Blake cursed under her breath; rarely in her life had she felt so useless. In fact, never since she'd been a child had she felt so useless. Her youth had been brimming with rigorous training on the White Fang's part and even back then could she best adult soldiers without much strain. She had always been capable and had always pulled her weight and yet in this instant she watched her partner's back as the blonde heaved deeply, taking another hit to protect her.

"Yang, we have to run, you can't keep this up!" Blake pleaded.

"We push forward," she growled her retort, her voice almost drowned out by the deafening sound of shotgun rounds and the roaring of the Ursa. "If we lose any ground, we really won't make it to the city before nightfall!"

Blake bit back words of protest and helped her teammate as she could – firing gambol shroud and using its lash to help protect her partner's back, mentally cursing the foreign device beeping on her wrist.

Twelve hours earlier-

"The details of this mission are minimal. We drop you off in remote locations at random; you make your way back to a designated rendezvous point. You will then be transported back to the academy," Glynda explained as the lined up students all took their turn picking a thin bangle from the tray next to her. "Simple enough, isn't it?"

Once the bracelet was secured around her wrist, it lit up with a green light. Blake looked to her partner's and frowned seeing Yang's had an orange light.

"This bracelet is called an ESD, it stands for Energy Silencing Device. It's designed to suppress both the projection of your aura and your semblance," the blonde teacher continued. "It has been programmed to bond with your partner's, so only one of them is active at a time. During this three day mission, you will each have thirty-six hours of downtime and thirty-six hours of active time, at random." As she explained this, a detailed image of the device they all had secured around their wrist appeared behind her. "The green light signals you're in possession of your full combat abilities, the orange light signals your semblance is suppressed, as well as your ability to project aura."

"Basically, I'm now a ball and chain on you," Yang muttered, seemingly quite unhappy about it.

"I will be yours later," Blake casually offered in exchange.

"The ESD also reads your vital signs as well as having a built-in tracking system. In case of an emergency, the mission will be aborted, we will rescue you," the teacher continued. "You can also send out an emergency signal by activating this switch at the bottom, and holding down both buttons there," she explained as she made the projected image of the device rotate behind her. "This mission has two objectives; for you to learn to be resourceful, stop relying so much on your aura and semblance, and also for you to learn to care for a dependent party. As Huntsmen and Huntresses, a lot of you will regularly be taking on missions where you will have to escort or protect a third party. Any questions?"

Blake gritted her teeth; they hadn't encountered much opposition on her own active shift and had been able to progress a lot. They had nearly reached a small village, which would have ensured they wouldn't have to camp out. Not that the faunus minded sleeping under the stars, no, her preference for the safety of a room was solely based on the fact that camping out would have to mean the one on active duty would have to stand watch for Grimm while the other slept. Being forced to do so would considerably slow them down on the following day compared to both of them getting proper rest at an inn.

Yet as the day had slowly darkened into a beautiful pink and purple evening, the light on her bracer had turned orange, and it had seemed that suddenly all the Grimm in their vicinity had woken up.

Yang had been single-handedly taking them down for almost three hours now, not only trying to make way for them to press forward, but also taking hits on Blake's behalf since no aura meant Blake was currently highly vulnerable to damage.

"Yang, please!" She implored again.

"No!" The fiery blonde barked, exhaustion and pain obviously taking its toll on her. "The town's lights are in sight Blake! We'll make it."

And they did make it. But as they made their way down the main street of this small village, the brawler was leaning so heavily on her partner that the dark haired faunus was practically dragging her. Thankfully, the only inn was not a very long walk from the village's outskirts, and Blake was all too relieved for the warmth of this safe haven. She pulled Yang to the reception desk and requested a room.

"We do have one left, but it only has one single bed," the young woman behind the counter stated apologetically.

"We'll take it," Blake didn't even hesitate, resolved for her partner to get some proper rest after the evening she pulled them through. Yang wasn't in any capacity to give her opinion anyways; barely still standing thanks to her arm around Blake's shoulders, she was struggling to keep her eyes open.

Blake dragged her up the stairs and laid her in bed before locking the door. Looking at her dirty and battered partner lying barely conscious pulled at her heart, and she felt the overwhelming urge to tend to her.

