ACT, SAT, HISTORY STAAR, AND TWO AP EXAMS ARE DONE! THAT MEANS ONLY FINALS LEFT TO GO! Alright, I'm SOOOOOOO sorry about the wait guys but like I said, the uploads were going to be sporadic at best with homework, testing, another 11,000 word Mythology Myth, and a kinda bad case of writer's block. I should have more time to write now but you never know how long Final Reviews are going to be, but I'll do my best. And a quick thanks to all of your for being so understanding about the upload speed. So moving on…
The poll is now closed - Davian will stay with RWBY for this story. In all honesty, this is what I wanted to do, I just wanted to give you guys and gals some control of where the story was going. So thanks to all of you who voted.
So you guys know how each character in RWBY has their own theme (I.e. Yang is I Burn and Ruby is Red Like Roses). Well, I've been waiting for this part of the story to reveal Davian's Theme.
Monster by Imagine Dragons. One of my favorite songs. It's really an awesome, powerful song about being afraid and uncertain how you, and those around you will deal with the monsters inside of yourself. As we saw last chapter, this is something Davian struggles with.
Time to respond to Reviews:
Avatar Connor - "With what happened in volume 3...are planning on changing anything?"
First of all, like the name man. My name is Connor as well. As for your question, you'll find your answer at the end of the chapter.
With that over, let's get to why you guys came here…
Pain is all I can feel, something I'm very familiar with by now and I accept with open arms as the flames consume me as a starved wolf devours a fresh kill. Feeling weightless as my feet leave the train I feel nothing but chaos…then nothing. Darkness engulfs my mind, and for once, I didn't fight or struggle. In the blackness I lay, my gaze stares into nothing as a single thought churned around and around in my head. I killed, but that wasn't what shamed my soul. No, what left me feeling vile was that I tortured. I took every evil action that was done to me and turned in on my enemies. Torture and killing for amusement, and now I'm no better than them. But worse of all…those I care most about saw my cruelty. There are many things that we never want to happen, things we don't want people to see. But no matter how hard we try, in the end it's all they can see. And now, no matter how hard they try, when they look at me they won't see Davian Kadar. Instead all they'll see is a monster who has been soaked to the bone in his victim's blood and deserves no pity.
Suddenly a bright ray of light pierces the darkness and lands right on my face making me squint. A few seconds later, another piece of the darkness is pulled away, then another, then another. Pretty soon I'm barely able to make out the silhouette of someone moving frantically. The figure looked over his or her shoulder and waved its arms at someone I couldn't see. Very quickly, a second silhouette joined the first and peered down at me. The first figure continued pulling away at the blackness while the second took a step back and disappeared from sight. Suddenly stopping and looker over its shoulder, the first figure jumped out of sight right as a large chunk of the of darkness was torn away.
Within seconds a small space around me had been cleared and the two figures were kneeling down beside me. I blink, trying to clear my fogged mind but I'm unable to. Shaking my head, a sharp pain shoots through my skull but is somewhat successful in restoring my mental function. Though I quickly wished I hadn't. The pain that had been pulsing throughout my body suddenly became much more apparent. Any movement caused waves of pain in every cell of my body. Feeling two hands hold me down, I turn my head and saw Professor Goodwitch kneeling down beside me whose mouth is moving but I can't hear anything except for a high-pitched ring. Blinking again, I turn my head as well as I can and catch sight of long golden hair cascaded around the person on my right alerting me to who it was. Looking up, I expected to see Yang's judging gaze glaring down at me, but it's not. She isn't even looking me in the eye. Instead her wide-eyed, teary gaze is glued on my chest. I try to sit up but am stopped before I could even move an inch and the pain became pure agony as something severely restricted my movement.
Confused, I tilted my head forward despite Goodwitch trying to keep me from doing so and saw what was weighing, or rather nailing me down. Coming out from my torso were two pieces of rubar that had punched right through my armor, me, then through my armor again and into the stone wall behind me. One was jutting out from my stomach while the second was a few inches shy of the center of my chest. I just stared, unable to comprehend my situation. As the pain continued to climb I should've realized several other things but was unable to. Like the fact that my mouth felt wetter than usual and tasted of metal. Or that I was coughing up an alarming amount of blood due to my punctured lung. I didn't realize that I was frantically trying to pull myself off the metal but Yang and Ms. Goodwitch were holding me firmly against the ground. And I definitely didn't see Yang pull her fist back and let it fall, knocking me back into merciful darkness.
