Das Verschneite Herz
Weiss pulled open the curtains to let the dawn light into the living room. She stared out into the horizon for a moment, allowing the sun to warm up her skin. This region of the continent of Solitas, surrounding the nearby town of Oasis, was the only place not perpetually blanketed in ice and snow. She had long since attributed the phenomenon to the Shieldmaiden, which she harbored deep within her, that entity of unimaginable power whose sole purpose in life was to protect the world and everyone in it. She had long since abandoned that side of her. After all, what good was such power when she couldn't even use it to save the love of her life?
She placed her palm atop the blue and red opal locket hanging over her chest, closing her eyes for a moment before opening it to take a look. It had been months since her eyes last met this treasure. After all, doing so was still much too painful for her, even though it had been a decade and a half since that awful day. The inscription was still there, carved into the side of the locket behind the black red opal, words she could never forget.
Ich bin dein für alle Ewigkeit.
She felt a small tear roll down her cheek and moved quickly to wipe it away. On the other side of the locket, the half containing the black blue opal, was the very first photograph ever taken of the two of them, that impromptu shot by that youngster they had met briefly. Both were facing the right in the portrait, him standing behind her, his strength the perfect complement to her grace. In those short months, he had been her rock, the one person in the entire world that she could count on for anything. His vow to her was as immutable as that of any knight, one that transcended mere words.
But in the end, even he managed to let her down.
No, I need to stop. Because if it weren't for you, I never would have known true love. And it was because of your sacrifice that your daughter has had such a good life. I just...I wish you could see her. I think you would be so proud.
Lilly yawned as she walked out into the living room. "Good morning," she drawled.
Weiss quietly shut the locket before letting it hang over her chest. She turned to face her daughter, whose snow-colored hair was a mess, her nightgown hanging off her shoulder.
"Did you even look in the mirror before leaving your room?" Weiss said with a sigh.
"Huh?" She turned to a mirror before fixing her clothing. "Oh. Whoops."
"Breakfast is ready."
"Super!"
Weiss watched her daughter for a while before the latter beckoned for her to join.
"You're not gonna eat?" Lilly said.
"I will in a bit," Weiss said, heading to the counter. "Coffee?"
"You know it!"
Weiss couldn't stop the smile from forming as she brewed up their favorite coffee, beans acquired from Patch and Menagerie, ground together very finely in a two-to-three ratio, respectively, and brewed with water just barely boiling, then filtered through very fine, unbleached paper. It was a taste Lilly had acquired not too long ago, a peculiar one at that. The flavor of this blend was chiefly floral, though it was hidden beneath a near-alkaline bitterness. In spite of that, the underlying sweetness was worth enduring the otherwise harsh taste.
"Perfect as always!" Lilly said, taking a sip from her mug.
"You didn't even cleanse your palate before drinking," Weiss said.
"Yeah, I know, but I don't mind the pancakes with the coffee. They actually go pretty well together. Not the eggs, though. Everybody says eggs go with everything, but in this case, not really."
Weiss chuckled, reminiscing on her own family. She could not recall the last time she had breakfast with her own family. Winter had always been busy with her military duties while Whitley was always trying to win their father's favor. Her mother was never anywhere to be seen either, reliably failing to shield her from her father's cruelty.
"Mom?"
Weiss looked over at her daughter, whose eyes showed concern.
"What's the matter?"
"Huh?"
"You're...you're balling your fists."
Weiss looked down at her hands. She hadn't noticed what they were doing. "Sorry. It's nothing. I was just remembering something unpleasant from long ago, that's all."
"Was it from the war?"
"Yes," she lied.
"Do...do you wanna talk about it?"
She shook her head.
"Okay. Hey, don't forget to eat. Don't want you wasting away and all that!"
"Okay, 'mom'."
Lilly laughed before standing up and taking her plates to the sink to wash them. After a moment, Weiss poked at her food a little bit. She had gone through half of everything when she stopped eating altogether. The behavior was not lost on Lilly, who wanted to pry some more, but decided not to. Her mother had these moments from time to time. She knew from experience that leaving her be for a while would be more than enough, but there were times when she would come home from school and her mother would be in her room, sobbing audibly.
