Chapter 9: Sisters, a Motorcycle, and a Checkup

AN: Warning for a couple of food mixtures that may or may not sound revolting to readers; Yang has cravings.

Ruby burst in, trailing petals. She slammed the door behind her and locked it. That done, she rested her back against the door, panting, wild-eyed.

Yang and Blake stared at her from in front of their couch, Yang's prosthetic gun aimed at her until she lowered it, mechanism whirring as it slid away. Blake stood in front of Yang, as if trying to shield her with her body, cat ears pinned back.

Ruby vaguely noticed Blake looked healthy again, skin no longer too pale, and no shadows of exhaustion under her eyes. Then again, it had been about a month since Blake's last mission; she must've recovered from the blood loss by now.

Yang blinked and found her voice. "Ruby, what the fuck?"

"Hide me!" Ruby zipped across to the windows, closed them, and drew the curtains.

"Hide you?" Blake echoed, alarm fading to confusion.

Ruby dropped to her knees and held her hands clasped in front of her. "Please! Weiss is gonna murder me!"

Yang groaned. She pinched the bridge of her nose, shaking her head. "Weiss adores you. She won't harm a hair on your head."

"I had an accident while lighting the candles on her birthday cake and her binder with your wedding planning stuff in it kinda sorta went up in flames."

Yang and Blake took a moment to parse Ruby's rapid speech, then exchanged a look, eyes wide.

"Okay, so she might need a little time to calm down. She's been a bit frazzled about the wedding planning all along, and now that it's almost time?" Yang winced. She shook her head while whistling lowly.

Blake tried what was probably meant to be a reassuring smile. It came out more like a grimace. "On the brighter side none of the stuff in that binder was essential, and if I know Weiss she has backups of backups."

"It was essential to Weiss!" Ruby wailed. "That was her favourite binder."

"Oh," they said, more or less in unison. It always creeped Ruby out when they did that, but she was more concerned with being hunted down and skinned alive by Weiss.

"It was good knowing you, I'd better come up with your eulogy. The best baby sister ever…" Yang sniffled, wiping away a non-existent tear. Or maybe it was a real tear; Ruby knew Yang was still very much at the mercy of her hormones.

Ruby slumped to the floor, moaning, "I'm so dead."

Blake's scroll vibrated from where it rested on the coffee table. Or rather tea table; it'd been a while since any coffee cups rested on it. Poor Yang, deprived of coffee for months now. Blake picked up her scroll, cat ears perking up.

"It's Weiss…"

Ruby yelped, fearful gaze on the scroll. "Don't tell her I'm here!"

Blake hummed soothingly. She unrolled her scroll and accepted the call, Weiss's face appearing where Ruby could see it through the screen. Blake mercifully kept her own camera pointed only at herself and Yang.

Weiss sighed. "Oh, of course you're there too, Yang, I was hoping not to worry you."

"Blake would tell me anyway. What's up?" Yang asked. "Oh, and happy birthday!"

Blake echoed the birthday greeting.

"Thank you, and I'm looking forward to seeing you both later to celebrate it. But I need to find Ruby before we can."

"Ah, so that's why you were hoping I wouldn't be with Blake," Yang muttered. She wasn't the best actor, but at least kept her eyes away from where Ruby lay.

"What happened?" Blake asked.

Weiss sighed again, heavily enough to interfere with the microphone pickup for a moment. She looked sheepish, almost unheard of for her. Unseen, Ruby corrected herself, wary eyes fixed on her partner.

"I may have overreacted. Ruby insisted on a birthday cake for breakfast for me, and she had an… accident… when lighting the candles. Something of mine ended up going up in flames. I…" Weiss blinked back tears. "I lost my temper. Ruby fled. I tried her scroll, but she won't respond. Could you two try getting in touch? Tell her I'm sorry. It won't happen again."

Guilt was already a leaden weight in Ruby's stomach. It only got heavier with every word Weiss said, and the worried look on her face was too much. That coupled with the fact it was Weiss's birthday, and Ruby had ruined it…

Ruby lurched to her feet and snatched Blake's scroll out of her hands. "I'm here, I'm okay, I'm sorry, I panicked," she babbled. "I'll get you a new binder, I'll find one just as nice, I promise!"

