Chapter 3: Birds of a Feather
Yang's scroll buzzed. She snatched it up, eagerly checking the notifications, only to slump in disappointment. It wasn't Blake letting her know when she'd be home.
Yang frowned. It was… Raven? Ruby had clearly got her hands on Yang's scroll again, Raven's screen name always changed after that. Yang usually checked and changed it back before Raven saw it, but she'd forgotten this time with everything else on her mind.
Deadbeat Birdmom: Mind if I drop by?
Deadbeat Birdmom: Never mind. Judging by the name you've given me in this chat, I'm guessing you'd rather not see me.
Best Daughter Ever Who Deserves Better: Don't assume things. Ruby got hold of my scroll. She still bears a grudge against you.
Yang eyed her own name in the chat. She sighed. Ruby meant well, she was just a little overprotective of Yang, and vindictive when it came to Raven. Yang tapped away at her scroll, doing a bit of editing.
Yang: Fixed. Drop by whenever. I've nothing better to do.
Raven: On my way.
A distinctive ripping sound heralded her mother's Semblance tearing through reality. The swirling dark crimson light widened until it was large enough for Raven to walk through, then disappeared.
Raven looked her up and down. "Yang."
Yang paused. She was never sure what to call Raven these days. By her name, or… She sighed again. "Mom. What do you want?"
Raven paced back and forth, restless as always when outside her comfort zone. "I've never really told you about my Semblance. Everything you know, you heard from Tai, and maybe a bit from Qrow for all I know. But they don't know everything. I can feel changes in my bonds when things happen."
"Like?" Yang asked, unable to keep the wariness from her tone.
"I felt it when Summer was pregnant." Raven's glance dropped to Yang's belly, then raised to meet Yang's eyes. "I've felt the same change in you. My anchor to you still works, but it feels almost confused. Because you have someone else within you who I'm not bonded to."
Well, fuck. So much for deciding for herself whether to tell Raven. Yang folded her arms. "So?"
Raven raised an eyebrow. "Having any problems?"
Yang's eyes narrowed. "What are you saying?"
"You're keeping it, aren't you?" Raven kept her words mild. Non judgemental. It sounded weird coming from her.
Yang resisted the urge to lash out. It wasn't Raven's fault that she found herself pregnant. Right? Could Raven be behind this? She nodded jerkily, not trusting her voice in her moment of doubt and suspicion.
"I had terrible morning sickness with you, and figured you might have the same problem." Raven shrugged. "Maybe it's a genetic thing, I don't know. But I did discover something that helped."
"What is it?" Yang attempted not to sound too suspicious. If Raven really had a remedy she'd take it, even if she couldn't entirely trust her. The doctor had been reluctant to give her any medicines due to possible side effects, and most of them weren't safe for pregnant women anyway.
"It's a blend of tea. Before you ask, it's safe. You came out fine. Just don't expect a miracle, you'll still feel a bit sick, but it'll be more bearable." Raven pulled a pouch out. "Here." She tossed it over.
Yang caught it. "Thanks, I guess."
"Mmm. You'll be more thankful after your first cup of it. I'd better be going. Would you…" Raven bit her lip. "I'd like to try to be a grandmother. If you'd let me."
Yang frowned. She wasn't sure what to say. Perhaps at this stage just something to give herself some time. "I'll think about it. No promises."
Raven nodded jerkily. "I understand. I know I couldn't have done much worse as a mother."
"I didn't say no. I said I'd think about it. Don't put words in my mouth." Yang waggled a finger at her.
Raven's eyes widened. "You mean you might…?"
"Maybe," Yang snapped. "Like I said, no promises. Give me time."
Raven nodded. "You have it. Do you need anything else?"
Yang took a moment to think it over. Maybe Raven could help… And her reaction could rule her out as the orchestrator of this. Could it all be a plot to carry on the Branwen line? "I don't suppose your Semblance can identify the other parent?"
Raven blinked. "No, but how do you not know who the other parent is?" She looked sidelong at Yang, red eyes baffled.
'I don't think Raven's really any better at acting than I am. I don't think she's the culprit.'
Yang considered telling her to forget it, but the last thing she wanted was a curious Raven poking her nose (or beak) where it didn't belong. "This was a surprise to me. As far as I know I've never had sex that could result in pregnancy."
Raven gave her a pitying look. "There are ways two women can have children."
"Not accidentally! And Blake would've asked me if she wanted to have a baby with me."
"Then this is a more sinister situation than I expected. I trust she believed you? She didn't end things?" Raven fingered the hilt of her sword. "You don't look distressed enough for that to be the case."
"Blake's great. She didn't doubt me, and she's not going anywhere."
Raven pointedly looked around, at the absence of Blake.
Yang rolled her eyes. "She's on a mission, she'll be back later. As far as she's concerned, this is her baby too." She put a hand over her lower belly. "We'll still be getting married." For now, Yang wasn't going to mention the whole eloping plan. She still wasn't sure if she wanted Raven there or not.
"Hm. If you say so," Raven muttered.