Those were the times when Lilly would wish she had more power to do something about whatever it was that ailed her mother. After all, her mom was everything to her. To be unable to keep her happy tore away at her heart.
She took a seat at the piano in the living room, pulling open the cover. She lightly tapped a few keys here and there before starting to play an old melody, one of her favorites by Lyon's Pride.
Who am I to complain
When life's been spared so much pain?
Born with all that I need,
My comfort's all guaranteed.
So what's the problem?
What's keeping me
From moving forward?
It's hard to see.
I should be free now,
I should be fine,
But the life I fought for
Still isn't mine.
Some believe in fairy stories
And the ghosts that they can't see
I know that I could do so much,
If I could just believe in me.
Mirror, mirror, tell me something
Can I stop my fall?
She played the rest of the music without singing, but after a while, she could hear her mother singing in the background, quietly at first, but louder as she went over to join her at the piano. They finished the final stanza together, Lilly harmonizing with her mother's key.
Some believe in fairy stories
And the ghosts that they can't see
I know that I could do so much
If I could just believe in me
Mirror, mirror,
I'll tell you something,
I think I might change it all...
Lilly hit the final notes tenderly, keeping her pedal depressed to allow the tone to fade away on its own. The silence lasted longer than usual, but when she looked up to face her mother, she was surprised to see tears in her eyes. This was the first time she had ever seen her cry openly.
"Mom?"
Without answering, Weiss wrapped her arms around her daughter, holding her as tightly as she could. Lilly was dumbfounded as her mother's tears wet her shoulder. She returned the embrace, holding onto her arms tightly.
"I love you, my darling," Weiss whispered. "I will never let anything happen to you."
"Mom..."
"This world...is a cruel world. I hope you never have to experience that for yourself, but I fear that you might. But know that I will do everything in my power to protect you from all of it."
Lilly said nothing, allowing her mother to get it all out of her system. It would be several minutes before she would finally release her grasp on her, taking a seat on the piano bench with her daughter. She began playing a few notes and Lilly sat in silence, watching as her mother played an unfamiliar tune. It wasn't until she hit the chorus that she finally recognized the song. Instead of singing, however, Lilly played the melody on her half of the piano.
Weiss closed her eyes as she recalled the most significant time this melody was played, during the dance she had shared with the love of her life. "A Thousand Years" was the title of this music. It had been quite a popular song in that time, though by now it was considered a classic. The piano-and-cello version rendered by her two friends, Hollie and Hillphire, was the perfect accompaniment to the dance she never wanted to end.
Even now, as her daughter played the melody on the right side of the piano, her own fingers moved of their own accord across the keys, striking ebony and ivory with perfect concord. She felt the tears welling up again, but kept them at bay. This was not a song of mourning. Rather, it was a vow, one between her and him, a vow that would never end. For even death could not keep them apart forever.
—
It was mid-afternoon when Lilly returned home from Oasis. It was a Saturday and her only business in town was hanging out with friends from school, but she wasn't in the mood to stick around until dark and she left earlier than usual. It was a good idea anyway since their house was a good distance from the outskirts of the city proper, at the very end of a dirt road that led nowhere else but their home. The walk from here to the city was probably about a half hour if the pace was brisk.
Lilly was going to announce her return when she spotted her mother tending to the garden at the side of the house. She joined her, crouching at one of her favorite flowers, a white blossom with furry petals and a powdery scent.
"Hey, mom," she said.
"Hmm?" Weiss said, turning to her.
"I keep forgetting to ask you what this one is called. I know all the lilies here and all the wildflowers and stuff, but this one's really different from the rest."
"That one requires special care. The other flowers here are all native to this type of climate, but that one likes mountainous regions. If you look closely, the petals are all covered with a hair-like surface."
"Yeah, it's a cute and furry flower."
Weiss chuckled. "That's to protect it from the cold."
"Oh, like a snow jacket!"
"Yes, perhaps."
"So, what's it called?"
Weiss paused for a moment, recalling the first time she had ever seen this flower. He had given it to her, the only one of its kind amid roses of different colors for the rest of her friends.
"Edelweiss," she finally said.
