The atmosphere was heavy with danger at Weiss and Blake's standoff. They stood barely ten feet apart; Weiss with Myrtenaster aimed at Blake, and the other girl looking like a deer in headlights.
Ruby and Yang jumped between them, facing their respective partners less violence start.
"W-why don't we all calm down," Ruby tried. "I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation for this Weiss. You can't hurt Blake."
The Heiress ignored her leader, her eyes bore into Bake.
"You were trying to keep your identity a secret," she said. "You were afraid that they would reveal you, that was why you rushed ahead. And then when you got here you killed one that knew who you were." She nodded in the direction of the dead White Fang member. The others looked and Yang took a sharp intake of breath.
"I said the White Fang were murderers, it looks like they kill even their own to keep a secret. What did he call you? Captain Belladonna?" she tilted her head. "You're high ranking then."
Blake still hadn't said a word. Instead she was slowly inching back, her eyes wide with panic and her feline ears twitching wildly.
"Well?!" Weiss snarled as she moved forward, pushing past a wide-eyed Ruby. "You haven't answered my question yet Belladonna. Are you an assassin sent to kill me? To kill a member of the Schnee family like so many of your kind have before? Or are you here to sabotage the Huntsman academies instead?"
"I-I…"
"Weiss that's enough!" Ruby pressed, getting in between them again. "Let's just talk this through and I'm sure we can figure out what's going on. Besides we're not done here. There could still be more White Fang further in."
The white-haired girl glared at her partner and Yang turned to them to give her piece. At that moment all three members of Team RWBY took their eyes off Blake, and Team JNPR was so busy looking worriedly between Weiss and Ruby that none of them saw it until it was too late.
Blake leapt back, using Yang's back as a springboard and shooting Gambol Shroud into the air. It tore through the tin ceiling and dug into the roof. With a desperate tug it fell apart and the sheets of metal came crashing down.
The seven Huntsmen dodged out of the way of the debris, but when they next looked to where Blake had been.
She was gone.
"NO!" Weiss shouted, spinning in a desperate attempt to find out where Blake had gone.
"She disappeared." Pyrrha gasped.
"Did anyone see where?" The heiress cried.
Ruby raised her hands in a calming manner. "Weiss you need to take a minute to think."
"We don't have that time," she snarled. "If we delay any longer Blake will be gone for good."
The reaper shook her head. "No she won't. Blokes panicking right now, she hasn't put together that she can't leave without the bullhead. She has no supplies, lien or even an idea of where to go yet. We'll find her."
Weiss nodded. "You're right, then we can apprehend her."
"That's… not what I meant."
Ruby went ignored as the Schnee turned to the others. "We need to spread out, find Blake and make sure she doesn't get away."
Team JNPR nodded, albeit hesitantly, and turned to leave the warehouse. There was silence between the three remaining members of Team RWBY. Weiss looked between the two sisters with irritation.
"Well?" she said. "Are you coming or not?"
"Don't you think that was a bit of a bad idea ice queen?" Yang said softly.
"You can't be serious. She's obviously with the White Fang."
"You didn't give her a chance to explain anything Weiss!" Ruby tried again, her voice was begging her partner to see reason.
But the heiress wasn't moved. "She ran. That's a sure a sign of her guilt as any."
"You pointed your sword at her." Yang pointed out.
She grit her teeth and growled. "I'm going to catch her. You can't stop me, so either help or get out of my way." And with that she left.
Ruby and Yang didn't follow. The older girl turned to her sister.
"Well Weiss sounds determined… what now boss?"
Ruby closed her eyes and took a breath. "We find Blake, before Weiss does. If we can convince her to talk then I'm sure we can find out the truth."
"And if she is one of the bad guys?" Yang asked, although she didn't sound like she believed it. Blake was her partner after all.
The smaller girl sighed. "I won't let our team fall apart after our first mission. We will work this out… we don't have any other choice."
The blonde grinned. "Got it."
…
…
The town was alive.
