Blake quickly settled into the flow of things around Yang's office. She worked mostly with Ruby, planning the public gala which was fast approaching. Pyrrha, who was as kind as she was intelligent, and Jaune, who…tried his best, helped out whenever they were available. Qrow handled the advertising, plastering "Yang 2016" on billboards, posters, and a variety of merchandise for campaign supporters to buy. He also kept Yang on a tight schedule of public appearances and interviews, although she still found a way to stop by the office several times a day.
Almost every morning, she would poke her head in with a chipper, "How's it yangin'?" and offer everybody some donuts or pastries from Ren's Diner, which she referred to as, "the greatest restaurant in the universe." Once she mixed it up by bringing in sorbet, sparking a heated debate about what exactly the difference was between sorbet, sherbet, and sorbetto.
"For the last goddamn time, IT'S ALL THE SAME THING," Jaune yelled in his comical upset voice.
"Maybe for an uncultured SWINE," Yang shot back.
"I think Jaune's right," Blake said calmly. "It's the same word in different languages." Yang whirled on Blake with a hurt expression.
"Blake…how could you turn on me like this?" she practically whimpered. Blake sighed heavily.
"I suppose there may be a slight difference between them," she admitted.
"AHA!" Yang said triumphantly. "Suck on that Jaune!"
"I don't care what it's called, it's deliiicious," Ruby stated, wolfing down her serving of sorbet. "Ahh, brainfreeze!"
"Pyrrha! Is there a difference?" Jaune demanded, totally ignoring Ruby's plight.
"I believe sherbet is made with milk," Pyrrha explained. "I'm not sure about the difference between sorbet and sorbetto…though I personally like sorbetto the best." Jaune frowned, clearly not pleased with the answer. Yang, however, was deep in thought.
"So," she began, "would you say that it's the…sor-best-o?"
Reactions to the godawful pun included aggressive face-palming (Jaune), throwing things at the perpetrator (Ruby), leaving the room (Pyrrha), and ill-disguised giggling (Blake).
"What the hell is going on out here?" Qrow grumbled, sticking his head into the room. In unison, Ruby, Blake and Jaune pointed at Yang.
"Uhh, I gotta go!" Yang said hastily, darting out of range of her disgruntled campaign manager.
Today though, Yang hadn't stopped by the office at all, and Blake found herself missing the vibrant presence. She stood alone in Yang's office, taking a break from gala planning to stare out of the window. The heat wave had finally passed, and it was a cool, though windy, morning, the trees swaying with each gust of air. Blake really enjoyed such weather, though it was apparently too cold for Yang already.
"Ugh, what happened to the summer?" Yang had griped a few days prior.
"Yang, it's in the sixties," Blake said, not looking up from her laptop. She was sitting at a desk in Yang's office, which had been moved in specifically for her use.
"Freezing." With a shake of her head, Yang leaned on Blake's desk, dramatically shivering.
"I personally think the weather is quite nice. Much better than it was in July, anyway," Blake said, finally looking at Yang.
"Ooh, can't stand the heat, Blakey?" Yang grinned and Blake raised an eyebrow.
"…Blakey?"
"I understand, I tend to have that effect of people," Yang said with a wink.
"That line's about a thousand years old."
Blake smirked. "You'll have to try a lot harder than that to flirt with me." She leaned back, satisfied, as Yang's cheeks and ears immediately turned an amazing magenta color.
"Wha—I'm not…I-I wasn't…uh.." Yang stammered, backing away as she did so. "YOU'RE a thousand years old!" She finally yelled, whirling around and slamming face-first into the door. Blake couldn't help it. She burst out laughing harder than she had in years.
"Are—Are you okay?" Blake asked when she had recovered, making her way over to the door.
"Fine," Yang grumbled, still a little flustered. Blake delicately took Yang's face in her hands, the skin warm to her touch.
"Whoa, what are you doing?" Yang asked, her eyebrows rocketing up in surprise, although she made no move to step away.
"Calm down Yang, I'm just checking to make sure you didn't break your nose," Blake explained. "That would be a little too rugged, even for you."
