Chapter 58

Ren returned to the room, several bottles of water in his hands. "In case we want more, I brought enough for all of us."

"You're an angel Renny." Nora thanked him as he passed her a bottle.

"Trying to get more wives for your harem?" Yang teased.

"As if he needed to try." Pyrrha joked.

"I think the wedding would be a little too extravagant for the five of us." Ren deadpanned.

Yang snorted, pushing herself up and puffing out her chest. "Not to mention poor Jaune would have a stroke."

"He very nearly has already." Ren noted.

"I hope he's having fun mowing Summer's lawn." Nora laughed.

"Oh, I'm sure she'll thank him when he's done." Yang grinned.

"You two are terrible." Pyrrha huffed.

"Maybe Winter will join in!" Nora cheered.

"I thought this was supposed to be a foursome." Pyrrha said.

"Even foursomes have intermissions!" Yang declared.

"We can continue if you're ready Yang." Ren said as he placed the remaining bottles on the bedside table.

"If?" Yang scoffed. "I'm foaming at the mouth here!"

"Which one?" Nora giggled as Yang flicked her on the nose.

Pyrrha pulled Yang away, cupping her cheek and pulling her into a deep kiss. "Have fun sweetie. Put on a show."

"Yeah, you too." Yang grinned. Pyrrha yelped as Yang rolled over her - all that muscle was heavy after all - and she found herself staring at Nora, who had just finished draining her bottle, throwing it aside.

"You're mine now." Nora leered, reaching out to pull Pyrrha close.

"Omph, uh, hey Nora." Pyrrha said nervously.

Ren was Ren, Pyrrha understood him, she knew what to expect. But Nora, apart from their fairly passive friendship, was unknown. Nora would hug and kiss her on the cheek like any other friend, the would occasionally go out as a group on days off, and she had given her some very helpful advice for her relationship with Yang. But intimacy was still an alien thought, and now here she was, naked, sweaty, still more than a little sensitive from her time with Ren, and all she could think about was how warm Nora's stomach was against her own.

"Hey, relax, we don't have to do anything." Nora soothed, sensing Pyrrha's apprehensiveness. "Let's just snuggle. I've kinda' always wanted to snuggle with you."

"Really, me?" Pyrrha exclaimed, taken aback. She had never thought of herself as a particularly snuggly person. She enjoyed embraces when they lasted, but Yang had far more cushion than herself. Pyrrha's hard muscle was not exactly comfortable for snuggling.

"Mmm, you smell really nice." Nora borderline moaned.

Pyrrha felt her face heat up even further. "...thank you?" She tried to ignore the twinge down below as Nora planted a gentle kiss on her collar.

"How do you feel?" Nora asked.

"Tired...hot...a...a little...weird." Pyrrha stammered.

"Weird how?" Nora asked.

A drawn out moan drew Nora and Pyrrha's attention. Yang had straddled Ren, and evidently just taken him for the first time. She sat with her head flung back, back arched, eyes closed with a blissful look on her face. "Ohmy...God! I've never felt so filled!"

"Pace yourself." Pyrrha half-heartedly warned, receiving a thumbs-up in response.

"Isn't it beautiful, seeing the people you love most, together?" Nora asked.

Pyrrha smiled. It was indeed quite the sight. Yet at the same time, she could not help but feel… "Guilt...I feel guilty for loving this."

Nora wrapped her arm around Pyrrha's back, her fingers tracing a soothing pattern on her skin. "Why?"

Because it felt so right. "My parents won't approve." Pyrrha sighed. They never did.

"Does this make you happy?" Nora asked. Pyrrha nodded, and Nora planted a kiss on her chin. "That's all that should matter."

"It's not that simple Nora." Pyrrha slumped.

Nora smiled and pecked beside Pyrrha's lips, barely grazing the corner of her mouth. "Here, with us, it can be as simple as you want Pyrrha." A yelp interrupted again, and they turned to see Yang doubled over, panting into Ren's neck as he gripped her hips, thrusting from below. It seemed Ren had taken charge. "Hey...you wanna' say hi to the baby? She loves kisses."

Pyrrha glanced down at the belly against her own, and chuckled. "She's really growing." Pyrrha admired, laying a gentle hand on the belly's side.

