Dark Forest ch2

Dark Forest ch2 - Early release for patrons. Ch1 is available to the public on my page.

A/N: I wish I was alright enough to write a separate story in light of what's happened a few days ago with Monty's passing. I can only dedicate this chapter to him, as well. Words cannot describe what you meant to me - to all of us. Thank you.

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

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							Chapter 2.


Blake wasn't sure how much time had passed - at least 5 hours, she assumed, considering the positioning of the moon.

She was sure she must've dozed off a few times during her shift, only to be woken by a sudden gust of wind or something of the like. Reaching out, Blake tentatively shook the heiress' shoulder.

"Weiss..." Her voice was raspy due to lack of use.

Weiss felt her consciousness coming back to her, and for a moment, nothing mattered; she was simply waking up after a good rest.

Until the memories of the current situation came rushing back to her.

She jolted a bit as she saw Blake's darkened figure shaking her awake, and nearly cried out in alarm before she recalled their circumstances. With the return of her senses came the return of the pain assaulting her side and she winced.

Blake's amber eyes reduced to slits when she noticed her teammate's pain, but she didn't know what she could do to help, not when she herself was so exhausted like this.

Weiss noticed how enervated Blake was, too; on top of not having eaten since the previous morning before their departure, she had also fought vigorously in battle, and now had stayed awake on watch for several hours into the chilly night. Weiss gave her an appalled look as she noticed the position of the moon.

"Blake! Why did you let me sleep for so long? You should have woken me hours ago! You look like you're about to fall over - and you're already sitting!"

"I'm fine, Weiss. It wasn't that long," Blake lied, mumbling. "And I-"

"Hush," Weiss snapped. She moved stiffly as she placed her hands on Blake's shoulders, having her lean back against the trunk of the fallen tree. "Now rest. I'll keep watch until sunrise. I've slept well enough. You need to replenish your aura and rest your body to give your wounds some time to heal."

The heiress hoisted herself up onto the fallen log, sheathing Myrtenaster at her hip before sliding closer to Blake, letting the girl rest her head against Weiss' legs rather than the hard bark of the log.

Weiss had enough of her aura back now where it wouldn't hurt to share. Resting her hands on Blake's shoulders again, she began to emit a gentle flow of it, urging her teammate into the realm of slumber.

"Sleep," she murmured on a quiet breath. "Don't worry about a thing. I'll keep us safe."

A small grunt left Blake's lips as she leaned against the heiress' legs, though she had to admit it was much nicer than the fallen tree. The trickle of Weiss' aura felt heavenly as well.

Still, she had to protest.

"Thanks. But you should save your aura, Weiss. Wake me if anything happens, and don't let me sleep too long," she mumbled, amber eyes sliding closed. Her shoulders went lax, and she was about to protest again when she realized Weiss still hadn't stopped sharing her aura.

But the small stream of her teammate's energy was what eventually guided her to rest.

Weiss felt the tension leave Blake's body as the Faunus girl succumbed to sleep, uneasy as it may have been.

The heiress was alert now as she cast her gaze about the dark forest. Her rest had found her much more vigilant now, and though her senses were not nearly as good as Blake's, she felt she could hear better in the eerie silence. She closed her eyes briefly, lowering her senses of sight and smell so she may focus on her ears. She seemed to hear every leaf tremble on the breeze, every breath Blake inhaled as she slept.

Reopening her eyes, Weiss continued her shift, eventually pulling her hands back into her lap and stopping the flow of her aura onto her teammate.

She leaned back a bit and looked up at the open canvas of the sky, vast and endless like an ocean of ebony, stars speckling brightly across its expanse. It was a much more beautiful scene without all the artificial light pollution, and had the situation been different, Weiss might have taken more time to enjoy it. But she didn't get the chance now.

For an hour or so, Blake seemed to sleep peacefully. But not long afterward, she began to shift uncomfortably, bit by bit until she was twitching and whimpering.