Weiss held up her free hand in a 'stop' signal. "Ruby, breathe. Don't worry about the binder. I'd rather pick a replacement out myself. And I'm sorry. It was an accident, and I shouldn't have got angry."

"It was your favourite binder," Ruby said, voice small, rubbing at the back of her head.

"Forget the binder. There are more important things."

"Like your cake!" Ruby tugged at her hair, wincing. "I'll get you another. One that didn't get a bit charred."

Weiss smiled. "It'll be fine after I trim the burned bits off. Just come home, okay?"

"Promise not to murder me?" Ruby managed a small grin.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "I promise that whatever fate befalls you, Ruby Rose, it will not be at my hands."

"You do have Summons," Yang pointed out, oh so helpfully, like she was trying to give Weiss ideas. Traitor.

"I do," Weiss agreed, tone mild.

"Weiss wouldn't turn her Summons on me," Ruby said. "Right?"

Weiss smirked.

"Right?"

Weiss ignored Ruby's desperate question. "Give Blake her scroll back, Ruby, I want to say a little more to her and Yang."

"Talk to me, Weiss! Please!" Ruby winced at the shrill pitch of her own voice. It wasn't fair, it could pitch low, but it had a tendency to go high when she least wanted it to.

Yang's prosthetic grabbed the scroll and stole it away from Ruby. "Yoink," she said, voice lower than normal, almost as if taunting Ruby. She was pretty sure it wasn't actually intentional, but you could never be sure with Yang. At least not when there was an opportunity to tease her poor younger sister.

"What'd you want, birthday girl?" Yang asked, positioning the scroll so the camera captured her and Blake.

"I just wanted to say that regardless of whatever Ruby told you about the burned binder, your wedding will go according to plan." It was almost funny how calm Weiss sounded, considering how frazzled they all knew Weiss was about it. She wasn't fooling anyone.

"Oh, we weren't worried," Blake said. "We know you're careful about keeping backups."

"So long as Ruby doesn't burn those or wipe my scroll," Weiss muttered.

"I heard that!" Ruby protested. "I wouldn't!"

"You were supposed to, you need to be more careful. I know it was an accident, and it's wrong to blame you, but it could have been avoided if you hadn't been in such a hurry."

Ruby moved to where she could poke her head into view of the scroll camera, pouting at Weiss, giving her best attempt at puppy eyes.

Weiss resisted for a few seconds, giving Ruby a stern look, before it softened into a smile. "You're impossible."

Ruby blinked slowly, maximising the effect of her eyes. "And safe from your Summons? And your sword, that technically wouldn't be your hands…"

Weiss raised an eyebrow. "If I do, it won't be at home, or anywhere else I'd want to avoid getting blood."

"Like, everywhere, right? You wouldn't want blood anywhere. Especially not mine."

Weiss didn't answer, her smile just widened. Ruby comforted herself with the thought that Weiss would never really hurt her. It was also some consolation that Yang would avenge her in the unlikely event Weiss snapped and forgot she loved Ruby. Although Yang might leave it until after the wedding, she was practical like that.

"Do you need any copies of things from us? You made sure we had them, so in the event Ruby does have another accident, just let us know."

Weiss laughed, waving a dismissive hand. "No, just make sure you keep Ruby away from those copies."

"Oh, we will," Blake and Yang chorused.

"Hey!" Ruby stuck out her tongue. Traitors. All of them.

"Come home, Ruby," Weiss said. "In all seriousness, you're safe. I'll try better to keep my temper in check. That I'm feeling a little stressed explains it, but doesn't excuse it." Her eyes flicked to Blake and Yang. "I'll see you both later. You have the five month scan today, don't you?"

"That's right. See you," the Bumbleby chorus sounded again.

Ruby shuddered, distracted by the creepy way they were so in tune with each other. At least they didn't do it all the time, and it was kind of cute, but… Damn it, she'd missed saying anything to Weiss before she ended the call.

"Do you need anything before heading home?" Blake asked.

Ruby turned to face her almost sister-in-law and sister, and took a step back so she wasn't in their personal space. "Oh, no, I'm good!" Although come to think of it… "Oh, wait. Got any snacks I can have?"

"Yes," Blake said.