Yang glared at Raven. "I do say so. If you really want to be part of my life, let alone the baby's, you have got to get over whatever doubts you have about Blake. She's a keeper."
Raven held up her hands, palm outwards in a gesture of surrender. "I… I'm sorry." The words were clearly a struggle, her voice choked. "I just see too much of myself in her."
Okay, that weirded Yang out. She'd just ignore it rather than argue about it though. It was just Raven's opinion, and she was entitled to it. Her very wrong opinion. Yang wanted to defend Blake's honour, but then she'd have to throw Raven out, and Blake probably didn't want to be the cause of another estrangement between mother and daughter.
Raven cleared her throat. "Anyway, what if this whole thing is a plot to steal the baby after he or she is born?" She gestured at where Yang's hand rested on herself.
Yang crossed her arms. "Ruby and Weiss will help us keep watch. We're well aware that might be the plan of whoever's responsible."
Raven cleared her throat and avoided looking at Yang. "I could form a bond after he or she is born, even if you don't allow me to be an active grandmother. That way I could always get your baby back. Unless it's someone who can go places I can't. But that's unlikely. The Relics and their vaults are gone, as is Salem's realm."
Yang opened her mouth to accept, but remembered this baby had another parent. "I'll talk it over with Blake. But I do appreciate the offer. Oh, and I haven't told Dad or Qrow yet, and have no intention of telling them about the circumstances."
"Right, so you want me to keep my mouth shut. Easy enough with Tai; we don't talk, and I won't tell Qrow anything you don't want me to. As for the rest, you've got time to think about it. Months yet. Well, let me know what you decide. See you around." Raven opened another portal and left, closing it behind her with another otherworldly ripping sound.
Yang investigated the pouch. She found tea leaves, and her scroll buzzed with a message; Raven had belatedly remembered to mention brewing instructions.
Her scroll finally vibrated with the message she'd been waiting for:
Blake: Sorry, scroll needed repairs. Be with you in 30 minutes, I'm dying for some tea, please make me some? I love you.
"Yang? I'm home. How're you—What's that?" Blake raised an eyebrow at the steaming cup Yang had taken a sip from. Blake's own mug was on the counter, with her favourite tea waiting for her. Yang's smelled different. "Since when do you drink tea?" Maybe it was an adaptation to the caffeine ban.
"Raven came by. This is to help with the morning sickness. It seems to be working already. The difference is so good: I don't feel like I'm going to be sick."
"That's good, but…" Blake felt her ears twitch atop her head. "You told Raven? I thought we were going to wait before we shared the news with our parents."
Yang shook her head. "Her Semblance somehow gave it away. And she thought I might be having trouble with sickness, because she did with me."
"Well, that was… nice." Blake did her best to keep her feelings about Raven out of her tone. Yang knew how she felt anyway, but she didn't need to be reminded by Blake's open dislike of the excuse for a mother who'd abandoned Yang.
Yang winced, rubbing the back of her head. "I, uh, did tell her about the circumstances. I figured her reaction could rule her out as the mastermind of a plot to carry on the Branwen line or something." She watched Blake nervously. "I'm pretty certain she didn't do it."
"Then it was worth telling her." Blake didn't condemn it. Sure, it would've been nice if Yang had asked for her opinion first, but it was Yang's business to tell her mother.
Yang stopped looking quite so awkward. "She wants to be an 'active grandma,' if I'll let her. And she offered to make a bond after the birth so she can make a portal to the baby, in case of emergency."
Blake felt the fur on her cat ears bristle. "What did you say?"
"That I needed to talk it over with you."
Blake blinked. "Me? She's your mother."
"And it's your baby too."
That was a good point. "In that case… I'd still rather leave the grandma decision up to you, and I'll support whatever you decide. If you think she deserves a second chance, fine. If you don't want to risk her falling back into bad habits, that's fine too."
"Figured as much. I'm still thinking it over, but I'm leaning towards a second chance."
Blake kissed her forehead and then rested hers against Yang's. "Even just considering it proves you're a better person."
Yang nuzzled their noses together. "You're biased. And what do you reckon about using Raven as a lost baby retrieval service?"
"Lost or stolen?" Blake muttered darkly. "Either way, I think we should take her up on that. If we didn't, and something went wrong… We might regret it forever."
"I'll let her know." Yang pulled back and got her scroll out.
Blake concentrated on drinking her tea. Yang didn't mind if Blake saw things on her scroll, but Blake thought it important to give her the privacy Adam hadn't given Blake. There were no secrets between them, but there was a difference between a secret and something they just weren't ready to share.
Yang put her scroll away, and drained her own tea. "Doesn't taste too bad either." She looked Blake up and down, licking her lips in a way she hadn't done for painfully long. "You know, I don't feel sick right now. Want to collect on our bet about Weiss?"
Blake's breath caught at the sight of the desire smouldering in Yang's eyes at long last. "If you're sure."
Yang kissed her. Deeply, her tongue stroking against Blake's. "Very."
Blake struggled to find her voice, overwhelmed by the pleasure and the relief of kissing Yang passionately again. It had been so long. Too long.
"Bedroom," Blake said, wrapping her arms around Yang's neck.
