Recovery
AN: With everything that happened in the Volume 3 finale, we need some happiness in our lives right now, just like Yang does.
Jake stood outside the room with hesitation. The attack on Vale and Beacon had ended, sure…...but there were sacrifices. Pyrrha, poor Pyrrha…..she went out fighting who was responsible for all this, and he didn't know how but because of her sacrifice, the Grim Dragon was stopped. He went to her funeral….Jaune cried, honestly Jake didn't blame him.
Afterwords, he and Jaune talked. He, Ren, Nora, and Ruby were all heading to Heaven, and he was asked to come with too. But…..after everything? He just felt too numb to do anything. He was angry at first, he was angry that whoever was responsible was still out there and he wanted their heads on his shield for what they've done…...and he was serious.
Ozpin had dissapeared, no one knew where he was or they knew and just didn't want to tell. There were casualties to the civilians too, but their numbers had barely been affected. So that was good at least.
Weiss had gone back home as well, by her father's request but he honestly didn't blame the man. Their relationship may be strained, but he does at least care about his daughter. Blake had disappeared too. But she was alive, he'd seen her after it all ended but hadn't seen a glimpse of her since. He'd be lying if he said he understood why or that he agreed.
And then…there was Yang.
She had been badly wounded…...Adam. He cut her right arm off. And Jake's first thought after hearing that was to track this sick son of a bitch down and make him suffer. Make him suffer for everything that's happened, but he couldn't, Yang was far more important than that. So every day he came by the hospital, to check in on her condition. She was stable, and her wound had healed nicely, but still when he looked at it…..he just felt like it wasn't real.
God knows what she thinks. he thought, still staring at the door.
He wants to look on the bright side but…..how?
He can he look on the bright side of things when things are the way they are now? Part of him wanted to just find somewhere to cry, part of him was mad and wanted to hit someone, and another part…...he just wanted to know what his next move was. Up until now it was go check in on Yang and see.
But she was awake now. Her partner was missing, Ruby has left, and…..she lost her fucking arm.
"I can't do this…...fuck me I can't…...I have to do this." he said, steeling himself as best he could as he kept his tears back. Taking a few breaths to calm himself down, he reached for the door handle and turned it, opening the door quietly as he could.
There she sat, looking out the window with her gauntlet and a few sunflowers he had bought her on the bedside table. His voice was gone, just like when he tried to talk her before they had actually KNOWN each other.
Eventually, Yang felt someone staring. Her head turned with a almost angry look in her eyes but they widened when she saw who it was. "Oh…." she said, her heart clenching at the sight of Jake. Right now…...right now she didn't want to see anyone but…..at the same time she wanted someone to just talk to.
"Hey…." Jake greeted, shutting the door closed behind him. Slowly walking over, he took a seat in the chair next to her bed. "...I…...I'm….." Jake's fortitude was failing, he wanted to break down and cry, cry about her being alive and not dead, but he refused to let his mask fall.
But it slipped, Yang saw the way his body trembled, the sucking in of his lip, the rapid blinking. It was then she realized that he looked like hell.
His hair, both the new stubble on his face and head, had grown out slightly, the area around his eyes were red, his lips looked like someone took a knife to them from how he'd been chewing at them for the past few days. She came to the realization that he was holding a lot back, he was holding everything back, just so she wouldn't get upset.
"I uhh…...I found those sunflowers a few days back…..I didn't know if you had a favorite so…..if-if you don't….." he struggled.
Yang felt her heart clench. "Jake."
Her saying his name sounded like a gunshot, he was completely focused on her now. "I…..are you ok?" she asked finally. He wanted to nod, he wanted to say he was fine, there wasn't a single…
"I don't have a scratch on me….and my girlfriend is sitting in the hospital. No…...I'm not ok." he said, finally breaking as he let the tears fall down his face. Yang's hand reached to his, he put her fingers in a vice grip the moment they made contact.
He was no longer trembling, he was full out shaking. "I-I-I…...it should have been me." he said, making Yang look at him in shock, "If-F it were me you wouldn't be in here and hurt and Blake would still be here with Ruby…." he whimpered out as salty tears went down his face.
Yang had enough.
She used her strength to pull him in close, to her body, his arms flew around her midsection, gripping onto her for dear life. "Shhhhh, shhhh…..let it out Jake, let it all out." she said soothingly as her hand ran calmly through his hair and back. Yang honestly felt bad at first but after listening to him? Jake was on the breaking point here.
Other than everyone at beacon, he didn't have any friends. And with most of them gone their separate ways, this has to be devastating to him. "Jake…..it's ok."
"It's not." he muffled back as he sat up and looked at her. This time she had a clear view of how upset he is, his eyes were red from tears, his mouth was quivering, his entire body was shaking down to his feet that tapped against the floor. And he was right….things aren't ok.
For the past few weeks she had sat in this bed and what good has it done?
I'm looking at it. she thought, seeing her boyfriend's mask destroyed.
"Your right. It's not ok." she started. Her hand lifted up and cupped his cheek. "But we are going to make it better. Ok?" she asked. Jake stared at her a moment before letting out a breath and nodding. "Ok…..but I'm…..I am missing an arm." she said bluntly. "I'm not going to be able to just get out there and kick some ass. Yet…..So I'm going to need your help." she said.
Jake's tears had stopped flowing, "Ok…..anything you need. Just say the word."
"First….kiss me." she said quietly as she leaned her head in towards Jake's, his lips met her's without hesitation, surprising Yang. She expected hesitance, she expected him to question why but instead he was kissing her for the same reason she wanted him to kiss her.
To feel.
The past few weeks have been nothing but numbness to her, day in and day out. And when she wasn't numb, she felt sad, she felt anger, and a whole handful of negative emotions.
But right now, all she wanted was him to keep kissing her. Jake's kiss felt like it was desperate, desperate to feel her warm skin but finding that it anything but. Her skin was normal temperature, almost cold.
