Of Sunsets and Night Skies
Chapter 10: Stray, Part 2 of 2
"You're an idiot." Yang sneered, her temper threatening to get the best of her once more.
"Hnng..." Blake struggled in Yang's iron grasp, failing to pull herself away. Yang only gripped her harder, ignoring the wince of pain from the girl.
"I thought you Faunus were supposed to have good eyesight." Yang growled, effortlessly lifting Blake into the air, Blake's feet dangling inches from the ground.
"What?"
"Good eyesight. I thought you Faunus were supposed to have it. Or night vision. Something to do with eyes." Yang replied.
"What's your point, Yang?"
"You're blind! You can't see that the people right in front of you care more about you than anyone else."
"That's just team-" Blake was cut off as Yang violently shook her, lilac eyes fading back to red.
"It's not just as a team." Yang growled, baring her teeth at Blake. "You're either ignorant or stupid. All this melodramatic nonsense about no one caring about you, no one teaching you to play, but all you can do when faced with friends who care about you is run away."
"Put me down." Blake ordered, tears threatening to spill down her cheeks.
Yang laughed, running her tongue over the sharp edges of her canines for a moment before tilting her head to study Blake.
"So you can disappear again? Not happening."
Blake ground her teeth together, feeling her shoulders strain under the weight of her suspension.
"I saiiiid...put me down!"
Yang grinned. "I can hold you here all day, darling. It won't bother me a bit."
"Why are you doing this?" Blake asked, frustration clouding her mind.
"Because."
"Why?"
Yang smiled softly.
"Ruby and I used to rescue cats all the time."
Blake immediately stopped struggling, instead focusing on what Yang was saying.
"At first, you give the stray it's space. Let it know it's got friends, but give it space. It'll take a while, but it's worth it. When the cat finally comes around for the first time, realizing you're not a threat, that you're trustworthy and there to help, it's an amazing feeling."
Blake said nothing, too afraid of the sound of her own voice to speak.
"I've given you your space, Blake. But you're not coming around, and it's pissing me off."
Again, Yang was treated to silence, so she decided to continue.
"I can't fix what happened in your past, Blake, and I'll never be able to. But from the present, moving forward into the future, I can do my best to make sure that you're never alone. That you don't have to spend another night lonely, with no one to care for you. I don't know if there's some small, sadistic part of you that enjoys that heart-wrenching loneliness, but open your damn eyes, and see that you have people who care about you and who don't want to see you hurting anymore."
Blake stared into Yang's eyes even as her vision blurred, tears now overwhelming her and spilling uncontrollably down her cheeks. Yang doggedly ignored them, continuing.
"Blake...I don't want to see you hurting anymore. I don't want you to run away. Not from anyone."
She paused here, taking a deep breath.
"Especially not from me." Yang stared into Blake's eyes, refusing to break eye contact.
"Blake, please don't run away from me anymore. I'm here for you."
A wretched sob burst forth from Blake, unable to contain herself any longer, and Yang gently set her down, releasing her grip on her wrists as her tears flowed freely now. Immediately falling to her knees, Blake finally let go of all the emotions she had been holding for so long as Yang stood in front of her, listening to the overwhelming cries of a heart-broken girl.
It was much, much later that night when Yang slowly turned the handle to their dorm room, silently pushing it open with her foot. In her arms, she cradled her now-sleeping kitten. Pulling the raven haired girl protectively to her chest, Yang kicked off her boots before padding softly over to Blake's bed. Ever so carefully, she laid the sleeping girl down on the bed. As she tried to stand, she realized that Blake's fists were balled in her shirt, unrelentingly holding tight to her even unconscious as she was.
Smiling softly, she gently pried Blake's fists from her shirt, before laying her arms down at her sides. Grabbing the edge of Blake's blanket, she pulled it over the sleeping girl, up to her shoulders before tucking the edges in and making sure that the girl appeared comfortable.
Sighing heavily, Yang dropped to her knees beside the bed. She was exhausted now; so much fury had been put into dealing with her fleeing partner that now she was absolutely drained.
Reaching out, she gently pushed Blake's bangs out of her face, gently tracing the tear stains on her cheeks with her thumb.
"I'd give anything in this world to be able to shoulder your burdens, Blake." Yang whispered.
"But I can't carry them for you. All I can do is walk beside you and catch you when you fall."
The girl groaned softly in her sleep, and Yang fell silent, afraid of waking her. It was too little, too late, however, as Blake's eyes fluttered open.
Blinking a few times, Blake's sleepy gaze quickly found Yang.
"Did..you...?"
Yang nodded. "Yeah, don't worry. I'll take care of you."
Blake looked away for a moment, befure looking back and Yang and sighing.
"Yang, will you..."
Yang raised an eyebrow, leaning in close so as to not miss a word.
"Y-Yang, will you...sleep with me tonight?" She asked.
Yang's eyes widened, before she realized that Blake probably didn't mean it that way.
Probably.
Blake felt the hesitation, and looked up at Yang.
