&; cerebral thunder.

perhaps willingly, perhaps not. blake herself had zero intentions of getting into another fight with him. though despite getting rid of her demons with her own two hands, the feeling was not, and would never be... satisfactory. 

taking a life to save your own is something she would never wish for anyone. 

but a last resort is a last resort. 

“ ... stop. ” the faunus ceases in her tracks, ear swiveling to the noise of crumpled gravel behind her. the scene is too familiar-- all too familiar. scathing eyes burn a brilliant yellow as she looks over her shoulder.

“ just. stop. ” she turns fully now, arms folding across her chest with a scowl. to the human eye, it looks as though she is talking to no one. an empty street behind her with nothing but moonlight coating patches of pavement. but blake knew what she heard, who she saw. familiar boot-clad steps trudged heavily against the ground below them, the tall figure standing within the shadows as a sad excuse for cover.

he wanted to be found. 

and blake knew that. 

she always knew. 

“ adam. ”

it must have been hard having to keep your voice low in a library; especially at that size.

“ which book did you say you’d like? ”

 perhaps just at the perfect time, and she was not even aware. 

“ unless peaches aren’t to your liking. ” an ear twitches. “ i have a feeling it might taste better than that strawberry one beside it. ”

blake belladonna // rwby

not her first isola rodeo but we’re re-adjusting here folks

teenage rebellion, but make it 100 times more sick and deadly

usually a quiet girl who minds her own business– unless that business involves public harassment and/or petty crime. then it’s her business

i promise she’s friendly though. a little snarky, and has been plagued with semi-permanent rbf… but friendly nonetheless

she can and will die for all cats in the surrounding area

disaster bisexual 

“ though i suppose i can forgive you just this once. ”

@rozmaity

Sun was…disoriented, to say the least.

although in a wildly new place, he did the only thing he knew how to do– adapt. the city was nothing like he was used to back in Vacuo, let alone Mistral or Vale, but he took the differences in stride. after all, he wouldn’t gain anything from feeling sorry for himself. sitting around and doing nothing but worrying would simply be detrimental, so he followed his instincts and gave into the urge to explore.

he’s glad he did, because the flash of dark locks and feline ears amongst the crowd immediately lifted his spirits. maybe the city wouldn’t be so bad after all?

“Blake…–” her name is nothing but a slight murmur at first, but as he focuses on her amid the myriad other people, he repeats her name in a burst of confidence.

“Blake!”

Sun does what Sun does best: launches himself at her.

never was it strange to find a familiar face among the daily sea of strangers. granted blake knew how all of this worked by now; the process, the memories, how people came and went. though it was not as though she was ever actively looking for those from remnant. as much as she should be, times like these were not exactly the best to go out looking for people. or perhaps it was... to clear her head and distract herself from the harsh realization of what they were truly fighting for. 

or what she thought she was, at least. 

all concentration was broken as a certain someone’s voice pierces right through her. ears flick up in apparent surprise, immediately turning her body fully towards the sound. she knew for a fact her mind was not playing tricks on her. not like this. 

“ sun? ”

blake has very little time to register the situation. before she can even let out a coherent thought the other faunus is running towards her at full speed. fortunately for blake-- or in this case, rather unfortunately, she knows whats coming next.  

She’s collected, perhaps too much so to be natural, but, honestly, at this point the civility offered is much kinder than she needs to be. He waits, quietly as she makes her decision, and then nods, stepping aside.

“Alright. The living room and dining room are free. Make yourself comfortable… if you’d like.”

Ozpin can’t offer anything more. There’s no acting like this is a normal visit. The former headmaster quietly shuts the door behind them, taking a deep breath. Right. No hiding. No lies. No more.

“So,” he begins when he thinks she’s settled on where and how she wants to be for… whatever this conversation would turn into. It has to turn into something. His nerves cause his thumbs to circle the mug he’s still carrying. Does he broach it first? Should he? Should he say anything?

“What… do you want to talk about?”

blake is silent as she enters the man’s home. she gives the new layout a once over, thinking back to the old house in which he spent his time in. they were neighbors once. looking out for one another; their relationship growing a bit further beyond just professor and student. ozpin had become somewhat of a guardian to her; an older figure guiding her through ups and downs, offering both wisdom and assistance without any hesitation when the time called for such a thing. 

all of that had been but a distant memory, drawing itself further and further as present thoughts were replacing what once was. blake knew that all he wanted to do was protect them from such a gruesome reality. 

despite all that is, and was, it hurt-- it ached.

and it was only just the beginning.

she chooses not to seat herself. instead she turns on her heel towards oz once more, staring him down with a temperament that was no longer calm, but now so very clearly tinged with annoyance. eyes narrow as she stares him down, allowing for the former headmaster to ask what he may as she continued pondering.

the empty noise kept between them was nothing short of deafening. 

