-Authors note-

So last week I uploaded chapter 13 and sort of messed up. I accidentally forgot to put in the name of the doctor Qrow was talking about, and then put in the wrong name. The doctor's name was for anyone that missed it. Thank you to Timrocks99 and GoldElite245 for pointing this out to me, it meant a lot you two went out of your way to let me know! Anyway, hope you enjoy this week's chapters!

Tuesday wasn't Winters finest hour. When she rolled out of bed, the honking outside of her window was worse than ever and it made her blood run hot. The traffic had been louder than gunfire and had kept her up most of the night, and when she did find sleep, it wasn't exactly pleasant. It was filled with images of Weiss screaming and Winter sitting in her apartment, totally oblivious.

She went to the bathroom and found a gremlin looking back at her, with bags under her bloodshot eyes. Drudging off to the kitchen for some food brought another fun surprise, she was running low on food. "What the hell" Winter spat through gritted teeth, slamming the fridge door.

Winter got dressed followed by a light breakfast that consisted of a single egg on a slice of toast. The rest of her morning was spent caking her face in a thick layer of makeup to try and look even a little bit normal. Oh, and trying to force her hair back into a bun of course.

Needless to say, she wasn't in the best mood when she walked into the elevator. But it got even worse when the doors opened on the ground floor to reveal Tyrian Callows standing right in front of her.

Winter jumped about a foot in the air and let out a small yelp of surprise, but Tyrian smiled like he hadn't even noticed. "Winter, how wonderful to see you! I was hoping I'd run into you again soon!" He shot her a crooked grin as he folded his arms behind his back and stepped into the elevator.

"Sorry, Tyrion, can't talk, running late for work" Winter wasn't even lying, she was running behind. But for Winter, on-time meant she got there early, and late meant she got there at the same time as everyone else. But Tyrion didn't need to know that.

His smile fell for a fraction of a second before it came running back to his face, "Maybe I could give you a ride to work? Don't want you to be late now, do we?" He asked taking another step towards her, getting too close for comfort, before leaning forward enough so she had to lean away.

"No thanks, I have my own car" She countered, quickly sliding between him and the elevator wall before taking a step out of the door, discretely hitting the third-floor button as she left the threshold of the elevator.

The door started to close and his smile fell, and he looked angry at her, though he was trying to look relaxed. He tried to smile, the result was a terrifying face that reminded Winter of a deranged clown. "Next time, then" was all he managed to get out before the doors slammed shut, blocking him from Winter.

She took a deep breath before walking away. "Nice one" She heard from behind her. She turned to see Earl looking up at her, puzzle book still in his hand and a smile on his face. Winter smiled back at him warmly.

"Thanks, Earl, I try" Winter was glad she had someone to keep a lookout for her.

As Winter was driving to work, she passed by all the same buildings she had the past two days, but something felt off. For some reason, she had a steel ball sitting in the pit of her stomach, and she couldn't place why. Then she passed a group of kids playing, and a thought hit her that she hadn't considered before… she had bailed on one of her patients without a word to and then left for the day to get ice cream. She hadn't told anyone anything specific, and she hadn't heard anything back yet. That didn't mean anything good.

Winter's mouth filled with saliva as her stomach lurched, and her small breakfast almost jumped out of her mouth. What if fires me? I just left! Why would I do that! How can I help Weiss without a job? How will I pay for food if I get fired! Winter's mind felt like a ball of yarn unraveling all at once, with every bad thought leading to worse thoughts. Her train of thought eventually crashed into the piercing blue eyes of her father.

Winter put her car in park and tried to turn the key off, but her hand was too weak and shakey. She had to use both hands to twist the key out. She looked at herself in the mirror and didn't recognize who was looking back at her. Her skin was as gray as a week-old corpse, and it looked like the makeup she put on that morning had made it worse. She got out of the car slowly before starting to walk on shaky legs.

She double-checked her phone to see if or Amy had called her at any point, but didn't see any messages. The elevator ride up left enough time for all of her thoughts to settle in her mind like sand in a lake. They didn't go away, but they had stopped swirling around chaotically in her mind. Now they were just an ever-present feeling of dread, shame, and guilt. When the elevator dinged and started to open, Winter felt like she'd reached the end of the line.

She walked out with her hand on the wall for support and wasn't shocked to see the waiting room empty except for the redhead sitting behind the reception desk. Amy looked up at the sound of the elevator closing, her face smiling on instinct before it dropped at the sight of Winter. "Hey Winter, how are you doing? You look a little green" Amy pointed out worriedly, standing up behind the counter.

"I'm fine Amy, didn't get a lot of sleep is all, no need to get up" Winter insisted, forcing herself to stand upright without the wall, hardly keeping a small smile on her face.

"If you're sure, hun… Well, you got a few appointments today. They won't be here until noon though, so if you want you can go and rest in your office" Amy's eyes didn't leave Winter as she slowly sat back down in her computer chair like she was expecting her to get pushed over by a light breeze.

Winter stood there waiting for her to say something about her sudden exit yesterday, but it never came. Amy kept looking at Winter, turning now and then to type something on her computer but always returning to Winter. "You sure everything's ok?"

"Yes No. Amy, when's supposed to be in?" Winter eventually got out, wanting to know when exactly her doom was coming.

"Oh, he's back there now. Oh, that reminds me! He wanted to talk to you about something this morning! Perfect, you can head back there now if you like"

Winter felt her heart drop. Without another word Winter felt her legs carrier her back towards , her mind was completely blank while she walked. She could have been walked over broken glass that was lit on fire and she wouldn't have noticed.

Winter felt like Jaune standing in front of door, her tight fist heavy at her side. "Three, two, one" She whispered before she heard her fist tapping lightly on the wood.