Weiss had been focused on her stargazing, keeping herself alert for sounds or signs of danger, but all was quiet. It was then she felt Blake's shoulders twitching and directed her eyes back to her sleeping teammate. Weiss reached forward, placing a pacifying hand on her back for a moment.

But not even the gentle touch served Blake any good.

Nightmares tormented her, her brow creasing with uneasiness. These kinds of dreams were normal for Blake, and she was usually able to hide it quite well. But the current perilous situation reminded her much of the past, and this nightmare was much more crippling than the usual night terrors.

Another small whimper left her lips, nails digging unconsciously into the ground.

Blake absolutely hated nightmares, and nothing would ever change that fact. They were always there, from as far back as she could recall. As a child, her nightmares were really only of human abuse, which she had experienced more than she liked to admit.

As years went by, the nightmares had grown increasingly worse, to the point where she had them of her own allies. It really changed when the old leader of the White Fang stepped down, and the new one rose up. Things changed, and Blake was still young - she wasn't used to the type of violence they used. Nonetheless, she was forced into it, though she resented it.

Night after night, she would have them, but there was really nothing she could do about it. She thought that leaving the White Fang would help somewhat - though that obviously wasn't the main reason why she left. Leaving didn't help in the slightest with the nightmares.

In the end, it actually made things worse. She was afraid that they would find her, and end up hurting her teammates, whom became dear to her.

That was the last thing she wanted. For her teammates to get hurt because of her.

But that's usually what the nightmares were about.

And Weiss knew that something was wrong instantly. She felt Blake shift against her legs, her back trembling, the outlines of her ears flicking sharply on occasion before swiveling in discomfort. The small whines she was making weren't just the mumbles of one sleeping anymore - they were sounds of fear, pleas for help.

"Blake?" Weiss called her name softly, hating to wake her, but hating even more to see her trapped in her nightmares like this.

Blake had nightmares often. Weiss would hear her whimpers from time to time from across the room and always felt guilty about never being able to do anything about it.

But now she could.

"Blake...?" She said again, and this time she placed her hands on the girl's back. She nearly pulled back when she felt Blake's pulse beneath her left shoulder, hard and frantic. Concerned now, Weiss shook her gently. "Blake? Blake, I'm sorry, but please wake up."

Blake's condition only seemed to worsen as the seconds ticked on, and Weiss debated whether or not she should shake her harder. Though she could hardly see under the dark cover of night now, she could still make out the shape of her teammate, the shades of her clothes.

Weiss couldn't bear to watch this, to listen to those strangled sounds she was making-

Weiss gasped when Blake suddenly jolted and scrambled to her feet. She'd clearly felt Weiss shaking her, and a low hiss left her lips as she whipped her arm back to grab her weapon, irritating her wound. Though Gambol Shroud wasn't on her back, where it would typically be.

"Blake!" Weiss gasped again, slightly startled.

Blake's ears flattened at the sound of her name, the sounds of the forest hindering her senses. Her eyes hadn't adjusted to the darkness yet, and she had forgotten that it was Weiss - it was Weiss here with her in the forest.

Not Adam; not the White Fang.

Amber orbs reduced to slits as she struggled to see through the night. Her good arm raised to the other, rubbing around the wound as she hoped it would ease the pain. Her mind hadn't quite put the pieces back together just yet, so she remained silent as she glared, ready to defend herself if need be.

The sharpness of Blake's motions made it obvious to the heiress that her teammate would reopen her wound if she kept moving like that; Weiss knew she had to calm her down.

"Blake- Blake!" She put her hands up in front of her chest by means of peace, trying to sooth her. "It's okay. It was just a bad dream," she said, voice lowering into a reassuring murmur.

Weiss knew her next words were lies, considering where they were, but she was intent on making them the truth:

"You're safe, Blake. Nothing's going to hurt you. You're okay."

She reached out, groping to find Blake's hands and take them into her own, rubbing her thumbs over the backs of her sore knuckles as she pulled the girl closer to her, doing her best to calm her.

But she could tell something was wrong, that her teammate still wasn't fully in control of herself.

