So, I'm not sure if I'm making this into a series of one-shots or what. Mostly it's just little scenes that pop into my head that I think could happen within the series, but might not actually get shown for various reasons. At any rate, hope you enjoy it.

It wasn't like Yang to want to be by herself. For most of her life, she had always been surrounded by people; her sister, father, her friends from Signal and Beacon, and even in a crowd of strangers, Yang usually couldn't help but find herself at the center of it. And for the most part, she liked it that way. After all, it was around people that the most interesting things happened. Yang was a people person, simple as that.

Which is why it was strange for her to be out on a balcony in Mistral, alone, and away from the hotel where her team and friends were staying. Yet her team was the very reason for her solitude.

Specifically, her former partner, Blake.

She hadn't been lying back at Haven; part of her was glad that Blake was back. But that didn't change what the Faunus had done, didn't change the months of pain and bitter anger she had gone through. Which was why, in the week since the attack on the Academy, the two of them had not directly spoken a word to each other. Instead, they had been engaging in an awkward dance around one another, both of them knowing that they had to, but not knowing how or wanting to take that first step.

And when that dance got too much for her, when she got too aggravated with her own fears and anger going against her nature, Yang just needed space away from them. Fortunately Blake seemed to be more than willing to give it to her, and Weiss helped with getting Ruby to understand. She knew that her sister meant well, she always did. But this wasn't something that Ruby could fix, no matter how much she wanted to.

"I see you found this spot as well."

The warm voice behind her roused Yang from her thoughts. "Huh?" She turned, and immediately swallowed as she looked at the beautiful Faunus woman, garbed in a simple black hakama, open jacket and white hiyoku walking towards her. From the pierced black cat ears that shifted faintly in the gentle breeze, to the soft amber eyes that seemed to envelop Yang, there was no mistaking who she was. "Oh, uh, hey. Sorry. I can leave if…"

The elder Faunus shook her head, smiling as she gestured at Yang. "Please, don't feel the need to leave on my account. You were here first. If you want me to leave-"

"No!" Cursing internally, Yang sighed. "No, it's okay. Um, you're Blake's mom, right?"

"Yes. But please, Kali is fine." She laid her hands on the railing, studying Yang with a warm smile.

Yang ran her fingers through her mane. "Uh, I'm Yang." God, if this what Blake is gonna look like when she gets older, wow.

"I know," Kali chuckled. "I remember you from the Vytal Festival broadcasts."

"Oh." The memory of her fight with Mercury in the finals flashed through her head, and Yang's shoulders sagged. "Look, what happened there-"

Kali's hand settling onto Yang's mechanical one made her stop, her warm smile never leaving her face. "Blake told me what really happened. And I try to make a habit of basing my judgements of people on everything I know, not just one thing."

Releasing a breath that she didn't realize she'd been holding, Yang sighed heavily. "Right. Okay, thanks."

The pair turned back to the railing, an awkward silence settling between them. At least it felt awkward to Yang; Kali didn't show any sign of discomfort in the slightest, letting her eyes rove over the landscape laid out before them. Racking her brain for something to say, Yang kept coming up short. What could she say to this woman?

Apparently she didn't need to, as Kali broke the silence for her. "The truth is, Yang, that I've been wanting to meet you for a while."

A heavy weight settled on Yang's shoulders, and she sighed. "Look, if you're here to get me to-"

"I was going to say nothing of the sort."

She looked at the older woman, and found a strange sort of sadness in her amber eyes. "Really?"

Kali dipped her head. "Yes. I've actually been wanting to meet you ever since I first saw you during the opening ceremonies. All three of you, really, but you in particular. I wanted to thank you."

That was a surprise. "Really," Yang asked, her brow knitting in confusion. "For what?"

Another long silence settled between them, broken only by the breeze whistling through the mountain peaks of Mistral. A strange expression was the Belladonna matriarch's face, a mixture of emotions that Yang couldn't decipher. What could she have done that could make Blake's mother want to thank her?