Yang moved as if to pick her up.
Blake let her clone fade away like smoke in Yang's arms, and swept Yang off her feet and up into a bridal carry.
The sound that escaped Yang was somewhere between an outraged shout and a laugh. "Hey, that's cheating!"
"All's fair in love and war."
Blake kicked the bedroom door shut behind them. She was going to enjoy this. Forget the bet and its reward, they'd both enjoy this.
After Yang begged for it. And she would.
Blake would make sure of it.
Hours later, Blake stirred, her limbs entangled with Yang's. In her doze, the pleasant ache between her legs had faded. Damn it, she'd been hoping to make that linger longer as a souvenir, but her Aura had other ideas.
Yang shifted, bare skin brushing against her own. She nuzzled her head against Blake, and pressed a kiss to her pulse point, over skin that had doubtless been marked by a love bite, at least up until Blake's Aura dealt with the bruise.
Blake arched against Yang's lips, burying her fingers in Yang's hair. "Want to go again?"
Yang's tongue darted out in a teasing lick, and she nipped Blake before pulling her head far enough back to look at her. "I think I might die if we did."
That cooled Blake's ardour. "Are you starting to feel sick again?"
"Not yet, no, but wasn't that more intense than usual for you too?" Yang asked. "You took my breath away." The shine in her lilac eyes stole Blake's breath anew, that was for sure.
Blake found her voice eventually, even if it came out undeniably breathless. "It was, and you did. I still want more, but I can wait."
"Hopefully it won't be as long this time," Yang said, smiling ruefully. "Although maybe that was why it was so intense."
"The longer the dry patch, the stronger the effect we have on each other?" Blake hummed thoughtfully. "Maybe. Still, I'm not about to avoid making love. Not unless either of us aren't in the mood."
Yang smiled, snuggling closer. "Couldn't say it better myself."
"So let's just enjoy the aftermath." Blake wrapped her arms tighter around Yang. "I love being like this with you, just lying together, skin to skin."
"Me too," Yang murmured. "I love this. I love you."
Blake smiled. She felt like her heart might burst, as happy as she felt in this moment. "I love you too."
"More than just fond, eh?" Yang chuckled. "So what are those parts of me that you're more than fond of?"
Blake's smile slipped into a smirk. She let her hands explore Yang's back. There was no sign of where Blake's nails had raked earlier, Yang's Aura had healed them. "A pity you didn't win our bet, or I'd have to tell you."
"You could tell me anyway." Yang moved so she could give a winning smile where Blake could see.
Blake kissed her with everything she felt for her. "I could," she whispered against Yang's lips.
"Huh?" Yang sounded dazed. She looked it too, when Blake drew back enough to see.
"I love all of you."
Yang shook herself. "But there're parts you said you're especially fond of?"
"There are." Blake winked at her. "But I think I'll save revealing those for our wedding night."
"Tease," Yang whined.
"You can wait a few months. However long it takes Weiss to organise our elopement, after we tell our parents about our impending Bumblebaby."
Yang groaned. "We're not calling it that in front of Ruby. Ever. She'll be unbearably smug."
Blake nipped her. "No promises."
The weeks slipped by, mission by mission, and every time Blake got back she couldn't help but look Yang up and down. Partly reassuring herself that Yang was all right, and partly letting her gaze linger on Yang's lower abdomen, gradually swelling after the embryo became a fetus. It was only noticeable for Blake because she didn't see her every day when called away by Ruby, to join her and Weiss on any missions they couldn't handle without her.
None of them liked leaving Yang on her own, but sometimes there wasn't any choice. Grimm were still a threat even with Salem gone. The Grimm spawning pools hadn't vanished with her. But then they had been around since before Salem; the vision from Jinn had revealed that much.
At least Yang's morning sickness wasn't troubling her so much. It usually struck first thing in the morning now, before Yang had a chance to drink some of the tea Raven had provided. When Blake was home, she tried to make sure she had a cup of the tea ready before Yang woke up, but even then Yang sometimes had to bolt for the bathroom before she could down the tea.
One day Blake eyed the slight bump swelling Yang's lower belly. Soon it'd be noticeable for other people. Soon they'd have to tell their friends. Soon—
"My eyes are up here," Yang grumbled.
Caught, Blake jerked her eyes up, only to have them trapped by Yang's breasts. They'd grown a little larger, and that was something Blake couldn't help but appreciate. Yang's breasts had been perfect anyway, but this was something beyond that. Too bad Blake couldn't touch them; they were sore.
Yang gingerly crossed her arms over her bust. "Blake."
"Sorry," Blake mumbled, tearing her eyes away and raising them to meet Yang's glower.
Yang sighed, closing her eyes. She kneaded at the bridge of her nose. "I'm sorry too. I don't usually mind you looking. Just… I guess I'm feeling a little self conscious. And it's not like you can do more than look at them while they're sore. I shield them with Aura and it deadens things a bit, and then what's the point?"
Blake tentatively reached out. Yang let her wrap her arms around her, carefully avoiding her breasts. "Is this all right?"
