The family gathered back together during the gusty chill of what Vale might call spring. Snow turned back into sleet and icy rain, greenery poked through the snow before it was buried once more, and the temperatures turned less artic and it became more pleasant to be outside on the sunny days, traversing the glistening paths of white fluff.

It was two weeks away from Blake's due date, anticipation gathering around the small group and clinging there between each conversation and flick of the eyes. Blake took notice of the way others looked at her, watching, waiting, for her to indicate some change to her condition. The only thing she felt was happier, prone to relish the warm conversations and jovial banter gifted to her by friends turned family.

Yang's arrival was solitary, Yatsuhashi stayed behind in Vale. She laughed it off, saying Velvet still needed him there, and continuous messaging back and forth indicated that she was putting the matter mildly. For at least a few weeks she would be reclaiming her room. That still didn't keep her from finding it strange that everything was left exactly as she had abandoned it, her clothing rumpled is various piles, and her bed sheets bundled in a heap.

She wasn't fond of being away from him, and the fact that the place beside her would be empty at night aggravated her. Sharing a bed was one of the best things about their time together, those lazy little moments when the world drifted away. It was more than just cathartic, it was the way things were meant to be. However, the people in her life were more important than her selfishness, and Blake needed her here.

It was only a matter of time, and Oobleck arrived early as well, just in case. His dealing with his former students happened mostly in the professional space. Parties, scientific or historic ventures, and Blake's appointments. Whenever he stayed at the manor, it was strictly as an expert, or a teacher at Beacon, so he often made himself scarce and kept to himself.

He knew these women though, and understood that they were still very young at heart. He saw the rough outer edges of hardship that had shaped them, but to him they were still the four girls who were quick to go looking for trouble. Oobleck never voiced the opinion out loud, but he still thought of them as young upstarts…always in need of someone to keep an eye on them, least they bit off more than they could chew…

It wasn't out of disrespect for their abilities. It was merely that if the flying blueberries across the dinner table were any indication, old habits tended to die hard.

"Yang, come on." Ruby chastised when one wayward piece of fruit smacked her in the face. "Don't teach him that."

"Uncle Qrow taught us…"

"Yeah, but you're supposed to be the good influence."

"If you don't want him learning all of the best ways to drive you crazy, don't put him in my lap."

"It's bad enough he's started to gnaw on his shirts." Ruby protested, but it fell on deaf ears as the little boy continued to use his fruit as projectiles.

"Speaking of, why does he gnaw fabric like that?" Yang asked. "He never used to…he just used to pull them off and stuff, not go looking to tear them all up."

"The guys in Sun's family don't seem to like clothes. I don't know why, exactly, but they try to get away with a little as possible. I think he picked it up from some of the older boys."

"It's a Faunus thing, Ruby." Blake said to her.

Winter had heard that excuse time and time again protruding from Blake's mouth, and many times, the phrasing didn't bother her in the slightest, but this one did. "Forgive me my naivety, but why do you consider that a Faunus trait? I'd beg to differ, and simply call the matter uncivilized. Women are a minority in the military, and the ones that join normally partake jobs that keep them out of combat. Frankly speaking, I'm around testosterone driven males and machines all day. I'd tell you the sort of things I've seen, but that's not something I'd discuss in polite company at the dinner table."

"Zhu would prefer being topless is because of his Faunus blood. When it's a question of dominance, we react based on our heritage. Then again, it's probably also more comfortable too." Blake said, fingers tapping on the table soundlessly in thought. "For him, it's civil enough, I guess."

"You guess?" Winter asked with an upraised brow.

"Do I look like a monkey Faunus to you?" Blake returned humorously. "If you want to get into the complexities of their behavior, you'll have to ask Sun, but I can say that some Faunus do more posturing than others. Monkey Faunus are insanely strong. Pound for pound, Sun's dangerously powerful. Sun and Zhu don't have claws or fangs. Strength is really all they have, so they sometimes like to display that." Blake shrugged then. "Shirts hide their bodies, and I can see why Zhu might not like that."

"Oh, yeah, what do women do? I've never met a female monkey Faunus, but I can't imagine they just let their boobs flop everywhere." Yang shot back.

