Chapter 39

I'm sorry this took so long. Here comes the drama, let's go!

Yang's Room

Jaye shut the door behind him, quietly taking in the sight of the sullen girl sitting on the bed. Yang stared at her blanket, her hand resting on her lap, and Jaye scratched his neck sheepishly.

'Hey.' He said, shifting awkwardly on the spot. Yang barely glanced at him, and he cleared his throat. 'You doing okay?'

'Does this look okay to you?' She breathed, her voice barely a whisper, raising the stump of her arm into the air. Jaye's breath hitched in his throat, and he swallowed roughly. He paced over to the girl slowly, touching a hand to her face. She pulled abruptly away from him, slapping his hand away.

'Don't touch me.' She hissed, hugging her chest. Jaye let his arm fall limply to his side, gripping his trousers between his fingers.

'I'm going to Haven.' He said. Yang flinched slightly, not turning to meet him, and Jaye swallowed again. 'I know you're going through a hard time right now, and I know it's not fair for me to ask you this, but I want you to come with me.' He placed a hand on her shoulder. 'I want you to be with me.'

'I said don't touch me!' Yang screamed, hitting him in the stomach. Jaye backed off, raising his hands into the air, and fell silent as Yang finally met his eyes. Tears streamed freely down her face, and she scowled at the boy.

'You want to be with me?' She hissed, her lips trembling. 'Where were you when Adam attacked me? Where were you when I lost my arm? Where were you for the past month? Where were you when I needed you the most?' Her voice quivered as she slumped weakly in the bed. 'Why did I have to go through this alone?'

Jaye watched the girl quietly, shifting uncomfortably on the spot. He had no idea what to do, and just watched her cry. He took a shaky breath as she rubbed her eyes, covering her face with her hand.

'I'm sorry.' He whispered, taking a step towards her. 'I should've been here sooner. I should have been there for you.'

'No!' Yang choked, the tears once more threatening to spill from her eyes. 'That's not right!'

She turned sharply towards the boy, and this time Jaye held her gaze. She grasped her pillow in her hand, squeezing it tightly.

'Tell me I'm being childish! Tell me I'm being immature! Tell me this isn't fair for you!' She cried, hitting him weakly with the pillow. Jaye stood still, letting her swing the fluffy object. 'Tell me I'm asking too much! Tell me I'm being dramatic! Tell me I'm a fool!' She paused mid-swing, dropping the pillow to the ground. 'Why aren't you getting angry!'

'Because I love you.' Jaye took ahold of her wrist gently. Yang sucked in a breath, turning away from the boy again, and he pulled her closer. She struggled against him, pushing at his chest, but he gathered her into his arms tightly. She squirmed and wriggled, but he gripped her even tighter, until she finally went limp in his arms. She coughed softly, gripping his shirt in her hand and buried her face in his neck. She sobbed against his skin, squeezing him tight, and Jaye just held her. She finally pulled away from him, placing a hand on his chest.

'I can't tell you you're being dramatic.' He breathed, stroking her cheek. Yang rubbed her face into his chest, and he felt her body shake beneath him. 'You went through something terrible, and I should have been there to prevent it. I let you get hurt even though I swore I'd protect you.'

'It's not your fault.' She whispered, rubbing her eyes again. 'No one could have seen this coming.'

'I should have been with you.' Jaye grit his teeth. 'I shouldn't have let you search for Blake alone.'

'I see him, you know.' The blonde girl ruffled her mop of blonde hair. 'Adam. In my dreams.' She hugged the stump of her arm to her chest. 'I see his white mask, his red hair, his cruel smile. I see him when I close my eyes.' She looked up at the raven-haired boy. 'It's always the same. I see him with his sword drawn. And before I know it, I'm bleeding on the floor.'

'I can't imagine what that's like.' Jaye said, touching his thumb to her lips. 'I wish I could have saved you.'

'Stop being caring. It's creepy.' Yang said, a small smile breaking onto her face. 'Just be your usual condescending self.'

'Would you rather I scolded you for being too weak?'

'Please care about me.'

'Okay.' He pressed his lips to hers, softly, and she ran a hand up his neck. She caressed his cheek gently, pulling away from him. She covered her mouth with a trembling hand, turning away abruptly, before darting out from under the covers. She charged into the bathroom, and the sounds of hurling came brightly from within. Jaye stopped by the door.

'Wow, I know I've been on the road a while, but I didn't think it was that bad.' He said, gathering her hair in his hands, pulling it away from the bowl. Yang pushed him away gently.

'I-I'm sorry. It's not you, it's just.' She choked, coughing into the water. Jaye stepped back, holding his hands to his chest.

'No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have pushed you like that. You just went through a traumatic experience.' He scratched his head. 'My bad.'

'This sucks.' The blonde scratched her mane of golden locks, slumping over the bowl. Jaye reached over, pressing the flush button. 'I didn't think something like that would happen.' She turned back to the boy. 'I'm sorry if I offended you.'

'Hey, I'm not a child. I can handle a few jabs at my hygiene.' Jaye said, crossing his arms in mock anger. Yang giggled, before erupting into fits of coughing. She picked herself off the floor, and Jaye stepped aside.

