Quick forewarning: Things get just a little bit spicy before the end of this chapter.
… …
… …
… …
Whitley didn't dare let his mind wander before they were safe, if any place in this world could be called 'safe' anymore. If his own Father had declared him dead, where else could he go?
He and the Faunus woman – Sienna, she was called – slowly made their way through the enemy base wearing the uniforms of their guards. He moved as naturally as he could, even though his entire body still hurt from their last beating only an hour ago. Oddly, the pain seemed to diminish as the weeks went by. Perhaps he was just getting used to it.
Sienna never once bothered to check behind her to see if he was keeping up. She'd made it clear that if he didn't pull his own weight, he would be left behind while she escaped this place. Whitley didn't have to be told twice.
More than once his body sagged, weary from his ordeals… but he powered on through sheer willpower. He would prove that a Schnee could… endure…
No. Whitley was no longer a Schnee. Father had made that point rather vividly.
The boy bit his tongue to stay focused as Sienna made her way through one final door, leaving it open long enough for him to slip through behind her.
A massive cave stood open to the night sky, filled with half a dozen Bullheads. The woman made a beeline for the closest one, checked to see if anyone was watching them, then opened the side doors and climbed inside. Whitley tried to follow, but his legs gave out – a strong hand darted out and caught his, pulling him into the cabin easily.
Sienna closed the door, then whipped off her mask and took a deep breath. Whitley did the same a moment later.
He really wanted to change, and soon. These clothes smelled like wet dog.
"How are you feeling?" The woman asked in a low voice. The dim cabin lights were barely enough to see by, yet she moved naturally through the darkness to check the instrument panels at the pilot's seat. When she turned to face him, her golden yellow eyes seemed to glow in the dark.
"Tired," he replied with a sigh. "Very tired. In a lot of ways."
Her eyes narrowed as she considered his answer. Whitley had to admit that for a Faunus, Sienna Khan was clearly an incredible specimen – smart, cunning, and strangely pretty for someone with cat-like ears on her head.
Sienna then turned to move a few boxes in the cabin, as this particular transport was clearly intended to move cargo. She cleared a narrow gap and said, "You can rest in this space for now. Cover yourself with this sheet so no one finds you. Lay still and keep quiet."
"Aren't we leaving?"
"We will. Soon." The Faunus replied, her voice taking on an icy tone as she looked back towards the door. "There's something I need to take care of first, then we can go. Stay hidden there in case anyone pokes their head inside." She reached for the door handle.
"How do I know you'll come back?" Whitley spoke before he could stop himself. "There's nothing stopping you from leaving me here and taking one of the other transports to escape on your own…"
Sienna stood quietly for several moments, and Whitley was briefly afraid she would do the very thing he had accused her of planning. She then turned back to him, her eyes glaring and hard. They almost appeared to glitter.
"You set me free, boy. I intend to return the favor." Sienna lifted her hand, showing the rectangular lines where his torture device once sat embedded in her flesh.
In that moment, Whitley realized that his earlier fears were foolish – this woman could be trusted.
He'd never really listened to his gut before, but now was a good time to start. "Very well. My life is in your hands." He was too weary to speak further, nor was he in any state to demand a pillow.
Sienna nodded, then gestured towards the opening she'd made. Whitley quickly took off his stolen uniform – gladly, one might note – and carefully slipped into the space. Sleep rapidly began to take him as his body relaxed.
Just before he slipped away, Whitley felt the Faunus woman pulling a sheet over his weary body. He also felt fingers gently brush his disheveled hair from his face, almost in a motherly fashion.
His last thought before falling asleep was: I shouldn't have undressed in front of her. That was… inappropriate.
… …
… …
… …
Sienna went about her business with only half a mind on her work.
She knew where to go – living as an outcast among her own people gave her a level of autonomy that few were aware of, letting her come and go as she pleased without incident. She knew access codes into every room of the base, and those she didn't could be entered with a card key attached to her stolen uniform. There were a total of 8 Dust storage rooms on the base, and she automatically went to each one and… 'prepared' them for her departure.
The other half of her mind was on the boy. Whitley. Son of the sworn enemy of all Faunus.
A boy she was willing to save. A boy who went against everything she thought she knew about humans.
He was the only human who'd ever shown her kindness.
Almost two months had passed since they'd brought him here, unconscious and bruised up from his kidnapping. He'd made it clear from the beginning that he was going to be just as stubborn and headstrong as a Schnee was meant to be, but before all of that… he'd asked Sienna if the device was hurting her. The first words he was able to speak had been about someone other than himself.
Thinking back on it, that was the moment Sienna had chosen to help him endure what was to come.
