Pyrrha gazed out the window of the airbus, watching the scenery fly by beneath them as they left the city of Vale and Beacon Academy behind. She turned to face her girlfriends, Ruby snuggled up into her side and Blake next to the brunette, her hand clasped with Ruby's in the smaller girl's lap. The redhead smiled softly, reaching across to cup the entwined fingers affectionately.
"So, you've told us what Patch is like," Pyrrha said softly. "What about your father? What kind of man is Mr Xiao Long?"
A quick bark of laughter forestalled what response Ruby might have made, and the three of them looked up at the couple sitting across from them. Yang was sitting more or less sideways with Weiss curled up on her seat, her head resting drowsily on the blonde's lap with a contented smile on her face.
"First off, don't call him Mister or Sir," Yang chortled. "I mean, yeah go ahead when you meet him, but he's gonna insist on Tai right off the bat anyways."
Ruby nodded, her red-tipped hair brushing up against Pyrrha's nose, widening her smile. "Yep, pretty much. Think of Yang as a guy, and there you go."
"Hey!" Yang protested. "I'm not that bad!"
Ruby rolled her eyes. "Oh, really, big sis?" she scoffed. "Confident, good looks, charming…" She was ticking off each point on a finger as she went along. "...Protective, overbearing…"
The brunette's voice trailed off at the end, and she looked up at Yang. Both of their eyes widened slightly as they shared a realization.
"Oh my Oum," Ruby squeaked. "I've never taken someone home to dad before!"
The blonde shook her head solemnly. "Rubes, you've never had a serious relationship before." She shot a smirk at first Blake and then Pyrrha. "And then you had to make up for lost time with two at once."
The brunette stuck her tongue out at Yang, the sight of which distracted Pyrrha and caused her mind to wander slightly in all the wonderful ways the petite girl was so very talented with said tongue… She blinked her eyes, focusing back into the conversation, as Blake suddenly spoke up.
"Should we be worried?"
"It's… Nah, we'll be fine," Ruby assured them. "I mean, he's had enough practice with all the boys and girls Yang brought home…"
"Ruby…" the blonde growled warningly, though Weiss just chuckled mildly.
"It's fine, sweetie, I'm under no illusions as to your past proclivities." The white-haired girl glanced across at the other three. "I suppose he'll want to have a word with us… girlfriends."
"Undoubtedly," Pyrrha murmured, feeling her stomach drop slightly. No, this is fine, Nikos, you've fought in tournaments in front of thousands, been broadcast on live vid… One man will not be a problem.
Are you so sure about that? her nerves replied archly.
Of course I am… mostly… I think…
Yeah, didn't think so, her nerves stated smugly.
Oh, hush, you.
In response, she felt her pulse begin to race and sweat bead upon her forehead.
Thanks so very much for that.
The redhead glanced aside towards Blake, and took some comfort in the fact that the normally unflappable girl looked to be just as nervous, her eyes slightly wider and darting about.
"Guys!" Ruby chirped, tuned in as usual to her girlfriend's moods. "It's gonna be fine! Honest! He'll just sit you down and have a talk, that's all!"
"Maybe a few threats," Yang stated nonchalantly. "I mean, I did get my strength from him, you know…"
"Yang!" the brunette hissed. "Not helping here!" She pointedly eyed her partner, who was now slightly paler as she stared up at Yang.
"Oh… Yeah, no worries, babe, it'll be fine. Really!" Yang flashed her girlfriend her best reassuring smile.
"Sweetie," Weiss began with unnatural calmness. "If I die today, I shall haunt you for the rest of your life."
Yang laughed weakly. "Ha ha, ha, yeah, such a kidder…"
o o o
The airbus touched down at the main landing pad for Patch right on schedule. As soon as they were allowed to disembark, they carted their bags out so as to pile them just off to the side. Blake and Pyrrha stood watch over the luggage while Yang, Ruby, and Weiss headed over to the cargo compartment to pull the blonde's beloved motorcycle, Bumblebee, out.
"It's funny," Pyrrha mused, watching the three of them struggle, impressed despite herself at the effort Weiss was making to help. "I never even knew Yang had a motorcycle."
Blake nodded, her eyes also fixated on their labors. "She didn't have much chance to use it, but it's come in handy at times." She glanced aside at the redhead, her amber eyes dancing merrily. "She took me on a ride a couple of times. It was… exhilarating, to say the least."
"You don't say. I wonder if she would mind taking me out sometime over the next two weeks?"