Pulling away, Yang shakily let out a breath, "I thought…"
"Yang…...I love you. Arm or not…...hair or not-" he added. The blonde's hand immediately went to her hair, worried that it had to be cut for some strange reason but relief finding her when she felt her locks untouched. That's when she realized the meaning, a joke.
And she smiled. "Your a jerk." she said, bowing her head down, trying to hide her smile but failing when she started giggling.
"I'm your jerk. Forever. Got it?" he asked, making her nod her head, the couple leaning their foreheads against each other's.
Yang's hand laid against his chest, her eyes widened at how fast his heart was beating. She thought back to his anxiety and how they talked about how he handled it. "Jake….I want you to get checked out here ok?" she asked. He opened his mouth to protest, "Please?" she asked again.
Jake closed his mouth before sighing. "Ok. Sure thing sunshine." he agreed.
As the two embraced once again, Taiyang Xiao Long smiled from the doorway. Smiling at the sight of his daughter happy after so long. He'd give the couple a few more minutes of their reunion.
After that, he'll break the boy's arm if he does it any longer.
(000)
"Anxiety disorder? Seriously?" Yang asked with surprise at the diagnostic that Jake had been given. Jake had done as she said and went to see one of the doctors about his symptoms, and given the state that he's been in since the attack it does make sense,
Jake sat at the foot of her bed, "Yep. He says it's actually been more common since the attack. Unfortunately…...I don't have any real medical insurance." he said. He and his sister were the only ones in their family that either of them knew about. "The doc said it could be possible that it's heredity…...or my lifestyle….upbringing…..you get the idea."
Yang stared at him sadly, the idea was that he was he was a ticking time bomb for a possible heart attack from the sound of things. "You're at risk." she muttered. Jake nodded, she felt her chest clench, "Is there anything you can do?" she asked with concern.
Jake shook his head, "Well he said that there's medicine but it's pretty expensive, and that's before people with the same thing kinda skyrocketed." he explained. Supply and demand was a pretty tight concept.
Jake could see she was unnerved by this news, he gave her a reassuring smile, "BUT he also said that there are meditative and relaxing techniques can really help as well." he added, making her features relax. "And what about you?"
Yang smiled, "Well since I've been kind of a lazy butt, my muscles need to be built back up a little. After Gaining some more muscle mass…...i'll be Able to get a cybernetic arm." she said, looking down at the wrapped up wound. The old wound was far from being in danger of reopening, she just liked keeping it on so others wouldn't stare at it. Jake hadn't even seen it since…...that day.
She gulped at the mere idea. She hadn't seen the wound herself, she passed out before she hit the ground. So it was all a kind of distant dreams she couldn't recall, "You thinking of…." he trailed off, glancing at her bracelet on the table.
Yang was unsure, after losing to Adam like that…..she wasn't even sure if she can fight given that every time she looks at it she thinks of how she lost it's twin. "Maybe…...do you think you could help? I mean like…...I don't want it to be big and bulky."
"because you need balance and speed for when you move…...and sensors. That way you can feel things with the arm." he said, already thinking of ways to improve the arm. "You know it's possible I could integrate your weapon directly into the arm," he gave Yang a grin, "And I can make it so when you crack your knuckles they make the sound of cracking knuckles."
Yang smiled a little at that. "Ok you're messing with me."
"Ok maybe a little. But seriously I can do a lot….maybe make a rocket arm?" she suggested jokingly. Yang rolled her eyes but smiled, before it slowly faded, "Could…..could you make it have skin?" she asked, her hand touching her shoulder.
"Oh that's kinda standard. I mean it would usually depend on how bad the injury is and what type of injury it is. So you'll probably qualify but…there may be a scar." he explained. Honestly he would take a scar over missing an arm any day, but this was different, this was Yang.
The blonde thought for not even a second, "Who cares? Scars are cool." she said with a shrug. Her right arm having the feeling of pins and needles at the thought.
Phantom Pain was something that took her a while to get used to. But honestly she had gotten used to it, it was just a reminder, and it wasn't like she could forget.
"You know…..I could start getting to work on it but…..I would need your measurements…..including…" Yang's hand brushed up against the bandages. "I could get it from the doctors though, if that's too…." he explained, not wanting to do something she's not comfortable with.
"No." was her automatic response. Jake nodded in understanding, instead he gave her a smile that she slowly began to mirror. "I mean…..not right now…...I'm still…"
"Yeah, I know." he said understandingly.
The couple were silent after that, Jake's hand reached out and took ahold of her's, giving it a small squeeze of reassurance before smiling. "You still look sexy without it." he said abruptly.
His statement made Yang look at him before bursting out in laughter. After a few moments she managed to calm herself back down, "I'm not…..not right now anyway."
"You make it sound like you want me to make your hand sexy." Jake noted.
"I'm sure you can find some way to do it." she said as Jake lifted her hand up and planted a small kiss on it in a gentleman like manner. Yang's fingers writhed in his palm, "You…..don't have to do this."
Jake have her a look, "Of course I do. You're my girlfriend, and if I got super smarts the least I can do is help you get a sweet robot arm." he said.
"That's my point." Yang explained sadly. Jake went quiet, "This…...this won't heal. I mean yeah we can make it look like my old one as much as we want but…...if this is too much-"
"Don't you dare ask me that Yang." Jake said, his eyes locking with hers. She quieted when she saw just how serious he was. "Don't you even dare ask me if I want to leave you. You don't get to ask that because of this," he nodded his head to her missing limb, "I know your….recovering. But get it in your head, I ain't leaving." he said with determination.
Yang was silent, she had tears in her eyes but they refused to fall down her face. After moments of silence she finally smiled, "You're not leaving. Got it." she said before nodding in agreement.
(000)
Deep breath in. Jake sucked in a long breath through his mouth
And let it all out. He exhaled through his nose.
