We are officially almost caught up to as far as I've written...dum, dum, dummm...just means I need to write faster! I'm trying to make the chapters longer, so there might be more of a delay in between updates. However, after reading many fanfics myself in the past week, I realized that I should not be holding back completed chapters that people might want to read!
Thank you to everyone who continues to read and review. I love hearing from you guys! The reviews seriously make my day :)
I still don't claim to own RWBY. I think I'll stop saying this every chapter. If something changes and I suddenly DO own RWBY, believe me, you'll be the first to know.
Blake woke the next morning to the sound of cheerful birds singing, as the early morning sun drifted through the white curtains of her bedroom windows. She sluggishly rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, remaining in bed as she cursed the tiny beings for being so happy this early in the morning. She immediately felt guilty at her resentment towards the joyful creatures; it was not their fault that she was in this predicament, after all.
She felt no strong desire to get out of bed this morning, especially after what had happened the night before. But she was finally able to force herself out from under the covers to get dressed and ready for the day. It was shaping up to be a very long day, as she was already exhausted from getting hardly any sleep the night before.
Blake had listened to the sound of Yang's footsteps echoing through the house as the blonde huntress had raced away from her, flinching as the front door slammed, carrying Yang out into the night. For several seconds, Blake had stood frozen as she debated whether or not she should chase after the girl. It wasn't exactly safe to run around in the middle of the night, especially dressed in her pajamas as she was. But Yang hadn't seemed very willing to speak to Blake at that moment. Chasing after her could just make things worse, if Blake was able to catch up at all.
So, with a heavy heart, Blake had slowly ascended the stairs to her bedroom and tried to go to sleep as her partner had suggested. However, she had only managed to toss and turn for several hours as she worried about where Yang might be and, more importantly, if she was ok. She had even considered waking Weiss and Ruby to have them go in search of the girl, but she couldn't bring herself to face their judgment.
Thankfully, Blake's ears had picked up the sound of the front door gently opening several hours later, as Yang had quickly padded up to her room and jumped into bed. Only then did Blake feel like she could breathe easily as she let out a sigh of relief, drifting into a restless sleep several moments later.
This morning, she was very much dreading having to face her partner. Their wrestling match last night had dragged up memories from when they were at school, for both of them. When Blake had heard Yang suggesting the same prize as always, she had wondered if she could respond in the same way she always had.
It had been easy at school to brush off the comment as Yang just being Yang. The beautiful blonde huntress-in-training was widely known to be flirtatious, so Blake had always figured that it was only natural for some of that energy to rub off on her as well. She did spend almost every waking second with the girl, so it would make sense. That had been before Yang had confessed her true feelings to Blake.
Now, in hindsight, Blake recognized that Yang had probably not been joking with her all those times at school. The fleetingly intimate touches, the exuberant compliments, her possessive nature…those had just been ways for Yang to express her feelings for Blake, without the latter catching on to her true motives.
So, had she been joking with Blake last night? Before Yang had run off, the atmosphere had felt vaguely familiar, but also somehow different. Maybe it was that Blake was now more attuned to her partner's true feelings, but the air in the simulation room had felt charged with energy in that moment.
Blake couldn't help but wonder what might have happened if Yang had actually made it through her full suggestion and Blake had managed to say yes. Would Yang have…kissed her?
She quickly shook her head as she tried to squash the butterflies that appeared in her stomach. Yang would probably never have those kind of feelings for her ever again, so there was no point in dwelling on them. She needed to focus on being Yang's friend, first. On regaining her trust and mending the broken feelings from years ago. Nothing beyond that mattered at this point.
But what might have happened…
As she finished dressing, she slowly crossed the room to stand in front of her door. Listening carefully for a few seconds, she tried to pick up any sounds of Yang talking from downstairs. Hearing nothing, she gingerly turned the doorknob and stepped hesitantly out into the corridor. Turning to her right, she saw that Yang's door was still shut; the girl must still be sleeping.
Blake heard a small sigh of relief escape her lips. At least she would be able to put off the confrontation with Yang until a little later. She padded down the staircase as quietly as she could, unintentionally nervous that any small noise she made could wake up the blonde haired girl at any second.
Once downstairs, soft noises coming from the living room caught her attention. Entering the room, she found Ruby sitting on one of the sofas watching something on the projector. Their team leader was focused intently on the images upon the screen, pausing and unpausing the muted video repeatedly.
