"So, you want to know more about me." Blake said simply, sighing heavily. Her past wasn't the best topic she liked to talk about, especially since some would decide to call her a criminal despite not committing any crimes. She didn't want Yang and Ruby to see her differently just because of her past.

"Uh, yeah." Both Ruby and Blake shot the blonde a look, who shrugged in response. Once the annoyance wore off, Blake hunched back over and put her head in her hands.

"You two know about the White Fang, right?"

"Yeah I don't think anyone hasn't heard of them. They're all over the news. People say they're a bunch of criminals." Yang said, moving her hair back behind her from when it fell down over her shoulder. Blake's expression worsened, her eyebrows knitting together as she tried to get her words together.

"I… Was once a member of the White Fang."

"What?! You were a member of a terrorist organization?!" Yang exclaimed, just about falling off of the couch. Blake nodded and cast her gaze further down until her chin was almost tucked in her pajama shirt.

"That's right. I was a member for most of my life, actually. You could almost say I was born into it…" Blake shivered as she delved back into painful memories, her breathing becoming less controlled. "Back then, things were different. In the ashes of war, the White Fang was meant to be a symbol of peace and unity between everyone. Of course, despite being promised equality, people were subjected to discrimination and hate. Humanity still thought of us as lesser beings. And so, the White Fang rose up as the voice of all. And I was there.

"I was at the front of every rally. I took part in every boycott. I actually thought we were making a difference. But I was just a youthful optimist." Blake's shoulders shook as her breathing became more erratic. Her clear anxiety and PTSD shook her in every aspect of her being. It became painfully obvious that she was intent on telling her story, no matter how difficult it was for her.

"Hey, if this is hard for you, you really don't need to tell us. It's fine. We don't need to know everything now." The dark haired girl held up a hand to silence Yang. She had already mustered up the courage to go his far, a little more wasn't going to hurt her much.

"Then, five years ago, our leader stepped down, and a new one took his place. A new leader, with a new way of thinking. Suddenly, our peaceful protests were being replaced with organized a-attacks. We were... setting fire to shops who refused to serve us,.. hijacking cargo from companies that used slave labor. And the worst part was, it was working. We were being treated like equals. But not out of respect… Out of fear.

"So I left. I decided I no longer wanted to aid in their violence. So here I am: an anxiety riddled criminal hiding in plain view." Blake whimpered quietly as she tried to get control over her breathing. Sensing the girl needed an anchor, Yang reached over and took Blake's hand in her own, the other twisted around the fabric of her pajama pants.

"Just breathe, Blake. C'mon, in… Out…" The blonde tried to get Blake to respond to her, curling the girl's fingers in order to try and restrain the shaking a little.

"Yang-" Blake cut herself off when her throat constricted around itself. She tried to breathe; anything but the short gasps that brought no oxygen to her lungs. She could feel the sense of dread in the back of her mind as her hand curled into a fist. She knew what it signified, having experienced it many times. She wasn't exactly thrilled about it happening again, especially in front of the nice people who allowed her to stay with them.

When her memories first began to resurface in her mind, Blake's hands clenched. Her nails dug into her palms but she could hardly feel the pain. She could tell Yang was speaking her her, Ruby directly behind her sister with a concerned look on her face. It didn't do any good because all she could hear was his voice.

She was sure to be trembling even harder now, her memories replaying themselves. She just wanted to curl up, to shield herself from the flashback. But she somehow knew exactly what she would feel. She would feel herself in a fetal position while seeing him standing over her. And, if Yang put her hand somewhere other than her own, she would feel his hand touching her.

She didn't want to do this again. She didn't want to see his hand touching her again, didn't want to feel like she should be able to feel his rough palm on her skin. She didn't want this.

"Blake." She was sure her name was said carefully, full of concern from a feminine voice, but all she could hear was the rough and gravelly tone he always used. All she heard was him. All she saw was him. Blake was tired of it. She didn't want him to touch her anymore. Not when his hand was circling around to the small of her back to pull her in close. Not anymore.

