"So what's up, Blake?" Yang smiled as she was lead into a small canteen. The small room seemed abandon as if there wasn't anyone around for quite some time. Heavy layers of dust could be seen even with the dim light that illuminated the room. That last detail, while it wasn't a big issue for the faunus girl, it was most definitely an issue for her.
A few days passed after their little battle for the artifact with Salem's cronies, everyone took that time to rest and prepare for whatever next goal they would need to achieve, whatever the next destination would be. And all signs pointed towards Atlas.
Still, here she was, lead into this small room by the Blake.
"I think you know what's up." The faunus's demeanor was grim from the moment she asked her if she had a moment. The worst part was that indeed, she understood what was going on and why they were here. Or rather, she wasn't sure why they were here, but she understood what was between her and the other girl.
"Maybe I do." Her own smile faded away quickly, replaced by the cold feeling that filled her for such a long time now. Whenever she managed to mask it or forget about it, there was always someone to remind her of it. This time the source of it all was here making it clear that she wouldn't be allowed to escape it.
"Yang, it's just… It just feels so wrong, you acting like nothing happened, smiling and joking. You haven't said a word about..." Blake paused and looked away, as if just the thought of what she did filled her with disdain towards herself.
Yang clenched her fist, she didn't use her prosthesis ever since she lost it in the fight, and last time she heard about it, it was having some sort of maintenance, her uncle making sure she was battle ready apparently. Or just making sure she could use it if she wanted to.
"About you leaving us? Leaving me?" She turned her head to look at the catgirl. That cold feeling was being slowly replaced with anger, a more familiar feeling. As if her own body was being slowly fueled so that she could properly react towards the black haired girl.
"Yang I said I'm sorry, it was complicated, everything was." The faunus girl hugged herself, as she forced her eyes to look at the blonde girl. What she saw almost made her heart stop. Hate and anger. She clenched her jaw to stop tears from sneaking into her eyes.
"Of course everything was complicated!" Yang screamed, she didn't care anymore, not at this moment. People could walk by and experience all of this. She didn't care. "Army of grimm attacked together with your stupid white fang. I lost my arm, the academy got ruined to the ground. It was the moment where we should be there for each other."
It wasn't the loud tone of her voice that made her ears fall flat against her skull. It was the phrasing that Yang used. Her white fang. She was part of it, and Adam who lead the attack was part of her life. Now everything was clear, but back then? Back then it was all a mess.
"If it wasn't for the white fang, you wouldn't even be here, Blake. It's an accident that we reunited. Who knows if you would even stay if our goals didn't overlap." Yang panted as she felt exhausted right now.
Blake wasn't sure what to say at that. It was clear that arguing with Yang when she's in such a state was pointless. Besides, didn't she have a point? It's not like she came here hoping she would see her old teammates. She was so surprised to see them there. Her entire life since she left got occupied by trying to solve the issues at the menagerie. "Why? Then… Then why haven't you just yell at me once you saw me. Day after. Why did you just smile and pretend that nothing happened? If this is how you feel."
The catgirl didn't look at the blonde, she knew what she would see. The same hate and anger that she saw just moments before. It hurt less to just rely on her memory of the spiteful glare.
"Because Ruby and Weiss would feel bad. Because they both wanted for our team to be reunited, so once that happened I knew that I should keep my mouth shut." She started to slowly walk towards the exit of the small canteen. "I think we're done here." She glanced over her shoulder before leaving the room.
She closed the doors behind her and let out a sigh. A voice from the side made her jump a little. "That didn't sound like it went too well." It was Weiss, holding her yellow arm in her hands. "Here, I was looking for you, and luckily you had to know that since you shouted so loud."
"Thanks." She reached to take the arm, which the Schnee girl just handed her over. As the emotions started to leave her system she felt like she needed some fresh air to fully vent. She started to move along the corridor, expecting the white haired girl to follow her.
