21

Chapter 21: Zweijo

Pandemonium.

There was no other way to describe it.

Blake screeched, as only someone infused with primal fear could. Scaling the side of Yang's bunk with feline grace as she hissed towards the intruding animal. Ruby crying out as she tried to convince the dog to release the yellow teddy. He too screamed, though only one of them could hear it, his body being swung left and right as the dog sprinted about the room – Ruby hot on his tail.

Yang, to her credit, did her best to install some discipline, shouting at the dog to drop it. But with a toy in his mouth and one of his masters chasing after him, shouting? It was already a game to the dog's mind, and the bigger master's orders couldn't even be made out over Ruby's wailing.

"Zwei no! She's going to tear my throat out – I need that to live!"

"No one's tearing anyone's throat out," Weiss tried to wade into the mess, reaching down to catch the dog – only to have it wiggle between her legs. Instead she caught Ruby, forehead to forehead as both girls collapsed.

"Blakeeee! Help meeee!"

"L-let go of him dog," the faunus shouted, lowering her head as the beast spared her a curious glance – barking once in greeting, before throwing Jaune into the air and catching him on the descent.

"That's your idea of help!? Get down here and save meeee!"

"Zwei! Drop it! Ah-ah-ah!" The blonde's voice took on a hard edge, and the dog responded immediately – tail slipping between its legs as it dropped the wet bear on the floor. Yang skipped forward quickly, snapping the toy up in one hand and tossing it towards the hiding girl.

Blake caught it with one hand, before dropping the wet bear atop Yang's quilts.

"Ugh, I feel dizzy…" Jaune moaned, slipping from the bear into his spirit form, "and abandoned... and bereft of help from my own partner."

"Blake, I'm so sorry – don't kill me!" Ruby began to wail, which the dog apparently thought to be a signal, because it too started to howl – matching her pitch even as Blake tried to smother all four of her ears under a pillow.

Weiss joined in, shouting for them to stop – which only prompted the dog to increases its volume (and Ruby in an attempt to be heard over it all). Yang's face was already starting to twitch, but it wasn't until something thumped angrily on their wall – a muffled voice screaming obscenities from the neighbouring room – that she snapped.

"SHUT UP!"

"Okay," the blonde growled, red eyes looking over each of them in turn, "we're calm now, right? All sat down nice and quiet?"

"Ar-" The dog tried to answer, only to slump when her eyes focused on him. The other three girls simply nodded, even Jaune refusing to speak.

"Great. Now we can handle this like mature adults, and not a pack of screaming banshees."

"In my defence," Weiss tried, only for her voice to die a lingering death as Yang turned to look at her. "Never mind…"

"Anyone else have anything to add?" Even Jaune shook his head with the rest of them. Hell, even the dog did. "Good, now Blake… you're not going to tear my sister's throat out."

"I'm not," the girl sighed as she looked at the three girls sat opposite her, "it was just a threat for Cardin, and you can uh… stop trying to avoid me, Ruby." The small girl poked her head out from behind Yang, looking almost suspicious.

"And you won't kill Zwei?"

"I won't kill the dog," she rolled her eyes. Not so long as it didn't come anywhere near her, anyway. Or slobber on her clothes, or bark loudly at her, or try to hump her leg, or…

"Right, so now that we've decided we're not going to start killing each other," the blonde deadpanned, "or keep screaming. Can we finally move onto the important business?"

Blake leaned back with a wince, rubbing her still sore arms as she watched her partner with a wary eye. She had a bad feeling, mostly from the way Yang was staring at her, that she wasn't going to like what this would be about.

"Blake…" the blonde said slowly. Yep, knew it… "Now that you've got, uh… Mr Tiddles back-"

"Hate you so much right now, Blake!"

"- I think we need to talk about what happened." The two shorter girls beside the blonde nodded, showing that the interrogation had been long in the planning. They were even arranged across from her; sat cross-legged in a line as they faced her – like some kind of bizarre job interview.

"Do we?" Blake decided to stall, making to rise to her feet, "I mean it's sorted now, Cardin won't need to be dealt with an-"

"Sit."

"Sitting," she landed lightly on the floor, swallowing as Yang's eyes turned back to their slightly more natural purple colour.

"Good girl, now then… I can understand you were upset about Mr Tiddles, and that Cardin didn't make things any better. But I think we need to talk about what happened at the training rings – and then afterwards."

"Like why you just let that brute hit you, for one!" Weiss hissed.

"Yeah!" Ruby chimed, holding her hand out even as Weiss slapped a palm against it. Ugh… nice to see those two working together … sort of…

"Huh…" Blake hummed noncommittally, wondering how bad an idea it would be to explain that she'd risked a concussion or worse, for a teddy bear. She could imagine just how badly that would go down.