"Very funny," Yang muttered, the corners of her mouth twitching up despite herself. Blake gently pressed Yang's nose with her thumbs, marveling at how soft her skin was. Suddenly unable to make eye contact, Blake found herself staring at the light freckles dusted on Yang's nose and cheeks, only visible from this close distance.
"Pretty cute, right?" Yang's voice jolted Blake out of her stupor.
"Huh?" she asked intelligently.
"I was saying, it was kinda cute the way I walked into that door, right?" Yang said, undeterred.
"Um, sure Yang," Blake responded, still somewhat dazed.
"Would you say it was…A-door-able?"
Blake shoved the idiot back into the door.
Now, Blake rested her fingertips on the windowsill, a small smile working its way onto her face. In spite of all her stupidity, Yang actually worked really hard. She was always busy with campaigning or her council duties, and yet she never seemed to get bogged down in the stress of her job. It was inspiring, although Blake would never say so.
"Wondering when your husband will return from war?"
Blake jumped a foot in the air and turned to see Ruby standing in the doorway.
"Seriously, what are you thinking about?" she asked innocently.
"Nothing," Blake said quietly. "Do you need any help?"
"Well, I'd love to get these guys for the gala," Ruby replied, holding up a poster of four clearly testosterone-rich young men, two of whom weren't wearing shirts for some reason.
"S-S-S-N?" Blake read off the sheet. Ruby giggled.
"It's pronounce 'Sun'," she explained. "You haven't heard of them? They're the most popular band in the country right now."
"I mostly listen to classical," Blake admitted.
"That's cool!" Ruby said, ever positive. "But for real, I came to tell you Yang's interview is about to come on if you wanna watch."
"Right," Blake responded, following Ruby back to the lobby. Jaune and Pyrrha were already clustered around Ruby's computer, and Blake and Ruby quickly joined them. This was Yang's first appearance on Vale's most popular talk show: Vale Today with Neon Katt. Yang hadn't seemed nervous about the interview, although Blake knew that Neon was a little…confrontational. Ruby was certainly jumpier than usual as the ad break ended and the Vale Today graphic popped up. On screen, Yang and Neon sat in comfy looking armchairs, a low table in front on them. Yang sat with one leg crossed, smiling leisurely as Neon appeared to laugh at something she had said.
"Good start sis," Ruby whispered, watching intently.
"Goood morning Vale!" Neon said, looking up and waving cheerily. "Today we have with us Councilwoman Yang Xiao Long, here to talk about her campaign for mayor and, more importantly, why she wears such sexy outfits!"
"What?!" Blake and Yang said in unison.
"Well, there goes that," Jaune muttered.
"Come on Councilwoman," Neon said with a wink. "You've gotta know the effect that your extensions and…top-heaviness have on our poor male audience."
"What the hell," Blake said through gritted teeth.
"Yang's gonna lose it," Jaune groaned.
"She's not gonna lose it!" Ruby protested.
"I think she's losing it," Pyrrha stated glumly.
Indeed, Yang actually seemed to be growling at Neon.
"First of all, and let me be crystal clear about this" she began, holding up her pointer finger inches from Neon's face. "I don't have extensions." Then, amazingly, Yang smiled.
"This is all natural," she continued, tossing her hair dramatically and eliciting chuckles from both the audience and Neon herself. "And anyway, you're one to talk with that on your head," she said, gesturing at Neon's rainbow colored hair. "Looks great, by the way."
"Flattery will get you nowhere, Councilwoman," Neon replied, though she looked rather pleased with the compliment. "Let's talk about your campaign, shall we?"
"I thought you'd never ask," Yang said with a grin.
"Excellent," Neon said, immediately diving in. "Your main opposition, Mercury Black, has already begun attacks on you. Just last night, his campaign manager Cinder Fall referred to you as 'young and inexperienced,' criticism that you've faced throughout your career. How do you respond?"
