Chapter 4: Foot In Her Mouth

Yang Xiao Long

What was the meaning of a fight? Yang felt like she could remember a hundred people saying they knew the answer and a hundred answers that were wrong. Some had told her that it was an expression of her anger, pent up rage that could only be unleashed in real combat. If that was true, why did she feel like smiling when a strike landed or want to laugh when the match got truly intense? Others had told Yang that she needed something to be proud of, that it made her feel powerful in a powerless society. She wasn't so sure of that as well. Yang couldn't remember a moment she felt powerless. She was a natural in her

prime and the best. Some said it was because the blonde must have been picked on in school, but again this was false. Yang had many friends, who often complimented her about how beautiful she was. Her confidence was unbroken and remained as such all her life. Her mother claimed she was just a violent person, but it wasn't about the violence. She didn't need blood and gore, she wanted struggle, intensity, and she almost always made friends whether she won or lost, though she rarely walked away defeated.

Blake had once suggested that it wasn't about anything at all particularly. Something about it all being sound and fury, signifying nothing. It was very close, but missed something intrinsically important: the enigmatic value. When Yang was asked this question she often would say it was just the kick, the adrenaline, the moment of which she was just a junky, but something about that was just a hollow place holder. It didn't scratch the surface and could not be replaced with a roller coaster ride or a dangerous night in the town.

The best answer Yang had ever heard, the answer of her father, was the concept of Dao. The way of things, as he liked to put it. He once said that everyone had their inner Dao, or way, which when found was their natural state, one that resulted in Wu Wei, or effortless action. The religious mumbo-jumbo was not something Yang believed in and neither was any of the meditation or Zen stuff, but the concept of Dao seemed to be true regardless of any faith. The idea of this being her natural state, the core of what was her held true. Something beyond choice was definitely in her, resulting in the effortless action of a match. Yang lived nearly every day in the thinly padded room, knocking back bags, honing her form, exercising and building up for a fight because it was her Dao, her way of which there could be no other.

Now that same Dao brought her into the sparring arena, just a floor of gymnastic mats and agreed on borders in some small shared space that was the club room. It was what made her stand pumped and alive, never quite as complete as she was when facing a new opponent. And that she did. Pyrrha Nikos, Grecian student by day, sexy Spartan warrior princess by club time. At least it felt like that, seeing her in gym shorts and a sports top that displayed an orange tint that lightened her nearly nonexistent Mediterranean tan and highlighted her red hair tied up in the back. She had well defined abs and arms, muscular as hell, yet surprisingly thin. The kind of tone Yang was jealous of. Not to say Yang didn't try to put on a show herself, dressed in matching yellow shorts with a gym top that was about two inches short of just being a sports bra. After all, Blake was watching, even if the bookworm was just reading in the corner, not as impressed by Yang's own muscled form as she used to be. It was worth a shot at least.

"You ready to go?" Yang asked, her words slightly slurred by the protective mouthguard. The golden girl stood, just a meter between them, arms raised the perfect distance between her eyes and hands, bound by the sparring gloves she wore. Weight perfectly center, left leg forward and right tilted ever so slightly, Yang's preferred heavyweight stance.

"As long as you are, Miss Long," Pyrrha replied, voice slurred in a familiar way, mouthguards a rather annoying necessity. Still, she spoke well for having a big thing of plastic in her mouth. It made Yang smile to tell she had needed one of these guards before. Pyrrha had a stance of the same Muay Thai art, but her form was of a rare lightweight variety. Left arm low, only slightly bent, which allowed her to pivot it and turn that tough forearm into a shield. Her right fist was raised up already in striking position, like a readied javelin. She turned her body slightly, letting her left side be the only striking zone, a much smaller area to aim for than Yang's if not as versatile a position.

"Let's go!" Many people liked to start out circling each other, giving themselves time to think. Yang didn't need to think, she only ever was. This was her Dao, her infallible way, and it said straightforward.

