"We failed."

Those two words- merely two words- echoed in the spacious office. They rang over and over in his head as if they were taunting him.

The only barrier between them was a wide desk. Steam rose from the man's head. His icy white hair could have melted from anger.

Furious from the report, Jacques Schnee slammed his hands on the desk. "How did you fail me, Cinder? For Remnant's sake, I gave you my submarine to ensure success."

Despite him looking so infuriated, Cinder remained calm. A little too calm. And kept a poker face.

"I won't fail again," Cinder said sternly.

"You're right, you won't," Jacques said in a calm voice. His tone flipped like a switch. "There won't be a next time. Now, tell me how you failed exactly."

There were so many things that went wrong on her mission. There was one mistake that towered above the rest, and it was entirely Cinder's own fault. If there was one thing she despised, it was admitting her own mistakes.

"I tried to kill Ruby," Cinder informed. "It just so happened that your daughter pushed her to the side and took my blade instead. I might've killed her."

"Fool!"

Cinder simply rolled her eyes from the insult. If anyone was a fool in Cinder's eyes, it was Weiss for sacrificing herself. Cinder couldn't even begin to fathom a concept, but to witness it?

"Your daughter's the fool," Cinder quipped as she glared into those icy eyes.

"Of course she is," Jacques agreed. "You are, however, more so."

From that, Cinder simply shrugged him off. There was no use arguing with him.

"It wasn't a vital spot, but it didn't look good," Cinder said.

"Then you didn't kill her," the Schnee said with finality.

He sounded so sure of himself, which made Cinder confused. His line of thinking had to be whack if he sincerely believed she could survive being impaled.

"With all due respect, you weren't there," Cinder said bitterly. "You didn't see how bad it was."

"With all due respect," Jacques retorted sarcastically. "You don't know my daughter. She's not only a fool. She's a stubborn fool."

Again, there was no use arguing with him. Jacques could believe what he wanted. Cinder wasn't there to change his mind.

In an irritated voice, Jacques continued. "I hired you because you're one of the most notorious pirate bounty hunters. You were supposed to kill everyone except Weiss. I've never seen failure on such a level."

When he put it like that… it wasn't just a failure. It was utter defeat.

"Spare me the lecture," Cinder almost growled.

"You're never working for me again," Jacques barked.

That didn't need to be said. Cinder only rolled her eyes. "I'm at a loss. Really."

Angry that she was giving him sass, he said. "I can crush your business in a heartbeat."

"You think I'm scared of you, Jacques?" Cinder said sarcastically with her eyes and tone sharper than daggers. "I've killed more men than I can count. At this rate, you'll be another number."

With that, Cinder strutted out of his office like she owned the place. Growling, Jacques watched her leave. No one had ever threatened him before. Then again, that's probably what he should have expected when he worked with someone from the underworld.

That wench was a disaster, the Schnee thought. To capture a pirate, I need to hire a pirate.


It was warm.

Hot, actually.

Really hot.

There was this vague feeling of tightness. Something was squeezing her abdomen like a rubber band- expanding and shrinking every second.

The aches crept up on her. They faded into her body like they sank into her bones, before rapidly pulsing to announce their presence.

It felt like a dream as she drifted in an abyss, but the pain was real. Way too real. It ate at her.

All at once, the registration of agony forced her to jolt her senses. It caused her to groan, but it came out as a soft, unintelligible whine.

There were various voices, but they were muffled. They sounded tinny and far away, yet familiar. They sounded friendly. Not something she wanted to drift away from, but something she wanted to approach.

Deciphering the words sapped the energy she lacked at the moment. At least they sounded friendly and caring. Maybe even a little worried.

Why were they worried? God, why was it so hot?

A flash of heat overwhelmed her, and caused another whimper.

"-eiss, that's it- come on," a sweet voice coaxed. It sounded so innocent. "-e got you."

There was this vague notion that something- someone- was holding her. Oddly enough, she felt safe and secure even though pain pulsed through her.

With great effort, her face flinched a few times. That earned a few gasps.

