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Chapter 4: Acceptance

"Okay, Blake. Start talking."

Blake's eyes flitted to Yang, before staring back at her hands. Yang had placed her on her bed, still wrapped in towels, before taking a seat in the desk chair, sitting backwards with her arms folded on the backrest. Weiss sat on the edge of her bed, while Ruby settled for sitting cross-legged on the floor near Blake's bed. All three stared at her, waiting for an answer.

Blake pulled the towel around her tighter. "I'm... " She took a shaky breath. Just get it over with. "I'm in heat," she whispered out, unable to look at any of them.

The room was silent, Blake waiting for the pin to drop. Any second now, it would happen, the anger, the disgust, the utter revulsion a the realization of exactly what she was, what that entailed. Blake closed her slitted eyes, tears welling up as she waited for the rejection…

"Well, we kinda figured that."

Blake's eyes flew open at Yang's dismissive tone. She saw the blonde giving her a troubled look, frowning slightly. "W-what?" she asked hesitantly.

Yang jerked her chin towards Weiss. "You had us worried, so Princess looked up how you were acting on the web. Wasn't that hard."

Weiss scoffed, rolling her eyes. "At least I thought of something…" she mumbled, before looking at Blake. "Why didn't you tell us?" she asked.

Blake flinched at the question, despite Weiss' soft tone, or at least soft for her. She looked into Weiss' eyes and, to her awe, saw only worry. She turned to Yang, then Ruby, only to see more of the same.

"You… you're not mad?"

The reaction she got was nothing like she expected. If anything, it looked like they were the shocked ones now.

"Mad?" Yang said incredulously. "Why would we be mad? Blake, what's going on?"

"What reason would we have to be mad at you for this? It's not like you can help it." Weiss crossed her arms, frowning.

Blake only stared in disbelief, not knowing how to respond.

Ruby, who had been quiet up until now, asked, "Blake, are you.. Scared of us?"

All of them turned towards Ruby, who was biting her lip nervously.

"What? What do you mean, Rubes? She ain't scared of us, right Blake?" Yang turned towards Blake with a smile on her face, only to falter when Blake dipped her head down, pulling at the towel. "Right?"

Blake was silent, not looking at anyone. Weiss gave a huff, before turning to her scroll, thinking maybe the web page could give her further insight, when Blake's broken voice reached her ears.

"Yes," she whispered, her cat ears pinning back against her head. "Yes, I'm scared."

Ruby scooted a little closer, confused. "Why?" she asked softly.

Blake kept her head down as she went on. "I'm not human." Weiss and Yang's eyes widened at her tone, while Ruby just tilted her head. "I-I act like I am, I hide my ears, I slow myself down, I… I try to keep myself as… normal as possible, so no one will notice that there's anything different between a human and a Faunus. But…" She cleared her throat as her voice grew thicker, a tear sliding down her cheek. "...but there is."

"Blake…" Ruby whispered, eyes wide.

Blake didn't hear her as she continued, her voice cracking. "The way… the way I act and… the way I want to act. The little whims, just… random things I feel every now and then, that I just force myself to ignore, so that everyone will think I'm normal. And then… this!" she hissed out, looking down at herself in contempt, at her reddened skin and slight sweating. The fire was in full force, burning at her insides. The only thing keeping her from acting on the feelings was the distraction of her teammates, though she knew that would only last so long.

Blake's anger burnt itself out quickly, leaving only sadness in its wake. Tears flowed down her face. "I just… you all know I'm a Faunus, and… and I know you're telling the truth when you say you don't care, but… I just keep waiting for the day you realize how different I am… and…"

"And?" Ruby asked.

"...and start to hate me."

Silence filled the room once again as she gave up. She cried silently, tears flowing freely as she took shaky breaths.

"Nope."

Blake looked up and nearly flinched when she found Ruby right in front of her.

"W-what?"

"Nope," Ruby repeated, before throwing her arms around the Faunus.

Blake froze as Ruby clung tightly to her, pulling her close so that the leader's chin rested on her shoulder. "R-Ruby?!"

"We could never hate you."

Blake's eyes widened.

"You're our friend, Blake. We don't care that you're a Faunus, whether you're normal or not. You're a member of our team, and we trust you with our lives. We love you."

Fresh tears sprung from Blake's eyes. "R-Ruby…"

Strong, warm arms suddenly wrapped around the both of them.

"Couldn't have said it better myself, Little Sis. Sorry, Blake. You couldn't make us hate you if you tried." Yang smiled brightly as she gave Blake a squeeze.

Blake stared back, tears flowing. "Yang…"

A weight settled onto the bed next to her, making Blake turn to the side. Weiss was sitting next to her, head pointed down.

"You told me you were once a member of the White Fang, the organization that's been making my family's lives, and by extension my life, a living hell." She turned to Blake, her eyes soft. "If that couldn't make me hate you, what makes you think this could?"

Blake was dumbfounded. "Weiss…"

The heiress put a hand awkwardly on her shoulder. "Ruby's right. You are my friend." She smiled. "Nothing can change that."

