Step By Step (ch11)

2-DAY EARLY RELEASE FOR ALL MY PATRONS!!

Some of you expressed concern after my notes in the previous chapter. Time to find out if there was good reason for it...

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

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												Chapter 11. Believing In Someone

Sleep had come quickly for Pyrrha. Her breathing fell into a slow rhythm, and her mind succumbed to the creeping blackness of sleep, and while she didn't dream she didn't mind - she had been living a dream while she was awake today.

And yet, for reasons she wasn't quite sure of, she awoke, being pulled from the tranquil silence by something she never quite saw. Her eyes opened slowly to the darkness, the pair of arms still curled around her stomach, refreshing the already-vibrant memories in her head with a smile.

But something was off - something slowly clutching inside her stomach that she couldn't put her finger on.

A quick glance over the room confirmed they were still alone and the door was still 'closed', and from what she could tell there was nothing different from before.

So why did this nagging feeling of uncertainty continue to claw at her, as though it were trying to force her to realize something? She was tired, and her interrupted sleep had only served to befuddle her brain even more. She fumbled over her thoughts while her head went back to the pillow to sleep it off.

It was still warm… warm… warmth…

Cold.

The realization hit her harder than a train tearing through the bedroom, slapping every ounce of fatigue from her body in seconds. The arms around her were suddenly chilled and loose, devoid of heat and joined only by the grip of rigid fingers. There was no warmth against her back, only the pressure of a body half-limp on the sheets.

Pyrrha flipped over as quickly as she could, half gentle and half rushed as she peered through the blackness to the shape in front of her, her heart rapidly hammering in her chest as her stomach tightened into even bigger knots.

Weiss wasn't moving.

Pyrrha shook her friend, her head pounding and her hands shaking, all manner of worries and doubts falling over each other in the shadow of a realization that tore out her heart from her very being.

Weiss' eyes were closed. Her chest was motionless, and no matter how much Pyrrha jolted her, she didn't wake up. Even as Pyrrha's distraught voice punctured the silence of the night in the same way spears of regret and fear stabbed through her heart, the girl in front of her didn't stir.

"Weiss? Weiss! Please, wake up!"

She felt the tears burst from her eyes, streaming down her cheeks and staining the silk of her nightgown, the sobs she tried and failed to fight back choking her unheard pleas, her voice failing her just like she had failed the girl she loved.

"P-Please! You can't- you can't do this to me!"

Her shaking slowed and gradually halted just as her voice cracked and broke, her body shaking with uncontrolled sadness as her shoulders heaved with sobs, wrapping her arms around the lifeless body of her friend and burying her face into the crook of Weiss' neck, unable to do anything but cry.

She was pathetic. For all her talents, she couldn't even save the life of the person she cared about the most. Her fruitless begging only fell on the monotony of the night, and even as a tiny part of her continued to cling to the hope that the girl in her arms would wake, it never came.

"Please…"

She was dead-

Pyrrha shot up from her pillow with a gasp, yanking the sheets forward as they fell down her torso. Her chest rose and fell to match the rapid, shallow breaths she was forcing herself to take. Her heart pounded in her chest, and her stomach was inside itself with fear. Her head throbbed with a headache she'd never known the likes of before. Cold sweat trickled down her skin, and yet she felt her entire body on fire.

But she couldn't focus on anything at all until she finally felt warmth around her waist, and her thoughts immediately turned to the person beside her-

Which also brought everything in her nightmare flooding back.

She could feel a wave of nausea surging through her body faster than she could react. Everything was a mess and her vision was blurry. Even the darkness seemed to spin dizzyingly, yet somehow she managed to stutter out some words, filled to the brim with every worry and fear in all 17 years of her life.

"Weiss? A-Are you all right...?"

. . .

Sleep had been kind to her for a good portion of the night.

Weiss dreamt she was somewhere warm - safe. She couldn't pinpoint where it was exactly, at least not right away. But as the world started to form around her, she could tell it was colorful and bright - welcoming.

At last, the splashes of color separated into individual shapes - hundreds of them. She was in a field of flowers. And she wasn't alone.