“ ... how long did you think you could keep all of that from us? were you-- did you even have an idea when you were going to say something? ”

@rozmaity

It’s a quiet morning. Most of Ozpin’s housemates are out or staying in their rooms. It’s for the best. Memories ooze over him anew. They sting. But the pain is only fair.

As is the sudden heavy knocking at his door. Or at least he acknowledges it as such when he gets a glimpse of the person on the other side. Oz pales, freezes, tightens his grip on his cocoa. And opens the door.

“Miss Belladonna.”

This meeting was inevitable. He knows that. It’s not like he could hide, even if he wanted to. But he doesn’t want to hide, not anymore.

“…Do you want to come inside or would you rather us stay out here?”

it still felt like only a dream to her. every sentence the imprisoned being had uttered unto them; the picture she painted with words alone-- all of it had been the truth. a secret which had been best kept in a man whose lives were forever cursed with such a horrific task. as he put it, everyone’s best interest was kept in mind as he locked away the tragedies of his past. 

perhaps that would had all been okay if the details were kept from the right people. but this was not the case. there at his door stood a lone girl, now from the very beginning wrapped up in fighting this impossible war. a war which was not only her fight, but her team’s. her family’s. 

the internal turmoil regarding the man she once hardly knew was simmering. an ear flicks to the sound of the door clicking open, blake staring up at him with an expression that could only be described as collected.

“ ozpin. ” all formalities are dropped, arms folding across her chest as she takes a moment to make her decision.

and naturally, it had been for reasons that were yet to be released to those who were close with her.

a dark and rather broody young woman stood within the confines of the dazzling shop splashed with every shade of pink imaginable. for quite some time now the faunus had her gaze fixated on the display before her, hands folded behind her back whilst doing so. on the counter before her lay some jewelry; earrings and necklaces, bracelets and rings. though if she were to look up at the mannequin sitting atop the counter, her eyes would latch onto the model beautifully garbed in a lacy black garment trimmed with white and gold. 

feline ears twitch in alert as blake catches herself lost in thought, a bolt of heat rushing through her neck and into her face before she darts her gaze to the earrings again. 

it was nothing she had not seen before, truthfully. but there was just something about perusing a shop like this with future intent that made her feel... odd.

yeah. odd.

Blake’s grasp on Pyrrha’s shoulder was just the anchor she needed to return her to reality. She was so caught up in the scar, and Blake’s ears being visible… It was almost too much for the Huntress. But Blake was here and she was alive. Which wasn’t much of a surprise, but still a chilling relief.

Pyrrha released her breath, now realizing she had been holding it in. “Sorry.” That was all she could muster. She wasn’t prepared for this. The Huntress had to take a moment, taking a second to breathe. As much as Pyrrha trusted Blake, she couldn’t help but feel lied to. 

She was not fine, not in Pyrrha’s eyes. Truthfully neither was Pyrrha but she wasn’t ready to deal with that revelation yet. She still didn’t know how to tell Blake what happened, what she knew already. It wasn’t Blake’s burden to know Pyrrha’s fate.

“I’m… I’m not sure.” She felt like no time had passed, as if she had only been battling Cinder mere hours ago. “I… Think I’m alright, but I wish our meeting was under better circumstances.” Such as at Beacon, between their two rooms.

But she had to ask again. “Blake. I can’t just ignore them.” Pyrrha brushed the other girl’s hand away. Moving her own hand to the Faunus’ face. She cupped Blake’s cheek. “Please don’t lie to me. Who did this to you?” She would hunt that person down to the ends of this earth, or whatever this island was. She would do everything in her power for her dear friend Blake. 

“ that’s fair. ” a pause. being away for so long begins to make people blunt, doesn’t it? “ i mean. i understand. this isn’t exactly... ideal. ” 

the silence between them there after was borderline deafening. a sound only blake could hear; the rapid thump thump thumping of her heart beneath her ribs, pounding endlessly as a wave of subtle unease set itself within her. as to why she felt such anxiety? blake herself was not sure. it was as though it were to be a premonition of some sort... a calm before some whirlwind of emotions were about to be spilled forth and exchanged between the two. unexpected as this meeting had been, the faunus could not pinpoint a valid reason as to why what had been brewing inside her began in the first place. 

explaining to pyrrha where the scars came from would be no issue. difficult as the memories were still to digest, it was nothing of such severity she did not have to think back to before. not after all she has fought through and survived. 

so what was it?

such pondering thoughts are left to be temporarily shoved aside as the huntress brings blake’s injuries back into focus. a gloved hand cups her face, ears flicking as an immediate response to such gentle caress. words get caught in her throat for only but a moment, the faunus offering her a grin before taking her classmate’s hand in her own. 

“ pyrrha. ” blake chuckles, lowering their hands before giving hers a reassuring squeeze.