She took off her friend's boots, belts, weapon, stripping her down to her yellow tube top and black shorts before getting some warm water and a towel. Wiping down some of the grime, sweat and blood from her let Blake see that the blonde had looked much worse off than she actually was. Her aura had healed most of the scratches and bruises by then, and it seemed she now had energy to maintain consciousness, as Yang finally started to come to.

"Where are we?" She muttered, trying to sit up.

"Inn room," Blake carefully put a hand on her shoulder, making her lay again. "We're safe, you can rest."

"Oh…" Yang let herself be pushed down, settling on her back and remaining still as Blake resumed her self-appointed task.

She was surprised that her friend allowed herself be pampered this way, but the dark haired faunus was tremendously glad she did. The brawler had pulled them through an impressive swarm of Grimm, and after all the hits she took to protect her, it was the least she could do, right? Blake wrung the excess water off the towel again as she'd rinsed it and gently wiped filth sticking to her partner's skin. She refused to linger on how much she was enjoying doing this for her.

"I told you we'd make it fine," Yang broke the silence with her boast, flashing a weary but annoyingly smug smile.

"You did," the faunus conceded, smiling back in spite of herself. She maintained her gaze for a second before she looked her over, evaluating her work. There was nothing more she could do short of bathing her, so Blake discarded the now dirty wet towel and moved on to taking care of herself. She felt her partner's eyes still on her as she removed her own boots and was slowly taking off her bow, sleeve, along with everything else that would be too uncomfortable to sleep in. Left in her white shorts and white crop-top, she glanced at her partner as she quickly wiped herself down too. "Are you hungry?"

"Nah, I'll be good until the morning," Yang answered, stifling a yawn. "Thanks."

"…It's the least I can do," Blake quietly said, settling on the floor next to the bed. "Thanks for getting us to safety."

With a frown, the blonde sat up again. She looked around to finally take notice that the room held only one bed. "Blake what-"

"It's all they had left," she cut in. "Rest up." She made herself comfortable as she could.

"You're not sleeping on the floor." The tone of her voice offered no compromise.

"I'll be fine, it wouldn't be the first time," Blake sighed, not opening her eyes. At least not until she felt herself being lifted off the ground as if she had weighed nothing and unceremoniously dropped onto the mattress. She put aside her renewed amazement for her partner's strength and stood right back up. "Yang, you need proper rest!"

"So do you. Chances are you'll be in charge of both of us tomorrow," the blonde pointed out as she motioned to the still green-lit bracelet on her own wrist. She then dropped to the wooden floor, apparently making herself comfortable where Blake had been lying a second ago.

"We're not going to fight about this," Blake grumbled, pulling on the brawler's arm in an unsuccessful attempt to get her up again; Yang was surprisingly heavy.

"We're not," Yang agreed, her amethyst orbs snapping up to lock onto the golden ones. "I take the floor or we share the bed."

"The bed is small."

"It's not like we can't both fit."

"It'll be cramped."

"You think I care?" Yang argued. She paused and her expression softened slightly. "…Unless you do? I mean, I know I'm probably smelly after the day we had... I can go take a shower if it's really that bad. I was going to wait until the morning 'cause I'm tired and you did a good job of cleaning me up, but I can go if it's really no good."

"You smell fine, that's not the issue," Blake stubbornly pulled on her arm again.

"Then what is the issue?" The blonde stopped resisting her partner's tugging and got up, her eyes still on her friend's.

The faunus held her gaze stubbornly. The actual issue was not one she could even brush.

Something passed through her features, like Yang might be a little wounded. "You really have this much of a problem with sharing a bed with me?"

This wasn't the first time Blake had refused sharing a bed with her, far from it. Yang usually asked her if she wanted company when Blake's nightmares had woken them both in the middle of the night, and over the last year of being partners, Blake had turned this offer down well over two dozen times. She knew her friend meant to comfort her, but Blake didn't want to trouble her, and she surely didn't want to abuse her kindness. However… while she could turn Yang away without a second thought when they were home, when they each had their own bed, now was another story. Refusing to share now would be unaccommodating and difficult on her part. Blake sighed. "It's not a problem," she truthfully said. "I just don't want to be an inconvenience. You're sure it doesn't bother you?"

"Are you kidding?" Yang grinned, climbing back into bed. "Close the light and get your ass in here with me."

