Omake 13: Accepting the Third Wheel (C)

"So, that's what they call this 'Israefel Special'." – Author while reading 'Advice and Trust' by Strypgia.

My head was hurting like hell. Hangover.

It took me a full minute of being awake to realize that something about the bed was wrong. It was morning, the curtains were low, the door was closed and… the count of people in the bed was off by one.

Yesterday I… went on a date together with Sienna. The kids were meant to spend the night at the Chieftain's manor for a full sleepover with other friends, giving us the chance to have the house for ourselves. It was going to be brilliant… and then I made the foolish mistake of trying out a new alcoholic beverage at the restaurant we checked on.

While I could normally hold a beer or two, the unexpected beverage had me tipsy and drunk way faster than planned. I could remember drinking from my glass and then things started to get particularly… difficult to remember.

It was me, Sienna… we both walked back to the house and… we drank again. I think we were drinking again some wine, but I couldn't exactly recall what pushed us both to drink even more despite how drunk we were.

My brain seemed to finally catch a new hint of how weird this situation was. While the covers were doing a fine job covering the fact I was without clothes, and the same was for Sienna… it did little to cover that the 'intruding member' of this curious drunk night was now slumping down the mattress and making a full display of her behind. A pale behind. One that was connected to a snoring former bandit that I could see smiling in her sleep.

I closed my eyes, I held back a groan and then I opened my sight back to the ceiling.

Yep, I did the deed. The fact that there were two of the emergency boxes now open and emptied by its previous content meant that it wasn't even a modest fun night. But what really had me worried wasn't that it happened, rather 'how' it happened.

I forced myself to remember. Did I do something to force her to bed? Did Sienna do it? Or maybe did she abuse the fact we were both drunk and went all in on this opportunity?

None of the above.

Oh, you're awake and- wait, how much did you see?

The beginning, and then the rest was ignored for the sake of privacy.

Still, what did you see?

You two returned home rather drunk. Raven was passing by to ask to pass the night at your house and then you offered her a drink.

Oh no.

And by a drink, I mean 'two whole wine bottles'.

Fuuuuuck.

You were all drunk and tired. Then you were no longer tired by the moment you went to bed and started to undress because it was 'too hot'.

And then the rest happened.

Yes.

Still… you mean to tell me that you didn't peek?

I've been the headmaster of a school meant for young adults, John. I will have you know that I have the capacity to hold myself from staring and-

[Good morning~]

Oh… you saw?

[The beginning. Then the rest was… played differently between Ozma and I.]

Ah…

That's some interesting timing-

You will not speak of this to no living soul!

I don't think anyone wants to know you went back to warm your wife's bed.

[The bed sure was warm earlier this morning-]

S-Stop it!

I would've wanted to keep going with this discussion, but then I felt the covers shift and Sienna's head pop out from beneath the warm surface. Her eyes took a moment to focus, but soon she regaled me with a satisfied smile.

"Mhhh~ Good morning, hun."

I smiled. "Morning," I returned the greeting, leaning towards her to land a peck on her lips. "We have… a tiny issue."

She blinked, her face slowly morphing to a confused look as she tried to make sense of my uneasiness, but it was only as the covers further shifted as Raven ended up waking up from that uncomfortable position, moving out of the bed and slowly lifting herself up. Turning around to look at us, my jaws almost fell as I saw her body and… yep, this issue feels way tinier than it should be.

"Good morning," Raven half-groaned, still smirking eagerly as she remembered what happened yesterday. "That was an… interesting night."

"What exactly happened yesterday?" The Tiger Faunus inquired and I sighed.

"We ended up drunker than usual, we got… Raven drank too when she came by to spend the night here," I curtly summarized. "I remember offering the wine… and then we got to bed."

…

"This is- I really- I don't know," The tanned woman conceded with a frail tone. "This is so absurd and-"

"It happened," The Huntress remarked calmly. "And it was glorious."

…

"Let me put it this way, do you regret it? That we had this night together?"

Sienna kept quiet, and I was about to do the same until I felt a degree of guilt at Raven's inkling of hurt that I could feel in her voice.

"No."

Her red eyes widened at that blunt response. "You… You mean it?"

Sienna gave me a look, but I couldn't exactly lie now that we were at this point.

"Yes."

"So you mean to tell me that, despite how outrageous it is, you still don't-"

"Raven," I muttered, stopping her in her tracks. "We don't regret it."

Despite her best efforts, I could tell that my current fiance was having some trouble refusing that comment of mine. Beneath her efforts to not appear delighted by that night, we were both enjoying this with the 'intruding party'.

"I… I'm actually floored," Raven admitted. "I had this big speech I was improvising about trying to guilt-trip you to accept the truth but… I'm confused, why conceding so quickly?"

"Because as much as I can try to deny it, you would be hurt by any lie," I answered. "And I believe we are not liars when it comes to this kind of well… scandalous occasion."

The Tiger Faunus was blushing madly at these words, but she only stared and didn't try to speak against what I was saying. Instead I could tell that a sliver of desire would flash the moment she would glance at the former bandit leader.

"So you didn't want to 'hurt me'?"

"I didn't want to lie because it would have been wrong and because right now you're being particularly trusting," I answered seriously. "I don't see you weak, only that right now you want honesty in the closest sense of trust and respect. So here it is, before your eyes."

...

Instead of silence consuming the awkward scenery, where the woman was trying to cope with my words, two familiar boxes suddenly dropped out of a portal opening beside the huntress, these ones filled with usable products.

"If that's the case, then let me offer you two a deal. Yesterday you both mentioned the kids were staying at Kali's until lunch and it's six right now," Raven explained with a strange voice. "That would be just enough to make a 'continuation' to our night, this time we are all aware and capable of reacting accordingly to each situation."

She crawled on the mattress, her red eyes glowing in the dark. I was about to try to see if Sienna could offer at least a compromise but… the woman spared a quick look at the boxes and then back at me, her eyes mimicking the desiring glow coming from the approaching huntress.

I was surprised by how quickly the Tiger Faunus had changed her mind, but then again it's been a long time since we had some time alone and… having a third member in these sessions sure added a greater perspective to it all.

There was no compromise, only one way out for us all. And while I was slowly pulled into that unexpected but welcomed sequel of a night, I could only hear a few clues of Sally taking a partly-reluctant Ozma back to 'bed'.

And that's how Sienna and I started to accept Raven as part of our relationship. A strange part to it considering that everything about it felt… insane.