Burden and Blame Chapter 5

A distorted voice broke its way into Weiss' consciousness.

"Weiss, please, get up. It's almost been a week. We understand you're upset, but this is starting to become unhealthy." Blake said, kneeling at Weiss' bedside, attempting to get a response.

Weiss was awake physically, but mentally and emotionally, she was gone. Even Yang had taken the situation considerably better, but at least Ruby remembered her. However, for Blake and Weiss, it wasn't the same case. Weiss made the connection with her nightmare and it sent her into a void of pain and hopelessness. She had gotten up minutes later, asking if she could see Ruby. The doctor allowed it, letting the team in to see their leader. Ruby almost immediately noticed Yang walk in, smiling and greeting her from the bed she had been moved to. But the hard-hitting answer to the unspoken question had come after a puzzled look crossed over Ruby's face.

"Hey Yang, who are your friends?" She had asked.

Weiss froze, turned on a dime, and ran out the door, slamming it behind her. Both Blake and Yang felt the frustration and hurt radiate through the air as the sound echoed through the room.

"Sheesh, what's up with her? All I did was ask a question." Ruby said, clueless as to what actually happened.

"Ruby, there's something you need to know…" Yang began, filling in the missing pieces for her.

After Weiss left, she went to their dorm. Crawling into her bunk, she curled up into a ball. She stayed there for days, only getting up to use the bathroom. She refused food, and barely drank any water. Now, Blake was doing her best to fix the shattered girl.

"Weiss, you can't stay like this forever. You're not going to help anything by laying here and watching time go by. I know you are upset, but it's going to be alright."

Weiss looked up at Blake and deep into her eyes. A blank expression showed more agony than any other.

"Blake." Weiss' voice was monotone and quiet, filling Blake with sympathy for the disheartened girl. "Do you know what it's like to lose the person closest to you?"

"Yes, I do." Blake responded, already not linking where the conversation was going.

"Do you know what it's like to have them in a coma for weeks, then only to see them vomiting blood on the brink of death, and have them forget you even exist within the span of a couple of hours?"

The verbal blow struck Blake speechless. Weiss was starting to sob, shuddering at the image of what side effects the medicine had on Ruby. Blake was silent, unable to match what Weiss had gone through.

"You know exactly how I feel about Ruby. It's hard for me to feel that way about anyone anymore. For what it's worth, I'm happy Ruby doesn't remember me. I don't deserve her. I got her hurt, then I nearly killed her, and now she's clueless as to who we are." Weiss was choking over her own words as everything she felt spilled out without moderation.

"Weiss, you did everything you could. You went to every length to get her back, and I think that was an incredible feat." Blake was showing more sympathy now than in many other points in her life, and it was scaring her more than the depressed Weiss confessing her feelings.

"It was selfish!" Weiss screamed. "All because I got attached!"

"Calm down!" Blake shook Weiss by her shoulder, trying to make her see how deluded she was.

"Blake?"

Blake stopped shaking Weiss as she turned to see Yang in a partially open doorway.

"I finally got her to speak, but now she's blaming herself for all of this." Blake said quickly, trying to explain herself.

"Blaming herself for all of what?"

The door opened more and Ruby, pushed by her larger sister, stumbled into the room. Her eyes locked with Weiss', leaving no room for talk as Weiss leapt out of her bed and ran over to Ruby, giving an extremely tight hug.

"I'm so sorry Ruby, I didn't ever mean for this to happen!" Weiss cried into Ruby's shoulder.

Blake moved over to where Yang stood in the doorway, motioning that they should leave the two to catch up.

"Yang told me what happened, Weiss." Ruby said pulling Weiss off and holding her by the sides of her arms.

"R-really?" Weiss used a sleeve of her dress to wipe away the tears.

"Yup." Ruby smiled. "You got me up. It was a bit painful, but it was worth it." She giggled, somehow eliminating the room full of tension. "But another thing. When I was asleep, I heard crying. It was in lots of my dreams. I searched endlessly for it, but I could never find who it was." Ruby took a deep breath. "Until I got to the door with Yang. I recognized it as the exact same. It was you, wasn't it?"

Weiss was dazed as Ruby spoke, pinning her. There was no possible way to get out of it. "Yes, it was." Weiss looked at her feet, ashamed.

"Now explain why the first time I saw you after waking up, I felt butterflies in my stomach."

"We have a long history, Ruby." Weiss began, taking in a deep sigh.

This was going to be a very long night, and the outcome was unpredictable.