The peaceful inhabitants of Grainsal were asleep, but the White Fang was very much active. One of them from the warehouse must have been able to contact for help and revealed that Blake was here because now they were on a full-on manhunt.
Blake ducked and weaved through the alleys as silently as she could, ears twitching at the tiniest of noises. She needed a plan, someplace to go. The obvious answer would be back to the inn to wait it out but her team was probably waiting for her there.
Where was she going anyway? Blake wasn't exactly sure, trusting her feet to take her someplace safe while she figured out what to do.
'You're an idiot," the voice in her head said. "What did you think was going to happen? Did you think you would be some hero? That you could run away from everything you've done?"
She grit her teeth and sped up.
'Well you can't,' the voice continued. 'You lied to your team, lied about who you were and ran away. You're a liar, a coward and a murderer. Nothing's changed since you left the White Fang.'
It wasn't true, she told herself. She had tried to change. She'd joined Beacon for the chance to make things right. To be someone that Faunus looked up to and saw as someone they could trust.
And yet you still ended up running. What did you think a person like you could achieve? Why did you really do it? was it for fame? Glory? Revenge against the White Fang?'
No! that wasn't it-
Because from the looks of it, you seemed very keen on the last one. What, with how you tore through those grunts like paper. With how vicious you were it almost felt like you wanted to hurt them and then when they recognised you it only got worse. Of course you resorted to killing that man.
That had been an accident-
Really? Because this isn't the first time you've killed someone, nor the second or third. Just how many lives are you willing to end to get what you want? Sure it's with you on a different side but the result is the same.
Someone dies. And Miss Blake Belladonna gets to run away from the consequences again.
As Blakes inter struggle continued she tripped over discarded trash, curing herself for losing focus she crossed the street and ducked into another alley.
What did you think was going to change anyway? You think that running away is going to make this any better? That's crazy.'
"I'm not crazy." Blake growled through clenched teeth.
'Really? Because talking to one's self definitely falls into that category. Oh, up ahead by the way.
It registered just as six White Fang turned the corner and saw her. They snarled and aimed their guns.
"There she is!" one of them yelled. "Shoot her! We can't let her escape!"
Nearly on instinct Blake leapt into the air, kicking off the wall as bullets whizzed under her. She planted one foot on the vertical wall and kicked off, doing the same thing to the other side, again and again as she rose higher and higher. Each time she would just barely avoid the dust projectiles as the chipped the stone she had just been in contact with.
With one last jump the cat Faunus' hands clamped onto the edge of the roof and she scrambled over the top. She flinched as a bullet bounced off her aura but didn't stop. They were already calling for help and she didn't want to stick around when it arrived.
Blake sheathed Gambol Shroud to keep her hands free even as her instincts screamed at her to be ready for a fight. But the fact was she would stand out even more with her favoured weapon draw. Better to find a place she could mix, blend in and disappear.
But first, she had to actually find somewhere safe.
…
…
"Why aren't you using your speed semblance again?" Yang gasped out as she and her sister ran down a street.
Ruby's weapon was drawn in its sniper form while Yang gauntlets were primed and ready. They could hear the cries and yelling of the White Fang all around them, and were ready for a fight. Honestly, it was a wonder people hadn't woken up at all.
"because we might miss Blake if I run too fast." Ruby explained. "We might not blend in here but in this light – or you know that fact that there barely is any- means she's almost impossible to see. If I rush it I might miss her altogether."
Yang nodded. "Right, well if you know what you're doing then I guess I'll trust you."
The younger girl made a face that looked like she was frowning at herself.
"I don't know what I'm doing, I'm just worried that if we don't hurry then she'll get hurt."
The blonde snorted. "Come on, Blake can take on some White Fang grunts any-day."
"I meant Weiss… if she fights Blake first then I don't know what'll happen."
"Hey," Yang called while putting a reassuring hand on her leaders… her sister's shoulder. "I might not know Blake all too well but she's still my partner. She won't hurt Weiss no matter how much she argues with her. And she's strong. Enough to hold Weiss off until we can find them."