Blake rolled her eyes, but did as told. In the darkness she walked back to the bed, hesitating only a second before getting under the covers. She laid on the very edge of the bed and her back to her partner in an attempt to respect her space, to somehow not lean against her. However it was only a second before she felt strong arms pull her closer to the center of the mattress and an oh-so warm body pressed against her back. Her breath caught in her throat.

"See?" Yang laughed quietly, seemingly oblivious to her partner tensing up. "Plenty of space for both of us if we snuggle up just a bit," she whispered.

Blake could feel the other woman's breath on her naked shoulder as she spoke, felt enveloped in the blonde's scent, and she tried so hard to keep her cool. "Just… sleep, Yang."

"Good night to you too," the blonde playfully answered, resting her head against her back.

It took barely a minute for the midnight haired faunus to hear her partner's faint snoring. She wasn't very surprised, Yang had been exhausted after all. Letting out a sigh, Blake allowed herself to slowly relax in her friend's arms. She certainly didn't expect to ever find herself in this position and, granted, she wasn't falling asleep in the blonde bombshell's embrace under the circumstances she'd guiltily have to admit fantasizing about, but she thanked whatever force was out there for this small blessing. But the hand limply draped over her with Yang's warm hand on her bare stomach made it almost feel intimate, and Blake reveled in the illusion.

Her hand found the limply stretched out limb in front of her on the mattress and folded it back over herself very carefully so she wouldn't disturb the sleeper. She entwined her own with the brawler's lightly callused fingers, hugging her forearm and holding her hand tightly against her heart, feeling fatigue finally taking over.

Yang woke up to the incredible brightness of the sunlight pouring in. She squint her eyes, blinking a few times, making sense again of where she was.

Right; the inn.

Gentle twitches of a cat ear against her cheek made her aware of her partner still curled up in her arms, apparently not entirely asleep but certainly not awake either. She rested her blonde head of hair on the pillow again, half leaning it against the faunus's head. If Blake had decided to laze a bit, Yang gladly would take advantage of the extra rest time. It's not like they were in any hurry with this field exercise anyways; they had already gone two thirds of the way to the rendezvous point in less than twenty four hours. With over forty-eight hours left, they could certainly afford to take it slow.

She closed her eyes again, expecting to drift back to dreamland in a matter of minutes, but after staying motionless for what Yang deemed to be at least half an hour, she found she couldn't fall back to sleep. An odd restlessness was taking hold of her, and she wondered why today of all days, when for once they didn't have Weiss attempting to march the whole team out of bed at the crack of dawn, she felt so alert and ready to tackle the day. She nevertheless couldn't bring herself to move because Blake, on the other hand, seemed absurdly comfortable as she snoozed in her arms. The picture wasn't unlike a kitten languidly slumbering in the afternoon sun and Yang sighed inaudibly. She had rarely seen Blake looking so peaceful. Inspired by this, she opted to make another attempt to bring herself to at least nod off, shutting her eyes for a few minutes again... only to very quickly decide it was a lost cause.

Yang cracked her eyes open once more, staring at the back of a dark head of hair.

They had been running around for hours the day prior, but the midnight colored locks still looked really silky. They also still smelled great, Yang observed as she leaned in slightly. Now as she was turning her attention to her partner, she also noticed both Blake's hands on her forearm, hugging the limb to herself.

Yang couldn't repress her smile; no matter how often her partner would seem aggravated with her, she'd known fully well the faunus was incredibly fond of her. Fondness which was absolutely reciprocated.

With the smile lingering on her lips, she felt the urge to squeeze her friend, and so, found herself curling up around her a little closer. She rested her head again against her shoulder, welcoming how warm Blake felt in her arms. And how soft, crazy soft. Yang tightened her embrace even more. With this, she at last noticed the arm Blake hugged was being hugged to her chest in a way that let her palm cup one of the mounds perfectly.

A jolt ran through her body to freeze her in place and Yang's heart stopped for a second. Her first reflex was to very carefully try reclaiming her limb, but between the fact that Blake was lying on that arm and how firm Blake's grip on her was, Yang realized she would definitely be bothering her and waking her up if she did take her hand back. After an interminable moment of awkward internal debate, the blonde sighed lightly, ultimately opting not to disturb her. Blake looked so serene for once, and she would be damned if she disrupted this rare incidence.

