Chapter 11: Mirrors and Truth
The first thing Yang was aware of was that she was not lying on a cold, hard cement floor like she'd expected, but a soft bed. Her eyes slowly opened. Expensive décor and fancy furnishings that she recognized surrounded her. She was in her guest room at the Schnee mansion.
Hushed voices were speaking. Yang heard Weiss say, "I knew something like this was going to happen. We're lucky it wasn't worse."
Blake said, "I should have stayed with her. I knew something was wrong."
Ruby said, "This wasn't your fault. I was the one that said we should split up."
"Stop it, both of you," Weiss said. "We'll argue about who's at fault later."
Yang closed her eyes. Maybe if she pretended to still be asleep everyone would go away. There was no way she could face any of her teammates right now, especially not Blake. She couldn't tell them that they'd been wrong to believe in her. It was so obvious to her now. She should have never left Patch. She was broken, and no prosthetic, no matter how advanced, would ever fix that.
Unfortunately, Ruby said, "I think she's awake, guys."
Yang knew there was no use pretending now that she'd been found out. She reluctantly opened her eyes and sat up. Ruby, Weiss, and Blake were all standing around the bed she was in. Ruby's face was filled with concern. Blake's was filled with guilt. And Yang could practically see the "I told you so" that was sitting mercifully unvoiced on Weiss's lips.
Ruby asked, "How are you feeling, Sis?"
Yang didn't answer. She tossed off the covers and got out of bed. Her back was sore where Neo had stabbed her, but her aura had already healed most of the damage. Neo must have somehow missed all her vital organs. If Yang had been in a better frame of mind, she might have counted herself lucky.
There was a mirror at the far end of the bedroom, sitting on top of a dresser. Yang walked up to it. Whoever had put her in bed had removed a lot of her clothing. She was only wearing her crop top and shorts. She was covered in the last traces of faded bruises, and there was a thin red mark on her cheek where Neo had cut her. Her reflection stared back at her with a miserable look on its face.
Yang slumped forward and put her hands on the dresser. Her artificial arm was completely exposed. She wanted to believe that it was the reason she'd lost. If she'd had her real arm, she would've beaten Neo. That had to be true, didn't it?
"Yang?" Ruby asked softly. "Can you tell us what happened? We found you alone."
That answered one of Yang's questions. She was alive because Neo had let her live. The little miscreant hadn't even had the good grace to put Yang out of her misery.
"Yang, please say something," Ruby begged.
Yang stayed silent. What was there to say?
Blake said, "Ruby, Weiss, can you give us some time alone?"
Weiss and Ruby looked at each other. Ruby clearly didn't want to leave, but Weiss convinced her with a look. Weiss said, "We'll be just down the hall if you need us."
Yang heard the door to the room open and close. She didn't know what Blake hoped to accomplish. She didn't even know why she was bothering to try.
Blake's arms wrapped around Yang from behind, and her head came to rest on Yang's back. Yang expected her to say something, but she didn't. The physical contact was soothing, and Yang didn't want it to be. She knew she didn't deserve it. She wanted to tell Blake to go, but her traitorous body was craving Blake's touch too much for her to speak.
Yang knew what Blake was doing. Anything Blake might have said, Yang could have rebuffed or ignored. But she couldn't resist Blake's gentle, unyielding presence. She could feel how much Blake cared about her and how much she wanted to help.
Finally, Yang relented and said, "What good is this arm if it can't fix everything?"
Yang felt Blake cringe at the mention of her arm, but she didn't let go. She said, "It was good enough to give you back your life."
"No. It wasn't," Yang said.
"Please tell me what happened," Blake said.
"It was Neo," Yang explained.
"You mean Torchwick's henchwoman? What was she doing there?" Blake asked.
"I don't know," Yang said. "I don't really care. She beat me. Bad."
"I shouldn't have let you go off on your own," Blake whispered.
Yang slammed her hands down on the dresser. "Stop it!" she shouted. She spun around and grabbed Blake by the shoulders. "Stop blaming yourself for everything that happens to me! Adam wasn't your fault! My arm wasn't your fault! And Neo really wasn't your fault!"
"This wasn't like the other times!" Blake said. "I wasn't hurt or distracted! I just wasn't there for you!"
"You weren't there because…because I didn't want you there!" Yang said. "I didn't call for help when I could have."
"You didn't!?" Blake exclaimed. "Yang, Neo beat you the last time you fought her!"
"I know that!" Yang shouted. "But she shouldn't have been able to!"
"Why not?" Blake asked.
"Because…!" Yang faltered. She knew for a fact that she should've been able to beat Neo, but when she tried to actually come up with a reason why, every one of them was ridiculous. A horrified expression slowly worked its way onto her face as a terrible truth reared its ugly head. Even after everything that had happened, deep down she'd really still believed that she was invincible. It was the most idiotic thing. Her right arm was proof enough that she wasn't. She wasn't the best there was. She could be hurt. And she'd completely refused to acknowledge it.
Yang let go of Blake. She slumped to the floor and whispered, "Weiss was right. Weiss was right about everything."
"Yang…" Blake said.
"Just…go," Yang said. "Leave me alone."
Blake knelt down. She cupped Yang's head in her hands and said, "I'm not going to run away again. I'm not going to leave you when you need me. You want me to stop feeling guilty for what happened? Well I want you to stop thinking you're worthless just because you lost a fight."