Whitley had proven, in only 3 words, that even a Schnee could think beyond himself. Could actually care about others, even his own captors.
That meant something. It had to.
Because if it didn't, then she was making a big mistake in taking him with her.
… …
… …
Half an hour later, it was done. Both she and the base were ready for their departure. Sienna had made peace with the fact that she was throwing away any and all lingering ties with the White Fang in this moment. It didn't matter anymore.
She climbed into the waiting Bullhead, made sure the boy was still there, then started up the vehicle. The radio buzzed with a confused voice from the control room, but she muted it. Nothing was standing in their way now.
In addition to 'preparing' the Dust rooms, Sienna had also taken the time to disable all defensive cannons on the sea side of the base – in the event any guards were actually paying attention, they would still be unable to shoot down the fleeing Bullhead. No tow cables or shields could be deployed on such short notice. They were home free.
The Bullhead gained altitude quickly, leaving behind a facility that would, if left alone, likely send a pursuit party after them before sunrise.
Sienna pulled out a radio transmitter from her pocket and hit the button. She put on a feral grin as she heard the distant rumble of heavy explosions rocking the entire mountain.
The White Fang wasn't going anywhere tonight. Or for the next year, if she was lucky.
… …
… …
… …
By the time he woke up, Whitley wasn't sure if they'd even left yet. The vehicle was quiet and cold beneath him.
In fact, it was very cold. Downright freezing.
Whitley carefully sat up, keeping the sheet wrapped around him, and looked around to see if the woman was still here. He found her sitting on a crate nearby, staring into space and quietly mumbling to herself. It was a bit creepy, to be honest. The windows at the cockpit glowed white and he heard strong winds coming from outside. A snowstorm?
"Get dressed. We need to reach a supply depot a few miles away from here before we can move again. Low on fuel." Sienna spoke in a strange tone, like she wasn't quite sure what she was saying. "I think there's a town nearby if we need to lay low. Lay low. A town. Few miles away…?"
"Sienna…?" Whitley was getting a bit unnerved by her erratic behavior. He was still willing to trust her, but something was off. A possible side effect of having that device attached to her for so long?
She shook her head briefly, seemingly coming back to her senses for a moment. "Sorry. A lot on my mind. We do need to move, though."
Whitley nodded and stood up, this time trying to keep the sheet up and around his shoulders while he slipped his pants back on. He let it fall once they were secure, but still noticed a pair of golden yellow eyes staring at his back as he put on the rest of the clothes.
He tried not to blush as he realized how many times he'd casually dropped his trousers to use the bucket in his cell… while she watched.
Now is not the time to dwell on that! Stay focused!
"May I ask you a question?" Her tone was informal as she spoke with a bit more confidence than before.
Whitley paused, his jacket halfway buttoned.
"Why exactly did you free me?"
That was a good question, and one that had many possible answers. The most likely one, and the one she would probably expect, was that he was facing his own death – so why not do it? He knew the code to shut the device down, and it would have made little difference if she'd fled or killed them both in a blood frenzy once freed. No major loss in either case.
In truth, however, there was a different reason. A far simpler one.
"I made a choice… and for the first time in my life, I chose to do something against what my Father would have wanted. It felt… … … good."
He turned and met Sienna's gaze with his own, surprising himself by not flinching or looking away. They stared at each other for almost a full minute as the winds outside continued howling.
Finally he added, using the very words she had said to him at the beginning, "'It is a small act of defiance, but… it is all I can do.'"
Sienna turned away, her face unreadable. She seemed upset, but also… happy? He couldn't really tell from this angle…
"That is enough, I suppose. Come, this storm will only get worse after dark, and we have a long way to go."
"Can we not wait here until morning? I will surely freeze to death out there. Where are we, anyway?"
"An old, unused airstrip on an empty peninsula of Solitas. We are close to a supply drop and far enough from Atlas to remain unnoticed. It was the best I could do on such short notice – these Bullheads are always kept at a low fuel level until an official departure, which we… missed."
"Then do we at least have any warmer clothes among this cargo? This uniform is not the highest quality…"
"You have your Aura to protect you, boy. Use that."
Whitley scoffed at the notion that he could use such an advanced technique on his own. If it was that easy to use the tool of Huntsmen, everyone would be doing it. Such a thing was… beneath his… station…
Gods dammit, now he had to learn.
"I don't know how to use it, or if I even have it," he finally said with a frown. "What must I do?"
The woman walked over and put her hand close to his chest without touching him. She quietly said, "It is stronger than before, but still locked away. I'll have to release it."