"Unless Weiss is trying to kill Blake." Ruby argued.
Yang's eyes flared red.
"That won't happen, got it?"
Ruby didn't reply, facing ahead with her ever-watchful eyes and despite herself Yang did the same. Her sister was right; even if her partner could hold the angry Schnee off one of them could still be hurt.
Right now she needed to keep a lookout and-
Wait… what was that?
Yang skid to a halt on a street corner and squinted into an alley. There was no light, and yet… she could see something… glow.
She took a step closer as her skin prickled with a freezing cold, and her breath was suddenly visible. What was that? What was it!? it was like a feeling in the back of her eyes that burned the closer she got… what was…
"What are you doing?"
Yang almost jumped out of her skin as Ruby's hand came down on her shoulder. She blinked, the red fading from her eyes as she looked to her sister.
"I thought I saw…" she trailed off. She looked back and the light had vanished, faded as fast as it had appeared… and the cold was gone.
What was that?
Had Ruby seen it? she hadn't been looking, but right now she was prominently looking in the other direction.
"Come on, I think I picked up a trail but we need to hurry."
Yang shook her head clear. "R-right."
…
…
A dead end.
Blake cursed loudly. She trapped herself.
She didn't know these streets and with no time to plan she'd run straight into a corner she couldn't go back from.
Especially not with the sound of people getting closer. There was no other option, she had to fight.
Blake snarled as Gambol Shroud came free and was split in two. The dual blades – katana and cleaver – held in reverse grips as she took a wide stance; left foot forward and prepared to pounce.
They came around the alley corner; a dozen White Fang with their weapons already aimed at her.
There Blake stood, ready to fight for her life, teeth bared against her own kind and a dozen guns pointed at her.
When a storm of ice crashed into the ground and sent them flying.
They flew in every direction, slamming against the brick walls and slumping like puppets cut from their strings and Blake stared at its centre. Had… Weiss just saved her?
She was given an answer when the heiress spun around and levelled Myrtenaster at her. No, of course Blake wouldn't be that lucky.
"Freeze!"
In a hysterical part of her mind, Blake realised there was a joke there. Something Yang would have no doubt picked up on and – probably – butchered it beyond belief. Even in the short time Blake had known her partner she knew that the blonde had a thing for stupid jokes like that.
Why was she thinking about that now? She wasn't sure but chalked it up to fear.
Weiss was, of course, ignorant to her internal plight and schooled her face into a cold demeanour.
"Your attempt to flee has failed," she said. "It was a fair try, running the way you did… if it wasn't for these White Fang scrambling around I might never have found you." She nodded to the unconscious terrorists before turning back to Blake.
"Blake Belladonna, as a Huntress-in-training I hereby place you under arrest."
Blakes grip tightened on her weapon almost instinctively… Weiss noticed; her mouth downturned as she advanced forward. "Don't try to resist. If you do I will use force."
The dark-haired girl grit her teeth and shook her head.
"No. I'm not going to turn myself in; there are things I still have to do."
"You should have thought of that before you did all this!"
Blake's frustration began to leak through as she growled and her ears flattened on her head. "Why can't you just listen?!"
"To a murderer?" Weiss spat. "I think not. I think the time for talking is over."
The Faunus agreed, tightening her grip she readied herself for a fight.
And promptly railed back as Weiss sword narrowly missed her head. It was only instincts that had saved her and those same instincts kicked in as she batted the steel away. She stumbled as her eyes widened in shock.
How had she moved that fast?!
There'd been no tell, no obvious movement or even tension in Weiss' legs… that-
Blake's eyes flashed down to the Heiress' feet. There were white Glyphs on the ground where she stood.
So that was how it worked: Weiss didn't so much really on speed as she did for her Glyphs to propel her forwards at high speeds.
