It was almost nine o'clock by the time the airship on which Blake and Mina rode set down at Beacon. It had been a trying eight hours of waitressing, and Blake was glad to be done with it as she and Mina strolled through the campus gates. Right now, Blake had nothing so pressing on her mind as her bed and the satisfaction of being done for the day.

"I've got to say, Mina; I don't know how you do it, working at a place like that I mean…"

"Oh, was it really so bad as all that?" Mina asked playfully, "If nothing else, three hundred Lien is not half bad for a day's work, yes?"

Indeed, Blake had left the restaurant with a considerably overstuffed wallet, but the money just felt dirty somehow… "I suppose…"

"Just think of all the books that you can buy with it," Mina assured, "And didn't you mention that there was a ne Ninjas of-,"

"Blake! Mina!" An urgent voice called, interrupting Mina; it was Weiss, "Thank God I got to you first!"

"Weiss?" Blake asked quizzically, noting the heiress' slightly disheveled appearance as she slid to a stop in front of them before the glyph flickered out, "What are you doing here?"

"Trying to help…" Weiss answered in a clipped manor, rapidly typing away at her scroll, "Hey, Ruby, I found them; time for you to run interference!"

"Roger!" came Ruby's voice through Weiss' scroll before the heiress ended the call.

"Run interference? What?" Blake pressed, still bewildered, "What's going on?"

"Yang's looking for you," It was explanation enough in itself, "But where have you been for the whole day?" Weiss asked, "Yang's certain that you've been avoiding her – not that I'd blame you if that were the case, mind you – but since she arrived at the conclusion that you're hiding, she enlisted Nora to help her find you…"

"NORA!?" Blake panicked, "Wha-! How did Yang-?"

"Bribed her with a stuffed sloth with Ren's face on it,"

"…"

"Oh, what is the harm, Dearest? Miss Valkyrie is great fun," Mina asked, "I see no reason why we should not-,"

"Please tell me that you have a hiding place," Blake ignored Mina's assurances, turning to beg Weiss, who nodded.

"A quiet study room in the library," Weiss held up a little key, "Let's face it; neither Yang or Nora would think to look there,"

Blake grabbed the key, "Thank you…."

"What are friends for? Now shoo! Before they find you!"

Blake nodded thankfully, then took Mina by the hand and bolted. It was preposterous really; she was running away from her friends – her partner no less – and dragging Mina behind her to escape Yang's huge smirk and embarrassing questions, even if only for a brief reprieve. It was ludicrous really, and pointless besides, as she could only avoid Yang for so long,… But maybe just until Monday morning…

"Dearest, is this truly necessary-?'

"FOUND THEM~" Nora's voice could be heard singing out suddenly.

"Yes!" And Blake pulled all the harder,

Glancing over her shoulder, Blake saw the bubbly hammer-wielder bounding after them in pursuit carrying – instead of her trademark war-hammer – the most ridiculously large butterfly net that she'd ever seen, What? You have got to be kidding me!

"Hey, uh… what's all the ruckus?" Jaune asked, rounding the corner into the corridor, "It's kinda late-,"

Blake seized upon the opportunity, "Jaune, I need you to distract Nora!" she pled, stopping just long enough to shove Jaune at his oncoming, giggling teammate before he had the chance to refuse, so that he would be netted in her or Mina's place before tearing off again as Nora apologized in much the same way that an excitable child apologizes to a pet after yanking on the leash, "Sorry Jaune!"

Fortunately, Jaune's noble sacrifice bought enough time for Blake and Mina to round the next corner, and then another, just to confuse the trail, before finally arriving at the library. Technically, the library was closed at this hour, but picking the lock would have been easy, but perplexingly, it was unnecessary; the place was unlocked. Not stopping to think about it, she slipped in with Mina, shutting the door behind her. The library was dark, and Blake could only see where she was going thanks to her Faunus night vision, but she could see a light on in the far corner of the room, and Blake started for it pulling Mina behind her.

