While family matters were stressful on Yang for a plethora of reasons she had solution for, Weiss was finding her little world to be blissfully right-side up. Something it hadn't been for a while. Her friends were alive, not entirely well perhaps. Still, all of them were healthy enough that she could breathe a sigh of relief. Wilson and Blake hadn't had a shouting match in days. Zhu was no longer hooting for long hours into the night…though all of his visits had to be supervised until after Sun's stiches were removed, and he still stayed in their bed as a result.

The Grimm were still at large in the north, making more havoc than the communities knew what to do with. A task force was now being put into place. General Ironwood was now delegating the procedures to the Grimm threat. Ozpin and all of the other academy headmasters were in the process of screening the combat reports for any plausible ways to launch a counterattack.

An army of seasoned hunters were being recruited from all across Remnant, the bounty hiking in price by the second. Things, though more hectic than ever Remnant wide, was peaceful in the household.

Weiss was happy to have a moment of relaxation. Even if she found how she spent that time to be strange, and absurd. "I feel absolutely ridiculous." Weiss said, as she pressed her lips to Blake's belly. "They don't really do this, do they?"

"Faunus who sire offspring do." Blake said, shaking her head at her wife's antics. "Though, you doing this is functionally redundant."

"Well, I wouldn't go quite that far. I can't smell them, but your reactions are quite amusing. If I do say so myself." Weiss pointed out. "However, I do wonder why anyone would actually do this?" She asked, giving Blake a little lick.

The black haired woman startled at the ticklishness. "Stop that."

"So, I take it that you aren't fond of me acting like I'm sort of hog looking for a truffle?" Weiss asked, puffing a laugh that was rare these days.

"Weiss Schnee comparing herself to a farm animal, never thought I'd see the day."

"Don't knock it. In literature they are indicative of money and corporate power. Not to mention, swine are of particularly high intellect." Another little lick, and Blake made an indignant squeak, prompting more laughter.

"Smartass." It was easy to forget that Weiss could be rather playful behind closed doors.

"That would be a donkey, and I refuse to be equated to a pack mule."

"Yes dear." Blake rolled her eyes fondly at the thought of what it might be like if Weiss had been born a Faunus. "In any case, I told you because you were curious about what a sire might do. Not because I thought you would actually do it."

"I heard you talking to Sun the other day." Weiss said, the offhanded statement far deeper than even she wanted to admit. "Before I knew it, I got to thinking about it. It bothers me too, you know. Everyone else around me seems to have a better understand of my own children than I do. It's disheartening enough knowing how inadequate I'll be as a parent when they're young."

Blake's gaze softened then. "You'll be fine."

"I'm not so fine with Zhu by myself. It's all trial and error, and we should both be honest. I error more times than not." Weiss frowned. "You make it look easy."

"He's not your child." Blake said with a small laugh. "That'll always make a difference. Zhu listens to me because his father listens to me. Zhu's falling into line, just like his nature dictates. I'm the leader, what I say goes. He knows this."

"That sounds far too utilitarian." Weiss commented, sitting up from her position on the bed and arranging her pillows before leaning back onto them. "Then again, even as often as you say that, it always does."

"Weiss, you don't need to worry. It's just nature."

"Is it?" Weiss murmured. "Knowing I already fail in meeting curtain requirements isn't a good feeling. No matter what excuse you use about human parents being fundamentally different."

"You can stop being paranoid now." Blake chided, fingers weaving through long strands of white hair. "Your dealings with Zhu can't be compared to your involvement with our cubs. Our scent defines us as their parents. They'll answer to you because it's in their nature to respond to a parent when they're young. They already know who you are, Weiss, they seek you out constantly."

"No…" Weiss denied. "Really?"

"Oh, they do." Blake murmured. "When my mate's around, my body reacts to that on an intuitive level. My defenses come down, my need to stay alert relaxes. I'm sure to some degree, they notice those changes. They hear you talk, and respond in their own ways. They know who their sire is. Which is why a sire would rub their noses against their mate's belly. Acquainting themselves with the scents of their children…and also, marking my belly, if you could, would be an endorphin rush for me…"

"Endorphin rush…I see…" Weiss murmured, more to herself than Blake, though with the low tone, her wife most assuredly heard her.

"What's that look for?" Blake wondered aloud.

"What look?"

"You're scowling again." Blake told her, thumb reaching up to smooth away the creases upon that pale forehead.

"It's nothing." Weiss assured. "I'm just thinking, that's all."

And to the credit of the white haired woman, she was thinking. Quite deeply in fact. Musing about all of the little details that continued to slip by her notice. It was more than just her capabilities, or lack of them as a human. It was beyond even the simple failings she thought she would face as a new parent. Though, she suspected those would be a great many as well. This failing was one that struck quite a bit deeper.

It was a niggling little sensation that Blake was downplaying a mate's involvement during pregnancy. The importance of even the simplest acts.