Although… now that she'd noticed her breast against her palm, she truly couldn't will herself to think of anything else.

To be fair, Yang really did try to think of anything she could to distract herself; how Ruby and Weiss's mission was going, if they'd make it there before team JNPR, what she'd eat when they made it home. However, with each breath Blake took, Yang felt her flesh pushed to her fingers and she would abruptly be brought back right in the moment. And she'd again try thinking of anything else. Yet try as she might, she was now noticing how Blake's breast felt firmer than her own and, yes indeed smaller, but just perfect for the size of her hand. Yang sighed, trying to get a grip. So to speak.

She decided she should mentally go through the steps of taking apart Ember Celica, as doing so had always been somewhat of a meditative and soothing activity for her. But then Blake had to breathe again. And Yang again tried, really, really tried to cleanse her mind of this suddenly unreasonable curiosity for her partner's curves. But the more she tried, the more she could only focus on the warmth emanating from her body and how her breast felt in her hand. Try as she might, all she noticed was her warmth and her slow breathing and had Blake always smelled this good?

The blonde struggled to stay still, she truly did try with everything she had to think of anything else, but the other woman's soft flesh was cupped so perfectly into her hand, and her thoughts kept shifting to this very amazing detail and it felt like her hand would start twitching if she didn't move it. She was powerless to stop herself when she finally curled her fingers ever so slightly for an almost imperceptible squeeze.

Yang had never been shy with being huggy, dotting, or expressing affection for friends and family through gentle touches, and yes, many times she'd gotten more physical than Blake would probably have been comfortable with, but… doing something like this without permission? That wasn't in the realm of acceptable liberties to take.

Yet somehow, the rush brought on by yielding to something forbidden, no matter how small of a gesture it had been, was nothing short of exhilarating. Her whole being seemed to accelerate and a wave of heat overtook her. Not the same kind of heat that would flood her when she activated her semblance, no. This was a very invigorating and irresistible kind of warmth, starting in the pit of her stomach and tingling to the tip of her fingers. It felt like this flash of heat made her mind go blank; fogging it to the point she couldn't formulate a coherent thought anymore. All she knew was that she wanted more. Much more. It was as if she had a taste of the forbidden fruit, and now more would never be enough. Blake hadn't budged an inch and Yang moved her fingers subtly again, guiltily coping another feel, fascinated with the difference in firmness and weight compared to her own.

If, in retrospect, she had been asked what the hell did she think she was doing, Yang would honestly not have been able to give a better explanation than…she simply wasn't thinking anymore. Exhilaration let her dare moving her other hand delicately to cup her other breast, still careful not to disturb the napping faunus. She gently squeezed both, marveling at how well they fit her palms.

How her touch couldn't be excused as innocent curiosity anymore didn't seem to have hit her yet, neither had the fact that she was definitely not being subtle. She didn't seem to notice either how, whether she wished it or not, the way she touched her partner held intent, or what this intent was to be recognized as.

Though her brain seemed to have completely stopped working, all her other senses were tremendously heightened. The cat ear against her cheek was soft as a feather, and Blake's scent was utterly intoxicating. Yang never wanted to stop touching her and, as her light petting rapidly escalated to explicit caresses, the blonde found herself exceedingly aware that things had escalated to a point she could now feel nipples erect and very defined through the light clothing. It was only with this that her mind seem to start catching up to what she was doing. Only now did Yang realize how undeniably sexual her actions had been. Of course, she instantly recognized she had to stop, but she couldn't process just how she'd be able to.

It was as if her brain had lost control over her body; she knew that no matter how close they were or how Blake may have tolerated her unbounded need for physical affection before, this was unquestionably overstepping her bounds. And yet, her clouded thoughts made it impossible for her to persuade herself to act rationally again. She gently rolled a nipple in her fingers through her shirt, squeezing her breast again more boldly than she had intended to.

The heat Yang had felt warm her core had somewhere along the line become a raging blaze burning throughout her entire body; she exhaled a hot breath, closing her eyes and burying her face in the dark hair. At once, she became aware of how unbelievably turned on she was. Because of Blake. Blake's body, her scent, her warmth. She couldn't wrap her head around it, but there was no denying the state she was in.

