((I would like to give a special shout-out to Gorsouul, who Beta-read this chapter for me. This chapter was greatly improved because of Gorsouul's help, so I thank them very much.

And now, presenting Chapter 14! We are getting close to rounding out Part II!))

Chapter 14: Common Ground

It seemed everyone on the large Mistral battleship was pretty happy about Weiss Schnee suddenly appearing on their deck. They did not care as much about Ilia, who sort of stood aside while medics were called to help Weiss.

"What did they do to you?" "How did you escape?" "Is anything broken?" "Were you shot?"

Weiss was visibly agitated by being hounded by the various crew members and officers, asking her questions and pulling her along to see the ship doctor. She eventually hit her breaking point and stomped her foot louder than Ilia figured physically possible. "All of you back off!" The Mistral Police stepped away, creating a little space for her. The scene became quiet, and Weiss sighed and nodded. "Thank you. Now," she gestured towards Ilia. "She needs more help than I do, so if you would please..."

Various pairs of eyes fell on Ilia for the first time, and she immediately tried to make herself smaller. All the officers were Human, as far as she could tell. She waited for one of them to accuse her of being one of Weiss' captors.

Instead, a female officer stepped forward. "Ma'am, I'll take you to the medic's office."

Ilia sighed and nodded, allowing the woman to take her arm and lead her away. "Thanks." She glanced at Weiss one more time, and they made eye contact. Weiss didn't know what else to do but nod. Ilia huffed and looked away, and the officer led her down a flight of stairs. Although she was relieved to be receiving medical care, being on a police ship was not comfortable for Ilia "Former Terrorist" Amitola.

Meanwhile, Weiss was led to the ship's medical ward. She wondered why they were taking her to somewhere different from Ilia, but she didn't ask. She was more concerned with finally being safe. After all the walking and running and fighting, Weiss felt as if she were back in the care of the Schnee Manor servant staff, except with police officers instead of maids and butlers.

The medical ward had four beds, all of which were empty, with cabinets along the far wall. Weiss was instructed to take a seat on one of the beds, and a pair of nurses began to tend to her wounds and ask various questions about her physical being. As bandage after bandage was applied to her, one of the officers stayed to question Weiss. "Hello, Miss Schnee." The officer was a young woman, the bottom half of her face covered by a mask, brown hair tumbling over her shoulders from beneath her police cap. She sat on the bed across from Weiss, looking at her with sapphire blue eyes. "I am Deputy Neela Gray." She extended a hand to the heiress, who honored her gesture. "How are you feeling?"

Weiss exhaled and shrugged. "Tired. Relieved." She shifted in her spot a bit. Simply sitting on a bed suddenly reminded Weiss of how long she had gone without sleeping properly. She desperately wanted to take a nap right then and there.

"I'd expect so." The officer pushed some hair from her face. A ring on her finger, and engagement ring, glinted in the lights. "Do you miss home?"

Weiss stared at Deputy Neela for a moment, taking notice of her subtle beauty. She leaned her head to one side at hearing her question. She had not thought about home very much over the past few days. She had been focused mainly on escape and survival. "I do." Of course she missed home. Home was better than where she'd been the past few days.

"I'm certain your father has been incredibly worried about you."

Weiss closed her eyes at the mention of her father, but she nodded. "I'm certain he has." She was not certain, however. Worried about his company and name most likely, while Weiss herself may have come third or forth.

"Ma'am, I fully intend to allow you time to recover, but right now, I need to ask a few questions. Would that be okay?"

Weiss took a moment to think before nodding. This would be Weiss' first opportunity to tell someone what had happened to her. While in her cell on the White Fang ship, she relished the moment she would get to tear the White Fang to shreds by telling the authorities about everything, but now, she knew people were at risk, namely Ilia. Weiss had to be cautious with what she'd say, or else Ilia would fall into trouble.

"Miss Schnee, how long have you been stranded in the wilderness?"

"I escaped the White Fang airship two days ago," Weiss answered, wincing every time the nurses applied alcohol to her wounds.

"I figure you haven't eaten much. Our crew is on that."

Food. Weiss became hyper-aware of her very empty stomach.

Deputy Neela looked at her wrist watch, then back at Weiss. "Who was that girl who came aboard with you?"

Weiss almost told her, but she quickly thought up a lie. "She was held captive with me." She did not put a lot of thought behind that claim, but it was better than saying the truth.

"Why was she being held captive?" Weiss noticed the officer raise her eyebrows.