And Weiss didn't disappoint in that regard, as she followed her, not really sure where they were going, but having to settle this little issue that Yang and Blake had. "So what was that about?" Of course she knew what it was about, but it didn't hurt to let the blonde just vent and tell her side of the story from the beginning.
"Blake thought she can fix everything by saying sorry and looking like a sad cat." The taller girl explained as she lead both of them into a small porch in front of the building they just were inside of. Since she felt tired, she just opted to sit down on the wooden steps, eyeing the yellow metallic limb in her hand.
Weiss just followed up till the stopping point, in which she decided, with a shrug, to just join her friend at the wooden steps. This was a very sensitive subject, so she didn't want to rush with unnecessary questions and statements, although at the same time she knew that she had to say something. Truly a chess like situation.
"Does this mean you'll never forgive her?" She saw that her question had a reaction, as the blonde grasped her metallic limb more firmly.
Silence lingered for a few moments before Yang gave her a quiet answer. "You don't understand."
"Perhaps. So maybe you can tell me why you treat that arm with no respect? Apparently it was Qrow that found it after everything settled down." She tilted her head curiously.
"It's not my real arm." Yang just shrugged at that.
"Yang, it's true that this isn't your real arm, it will never replace what you lost. But it's a tool you need to learn to respect, if not for everyday things then at least for fighting purposes. You know you have people you need to fight for, right?" The Schnee placed a hand on the other girl's shoulder, leaning forward and offering her a soft smile.
That smile alone made Yang do the same. She nodded, as she moved to attach the fake limb into its socket. Once that done she winced as she had to get used to the feeling of it… Connecting to her body, for lack of a better term. She was sure that there was a proper term for this, but she never cared enough to learn. "I guess you're right, Weiss. Thanks."
"It's what friends are for." The Schnee nodded. "You know that we're all your friends, right?"
"You also mean Blake in it all, don't you?" Yang's smile disappeared as she looked down at the ground.
oooOOOooo
Blake watched as the blonde girl left the room, closing the door behind her. She once more hugged herself and leaned against the wall. She wasn't sure why she expected for this to go any other way then it did. She was foolish to think otherwise, blinded by her recent victories.
"I guess there's no point in asking how it went eh?" A voice made her jump as she squinted her eyes to try and seek out whoever it was inside the room with her. Her hand instinctively reaching for her weapon.
Soon, from the shadow appeared Ilia, her hands in front of her as she chuckled at the reaction. "It's just me."
"Are you spying on me?" Blake frowned, not really in the mood for jokes.
"No, I heard someone yell so I got worried, after I discovered it was you and your friend arguing I decided to stick around since it didn't seem like too much of a secret meeting, with that Yang girl yelling and all that." The Chameleon girl shrugged.
Blake wasn't sure what to say, so she just allowed for her body to relax as she leaned against the wall once more. Soon her legs gave out and she slowly slid down the wall and into a sitting position. The silence made Ilia worry, while she knew that the catgirl wasn't the most chatty person, it was clear that this entire situation was troubling the black haired girl.
She approached her and sat next to her, moving her legs up and resting her arms and head against her knees. "Mind if I ask about the situation?" She finally asked.
"It's a… It's a friend I abandoned at some point. My partner from my team when I was still at the beacon academy. She lost her arm when fighting Adam at the night he attacked the Colosseum and the academy. I managed to fool him so that I could save her before he finished her off and after that I left and… You know what happened after that." The catgirl shrugged. Her voice felt so empty as she quietly answered the other girl's question. Unsettling was the only word that Ilia could use to describe it.
"I know it's not my business but… Is it just a friend?" She watched the catgirl's reaction carefully, not sure if she didn't cross a line. Yet it seemed that even if she did, Blake was feeling too defeated to really make anything out of it. She just shrugged.
"I don't know anymore." Blake admitted with a soft sigh.
"What about her?" She inquired further.
"What about her?" The catgirl raised her brow as she looked at the Chameleon girl for the first time since they both sat down.
Ilia rolled her eyes at that. "Does she think of you as just a friend?"