Had she always been attracted to Blake...?

At once, so many moments they'd shared came back to her, moments in which Yang would feel the urgent need to touch her or hold her, to take her hand or kiss her head, or moments in which she'd find herself in awe of her partner's beauty, or noticing anything and everything about her. It was like Yang was thunderstruck.

Looking back, her behaviour was impossibly obvious, her attraction to her friend was shockingly transparent, and still, she had never suspected any of it to be what it was turning out to be. And there certainly was no denying what it was turning out to be now that she'd stumbled on it. There was absolutely no room for doubt about what she wanted in that moment, or about the indubitably sexual nature of the desires that had surfaced. Ashamed, she still pressed herself closer, yearning for more warmth, more of her.

With the way she leaned against her back, the blonde could feel the rhythm of her partner's heart against her own chest. Her eyes snapped open; the absolutely wild rhythm of her partner's heart, indicating Blake was undeniably awake.

Yang stiffened, anxiety chilling her. In a flash, a million thoughts flew through her mind. How long had Blake been awake? Long enough, obviously! How the hell could she explain what she'd been doing? What was she doing? …Well…that was obvious. But still! What the hell? And how did she expect things to go down anyways? For Blake to just shrug it off? Of course she'd be mad wouldn't she? Would she hate her? Yang had definitely crossed the line after all. How rapidly anxiety tightened her stomach and made her feel sick was astounding. Why had she let Yang do this if she'd been awake? Blake never had any qualms about shutting her down whenever Yang was pushing her limits.

She held her breath as this latter thought crossed her mind.

So wait—what if she…? What if she was okay with this...? Had Blake been enjoying it?

Yang seemed to at once come aware again of how Blake's skin so was feverishly hot against hers, of how deep her breathing had gotten, of her nipples stiff through the fabric of her clothing. It was plain and clear that the other woman's body was responding to her touch. The chill brought on by her sudden concern seemed to dissipate as fast as it had taken over her as Yang finally grasped that she certainly was not the only one enjoying herself. Undoubtedly, her faunus partner was readily letting herself be fondled.

The blonde felt embers of lust flare again in her core at the idea that Blake just may also be aroused. It had never crossed her mind to even conceptualize her partner as a sexual being, but... of course Blake would have those urges and those desires. Of course Blake would sometimes want or need… this. Yang's mind was flooded, saturated with erotic images of her and her own lust now ravaged her body in a blaze. Her eyelids felt heavy, her breathing labored again, and Yang could only think of how she truly didn't want to stop what had been set in motion. How she wanted to turn her on more. How she wanted to know what it was to share this intimacy with Blake.

All this happened in an instant, and it was in a split second that Yang decided to take a leap of faith; she pressed her lips to her partner's neck and started her ministrations again with renewed vigor, making her intentions clear. Blake gasped, pressing into her touch, and moved one hand over Yang's on her breast to encourage her. Her response confirmed what Yang had believed- that Blake had been letting her because she was fine with it- and the blonde now explored unashamedly, tracing her nipples, groping her breasts as she would.

She moved her lips along the skin of her neck and her shoulder, pressing closer, going up to nibble her ear and Blake groaned in pleasure. Yang trailed one hand along her partner's body to her waist, to her hip, taking the liberty to start discovering her curves, eager to know what the rest of her felt like. Groping along her hips and thighs is what had her notice the way the midnight haired beauty in her arms was fidgeting, squeezing her thighs together…bucking her hips slightly with almost every caress along her body. Blake's need for more— for a bolder, more venturing touch was glaringly obvious and Yang wondered whether or not it would be going too far were she to attempt it. Would it put a halt to this exhilarating intimacy were she to move her hand between the faunus's long, slender legs…? What if maybe that line was not one Blake was ready to cross?

The blonde exhaled a hot breath; she couldn't help being captivated with the way Blake's hips would rear when her hands found her breasts again or when she seemed to hit a sensitive spot. She was absolutely mesmerized with how Blake pushed her flawless ass back into her crotch rhythmically as Yang's efforts doubled. She sucked on her partner's neck, softly moaning too as she let her own hips follow along with Blake's in that faint thrusting movement. The heat going to her head was driving her mad and, in spite of her previous reservations, her fingers found the hem of the white shorts. They slipped underneath the fabric, tracing the line of her partner's underwear but not yet daring going any further.