"Yang, ew! They don't just walk around naked. They just cover very little up top." Ruby told her before turning to Winter. "Actually, it's really kind of cool what some of the huntresses wear, kind of like armor. There's these vest things that are tight fitting, but snap in the front. Like a bra, but it covers more than that, and the material is thick. Some of the others had halter tops made of the same thing."

Yang frowned, not wanting to think about her little sister praising skimpy battle armor, in case she adopted the style herself. Loading another berry onto Zhu's spoon, she grinned wildly as it nailed Ruby in the forehead again. "Ha, nice one."

Winter murmured something about Branwen blood and how strong it seemed to run, but Ruby and Yang ignored the obvious jibe. Stories of the Branwen twins left no question that Yang took after them, or that Ruby had learned some terrible habits from her uncle in their younger years. Ruby kicked her sister's knee from under the table, watching the blonde wince as Ruby glared at her. Another berry when flying, but this time, it went sideways and hit Blake.

The little boy giggled before being picked up, meeting unhappy golden eyes. Blake plopped him down on Weiss's lap and rolled her eyes, moving his plate of fruit over to him. Then, almost out of nowhere, a harsh slap to the back of Yang's head knocked her into the mashed potatoes.

"What was that for?!" She squawked indignantly, palming away the sticky substance, eyes coloring red as she reached for a napkin.

"Keep showing him how to throw his food, and I'll keep throwing you into yours."

"If you weren't pregnant, you'd be swimming in your soup by now, Belladonna…"

"I'd end up taking you with me."

"Some things never change." Bartholomew said good-naturedly.

"Unfortunately, no, they don't." Weiss replied, already realizing that. Some part of her was thankful for the openness that the sisters displayed, and the playful effect it had on Blake. Still, another part dreaded what terrible influences could result from such dinner time ruckus. "I'm just happy I haven't been pelted in the face with snow in the last year or so."

"Small victories." Oobleck laughed.

Weiss merely nodded. "Indeed."

"Your days are numbered." Yang said, giving Weiss a knowing look. "I'm building an army of half-pints."

Weiss rolled her eyes, refusing to imagine an army of small children armed to the teeth with balls of snow and ice. She didn't put it passed Yang to come up with such an obvious scheme, and chose not to reply about that fact that she could simply freeze Yang to the nearest wall in the aftermath. Comforting herself with the idle thought, she lifted her mug of warmed cider to her lips. "On another topic, how are the studies on that yellow dust going? I hope you found the samples worth your time…"

"All samples are worth my time." Oobleck said simply. "Even if it weren't still applicable in the field, academically, it's always worth the initial study. Besides, even seemingly useless combinations of dust might still have importance we've yet to think of. Discovering that is what makes the dust trade so lucrative. I don't say this very often, but it's always been an offhanded goal of mine to discover a new advancement, or to pioneer old ones in new ways, though my current project is something a bit strange."

"Dust is strange in general." Ruby said. "I've seen kids take wooden planks, iron ore, magnets, glue, and dust spray to make hover boards."

"And you're the one who taught them, I'm sure of it." Weiss turned to Oobleck. "I don't think we've ever told you this, but Pyrrha flung Ruby through our dorm room window by accident during one of your assignments."

"Pyrrha Nikos?" Oobleck said, as if shocked.

"The one and only." Ruby nodded. "Actually, it was a really awesome. Well, outside of the explosion, that wasn't very cool at all, but we had a good idea for using dust in the field to make getting from one place to the other easier."

"Why am I not surprised?" Winter asked more to herself than to the others at the table.

Blake sighed, recalling that particular catastrophe. "Pyrrha made the mistake of telling Ruby that most unrefined dust can be easily polarized because of the metal bits still inside of it. The next thing we know, Pyrrha and Ruby team up as lab partners, and we hear a loud boom. Pyrrha is absolutely covered from head to toe in red and yellow dust. There's a gaping hole in the window, and Ruby's hanging upside down in the tree outside. Later we found out that Pyrrha polarized the red dust, and Ruby sneezed."

"That's what happens when you're allergic to it as a huntress, I'm afraid." He said, giving Ruby a knowing little glance. "In answer to your question, the yellow dust I've been testing is of unusually pure quality. Ruby's right about that. However, it's also particularly strong as well, I wonder if it would be wise to sell it as it is. The properties could be too pure, and volatile."

Weiss had been wondering about that little matter too. "Well, what would you suggest?"