Blake's reaction made her wince, as Blake let out a dry, short lived laugh. "I don't think she even thinks of me as a friend." She moved her head to look away from the shorter girl, finally closing her eyes. "I don't know, to answer you question. We never really discussed anything like that. We never thought that everything would happen so abruptly. I never knew I'd be so stupid to just run away again."
"So you'll just give up?" Ilia raised a brow.
"What else can I do? She hates me and besides she was right." Blake moved her legs up and hugged her knees.
"I think that if she really is your friend, she will forgive you. We all make mistakes, big and stupid mistakes. In the end? Forgiveness is out there, you just need to reach out for it. If you really care about something you'll fight for it. All of these lessons were taught to me by you, Blake." The dark skinned girl smiled as she looked at her friend.
The catgirl chuckled. "I feel like all that I've done in the menagerie was a cakewalk compared to this."
Ilia nodded at that. "Maybe, but that doesn't mean you should just give up."
"Do you think I should wait before talking to her?" Blake opened her eyes and tilted her head enough to be able to see the other girl.
She just let out a chuckle at that. "You know I'm not the best person to talk about emotional things." She finally sighed softly. "But if I was in your boots? I'd hit the iron while it's hot"
"If I was in the mood I'd say that was a very clever innuendo." Blake allowed herself to give a small smile at her own words.
Ilia just rolled her eyes. "You can make it be whatever, but for now I think you have someone to find and try to apologize to."
"Yeah." Blake nodded and got up, she had to take a moment to regain her composure, as she felt almost dizzy from all of this. She shook her head and moved towards the closed door.
"And Blake?" Ilia called out to her before she could reach out to grab the door handle.
"Yes?" She looked over her shoulder, curious what it was that the other girl wanted to tell her so suddenly.
"From now on try to handle your love without using the scorched earth method." She smiled, but not without it having a hint of sadness behind it.
Blake paused, before she nodded. She understood what the girl was referring to. "I won't, I promise." With that she left the room. She took a deep breath, wondering where it was that the blonde wandered of.
oooOOOooo
"Yang, I know that you're upset, but Blake was right, it was a complicated situation, for all of us. You know how Blake is. Dust, you know her the best of all of us, or at least you knew her back then. She had issues with this sort of things." Weiss placed her hand on Yang's as she leaned towards her.
"Why do you care this much anyway?" She brushed Weiss's hand aside and frowned as she turned her head to look at the heiress.
This initially surprised her, but after a moment she regained composure and just smiled sadly. "You might think that it's because I don't want for our team to shatter, like an ice figurine. Because it's what it is now. It's pretty, but it's still just a cold symbol of what we had, nothing more or nothing less. Still, even that could easily shatter into pieces."
"Yet that's not really why I'm telling you all of this, or perhaps not the most important aspect of it. Fate blessed us and gave us another chance. It's especially important for the two of us. We have people we care for and that care for us. Sure, they make mistakes, but who doesn't? It's just that I don't want you to have this one in a million chance and just discard it because you're angry. You have your reasons to be angry, I know. I just think you should hear her out and at least try to understand her. If you think it's not worth giving her a second chance? Then so be it. But at least give her a chance to explain herself."
Weiss took a deep breath. "With that I'll leave you two alone."
"Us two?" Yang raised a brow.
"How did you know I was here?" Blake couldn't help but to mimic Yang's reaction.
"Sometimes all you need is a bit of wits and a pinch of luck to know someone is sneaking in the shadows." Weiss smirked as she moved back into the building the three of them were in front of.
That left both Yang and Blake just standing there, neither of them knowing what to say as they both looked at each other.
It was the faunus that broke the silence. "You got your arm back." She commented with a small smile.
"Yeah." Yang answered, turning away from the catgirl. "Were you looking for me? Or were you just passing by?" There it was again, the same cold tone of voice. Yet this time Blake was determined not to let it take control of her. She took a deep breath and moved forward to take the same place that Weiss was previously occupying.
