Shadow of Her Former Self
Blake woke up. She was lying in bed at her own house. The lights were out in her room, but it didn't bother her, after all being a Faunus had its perks. She reached up to her face and found tear stains on her cheeks. Surprised by this, she tried to remember the dream that had woken her up. Tears began to well up in her eyes again as she remembered. Unfortunately it was not a dream, but merely a memory. She remembered her most recent mission, and how horribly wrong it went. How there were more Grimm than originally anticipated, and how the horde had taken her lover's life. She wiped her tears away, but the sadness that permeated throughout her body was still overwhelming.
She sat up in her bed and grabbed the picture that she kept next to her nightstand. In the frame was a picture of her team. Aside from herself, there was Ruby, Weiss, and Yang, her three best friends in the entire world. She smiled slightly as she remembered the day that they had all met.
"Unbelievable!"
Blake held a bottle of red dust as she looked at the two arguing. One of them she had seen before, unfortunately. Her name was Weiss Schnee, she had snow white hair in the style of a side ponytail and blue eyes. Currently she was telling off a brunette with red streaks in her hair. Blake didn't know who she was but it looked like she was upset by Weiss' actions. Blake decided to intervene; after all she hated to see someone get picked on so much.
"Hey, I said I was sorry princess!" exclaimed the brunette.
"It's heiress actually," Blake explained, "Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world."
"Finally, some recognition," Weiss said, acting pompous.
But Blake wasn't going to let her off that easily.
"The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces, and questionable business partners," she finished.
The surprised and offended look on the Schnee's face was utterly priceless. Weiss continued to try to retort, but ultimately failed and left after yanking her dust bottle out of Blake's hand.
Pleased that she helped the brunette, Blake left the two of them, not knowing how integral those two would be to her life.
Blake looked up from her book to see the brunette from earlier being dragged by a taller girl with blonde hair and lilac eyes.
"Helooooooo!" cried the blonde girl, "I believe you two may know each other!"
She did remember the brunette, but she didn't want to become too involved with anybody at this school, so she pretended that she vaguely knew her.
"Aren't you that girl that exploded?" she asked, acting confused.
"Uh, yea," the brunette stuttered, "My name's Ruby."
Ruby held out her hand, but Blake ignored it, trying to focus on her book rather than the shy girl that stood in front of her.
"But you can just call me crater….." Ruby paused as she tried to finish her statement, "Actually you can just call me Ruby."
This time Blake was actually confused by her statement.
"Okay?" she said, taken aback.
She continued to ignore the two girls muttering to themselves as she tried to read her book.
"So…" the blonde broke the silence, "What's your name?"
Blake sighed, knowing that she was in for a long conversation with these people.
"Blake," she stated bluntly, still trying to not be involved.
"Well Blake I'm Yang! Ruby's older sister!" Yang declared happily.
She's certainly loud, Blake thought to herself as she tried to focus on her book.
"I like your bow!"
Blake froze slightly at the comment, wondering if Yang had noticed her secret.
"Thanks," she answered slightly nervous.
"It goes great with your…" Yang paused in thought, "pajamas!"
"Right…" Blake said, relieved that Yang hadn't figured out anything.
There was an awkward silence as Blake continued to read her book.
"Nice night, don't you think?"
God this blonde girl is gonna drive me crazy, Blake realized.
"It's lovely," she answered, "Almost as lovely as this book."
Silence fell as Blake waited for them to take the hint.
"That I will continue to read," she continued, trying to get them to go away again.
Silence again fell as Yang and Ruby didn't move.
"As soon as you leave," she finished bluntly, hoping that it was the end of the matter.
Unfortunately, it wasn't.
"Yea, this girl is a lost cause," Yang declared.
"What's it about?"
"Huh?" Blake was taken aback by Ruby's interest in what she was reading.
"Your book," Ruby continued, "Does it have a name?"
"It's about a man with two souls," Blake answered, "each fighting for control over his body."
"Oh yea…" Yang said, disinterested, "that's…real lovely…"
"I love books," Ruby stated, ignoring her sister, "Yang used to read to me every night before bed. Stories of heroes and monsters, they're one of the reasons I want to be a huntress."
Blake chuckled slightly, amused by the brunette's mentality.
"Why is that?" Blake asked curiously, "Hoping you'll live happily ever after?"
"Well I'm hoping we all will," Ruby answered, "As a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books someone who fought for what was right and who protected people who couldn't protect themselves."
