14

Chapter 14: Revealed… Kinda

Pyrrha gave the whole room a quick once over, her green eyes connecting with Blake's for a brief moment. "Am I interrupting…" She looked back down at the crimson-faced heiress directly below her. "...something?"

Weiss just looked up at her, wide-eyed and frozen, her usually sharp mind dulled by embarrassment and shock. A seed of dread formed in her stomach as she tried to think of some way, any way, to convince Pyrrha that the situation was not as it appeared.

"We were just helping Weiss out with some… issues."

...Dust damn you, Yang.

Weiss' head snapped up, somehow managing a look that simultaneously held schock, fear, and absolute fury.

Yang just smiled back, her face the perfect picture of sympathy. "Relax, Snowflake. It's nothing to be embarrassed about."

Weiss did not relax.

Pyrrha looked between the two, then at Ruby, who was trying very hard not to laugh. "Is everything alright?" the redhead asked hesitantly.

Yang waved her off as she pushed herself to her feet. "It's cool. Just, uh, could you step inside?" She took a step forward, bending slightly as she reached a hand down to Weiss.

The heiress took her hand, and was quickly pulled to her feet. "What are you doing?" she hissed into Yang's ear.

"Saving our hides," Yang whispered in answer. She pulled Weiss into the room, closing the door behind them. Speaking louder, she addressed Pyrrha. "Yeah, sorry about that. We were just- hey, Blake! When did you wake up?" Her voice shifted from easygoing to unnaturally chipper upon seeing the Faunus awake.

Blake flinched as all eyes suddenly turned towards her. She flushed at the attention, pulling her covers against her chest. "A couple minutes ago," she answered simply.

Yang blinked. She glanced briefly at Weiss. Then she smirked, and Blake didn't need the Link to sense the mischievousness Yang was feeling.

"Is there somewhere for me to put these?" Pyrrha asked, gesturing to the trays above her head.

"Oh, yeah!" Ruby said, jumping to her feet. "Sorry, kitchen table's this way." She opened the door to the living area, waving for Pyrrha to follow. "Um, sorry for asking, but I figured that Ren would bring these over."

Pyrrha let out a nervous chuckle as she followed Ruby into the next room. "Well, he was going to, but at the moment, he's…"

"So, why are you making so many pancakes?"

Ren briefly looked away from the stovetop, glancing at the onesie-clad Jaune sitting at the kitchen island next to him. "Evidently, when I make pancakes, Nora has 'First-Dibs Priority'." He turned his head all the way around, looking over the mountain of pancakes at the girl glaring at him. "Though this is the first I've heard of it."

The glare intensified.

Jaune sweatdropped. "Oh."

"Indeed," Ren responded simply, flipping a new pancake over.

…

"...Ren?"

"Yes?"

"Can you please make her stop glaring? She hasn't blinked in five minutes."

"...occupied."

"Ohh…" Ruby droned as she led Pyrrha into the next room.

Once they were out of earshot, Weiss turned to glare at Yang. "Yang, what are you doing?!"

Yang laughed her off as she went to the closet. "Relax, Weiss, I know what I'm doing."

"And what are you doing?" Weiss repeated.

Yang sighed. "Look, Weiss, Pyrrha just caught us liplocked." Weiss turned crimson again, but Yang kept going before she could say anything. "Do you want to tell her the real reason why we were?"

"W-wha- No!" Weiss spluttered. "Of course not!"

"Then we got to tell her something else." Yang rummaged through the closet, pulling out a pair of blue jeans, before tossing them to the side. "Look, I'll do the talking. If she asks, just leave it to me."

"B-but," Weiss glanced at the open door to the living area as the clatter of silverware drifted through. "You just told her I have issues," Weiss hissed in accusation.

Yang fixed her with a blank look. "Weiss, you do have issues." At Weiss' look of outrage, she continued, looking back in the closet. "I know it, you know it, and yes, Pyrrha knows it too. Heck, everyone at school knows it."

Outrage. Fear. Embarrassment. Shame.

Yang stiffened. Her head snapped around, her lavender eyes meeting pained, misty blue. Weiss quickly looked away, crossing her arms with a scowl on her face.

Remorse flooded through Yang. She quickly stepped across the room, grasping Weiss by her shoulders. "H-hey, I didn't mean it like that! I wasn't kidding before; it's nothing to be ashamed about. Everyone has issues, myself included!"

Weiss scoffed, glaring at the blonde from the corner of her eye. "Yeah, right."