Years of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of humans drove Blake to the edge, her senses still disoriented from the wounds she'd sustained in battle. In the dark shadows – in Blake's eyes right now – Weiss was just another enemy.

Blake couldn't stop herself, too delirious to think rationally, mind still clouded.

She lashed out, sharpened nails scoring over flesh as she shoved Weiss away in a furious panic. Weiss didn't even have the chance to react before she saw the flash of fear in Blake's eyes, and not a second later felt a piercing pain in her side.

Blake's nails had scraped over her pre-existing wound, as well as down her opposite wrist. Weiss' efforts to reach out and touch the girl's hand had resulted in cruel red streaks down her own porcelain skin.

The force of the shove sent Weiss reeling, falling back into the dust with a pained sound that suggesting to Blake just how hard she'd pushed.

The Faunus girl crouched over her, knees bent, ready to tear off until-

-until she realized what she'd done.

She finally seemed to be free of her nightmares and blinked herself back into reality – only that too, had now turned into a nightmare.

Her own teammate lie before her in the dirt, gasping in pain.

And it was all because of Blake.

"Weiss..."

She reached out, the muscles of her arm tight with uncertainty, but she couldn't bring herself to make contact with the heiress. She was too scared she'd see the same look of terror in Weiss' eyes, the same look Blake had seen in the eyes of every human she'd ever hurt unintentionally. The White Fang had more or less forced her to do so in the past, but now it was only Blake. No one had made her lash out at Weiss other than herself.

"I'm... s-sorry..."

Blake dug her heels into the grit of the earth and spun around, tearing off across the clearing as fast as her bruised legs would allow. She stumbled and nearly collapsed due to the pain shooting throughout her body with every jolting step, but Blake didn't stop running, not even after she reached the tightly-packed army of surrounding trees. She followed her instinct rather than abiding to any shred of logic that tried to claw its way into her mind.

Run.

It was the only reaction she knew.

And so she did, pelting through the silent forest with nothing driving her other than her night-vision and the fear of turning around and being reminded of what she had done.

Her ears still picked up on the fading echos of Weiss' voice as she called out after her, but Blake didn't want to hear anymore.

"Blake!"

Weiss hissed again, desperately scrambling to get up and keep her eyes trained on the blur of her teammate's figure. But it was only seconds before Weiss lost sight of her, Blake's burst of speed and the enveloping darkness serving to hinder her vision and leave her helpless.

She cursed, finally getting onto her feet. Running into these woods at night injured and alone was suicide, and the commotion they'd just made had surely alerted a nearby Grimm or two to their location.

But despite all of that, Weiss was simply not about to let Blake run away from her like that.

Grabbing Myrtenaster, she secured it at her hip, and the heiress tore off after the Faunus girl, moving as fast as her fumbling legs could carry her. Her wound had reopened, and she knew the scent of blood would only draw more problems toward her.

Reaching within herself, she tried to stir up her aura and drag it up from her core to her injury to staunch the blood-flow. She didn't want to make any more noise than was necessary, but she had absolutely no other way of seeking out her teammate in this hell of a forest without calling for her or finding her by sheer dumb luck.

"Blake!" she cried out in a low tone. She couldn't see in the darkness like Blake could, and the moonlight only did so much to illuminate her path past the thick canopy of leaves.

And she'd be lying to say she felt any ounce of confidence a trained huntress should be feeling in this situation; she was lost and cold, scared and injured, and perhaps worst of all she was alone.

She tried to think where Blake would go, the Faunus girl having been in a more mobile state than Weiss herself. She could've climbed any of the thousands of trees or taken shelter behind any bush...

The heiress stumbled, reaching out to grab a tree trunk to steady herself as she came to a sloppy halt, panting as the pain in her side started to register and overlap the numbing adrenaline pumping through her.

What can I do, Blake? What can I do...?

She'd just wanted to get back home safely with her, and now...

She realized how loud she was being, her breath heavy and wheezing as more blood trickled down her side, even past the coating of her aura to prevent it. She felt dizzy and nauseous, like she might drop to the ground right that minute and never get up again.