"Uh…" Yang buried a hand in her mane, rubbing at the back of her head. "I might have polished them off yesterday."

Blake goggled at her. "Is that what you were having with the cheese dip? Yang, that can't possibly have mixed well with cheese. Weren't they chocolate chip cookies?"

Yang shrugged. "Cravings hit, but it turns out chocolate goes surprisingly well with cheese."

Ruby exchanged a dubious look with Blake. "I'll take your word for it." That made it her turn to chorus with Blake… It felt kind of weird.

"Your loss." Yang wandered over to the fridge, checking inside, then looked in the pantry. "We could send you off with a sandwich? Definitely need to buy more food though." She turned to face Ruby.

Ruby stared. The Bumblebaby bump was even bigger than when she'd last seen it, but then again she hadn't seen Yang in person for almost a month, and scroll calls didn't show her belly.

Yang sighed, gesturing at where the Bumblebaby was growing. "Do you need to get it out of your system again?"

"Huh?" Oh, right. She may have got a bit excited the first time she saw the Bumblebaby bump emphasised by Yang's new outfit. Well, relatively new by now. "Nope, not in the mood. I've got to get back to Weiss anyway, I'll pick up something on the way, I don't want to wait while a sandwich is made. But thanks."

"Do you have any lien on you?"

Oh great, Yang was in mothering mode. Ruby rolled her eyes. She appreciated it until getting on for a decade ago, but she hadn't needed a mother in ages. She patted the pocket where she kept her wallet. And froze. Well, fuck. Maybe she did still need her big sister.

Ruby gave Yang a sheepish grin. "About that… I must've left my wallet behind in my rush to escape Weiss's wrath."

Yang sighed.

Yang sent Ruby on her way with a hug, and enough lien to get a snack and an airship ticket. Whether Ruby stowed away on one to reach them, or just came all the way using her Semblance was a mystery. One Ruby could solve if Yang asked her, so perhaps she should message her. If she could bring herself to care enough when all she wanted was some potatoes and custard. She got her meal of acquired taste ready and tucked in, aware of Blake's eyes on her. A glance at her fiancée revealed an expression of morbid curiosity.

"Want some?" Yang offered a forkful.

Blake grimaced. "No thanks, kissing you afterwards is more than enough of a taste of these cravings of yours."

Yang shoved the fork into her mouth to keep herself from snapping at Blake. By the time she finished chewing, her hormone fuelled outrage had simmered down enough to smile instead. "You could just ask me to go rinse or something."

Blake smiled back. "And you would. That's true love."

"I'd do anything for you."

"Right back at you," Blake said. "Even this." She leaned over and kissed Yang deeply, despite not requesting a courtesy rinse first. If she objected to the taste she really only had herself to blame at that point.

Blake drew away. She grimaced, briefly sticking her tongue out. "I think you should try that combination again after the Bumblebaby is born, just so you can experience what I just did."

"I trust your judgement," Yang said sweetly, sliding her glass of water over to Blake. "At least when it comes to matters of taste. Not so much when making dumb gestures to prove you love me." She rolled her eyes. "I know you do, you don't need to prove anything to me."

Blake laughed. "Maybe it was a dumb thing to do, but you're the one marrying me. That makes you dumb by extension." She tapped the tip of Yang's nose.

Yang nipped playfully at Blake's finger. "Just a week left now."

"Can't wait." Blake leaned in to kiss her again.

Yang held up a hand between their lips just in time. Blake jerked back, eyes wide. Yang smiled reassuringly, picked up her glass, took a gulp and did an exaggerated rinse before she swallowed. She spread her arms. "Kiss away."

Before they could get too carried away or think about relocating to the bedroom, Yang's scroll vibrated.

They parted, sighs mingling. Yang pulled her scroll out. She couldn't ignore it; what if it was important? She relaxed on reading the message. "Ruby, just saying she's on an airship. And thanking me for the cash."

"Good, you definitely gave her enough lien, then."

Yang nodded. "Funny how I'm the one handing out lien to family despite barely having a job at the moment."

Blake snorted. "Next it'll be Tai or Qrow needing some cash to get back home."

They were joking, of course. Raven had paid her back, and Ruby would insist on doing the same, despite how she overpaid Yang for dealing with mere paperwork. Although Yang wouldn't put it past her dad or Qrow to lose their wallets at some point, possibly with Zwei's help. The elderly corgi still liked to bury things.

