Here's chapter 16 everyone.
"Velvet, sweetie, you do know your father left for a mission today, right?" Vezel asked.
"D-Dad…But…" Velvet ran out the bathroom and into her room. She looked around, but couldn't find her things. "Mom! W-Where is dad?!"
Vezel walked in and said. "Sweetie, I know you're worried. He's over at the borders of Vale, so we'll be hearing from him soon enough."
"Mom…Mom, please make dad come back. Please." Velvet begged. "Please, mom, call dad and tell him to come back." Velvet started to tear up.
Vezel walked over and hugged her daughter. "Sweetie, you know I can't do that. Your father's already where he needs to be for his mission. If he were to leave now, he'd get into some trouble."
Velvet's tears continued to fall. "M-Mom…Please call him…I wanna talk to dad."
Vezel frowned and held her daughter a little tighter. "Velvet, is there something that brought this up? Please tell me, sweetie."
"I need to know what he'd doing…Please let me talk to him." Velvet continued to beg.
Vezel pulled away. "Okay, sweetie…I'll try to call him, but if he can't answer, then please try to relax. I promise you'll be able to speak with him later."
Velvet stood patiently, waiting for her mother to make the call. Vezel pulled her scroll out and dialed up Katoen's number. All Velvet wanted was to hear her father and see him, just to know what was happening.
Dad…
Vezel smiled when she heard her husband answer. "Vezel? I wasn't expecting you to call so early. How are you, dear?"
"I'm doing fine, but Velvet really wanted to talk to you. She's a little worried about your mission, so please assure her that you'll be fine." Vezel requested.
"Oh, yes, of course I can do that. I've been allowed some rest, so now is a good time than any." Katoen said.
Vezel nodded and handed Velvet her scroll. "Here you go, sweetie. Remember if you want to switch the video, just press the video call symbol on the scroll."
"Sweetie, hey." Katoen said. "I hear from your mother that you're worried."
Velvet almost cried the second she heard her father's voice again. "Dad…Please come home…Don't fight over there anymore."
"Sweetie, you know I can't abandon my post. They need people here keeping the borders of the kingdom safe." Katoen explained.
"They have enough people there, dad. Just forget about that mission and come back!" Velvet begged.
Katoen took a breath. "Velvet, turn on your video feed."
Velvet did so and felt her heart beating faster when she saw her dad. "D-Daddy."
"There, there, sweetie. See, I'm okay. You don't need to worry. And to explain, you know that as a hunter, I need to protect the people. It's not only my duty, but it's what I want to do in life, no matter the cost." Katoen stated.
Velvet's tears fell faster and she shook her head. "That isn't fair! Y-You're supposed to stay here…with your family!"
I…I thought…I thought I came to accept you being gone…but…I just want you to come back
Katoen frowned at that. "Velvet, I promise to come back home with no scars. I won't be reckless out there and you know that." His frown turned into a smile. "Listen, when I get home, you can try out your camera. I did promise that once you turn thirteen you could use it, but I'm sure a year early wouldn't hurt."
"I…I don't care about that…I just want you to come home, dad." Velvet looked down and her tears continued to hit the floor.
Vezel hated seeing her daughter cry so much, so she kneeled down in front of her and took the scroll. "Katoen, please stay on the call for a few more minutes."
"Yeah…I understand." Katoen said and waited.
"Velvet, what is going on? You've never been this worried about your dad being on a mission before." Vezel stated.
"I-I just…have a bad feeling. D-Dad could come back and n-no one would be hurt. They have enough-people there." Velvet tried to reason while sniffling every few seconds.
Vezel looked at the screen. "Honey, is there any way for you to come back early?"
Katoen sighed. "I wish it were that easy, Vezel, but abandoning my post would be…well not a good idea for obvious reasons. And they have no one else who could take my position for at least two days."
Vezel frowned and looked at her daughter. "Sweetie, your dad can't leave just yet, but…maybe in those two days when they bring someone else-."
Velvet shook her head. "No! If he won't come here, then take me there!"