But she couldn't afford to think like that, not when she still had the life in her to move and continue searching for Blake.

She considered sending out a glyph of light to indicate her position in the woods, but that would also give her away to enemies. Additionally, it would only benefit her if Blake was having regrets too, and had cleared her mind enough to want to return to Weiss; if she wanted to avoid her, sending a glyph would only tell Blake where not to go.

Besides, with those ears of hers, Blake could listen for Weiss and locate her if she so wished, and it didn't seem that was the case.

Weiss pressed a palm to her mouth in an effort to stifle her rapid breathing, but it only served to make her more needy for air. She tried to swallow, but it didn't go down, and she ended up coughing on it. Her body was shaking of its own accord, and Weiss leaned heavily back against the nearest tree, trying to clear her head.

But she didn't get more than another few breaths in before she heard a growl from one side, and her blood ran cold as she slowly turned her head.

A pair of crimson eyes watched her from a distance, narrowed and predatory.

Weiss' left hand went to the hilt of her rapier, but she could hardly even get a good grasp on it. She didn't even bother trying to stifle her breath anymore; if this was going to come to a fight, it didn't matter.

She braced herself, not wanting to initiate if she didn't have to, not wanting to direct more attention to herself by making the swift motion of drawing her weapon. She didn't know how much of a fight she could afford to put up at this point, what with her aura scrambling just to heal the newly reopened wound on top of the sheer energy depletion she was already suffering from.

She held the unseen beast's gaze for a long moment that dragged out, and it was as though it could sense her weakness and was waiting for her to exhaust herself or let down her guard.

Weiss drew a particularly needy breath, feeling cold sweat on her forehead and hot tears in her eyes as she closed them for a second to inhale-

-and when she reopened them, the eyes watching her had vanished.

She stiffened, her head and torso throbbing in time with her terrified pulse; they'd taught her in every lesson not to display her fear as it would only attract more trouble from the creatures that could sense it, but Weiss was at her limit now.

Something brushed against her arm-

She shrieked, stumbling on uneven earth and falling to her knees, wincing at the strain it put on her injury. She was torn between holding the wound and reaching for her rapier as the shadow advanced.

She wasn't going to die here, she couldn't-

"Weiss!" Blake's voice was earnest and concerned as she looked down at her teammate, startled by the heiress' reaction to her arrival. "It's just me," she soothed, before looking up again. "Whatever that was, it's gone now; probably didn't want to have to deal with two of us at once."

Her eyes went quickly back to Weiss as she knelt down before the heiress, softening her voice. "I-I'm sorry for startling you. And I'm sorry for running off like that, Weiss. I just... I..."

The fur of her ears was ringing, aching with the sounds of reverberation, and it didn't take long for her to realize what the sound was – and it wasn't coming from her.

Her ears were throbbing with Weiss' heartbeat, fast and hammering, and when Blake met her eyes again, she saw just how petrified the heiress was.

It was then the rustic tang of blood reached her nose, and when she narrowed her eyes, even in the darkness, she could make out the stain on Weiss' dress. She gasped and moved instantly closer to her, reaching out her hand.

"Weiss, Weiss let me- let me help you. I p-promise I won't hurt you again, I'm sorry. But you need help-"

"Blake..." she panted. "It's okay, you... you didn't mean to. You had a nightmare, that's all it was."

Weiss refused to let the Faunus girl keep living under the impression that others thought she was a monster. She needed Blake to know first and foremost that Weiss didn't blame her, and she held her teammate's golden gaze for a moment as she struggled to regain her breath. Weiss swallowed hard, wishing her heart would calm down.

"You won't hurt me, Blake. I know that."

Slowly, she lifted her hand and slipped it into Blake's; she hadn't realized she was shaking until her palm was being supported by a sturdier one.

And it only took that much for Blake to stop feeling guilty about herself.

When she felt that small, trembling hand in her own, she realized how foolish she was being. She realized that Weiss would always accept her as her friend and teammate, and that right now, Weiss needed her.