The Cat Faunus snorted softly. "If you can convince Weiss. I have a feeling she will be manipulating all of Yang's time on it. Do you see how hard she's trying to help?"
"Oh, I see," Pyrrha grinned. "So she's been looking forward to riding, then?"
"Well, I can't imagine she's ever had the experience."
"True enough."
A rough clearing of a throat interrupted their conversation. "So, you would be Blake and Pyrrha, then?"
The pair of huntresses-in-training spun about to face a tall, broad-shouldered man with rugged good looks, a broad smile that could melt the hearts of anyone he might direct it upon, and short locks of golden hair that matched the rough stubble across his chin.
In short, a male version of Yang.
"O- Oh, er, Mr Xiao Long!" Pyrrha stammered, giving a half-hearted wave. "Hello!"
Blake nodded to him with a nervous smile plastered on her face. "Yes, my name is Blake Belladonna, and this is my girlfriend, Pyrrha Nikos."
He nodded genially towards them, fists planted on his hips. "I see. And also my little Ruby's girlfriends, is that right?"
"Um… Yes, sir," the raven-haired girl replied meekly.
He gave a small noncommittal grunt before a blur of red tackled him from the side.
"Hey, dad!" Ruby exclaimed from where she was wrapped around his upper torso like one of Nora's sloths. "Didja meet my girlfriends?"
"I did, and hey yourself, squirt. Did you grow on me again?"
"It's all the milk!" she giggled happily, nuzzling her father's arm as he wrapped his other arm around her. Both Pyrrha and Blake couldn't help but smile at their girlfriend's affectionate exuberance at seeing her parent again.
"I'd say the good habits helped too, but that's not the case much anymore," Yang chortled as she walked Bumblebee up, Weiss pacing her on the other side.
"Yaaannng," Ruby whined.
Taiyang set her down so that he could grab his blonde daughter up in a rough hug. "So I've heard. Good to see you, sport."
"You too, dad," Yang said softly, leaning briefly into the embrace. She stood back and held her hand to the side, clasping the heiress' in her own. "And this is my girlfriend, Weiss Schnee."
"A pleasure, sir," she said elegantly, making a quick curtsy.
"Hmm." The blonde man looked Weiss over briefly, his deep blue eyes glittering in the afternoon sunlight. "Well, let's get your stuff loaded up. You gonna ride your bike, sport?"
"Yeah, me an' Weiss will join you guys later, I'm gonna take the scenic route."
"Fair enough," Taiyang nodded genially. He grabbed hold of three bags in each hand, effortlessly toting them along to a waiting pickup truck. "Blake, Pyrrha, you two alright with sitting in the back?"
"Oh, certainly, no problem at all, sir!" Pyrrha replied with false cheer. She grabbed hold of another pair of bags, and between her, Blake, and Ruby, they had them loaded in no time. Before the pair climbed into the back, Ruby gave them each a quick kiss. The brunette then jumped into the cab next to her father, already happily chattering away.
"So," Pyrrha murmured as the dust-powered engine roared to life. "He seems…"
"Intimidating," Blake muttered uncomfortably.
"Yes, I suppose so…"
"And I thought he would tell us not to use 'sir' right off the bat?"
"Well… perhaps after we have our… talk?"
Blake swallowed nervously. "When do you suppose that will take place?"
The redhead glanced over her shoulder. Deep blue eyes met her own in the rear-view mirror, and she quickly turned back to face rearward again.
"I imagine once we get to their house."
Blake sighed and clasped Pyrrha's hand in her own. "Well, at least we'll be together for it."
Smiling, Pyrrha leaned her head down on top of the Cat Faunus', who was keeping her free hand atop her bow to make sure it stayed in place. "Indeed."
o o o
In the cab of the truck, Tai was smiling gently to himself as his youngest daughter rambled on about her past semester. Some of it he'd heard already from her mail, some of it from Yang's. But he definitely noted a marked difference in her conversation from the last time he'd seen her in person for the winter break, at least as far as the names she referred to most frequently.
"So, these girlfriends of yours," he interjected when Ruby took a moment to breathe.
"Yeah," she grinned widely. "They're awesome, right?"
He nodded calmly, glancing between the road ahead and the rear view mirror, where the raven-haired and redheaded pair were leaned up close together. "They treating you alright, squirt?"
"Dad."
He glanced aside, momentarily startled at the solemn and serious expression on his daughter's face.