Breathing exercises were amazing to Jake. It was something he did every day without even thinking about it and yet he could use it to keep himself nice and calm.
Clink.
Jake popped an eye open as he heard Yang breathing hard. The blonde was sitting on a bench with a fifty pound weight in her hand with sweat beading down her forehead. She was pushing herself. Again, "You know you can get more reps with less weight." she said as he uncrossed his legs and stood up, walking over to Yang before kneeling beside her.
"Well I….ugh….need to get back in….ugh….shape." she explained, struggling a little with the weight. Jake could tell she wouldn't be backs to lift it again even if she couldn't see that, he reached over and took the weight by both ends, Yang glared at him but he simply looked right back at her.
The blonde sighed in defeat fedora slowly lowering it to the ground. "Given that you're not using your godlike strength, you're doing amazing. Physical therapy usually takes months." The couple looked up to see Yang's father, Taiyang, standing with a bottle of water, the top already opened for Yang.
"Thanks dad." Yang thanked as she took the water and drank it halfway before coming up for air. "Oh god that's refreshing." she said with a smile as leaned back on the bench rest.
Tai nodded as he looked at the weight she had been using, "You know that you can get more reps-"
"-with less weight I know. He said the exact same thing." she said, nodding to Jake who was finding his shoes very interesting at the moment.
Tai intimidated him like a Rottweiler intimidated a squirrel. He wanted to find somewhere to hide until Tai was gone, but he was NOT going to leave Yang's side…..even if it meant him getting killed by her father.
Yang of course noticed this, spending every day with him she picked up on it right away. The young woman looked between the two, her dad was a big sweetheart in her eyes, when she was depressed over everything he was there to try and help her.
Her gaze shifted to Jake, a small grin appeared on her face. "Well I gotta use the little lady's room. I'll be right back." she said. It was hard learning how to use the bathroom with one arm for the time being, but after her dad helped a few times she found a way to do it by herself.
Jake felt her hand run through his hair, "Don't go anywhere." she said, a hint of demand in her voice as she walked off to use the restroom.
That left Jake…...and Taiyang.
You have gotta be effing kidding m- Jake thought before Tai spoke.
"So…...how has she been doing?" Taiyang asked uneasily. He was grateful that this young man had managed to pull Yang out of her depressive state, but what ate him up was that…..well Yang hadn't told him anything. She didn't say how she was feeling, when she was frustrated, she kept to herself even when he called her out on it.
She was his daughter, and it killed him he didn't know what was going ok with her.
Jake gulped, glancing at the weight she was just using. He could feel his gut doing it's best contortion act and that didn't help his thinking all that much. "She's…...well I can't speak for her, but I think she's doing as well as can be expected…...but I think she just wants to do something other than wallow." he said.
Tai nodded, "That sounds like her."
Jake smiled, "Yep…..she still hasn't made a pun though. And that actually kinda worries me." he said honestly, the knot in his gut tightening. He took a deep breath in before slowly letting it out to calm down.
Tai noticed his breathing, Yang had mentioned that the young man had anxiety problems. And as much as he was proud that Jake recognized him, and feared him, as Yang's father, he also could tell that he deeply cared about his daughter.
"You seemed more worried than she is." he noted.
Jake looked down at the ground. "After…..after everything happened…..I couldn't find my footing. I didn't know what to do so I just found Yang and came to visit her, day in and day out….and it worked. I woke up, I ate, I helped with clearing out grim, and went to visit Yang." he explained. He liked the pattern, it helped keep his mind off other things.
"But when she woke up…..I just…...I just lost my footing again….but she helped me get it back…...and I'm after aid that of I loose it again…..she'll lose her's too." he explained.
Taiyang let out a ooh of understanding. "You feel responsible for her." he noted.
Jake was silent for a few seconds. "I wanted to go with Yang and look for Blake, but I decided to go find Ruby instead…..if I had gone with her….maybe it'd be me without a limb…..and her out there with her team….and I'd be ok with that."
The revelation shocked Taiyang, he'd give his life for his daughters without a thought. But he accepted that it wasn't his fault what happened to Yang, she should be allowed to do what she wants, and he still worried because they're his kids.
But Jake.,...if what he is saying is true. He would gladly sacrifice himself for Ruby or Yang.
Jake felt a large hand on his shoulder. For a second he thought Tai was going to ring his neck and snap it afterwards for good measure. But instead, he patted it. "You're a good man Jake…...but don't ever think like that. Yang is alive, and that's all that matters." he said knowingly.
Jake gritted his teeth. That wasn't all that mattered. Yang came first of course, but he fully intended to find Adam when Yang was back in fighting shape. He didn't want to leave her, but the last person she needed to
see was Adam. Tai could see the fire in the young man's eyes, "You want to hurt whoever did this to Yang don't you?"
"No. I'm going to kill him." Jake stated adamantly, looking over at Tai with pure rage in his eyes. Anxiety problems can be solved by channeling them as well, so he planned on using every little bit he has on making Adam pay for what he's done. Slowly and very Painfully if can.
"Ok. Let's say you do. You kill the guy and you tell Yang. Then what?" he asked. Jake was about to reply but stopped himself, he hadn't a clue to how Yang would react to learn he killed someone for her…...thinking that sentence actually scared him a bit. "If you do that, then every time you look at my daughter you will think of that man."
Taiyang folded his hands together as he leaned forward on the bench, "I don't blame you for wanting payback. Oum knows I want the same. But I also know that's not what I want to remember when I look at my little girl." he said.
Jake looked down at his feet. Tai patted him on the back, "It's ok. I just said we can't kill him, we'll fuck his shit up when we see him." he said with a small smirk.
"I call dibs on his arm. Poetic Justice."
"Screw that! Yang's my little girl, I get the arm, you get whatever you want,"
Jake thought for second. "I will mount his balls on a wall."