-][-
(POV Yang)
Beep…Beep…Beep…Beep…
It's been hell the last week, and I'm not even counting the mission that went beyond messed up. I shake my head as my gaze wanders up to the clock on the wall to find it's three thirty in the morning. Sighing bitterly, I look back down at the still, wrapped body in the bed in front of me. Reaching out, I cup Davian's bandaged face in my hand and run my thumb over where the scar would be that ran over his right eye. As the minutes ticked by I felt my eyes begin to water, something that had been happening a lot these last several days.
Clenching my fist, I sniff as I wipe my eyes and make sure Davian's bandages weren't turning red that would alert me to a wound or skin that had broken open again. As I check over all the gauze, I couldn't help the tears that escaped and flowed down my cheeks before dripping down, saturating the bandages. It's not fair dammit. He's been through so much more than any ten Hunters combined and deserves to have something go his way. But no, something else always rears its ugly head just to give an already downed man another kick, not understanding that he's already miles past his breaking point. A few more tears drop onto the bandages as I finish checking them over. I sat back down into the chair that had been pulled up next to Davian's bed. Unable to hold it back again, I press my forehead against his hand and silently weep. Several minutes pass before I feel a hand lightly rest on my shoulder my head shot off the mattress, hoping to see Davian awake, but am disappointed to see Blake standing next to me with Ruby and Weiss behind her.
She sighs sadly as she lets go of my arm, "Yang, please go get some air at least, you've barely left this room for two days."
I'm shaking my head even before she finishes her sentence, "I can't Blak-"
She crossed her arms and motioned at Davian, "He's not going anywhere and you know he'll beat himself up if you don't take care of yourself while looking after him."
I scowl at her, "I'm fine."
Ruby pushed in front of Blake, "No you're not!" She furiously whispered while tearing up, "Look at yourself, this not my big sister sitting in front of me!"
"What would you have me do!" I snapped at her making her shrink back, "You all saw what happened on the train." I glanced to my right at Davian and bite my lip in worry, "When he wakes up we don't know how he'll react once he realizes what he did." Looking back at my team I plead, "You all have to understand that wasn't our Davian on that train, there's no way."
Blake immediately nodded, "We know Yang, Davian was just so angry at what that Tracker said that he reacted in a way he didn't want to."
Weiss cocked her head to the side, "I didn't hear him say anything, what did you hear?" While we had been talking, we didn't hear Davian's heart monitor speed up.
Beep…Beep…Beep..Beep..Beep.. .
Blake shook her head, "I don't want to repeat it all, especially with Ruby here, but I did hear him say that he's the one tha-"
Suddenly hearing a sharp intake of ragged breath, we all spun around to see Davian trying to pull out the oxygen tube out of his throat. Grabbing his hand, I pressed him down with the other when he tried sitting up. Before any of us could say anything, a Doctor and Mrs. Klein burst into the room making Ruby, Weiss, and Blake jump back (Dragging me with them) as they rushed to the bed.
The Doctor held Davian down while Mrs. Klein tried to reason with Davian, "Mr. Kadar please calm yourself, you're only going to hurt yourself worse!"
I stared helplessly as Davian struggled less and less over several minutes eventually tiring himself out. Even though he was lying still, his heart monitor was still going a mile a minute.
.
The Doctor held three fingers in front of Davian, "How many fingers do you see Mr. Kadar?" Davian didn't answer as he stared blankly at the covers. "Mr. Kadar?" Somehow the beeping got even faster.
BeepBeepBeepBeep
The Doctor glanced at the nurse and jerked his head in the direction of a cabinet on the wall. Nodding her head, Mrs. Klein quickly walked over and filled a syringe up with some sort of clear liquid. Walking back over, Mrs. Klein injected the needle into Davian's IV and he was out within seconds.
BeepBeepBeep.Beep.Beep..Beep..Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep
The Doctor stood back up and stretched his back and sighed, "Keep monitoring his vitals and alert me when he wakes up again, I don't want to keep him under."
I tore my arm away from Blake and rushed back over to Davian, "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!"
The Doctor sighed again, "He was just confused, a completely normal reaction when waking up after being injured that badly so we gave him a simple anesthetic."
"How badly was he hurt, no one's telling us anything."
The Doctor rubbed his face, trying to get the tiredness out of him, "We won't know exactly how bad until he wakes up and remains calm. The protrusion in his chest were, while dangerous, not what I'm worried about. It's the one that punched through his abdomen that might be a problem."
I started panicking, "How big of a problem? He'll live right!?"
Mrs. Klein put her hands on my shoulders, "He'll live, so don't worry about that."
"Then what's the problem?"