When did she suddenly become so very much like Summer?
"I want you to understand something, right now," she began intently. "These two girls are the best thing that has ever happened to me. I love them both, very much, and they love me in return, just as they love each other. I know it's… a little odd. But we make it work." She smiled brilliantly, and Taiyang felt another pang as he was reminded once more of his late wife. "I've never been happier. And you know that says something."
"Yeah, it does, squirt. Yeah, it does."
o o o
"Yang!"
"Yeah?" the blonde yelled over her shoulder as she pushed her beloved bike through the turns. The ocean glistened off to the left along the winding road that meandered eventually around to the neighborhood she grew up in.
"Can you pull over for a moment?" Weiss yelled in return from where she was pressed against the blonde's back, her slender but strong arms gripping around her waist.
Yang nodded and slowed down, pulling to the shoulder nearest the water. She shut the engine down and hopped off, trusting in the gyro-stabilization to keep her upright as always. Reaching back to help her girlfriend down, she smiled at the sleek yellow and black lines of the motorcycle she'd built from the ground up.
The alabaster-haired girl slipped her helmet off and placed it on the seat, tossing her side-ponytail over her shoulder. Her legs were a bit wobbly and bowed as she staggered to the side.
"Whoa, careful there, princess," Yang smirked, catching her around the girl's trim waist. She pulled her own helmet off with her other hand, shaking her golden tresses free.
"I'm fine," Weiss grumbled, pushing Yang's arm off. She promptly stumbled again, causing the blonde to assist her once more.
"Sure about that?"
"I'm simply a bit… shaky." Though she didn't refuse her help this time, Weiss refused to look her girlfriend in the eye. Yang could see the bright blush spreading across her cheeks, and she threw her head back and laughed wholeheartedly.
"Oh, gods… Yeah, okay, shoulda warned you about that. It's an experience if you're not used to it."
Weiss finally gave her a glare. "You actually get used to that?"
Shrugging unconcernedly, Yang led her over to the sidewall and let her sit. "Well… it does wonders for your stamina."
Her girlfriend stared at her, open-mouthed. "You… You… No wonder you last so much longer than I do!" she hissed accusingly.
Yang shrugged once more, though there was a distinct air of smugness this time. "Like I said, stamina."
"Dust-damned oversized vibrator," Weiss grumbled, sending her glare over at the motorcycle this time.
Yang slid onto the wall next to her girlfriend, bumping her shoulder. "We could walk the rest of the way..."
"Yang Xiao Long, I am not walking the entirety of this island to get to your house and show up all sweaty and tired for the grilling your father has prepared for me!"
"Right…" The blonde slipped an arm around the other girl's slim shoulders, pulling the duellist into her. Weiss gladly leaned into the embrace, slipping her arm around Yang's waist as well. "You know you got nothing to worry about, yeah?"
"So you and Ruby keep saying," Weiss muttered. "I have yet to see any evidence to prove this theory of yours."
"Look, if this is gonna go the way of any of the others, he's gonna ask you some questions just to get the feel for ya. Answer 'em honestly. Even if he asks about our sex life."
Weiss broke away from the hug, her eyes wide and face flushed. "WHAT?!" she screeched.
"Easy, babe, easy," Yang chuckled, her hands held out in a calming gesture. "Dad's an easy-going guy, honest. And you already know you're not the first. He just wants to get your measure."
Weiss' mouth opened and closed, doing an admirable impression of a goldfish. "You must be joking," she finally stated flatly. "No person of upbringing would be so uncouth as to ask such a question."
"Whelp, there ya got me, princess," Yang replied a little more sharply than she'd intended. "We're just simple country folk."
The white-haired girl looked down, abashed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean…"
"No, it's okay, I'm sorry too. I get it, you're nervous. Like I said, though, just be honest." Yang gave her a toothy smile. "I gots faith in you, babe."
Weiss sighed, shaking her head ruefully. "You're just lucky I fell so hard for such a criminally attractive oaf as yourself."
"Flattery will get you everywhere, princess."
o o o
Pyrrha and Blake were seated together on the well-worn couch of Taiyang's study. It was a cozy room, smelling strongly of aftershave, old papers, gun oil, and weapons-grade dust residue. Several shelves of books and trophies lined the walls, along with a battered desk overflowing with papers, an equally battered desk chair, and an overstuffed plaid seat facing the matching couch they were on.
They held hands, perhaps a bit tighter than necessary, but it kept their nerves intact.