"Yes. I… I'm sorry. I don't want to be taking out my temper on you. Not on anyone, but especially not you." Yang buried her face against Blake's shoulder.
Blake stroked her hair. "I know. I can take it."
"You shouldn't have to."
"It's nothing compared to—"
Yang raised her head, eyes red. "Don't. I don't want to be compared to him, not even favourably."
Blake winced. "Sorry. That's fair. I'll try not to bring him up."
Yang huffed. "You can talk about him if you need to, just don't compare us."
Blake remembered all too clearly the look in Yang's eyes and her tears from the first time Blake had compared her with Adam. "You're not like him, so that's easy enough."
"I appreciate the thought," Yang said, her voice a little strangled. "But that's too close to comparing for my liking. Just… don't."
Blake hugged her a little tighter. Sometimes it felt like she couldn't do anything right with Yang. Normally she'd never feel like this, but normally Yang wasn't at the mercy of hormonal fluctuations. Her periods hadn't affected her like this. Her mood went from foul to inconsolable to joyous without warning. All Blake could do was try to be a steady rock for her to cling to. All too often that metaphorical rock felt like it was crumbling. Pregnancy was hard, and not just on Yang.
It didn't help that they had to switch how they slept together. They liked to sleep nested like spoons, with Yang as the big spoon. That didn't work so well when Yang's breasts objected to being pressed against Blake's back. Her Aura couldn't shield them in her sleep, and it was interrupted enough already by her need to pee more often.
So Blake took over as big spoon, and Yang wasn't happy with the change. Blake preferred resting in Yang's arms too, but needs must. Well, in Yang's arm. Yang didn't sleep with her prosthetic on unless she needed to be ready for a fight at any time.
Blake had given Yang a pregnancy pillow to snuggle up to, but she complained it wasn't the same as having Blake tucked in the curve of her body. Blake just hoped it was better than nothing whenever she was called away by Ruby. At least it should give Yang some extra physical support later on in the pregnancy when her baby bump needed it.
Another day, another mission summons. Blake could feel Yang's eyes on her as she prepared, dressing in her combat outfit.
Yang sidled up to the closet, fingering her own combat outfit, untouched for weeks now. "Maybe I could come this time."
Blake shook her head. "Ruby would send you right back home."
"I'd like to see her try," Yang growled. "She won't lay a finger on me."
"She'd quite happily tie you up for your own safety."
"I'm not helpless!" Yang snarled.
Blake gave her a quelling look. "None of us think you are. We just don't want to risk the baby if your Aura broke."
"And what if something happens to you? I'm always scared you won't come back when I can't be there to watch your back." Yang swiped at her eyes.
"Ruby and Weiss have my back. We all miss you out there, but we're careful. We retreat if it's too much for us without you, and call in Jaune, Nora and Ren." Blake pulled Yang into a tight embrace. "I'll be fine. I'll always come back to you. I promise."
Yang stiffened. "Summer said that. Before her missions."
Blake pulled back enough to look Yang in the eye, and cupped her jaw. "The difference is that Salem was too much for her. But we're facing Grimm, not an immortal witch. I'll come home. Always."
"Tell that to my nightmares," Yang muttered.
Blake winced. She leaned in and stretched up to kiss Yang's forehead. "I wish I could be there for you with these nightmares. Maybe you could call me?"
Yang shook her head vehemently. "I'm not going to risk distracting you."
Blake didn't argue. She knew Yang had a point, especially when Grimm were most active at night. Although… "What about when we're in different enough time zones? When our nights don't overlap enough to be dangerous."
"Grimm don't mind broad daylight. No, you call me when it's safe."
Blake sighed. She rested her forehead against Yang's. "I just hate to think of you struggling to figure out what's dream and what's reality. You said your dreams are more vivid, and they were already too vivid."
"I don't see how calling you would help, soothing as it is to hear your voice. I might think it'd have to be a dream. A good dream for once," Yang said, voice wistful.
"Reason enough to want you to hear my voice. Besides, I might be able to talk you through it, back to reality." Blake cupped Yang's cheeks and kissed her.
Yang kissed her back. "Ask Ruby if she'll reconsider," she pleaded, the moment their lips parted. "You might be able to persuade her where I can't."
"She won't. Your morning sickness is lingering, and there's no guarantee you'd be able to make Raven's remedy in the wild. You're still tired and drained, and you have headaches more often than not."
Yang outright whined. "It's not fair! I'm stuck with the paperwork!"
"You're the one who insisted we give it all to you."
Yang scowled. "Because Ruby insisted on splitting the pay equally between all four of us, despite me being benched. I'm not taking that lien without pulling as much weight as I can. I just want to be out in the field!"
"Yang," Blake said, as gently yet firmly as she could. "Be honest. Would you want Ruby out there if she was pregnant?"
"That's different!" Yang protested.
She stroked Yang's cheeks soothingly. "How?"
"I… Fuck. I hate this. I hate how this makes me weak."
"You're not weak. Your body is just temporarily compromised because it's growing a baby. Give it a break. Please. We talked about this. We keep talking about it. I understand, I'd hate it too." Blake took a deep breath. Hopefully Yang wouldn't be too upset with her. "But you have to accept it or change your mind about having this baby."