Finally, Kali let out a heavy sigh. "Blake told me everything that happened that day. I know what happened to you," Yang's eyes flicked down to her metal hand, then back up to the woman's face, "That when she left, you were hurt, in more ways than one. And, I know why she did it." An almost sad smile crossed her face as she looked at the golden-haired Huntress. "But I hope you won't hold it against me when I say, that I'm glad she did."

That, more than anything, left Yang absolutely stunned. Words utterly failed her for a moment, eyes wide and mouth slackened. "Whuh, what do you mean?" she finally managed to ask.

Kali turned and held up her hands. "Please understand me, I do wish that the circumstances had been better. And I'm sorry for everything that you had to go through. I can't imagine how hard it must have been." She turned back to the railing, gazing out over the valley again. "You see, when Blake left home, we parted under… less than pleasant circumstances. I'll spare you the details, but Blake has always been very passionate about her beliefs, and when Ghira and I left the White Fang, she… well, she disagreed. She left to continue doing what she thought was right, and for a long time, we didn't hear from her."

Yang was silent, chewing on her words. Blake had never really wanted to talk about her past before the White Fang, and while she had mentioned that she was originally from Menagerie, it had been quite a shock to learn that her parents were literally the leaders of the island nation. "Why didn't you try to stop her?"

A small chuckle broke through Kali's lips. "Blake is the same as her father when he was her age. Once they set their minds to something, there's no stopping them. And she never gave us the chance. One night, she'd been arguing with us, and the next morning, she was simply… gone." She sighed heavily, looking down at her hands. "We tried to get messages to her through the White Fang. Knowing what we know now, I don't know if she never got them, or simply chose not to answer. In the end, it doesn't really matter. All we could do was wait, support her as best we could, and hope that maybe one day, she would change her mind." Her shoulders dropped. "Eventually, we got word that she had disappeared, without anyone knowing how or why."

"At first, I was terrified that something had happened to her. Grimm were always a threat on Menagerie, so from an early age Ghira had taught her how to protect herself, and when we left Blake had been getting closer to some of the more… aggressive elements within the White Fang, so I knew that she could look after herself. But I still worried, we both were." Kali smiled slightly. "But, Ghira was certain that if Blake had been hurt, then Sienna would have let us know."

Yang frowned. "Sienna?"

"Sienna Kahn," Kali explained. "She was the voice those within the White Fang that felt that we weren't doing enough to combat the discrimination Faunus were facing, that more… proactive measures were needed. When Ghira stepped down as High Leader, she was nominated to take his place." Her expression grew sad. "We didn't always agree with her methods, but we respected the fact that our goals were the same. She didn't deserve what happened to her."

For a brief moment, Yang saw the Faunus woman's face harden, her fingers clenching around the railing. It was the same expression that Blake wore every time they'd gone up against the White Fang, or even smaller things like another Faunus student getting pushed around by Cardin and his team. I guess this is where she gets it from, she mused.

Taking a breath, Kali centered herself. "At any rate, Ghira was convinced that, whatever had happened, if Blake couldn't be found, then it was because she didn't want to be found." She smiled fondly. "Even when she was little, Blake always very good at hiding. But, as much as we wanted to go look for her, we both had responsibilities in Menagerie that we couldn't walk away from. So, once again, all we could do was wait, and hope that she would try to contact us."

"That was the longest year of my life."

Yang nodded faintly. That was something she could understand. It had only been six months for her since Ruby had suddenly left home to hunt Cinder, and even though she'd been too stuck in her own depression to think about it for the first two, that worry had constantly lingered in the back of her thoughts. And the longer Yang and her father went without hearing from her, the worse it had gotten. Even so, she couldn't imagine going an entire year.

"Then," Kali continued, "one day we tuned in to watch the opening ceremonies for the Vytal Festival, and there she was. My baby girl, standing tall and proud." Her lips curved into a smile that was filled with such pride, it made Yang's heart ache to think of her own father. "Somehow, all on her own, she'd managed to get herself accepted into the largest Hunstman academy in Remnant. I didn't know who the two girls next to her were, and it was certainly a surprise to see her standing shoulder to shoulder with the daughter of Jacques Schnee, but I knew my daughter. And I could see it on her face; she was safe, she was healthy, and above all, she was happy."