Blake smiled at the brunette's determination. It was naïve, certainly, but the way she said it without hesitation made Blake believe, briefly, that there was some good left in the world. But…
"That's very ambitious for a child," Blake pointed out, "Unfortunately the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale."
She felt like she had killed the happy vibe from Ruby, but that's who she was, truthful about the harsh reality of the world. However, it was Ruby's next response that surprised her.
"Well that's why we're here," Ruby answered, "To make it better."
Blake smiled wider, as happy tears fell down her cheeks.
Ruby always let her optimism shine through, Blake remembered, like it was a light that could never go out.
She put the picture down. She never would have imagined that an explosion, a shy girl, and a sibling fist fight would be what led her to the three best friends a person could ask for. And for one of them, even more.
She wiped her tears again, trying to prevent the memories of her team from coming back as they only made her sad and wistful for a time long forgotten. Where nothing could stop them and anything seemed possible. Where life, for a few years, felt like a fairy tale.
The tears started to form again as she reminisced. She remembered how they had looked for her non-stop when she ran away, because she let her secret slip. She remembered how they immediately came to her aid when she was concerned about Roman Torchwick and the White Fang's plans for Vale. And when she became obsessed with stopping them, they all came to support and help her, even when she didn't want it.
"You want me to what?"
Blake and the rest of her team were sitting on their beds in their dorm. The idea had just been proposed for Blake to join them at the dance. Blake, of course, was completely against it. After arguing and pleading with her to stop what she was doing, Blake denied them and then left for the library.
How could they even suggest it? Blake wondered, as she sat in the library the next day, still fuming about everyone's relaxing attitude toward the issue.
If we don't stop them, no one will, she determined as she typed on the computer, and if I have to lose sleep over it then so be it.
She continued her search, trying to stay awake and process what was in front of her.
Suddenly a red dot appeared on the screen. In her stupor, Blake followed the dot with her eyes. Snapping out of it, she angrily turned around to see who was causing it. But there was no one there. Confused, she looked around, but still no one. She turned back to the computer and began to type again. A couple seconds later, the dot appeared again. Exhausted, Blake followed the dot again, until she got irritated. She turned around and stood up, ready to leave. Then she saw the dot on the floor. Her mind fuzzy from her lack of sleep, she began to follow the dot again until it led her to its owner.
"Heloooooo!" Yang called in her usual singsong voice.
"What are you-?" Blake began but was cut off by Yang's hand grabbing Blake's arm.
"We need to talk." She stated and began to drag Blake into a nearby classroom.
Immediately, Blake knew what this was about. Her friends were so concerned for her well-being that it was extremely obvious that Yang was about to give her a lecture.
They just don't understand that all that matters is getting to the bottom of this, she reasoned within her mind.
"Yang," Blake began, "If you're gonna tell me to stop you may as well just save your breath."
"I don't want you to stop," Yang said calmingly, "I want you to slow down."
"We don't have the luxury to slow down," Blake explained, agitated by Yang's stubbornness.
"It's not a luxury," Yang countered, her voice soothing, "It's a necessity."
"The necessity is stopping Torchwick," Blake snapped.
"And we're going to," Yang determined, "But first you have to sit down and listen to what I have to say."
Blake sighed, she knew Yang wouldn't let her leave until she heard her every word. She sat on the teacher's desk, facing Yang.
"Fine," Blake resigned.
Yang then went on and explained her childhood. She and Ruby had been raised by their father and their mother Summer Rose. However, Summer Rose had died on a mission one day, making life tough for their family. It was then that Yang learned that Summer Rose wasn't actually Yang's mother.
"Summer wasn't the first love he lost," Yang explained, "she was the second."
Yang took in a breath, "The first…was my mom."
Blake was surprised; she hadn't realized that Yang's mom and Ruby's mom were two different people. She was also curious as to why Yang was telling her this story.
"He didn't tell me everything," Yang explained, "But I learned that the two of them had been on a team together with Summer and Qrow, and that she left me with him just after I was born. No one had seen her since."
"Why did she leave you?" Blake asked, curiously.
"That question," Yang said, expelling air from her mouth, "Why?"
She then walked to the blackboard as she continued her story.
"I didn't know the answer but I was determined to find out. It was all I thought about, I would ask anybody I could what they knew about her."
Yang then began to draw some sort of symbol on the blackboard.