One hop was all it took to close the distance, that terrible little space between Yang and her opponent. No, just like dance there wasn't meant to be space. A fight needed contact, contact Yang was happy to give. Left jabs were quick taunts, a kind of fighting handshake that could turn into bee stings if the opponent let it, and Yang was happy to sting her apart. The little left strikes could only bite Pyrrha, shielded by the pivoting forearm, the damn shield of an arm unbreakable. Thing was, little stabs stung after a while, stung in a way that you just had to stab right back. Pyrrha was not an exception to this rule.

A hidden wince of irritation in those green eyes messaged Yang that a strike was coming, and come it did. That spear of a right arm went for thrust, the force of it Yang could almost feel, and did when she caught it in her right, the kinetic wave running all the way into the blonde's shoulder. It was a wonderful kind of force, one that pumped her heart an extra beat and made the world slow down and speed up all at once. This was being alive; this was the only work that felt effortless.

Arms a tangled mess, Yang shifted her left foot at an angle, spinning the whole of her body into one side destroying swing kick. It was an easy bet in a close hand mess like this that the opponent would forget their lower body, letting a well placed kick or swipe be turned into a perfect knock out. Pyrrha wasn't most people. Perhaps it was Yang's smile that gave it away, the stupid tell she couldn't seem to stop in a beautiful battle like this. Either way the Grecian noticed, eyes down on Yang's muscled leg whipping around to strike, the force of Yang's entire body propelling it forward. Pyrrha simply lifted her leg, the knee blocking any strike to center body, and sending the most horrific pain and livening feelings one could feel into the bone. It hurt bad, but Yang was used to it, her nerves were muted to the pain and whatever was left made her alert and alive. Perfect time to force forward.

The space between them was null, so much that with a step she could kiss her red headed friend, but kissing was a different game. One not done with fists. Yang guessed you could say she meant to kiss a confused, down-looking Pyrrha with her glove rushing towards her jaw. This girl wasn't a normal fight, she was astounding, amazing even. She just pivoted that left arm and smacked the blonde's main punch to the side like nothing. All that heft, force, and kinetic energy sent into the air somewhere lost forever. Yang's body was still moving forward, her mind still focused on attack, left hand balled up tight for rib jabs. She had made a terribly stupid mistake. She forgotten about that high raised arm of Pyrrha's, the one that in just a moment would be implanted in Yang's memory forever.

It hurt, hurt badly. The pain was searing and destroyed her senses. Yang felt her mind melt for a second in a buzz, the one a good knock to the face often earned her. The strike was meant for the jaw, but it found Yang's eye and she could totally feel tomorrow's bruises coming quickly. Pyrrha was apologizing, Yang could hear it, but not really, the game winning onslaught that should have followed didn't, instead there was the gift precious time to breath, shake it off, and get right back into position.

"Yang, are you okay?" Pyrrha had a sad look in those emerald eyes, but the blonde couldn't think of why. After all she was smiling like a fool.

"We're not done!" Yang shouted in a slurred mess as she circled her opponent for the last gambit. She had to stop soon, before the swelling started to hit, but no way was she going to go out to the newbie without being a little cool first. Mad dash in, all her chips on the table, Yang went in close. She might have expected a quick strike, but Pyrrha was playing for counters and Yang took that as an invite. Illegal in some tournaments she went for one of Muay Thai's more famous offensive moves. A slashing elbow strike to the face. It was an intimate attack that put you in such a close proximity to the opponent some thought it too brash. Well brash would have been Yang's middle name if it wasn't already Xiao.

Pyrrha wasn't any less defended and she pivoted her arm to shield her face, but the thing was an elbow strike was full bodied. Yang's entire self smashed into her and blocked Pyrrha's view of her feet. Exactly what Yang wanted. The redhead moved to spear Yang right in the jaw with her right punch, but she never got her chance. It's an easy thing fighting this close to forget the legs, even more so when you're confident.