Vezel was taken aback by her daughter's raised voice and Katoen said. "Velvet, you need to calm down. You shouldn't be raising your voice like that to your mother."
Velvet sniffled. "I-I don't…I just don't w-want you to f-fight anymore."
Before her parents could respond, the room around Velvet froze and she was shocked by that.
What's happening?
The room collapsed around her, but even though there was nothing under her, she was still sat in mid-air. "Mom! Dad!" She called out to them, but didn't get a response. "W-Where am I?" A car horn went off and she looked towards it to see a car and a certain white haired heiress. "W-Weiss!"
The rabbit Faunus ran to her and tried pushing her out of the way, but time slowed down for her. Velvet saw Weiss slowly turn to her, but the car was not stopping. Time went back to normal at that point and Weiss was hit by the car and Velvet screamed Weiss' name.
The car skid to a halt and disappeared as Velvet ran over to the downed heiress who looked to be barely breathing. She kneeled down and pulled her onto her lap. "Weiss! Weiss, please speak to me!"
Weiss slowly opened her eyes and looked to Velvet. "V-Velvet…H-Hey…W-Why do you l-look so sad?"
Velvet was taken aback by the question, as it seemed like the heiress didn't even know that she was hit by a car. "Y-You're hurt, Weiss…I-I need to take you t-t the hospital!"
Weiss smiled and moved one of her hands slowly up to cup Velvet's cheek. "Don't c-cry so m-much for me, Velvet. Everything will be okay, I promise."
Promise.
Hearing that word made Velvet's heart drop, as she remembered how her father made her a promise that day as well. "No, Weiss…No, I-I'll cry, but I won't sit back." Velvet lifted the heiress up and began to run down the streets that were forming in front of her.
"Velvet, you don't need t-to do this." Weiss coughed. "I'll j-just slow you down."
"Stop it…Please no more." Velvet begged. "I'm going to take you there and that's that. I won't let you die!" Velvet continued running and saw the hospital in the distance.
Back in the real world, Weiss was still sitting next to the bed Velvet was on and sniffled.
"Weiss…Hey." Ruby said as she walked into the room.
The heiress slowly turned to her partner with tears in her eyes, shocking Ruby a bit. "R-Ruby? O-Oh…You're here…"
Ruby walked over and hugged her partner. She then looked over to see the condition Velvet was in. "I know it hurts right now, Weiss, but you know she'll be okay soon. And…I don't want you blaming yourself about this. I overheard your talk with Fox."
"You don't know, Ruby…You weren't there. I was the fool. It was my fault she was hit by that car." Weiss stated.
"Do you really think blaming yourself will help her?" Ruby suddenly asked.
Weiss was surprised by that. "E-Excuse me?"
"I asked if blaming yourself would help Velvet." Ruby repeated.
"I…no, but…I still need to take responsibility for what happened. If I just had my eyes opened…I would've-." Weiss was cut off.
"Weiss! You can't change what happened…I learned that, but that doesn't mean you should be like this. The best thing to do is to be here when she wakes up." Ruby said.
Weiss felt Ruby pull away and she sighed. "I don't get it…Velvet…She's so kind and I'm so…terrible, yet you guys try to make it seem like I wasn't at fault…Why?"
"It's because no matter what, we'd always want all of our friends to be okay. If you don't think you're a part of that, then you might be the dolt after all." Ruby smiled.
"Y-You…idiot." Weiss looked to the ground and felt a tear fall. "The time I've spoken with Velvet, it…made me think of a few things. My life, my choices, my…everything…I just don't understand it anymore…Seeing her like this makes me…angry, sad, and hurt. All of these emotions, but…I don't know who to speak to about them…besides her." Weiss looked up and at Velvet.
Ruby placed her hand on Weiss' shoulder. "It's not easy for me to talk about…emotions. I try to be happy…and adventurous in my life, but I'm also your friend. So that means I'll hear you out whenever you need me."
"No…I appreciate that more than you know, Ruby, but…Velvet was the one that saved me…I need her." Weiss admitted, which shocked her the moment she said it.