Ruby hadn't yet noticed that anyone else was in the room, so Blake coughed lightly to announce her presence, not want to frighten the girl by sneaking up on her. Ruby jumped slightly anyway as she turned towards the new arrival.
"Oh hey, Blake!" she greeted cheerfully as she paused the video yet again. "How did you sleep?"
Blake gave a small smile and decided that it might be best not to answer completely honestly in this situation.
"Oh…you know…sometimes it's a little difficult to sleep in new places."
Ruby nodded her head knowingly as Blake continued, not wanting to delve any deeper into the subject. "So, what are you watching?"
The young girl spun back towards the screen at her question, seemingly having already forgotten that she had been watching anything at all. After taking in the image, she turned to look sheepishly back at Blake.
"I was just…um…watching some of the videos we have of the Grimm appearances so far…trying to see if I can notice anything that might help us figure out who's doing this, why, or how even. Weiss and I have gone through these videos hundreds of times already, but I thought that maybe, without her here, I could catch something…"
Blake couldn't help but smile at the young girl's admission; Ruby had always been disarmingly honest. The girl couldn't hide her true intentions if her life depended on it. In that way, she was almost exactly Blake's opposite, something Blake had grown to be quite fond of many years ago.
"Do you want an extra set of eyes to watch with you?" she offered helpfully.
"Maybe next time," Ruby began as she shook her head. "I've already been watching them for hours. I don't think that I can watch another second today without going crazy!"
Blake chuckled.
"Hey, where is Weiss, anyway?" she asked, suddenly taking in the fact that there was no heiress barking orders or stomping around the house.
"She had a meeting this morning with her parents," Ruby replied. "Something big and important, I'm guessing. It always is."
"Do her parents know you two are dating yet?" Blake asked casually. She found herself immensely curious about how serious Weiss might actually be about her relationship with Ruby. It was difficult to imagine any relationship with the icy girl progressing very easily; even friendship was difficult to accomplish with the demanding heiress. Weiss telling her parents that she and Ruby were dating would certainly be a monumental step for the reserved girl.
Ruby looked away from Blake though, blushing slightly. "No, not yet…but we haven't been officially dating for that long. And you know her relationship with her parents can be kind of difficult. Plus, it's easier for me because I only have Yang. I don't really have to consider what my family might think or do if they disapprove…"
Blake felt her eyebrows knit together at that response. While those reasons held some validity, they sounded an awful lot like explanations that Weiss had given Ruby, not ones that Ruby had come up with on her own. She silently prayed that Weiss wouldn't let her obsessive need for control ruin what she had with Ruby.
However, her worry for the girl quickly dissipated as Ruby turned back to her with concerned eyes of her own.
"How are you doing, Blake? With Yang…and with everything?" the brunette asked hesitantly.
Blake sighed as she glanced away from those caring silver eyes. Ruby would ask her that this morning. She reminded herself that she should be grateful that Ruby cared enough to ask the question at all. It's not like Weiss was going to be running around anytime soon asking how Blake was feeling.
"It's been a little rocky so far," she began, "Weiss really let me have it yesterday, but I figured that was coming sooner rather than later. And Yang…Yang still needs some time."
Ruby nodded at her response, as if that was exactly what she had been expecting. "Yeah, Weiss told me that she had spoken to you. I know what her idea of 'spoke to' means. It seemed like you said enough to make her a little bit happy, at least!"
"Well that's good to hear," she said in relief. That would likely be some of the best news Blake would hear all day. Something she had said had actually made a chip in the ice queen's shell.
"What about you?" Blake tentatively asked, somewhat afraid to hear the answer. "Do you have anything you would like to yell at me? Because it's open season right now…"
The only response she received was a sigh.
"Blake…" Ruby began, "I know you. I know that I don't have anything to say that you haven't already said to yourself. And you were probably much harsher about it than I would ever be."
Blake smiled grimly at that. What Ruby said was true. She was constantly berating herself for the mistake she had made and all of the consequences that came from it, many of which she had not even been aware of until a couple days ago. She was pretty sure that even if her teammates forgave her, she would never be able to fully forgive herself.
"Well, for what it's worth, I am really sorry for what I did," Blake said. "I know that it's going to take a long time to make it up to you guys, but hopefully you're willing to let me stick around that long."
Ruby giggled. "Just try to stay on Weiss' good side then."