"She was a waitress at the hotel I was taken from. She was kidnapped because she witnessed me getting attacked." Weiss felt rather proud to be lying so easily. Something I picked up from Father, perhaps.

"There were never any reports of another person being taken," the officer stated. "Although witnesses did say you were seen leaving the ballroom with a waitress, though this girl who was with you does not fit the description."

Weiss felt stabbing regret in her chest. How did this Mistral officer know about the events that took place at the Acronon in Atlas? Had word spread this far? Were the search efforts this widespread?

Weiss did not want to tell the truth about Ilia. The girl had been through enough. Ilia didn't deserve to be arrested, even though, in hindsight, she technically did deserve to be arrested.

Then again, they were probably questioning Ilia right now as well. There was no guarantee whether Ilia's lies would match up with Weiss'. Weiss knew she was digging a trench she could not climb out of by lying to this deputy. She felt angry with herself to letting her exhaustion prevent her from being more prepared for the officer's questions

"Alright, I'll tell you the truth." Weiss submitted, letting her lungs empty slowly. I'm sorry, Ilia. "She was one of my kidnappers, but she helped me escape. My other kidnapper also helped me escape, and she ran back to the White Fang to buy us time to run away. You all need to get there and help her before they hurt her."

The officer sat in silence, her unblinking eyes staring at Weiss. "Your kidnappers... helped you escape?"

"Yes. I don't wish to press charges against either of them. What I want is for you all to please find her before she-"

"Miss, we are in pursuit of the Fang ship as we speak, and we are closing in. Although I understand your concerns, your kidnappers are, or were, members of an intercontinental terrorist group. They need to be taken into custody whether you wish to press charges or not."

Weiss gritted her teeth and lowered her head. She had really hoped she could find a way to clear Blake and Ilia's names, but she knew that would have been a long shot. Of course, rescuing Blake was the first and foremost priority. Blake was very likely to get caught in the crosshairs of the imminent confrontation between the Fang vessel and this Mistral battleship. How was she ever going to find her way out of that?

"Where did this wound on your neck come from?" One of the nurses asked, carefully removing the bandage from under Weiss' chin.

"It's from our escape. I managed to get a hold of a first aid kit and I put that bandage on, but we lost the kit in the forest." There was no point in admitting Ilia was the one who had hurt her. They had no way of knowing, after all. Weiss was certain that was a lie she could get away with.

"Miss Schnee, I hope you don't mind my asking, but why did you leave the ballroom in Atlas?" The officer asked.

"Hm?" Weiss raised her eyebrows at the woman's question. Again, she wondered how she knew about the events leading to her kidnapping. Was such information that widely touted?

"That's been the question investigators have been trying to answer. Why did you go to the roof?"

Weiss looked down and swallowed. She did not want to admit the nature of her trip to the roof of the Acronon. She figured it would sound stupid, a kid struck by a sudden attraction, considering it's what led to her kidnapping. Then again, she had no good lie to tell. "I will admit that...I really hit it off with this girl, the one people probably saw me leave the ballroom with. I went to the roof to meet up with her."

Neela leaned back and nodded. "That was my suspicion the first time I heard the chain of events."

Weiss huffed and flexed her fingers after the nurses finished mummifying her arms. They left the room, leaving Weiss alone with the policewoman. There was a loud groaning noise, and Weiss felt her surroundings shift. The airship had just accelerated, for reasons unknown to Weiss. "How did you suspect that?" Weiss asked her.

The deputy noticed the sudden movement of the ship as well. "We must be trying to cut off the Fang ship's path of escape." She cleared her throat, then returned to Weiss' question. "The girl you were with was seen talking to you earlier in the night. It seemed like a classic example of an eventual victim arranging a meeting with their future attacker. It's straight from a police academy textbook." Neela stood to her feet. "I do want to assure you that this plight of yours is over. As for the two who helped you escape, they may have a chance for freedom if a Mistral court decides so, but for the moment, they both will need to be kept in custody."

Weiss sighed, but nodded. "Yes. I understand." She really should not have expected any other result. Ilia was known to have played a role in the kidnapping of Weiss Schnee, and she would be tried as such. Weiss knew whether she admitted the truth or not, these police officers would uncover it anyway. That did not keep Weiss from feeling guilty, though. For the purposes of this little interview, Weiss had ratter out Ilia. She was not very good at helping the poor girl, even though she had offered to do so just before they boarded this behemoth of an airship

"If you want my opinion," Neela piped up a bit. Her voice shifted to a less formal tone. "It seems like they helped you because they saw the wrong in what they did, or they felt guilty." The ship slowing down all of a sudden almost caused Weiss to fall over on the bed, but the officer continued on. "If I were a juror at their trial, I'd say they'd deserve another chance at a regular life, but that's just from what I know. I'm just a big believer in the power of second chances."