Whitley swallowed hard. "Does that mean… I'll be a proper Huntsman? One of those barbarians?"
Sienna smirked, "Of course not, foolish boy. It takes months of practice to master even the most fundamental techniques and, for some, years to discover your Semblance. All I'm doing is drawing out the power of your soul – it knows what to do from there. What you do with it after that is up to you."
The Faunus woman raised her other hand, putting one on his head and the other over his heart. He watched as her body began to glow with a pale orange light, which he guessed was the Aura she was talking about. The mysterious light that was supposed to protect Huntsmen from the Creatures of Grimm. Or something.
She began to speak, and her words echoed deep inside Whitley's head:
…
"For it is in victory that we claim honor.
Through this we receive the glory that is our due,
and ally and enemy shall fear our names.
Infinite in potential and unburdened by destiny,
I release your soul,
and join you in the hunt."
…
Something warm flowed into him, like a mist on a hot morning, and the warmth slowly spread across his entire body. The small aches and pains he still had from the previous day suddenly… faded away. He felt stronger, but not inhumanly so – he wasn't suddenly able to pick up this Bullhead with his bare hands or anything – he simply felt better than he had in weeks. Years, even.
As she pulled back, Whitley looked down at his hands and found them wrapped in a new and strange light – it was a faded slate color, the pale gray of a midday rain.
This was… his Aura…?
"Now you are ready," Sienna said with a tired smile. "That should hold until we stop for the night, then I'll walk you through the basics of how to call it forth once again. Come, we need to find shelter before nightfall."
… …
… …
… …
Sienna was never a cold weather kind of woman. She'd grown up in and around the jungle of Menagerie – before she ever left the island, her only experience with 'cold' was the ice in the drinks over in town. The idea that she would ever find herself walking waist-deep in literal frozen rainwater was beyond imagining.
This wasn't quite that bad, but it was close enough. Seeing her own breath cloud up in her face was… disconcerting.
The cold actually didn't bother her, as her Aura kept her protected from it. If anything, she felt a bit hot and had to open her jacket to try and cool off. The boy seemed alright, but his newly awakened power didn't automatically give him a warrior's stamina – he had to stop for a break several times before they got very far. During these breaks he would bend over, hands to his knees… with his backside jutting out.
And every time he did, Sienna's control was strained closer and closer to the breaking point.
Several months with that device attached to her wrist was several months in which Sienna was unable to release her… private urges. Needless to say… she was really, really backed up. There was no other way to put it. It wasn't quite so bad when she was first freed, as she had a target to kill and an outlet for her primal rage, but now… now…
Now she was alone. In the wilderness. With a healthy but naive young man.
And it didn't matter that he was a human; he had what all males possessed and up until now he'd shown no hesitation in dropping his pants and showing it off. Even though she was under the influence of the torture device, that was more teasing than most woman could stand. The only thing that stopped her from pouncing on him back when he stripped on the Bullhead was her laser-focus on getting them out of there.
She also decided that she was becoming somewhat fond of the boy. And he, too, seemed comfortable around her. If she lost control and took what she wanted, she knew it would jeopardize what little friendship they'd formed.
As they walked, Sienna started checking around rocks and behind dense trees to see if any Creatures of Grimm were in the area. Maybe if she could tear some monsters apart, she might let loose a few of these urges in a way that wouldn't leave her completely alone out here. Whitley would surely flee if she tried to act on her more… base instincts.
Dammit. Nothing. Either Grimm didn't frequent this part of the continent or Sienna's growls were scaring them away. The boy was certainly keeping his distance. Damn it all.
And gods above, if he dropped his pants in front of her one more time… she'd have to start thinking of names for their cubs. Gah!
… …
… …
… …
As it turned out, what Sienna considered 'a few miles' was vastly different to what Whitley expected. They ended up walking for what felt like hours before they found anything other than snow. Maybe it was the extreme weather (which he was unused to, even after living in Atlas all his life), or maybe it was the lingering pain of being abandoned by the only man he'd ever looked up to. Either way, Whitley tried not to think about things too much. That road would lead only to darkness.
He also tried not to stare at his companion, a Faunus woman (who apparently had no issue with exposing most of her cleavage) and former High Leader of his family's antagonists.
No, they were against the Schnees, not him. He no longer belonged to that family.
He wasn't worth the effort.
Instead he tried to focus on this new warm sensation within him. His Aura. He'd heard about the abilities of Huntsmen for his entire life, and despite his Father's intentions, Whitley always envied those men. They had the power to shape their own destiny. He did not.
But things were different. It may not be worth much, but Whitley possessed that power now. And he no longer lived under the dominance of Jacques Schnee.