Yang didn't need much force, just a quick kick to the shins. While more painful than damaging, it put Pyrrha on her a knee without much chance to respond. Where a series of quick and brutal strikes should have followed, they didn't. Yang was too excited, her heart pounding, face screaming, and smile wide she just pulled Pyrrha into the biggest hug ever.

"Oh, my god! You are, like, the toughest badass ever! That was awesome!" Yang's voice was so slurred she wasn't even sure her words would be anything else but a jumbled nightmare.

"Thank you… are you okay, Yang? I didn't mean to get you in the eye," Pyrrha asked as soon as she could pull out of Yang's hug. She seemed a little concerned, though there was no reason so. Yang's eye still stung, the surface area of that knockout punch was wailing so loud, but it felt great in a way. She was sort of proud of it, more so because that the newest member was such a beast. The blonde didn't even comprehend enough to answer, the excitement in her blood too hot, too concentrated. All she could think of doing was sharing this new discovered compatriot with her most important person, Blake.

"Blake, did you see that?! Did you see that!?" Yang actually spoke clearly, remembering to remove the mouth guard. She had pulled Pyrrha along, firmly holding her hand. The silly Grecian girl seemed so awkward now. Presenting her prize fighter, Blake seemed unimpressed, hands on her hips, those amber eyes annoyed.

"It was her knocking the shit out of you is what I saw. Jesus, Yang, you need to be more careful. Velvet, please get us an ice pack." Blake was definitely Yang's most important person. A friendship that danced a thousand lines, trampled over a few more boarders than they should have, and never quite found its comfortable standard. Some days it felt like Yang could love her forever, sometimes it felt like she was completely alien to the blonde, something beyond her comprehension that words and concepts just wouldn't measure. Sometimes it just felt distant, like Blake was just an afterimage of something caught in twilight. Over a year had passed since Yang Long met Blake Belladonna, and in that time the only thing Yang had learned for sure is she was something important to her. What it was or what it meant Yang didn't fathom or factor into this equation. Blake was here now, dressed in her stylish Italian vest and that little black bow, her slender fingers touching the now swollen soon-to-be black eye. It stung, it burned even, but the attention was gratifying.

"Here you go, Blake. That was a nasty shot." Velvet came back with an ice pack and bandages, sweet girl as she was. Yang let Blake apply the pack and wrap a holding bandage to it to keep the small patch of chilled gel in place. It felt like a jolt at first, but quickly the coolness turned into the exact boon Yang needed for this beating. It drained the adrenaline from Yang. The exertion finally catching up with her. Face chilled and all minor wounds settled, she let herself drop with a laugh, collapsed on the soft padded floor, and sprawled out with a smile. This was the life.

"I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to." Pyrrha was a little skittish, standing up above her, stepping back just a bit to avoid showing the goods under her skirt to the now pleasantly passive floor bound Yang. Smart girl, showed again how aware she was of everything around her and brought a laugh to her collapsed compatriot. Yang was the inverse of Pyrrha, the world got smaller in the fight, simpler. Everything around her outside of the opponent was background noise. It was only clear now with the match over exactly where Yang even was. The fuzz went away and the clear expanse of the room replaced it. The punching bags to the left shared with the regular boxing club, the training sets to the right, a mess of machines weights that were 'borrowed' from the school's full gym. She could sense the few others present. I couple of girls who always trained together in the other corner. She noticed now who was not present, the Malachite twins, off working the bar or with their boyfriends, skipping practice probably.

There was of course Blake here. She was second captain but never fought, instead she was just there as a friend, and because whether she would admit it or not, the Italian minx thought watching beautiful woman fight was sexy and Yang had seen the reading material to prove it. Velvet was there as a transfer from mid last year, and she joined because she had such a huge crush on Blake, though everyone either didn't notice or ignored for her sake. Yang liked Velvet though, she was a sweetie. Almost made her wish Blake would notice Velvet's affections. Almost. The little aussie was an amazing book keeper for the club too, which Yang was in dire need of.