"Aw no you don't, get in here!" Yang suddenly grabbed Weiss' wrist and pulled, forcing the heiress' arm to go over Blake's shoulder with an "eep!" Weiss glared at the blonde, who just grinned back, making Weiss roll her eyes and put her other arm around Ruby, completing the group hug.

Blake looked around at the three girls around her, all smiling, all giving her comfort.

The don't hate me, she thought, her lips slowly shifting into a smile. They accept me. They… love me.

Slowly, Blake wrapped her arms around Ruby's waist, the only one she could reach around, making Ruby squeeze her harder as Blake buried her face into the leader's shoulder.

Blake sank into the embrace, feeling the safety and acceptance of her team around her. She hummed in contentment as their bodies pressed against her. Their warm, soft bodies…

Her eyes snapped open.

Oops…

"Um, guys?" she said hesitantly. The three pulled back, looking at her questioningly. "I really appreciate this, but, um… you're making me kind of… warm…"

It took a full five seconds for her words to register before all three of them flew back, blushing.

"Oh, crap, I forgot about that!"

"I-I-I didn't intend to- I didn't mean to-"

"Sorry, Blake!"

If the circumstances had been different, Blake would have burst out laughing at how flustered her team was, all blushing and trying to look anywhere but at Blake.

Unfortunately, the roaring, buring, rather frustrated fire inside her kept her silent.

Everyone shifted awkwardly, until Yang broke the silence. "So… what do we do about this?"

Blake shook her head. "I don't know. I usually have some medicine that… helps me through this… but I'm all out."

"Oh, well, maybe someone else on campus has some you an borrow." Ruby suggested.

"I thought of that. That's actually what I was going to check earlier, but…"

"The lockdown," Yang realized, rubbing her neck. "Well crap. Any other ideas?"

Blake shrugged.

"Um…" Weiss started, sporting a blush. "Forgive my… bluntness, but couldn't you just… take care of the problem yourself?"

Blake blushed at her meaning, as did Yang and Ruby. "No, I can't. A Faunus' heat affects both the body and the mind. For that route to work, I would need a… partner."

Awkward silence reigned as the implications of her statement sank in, Yang's blush deepening a bit at her wording. Blake wracked her brain for an alternative, or at least as much as she could with her heat-frazzled mind.

"Umm… is that an option?"

All eyes turned towards Ruby, whose face was as red as her cloak.

"Ruby?" Blake asked.

Ruby shifted in place, swallowing slightly. "If you need a partner…"

Blake looked at her in confusion, before her mouth popped open. Did she just suggest…?

"Wha- NO!" Yang suddenly shouted, putting herself between Blake and Ruby. "Nonononono. Hell no! Don't even think about it!"

"What? Blake said it would work," Ruby said, pouting slightly.

"I don't freaking care! You are not shagging Blake! Especially when I'm stuck in the room with you!"

Weiss finally seemed to have caught on to the conversation. "Wait, do you mean-? No! I mean… I don't… I…" She trailed off as her face turned redder and redder.

Blake stared at Ruby with wide eyes, a sharp denial on her lips despite the fire inside her roaring in approval. She appreciated the sentiment, but there was no way she could let Ruby-

"Well, do you have a better idea?!"

Ruby's angry yell made Yang stop shouting and take a step back in surprise. Weiss and Blake stared at her in shock. They'd never seen Ruby mad before.

The room silent, Ruby took a deep breath. She then turned to Blake. "Blake, you said you needed a partner?"

Blake, still in shock, nodded slightly. "Y-yes?"

"And you're sure it would help you with your heat?"

Blake stammered her response. "W-well, yeah, but Ruby-"

Ruby just gave her an awkward smile, before turning back to Yang. "Do you have any other ideas?" she asked honestly.

Yang looked down at her little sister, looking lost. "N-no, but-"

Ruby turned her head towards Weiss, the same question in her eyes. All Weiss could do was shake her head.

She glanced back at Blake, before staring up at Yang. Yang held her stare before letting out a sigh.

"Ruby… don't you remember the talk we had? You know… the big one?"

Ruby nodded. "Yes, I do. You said I should save my first time for someone I love and trust."

"Yeah, and-"

"I love Blake," Ruby said, as if it was the simplest thing in the world, making Blake blush. "I trust her, too."

Yang's eyebrow twitched, looking irritated. "That is not what I meant and you know it."

Ruby shrugged. "So? I'd rather it be with Blake than someone I don't know as well. And it's to help her, too."

Yang struggled for something to say. "Ruby... " she huffed. "You…"

Blake finally found her voice. "Ruby, I appreciate the sentiment, but I can't let you do this. Especially if it's your first time. You need to save that for someone special."

"You're special," Ruby replied bluntly, tilting her head in confusion.

"A-are we really talking about this?" Weiss interjected, still red-faced. "I-I feel like things are getting a bit out of hand."