"-ello?" a voice practically sang. "-nyone home?"

From hearing the chipper tune, Weiss almost growled. It was clear that no one was going to let her sleep. Might as well make them shut up.

At last, hazy azure pools were revealed. They were riddled with exhaustion, but contained life. For a moment, Weiss only stared at the blobs of red, black, and yellow crowded around her. While her vision adjusted, she could make out those alluring silver orbs.

A rasp.

"Ru...by…?"

This felt like a dream. Was it really her? The moment Ruby gave her that goofy grin, Weiss knew this was reality as her fingers curled into her hand.

"Weiss!" Ruby chirped with glee, resisting the urge to give her a hug or she might irritate her wounds. "You're up!"

Seeing those blue eyes open again caused the crew to almost cry out in relief. Until now, Weiss had been deathly still and looked like a ghost. A scorching ghost.

"Welcome back," Blake greeted with a small smile.

"It's about time," Yang smirked with a steaming bowl in hand. "I bet you're hungry."

Not missing a beat, Weiss said. "I'm hot," she glanced at the hot bowl, wanting to push it away.

"This soup's the best for fevers," Yang tried to persuade. "Trust me. Just try it."

She had a fever? This suffocating heat explained it. Confused, Weiss felt her forehead. The wet cloth on top was lukewarm, failing to cool her off.

"This isn't doing much," Weiss complained.

Before anyone could tend to her, the ex-heiress tried to move. From the sudden movement, more pangs shot up her body. The agony was visible in the form of a grimace.

Hastily, Ruby tried to keep her still by holding her shoulders. "Don't move so much. You're hurt right now."

That explained the physical soreness. There was an inkling as to what was wrong, so Weiss felt her abdomen. Big mistake. A prickle of pain stung that spot.

"Ugh..." she groaned, her eyelids heavy. "What happened?"

Her crew glanced amongst each other in silence. There was a hint of shock written on their expressions. Briefly, Weiss was left to wonder why. Before she could ask again, Ruby spoke.

"You- uh…" the captain paused, reliving the memory of Weiss tipping over from the blade. "Took a really hard hit."

That was one way of putting it.

"That's…" Weiss trailed off. "Annoying."

Her signature sassiness caused them to almost chuckle.

Ruby leaned down to meet her gaze, which was hazy and not all there. "I know you don't want to eat hot stuff, but trust me. The soup'll cure you in no time."

Even if Weiss refused the soup, her crew would probably shove it down her throat, anyways. Choosing the easy option, she grumbled. "Fine."

To encourage her, Blake sent her a smile. "If you don't like it, you can slap Yang."

"Rude!" Yang yelped.

"What's this?" Blake said to egg her on. "Are you not confident in your cooking ability?"

Sassily, Yang placed her hands on her hips. "Of course I am!"

With a smirk, Weiss said. "Now I hope I won't like it."

After heaving a sigh, Yang replied. "Eh, it's not like it'll be a hard slap when you're like this."

"I'll have Ruby do it for me," Weiss easily said.

Ruby pumped her fist in the air. "Aye, aye!"

"No fair," the blonde pouted.

After a few chuckles, Ruby sat on the edge of the couch. Earlier, her tone was joking and now she was in full protective, maternal mode.

"I'm gonna lift you up so you can eat, okay?" Ruby said. "Lemme know if it hurts."

"Mmm," Weiss breathed, not looking forward to it.

Carefully, Ruby wrapped an arm around her back while the other was on the front of her shoulder. She was extremely careful to not graze her wounds in the slightest. To help, Weiss locked her arms around Ruby's neck.

Eventually, Weiss was propped up against the couch. She did her best to hide the pain she was experiencing and tried to keep a poker face. However, she couldn't bite back a weak gasp as the throbbing surged over her.

"Weiss," Ruby called softly, hoping the pain would pass.

"I'm fine," Weiss said through grit teeth.