She nodded her thanks to the heiress, asking silently for permission to move closer, which Weiss granted with a slight pull of her wrist.

Blake closed the distance between them and quickly placed her hands over Weiss' side, apologizing when the other girl winced from the pain. Blake activated her aura and channeled it to her teammate, helping to awaken Weiss' and heal the wound faster.

Weiss huffed, and Blake could feel the blood still oozing between her fingers, causing Blake to increase the flow of aura a bit. She could taste Weiss' uncertainty thick on the roof of her mouth, just as clearly as she could feel and hear her palpable heartbeat.

"Just breathe, Weiss," she murmured. "You're okay. I promise."

Weiss nodded, trying to keep herself upright, closing her eyes for a brief moment of rest.

Blake sighed in relief when the bleeding finally stopped, and she wiped her hands clean on the grass, not wanting to have to smell the pungent scent any more that she absolutely had to.

But she could still hear the frantic throbbing that traced back to the heiress, and Blake cast her a worried look. Weiss' eyelids opened weakly, and she could only shrug, shoulders slumping.

"I don't know... what's wrong..." she sighed. "I'm just so tired..."

Blake nodded and closed the distance between them, wrapping her arms gently around Weiss' waist and back, holding her up.

"I know. We should keep going, though. There's no point in wasting time when we aren't even able to sleep. We should try to get back."

Ears still perked and alert for sounds of danger, she continued to hold Weiss, waiting until the girl's pulse gradually slowed, matching her own.

Likewise, Weiss allowed the Faunus girl to provide whatever comfort she could, hoping that her own warmth could ease Blake's tensions.

Weiss wasn't thinking at all when she kissed her cheek.

But almost immediately afterward, she regretted it, feeling dread pound through her veins.

"I-I'm sorry," she murmured on a small voice. "Blake, I just-"

She was quieted when a soft kiss was pressed to her own cheek.

Blake didn't know why Weiss had kissed her, nor did she know why she'd returned the action unto the heiress.

But she knew she hadn't minded all that much.

After all, it had been a long day, and an even longer night, and the two of them had stared death in the face more than once within the past twenty-four hours.

Blake knew a lot more about Weiss now than she had yesterday, and she'd revealed just as much about herself to the heiress – but most importantly, she felt comfortable about it. She appreciated the trust Weiss had put in her, and the trust she could put in her teammate in return.

She held her there, feeling thin arms curling around the small of her back and taking solace in her touch. Feeling Weiss' support, her warmth, her heart, it all gave Blake a newfound energy, a rejuvenated desire to get them the hell out of here.

After a few moments had lapsed, she pulled herself away from Weiss gingerly, meeting her eyes, finding the same energy in her gaze.

"Come on." Blake got to her feet and helped Weiss up alongside her. "Let's go home."

Weiss held tightly to her hand, giving an affirmative, determined nod.

"Let's."

Blake led the way, utilizing her enhanced night-vision to bring them through the thickets and bushes. She was filled with a new vigor, a desire to get out of here before they really found themselves in trouble, so she maintained a quick pace while still trying to let Weiss follow easily.

But it was clear to the both of them that the heiress' injury was aggravating her, and Blake was hardly surprised when she felt a tug on her arm, a silent request to pause.

"I'm sorry-" Weiss wheezed. "Just a moment, please..."

Blake frowned; she sounded understandably in pain and looked paler than usual, even in the limited lighting. The Faunus girl stopped walking, ears still set to catch any sounds of trouble. But all that reached them now were Weiss' labored breaths, and she turned her back to the heiress and crouched before her.

"Get on my back. I'll carry you."

Weiss made a noise that sounded almost offended.

"Nonsense," she huffed. "Or have you forgotten you're injured as well? I can make it back just fine-"

"Weiss, please," she begged. "I can't just keep going knowing you're hurt like this. It's fine. Just let me do this."

Weiss was silent as she caught her breath. Then, a small snort led her to a sigh.

"Fine, I get it. I'm just a burden to you otherwise."