This thought ran through her mind just as another thrust was pushed aside by her cleaver. A scowl spread across her face, perhaps even trumping her fear for a moment. She had been pushed onto the defensive almost in an instant. Her eyes flitted in the dark as she parried the next blow; this clash was already stacked against her: the alley was narrow, about the length of her body from one side to the other, not only that but she had a wall at her back that prevented retreat. It was almost like a piste… it was practically the perfect battlefield for Weiss, whose primary weapon was a rapier.
This had been a bad move from the start, and now she was cornered.
Blake cursed and crossed her blades as the Schnee stabbed at her again but this time she pushed forward, locking the rapier in place. She lasted out with her katana-
And hesitated.
The second that passed was what Weiss needed to free her weapon but Blake was already moving again, not with Gambol Shroud but instead planting her boot in her teammate's stomach and pushing. Hard.
She suppressed a wince as the snow-haired girl smashed into a dumpster, her back folding before she hit the ground. It was fine, Blake told herself, her aura protected her.
And it did, because Weiss was already on her feet and lunging in against with a snarl on her face.
Clash!
Clash!
Clang!
Steel rung on steel as sparks flew. Their weapons were a blur, the two huntresses-in-training being speed fighters. Weiss' attacks were beautiful lines of silver against Blake's black steel. The Faunus however knew she had the advantage; Weiss relied on her dust just as much as her close-combat fighting style while Blake not only had the power advantage in close range but more experience.
So why was she on the back foot?
The answer was almost instant, and hit like a hammer:
She didn't want to kill Weiss.
It was ridiculous, here in front of her was the Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, a company that pushed down the Faunus and treated them like dirt. She'd fought against them before, killed members of their company before.
But…
This was different.
It was different because this time Blake knew that Weiss was right… and she was wrong. Weiss knew that she was a huntress-in-training fighting the White Fang and before that she knew that she was training to be someone who could help people.
While Blake had been a terrorist, she'd killed defenceless people in the name of her beliefs, and hadn't even made a defence for the change she had so boldly and blindly fought for.
And when she realised she was wrong she didn't stop them. She ran, just like she was doing now.
In all honesty Blake knew that if she was actually a braver person, a more selfless she would have submitted, turned herself in and faced the consequences. But she wasn't. She was a coward that couldn't let the mistakes she'd made stay that way. She had to make things right.
She… more than that she didn't want to hurt Weiss because as much as she disliked her she… she respected her for reasons she wasn't even sure of herself.
Blake grit her teeth as she deflected another attack and knocked Myrtenaster away, drawing sparks as it dug into the wall.
She didn't want to run again after she'd made her choice; her choice to be a huntress and set things right, to stop the White Fang. To make things better for the Faunas. And if she was honest with herself she wanted to be a part of this team. Of team RWBY because for all its faults it made her feel more welcome than she ever had in the White Fang.
Her partner with her blinding smile, cocky attitude and god-awful puns. Her young, strange leader, who was bright, brave and had a desire to do what's right without hesitating… even Weiss, who was intelligent, dedicated to succeed and was so confident, so sure of her actions that you couldn't help but believe in what she was doing.
It had been just two weeks. And yet she knew all of this about her team. And… she didn't want it to end yet. Not so soon after it had started.
Blake's body surged with anger. She locked blades with Weiss once again but this time she didn't retreat. With all her strength she pushed forward. Blake pressed the tiny window of opportunity she got from Weiss' stumble.
She was on the offensive now; her attacks unrelenting.
The only way to win was to beat Weiss. To subdue her. Which meant she had to fight with everything she had.
Faster and faster she moved, weaving in and out of the Heiresses now desperate thrusts. She was pushing the girl back.
She swung both blades down on Weiss, the girl raising her sword to block it. the Heiresses arms nearly gave out from the force of the attack.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Weiss cried out as she was forced back, slipping as Myrtenaster was thrown to the side. Blake didn't even give her the chance to fall, moving into her guard, pressing her hip against her and locking her arm under Weiss' shoulder and with all her strength threw the shorter girl over her shoulder.