Yang blanched. She clutched at her lower abdomen. "I can't."
"I didn't think you would. It's pretty clear you're attached to him or her." The number of times she saw Yang stroking her belly…
"Our Bumblebaby is moving, you know," Yang murmured.
Blake smirked. "I'm going to tell Ruby you called—" Her breath caught, as she belatedly registered the rest of what Yang had said. "Moving? I thought… the doctor said you wouldn't feel it for a couple of months yet."
"I can't feel it unless I send a burst of my Aura through my body. Doc said it's safe, I just need to be gentle."
"Do you think it'd work if I did it?" Blake asked, and hurriedly added: "Gently, of course."
"I don't see why not, I'd just need to drop my Aura or it'll interfere."
Blake reached out a trembling hand, resting it over Yang's, who took it and pressed Blake's fingers against her belly.
"Be easier with skin contact," Yang mumbled. She tugged her clothing out of the way.
Blake didn't quite have Ren's fine control over Aura, but it was still easy enough for her to send a tentative burst of her own out, manifesting as purple light washing over Yang's body. Blake's eyes widened. She was vaguely aware of her hair standing on end, not just on her cat ears, but also the peach fuzz on most of her body. It felt incredibly intimate, like Yang was an extension of her own body. She could feel Yang's heartbeat, the blood pulsing through her, nerves crackling, and—
Deep within, a little fuzzily, something else. Someone else. A heart beating far faster, echoing within Yang, tiny body wriggling.
It all faded away as Blake's Aura dissipated from Yang.
"Wow," Blake breathed.
Yang's eyes were just as wide. "Oh wow, yeah… I didn't expect to feel that. It was like you were inside me." She sniffled. "I don't think I can handle it if you do that too often." She rubbed at her cheeks, wiping away tears.
"Sorry," Blake said, ears pinning.
"What? No, no, it wasn't bad. Just overwhelming."
Blake eyed her dubiously. How could it be anything but bad when it made her cry?
Yang sighed. "What does my heart tell you?"
"I know you're not lying, it's just… I hate making you cry."
"I mean, I don't like crying, but these aren't bad tears."
Blake tried not to look too sceptical. She failed, judging by the way Yang rolled her eyes.
"Here, let me show you. Drop your Aura."
It took some concentration to let her Aura drop, being the opposite of what huntresses were trained to do.
Yang cupped her cheeks and kissed her, sending a burst of her golden yellow Aura through Blake's body the moment their lips touched.
This time Blake had no idea how her body reacted. All she could feel was Yang's very soul passing through her whole body. She felt her own Aura stir, the urge to reach back, to embrace Yang's. Blake resisted; she had no idea what would happen, and wasn't about to experiment while Yang was pregnant. Her soul cried out at being denied.
The penetrating touch of Yang's Aura faded away. Blake swallowed thickly, suddenly aware her cheeks were wet. Yang's thumbs stroked away her tears.
"See?" Yang asked, her eyes soft.
Blake nodded, sniffling. "I see why you don't want it too often. Yet I think I'm crying because I crave more."
Yang hummed knowingly. "And if I gave you more?"
"I think I might die, because I can't have what I really want."
"Not yet, anyway. After I don't have a passenger inside me…"
Blake attempted to smile. It came out rather wobbly. "Then we can experiment."
Blake's scroll buzzed. She sighed and checked it: Weiss asking when they should expect her. "I've got to go."
Yang tried to put on a brave face, but Blake could see the strain around her eyes, the pain staining the lilac with grey.
"I love you. I'll be back as soon as I can be, and call when I can. Miss you already." Blake hugged Yang tightly. Like she was trying to merge with her, the way her soul still cried out for.
"Right back at you," Yang choked out, clinging to her. Blake could hear her ragged breathing, the way she was trying not to cry.
How many more goodbyes like this could she bear? How many more times could she return to the haunted look in Yang's eyes? Maybe she should talk to Ruby about benching herself. Maybe it was time to rethink her life as a huntress. But for the time being she needed to work, help build up their savings for while they were on maternity leave. Blake could of course ask her parents for a loan, and they'd probably just gladly gift her the lien, but she didn't want to. She had her pride. So did Yang.
It was just times like these that had Blake wondering if pride was worth the price of being separated from Yang for days at a time. Would it be so bad to tell her parents the good news, and also mention how hard she was finding it? Her parents would probably write them a blank cheque without even being asked for money, and tell her to take a break from work with Yang until their grandbaby was in school.
And Blake hated the thought of relying on her parents like that.
For the time being she'd take her frustrations out on hunting Grimm.
Without Yang by her side. It felt wrong.
But what else could she do? Nothing felt right, unless it was sending her Aura through Yang, feeling their unborn child move. She wanted to feel it again. She wanted to feel Yang's Aura inside her again in return. She wanted, no, she needed—
Focus. Grimm to slay. And a promise to keep; a fiancée to return to, safe and sound.
"Ghira, Kali, good to see you again."