Mrs. Klein pursed her lips before looking at the Doctor who shook his head. He then looked at me, "I'm afraid we can't disclose that information until we know exactly what's wrong and Mr. Kadar signs off on you being able to view his medical information." I stared helplessly at Davian as he slept. The Doctor then started herding us out of the room, "Now your team is going to make sure you get some food and sleep." I started to protest but he held up his hand, "I won't budge on this matter Ms. Xiao-Long. I will not allow you starve yourself just to sit next to someone who won't wake up until sometime tomorrow afternoon. Go and get some food and rest, but you may not return until your leader assures me that you've done so. Am I clear?" I looked at the ground and nodded before Blake nudged me down the hallway towards the dorm. It was going to be a long couple hours.
-][-
I fidgeted in my seat as I watched the minutes tick by so agonizingly slow. I had been forced out of Davian's room early this morning and haven't been allowed back in since. Though what had me fuming in my seat even more was that today was a Friday and Weiss had forced me to go to classes before Ruby would even think about letting me head back to the infirmary. At least we were in the final minutes of our last class.
During my staring contest with the clock Blake kept glancing at me from over the book she had hidden behind a textbook. Glancing at Ms. Peach to make sure she wasn't looking, she set down her book and leaned over, "He'll be fine Yang, Davian's a stubborn guy."
Sighing, my gaze never left the clock, "I know that Blake, I just want to be there when he wakes up. You saw how he reacted last time." I rub my face in indignation before slumping in my chair, "I need to get back there as soon as possible."
Feeling her poke me with her elbow, I glance at her out of the corner of my eye, "You have to rest Yang, you saw what happened when I was obsessing over finding the Fang." I start to open my mouth to deny the similarities but she held a hand up, "Yes this is the same situation, just the roles have been flipped on us."
I glare at her, "No it's not the same. The man you love isn't lying in a hospital bed with what could be crippling injuries while you can do nothing but wait for him to wake up. We can come back and compare notes when its Sun in Davian's position." I immediately regretting my words as soon as they left my mouth but I couldn't take it back. Blake stared at me, lips slightly parted as she processed what I just said. The bell rang, and before I could say anything Blake stood up and walked passed me. I reached out and tried to grab her arm, "B-Blake I'm sorry, I-I didn't mean-" She ignored me and pushed past a confused Weiss and Ruby without so much as a backwards glance. As she disappeared from view I slammed my head onto the desk and just lay there mentally kicking myself in anger, "Great fucking job Yang, flawless. She was just trying to help and you threw it back in her face."
"What happened?" I heard a Ruby quietly.
I turned my head on its side and looked at her, "Said something I regretted as soon as it came out of my mouth."
Ruby patted my shoulder sympathetically, "It'll be okay, I'm sure it wasn't that bad."
I slammed my fist on the desk as I stood up making Ruby and Weiss jump, "It was that bad! I practically told her I wish Sun was in Davian's place instead of him! I don't know about you, but that's messed up on so many levels."
Ruby took a hesitant step forward and put her hand back on my arm, "Y-You're just upset Yang, you didn't mean i-"
I shook her hand off, "It doesn't matter if I meant it or not! You don't say stuff like that no matter the circumstances."
Weiss crossed her arms, "Well you can't do anything about it now. Ruby signed off on you to go see Davian again. Just give Blake some time to cool off and then apologize."
I sighed, knowing nothing else could be done and walked out with a quiet thank you. Quickly making my way to the infirmary, I opened the door to Davian's room and saw Mrs. Klein checking over her patient. Without even looking at the door, Mrs. Klein acknowledges me. "I see your team finally signed off on you."
I quietly take my seat by Davian again, "How long until he wakes up?"
Mrs. Klein wrote something down on her clipboard as she shrugged, "Could be anywhere from within the hour to tonight. We'll just have to wait to see."
Beep…Beep…Beep…Beep…
I nodded and for the next hour we fell into a comfortable silence. After a while I realized something. Looking back at Mrs. Klein who was sitting down in the corner working on something, "Why are you the one that's always caring for Davian in here? Doesn't the infirmary have several nurses?"
She finished whatever she was writing before setting down her clipboard, "I'm just his assigned nurse as is Mr. Klein."
Beep…Beep…Beep…Beep…
I raised an eyebrow, "I don't know of anyone else who's been assigned personal doctors and nurses. And I didn't realize you were married to the doctor."
She smiled, "Twenty years. We met in Med-School and got married soon after graduation." She chuckled, "We couldn't believe it when Ozpin extended an offer to the both of us to work here. It's nice though, being able to work with your significant other." She finished, deep in thought.
I smiled softly, "That's nice, while it's not the same I get it." I glance over at Davian who twitching in his sleep signifying nightmares. I reach out and take his hand in mine which seems to calm him down somewhat, "We may not be married but Davian and I have known each other since we were little." I sighed, "He's soldiered through hell to keep myself and the others safe."