Ruby frowned, not liking seeing her in pain. "You're obviously not…"

Quietly, Yang handed her sister the bowl of soup. The bumblebee pair decided to wash the other dishes while their captain tried to get some nutrients in her system.

"Do you think you can hold it?" Ruby asked, hoping her crewmate wasn't that weak. "If not, I guess I- I could feed you…"

Good thing Weiss was already redder than a cherry. Otherwise, she would've noticed her blushing. Wanting to avoid the embarrassment, Weiss reached out for the bowl.

"Don't be ridiculous," the ex-heiress lightly chided.

Part of Ruby- most of her- was glad to hear that. The other part wished she could've fed her. Although she could see why that would fluster Weiss.

"Lemme know if you need anything," Ruby said with her own blush. "Anything!"

Carefully, she handed the bowl to her. In response, Weiss almost flinched from how much heat that added onto her already-scorching body.

"Is it too hot?" Ruby asked, worried.

"I'll manage," fighting off the heat, Weiss brought the spoon to her mouth and was surprised by the burst of flavor. "It's good."

From across the room, Yang yelled. "No slap for me!"

Jokingly, Blake tapped her on the side of the cheek.

Yang pointed at her. "That didn't count."

Quickly, Blake pecked her on the cheek.

Grinning from the interaction, Ruby looked back to Weiss. "It really is the best, isn't it?"

"Mhm."

From her short reply, Ruby gathered she was too exhausted to actually talk. Not to mention, she was redder than a cherry. To alleviate the heat, Ruby dunked the cloth in cold water before padding it over her forehead. That earned a wheezing sigh.

Not long after that, Weiss finished the soup. The truth was, she didn't feel any different. The pain in her abdomen stole her attention with every pang. She couldn't even tell if her stomach was full or not. By the end, she was left exhausted.

Happy that she ate, Ruby set the bowl aside.

"Do you-" Ruby paused, likely knowing the answer for herself. "Feel any better after eating?"

Suddenly, Weiss slumped back. Her body felt like lead. Too heavy to support. Instantly, Ruby darted forward to keep her steady.

"I'm so tired…"

Even though she was laying down, Weiss felt like she ran a marathon. On top of that, she was burning from the inside-out.

"Rest," Ruby whispered, keeping her arms around her. "I'm not going anywhere."

Slowly, Ruby positioned her to lay down in a comfortable position. Weiss was like a heating pad in her arms. Didn't weigh anything and hot to the touch.

During the endeavour, Weiss didn't feel much movement. She was drifting on the verge of unconsciousness. Completely jaded, the ex-heiress mumbled.

"You saved my life three times, Ruby…"

She didn't know why she said that now, but she felt Ruby should know. These stinging pains brought back memories she'd rather not relive. The sharpness of the switchblade, the friendly blue flare… how close she was to ending it all.

"Huh?" Ruby tilted her head like a confused puppy.

The captain could only recall two times she'd saved her life. The first time was when they met. An ursa attacked her out of the blue. The other was last night.

"What do you mean?" Ruby asked, wanting her to elaborate.

Although it was clear Weiss probably couldn't in her state. All she could do was curl her fingers around Ruby's hand.

After Weiss closed her eyes, she murmured. "Thank you."

Utterly confused, Ruby could only watch her sleep as question marks swarmed her mind.

Curious, Yang approached the pair and asked. "What was that about?"

"I have no clue," Ruby said.

Blake only shrugged. "Maybe she's delirious. Her temp's really high, after all."

Although that made sense, something told Ruby that Weiss meant every word. There must've been another time she saved her life. She just didn't know it. From the realization, Ruby quirked a smile.

To lull her to a peaceful sleep, she brushed gentle fingers through white tresses. When Weiss' hand uncurled, Ruby lovingly kissed the top of her head.


Lyrics from Lost In Thoughts All Alone: "Vow that we shall tear the light. Dark seize the throne," references Jackass Schnee trying desperately to get his daughter back. Even though Weiss is finally happy, he doesn't give two f*cks and wants to tear her light. The Thorns.

Stay dandy,

~Toto