"I didn't know Weiss even had a good side!" came a sudden voice from behind them. Blake and Ruby both jumped in surprise as they whirled around to find Yang walking towards them, yawning as she stretched. Blake flushed, silently cursing herself for being snuck up on for a second time. She really needed to start using her senses more passively again.
"Good morning, Yang!" Ruby sang happily at the sight of her sister, running over to give the girl a quick hug. "How is your shoulder feeling this morning?"
Yang grinned back at the young girl as she answered. "It's feeling almost brand new, thanks to the best doctor ever! Just a little tender right now, but nothing I can't fight through." She threw some quick jabs at the air to emphasize her point.
For several seconds, Blake thought that Yang might not even acknowledge her presence in the room, until the blonde huntress finally turned towards her. Blake watched the smile on Yang's face fade a fraction of an inch as she muttered a quiet, "Good morning, Blake."
Blake looked down at the ground as she said "good morning" quietly in response. She couldn't stand to see Yang with anything less than her fully radiant smile. And maybe she was just overanalyzing the situation, but she could swear that the room had gotten slightly cooler from Yang's detached greeting.
Just then, Ruby seemed to perk up noticeably before shouting, "Weiss is home!" and dashing to the front door, leaving the two girls behind in awkward silence. After a few seconds, Yang finally turned and silently followed Ruby to the door without another look in Blake's direction.
Blake sighed and followed Yang out of the room, realizing then that there actually had been a drop in temperature. But it was due to the angry heiress currently standing in the foyer, not the cold shoulder Yang was currently giving her.
Ruby was watching silently as Weiss stormed back and forth across the front entryway, waving her arms as she ranted, blasts of cold air emanating from her.
"They're just so frustrating. Nothing I say is ever good enough. I always have to prove myself to them by some elaborate gesture. Why can't they ever just listen to what I say and believe me?"
As Weiss stopped stomping for a split second to throw her arms up in defeat, Ruby rushed forward and quickly grabbed one of her hands.
"What do they want you to do?" she asked, voice filled with concern over her girlfriend's plight.
As Ruby held Weiss' hand delicately, Weiss looked deeply into the girl's eyes. Blake felt the room start to warm slightly as Ruby was able to thaw some of Weiss' anger.
After several seconds, Weiss sighed, reaching out to grab Ruby's other hand so that both of their hands were now locked together.
"Nothing that I'm not willing to do," she said tenderly, seemingly oblivious to the onlookers. "They're just frustrating sometimes. But I'll tell you about it later."
Ruby nodded in complete acceptance of that answer. "How about we go make some tea?" she offered, pulling Weiss gently backwards towards the kitchen.
Weiss rolled her eyes slightly, but allowed the younger girl to pull her forward. "Only if you let me make it."
"Deal!" Ruby shouted cheerfully.
Blake watched as the two girls disappeared into the kitchen. She couldn't help feeling…jealous…of how close the two girls were. Was that what Yang and she could have had?
She shot a quick glance towards the girl standing quietly to her left, wondering what Yang was thinking as she stood there. The girl in question suddenly turned to her with a smile.
"So, what do you want to do today?"
Caught off-guard by the sudden mood change, Blake stuttered, "I-I don't know…what are our options? I thought that we had to stay here in case of calls."
Yang laughed. "Naw, we only have to be nearby. But it gets boring to be out shopping all of the time, so we normally stay here. Let me show you around the neighborhood! I can point out all of the best places to eat."
Once out of the house, the two girls strolled down the sidewalk in a nearby shopping area. True to her word, Yang was pointing out every restaurant that she liked to go to, as well as the ones that she didn't like and the ones that she had never been too. Blake couldn't help being very amused by the girl's fascination with every eatery in the vicinity.
What Blake was finding to be less and less amusing was the amount of attention Yang was drawing. It had always been obvious to Blake that Yang was extremely attractive, but she had completely forgotten what it was like to be out in public with the blonde haired beauty. Without even trying, Yang succeeded in turning every person's head as they passed, resulting in more than a few overly confident men approaching the girl.
The current suitor stood in front of the two girls; tall, dark hair, with striking blue eyes, he had introduced himself as Carson. While Blake would have no problem ignoring or brushing off such advances, Yang's playful personality did not lend itself to overtly shooting these men down. So Blake just glared at him as he continued speaking, making no effort to mask her displeasure at his presence.
"So…why is such a fine lady like yourself out alone today? Would you care to join me for a drink?" he asked flirtatiously, leaning forward slightly into Yang's personal space. Blake rolled her eyes; apparently she was invisible now.