She hit the ground. Painfully, and the sound of her aura vanishing hummed in her ears.
And yet despite this Weiss wasn't done. A snarl passed her lips as she scrambled to her feet again.
Blake though, had had enough.
She lifted Weiss by the collar and slammed her into the wall, lifting her feet off the ground and holding her there.
"Enough Weiss!" she hissed. "You can't beat me and I don't want to hurt you."
The heiress wasn't impressed. "Don't talk to me you monster!" she howled. "I'll make you pay, I'll make all the White Fang pay for what they've done!"
"Weiss you can't-"
"Do you know how many people I've lost?!"
Blake froze. Her eyes wide as she stared at Weiss'; who was on the edge of frustrated tears.
"Every day of my life since as long as I remember I've been in danger from the White Fang. When I was little I had nightmares of Faunus sneaking into my bedroom and killing me." Her teeth ground against each other as she glared at Blake.
"What made it worse was that every friend I made as a child was just another target, another person the White Fang assassinated. I usually got the news days later. I've lost aunts, uncles even staff that worked in my home. All murdered by people like you."
She snarled. "You want me to listen to you terrorist? You want me to just give up? No! I'll hunt every last one of you down and bring justice to all of you!"
Silence.
That was all there was in the alley now, apart from Weiss' labour and angry breathing.
What could Blake say to that? After hearing how she'd been wronged by the very group she'd worked for – believed in – what could she say?
"You're right." Blake whispered, and for some reason, in whatever Weiss had heard it made her pause.
"The White Fang are killers… they've gone too far and… I… I was a part of it. I'm as guilty as any o them because I was too blind to see what we were doing was wrong. You're hatred of them – of me – is justified. But. I'm going to make things right. Not from inside a cell but out here, stopping the White Fang and making things right so that one day there can be peace between humans and Faunus. Real peace."
She looked into Weiss' eyes. "And if I have to bare your hatred, everyone's hatred to absolve the sins of all of my people. Then I will!"
With her piece said Blake scowled at herself, looking away in shame. She almost didn't hear what the snow-haired girl said next. Her voice was soft, bitter, but not towards Blake this time.
"…To redeem the Faunus huh? Isn't that ironic?"
Blake didn't understand what she was referring to, but before she could ask there was a cry from their right. Blake's eyes widened a fraction more in the split second it took her body to react as she pulled Weiss into her chest to shield her.
Before a hail of bullets rained down on them.
Weiss coughed. She'd landed on her back with something weighing down on top of her. Her hands were wet and her eyes were filled with dust. After a moment she opened her eyes to see what was going on.
Her veins turned to ice at what she saw.
"B…blake?"
There she was; the Faunus girl on top of her, shielding Weiss with her own body. Her face was contorted in a pained grimace as Weiss realised what the wetness on her hands was.
Blood.
Her hands were covered in Blake's blood.
Blake, a White Fang terrorist aligned against the Schnee's and everything they were, had thrown herself on top of Weiss to protect her. Her aura had taken the attack for a moment before it had broken through and straight into her body.
"Why?"
It came out as a rasp.
"Why did you save me?"
Blake smiled down at her painfully.
"I told you already… I'm going to make things right."
Before Wiess could say anything in response the sound of heavy footfalls surrounded them, and then Weiss could see White Fang Grunts aiming their rifles at them. She felt Blake shift to shield her even more. She grit her teeth as she vision blurred with tears.
Why!?
"Disgusting," one of the masked terrorists spat. "You betray us, turn your back on everything we fight for and then you protect a Schnee." He aimed the gun barrel right at Blake's head.
"This is your punishment traitor."
He squeezed the trigger.
And was hit by a meteorite.
Weiss gasped at their saviours.
A golden brawler with eyes of crimson, and a girl with a scythe covered in rose petals.
Yang's smile wasn't friendly.
"Alright you bastards," she roared. "Time to get crushed!"
