Chapter 45

Neon was scared.

"Something big happened, I need to talk to you in person please." It was not the most gentle request when coming in the form of a text from Weiss.

Something big could be good or bad, but Neon was not going to press for information when she wanted to talk face to face, which was another red flag. Weiss avoided inviting Neon to her room, likely to avoid any awkwardness or just to spare her pining over her sister and friend. If Weiss wanted to be with Neon, she would go to her, asking permission and ensuring she was not busy, like the overly considerate snowcone she was.

Sun had more faith in the situation. That was another of his virtues. Where Weiss had a habit of seeing the worst in everything, Sun always tried to see the best. Maybe Weiss had worked everything out he said, maybe something big was everyone being able to love each other. Weiss' pessimism had rubbed off on Neon. She did not want to cling to more false hope. She wanted to tear off the bandaid and hide under the covers until the pain stopped.

"Ney, look at me." Sun instructed. He gently held her shoulders, and she obliged, hands clasped to prevent their trembling. "Weiss loves you. You know it, and she knows it. This could be a really good thing, and hey…" He leaned down to kiss her. Though it was more of a peck, it meant the world. "...worst comes to worst, I hear I'm a good rebound." He smiled that cheeky smirk of his, and Neon found herself stifling a giggle.

Reaching up, Neon pulled Sun down into another, more intense, kiss. "You're so much more than a rebound Sun. Don't sell yourself short."

Sun's goofy smirk grew, and Neon felt her eyes sting. Maybe, just maybe, things could work out. It was time to find out. "Good luck." Sun cheered. "Text me with the deets."

With a final hug Sun left, leaving Neon standing just down the hall from Weiss' dorm room. A few steps and she was poised to knock, but before she could it was opened by Blake. "Oh, heya' Blake, howsit' hangin'?"

Blake looked at Neon differently than usual. Normally she seemed fairly indifferent, except when she looked at Ruby. She always looked at her like the sun shone from her eyes. But right now a similar gaze fixated upon Neon, and she was not sure how to handle that. "Good, very good. Come in, please."

Blake stepped aside, and Neon walked in. Her attention was immediately drawn to the sight of a nervous looking Weiss and an excited looking Ruby sitting side by side, holding hands, on the bed, or rather beds. They had pushed together their beds...oh. "OhmyGod!" Neon exclaimed. She felt herself grin, ignoring the tiny little pain in her heart as her expression was mirrored by Weiss, who borderline leaped off the bed to wrap her in an enthusiastic hug. "Weiss, you did it!" Neon's voice warbled, and she felt her eyes sting again, but she was laughing as Weiss nearly crushed her in the embrace.

"I was so stupid, and I thought I messed everything up, but they love me Neon." Weiss enthused. "They let me in, they let me in a-and we're having a sort of openish relationship, because w-we keep finding people to love and we don't mind sharing, and Blake's heat's coming up so that'll be a thing, a-and...and I love what we had, and I-I don't wanna' throw it all away."

Neon's heart leapt, and she could not contain a squeal, picking up Weiss in an equally crushing hug. "I don't want to either. I love you too much to just stop. E-even if...well...I...I'm kinda' sorta' starting some things with Sun...he's been really good to me."

Weiss hesitated a moment before grinning. "That's good, I mean, as long as he's okay with our...friendship."

Neon giggled. "He kinda' gave me the pep talk I needed to come here so fast."

"I thought I smelled him on you." Blake smirked.

Neon flinched, suddenly remembering their company. Stepping away from Weiss she turned to face Blake, who despite her lack of effort, seemed very intimidating in that moment. "Well...yeah h-he hugged me and we kissed...are you really okay with this? I don't wanna' intrude…"

Blake smiled warmly, stepping forward and holding a hand out for Neon to take, which she did timidly. Neon had never been one for Faunus traditions, but mates were still often considered off limits. She could be walking on very thin ice no matter what Blake seemed to feel. Ruby approached, taking Blake's free hand before reaching out for Neon's. Accepting it, she felt Weiss hug her from behind. "This is all very new to us." Blake admitted. "My heat is coming soon, and we were planning on asking our friends for help. Weiss' feelings came to light, we talked, about everything. She told us how much you tried to help her, how much you loved her, while we were ignorant of her feelings. Neon, your love for her is just as valid as ours, and a piece of her heart will always belong to you. I could never deny that. And I won't. What you have is special. I want you both to nurture that, no matter where our lives take us."

"You're family neon, and we love you." Ruby added.

Neon was overwhelmed. The shock, the emotional intensity of the situation leaving her speechless. Just hours prior she had been worrying for Weiss' health, now her feelings were being accepted and validated by the very people of whom she had once felt so envious. Then Weiss raised her wrist, a multicolored bracelet on display. "I kept it safe. It didn't feel right to wear it anymore, but I promise I won't take it off again...except to shower...obviously."