She took a shaky breath. "Ghira and I both made sure to watch every fight that your team was in. And I could see it in the way she fought, how easily the four of you worked together. Whatever had happened to make her leave the White Fang, Blake had found people that she could trust, a home that she felt safe in. You can't begin to imagine how happy that made me, how proud I was of her. And, it gave me hope. That maybe, one day, she would to come back to her old one."

"Then there was the Beacon attack, and it was like we'd lost her all over again. We didn't know if she'd been hurt, if she'd been able to make it out. That hope was all we had, until six months later she showed up at our front door, with that boy right behind her. After so long, my baby girl had finally come home." She turned towards Yang, and she saw the tears gathering in the older woman's eyes. "And I know that you are the reason why."

Yang blinked. "Me?"

"All of you, but you most of all," Kali said. "I've heard so much about you from Sun, and some from Blake, but after knowing her for so long, I've learned to read my daughter. You were more than just her partner. When the four of you became a team, you embraced her with open arms. When you learned that she was once in the White Fang, you stood by her. When she thought that she was alone, you gave her a family. And I know that because of you, when she was afraid of losing that family, she had the courage to face her old one." She smiled, even as the tears began to spill down her cheeks. "Because of you, I got my daughter back. And I will always be grateful for that. From my husband and myself, thank you."

For a long moment, Yang didn't know what to say. Almost nothing about the conversation had gone the way she thought it would. What could she say? "You're, uh, welcome," she managed lamely. "I mean, Blake meant a lot to us."

Kali smiled as she wiped the tears from her cheeks, composing herself. "I know. You, all of you, meant everything to her. And I can tell you, she regrets leaving the way she did." She held up her hand, forestalling Yang's open mouth. "I meant it when I said that I wasn't going to tell you to forgive her. I won't lie, I hope you can." She chuckled lightly. "I am her mother, after all." Her expression sobered, though still radiated a sincere, albeit sad, kindness. "But I know that she hurt you by leaving. After everything that's happened, I wouldn't blame you if that's just too much to forgive. Whatever happens next, is for you two to decide."

After a moment's hesitation, she laid her hand on Yang's metal forearm. "I just wanted you to know that, whatever you decide, I will always be grateful for what you've done for our family." She bowed her head slightly. "You gave her the chance to explain herself once before. I know I have no right to ask you this, but please," Kali looked up, a mixture of sadness, hope and understanding in her eyes, "give her that chance again." With that, she turned and walked back towards the archway from which she'd come.

Yang was silent as she turned over Kali's words in her mind. It was amazing to her, but she was struck by just how much of a resemblance there was between Kali Belladonna and Summer Rose. She couldn't fathom how Blake could ever had walked away from a family like that. "You know," she found herself saying, turning towards the archway where Kali had paused to look at her in askance, "Blake's pretty lucky to have a mom like you." Yang paused for a moment. "I think our parents would've liked knowing you."

Smiling warmly, Kali nodded. "I hope someday I get to meet the people who raised such wonderful girls," she answered as she turned away.

A small, rueful smile quirked the corner of Yang's mouth. Well, one of them at least. She turned back to the railing, leaning heavily as she stared out over the valley. There was a familiar restlessness gnawing at the back of her mind now, one that she felt whenever she there was something she could do.

Yang was tired of being alone.

I played a little loose with the post-Menagerie/pre-Beacon timeline for Blake, because as far as I know it hasn't really been established. All I know for certain is that, sometime within the five years between Ghira stepping down as High Leader and the beginning of V1, Blake left Menagerie to be more serious with the White Fang, then left the White Fang, then applied to and was accepted into Beacon. I don't think it has been established exactly how much time had passed between those individual events. Could be wrong though.

At any rate, until the next time that something gets stuck in my head! I do have something of a counterpart to the first one-shot I put up, this one from Raven's perspective. Dunno when that one might get done.