"I was looking for you. I think we need to talk, about… About this, us, everything." She stated firmly a she looked at the blonde besides her.
"Go ahead." Yang simply answered.
"Excuse me?" She blinked, not sure what the other girl meant. At least not entirely.
"You said you wanted to talk, so go ahead, talk." Her purple eyes glanced briefly at the black haired girl as she dryly explained what she meant by her own words.
Blake took a deep breath to calm herself, this of course wouldn't be as easy as she hoped for it to be. "I know that what I did was wrong. And I'm sorry for it. I just wasn't sure what to do. It's like my entire past decided to knock on the door, knock hard enough to ruin the Amity Colosseum and our old academy." She paused, biting her lower lip at the memory of that. She shook her head, not wanting for the images of that day to fill her head.
"So I did what I knew best when dealing with difficult situations. I ran away." She hugged herself. "The only thing I can tell you is that I managed to learn how wrong it was. I needed someone who's very insisting and borderline annoying to show it to me but… But it worked." She glanced over at the blonde, who seemed to just sit there without moving or even changing her facial expression. She looked like a statue, not moved by anything that she said. This was then her previous encounter with the girl. She would much more prefer for her to at least get angry, frustrated or upset. React in any way that would show that she cares, even if negatively. But there was nothing.
"I'm sorry Yang, I don't know what else to tell you, what else to do." She finally said in a weak and quiet voice.
"I hate silence." Yang's sudden comment made her jump a bit. She felt as if someone just poured a bucket of cold ice water on her. It was so out of place, everything about it. The words she used, her tone of voice and how sudden it was after her being quiet all this time.
"It's the worst part of being alone. Silence. Some people are afraid of darkness, spiders or height. Me? I always hated silence, I feared silence. I remember back home when I was alone because Ruby was in school and dad was out, I always had my television on because I hated the silence." Yang looked before her, as if seeing something that wasn't there, at least not anything that Blake could see.
"I grew out of it of course, the fear of it that is. I still dislike silence." She chuckled, although it felt so dry and emotionless. "Maybe that's why I like to be so loud, maybe I should tell this to Weiss so she could understand."
"This situation, these last months made me wonder if I'm just deaf. It's not that there's silence around me, but that I'm just deaf. Because of that all I hear is silence, so I scream loudly, as loud as I can to hear something, anything. But all I do is hurt my throat and ears of those around me." The blonde's lips crooked to form a sad smile.
She slowly stood up and started to walk towards the door of the same building that was the background for this entire evening. "I think that's all that can be said by both of us." Not a moment later she was stopped as she felt arms around her and a presence behind her. That started something inside of her, something familiar. Yet for now she managed to keep it under control. "Blake? What are you doing?"
The catgirl continued to hug her tightly. "You said silence is part of being alone, You said that you can't hear anyone and because of that you think that you're alone. So I'm here to show you that you're not. If you can't hear me, then you can feel me, so you know that I'm here, that I'm for you, Yang." It was past the breaking point for the faunus, as she felt tears roll down her cheeks. She didn't care.
The next thing that Yang did surprised her, and not in the good way.
The blonde turned enough to be able to grab the girl and move her towards the door. Once she was in front of her, she grabbed the catgirl by the collar of her outfit and raised her up, only to hit the girl's back against the doors.
Blake winced at that, too shocked to react. "Y-Yang?" She managed to blurt out, although nothing else came out of her lips as she felt the air being knocked out of her lungs by the hit.
"Don't you ever dare to do that again, do you understand? If you do that again, I'll beat you up and I won't go soft on you because you were my friend at one point. I don't care if you think it will help you or me, if you do it again, I'll make you regret it." At that point Blake could just describe Yang's expression as a snarl, as she saw her eyes turn red, which was a bad sign.
She couldn't really say anything, what could she say? No words came to her mind at that. She was shocked and surprised by the blonde's behavior.