Ruby pulled her hand away and brought over a chair next to Weiss. She sat down on it and looked at Velvet. "You know…She'd probably say that to you too, Weiss. You don't think I've noticed, but I have."
Weiss blushed. "W-What do you mean?"
"Oh come on, Weiss. You and Velvet spend time with each other so much. It only makes sense that you're feeling this way." Ruby giggled.
"Y-You're not making any sense, Ruby." Weiss said.
"I'm trying to say that you like her, Weiss." Ruby explained.
"Huh? W-Well of course I like her. Velvet's my friend." Weiss stated, though not understanding what Ruby was saying.
Ruby talked to Yang about the heiress and the rabbit Faunus' recent interactions. Yang told her that it may be more to it than just being friends, but she didn't want Ruby to try and force anything on both of them.
Ruby nodded. "Then you can't let that friendship die down. You need to be with her through this…and more so. Try to see that you should be positive about this…and I know that sounds…hard to do right now, but it's the best thing for you and Velvet."
Weiss took a breath. "How do you know that? W-What if she hates me and-."
"Are you hearing yourself, Weiss? Velvet hating you? That's ridiculous. Didn't you listen to a word Fox said to you?" Ruby asked. Weiss froze up, not knowing how to respond. "No answer…It's okay though. I'm not trying to pressure you Weiss. That's the last thing I'd want to do to my friend."
"What even is a friend, Ruby?" Weiss reached her hand out to Velvet's. "I still…don't know completely what one is…I only consider who my friends are…but I don't see myself as one to you all."
"If it's because you were distant with us, then you shouldn't even question it. Did I ever tell you how scared I was when I first got to Beacon?" Ruby asked and Weiss shook her head. "I didn't really like the idea of being partners with anyone but Yang. It…kinda worried me, but after being placed in a four person team with you, Blake and Yang…I started feeling so much happier."
"I did too…" Weiss squeezed Velvet's hand. "Is it wrong that I want to hurt the person who did this to her…to make him pay." Weiss felt her anger growing.
"No…It isn't, but at the same time, I know you won't try to physically hurt whoever did this. It's not something that would make things better." Ruby explained.
Weiss looked to her partner. "You sound…so much more mature now. How do you do it?"
Ruby smiled. "My friends are in a serious situation. Being the kid you met on the first day at Beacon wouldn't cut it."
Weiss took a breath and turned back to Velvet. "Do you think she's really going to be okay? After this…her time at Beacon for however long it takes to recover won't be easy."
"That's why you'll be there to make it easy, Weiss. Well, we all will, but she'll want you there the most." Ruby stated.
"I…I suppose you're right…Ruby, I want to be here, but…I think I may need a break. I'm just…I'm so tired." Weiss sighed.
Ruby nodded and helped Weiss out of her chair. "Come on, I'll take you back to the waiting area. Velvet will still be here. And the others will keep her company."
Weiss gave one last look to Velvet and nodded. "Ruby…Thank you."
Ruby smiled. "No problem, Weiss." She walked the heiress out of the room and the others gave them some space when they heard the door open.
Weiss looked to Fox. "Um…about earlier…I just…wanted to say thanks. You didn't need to try and help, but you did anyways. And that means a lot to me."
Fox nodded and walked to the door. "I stand by that, Weiss. She'll want to see you."
"I know…I'm sorry for not listening to you." Weiss said.
"Don't be. This is a lot to deal with, Weiss." Fox opened the door. "Just try to relax a bit. Once she wakes up, I don't think Velvet would like seeing a teary eyed heiress." Fox smiled and headed in.
Weiss let out a small smile. "Are you guys going in too?" Weiss asked Blake, Ren and Nora.
Blake shook her head and walked up to Ruby and Weiss. "I think the room may be a bit crowded, so I'll go after the others."
Ren spoke up. "We'll let you know when we're done." He walked in with Nora.
Weiss moved a bit away to stand on her own and Ruby said. "Hey, don't try to move around too much. I can still help."