"You don't even know half of what he has endured." She said so softly I didn't hear her. Then sighing, Mrs. Klein stood up and stretched, "He should wake up soon and I gave him something that will help keep him calm. So between that and having you here he shouldn't freak out nearly as badly as last time." Again, the room became completely silent except for Davian's heart monitor.
Beep…Beep…Beep..Beep..Beep..Beep..
Mrs. Klein and I quickly turned back towards Davian has his monitor started beeping faster, but not even nearly as quick as it was going off this morning. Taking out a penlight, Mrs. Klein walked over to Davian and checked his reaction to light. Seeming to like what she saw, Mrs. Klein put away her light and then turned to me, "He should be completely awake in a few minutes. So while I go get the doctor you make sure he doesn't move any more than you can help. We still don't know the exact extent of the damage done so we don't want him opening any of his wounds again. Understood?" I nodded my head and she smiled comfortably, "Don't worry, if I've learned anything about Mr. Kadar it would be that he's very resilient."
I rubbed my face and sighed, "To stubborn for his own good is more like it."
Mrs. Klein chuckled, "That's just who he is. If you had the choice to change anything about him you know you wouldn't." With that she quickly walked out to find the doctor before Davian woke up. I just prayed for it to be calmer than last time.
-][-
Scum
Animal
Traitor
MONSTER
My eyes shoot open but close immediately due to the blinding light all the while taking in deep, ragged breaths. Immediately my mind processed that, while I was in pain, it wasn't anything like it was before. The next thing I realized was that I lying in a hospital bed and my entire body felt restricted. Not like I was tied down, but as if my limbs were tied to rubber-bands.
I try sitting up but something keeps me pressed against the bed, "Stay calm Mr. Kadar, we don't want an episode like last time." I slowly open my eyes and blink several times to get used to the light. Eventually my vision clears enough to see the doctor shine a penlight into my eyes making me blink several times again. Nodding his head, the doctor mirrored what Mrs. Klein did not ten minutes ago, "Eyes are dilating well so no unhealed head trauma. How do you feel Mr. Kadar?"
I stared blankly at the doctor before traveling to the wall behind him as my memories slowly came crawling back one by one. When I had realized Ruby and Yang were missing in a Grimm infested city with a possible Fang presence, my mind had gone on autopilot, and only now did I fully remember everything that transpired. Jumping into a dark pit without hesitation. Traversing Mountain Glenn's undercity. Seeing Ruby and Yang as they were brought into the city. My capture and our escape. Then, "The train."
The Doctor slowly nodded his head, "Yes, you were in an accident while on mission. How do you feel?" I didn't hear him and continued to mumble quietly to myself, eyes darting back and forth on the wall in front of me like I was watching each memory on it like a movie, each one more grim than the last. The Doctor, looking confused, followed my gaze but saw nothing but the stark-white wall. He glanced at the room's inhabitants that consisted of Team RWBY, Ozpin, and the nurse.
Ozpin looked closely at me as I continued to mutter to myself, "He's remembering what happened, give him time."
Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang were waiting anxiously as I continued to sift through the images, all worrying what would happen when I realized what had been done by my hand. All this went without my notice, but the girls could tell the moment I saw the first drop of blood fall. My body froze, lips slightly parted, and eyes darted left and right as I watched bodies drop, blood spill, and terror within every man and woman that fell to my blade. Then came the moment I met my tormentor, and I couldn't believe my eyes. I didn't just kill him, I mentally tortured him before throwing him into the waiting mouth of a King Taijitu without a moment of remorse. But my shame wasn't from any of the killing or the blood that soaked my clothes. No, the worse part was that the girls stood right behind my bloodied form as I mercilessly tortured my torturer.
Everything after that was a blur. Fire, chaos, and pain followed by nothing. As I continued to process what I had done, Ozpin took a final sip of his coffee before turning to the Doctor, "I shall return when Mr. Kadar is more stable. Until then I leave him in your care." Getting a nod, Ozpin turned and walked towards the door before stopping to address RWBY, "You four will be excused from the rest of your classes, I think it would be for the best."
The girls thanked the Headmaster and silently found different spots around the room to sit down. After a few more seconds of silence the Doctor sighed as he turned to Yang, "See if you can get him to talk at all, and if you do make sure to have him tell you if anything feels wrong." He glanced at his watch, "I need to go check on some other patients, excuse me."
The girls watched the Doctor walk out of the room before looking back to find me just staring at my hands, and while the girls saw nothing on them, I couldn't help but see them soaked in crimson blood. Half an hour crawled by while I did nothing but stare and think, completely ignorant of Ruby and Yang trying to draw my attention away from the memories.