Pyrrha stood just at the opposite end, beaming and beautiful as ever, her dazzling presence greater and more radiant than that of all the flowers combined. Her dazzling emerald eyes met Weiss' from across the distance, and she smiled brighter than the sun. Opening her arms to Weiss, she called out her name softly, invitingly.

The heiress kicked off instantly, sending petals up behind her heels, intent to cover the space between them. She could already picture their meeting, how Pyrrha would lift her up into her arms and twirl her, laugh with her, and kiss her. Weiss ran faster for the sake of achieving that outcome.

But it never came.

When she'd been just a foot away from Pyrrha - just that final jump away - Pyrrha vanished. Everything did.

Weiss woke with a start as she felt a dissonance of movement and sound beside her. The bed wasn't still as it should've been. The mattress was shaking, the sheets ruffling. She didn't know what it was right away, but there was definitely something horribly wrong. She felt instantly nauseous and on-edge, her heart seized with piercing thorns of panic, dreadful trepidation pulsing through her veins.

The sound of her name reached her ears, and as she squinted in the darkness, she could make out Pyrrha, propped up and facing her now, her hair frazzled and chest heaving, eyes wide with fright, as though she were being hunted.

Weiss' voice was choked, and her throat felt like it was clogged with something that wasn't there. She needed to force her voice out as she braced herself on her elbows.

"P-Pyrrha!" she gasped. "Wh-What is it? What's the matter- what's going on…?" Her voice trembled and shook, tears jumping into her eyes. "I-I'm fine, but you- what's happened, Pyrrha?"

She wanted to reach out to her, but she wasn't sure if she should - not yet. She didn't know what was going on, if there was something she wasn't aware of that Pyrrha was, if they needed to get up and run and get out of there, or if they needed to call for assistance. All Weiss knew was that her heart was pounding, and that Pyrrha was-

-absolutely terrified.

She'd never seen her like this before, never imagined it was even possible.

She didn't like it one bit. And she needed it to stop for both their sakes.

. . .

There was a dreadful pause in the silence, and no matter how much she would hate herself for the rest of her life for it, Pyrrha feared the worst. When Weiss did not instantly respond, her heart had frozen. It was only a second - not even enough for her mess of a mind to catch up - but it felt as though her body had left her.

All she could do was watch Weiss wake, watch the worry and fear flood into her eyes and listen to the pain in her voice. Pain, worry and fear that Pyrrha had caused.

And now, staring into those light blue eyes, beautiful even in the dark, their entirety brimming with tears and concern, all she could think about was one thing.

She repeated it in her head over and over again, her anxiety and nerves giving way from the terrifying thought of losing Weiss to something else entirely.

She was the reason all of this was happening. It was her fault Weiss was upset and distressed. She had wanted to protect her and make her happy, yet it seemed the only thing she was ever capable of was bringing her harm or pain.

Despite all her desires and efforts, she was only succeeding in hurting the one she loved the most.

And yet, even with these thoughts circling in her head, there was something far more important she had to do.

She had been staring in disbelief at the shaken heiress, her mouth slightly open and her eyes quivering with so much regret she never knew she could feel.

But she said nothing. No apologies, no comforting words - just silence.

Pyrrha pulled Weiss into the tightest hug she could muster, wrapping her arms around the heiress' back fully and holding her shoulders tightly, pulling the two of them closer as she buried her face into the crook of Weiss' neck, shaking her head over and over again. She felt the tears fall from her eyes and stain Weiss' beautiful nightgown, and she wanted to apologize for that too, but no words ever made it into the air.

She wanted to repeat it so many times, to attempt to make up for everything wrong she had done - for causing her doubts about them being together, for not knowing what she wanted and not being able to give it to her, but most of all… Pyrrha wanted to apologize for being such a terrible person.

Yet all that came were breathless tears and choked sobs.

She must have looked so awful, so pathetic, exactly the opposite of everything she had been told growing up. She had spent years being forced into being this perfect model-fighter-figure and never once gotten a chance to be a normal girl, and now when she had been so graciously given the chance by Weiss - she had ruined it.

She knew her grip was too tight and that she was probably hurting Weiss even now, yet even though she screamed at her arms to let go, they refused to budge. Even though she didn't deserve to hold the heiress in any way, she never wanted to let go.

