Chapter Text
Yang hopped onto the table and glanced at Blake sitting stiffly to her right.
“Hey. You okay?” she asked softly, mindful that May was giving instructions to those still out in the field.
Where I should be.
“Um, yeah,” Blake mumbled, not looking at her. “Just worried.”
Yang hummed in agreement. It seemed that she’d been in a perpetual state of worry ever since arriving in Atlas. Before then, if she was being honest. Most of her time in Atlas had been dictated by someone else. While she was thankful to have had training from the Ace Ops and gotten her Huntress licence, Yang was getting tired of being overlooked.
“Yang, what’s wrong?” Blake’s lovely voice permeated her haze of thoughts.
She glanced down and saw that her right hand had splintered the table she was sitting on because she’d gripped it so hard. Yang closed her eyes and sighed.
“I feel useless sitting here. I want to help the people in Mantle.”
Blake gave her a tiny smile – Yang relished those small smiles more than anyone knew. “I understand. I don’t know if it’s that we’re not deemed trustworthy yet or what, but it is…frustrating.”
Yang couldn’t help but smirk at Blake’s forced modesty. “I’m tired of other people deciding what’s right and wrong for me. We trusted Ironwood to do that and look where it got us. We trusted Ru-“ Yang bit lip and cut herself off. She hated that she’d been thinking about how Ruby’s decisions had landed them where they were, and not in a favourable way. She loved Ruby more than anything and would always trust her.
But…she just wasn’t sure that she and Ruby were on the same page anymore.
“Yang, what are you-“
Blake’s words were cut off as Weiss hurried to the door, opening it to reveal Joanna, Ruby, Maria and Oscar.
Oh, thank the spirits. She found him.
Yang could feel Blake still looking at her and her neck warmed beneath her collar. She kept a neutral expression and watched Nora give Oscar a surprisingly soft hug. She listened as Joanna painted a very clear picture of the state of things and it only fuelled her desire to help.
As soon as Joanna mentioned the crater, Yang knew that she would be boots on the ground, doing what she could. She had the ability to assist with the crater plan. She was strong and she had the perfect weapons for the job.
“If you’re not helping,” Joanna said as she opened the door, “you’re baggage.”
Yang’s mind was made up and she stood, making her intentions clear. She didn’t expect Ruby to disagree with her, but Yang was nothing if not stubborn. She believed that helping the people who needed that help now was the best course of action. Thankfully, Ren agreed with her.
Yang forced herself not to look at Blake because she truly wasn’t sure where Blake’s head was at. She did know that Blake trusted Ruby and would likely follow her but there was a small part of Yang that held on to the hope that Blake would choose her, that they would stick together.
She really didn’t want to be apart again.
What if I needed her there for me?
The memory of vulnerability came unexpected and Yang steeled her resolve. She was tired of people talking and discussing and lying while other people suffered. She needed to be doing something. She needed to know that she was helping, that she was making a difference.
Yang didn’t understand Ruby’s fervent need to let the whole of Remnant know about Salem when they were already at a massive disadvantage. And she was going to one of the most dangerous places in Atlas to try and achieve that goal!
Ruby had an unwavering moral compass and Yang knew that would keep her sister safe. If not that, then at least she’d have Weiss, Blake, Nora and Penny with her. Yang tried not to let her hurt show as she headed for the door.
“Do what you gotta do. I’m going out there to see what I can do,” she said, feeling tired from the conversation. She hated disagreeing with Ruby and knowing that her entire team was siding with Ruby and going to Atlas felt like a punch in the gut.
Part of her wondered if she’d missed something. Had there been a shift in their dynamic? She and Blake still seemed pretty on song when they’d taken on Elm and Vine. Perhaps seeing Penny and Winter fight Cinder had altered Ruby’s purpose.
She could feel Blake’s gaze on her as she reached the door but she knew that it would hurt too much to look at her. She caught the keys that Pietro tossed her and continued out the door, Ren, Oscar and Jaune following closely behind.
Why do I suddenly feel so alone?
Blake knew that she should be focusing on their approach to the military compound. She was honestly relying on instinct. Her head was all over the place. She believed that Ruby was right, that getting communications back up and running was vital to any hope of tackling the larger threat. But she also wanted to help the people in Mantle and she knew that Yang was disappointed and hurt that she hadn’t chosen to stay with her.
Blake had almost changed her mind, especially after seeing how sombre Yang seemed as she’d left their base of operations. The last thing she wanted was for them to separate. The last time they’d done that, it was months before they all saw each other again. Blake didn’t want to go through that again. She needed Yang, more than she let herself realise. Not just as her partner and friend.
Blake swallowed the lump in her throat. So many times she’d wanted to just grab Yang’s collar and kiss her, just to see if there would be any reaction. Blake was pretty sure that her attraction and her feelings weren’t one-sided but after being without Yang for what felt like years, she wasn’t willing to risk anything coming between them.
And yet, here you are. While she’s down there.
The mood around her was a tense one. Nora was quiet – something Blake had never expected to see or hear. Or not hear. Ruby was frowning and Penny kept a blank expression on her face.
We’re here and we’re going to do this but why do I feel like none of us are happy about it?
While Maria was relaying information to Weiss, Blake’s ears pricked up at the first sound of a scroll. Quickly, she pulled hers out, hoping that she’d see Yang’s face on the screen. Her heart sank when she saw that it was blank and Penny’s was the scroll that was ringing. She slipped her scroll back into her jacket and tried to remain focused.
Yang was right about Ironwood – he wasn’t going to budge on helping Mantle and Blake could never blame her for wanting to feel useful, for wanting to help people. Yang’s big heart had been one of the biggest surprises for Blake back during their Beacon days. While she’d initially chosen Yang because of her fighting prowess and penchant for getting easily distracted – ideal for a Faunus in hiding – Yang had become the constant light in her life that she hadn’t expected.
Memories of sad stories, of comforting hugs, of exciting dances washed through Blake’s mind and she felt her heart ache.
Dammit, focus!
Blake really hoped that it wouldn’t be long before she saw Yang again.