Yet the most difficult thing that kept her from saying anything was something else. A pair of lips that suddenly pressed against her own. Sadly, while Blake would normally love to enjoy the sensation, she couldn't. Her mind was on a lock down from all the contrary emotions that she felt, together with Yang's confusing behavior.
The one sided kiss ended as suddenly as it started, as Yang pressed herself against her, wrapping both her arms around her and hugging her close. "Don't ever leave me again. I'll break if you do, because I'm forgiving you for what you did."
A smile started to blossom on the catgirl's lips, as she moved her own arms to wrap them around the other girl. "I won't, I promise." She answered quietly. "I'll be by your side since now till forever." The two girls went silent, as they continued to embrace one another, not wanting for this moment to ever end.
oooOOOooo
Weiss sighed as she observed the situation from a window. It was so difficult to be surrounded by dolts and having to fix everything for them, so that they wouldn't keep doing stupid mistakes. Her train of thoughts got derailed as she felt someone appear behind her. Before she had a chance to react, she felt her mouth being covered by a hand, her scream muffled.
"Shh! Calm down, it's just me." She heard a familiar voice which made her calm down immediately. The mysterious figure waited a few more seconds before moving her hand away and stepping to the side.
"Ilia, for dust sake, you'll make me have a heart attack one day" She frowned as she looked at the chameleon girl.
The dark skinned girl just shrugged as she smiled sheepishly. "I knew I'd surprise you, but I didn't want for them to know you were watching them. Speaking of which, how did it go?" She inquired curiously, tilting her head to the side.
"It worked, you seemed to motivate Blake enough for her to give it another go, and Yang got softened by my persuasion to not go all defensive. All in all, I think they can be left to make their own mistakes, at least for a while." The human girl smirked.
"Typical Schnee, manipulating everything behind the scene." Ilia crossed her arms, although not without a playful smile.
"It seems it is our obligation towards the world to make it a better place, even if its one dolt at a time." Weiss decided to play along her new role.
At that both of the girls shared a laugh, and it was Ilia that spoke after that. "Actually I was thinking… Since it's a nice weather tonight and the sky is clear I thought it was a good time to go out for a walk, and I was wondering if you could join me?" She smiled shyly as she moved her hands behind her.
"Mmm… Very well." Weiss nodded.
"Eh?! Just like that?" Ilia raised her brow, not really expecting the Schnee girl to accept her offer immediately.
"Sure." The white haired girl said as she reached out to grab her hand. "Rough times are ahead of us, so we might as well enjoy life and not second guess ourselves." She smiled to the faunus as she lead the dark skinned girl towards a different exit.
Yet, not without giving the bee pair one last glance, smiling at the black and yellow pair.
She had to agree, silence was indeed the worst part of being alone.
Author's note:
So for those that don't know the lore, in one of my other stories I said that I don't quite understand the dynamics going between Blake and Yang as a ship, and that's coming from someone who can be very lenient about ships, even crackships and reasoning behind them.
Since that moment I was thinking about writing a Bumblebee story, to challenge myself. And here we are.
People who read my recent oneshots might notice that I really enjoy this "Few days later after the ending of v5" setting, but hey! It's a simple thing and it's easy to abuse for fanfic purposes. I mean we know jack diddly doo about the setting they were in, outside of the general idea, so we can do whatever we want with it. And I'm sick of the Beacon Academy setting for stories.
Also the Ilia Weiss stuff? I uh… I admit I sort of grew to like this pair. Not as some main pair, but something on the side to enjoy? Why not. It's not my most favorite ship at the moment, but I do enjoy them. I think they could make for a quite dynamic duo in a romance situation. A bit more interesting take on the whole Faunus/white fang x Schnee heiress/hooman. So that last part was purely for me (And other folks who think the same) – Besides, we can't pair Blake with someone and not give some love for poor Ilia!
I'm not sure if I cracked the code of how Bumblebee works, but I hope I at least made a semi entertaining oneshot for folks that enjoy this ship. Tell me how I did! I must know!