Got my second vaccine shot and had nowhere near the same reaction I did to the first. I hope those of you who've had your shots are doing okay with them too! Hooray for us getting back to a sense of normalcy!
Also just as a forewarning of sorts, yes, this title's a wee bit on the nose. So much so that it might make you roll your eyes. That's intentional. A little fourth-wall breaking and some catharsis for myself, and perhaps even some of you.
Or maybe you'll hate it! I don't know. My job would be boring if I could read minds.
Weiss leaped from the chair the moment Qrow had undone her bindings. After coming back into Remnant with a shuddering breath she had sat still, exercising every ounce of self-control to remain calm. All while Rhodes stared at her in anxious silence. Her heart thundered in her ears, rage compelling the magic within her to be let free, to lash out at the latest source of ire. Qrow must have felt the surge for he grunted and looked to be focusing intensely now, sweat beading on his brow.
Unarmed and with her magic snuffed out she couldn't hope to do much. Yet she still went for it, throwing herself bodily at Rhodes and grabbing for his collar. Her hand's echoing crack sang in the room and her palm stung as one of Rhodes' men tore her away by her hair. She whirled and her knuckles almost broke against the man's nose. It cracked and blood seeped down his lip.
Someone drew their sword and Qrow put them through a table before it ever raised. The lantern hanging overhead sent their shadows dancing as Qrow began brawling with crewmembers. Punching, kicking, choking and smashing, doing everything and anything they could to cause harm.
Weiss because she felt furious. Angrier than she thought possible. Qrow because he somehow knew something wrong had transpired. He had seen her calm fury the second her eyes opened, sensed her magic readying itself to erupt.
Her back hit the floor and Weiss gasped, gagged, and kicked. A hand seized around her throat and she clawed at the man's face, raking her nails down his eye and cheek. Blood stained his beard and she winced as her head slammed against the floor. She kicked and felt something give beneath her heel, then kicked again, watching the man pale and collapse beside her. Wood smashed and she watched Qrow use the remains of a broken chair to fend off a woman with twin daggers. A paltry weapon, one which wouldn't do them much good if everyone drew steel.
"Enough!"
She had just gotten a hold of a broken leg chair when Rhodes shouted. Weiss stayed her hand from driving it through the bearded man's calf, body wracked with shuddering breaths. On her hands and knees she glared at Rhodes while cursing Qrow's continued stifling of her magic.
"That's enough! Stop fighting, all of you!" Rhodes glared until weapons were lowered, releasing runes that Weiss hadn't realized he'd conjured. Shoulders drooping, he exhaled and swept a hand through his hair before meeting her eyes. "I will not have this ship turned into a bloodbath. Draw your weapons again and I will throw you overboard myself, am I understood?" When no one answered Rhodes slammed his foot down. "I said, am I understood?!"
Murmurs of assent. Lowered heads and averted gazes. Even with some of them sporting bleeding wounds no one made the slightest indication they planned to keep fighting.
Which could change in an instant if Weiss decided to use the wooden stake she still held. Taking one look at the jagged, splintering length she tossed it aside and rose to her feet. A sense of emptiness filled her mind, her thoughts jumbled, incongruent. The sensation of having someone pick through you left her feeling more violated than ever and a shiver raced down her spine. She managed to hide it behind a scowl, ignoring her split knuckles as she wiped her mouth against them.
"You knew."
"I did."
To everyone else in the room the exchange meant nothing. Weiss could feel the question in the air of what they meant. Qrow would ask certainly, and she would tell him. Later though.
She could out Rhodes then and there, let his crimes be made clear to his own crew. Maybe they would accept the man regardless. Even if most of the crew would however there would be no telling how Cinder might react. Nothing stopped Weiss from revealing that truth either; she held the cards now and knew it. Rhodes knew it too from the way he'd demanded they cease fighting. From how he hesitated to attack her.
Kill her and Qrow and the others would find out. Raven would find out. Before long all of Rhodes' supposed allies would turn on him and he'd be in a far worse situation than he found himself in now.
Weiss could ask for anything and probably get it. Lien, a ship to ferry them around. She could curse enough to make the crudest among Rhodes' crew blush too. "You are going to bring Qrow and I to shore, and then we are leaving," she whispered. "Immediately."
Rhodes waved a hand and barked a quick order to make it done. Weiss watched two of the crew scramble out of the room and allowed herself a faint smile. "Anything else?" Rhodes asked.
"Your notes, anything you have. Details on the process, the runes you used, I want them."
"I can't just divulge that information. If you were to lose those -"
"I can help my friend with those notes. I can stop Ozpin, something you seem to be too afraid to do." Weiss swayed on her feet as a spell of nausea washed over her. Spellcast Sickness? No, she hadn't expended any energy. "I want them all, and I want them before we leave. Or I can speak to Cinder if you'd like."
Rhodes' jaw went taut and his hands clenched at his sides. Weiss almost begged him to give her a reason to attack. Hoped against all reasonability that Rhodes and his crew would start another fight. Would she and Qrow win? She doubted it, but in the moment, she wanted nothing more than to make someone hurt. To do something with the whirlwind causing havoc inside her breast.
The lantern above them vanished without a sound and the sunlight, which Weiss had begun to suspect had been fabricated, embraced them once more. Yet the treeline around them remained quiet and still as she waited for Rhodes' response.
"Fine," he grumbled. "I'll gather everything I have and put it together for you. Do not lose it." As if she'd be so careless. Her losing Merlot's work aboard their ship hadn't been her fault, and Ozpin confiscating most of it before that had been out of her control. "I don't need to tell you what might happen if someone else gets a hold of this information."
