Pawprints (ch11)

2-DAY EARLY RELEASE FOR ALL MY PATRONS!

Introducing another character into the RP. Weiss line's will begin underlined, Blake's bolded, and Yang's unaffected. Sorry it might be a bit of a chaotic read.

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

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													Chapter 11. The Bullet

The first thing Weiss felt when she awoke the next morning wasn't even relief; it was just the same biting cold.

She should've been relieved and thankful that she'd woken at all. But instead she was just scared - how many more times would she be able to wake after she fell asleep?

She moaned in pain, not even Blake's soft form against hers serving to comfort her like she knew it should. She wanted to kiss Blake, not knowing how many more times she'd be able to, but she feared spreading the sickness, and instead buried her face in the Panther girl's collar.

Weiss tried to slow her racing heartbeat, matching her breathing to Blake's steady inhales as best she could. It was snowing again today, and Weiss wanted to savor Blake's warmth despite her own fever.

The last thing she wanted was to lose that warmth.

. . .

Blake held Weiss the entire night, rubbing her back the entire time at the cost of her own sleep.

Eventually, the dawn slowly colored the dark forest, and Blake blinked her tired eyes, happy that Weiss had descended into a more peaceful sleep later in the night.

When Weiss woke up, Blake breathed a sigh of relief, smiling wearily as she kissed Weiss' head. The fire had slowly died down throughout the night - Blake hadn't wanted to leave Weiss, and so had been unable to refuel the flames.

Gently, she brushed the hair out of Weiss' face, the Huntress' eyes opening blearily to look up at her.

"See? I told you that you'd be fine," Blake reassured with a smile "I'm going to go. I need to find you some of the medicinal plants you showed me." Blake could hear Weiss' whimper and feel her clutch tighter. "Hey, I'll be back. I'll put a cool cloth on your head and bring the fire back up. I promise I won't be long."

. . .

Weiss was beyond frightened at the thought of Blake leaving her. Her strong fever and weakened state of mind only let her assume the worst; that Blake would get hurt, that she wouldn't come back, that Weiss wouldn't be able to stay awake without her.

She wanted to tell Blake that most of those plants had probably been killed by the frost, that there was no use in going out to dig for dead leaves, that she'd rather have Blake stay here with her. But her voice wasn't working, and only a rasping, thin breath of air passed through her lips.

She shivered and hugged herself pitifully. The fire was gone, reduced to only a few meager, lapping flames, and a heavy cold chill had settled into the cave. But Weiss knew Blake would go anyway, because it was for her sake.

Still, she didn't want to watch Blake leave her, so Weiss buried her face in her elbow and closed her eyes.

. . .

Blake stood and gently laid Weiss' head down, wanting the girl to be comfortable. Treading quietly, she grabbed the remaining sticks and branches they had, placing them on the fire to get it roaring again. Once the fire was blazing and giving off heat, Blake sighed knowing this was all she could do for Weiss at the moment.

"I'll be back soon, Weiss. And I'll have the plants, I promise." She kissed Weiss' head again.

Transforming into her panther form, Blake ran out of the cave and into the snowy woods with haste. She ran as fast as she could, wary for hidden vines and roots that could twist her ankles.

Her mind was entirely devoted to the goal of finding these plants. As she ran, she looked for any leaves poking through the frost. She was heading to the place where Weiss had originally shown her the plants, a hope that they would still be alive.

Hold on, Weiss!

. . .

After she'd been roused that morning, Yang had scarfed down a decent breakfast before gathering her supplies. She checked again to make sure her rifle was loaded, leaving her knives and poison behind. Since her last hunt, she'd improved her aim enough to be confident she wouldn't need any of her other weapons.

The group of Hunters gathered together at the heart of the camp, listening to orders. They were to move out in search of the pack, follow any prints they saw, and alert the others so they could track the cats together.

And that was what Yang did - or at least, that was the impression she gave.

She hung around the back of the group as they headed off into the snowy forest, but made sure to keep her pace slow. Gradually, she put distance between herself and the others, and eventually broke off to go hunting solo.

She'd seen prints and kept quiet. She didn't want to risk leading the others to the pack and someone else taking her kill.

So she followed the prints into the woods, moving swiftly but silently, convinced luck would be on her side.

Just you wait, ya damn bastard.

. . .

Weiss huddled into her blanket, curling in on herself as the violent shivers overcame her worse than before. The moss beneath her was cold by now, and the fire completely dead. Her breath was white and her body convulsed from the frigid cold, stomach flipping as she coughed.