So, she did the most logical thing she could think of. She pushed him. She pushed against his muscled chest and fell away from him. But… Blake didn't feel the same chest she was used to touching. This one was soft; the old and blood stained suit jacket wasn't there. The shirt was lower, too. Her fingers had splayed over soft skin and a hard collarbone. The fabric she had touched was a worn cotton, pleasant to her senses.

And finally, she could breathe again. Blake found that whatever memory resurfaced started to fade away. She started seeing less of that dreaded place and more of the small living room. Her trembles calmed until she was left with gasping for much needed air. After a few moments, Blake realized exactly what she had done. She didn't push him away, she pushed Yang away.

Blake's had snapped up and she stared into wide, lilac eyes. A look of concern met her, not the anger she had been expecting.

"Yang… I'm so sorry…"

"No, no Blake you're okay. I'm sorry for touching you. I shouldn't have. It was stupid of me." Yang fired off quickly, Blake wincing at each one because Yang thought it was her fault Blake had pushed her away. It wasn't. I would never be. Yang was soft, gentle, understanding. Everything he was not.

"No… I-I… PTSD… Flashbacks… I-It wasn't you.. A-"

"Blake don't freak yourself out again. Please. If you don't feel as if you can do it, don't. You can tell us one other day, just please. I don't know exactly what happened, but I don't want to see it happen again." Tears swam in those eyes as Yang pleaded. Everything was starting to calm down, a comfortable silence filled with the occasional sniffle from the two sisters and a wheezing gasp from Blake.

The silence was broken when Yang noticed blood running down Blake's arm. The dark haired girl was hunched over on the floor, her elbow propped up against her knee to where her red lifeblood was slowly dropping down her forearm.

"Blake!" The paraplegic gasped out, "You're bleeding!" She quickly pulled herself into her wheelchair and pushed herself over, grabbing Blake's hand to inspect it. Deep, crescent marks in her palm were bleeding profusely.

"I'm okay. Whenever my… flashbacks happen I clench my fists too hard for me to notice. This always happens. I'm okay, really." Blake tried to reason. However, Yang was having none of it. The blonde lightly tugged on her arm, just enough to Blake to realize she wanted her to stand. So she did. Yang wasn't like him, so Blake would gladly do anything Yang wanted her to do.

"Still, we need to bandage your hand. It could get infected or you could pass out from blood loss or… or…" Yang's voice faded away as she tried to think of another reason. Stopping the blonde's fretting, Blake her other hand on her shoulder. "Come with me into the kitchen. I'll grab the first aid kit."

The paraplegic led Blake into the small kitchen, stopping at the edge of the counter. The surprised the dark haired girl by hefting herself onto the slab of polished wood, opening the top cabinet and rummaging through it. She brought out a small box once she located it, popping it open. Yang grabbed Blake's hand once more as she pulled out disinfectant and ointment.

"This'll hurt a little." She warned before spraying it all over her palm. The dark haired girl hissed but held fast. She hadn't expected it to sting the way it did. She had never had access to this kind of medical equipment. Usually it was just bandages and natural herbs if your wound was bad enough. Sometimes not even that.

The stinging sensation ebbed away quicker when Yang started to lightly blow on the cuts. The cool air against her agitated flesh felt nice, and Blake knew Yang had done this before. Humming in appreciation with her patient being so good, the blonde went back to her work. She grabbed the antibacterial ointment and spread a little onto her finger, smearing the cold gel over the crescent moon cuts as lightly as she could.

Only when Yang reached back into the box and pulled out a roll of gauze did Blake stop her.

"Can… I do this part by myself? It- we always patched each other up before and… I don't want any other memories to come back." She pleaded, lightly pulling her arm out of Yang's grasp.

"Yeah, no worries. Here." The paraplegic handed the roll of bandages to Blake, and she started to wrap them around her hand. Blake also wound it around her wrist a few times to insure it wouldn't slip off easily. When she was finished, Yang held a pair of scissors out and happily cut the end, putting a piece of tape on it to keep it together.