The power of second chances. Weiss felt struck by such a deep statement coming from this officer. Second chances.

Weiss opened her mouth to respond, but their surroundings suddenly began to rumble, and a crash could be heard from somewhere on the ship. "What was that?" Weiss asked, looking around the room to see it untouched.

The officer inhaled sharply and stood to her feet. She began to head for the door with haste. She ran out of the room, abruptly leaving Weiss alone in the ward. Weiss wanted to call out to stop her from leaving, but she didn't think to yell until she had already left. She looked around, feeling the ship sway. A few seconds later, a second crash could be heard, a bit louder this time. Weiss could hear the splintering of debris and the distant sounds of panic from the crew. The lights in the room flickered for a seconds.

Deputy Neela returned, breathing hard and extending a hand to Weiss from the doorway. Her eyes were wide, her body tense. "The White Fang vessel is firing on us. Come with me, Miss Schnee."

Before Weiss could even get to her feet, a third impact was not only heard and felt, but also seen in the form of a fiery streak of white piercing through the room. Debris scattered everywhere in a din of rumbling and shattering, followed by a cold breeze from the hole in the ceiling. Weiss fell to the floor, frozen in shock. Her right ear was ringing, dust burning in her eyes. She had to feel over her entire body, checking for any bad injuries. Her perception of her surroundings became wayward, not knowing whether she was trapped in that room or not. Her entire body tingled like the aftermath of numbness, pins and needles plaguing her nerves. Her Aura had flared in her shock. There was no telling what kind of awful harm might have come to her had her Aura not taken the brunt. Weiss had to manually breathe, her heartbeat pulsing in her neck. She slowly got to her feet and analyzed her surroundings. She saw a large hole in the floor to match the one in the ceiling. The fluorescent lights flickered out, dangling vertically from the ceiling. The ship began to lean to the side. Wood and metal shrapnel littered the floor.

I could have died.

A low rasp of a groan reminded Weiss of Deputy Neela.

She was face down on the ground, close to the opening in the floor. Her arm dangled over the edge of the chasm, and she lied there unmoving. Weiss ran to her side and pushed her onto her back. "Are you okay?" she asked, but her gut lurched at seeing the entire right side of her face glistening with blood.

Weiss could see the gash in her forehead, bits of debris lodged in Neela's face and neck. Her eyes were barely open, and she looked towards Weiss. "I..."

Weiss was frozen in place. Her hands hovered over the deputy's torso, desperately trying to think of a way to help, but her mind did not give her any ideas. She could do nothing to help this innocent woman. All she could do was shiver "What...what do I..."

"I don't..." Neela's voice was garbled and barely audible. Her hand inched towards Weiss. "I don't want to..."

Weiss' breathing hitched, realizing what Neela was trying to say, and what she did not want to happen was already happening right before Weiss' eyes. Weiss grabbed her hand. The officer's engagement ring felt cold between Weiss' fingers.

Weiss wanted to look away, but she couldn't move. She sat there by this woman she didn't even know, and she felt like crying.

Weiss realized in a moment of heartbreak that she was the last person this woman would be with. Weiss felt she had a solemn duty to help her stay calm in her final moments.

"Neela," Weiss said lowly. The deputy's narrow eyes looked her way, tears mixing with the blood on her face. The woman was crying silently. Weiss squeezed her hand. She struggled to find something to say to her, but soon pieced something together to confide in her. "Thank you for...for your bravery. You're a hero."

Neela stared at Weiss for a moment, and if Weiss was not mistaken, she saw Deputy Neela nod just slightly. She closed her eyes. Neela seemed to resign to her fate, lying her head back and taking slow, calm breaths.

Her police cap rolled off her head. She had little horns peeking just over her hair.

Neela was a Faunus.

Weiss did her best not to let this revelation get to her, but she could not continue speaking with out her voice wavering greatly. "Thank you. Thank you..." Weiss whispered the short phrase a few more times, finally mustering the ability to look away, feeling a tear escape past her cheek and fall onto her arm.

Weiss felt Neela's hand relax in hers. Without looking, Weiss pressed her fingers on Neela's wrist, just to be certain. She felt nothing.