Maybe… maybe if she could get up and get her blood flowing, that could be warmer than this. Anything but lying down and withering away. She wanted to see Blake again and didn't think she could wait.

She staggered to her feet and shed her blanket, leaving it behind and she hobbled toward the entrance of the cave and stepped out into the cold white world.

. . .

Blake reached the clearing where she had first been shown the plants she was looking for. The layer of snow in this area was lighter than the rest, and bits of greenery poked through the cold blanket that smothered it.

She stayed in her panther form - her heightened senses would make finding the plants easier if they were still alive.

Gently, she started digging through the snow, careful not to tear up the ground and flora below. The sun was high in the sky, but the warmth and light it gave off were weak and barely noticed by Blake as she continued her work.

The Panther girl lost track of time as she kept moving through the clearing and digging, her focus entirely on helping Weiss.

A knot formed in her throat when she saw a bit of brown beneath the snow. Carefully she dug it up. If her animal form could shed tears, she would have. She found the plant she was looking for, but it had died in the oppressive cold of winter.

. . .

Yang kept absolutely silent as she moved through the forest, her boots not even making loud sounds in the crunching snow. She'd tied her golden hair back, and draped a white cape over her hunting clothes to help camouflage herself.

She followed the prints deep into the woods, noting there was only one set. It was a stretch to hope this would just so happen to lead to the cat Yang sought, but she'd come this far - she might as well finish the job, whatever stood at the end of the trail.

It must've been her lucky day.

She could see it up ahead, a panther rummaging through the snow, likely searching for burrowing prey. Its pelt was pitch-black, sleek, and oh so familiar.

Yang licked her lips.

She crouched down behind the nearest bush, breathing slowly and inaudibly. She narrowed her eyes at the Panther, knowing full well this was her intended target.

She lifted her rifle and took aim.

. . .

Weiss knew where Blake had gone off to - she herself had shown the Panther girl, after all.

In her delirious state of mind, she wasn't too sure of where she was going, if it was the correct direction, but she let her instincts lead her; she'd lived with Blake long enough, loved her long enough to know she could have faith in herself and her ability to find her partner anywhere.

She fell many more times than she knew she should've, even in her weakened condition, and each time the snow seeped deeper and colder into her skin, settling in her bones.

But Weiss always pushed herself up again, panting and sweating, shivering and sobbing as she fought to find her partner.

And when she finally had, she collapsed to her knees at the edge of the clearing, her small, white form not even a disturbance in the area.

Blake was so close...

She wheezed harshly, looking up with blurred vision past the tears, trying to focus on the Panther's form. She didn't know if her voice would work, didn't know if she'd hear her or not, but she only had enough breath left in her to try once.

"Bla…ke…"

. . .

She roared in anger, furious that the hopes she'd had riding on the plant had died like the plant itself.

What now? I need to help Weiss, but what can I do now?

Blake thought with increasing desperation. Without any plan of action, Blake turned to head back to the cave. With slow trudging steps, she made her way to the edge of the clearing.

Then, a smell reached her nose, something that she hadn't smelled in months.

Hunter.

Blake's fur began to bristle and her hackles raised. She tried to figure out where it was originating from. But she couldn't figure it out, not with sight or scent or hearing; this Hunter was good and had taken a longer route to disperse their scent around the area.

Blake started to run just as a gunshot suddenly exploded, and the ground by her left paw erupted from the impact.

. . .

Yang fired a shot just as the Panther started moving, and due to the cat's sudden motion, her bullet missed its target.

"Fuck!" she growled. She'd wanted a clean hit, but now it was on to her.

But still, she intended to make her kill; even if it took every last bullet she had with her, she'd kill this damn beast.

She stood from her hiding spot and barked in a voice full of venom:

"Monster!"

She fired again, hands shaking with fury and causing her to miss a second time, and she bit her lip until she tasted blood. Tears swelled in her eyes as she tried to steady her hand.

"You fucking monster! You took her! You killed her, didn't you?! I'll kill you no matter what!"

The Panther was frozen in place, and Yang aimed the barrel at its chest-

-and with a distraught and furious cry, she fired.

. . .

Weiss couldn't even fathom what was happening.

As soon as Blake's ears perked up, Weiss saw her body stiffen and knew something was wrong. The girl pushed herself up in the snow, clutching her chest as she cast her gaze around the clearing-

-and her worst nightmare came true.