Eventually, somewhere in the back of my mind, I felt someone tug on the sleeve of my gown, "Davin please, talk to us." Slowly coming out of my trance, I slowly looked to my right. Ruby is staring at me with watery, pleading eyes. Weiss has her hand on Ruby's shoulder, trying her best to be supportive. Blake isn't much different from Ruby other than she isn't getting teary eyed. My eyes wandered the rest of the room but couldn't find the mane of golden hair that I took great comfort in. As my gaze began falling back to my hands, I felt something tighten around my lower torso. Looking down, I saw arms of porcelain skin wrapped tightly around me and only now realized that my shoulder felt damp. Turning my head slightly, I saw Yang's face pressed against my shoulder as she silently comforted me.
Willing away any images of blood or death, I slowly reached behind myself and nudged Yang. Tightening her arms, Yang presses her face deeper into my shoulder to avoid looking at me. My eyes drop to the sheets in sadness, unsure if she's angry or afraid, and I don't know which is worse. Sitting up straight, I turn my torso enough and, to everyone's surprise, lift Yang. Setting her down in front of me I try to look her in the eye but she still kept her gaze glued to the bed, much like how I'd been the last hour. I reach out and put a finger under her chin to tilt her head up, finally allowing me to see her eyes. Not angry, disgusted, or horrified. Instead they were sad, uncertain, but most of all…loving.
I bowed my head in shame and sighed, "I'm sorry. I know that doesn't change anything, but I'm sorry."
Yang remained silent and just stared along with the others. Movement in the corner of my vision caused to me turn and see Blake moving to the end of the bed, "What happened on the train Davian, that wasn't you? You don't get enraged like that, you don't feel the need to…kill."
Even before she finished speaking I was shaking my head, "You couldn't be more wrong. I get beyond angry, enraged even, more than you think. It just happens to be the one thing I'm good at keeping internal…or at least I thought so." I chuckled bitterly, "Guess the Fang finally brought out that monster they were trying to expose."
Silence reigned king in the room before a shuffling came from behind Weiss and Blake making the girls look behind them and step to the side to reveal Ruby nervously messing with a bundle of dark cloth. Taking a deep breath, she held the bundle out towards me with a look in her eyes that was somewhere between determined and highly annoyed, "You aren't a monster, you never were and never will be. You're Davian Kadar, cherished member of Team RWBY, my sister's boyfriend, and my older brother in every way but blood." She set the bundle down on my lap and pointed a finger in my face, "Just because you stumbled doesn't mean we'll let you fall." Ruby stomped her foot emphasizing her point, "A family is supposed to take care of each other and you've done more than enough of that. So now it's our turn to return the favor and take care of you when you need it most."
The girls all stared widely at Ruby before a sigh drew their attention back to me. I shook my head, "You don't understand Rubes," I pulled my gown to the side to expose the patchwork of scars causing the girls to go pale, even Yang who'd already seen them, "you have no idea what the Fang did to me." Ruby looked petrified as her eyes traced each scar, incapable of understanding how someone can hate enough to cause this. I let my gown fall back into place, "I want to move on, but I can't. I want to forget and sleep peacefully, but I can't. I don't want to kill but…" I clenched my jaw as I tears came to my eyes, "The worse part is that I don't feel a shred of shame for what I did. The only shame I feel is from the fact that you four had to see me kill, and that scares me."
"Y-You do-don't regret doing what you did?" Blake stuttered.
"No, I don't," I point out the window towards downtown Vale, "they were planning to, and succeeded in running a train into the heart of Vale fully knowing they'd lead the Grimm right there. And while I do wish I hadn't killed, I do not feel shame for doing so. I will not allow people to get away with that kind of pain just to do it again somewhere else." I sigh as I looked out the window, "I'm sorry if that's not what you wanted to hear but that's how it is."
Silence fell over us again before Ruby stepped in front of my bed with her hands on her hips, "We all have things we don't like about ourselves. Blake has trust issues, Weiss is all haughty, Yang doesn't think before she acts sometimes, and I have zero social skills."
This earned Ruby a "HEY!" from Weiss and Blake.
I stared Ruby in the eyes, "I don't know if I should be concerned or thankful you don't care."
Ruby smiled cheerfully, "Go with thankful, it'll save you a beating from Yang."
I stared blankly at her before looking down at the folded bundle on my lap. Picking it up, it unraveled to show a new cloak very similar to the one on my first set of armor. Black as the void and tattered at the bottom, it looked exactly the same, except for one detail. On the back, about the size of a plate, was a white moon with a gray wolf head silhouetted in front of it howling. I smiled slightly as I looked back up at Ruby, "Who are you and what happened to our little, naive, adorkable leader?"
Ruby went red and traced circles on the floor with her foot, "We-well I-I mean I thought I-I did okay."