"Sometimes I kinda' wish I laid an egg instead." Nora sighed. Pyrrha snorted, laughing into the pillow, Nora alongside her. "I could have made an awesome nest!"

"You can barely sit still as it is." Pyrrha noted. "Who would keep it warm?"

"Jaune would, obviously." Nora chuckled. Rolling her eyes, Pyrrha leaned down to plant a kiss on the baby bump. Nora giggled, Pyrrha grinned and began peppering it with more kisses, shifting down to better cover the area. Nora's hands found purchase in Pyrrha's hair, clinging on for support as she was assaulted, some of them quick, some of them slow, even one on the belly button, drawing a little squeal. Nora gave a little tug, and Pyrrha allowed herself to be pulled back up. "You missed a spot."

"Hmm?" Pyrrha managed before Nora kissed her on the lips. Pyrrha melted into the contact, closing her eyes and enjoying the moment...until a loud moan startled her out of it.

"Oh fuck!" Yang yelled, head thrown back, eyes clenched shut as she shuddered, the orgasm rippling through her like an electric shock. "Nghaaahgod!" Yang fell limp and collapsed entirely on poor Ren, who lay panting below her.

"That was explosive!" Nora cheered.

"I can't feel my lips." Yang struggled to catch her breath.

"Which ones?" Pyrrha chuckled.

"Yes." Yang replied.

"Renny, baby, you still alive?" Nora asked.

"For now." Ren answered.

"You still haven't finished, have you?" Nora smirked.

Ren huffed. "I was so close!"

"I can't believe you got the whole thing down." Nora shook her head. "The last time I tried, I could barely get halfway. It doesn't seem physically possible." Along with Yang and Pyrrha, she rested on the couch, ensconced in a cocoon of pillows and blankets. On the television screen in front of them, the menu screen of a DVD looped endlessly.

"I saw a sword swallower when I was a kid." Pyrrha explained. "I thought it was really cool, and I tried to do it for a while, trained away my gag reflex."

"You didn't even flinch when he came." Yang noted.

"Like I said, no gag reflex." Pyrrha repeated.

Ren chose the moment to enter the room, carrying with him a pair of delivered pizzas. One was half plain cheese for him, half hot peppers for Pyrrha, the other half meat-lovers for Yang and half onion, anchovy and BBQ sauce for Nora. "I never told you, because I didn't want you to be jealous." He handed one pizza off to Nora.

"She can have this one." Nora chuckled. She opened the pizza box, and Yang snagged a slice before Nora had the chance to choose one.

Yang carefully examined her chosen slice before eating it. "Gotta' make sure it's not one of your abominations." She teased.

"Pregnancy does strange things." Nora sighed. "Last night I ate a whole jar of pickles, then drank the juice. I couldn't stop myself."

"Pregnant or not, you've never had much self control." Yang noted.

"This is true." Nora shrugged, finally taking a gargantuan bite of her slice.

"So, should we get the movie started?" Pyrrha asked, picking up the remote.

"I don't know, I'm really enjoying this thirty second loop." Yang joked.

Pyrrha rolled her eyes and pressed play. After the day's vigorous exertions, all four had worked up an appetite, and the pizzas were consumed barely ten minutes into the movie. The movie was a sappy romance, the mushiest Nora could find. The intention had been to choose a film so over-the-top that they could spend the time making fun of it, one of Yang's favorite pastimes, but somehow the movie went from emotional, to sappy, to ridiculous, and back around to emotional again. Pyrrha was left a blubbery mess, and Nora shed more than her share of tears. Yang and Ren had to step in to comfort their loves, and Yang failed to get a pun in edgewise.

The story of family hardship, tragedy, and all-conquering love seemed to have struck a chord with Pyrrha in particular. She continued to cry straight through the credits, and did not stop even as the menu screen returned, along with its wildly misleading series of clips. A bin full of used tissues sat at her feet, and the supply of fresh ones had run out. "Are you okay Pyr?" Yang asked. "You're a hopeless romantic and all, but you've been crying your eyes out for over an hour."

"Oh I...sorry." Pyrrha sniffled. "I didn't mean to ruin the mood or anything, I just...there's a lot on my mind and...sorry."

"A lot on your mind?" Yang pressed. "You never said anything."

"I didn't want to bring you down, and I still don't, so maybe we should just drop it and-" Pyrrha rambled.