"Well, I gotta admit, I am young. Sorry about that folks, I can't really help it," Yang said with a shrug, drawing some laughter from the audience. "But I'd say that young doesn't necessarily mean inexperienced. I've been involved in local government here in Vale for 8 years, starting with an internship in high school. And that's 8 years longer than Mercury Black has. Sure, he's a CEO, but that doesn't prepare him for a political career. Meanwhile, I'm head of the subcommittee of Public Health, and I've passed initiatives to educate at-risk youth, to keep our parks clean, and to increase recycling volume, just to name a few. I can promise that I'm committed to continue making Vale a better place, just as I have for almost a decade now."
The audience clapped enthusiastically as Yang finished speaking, and Neon nodded approvingly.
"Fuck yes," Blake said, clenching a hand into a fist. The others looked at her in surprise.
"Somebody's been spending too much time with Yang," Pyrrha teased. Blake gave her a look.
"Quiet, I'm trying to watch this," she responded, turning away to hide her blush. She focused on the show, where Neon was currently in the middle of a sentence.
"—issues in this campaign. One is the controversy over Beacon Park. Here's what Mercury Black had to say." A television beside Yang and Neon lit up to show Mercury giving a speech.
"After my father's untimely death, I've had to step up and be CEO of the second largest company in the Vale area. So trust me when I say that I understand the struggles of running a business, from the smallest to the largest," he paused to flash a toothy smile. "Black Industries has always been a friend to both Vale and to the Schnee Company. Obviously it's unfortunate that the park has to go, but the new Schnee factory will provide jobs and stimulate our economy. As a businessman, I'm more than willing to part with a few trees for the good of our livelihoods and of our children."
"Always gotta bring in the children," Jaune quipped.
"Shh!" Blake and Ruby hissed together at him. Blake leaned in closer to hear Yang's response.
"Look, I get why we need this factory, I really do, but there's gotta be a better place to build it than on the largest park in Vale," Yang said solemnly. "Beacon Park has been around for decades. As a kid, my mom used to take me and my sister there every weekend. It was the only place with green that we could walk to. And taking that experience away from the next generation—frankly, it's irresponsible. We need to try harder, and we need to be better than that." This answer elicited even louder applause and cheers from the audience.
"So, what's your alternative then?" Neon asked. The audience was dead silent as Yang thought for a few seconds.
"I'm working on it," she said finally. "In fact, I'll be meeting with Weiss Schnee this afternoon to discuss options. There are a lot of factors to consider but I'm confident that we can find a solution," Yang finished smoothly.
"Will you promise to save the park though?" Neon asked aggressively.
"Uhh—" Yang started, clearly apprehensive.
"You did just say that you're committed to making Vale better," Neon reminded her.
"I did, but promises like that are—"
"SAVE THE PARK! SAVE THE PARK!" Neon chanted. Almost immediately, the audience joined in. Yang bit her lip, and Blake noticed her start to viciously pick at her nails. As the chanting grew louder, Yang set her jaw, her eyes lighting up in determination.
"I WILL." The audience grew quiet at her words. "I promise you all, the citizens of Vale, that I will get the factory moved and save Beacon Park!" The applause that erupted was thunderous.
"And that's all the time we have!" Neon said cheerfully. "Thank you for joining us Councilwoman! Flynt, take it away!" With that, the camera panned to Flynt Coal and his jazz group as they began playing a fast-paced tune.
"Well," Jaune said when Ruby had closed out of the program. "This is either gonna be really good or really bad."
"Yang can do it," Blake said firmly.
"She's right," Ruby agreed. "Now let's get ready for this afternoon."
They were still tidying up the office when Yang and Qrow arrived 20 minutes later.
"Chill ouuut, Qrow," Yang was saying. "It's fine, we have plenty of time to work something out with the Ice Queen." Qrow didn't look pleased.
"Doesn't matter," he said gruffly. "Point is, you can't be so impulsive if you want to be in office."
"…Eh." Yang shrugged him off. "How's it yangin' in here?" she asked, addressing the group. Blake smiled at the familiar pun. Ruby rolled her eyes and sighed dramatically.