Blake watched as Taiyang stretched up to give her father a friendly clap on the shoulder, before giving Kali a gentler hug. She exchanged a perplexed glance with Yang.
"When did they meet?" Yang muttered.
Blake could only shrug. She hadn't known their parents had already met. Whenever it was, it hadn't been when their daughters were present. It was weird: she should be happy with the idea of their parents having met and being friendly, but instead she found herself somehow uneasy.
"Why don't I like it?" Yang whispered.
"No idea, but I don't either. Maybe because we weren't there, and they're bound to have talked about us."
Kali's top ears twitched towards them. She gave them an amused glance. Damn it, Blake had been hoping she was too occupied with greeting Tai to overhear them. Kali approached and hugged them both. "Don't worry, we only exchanged your baby pictures."
"Mom," Blake moaned. She really didn't like the sound of her mother's telltale heart. Kali had lied. It had to be so much worse. Oh no, please not the videos of when she got stuck up a tree…
"Only joking. I wouldn't show Tai those. Yang, though… We must meet up, just the two of us, and I'll show you them." Kali grinned. The mischief in her eyes made Blake shudder.
Blake groaned. "Don't you dare."
Yang looked between them, wide eyed, not unlike a mouse caught between two cats. "Um."
Blake could tell from that single hesitant sound that Yang was torn. She leant close to Yang and whispered, making sure her lips brushed against sensitive skin. "I'll make it worth your while if you never see my baby pictures."
Yang shivered and her breath caught. "Uh, thanks for the offer Mrs Bella—"
Kali raised an eyebrow and cleared her throat.
"I mean, Kali." Yang rubbed at the back of her head. "I appreciate it, but I have to refuse. Blake wouldn't like it."
Kali gave Blake a knowing look, before her eyes returned to Yang. She reached over and patted Yang's hand. "That's all right, dear. I know Blake has you wrapped around her finger, as it should be."
"It's mutual," Blake protested.
Kali patted her on the head, right between the ears.
Blake's ears pressed back against her head in her mortification. "Mom!"
Ghira took Kali's hand in his, pulling it away from Blake. "Now, now, dear, don't tease. You'll embarrass her."
"Too late," moaned Blake.
"Embarrassing our kids is what we're there for!" Tai said. He reached for Yang's hair.
"Don't," Yang snapped, grabbing his wrist.
"Am I seeing things, or did Yang's eyes just flicker red?" Ghira whispered to Blake.
Blake ran a soothing hand down Yang's back, more focused on calming her fiancée down than on answering her father.
"I didn't see anything," Kali muttered to Ghira.
"Easy, it's me. I thought I was allowed to touch your hair?" Tai looked a little wounded.
"You thought wrong," Yang said. She softened the blow by hugging her dad. "Just hands off my hair."
"All right. How are you? Ruby mentioned you've been sick." Tai drew back, and looked Yang up and down.
Blake watched Kali's cat ears prick up, and she looked at Yang, eyes wide with alarm.
"Oh, she did, did she?" Yang growled. "I told her not to worry you. I'm fine."
Tai glanced at Blake, raising his eyebrows.
"It's nothing bad," Blake said. "Wait for Qrow to get here, and we'll tell you."
Yang had ultimately decided against inviting Raven to this gathering, in part because she already knew about the baby, and because Yang didn't want to inflict her on Tai. At least not without checking he was okay with it first, and Yang would only ask that sort of thing of him in person.
The door opened, and Qrow walked in. It slammed behind him, and a window pane cracked. He winced. "Sorry. And sorry I'm late. The usual thing, bad luck. Everything that can go wrong? It did."
Yang sighed. "At least you're here. You've met Blake's parents, right?"
"Yeah, back in Vacuo. Good to see you two," Qrow lazily saluted Kali and Ghira. He eyed where Ghira's head brushed the ceiling. "Glad I'm not as tall as you, or I'd hit my head even more often."
"It helps when the architecture is built for you. Our house in Menagerie has high ceilings by design." Ghira eyed the ceiling. "This could do with being higher, but I can get by. I just need to be careful with light fittings and when going through doors."
"Hello to you too," Tai muttered, mouth turning down.
Qrow rolled his eyes. "How you doing, O my favourite brother-in-law?"
Tai approached Qrow and slapped him on the back. "Only brother-in-law, and I'm fine. You?"
"Did you ever get that divorce from Raven?" Qrow asked.
Tai shook his head. "Nope. Although I'm not entirely sure the marriage was legal in the first place, her only ID was her huntress licence."
"Sucks to be you," Qrow said.
"Are they always like this?" Kali asked, her eyes on Yang.
"Pretty much," Yang said. "It'd be a lot worse if Raven was here too."
Kali frowned slightly. Realisation crossed her face, and her eyes flickered towards Yang's belly. She turned questioning eyes towards Blake, who did her best to maintain a poker face. Yang should be the one to confirm it, not her. Kali didn't know yet, she'd only guessed by jumping to conclusions about why all parents might have been here.
"Well, we're all here. Would you like anything to drink?" Blake asked, glancing at their guests.
"Coffee'd be good," Qrow said.