"You've said way too much for me to drop it now." Yang advised. "I'll be worried whether you tell me or not."

"I don't want...fine." Pyrrha sighed. "Recently I've received a few calls from my parents. They want me to move back home, to take over the family business, get married, have kids, all that. They don't know about us Yang. To them, to that culture, homosexuality of any kind is a grave offense. I've been trying to avoid a confrontation as long as possible, but I have to visit for Solstice, and my mother made it abundantly clear that she expects me to move back in then. I don't want to do that, I can't do that, I'm going to stay with you, but...they'll disown me. I've never thought of choosing them over you, I never would, but I don't want to lose them. I...I know what's going to happen...there's just no avoiding it…" Sobbing cut off any further speech.

Yang pulled Pyrrha into a hug, patting her on the back in an effort to soothe her. "I...I had no idea. You should have told me sooner. Maybe there's a way we can-"

"There's no getting around it." Pyrrha shook her head.

"No one should have to choose between love or family." Ren declared. "Forcing someone to do so...their own child of all people...it's despicable."

"I know what I'm going to do...what I have to do." Pyrrha continued. "I'm going to tell them about us, I'm going to tell them I don't want to live the life they've chosen for me...it's just so hard."

"I'll go with you." Yang offered.

"Really?" Pyrrha asked.

Yang nodded. "You shouldn't have to do it alone."

"We'll go too." Nora added. "Right Ren."

"Yes." Ren confirmed. "We'll all be there to support you."

"Thank you, thank you so much." Pyrrha managed a smile. "It means more than you know."

Qrow leaned back in his chair, hands on the back of his head. "So, why aren't you getting your hair done too? You always used to hate having it long."

"I still do." Ruby replied. "I just made a deal with Weiss and Blake."

"Oh?" Qrow asked.

"Yeah, I keep it long, they get streaks." Ruby explained. "I honestly didn't think they'd go through with it."

"Come on, no one can resist those puppy dog eyes." Qrow chuckled. "Same with your mother. Must be genetic. She once convinced me to wear a skirt in public. Tai insisted it was a kilt. Raven just thought I looked like an asshole."

"I don't think that had anything to do with the skirt." Ruby teased.

"Ouch." Qrow smiled. "So, how were your finals?"

"Pretty easy actually." Ruby shrugged. "Midterms were harder honestly. Dealing with Weiss was the worst part. Around exam time she gets intense."

"I'll bet." Qrow nodded. "I'm guessing Blake was as cool as ever."

"Mostly, though she did get a little antsy." Ruby noted. "I probably got myself overly worried too."

"Figure out what you're gonna' major in?" Qrow asked.

"Not yet." Ruby shook her head. "It's hard. It's such a big decision, 'what am I going to do with the rest of my life?' I don't wanna' rush it."

"That's a good philosophy, take your time, think it out." Qrow praised. "Just don't take too long." He took a sip of his soda before placing the glass back on the table. "Got your flight booked and everything?"

"Yep, the three of us fly out tomorrow." Ruby replied. "What about you?"

"Winter's got me booked on a flight for Solstice Eve." Qrow answered. "She wanted to put me in first class, but I talked her down to economy plus. That girl just loves to spend money."

"You should let her pamper you." Ruby suggested. "First class is the best." Her smile quickly faded. "So...is...is dad coming?"

Qrow heaved a heavy sigh and leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. Ruby already knew the answer and frowned, her lip beginning to quiver. "Sorry kiddo, he's...not ready just yet. He knows it'll be tense if he shows up...hell, it'll be tense with just me there. Point is he doesn't wanna' ruin it for the rest of us. I'm already workin' on him for Equinox though. Give 'em some time."

Ruby sniffled and wiped her eyes, doing her best to keep a straight face. "He's gonna' be there all alone?"

"Well, not really alone." Qrow corrected. Ruby raised her eyebrow at that. "There's probably a better time and place for you to find out, but he's got a girlfriend."

"Oh well...that's...good." Ruby managed. "Who is she?"

"It's a good thing you're not one to judge." Qrow mumbled. "Name's Octavia. I met her once. She's about Yang's age, seemed pretty straight-laced, all smiles though."

"Yang's age…" Ruby trailed off.