"So this is the library? Hmm…"

"Shhh…" Blake hushed her as they moved toward the one light that was on, "We can't risk Yang finding us in here,"

"Dearest…"
"Blake? Mina? Is that you?"

Blake froze, but then relaxed when she recognized the voice, "Pyrrha?"

The figure nodded and beckoned them forward, "Weiss told me that Yang and Nora are after you?"

"Yeah…" Blake admitted, "Did she tell you anything else...?"

As Blake and Mina proceeded into the lit study room, followed by Pyrrha, who closed the door behind her, leaning against the door to hold it shut, "No," Pyrrha said with a smile, "She just mentioned that you two needed a hand…"

"Much obliged, Miss Nikos," Mina thanked her before continuing, "But I do think that Blake is perhaps being oversensitive…"

Pyrrha cocked her head, though she didn't step away from her position barring the door, "Oh?" she gave Blake a concerned look, "I know Yang can be… excitable… but…"

Blake sighed, curling up on herself in her seat, "Mina and I had a date last night…"

"Well I can see how Yang might get carried away about that but-,"

"And we're just getting back now…"

"Oh…" Pyrrha blushed, "Well… I'm sorry to have pried… and I see why Weiss asked for my help… Especially if Yang got Nora on board…"

"Do you think Nora knows…?" Blake asked weakly, hoping that as much of her dignity as possible might be salvaged; this was Pyrrha after all, she could be trusted.

Thankfully, Pyrrha shook her head, "I… don't thinks so…. She was really excited about a stuffed sloth… with Ren's face on it…" She offered a puzzled look at saying it, as though seeking clarification from either of them, but moved on nonetheless, "Anyway, she dropped that off before grabbing her net – incidentally, did either of you know that she owned a giant butterfly net? Because I didn't – but she grabbed that and skipped back out of the dorm, whistling… Ten minutes later, Weiss called me on her scroll… and here we are…"

"Mina… remind me to thank Weiss…"

Mina chuckled, "Of course Dear-,"

The three of them fell silent at the barely audible sound of the door opening out in the library proper. Pyrrha reached over to flick the light off in the study room, then held a finger to her lips to hush them. Through the window out of the study room door, Blake could see light filtering into the library from the entrance, and through the doors came-

"Of course it's Yang…" Blake lamented.

"Shhh," Pyrrha hushed, "Maybe she won't notice you…"

But when the figure actually walked into view of the window in their door, it was not Yang, but Ren… And he proceeded directly for the study rooms…

Blake cocked her head in perplexity, "What?"

Pyrrha shrugged,

Blake let out a sigh as Ren knocked on their door, "Go ahead; open it up…"

Before Blake could reluctantly greet Ren though, he spoke, "Okay look, I don't know what this is about, but Nora's holding Jaune hostage until you turn up… Care to explain?"

Blake shook her head, "No…"

"She seriously won't let him out of the net?" Pyrrha asked with concern, "Couldn't you-,"

"I tried, believe me…" Ren shook his head, before hesitantly continuing, "I guess I could-,"

"No…" Blake cut him off, slumping slightly, "I surrender…"

Mina chuckled again, "Don't worry Dearest; I will protect you,"
"Thanks…" Blake replied dryly.

"Soooooo~" Yang began, a truly massive smirk on her face as Blake sat down on her bed and Mina pulled herself up to a hanging position on her bar.

They had peaceably gone back to their dorm after a moment's pause to message Yang to call off Nora. Outside the dorm they'd met a chipper Ruby and a notably disappointed Weiss. The four of them had then proceeded into their dorm, just in time for Yang to follow them in.

"Yang, this really isn't our business-," Weiss began, but Yang ignored her.

"You two spent a whole day and night out… I want details…"

Ruby seated herself up on her bunk, munching a bag of cookies, and Weiss rolled her eyes, "Ruby, stop her! You're the team leader, aren't you? This is a huge violation of privacy!"