They'd lived through hell and high water together. Persistence, as Weiss had come to learn, was only one facet of keeping a functioning marriage alive. Especially when that marriage included a person who required a physical and emotional connection far deeper than Weiss could realistically fathom. So, Weiss devised a plan.

The next day Blake let out a contented purr as she barricaded herself into the nesting area once more. It was a quiet place, peaceful. Among the scent of beloved books and the comforts of home, her mate's scent distinctively stood out as well. She didn't know how long she had been laying amongst the bedding, deeply engrossed in a story she hadn't read before. An old folktale of sorts, the yellowing pages weaving old phobias anew.

About midway in, she sighed longingly, closing the book.

Craning her neck from side to side, she stretched and let out a needy little mew that had instinctively risen up from the back of her throat. Then with keen golden eyes she scanned the room. If she would have mated to a Faunus, that mate would know when to check in on her. They would know to do so often. They'd constantly scent mark her growing belly, and become fiercely protective of her. It was simply innately hardwired into mated Faunus to keep a keen eye on their pregnant spouses.

She felt her children inside of her. They were none too pleased to be left alone for so long, either. With a quiet mewl, she responded to her daughter so keen on getting her attention…though, truthfully, Blake knew what she was looking for.

What they were all waiting for, honestly.

Weiss.

Deepening her purr and making it louder, she took to communing with her young in a way only a Faunus ever could…if Weiss wouldn't know when to affirm her role in their lives, the Blake would just have to go to her. The only problem was, Weiss wasn't in any of her usual places. In fact, Blake followed the scent to the bedroom, where Weiss normally never was in the middle of the day.

Her eyes widened at the sight that came walking out of the bathroom moments later.

"I was wondering when you'd come wandering in here." Weiss said, in a sultry tone that left nothing to the imagination. Then again, neither did the fact that she only had on her robe. She walked across the room, locking the door shut behind her. Truth be told, Weiss couldn't recall the last time they'd made love. The mood hadn't struck them, and with Zhu always around, it didn't help matters. Today was the day that would change.

Ruby was getting discharged today, and Yang was going to go get her. Sun and Zhu went along for the trip.

"Did you ditch work?" Blake asked, eyebrow raised. She faintly smelled catnip lingering in the room, as if Weiss had just recently put an oil candle out.

Weiss nodded. "I haven't been the most attentive person behind closed doors lately." She said in way of reply. "For that, I'm sorry."

"That's not your fault, you know." Blake murmured, instinct starting to ease, her shoulders relaxing.

"Get comfortable and lay down on the bed, I'll join you in a moment." Weiss suggested.

"Weiss what-" Blake was interrupted as Weiss leaned up and captured her lips in a kiss, silencing her. A purr began to rumble up into her throat as deft fingers toyed with the soft fur at the base of her ears. Over the years, Weiss had become entirely too good at rendering her into blissful mindlessness that accompanied the action.

"You heard me." Weiss breathed, her lips still ghosting over Blake's own. "Get comfortable. Lay on your side, and give me a moment."

"…Actually, I'd really rather-" But her mate cut her off again, this kiss much deeper than the one before. Lingering and intense.

"Don't insult yourself." Weiss demanded softly. She knew Blake was self-conscious of the stretchmarks around her thighs and belly. Blake had never been a modest person in the bedroom, but pregnancy had rendered her a little uncomfortable with some of the changes that kept cropping up. "You're beautiful. Trust me, I know beauty when I see it…and I see it."

"Someone's feeling competitive." Blake said with a small, amused smile.

"Hush, or I will take you against this door." It wasn't a threat, it was a promise.

"Will you now?" Blake murmured, feeling the small shiver skitter down her spine. Weiss rarely become fired up over anything, but prideful as she was, she had clearly taken Blake's words to heart.

Weiss narrowed her eyes. Perhaps maybe she was being competitive. Instead of just outwardly admitting it, her eyes narrowed. Another kiss portrayed her feelings perfectly. It was possessive, promising delights that Weiss would never dare speak aloud. She was never a vixen, not by far, but what she lacked in sensuality, she more than made up for with blunt honesty.

A true desire to fulfill Blake's needs to the best of her ability.

Weiss Schnee was always a woman of her word, which made her physical promises all the more tantalizing. Blake's purr happily deepened further, when she felt Weiss's fingers trail through her hair, and down her back. "Bed." Weiss heatedly whispered as she broke the kiss. "Now."

Ruby was finally released from the hospital, her wounds done festering, even though they ached terribly. She hadn't gained full feeling in her fingertips. The damage would never be undone, but she was more than happy to be home. More importantly, she was happy to have Sun in her bed. It was hard for her to fathom just how deeply she loved him, how important Zhu had become to her.

As the small boy saw fit to wiggle in between them, she couldn't suppress the grin tugging at her lips. If this was even a fraction of how it felt to have a family of her own, she couldn't imagine any other way to live.

Sun was still sore, even if he wasn't severely mangled anymore, and he winced as he turned over. Adjusting the pillows, he handed Ruby the scroll he'd been reading. "I think it's a bad idea." He said to her. "Cybernetics aren't all that great, are they? I mean, there's no way having a cybernetic arm would be better, right?"