Ruby let out a sigh. "Look, Blake, you said this would pass in the morning?" Blake nodded, before Ruby looked towards the clock on the desk. "Well, morning is nine hours away. So, our choices are either Blake stays like this all that time, or…" She trailed off, her face turning red.

Blake searched for something, anything she could say to dissuade Ruby, but her frazzled mind could think of nothing.

Yang looked back and forth between her sister and her partner. "I… you…" She turned to Weiss, who could only offer a helpless shrug, just as lost as her. Yang let out a growl of frustration. "Augh! Okay! Okay, okay, let's just… step back and look at the facts." She stared pacing, her hands moving as she spoke. "Blake is in heat. She's all out of medicine. We are locked in the room, no way to leave. Only way we can think to help is…" She looked at Ruby. "Is… ugh! Weiss, gimme that scroll!"

Yang practically ripped the scroll from Weiss' hands, surprising the heiress, who fell back on her bed.

Yang kept pacing about the room, skimming through the web page from where they'd stopped before. There's gotta be something in here… increase in body temperature… increased desire for affection… phantom pain…

Wait, what was that last part?

Yang reread the portion of article, but as she read further, her pacing slowed to a stop.

...when a female Faunus is at the height of her heat, her body temperature can reach a high of one hundred and two to one hundred and four degrees. It is at this point that the body will be at its most receptive. During intercourse, the Faunus' brain will release a specific type of endorphin to help regulate body heat. If these endorphins are not released, the Faunus runs the risk of overheating, and in some cases, phantom pains that will persist until their heat has passed…

Yang looked up from the scroll. Her worried eyes landed on Blake, who stared back with slitted eyes. Her face had grown redder, a visible tremble in her shoulders. Her ears were pinned against her head. Her breath was choppy.

She won't make it til morning. It'd be hell.

Yang took a deep breath, letting it out slowly through her nose. "Ohh… this is gonna be a weird night."

Ruby and Weiss looked at her, while Blake's eyes widened further. Is she…?

"Okay, I'm… I'm on board with this."

"WHAT?!" Weiss screeched, jumping up for her bed. All eyes turned to the heiress, who looked back in utter shock, mouth gaping. "Yang, are you serious?! You and Ruby?! I don't even know where-"

She was cut off when Yang placed the scroll back in her hands. "Read," she said simply, tapping on the words she'd read.

Weiss looked at the scroll, eyes trailing quickly over the words, before coming to a stop. Weiss looked up at Yang, looking uncomfortable, before turning away and sitting back down.

Yang gave a nod before turning to Ruby. "Okay, Rubes, uh… I don't want to ask, but I kinda have to ask… do you even know how to… Dust I can't believe I'm saying this… Do you know how to have sex with another girl?" she asked with a blush.

Ruby blushed back, speaking quietly. "Um… yeah, kinda…"

Yang let out a breath. "Okay, well, that simplifies-" She cut herself off, a thought hitting her. "Wait, how do you know?"

Ruby's eyes widened before she looked away, mumbling.

"Excuse me?"

Ruby spoke just slightly louder, enough that Yang could make out… "...under bed… underneath old jacket… magazines…"

Yang blinked, then facepalmed. "I thought one of those went missing." She took another breath. "Well then, Blake, what do you think?"

Blake, having watched and heard everything from her bed, just stared, her gaze flickering between Yang and Ruby.

They… they really…? No, I-I can't. It's not… She flinched as a sudden burst of heat ripped through her. She was nearly at a breaking point.

She looked to Ruby, then to Yang. Both looked back, small smiles, nervous but genuine, on their lips.

"You… you sure?" she asked, the words slipping out before she could think to stop them.

The sisters glanced at each other, before nodding. "Yeah, we're sure." her lips quirked upwards. "Who knows? Could be fun." Yang looked back at Weiss. "What about you, Snowflake?"

Blake turned her gaze to Weiss, who was looking at the wall, chewing a thumbnail. Her eyes flicked towards Blake, lingering for a long second before looking away, face flushed.

"I… can I just think about this for a bit?" she said quickly before staring into Yang's eyes. "Please?" she asked softly.

After a moment, Yang nodded. "It's your choice. Not like you got drafted or something."

Weiss nodded back, grabbing her scroll as she made her way towards the bathroom. "Sorta feels like it, though," she mumbled under her breath as she closed the door.

The three stared after her, before turning back. "So…" Ruby started awkwardly, "...how do we do this?"

Yang shrugged. "Do what feels natural, I guess. So, Blake, which of us lovely ladies gets the first honor?" She smirked slightly, her usual mirth coming back.

Blake blushed as her heat soared to new heights, heart thumping in her chest. This is really happening, she thought. She did note that Ruby seemed a lot more nervous than Yang.

She smiled, Yang's humor seeping into her. "Well, seeing as Ruby got to kiss me already…" she said, giving Yang a look.

Yang took the hint, leaning in as Blake let the towel slip from her shoulders.

The last thing she felt before reason left her was Yang's soft lips against hers, the fire slowly calming down.