Weiss let go of the hand and put her hands over face, and she began to sob to the point of it hurting her head and throat. Weiss had never seen someone die, and watching someone like a police officer get killed so casually by the White Fang was heart-wrenching.

She just witnessed someone's death, the final moments of a life. It was needless for Neela to go like this. She was a beautiful young woman with a future, a story that was yet to be completed. But the story just ended, right before Weiss' eyes.

Did the White Fang know what they were doing? Did they realize they were killing people by firing on this ship? Did they realize they were killing Faunus?

Weiss wanted to be angry, but her sobs and yells pushed her rage away. "I'm sorry," she whispered. She wanted to stay there for reasons she did not know, but she forced herself to her feet and ran out of the room, trying to stave off her crying so she could see, but she was having difficulty. She ran down the hallway and emerged onto the vast, empty wooden deck. The slightest sliver of sunlight was beginning to peek through the forest below. The light pooled in Weiss' eyes, mixing with her tears, making it even harder for her to see.

All she thought to do was to find Ilia, and then get off this ship.

She felt the ship shudder, but not from another impact. Instead, she looked in the distance, towards the White Fang destroyer, to see a rocket flying towards the metal airship. The Mistral ship's crew was fighting back.

Ilia did her best to navigate out of the hallways after hearing the shelling, but the painkillers she had been given were making her dizzy. She slowly made her way down a hallway, cursing quietly as she used the wall as a support. Yet another impact shook the airship.

Ilia knew she had to escape, or she'd be arrested and put in a Mistral jail. Even if she'd have the chance at freedom through a trial, Ilia wasn't interested in taking that chance or living the rest of her life with the world knowing she was one of the White Fang extremists who kidnapped Weiss Schnee. She had given the officers who questioned her a fake name for that very reason.

She eventually made it to the deck, and she saw the White Fang ship in the distance. Its heavy canon atop the command bridge was at the ready, but a tower of smoke billowed from the far side of the ship. Ilia felt a little comfort in knowing the police were fighting back, that is, until she remembered Blake a second later. Her empty stomach lurched at the thought of Blake being on that enemy ship, now at the mercy of the Mistral police's onslaught.

Ilia looked over the edge of the deck railing at the forest below. She had no clue how to make it down. Her best bet was to hope the airship would make an emergency landing.

"Ilia." She suddenly heard a familiar voice. She turned to see Weiss running up to her. Ilia felt inexplicably relieved to see the Schnee. Before Ilia could say anything, however, Weiss continued in a gravelly voice. "We need to get off this ship."

Ilia huffed. "Great idea." She stumbled a bit. "Shit."

"What's wrong?" Weiss asked her, stepping forward and grabbing her arm to keep Ilia from falling over.

"Pain drugs," Ilia stated simply. "Now that I think about it, I feel like they drugged me to help, but also to keep me from escaping, 'cause..." she waved her hand over her body. "I'm fucked up pretty good right now."

Weiss sighed and nodded with understanding. "You swear a lot."

"I know." She raised something she held in her left hand. "But I have a sandwich." It was a single sandwich in a plastic bag. The sight of it made Weiss' mouth water. Even in this dire situation, her almost three days of fasting was cutting close to what she could bear. Then again, thinking about eating after what she had just witnessed made her feel sick.

Boom. Ilia looked towards the White Fang ship. Its canon had just fired another shot, sending a large metal sphere hurtling through the air towards them. "Let's move," Weiss said to her. For the third time in the past two days, she created a glyph staircase down to the ground.

"What was the point of this?" Ilia asked. "Coming aboard this ship?"

"We weren't expecting it to get attacked," Weiss responded, her voice still rough and grating. Without even asking, she pulled Ilia into her arms and vaulted over the railing, landing on the first glyph. She then started to run from glyph to glyph. "At least we got some food."

Ilia watched the canon ball hurtle towards the Mistral airship they left behind. She couldn't look away as it made impact, a fire cloud billowing from the far side. Ilia couldn't believe the White Fang was actually firing on a police ship. That had never been a strategy. The White Fang would sooner turn tail and run than start an aerial battle with a vessel twice as big. Why were they doing this? If they had Blake, they definitely would be running away by now...

Ilia gasped in realization. Adam wasn't running, because they hadn't caught Blake. There was no doubt they had seen her, but if they were refusing to abandon this area of the forest, Blake must still be evading them somehow. Against her own efforts, Ilia began to feel hopeful.