"Oh!" Lilly said. "Oh! Wait! Yeah, I know this flower! I think I read that name somewhere before. Supposedly it grows naturally in, like, only two places in all of Remnant, right? Well, aside from here, duh, but there's supposed to be an island between Solitas and Anima that's basically one big mountain range and there's, like, no places to land an airship or anything and so it's really tough to get to it so yeah. And the other place is...I think in the very south of Sanus? Like, outside of the kingdom of Vale, or something, where it snows up in the mountains, too."
Weiss smiled as her daughter regurgitated everything she had read about this flower. This was the closest she would ever know her father, but it would have to do.
"How did you get this flower anyway?" Lilly said. "It's basically impossible to get to the places where it grows."
She was going to reveal everything about the otherworldly powers she had acquired upon the Shieldmaiden awakening in her all those years ago, but decided to keep her daughter in the dark for now. She needed to maintain her innocence for just a while longer.
"According to some legends," Lilly began, "to give this flower to someone is a sign of dedication. I mean, makes sense. You can't just go out for a jog and pick it. You have to go through some major trouble just to find one." She picked up one of the pots and sniffed a flower, admiring its powdery aroma. "Where'd you get the idea to plant these, anyway?"
Weiss's heart skipped a beat and she nearly dropped another pot she was tending to. "I just thought it would make a good addition to all the lilies and wildflowers."
"Oh. I just thought maybe someone gave one to you a long time ago and you got attached to it. That's all."
Weiss's chest tightened with every word her daughter spoke. But instead of letting the emotions get the better of her, she reached into her tool bag and pulled out a trowel, handing it to Lilly.
"Here," she said. "One of the things you have to know about gardening is soil quality. Of course, you also need to understand just what kind of environment your plant likes." She reached into a nearby sack and pulled out a bulb, handing it to her daughter. "These can be grown in pots, but they like the dirt a lot more since they grow pretty big. It doesn't get hot around here, so we don't have to worry about planting them all that deep, but they do grow big, so don't do it too shallow either."
"How far down?" Lilly asked.
"About a foot. Once you've got a good depth going, place the bulb right in the center and add some soil. Cover the very top with about two inches of mulch. It won't be long before you see it poking through."
"Like that?"
"Don't pack it so tightly."
"Oh. Sorry."
"Okay, that's better. You wanna make sure not to over-water it since it'll get rotten. The loose soil around here helps with drainage a lot, so we don't have to worry so much about it."
"What about that one over there?"
"The Amaryllis?"
"Is that what it's called?"
"Mm-hmm. That's a type of lily, but it's not an actual Lilium, which is the, I guess, 'true' lily. Even water lilies are not really lilies."
"Aww! But they're my favorite!"
Weiss chuckled. "I know, but they're part of the Nymphaeaceae family, not Lilium. Water lilies grow from seeds, not bulbs like true lilies."
"Still, I like water lilies." She picked up the other potted flower, stroking one of the fuzzy petals. "Although, I think I'm starting to have a new favorite. I mean, this flower has your name in it."
Weiss smiled. "Do you want to know how to take care of one?"
"Sure!"
—
The next morning, Lilly ended up sleeping in. Weiss refrained from waking her up, preparing a light snack in the event that the young one got up before noon. She took a seat with her coffee outside in the small patio that bordered her garden. The air was chilly this morning, the warmth of the rising sun bringing balance to the weather. A hummingbird went from flower to flower, drinking nectar and eventually perching on the stem of an Edelweiss. She watched it for a bit and it seemed to return her gaze. After a few minutes, the bird departed, flying out of sight in mere seconds.
When she finished her coffee, Weiss headed inside, opening up a leather-bound hardwood case that sat atop their piano. She reached in, pulling out Myrtenaster for the first time in fifteen years. She held the weapon in front of her face, admiring the intricate designs of the hilt. It had been a long while, but she still had that otherworldly power within her. She could feel it burgeoning, almost begging her to set it free.
She stepped outside to grant its wish, summoning a Water Rune to the back of her right hand. Though her weapon's Dust reservoir was empty, she had the power to channel her magic through it. She closed her eyes, calling forth a Wind Rune to her left fist. She held onto Myrtenaster with both hands, calling forth the power that had long lain dormant within her. Her weapon pulsed with energy and bright blue light as the power of her runes filled its core.