Ruby seemed to shrink up on her precariously hanging bunk, "…But…"

"I gave you those cookies to help Blake and Mina!" Weiss exclaimed.

Blake looked up at her team leader in disbelief, "Wait, she had to bribe you to help?"

Ruby didn't respond.

"I only resorted to that after appealing to her sense of right didn't work," Weiss muttered, crossing her arms and sitting down on her own bed.

"You mean that you tried to guilt-trip me!" Ruby shot back, and then more weakly she added, "Family's supposed to stick together…"

"I'm not going to dignify that excuse with a response," Weiss muttered in return.

Yang laughed, "Atta girl Rubes! At least you got something out of the deal, but as for you, kitty-cat…"

Blake winced, I'm not getting out of this, am I?

"Yang Xiao Long!" Weiss waved her finger reproachfully, "Have you no respect for-,"

"Do you really want me to answer that Princess?" Yang shot the heiress a raised eyebrow, "And don't even try to tell me that you aren't curious,"

"…"

"Yeah, I didn't think so," Yang concluded smugly, "So as I was saying," Turning back to Blake and Mina, the one seated, and the other visible only as an upside-down head and shoulders hanging below Yang's bunk, she continued, "I gotta know where you two sneak off to get steamy~"

Blake made for a furiously embarrassed denial, but Mina spoke first, "The Vale Grand Hotel,"

"What!" All four others exclaimed at once in disbelief, albeit of differing varieties, and Blake added, "Mina!"

Mina did a little upside-down shrug, "It is true, is it not?"

"No. Way! You went to a hotel!" Ruby gaped.

"A very expensive hotel…" Weiss added contemplatively.

Yang whistled, "Damn…so…"

In answer to Yang's unvoiced question, Mina continued to explain, "I bought her dinner, we retired to our room, cuddled, took a shower-,"

"Together?"

"Naturally," Mina responded with a grin, "And then we saw to my needs…"

Blake facepalmed, "Yang… wipe your mouth; you're drooling,"

"Huh? Oh…" Yang wiped her mouth as directed, "Hehe… sorry…"

Weiss shook her head, "Unbelievable…" A sheet of paper was heard being flipped, "Ruby, put that smutty sketchbook of yours away!"

Ruby obeyed guiltily, "Fine…"

Yang ignored the exchange between her sister and Weiss though, "So when you say your needs…D'ya mean…"

Mina bared her fangs with a little upside-down grin, "Among other things…"

Yang shot Blake a look that was somewhere between disbelief and some odd perversion of respect, "Jeez Blake, I know she's hot but all night and today? I mean, I understand a good time but-,"

"Yang, please shut up," Blake rubbed her temples, "I was helping Mina at her job today, not… that..."

"Well… there was that bit before breakfast…"

"Not helping Mina…" Blake groaned.

"Wait, you actually wore that outfit?" Weiss cut in now, speaking of the Summer Blossom's maid outfit of course, "That's so… indecent…"

"I won't disagree…" Blake looked down at the floor, "I can't remember the last time that I wore a dress; even the skirts on the uniforms kind of bug me…"

Mina chuckled, "I do not know Dearest; I rather enjoy wearing skirts…"

"They're too breezy…" Blake complained with embarrassment.

"Maybe so," Mina admitted in a sultry voice, "But whenever I put one on I can imagine you bending me over a desk and-,"

"Okay, that's enough!" Blake turned around to clap a hand over Mina's mouth to stop the lascivious remark mid-sentence, her own face reddening like a beet, Though wouldn't that be – NO!

Yang broke out in hysterical laughter, "Damn Mina… That's bold!"

Weiss looked away, also blushing, "And positively obscene…" she sighed, "But to each her own…" she swallowed, "Not sure that I can ever look at my uniform the same way though…"

"Says the girl who fights in a combat skirt," Yang sniggered.

"That is completely different and you know it!"