Pyrrha hated it. She hated herself and the things she did, but more than that, she hated that she couldn't be the person that Weiss deserved.

. . .

It was only fear on the air for a long, weighted moment. Every beat of her heart pounded and it hurt. She was so scared for Pyrrha, for whatever was happening to her.

Weiss could soon tell it wasn't a tangible issue - her friend was being assaulted by invisible demons. Weiss knew full-well that the mind was a person's strongest, and yet more dangerous weapon. It could be empowering or devastating. The mind controlled the body more often than the heart did, especially in such absurd hours of the night. The mind could could harm as easily as any knife, though the damage wasn't always proven in visible scars. It was often kept hidden, piled up in jumbled heaps of haphazard emotions-

-until it burst.

And that's what was happening to Pyrrha right now.

She was shaking and sobbing uncontrollably, her lips trembling and releasing silent screams against Weiss' chest. And though she wasn't saying anything - because she physically couldn't - Weiss heard her loud and clear.

The arms around her waist were clinging to her with a crushing grip, but Weiss hardly minded. If this was something that could help her friend, she would eagerly accept it. It didn't hurt - not when she realized the severity of Pyrrha's pain.

Weiss could only hold her tightly, ashamed it was all she could do. She cradled the girl's head to her chest, urging her to be calm, wishing her pulse would fill her ears and prove to Pyrrha that Weiss was here and everything was all right. The heiress would've said as much, but she was still shaken at the moment, and didn't think Pyrrha would be able to understand her anyway.

So all she could do was helplessly hold her, petting her hair and caressing her cheeks, rubbing her shoulders and hugging her with everything she had. It was only after a torturous moment of feeling Pyrrha break down against her when Weiss forced her own voice out.

"Pyrrha…" she begged. "Pyrrha… shhh…. It's all right..."

Again, she willed for her pulse to reach Pyrrha. It was proof, and when Weiss' voice failed her again, it was all she had left.

. . .

How could she even think about being together with Weiss after this? After everything that she'd done? Pyrrha didn't want to hurt Weiss, never in any lifetime, but that's exactly what she was doing.

She was a terrible person, an awful friend and completely unworthy of even attempting to make the heiress happy, and she knew it. She knew she was just trying to blot out the painful truth, and Dust did it pain her. It stabbed through her heart and wracked her body with tears, shaking and quivering while all her throat could do was sob.

She wanted to apologize with her eyes if nothing else, but she knew that all she'd do would be something else wrong. Really, she was just sculpted from mistakes, and in all of this she was doing another one.

She wasn't listening as Weiss wanted her to. Not to anything but her own venomous doubts, sliding around her like shadowy serpents and constricting her in place, pinning her down and forcing her to face all the negativity and regrets she had tried so hard to suppress and ignore.

If only she could hear the fear in Weiss' voice.

If only she could listen to the reassurance that broke through all the tears and pain.

All she could do was shake her head in apology for something she didn't even know she was ignoring.

. . .

It became apparent all too quickly that this wasn't working. Nothing was working. Not her desperate pleas or words of reassurance, not her consistent pulse. Nothing.

Weiss didn't know what to do. She'd been powerless all her life, but in a different sense. She'd always been under her father's jurisdiction, always under orders and made to obey rather than think on her own. Breaking away and training to become a huntress had been the most self-empowering thing she'd ever done - her own decision. She'd felt stronger here at Beacon, free of her family's chains.

But now… even here, she was feeling more powerless than ever before. She had nothing else to give Pyrrha.

Or so she thought.

There was only one more thing she could think of; the thing she'd been all but forbidden to share or express for the first seventeen years of her life.

Once she'd resolved herself, the heiress slid her hands up from Pyrrha's shuddering back and trailed through her hair, until at last she came to a stop at soft skin. She cupped the sides of Pyrrha's face and ever-so-gently eased their bodies apart, just enough so she could see her eyes. She waited until Pyrrha could see hers as well.

With her blue eyes watering and her lips curved up into a smile, Weiss pressed her lips to Pyrrha's forehead in a blatant display of the thing she'd been denied sharing until so recently.