Yang grimaced. She looked over at Blake, now sitting on the edge of her bed, but all the Faunus could offer was a look of concern.

Yang gulped. She took a deep breath, turning back to Weiss. "Weiss…"

The heiress refused to meet her gaze.

Yang hung her head, letting her hands leave Weiss' shoulders, trailing down her arms. "I'm sorry…" she muttered mournfully.

Weiss blinked, slowly turning to face the blonde. Normally, she'd dismiss the words as an attempt to get back into her favor, but…

Sadness. Frustration. Self-loathing. Remorse.

Weiss sighed, looking down. "...did you have to say it like that?"

Yang lifted her head. She managed a half-smile. "Sorry. Sometimes my mouth moves before my brain does." She punctuated her words by tapping her knuckles to the side of her head.

Weiss looked down for a moment longer, before looking up through her bangs. "Just sometimes?" she asked, smirking slightly.

Yang blinked, huffing out a laugh. "Yeah, yeah…" she muttered as she pulled away, a full smile on her lips.

Blake watched on with a smile. Though dulled, she could feel the emotions going between the two, helping to fill the gaps in understanding their words left. She felt a warm feeling in her chest, almost like pride.

Weiss glanced back at the open door. They'll be out here any second. She looked at Yang nervously. "You know what to tell her?"

"...you're going to embarrass me, aren't you?"

Yang smirked. "Oh, totally. But tell me something: which would you prefer? Get a little embarrassed, or explain the whole Mates situation to Pyrrha, right here, right now?"

A wave of panic slammed into her from two sides, both from the heiress in front of her, and the Faunus across the room. Yang looked at Blake, and was taken aback by her fear-filled yellow eyes and her cat ears standing straight up on her head.

Yang waved her hands in front of herself in defense. "Hey, hey! I'm not serious! You guys really think I'd do that?"

Blake let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Weiss sighed in relief, before giving a pleading look at Yang. "Please don't make it too bad."

Yang chuckled. "Relax, Snowflake." She leaned in and, to everyone's surprise, kissed Weiss' forehead. She pulled back with a soft smile. "I know what I'm doing."

"What are you doing?"

They all jumped as Ruby stepped back into the room, Pyrrha right behind her. Ruby was giving Yang a questioning look.

Yang just smiled at her. "Nothing, Sis. Just making plans for the day." She turned her attention to Pyrrha. "Thanks for bringing that over. I hope Ren didn't have to wake you up to do it, though."

"O-oh, it was no trouble," the gladiator answered awkwardly. "We were getting up early anyway. I'm sorry if I, um…" Her green eyes flickered between Yang and Weiss. "...interrupted… anything."

Weiss' blush returned full force. Yang let out a sigh. "You want to know?" she asked simply.

Green eyes widened as Pyrrha waved her hands in denial. "O-oh, I don't need to… I didn't mean… I don't need to know." Her cheeks tinted as she stopped stuttering.

Yang gave her a look. "But it's going to bug you not knowing." It wasn't so much a question as a foregone conclusion.

Pyrrha's only response was a rather uncomfortable fidget, glancing between the blonde and the heiress.

Yang huffed. Then she turned to Weiss. "Can I tell her?"

Weiss' first response was to ask (or rather, demand) "tell her what?!" Instead, she stared into Yang's eyes, remembering her words.

Trust me.

Weiss glance back at Pyrrha, the redhead looking back in equal parts awkwardness and curiosity. She swallowed, before nodding slightly to Yang.

The blonde gave her a reassuring smile, turning her attention back to Pyrrha. "Okay, P, can you keep a secret? Like, even from your team?"

Pyrrha blinked, looking unsure. "I… suppose."

Yang nodded, accepting her answer. "Okay. I'm guessing you've put two and two together on what me and Weiss were doing before you opened the door?"

Huh. Didn't know her face could turn the same color as her hair.

Pyrrha cleared her throat, ignoring the heat in her face. "I, um… have an idea."

Yang couldn't help the slight smirk tugging at her lips. "Well, the truth is, Weiss has been having some trouble figuring out her… preference."

The look Weiss sent her was thunderous.

Trust her, trust her, trust her…, she kept repeating in her head, praying that Yang really knew what she was doing and wasn't just screwing with her.

Pyrrha blinked in surprise. "O-oh! So, you were…"

Yang nodded, half-smiling. "Yeah. just… helping her figure out which team she's on."