Well, that did it for Neon, who dissolved into a puddle of emotional goo. It was not so bad. She had a loving family to help pull her back together, each of them as tender and caring as Weiss.

Neon was in heaven.

"Have fun." Summer smiled, giving Winter an encouraging slap on the rear. "I'll be over in a few." Winter grinned and swaggered away, ducking into Raven's dojo, just past the gym's main entrance. Summer headed inside the gym, planning to say hello to Glynda, but found Pyrrha at the front desk first. Pyrrha was bent forward, face buried in her hands, elbows braced on the desk. "Hey Pyrrha, you alright?"

"Oh, hello Summer." Pyrrha looked up, plastering on a smile. "What brings you here?"

"Winter's next door for her first lesson." Summer replied. "I figured I'd tag along to make sure Raven doesn't just spend the hour beating her up. Anyway, you look troubled."

"Well...my parents just called." Pyrrha explained. "They've been asking some difficult questions."

"Oh?" Summer asked. "Are you not on good terms with them? I thought everything was alright at home-"

"It's not that we're on bad terms, we just...don't see eye-to-eye on some things." Pyrrha corrected. "They want to know when I'm coming back home, when I'll join the family business, when I'll take my place at the head of a household, stuff like that. I...told them it'll all have to wait until I finish school, but...I don't really want to do any of that."

"Why not tell them that?" Summer asked. "They seemed nice enough the last time we spoke."

"My parents are...very traditional, but you already know that." Pyrrha sighed. "In Mistrali culture, women are expected to start their own households at a rather young age. That means getting a good job, having my own home...getting married…I'm not ready for all that, but if I just tell them they won't be happy. I don't want to disappoint them."

"You'll have to tell them sooner or later." Summer warned.

"I know." Pyrrha slumped.

"I'm sure they'll support you." Summer encouraged. "Even if you don't want to do things exactly the way they'd prefer."

"I'm not so sure." Pyrrha shook her head. "My mother has made it very clear what she expects from me. As soon as I complete my education I'm to take over the bathhouse they own in Signal, so they can return to Mistral to run their other locations. I'm to marry a man and have children, as many as it takes until I have a daughter of my own, who will then carry on the cycle."

"That's...wow…" Summer struggled.

"Do you know much about Western Mistrali culture?" Pyrrha asked.

"No, not really." Summer admitted. "Tai was from Mistral, and Raven loves that stuff, but the family aspects were never really mentioned."

"That's Eastern Mistrali culture." Pyrrha started. "Western Mistrali culture is matriarchal and militaristic. Being naturally stronger physically, men did the bulk of the fighting, though the strongest women also fought on the front lines. Most women trained to be officers though. They would command the men, and run the government while they were away fighting. Women were expected to be leaders, to give birth to and educate the next generation. My parents...it's like they're living in a world that's hundreds of years behind the times."

"That must be difficult." Summer noted, not really sure what else to say. "I can't speak for your parents, but whatever you do, I'll support you, no matter what."

"Thank you Summer." Pyrrha managed a genuine smile. "That means more to me than you know."

I wonder how the lesson's going.

After chatting with Glynda in her office, then speaking to Yang as she ran on a treadmill set to a terrifyingly unsafe speed, Summer headed next door to see how Winter's first session with Raven was going. As Summer opened the door, Raven grunted, pulling on Winter's arm as she ducked down, flipping Winter to the mat where she landed on her back with a shocking smack. In an instant Raven, still holding Winter's arm, stepped over and fell to the mat, tugging Winter's limb straight. Raven slowly raised her hips, increasing the pressure on Winter's elbow until she frantically tapped on Raven's leg with her free hand. Raven held on for what seemed to Summer a beat too long before letting go.

Not great.

"No, all wrong." Raven admonished, rolling away and standing. "You've got to react more quickly."

Winter took a deep breath and sat up. She adjusted her gi - white with a light blue snowflake embroidered on the back - which she had originally acquired for her training with Ironwood. Summer could see her nose was not quite right. On closer inspection there was a bit of dried blood below, with a wad of cotton jammed in one nostril. "Raven, I told you not to hurt my girlfriend." Summer sighed.

Before Raven could respond, Winter sprung to her feet. "No, Summer, it's alright. We started with a little Muay Thai, and my blocking game needs work. It's just a bloody nose, not even broken."

"She won't get hurt if she'll just think faster." Raven declared. "She already knows what to do, she just takes too long to do it."

"I guess it's just hard to think straight when I'm getting thrown around." Winter noted. "I'll get it though. No pain, no gain and all that."

"So Raven's just using you as a training dummy?" Summer joked.

"Maybe a little." Winter chuckled. "Better too hard than too soft. It's the best way to learn."