"Well, I'm not alone," Yang replied with a friendly smile as she gestured towards the agitated Faunus girl. "My friend, Blake here is new to the area and I'm showing her around."
Carson shot a surprised look at Blake, suddenly realizing that she really had been walking with Yang, not just near her.
"She's a Faunus," he stated in shock upon taking in Blake's ears. Blake couldn't help rolling her eyes a second time as her ears twitched in agitation. This guy was really slow.
"Of course she is!" Yang replied without a moment's hesitation. "You see…" she began, leaning in close to him as she stood on her tiptoes to whisper suggestively in his ear, "I find the Faunus to be exceptionally sexy."
Yang giggled as she stepped away from the boy, his mouth hanging open in astonishment as he stared at Blake with wide eyes. Blake could feel her face heating up from Yang's comment, but returned Carson's gaze steadily as he began sputtering.
"B-but the Faunus are…they're…well, they're Faunus!"
Blake felt her ears twitch at his comment. He was implying that a Faunus could never date someone like Yang Xiao Long. That only a human could be worthy of her affection. Well…Blake wouldn't exactly consider herself to be worthy of dating her, but maybe some other Faunus would have a chance in the future. Yang had seemed to get along quite well with Sun, after all.
Yang simply laughed at the sputtering remark as she began to walk backwards away from the boy, motioning for Blake to follow her as she replied jovially, "There's just something about them that's so alluring, don't you think? Maybe it's the ears." She finished with a wink before blowing a kiss back towards the dumbfounded boy.
Blake felt a sharp jab of jealousy at the gesture, even though she knew that Yang was only doing it in jest. She couldn't understand how Yang made it look so easy to flirt with creeps like that.
As they turned around to continue walking through a beautiful outdoor shopping plaza, Yang sighed heavily, "Ugh, I hate guys like that."
"Well, most people still aren't as tolerant of Faunus as you are," Blake began. "Especially the suggestion of Faunus-human relationships…"
"Oh no, not that," Yang said, waving a hand dismissively, "I mean guys who act like they can't see you. It's like saying a tree is beautiful and ignoring the sunrise right behind it."
Blake felt her face flush at the compliment. But before she was able to say 'thank you,' Yang had already moved on to another subject.
"Ooh look! This is my favorite spot!"
Turning her attention back to their surroundings, Blake realized that they were standing in an open, circular area positioned around a large, ornate three tier fountain. Small black tables with matching chairs and umbrellas were placed strategically about the area, where shoppers were sitting, chatting or eating food from one of the nearby restaurants.
"I like to sit here and people watch," Yang continued as she walked over to a nearby empty table, pulling out a chair and plopping down into it. Blake followed her lead, sitting down across from her and turning her attention to the people walking nearby. She watched as couples and families passed, engrossed in their own conversations. She could see why Yang liked it here. It was cathartic to watch the shoppers, each lost in their own world and own problems.
Her attention was suddenly drawn to a small girl who was hesitantly approaching them. With her blonde hair tied back in pigtails, she couldn't have been more than seven years old. Blake watched her curiously as she crept slowly closer.
"Excuse me…" the young girl finally spoke, voice hardly more than a whisper. "A-are you Yang Xiao Long? The huntress?" The girl looked at Yang with wide eyes, nervously waiting for her answer.
Yang smiled warmly at her, responding happily, "Yes, I am! And who might you be?"
Having her suspicions confirmed, the young girl broke into a huge smile, clasping her hands happily together in front of her. "I knew it! I knew you were! My name is Violet. Can I have your autograph? Please?" She thrust out a pen and crumpled napkin as her words finished tumbling out.
Blake smiled as Yang chuckled softly.
"Of course, Violet," she replied softly as she knelt down from her chair directly in front of the small girl. Taking the pen and paper from Violet's small hands, she set the napkin down on her thigh and began writing, speaking out loud:
"To Violet, my biggest fan. May you never lose the courage you displayed today. Love, Yang Xiao Long."
Violet squealed in happiness as Yang handed the napkin back to her.
"I want to be a huntress just like you when I grow up!" she nearly shouted, excitedly bouncing up and down while clutching her new treasure.
Blake felt her heart warmed from the entire exchange. Yang was being exceptionally sweet to the young girl, who was practically bubbling over in her idolization of the blonde brawler. She couldn't help thinking that Yang would make a really good mother, if she ever decided to have children.