To Weiss' surprise, Pyrrha nodded in understanding. Then the redhead frowned. "Isn't it a little early for… that?"

Yang just kept smiling. "Yeah, well, we kinda started talking about before we went to bed, and since we both woke up a bit early…"

Pyrrha nodded again, this time with a smile. "Well, then, I'm very sorry for interrupting you." She then turned her smile on Weiss. "I hope you have luck in figuring yourself out, Weiss."

Weiss, stunned, stuttered. "U-um… t-thank you, P-Pyrrha." A small smile managed its way onto her lips.

Pyrrha nodded to her, then to Ruby as she went to the door. She opened it and was halfway out, when she turned back to the room "Oh, um, Blake?"

Blake, who had been watching the interaction with worry, then relief, gave the gladiator a curious stare, tilting her head.

Pyrrha gave a kind, if nervous smile. "You look very nice without your bow."

She shut the door before anyone could respond.

It took Blake a full three seconds before Pyrrha's parting words sank in. Her eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, her hands clamping over her ears.

Her large, feline, completely impossible to miss ears.

"She, she saw…" Blake started breathing hard and fast, panic building in her chest. "She… she knows… oh, Dust…"

"Blake? Blake!" Yang was instantly at her partner's side, wrapping her arms around the distraught Faunus in a gentle yet firm embrace. "Hey, calm down! It's okay."

Blake didn't seem to hear her. "Pyrrha saw my ears. She knows that I'm… I-I didn't even think about…"

Weiss and Ruby quickly moved in front of Blake's bed, completely lost in what to do. The emotions rolling off of Blake were so strong that it almost made the two ill.

Panic. Dread. Terror.

Yang held Blake tighter as the emotions washed over her. She felt an ache in her chest, like her heart was trying to pound its way out and get to Blake. A thought popped into her head, and Yang acted on it.

Very gently, Yang rested a hand on the back of Blake's head. Closing her eyes, Yang leaned forward, pressing her forehead against Blake's. She started humming.

Blake's panicked babbling cut off the second Yang leaned forward. She stared blankly for a few seconds, before her eyes slit shut, pressing against the blonde in kind.

Ruby breathed in sharply when she heard Yang start humming. She recognized the tune; it was one of the songs their mother would sing to them on stormy nights or after a bad dream. The same song Yang sang to her after Summer was… gone.

With a look to Weiss, who was watching the two partners with worry, Ruby bobbed her head towards the two, hoping Weiss go the hint.

She did, and, after a moment's hesitation, Weiss sat down next to Blake. Unsure of exactly what to do, Weiss gently put her hand on Blake's thigh, hoping it would comfort her.

Ruby, seeing there was no room on either side of Blake, crawled around Yang onto the bed and wrapped her arms around Blake's waist, hugging her from behind as she pressed her face into the nape of the Faunus' neck.

After a minute or so, Blake's breath slowed back down to normal, though she remained tense. "She knows," she murmured weakly.

Yang rubbed her side gently in comfort. "Blake, it's okay. It's Pyrrha. She won't tell anyone."

Blake took a shuddering breath. "But… but what if…?"

Yang shook her head, keeping their foreheads connected. "No 'what-ifs'. If it worries you that much, we can go talk to Pyrrha and tell her to stay quiet. No need to freak."

Blake stayed still for a minute more. Her eyes opened slowly as she moved her head back, Yang doing the same. Amber eyes still glanced around the room, as if she was expecting some kind of attack. "S-sorry," she mumbled meekly.

Yang gave her a squeeze. "Hey. Nothing to apologize for." Her usual smile came back in an instant. "She wasn't wrong, though. Your bow is cute and all, but I like your ears more." To confirm her point, she gave both ears a small scratch.

Blake hummed at the feeling. Ruby squeezed her waist, resting her chin on Blake's shoulder. "You okay now, Blake?"

Amber orbs met silver, then concerned blue. She put her hand over the one Weiss had on her leg, leaning her head against Ruby's. "I think so. Sorry."

"Ugh," Yang groaned, releasing Blake so they sat shoulder to shoulder. "Enough with the 'sorry's."

Blake looked at her. "Sorry," she said, a small smirk on her face.

Yang elbowed her in the side, getting a chuckle.

Weiss rolled her eyes.

Ruby giggled. Her eyes drifted across the room.

"...y'know, the pancakes are getting cold."

Betaed by Covert Weapon

Old A/n: Not much to say this time. Next one should be up soon - next week at the latest.

See ya next time!