'I'll go get you some water.'

'I'm sorry. But I can't go with you.' Yang pulled the covers up to her chest, hugging her knees. Jaye sighed, taking her hand.

'I know. You need time. We all do.' He squeezed it gently, rubbing his fingers over her knuckles. She made a face of discomfort, and he immediately let go.

'I promise I'll work hard. I'll get over this somehow.' She said, touching her fingers to his. Jaye nodded, and Yang smiled. 'I've always pulled through. No reason I won't now.'

'I'll be in Haven.' Jaye said, tapping his pocket. 'Communication across the Kingdoms hasn't come back yet, who knows if it will anytime soon, but you'll be able to contact me once you get to Mistral.'

'Yeah.' She said, closing her eyes. 'I'll be with you soon.'

'I'll be waiting.' Jaye stood up slowly. 'I'll wait for you.'

'I know. You've never let me down before.' Yang smiled. Jaye hesitated for a moment, before picking her hand off the bed. He kissed her fingers, gently, before turning to the door.

'Goodnight.' He said, resting his hand on the doorframe. Yang waved at him, and he stepped out, closing the door behind him. She watched as it clicked shut, clutching the bedsheets. She pressed her fingers to her lips, feeling the warmth left behind. Tears began to run down her face again, and she flinched as she heard an engine rev. She ran to the window, pressing her palm against the glass, and watched as the three figures got on their bikes. She watched Jaye as he slid his helmet on, kicking his bike into gear, and they shot down the freshly shoveled pathway. She watched them until he disappeared beneath the tree line, and slumped against the wall.

A Tavern In Town

'So, she's got PTSD huh.' Indigo crossed her legs, leaning back in her chair. Jaye swallowed his noodles, popping half an egg into his mouth.

'She threw up. I'd say that's pretty bad.' Kamina pointed out, swirling his bowl. Indigo busied herself splitting her roasted pork into two equal halves, and Jaye spun his chopsticks in his hand.

'She's strong. She'll get through this.' Jaye said, catching his chopsticks. He shoveled more noodles into his mouth, and Indigo sighed.

'You guys are so insensitive. I'm sitting right here you know.' She jested, nudging Kamina, and he made a face of horror.

'Oh deary me, did I offend you? I thought you could handle jabs at your hygiene!' He said, pretending to throw up. They laughed heartily, and Jaye scowled at his teammates.

'On a more serious note.' Indigo finally managed to split her roast pork evenly, and promptly popped a piece into her mouth. 'We actually need to get to Mistral, and fast. With Vale fallen like it has, the Vale Faction leaders have probably moved over to Mistral already. We've given them too much of a head start.'

'We don't know if they're actually siding with Cinder and her little friends.' Kamina made a "deep thought" face. 'We've always been business partners, but it's hard to say. The Vale leaders were probably at least tolerant of it, otherwise Torchwick and Damian wouldn't have been able to run around so freely.'

'Fair point.' Jaye poked an egg with his chopstick, giving up on trying to grip its slippery surface. 'We're too in the dark. We need more information, and we need it fast.' He glanced across the table. 'We're going to need to call in a few favors.'

'She can.' Kamina gestured at the auburn-haired girl sitting next to him. 'We can't. You're a traitor and I'm dead, remember?'

'I'm sure we could find a few people.' Jaye waved his hand dismissively. 'I've still got a few friends around.'

'I wouldn't recommend that.' Indigo said. 'You've always had the worst tastes in friends.'

'Hey!'

'It's true.'

'That makes you guys part of that "worst tastes".'

'We know, we're proud of it.' Kamina grinned, chewing on a piece of pork. 'But in all seriousness, we don't know who's been bought off and who's being tracked. Right now, Indigo's the least suspicious out of us. Best if she goes at this alone first.'

'Agreed.' Indigo said, blowing on her noodles. 'Anything could potentially land us in the eyes of the wrong leaders. We know for a fact that Mistral is pretty neutral, but Vacuo's always been a den of low-lives, and Atlas is pretty much the worst because of how many Faction leaders are Military leaders too.'

'So we'll start in Mistral, then head over to Vacuo down the line.' Jaye stirred his soup. 'Information first, then we start thinking of expanding our forces for the potential war.'

'Cinder and her group brought down Vale. It's safe to say they're not to be underestimated.' Indigo interjected. 'I wouldn't be surprised if some of the headmasters or government leaders are in on their plans too.'

'We should be careful going in to Mistral then.' Kamina said. 'So first thing we need is an under-the-radar ship heading for Mistral.'

'Or better; a way to stow away as cargo.' Jaye said, thanking the waitress as she brought over a plate of dumplings. 'It'd be best to keep as little of a paper trail as possible.'

'Alright then. It's settled.' Kamina grinned, swiping a dumpling. 'Let's find a ship!'

And that's that for this chapter. I hope you enjoyed how I portrayed it. I was honestly torn between having yang be a total bitch so they'd fight and leave on bad terms, or do the above. But I spent some time watching bits and pieces up until volume 5, and I think she's grown a little too much for that. Besides, I don't want to tear them apart.