"Trust me, I'm well acquainted with what a madman might do." Merlot would only be the beginning. Although rogue elements were hardly the worst of the culprits; the sanctioned experiments had proven far worse already.
As her heart continued to pulse in her ears Weiss turned on her heel to leave, wobbling on unsteady legs. Despite the sweaty clothes clinging to her she felt bare. Rhodes had been with her in that memory, but what if he had seen more? Just how much of her mind did he have access to, or Ozpin for that matter?
Qrow caught her elbow and she sent a silent nod to him as thanks. His expression demanded an explanation and she answered with a slight shake of her head. Later, she promised.
If Qrow knew that Yang's salvation might be staring them in the face and hadn't offered to help he'd be livid. He might even attack again, and Weiss doubted she could stop him, or cared enough to.
She didn't need Rhodes to help them though, just his information. Weiss felt confident she could reverse-engineer the runes just as she had done in Liar's Bay. Even if they were a mystery to her she could find clues elsewhere; libraries had to carry information with them, some record of her magic system. Or she could seek answers from a fellow Magi if they were fortunate enough to find one.
"Wait, please." Weiss wanted to storm out of the room and head to the top deck. A sliver of civility compelled her to wait, sighing as they stopped mere feet from the doorway. Rhodes approached them slowly, holding a hand up to keep his own people at bay. "You're just going to leave us? I understand things haven't gone well between our parties, and I'm sorry for that. But we're still on the same side here, seeking the same goals. Raven said you would be reliable."
Weiss felt a laugh bubble inside of her. A faint giggle passed her lips and she closed her eyes. "Reliable, are we?" She snorted. "And we share the same goals?"
"To see the Church answer for its crimes. To prevent them from repeating their atrocities, and to reveal the truth to everyone." Rhodes shook his head. "We should work together. You don't have to leave."
She supposed they didn't. They had only just arrived in Mistral - she and Qrow hadn't set foot in it yet - and already they planned to move on. Weiss did anyways. She mulled over Rhodes' words for a moment, rubbing drying blood between her fingertips and feeling it flake apart. Licking her lips, Weiss eased her elbow from Qrow's grip and turned to face Rhodes with a smile.
"What are my goals again, sir?"
"To expose the Church and their crimes," Rhodes answered immediately.
"No."
"No?"
Qrow's eyebrows rose slightly. "It's not…?"
"That's the problem with you people. All of you people. You think that everyone shares your ideas, your beliefs." Weiss inhaled sharply, closing her eyes for a moment. Her hands smoothed down her hair and she lowered them to stare at her trembling palms. "All you do is project and assume. You think that we're pliable, willing participants in this ongoing battle of yours."
"Ozpin has harmed you and your friends, hasn't he? He's tried to take everything from you!" Rhodes shook his head. "What don't -"
"Do you listen to yourself? I understand that you might presume to know my thoughts since you violated my mind not once, but twice, but clearly you weren't paying any attention." Weiss took one step forward, then another. Magic lapped at her fingertips, and they twitched in anticipation but she drew no runes. "You're correct that Ozpin has harmed me. Harmed my family." Not friends. You didn't bleed and die for just friends, didn't travel across the world and try to combat all of its evils for simple friends. "But you stand there and assume you know my goals? All I hear is you trying to twist my thoughts, my desires, in the same way the Church has."
Rhodes strode forward to meet her, his face going red. "I am nothing like them! I've denounced everything they are!"
"After you helped them commit atrocities!" Weiss shouted. She stormed into Rhodes and jabbed a finger into his chest. He didn't budge and she jabbed again and again, raising her voice. "You assisted them with crimes against Remnant itself and now, after all you've done, you think you can claim to be better than them? At least Ozpin has the decency to acknowledge what a bastard he is! Even if he's deluded, he accepts what he does." Not that it made it any better, but she'd prefer a lunatic that knew what they were than one in denial.
"Why do you need me?" Weiss held her hands to her chest. "Why do you need me?" she repeated. "I'm not the only one who can use runes, clearly you're capable of it, and you know more than I do. I'm not anymore skilled, I don't have any secrets, and I certainly don't have any connections that might change the tides of things. Everyone keeps insisting that I need to do something. That I need to help." She smiled sweetly. "Why?"
She had wondered constantly about that. Something had to set her apart from the rest, make her different. Either that or it had been simple lip service by Raven and others to try and coerce her into cooperation. Empty words meant to persuade to align herself with them.
Rhodes couldn't answer, and after giving him another moment to try she scoffed.
"We are done. We are done chasing after your enemies for you and your allies. We are through being weapons, pointed at your enemy so you can claim a victory!" She slammed her fist into Rhodes' chest and he staggered back. Trembling, Weiss clenched her fists until her nails dug into flesh and drew blood, clenching her teeth and hissing. "I am leaving here, and I am helping my friends. We will help each other, and we will decide what we do next. Not you, nor Raven, nor anyone else. Us. We are finished being playthings in all of this."
Agency. They desperately needed a chance to think for themselves. Act for themselves. And so long as they ran to and fro at the behest of another they would never find a chance to.
Maybe it was a fool's errand, shirking potential allies. Maybe burning bridges that they might need in the future set them up for failure. Weiss couldn't find it in herself to care as she turned and stormed back towards the door. No one made an effort to stop her either, and as she flung the door open she paused briefly to glare at Rhodes.
"If you value the truth so much then perhaps you should start telling it too."