"But…" Yang said.
Blake put a finger over Yang's mouth to silence her and sat down in front of her. Blake reached for her bow and untied it, exposing her cat ears. She let the ribbon fall to the ground.
Blake said, "You said my ears didn't change anything for you. I was still the same person to you, even if I was a faunus. Well you're still the same person that I chose as my partner. You're still the same person I fell in love with. I love you, Yang."
"Blake…" Yang said. Tears started to fall from her eyes. This was all wrong. She was supposed to be the strong one. She was supposed to sooth Blake's hurts, not the other way around. Yang didn't know who she was anymore. There was only one thing she was certain of. "I love you too, Blake," Yang said trembling.
Yang reached out for Blake. She needed her close like she'd never needed anything before. She was confused and afraid, but as long as Blake was there to be her anchor, she'd never truly be lost.
Blake took Yang into her arms and rocked her gently. Yang let herself cry into Blake's shoulder. She'd never intentionally made herself vulnerable to anyone before. She'd always been the protector. She'd been the strong one when her mom died. She'd helped raise Ruby when her dad was too overcome with grief. But now she was the one who needed protecting. And in Blake's arms, she felt warm and safe like she never had before.
When Yang had no more tears to cry, she finally let go of Blake. She reclined against the dresser, took in a deep breath, and let it out slowly. She said, "I've been a complete idiot."
"We've both done foolish things," Blake said.
"I think I'll win that competition," Yang said.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Blake said softly.
"What do you mean?" Yang asked.
Blake didn't say anything.
"Blake…. Please tell me," Yang said.
Blake stayed silent a moment longer before she asked, "Do you know why I came to Atlas?"
"You were going after the White Fang," Yang said.
"I was going after Adam," Blake clarified. "I knew you'd never be safe while both he and I were still alive. So I was going to fight him again."
"But he would have killed you!" Yang said.
"I know," Blake said. "But then he'd have no reason to come after you. It's what I thought I had to do to keep you safe."
"Blake!" Yang said. She reached out to touch Blake with her real hand.
Blake took Yang's hand and kissed it. "Now I know how selfish I was being. Despite what I intended, I would've ended up hurting you even more."
Yang thought about what Blake had said for several minutes. In spite of everything, she started laughing.
"Yang?" Blake asked.
"I'm sorry. It's just…" Yang chuckled. "We've been doing it all wrong! I almost got myself killed thinking I was proving myself. You almost got yourself killed thinking you were keeping me safe. And how long did we both hide our feelings from each other? What's it going to take for us to get this right?"
"I think we both know what's really important now," Blake said. "Whatever happens, we can face it together."
"Yeah," Yang said. "Together."
Blake stood. She offered Yang a hand, which Yang readily took. Blake pulled Yang to her feet, and they found themselves eye-to-eye. Yang was captivated by Blake's gaze. She'd never seen anyone look at her like Blake was now. The emotions in Blake's eyes were indescribably beautiful. They filled Yang with a deep longing and an aching need like she'd never known.
"We should…uh…" Yang stammered. "We should probably tell Ruby and Weiss that I'm alright."
Yang turned to the door, but Blake tugged on Yang's hand to stop her.
Yang looked at Blake.
"Please stay," Blake said. "I thought I'd lost you again tonight."
Yang nodded. Blake snuggled up to her and kissed her softly. Yang could feel there was something different this time. There was desire, desperation, hunger, need, love, and a hundred other nameless emotions in Blake's kiss. It was a heady cocktail, and Yang drank deeply of it.
Blake broke the kiss. "I…I need…" she gasped. She stopped to catch her breath, and then said, "I need to show you how much I love you. But I'll understand if you aren't ready."
Yang knew what Blake meant. "I've wanted this for a very long time," she said without any hesitation.
Blake smiled sweetly. "Do you trust me?"
Yang nodded yes.
Blake put an arm around Yang's back and said, "Then lean back."
Yang did as she was told only for Blake to literally sweep her off her feet and scoop her up into her arms. It was almost surreal for Yang. She'd always been the one to take charge in this kind of situation. This was completely new for her, and it was wonderful.
Blake carried Yang to the bed and set her down gently. She kicked off her boots and crawled up with Yang. A fire started burning in Yang's belly. What she'd dream of for so long was really happening.
Yang saw desire shining in Blake's eyes. Blake still wanted her, even as she was now. Everything really was going to be okay.
Yang reached up and drew Blake close. She said. "I love you, Blake."
"I love you too, Yang," Blake said.
Author's Note: This scene is just about the exact opposite of what I always imagined Yang and Blake's first time would be like. I guess that's what Volume 3 did; it turned everything on its head.
After writing this chapter I can appreciate how useful aura is for storytelling purposes. If Yang didn't have aura to help her heal, she'd be laid up for weeks at least with injuries like that.
Only one chapter left to go. Tune in next time for the finale! And in grand RWBY tradition, it's going to be a double-length chapter! I didn't really plan it that way, but that's how it happened.
Oh, and if anyone's looking for the Mature rated version of this chapter, it can be found on Archive of Our Own.
Constructive criticism is always welcome so please feel free to review or comment. If you want to be notified of updates or send me a message, you can find me on tumblr under the name electronicyarn.