"I think that's a good idea." Their young leader said. Her eyes weren't their gentle selves. They were steel. "Yang… get em."
She was happy to oblige.
…
…
Team RWBY and JNPR sat quietly in their inn room.
It had been an hour since they'd all regrouped. Yang had carried Weiss and Blake back on her shoulders, though neither had protested. The rest of the White Fang that the two sisters hadn't defeated fled from the town, nowhere to be seen.
There had been a bit of excitement when they'd returned and the others had worried over them. They'd asked questions; what had happened? Were they alright? Did they run into any more of the White Fang?
That was all pushed aside however when they saw what had happened to Blake.
Thankfully, and perhaps miraculously Ren had some experience in first aid and at that very moment was dressing Blake's wounds.
So there they were: Jaune and Pyrrha sat on the beds on their side of the room, Nora hopping restlessly from one foot to the other as she watched out the window, Yang stood with her arms crossed guarding the door, Ruby and Weiss were sat on their own beds too, while Blake sat at the foot of her bed as still as she could.
Not exactly out of awkwardness or fear –although it was still there – but because she had to let Ren bandage her shoulder. For that she had taken her shirt off, and was wearing only a grey vest to shield her modesty. Every so often she would wince when Ren dug the metal instruments into her wounds.
So when the silence had taken hold of them all Blake did they only thing she could think off: she told them her story.
Of how she was born into the White Fang, how she had been at the front of every rally and listened in to every peace talk… about how when the White Fang's tactics changed she followed blindly. Blake told them about her deeds, how she'd hut people… even killed.
She told them how she ran.
And when it was all finished she took a deep breath.
"So that's it." she said. "That's the truth."
She stared at her lap, unwilling or unable to look up for fear of how her teammates would see her. Would they give her looks of disgust? Fear? Hatred even?
Ruby was the first one to speak, but not to Blake.
"How's it going there Ren? Anything we should worry about?"
What?!
The boy shook his head as he fiddled with a pair of tweezers.
"Her aura seems to have taken the brunt of the damage. Which is fortunate because some of the bullets look like the just barely missed her spine." He looked over Blake's shoulder as a way to speak to her directly. "There will be some bruising for a while on most of your back but nothing that will damage you permanently."
Despite the situation Blake let out a sigh of relief. As much as she'd flung herself on top of Weiss it had been a thoughtless action. Ad once the dust had settled she had been afraid of just what damage she'd received.
"The blood," Weiss whispered. "What about the blood I felt?"
Ren hummed. "That is the more unfortunate part; eventually you aura did give out Blake, and when it did your right shoulder was filled with dust projectiles. I've managed to dig out the leftover dust reside from your shoulder but… I can't say yet about any scarring. Again nothing was permanently damaged but when it heals over the entry wounds might still be there."
"That's… fine." Blake said.
He nodded. "Then I suggest swapping the bandages out for new ones every week just to be sure. If you really want though you could go to a hospital, they know more about it than me."
Where could she even go? Beacon? Was that even a place she could go back to?
Ruby could hear her unspoken question.
"It's up to all of us. I already know what I think but this is a team, so we'll put it to a vote… but what do you actually want Blake?"
She thought for a moment. What did she want? The answer was obvious, she wanted to stay, to go back to the chance she had to be a huntress… but she couldn't do them at anymore. She stood.
"I understand that things can't go back to the way they were before… I… I'll leave you to your own devices… I'm sorry."
She turned to leave, fully intent on walking out the door and leaving their lives before she could ruin them any further.
Or… she would have, if Yang hadn't blocked her path with a grin on her face. She looked towards her sister.
"I didn't know about you Ru, but I think my partner was pretty awesome fighting the White Fang back there. I think we should keep her around, it'll be fun at least."
Blake stared up at the blonde. Was she serious? After everything she'd just told them Yang shrugged it off like it was nothing.