It was at that exact moment however, that a flash of colour dashed behind the girls, visible between their heads to her vision – even as they remained fixed on her rapidly whitening face.

"Gerroff – gah – damn mutt!" Jaune was running away from the dog, small yellow frame sprinting back and forth in the middle of their room – corgi hot on his tail.

"Blake?" Yang reached across with one hand, laying it against her head even as her throat went dry. "You okay? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"M'fine…" Blake managed to mumble, amber eyes wide even as a cynical part of her brain applauded the only decent pun Yang Xiao-Long had ever made, even if she didn't realise it. "Sorry – what was the question?"

"I said; why would you just take hits like that?" Weiss repeated, though even she looked a little concerned for her now, "don't tell me you couldn't dodge them – I think we all know you better than that."

"Ah well, the hits… yeah…" there was a good explanation for that, right? What reason could she give, that wouldn't end with Yang going on the warpath? "It was… Cardin said that-"

"Grr, come on – oof – think you're a match for me!? I'm mother-fucking Jaune Arc!" Jaune rolled about behind them, visible past Yang's shoulder as he flipped the dog onto its back – straddling the bundle of fur as he flailed his fluffy arms at the dog's face. The dog had its mouth open, trying to catch the appendages even as its legs kicked.

"Said that…"

"Whoah!" The dog flipped him off, now on the top itself as it gnawed on his ear – right before Jaune kicked one leg out, rolling them over once more as he tried to wrap his stubby arms into a headlock.

"Cardin… said…" Oh Gods, she was doomed…

"Blake!" Yang snapped, waving one hand before her eyes, sparing her the horror of what she was seeing. "Are you okay? Crap, you must be more hurt than I thought…"

"I think what we're trying to say, Blake," Weiss cut in, ever the voice of reason, "is that after the debacle with your heritage – we want you to trust us all a little more."

"I do trust you." She did too, as foolish as that seemed. After what Adam had done… after how he had been… she thought she'd come on really far.

"Then come to us in future if you have problems," her young leader ordered, "instead of rushing off to confront CRDL yourself. Didn't you think any of us would have helped? What if you'd been hurt?"

"I wasn't hurt though, was I?" She'd gone in, rescued Jaune and gotten out, just like he'd said. There was no need for them to worry, even if she had been a little tired, and fallen asleep afterwards.

"Blake, please," Yang leaned forward, reaching out to cup her tired face in two hands. "We're a team, you're my partner. I know you might not be used to having people to rely on, but just try. For us, okay?"

"…"

"Please?"

"Mother-fucking Tiddles!" Jaune cried, riding the corgi across the room behind Yang's head, his small frame bucking wildly off the dog's back as he struggled to maintain his grip on the collar. The corgi was bucking like a wild bull, spinning and kicking an effort to dislodge the rider. "Victory!"

"Sure…" Blake mumbled, wanting to climb under her blankets and pretend the day hadn't ever happened. "Why not…"

"Hmm?" Yang must have noticed her empty gaze, for the blonde turned around to look behind her, even as Blake panicked. Jaune went slack instantly, slipping from the dog's back – just in time for the corgi to proudly catch it in its mouth. "Zwei, NO!"

"Suck it!" Jaune crowed as the dog lowered its head, depositing the teddy in Yang's outstretched hand with a guilty look.

Only you would be pleased at outsmarting a dog…

"Here ya go," Yang tossed the bear at her, which she caught in one hand, before dropping into her lap.

"Ugh… now I'm covered in dog slobber."

"And I'm an undead chew toy – you'll forgive me for feeling a little unsympathetic."

"Well," Ruby clapped her hands, climbing to her feet. "Tiddles is back, Blake's going to come to us in future if we have problems – and my throat remains safe!"

"Though Blake's bear still ended up as a chew toy in the end," Weiss pointed out – apparently not noticing the motions of silence Ruby was frantically making.

"Yeah!" Yang crowed, the shit-eating grin on her face letting everyone know what was coming. "That's some Zwei-rony for you, am I rig- ah Zwei, no biting!" Blake felt one brow rise as she watched her partner roll about the room, trying to unlatch the small corgi from her arm.

"Oh right, I nearly forgot," Ruby slammed a fist down into her hand, "our uncle trained Zwei to attack Yang if she makes a bad pun."

"Huh," Jaune shrugged within Blake's grip, even as the faunus leaned back with a smile on her lips, "maybe the dog can stay after all."

"Zweiiiii! It was good though!"