"Now where were we…" Blake murmured, eyes trained on Yang's lips.

Yang checked the time on her scroll. "We have maybe half an hour to spare." After that they'd need to go to her latest checkup with their doctor.

Desire burned in Blake's eyes. "Time for a quickie."

Yang felt the same burn consuming her. She pushed herself to her feet, and wished she could sweep Blake off her feet. Black spots clouded her vision, and she laid a steadying hand on the table until they faded. She'd actually fainted a week or so back, scaring the life out of Blake. The doctor had said it was nothing to worry about, the baby was well padded, and Blake had caught her anyway. Feeling dizzy wasn't uncommon at this point in pregnancy, apparently.

"Please don't faint." Blake cupped her face.

Yang groaned. "I'm never going to live that down."

"At least it didn't happen when Ruby burst in."

"Only because I leaned on you until the dizziness passed."

Blake wrapped her arms around her. "I don't think she noticed."

"She was a little distracted by the thought of Weiss's wrath." Yang took a deep breath and straightened up. "I'm okay. And still in the mood. You?"

Blake's only reply was to take her hand and stroke her thumb over the back of it. Desire burned anew in her eyes, her cat ears perked up. She led them into the bedroom, shedding clothing and kissing as they went.

They were nearly late getting to the doctor. First they had to find their clothes, then riding Bumblebee to the appointment wasn't as straightforward as Yang hoped.

"What if you faint?" Blake stood between Yang and her bike. "You can't project your Aura while unconscious."

"Fainting's only a risk if I get up too fast. It'll be fine! Besides, you'll be right there, you've used your Semblance to take me along before."

Blake shook her head. "We should get a taxi. Just to be safe. I can't risk either of you."

"Come on, Blake, I'm going to have to give up riding soon enough." Yang patted her bump. "I haven't had a chance to do any for a week, and I want to make the most of it before I get too big. So long as my Aura doesn't break, the doctor said it'd be safe enough. Even in a worst case scenario of the placenta detaching, Aura fixes that before anything happens to the baby."

Blake shuddered at Yang's words. Not that Yang could blame her. It was nightmare material, the thought of their baby's lifeline in the womb severed.

Blake frowned, cat ears pinned back. "The doctor said you shouldn't risk your Aura breaking."

"I know. I'm not." Yang forced back her rising annoyance. Blake was worried, and Yang would be in her shoes too. Snapping at her over it would only make her feel bad afterwards. "It's embarrassing to admit, but I came off Bumblebee at high speed when doing something stupid as a kid. My Aura didn't shatter from that. I won't be breaking any speed limits this time."

Blake glanced behind her at Bumblebee. "I don't know…"

Yang folded her arms above her bump. It didn't feel quite right to rest them over it when she wasn't hugging it. "There isn't time to call a taxi anyway."

Blake eyed a neighbour's car. "There's always grand theft auto…"

Yang laughed.

Blake smiled slightly, a furtive glint in her eyes. Yang stopped laughing and stared. Had Blake been serious?

"You meant borrow, right?"

"Sure," Blake drew out the word. "Borrow. I'd never steal a car." She flashed a grin. "Not any more."

Yang spluttered, smothering a guffaw. "You've stolen cars?"

"The White Fang didn't exactly have the money to buy them."

"I'm marrying a criminal," Yang whispered to herself, lips twitching as she tried to smother a grin.

"So am I. You have a history of arson, don't you?"

Yang pointed a defiant finger at Blake. "Not that you can prove without incriminating yourself. And you set your parents' house on fire, your dad said so."

"Let's hope that baby doesn't take after us." Blake laid a hand on the Bumblebaby bump. Yang mentally sighed, well aware that she'd been corrupted into calling it that herself. If it ever escaped her around Ruby she'd have to go into hiding.

"Nature and nurture." Yang clicked her tongue. "The Bumblebaby's gonna be a criminal too, just like his or her mothers." Her scroll buzzed. Yang checked it. A reminder for the appointment. "We gotta go."

"Right…" Blake sighed. "Are you sure it's safe?"