"You got me good. You have one of the best senses of alertness I've seen. That left arm, Pyrrha, I just couldn't get passed it!" Yang announced punching a fist into the air to mark her excitement. Next order of business would be to learn how to do that, and how to beat it. Yang loved learning the different styles and skills, loved mastering her combat arts. Totally loved kicking butt, too.

"Actually you got me in the end. That elbow caught me off guard; I'll need to work on that for next time." Pyrrha smiled, the brightness in her eyes back as the shiny emeralds they should be. The special phrase of next time meant something super important, the largest success of this meeting by far. The big fish might have just been caught and Yang was thrilled.

"So you are joining?!" Yang asked with a smirk and a raised eyebrow just wanting to sink her teeth in a new member. Frankly, a girl's kickboxing club should have been way easier to start, the girl's Futbol was huge here and Yang thought a club about punching things should be easy to sell. So far the roster floated between ten and seven depending on semester, two of which didn't even fight. She would have pressured Ruby into joining, but Yang thought watching her get creamed in the face over and over again might be too much for a good sister to bear. Blake didn't share the thirsty look, instead she gave Yang a bit of a grimace.

"Give the girl some space, Yang. Sorry Pyrrha, she is… excitable… when it comes to new girls. We'd welcome a new member, but don't feel pressured," Blake offered with probably more affable terms, but spoiling all of Yang's fun. The blonde rewarded Blake's efforts with an extended tongue in complaint. Blake tried to hide her laugh and looked back with this hidden expression meant to tell her just 'really?'. Non-verbal communication was cool and a strong measure of their familiarity.

"I can see that," Pyrrha started giving Yang a sweet, but a bit pained smile. 'Okay maybe I came on a little strong, but come on!' the blonde thought, opting maybe for begging, however, the Grecian's next comment made her near speechlessly happy. "But I'd be happy to join."

"Hell yes! I consider this a win! I told you, Blake. Ha!" Near speechless, nothing ever really made Yang speechless. Yang kick-laughed up a frenzy and while Blake did roll her eyes, she seemed to give a subtle smile. A gracious loser considering the little bet they made in class about how quick Yang could turn her to the noble combatant's path. Teach her to doubt the masterful persuasive techniques of Yang Xiao Long.

"So what is the schedule here? Any requirements for membership to your club, Captain Long?" Pyrrha asked. The title of 'Captain Long' felt pretty cool to hear, but Blake laughing outright at the mention of it put a bullet in any hopes of turning that into a real thing.

"We meet here whenever we can around at thirteen o'clock. If you can't make it, you can't make it; if you're late, you're late. We tend to be fairly relaxed. Our leader here seems to hate everything that comes with scheduling, so if you need the club room at another time, just ask," Blake explained opening up the club books for whatever forms were needed. Administrative tasks were always floated down to Blake and Velvet, mostly because they were boring and clubs were supposed to be fun. Honestly, the main reason Yang was the club captain was because Blake wanted nothing to do with the actual fighting. She was more like a really sexy coach that all the boys dreamed they had instead of the fat, balding guys they got. Kind of like that. "Also call her Yang, you've already swollen her head enough as is."

"You're no fun!" Yang replied from the floor with no defense, but a whine. Didn't deter the minx in the least.

"I've heard you say quite the contrary if I'm remembering a few drunken episodes correctly. Now get up lazy," Blake remarked, seeming satisfied with a victory and content she had Yang by the collar. The raven haired girl reached her arm out for her disheveled captain, offering her a way out. 'Clever, clever cat', Yang thought, taking the outstretched arm.

"Alright, I'm up. All in all, I'm glad you joined us Pyrrha, but I mean with this pack on my face some might wonder if it was maybe a pyrrhic victory, eh?" No one laughed.

"Oh, come on. It was funny!"