"I talked to Tai a bit, and apparently looks can be deceiving." Qrow continued. "He tells me she's got a major daddy kink. To her credit, you'd never get that from a casual meeting, and when she's dressed up she looks older than she is. From what I've heard, I get the impression she didn't have a father growing up." He paused. "Sorry to spring this all on ya' kiddo, I know it must be tough."

"No I'm...I'm glad dad's getting on with his life." Ruby forced a smile. "He can't just sit around moping forever. Heck, maybe his girlfriend will help him work up the courage to come visit!"

"That's the spirit." Qrow smiled. "Speaking of girlfriends…" Qrow nodded towards the cafe's entrance. Ruby turned to spot Weiss and Blake. Qrow could just about hear the sound of her jaw smashing into the floor. Their hair had streaks alright, but that was not all. Blake had gone with a full punk look, undercuts on both sides to go with purple streaks. Weiss had also gone for an entirely different style, a feathered pixie cut with light blue streaks.

"Like what you see?" Blake smirked.

"Guh." Ruby spluttered.

"I think that means yes." Qrow grinned.

"I hope you appreciate this Ruby Rose." Weiss huffed. "I've had that ponytail for fifteen years."

"You both...incredible." Ruby finally pieced together something vaguely coherent. "Why...how…"

"I wanted a new look." Blake explained. "Weiss was considering it, and when I told her how you said she'd look hot with short hair, she didn't hesitate."

Qrow chuckled. "Yep, definitely your mother's daughter."

"Pyrrha, I have tons of settlement money, let me get you a new car." Yang insisted.

Pyrrha pulled Milo to a halt in a parking space beside the store. "But I love Milo."

"It's older than you are." Yang observed. "And it's tiny. And if you try to go faster than 40 mph, it sounds like you're inside a jet engine."

"It's so cute though." Pyrrha pulled the keys from the ignition and stepped out, Yang following suit.

"Come on Pyrrha." Yang rolled her eyes.

"No!" Pyrrha shouted. "I'll never give up Milo." She bent down and hugged the car, only for a hubcap to fall off. She backed off and glanced at the detached part. "It's no big deal."

"What if it comes off while you're driving?" Yang pressed.

"I have spares." Pyrrha replied.

"No, I mean what happens if it comes off and nails some innocent bystander?" Yang clarified.

"Milo would never hurt anyone!" Pyrrha returned to hugging the car.

"Pyrrha, you're scaring me." Yang warned.

"I have a lot of memories with her." Pyrrha explained. "That feeling of freedom that comes with having your own car, driving around with the windows down, feeling the wind in my hair, getting frisky with Ren...driving while listening to heavy metal after we broke up…"

"Oh sweetie." Yang sighed, laying a hand on Pyrrha's shoulder. "I know you love...Milo...but be realistic. I'll admit, you keep the interior immaculate, and the paintwork isn't too bad except for a few dings, but the engine's on its last legs and there's some rust creeping up from underneath."

"But...I can't give up Milo." Pyrrha persisted.

"What if I got it fixed up...restored!" Yang suggested. "You know, a new engine...the same kind but not 20 years old, some work on the chassis to keep it from disintegrating, a new coat of paint...air conditioning that works…"

"I could accept that." Pyrrha allowed. "But only if it was the exact same color."

"It's settled then." Yang smiled. "Alright, why did you drag me into town today?"

"Oh, right, I wanted to get you clothes for the trip to my parents'." Pyrrha explained.

"I have plenty of clothes, nice stuff." Yang noted. "I could just wear that."

"Actually, I wanted to get you something...traditional, special for the holiday." Pyrrha elaborated, leading Yang into the store. "For Solstice my family wear...I guess you could call them costumes. They have some to loan to guests, but if you arrived with your own, I think they'd really appreciate it."

"Pyrrha...whenever we discuss this, it seems like this is going to be a big confrontation with your parents." Yang frowned. "Given what I represent, it doesn't sound like a costume will make much of a difference. Why are we even-"

"Yang, I know it looks bleak, and I don't expect my relationship with my parents to survive this, but if there's anything I can do to maybe smooth things over, even in the slightest way, to make it more likely that I can persuade them, I'm going to do it." Pyrrha declared. "If I have to choose between them and us, I choose us, but I don't want to have to make that choice."

"I understand." Yang nodded. "So, what kind of costume is it? I hope it's slutty!"

Pyrrha groaned. "Why would you even think that?"