"Yes. I wouldn't risk it otherwise." Yang somehow managed not to snap at Blake, but she couldn't help sounding exasperated. Her Aura could take it, and she hadn't come off Bumblebee in many years anyway. Launching Bumblebee the First at Adam didn't count.

Blake hugged her, resting their foreheads together. "Sorry. I know I should trust your judgement. I just worry, you know?"

Yang cupped the back of Blake's head, stroking her back with her other hand. "I know. C'mon. Helmets on."

Within a minute Yang straddled Bumblebee, engine growling into life. She took a moment to enjoy the vibration against her. The only thing better was straddling Blake, in a rather different way. Blake slid on behind her, hands resting on Yang's hips. Her grip felt tentative, as if unsure where to hold on. Normally Blake would wrap her arms around Yang's waist, but that couldn't really work now with the Bumblebaby in the way.

Yang glanced back at Blake. "You might have to hold on to the underside of the seat instead. Or… Hang on, let me see if anything else might work once I'm actually riding and not just sitting."

Yang got one leg into position, the other ready to kick the stand up. She leaned forward, and—

"Fuck." The expletive hissed between Yang's teeth. A week ago, and she'd been fine. A week! Just a fucking week, and now…

"Yang?" Blake sounded confused, voice raised over the rumble of the engine. "Is something wrong?"

Yang sat upright, and pulled her helmet off to drag a hand through her hair. She didn't say anything for a moment, far too close to comfort to snapping at Blake. It wasn't her fault. She laid a hand on her bump, strangling the moment of resentment towards her baby. It wasn't the Bumblebaby's fault he or she was growing fast.

Blake's arms wrapped around her, hand resting over hers on her bump. "What is it?"

Yang put her helmet down in front of her and turned off the engine. She sighed heavily. "I'm too big."

Blake must have taken her own helmet off too, her chin resting on Yang's shoulder without the carbon fibre hitting the side of Yang's head. "You're… what?" She sounded confused.

"The Bumblebaby apparently had a growth spurt." Yang patted their joined hands on her bump. "I can't ride without putting too much pressure here. It's not comfy for me, and I can't imagine it is for the baby either."

"Oh. I'm sorry, love."

Yang turned her head and leaned her temple against Blake's. "You were right. We should've got a taxi." The admission didn't come easily, but Yang would be damned if she couldn't admit when she was wrong. Disappointment in the situation and herself burned like Grimm spit.

Blake kissed her cheek. "Wait here, I'll see about grand theft auto. We've got to get to that appointment."

"Would you like to know the biological sex?" Their doctor asked, eyes on the scan.

Yang exchanged a look with Blake. Her fiancée shrugged.

"Maybe next time?" Yang suggested. "We can talk it over before then, without wasting your time by doing it now, Doc."

Blake nodded.

"Very well," the doctor said. They typed a note on the screen of their larger scroll model. "No abnormalities or other causes for concern detected. You both seem to be doing fine. Do you have anything to report? Any questions?" They glanced at Blake.

"Your nosebleeds," Blake murmured, nudging Yang. Of course she'd raise the thing she found most concerning. Granted Yang would be alarmed if Blake kept waking up with blood trickling from her nose.

"Nosebleeds," the doctor stated. "How often?"

"I've been waking up having one for a few days now." It felt pretty revolting, feeling it in the back of her throat before it emerged from her nose when sitting up.

"How soon does it stop?"

"I used to get them as a kid, so I know how to stop them. Sit down, lean forward, pinch here—" Yang pinched her nose shut briefly, cutting off her voice before it could sound nasal. "—and wait for Aura to kick in and stop it in maybe a minute."

"Nothing to worry about," their doctor said soothingly, mostly to Blake. "Nosebleeds aren't uncommon with pregnancy."

"I'm glad to hear it, but is there any way to prevent them?" Blake asked.

The doctor shook their head. "It's probably something to do with hormones drying out the membranes in the nose. Once the levels of pregnancy hormones go down, the nosebleeds should clear up. Anything else?"

"You're up several times most nights," Blake commented, eyes on Yang.

Yang sighed. She didn't want to talk about bathroom issues, it was bad enough having them. The number of times she had to get up during the night… But it was relevant. "More of the same with nightly disturbances. Having to get up to pee, and cramps in my calves are waking me too."