"Deep breaths, Pyrrha," the raven-haired girl murmured with a small grin.
The redhead nodded rapidly. "I'm fine, I'm fine," she stated, her voice a bit higher-pitched than normal.
Blake leaned over and placed a soft kiss on her cheek. "I'm here with you," she said softly. "Ruby and I love you very much, everything will be alright."
"Thank you, love," the redhead replied quietly, turning her head so that she might capture Blake's lips before she pulled back. "I love the both of you so much," she breathed.
The pair of them started as the door opened to reveal the hulking form of their girlfriend's father.
"Ladies," he greeted them levelly before plopping down into the chair across from them. His eyes flickered down to their joined hands before regarding them intently.
Pyrrha caught herself before she could fidget or bite on her lower lip. Calm… I radiate calm and peace… Channel my inner Ren…
"First things first," he stated firmly. "Blake, there's no need for a bow inside the house."
The Cat Faunus gasped lightly. "You… er, you know about…"
"Well, I am a hunter, kid. Even if Ruby hadn't told me already, I'd have noticed. Go ahead, you'll be more comfortable."
Blake hesitantly reached up and pulled her bow off, her Faunus ears flicking slightly in relief.
"So," Taiyang began after another moment's pause. "The both of you… are dating my little girl."
Pyrrha nodded rapidly. "Yes, sir."
"And you're dating each other."
Blake cleared her throat. "Er, sir… We all love each other very, very much. I realize this is a bit… unusual… but we are, in fact, a tri relationship."
"And we are very happy together as well," Pyrrha added softly.
"Hmm." Taiyang kept his implacable gaze upon them, seemingly not even blinking. "Spoke to Qrow, he had some good things to say about the two of you. Good fighters."
"Er, thank you, sir," Blake murmured.
"And you, Miss Nikos, bit of a celebrity, aren't you?"
"Not so much, really, anymore," Pyrrha smiled weakly. "I mean, in Beacon, I'm not even the top-ranked in combat."
"That so?" he asked, somewhat surprised.
The redhead nodded, her smile strengthening. "Your daughters are actually both just ahead of me."
A proud smile briefly graced Taiyang's handsome features before they settled into neutrality once more. "Well, I have one more question for you."
The girls held their breath in anticipation.
"Are you sleeping with my little girl?"
Blake and Pyrrha blushed furiously, and the both of them stumbled over themselves to try and explain themselves.
"Not exactly, no," the redhead began.
"That is, we share a bed, yes," Blake interjected.
"And perhaps a bit more…"
"...But in essence, no…"
"Er, yet." Pyrrha's blush intensified as she regretted her slip, Blake shooting her an incredulous look.
"Huh." Taiyang regarded the two of them with an expression that might have been considered perplexed. "Wasn't expecting that."
"Sir?" Blake squeaked uncertainly.
"Well, she is my daughter," Taiyang huffed with a shrug of his broad shoulders. "I figured you would have by now. Just wanted to know how the sleeping arrangements would be. So, sharing a bed?"
Blake and Pyrrha nodded dumbly in unison.
"Alright, then!" he exclaimed, clapping his hands together before rising. "I'll see what I can do."
He reached out and pulled the two girls up and into a strong hug that reminded them heavily of Yang. "Welcome to the family," he chuckled heartedly. "And please, no more of this 'sir' nonsense. Call me Tai."
He walked out first, the pair of bewildered girls trailing behind to meet Ruby out in the hallway.
"So, how'd it go?" the brunette whispered excitedly.
"Er, well enough," Pyrrha replied, still somewhat shell-shocked.
"Did he already drop the sex question on ya?" Ruby pressed.
"Yes, yes he did," Blake stated.
Ruby grinned cheerfully. "Cool, got that out of the way, then!"
Just then the trio turned as Weiss headed down the hallway towards them. "Hello," she began with a tremulous smile. "I'm supposed to wait for Mr Xiao Long in his study? Is that the door behind you?"
Blake and Pyrrha shared a glance before the Cat Faunus stepped forward solemnly. She folded the surprised heiress into an uncharacteristic hug. "I am so sorry," she murmured brokenly. "At least I had Pyrrha there for me to brave… what happened."
Pyrrha quickly replaced her. "Good luck," she intoned solemnly. "I wish you well. Remember your training."
"W- What…" Weiss stammered, before swallowing. "What happened?"
The two girls shuddered, while Ruby sheltered behind them, unable to hide her grin.
