Black - Regret


re·gret

/rəˈɡret/

verb

1. feel sad, repentant, or disappointed over (something that has happened or been done, especially a loss or missed opportunity).

"She regretted her actions far too late."

noun

2. a feeling of sadness, repentance, or disappointment over something that has happened or been done.

"Her regret wouldn't bring him back."


Sometimes, when upset, people lash out.

And sometimes, they hurt others around them.

I never meant to hurt him.


Crickets chirped outside and frogs croaked every so often. It was almost midnight. Blake's eyes were getting heavy and her mother, Kali, was getting worried. She rapidly tapped her finger against the table, looking at the clock on her scroll every few minutes, "Where is he…"

Blake yawned, "Mommy, when is Daddy coming back? He's been gone for so long already…" The little cat Faunus tiredly huffed and let her head drop, her forehead bopping against the table. She felt her mother gently pat her head.

"He should've been back hours ago… neither he nor Sienna have contacted me since the last check-in…" Kali bit her thumb nail, turning over her options as the minutes ticked on. Either she could continue waiting, trying contacting Ghira or Sienna, or go to the White Fang base and ask what's going on.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the front door being slammed open, making both her and Blake jump. Sienna came darting into the room, almost failing to catch herself before she hit the doorframe, "Kali! Come quick!" She was out of breath and frazzled, the fur on her ears standing on end.

Kali quickly jumped up and followed her through the house, Blake in tow. She was worried that something had happened to Ghira, but soon saw that that wasn't the case. Sienna had led them to the guest room where Ghira was kneeling down next to the bed, his hands visibly shaking. As she moved to stand by him, her ears went up in surprise upon seeing a young, red-haired boy curled up in the bed, wrapped in her husband's coat. She was horrified to see patches of blood soaking through the fabric.

Ghira looked at her, "We- we don't know where he came from-! We only realized he was there after he'd-" It was clear that both he and Sienna were in shock from whatever happened and that this boy needed medical attention.

"Blake," she looked back at her daughter, "take your father and Miss Sienna to the kitchen. Make some tea to calm them down."

Blake quickly nodded and grabbed her father's arm, making a poor attempt at trying to drag him along with her. He snapped out of his daze and stood up, following her and Sienna out of the guest room. Kali quickly uncovered the boy to assess his injuries; two bullet wounds, one partially healed. His Aura had been intact but weak after the first shot and broke after the second one, resulting in a partially healed wound that she'd have to pull the bullet out of.


The kitchen was quiet, Ghira and Sienna both holding their cups with shaky hands. Blake's eyes flicked between them as they sat there quietly. Did she make the right tea or had she grabbed the wrong jar? They appeared calmer but still shaken up. Her ears twitched and flicked as she waited for either of them to say something.


Hours had gone by by the time Kali exited the guest room, blood covering her hands and staining her clothes. The two cat Faunus looked at her as Blake remained fast asleep in her father's arms.

Kali softly and shakily sighed, "He's okay… but he needs an actual doctor to treat him. Ghira, what happened out there?" Her ears twitched anxiously as she worked at scrubbing the boy's blood off her hands.

"Grimm… they… we were attacked by a horde of capivara on our way back and… this kid… I don't know where he came from but he was hit by stray bullets." Ghira held Blake close to his chest with a guilt-ridden expression.

Sienna huffed and shook her head, "He's likely a stowaway from one of the other settlements… nobody noticed him until he'd already been hit…"

The three stood in silence. Regardless of how the boy had snuck into their caravan, he'd been seriously injured and needed proper medical care. On top of that, they needed to find his parents and take him home. But it would put a dent in the plans they had already set and delay their next mission… but even if that was the case, Ghira's guilt wouldn't allow him to continue their plans until the kid had been safely returned home. This was going to be a long week…


Two days had passed before the boy woke up. Blake had been curious about what had happened and had been sneaking into the room to leave random things she found; shiny rocks, coins, quite a lot of her own stuffed animals. Her parents didn't say anything about it, seeing as she wasn't causing any harm. Although the poor kid would probably say otherwise; he'd woken up to a pair of bright yellow eyes staring directly at him from half a foot away and been scared half to death.

His name was Adam and he, as Sienna had guessed, stowed away on their caravan as they made a quick stop through a different settlement. He was quick to apologize for causing so much trouble but was also quick to admit that he was an orphan, meaning that there was no one he could be taken back to.