"No…"

Yang.

She'd come back. She'd come back to avenge Weiss. She thought she was dead.

Weiss should've known this would happen. Why had she let Blake and herself stay in this forest for so long? Why hadn't she considered this possibility and encouraged them to move sooner?

This was all her fault.

A bullet exploded in the snow before Blake's front paws, and then another just a few feet shy of her flank. Weiss could see how much pain Yang was in as she pulled the trigger - she was doing this for Weiss' sake.

But Weiss didn't want this.

And yet, she didn't have the voice to shout out to deter her old friend's attention, nor did she have the voice to warn her lover.

When she pushed her body to its limits and beyond, there was only one thing she could do.

One final burst of speed.

One final dash.

And it put her between the third and final bullet aimed at Blake.

Arms spread wide, Weiss had been on her way to the ground anyway due to sheer enervation-

-but the ferocious, indescribable pain of the bullet as it pierced her chest sent her violently down into the snow.

She let out a silent wail of pure agony as pangs of searing pain ripped through her body, blood pooling quickly and cruelly into the bright white snow as the bullet pierced her heart.

The world quickly blurred to black around her as the red crept out beneath her crumpled body. The snow all around her was freezing, but the blood that spilled out of her was hot, and with every beat of her fading pulse she only felt colder and colder.

The tears poured down almost as quickly as the blood, and Weiss choked out the only word in her heart as it jolted weakly, feebly within her ribcage:

"B-Bla-ke…"

. . .

Yang screamed, rifle thrown into the snow with a thud just as Weiss' body collapsed in front of her.

Weiss.

Weiss.

"Oh my god!" Her voice was high and panicked, and tears jumped into her eyes as she rushed forward, stumbling and collapsing to her knees just a few feet away from the girl as she writhed in a pool of her own blood, losing life by the second.

Yang noticed the Panther move toward the fallen girl, and Yang was too scared, too confused and terrified to force her legs to work again, her eyes fixated on her old friend as she watched her bleed out.

"D-Don't touch her!" Yang shouted as the Panther neared Weiss. "Oh my god, Weiss! Weiss! I-I didn't mean to, I-" She cried out and pressed a hand to her mouth.

She'd done this. The Panther hadn't killed Weiss; Yang had.

Not knowing what more she could possibly do due to her immobility and terror, Yang clasped her hands together in prayer, hunched forward into the snow, and cried out, forced to listen to Weiss' gurgling gasps for breath as the girl grew weaker by the second.

. . .

Blake didn't feel the pain of the bullet like she knew she should've. Opening her eyes, she felt her heart stop.

Weiss was lying on the ground, croaking Blake's name as a pool of blood spread beneath her.

No-

Blake roared in terror and dug her claws into the snow.

No!

Too stunned to move, she watched the blonde Huntress rush forward in a panic and kneel beside the dying girl, crying. She knew this was Yang, the one Weiss had told her about - the one who had killed so many of Blake's kin.

And now she'd killed Weiss.

Blake took a few staggering steps closer while staring at Weiss' body before the blonde girl shouted at her to keep away. Blake snarled at her and bore her fangs in fury.

It's her fault! She's the one who shot Weiss… She's the reason Weiss is going to die!

Blake's skull was pounding in anger and terror, not for her own life but for her lover's. Her vision seemed to mist red as she focused her rage and sorrow on Yang.

Without warning, Blake let out a deafening roar and pounced over Weiss. She hit the blonde with all the strength she could muster. Her two front paws hit Yang's shoulders and pinned her to the ground. Blake roared as loudly as she could down into her face.

It's your fault! Blake screamed in her head, unable to think clearly through the despair and fury coursing through her. She parted her jaws, prepared to kill the murderess.

It's your fault! I'll kill you-!

. . .

Yang trembled in the cold snow, crying out Weiss' name again and again as she was forced to watch the girl bleed out with agonizing slowness.

"No, oh god no…" She reached out toward the girl as Weiss' body went limp, unable to even writhe in pain anymore as the blood seeped out of her wound. "Weiss…"

Before she knew what had happened, a powerful impact had landed on top of her, and Yang cried out, thrashing beneath the Panther.

"NO!" she screamed. "No, get off of me! Damn it!" She kicked and punched at the cat, but her blows had no effect; she was sniveling and distraught as terror seized her.

Why resist it? She'd killed Weiss, after all. She deserved to die.