She didn't linger, didn't give Rhodes a chance to justify himself with a response. Storming into the hallway she waited until she heard Qrow's hurried footfalls chase her before letting out a breath. When the door clicked behind shut behind them she allowed herself, briefly, to lean on the wall and close her eyes.
Her entire being screamed at her to rest. The emptiness in her head left her reeling, feeling as though her head had been submerged and oxygen had been cut off. Weiss clung to the anger to ignore it, letting it fester as she shrugged off Qrow's offer of support, using the railings to help herself up the stairs.
She had waited far, far too long. They all had. Ruby had lost her magic as a result of their willingness to do as others said.
Perhaps it had been foolish to trust them. They had no idea of how the world operated, not really, and had sought out guidance wherever they could. But then they had managed on their own too, hadn't they? No one had helped them oust Merlot or defeat him. They themselves had revealed Liar's Bay, had become Hunters, had trained and honed their skills.
We are perfectly capable of helping ourselves. We were idiots to forget that. Weiss shouldered the door open and stepped out into the blinding midday sun. Fresh air helped relieve some of her headiness right away and she sucked down more with a greedy gulp. To hells with this city. Let Rhodes and his minions play their games.
Already a small number of the crew had begun to prepare a vessel for them. Small, hardly larger than a canoe but more than enough to reach shore. They sent accusatory looks her way but no one moved to challenge her.
Good, she doubted her grasp on her fleeting patience would hold much longer.
Once Rhodes arrived with his documents they could be on their way. They would find Ruby and the others, settle for the evening, then leave Pradalia as soon as possible. Although…
"Qrow?"
"What's up, kiddo?" Qrow drawled. "Reconsidering not freezing that bastard to the floor?"
Yes. "No," Weiss lied, smirking. "If I wanted to find some information on a former Hunter or Warden, I would imagine the local branch would have that, yes? Or perhaps someone currently employed might know something?"
Tilting his head, Qrow rubbed at his chin and hummed. "Yeah, I guess they might. Why, what're you thinking?"
"I'm beginning to think I'm insane, if I'm honest." Weiss looked out over the bay, past the towering statues standing guard over Pradalia. She smiled and walked to the rails to lean on, closing her eyes briefly as ocean air brushed sweat from her face. "But hypothetically, if we sought out a Hunter and politely asked them to help us find this Maria woman Rhodes spoke of, do you imagine that would work." She glanced slyly at the man beside her.
"Hm, hypothetically, I think it's a ruddy idea and that you've definitely gone insane." Qrow chuckled. "But it's not the worst idea I've ever heard. I've got to say, Ice Queen, I'm impressed." He slapped her back and she let out a humiliating 'eep' as she almost tipped over the railing. "Looks like you've got some fire in you after all."
Weiss eased back from the rails and smiled to herself. "Weiss. My name is Weiss, you drunken oaf." She pushed him back and clicked her tongue in disappointment as Qrow barely budged. "And you'd best remember it if I'm to suffer working with you still."
"Alright then, Weiss. You'll have to excuse me if I forget sometimes though," Qrow ruffled her hair and laughed. Then with a teasing smile and an elbow to her side he asked, "No Schnee?"
Weiss shook her head. No, she didn't need that. Being a Schnee meant nothing to her right now. The wealth and social standing that normally came with it had been stripped away. Any notoriety it might afford her had been removed the day she'd been bastardized.
So no, no Schnee. Maybe if she earned it someday, if she made it really mean something other than being a loyal Church hound, then she might take it up again.
But for now, Weiss worked just fine.
/+/+/+/+/+/
Down they went. Away from the smoldering sun and the ash-stricken building into a cold, poorly lit tunnel. Blake had thought they were catacombs, abandoned, until she noticed the crates piled up along the walls. Felt the water dripping from the ceiling, her hand brushing against the cold, rough hewn rock as they walked.
Her elation to having been found had been short lived. After her not-so-graceful tumble from the balcony and a brief reunion the sounds of bells ringing had alerted them all to oncoming guards. Worse still, Sun had warned as they funneled into the hidden passageway, would be the Hunters following suit. Guards they could handle - not that Blake wanted to fight them - and the Hunters too, but that meant exposing themselves to the Church. When the whole point of them coming to Mistral had been to avoid that, well, ousting themselves on day one felt rather counterintuitive.
Ruby stumbled and almost fell if not for Sun's aid. In the poor light Blake could still make out her friend's smile, heard the faint, rushed "Thank you" before Ruby continued along, in the middle of the pack.
All the civilians were in the middle of the group and it astonished Blake at just how many there were. Women and children, elderly and infirm. Whole families had been residing in the modest home when Yang had almost set it ablaze. Maybe that was why Yang had insisted she take the front of the group along with Manon, so she could try and make amends by protecting them.
And avoid her guilt by not having to look at them.
Confusing. That is what the whole situation had become. One second Blake had been prepared to kill Sun and Manon at her earliest convenience; now she led civilians to safety at Sun's behest.
The tunnels shrank around them, and Blake found herself slouching to better fit. The children had no issues moving along but Blake wondered how Manon managed to fit in such a tight space. Now and again, she heard his armor scraping against stone, hissing and cursing whenever his hammer snagged on a rock.
I can't imagine we're walking into a trap, not with children around. But who's to say they won't try something regardless?
Plenty of White Fang could be heartless if they needed to be. Blake had almost been one of them. She had loved one of them, once upon a time. And speaking of potential heartless fools, Sun had begun to drop back. She caught his smile and rolled her eyes, hoping against all hope he intended to speak to anyone besides her.
"So, uh, no hard feelings?"
