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When James entered his apartment he thought he might find Clover and Qrow sitting together in the living room watching television or talking. He did not expect to find his Captain laying out on the furniture with Qrow stretched out on top of him. He was willing to bet that Clover had laid down on the couch with Qrow still in bird form perched on top of him. The shift back must have happened after they both fell asleep. Qrow did that sometimes, though it wasn’t very common. He noticed, with no small amount of relief, a bowl on the coffee table that had only the stems from some strawberries and cherries left. Clover had gotten Qrow to eat at some point.
The brunette was a godsend. James had been trying to get Qrow to eat since the night before without success. Even if it was just a small bowl of fruit, it was still something and he was beyond grateful for it. Qrow looked quite peaceful in his place on top of the taller man. Much better than the exhaustion that had lined his body after his restless night.
Smiling to himself, he quietly retrieved a blanket to cover the two men. Then he went to make something simple for them all to eat. They could use dinner as a chance to talk to Clover about joining their relationship. Especially since he was sure the younger man was bound to be upset with himself when he woke under the shifter. Poor man would likely feel as if he’d betrayed their trust or violated the boundaries of their relationship (never mind the fact that it was unintentional and welcomed).
It would be best if he could soothe those fears quickly. If he could keep quiet while he cooked then he could wake them himself. That would allow the chance to assure Clover that there was nothing wrong with what had happened. If Clover was agreeable then they could start by having dinner together a couple times a week. Maybe a movie or something similar to spend time together. Then if they were all comfortable together they could go out on a proper date.
~
Clover felt something trailing along his jaw and down his exposed throat. There was a voice quietly calling him. A very familiar one. Something shifted on his body and he blinked his eyes open to figure out what was going on. The first thing he was was his General looking down at him with the same gentle expression he’d had in the office earlier that day. Movement brought his attention down and he looked to meet the red eyes of a sleepily blinking Qrow. Who was laying on top of him. Fuck!
Barely resisting the initial panic to throw the smaller man off of him and profess his innocence as vehemently as possible, Clover tried to think of how he’d ended up under the other. He remembered holding Qrow as a bird and petting him. Eventually getting him to eat the fruit he’d brought from the kitchen and to drink some water. He’d laid down and Qrow had nested on his chest and then… They had fallen asleep?
Now that the flight instincts had been silenced Clover was able to take in the rest of the situation. Qrow had been woken by his lover gently rubbing his hand down his back. Which brought his attention to the fact that James’ other hand was what had woke him. He looked from the (adorably) grumpy shifter (who was attempting to snuggle into the space between him and the couch to go back to sleep) to James, silently asking what he should do.
The tall man gave him a smile and reached down with both hands to grasp a narrow waist. Qrow squawked indignantly (Clover wondered how many bird traits carried over to his human body) and tried to cling to the brunette as he was hefted up and set on his feet. “Come on, love. Dinner is ready. I’ve already got the table set for the three of us.” Once the grumbling hunter was steady, James bent to help Clover up as well.
Teal eyes blinked in confusion when he was tugged along by the smaller man to the dinner table. He hadn’t thought he’d be staying honestly. The Captain had figured that once James returned home, his purpose would be fulfilled and he’d be sent on his way. A faint blush touched his cheeks as he took the seat obviously set for him (the cup and bowl were green while the other two were red and blue which raised all sorts of questions he wasn’t ready to ask). It looked like a simple soup, which made sense given Qrow’s nausea. He was thankful since his own stomach seemed a bit twisted at the moment…
~
Dinner had started out as a quiet affair, with the General filling them in on what the parts of his day that weren’t confidential and Clover talking about the missions he’d been on before being summoned to the office to care for Qrow. Clover had just started to relax when the two older men shared a look. Whatever that look meant, he didn’t think it was anything bad from the way they were now looking at him (and that was the only thing keeping him calm).
“Qrow and I had a matter we wished to discuss with you, though I want it to be clear that you are free to refuse our proposal if you are in any ways uncom-”
“Oh for fucks sake! Jimmy this isn’t a business meeting!” Qrow gave the eldest man a look that was beyond exasperated before he turned to the youngest in the room. “We’ve noticed you’re interested in us and want to date you. Are you okay with that?”
“Uhh…” Clover felt his face burn (he hadn’t been as subtle as he could have been around them but he hadn’t expected to be called out on it) as he looked between them. James giving Qrow a flat look while Qrow just raised an eyebrow at his lover. He was grateful that they weren’t putting all their focus on him, he was able to breathe and think this way. “I think…” Red and blue eyes turned to him. “I think that I would be willing to try. I’ve, uh, never been in a relationship like this before so… I’m not really sure how it’ll work but…” The brunette shrugged sheepishly.
“Don’t worry, Qrow’s the only one who has any life experience with poly relationships and that’s purely from an outside perspective.”
“With what I know from that and what we looked up, we’ll be okay. The most important thing, for any relationship but especially one like this, is to communicate. So if we do anything that you’re not comfortable with you gotta let us know. If there’s any kind of problem then we gotta all get together and talk about it… That kinda thing.”
“Right… Got it…” Taking a deep breath, Clover couldn’t help the smile he had. “So… Do we have plans for the rest of the night or…?”
The two older men gave a quiet laugh and got up to clean dinner. Afterwards, Clover found himself reclining back on James’ flesh side with Qrow curled up in his lap, black feathers fluffed up in contentment. He ought to be, considering he had both Clover and James absently petting him while they watched the movie marathon that the shifter had insisted the two soldiers had to see. (Before he had shifted and apparently decided to take another nap.) Clover looked down at the tiny body that hardly weighed anything and yet effectively pinned both him and James in place. (His cup was empty but to refill it he’d have to move Qrow and that just felt like a criminal offense. Dehydration was the obvious decision.) He let his head fall back on the muscled shoulder and closed his eyes. He was still a bit tired himself and since he wasn’t going anywhere any time soon he may as well nap with the bird. James gave them both a fond smile, shifting just enough that Clover wouldn’t get a crick in his neck, and figured he may as well join the party. Resting his head against the cushions on the back of the couch he allowed himself to drift off. Qrow would wake them when he decided it was time for them to move to the bed.