"What do we do?" Kali asked anxiously, glancing to where the two children were sitting. Adam was only about five years older than Blake, making him about twelve. "We… we can't just… keep him... can we…?"

Ghira looked pensive. While technically they could, it would be difficult to obtain proper documentation if no one was currently in possession of it; birth records, medical records, etc. Adoption papers would be less of an issue since he didn't belong to an orphanage. Ghira sighed, rubbing his face, "Well… we can… but I'm not sure it's a good idea…"

"I can have a big brother?!"

The pair jumped and looked down at their daughter, who had apparently overheard their conversation and focused on the fact she could acquire a sibling. She looked up at them, bouncing on her toes excitedly with stars in her eyes, completely unaware of- or outright disregarding- their hesitance to say yes. They looked over at Adam, then at each other, then back at Blake.

"If, and only if," Kali started, "he wants to stay with us. If not… we'll have to figure something else out."

Blake's ears twitched as she gained a look of determination, running back to Adam and almost throwing herself up onto the bed he was sat on, startling him. She stood on her knees and aggressively shook his arm, "Do you wanna stay with us?! Do you?! They said you can!"

"Uhm…" He glanced at Kali and Ghira as if asking for permission to answer. Ghira gave a small nod and Adam returned his gaze to Blake, "Sure…"

He was jumped on by a very excited Blake and hugged much tighter than someone of her size should've been able to. After making a futile attempt at prying her off, he gave in and- albeit rather awkwardly- hugged her back. Kali snickered and pulled the girl off, "Well don't strangle him, sweetie."


Years passed by peacefully. Ghira and Sienna had agreed to train Blake and Adam and, once old enough, make them official members of the White Fang. Normally Ghira didn't like the idea of bringing one of his kids along on missions, but Adam had wanted to tag along for one and Sienna backed him up, saying that it was a short trip to Mistral and back and wouldn't be too dangerous. Had she known what would happen, she would've sided with Ghira.

Blake didn't remember how the fight started. She remembered Sienna and Adam getting home without her dad and Adam hiding in his room while Sienna talked to their mother.

"Dad's… dead…?" she asked, ears flattening against her head. Her arms curled in and she shook her head in disbelief, "No… you're lying!"

Adam's hands shook as he forced himself to look at his sister, "I'm not… Sienna's telling Mom what happened right now…" Tears fell and his vision blurred, "It… it's my fault… he'd still be here if… if I hadn't gone with them…"

Blake's eyes welled with her own tears, "What do you mean…?"

"We… we got ambushed by humans… and I was fighting… but… one of them went for Dad… and… and I wasn't fast enough to stop him…"

A mixed range of emotions passed through Blake as she finally processed everything. She still doesn't know why, but she lashed out. She blanked for a moment and lashed out at her brother, clawing him in the face and drawing blood. Adam held his left eye as he cried out in pain, blood dripping through his fingers. His breathing picked up in a panic as he looked back at Blake, scared that she'd try to kill him. He looked at the blood on his hand and realized he couldn't see out of that eye anymore.

Blake tried reaching out as Adam ran past her and out of the room. She heard Sienna and her mother calling out for him and the front door open. Kali came into the room and frantically asked what had happened upon seeing the blood on her daughter's nails. She became even more frantic when Blake didn't answer her and only stared blankly at the door with her ears pressed flat.

Sienna wasn't able to find Adam. She had groups check every settlement in Menagerie as well as scout the desert but nobody found him. He'd likely gotten onto the last ship to Mistral after he ran out of the house, meaning that it was unlikely they'd ever find him. This caused Kali to fall into depression, having lost both her husband and her son in such a short time. Blake felt nothing but guilt and regret even as she continued her training with Sienna, who had become the White Fang's High Leader a few months after Ghira's funeral.

Although Sienna's ideas of getting humans to listen to and respect faunus were… often violent, Blake went along with them. She was unsure of what she wanted to do for several years until she heard other members talking about the academies. When asked if she could apply, Sienna was hesitant at first. But the idea had made Kali perk up for the first time in years. Ultimately, she went along with it, letting Blake apply to Beacon Academy and promising to cover whatever expenses she could. Blake's main hope when applying was that she'd somehow, some way, find her brother and fix things.


A/N

So how's y'all's day going? I feel like I got put through a washing machine spin cycle for a year. I am not having fun :D