"We cannot speak of it," Blake said hauntingly.
"But you will understand all too soon," Pyrrha finished with an appropriately sepulchral voice.
They turned and walked in the opposite direction, pushing the brunette ahead of them who was desperately trying to stifle her snickers.
Pyrrha glanced back to see the heiress, her face pale as a sheet, slowly enter the room as if it were an execution chamber.
Once they were around the corner they all broke down into giggles.
"We are so very bad," Pyrrha remarked, grinning widely.
"Yup," Ruby snickered. "And she's gonna kill us."
Blake linked her arms through her girlfriends'. "Might I suggest a hasty retreat?"
"This calls for ice cream!" Ruby cheered. "Let's go, there's a stand just down the block!"
The three of them scampered through the back door, laughing merrily out into the warm summer air.
A/N: Bit longer than my usual chapters, but a lot going on. And I wanted to do proper justice to the girls' meeting Taiyang. I've never really experienced this as a parent, with my oldest she's only dated the once in high school, and my youngest is ace. I'd like to think I'd be pretty chill about the whole thing, kinda like Tai is. He's just a big teddy bear at heart. And don't worry about Weiss, you know she'll have a response for the girls next chapter.
So, for update news, however, I'm going to need the weekend off. I have the next chapter ready to go but it will have to wait for Monday, and I should have the rest of the week's finished close enough to then. Mulling over in my head making this a regular thing, just updating on weekdays. We'll see.
Jack Inqu: I do my very best to represent the overwhelming respect each of the girls have for each other. And how eager they are to please one another as best they can.
FelipeCH98: I agree, Linked is the best polyamory tale I've ever come across. Oh, and I do really like Surface too, it's on my follow list.
ILikeHotDogs: ...I worry about you… but in a good way...
Skiptrace: Haha, always happy to give inspiration, gods know I've gotten enough myself from the likes of great writers like Jefardi, ShowMeYourFury, Solora Goldsun, NobleMETA, Hysterical Clerical Hijinks, momoxtoshiro, l OmegaInfinity l… I could go on and on, the list is pretty long. But yeah, if my little fluff manages to give you ideas, heck, run with 'em.
Gorsouul: Thanks! And I think my problem with the beginning was how fractured it was, and I just kept trying to fix it. Should have just scrapped it, kept the same ideas, and completely restructured it. Ah, well. A few awkward paragraphs isn't enough to stress over.
l OmegaInfinity l: I always squee when one of my favorite authors notices me, so don't mind that odd sound coming from my direction. I'm trying to get better about it. While I did respond via PM, it bears repeating here. Dude, thank you. Seriously, yours is the best polyamory tale I've come across! And more than happy to provide the fluff! Doing my best to keep our fav Amazon warrior alive in our hearts! (And now I'm embarrassed because I just got done listing your name up above, so I'll just go off and fangirl to myself now… don't mind me…)
Demonic Angel C: Hope the meeting with Tai didn't disappoint!
kaiju62: Yep, Renora is definitely a thing in this story, and as for Jaune, nothing just yet but there are plans for the next semester, peripherally. And thanks very much, though the daily postings are interesting to keep up with I'm having too much fun not to. Though I might need to take the weekends off, they're pretty busy anyways but it would give me more time to keep the buffer going…
growlscout: Well, like Blake said, this isn't something she's discussed with them, or something well-known outside of Faunus circles. I would imagine, the social climate of Remnant being what it is, Faunus Mating a non-Faunus are pretty rare.
DarthMaine: Perhaps there was some initial fainting, I'm sure Qrow made sure to be the one to tell him so as to be there, vid record it, and draw on his unconscious face.
Boombox94: Nah, he's got this.
THB4: True, it could be considered a dominance thing, at least towards other Faunus, telling them to back off from her (potential) Mates. And there wasn't any history behind it, just something Blake had been considering.
WyattMoore: Fluffy diabeetus!
Jazzatron: Have some Tai!
allie300093: Definitely have some fun planned for Patch.
DandyHandy: Lmao, 'double rainbow' indeed. No I'm pretty sure Tai might have had some inclinations as to his daughter's preference. And for the purposes of this story, I'm portraying Remnant as being a place very tolerant of sexualities. Love is love and all that. (I can dream.)
ScaryGirl95: Aww, thanks girl!
Unslaadtoorjun: Your review made me laugh and scratch my head at the same time. But yeah, gonna sail this ship for all it's worth.
Stay shiny!