She explained how she had found a clue about where her mother was and decided to pursue it. After waiting for her dad to leave the house, she grabbed Ruby and walked for hours until she reached her destination. She then described how she found a horde of Grimm at the location.
"There we were," Yang stated, "a toddler asleep in the back of a wagon and a stupid girl too exhausted to even cry for help."
Yang brushed away a single tear as she tried to finish her story.
"We might as well have been served on a silver platter," Yang described, "But as luck would have it, our uncle showed up just in time."
Yang put down the piece of chalk.
"My stubbornness should've gotten us killed that night," she finished somberly.
Blake now understood why Yang was so adamant about this whole thing. Why she was the one who spoke out about this the most. She was touched that Yang would share what must be a heartbreaking memory for her just to try and get her to stop what she was doing. But Blake wasn't convinced.
"Yang," Blake started, "I'm sorry that happened to you. And I understand what you're trying to tell me but this is different."
Her voice shook with emotion, "I'm not a child, and this isn't just a search for answers I can't jus-"
"I told you," Yang interjected, her voice rising, "I'm not asking you to stop. I haven't. To this day I still want to know what happened to my mother and why she left me. But I will never let that search control me."
Yang took in a deep breath, "We're going to find the answers we're looking for Blake," she continued, "but if we destroy ourselves in the process then what good are we."
Blake was angry now. Angry that Yang wouldn't let it go. Angry that she wouldn't let her do what she needed to.
"You don't understand," Blake yelled, "I'm the only one who can do this."
Yang turned around, her eyes blazing red as she stared angrily at Blake.
"No, you don't understand!" she yelled, "If Roman Torchwick walked through that door what would you do?"
"I'd fight him!" Blake cried with determination.
"You'd lose," Yang declared, pushing Blake into the desk.
"I can stop him!" Blake retorted, attempting to push Yang back. However, her exhaustion allowed her to only manage a slight jab at Yang's arm, not even moving her.
"You can't even stop me!" Yang cried as she pushed Blake again.
Blake was shoved into the desk. She turned to Yang, angrier than before. All she wanted to do was hit Yang. She knew Yang was right and she hated that. She didn't want to give up on what she believed to be right. But just as she was about to make another retort, she felt Yang embrace her warmly into her arms. Blake was surprised by her teammate's show of affection that she was at a loss for words.
"I'm not asking you to stop," Yang spoke, her voice shaking, "Just please, get some rest. Not just for you, but for the people you care about."
Yang let go of Blake and walked towards the door.
"And if you feel like coming out tomorrow," Yang said as she turned to face Blake.
"I'll save you a dance," Yang said, giving her a wink as she left the room.
Blake smiled as she remembered how much they had all cared.
It was a great dance too, Blake remembered, and it was amusing to see Ruby walk around in stilts all night.
Blake laughed a bit through the tears streaming down her cheek. However, it quickly became just tears as she remembered graduation day, and their missions as huntresses, and the last time she kissed her lover before she died.
"It's my fault," Blake said out loud to the empty room, "It's my fault she's dead."
She continued to sob loudly into the emptiness.
How can her sister ever forgive me? She thought as she continued to cry into her bedsheets, I don't deserve to be alive while she's dead.
Her sobs continued for a long time. The wake, the funeral, the look on her lover's sister's face. All of the pain she suffered from what had happened had destroyed all of her happiness. All of the light in her life was now gone, only to be replaced by shadows and fragments of what had been.
She continued to cry, even as Yang entered the door frame. She didn't know what to say to Blake. It had been so long since they last talked, and the state Blake was in now, meant it would be even harder to say what she wanted to.
Blake looked up at the doorway with Yang standing there.
"Hello," Yang said, not as cheery a voice as she usually said it, but it was all she could manage right now before she continued.
"Blake," she began, "I know you are really hurting right now, and I know you only blame yourself for what happened."
Blake blinked as Yang continued to speak.
"But you need to know that you have to keep moving forward. Don't let death stop you from being you."
Blake got up from the bed and stood in front of Yang.
"You can't let this control your life," Yang said her voice cracking; "It wasn't your fault."
Blake then hung her head and walked through Yang.
Yang didn't look back as she knew Blake was already out of her house.
"It was me," she said through a choked voice, tears slipping down her transparent face, "I chose to protect you that day. I chose to give up my life for yours."
She tried to wipe her tears away, but couldn't.
"I chose for you to live."
And with that she disappeared. Gone from the world forever. Gone from her sister forever. Gone from Blake…forever.