"I think you're right," Ruby agreed and didn't seem fazed when the Faunus spun round to gap at her. "whatever you think Blake I'm the leader of this team… It'd be pretty unfair if I judged you for things you did before joining Beacon. I don't think anyone else is gonna judge either. Right?"
There was a chorus of positive noises from Team JNPR, with Nora of course shooting her a thumbs up for good measure.
Blake couldn't believe it. were they really that accepting of her after she'd just revealed that she had been a terrorist? Did they just not care?!
That was when Weiss stood. Blake froze, her feet suddenly rooted to the ground as the others went quiet.
Hesitantly, Weiss took a step towards Blake, then another. Eventually, she'd inched her way over to stand directly opposite the Faunus, all the while a tentative look on her face.
Then she stared at the floor, unable to look Blake in the eyes.
"You saved me," she breathed in a whisper. "Me, probably someone that many of Faunus kind hate for my blood… you even more so have reason to despise me, to let me die. Instead you fought to stop me without killing me, and threw yourself in danger to protect me." Her eyes hardened."You said you wanted to make things right? Well so do I."
"W-Weiss?" Blake couldn't believe what she was hearing.
The Heiress pressed on. "My goal. My real goal is to redeem the Schnee Dust Company, to solve the injustices committed by my family; by my father and… and to make things right."
She met Blakes eyes with a determined look.
And held out her hand.
"Let's do it together. You and I, Schnee and Faunus from both sides working to make things right not just for ourselves, not just for our people but for everyone!"
With her word said Weiss kept her hand out, waiting for Blake to accept.
And she did.
Firmly and resolutely Blake shook Weiss' hand and even though her face was still morphed in shock.
She could feel something inside her that told her this was the right choice.
Blake reached into her pocket and looked down at her hand, to the ribbon in it. it was a small sacrifice, but if it meant she could start again then she–
"No."
She blinked.
"W-what?"
The Schnee's hard look was back as she put her hands on her hips.
"If we're going to do this, and we are doing this then it won't be with you hiding your true self. You, Blake Belladonna, are going to stand proudly beside me as a Faunus so show that even the most unlikely of people can work towards something great. Not to mention I refuse to have a teammate that feels the need to hide herself away."
"But," Blake tried. "The others at Beacon –"
"Will deal with me if they have a problem with who you are."
"And me!" Yang added, casually cracking her knuckles.
"And us," Pyrrha smiled. "While we haven't known you for long you've finally been honest, not to mention risking your life. I think it's fair to say that team JNPR will support you also. Right Jaune?"
The Blond blinked. "Yeah, obviously," he said. "I don't think we'd have been able to find a good reason not to even if we tried."
"Oh yeah!" Nora boomed. "Team JNPR representing you Blakey! You got a problem with anyone and we'll break their legs."
"Not quite that extreme," Ren argued. "But we will support you."
Ruby smiled. "So there you go Blake. Everyone's with you if you want to stay."
She couldn't move. She couldn't speak. Blake was so floored by their acceptance that she'd been rendered speechless. Every single one of them had rocked her world with her words… she didn't know what to say.
Yang did.
"Huh…"
"What is it?" Their leader asked.
"Nuthin'," Yang ginned. "I just realised that the nickname kitten works soooo~ much better now."
The others groaned.
"Yang no."
"Yang yes."
Blake couldn't help it. Whether it was from the ridiculousness of Yang's words, the situation she was in or the weight that had suddenly disappeared from her shoulders she didn't know.
But she laughed.
She laughed and laughed and laughed.
With joy so freeing that the others couldn't help but join in.
Ruby smiled.
"Hey guys? Let's go back to Beacon."
...
And that's the end of the Unrest Arc. What did you think? Was it Good?Bad? Let me know what you think. For now anyway that's the end of the conflict between Blake and Weiss finished. I want to get into the nicer moments of team RWBY now. And I'll also be going deeper into AU material, adding to magic and other things, I can't wait to show you.
Anyway, That's all for now. Be sure to follow, Favourite and Review.
Hope you enjoyed.
Bye!