to agree," she murmured weakly.
"You agree that you're hot?"
"Yes… I mean, no… Er…"
Ruby snickered softly. "I'm just teasing you, Pyrrha."
The redhead let out a small, miffed sigh, but couldn't keep the smile from her face as she watched Ruby dive right into the rest of her dessert.
Their last stop of the evening was back at Beacon. They made it up to the top of one of the smaller towers just in time to watch the beginning of the sunset. They stood together in front of a small stone outcropping, Ruby nestled in front of both Blake and Pyrrha as they wrapped their arms around one another.
"I need to tell you guys something," Ruby whispered somewhat hesitantly as the sun began to dip. "Um… I hope it's not the wrong time to do it, or that you don't appreciate it, or…"
"Ruby," Blake interrupted gently. "You can tell us anything, you know that."
"Absolutely," Pyrrha added, giving the other two a gentle squeeze.
"Well, okay…" The smaller girl took a deep breath. "I just... "
She slipped out of their embrace and turned to face them, her face open and earnest while her silver eyes glistened with unshed tears.
"I… I love you both. So, so very much… it's like, almost painful how it just kinda squeezes my heart when I think of the three of us… So, yeah, that's it. I love you. Both of you."
Blake and Pyrrha shared a glance, the redhead giving her a small incline of her head. Blake winked at her in reply.
"I love you too, Ruby," the Faunus murmured. "I've never felt a love like this before. You're my heart."
"And I love you as well," Pyrrha said with a warm smile. "Unconditionally and with every fiber of my being."
Ruby sniffled, smiling up at them joyously. "Really?" she whispered brokenly.
Her girlfriends gave her a happy nod.
"So…" Pyrrha began hesitantly. "Do you want to know what the last thing is that we have for you tonight?"
Ruby dashed away her happy tears and nodded rapidly. "Yes, please," she smiled.
Pyrrha cleared her throat nervously and reached out her hand to Ruby. The brunette took it, eyebrows furrowed in momentary confusion, and followed her back as she sat on the outcropping. The redhead completed the motion and pulled her into her lap.
They stared into each other's eyes, Pyrrha hesitantly biting on her lower lip for a second as Ruby's eyes suddenly lit up with understanding and excitement. Then they slowly leaned in together, pressing into a soft kiss.
Blake looked on affectionately. She had wondered what it would feel like to watch the two of them do this, but there was no jealousy or even discomfort. All she could feel was contentment.
It's as if this was just so incredibly… right.
The Cat Faunus did what only felt natural to her, and sat down next to the pair against Ruby's back. She slipped an arm around the both of them as they continued to kiss, their jaws working languidly, and she leaned her forehead against Pyrrha's shoulder. A smile crossed her face at the same time as a purr began rumbling in her chest.
Eventually Ruby and Pyrrha broke apart, panting lightly. The brunette had a slightly stunned expression on her face, though it was split into a wide grin.
"So," Pyrrha breathed, glancing aside at Blake who had now sat up. "Your turn?"
Blake nodded slowly. "My turn."
She wrapped both of her arms around the smaller girl and shifted her backwards and into her lap, which made Ruby squeal softly in delight. Her legs remained stretched across Pyrrha's lap, who held them in place with one arm while the other slipped around Blake's waist.
The Faunus gazed lovingly into her girlfriend's silver eyes before leaning in and gently brushing her lips against Ruby's. The slight tease made the brunette moan softly, which she captured hungrily as she darted in the rest of the way. Ruby was ready for her, and immediately parted her mouth enough to slip her eager tongue into Blake's mouth. She could taste the lingering sweetness of the dessert there, as well as a faint hint of what she now recognized to be Pyrrha's cherry chapstick.
And in short order, she felt herself melting into the kiss, dimly aware of Ruby's hand tangled into her hair while the other arm wrapped around her back. Pyrrha's hand gently rubbed up and down along Blake's spine, and the sensations of everything threatened to overload her into blissful incoherence.
The burning in her lungs forced her to finally pull apart. She giggled at the trail of saliva that ran between their mouths and quickly swiped it away with a brush of her hand.
"Wow," Ruby whispered, looking wide-eyed between the two of them. "Just… Wow."
Blake and Pyrrha shared a laugh, though Blake's was still fairly breathless.
The brunette leaned her head against Blake's shoulder and reached out to clasp her hand with Pyrrha's. Blake tentatively reached her own hand out and joined it with the other two as they sat there in the dark, just blissfully drinking in each other's presence.