"No, it's okay, Ruby. I can walk." Weiss walked over to the waiting area and saw Yang. "Oh…hey."
Yang turned around when she heard Weiss' voice. "Weiss!" She ran over and hugged her. "I'm glad you're okay. When I heard what happened…it just…it was crazy to think of." She pulled away.
"Yes, well, I need to take a break for a bit." Weiss walked over and sat down on one of the chairs. "I…haven't seen Coco or Yatsuhashi yet."
"Oh, yeah, they'll be here soon. They stayed back to talk." Yang explained.
Weiss nodded and closed her eyes as she started to finally get the break she needed. Her teammates looked to her with frowns on their faces, so Ruby walked over and sat next to her in support.
Velvet continued to run to the hospital, but for some reason, it just kept getting out of her reach. "No! Stop doing this!" She begged and looked down at Weiss, who was barely keeping her eyes opened. "W-Weiss…Please don't close your eyes."
"You don't need to worry…I won't be a burden to you, Velvet." Weiss said in a weak tone.
"You're not a burden! You're…You're my best friend…no…more than that. Please don't let go, Weiss." Velvet began to cry.
"Y-You mean that?" Weiss asked.
"Of course I do…I don't want to lose you…Please don't go." Velvet pleaded.
"I-If you don't want me to go…I won't…Just…let me know that…in the real world." Weiss said and vanished from Velvet's arms.
Velvet's eyes widened and she screamed. "No! Weiss!" Suddenly Weiss was standing in front of her, completely unharmed, but the rabbit Faunus didn't notice, since she was on her knees crying.
Weiss kneeled down and said. "Hey, don't cry anymore. I'm right here."
Velvet gasped when she heard Weiss' voice and opened her eyes. "W-Weiss…Oh my goodness…You're okay!"
Weiss smiled. "Of course I'm okay…Well, dream me is okay. I don't know if the real me is, since…well this is just a dream."
Velvet took a breath. "T-This…it's all been…so horrible." She leaned over and hugged the dream heiress. "My dad…I…I saw him…and…and I couldn't get him to come home." She sniffled.
"I know. Velvet, I don't know anything else, except for your memories, since…well I'm just a part of your dream. I can say this though, if I'm here, then I must mean a lot to you in the real world. Once you wake up…then you need to tell me that." Weiss suggested.
"W-Wake up…W-Where am I exactly?" Velvet inquired.
"I wish I could tell you, but remember. I only know what you know. The last thing was you running to me when I was about to be hit." Weiss explained.
"So…I won't know how she is…until I wake up?" Velvet frowned.
"Yes, but that doesn't mean I'm hurt. If anything, I'm sure you saved me…just like you did before." Weiss smiled.
Velvet knew what she meant and sighed. "So does this mean I have to just wait in this nightmare?"
"The waiting part, yes, but it doesn't have to be in a nightmare." Weiss said and the scene changed to the area outside of Beacon Academy. "Your memories, remember? It seems this spot holds dear to you."
Velvet took note of the spot and realized it was where she and Weiss would sit when they talked. She smiled and sat down on the soft grass. "I know…you're not the real Weiss, but…to make this seem as close to how I would like things. Could you sit with me?"
"Of course." Weiss sat right next to Velvet and she placed her hand on the rabbit Faunus'. "If I had to guess what the real me would do, well, it would be that."
Velvet blushed. "T-Thank you, Weiss." The rabbit Faunus looked up at the sky and hoped the real Weiss was okay too.
This kind of dream sequence was hard to write up, since I knew I would be having Velvet go through some pretty painful memories. Adding that part with Weiss getting hit by the car in her nightmare, well that was to further show how Velvet would be if it was reversed. Also, if it feels unrealistic for this kind of thing to happen…eh, I like it this way.
To JJ- I want to delve deeper into why he's so hostile with her, but I'm unsure when I'll have a good moment for that. Also, yes, that was what I was hoping people would catch in that chapter.
I hoped you all enjoyed chapter 16. Remember, reviews are welcomed, but not required. See you all in chapter 17.