"We'll give you the lien for it, but you'll have to get it somewhere else and only come back when it's gone," Yang said.
Qrow stared. "Uh. Why?"
"Because I'm pregnant and can't stand the smell of it," Yang said, casually breaking the news.
Blake glanced around and took in the reactions. Qrow looked surprised, while Tai and her parents were delighted. She caught a strange flicker of something in Kali's eyes, before it was replaced by sheer joy. Blake wondered what it could be. Worry, because of what Kali had heard Tai say about Yang having been sick? Maybe. It had been too brief for Blake to be sure.
"Congrats, kiddos," Qrow said. "Huh. Guess I'll have to find something else to call you, now you've got your own kid on the way."
"There's always our names," Blake suggested.
"Eh, I guess." Qrow didn't look terribly enthused.
"Congratulations," Tai, Ghira and Kali chorused, almost as one.
"Are you taking a break from work?" Tai asked, his voice sounding purposefully mild. Perhaps he figured Yang wouldn't react well, and would react even worse if he sounded judgemental.
"Ruby benched me," Yang said shortly.
Blake took her hand and squeezed. Yang squeezed back.
"Probably for the best. Do you think you'll go back to being a huntress after your maternity leave is over?" Tai's tone made his opinion all too clear.
Blake winced. Yang's hold on her temper had to be fraying.
Yang's grip tightened on Blake's hand. "It's that or retrain as something else, and nothing else I can think of is as worthwhile to me."
"After what happened to Summer, how can you want to remain a huntress?" Tai demanded.
Blake held her breath. Besides throwing Tai out, she didn't know how to prevent the inevitable fallout.
"It's less dangerous these days. And I'd appreciate it if you never threw Mom in my face like that again," Yang snarled the last few words, glaring at her father.
Blake put an arm around Yang, both as a gesture of support, and as a silent reminder not to lose her temper. She doubted it'd work.
Tai held up his hands. "Easy, little dragon. I'm expressing concern, I'm not trying to hurt you."
Yang took a few deep, slow breaths. "Maybe you didn't mean to, but you still did. What I do with my life is my choice. Feel free to express concern. I'm free to ignore it."
Ghira put a hand on Blake's shoulder, leaning close to whisper in her ear: "Is Yang all right? She's not entirely herself."
Blake kept her voice quiet enough that only her parents would hear. "She's fine, pregnancy has made her a little moody. That and Tai has a tendency to put his foot in it with her, and she's less able to shrug it off at the moment."
"Oh dear," Kali murmured. "Perhaps we should change the subject, run interference."
"If he doesn't drop it right now, I'll intervene." Blake turned her attention back to her fiancée and future father-in-law.
"—can't deny your life would've been better if Summer hadn't—" Tai was saying.
"Enough," Blake snapped. "With all due respect… Like Yang said, this is her life. Do you expect me to stop being a huntress too? Whatever we decide to do, it'll be our choice. Not yours. Nobody gets to decide that for us. I think we're capable of deciding what's best for us and our child."
Qrow whistled. "Feisty. No wonder you're marrying her, Firecracker." He slapped the back of Tai's head. "You've had your say, now shut up."
Tai swatted Qrow away. "Hey!"
"Nope. Like Blake said, enough." Qrow turned his eyes to them, flickering between Blake and Yang, settling briefly on Yang's belly. "What I'm wondering is who the donor is, and why you did this now, and not after you married."
Blake exchanged a glance with Yang. She left it to Yang to answer; it was her uncle.
"That's a surprise for later," Yang said. "As for why now, it was just time."
Blake was impressed that it didn't sound like a lie, but then Yang was mostly omitting. Her heart still gave her away to Blake, but it should be out of range of Kali's equally keen hearing.
Qrow raised an eyebrow. His expression cleared, and he shrugged. "All right, be mysterious. You're definitely your mother's daughter."
"Which mother?" Yang challenged.
Qrow looked at Tai, who sighed.
"No kidding," Tai muttered under his breath. "I'd forgotten how much of a nightmare Raven was while pregnant. Summer wasn't exactly a picnic either." Yang didn't react; Blake doubted she could hear him. Just as well, really.
"Pick one, they both had their moments," Qrow said. "Raven still has 'em."
"Speaking of Raven, does she know?" Tai asked.
Yang eyed him, her jaw set.
"Come on, I can take it," Tai said.
"She knows," Yang said. "Turns out you don't know everything about her Semblance. She can feel it, the difference in me. She felt it with Summer too."
"That's… not how I'd have chosen for her to find out about Ruby." Tai looked uncomfortable before his face settled on resignation. "Oh well. She chose to leave."
"Would you be okay with it if she's at our wedding?" Yang asked, her eyes still on Tai.
Tai shrugged. "It's your wedding. Invite whoever you want there. I'll just get Qrow to run interference."
"Hey, don't bring me into your drama!" Qrow protested. "I'd only make it worse."
"Hm, I guess I don't want to risk some kind of Misfortune rigged disaster at my daughter's wedding." Tai sighed. "Don't worry, Yang, I'll be okay. Raven should be there. We'll see if she actually shows up. My advice: don't get your hopes up."