"When are you gonna stop making that joke?' she asked in exasperation.
"Dearest sister: it's a pun, not a joke. Also, never." Yang grinned. "Besides, Blake likes it."
"Don't drag me into this," Blake said, raising her arms in surrender.
"Anyway, we were getting this place ready for Weiss before you showed up to distract everyone." Ruby glared pointedly at her sister.
"Right, right, sorry," Yang said, not sounding remorseful in the slightest. She checked her watch. "We've got 15 minutes, it'll be fiiine." Ruby frowned.
"Everything has to be organized, that's really important to Weiss," she said seriously.
"How do you know so much about her?" Blake asked. Ruby seemed caught off guard by the question.
"Huh? O-oh, we went to high school together," she answered. "I don't think she knew I existed though…" Ruby trailed off, her features taking on a downright wistful expression that Blake had never seen before. The wistfulness persisted for the next 15 minutes until Weiss Schnee arrived at 11:00 am, on the dot.
Blake knew about the Schnee Company CEO, and had even seen her a few times, although they had never directly interacted. However, Weiss had quite the reputation, known throughout Vale as the "Ice Queen" for her cold demeanor. She certainly lived up to her name as she swept gracefully into the office lobby, giving her surroundings an unimpressed glance before striding up to Ruby's desk. Ruby leapt to her feet in panic.
"Hi Weiss! Er, Miss Schnee! You probably don't remember me, but I'm Ruby Rose! We, uh, we went to high school together." Ruby thrust a hand out to shake, looking rather flustered. Weiss was silent for a long moment, staring first at the hand in front of her, then up at the offending party. Ruby stared back down at the smaller woman, turning redder and redder as Blake looked on.
"Miss Schnee?" Blake called, deciding to help Ruby out. "Right this way please," she continued, waving Weiss over.
"Finally," Weiss said haughtily. "Somebody halfway competent." She stalked past Ruby, who remained frozen, her entire face a bright red color. Blake frowned a little at the rude comment.
"Nice to meet you, Miss Schnee. My name is Blake Belladonna and—"
"Didn't ask."
Blake paused, taken aback by the statement.
"Wha—excuse me?" she stammered.
"I said, I didn't ask for your name," Weiss repeated coolly. "Now, where is that dolt Xiao Long?" Blake fought the urge to slap the other woman in the face.
"She's right here in the conference room," Blake answered, managing to keep her tone relatively cordial.
"Great." Weiss didn't even bother to mask her disinterest. Blake trailed behind her as she strolled into the room. Yang and Qrow were sitting together, talking in low voices when they entered. Yang immediately stood up and gave Weiss a wide smile.
"Hi there Miss Schnee, can I call you Weiss? Thanks so much for stopping by!" Yang stuck a hand out to shake, making the same tragic mistake as Ruby.
"You may call me Miss Schnee," Weiss said in a monotone, ignoring the hand and moving past Yang to take a seat as far away as possible from Qrow, to whom she sent an unfriendly glare. Blake rolled her eyes and started to exit the room when Yang shot out a hand to stop her. Blake gave her a questioning glance.
"Stay. Please," Yang whispered, quiet enough that Weiss and Qrow couldn't hear. Blake nodded, following Yang and taking a seat beside her, diagonal from Weiss.
"So, Miss Schnee, I—" Yang started.
"No."
"Uhh…"
"The only reason I spent my valuable time coming to this"—Weiss paused to search for a suitable word—"hovel, is to tell you personally, and for the only time, that I will not be altering any plans for the upcoming Schnee factory." Yang opened her mouth to speak but Weiss simply held up a hand to stop her. "Nothing you can say or do will change my mind." Weiss locked eyes with Yang. "So stop trying," she snapped, standing up abruptly. Yang rocketed to her feet as well.
"Whoa, wait a minute!" she said, holding up her hands. "Politics and business don't have to be enemies y'know. I get that you've only been CEO for a little while, and I know it can't be easy, but at least listen to what I have to say before you make a choice." Yang offered another warm smile. Weiss looked entirely unimpressed.