"...trade?"
"No. You had your chance." Jake said with some triumph.
(000)
"GAH! Sonofva-MMMMMHHH." Jake growled out as he shook his recently burned finger through the air to try and cool it down. On the desk in front of him was Yang's arm…..her new arm, nor her old one…..and now he was thinking of her old one. Gross.
Beacon had been closed down for clearing from the attack, Vaccuo and Mistral sent some of it's hunters and military to help. Atlas offered as well as a sign of good will, but having your armed robots attack a city that's also being invaded by Grim didn't exactly make Atlas the most well liked place. Unsurprisingly.
And due to Beacon being closed, so was the housing. But due to how the hunts people's (because saying both men and women of the profession was a mouthful) bravery the city was more than grateful enough to allow them some free housing for the time being.
Jake had gotten a small apartment, mainly because when people began to move back in they could put multiple people up in larger rooms. The one he had was…..well it was what a hotel room was to a suite as a ballroom is to a broom closet.
It had one bed in the wall with the window, a small kitchen on the other end, and a door leading to it with a table right beside the door for his work. His shield laid at the foot of his bed, the round weapon in need of some polishing off, grim blood was hard to get out.
The arm on the table was simply the hand, deciding to get the most hard and complicated part of the arm out of the way and done with. The fingers were littered with small sensors so Yang would be able to feel, with or without synthetic skin too. It looked exactly like her hand but painted yellow and black for the time being.
The joints were what took him all of last night to design, mainly because he had to check and recheck if he had the right amount of them, using his own hand for preference for the time being. As of now he had only two fingers, the Pointer finger and the middle finger.
"Now that I've come this far I now realize I probably shouldn't have started with the middle finger." he muttered as he reached for his cup of coffee. Unlike Weiss, he took his coffee bitter, nothing in it.
It helped keep him awake through the night.
As he started to get back to work, Jake felt someone watching him. Glancing over at his shield, he watched as he saw a shadow move slightly over it.
He moved fast, turning to his left he kicked the chair back to the intruder as he reached for his shield's rim. Spinning on his heel, he threw the disc at the intruder, nailing them in the gut and knocking them back onto the floor as the shield bounced off the kitchen countertop and back at the young man.
The shield clamped down on his wrist, his magnetic seal on his forearm holding it in place as he grabbed the handle with his hand. "You have five seconds to tell me who you are before you get something cracked." he said as the shadowed figure stood up.
Jake's eyes widened, "Blake!?" he yelped in shock. It was indeed the Faunus, her outfit having a more winter appearance, a black pea coat with the collar up covered her torso, along with dark grey pants that went down to her shoes, she also had fingerless gloves on the same color as her bow.
"Hello Jake." she greeted.
The young man honestly didn't know if he should hug her and be thankful she's ok, or bash her again. But his face showed a more neutral expression, "So…..you're here."
The girl's eyes locked with his, her face showing that she was tired, like when she was trying to track down Torchwick. The Faunus lowered her gaze to his shield, the dried blood on it almost made her feel a little sick. "How….how is she?"
"You're seriously asking me that?" Jake spat out, making her flinch. He wanted her to feel bad, he wanted her to feel like shit for leaving like she did. But if there was a chance…..
"Look….I understand why you left." she started again, lowering his shield. "I mean honestly I'd do the same if it were me but….I'd hate myself…" he said. The look on Blake's face said that she did too. "But you have to do something Blake. I'll tell her you dropped by-"
"You can't." she interrupted. "If she finds out I came to you and not her…." the hypothetical hung in the air and it stank that she was right. News like this would send Yang back into her depressed state in a instant.
The young man sighed, "Ok…...so why are you here?" he asked.
Blake laid back against the countertop, "I….I just want to know how she's doing." she admitted honestly.
Jake nodded as he sat back down in his bed, "She's better. She hasn't made a dumb joke yet but we're getting there." he supplied. That made Blake smile, she'd seen how losing so much can affect one person first hand.
"That's good…...Jake you know that-"
"I know…..you didn't want to leave…...but if what Adam said to you is true…...we can't leave it to chance." he said. If he was in Blake's shoes he would do the same thing to protect everyone else. And as much as he wanted payback against Adam, he honestly wasn't sure if he could win in a one on one fight. "Look…...this isn't forever." he said, "You four? You'll get back together, and with us plus Nora, Ren, and Jaune? We will kick Adam's ass." he said confidently.
Blake didn't look to sure, "He beat me and Yang and we didn't even hurt him-"
"Did you hurt Roman when you first fought him? No. You got better, you all did. And that's what's going to happen, we're going to get better, and we will beat him." he stated with confidence. No one is unbeatable, and if Adam thinks that, that's how they'll beat him.
Blake smiled at his words. Right now it may not seem it, but they carried a weight with them. "Ok….but for now-"
"My lips are sealed. But when Yang does find you…...you going to wish I got you with this." he said, knocking his knuckles against the shield. The weapon was strong enough to defend against one of Nora's strongest swings of her hammer.
But…...if he did what Blake did to Yang, and then she proceeded to track him down. She would break his shield and then proceed to beat him to a bloody pulp. And that was if he wasn't her boyfriend. He glanced over at the hand, "And that's with her having a single hand. When I give her this? You may want to consider getting some protection." he stated.
"Yeah…..guess I kind of deserve it then."
(000)
Jake walked down the path to the hospital with a bit of a spring in his step. He had a package under his arm that had been gift wrapped to the best of his abilities. It took him two weeks but he finally finished the arm. And with some luck, Yang could get it attached soon enough.
As the doors slid open, he gave a wave to the receptionist who gladly let him get into the elevator. He'd gotten to be fairly well known throughout the hospital, having come in every day since the attack he wasn't surprised.
Pressing the third floor button, the small box lifted him two floors up to where Yang's room was. Feeling a buzzing in his pocket, he pulled it out and gulped at the caller ID.