Foolhardy for hoping, she supposed. Blake stood taller as the ceiling rose again, rubbing her arms as cool air nipped at her. "About the kidnapping, trying to kill me with the fall, or being forced into hiding?"
"Um, all of the above?"
Cute. Blake might be tempted to smack Sun across the face again, if children weren't present. In favor of setting a better example then she 'accidentally' stomped on his foot, stretching to do so, before smiling sweetly as he hissed and hopped in place. Not quite even still but she enjoyed the small bit of satisfaction seeing him whimper brought.
"Ouch! What was that for?" The glare she gave him made Sun pale and take a step away, bumping into the wall of the narrow tunnel. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? Ow, I'm sorry! Jeez, you're acting like we drugged you or something!"
"Is that something you and yours make a habit of?"
Sun's face somehow lost even more color as he shook his head vehemently. "No way! We're not like that. Look," he insisted, stepping closer and lowering his voice. "I don't know what you've heard about us but we're not bad guys! We're just trying to help people who need it."
"Mhm."
"Jeez, you're a real pain to talk to, you know that?"
"Sorry. I'm usually more chipper when speaking with my kidnappers."
"Man," Sun groaned. "You're not going to let that go, are you?"
Blake could forgive people. She could ally herself with the same people she had once called enemies. If she were being honest with herself Sun didn't even come across as a bad guy. A bit dense, overly friendly, and more immodest than most. Seriously, who strutted around near shirtless around complete strangers? Even Yang had enough decency to clothe herself fully.
Not a bad person though. White Fang, yes, but someone who still appeared to be decent in morals. Maybe she gave him too much credit. They had only just met and she hadn't seen how his cell operated.
Not Adam though. That much she could glean already.
"Hey… Why're you smiling at me now? It's kinda creepy."
Blake flicked one of her ears and grinned. "Oh, no reason."
Civilians made things complicated, but she could work with this. Figure out whether Sun's group could be trusted or not, and in the event they couldn't be…
Well, Yang did enjoy setting things on fire.
Further they went until the tunnel they'd crammed themselves into grew broader. The air remained chilly and crisp but the staleness had begun to wane. Wind whistled and blew in from ahead, flushing out damp, musky air and cooling sweat Blake hadn't realized she'd produced. Light had begun to appear too and they extinguished the few torches they carried as their entourage stepped out into a wide cavern.
Although 'cavern' felt like a disservice. From the twin waterfalls crashing down from holes in the roof above to the effervescent, crystalline pools collecting at their bases, the room itself filled with a fine mist. Warm thanks to the sun's rays spilling in, although Blake was sure it cooled down considerably at night. Pale green ivy flowering with purple blooms crawled across the walls and floor, breaking apart rock after years of stubborn determination, twisting and gnarling solid stone. Whimpering echoes sounded as they walked across the space, her boots gripping the slick stones with surprising ease. They paused at a small river that cleaved the cavern in two, rushing into a dark crevice to their right and vanishing within.
Beautiful in an untouched kind of way. Wholly natural with none of humanity's tampering. Blake walked over to a stalagmite and ran her fingers over the purplish-gray rock…
And stared in awe as wisps danced along her fingertips.
The rock had reacted to her. To her magic. She glanced at the others around her; Ruby and Yang seemed busy talking with some of the civilians while Sun had gone to speak to his comrades. Brushing her hand across the stone again Blake felt the familiar tingle of magic beneath her skin, the eagerness for it to be drawn free and manipulated.
A dagger hissed from its sheath silently and she carefully chipped at the stone, scraping at it until a piece broke off. When a deep purple crystal appeared beneath the surface she wasn't sure whether to smile or worry.
A cave filled with dust right beneath a city. Sprawling stores if every stone around them contained a trace of it. Did Sun and the others know? Perhaps Rhodes had and this was why he'd been so keen to enact a plan here in Pradalia. They could easily arm the city with Dust after showing them its applications, and easily build up an army.
She tried and failed to place the sliver of stone back in place, deciding to just leave it be and keep quiet. The less the White Fang knew of this place the better, she figured.
Arguing had begun, and it didn't take long to find Yang in the center of it. Or that hulking brute Manon opposing her. From the sounds of things they were 'debating' over whether they should help these people or send them elsewhere. What might otherwise be a healthy debate quickly turned into the pair simmering and growling, looking ready to beat, bludgeon, and bloody each other at a moment's notice.
Thankfully, Sun had enough sense to step in and drag back his companion before things could turn ugly. Ruby, his counterpart in their merry band, eased Yang back with soft assurances and a worried look.
Among those they had brought with them there were eight children. Some as young as three or four, Blake realized with horror, and others just breaching teenhood. Too young to be embroiled in any kind of brawl between their two sides. Too vulnerable if any Hunters or Wardens came searching for them.
"Come on, we need to get these people to safety. You two can bark at each other later." Sun waved Silva over, wrapping an arm around the boy's shoulders and pointing to one of the tunnels shooting off the cavern. "Take a peek down there, will ya? Let us know where it comes out. If you see anything or anyone just come running back."
"Got it!"
The young boy took off without so much as a question, silver hair bobbing as he disappeared into the dark mouth just right of the waterfalls. Under the crashing water Blake struggled to listen to his footsteps, grateful that perhaps if he did find anything she wouldn't be able to hear it.
"Manon, check the other tunnels. And please, please don't pick a fight with whatever is inside."
Manon squared his shoulders and frowned. "What makes you think I'd fight?" Sun pointed at Yang, then at Blake, and the hulking man growled in acceptance. "Fine. Don't complain to me if I bring something back here though."
