Blake stared at the outside of Team RWBY's dorm room door. Six days, and she had nothing. After finishing where Weiss had left off with Goodwitch and Ironwood and securing a promise that they were reaching out to experts, Blake decided that waiting for a response was not good enough. Instead, she decided to make an expert of herself, near as she was able. To that end, she'd spent every spare moment in the library pouring over any even tangentially related research, homeopathy, or even rumors in this latest session of library time in hopes of finding some – any – solution. While she might have been interested in her findings under any other circumstances, nowhere was there a solution to Mina's amnesia anywhere to be found, and it frustrated her to no end.

Every night, it got harder and harder to come back to the dorm, stand in front of this door, and turn the knob. She'd given Mina her bed for the time being, and though she'd been provided an air mattress and bedding, it seemed to underscore the sense that she didn't have – or deserve – a place inside until she fixed this. Still, she had to sleep at some point, and she couldn't just curl up in the library to hide, so she opened the door.

She could vaguely hear Weiss in the bathroom, chiding Mina as what she presumed to be bathwater sloshed about when she entered the room, but she said nothing, just quietly closing the door. The lights were all off, save for what made its way past the bathroom door, just barely cracked open, and Blake did not care to turn any of them on – she didn't need them to see by, and she didn't feel like being noticed… would that she could just curl up and disappear.

What else is there for me to do? She sank down to the floor in the corner opposite the door behind her bunk and wrapped her arms about her knees, I need something… anything… For a long time, Blake just sat there in the dark, doing her best to breathe slowly, calmly, just wishing that she could hide from the pain and frustration, What the hell are you good for if you can't help her when she needs you?

When the door from the bathroom began to swing open though, Blake's internal reprimands fell silent; Mina was first to walk out into the room, letting out a little yawn as she went, but Blake could see even from where she was tucked away in the corner that Weiss had her hands on Mina's shoulders and was guiding her towards the bed. Mina was already dressed for sleep – in her favorite negligee, no less - so Weiss must have had her dress in the bathroom – definitely something Weiss would do – but Blake couldn't help feeling a knot of jealousy forming in the pit of her stomach.

"Come on big girl, bedtime…"

"But I'm not-," Mina yawned, "not tired…"

"Yeah, nice try," Weiss chided with the barest hint of a smile as Mina sat down on Blake's bed, "But you aren't fooling me,"

"Okay Miss Weiss…" Mina pouted as she lay down and allowed Weiss to pull the covers over her, "Read me a bedtime story?"

Blake gritted her teeth, but fought herself to keep silent, no matter how much she wanted to scream that Mina should be asking her that.

Weiss shook her head though, "I read you that storybook while you took your bath, remember?"

"But I like that book…"

"Tomorrow then," Weiss promised, "now close your eyes, it's time for sleep,"

Mina rolled onto her right side for comfort's sake, and Blake remembered all the times she'd wake up to find Mina still sleeping, just like that, and all at once, even as Mina groggily mumbled, "Goodnight…"

"Goodnight Mina," Weiss smiled a little more broadly, starting to turn away towards her desk, but then Mina added with a final yawn.

"I love you Miss Weiss…"

Weiss stopped dead and Blake's heart stopped cold, though the Heiress was first to recover her wits, speaking again with more melancholy now, "Goodnight Mina…"

It was too much. Abruptly Blake stood as her throat tightened, without regard for the noise, and made for the door, attracting Mina's groggy attention, but more notably Weiss's surprise, "Blake? When did you get-?"

"I don't want to talk."

She opened the door again to leave, but Weiss placed a palm on it before Blake could pull it open, "Blake-,"

"I can't do this Weiss-!"

Weiss took her hand off the door, moving it to hush Blake instead, "No, you can't," Weiss nodded Mina's way, then sighed, "Not here anyway… but you can't bottle it either-,"

"Don't pretend like you-,"

"If you could, than you never would have joined the White Fang," Weiss snapped definitively, "Now are we going to take this somewhere else and let Mina sleep, or must we do this right here?"

"We don't have to do this at all-,"

"Clearly we do…" Weiss moved to take the doorknob from Blake, and opened the door, "It's obvious that we've got a lot to talk about…"

They only made it as far as the common room for that floor of the dorm building, presently deserted on account of the lateness of the hour, before Blake refused to continue, "Alright fine; I miss her Weiss, are you happy?"

"Happy? No. Satisfied? Maybe," Weiss shook her head exasperatedly, "We are going to figure this out Blake – you know that-,"

"I don't though!" Blake interrupted, "for all I know she's stuck like this-,"

"Calm down Blake," Weiss interrupted in turn, "You snapped out of this, she will too,"

"This clearly isn't the same!"