By the time evening came, they'd found the town Sienna had mentioned – but it wasn't much of a town. It had been abandoned before it was even finished, but thankfully one building had been completed before the snow drove everyone away. They had their shelter. And as luck would have it, the place even had a spot for a fire and some old firewood chopped and ready.
Sienna used part of her weapon, a chain whip with three Dust projectiles at the tip, to light the firewood. He watched her work with a sense of wonder – how could she carry on like this? Even though Whitley had been subject to the torment of his captors, at least he didn't have that device attached to him for possibly months. He also hadn't experienced losing the support of an entire group-
Oh. Yes he did.
That made it even stranger that she could carry on like nothing had happened.
Eventually they sat around the fire while the blizzard continued howling outside. Sienna had found a few old stores of canned food in another building, so they at least had something to eat (and it tasted great). The original settlers didn't even bother taking their things with them when they fled, so Whitley discovered a small treasure trove of supplies in their little sanctuary – among which were two very nice sleeping bags. They were still nowhere near as nice as the silk sheets he'd grown used to over the years, but compared to the prison cell of the White Fang, it was the highest luxury.
"What will you do now?" The Faunus woman asked once she'd finished her supper. They sat on opposite sides of the fire from each other, both gazing into the flames to watch the wood burn away.
"I… I'm not sure," Whitley answered with total honesty. "A part of me still wishes to go home, but… … … I don't think I can."
"Not after your own Father declared you as dead. And to the entire world, no less," Sienna sighed. "It seems we're not so different, you and I."
Whitley chuffed. "No, we are nothing alike. I am dead in the eyes of my Father, but all you have to do is march back to your people and take command once again."
"If it were that easy, I would have done it already!" she suddenly snapped, causing him to recoil. She'd been so passive lately that he forgot how fierce the woman could be. "That man… Adam Taurus… has taken both of our lives away from us. If I marched back to my people, they would simply have me shot."
Whitley blinked, "Surely there would be some who would support you…?"
Sienna sighed again, poking the fire with a stick. "It is a nice thought, but not one I would place much faith into. The entire world has seen footage of my sins, without exception. My fate was sealed all at once – no one in the world would take me in now."
"No Faunus… but perhaps humans…?"
This caused the Faunus woman to burst out in a bitter chuckle. "Humans? Take in the very woman who formed the White Fang? Are you out of your mind?!"
Whitley looked back down at the fire, his face hot. He hadn't considered that issue. Their conversation died out as the wind picked up speed, causing the frame of their shelter to rattle.
The warmth of the fire, combined with the presence of food in his stomach, was starting to drag him back to the land of sleep. However, he needed to ask something first, "How are you feeling now that the device is off?"
"Alive," she replied instantly. "I was like a walking corpse while it affected me, and once it released… I came alive again. I hadn't felt so good since the days of my youth."
"You had it on for several months, right? There had to be side effects…"
Sienna considered for a moment, then started pinching herself on the arms and face. "Now that you mention it, I'm still numb. All over. I thought it was only temporary, but… nothing. I didn't even feel the cold."
"That's your body over-compensating for the effect of the device," Whitley nodded. "It was never tested for such long-term use, so there's no way to be sure what kind of effect it would leave behind. I would guess… you should be back to normal in… no more than two days."
When he looked back up, Sienna was looking… past him. Her eyes had gone eerily blank and she was mumbling again. Whitley had a flash of unease, no longer certain if he wanted to rest in the same room as a woman who didn't feel any physical sensations anymore. The strain on her mind must have been tremendous.
Had it been… too much? Had it broken her mentally before it broke her physically?
In a moment that sent a chill down his spine, Whitley saw Sienna's eyes… change. The normally round pupils became vertical slits that opened wide. A predator's eyes.
And they fixed on him.
She squeezed her eyes shut, pressing her hands against her head like something was about to burst out of it, and started muttering "no" over and over. Whitley, now concerned for the well-being of his companion, scooted around the fire to try and help, but her outstretched hand stopped him from getting too close. When she looked up again, her eyes had returned to normal… though the rest of her was still writhing.
"I… I… I need… please… don't… oh gods!"
Her breathing was getting faster and her face, oddly, was starting to flush. One hand drifted away from her head and… started wandering downwards. Whitley looked away quickly, wondering if he should walk outside for a few minutes to give her some privacy.
And then, all of a sudden, Sienna simply fell over. She puked up all the food she'd just eaten, then lay still.
Whitley was up in a moment and by her side, checking for any wounds she may have picked up while she'd been outside in the snow. What he found was that the woman was dreadfully cold, even after sitting before the fire for a few hours. Her breathing was labored and her body was starting to shiver violently. Looking closer, her fingers were starting to turn a much darker color than her already dark skin tone.