"So, did you guys actually plan this?" Ruby finally murmured, staring at their interlocked hands with a soft smile.
"We did," Pyrrha replied warmly. "We even practiced-"
The redhead shut her mouth with an audible click.
Ruby bolted upright, staring at Pyrrha.
Blake shared a guilty look with the tall redhead, the two of them blushing brightly.
Ruby switched over to stare at Blake next.
"Um…" the Faunus girl began weakly.
The brunette leapt off of their laps, now gazing at the both of them with unrestrained intensity. "Did you two kiss?" she asked, her voice low and filled with an unidentifiable emotion.
"Er… yes?" Pyrrha sheepishly admitted with a wince.
Oh, gods, is she going to be upset we kissed before we kissed her?
Ruby turned to face Blake, evidently waiting for her confession as well. She sighed, looking down at the ground, and nodded glumly.
The small brunette stomped a foot. "And I wasn't there to see it?" she exclaimed.
Blake and Pyrrha shared another look, this one of confusion tinged with just a little bit of relief. They gazed back at Ruby, perplexed.
Ruby crossed her arms. "I want a reenactment!" she demanded.
"… Pardon?" Pyrrha asked.
"I wanna see the two of you kiss!" Ruby reiterated, bouncing on her toes with an eager grin now on her face.
"Now?" Blake asked hesitantly.
"Yes, now!"
"Well…" Pyrrha hemmed. "I suppose, it is Valentine's Day after all…"
"And we did already kiss once," Blake murmured, her eyes now riveted on Pyrrha's emerald orbs.
Without further ado, they slowly leaned in and sealed another kiss against each other's lips. This time, Blake could definitely taste the cherry of her lip balm, but there was also the hint of Ruby there now, of cookies and sweet ice cream.
She decided that she really, really liked the combination of the two. And, without a doubt, she truly did like kissing both of these girls.
Ohhh… what am I doing, I should not be… Wait, why shouldn't I?
That was her last coherent thought for awhile as they deepened the kiss, wrapping their arms around each other and pulling in close.
The kiss was broken as a shrill sound registered, that of Ruby squealing in delight.
"Eeeeeee!" The brunette threw herself forward and latched on to the two of them, who couldn't help but giggle against each other's lips.
"I am the luckiest girl in all of Remnant!" Ruby proclaimed, holding her girlfriends to her tightly.
A/N: So, yes, this was a little longer than usual… But we finally get a kiss with Pyrrha and Ruby! And Blake and Ruby! And… then Pyrrha and Blake again! Much Purruby love was had by all. The squees shall be plentifully abundant and without any regrets whatsoever.
Now, a quick announcement. I finally (!) have come to the decision to keep the postings to once a day. I will most likely be doing so in the mornings, though that might get delayed depending on the circumstance. I'm still keeping a little bit of a buffer, but this way I'm not feeling too stressed out about it. Because the whole point of this is to have fun with it, and bring the rest of you fabulous people along on the ride. Which apparently you're all still enjoying enough to stick with me - almost 12k hits and 147 followers as of this morning! Whee! I love you all!
Jefardi: Eh, I don't think anyone ended up being too disappointed, heh.
THB4: Sweet holy kittens, man, I've had chapters shorter than that review! Umm, okay so just picking out a few points… Yep, Blake and Pyrrha definitely coming to terms over a few things, though they aren't quite sure what to do with this knowledge as of yet. Give it some time. I did consider a birthday chapter, but as this is outside of the normal RWBY timeline I didn't really want to get into what age they all are… I dunno, maybe I still will. Not that I'm even sure when their birthdays are. I do also like the idea of making one of them sick and having the others care for her. I'll stick that idea on the backburner. And finally, I think Cardin's learned his lesson.
SamuraiShippo: I thank you, kind Samurai of many Ships (Would you be Mugen? He was always my fav...), and hope the insanity continues to please.
growlscout: Sneaky feelings indeed, though Ruby had a little bit of a hand in things as well. I don't think Pyrrha would be jealous of Blake's time with Ruby in the mornings, she'd likely just accept the fact that as her teammate Blake got first dibs on her. Especially seeing as how their very first stop of the morning is to pick Pyrrha up. Be patient, though, as things progress…
Silverwing07: One of the best you've read? Wow, I'm flattered, and thanks for reading! Hope you've enjoyed this one as well!
Stay shiny!