Affection. Love.

She held the kiss over Pyrrha's sweating forehead, caressing her cheeks with care.

And kissing her then felt more empowering than anything Weiss had ever done before. More than when she slew a Grimm, or passed a significant exam. Her love for Pyrrha and the fearlessness with which she expressed it was what made Weiss feel stronger than ever before.

She hoped it could help Pyrrha, too.

"There, now…" she breathed, hugging Pyrrha to her chest once more. "It's all right. I promise."

. . .

At first, her thoughts matched the doubts that had hounded her from the start. The hands pulling her away, telling her that she wasn't wanted and that she had overstepped all the boundaries were hot with the aftereffects of the terror Pyrrha had caused.

Yet, even though they were pushing her away, she didn't want them to let go.

Her eyes were closed and her heart had sunk, sitting in her stomach amongst the mass of twisted thorns that had rooted inside her.

She had lost the one person that made her life feel truly special.

At least… that's what she believed.

Yet those gentle, soft hands never left her cheeks. They never stopped brushing lightly against her skin, and the silence didn't weigh on her shoulders like the overwhelming pressure she so often felt.

Half of her wanted to stay like this forever - better than facing the consequences for her actions - but another told her to open her eyes.

And she did. Her gaze was low and tears still brimmed before they trailed down her face, yet short of breathing still somewhat choked by her crying, there were no sounds. Pyrrha forced her eyes upwards, emerald trembling like leaves in the wind until they met the blue of purest ice.

Weiss' gaze was warm and comforting, but Pyrrha didn't have time to let the heiress' reassurance get to her, for her senses, her mind and her body all ceased to function the second she felt soft, delicate lips press against her forehead.

She could feel the tenderness and the warmth even over her risen temperature, and she could see the lines of Weiss' neck and shoulders, leaving no doubt that it was real - but nothing else seemed to really matter. Not the tear stains on the sheets, nor the despair that had gripped her so tightly just moments ago.

It seemed to last an age, and once more. Pyrrha never wanted it to end.

And yet, even as Weiss slowly pulled away with the tiniest of sounds, Pyrrha couldn't react. She blinked, her expression riddled with surprise and confusion, but Weiss pulled her close and held her with such a loving embrace that she didn't feel the need to understand what the action had meant.

What felt right to do was exactly what she should have done to begin with - believing in someone. In Weiss.

She was hesitant even now, her arms shaking and her heart racing, but she gingerly placed her arms around Weiss' waist and linked them together, sniffling back a stray sob and breathing in the slight scent of Weiss - even the girl's natural smell was beautiful, though Pyrrha couldn't quite find the words to describe it.

All she really cared about was the hold on her, and despite her head being a mess and her heart tripping over itself, she felt safe. She felt happy. She felt loved.

. . .

It took a painstaking moment, and then another, but Weiss was willing to wait for as long as it would take for Pyrrha to feel all right again.

She was relieved beyond words when she finally, finally felt a response.

A pair of trembling arms slowly slipped around her waist, hugging her with hesitant affection - need. It was the first sign of acceptance she'd received from Pyrrha since this waking nightmare had begun. It was the sign that Pyrrha was finally beginning to realize the reality of things, as opposed to the falsehoods that were plaguing her mind.

It was a small gesture, but it said so much, and Weiss accepted it for all it was worth and then some. She continued stroking through Pyrrha's long hair, feeling the warm, wet stains on her collar begin to lessen as the minutes gradually ticked on. She just kept repeating those words, hoping somewhere along the lines Pyrrha would believe her.

"It's okay… I'm here… You're okay…"

She kissed her hairline, her cheeks, her forehead. Pyrrha's pulse was pounding hard against her own, and Weiss tried to slow it down with her motions, keeping control over her breathing.

"It's all right… you don't have to cry, Pyrrha. Everything's all right. Please… trust me…"

To prove it, she kissed her lips, breathing into her, though for entirely different reasons than why Pyrrha had kissed her before. Weiss swallowed hard, terrified to say it, but even more terrified not to.

"I love you…"

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A/N: Ending it off right there, of course! The next chapter shall be the last!