"Thank you, Yang." Blake muttered as she smiled. The two grinned at each other, Blake nursing her bandaged hand and Yang still sitting on the counter. Their attentions were turned only when they heard the quick noises of bare feet hitting against hardwood.

Ruby came running up, a pencil in one hand, and her sketchbook in another. She had a large, excited grin on her face as she came bounding up to them. When the mute girl got to them, she bounced in place for a few seconds until Yang finally spoke.

"Whatcha' up to sis?"

If Ruby's smile could get any bigger, it certainly did as she flipped the sketchbook over. An unfinished sketch of a person was drawn into the paper. They, or more appropriately she, had a sweet smile just barely ghosting over her lips, eyes staring lovingly. Her dark, flowing hair brushed over her shoulders and the bow tied on her head seemed to compliment the onyx hair. It was just the profile, but so much detail in just a sketch was put into it.

More importantly, the girl messily yet cleanly sketched was Blake. Caught in the moment of thanking Yang, her expression was permanently put on paper. The anxiety riddled girl simply stared in awe, shock exchanged for her smile.

The two sisters had the same happen to them when Blake suddenly sniffled, tears springing to her eyes. Yang reached for the girl as she hid her face in her hands, but Blake moved away just enough for the blonde's fingers just barely brushed against a few strands of hair.

"Blake..?"

"Thank you, Ruby." Blake sobbed, surprising them both, "Thank you so much. You can never understand how much that means to me. Thank you."

The mute girl's smile came back at full force, delightful tears forming in her own eyes. She handed Yang the sketchbook and pencil before tightly wrapping her arms around Blake's trembling frame. The simple gesture only served to make the dark haired girl cry harder, hiccups rattling in her chest.

Ruby tried her best to carefully guide Blake over to the cabinet so Yang could join in. Soon, the girl was wrapped in two sets of arms, heads resting on and against her shoulders for comfort.

"I've… I've never ha-had something like this before." Blake hiccuped.

"Then we'll be sure to hug you more often. I guess it's a good thing you found us. Right Ruby?" The mute in question furiously nodded her head against Blake's chest, nuzzling into the fabric of her clothes.

They were just three teenagers to the world hugging in a tiny kitchen, but to each other, they were slowly becoming a family. And neither of them wanted the family to break apart.

Authors' Note: Hey guys! Fox here, I just wanted to say thanks for sticking with this story and how much it means to us for all of the support. We're currently just two students writing in our free time and with this story and all of the little ideas that we try and bring to life and much bigger plot lines we get a little swamped. Between the last chapter and this one, I was sick twice (After not being sick for three years my body has betrayed me) so I wasn't able to write at all during that time. Finally, I realized just how much time has passed since we last updated, I hurried to construct some kind of ending for this chapter, despite it being short. I hope you all will forgive me with this!

Also in response to some of the reviews you guys have left us: Weiss does have a white stick (cane thingy) but we didn't mention it because we came to a mutual agreement that Weiss knew the full layout of the grocery store and didn't need it and why would I stick something in there during the cafe scene that didn't exactly do anything currently? I will write Weiss with her white stick in the next chapter so don't worry. Also in response to those seeing this story marked as Ladybug and Freezerburn before it was changed was my fault. I messed up the pairings and saw it too late.

Man this is getting long but quick thing: Ruby is mute and we are currently debating on whether she was born mute, or became mute from an outside source. Weiss is blind and has always been blind ever since birth. Blake has bad anxiety, PTSD, and insomnia from night terrors brought on by her anxiety and PTSD. Yang is paralyzed from her past from her waist down *Reason will be shown later on so no spoilers sorry*

Quick word from Dragon: Thanks for the reviews, favorites, follows, and all that jazz. Also take a look at our other story "Beginnings" which is mainly down by me (Dragon) with input from Fox here and there. Anyways thanks again for he support!