"So…" Ruby spoke hesitantly, as though she'd been waiting for someone else to ask, "You guys had fun though, right?"

There was a heartbeat's silence before Blake decided that it was an innocent enough question, "… Y-yeah… it was a good time…"

And then words tumbled from Ruby's mouth like a dam had broken in her head, "Ohmygoshsowasitlikearomanticgoodtimeorasexygoodtim?Oristhereadifference?Ihonestlydon't-,"

"Ruby!" Weiss was visibly horrified, "How could you be so… so lewd?"

"…Sorry…" Ruby shrank again and Blake couldn't help conjuring the pitiable image of a scolded puppy, but again, it was Mina who spoke, "Come now Weiss; is there really a need for that?" It is a natural curiosity after all…"

Blake and Weiss were speechless, Yang smirked, and Ruby brightened up a bit, "R-really? So you don't think I'm some kinda creep?"

Mina chuckled, "Nonsense Miss Rose; it would be rather oddly hypocritical of me to think so seeing as I was little older than you when I gave Blake my-,"

"Oh really?" Yang interrupted, for which Blake couldn't decide if she wanted to thank or throttle her, "That's one hell of a birthday present~"

"Yang-!
"I can see it now!" Yang completely ignored Blake's protestations, "A hesitant, adorably nervous Blake willing to do anything to get her mysteriously alluring sempai to notice her…"

Mina chuckled.

"Yang…" Blake facepalmed, not for the first time that night, "Even setting aside the more baseless aspects of that invented scenario of yours, I am eight days older than Mina-,"

"Oh, so it was cradle-theft then? Gotcha," Yang cut in with a devious look, before launching back into her sultry voice to air the adjusted rendition, "Smoldering temptress Blake Belladonna schemed to steal the innocence of the unsuspecting Mina-,'

"Oh for the love of-SHUT UP!" Blake flopped backward onto her bed in exasperation, giving up.

Mina on the other hand, was laughing so hard that she had to dismount her bar to avoid falling from it, "Smoldering temptress, Miss Xiao Long? Truly? I cannot even imagine it!" She had another fit of laughter, "No… as… interesting as that may have been, I should not think to trade that night for anything; I would change nothing,"

"Awww… That's so sweet!" Ruby chimed in, "And you two are like, so cute together too! It's why you're so much fun to draw- Crap… did I just say that out loud?"

"Unfortunately yes, Ruby," Weiss quipped dryly, "And equally unfortunately, everyone here already knows anyway…"

Ruby got the sad puppy look again, "…Well they are cute…"

"I don't know that 'cute' is the word I 'd use to describe bondage pornography!"

Blake tensed; she knew exactly what picture Weiss was talking about.

"Actually Princess…" Yang raised an eyebrow, "I'm kinda interested that you even know what that is…"

"Wha-! I-! I was raised in a castle, not a cave!"

"Spend some time in the dungeon, did ya?" Yang shot back, grin broadening.

Blake couldn't help a little chuckle at the thought of placing Weiss, of all people, in that particular context. Mina though… No Blake… Pure thoughts, I don't care how enticing the gutter is, or hot it would be to see Mina-

Blake's insidious train of thought was interrupted, however, by a series of heavy knocks on the door to their dorm.

"Now who the hell is that at this hour?" Yang asked rhetorically as she moved to answer it, "Wait, Cardin?" The whole room tensed up, "What the hell do you want, Winchester?"

"Where's Carfax?"

Blake sat up in her bed, heart suddenly hammering as she heard yang shoot back, "And what the hell business is that of yours?"

Cardin's reply was as impatiently irritated as it was contrite, "I… I need a hand…"

Author's Note: So a more fluffy and humorous chapter, I know; next time will be less fluffy, though not to say particularly tragic or angsty… well, not hugely… maybe a little… not much. Anyway, I hope that you all enjoyed, as I am less sure of my humorous writing than that of the more serious variety, so as always, reviews are appreciated to get a feel for how I'm doing. Till next time.