"We can almost get outta here!"
One of the doctors had finally given them the okay to be discharged. Although it was only a week, it felt like an eternity to Ruby. She was antsy and restless.
The Thorns had been confined to a single bland, white room. Since they were still Vacuo, technology wasn't up to par with some places like Atlas. Despite that, the nurses and doctors did their best to treat the troublesome crew.
Once the Thorns had recovered their aura after the big fight, healing came much easier.
The battle against Sienna was long and grueling, doing a number on the crew. At least they emerged victoriously. That made all the injuries worth it. The notorious Khan leader was finally dead. Countless numbers of faunus were free.
"Settle down, dunce," Weiss lightly chided. "You don't want to reopen your wounds."
If Ruby could, she would've ran miles already. Eagerly, she bounced up and down.
"I'm just so excited!" Ruby chirped. "The Howling Thorn is calling our names for another adventure!"
Weiss wanted to be frustrated with her girlfriend. She really did. Ruby should be worrying about her health. Despite herself, Weiss smiled.
"I can hear the waves already," Weiss said fondly, setting a hand on her shoulder.
Ruby held her hand. She took note that one of her girlfriend's arms was still in a sling. It should be back to normal in another week. Currently, Ruby was almost fully healed. A scar was carved into her shoulder from the stab from Neo.
On the other side of the room sat Yang. She refrained from too much movement since her ribs still bothered her sometimes. Certain movements caused her abdomen to feel like it was being stabbed by a knife.
"We could buy sweets to celebrate when we get outta here, Rubes," Yang beamed a grin. "I think we've earned it."
Nowadays, sweets were hard to come by. At least at a cheap price. They definitely weren't a top priority, but they could make an exception.
Wanting to be next to her girlfriend, Blake sat by her. "How're you feeling today?"
"Still sore," the blonde answered honestly. "It's nothin' I can't handle."
"Do you want me to get you anything?" Blake asked.
Since Blake received cuts and a deep gash from the fight, her injuries had mostly healed. Aside from the new, long scar on her leg. Yang's were internal, so they required more time.
"I need my daily dose of Blake," Yang said evenly.
After rolling her eyes, Blake lightly pecked her lips.
That made Yang light up brighter than the sun. "Wow. The pain is gone!"
"Don't be so dramatic," Blake smirked.
A yell stole their attention. Definitely Ruby.
"I need it now!"
A red whirlwind streaked across the entire room. During the mayhem, several blankets were thrown off the beds. Utensils flew and a few older computers almost tore from the outlets. When the crimson streak headed for the door, Qrow promptly blocked the line of path.
Abruptly, Ruby halted and looked up to her uncle. "Aw, come on!"
"One more day, troublemaker," Qrow said as he leaned onto his crutches. "And don't do that again! You tryin' to make me pay for any broken equipment?!"
Since Qrow had a broken leg, Ruby could easily sail past him. But she supposed being with her crew was more important than sweets. For now.
Now, the room was littered with rose petals and was a complete mess.
Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose. "She hasn't even had coffee."
"I drink milk," Ruby said knowingly.
"I've never seen you drink milk."
"Irrelevant!" Ruby quipped.
Before Weiss could retort, the door slid open. It was so sudden that Qrow stumbled forward, being caught by his niece. Without warning, eight people poured into the room. The four brothers and Juniper crew.
"Woah, it's a party!" Yang beamed. "Who brought the music?!"
"Darnit!" Nora yelped. "Why didn't I think of that?!"
Confused, Ren glanced around. "Did a tornado rip through here?"
"Basically, yes," Blake confirmed.
Neptune gave them a twinkling grin. "We wanted to check on you ladies."
"And let you know what's goin' on!" Sun finished. "Woah, you guys have seen better days."
Scowling, Weiss asked. "What do you want to tell us?"
"It's the Khans," Jaune informed with happiness in his tone. "They're-"
"-finished!" Nora cut him off. "Done for! Good riddance!"
Dumbfounded, Yang asked. "What?"
"Lots of faunus are leaving the Khans," Jaune said. "So many are leaving that there are sales for cover-up tattoos all around Vacuo."