Weiss rolled her eyes good naturedly, "Well it sounded inspirational until you stomped your foot and started stuttering like a child." Weiss then turned back to me and waved her hand dismissively, "It doesn't matter what we think . You're one of our teammates and will be treated as one.
Blake elbowed her in the side, "What she's trying to say is that we know you're a good person Davin, nothing will change that." I close my eyes and sigh, believing I didn't deserve any kindness they gave, "Your team cares for you deeply, all you have to do is let us in." With that I hear the click of a door making me open my eyes to find myself alone in the room…almost.
Now that the others were gone, I realized that Yang hadn't said a word the entire time and had just been staring at me. Emotionless lilac eyes stare into blank sapphires. The silence was broken with a slap making my head turn sharply to the left and for my cheek to sting, "That's for almost dying." My head turn sharply to the right as another slap landed itself on my left cheek, "And that's for lying when you said you had told me everything the Fang had done to you." I turned back to face her crimson eyes, cheeks stinging with a red hand-print decorating each, "One…last…chance. What the hell did those bastards do to you?"
Eyes falling to the scars criss-crossing my arms, my mind reaches back into my mind to find the memories I had stuffed into the darkest corners possible. Yang, thinking I wasn't going to answer, started getting to her feet with tears in her eyes. As her feet almost touched the floor, my hand shot out and grabbed her arm. Turning back to look at me as I let go, I reached down and pulled the gown off my torso once again, "Look."
Yang looks, and again finds the evidence that knives, fire, tools, and rocks had left in their wake. She wipes her eyes, "What am I supposed to see?"
I pointed to a spot at the base of my neck. Looking closely, Yang saw a scar that were almost unnoticeable beneath all the others. While the rest were thick and jagged, this one was small, light, and precise. Her eyes follow it down to mid-chest only for it to split into three separate directions. Two trail back up to my shoulder joints while the third continues down and ended a few inches under my navel forming a large y-shaped scar. Yang's eyes widened as she finally understood, though she immediately wished she hadn't. While every other scar was made by weapons or instruments of pain, these were made with a surgical precision.
Her eyes shot back up to meet mine once again, though this time the red was missing to be replaced by a distressed gray, "Th-The-They-"
I nodded my head, "The patient needed to be willing or uncaring, so I fought, and struggled for so long." Yang just stared, but I didn't need to hear the question she was asking herself, "Every person has something that breaks them, and they found mine."
"Wha-what did they do?" Yang asked quietly, afraid of hearing the answer.
My head fell forward, allowing me to stare at my scarred arms, "First they dragged in my father and mother and slowly cut them apart. Then Tai, and they did the same thing. I was horrified, but more enraged than broken. So they took it further." My fist clenched, "They knocked me out with something and I woke up later, but I wish I hadn't. Sitting, tied to chairs in front of me, were you and Ruby." Yang's eyes went even wider as she covered her mouth to stop a gasp from escaping. Tears begin flowing down my cheeks, "They…tortured and then killed both of you. The entire time the both of you were screaming, pleading for me to help you, but I couldn't, I was helpless." I couldn't hold it back anymore, the tears I had been trying to contain fell freely down my face.
Yang pulled my head into her shoulder and rocked us back and forth, "It didn't happen, none of it was real."
A shuddering breath escaped me, "It doesn't matter if it was real or not," I pulled my head back to look Yang in the eye, "what does matter is that it's what I saw. I know now it wasn't real, but at the time it was to me. I heard you and Ruby's screams, felt your blood splatter onto my face, and watched the life leave your body's." I sighed as I rested my face in my hands, "Can…can we talk about something else…please?"
Before Yang could reply, the door opened up allowing the Doctor to poke his head in. Upon seeing me functioning he stepped inside, "Ah Mr. Kadar, good to see you up and alert. Do you feel anything wrong that needs to be addressed?" I shook my head slightly, mind still stuck in the past. The Doctor's face turned serious, "Well, if you can walk properly then you'll be allowed to sleep in your own bed tonight."
Yang's posture became rigged with worry,"What do you mean?"
The Doctor pulled some X-Rays out of a folder and put them up on a light-board and pointed to my lower back, "The rubar in your abdomen nicked your spine when it punched through you. Can you feel your leg?" I nodded my head making him sigh in relief, "That's good news. If there is any damage then it'll heal, but you will need to use this regardless." He reached out the door and pulled in a wheelchair. My eyes dulled even more, telling the Doctor all he needed to know about how I felt about the situation. The Doctor smiled sympathetically, "Unfortunately this means no strenuous activity until I give the okay, no exception." He pushed it to the side of my bed and for the next hour meticulously checked over my entire body for any causes for concern. Finally, the Doctor gave a final nod, "We've closed all your wounds and done what we can, so I guess it'll be alright for you to go back to your dorm, though someone will need to be nearby until you're healed."