And at the jaws of this goddamn Panther. How ironic.

Yang threw her arms to the sides and closed her eyes beneath the cat, splaying herself prone and welcoming the sharp fangs as they neared her throat.

. . .

Weiss couldn't feel much else other than the numbing pain and cold. But it was terrifying that she could literally feel the life draining out of her, her heartbeat becoming harder and harder to pinpoint.

But then, she felt a rush of air over her, and heard the cries and snarls of the two she cared for most in the world.

She forced her eyes open again, but past the leaking tears could only make out shapes and smeared colors.

"N-No…" She wheezed, chest heaving as pangs of agony clutched her heart. "B-Bl-" She cut off coughing, hacking mouthfuls of blood into the snow. The pain was far too great for her, and she could feel the air leaving her along with the blood and tears.

She only had a few breaths left.

So she wailed at the top of her lungs:

"B-Blaaaake! Bl… ake… I-hh…"

Another mouthful of blood.

She couldn't say it.

Her body went limp.

Her eyes fell shut.

I love you.

. . .

Blake roared in Yang's face again, her jaws only a few inches from her prey's throat.

That's what she was now. Not a Huntress, not a threat, not even an enemy anymore.

Prey.

The Panther girl's mind was a maelstrom of painful and blinding emotions; despair, sorrow, sheer fury, pain stemming from a wound that wasn't even physical, but that could never be healed.

It was all focused on the Huntress beneath her.

Yang was crying and sniveling underneath Blake, her fear palpable to the Panther.

And Blake was happy about it, glad that the girl was terrified.

Good. You deserve to die! Murderer!

Blake wanted to drag out Yang's suffering. She started to lower her fangs closer to the girl's throat, Yang's struggles ceasing as she accepted the futility of her resistance.

When her jaws were less than an inch away from killing Yang, a cry went up from the only other person in the clearing.

Through all the roaring fury in her head, Blake heard that cry, and with a start realized Weiss was still alive. Her jaws closed right above Yang's throat, missing. She stepped off of the girl quickly and turned her back without a second thought.

Transforming back into her human form, Blake immediately felt the bite of the cold against her skin. Tears were already spilling down her face even before she got in her first breath in human form.

Kneeling over Weiss, she placed her hands on the girl's chest, feeling her weak and fading pulse. Without thinking, Blake started pouring her aura into her partner, all thoughts of the Huntress behind her gone as she tried to heal Weiss with only one thought.

Weiss, I love you! Please - you can't die!

. . .

Weiss didn't want to die. But she didn't want Blake and Yang to kill one another even more. She hoped they'd leave each other be-

"Nnghh-!" A breathless gasp flew from her lungs when she felt hands pressed to her chest, directly over the bullet wound. The pressure alleviated a slight fraction of the pain, but the blood was still spilling out.

Then, a cool feeling washed over her, a gentle flow of aura ten times stronger than her own feeble one. It poured into her in an unwavering stream, and she knew instantly it was Blake, sharing her life force.

But Weiss wasn't sure it would do her any good. She just wanted to see Blake one last time…

So she opened her eyes and blinked up at her, finding tearful golden eyes with her own fading ones, heart fluttering weakly.

"B-Blake…" she trembled beneath the girl's hands, breath hitching on more blood. "It's oh-okay… you d…don't have to…" She desperately wanted to hold Blake, but she couldn't move her arms or hands.

All she could do was cough again and whisper:

"I… love you, Blake…"

. . .

Blake sobbed, but she continued giving her aura to Weiss, felt it stream out of her fingertips into the other girl. Blake could hear Yang moving behind her, but didn't pay her any mind, other than a few frigid words.

"Stay away. You've done enough."

Tears streamed down Blake's face as Weiss opened her eyes, unfocused as they looked meekly up at Blake. The white-haired girl's heartbeat was growing faintly stronger, but it was still so weak. She coughed and spoke to Blake, her voice thin.

"No! I'm not letting you go, Weiss. I love you. Please. I don't want to live without you..." Blake begged, and she poured more of her aura into Weiss' frail body. Spots started dancing at the edge of her vision and her breath became harder as if the air had grown thinner. She was giving away a dangerous amount of aura, but she didn't care.

. . .

Weiss moaned as she battled against the cold darkness that threatened to overtake her. Part of her wanted to let go so Blake would finally stop sharing her aura. But the other part of her wanted to hold on and live.

What did she truly want, though? To let Blake live alone for the rest of her life, in pain and grief without her? If their roles were reversed, would Blake want that of her?