"Don't be distasteful," she said scornfully. "I've already made my decision." Yang's smile faded.
"If you destroy this park, you'll be making a lot of people upset. And you may not care about that, but your company's stock definitely will," Yang said, trying to appeal to Weiss' reason.
"Please, as if a bimbo such as yourself could possibly understand the economic repercussions of this development." Weiss smirked to herself. "I've already done cost-benefit personally, and this is clearly the best choice. Not that you'd understand that."
Yang seemed to be physically steaming. Blake was on her feet in a second, laying a hand on Yang's arm to stop her from literally biting Weiss' head off.
"You do know that Yang minored in business in college, right?" Blake asked, smirking back at the Ice Queen. "She understands plenty. But it is pretty embarrassing for you to be so ignorant going into a meeting." Weiss looked like she had just swallowed a lemon. She quickly recovered though.
"I see you need your assistant to do your job for you," she taunted, addressing Yang. "Only slightly less incompetent than your dolt of a sister."
"YOU—" Yang started, but stopped at a head shake from Qrow. Yang took a deep breath, fighting to regain her composure.
"Miss Schnee. Surely you see the value in keeping Beacon Park," she said calmly. "And compromising with us won't make you weak, I promise! If anything, it'll show everybody that you're strong enough to do what's right for Vale, not just for yourself." Weiss was silent. Yang attempted to smile.
"Uh, so, whaddya say? Should we start over?" she asked, her voice taking on a hopeful tone. Weiss looked her dead in the eye.
"I see no value in Beacon Park," she stated flatly. "Go complain to your mother about it." Yang's eyes flashed and she darted around the table before Qrow or Blake could stop her. She stopped right in front of Weiss, towering above the slight woman and jabbing a finger at her chest.
"My mom's dead and you know it, ya little—"
"So is mine." Weiss cut her off. "The difference is that I don't broadcast that fact in a pathetic attempt to scrape together some votes." Yang clenched her fists so tightly that her knuckles showed white.
"You—Gah! Why are you so—so—difficult?!" Yang erupted, taking a step forward.
"Why are you so childish?" Weiss shot back, standing her ground. They were only inches away now.
"BRAT"
"BRUTE"
With that, Weiss turned around primly and proceeded to exit the office.
"Wait! Weeeiiiss!" Blake heard Ruby's hapless cry from the hallway.
Yang growled in frustration, pounding a fist on the table so hard that it shook.
"Well, you fucked that one up," Qrow said, shrugging. Yang didn't acknowledge him, instead storming out of the room. The door to her office shut with a slam. Blake gave Qrow a glare.
"Seriously? That's what you think of to say to her?" she questioned angrily. Qrow shrugged again.
"I didn't mean it like that. Sometimes things go wrong, and she has to learn to deal with it." Blake frowned.
"Well, she doesn't have to do it alone," she replied. As Qrow paused to consider that, Blake wandered out of the conference room, making her way to Yang's door. Ruby appeared to have followed Weiss out, since her desk was noticeably empty. Pyrrha and Jaune stuck their heads out into the lobby.
"I gather that could have gone better," Pyrrha commented morosely.
"Yeah," Blake sighed. She raised a hand to lightly knock on the door in front of her. A muffled "fuck off Qrow" came from inside. Blake sighed again, turning the handle and entering slowly. Yang was sitting on the floor in front of her desk, leaning back against the wood as though she had literally collapsed there.
"Oh…Sorry Blake," she said, turning slightly pink.
"It's fine," Blake replied, closing the door behind her and approaching the desk. "Can I sit?"
"Sure, knock yourself out." Yang shrugged. "Didn't think you'd want to see me after that meltdown," she said, shaking her head. Blake dropped to the floor beside her.
"Don't be stupid, Yang," she said. "I was a second away from doing the same thing." Yang was silent for a moment, picking savagely away at her cuticles. Finally she spoke.
"I guess it's fine. I mean, you win some, you lose some, right? That's what Qrow says anyway…" Yang trailed off, staring at her fingers as she continued to claw at herself. Blake grabbed her hands.