"Weiss, that's not-"

"Ah-puh-puh-puh-pup! No, don't try to make me feel better about it," she carried on. "I understand. So I'll allow you to do it, just this once."

When she heard Weiss' almost-playful tone, Blake nearly chuckled; she needed to remind herself they were presently lost in the Emerald Forest and that certain death lurked around every other tree trunk.

"Alright," she said. "Then just this once."

Weiss grunted in agreement, before taking a step forward toward Blake's back. Slowly, she lowered herself down and slipped her arms around Blake's neck, lightly pressing her chest to the other girl's back.

"Okay?" Blake checked.

She reached back to secure Weiss' thighs and stood. The heiress was light on her back, her breath fanning over her shoulder as Blake took off at a steady pace. She could feel the faint beat of the heiress' heart against her back and paused briefly, hoping this wasn't too much for Weiss all at once, waiting for her to adjust.

"I'm fine," Weiss said softly. "But the second you start feeling tired, you put me down, do you hear me Blake Belladonna?"

"Of course."

And with that, the Faunus girl took off again.

She made sure to keep moving in a straight line, knowing that would be the quickest way out. But the forest was massive, and even just being put off a few feet could be putting them on the path to more woods.

Blake moved on instinct alone, following her gut; if she thought she heard something, she would veer only slightly, doing her best to stay on track.

She paused every few minutes to feel for Weiss' pulse, making sure it wasn't too fast. Small whimpers slipped past the heiress' lips on occasion, and Blake feared she was falling ill from severe enervation and blood loss.

Blake's body was sore as well, but she would rather keep moving now and rest when daylight came. She took comfort in the fact that the sky was getting lighter, but it would be a while yet before the sun came up.

She caught her breath, took in the sounds of the forest, and continued onward.

Weiss faded in and out of consciousness as they went, and she hadn't the slightest idea of how much time had passed.

But when she was next able to open her eyes and find her voice, she was extremely aware of Blake's condition. She could feel her teammate's chest heaving, hear her panting, and the pang of worry it sent through Weiss made her whimper again. She lightly bumped her head against Blake's to gain her attention, and was satisfied when the tired girl came to a halt.

"What..." She panted over her shoulder. "What is it, Weiss? Are you okay?"

"I'm just fine," she murmured. "But you're not. Rest."

"No, I can keep going. If we just-"

"Blake." Her tone hardened just a bit, and Blake released a sigh.

"Right..."

Blake crouched down and let Weiss off, only then realizing she couldn't get back up just yet. Weiss sat down beside her and had Blake lean on her, keeping her upright.

As Blake rested, Weiss took the liberty to sit vigil.

It was... almost odd that they hadn't run into any more Grimm, but she wasn't about to complain.

They rested for a few moments, but Weiss couldn't bring herself to relax even a bit. She wasn't sure if it was due to her weakened state or not, but there was movement coming from a distance in addition to odd lighting, but it wasn't the sun.

Blake's heightened senses must have alerted her to it as well, as she opened her eyes and straightened instantly.

"We should go," she uttered, getting to her feet. She helped Weiss up before starting off into the woods, but a hand on her wrist stopped her. She turned back to her teammate, a hint of urgency in her tone. "What is it? We need to go," she urged.

"No, wait..." Weiss was convinced she was hearing properly. "That's- we have to go that way. That's Beacon."

"What?" Blake closed her eyes quickly to help enhance her hearing. When she focused, she could hear voices, proof of Weiss' assumptions. Her eyes flew open and she met Weiss' gaze. "You're right. Come on." She grabbed her companion's hand and took off.

Weiss eagerly followed, taking the liberty to spare the energy to cast a glyph beneath their feet to send them forward faster. One was all she could manage, but it saved them time and energy.

Their ears were ringing, blood pounding in their veins, vision blurring to the point they doubted they would make it-

-And then there were footsteps charging toward them, voices crying out their names.

Of the members of the search party, Ruby and Yang had noticed them first and ran to their partners before the professors could stop them.