Blake took her hand and squeezed gently. At Blake's insistence, she reluctantly woke her up so Blake could try to massage away the cramping whenever it struck.

"And once I'm awake it can be difficult to get back to sleep." Yang patted her bump affectionately. "The wriggly little menace is most active at night." Her baby eventually settled if she stroked her belly enough, something Blake joined in with if she was still awake.

"That the baby is moving is a good thing," the doctor said. "If inconvenient when it keeps you up at night. Ordinarily napping can lead to disturbed sleep in itself, but in this case I advise you rest during the day if you need to."

"We do," Yang said. She suspected Blake joined her more because she wanted to snuggle than actually needing a nap herself, but wasn't about to complain.

"Good." The doctor took a few more notes. They glanced up at Yang. "Are you doing your pelvic floor exercises?"

Yang blushed. "Yes."

The doctor had advised she do them to try to prevent any… leakages when laughing, sneezing and coughing. So far so good. Yang would prefer not to wet herself if possible.

"And gentle exercise in general?"

Yang nodded, groaning. "My weights will get dusty."

"I'll dust them for you," Blake offered.

"Not the point! I want to be doing some real training, ugh!"

"Think of it as a temporary break from more strenuous exercise," the doctor advised. "You'll be able to get back to it after birth, if you have the energy. Being a parent is hard work. I'll give you some more stretches to work on, including some to try to prevent those leg cramps." They tapped away at their scroll for a minute. "I'm sending you some tutorial videos."

"Thanks. Other than that, not much else to report. I feel hotter, but I already ran warmer than most, something probably connected with my Semblance. These pregnancy outfits help." Yang plucked at her collar.

The doctor checked her temperature with some sort of scanner. "Nothing alarming. But I expect it will feel worse during summer. Was there anything else?"

"I don't think so."

Blake cleared her throat, raising an eyebrow at Yang. "Are you sure your cravings are good for you? The indigestion you get…"

Yang shrugged. "All I know is the cravings bug me if I don't satisfy them."

"Indigestion is common in pregnancy anyway," their doctor said. "Just make sure you eat a balanced diet, and don't eat much more than you normally would. You'll need more once you're breastfeeding, if that's how you want to handle it. No need to decide yet." They typed up a few last notes. "If that's all, I'll see you at the next checkup, perhaps with your assigned midwife by then."

Yang got up to leave, Blake poised to steady her. Yang bit back a sigh. She'd stood slowly just to avoid a dizzy spell.

"Oh, while I remember, one last thing, Huntress Xiao Long… You'll find yourself more vulnerable to sunburn during pregnancy. Focus your Aura to protect yourself, or use sunscreen, otherwise you could burn even on a cloudy day."

Yang blinked. "It's not summer yet."

The doctor gave her a stern look over their glasses. "It doesn't need to be for pregnant people to get sunburned. Just be careful."

"Right, Doc." Yang gave a lazy salute. "Thanks."

"As usual, get in touch if you need anything."

Yang shielded the inside of her mouth with her Aura and took a sip of her tea. She held it in her mouth for a moment, testing the temperature before swallowing.

Blake snuggled against her on their sofa. "I wouldn't have minded if you decided you wanted to know if the Bumblebaby's a boy or girl."

"Hmm? Oh. I figured, but I thought it should be a joint decision." Yang pressed a kiss between Blake's cat ears. "Our baby, not just mine."

Blake nuzzled against her. "Ours. But I don't mind. I'm happy either way."

Yang nodded, nuzzling back in the process. "All it would do is make it slightly easier to talk about the baby. Except thanks to Ruby most of the time we just say 'Bumblebaby.'" She smiled. "Besides, it might end up changing anyway once our kid's old enough to figure their gender out for themself."

"Let's just leave it for now," Blake suggested. "We can always change our minds."

Yang's scroll buzzed. Blake did her usual thing of looking away while she checked it. Sometimes Yang wished she could have known to shove a scroll somewhere painful for Adam before he met his end. Although it was just as well for Ilia that Blake insisted on respecting Yang's privacy, or her little secret might've ended up spilled.

Ilia: I'm really sorry to bother you, and I'm so sorry about my fuck up. I know I have a lot to make up for. Would you like to hear some stories about Blake? I doubt she'll have mentioned them, she finds them embarrassing for some reason.