Liz. His sister. She was currently in Atlas. She herself had moved there before he went to Beacon to start on her career as a Pilot. But her being his big sister, she was more like a mother in that regard, she doted on him every chance she had, he understood why of course but it didn't stop it from becoming annoying.
"Hel-"
'Don't you dare just 'hello' me Jake Jarsa! I have half a mind to steal one of the ships here and fly over to where you are and bring you back here!' she shouted into his ear so loudly that he recoiled away from the phone.
Stepping out of the elevator, he walked to a small waiting area where he sat down to talk. "Liz I'm fine, I told you I'm ok and Vale is…" he glanced out the window, Beacon off in the distance away from Vale where the now was stone dragon perched atop of. "...perfectly safe."
'There was a dragon.' Liz stated bluntly.
"Ok yeah there was but it was pretty cool looking." he said back jokingly.
He could hear her draw out a sigh on the other end, 'Why can't you just come here with me?'
"Beside the fact that the murderbots came from there? Yeah I think I'll take my chances here where you don't need to keep looking over my shoulders." he stated adamantly. He had destroyed a great number of the Atlas robots in the attack, and right now the city and school were being investigated.
It wasn't so much that he didn't trust the people in charge, General Ironwood seemed like a good man. But brute force can't answer every problem, it needs to be thought out, machines can't do that, but people can.
'Ok first off, you know that someone else was responsible, you where there. And second, you've been making little robots since you were six.' she pointed out.
"Wrong, I tinkered with parts. I didn't make anything with AI that could be hacked." he reminded her.
He could tell she didn't want to fight, but he just wanted to nail the fact that he didn't want to go with her. 'Look why are you staying there? I mean I get it if you want to help people but…..I'm your sister for Oum's sake. Talk to me.' she pleaded.
Jake sucked his lips in. He still had not told Liz about Yang being his girlfriend, let alone about her injury. "Liz…...my friends here….we took a hit….a really big hit and...I have to help pick them up." he said cryptically.
'Oh….well it's a good thing I'm on my way over to help then.'
Waitwhat?
"I'msorrywhatnow?!" he asked quickly.
'Sooooo I may or may not have had a buddy of mine program a little tracking app in my phone to find you…...and I may or may not have rented one of the bulkheads and I'm now flying over Vale right now.' she said sheepishly.
"...I'm sorry, WHAT?!" he asked, believing every word she said.
'Yeah so I'm gonna have to land this ship, but I'll see you later ok? Bye.' Liz finished before hanging up.
Jake looked down at his scroll before breathing out through his nose. "Oh you MOTHERFU-"
(000)
"-UUUCCCKKEERRRR!"
Yang looked back from the mirror towards the voice, her toothbrush in her mouth as the sink in front of her ran. "Dud yuoush hearh thwat?" she asked her father in the hospital room,
Taiyang nodded, "Yeah….it sounded like Jake." he said. "Couldn't make out what he was saying though." he added as Yang exited the bathroom. Ever since Tai and Jake's talk, the father and boyfriend had gotten along surprisingly well. Both of them sharing a little bit of twisted humor that Yang personally didn't get.
The door opened to show a very pissed off looking Jake. But his scowl dissapeared when he saw Yang, "Hello there sunrise." he said, walking over and hugging her with his free arm.
Yang smiled before pecking him on the cheek, "Hey handsome. What's in the box?"
"What's in the box?" Tai asked in a more dramatic tone. He and Jake grinned at one another.
"Sit down first." he instructed. Yang did as he was told and sat down on the bed beside Jake. Handing her the box, she went to work on tearing the wrapping off it. "So it took me a little longer than I expected but five nights straight and a few dozen cups of coffee and one long power nap later, and this is what I came up with." he explained as she opened the lid to the box.
Her eyes widened as she covered her mouth with her hand, muffling a gasp. It was the arm, the arm that Jake had promised her when he first saw her. Reaching down, she often out of the box with ease. "Since your a boxer, I made it light enough so you won't be slow on the swung but hard enough as your other hand. It has artificial muscles in it that contort like real ones, so you should be able to control your strength like you normally would." he explained as her fingers brushed up against her artificial ones. Tai was beside her as well, looking over it with as much awe as she was.
"Oh yeah I put most of the sensors in the fingers too. The doctor will take care of associating touching sensations so you don't feel ticklish when you hold ice or something." Jaje further explained.
"Now I went with yellow and black because of your bike and in case your skin gets damaged. But if you want I could make it another color like red or-" Yang's hand covered his mouth.
Her expression was neutral, and it scared him a little. "Dad….could you give us the room?" she asked. Tai looked between the two of them before standing up and walking out the door.
That's when Yang acted.
She slammed her lips onto Jake's catching him off guard as the hand fell to the floor and pushing him down against the bed. Jake's hands held her on her waist, trying to kiss back but finding it difficult to. When she pulled away, he was panting for breath, "So you like it?" he asked to clarify.
Yang was smiling ear to ear as she nodded. "Are you kidding I love it! Jake you did it! You actually….I love you." she abruptly stated, laying her head down next to his, "You did this and I've just…."
"You've been getting better. And you can pay me back when your up and moving." he said with a smile. Yang mirrored it before leaning down and kissing him again, starting to prove his lips with her tongue.
Jake recoiled back a little, "Uh…..wow this bed is very comfy. I might need to-oh goddamnit!" he said when he realized something.
Yang pulled away, "What? What is it?" she asked quickly as Jake ran a hand down his face.
"My stupid crazy sister is on her way." he said in realization. Between seeing Yang, showing her the arm, and making out, it understandably slipped his mind.
Yang gave him a strange look, "So you forgot to tell me she's coming?"