Almost immediately Blake's head snapped back to lock gazes. Her gorgeous eyes were like molten pits of gold, burning with a passion Yang had never seen from her before and, though Blake didn't say anything, Yang had the absolute certainty her partner was imploring her to go through with it. It took nothing more for her to swiftly shift their position. She guided Blake to lay on her back as she hauled herself on top and discovered she couldn't possibly have anticipated how good the faunus's body under hers would've felt. It was delicate and soft, moulding into hers like it was welcoming her, and it felt… for lack of a better word, it felt right.

Had there been any trace of hesitation left in her about what she was about to do, it would've undoubtedly vanished with this. Yang knew with unprecedented certainty what she desired, yet coming to terms with these desires somehow had her unable to hold the other woman's gaze. In an attempt to hide her discomfiture, she moved in and let her lips explore her neck. It took another moment for her to gather her courage and reach down again to slide her hand back in her shorts, along her skin, beneath her underwear. Her fingers found the slit, gently rubbing along her nether lips. It amazed her how soaked her partner was; she had no idea Blake had been this turned on.

Arms around Yang's waist pulled her closer, grasping at her back, and her legs slowly spread wider as the brawler penetrated her with two fingers. Slowly, she curled her index and middle finger to get a feel of how hot and wet it was inside her and then she slowly started pumping them. Blake's hips instantly fell in rhythm with the blonde's hand and, Yang should've expected it but it still took her by surprise, Blake moaned.

She moaned very quietly, but it prompted an overwhelming upsurge of desire to overcome Yang. She had never heard anything of the sort on Blake's part. Her voice, so sensual and thick with desire, intoxicated Yang with lust she'd never known she could feel. She found herself fingering her a little faster, pressed her body to hers, relished in the way the faunus clung to her, grinned wildly at the distinct purring sound rumbling from her chest—Blake was purring, she realized in awe. She'd never known her partner could do that.

She pushed her fingers deeper and Blake sighed in pleasure again, pressing her face against her shoulder. Yang was fascinated; it never had crossed her mind she'd ever be doing something like this with another woman, much less with Blake. Blake who, in this last year, had become her closest friend and most trusted confidante, Blake, who, not even twenty-four hours ago, she would've been ready to call family.

But… there they were. And she was relishing in the damp, slippery feel as she fingered her, in how burningly hot she was, in the way she writhed in pleasure and Yang was downright losing her mind over how sexy she was.

Blake's skin was quickly moist with the heat of their movements, and the blonde noted hers was too. She absolutely adored the way her friend pulled at her like she wanted to fuse their bodies, and how she couldn't help the few moans escaping her lips despite her apparent efforts to stay quiet. Somewhere along the way Yang's breath had become ragged too; she struggled to stay in rhythm with Blake as her movements became more and more heated until she ultimately froze, digging her nails in her back, reaching her climax. Her loud purring gradually faded as Blake relaxed under her, also easing her grip on her.

Yang heaved heavily from the effort, lying very still with her partner's head in the crook of her neck. She leaned her chin lightly on the head of dark hair, feeling an overheating cat ear against her cheek. As the tension dropped, Yang seemed to finally be capable of some lucidity; all at once she came all too aware of the silence that abruptly filled the room.

Her mind reeled. What had just happened? All of a sudden, she was so embarrassedly conscious of Blake's heat and slickness around her fingers, prompting her to slowly pull them out and removing her hand from the faunus's underwear. How did this even happen? Dread was starting to creep at the corner of her mind at the idea of having to justify herself to her partner now that they had calmed down. Where did all this come from? She was in absolute shock over what she'd just done. She couldn't seem to comprehend her own actions. Just what had taken over her? This sudden lust over her partner blindsided her and even more so how she impulsively had gone through with her unexpected desires.

Absolutely mortified, Yang didn't dare move another inch. What if Blake demanded explanations? Could she even begin to explain? What could she possibly say except she suddenly felt like it? Because that's exactly what had happened. She suddenly felt like it. She didn't know what it meant or what she wanted out of this.

Although... Blake had willingly submitted to her touch, encouraged her even, so wasn't Yang also entitled to some explanations?