"That's the idea." Raven agreed. "And your choke defense is impressive. Let's expand on that." Raven sat down and patted the mat between her legs. Winter sat in front of her, and Raven slid into contact. "I'm going to try to choke you out, but if you block it I'm going to try something else. Don't get caught."

"Do your worst." Winter smirked.

Raven reached around in front of Winter's throat, grabbing the collar of her gi and tugging it across her neck. Winter grabbed Raven's sleeve and slid her hand inside the hold, blocking Raven's attempt to lock in the choke. While the pair slapped and tugged at one another, Raven subtly shifted. Winter was too focused on the potential for a choke to notice Raven repositioning her hips. In an instant Raven exploded, tugging on Winter's arm and bucking her hips. Winter was flipped onto her stomach, free arm pinned beneath her body as Raven twisted the other behind her back.

As Raven pulled on Winter's arm, she could feel her shoulder overextending. She wanted to tap but her arm was tucked beneath her. She would have voiced her submission, but the impact of the flip had knocked the wind out of her. All she could manage was a whisper. "Tap…"

Again, after holding on for just a little too long, Raven released Winter's arm. "I told you not to get caught." Raven shrugged.

"I...I won't make the same mistake twice." Winter huffed, struggling to regain her breath as she rose to all fours. "At least next time I won't be surprised when you toss me."

"Raven, please." Summer beseeched. "She's not here to be your personal punching bag."

"It's alright Sum." Winter cut in. "It's just tough training. It was the same with Ironwood. I got tossed around like a ragdoll for the first few lessons, but as I got better things evened out. I can take it, I'm not made of glass."

"I throw all my students around." Raven noted.

"You don't personally spar with most of your students." Summer countered.

"True, but when I do, I don't go easy." Raven persisted. "If it's too much, all Winter has to do is say so, and I'll take it down a few notches."

"I'm telling you Sum, it's fine." Winter insisted.

"Well...alright." Summer relented. "If you say so."

I would not describe any of this as fine.

Weiss was exhausted.

As much emotionally as physically, the past two days had been taxing to say the least, for everyone involved. But finally it seemed everything was okay, everything that could have gone wrong had gone right in the end through some miracle. If there were gods, Weiss sincerely hoped they understood how thankful she was. Her luck was a truly blessed thing. As were her girlfriends, Blake currently hugging her from behind, and Ruby curled beneath her chin, creating a warm, firm burrito of happiness and calm.

It still seemed so unreal, that Weiss was here between the people she wanted to love most in the world, that her love was returned, that she was able to preserve her relationship with Neon without fear nor guilt, that everyone could be happy together. It had taken them a while to calm down after Neon began babbling, giggling, crying and hugging. It was as if months of emotional baggage were strewn all about via all manner of powerful emotions, love being the biggest, with all of them receiving more than a few kisses, several of them landing on the lips. Neon was an uncoordinated mess of happy.

Once she had vented, they were able to talk more casually. Neon explained that she had cut down on her usage of catnip almost entirely, admitting that she had been relying on it to dull the emotional pain of hiding her issues. Coco, Velvet and Sun had been extremely helpful, comforting, caring and caressing, as Neon put it. Sun in particular had stepped up to be a very loyal, dedicated friend - a friend whom Neon found herself falling for.

It had surprised Neon how easily it happened. She was not stingy with her affections. She loved freely and openly. The first person to truly capture her heart was Weiss, who vented her passion and unrequited love on Neon. No one had treated her with such care and reverence before. The majority of her relationships had been casual things, non-serious flings. She just wanted to enjoy life to the fullest, and make her friends happy.

Sun did not treat Neon with reverence, but respect. He preferred to take care in the relationship by not jumping into anything intimate. He let their friendship grow before doing more than lightheartedly jabbing back at her flirting. Neon thought about asking why he did not try anything further, but she supposed it was obvious. Sun understood Neon's conflict over Weiss, and wanted her to be in a better place before pursuing something more serious.

Weiss could not help but feel a little guilt, that her actions had almost prevented Neon from moving forward, and a small, terrible part of her felt some manner of jealousy. But she could live with that, she could be happy that their relationship could grow stronger again, though the kiss they shared before Neon left still felt like a crime. Blake and Ruby relentlessly teased Weiss for her blush. They made it feel right, they made everything feel normal.

But right now Blake made her feel like she was on fire. One of the strong arms that were wrapped around her stomach began moving upward, palming her breast seemingly by accident through the silky fabric of her nighty. Weiss had been awake for what felt like an hour listening to her girlfriends' gentle breathing, thinking they were asleep, but when she felt Blake's lips make contact with her neck, she shuddered, a warmth pooling down below.

Blake smiled up at Weiss. "You smell so good…"