"The matter is complicated. You'd net a tidy profit distributing it to the shops. However, one must wonder if doing so would be the safest idea. Dust is finicky in the hands of careful researchers as it is…reckless hunters on the other hand…" He pressed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose. "I'd extract it, but keep as much of it in crystalized form as you can. Use it for military personnel, or for experimentation I'd say."

Weiss nodded. "If you'd ever like any more dust from any of the mines under SDC control, you're more than welcome to it, just let me know."

Oobleck seemed to consider this, before falling into temptation and agreeing, his curiosity getting the better of him. "I'll do that, thank you. Though, I believe we should discuss that at a later time. I have something of a list you see, and the tests themselves are something you might find of particular interest…" He trailed off looking to Blake. "But, only later…much, much later…"

Celibacy, Weiss decided, was something akin to torture after enjoying the act of lovemaking. At first it was like any dry spell that was brought on by being too busy with other things. During those times, she simply had other worries, and didn't think about the intrigue of the bedroom, or how unquestionably sexy her wife was. Then, Weiss started working from home, and she couldn't put little details out of her mind any longer.

Matters of the heart were never easy for Weiss, and it wasn't the first time they chose to abstain from sex.

The first time was back in the halls of Beacon. She remembered that moment, and her fingers absently lifted to her neck, recalling the uneasy several weeks when Blake had acted strangely, choosing to distance herself the slightest bit in ways that were too obvious for comfort. Back then, it was because a sexually active female Faunus, became a Faunus who slowly acclimated to her heat cycles. As Blake had shyly explained, that was not something Blake wanted to trigger while she was still in school.

Then they graduated, married, and gave into temptation…and shortly thereafter, Blake began going into heat a few times a year. Since then, Blake's normally active libido kept them both rather satisfied, and sometimes, it was even exhausting for her to keep up with her wife's usual rigor…however, Faunus weren't like humans. They could reproduce again after childbirth very quickly, and with all of the crazy hormones running through their system, it was easy to trigger another heat cycle even out of season.

Blake stated clearly that wanted to focus completely on her new litter, and Weiss agreed.

So, as a human, Weiss put her own libido aside, focusing only on Blake's needs as her due date drew near. This was going to be a long lasting celibacy though, and Weiss sunk further under the piping hot water of the bathtub, reminding herself of why they were doing this. She missed the closeness, and the affirmation that she was actually desirable. She turned the page of a book from her personal collection, trying to soothe away her own paranoia, but it just wasn't working.

Getting out of the bath and drying herself off, she tossed on a nightgown and crawled into the bedding that Blake had been freshly marking every evening. As soon as she felt an arm slide around her, she bristled.

"Weiss?"

"It's nothing, just startled me is all."

"It doesn't smell like nothing…" Blake drawled concern dragging her mind from the comfortable fog of sleepiness. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong Blake." Weiss protested firmly before her voice softened to nearly inaudible levels. "I'm just thinking."

"Thinking of?"

"You're not going to let this go, are you?"

"Not when I smell so much anxiety just wafting off of you. It's a little strange that you cooked yourself in a bath for an hour, and something is still bothering you so much that you couldn't dissipate that scent in the slightest. Whatever it is, it's really bugging you." She maneuvered around a little bit before sitting up, and turning on the lamp nearby. Weiss also smelled sexually frustrated, but Blake wisely chose to omit that piece of information. "What's going to sweetheart?"

"It's hard to put into words…"

"Can you at least try?"

Weiss rolled over so that she could look at Blake. It was no easier seeing those golden eyes peering at her worriedly. "There are just some things about myself that…well…they're not so easy to believe right now, that's all."

Blake weighed the words carefully, her own question mild and tender. "Such as?"

"I'm not a very curvaceous woman. I'm not, and I have never been very much to look at. Those are facts I've grown to accept. However, there are some...old voices shall we say…that are reminding me of the way I used to think of myself, and I suppose I just don't like that."

Blake frowned, not asking Weiss to elaborate further as she pointedly switched off the light, and pulled herself out of her long nightshirt, leaving her cotton panties on. She laid down on her side taking some time to get comfortable before she guided Weiss closer.

"Blake?" Weiss asked as those strong and familiar hands grasped at the sleeping gown, bunching it up and over her head.