There weren't many other White Fang with them, Blake realized, not if she didn't count the unassuming women and children among them. Families maybe, or just people they were trying to help. With a casual hum she strolled over to Sun, inclining her head towards the group huddling now against an outcropping of smooth, moss-blanketed stones. "What's the story with them, exactly? Servants?"
The White Fang had them. Their own kind, Faunus, forced into servitude in order to support the fighting members. Opal had been one, and an elderly man named Richter had helped maintain their weapons. Either crippled by age, injury, or incompetence, those who couldn't fight were still made to serve the cause.
It made Blake shudder to think what young children might be used for.
"Rescues. People who fled the homes they worked in." Okay, not what she expected to hear. Blake gestured for Sun to continue and followed him as he made his way towards the waterfalls. Mist kissed at her skin and she lowered her ears to keep water from getting inside. "You've probably seen them, yeah? People, Faunus, being forced to do crappy jobs for humans, then getting treated like dirt after it."
"They had been lined up outside of a building earlier to get food. Is that typical?"
"Some houses, not many, but some will feed their help. Most send them to one of those kitchens to get food." Sun sighed, sitting down with his back to the water. He ran a hand through his unruly blonde locks and smiled bitterly. "It's gruel that they feed them. Stale bread, maybe some rotting fruit if they're lucky." His eyes snapped to Blake. "You don't seem surprised."
"It's the same in Vale. Even in the capital where they're supposedly treated better, Faunus are relegated to the slums. They have their own markets, their own places of worship, their own stores." Blake folded her arms and scowled at her flickering reflection in the pools. "I had hoped things might be a little different here. New kingdom, new people, maybe a different mindset. But humans are just as awful in Mistral, aren't they?"
"They can be," Sun admitted. "Not all of them are bad of course. But you got folks who just go with the flow and let things happen. Even the ones who feed and house their staff are guilty of it. Just because you're nice to a slave doesn't change the fact they're a slave."
Slave. Not servants, but slaves. Maybe indentured servitude too, which either way sounded just dreadful. Not uncommon in Vale either; Faunus would be given loans to buy a home, tools, whatever they needed, and then have the interest skyrocket out of nowhere. With no one to turn to for help they had to pay it back somehow, and often that meant selling their services to do so. Blake had seen that plenty of times too to know it happened often. Hells, she'd killed one or two merchants notorious for such a thing.
"So we do what we can to help them. Get those out that we can, get them to leave the city if they're able. Some of them," Sun went on, nodding towards the group nearby, "Still have family here and won't leave until they're reunited. So we find them housing in an abandoned building, somewhere on the outskirts, and protect them until we can. Not exactly easy, you know. You ever taken care of twenty kids before."
Blake's lips twitched upward almost imperceptibly. "Can't say I have."
Sun chuckled, leaning forward and listing off on his fingers. "Between changing nappies, trying to find someone to school them, and house them all? There's all of two places in the city we could put that many people, and your friend there just burned down one of them."
"Not without good reason."
"Yeah, I know. We kinda brought that on ourselves." Sun grinned weakly. "And then there's food. We can't exactly steal from houses and we're not about to steal from the kitchens feeding the workers either. Gets harder and harder, trying to grab stuff from vineyards and farms. They keep hiring more and more guards to protect their stuff."
That she knew all too well too. The same issues had led to them taking food from smaller towns when they could. Not outright raiding, not if they could help it; their lives were much easier when they didn't leave a village a bloody mess.
"Are there other villages nearby?" Blake asked. "Any other towns you could try stealing from?"
Sun heaved a sigh and shook his head. "Nearest one is a day and a half away on foot. We'd never get enough food there and back that way. Not for everyone that needs it."
She figured as much. Her ears swiveled at the sound of approaching footfalls and she nodded to Yang and Ruby as they approached. Unharmed, she tried to convey silently with a small smile. While Ruby seemed to have calmed down Yang continued to glare at Sun. At least her eyes were still lilac, that was a good sign.
"Blake, we should get going. Weiss and Qrow are probably startin' to wonder where we've gone to."
Probably, assuming they had even left the ship yet. Which meant they had time to kill until the rest of their group arrived.
Which meant they had a chance to help.
"I don't want to leave just yet. We should stay with them for now."
She could feel the heat spill of Yang as the blonde sputtered. "What? You want to stay with these jerks now?!" She strode towards Yang and leaned down, putting a finger to his face. "You hit her head or something? How're you guys tricking her?"
Rolling her eyes, Blake's hand shot out and she dragged Yang's back, away from Sun's face. "Yang, no one has done anything to me. I'm choosing to stay and help these people. Them," she nodded towards the families. "They need food and somewhere to go. I can't just ignore their plight, not when I might be able to help."
"Help them?" Yang repeated. A look of surprise turned to one of pure disgust and she shook her head hard enough that her hair whipped. "Blake, they knocked you out and took you! And now you want to help them?"
"I attacked a child, and they didn't do anything to me after they took me." As strange as it felt to argue for someone you were just butting heads with Blake couldn't let that one go. "Not all White Fang are wicked and cruel," she added, eyes sliding to Sun with a faint smile. "Unless you still think I am?"
"Come on, that's not fair and you know it!"
"Am I cold-hearted, Yang? Or am I worth helping?"
It was unfair and Blake knew it. Knew, and said it anyways. Someone who would willingly risk themselves, cooperate with a potential enemy, to help women and children couldn't be all bad. And while she might not be the best judge of character - she had loved Adam once upon a time - she liked to think she'd gotten a decent read on Sun by now. Not Adam. Not even close. That alone would have to be enough until she saw more from Sun.