They reached the ground, and Weiss let go of Ilia. While she caught her breath, Ilia looked towards the White Fang airship. "Blake hasn't been caught."

Weiss turned her head towards her. "You think so?" Her voice expressed more life with that question than Ilia had heard since their reunion.

"They'd be taking off by now if they did. I know Adam, and he would definitely do something like this just for the sake of revenge." Ilia could not suppress the bubbling feeling of hope in her chest. "I really hope Blake gets away."

"Me too." Weiss coughed a couple times, then stood up straight. "We should try to find our way to the village this ship came from. Hopefully Blake will find her way, too."

Ilia kept her gaze on the White Fang ship in the distant skies. She wobbled on her feet, then suddenly looked at Weiss. "Hold up. Why are you still helping me? I thought you would..." She stumbled to the side again. Weiss stepped forward to help her stand, but Ilia waved her off. "I thought you would want to be rid of me as soon as we found help."

"I figured saving you would be nice," Weiss deadpanned sarcastically, a little more bitterness in her words than Ilia would have cared for. "And second, I already said I wanted to help you. I'm willing to do anything I can to help you live a normal life."

"I don't really get why you'd bother." Ilia sighed and took a knee after becoming too dizzy. She stared at Weiss' legs, which was as high up Ilia was willing to crane her neck. "Once we get to that village, you ought to just get a flight back to Atlas and let me handle myself."

Weiss rolled her eyes and knelt in front of the girl. "And how do you expect to handle yourself? You have no money and no education beyond prep school. What are you going to do?"

Ilia forced herself to look at Weiss in the face, and she began to feel her heart sink. Weiss was right. Ilia had nowhere to go from here. "Well...why do you even want to help me? I figure you hate me."

"I don't hate you, Ilia." Weiss took a couple deep breaths before continuing. "I get that you don't want my help, but I think you'd agree that I'd be the only one willing to help you." It was a harsh thing to say, but they both knew it was the truth. "I want to make up for the wrongs my father has committed, and I want to start by helping you."

Ilia shook her head. "Why?"

"Because it's the right thing to do."

Ilia scoffed. "Please don't start with that shit. I get you're not a terrible person, but I don't want to live off of you. I can find a way to live on my own, and–"

"I want to help you, dammit." Weiss suddenly stood back to her feet. "Whether you think it'll hurt your pride or what, I just want to make sure you aren't living on the streets for the rest of your life. I've witnessed what the world's done to you. I was there after you found out your parents died, I was there when Blake left us. After all I've seen happen to you, not just the Faunus, but you specifically, I can't just do nothing." Weiss' seemed to say all of this without pausing to breathe. She took two deep breaths. "If I don't help you, then what kind of person does that make me?"

Ilia simply trained her eyes on Weiss' dirty shoes. The barrage of words Weiss had just rained down on her was enough to silence her. As much as Ilia did not want to accept Weiss' charity, she felt a growing feeling of dread in the back of her head that told her she had to accept. She would be living on the streets, struggling to find a job, perhaps going hungry. She envisioned herself becoming a criminal just to survive. She knew she was capable of it, and that's the path she'd fall down if she refused Weiss' help.

But then again, if Blake wasn't there, what was the point? Ilia would be fine being a vagrant criminal if Blake were there with her. Even if she did feel hopeful Blake would find a way to her, she still felt it might not happen. Whether she was dead or a alive was a mystery, even if Adam's actions by firing on the police ship suggested the latter.

Ilia had to accept reality. She'd live in squalor without Weiss' assistance. She had no clear path to a decent life on her own without her help.

Ilia sniffed and began to get back to her feet. Weiss grabbed her forearm and tried to help her up, but Ilia shook her head and went back down with a grunt. Though her rib no longer hurt, she was significantly physically impaired. Ilia simply glanced at Weiss for a brief moment, then closed her eyes and nodded. "Thank you."

Weiss exhaled and nodded in return. "Of course."

A mind-numbing explosion followed. They not only heard it, but they felt it.

Weiss and Ilia looked into the air, and Weiss felt floored by what she saw.

The Mistral ship was still in the air.

The White Fang ship disappeared within a cloud of fire.

"What the..." Ilia mumbled. The ironclad White Fang ship had been destroyed. Despite being reassured by the White Fang higher-ups that these vessels were almost guaranteed to never fail, this one had. Whatever the Mistral vessel had fired at the Fang ship, it certainly did it in. As she watched a mass of fiery metal fall behind the trees, she noticed in the distance three dots flying from the wreckage. Escape pods. Some of the White Fang members survived.