Blake said nothing at first, as she adjusted one of her wife's slender leg up and over her hips to close the distance. The position was awkward due to her large pregnant belly putting space between them, but Weiss didn't seem to mind as her blue eyes searched the darkness. Blake smiled at the confusion and shock written plainly across those delicate features. "Is that batter?"

Gods, yes it was. Even such a simple thing as spooning naked had been lacking as of late, but Weiss was too afraid at articulate that it was something she missed. The celibacy was a choice made for Blake's own heath, both mentally and physically. It was supposed to strengthen their bond as mates, and prepare them for the time ahead when bedroom frolics would be non-existent. After a litter was born, mated pairs would receive less time to claim each other, and would need to rely much more on trust during the fragile time.

After all, triplets were sure to be a handful, Faunus litter or not.

Academically, Weiss understood the reason why this tradition was so important, especially now that she was also starting to notice the dynamic change of their bond, and the questions it raised. She wasn't even a Faunus and she scrutinized herself. Weiss was determined, now more than ever, to see the tradition through for Blake's sake. It didn't quiet the voices, however, the niggling little fears leaving seedlings behind in their wake.

"I hate when you read my thoughts…" Weiss sighed. "Then again, I hate thinking these ones even more."

"It's hard not to when you make it obvious. Weiss, you're beautiful." Blake said with a laugh that ghosted just under her breath. "I don't know why you have trouble believing that."

"Habit, I suppose." Weiss murmured. "It doesn't help that I when I went into the office, I found a near avalanche of 'I'm the dad' buttons crammed up into one of the cupboards. Yang always finds some way to torment me...I'm just not so sure I like the joke. Look at my father, he's not exactly the picture of masculinity. I'm sure if I wanted to try, I could make myself look like a very short, pre-pubescent version of him."

Blake tried hard not to laugh at the mental image, instead, purring softly.

"Hey, it's not funny. The entire thing is very off-putting to think about."

"Now who's reading minds?" Blake asked after the rumble stilled. "You know how Yang is, I'm sure she didn't think you'd take it personally. It isn't as if you two have really talked about your self-image, have you?"

"Not that I mean to objectify our friends, but, with a body like hers, how could she possibly understand? When it comes to her body, her confidence has always been real."

"Not as real as you might think." Blake said softly. "Much more real than yours, yes, but Yang's always had poor body image...it's just been in a different way. As you said, she's always been objectified, she doesn't know how not to be…your worries come from the complete opposite end of the spectrum."

"I don't enjoy putting myself down, you know…it isn't a fun experience for me, either."

"Weiss, listen, humans are always more focused on visual aesthetics. You don't have a strong sense of smell like I do. For humans, basic hygiene is all that's required, but to my senses, you're the total package. I wish you could see yourself the way that I see you, maybe then, you'd understand why I'm attracted to you so much."

"And how do you see me?"

"As my mate." Blake could have lavished her with compliments all night long, but she doubted Weiss would truly internalize any of them, or take them as fact. The shorter woman had false bravado in spades, but when it began to fracture, it crumbled in moments. Logic and pointed honesty would win this discussion. "To me you've always been desirable. Your scent is intoxicating, your voice is pleasant to my ears when you aren't bellowing across the house, visually you're beautiful, you're smart as hell, and best of all you are mine…that last thing, Weiss, is what matters the most to me. That I love you, and your mine. Everything else is just a huge bonus."

Weiss blushed under the obviously Faunus slanted logic. "You've turned me into some kind of deviant, it seems."

Blake's only response was to purr louder, leaning in to nuzzle at the nape of her wife's neck, nipping at the porcelain skin and laughing at the sharp intake of breath that resulted from such an act. "Weiss, if you're that wound up, I don't mind helping you take some of the pressure off."

"No, we agreed to observe Faunus tradition, and we should. It's important that we do." Weiss said, though she buried herself as close to Blake as their position would reasonably allow. "Besides, this…this is better…frustrating in its own way, but so much better than before."

They needed to change up Ruby's training somehow, but first, before that could happen, Blake felt the urge to mend a very delicate and personal issue surrounding Ruby's suffering. Maybe it was her instinct kicking in, or shared history commanding the charge, and perhaps it was some hellish combination of both. No matter what it was, Blake felt protective of Ruby. She needed to do something, and the restlessness inside of her demanded that she do so.