"Once you start drawing out the word problems and turning them into triangles you won't have any more problems," Velvet lectured and Yang tried to pay attention. She was sort of a number's girl, good at math and science, which were not Yang's best subjects. Her lower level remedial courses in college were proof of that bit of disability. After discovering Velvet's hidden talents Yang was quick to highjack her for all sorts of tutoring and other much needed help. It almost made the blonde feel bad, but Velvet seemed to have fun. Plus it gave them an excuse to talk together in the halls just the three of them. That included Blake.

"I'm going to be honest, I don't think I'll remember any of this conversation. Kind of got clocked in the head. Maybe we can have a major study session?" Yang asked kicking back in her casual wear, gym clothes packed into her bags, hair freshly washed and combed, and her ice pack replaced with a normal temporary eyepatch to hide the bruising. Explaining she had gotten a black eye in club and showing her mom were two totally different beasts for sure. She was already so paranoid that Yang wasn't taking care of herself enough to get a girlfriend. It was a little funny, being caught with a girl by her mom didn't change the endless harping on her to find a hubby in college, just transmuted it into finding a wife. Not that Yang couldn't find her joy in either sex, the equal opportunity heartbreaker she was, but that was for another make out session to be barged in on at another time.

"Alright, but I'd like it if Blake could join us." Yang nearly laughed in her face hearing that. It was cute though and the last thing she wanted to do was hurt sweet Velvet's feelings. One could only imagine how excited Velvet was to be assigned as Blake's dorm mate this semester. "It would be better to have at least a three person group than just me teaching you." Good at coming up with excuses, too. Velvet was going to go places. What places, Yang had no idea, but definitely places.

"Absolutely, sounds like a party!" Yang announced, feeling victorious as she stepped down the hallway from her late after class study session to the foreign program building. Ruby had to wait most of her day for classes, an hour even after her last class with Yang. Poor sis needed to get some wheels, but for now they needed a nice trip home, a big meal, and some sister bonding time.

"I don't believe you can just volunteer me," Blake argued from behind the two of them. Always a stickler for respecting time and personal space and all that garbage. Wasn't like she was going to say no anyways, did it matter if Yang acted as her spokesperson? "I will go if you apologize. Definitely need some help despite you being a little rude just to assume my schedule." Blake added a little touch of a girlish smile behind that comment. She loved irking Yang just a little bit.

"What? Too busy writing your Italian anime fanfi—" Yang couldn't finish with how quickly Blake shushed her, the redness of her flustered face the most delightful thing Yang had ever seen. Poor girl was so obsessed with hiding it she didn't even realize everyone from the dorms last year knew on top of Yang, Velvet included, but she was into cosplay so she seemed just as into the anime thing. Velvet even had that cute little brown and gold battle suit with the bunny ears from that one show the two of them watched. Yang didn't delve into that stuff as much as either of them, but she thought it was kind of cool and adorable how passionate they were about it.

"Fine, I'll go!" Blake shouted causing even Velvet to giggle a bit. "I so regret showing you that. We're in public." Angry Blake was a very rare and charming sight to see. Something Yang felt proud to unlock after a year of trying.

"I don't know why you bother hiding it. Seems dumb, it's your thing then it's your natural self. Be proud of that." Yang didn't feel like explaining her theories about Daoism to Blake right now and honestly she didn't get it herself really, but this writing stuff and lit was totally the minx's Doa. For anyone who was that passionate and committed to something, yet did it without hesitation, well that was the Wu Wei, effortless action.

"Well it's settled. Ruby's outside right? I'll just head to the dorms then if that's okay?" Velvet asked and everyone nodded in agreement. Yang had told Ruby to guard Bumblebee with her life, this late at night towing was actually a fear. 'The Glynda loves Yang shield' did have its limits.

"So that Pyrrha girl. She was amazing. I'm so glad she's on the team. I didn't even know we had a Physical Fitness Program, I should switch from Culinary… though my parents would probably kill me," Yang mused as they stepped outside one of the farther entrances. The night air was a sharp cool, pleasant even on Yang's refreshed self. Wind picking up beautifully, brushing through the outer gardens that lined the space between buildings and low light from the moon still bright on the stone structure. It was in these strangely atmospheric moments Yang remembered to appreciate exactly how beautiful her home was.