Yang swallowed the snarl that almost escaped her. That'd only attract Blake's attention, and how would she explain it? A fresh surge of resentment burned through her. Why should she have to keep things from Blake for Ilia's sake? It wasn't fair.

She scowled down at her scroll, concentrating on keeping her breathing steady and not hissing through clenched teeth. She typed out a curt reply.

Yang: I'd rather hear them from Blake or not at all. If you really want to make it up to me, don't make me keep secrets from Blake.

She didn't bother acknowledging the apology. It'd be a while yet before she was remotely ready to forgive Ilia. Yang watched her scroll warily, wondering what Ilia would try next.

Blake's scroll got the next message. "Oh, it's from Ilia…" The happiness at hearing from her friend didn't waver. Whatever Ilia had sent, it wasn't a confession. Blake just looked a bit bemused, but still smiled down at her scroll. The scroll vibrated again. Her smile faded, and Blake looked troubled. But not angry.

"Something wrong?" Yang wrapped an arm around Blake's shoulders.

"No, not… It's just Ilia's trying to help. She's asking if she can involve the White Fang in investigating who is responsible for your pregnancy. More people would make it easier…"

Yang held her tongue. She'd regret whatever might escape her if she said anything in response to that.

Blake sighed. "The problem is that my parents would find out, they're too involved with the Fang to keep them in the dark." She started typing a response, reading it aloud: "'Thanks but no thanks. Not unless there's no other way. It'd break my parents' hearts.'" Golden eyes raised to meet Yang's. "Can I tell her Raven knows? They might be able to team up and maybe find out more than they would alone."

"You want me to introduce them." Yang managed to keep most of her reluctance out of her voice. She didn't like the thought of Ilia doing anything, but had to admit she had both skills and experience that might get results. "All right."

Yang sent a quick message to Raven. It'd only ruffle her mother's feathers if she didn't get permission first. Her scroll soon buzzed with Raven's go ahead, and she forwarded the contact details to Ilia. "Done."

"Thank you." Blake gave her a peck on the lips. "Of course Raven might not cooperate with Ilia, but who knows? She does seem to be trying to turn over a new leaf."

Yang almost bit her tongue in the effort it took not to say something snide about Ilia. Blake didn't know about Ilia's accusation, and it had better stay that way until Ilia could bring herself to confess to Blake. If Yang could manage it; keeping things from Blake was such a fucking strain, and it wasn't like Yang was any good at acting anyway.

"Oh, while I remember… Ilia asked if the White Fang could use our relationship as an example of human and faunus unity. I'm fine with it, but I said I'd ask you."

It took a long moment before Yang could do anything but stare at Blake. How the fuck had Ilia managed to ask that shortly before accusing Yang of cheating on Blake? Unless she'd asked before Blake told her about the mystery behind the pregnancy.

Blake's cat ears flicked, reflecting the confusion in her eyes. "Yang?"

"I'm not against it," she said slowly. "But why now? Why not before? We've been together for years now, engaged for most of them."

"Because we're finally getting married, I think. I didn't ask."

Yang shrugged. "Let's just hope our baby doesn't damage the White Fang's cause."

Blake reached down to stroke the Bumblebaby bump. "Even if the baby lacks faunus traits I'm sure Ilia will be able to spin the story however she needs to."

"Come to think of it, wouldn't a baby born to a human having faunus traits be alarming to bigots?" Yang grimaced. "I can imagine them panicking about being replaced or some shit."

Blake's hand stilled on her bump, and her cat ears pinned back. "That's actually a thing. If a faunus and a human have children, they're always faunus. There's been attacks over it, although no full blown panic so far."

Yang winced. "That's messed up."

"It is. You might get harassed more over being with me if we do let the Fang use us like that, although I pity anyone who tries to attack us."

"And? Fuck 'em. I love you, and I don't care who knows." Yang cupped the back of Blake's head and leaned in to kiss her deeply.

Blake almost purred her agreement, tongue stroking against hers, fingers tangling in Yang's hair.

They almost missed the airship to get to Weiss's birthday party, after getting caught up in the moment for the second time that day.