Enough for her, and hopefully Yang. Her friend still looked put off by the idea and leaned down, wagging a finger in Sun's face, lips pressed. "Give me a reason and I'll make you regret hurting my friend, got me?"
"Yang…" Blake snatched Yang's hand back and rolled her eyes. "I'm capable of protecting myself, but the gesture is appreciated." Patting her friend's hand she looked to Sun once more and smiled. "And that's that."
"Tell us how we can help," Ruby insisted, smiling at Sun.
"Wait, seriously?" Looking surprised by the turn of events Sun balked, blinked a few times, then shot to his feet with a curt laugh. "Okay, uh, wow. You're sure you wanna help? I mean I totally get if you still hate us."
"Not the biggest fan," Yang admitted, sighing as she eased her hand from Blake's and tossed her hair. "But you are helping kids, I guess, so you can't be that bad."
"Right! See, I knew we were all on the same side!" Face split by a grin, Sun punched a fist into his palm and nodded. "Alright, cool. For starters we gotta find these people somewhere to shack up. And we need to get some food for them too. Oh! And we should see about getting them some better clothes too. Something other than dirty rags."
Housing might be too much of an ask for them when they didn't know the city. Clothing seemed easy enough; just grab a few garments off clotheslines and that would do it. All that left then was food.
Blake chewed on her thumbnail as she watched water crash down before her. Farms had food but were guarded. Homes had food but they'd have to steal from several to get enough to feed this group. Not to mention that would be a temporary fix at best. If they wanted to make any meaningful change, they needed to get something that would last a decent while. Large quantities.
Not a farm. Not a home. Not the kitchens either.
"Yang… Remember how we met?"
"Feeling nostalgic, kitty cat?"
Blake snorted, feeling her lips twist despite herself. "Just answer the question."
"Of course I do. It was a starry night, beautiful, like the gods themselves ordained it." Yang sighed dramatically and cupped one of her cheeks. "There I was, the young fiery warrior protecting the town from the wicked White Fang." Her eyes flickered to Sun and she grinned. "She was way, way more interesting than you jerks are."
"Hey, I don't doubt it," Sun laughed. "She's way cooler than Manon is!"
"I think I liked it better when you two were fighting each other." Blake smacked her forehead and sighed. "Do you or don't you remember?"
"'Course I do! You were stealing from that town, yeah? And I saved them, even if they were total dickwads." Yang paused, then grinned and clenched her fists. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Blakey? We recreatin' that magical night?"
"Preferably without you threatening to set me on fire, yes, that's what I had in mind."
Ruby's eyes hadn't stopped flickering between the two of them, furrowed brow and lips downturned. "Are one of you two going to tell me what this is about?"
"Blake and her merry band of ne'er-do-wells were stealing food and junk from this town's storehouse when we met. I stopped 'em," Yang declared proudly. Blake had a brief moment where she considered telling Yang exactly how that had worked out for her in the end but decided against it. No point in making her friend feel guilty, not over something Adam had done. "Hey, Sonny or whatever your name is, I'm guessing this city's got a few storehouses?"
"Sun! And sure it does, a bunch of 'em actually." Sun inclined his head. "Few by the warehouses, a couple along the city walls, and probably one or two by the markets. And I get what you're suggesting, great idea by the way, but there's a reason we've never done it ourselves. You know, aside from having like six people working with me." He held his hands up. "Where do we even put it all? You can't exactly just hide crates and crates of food in a house and expect no one to notice it."
Blake almost groaned, narrowing her eyes at Sun. Stupid in almost a charming kind of way. Like a dumb puppy trying to chase its own tail. "Well," she began slowly, twirling a finger and smiling. "We just so happen to have found ourselves in a cave. A cave that might have tunnels leading to different parts of the city."
Even then it took Sun a moment to catch on. His eyes widened and he gasped, then in a move that made her yelp in surprise he grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "We can hide it down here!"
Brilliant. Truly the future of Faunus-kind. "Yes, Sun, we can hide it down here," Blake said, plucking Sun's hands off her one by one. "Assuming those tunnels can be used."
"If they don't then Manon can just make new ones! He made the one we used to get here, found this place weeks ago. What's a few more tunnels beneath the city?"
Aside from the potential structural failure and sinkholes forming? Nothing. Probably.
"How do we get all of that stuff out though?" Ruby asked, bringing up the Goliath in the room. "You said it yourself, Sun, you guys never did it because you couldn't move that much yourselves. We might be awesome, but we can't help that much."
"Leave that to me, Ruby." Blake smirked, then nodded to Yang. "I can handle transporting the boxes out with a little help, but we'll need someone else to handle the rest of it. If she's up to it."
Yang beamed and flexed her arms. "What do you need me to do? Haul a few boxes? Break down the doors? Oh, need me to rough up the guards?"
"Ignoring your weird enthusiasm for beating up the people protecting this city, no. If this plan goes how it's supposed to then they won't even know we were there, not until they realize all the boxes are gone." Blake reached out and playfully plucked at some of Yang's hair, snatching her hand back before Yang could swat it. "We need a distraction. I was thinking about a little blaze somewhere. Think you can handle that, Wildfire?"
Yang's smile turned positively dangerous as she rolled her shoulders. "There's a lot of things I'm good at, Blake. Cooking, looking badass while fighting, being the coolest big sister on Remnant." She clamped a hand over Ruby's mouth just in case. "I'm also the world's best fire Magi."
Sun's eyebrows shot up and he gaped. "Woah, seriously? The best?"
Oh great, someone to further inflate her ego.