Violet suddenly looked over at her, causing Blake to freeze and pray that the girl wouldn't notice her ears. Her wish was not granted as she watched the little girl's eyes lock on to her most prominent feature. She struggled to keep her ears still, but found that they were trying to take on a life of their own under the small girl's intent gaze.
Yang quickly noticed where Violet was staring.
"Hey," she said, capturing the little girl's attention again with a big smile. "Want to meet my new partner?" She gestured towards Blake with her head. "Her name is Blake!"
Violet looked at Blake again, confusion emanating from her. Her eyes never leaving Blake's ears, she whispered sideways to Yang, "But…she's a Faunus…"
Blake couldn't stop her ears from flicking at that comment, which caused the young girl to scoot marginally closer to Yang.
Yang merely chuckled happily and replied, "Of course she is! She's great too. One of the best huntresses in all of Vale."
"But…they're supposed to be mean…" Violet continued in a hushed voice, as if afraid of what Blake might do if she overheard her.
Laughing again, Yang leaned in close to the little girl and whispered back, "Yeah, they are supposed to be, but let me tell you a little secret…some of them are actually really friendly."
Before Blake had the chance to react, Yang reached out and pulled Blake down from her chair to the ground beside them. Placing one hand on the back of Blake's head, Yang gently but forcefully pushed her head down slightly towards the girl as she said delightedly, "Plus, look at how cute these ears are! Go ahead, you can touch them."
Hearing this, Blake immediately stiffened. She never let anyone touch her ears, partly because they were very sensitive, but also because she didn't want to be viewed as a pet that people could…pet. However, she didn't want to risk scaring Violet by jerking away, so remained as still as possible, eyes staring at the pavement.
After several seconds of waiting, she finally felt Violet's hand brush her ears quickly, causing her to flinch slightly at the abruptness of it. She heard a small giggle before Violet's hand appeared again, this time petting her ears more steadily, tickling slightly as she pulled gently at one of her ears between her thumb and forefinger. Blake had to use all of her willpower to keep her ears still as the little girl kept tickling her.
Violet continued giggling as she exclaimed, "They're so soft!" Blake smiled, realizing that the girl was practically squealing in delight. She heard Yang start laughing as well as she removed her hand from the back of Blake's head.
Suddenly, Violet's small hand was replaced by Yang's as the blonde huntress' warm fingers expertly ran themselves around Blake's ears, scratching slightly in all the right places. Blake closed her eyes with a small gasp as ecstasy flowed within her at the contact. She heard a low rumble escape her chest before she swiftly cut it off with a blush. And, just like that, Yang's hand was gone.
Blake looked up and saw that Violet was now beaming at her, holding out her pen and napkin once more.
"Can I have your autograph, too?"
She felt her jaw drop open in surprise before she managed to respond, "S-sure you can!" She took the items from the girl gingerly and quickly signed the first thing that came to mind, 'Violet, may all your wishes come true. Blake Belladonna.'
As she returned the objects to Violet, the little girl held them closely to her chest before exclaiming, "Thank you both so much!" And with that, she turned and ran back to where her mom was still sitting and waiting for her.
Blake and Yang watched as Violet ran up to her mom, thrusting the napkin into her hands as she waved her arms around, jumping up and down in excitement. Blake smiled as she watched the little girl making hand gestures as if she was petting Blake's ears again.
"Sometimes the smallest things can change a person's entire perspective," Yang spoke up from beside her. "She could grow up without fearing the Faunus, just because you let her touch your ears."
She turned to Yang and found the blonde's caring, lilac eyes locked onto her own. She flushed under the power of the girl's gaze and quickly looked away.
"Thank you, Yang," she said quietly. "That was…one of the most amazing things I've ever experienced…"
She replayed the scene again in her mind. The little girl had gone from scared to thrilled in a matter of seconds, all from touching her ears. It was amazing to see someone lose their fear of her just like that. It was something that she had never witnessed before. And she would never have had that experience if not for Yang.
"Sure thing, partner," Yang responded casually, as if it weren't a huge deal at all. "So what do you think about heading back to the house now?"
Blake nodded in approval as they turned to head back the way they'd come.
After walking in silence for a few minutes, Yang finally broke the quiet as she added cheerfully, "By the way, I think that Ruby will be really upset to hear that you ate her bag of marbles. She really loved those."
Blake instantly felt her face heat up. She had really been hoping that Yang hadn't heard that.