"Not so much as coming but she borrowed a bulkhead, planted a bug on my scroll, and is probably on her way here now." he explained, making the blonde's eyes go wide. Getting off him, the two sat up in the bed, Jake reaching down and picking up her arm.
"So…...how long do you think we got until she gets here?" she asked, laying her head down on his shoulder as he fiddled with the fingers. The young man shrugged, she could be there any minute, and it's not like they can decline visitors on the chance it wasn't Liz.
Jake's arm wrapped around her back, resting his hand carefully on Yang's shoulder. He had always tried not to touch the area where she was cut, mainly because he respected Yang's wishes and she hadn't given him any indication that she was ok with it.
Jake turned and planted a kiss inside her golden hair. Due to the rules, Yang wasn't able to get any hair caring products inside the hospital. "You know tomorrow, I'll try and smuggle in some conditioner for you." he said.
Yang smiled, "I will love you forever if you do that."
"You know I can't buy your love. I am kinda dirt poor." he said jokingly. It was true that money wise, Jake didn't have much, and the arm did set him back significantly. But a few odd jobs here and a chore or two there helped him out of more than one sticky situation.
The couple were unaware the the door to the room had cracked open, on the other side stood a young woman about four years older than Jason. Her black hair cut so that it stopped before her back and bangs combed out of the way of her face. She wore a atlas flight jacket and beige pants with boots.
"You could head to my house and pick some things up. Dad wouldn't do it because he doesn't want to risk being kicked out." Yang explained, Jake chuckling at her explanation.
"Ok so what else? Conditioner. Your scroll is there too." he added, making a mental list.
"Panties." Yang stated before bursting out in laughter along with Jake. "Ooooooh God I needed that. But seriously? Conditioner, pajamas, my purple blanket, and Ruby's chorgi pillow….you think you could sneak in Zwei?"
"How the hell would I do that?"
"Mail him here." Yang stated simply.
"You can't mail a live animal into a hospital." Jake said. Yang gave him a questionable look, challenging if he was indeed right. "Well I assume."
"That's what I thought. Oh and that one book I see you reading sometimes." Yang said, making Jake go rigid like a frozen river. He looked over and see Yang smirking at him with a twinkle in her eye he couldn't quite place.
Liz didn't know whether she should come in and save her little brother, or sit back and watch some more.
Jake on the other had was trying to think of what to say. Through some miracle, his Ninjas of Love collection had somehow avoided being destroyed during the attack. And right now he was kinda hoping it hadn't.
"Um…...those books are a little…...mature…." he muttered. Yang kept up her smirk. "And if your dad were to find them….no doubt he'd kill me." he pointed out. Yang let out a hum of acknowledgement, but her face didn't waver, "And…..you know what those books are don't you?" he asked.
"I saw you hiding it under your bed back at Beacon. I took a little peek. I didn't see you as such a naughty boy~." she said suggestively as Jake's face reddened like a tomato. Liz on the other side of the door had to leave so they didn't hear her laugh.
Jake felt his scroll go off in his pocket, opening he saw he received a text from Liz.
'In heading back. Be sure to call. And good luck with your GF little bro.'
Jake's face went from flustered to ticked off. "Sonofva-"
(000)
Today was the big day. After getting Yang's arm ok'ed by the leading Doctor, as well as a few alterations made to the limb so aura and her semblance could work, Yang was ready for surgery.
But that was on paper. Yang was…..she was nervous.
"It'll be ok Yang. They're professionals." Taiyang stated reassuringly as Yang sat on the gurney. The blonde brawler nodded her head but she couldn't stop shaking.
Jake stood behind her, a hand placed on her shoulder. "We'll both be in the next room. And I won't leave I promise." he said, trying his best to calm her down. His mind flashed back to when he saw her after the battle, he must have looked similar to this state. Walking around the gurney in front of her, he tilted her head up to meet his, "You'll be fine…...i'll won't leave your side as long as I can. We both will." he said, Taiyang nodding in agreement behind him.
Yang looked him in the eyes before taking a deep breath through her mouth, and letting out through her nose. "Wow, I must be rubbing off on you if I'm giving you mini panic attacks." Jake joked, making her flash a smile before laying down in the hospital gown. Nodding to the nurses, Jake and her father walked on either side as the nurse pushed the cart.
"It's ok to be nervous sweetie. Almost everyone who does this is." she said, trying to put the three at ease. As they reached the door to the operating room, the four halted, Taiyang planted a small kiss on her forehead.
Jake leaned down and kissed her on the lips, "Everything will be fine." he said.
And Yang believed him. As the wheeled her into the room, Jake and Tai watched before taking a seat in the waiting area. The surgery will take a few hours, until then the two had nothing but time. And Jake was not going to move an inch from his seat, and that went double for Taiyang.
(000)
Yang felt groggy. Her eyes were heavy and they didn't want to open. Why would I open them? she thought, shifting a little so that she got even more comfortable. As she shifted she felt a strange weight on her right side, "Is she waking up?" it sounded like her dad.
"Well…..there is one way to tell…...well a few, but one that doesn't end with her beating me to a pulp." another voice said. She could feel someone beside her, not physically but like when someone is staring at her. "Yang your dad pulled out some of your hair."
"Jake what the shit kid!?" Taiyang shrieked as Yang's eyes snapped open, her eyes red with rage. She raised her arm, ready to strike whoever dare mess with with her luxurious hair. But then she realizes.
She lifted her arm.
Looking over, she saw it.
Her new arm. Unclenching her fist she looked in her palm. The black padding on the palm and fingers standing out against the golden yellow. Reaching it up to her face, she felt her heart skip when she felt it.
Skin…..her skin. She choked on a sob, her eyes stinging with tears as her mouth stretched out into a quivering smile. "I….I can feel it." she muttered, Taiyang smiling brightly as he reached over and placed his hand atop her new limb.