"If the calibrations are done right, the cybernetics are actually more efficient. They don't sustain the same sort of injuries that flesh and bone do." Ruby told him, having already done extensive research. "Depending on the structure, they can sustain much more force, and obviously they don't respond to the cold climate the same way a real human hand does."

"But, they can be bulky…"

"For guys, yeah…"

"And not for women?"

"It depends." Ruby said slowly. "There are some designs made particularly for women in mind. The tradeoff is obvious though. Smaller parts means more delicate parts, so I think I would probably go with a man's model scaled down to fit my measurements." Ruby said as she pulled out a rolled up schematic from in-between the bed and the end table. She had several schematics there, but this one was her favorite. "Here, take a look at this. It's the leading in women's cybernetic prosthetics."

He knew next to nothing about mechanical parts, so she kept it simple, as she pulled another rolled schematic out. "And this…" She said with a grin. "This the male variant of the same model."

"They both look clunky to me." Sun said slowly. "Ruby, I don't claim to know what exactly all of these numbers on the side of this page mean, but I'm not sure that I like the idea of you having microchips inserted into your head."

"Well, I'd need those, otherwise the arm won't work…besides, it's a routine operation." Ruby told him. "The wiring is the hard part, or so I hear."

"Wiring?" He gave her a look, tail flicking outwardly before curling. He frowned. "I don't like the sound of that."

"What do you think the chip connects to?" Ruby asked him with a soft smile. "The chips connect to wires that will run down the back of my head, buried underneath my muscles in my neck and back. They'll enter into a fixed socket powered by dust. I'll have to keep a chamber filled so that power continues to run to the computer systems in the arm attachment itself. That's what keeps the artificial intelligence inside of the arm able to compute what my brain is thinking into actual movements…"

"And then you wonder why Yang's shitting a brick…" Sun cringed. "Ruby, that all sounds crazy. Painful even…and the amputation itself…that can't be an easy thing to do."

"Hunters do it all the time. It's not that big of a deal anymore." Ruby said then, and she wasn't wrong. "Being a huntress is all I know, it's what I was raised to be. Even when I was a little kid, my mom was a hunter. I don't remember a lot, but I remember the way her boots hit heavy on the floor. I remember her white cloak, and the clicking of her gear on her back. The way I look, and my job…they're the only things I have of her anymore…"

Sun worried when she trailed off, lost in her own mind. The soft smile on her lips seemed weighted. The way she tenderly ran her good hand along ruddy tresses atop Zhu's head let him know it's wasn't exactly a negative thought. Merely one of significance. "Ruby?"

She shook her head. "I just don't want to give that up."

He nodded, treading very carefully along obviously fragile emotions. "And nothing we say is going to get you to change your mind?"

"Hmm…" Ruby shook her head. "Nope."

"I'm sensing a hang-up somewhere in there…"

Ruby turned to him and sighed. There was something that bothered her, something she didn't talk to anyone about. She had no clear way to say it…but deep down, it mattered. More than it should have. "It's not like I want the arm because I think it looks cool. I know what I'm asking, I know what's going to happen…and for everyone else, there's this stigma…it's like oh, hey look. There's a hunter with a fake arm. Wonder what else they lost…and, I know it's not malicious. It's still going to happen."

"You're scaring me…" Sun murmured, cupping her cheek.

"That's just it, Sun. I'm scared too, and no one seems to get that." She whispered darkly. "This is life changing. In every single way, my life's changed now, and I don't have the agency I used to have…and if I want that agency back, I have to do this…it's not an option of physical therapy, or playing a waiting game. The feeling is gone in my hand. Just…gone…I could probably cut it off, and it wouldn't hurt nearly as bad as I know it should…"

"Ruby..."

"Knowing that just makes me so mad. I couldn't do my job right. I screwed enough to even let this happen, and maybe the Nevermore should have taken it off right then. It felt like…like…I felt like I was going to lose it when the talons dug in. Like it would rip off, right then and there, and I was expecting it. I was already thinking the worst, because the best case...that's right now..."

"Babe, shhh." Sun murmured, "You're going to be okay."

"And then to get frostbite."

"Ruby…"

"No, Sun." Ruby insisted. "I need you to listen to me. All of these welts are going to scar up, and people are going to see that." Ruby continued, she knew she was rambling, but the outpour was too much to stop now. "They'll look and stare, either out of curiosity, or because it freaks them out…and so either way, no matter what I do…I…look at this…" She said, gesturing to her bandaged hand and part of her arm. "I don't want it to be like this. I don't want to live like this…and I don't want Yang to hate me…I don't…" She didn't have any more words. "Damn it."

Sun just sighed at a loss, holding her close. So she wanted the metal arm that badly? He wouldn't complain. He just wished beyond measure that he wasn't feeling hot tears hitting his chest. He wished he could pull all of her pain away, but he knew he couldn't, so he just sat there, letting her soak his shirt in all of the bitterness she'd held in for too long.