…Explanations that however would still have to start with addressing Yang's behavior in the first place.

Before the blonde could agonize another second over what then, she felt her partner's hands unclench from her back. One tenderly slid through the golden locks and the other went around her torso to outline one of her breasts, already wholly taking hold of it. Yang shuddered. She was so incredibly turned on that any touch from Blake's would send her reeling. But also… relief washed over her for the second time. She had been terrified her partner would confront her; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say she was elated to feel fingers tentatively searching her body.

Blake's forehead was still pressed against her shoulder and the blonde could feel her deep, hot exhalations against her chest. She couldn't quite tell if her heaving was a remnant of the exertion of being brought to orgasm or if it may have been caused by Blake's potential excitement and anticipation with reciprocating. Whichever it was, it was hot, and the blonde rapidly felt her body grow feverish again.

Fingers combed along blonde curls down her back, followed the curve of her spine, ending on her rear. She squeezed her cheek with one hand, getting a good feel of her ass, and Yang heard herself let out a sound that wasn't quite a chuckle nor a moan. She felt Blake's lips curl into a smile against her neck in response. "That was really sexy," the dark haired faunus murmured, her mouth lingering against her skin.

A grin etched itself on Yang's features; she was thrilled to understand Blake wasn't doing this solely to return the favour. Her partner making herself do this like it was a chore, as if she owed her, was the last thing she wanted. But no, Blake had found hearing her sexy, and the last moments came back to Yang at once – how soaking wet the other woman had been, how she'd held onto her and even purred. It was crystal clear that Blake was actively enjoying this, and Yang was electrified. And she wanted her to touch. She wanted her partner's fingers and hands on her and in her. She wanted her.

In what was an almost involuntary impulse, an uncontrollable urge, Yang pressed her chest into the smaller hand in an attempt to encourage the caresses. Blake started assertively massaging her breast again and with her other hand she explored still her lower back and ass.

Yang held back some of her weight by leaning on her elbows, both arms on each side of her friend's head, but the more she felt her touch, the more she felt like just collapsing. Her partner's long, delicate fingers travelled along her body, finding her hips, caressing her sides, her skin along the yellow tube top, tracing the faint definition of her abs. Blake's lips gently brushed her skin on her neck, near her jaw, pausing there and trailing back down to her shoulder. Blake was apparently taking her time getting to know her body and Yang was agonizing over the teasing.

She was horribly turned on by having gotten the other woman off and, though she couldn't deny the taboo weighted at the back of her mind, the exhilaration of going there was mind-blowing. And she knew all of it wasn't only because she was doing all this with another woman, but very much so because this was Blake, of all people. Blake, her trusted partner, who had always been so secretive, so private, who'd been so guarded and this absolutely impenetrable air of mystery… Yang pressed her face in the dark hair, intoxicated with her scent.

This impression of mystery, of aloofness, of distance about Blake had been so dominant, the sheer contrast in this moment as the haired faunus now pushed their bodies closer, caressed her hips again, as Blake openly showed fierce desire, lust, was utterly staggering . All this had the blonde in an astounding state of arousal; she had never felt such an urge for release before.

Blake's fingers almost came to a halt as she traced the hem of the black shorts around the brawler's stomach and, with this, Yang noticed the way her breath shivered against her neck. Was this nervousness? Anticipation? She wondered if Blake hesitated to go any further for other reasons. "You don't have to if you don't want to. Don't feel like you owe me anything," she said despite how savagely she wanted Blake to dare further. She would hate for Blake to force herself into anything she was uncomfortable with… and yet still, the blonde shivered at the delicate caresses on her stomach, fingers still following the fabric of her shorts.

"…I know, Yang," Blake's voice was so faint it could have been her imagination. "Don't worry... I want to," she asserted before her hand promptly sunk in her underwear.

Blake let her index and middle finger slide against the burning, wet flesh, immediately finding the bud. Stiffening momentarily, Yang then let a deep exhalation escape her as she relaxed again, pressing her hips forward against her touch. This seemed to motivate Blake, who started stroking in a steady come and go movement, which Yang found herself immediately following with a faint thrusting of her hip.

"God, yes…" she groaned in pleasure.