"Weiss! Blake! Oh my gosh, are you guys okay? I-I'm s-so glad we found you...!"

The heiress felt the impact of Ruby's body as her leader clung to her, trying to keep Weiss on her feet. The older girl very nearly collapsed, and Ruby wailed with the utmost relief into her chest.

Yang had gone instantly to Blake, pulling her into a hug as gentle and yet fierce as she dared.

"Oh, thank god," she sighed. "Hey, hey, you alright there? The hell am I saying? Of course you're not alright. But god, I'm glad you're still in one piece, Blake."

The rest of the rescue party gathered around them, assessing wounds and healing them as best they could before they needed to move out. Ruby coaxed Weiss into her arms, and Yang carried Blake in a similar manner as they headed off.

"Just hang in there, guys."

They moved at a steady pace, doing their best not to jostle the injured girls. It was another twenty minutes or so before they arrived at the school campus once more.

"We're here," Yang announced.

And only when Blake and Weiss saw the truth for themselves did they finally allow their eyes to close.

The rest of the night until morning was hectic and consisted of getting the two girls fixed up.

Their wounds were cleaned, disinfected, and then healed, wires attached to their arms as they were changed into white hospital robes.

Ruby and Yang looked on anxiously, fretting and whimpering and asking the nurses all kinds of questions, even after they'd been told countless times their partners were eventually going to make full recoveries.

Only when the morning sunlight began slipping through the windows did Yang finally convince her younger sister that they needed to get back to their own room and get some rest.

They left Weiss and Blake who were already unconscious with sleep, murmuring prayers they would get well soon, promising to bring them flowers on their next visit.

It was several hours later when Blake awoke to the sounds of beeping; though she'd known this was going to be the reality she woke up in, it didn't mean she had to like it.

She turned her head to the side, relieved to see that Weiss and herself had been put in the same room, their beds close enough so that they could reach out and easily make contact with one another if need be.

She watched Weiss as she slept, the faint rise and fall of her chest, her pale, white figure almost too easy to lose sight of amongst the hair and robe and sheets. If she could take solace in anything, it was the fact that the heiress' cheeks had regained a bit of their healthy tinge of pink.

Blake spoke with the nurses when they came by, telling them how she felt and asking how long she and Weiss would be here for.

It was another half an hour or so until Weiss finally opened her eyes, and Blake's lips curled up into a soft smile.

"Good morning. How do you feel?"

Weiss looked over at her, eyes tired and slightly irritated.

"Like I was trampled by a pack of Ursai," she groaned.

"I hear you," Blake grunted.

"How long are we going to be here?"

"At least two more days, but even after that, no combat practice for three more."

"Ugh, I feel like an invalid."

"But you need to rest. We both do."

"Yes, yes..."

Weiss cautiously lifted her arms up a bit to stretch, wincing at the slight pain in her side.

But when her arms came back down, her hand brushed against Blake's that had been outstretched toward her. Weiss was about to pull back and apologize, until she felt Blake's fingers curling around the back of her hand.

The heiress drew a soft breath when the Faunus girl's stunning golden eyes met hers, and she was suddenly reminded of the kiss she had given in the forest, the kiss that had been returned unto her.

Neither really knew what the meanings behind those kisses had been, but they were both willing to keep the memories tacked to the backs of their minds.

They would have plenty of time to discuss things during their days of recovery as they moaned and groaned to one another about their aches and pains.

But for now they were content simply to keep their hand in the other's, to sigh in unison at the relief of being safe, and to close their eyes and go back to sleep.

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A/N: And that's all. Sorry, it really wasn't much, but again, I just hated leaving the RP unfinished to fade away and I wanted to share some of Tiffany's writing with the world.

And again on topic of Monty just... gods, may he rest in the best peace. Play DDR with the angels. We'll never forget you.

A/N: And that's all. Sorry, it really wasn't much, but again, I just hated leaving the RP unfinished to fade away and I wanted to share some of Tiffany's writing with the world.

And again on topic of Monty just... gods, may he rest in the best peace. Play DDR with the angels. We'll never forget you.