For an instant, she imagined it transforming into Durandal again, just like during the war, but those days were long gone. After all, she had left that ancient sword of legend plunged in the body of Salem, sealing away her evil influences for good.
A distant siren rang out in the distance. She stared for a short while before realizing what the alarm meant. There was a Grimm attack underway at the other side of town. Without a second thought, Weiss darted into the house, quickly changing into her battle outfit before grabbing as many Dust cartridges for her weapon as she could carry.
She concentrated as she stood in the middle of the road, projecting row after row of glyphs in the air to use as propelling platforms. Once her route was secure, she launched herself forward, flying to the city with such speed that her eyes began to water. It had been a long time since her last real battle. This was to test whether or not she still had what it takes.
Her first action upon arriving at the battlefield was stabbing a huge Ursa Major right in the back of the neck, Myrtenaster protruding from its throat as it convulsed. She withdrew her weapon, somersaulting to another target, an Alpha Beowolf, which stood no chance against the Silver Maiden. She had yet to unleash her full power, but already she was dominating the battlefield.
"I don't believe it! She's back!"
"It's the Silver Maiden! She's fighting alongside us!"
"All right, men, keep it together! Now that we've got the Silver Maiden on our side, there's no way we can lose!"
The people's confidence in her gave her the resolve she needed to continue onward. She held up her left hand, replacing the existing rune with an Earth Rune.
"Stahlknöchel, Gehärtete Verteidigung," she chanted, increasing her own attacking power and defensive abilities. She dashed headlong into a crowd of Grimm, slashing and stabbing in every direction, supplementing her melee strikes with glyph-facilitated Dust attacks of all types.
This group of Grimm was much larger than most. Oasis was mainly devoid of attacks thanks to the same magical aura that perpetuated the temperate climate here. What was it about today that emboldened them so?
She spotted a young girl and a young boy cornered in an alleyway. She was quick with the glyph attacks, sending fire and ice at the Beowolf at the same time to distract it before she finished it off by beheading it.
"You two okay?" she asked the youngsters.
"Yeah," the boy said. "Thank you, Silver Maiden!"
"Find somewhere safe to stay while the guardsmen and I take care of the Grimm."
"Okay!" the girl said, leading the way inside a nearby building.
Weiss continued on her offensive, leading the city's guards and police officers on a slow push to the edge of town. The Grimm's numbers seemed to be never-ending, but there was a solution for that.
She drove Myrtenaster into the ground, conjuring up a massive glyph before her, from which emerged Arma Gigas, the very first summon she had ever succeeded with. The projected knight was easily twice her size, just as large as she needed it to be. She sent it off to fight on its own while she led the guardsmen on another offensive.
—
An explosion awakened Lilly from her sleep. It was enough to jolt her out of bed and down to the ground.
"Mom?" she said, scampering to her feet and searching the rest of the house. "Mom! Where are you?"
Finding no sign of her mother, she headed outside. Smoke rose from the town of Oasis. Her instincts kicked in and she quickly changed into jeans, a white t-shirt, and her best hiking boots before running to town. She had just arrived at the outskirts when it hit her that she had just run for ten minutes straight without stopping.
She would put the thought of her own physical fitness at the back of her mind, though. People needed rescuing. There was a family nearby, trapped behind burning rubble.
"Hang on!" she called out to them. "I'll get you out!"
She looked around frantically for a path, finding one and making her way in. She took hold of the youngest of the family, leading them all out of the burning building to the street.
"Is everyone all right?" she asked the mother and father, who nodded. "No one got left behind, right?"
"No," a little girl said. "That's all of us."
"Is there anywhere safe you can head to?"
"My sister's place is not that far from here," the father said.
"Okay, head over that way." She headed toward the fires further in the middle of town.
"Wait, the Grimm are over there!" the young boy said.
Grimm? Lilly thought. She had only ever read about them in school, never seeing one for herself. They were supposed to be terrifying creatures with an unquenchable contempt for anything related to humanity, devouring flesh and destroying monuments with little distinction between either.