No. Weiss thought defiantly. I don't want to die. I don't…

But she was losing her own aura, and at this point, there was probably more of Blake's streaming through her veins than her own anymore.

Suddenly, the throbbing ache in her chest froze - simply froze - and the pain stopped.

How…?

But another pain soon overtook her.

Her heart started to pound, the blood roaring in her veins as her body convulsed beneath Blake's hands. She let out a strangled scream, eyes squeezing the last of her tears down her cheeks.

Her entire body was coursing with a new energy - it hurt, but that pain was keeping her alive.

But on top of her sickness and the strain already on her body, she didn't even noticed when she started to transform.

Her lungs expanded, limbs extending just a bit, a pool of energy at her tailbone and on the sides of her head. A coating of white fur started to bud from beneath her skin, her clothes unraveling around her as her human form was shed for that of a snow-white panther.

The scar above her left eye remained, and a new one from the bullet wound had been etched into her chest, but the blood had finally stopped flowing.

The process took the rest of her energy, and Weiss lost grip on her conscious as she lay still before Blake.

. . .

Yang's jaw was agape as she witnessed everything - how this black Panther girl raced to Weiss' side without a second thought, how she started pooling her aura into the girl, how Weiss said she loved her-

-how the small huntress started to transform before her very eyes into the creature Yang had despised most all her life.

Yang was dumbfounded as she wiped her tears, not sure what to make of things. She wasn't even sure if Weiss was still alive, but she was sure of one thing; she was in awe at the scene before her, and she didn't dare to move or speak.

. . .

Blake felt lightheaded, her breathing was ragged, but she never stopped giving Weiss her aura. She could feel Weiss' heartbeat and breathing growing steadily stronger, but still they remained weak.

But then, Weiss started to spasm underneath her hands, limbs lengthening as fur started to cover her body. Too late, Blake realized there must have been more of Blake's aura than Weiss' own coursing through her body.

Weiss was transforming.

A new fear gripped Blake as she watched her companion scream and change before her eyes.

Oh god- what if she doesn't survive?

Blake cut off her flow of aura into Weiss as her body contorted more and more. A tail and whiskers spurt out and fur covered her all over. Her screamed turned into a guttural roar as her body nearly doubled in size.

And then, the white-haired girl finished her transformation and was now a pure white panther.

Blake wiped her eyes and tried to stop crying. She leaned over and put her ear to Weiss' chest, praying.

Relief flooded her body as she heard a steady pulse.

Exhausted, Blake collapsed onto the panther, wrapping both arms gently around her neck. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Yang watching both of them, but she didn't have the energy to fight or even move. She simply raised her head and glared back.

"This is your chance," she growled. "Now you can get two Panthers instead of one. I'm sorry I don't have the energy to transform so you can have my pelt, but I don't think you kill Panthers for the pelts." Bitter venom dripped from every word, and the tail that remained in her human form lashed. She drew her lip back to reveal her teeth. "Go ahead. Do it. I dare you."

. . .

Judging by the black Panther girl's relieved sigh, Weiss was still alive, and Yang felt a bit better in knowing that. But she still felt pretty damn awful.

She'd just shot Weiss, almost killed her, and for what? To get the pelt of a cat that turned out to be innocent?

Yang eyed the black-haired girl cautiously, wearily, wiping her face on her sleeve again as she finally stood and dusted the snow off her pants. Looking over her shoulder at the two Panthers, she limped over toward her rifle-

-and kicked it away.

"Shut up," she mumbled. "Like hell I could ever kill you guys. Not as you are now, not ever. No. I've killed enough Panthers, most of them probably innocent. I'm done. I'm sick of this pressure to break records of taking lives..."

She turned back and found Blake's eyes, narrowing her gaze.

"You'd better take care of her. Get out of these woods. There's another forest east of here that we can't get to by foot or by air craft; the Hunters will never touch it. Take her there and keep her there."

It'd taken this much - almost killing one of her best friends - in order for Yang to believe her words. Weiss had always said not all Panthers were bloodthirsty killers. Yang was simply blinded by rage at what had happened to Ruby. And her thirst for vengeance had caused her to take innocent lives, and almost Blake's and Weiss' as well.

She knew Blake would keep her safe.

So Yang turned away and headed off through the woods the way she had come.

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A/N: So the climax has come and gone, but it's not over yet! We've still got a bit of adventure and drama left!