Yang chuckled and held out a palm. Flames formed and flickered, twisting and shifting to her will, reds and blues swirling with green, yellow, and whites. "You know it. Some guys think they're hot stuff but they go cold after two spells. Not me though." Yang grinned toothily and let the flame erupt. "I burn."
/+/+/+/+/+/
Fuck the ocean.
Fuck the gulls that trailed their ship for whatever dumb reason birds did so. Fuck the waves that continued to rock them side to side, threatening to spill over or send her tumbling into them. Fuck the ship's captain for having the gall to give her a hard time. Her. As if he was anyone of importance!
"You know, ginger helps a lot with nausea."
Raven tore her gaze away from the waves long enough to glare at Tai. Glower, as though trying to strike him down with her righteous, indignant fury. His grin grew and she opened her mouth to bark a string of insults; bile rose in her throat and her chest slammed into the wooden rails as she leaned back over them.
"I can go get you some if you'd like?"
And fuck that smarmy, teasing, obnoxious man behind her for no longer feeling threatened by her.
It hadn't taken long either for it to start. One hour out to see and she already had begun to feel off. Weak in the knees, lightheaded, unable to shake a small unsteadiness. Then nausea hit her like a runaway cart and she spent the better part of her waking hours, the last two days aboard the ship, hugging the railing for dear life. Even as children ran across the deck without a care, pausing briefly to gape at the angry woman doubled over the ships edge, they went on as if nothing were amiss. At least the adults had the common sense to leave her the hell alone. She liked to think most people recognized someone dangerous when they saw her.
Raven grimaced and spat into the ocean, coughed, and spat again before groaning and slumping down.
Dangerous? She couldn't walk ten feet on this godsdamned vessel before her legs wanted to give out. She had seen fawns sturdier than she felt. Hells, Yang hadn't been this fragile the day she'd popped out of her, wailing and covered in all manner of disgusting ilk.
When her stomach had settled to a low, bubbling anxiousness Raven allowed herself back from the railing. Taste still lingered on her tongue and she blanched, spitting one last time and forcing herself to stand.
"Here, this might help a bit."
She wanted to smack the mug from Tai's hand, or dump it back on his stupid, smug face. Seeing the genuine concern there though made her reconsider, and to her own horror, she felt obliged to take it. No thanks though. She wouldn't lower herself to become some sniveling, dependent wench just because she had fallen a bit ill.
Liquor burned as it flooded her mouth. Except the container hadn't held liquor, and with a sputter Raven spewed the foul water out and wheezed, finally cleansing her mouth of bile.
"Seriously, do you want ginger?" Tai took a step closer, either oblivious or uncaring as she growled at him. "The cook I spoke to said plain food helps too. Maybe some bread?"
"I am fine, Taiyang. Stop condescending me."
"Condescending?" He followed her as she unsteadily made her way across the deck. Why couldn't he just leave her alone? There were plenty of women on the ship, pretty enough things he could amuse himself with if he wished. She grabbed the door to descend into the ship's belly and scowled when he caught it. "Raven, I know you're not used to it but there's this little thing called 'helping' that I'm trying to do for you."
If fatigue and nausea hadn't sapped her strength she might have thrown Tai overboard for his tone. She might still try. "No, what you are doing is suffocating me. I am fine," she grumbled.
"Oh yes, fine is looking paler than the sails, hugging the rails all day, and barely holding down food." The audacity to roll his eyes at her.
"For a man who wears a dress for work you are surprisingly bold."
"Okay, one, it's called a cassock." Raven didn't care what the fucking thing was called, a dress was a dress. "And two," Tai leaned in and poked her side. Not hard, but still enough to make her cringe away and growl. "Big talk from the bandit queen that can't handle a little ship."
I'll set it on fire. I'll send us all to a watery grave just to spite him.
Raven hissed as she turned on Tai. "Dimurans do not board ships. We live on solid ground, stay on solid ground. What reason would we have to board a ship when our entire lives are centered around the land?"
"It's not a race thing. Just admit you can't handle boats."
Even with her face probably still green and her breath reeking of that morning's breakfast, and last night's dinner, Raven sneered. "Perhaps it's you I cannot handle. You haven't left me since we departed."
To try and make her point clearer she stormed into the stairwell, gripping the railing and leaning against the wall as she descended. Lower. She'd go to her room and sit by the window, that would help. Being above deck only made things worse.
Hearing Tai following her still made things worse too.
"I will kill you if you don't leave me the hells alone, you prune-dicked twat."
He laughed. Laughed at her insulting him! Raven scowled and paused at the landing to glower back, baring her teeth when he grinned right back at her.
"I can't believe I married that mouth of yours."
Raven blamed the incessant illness that kept ravaging her, for she opened that same mouth a second later and said, "As I recall, you rather liked this mouth of mine." Her eyes flickered down and a sly, predatory smile appeared.
Teasing. Innocent teasing, anything to get her mind off how miserable she felt in the moment. Yet when Tai's face went red she felt her own cheeks heat up as well. Then her mind decided to be cute and try to torment her even more Memories she hadn't considered in a while came back to her and she felt her anger dilute, tempering itself on something else. Something unwelcome.
The sounds of a young girl's laughter filling their tiny cottage. The scent of pines on the wind, the sizzling of food first thing in the morning. A warm body against her own, his scent in her hair, her clothes.
Raven missed the punch, but she still sent Tai stumbling back, barking a laugh as he fell backwards, tripping over the stairs.
"What was that for?" he whined.
Much better. Fighting with him felt much nicer than revisiting… Whatever that had been.