From the news, Blake's cat ears perked up. She could definitely take advantage of that. She despised her Khan tattoo. If she could replace it, she would in a heartbeat.
"Really?" Blake asked like she couldn't believe it.
"Yeah, I even got one," Scarlet chipped in. "I didn't have a Khan tattoo before, but still a regrettable one. They'll help anyone."
Yang sent her girlfriend a smile. "You could totally get a new one to cover that up."
"Yeah," the faunus said happily.
Finally, she wouldn't have to go out of her way to hide her arms in public. She could proudly display whatever new creation she picked.
Sun finished giving them the news. "We also destroyed that hideout we were at. And there's no sight of Neo. I think she left Vacuo altogether."
Qrow nodded from the information. "Let's hope it stays that way. She has no one to kidnap for anymore."
Again, the door slid open. An unexpected visitor walked in.
"Win?" Weiss called like she was seeing things.
Yang stared at the new arrival. "Please tell me you brought music."
"I did not," Winter replied and hugged Weiss tightly.
Everyone in the room watched the embrace, adorning smiles. It was a long-awaited reunion.
"I'm sorry," Weiss murmured as she returned the hug.
"Why on Remnant are you apologizing?" Winter whispered. "You came back safe and sound."
"Father didn't."
"You are not to blame, Weiss. His own greediness caught up to him," Winter said solemnly as she met her downcast gaze. "We've prepared a proper burial for him. You are welcome to attend the funeral, but I understand if you chose not to."
Ultimately, Weiss knew she would attend. She wanted to show him some respect one last time. After all, one of their last interactions was her throwing him onto the ground.
"We tried to save him, but we were too weak…" Weiss mumbled, her voice almost breaking.
A complete lack of aura endangered their own lives. With no aura, it was impossible to perform aura transfer. And by the time backup arrived, it was too late.
Reassuringly, Winter set a hand on her shoulder. "Trying is all you can do."
After a sniffle, another person walked into the room. None other than general Ironwood stood tall and smiled from the heartwarming sisterly sight. The sisters separated to address him.
"This is the best hospital in Vacuo, but it's not up to my standards."
Qrow sighed from his arrival. "Why're you here, James? I might be able to tolerate two ice queens, but not you."
Despite that jab, Ironwood ignored him. "Your crew is in this condition because of me. I came to give you the reward money. I've confirmed that Adam Taurus and Sienna Khan are officially deceased."
"No duh," Yang said obviously. "It's not like they were fake bodies."
Gently, Blake nudged her shoulder.
"You think we were tryin' to con you or something?" Qrow asked, unamused.
"You deserve every gold of this," the general cleared his throat.
Casually, Ironwood tossed a bag of money to Ruby. He also dropped several more onto the floor as loud clinks echoed.
Happily, Ruby caught the bag and peeked inside. "Wow. This is all one million?!"
"A million?!" the room repeated in unison.
"Eheheh," Ruby rubbed the back of her head. "We'll split it with everyone who helped, of course."
"You sure, Ruby?" Sun asked. "You guys did way more than us."
"If you guys didn't help, the Khan reinforcements would have gotten to us," the captain stated and looked to the Juniper crew. "We might've died out there if you guys didn't come along and bring us here."
"If you're sure," Jaune said.
"Positive!"
With this much money, the possibilities were endless.
Ren's mind was swarming. "I'm going to buy a new book series."
Nora sent him a grin. "You can buy way more than one!"
"We need more fish," Blake said, already drooling.
"We need more games!" Ruby insisted.
Qrow casually looped an arm around Ruby's shoulders. "Let's fix the Howling Thorn first."
"I'll buy the alcohol," Yang volunteered.
Qrow briefly pointed to Yang and winked, glad she got that covered.
Winter sighed and said sarcastically. "Glad to see your crew has their priorities in order."
"She's totally right guys, how could we forget?" Ruby asked them, which earned confused expressions. "We need to get the cookies first!"
Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose. "You bunch of dunces."
MOOOOONAY! Buy whatever the hell ya'll want you deserve it!
Stay dandy,
~Toto