Her Aura must have given out back when she used it to unlock his. After that she simply didn't feel the biting cold of the blizzard due to her numbness and left herself exposed. She was probably on the brink of death right now.
Whitley, formerly of the Schnee family, had no knowledge of how to survive in the wilds. Father had made sure they lived in perfect comfort his entire life. Yet even so, he had caught a glimpse of a technique that might let him save this woman – it was part of a movie he'd seen once, in secret, that featured characters in this exact scenario.
His face grew even hotter as he realized what he was about to do. It didn't matter that she was a Faunus… he'd started to see her as a woman first. Sienna Khan was actually rather… stunning. She may have done something worrying just now, but that didn't change the fact that he owed her his life.
And now… … … gods above… … … she needed body heat. His body heat. And if he did nothing, she would be dead before morning.
Thankfully she'd fallen unconscious. Stepping around her mess, he quickly and carefully moved her into one of the sleeping bags, got her out of her uniform (a memory he would bear for the rest of his life), then stripped and crawled in behind her (he didn't dare try to sleep face-to-face with her).
Oh, gods… she was so damn cold!
And soft.
He'd seen glimpses around her clothes, but Whitley was startled to discover that Sienna's skin bore tiger-like stripes all over – back, arms, legs, everything. At first he thought it might've been tattoos, but looking closer he realized it was her skin. Incredible.
Dammit, dammit, dammit… this was going to be a very long night.
… …
… …
… …
Sienna
slowly came
back to her senses,
crawling out of the cold,
inky darkness of her mind an
inch at a time. There was warmth ahead,
calling out to her. Beckoning her. She could
actually feel it now.
She awoke to find the boy asleep pressed up against her back, in the same sleeping bag.
And they were both… well… nude.
She knew what he was doing, of course. While there were plenty of other ways to help someone recover from severe hypothermia, this was probably the only method an untrained human could pull off. It was risky, but effective – one could easily lose too much of their own heat trying to restore someone else's. She was mildly impressed that he was willing to try it at all.
Sienna blinked as she realized how nice this felt. She liked it. And not the feral, animalistic side of herself that had tried to take over her mind earlier, but… her own mind. Once again, Whitley Schnee was demonstrating that even a member of that family could put someone else first.
She also noticed the faint trace of the boy's Aura in direct contact with her own. That was unexpected – somehow the boy was instinctively using his new Aura to aid in restoring hers. That would also explain why her mind was more subdued than before; it seemed the young Schnee had a calming influence on her.
The fire was still burning, but it wouldn't last much longer. The boy was fully asleep, arms around her waist and snoring lightly into her hair. The body heat was a bit more comforting than she wanted to admit, mainly because it came from a human. Especially from his… lower regions. If not for her total exhaustion, Sienna would not have passed up this opportunity. Luckily for him, she was far too tired. Must've drained more of her Aura than she thought.
This was the second time she'd had to share body heat to get through a cold night, but the last time was with… Sierra. They were the same age the boy was now. Their Father had taken them to a high mountain in Mistral and they all found out the hard way how cold the water of a mountain lake really was. It was one of her fondest memories of her life before the White Fang.
No winds howled from outside, but the windows were still dark. Sienna gently placed her hand over Whitley's and closed her eyes again, letting herself drift away into a more peaceful rest.
"Thank you," she whispered.
She dreamed of her sister that night, for the first time in years.
… …
… …
… …
["Yes?"]
"Good evening, sir. Sorry to bother you, but I needed to clarify the terms of that notice you posted…"
[*sigh* "I thought I was clear enough. What do you need to know?"]
"First off; most bounty notices state the phrase 'Dead or Alive' in regards to the target. Yours did not. Was this a mistake, or…?"
["There was no mistake."]
"Understood. Second; what would be acceptable proof? Do you want his head? The entire body?"
["Photographic evidence will be more than enough. In fact, I would prefer you completely dispose of the remains when you're done."]
"Understood."
["Was there anything else?"]
"No, sir. I've found their trail, so I'll contact you again in a few days… when I'm finished."
[*click*]
… …
… …
… …
Just as a quick note, the chant Sienna uses to unlock Whitley's Aura was based on the one Pyrrha used on Jaune in Volume 1, but not copied word for word – in my opinion, that's just lazy writing (It's just an opinion, put down the pitchforks). Pyrrha's chant is more relevant to Achilles, the character from The Iliad who she's based on, so it doesn't really apply to anyone else. I feel like this version is a better fit for a mighty tigress.
OwO