"For being an eternal pain in my ass."
"Again, it's called 'helping'," Tai corrected her as he picked himself up. He rubbed his tailbone with a wince and followed her down until they reached the ship's rooms, twelve doors spread evenly to their left and right along a narrow hall. "Seriously though, do you want something for the nausea? Or are you just going to keep being stubborn?"
"That depends," Raven mused as she marched towards their shared room. One room. Another instance of her not being able to get away from him. "Do you plan to keep on being a nuisance?"
"Until you finally get over your pride and let me help, yes, I do."
Rolling her eyes hard enough they threatened to spill out of her skull Raven pushed open the door and slipped inside. She didn't bother trying to close it on Tai since she knew he'd come in anyways, so instead she went right to her bed and threw herself into it. Cool, somewhat musky blankets greeted her and she breathed in their scent, feeling her stomach settle and muscles relax. That's all she needed, a comfortable bed to rest on and clear her mind…
"Uh, Raven? That's my bed."
Lightning couldn't move as swiftly as she did at that moment. She didn't dare look at him as she shot to her feet and marched right to her own bed. It creaked as she flung herself into it, rolling so her back faced him, and she folded her arms and closed her eyes, feeling like she'd just been set on fire.
No scent. No warmth. The sheets were somewhat itchy and a strand of fiber tickled at her nose. Much better.
She had no words to silence the laughter that erupted from behind her. Instead she ground her teeth until her jaw ached, twisting the sheets and silently deliberating again if incinerating the ship would be worth it. Except there were children aboard. And as much of a bitch as she might act like, as awful as some people thought she might be, she wouldn't kill children. Never children.
Just abandon them and leave them to struggle on their own, right?
Raven snuffed out the insubordinate voice in her mind that questioned her as Tai's laughter continued. A voice that had gotten louder since they had set off together. Her conscience, she supposed. Something that she felt certain she had strangled to death years ago.
"Make yourself useful and get me some ginger!" she barked, keeping her back to Taiyang, shoulders curled in.
"Oh, now you're accepting my help?"
The blanket in her hand ripped and Raven wrinkled her nose, hissing out air. "I'm ordering you to get me medicine. There's a difference."
"Alright, alright, just wait here and I'll come right back." Except he didn't leave, not right away. Raven finally turned when she heard something thud on the floor beside her bed, narrowing her eyes at the wooden bucket. "In case you feel like emptying your guts again," Tai explained, smirking.
"Just go already!"
Chuckling, Tai stepped back, hands raised in surrender. While he left she could finally have some peace and quiet, time to herself to think. Beyond trying to reach Mistral and find the girls again they hadn't given much to planning. Tai had assured her it would fall into place naturally. Raven preferred not leaving so much to chance.
At the doorway Tai paused and turned back to her. "Do you want some bread too?"
Her stomach answered with a growl before she could even open her mouth. Raven huffed and gave a curt nod. "Yes, I'll take bread."
"Yes…?"
A pregnant pause between them. Raven lifted her head and stared at Taiyang confused, furrowing her brow at his expectant stare. "What?"
"You want bread." She nodded again. Hadn't she been clear on that? "What do you say? Yes… What?"
"..."
You have got to be kidding me. Do I look like a child to him? Curled up on the bed as she was, sickly and tired, she probably did. He can rot in hells before I ever say that!
Taiyang folded his arms and remained in the threshold, arching an eyebrow at her. "I'm waiting."
"No."
"I'm not leaving until I hear it."
"No," Raven repeated again. Then her stomach growled and she felt a small pang. She hadn't been eating much since this whole fiasco began and if she vomited again, when she vomited again, it would probably be better to have something in her stomach.
"Raven," Tai called, his voice taking on that obnoxious fatherly tone she expected he'd used on Yang and Ruby growing up. Heat returned to her face but she continued to stare him down. "Say it and I'll get your bread."
"And ginger," she said sharply.
"Yes, and your ginger. And water, and whatever else you need." His smile warmed, blue eyes twinkling as he cupped one of his ears and leaned forward. "Go on, say it."
Raven considered the self control she had been exerting on this trip to be impressive. She hadn't killed Oobleck on the docks, hadn't killed the captain or his crew, and she didn't leap out of bed and throttle Tai for being a smug little bastard in that moment. "P-Please," she whispered.
"Please what?"
You cocky little... "Please get me my fucking food!"
Smiling, Taiyang nodded and pushed himself off the door frame. "Almost, but good enough for now. Sit tight, I'll be right back, okay?"
As though she could go anywhere in her current state. Raven made sure to give Tai's back a vulgar gesture before laying her head back down once he'd left. The boat continued to dance around her, rising, and sinking with the ebb and flow of the ocean. At least their room sat at the water's level, and from here she could watch the water lap at their window harmlessly, peeking over the porthole occasionally like a shy voyeur.
Better, but as Raven felt her stomach lurch with the ship her eyes widened, and she scrambled to grab the bucket at her bedside. She barely had it to her face before her mouth opened and her shoulders shuddered, curling up and groaning as her stomach once more relieved itself.
With tears in her eyes and her throat burning she coughed, spat, and slammed the bucket down on the floor. She hated this. Hated every godsdamned second aboard this floating piece of rotting wood!
"Fuck this ship!"
Had a wee bit more I could have put to this chapter, more I could've said at certain parts to flesh out some developments, but given how long this one already is - it's around 9k words where my latest I've tried to keep to 5k or 6k, I figured slimmer worked okay here. Hopefully. I'll judge its success by the number of pitchforks and torches that appear in my window later.