Blake yawned, got out of their hire car and stretched. It was good to be home, she never slept well when away from her own bed, even with Yang right beside her. But it had been even worse than usual with the pervasive smell of smoke lingering in Weiss and Ruby's home.

She collected their bags before Yang could, lugging it up to the front door while Yang got it open.

Once the door was shut behind them and the luggage set down, Blake got the kettle on and made tea. Soon enough they were sipping from mugs, snuggled up on the sofa.

Blake shook her head. "I still can't believe how much fire damage there was in the Ice Flower household. What did Ruby do, light a hundred candles for every year of Weiss's life?"

"The candles must've been contaminated with Fire Dust, there's no other explanation. Also, Ice Flower household? I know it's their team move, but…"

Blake shrugged. "Ruby keeps referring to us as the Bumbleby household, and the Bumblebaby is her fault. The name, I mean. I don't suspect Ruby's behind it."

"Don't worry, I knew what you meant. We both know Ruby would never." Yang rested a hand on her belly. Blake wondered if she was even conscious of doing it.

Yang sighed heavily. "What'd you think of the hire car?"

"It seemed fine to me. Comfy, spacious."

"And plenty of room for a baby in the back," Yang observed. "I'll look into whether it makes more sense to buy one or just hire it." She unrolled her scroll.

"We're going to need it with the baby anyway," Blake pointed out.

"I guess. Either way, I'm going to need to revise my insurance cover." Yang groaned. "Should I put you on the insurance? Where's your driving licence anyway?"

"Hmm? Oh, don't worry about it. And come here." Blake wrapped her arms around Yang. "You'll be back on Bumblebee II before you know it."

"It's just perfect riding weather and I can't even do it!"

Blake stroked her back. "You're all tense. Go lie down, I'll give you a massage."

Yang buried her face against Blake's neck. "Even that's not what it used to be! My belly's getting too big to lie on it."

"Bed. Lie on your side, and I'll do my best."

Yang went through into their bedroom, stripped her top off and flopped onto her side, hugging the pregnancy pillow close. "Sorry, I know I'm being a bitch."

Blake swept Yang's hair out of the way and started kneading her back, using some massage oil. "I still wouldn't call it that. You're pregnant and that makes you moody. We both know that."

"I should still be more grateful. This is still good. Still helps." She groaned when Blake found a particularly knotted muscle.

"I know I'm appreciated. And I'm happy to help."

Massage finished, Blake pressed a kiss to the nape of Yang's neck, and couldn't resist nipping. She smiled against warm skin, revelling in the way Yang's breath caught. Her tongue slipped out next in a teasing lick, before she closed her lips around Yang's skin and sucked, working on giving her a love bite.

Yang gasped, hips bucking back against Blake. "Giving me a happy ending again?"

Blake hummed thoughtfully. "We could wait until our wedding night, as the longing does seem to make it more intense. I know we said we wouldn't deny ourselves if we were in the mood, but… it'll be a special day, and that could make it even more so."

Yang groaned. "You have a point. It's just a week, we can wait that long."

"Here, have this as your happy ending." Blake moved and gently turned Yang's head to where they could kiss. Sex might be off the cards, but kisses and embraces certainly weren't.

Blake drew back to find Yang breathing raggedly, blush spreading down to her breasts, and pupils dilated.

"Are you sure you want to wait?" Blake asked, watching Yang carefully.

Yang waggled her fingers. "I can manage."

Despite the lack of any complaint or pleading from Yang, it felt cruel to leave her this turned on, with nothing but her own hands for a week.

Blake stroked a thumb over Yang's lips, her other hand slipping under Yang's bump and between her legs. "How about one last time before we get married?"

"Fuck," Yang breathed, bucking against Blake's fingers. "Yes. Please."

Blake leaned in to kiss her, fingers unzipping Yang's trousers. She reached inside, smirking against Yang's lips. "Your pleasure is mine."

AN: Coming up next: the Bees get married. Definitely. I know I said they would last time, but the Bees had other ideas. But I know for sure this time, because it's already written. I ended up splitting the chapter when it got rather long. It'll be posted after I've edited it, within a few days.

Did Blake steal a neighbour's car to get Yang to the doctor's appointment? Maybe. Maybe not. She probably just borrowed one or persuaded a neighbour to drive them, but who knows?