"Stop it." Her voice was barely audible. "It's okay if you're not alright, you know? You're allowed to feel shitty sometimes." Yang pulled her hands away.
"No, I'm not," she said, eyes still stubbornly looking downward. "I'm supposed to be energetic and happy, that's my whole appeal. And that's who I am now. My public image—that's all there is."
"Yang. Look at me," Blake commanded. Yang couldn't resist if she wanted to. Glancing up, she met the piercing golden gaze. "You. Are so much more than you seem. Over these past few weeks, I've realized that. And you don't have to hide or change yourself. At least, not when you're with me." Blake grimaced internally. She had meant to sound inspiring, but as always, words failed her. It seemed like words were failing Yang as well, who simply stared at Blake for what felt like years. Then, she hugged her.
Blake gasped slightly, completely shocked by the sudden feeling of the warm face buried in her shoulder, of the soft hair brushing against her chin, of the surprisingly muscular arms wrapped tightly around her waist.
Then, she shocked herself even more by hugging back. She gently wrapped her own arms around Yang, running a comforting hand through her thick blonde hair.
They stayed like that for a long moment, until Yang finally pulled away with a soft smile on her face.
"Thanks Blake," she said. They smiled at each other. Then—
"Yang, you're bleeding."
"Huh?" Yang looked down at her fingers. "Oh, you're right." Her left index finger was slightly bloody from where she had been picking at it. Wiping it on her pants, she shrugged at Blake.
"It's fine, just a habit," she explained.
"You shouldn't do that," Blake murmured. "Here, try this." Pulling her pen out of her pocket, she handed it to Yang, who stared at it quizzically.
"Okay, I give up. It's a nice pen?" Yang offered. She wasn't wrong. Blake's pen was thin and sleek, with a glossy though worn black finish and a silver symbol on it resembling a burning flower.
"It's what I use to relieve stress," Blake stated simply. Yang quirked an eyebrow.
"Kinda thin for a dildo, don't ya think?"
"YANG!" Blake turned bright red, smacking the cackling idiot, who tried halfheartedly to get away.
"Seriously though, how does this help?" Yang questioned. Blake huffed, still slightly annoyed.
"Like this." She snatched the pen back and proceeded to twirl it like a pro. Yang's eyes grew wide, watching intently as Blake dexterously spun the pen around each of her knuckles in turn, weaving it expertly through her long fingers.
"Holy shit," she breathed when Blake was done. "Where'd you learn that?"
"Just kinda…picked it up I guess." Blake shrugged, slightly embarrassed by the attention.
"Badass. And I never thought I'd say that about a writing utensil," Yang laughed. Blake smiled at her, hoping that Yang couldn't see how hot her face felt.
"So, uhh, can you teach me?" Yang asked, sounding entirely adorable.
"O-of course," Blake stuttered. "Just hold it like this…" She placed the pen in Yang's hand, trying not to shake as she gently moved her fingers into a proper grip.
"And push down here when you're ready to spin it," Blake said.
"Right." Yang stuck out her tongue, entirely focused on her task. Blake found her breath catching in her throat as she looked on.
Yang pushed down as Blake had shown her, and…the pen flew straight out of her hand, whirling around rapidly as it made a graceful arc through the air to land solidly at the other side of the room.
They stared at the offending instrument for a moment before they burst out laughing in unison.
"Well, the good news is you got it to spin," Blake said, still chuckling lightly.
"Hell yeah I did. Looked like a helicopter on fire," Yang replied with a grin. "And I love fire."
"Of course you do." Blake smiled fondly. "So, wanna try again?"
"Obviously," Yang said with a smirk, springing up to retrieve the pen. "And this time I'll get it better than you, Belladonna." Blake smiled wider.
"Sure, Yang."
AN: These keep getting longer and longer smh..
Well, Weiss finally showed up! Thanks so much for reading you guys :) Any reviews, complaints, or feedback will be greatly appreciated
Have a fantastic day!