Yang and him shared a smile before she looked at Jake, sitting at the foot of the bed with a smile on his face. "The skin will take a little while, it'll kinda be like a glove, but there might be a little bit showing where it connects." he explained.
Yang looked at where the arm connected to her body. It was bandaged up, it felt a little sore but Jake had told her that after researching similar cases that a small attachment was made on the skin so she can connect the arm easily with electromagnets so it wouldn't get pulled off easily.
She wanted to reach over and give him a bear hug but she could wait. Right now her eyes were fighting to stay open, as she laid back down, Taiyang set her hand back down at her right side. Jake smiling was the last thing she saw before falling asleep.
(000)
Adjusting to her new arm had taken some time, though due to her experience with increased strength it was easier for her to adjust. The real problem was syncing both the synthetic arm and her natural one but a few days of practice and she was much better at it.
So now she practicing something a little more particle.
Jake held up his padded hand, Yang's goat connected with it with enough force for him to feel it through the glove. As soon as she pulled her arm away, Jake stepped forward and swung his other arm, Yang dunked under it and weaved as she threw her first, stopping it right before Jake's face.
All the while, Yang was smiling. She was smiling like she hadn't in a long time. "Your getting better, I think of you keep it up you'll be back to your old self." Jake stated as he slipped off the gloves and dropped them on the floor as Yang took off her padded training gloves. Her arm was completely covered in skin the same texture as the rest of her body.
In a sense it really was like a glove that she can take on or off. But since it's such a pain to she usually just leaves it on. "Three days in here and I better be." she stated as they walked off the mat and sat down on a bench beside the training area.
Handing her a water, they both gulped down their liquids before taking a few seconds to catch their breath. Yang's hand found his resting on the bench and gave it a squeeze, making him smile. "Your gauntlet should be fixed by tomorrow, I just need to find out what kind tool I need to open the firing compartment." he explained.
He had taken a quick trip to the police station and asked to see if they had recovered Yang's arm. Thankfully they had, as well as the other half of Ember Cilica, it did look like a grim got ahold of it though, and since Yang was only allowed to recover in the hospital, Jake had been working on restoring it.
The blonde thought for a moment, she built the weapon so long ago that she needed to think of how she constructed it. "I think the hatch may be fused or something. I don't know it's been so damn long." she said with a little frustration.
She understood that she wasn't at peak shape yet, but what was killing her was that she could only train for a few hours a day. Usually she would do it until exhaustion but that wasn't a option.
The young man beside her thought, there was one person they could try…
"Your thinking Ruby aren't you?" she asked, making him look at her surprised. She gave him a knowing smile, "Come on its on your face, whenever you think of her now you get this half disappointed, half understanding look on your face." she explained.
"I don't think that's a real look." Jake pointed out.
"Real or not, you have it on right now." she said, tapping her finger to her nose. When Ruby ran off with Jaune, Ren, and Nora, Yang was in a state that she didn't really care. Now she did care, but she wasn't angry at Ruby, in fact she was a little angry with herself for not looking out for her little sister.
Jake on the other hand was somewhat angered that Ruby left. Of course he understood why, if he had a shot at the bitch responsible for all this? He'd take it without a second thought.
He'd take it, but he wouldn't go over a hundred miles away at the drop of a hat.
He called her five times over the last few months. And she didn't pick up a single time. To be fair she was probably somewhere where reception was useless but still.
"You can't be mad at my little sister." Yang stated, moving him with her shoulder.
"Why not?"
"You've seen her right? It's impossible! She'll give you those puppy eyes and your not mad anymore, trust me." she said, talking from experience. One time, Ruby switched out her shampoo with Zwei's, she was about ready to throw Rubes in the ocean before she gave her big sister puppy eyes.
Jake crossed his arms over his chest, "They have no effect on me." he said confidently. Yang looked at him unconvinced, Jake smirked at the challenge, "Go ahead, give me your best shot."
Yang grinned.
She gave him her best impression of her being sad, bowing her head forward slightly so that her lilac orbs looked up directly at him. Jake didn't so much as flinch, "Oh you're good." she said, breaking the gaze.
"My older sister." he said. Liz must have pulled that look on him a million times growing up. But he eventually found the trick to resist it, think of the ugliest thing you can imagine.
Yang smiled before leaning over and resting her head on his shoulder. The two stayed like that for the longest time in silence, simply enjoying each other's company. "So…...what are you going to do after I'm out of here?" she asked.
It wasn't something that they had discussed before, all that they've been focused on is getting Yang back on her feet, but now with the arm in place and her rehabilitation going so well. It was something that they needed to talk about.
Jake pressed his lips together firmly, "Liz was telling me something yesterday, something weird happened at Haven….." he trailed off, Yang understanding the silent message. If something out of the ordinary was happening in that area, dollars to doughnuts it involved whoever was responsible for the attack. And that meant Ruby and the others.
Yang watched him bite down on his lip before letting it go. Jake's sister was, as he puts it, the best crazy sister one could ever wish for. And the only family that he had left. "You need to go there then." she stated, making Jaje look at her with surprise. "Look, I can take it from here, and she's your sister. Trust me, I know how that feeling works. It'll keep nagging at you until you know for sure she's ok." she said, patting his shoulder.
Jake wanted to argue, but she was right. He had a feeling in his gut that something was off. The worst case was that someone was planning on doing something similar to the Vytal Festival attack, and they were still picking themselves up after that.
She nudged him, "Look i'll be fine. When I get out of here, I'll track down Blake and we'll meet up with you there. Ok?" she said. The first thing she wanted to do was go find Blake when she got out. Was she mad that she left? Yes, but she completely understood why after Jake explained why she left after he crumbled at told her about Blake sneaking in to meet him.
She was a little mad at him, but when she heard he pegged her with his shield, she figured he at least reacted appropriately.
Jake still didn't look convinced. Yang reached over and put both hands on the sides of his face, turning his head to face her's. "Go. Ok? You go and I'll be fine, you'll find your sister, catch up with Ruby and them, and I'll be right behind you."