"They...destroyed the ship," Weiss murmured. For this first time, Weiss felt it was truly over. Her kidnapping, her escape, finally complete. Only two questions remained in her mind: What about Blake, and what about Adam?

They watched the pieces of the airship plummet to the ground, the distant sounds of destruction pulling at their ears. It was a morbid display of wonder, neither girl able to look away.

Weiss was engrossed in what she had never expected to see, but Ilia felt terrified by the thought of who might've been near the catastrophe.

"Weiss," Ilia said, her voice soft and fragile.

Weiss looked at her, her attention completely stolen from the flames by Ilia's quiet use of her first name. "Yes?"

Ilia looked Weiss in the eyes, and Weiss felt a lump form in her throat instantly. Ilia's eyes were big and watery, her lips turned downward. "Please go find Blake."

Weiss stepped back, her eyes shifting about nervously. "What? We need to get to the village before–"

"If you truly want to help me, please go find her." The little bit of hope she had allowed herself to feel grew and burst into a debilitating fear for Blake. That massive explosion could have done awful things to anyone nearby. "I would if I weren't so fucking useless, but I need to you make sure she's okay."

"Ilia, I can't just leave you alone here like this. You're in no shape you defend yourself if someone or something–"

"Quit worrying about me and find Blake!" Ilia forced herself to her feet, her knees shaking beneath her. "I'll be fine. Just help her, please. She could be out there. She saved us from that ship, and now you have to save her."

Weiss stared at Ilia for a long while, the desperation in the Faunus' voice rattling in her mind. Weiss knew leaving Ilia here and going off on her own was a big risk, but Blake's life was at stake. For all Weiss knew, the girl could be alive but badly hurt. She could have been caught up in the wreckage in the distance, desperate for someone to help.

Weiss felt more scared for Blake than she had ever been before.

"Please, please, find her." Tears came dripping from Ilia's eyes, her shoulders shaking as she stepped side-to-side with anxiety. She turned blue. "I'm sorry for what I did to you. I'm sorry for hurting you. I'm sorry for everything." Ilia wiped her face, continuing to waver on her feet. Her face was turned down, believing Weiss had no reason to help, and that she wouldn't. "Please help Blake. I...she doesn't deserve to get hurt. Please help her. Please..."

Weiss' bottom lip quivered, feeling herself return to that bathroom at Atlas Prep, standing before the Blue Girl, watching her cry. Only now, Weiss knew why she was crying. She knew what had happened to the Blue Girl, and now, unlike back at AP, she had the chance to help her. Weiss stepped towards Ilia.

The White-Haired Girl hugged the Blue Girl. It was a hug years overdue.

It was different from when Weiss had carried her before. She didn't have to hug her right now, but Weiss thought Ilia needed it. She felt she needed it herself as well. "I'll find her," she whispered. "I won't let her get hurt."

Ilia kept her arms pulled to her chest, consciously refraining from returning the hug, but she nodded against Weiss' shoulder. She tried to say thank you, but she couldn't find the will to speak any further. She felt as if a wound left open for years was finally closed off. She watched as Weiss backed away from her, maintaining eye contact until the heiress to begin to run in the direction of what was once the White Fang airship. Ilia watched her go for a few seconds, but then remembered something. "Weiss, wait!"

Weiss stopped and turned. Ilia beckoned her to come back, and Weiss returned to her side. "What?" Weiss asked.

Ilia opened the plastic bag and pulled the turkey and cheese sandwich out. She tore it in half and gave one half to Weiss. "You need this."

Weiss took the half-sandwich, looking at it for a moment, then looked at Ilia, smiling a tiny bit. "Thank you." She then turned once again, but before she took off running, and glanced back. "Be safe, okay?"

Ilia's mouth dropped open a bit at hearing Weiss say such a thing, but she chose to accept it. She would have to get used to the fact that Weiss actually wanted the best for her. Ilia nodded, her mouth curling in the closest thing to a smile she allowed herself. "You too."

Weiss nodded reassurance, then turned and began on her run. Ilia watched her go for a few seconds before giving up on standing. She fell back down to her knees and crawled to a nearby tree. She leaned her back against it, holding her half sandwich in her hand as her arm rested on her knee. She tried to stop the tears from flowing, but being alone only made crying that much easier.

It finally hit. The flood of emotions Ilia felt she should have felt right after Blake left, finally came over her. It hurt. It burned. But she no longer felt cold.