The blonde couldn't remember the last time she had been this turned on, if she'd ever been, and whatever part of her brain that was still lucid was in awe at how such light contact could feel like the heavens were within reach. Not without effort, she managed to move her arms around the faunus. She craved to hold her, yearned to feel every detail of her body against hers.

She felt her fingers move lower and stop at the entrance. Blake dipped her index in, then deliberately let it and her middle finger in only to her first knuckle. She slowly pulled out her fingers, before fully pushing them back in even slower. Yang gave a very quiet but incredibly deep moan, tightening her hug. Blake's fingers were inside of her. She could barely believe it, and her body was shaking with pleasure. The feeling of them sliding out slightly and pushed in again was fantastic and Yang moved to hide her face in the dark hair again. Blake did smell amazing after all.

"Blake," she managed between unsteady breaths. She didn't even know what she wanted to tell her. She wanted to say her name. She wanted her to know how much she loved what she was doing. She wanted her to feel how much she needed more, how much she wanted to be pushed over the edge. Blake felt like heaven right now. No, Blake was heaven itself. "Blake," she repeated, her voice dripping with lust.

Blake's lips found her neck, collarbone, whatever skin of her chest was available, the arm around her clutched her again as she pushed her fingers harder, deeper. Yang felt herself weaken, her arms were failing her and she didn't seem to be able to hold back her own weight, unable to prevent herself from slouching heavily on the other woman. Blake's head pressed against her shoulder, her harsh breath burned her neck, and Yang gripped her desperately. "Holy fuck, Blake…"

She was lightheaded, unable to think. Fingers slid in and out, steadily picking up pace and Yang met her movement with her hips, letting out pleased sighs every time Blake's fingers reached deep within her again. Sweat pearled off her skin and stuck to Blake's, and it was fine.

Blake's second hand moved from around her waist to grip her ass, taking control of her thrust and Yang wanted nothing more than for her partner to own her entire body. She wanted to melt into her. She wanted to lose herself into her. It wasn't long before she saw fireworks. Her body clenched, euphoria, and then reality came crashing back around her.

Yang panted hard, pressing her forehead against the head of dark hair. The other woman's hand slowly retreated from inside her shorts, finding its way around her to settle in an embrace instead. It was dazzling how Blake had brought her over the edge so quickly.
It was astounding how all this with Blake… about Blake had inflamed her so. Both their breathing slowly came back to a normal rhythm and she remembered that she should loosen her embrace. The blonde couldn't bring herself to move from on top of her; she felt so fulfilled and happy… she wished to just naturally drift back to sleep holding her.

There was an almost silent click coming from their wrists, prompting them both to glance at the piece of equipment the school had lent them. The lights had switched.

Blake exhaled. "We might want to get going. We have to check out soon anyways."

The blonde hummed, snuggling the gorgeous faunus under her. "Give me another minute, will ya? I'm not quite back to earth yet."

Hands softly ran up and down her back, comforting. "Take the time you need," she whispered.

Yang almost told her not to say that, because she'd never be ready to get off. To hell with their assignment, to hell with Beacon Academy, to hell with returning home…what she wanted was to tear all their clothes off, feel Blake's bare skin against hers, go for round two and then fall asleep again.

But she knew that's not how it went. She didn't know what this was, where it came from, what it meant or if it was going to ever happen again, so never mind round two right now. In all its spontaneity, it had been staggeringly intense but… barely any words had been exchanged and neither of them had dared getting naked. It felt to Yang as if remaining clothed had taken from the intimacy. They hadn't bared themselves to each other. They surely hadn't bared their thoughts or feelings about this to each other either.

Yang's eyes fluttered open.

Blake didn't seem in any hurry to talk about it and didn't seem to be expecting explanations either, which was a relief. Not that Yang wouldn't want to talk about it; on the contrary, she would love to know how Blake felt. All the more so given how she'd so readily let her in and in turn so eagerly returned the favor. But Yang didn't know what to say for herself. She didn't know what had possessed her suddenly, she had no idea where she wanted to be standing in all this and even less what she wanted for the future ...so, for now, no talking about it seemed like a fair arrangement to her.

Finally, she found the courage to tear herself off and let Blake move. The dark haired faunus rolled out of bed and headed to the bathroom for a quick shower.

tbc