But that didn't matter. There were still people who needed help. She was not about to ignore the cries all around her.
—
"I had a feeling one of you was here," Weiss said, facing off beside her projected knight against an Omega Grimm, those uncanny humanoid Grimm with auras and the ability to weaponize Dust. "I thought you guys disappeared along with your master."
The Omega grew a bone out of its shoulder, forming it into a sword before reaching up and breaking it off.
"I guess I could use the exercise."
—
Lilly aided in the rescue efforts by fire crews and paramedics, but the casualties seemed endless. The stories about the Grimm's brutality were no joke. Fortunately, it seemed the security response was rapid enough that there were very few deaths. There were plenty of injuries, though. Most of them were likely due to the chaos which resulted from the rampage of the Grimm.
She continued further and further into the fray when she came upon a sight that made her jaw drop. Battling the most horrific looking Grimm yet was her mother, wielding a weapon she had never seen before, projecting glyph after glyph as she fought alongside a glowing, translucent knight. She matched the eerily too-human Grimm in combat ability almost perfectly. No, it seemed she wasn't even trying yet.
"I guess regular Dust isn't gonna cut it with you!" Weiss yelled before pointing Myrtenaster at her knight. "Arma Gigas! Return to me!"
Her knight bowed before vanishing. She held up her right hand.
"Fire Rune! Teufelsatem!"
A series of fireballs flew from her hand, but the Omega was quick and it managed to dodge or deflect all of her strikes. Weiss continued her assault, gradually leading the Omega Grimm away from the city. She had another attack in mind, but she needed to be as far away from collateral damage as possible. Meanwhile, Lilly stuck to alleyways and the shadows as she spied on the fight. She was aware of the fact that her mother was a Huntress, but she had never seen her in action and witnessing this today made her hair stand on end from the excitement alone.
"Okay," Weiss said, squaring off with the Omega Grimm. "It's time to end this once and for all."
The Omega held up its sword, preparing a Dust attack, but the magical power Weiss had built up in her hand was formidable. The Fire Rune morphed into a higher variant of itself, the Inferno Rune, which permitted its bearer to utilize the highest order of flame magic.
"Versengte Erde!"
A great wave of fire erupted from the Inferno Rune on the back of Weiss's right hand, scorching the very earth beneath. The river of flame was too massive for the Omega to evade, its heat far too great for its carapace to withstand. Within less than a second of being engulfed by the blaze, the Omega Grimm, along with the other creatures of Grimm behind it—and a sizeable section of grassland beyond—had been reduced to ash.
"That was amazing!"
"Did you guys see that?"
"That's the power of the Silver Maiden for ya!"
"I sure am glad she's on our side!"
Weiss smiled at the crowd as they cheered her victory. Little did she know that her daughter was amid the mass of people, remaining in the shadows to watch as her mother, for the first time in as long as she could remember, mingled with the townsfolk. She figured she had a head start and so she headed back home as quickly as she could. Her mother might not have wanted her to witness that battle given that she hadn't bothered to wake her up and let her know where she was going. It was a simple matter to slip through the crowds unnoticed before hurrying back to the house.
—
Lilly had jumped straight into bed under the assumption that Weiss wouldn't realize she had been gone, but of course the mother, with her acute attention to detail, knew that Lilly didn't spend the entire day sleeping. Regardless, she knocked on her door. Lilly opened up, feigning exhaustion, which wasn't difficult considering all the rescue work she had helped with.
"You didn't even bother taking a shower when you got back home, did you?" Weiss said.
Lilly stiffened. "H-Huh?"
"You smell like smoke."
"Oh, that m-must be cuz of—"
"Cuz you were in the city, right?"
She didn't answer, looking at random things on the ground while she fidgeted with her hands behind her back.
"Lilly, there's no need to lie to me."
"Okay, okay. I just thought since you didn't say anything when you left you probably didn't want me following you."
"No, that's not the reason why I didn't wake you."
"Why, then?"
Weiss sighed. "There are things I am not ready for you to be exposed to just yet."
"You mean like the Grimm?"
"You saw, did you?"
"Yup. You kicked butt, mom!"