Yang's hand immediately shot up with a grin, "Oo dibs, I always wanted to play nurse."
The Doctor rubbed his face tiredly, "Very well Ms. Xiao-Long." He then motioned towards me, "Will you assist me get him on his feet?" Yang nodded her head and help me sit up. I swung my right leg off the bed followed by my left but at a much slower pace. The Doctor sighed, "I was afraid of that," I scowled at my leg as if it were to blame, "just exercise your leg every morning and night." He pointed at me, "That is the ONLY exercise you're allowed to partake in. Got it?"
I begrudgingly nodded my head as I lowered myself into the chair with a bit of difficulty, "Yes sir."
The Doctor 'hmed', "Be sure you do, or you get to know that chair a lot better than you'd like." He then turned to Yang, " I really don't want to say this but you're in charge of him Ms. Xiao-Long, do make sure he doesn't strain himself."
Yang gave him a two-fingered salute while smirking, "I'll make sure he's as comfortable as possible Doc, don't you worry."
The Doctor raised an eyebrow, "I have every reason to worry due to the fact half of the people I get in here are your opponents from sparring matches." He then waved us out with a yawn, "Get out of here, my shift is ending in ten minutes and I'd like to get some sleep." With that Yang pushed me out of the infirmary, all the while trying to get me to speak again, but silence was her only answer as my mind sifted through all the memories once again. Normally my lack of attention would of earned me a whack on the head, but Yang saw my eyes darting back in forth in thought and decided to keep chatting, even though she knew there would be no answer.
-][-
The sound of soft humming and a comforting warmth pulled me from my memories. Opening my eyes, I found myself resting in a bed with my head in Yang's lap as she ran her fingers through my hair humming while watching something on her scroll. I breathed out a sigh, alerting Yang to my wakefulness. Switching her scroll of, she continued to run her fingers through my hair but didn't say a word.
After a few minutes I closed my eyes with a sigh, "I'm sorry."
Even though I couldn't see her, Yang smiled softly, "You already apologized for what you did on the train. You weren't in your right min-"
"That's not what I'm talking about." I whispered out.
Yang tilted her head to the side in confusion, "For what then?"
I knocked my knuckles against my leg, "It seems every fight I get into that's not a spar ends up with my ass in the medical wing." I sighed again, "I'm apologizing for constantly making you worry."
"You don't do it on purpose, and most of the time it's for a good reason. The whole Anderson/CRDL thing at the beginning of the year was you protecting Velvet, and the whole ordeal at Glenn definitely wasn't in your control." Upon mentioning Glenn, Yang's thoughts slowed as she remembered something that she had forgotten about, "Speaking of that, how did that Ursa hit you that hard? You're aura isn't weak like you said."
My eyes traveled down to look at my chest, "It wasn't that weak, but after what the Fang did that has changed severely." I looked back up at Yang, "I was at full aura when that Ursa nailed me, but as you saw that one hit drained me to near nothing."
Yang's eyes narrowed in anger, though not at me, "What did they do?"
I got to my feet with a bit of difficulty and leaned against the wall, "Yang, as much as it pisses me off, freak is a damn good descrip-" Before I could even finish my sentence another sharp slap sent my vision careening as I lost my balance. As I was near to hitting the floor, I was thrown onto the bed as Yang and I switched places very quickly.
As I tried righting myself, my face was grabbed and forced to look up to meet a very pissed Yang, "Don't. You. Dare. Finish. That. Thought." I started opening my mouth but her glare shut it faster than the snapping of a lion's maw, "You have no right talking about the man I love like that because you sure as hell aren't him." She poked a finger hard into my chest, "You listen to me and you listen well. If you even start forming an idea like that again then do you know what I'll do?" She doesn't wait for me to answer, "I will pummel you into the ground, heal you up, then beat the crap out of you again. I will do this over and over again until I beat into your thick head that you are just as important to me as my sister and father. NOTHING will change that!" By now Yang's eyes are blood red and her hair is levitating due to the heat rolling off her body, "The next thing out of you mouth better be something positive or I will come through with my promise. You got that you overgrown puppy?"
"What are you Yanging about? I'm a wolf, not a puppy." I said with a straight face.
Yang just starred, red eyes glaring and my eyes fell to the right as I started thinking it didn't wor- A snort drew my attention back to Yang to find a hand covering her mouth, trying to hold in the giggles that were trying to escape. I felt the corner of my mouth starting to curve upward as more and more giggles slipped through Yang's fingers as she tried to stay mad but was ultimately failing. Eventually she couldn't hold it back anymore and burst out laughing, holding her stomach as more and more laughter bubbled out.