"But it started the same way," Weiss reminded Blake, "Hang in there,"

"I've been hanging in there for a week…" Blake felt herself tearing up now, "I want her back Weiss…"

"Believe me Blake, so do I-,"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Blake demanded, suddenly angry, "You get to spend all day with her-,"

"I get to – Blake, you asked me to do this!" Weiss shot back indignantly, "And I sympathize with what you're going through Blake – this is not the Mina I know, and I want her back too; this isn't easy for me either Blake!"

Blake looked away, "I…" she sighed, "You're right… I guess I'm… I'm not being fair… just… can we trade places again…?"

Weiss's expression hardened, "Can you control yourself?"

"I…"

"Yes or no Blake," Weiss asserted, "if this isn't an easy answer for you, then I don't think it's a good idea,"

Can I? Blake's face fell, "I… I just miss her so much…"

"And what good will it do you to be trapped with the constant reminder that everything isn't as it should be?" Weiss's expression softened again, "I promise you that I will take care of her Blake; haven't I been? I've tried to read to yer as much as you do, I've taken her to the gym, I've even let her drag me all over creation just to keep her happy – would you believe that she wanted to go play with turtles of all things in some isolated pond on the edge of campus-?"

"You took her where?" Blake demanded, "Why would you take her there?"

"Whoa, Blake, calm down-,"

'No! Why would you take her to that spot? It's…" Blake paused, wincing a bit, trying to keep her emotions in check, "special…"

Weiss took a step Back, her brow furrowed as she scrutinized her teammate carefully, "Blake, I didn't know, but if you'll just-,"

"And now you've got her saying she loves you! Do you know how much that hurts Weiss? She's terrified of me, and yet you – the Schnee Heiress of all people -,"

Pale blue eyes burned with anger as Weiss struck Blake across the face, and the Faunus flinched at the blow, "Are you finished?"

Blake just gaped, her cheek beginning to sting.

"Good." The Heiress said through clenched teeth in a feeble attempt to control her anger, "Now, Blake Belladonna, I want you to tell me exactly what you think I've been doing with Mina for the past week. If you are going to accuse me of something like this, then you at least owe me the decency of growing a spine and saying it to my face!"

Blake's eyes widened in horror as she realized exactly what she'd implied in her exhausted and hasty rush to conclusions, "I…"

Blake stepped back, but Weiss's hand snapped forward to grab her wrist, "Oh hell no! You are not running from this one!" Weiss looked her straight in the eyes, "So tell me Blake – because I thought we were past this – but precisely how despicable do you think I am?"

"I… I don't-,"

"Well that isn't what it sounded like a second ago!" Weiss snapped, "I have listened to a laundry list of my personal shortcomings for my entire life, and I'll be damned before I stand here and let you add this to the list!I am not some disgusting letch who would take advantage of her best friend like that Blake! And she is my best friend Blake, and I love her, but not like that! I wouldn't try to take your place in her life even if I could! You want to know what I've been doing with her for the last week Blake? I've had to play along like I'm her mother, for God's sake! I sat in the bathroom while she took her bath to make sure she did! I took her to the pond because she wanted to catch a turtle! Right now she's a kid, Blake! What else am I supposed to do? I understand that you miss her and you want her back – I do too – but I will not stand here and be called a traitor by someone for whom I am doing everything I can to help! I stand by and give Father the fakes smiles and polite nods because I don't have a choice! He's my Father. You, Blake, are my teammate – and I refused to passively take this from a peer an equal!"

"Weiss-,"

"What do I have to do, Blake?" Weiss demanded, more desperate than angry now, "What do I have to do for you to trust me? How can I earn the benefit of the doubt? What will it take?"

Blake's shoulders fell slack, guiltily refusing to meet Weiss's eyes, "Nothing… You've earned that much… I just…. I owe you an apology…"

"Damn right you do!" Weiss affirmed, before her countenance softened, "Look, I think it would be best if you just turned in for the night, and tomorrow we can work you into Mina's activities… baby steps… I don't know why you'd think she's scared of you, but we can work through it – maybe it will even help get her memory back – that is, unless you feel that you could more usefully use your time researching…"

Blake took a moment to compose herself and think rationally, "No… Ironwood said that he knew an expert… there's not much else I can do until he can get in touch with them…"

Weiss nodded, "Alright, then you can stay with us tomorrow,"

Blake shook her head again, "That… isn't a good idea…"

Weiss gave her an odd look, "And why not?"

"Like I said… Mina's afraid of me now…" Blake's heart sank a little further as she said it, "All Faunus really…" She laughed bitterly, "It's ironic really; she's exactly like you were – and I judged you for that…"

"What happened?" Weiss asked, deadly serious.