"Oh, dear."
"But I kicked butt, too! I was helping pull people out of burning buildings and piles of rubble and I even helped some of the emergency crews with, uh, tree-something?"
"Triage."
"Yeah! It was awesome! I got to help people, just like you did!"
Weiss couldn't help but smile. Her daughter could not possibly know her father, but yet in so many ways, she was just like him, driven to help those who needed help, to be a hero that the people so desperately needed. She didn't even think twice about putting herself in danger to help others.
"You weren't being careless, were you?" Weiss asked.
"Of course not! I mean, I wasn't gonna abandon any of the people who needed help, but I thought carefully about all my approaches, making sure to plan out entry and escapes. After all, I'm not gonna be able to help people when I'm dead."
"That's a relief. Thank goodness you're not an idealistic idiot."
"Huh?"
"Nothing. It's nothing. Forget I said that."
"Oh. Okay."
"Are you hungry?"
"A little. I saw the breakfast, but the explosion kinda threw me from zero to a hundred in a flash, so yeah. But I guess I'm kinda hungry now."
"Good, because a number of restaurant owners in the city gave me a lot of these free passes."
"Oh, wow, I got some coupons and stuff, too, for saving people!"
"Not bad. How does it feel to be a hero, hon?"
"It's awesome!" Lilly said, jumping up and down.
"That's the energy I've been waiting for."
—
As the years went by, Lilly continued her pursuit of charity work, whether it was volunteering at homeless shelters or hospitals or even local animal shelters. The fame she had garnered for herself during the Grimm attack certainly helped spur on her advancement in her newfound field of work.
Little did she know that her destiny was far greater than merely helping the downtrodden or putting food on the table for the less fortunate. No, her destiny was to do work that no other in all of Remnant could do, to tackle unseen enemies and save not just people's bodies, but their very souls from damnation.
But even the greatest of destinies had to begin with small steps.
"I want you to have this," Weiss said, handing Myrtenaster to her daughter.
"But, I mean," Lilly began, "how do I even use it?"
"The cartridge system is designed to hold six different types of Dust. The trigger is used to actuate the Dust release. You did read up on the booklet I gave you, right?"
"Yeah, I guess. Honestly I found the colors really confusing."
"Just keep studying. You'll need to know a few basic things if you are to get through your first year at Beacon Academy."
"I don't get it. Why Beacon? Don't I have to go to a primary combat school before going to a Huntsman Academy?"
"Normally, yes, but I've already contacted Headmaster Pine and he says it's okay. You've already shown that you have the spirit. Learning the 'how' is the easy part."
Lilly sighed, playing with Myrtenaster. "This is built for a lefty. I'm not a lefty."
"Then, hold it in your right hand."
She did as she was told, getting herself accustomed to the feel of the new weapon. It was actually the first weapon she had ever held in her hands.
"What about you?" she asked her mother.
"What about me?"
"What'll you use if I have this?"
"Oh, I have a few other options. Think of this as passing on the torch. In fact, if you switch over to Fire Dust, the red module, and pull the trigger very slowly, you can turn Myrtenaster into a literal torch."
Lilly looked at her dryly. "Mom. That wasn't funny."
Weiss smiled. "It was."
"No, it wasn't."
"It most definitely was."
Lilly sighed as she examined the weapon in her hand. "What else do I need to know before I get to campus?"
"Know that I love you and I will always be proud of you no matter what."
She managed a small smile. "I love you, too, mom."
They shared a long, tight embrace.
"Okay, the shuttle should be here in a minute," Weiss said. "You have all of your things packed away already, right?"
Lilly nodded. This was going to be her first time leaving home. She had only just graduated from high school and already she was heading into a world unknown to her. What was Vale like? What would the Huntsman Academy put her through? Would she make friends there, or would her status as a Schnee make her an outcast?
None of these concerns stayed with her for very long, however. The moment she set foot at the front of Beacon Academy, she was in awe. The photos online and in brochures were mere snapshots compared to the full-blown experience of standing here, surrounded by all these people, some of them first-year students like herself and others returning from summer vacation.
"All righty, then," she said taking a deep breath and releasing it all at once. "World, here I come!"