"I think she'd lurk as a raven at least," Yang said.
Ghira and Kali exchanged a glance. They leaned over to speak quietly to Blake.
"A raven? What does that mean?" Ghira asked.
"Qrow and Raven can transform into birds. A crow and a raven," Blake said.
Kali stared. "You're serious. How are you serious?"
"Qrow, could you do your party trick, please?" Blake called over.
Qrow smirked, eyeing Blake's parents. "This'll be fun. Eyes on me, Belladonnas." The moment their eyes rested on him, a crow stood in his place. It blinked red eyes at her parents and cawed.
Ghira almost fell over. Kali jumped into his arms.
Qrow flapped his wings until he took off, soaring around the room. He transformed back into his human form and swept into a bow. "Neat trick, huh? I used it to spy for Ozpin. It's magic, like the Maidens but, uh, different. He'd be able to explain it better than me, if he was still around. I don't think Oscar knows, so you're out of luck."
"Is it… Ah, hereditary?" Kali looked at Yang, as if expecting her to turn into a bird at any moment, or maybe to lay an egg. She climbed down from her perch on Ghira, and smoothed out her clothes.
Qrow shook his head. "Not as far as we know. Unless there's something you haven't told us, Yang?"
"Nope. I've never turned into anything." Yang tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Except partly on fire."
Ghira and Kali blinked. Blake watched them look at everyone and take in the lack of concern at Yang's words.
"Is that… normal?" Ghira managed.
"For Yang, yes. Her Semblance has a side effect where it transforms her hair," Blake explained.
"Fiery embers go flying," Tai said. "So watch out if Yang loses her temper when you're around."
Yang frowned at him. She opened her mouth.
"I see," Kali said. Blake doubted her mother realised she'd interrupted Yang, because her eyes were on Tai. "Well, Blake always liked warm places. It's no wonder she chose you." Kali turned to Yang and smiled. She winked. "Just try not to set her on fire. I'm sure she's already hot for you."
"Mom," Blake groaned. She glanced at the others. Her dad was at least pretending he hadn't heard that, but Qrow was smirking, and Tai was trying to cover up laughter with fake coughing and failing miserably.
Yang kissed her cheek. "Oh, she's the one who makes me burn."
"Yang," Blake ground out between clenched teeth.
"Blake did that to our house," Ghira said. He tutted. "It took ages to get the stench of smoke out."
"Blake! Why is that the first I've heard about it?" Yang demanded, a grin spreading across her face.
Blake could feel her cheeks burning. "It never came up."
"Speaking of things coming up… When are you due?" Kali asked, looking at Yang, an almost hungry light in her eyes. Blake wasn't surprised, her mother hadn't made a secret of her longing to be a grandmother. It was why she'd asked Blake to—
Yang leaned against Blake, kissing her cheek again. As always, it drove anything else out of Blake's mind.
"That's part of the reason we wanted to see you," Yang said. "It'd either clash with when our wedding was supposed to be, or we'll have a newborn. Weiss advised us to elope, so Blake will automatically have parental rights."
"We want you to be there," Blake added. "Just close family, including Weiss and Ruby of course."
"What about Ilia?" Kali asked.
"No, because we have other friends just as close as her, and if we invite any friends we should invite all of them, and by that point we might as well have the full wedding itself," Blake said.
Yang winced. "Weiss would murder us if we handed her that mess to plan at short notice."
"We'll have what would have been our wedding as a reception, with all our friends invited, after the baby has been born," Blake said.
"And after however long it takes us to adjust to life with a baby," Yang muttered.
"We'll be there," said Ghira, resting a hand on Kali's shoulder. Her mother could only nod, beaming.
"Wouldn't miss it," Qrow rasped. Blake had to wonder if his years as an alcoholic had damaged his voice.
Tai smiled, tears in his eyes. "Of course I'll be there."
Yang narrowed her eyes and levelled a finger at him. "No crying at my wedding."
"No promises," Tai said, his voice thick.
"I'm going to invite Raven to our elopement, and while I do it… I'm going to give her that chance she wants, to be a grandma. I want to talk to her face to face. Do you want to be here?" Yang asked.
She watched Blake pause in her washing up of the mugs used by their parents and Qrow. They'd eventually given them drinks, a little later than planned. Perhaps Yang should have waited under after they'd got them refreshments before sharing the news, but Qrow had needed a reason why he'd have to go elsewhere for coffee.
"I want to be there for you," Blake stated. "And I should get used to seeing Raven around if she's getting that chance. But if she disappoints you and our child…"
Golden eyes drifted towards where Gambol Shroud was kept, when Blake wasn't primed for action as a huntress. Not that it'd take her long to retrieve it, especially if she used her Semblance. Yang never could win a race against her, not without cheating with Ember Celica's recoil.
"All right. I'll send her a message. We'll see if she turns up." Yang unrolled her scroll and summoned Raven.
AN: Coming up next: revelations from Raven, and sharing the good news with friends. And possibly more, I need to finish writing it.
Comments appreciated. I'll love you forever if you leave me a nice comment. It'll also help encourage me to complete this story.