Blake looked away again, "I… I don't know exactly… but she lost her mother…"

Weiss's eyes shut as she let out a deep breath, "I… I see…" Weiss finally let go of Blake's wrist, "But… The way I see it, that's all we need to know… don't you think?"

"Miss Weiss…?"

Suddenly, both the teammates' attention snapped to the mouth of the corridor toward their dorm in which a drowsy Mina was standing, one hand guiding her along the wall and the other rubbing sleep from her eyes, "Why are you and Miss Blake fighting?"

"M-mina-,"

But Weiss cut in, seeing the uncertainty on Blake's face, "Mina, it's past your bedtime; I'm sorry that we woke you, but you need to go back to bed while Blake and I have a grown-up conversation, okay?"

"You woke me up…" Mina pouted.

"We'll be quieter, alright? I promise,"

Mina nodded lazily, and yawned as she responded, "Alright…"

Weiss nodded, "Now hurry along and I'll tuck you back in when Blake and I are finished, alright? Goodnight Mina,"

Through this exchange, Blake just watched – it was Weiss whom Mina had asked her question, and she listened to the Heiress compliantly – but she waited until she could faintly hear the sound of RWBY's dorm room door closing down the hall, "That's what I'm talking about though…"

Weiss looked back to her sympathetically, "You're anxious and you don't know what to do, I get that Blake – maybe my life and circumstances haven't been the same, so maybe I can't claim to have gone through the same thing – but I can absolutely sympathize with what you're feeling, okay? I want to help, and right now, this is how I have to do it,"

"it just frustrates me…" Blake admitted, stepping back to lean up against the nearest wall, "You get to be her mother and I get to be… Miss Blake…"

"Apupup! None of that," Weiss chided gently, "I'm the adult and primary caretaker in her life right now – that's what she needs me to be - but I am not her mother; this is just the best – all – I can do for her now, and God does it frustrate me, but what else can I do? It's the question I've framed my entire life around Blake – 'what do I need to be to make it hurt less?' – the only difference is that now, it's not a defense mechanism, it's just what I need to do as her friend…" Weiss's eyes shut for a moment, before opening them again with a sad look, "Believe me Blake, I understand envy, but I promise you, I want her back exactly like she was before – I don't want to take her from you Blake… Maybe this is an odd suggestion, but maybe you should ask yourself how what to do to make this hurt less; I wish I could still be her best friend now Blake, but right now she needs me to fill a parental role instead – you though… Maybe you can't be her Dearest right now, but if there's nothing else you feel that you could do to help, you can try to be her best friend instead…"

Blake met Weiss's eyes for the first time since the conversation had taken a hostile turn and then calmed, "I can't do that to you… and even if I could… it wouldn't be enough…"

"All or nothing uh?" Weiss smiled sadly, "I wish that I could be like that; I'd always spring for 'yes daddy' if I thought it would even anesthetize… forget being happy… But… it's your choice…" She sighed, "So, how do you want to go forward?"

"I…" How did she want to do this? "I still want to be in her life… even like this…"

Weiss nodded, "Okay…"

"If it's alright, I'd like to read to her again…"

"Please…" Weiss nodded with and exasperated sigh, "I can't tell you how many times I've gone through every book on your shelf this week…"

"Wait, does that mean-,"

Weiss rolled her eyes, "Yes, including that one – fortunately I didn't read past the first page of that one before I shelved it again… But we can discuss that later…" Weiss shook her head, "That aside, story time is all yours – I might actually get a chance to catch up on all that work I've had piling up…"

"If you could just stay with us though..." Blake added, somewhat more timidly, "Just in case… You know, in case she remembers that I'm a Faunus or something…"

Weiss nodded soberly, "Alright, baby steps-,"

"And Weiss?"

"Hmmm?"

"Thank you for all you're doing for her – for us…"

Weiss smiled again, "What are friends for?"

"Still... Could you – and I know this is asking a lot – but could you keep being there for her? Even if – when – we get past this… you're the closest thing she's ever had to a normal… friend…"

"Well, thanks for the pressure…" But the Heiress said it with a wry smile, "But alright; I, Weiss Schnee, promise you here and now that I will do everything in my power to be there for Mina if ever you can't be," Blake nodded her gratitude, but Weiss wasn't finished, "And then I'll kill you for leaving my best friend out to dry,"

Blake couldn't help a little chuckle, "Thanks,"

Author's Note: Alright, so, some nice and lovely angstiness before we can have them talk it out a bit; fun stuff, right? I'm thinking of curing Mina next chapter, but that might come with certain… strings attached… (in-story, that is), but for now… spoilers… Anyway, as always, I do hope that you enjoyed that, and until next time, have a good one!