"The problem is, you're afraid to be comforted." Blake said as she slid the coin out from Ruby's grasp. She pulled the box out of reach too, plopping the offensive little circle inside with the other random objects. "That's why this recovery is taking so damn long."

"I don't want to be coddled." Ruby shot back. "There's a difference."

"It's one in the same. Been there, done that, have the T-shirt. Abuse leaves scars that can't be seen, and this is one of them." Blake shrugged, as she resettled herself in one of the chairs. "You don't think you can trust the moral support. You want to, deep down. Thing is, you've been wronged by someone you loved before…someone who claimed to love you…showing any weakness feels impossible in the face of all of that...but people have weakness that's just fact. Fight against it all you want, but you'll just end up yo-yoing back and forth."

"I'm a fighter, that's what I do. I'm not going to give up."

"I know."

"Then why do you insist on following me around every time I try to do this?"

"Because like it or not, being entirely solitary isn't healthy on a human's mind. I wish I could say you'll get used to 'being coddled' as you put it, but, the fact is, it's probably always going to feel like some sort of cage to you."

"You are trying to dig around in my head. Everyone is, and that's not helping."

"I'll concede that trying to pick your brain isn't helping, but unless you tell me what you think will help, I'm forced to rely on aggravating the hell out of you. Trust me, there's no prison worse than the one in your own head." Blake sighed, looking down at the gains on the table. "I was trapped there once for years, there's nothing worse. No one can set you free from your own oppression but you...and if you feel as if you can't, it's a bad place to be Ruby, trust me."

Ruby just looked down at the table. "What if it doesn't work?"

"The arm?"

"Everything." Ruby murmured.

"Ah, I see." Blake leaned over, elbow on the table, and palm cradling her chin. "You're stronger than Yang gives you credit for, and wiser than Weiss likes to think you are. I know you well enough to know, you'll figure things out as they come…with help or not...but, it would be easier if you just accepted help right now."

"I promised myself that I wouldn't be that way again…"

"Accepting of help?"

"Defenseless!"

Blake let out a long suffering sigh. Reaching forward, she yanked Ruby's hand out from under her, and without hesitating, she laid it on her belly. "They are defenseless, Ruby. You aren't, you just think you are."

Ruby's thumb twitched, her eyes wide. Abruptly touching Blake's belly like that was often a grave offense. Yang had done it once to tickle her teasingly, and Blake had recoiled on contact, bucking the blonde into a wall with much more force than Blake strictly needed. The entire affair had been an accident, but that day, long ago in the RWBY dorm room, the rule had been made clear.

Unexpected hugs were disliked, but tolerated, but only a select few would ever be allowed to touch her in such a fragile place. Which was why it was a shock now, to feel her friend's warm skin beneath her fingers. It was a testament of trust, complete and unrestrained, and Ruby knew that.

"I just..." Ruby shrugged guiltily. If she couldn't offer the same trust in return, what good was she? "I'm tired, Blake."

"I know."

"And I don't know if any of this is going to work the way I want it to."

"It will."

"How can you say that when you don't know for sure?" Ruby asked, pulling away. "No one knows, that's the worst part."

"Or the best…at least this way, you can hope…" Blake said, though she felt as though it wasn't enough. "Maybe I'm just being a jerk, and the best thing for you would be to just leave you alone…but if that's the case, I'd rather be the jerk than the better person." She didn't know why she felt inclined to lean forward then, but she did, head falling to rest on Ruby's good shoulder. Her head was starting to feel a little foggy, as her eyes closed. "You can trust us…"

"Blake?"

"Mm?"

"Are you okay?"

Golden eyes cleared. "I'm fine…" Blake replied. "Why?"

"Because…well, you're just acting strange…" Ruby said. "You don't exactly use me as a pillow unless you're sick, or in heat, or something."

That, Blake realized belatedly was a very good point, and quickly she detached herself from the shorter woman, inwardly wondering why in the world she had felt inclined to get so close in the first place. "I'm sorry, I just wasn't thinking."

Ruby didn't seem convinced, but she let it slide with a small smirk. "I can go find Weiss, if you want."

"No...no it's fine, it's not like that." Blake said as shook the oddly re-occurring fog from her mind and cleared her throat. "I've just been a little absentminded, that's all."

"If you say so..." Ruby murmured, watching Blake's eyes glaze flicker again. "If you want, I really will go find Weiss."