After a few minutes of laughing, Yang stood up straight and wiped some tears from her eyes, "Tha-That was awful but I love it all the same!" She then stepped forward and smacked my chest lightly, "No fair, I'm supposed to be angry at you, not laughing at your attempt to get out of trouble."
I shrugged tiredly, "What can I say, you're prettier when you're smiling." I then stood up and stretched as I glanced at the clock to find it was nearing 11:00, "It's getting lat-OOMF"
Yang didn't let me finish as she playfully tackled me into the bed, "Great, let's go to sleep."
I tapped her shoulder, "Yang, your bed is in the next room."
Yang snuggled in close and rested her head on my chest (Making sure she squished something against me, making me blush lightly), "Yeeeeaaah buuut the Doctor told me to watch you closely," she tilted her head upward so I could see her grinning mischievously, "and what better way than to sleep in the same room." She finished her statement by pressing herself just a bit closer.
I couldn't stop the blush on my face from deepening slightly, "Then I'll take the floor, I have sleeping mats."
"Nooooope." Yang said, popping the P, "You have to rest your back and sleeping on the floor will not help that." She then looked up with slightly narrowed eyes, "Don't you find me attractive?"
I quickly nodded my head, "Of course I do, but as much as Tai likes me, he will beat the crap out of me for sleeping with his daughter."
Yang grinned as she ran her hand across my jaw, "He's not here right now," her smiled sweetly, "but I am, and I will not take no for an answer." The unsaid threat was clear and I didn't argue any more. RFF (Righteous Female Fury) is not something I want to bring down upon my head. Taking my silence as her answer, Yang patted my cheek affectionately before laying her head back down on my chest.
As silence filled the room, I thought long and hard about what had transpired today. Yang and Ruby's capture as well as my own. Our escape. The train and its crash. Then the whole ordeal in the infirmary followed by Yang and I's talk. It was all too much, I had to get the answer to a question that had been burning in my mind.
I opened my eyes and found that I had shifted onto my side in though and Yang had pressed her back against my chest. I reach up and put a hand on her shoulder, "You awake Goldilocks?"
After a few second I felt her stir slightly, "Hm."
I breathed deeply, "Why do you do it?"
Yang twisted her body around and rubbed her eyes, "What do you- *Yawwwn* mean?"
I trailed my hand up and down her arm, "Why do you put up with me? After everything that's happened. If anything I've hurt you more than make you happy."
Yang lightly smacked my chest, "Shut up you overgrown, whimpering puppy and go to sleep." She then sat up and stretched before leaning on one hand while looking me in the eye, "And you're wrong, you've brought more joy into my life than you know." She started tracing circles on my chest, "Back when we lived together you came off as the quiet kid who didn't know how to have fun, and in all honesty I thought that for quite some time. But then you started coming out of your shell and we started having the greatest adventures all over Patch in our years together. Then there's all the fun we had in the first semester of Beacon, but best of all was last Christmas when we finally fessed up to each other."
I lightly grabbed her hand and sighed sadly, "You left out how upset I made you during that first semester and how I treated you during Christmas break."
Yang leaned forward and planted a kiss on my lips, "And every time you more than make up for it." She kissed me one last time before settling back down, "Now you better go to sleep because tomorrows Saturday and we're all going down to Vale to relax for the day."
I through for a second before wrapping an arm around her waist to pull her close, "Yes ma'am." Thus we fell asleep, with one last thought going through my mind. I was out of secrets to tell. Yang knew of the pain I had endured, both physical and mental. She knew of the experimentation and didn't care what I was anymore than Weiss cared for professional wrestling. Sleep came easy, so sleep I did.
BOOM, bet some of ya didn't see that coming (Cheers to those of you that did :D). I did hint at what was done to Davian in earlier chapters besides the torture but didn't come right out and say it. Yes, Davian was experimented on and yes he's stronger because of it. We've even seen the product of his experimentation twice already and it's definitely deadly. But it does have its downsides, one in particular we saw in chapter 15.
IMPORTANT - I have to come out and ask right now guys. After watching the entirety of season 3…I don't want that to happen. I won't spoil what happens for those of you that haven't seen it but…it's to sad. So I'm going to start a pole (IT WILL BE OPEN THIS TIME) on whether I should keep season 3 the same or change it a bit. So cast your vote in the pole (Again, if you can't cast it in the pole then leave your vote in the review section).
Aaaaaaannnnnnd done. Again sorry for the wait guys, but at least once I finish finals I'll have a bit more time to write. Leave a comment on how I'm doing as well as any chapter ideas you guys and and I'll see you guys and gals next time :) …
Archangel Out…