"You seem infatuated," Blake mentioned near soundlessly following Yang out. Though her question was loaded, her voice showed no hint of whatever it was loaded with. Her hips were moving in a sway that drove onlookers mad while she walked. The girl seemed even more impressive at night. Her being blended in, but seemed more there when you noticed her than any other time. A sort of invisible glow one could only see in the moonlight if they looked for it. Sort of Blake's natural state.

"Maybe," Yang admitted considering it, though not too seriously. "I want a bit more time with her before I can really say so. I'm not a love at first sight type of girl, not usually I mean." She noticed, between spotting her own past inconsistence, that they weren't walking. The two of them were just standing before the gardens in the night, tenseness to the conversation inescapable. Yang didn't know where it came from, but it was definitely there, choking the life from the moment.

"If you do, will you ask her out?" Blake asked, the question making Yang feel a little puzzled and sick, like a heavyweight was placed on her essence. This sounded complicated. Complicated emotions were among Yang's most disliked things. To her the world was about seeking out natural states. When you like something do it, when you don't, don't. Things like this couldn't follow the same rules.

"I get it, you're worried I won't pursue other people. Hey, I promised I wouldn't make things a problem… you know I'm sorry about what I did to make things so awkward after the festival. I just was under the wrong impression, just like I said." Blake was already walking away before Yang could finish her babbling bullshit. The blonde knew she was shoving her foot right into her mouth too, but how was lost to her somewhere in this dark parking lot path. Blake could be such an enigma, so often hiding what she felt about stuff in the dark away from Yang. It was that hiding that caused problems before. It made Yang guess wrong about the most important things. She was never very good at navigating the dark hidden parts of people.

"Hey Blake, what was with you bringing up last year's incident after the fight. I mean after I apologized you never brought it up before. I'm not mad, but you know I feel bad for causing such a huge fight and—" Whatever conversation would have happened ended right there. Blake stopped every motion in her body at once; instantly alert. Yang had never seen her look so tense, not for a long time. She was frightened by a sound; a red specter appeared in the garden corner, shivering slightly from a heavy wind.

"Yang! I've been waiting here for like thirty minutes! I'm freezing! Plus I really got to tell you about what Weiss and I did all day." It was Ruby, poor girl.

Blake eased back up and waved, her face was obscured by her bangs. She seemed distraught and didn't say a word. Just turned back to Yang and whispered, "See you tomorrow." There was no catching up to her.

"Hey sis. Sorry, got caught up." It was truth enough, though it didn't really scratch the surface of such.

"Oh my god, what happened to your face?!" Ruby looked so shocked, her grey eyes wide as could be imagined. Yang just laughed back, responding in the only way she knew how.

"Okay, so you know that Pyrrha girl. She is a total bad ass!"

***Writing till 6:20 AM for the win! :D Hope everyone enjoyed the Yang chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Except for the fight, fights are hard as hell to write and I've done one in almost all of the chapters this yet D: Still I think I got a good idea of a real life Yang, what she would be like, what philosophy she should follow and attitude she should have, and how to make it feel different from Ruby. Also glad to just write someone a bit more mischievous :D

Though if you're worried, next chapter is all about Weiss and Ruby :P There will be more perspectives and times given to more sets of characters in the future and as you can already tell, some 'choices' have been made before Ruby's arrival that will show up in the future. :P

Special thanks to LazyKatze for the edits as always also check out layers her fantastic white rose A.U., also thanks to A-rav for help with the fight scene. . so much writer's block. And sorry for being a week late, a Physics test really threw me for a loop. Please leave a review to let me know how it came out and to help me in the future.



Edit as of June 25. I'll be in an interview hosted by ff's own codyknight. Apparently there is a fan questions can be submitted on /r/Reiss/ if you're interested. Have a great night!