"Y-you did say th-that you would never leave me." Blake stammered, trying to find her tongue.
"That you'd always be beside me."
Yang didn't think twice as she peeled back the covers and slipped into the bed beside her Faunus partner. Pulling the covers over their heads, Yang let herself lay closer to Blake than she was sure the girl was comfortable with.
Until Blake slid closer, pressing her body against Yang's.
Yang felt her heart racing, skin tingling, as Blake pressed her body up against hers. Blake had turned so that she was on her side, facing Yang. Pressing her forehead against Yang's chest, the rest of her body was pressed as tightly as she could manage against the brawler, and Yang nearly froze when she felt an arm encircling her waist.
Yang struggled to control herself, lest she do something the young girl wasn't comfortable with and set back all the progress she had made in getting the sweet kitten to trust her.
Trying vainly to control her breathing, she closed her eyes as she became hyper aware of every touch, every small movement Blake made, rubbing against her body.
Yang groaned quietly as she felt her desire begin to edge out of her control. No, not that she couldn't control herself, she knew. She didn't want to.
Blake shifted again, looking up at Yang to see what the source of her groan was.
Due to their close proximity, that resulted in the Faunus giving Yang a rather cross-eyed look, and Yang couldn't help herself any longer.
Reaching forward, Yang slipped her hand behind Blake's neck before leaning down and kissing her softly on the lips. Gently at first, Yang pressed their lips together. Waiting, searching for any sign of acceptance or rejection.
The kiss was sweet; Blake smelled like lavender shampoo and the faintest scent of a rather fruity perfume. Her lips were soft, receptive of Yang's kiss, and quite compliant to the brawler's wishes.
Then Blake pulled away, putting her hand on Yang's chest to help separate them.
Yang pulled away, biting her lip in disappointment as she gazed at her partner with concern.
"Blake, I'm..." Yang began, unsure of what to say. She wasn't sorry she kissed her, so she wouldn't apologize for it, but...
Blake licked her lips slowly, never breaking eye contact with Yang as she did.
"Yang." Her name was a whispered statement.
"Yes?"
"What is it you want from me?" Blake asked.
Yang stared at her as she thought about it, and a thousand answers flew through her mind. Right now, she wanted more of the taste of Blake's lips on her own, and probably more than that. She wanted the girl to hold her tight and never let go. She wanted...
She shook her head. Those weren't the right answers. That wasn't the right question.
"Blake, I don't think you're asking the right question." Yang replied. "I don't think it's about what I want from you. Everyone has taken whatever they wanted from you without a second thought. I'm not going to do that. It's not about what I want from you. It's about what I want to give to you."
Blake's eyes widened slightly, but otherwise gave no indication that what Yang had said had affected her.
"And...what do you want to give me?" Blake asked, the foreign concept leaving a weird feeling in her chest.
Yang smiled, reaching out and cupping the cheek of her partner, stroking her cheek with her thumb.
"Blake, I want to give you everything that I am. My strength can be your strength when you're feeling weak. When you feel like you need to run and hide, I want you to run to me, and hide in my embrace."
Yang could feel her cheeks heating up as she spoke, but when she realized that what she was saying was true, she pushed on, unwilling to back down.
"When you feel like you're overwhelmed, I want to be there to shoulder your troubles. When you want to stand up and fight for what you believe in, I want to be by your side, to make sure that you're not fighting alone. When the darkess comes and you feel lost and like you can't possibly win, I want to be the shining beacon of hope that draws your gaze and renews your fighting spirit."
Blake said nothing for a moment, thinking about Yang's words. Turning them over in her head, inspecting them for evidence of lies or deceit.
Gazing into Yang's bright, lilac gaze, she knew that Yang was being honest.
And that was kind of scary.
"Blake, I can't fix the past. I can't be there for you all those times you were alone and had no one to depend on. And I know that a lifetime of that breeds a very particular type of person. But if you're tired of continuing your life like that, I'm here. I want to be the one you depend on. Blake, I want...you. I want you."
Blake felt her breath catch in her throat when Yang said that, and once again, tears sprang unbidden to her eyes. Fighting against the urge to cry her eyes out, she simply pressed herself tighter to her partner, and buried her face in Yang's neck, inhaling the cinnamon scent that lingered on her hair.
"You don't have to live like a stray anymore, Blake. I want you. If you'll have me, I want you."
Amidst the shuddering breaths and sniffles, Yang felt Blake nod slowly against her neck.
Yang couldn't stop the grin that stretched across her face, and she wrapped her arms around her partner.
"You have me now, Blake. You'll never have to take on anything by yourself ever again. I'll be here for you, I promise."
Yang felt her nod again against her neck.
"Yang?" Blake whispered softly.
"Yeah, Blake?"
"...You bruised my wrists."
Yang grinned. "We'll just tell them it was from s-"
"No. No we wont."
Author's Note: While this is technically the end of the "Stray" mini-fic, I may or may not post additional bits in the future. Blake and Yang are just too good together. Enjoy! As always, reviews are appreciated.