Those last words are what set him off, his heart Plummeted and his breath hitches in his throat. Yang noticed his change, "Jake what's wrong?" she asked, her hands holding his head in place to look at her.
He swallowed before speaking, "L…..last time I left you…you….." he started before Yang covered his mouth with her hand.
"You cannot possibly blame yourself! Jake, that ginger haired psycho did this!" she said, holding up her arm. You couldn't tell that it was fake, the only way you could really would be to cut her skin where he made the arm. But he knew it was there, "Look, you want to blame anyone? Blame him, blame me even! I was stupid and I picked first without thinking, but this is in no way your fault. You got that?" she asked sternly.
Jake simply stated at her.
"Ginger haired psycho?" he asked, smiling a little.
Yang let herself smile a little as well. "Well I don't want to sound racist or anything so I can't call him horn head jerk."
"Because that's a slur if I ever heard it," Jake interrupted, making Yang playfully punch his arm.
Unfortunately she send her right arm, so she punched him off the seat, "Oh god I'm sorry!" she short as Jake let out a small groan of pain. Getting back up on the bench, he rubbed his shoulder before Yang leaned over and pressed her lips to his cheek. Pulling away, they smiled at one another. Before kissing each other on the lips.
"And when I meet up with you, you can take me out on a date. We'll catch a movie, maybe dinner, or just walk around." she said, making him smile.
The young man wrapped his arm around her back and rested it on her shoulder. "Then we'll head back to the room-"
Jake's eyes widened. "Room? Singular?"
"Kiss me like never before-" she said, a small grin on her face.
"Y-Y-Yang?" he asked a little nervously as she shifted her position so she was leaning into him.
"Pin me against the door-"
"M-my heart Yang. Think about my heart." he stuttered out, his heart rate raising a little at what she was saying. His face was getting more and more red with every word she was saying.
"I'll wrap my legs around you and you can just-"
"OK I GET IT!" he yelled out, causing Yang to fall over in laughter. As she laughed, Jake glared at her, "Laugh it up, just remember who has to take care of that arm of yours." he said, the blonde continuing to laugh.
(000)
"So…...this is it." Jake stated obviously. He, Yang, and her father all stood outside the gates of the air docks. One of the ships was going to Atlas, and from there Jake would find a way to get to Haven and meet up with Ruby to help them out.
Yang wrapped her arms around him and gave him a tight hug that he returned with equal force. Loosening her grip, she leaned in and kissed him on the lips. "I love you." Se stated, Jake smiled at her admission.
"I love you too….find her. And knock some sense into her. Ok?" he asked. Yang nodded as she untangled her arms and turned around, walking towards her dad's car.
Taiyang stepped in between the two, "Call us when you find Ruby." he asked.
"I'll get her on the phone if I have to force her." Jake said, making the man smile before he held out his hand. Jake looked at it with surprise before grasping it and shaking it.
Kneeling down, he grabbed his bag and slung it over his shoulder before walking towards the gates.
Moments later when the ship was taking off, Jake looked out the window to see Yang smiling up at him, her hands in front of her chest and her fingers curled into the shape of a heart, mouthing words to him that made Jake laugh.
'Don't worry, I'll Yang in there.'
The road to recovery was long. But it was worth it to have her smiling.
AN: Volume 3 was amazing. I mean I know they said things would get dark but goddamn did they get dark.
Now obviously I was wrong about Yang getting her arm reattached. But after a while I learned to like the idea of Robo arm Yang.
Now as for the arm in this chapter, I didn't add anything to it because that would make it useless.
Allow me to explain:
Yang's fighting style is Boxing, using one's hands to fight. Now that fighting style relies on adaptability, being able to change the way she fights at a second's notice.
It also relies on one's balance, as well as speed. Yang's arm HAS to look like her orginal arm for that reason. If you add a weapon to it or make it bigger than it was before, then that throws Yang's balance off significantly. Her right side is heavier than her left and that throws her off.
The same goes for speed, her right hook would be slower than her left, leaving her with a weak spot that could easily be exploited.
Even with Yang's extra strength this applies, it doesn't matter how MUCH she can lift, but how LONG she can lift it. If she constantly has to use extra strength to keep her right side up, then she'll tire more quickly.
And as for the synthetic skin. I think that all characters in RWBY with cybernetic limbs have that. The only reason we saw Mercury's legs was because Amber used fire to burn away his pants as well as the skin covering them. And when we saw them again he was repairing them, which would require him to take off the skin in order to do so. There's also the possibly that his legs were self made, otherwise there would be records of his metal legs and Cinder wouldn't have that.
As for Ironwood, we can say the same thing. We only saw his cybernetics after his plane crashed and he was burned. In fact he must have had skin covering his parts considering Penny and the General knew each other well like they did. Or rather Penny's father. So it would only make sense that his skin is covered the same way that her body was covered with it.
Also I'm not sure about the gold band on where it was cut off or a scar because I couldn't decide which.
One interesting theory I heard about Yang's arm is that it will grow back. Due to her semblance being redirecting damage I guess if she directed it to her aura she could regrow it back. The reason it not having grown back already being Yang's outlook, she was depressed, and had just given up really. And we've seen that emotions can affect semblance when we saw Weiss unable to summon. So it's a long shot but I guess it still works.
Also there's still that post credit scene in Volume 2 that I'm positive is flash forward. Personally I'm leaning more towards synthetic skin covered arm, but after the who other dimension or whatever we saw? Fuck it, I'm expecting anything.
Also you'll notice I didn't conform Pyrrha's death…..ill belive it when I see a body. She already had a arrow in her sternum, and people do not disintegrate when they die. So I'm open minded to that, maybe she's the reason Salem turned around in the end? I don't know.
Any who, I hope you liked the chapter. :)