They had to be strong, stay positive. For Ruby, that was easier to do than most. This was what she lived for. The snow, the thrill, the amazing sights, the people she helped, and the places she visited. For her, life was all about the journey. There was just something so compelling about it all. At least, usually.

Then there were missions like this. More sinister, and deadly. Even fully confidant hunters didn't step up to take these sorts of missions without a strong team of people with them. She had complete faith in her team members, but, she felt caution all the same.

Ruby considered herself lucky that she was at least acclimated to the bitter climate. That was more than she could say about her friends. She popped a few fresh berries in her mouth, enjoying the crunch and juicy texture alike. "Snow peas and northern berries. Nothing beats the taste of food on the trail."

"They are quite good." Pyrrha complimented as she snacked idly. "Onto the task at hand, what was the total Grimm count today?"

"You mean besides the gigantic flock of nevermore?" Nora asked counting on her fingers. "I don't know, maybe two or three."

"Just a handful on my end." Ruby said.

"Mine too." Fox agreed.

"The same all around, then." Coco leaned into the fire, rubbing her chilled fingertips together. "The less we have to kill, the less densely populated the area is."

"Doesn't matter the number. Those Grimm were huge." Fox grumbled. "This was a bad idea. We should be calling for more help."

"That's up to the government." Ren replied. "I'm sure Weiss has already asked for assistance everywhere she can."

"We've done the same." Coco murmured.

"Never mind the Grimm for right now. It's an issue yeah, but, supplies are too. I think we're going to need to boil some more water." Ruby shook her canteen for emphasis. "I'm low."

"I am as well." Ren agreed as he passed Nora a hunk of hard, crusty bread. Slabbing off a hunk of cheese to go with it.

"I'm out of water completely, I've just been sipping Ren's." Nora shrugged, popping the yellow savory slice into her mouth with a hum. "Sure you don't want some Ruby? Trust me, it tastes really good."

"It's also very salty." Ruby denied. "That's probably why you're so thirsty. I get most of my fluids from the food I eat too." She wiggled a wild bean sprout she's pulled from the cave's wall. "Like this..." Popping it into her mouth, she grinned. "There's actually a lot of stuff to eat up here, if you know where to look."

"Well, since I don't know about that, I'll stick to bread and cheese, thanks." Nora said, making a show of how delightful it tasted after battling Grimm all afternoon.

Ruby plucked a stick up from the burlap bag closer to Nora. Then, carefully, she held it over the fire for a moment to warm it. "Try one of these…"

"That looks like tree bark…" Nora said thoughtfully.

"Jerky?" Fox asked, as he plucked one, giving it a proper examination.

"Doesn't smell like jerky." Nora protested, as she too, picked up a length of it. She followed Ruby's example, then took a bite. The consistency reminding her of the smoked meat, even if the flavor was strange as it could be. It didn't taste bad, but, she'd never experienced it before. "What is this?"

Pyrrha sampled one as well. "Twice smoked turkey bacon." She replied pleasantly surprised. "A breakfast staple back home…you've had this before Nora."

"It doesn't taste like it normally does then…is it stale?"

"It's just hasn't been fried like Jaune makes it, Nora. That's all." Pyrrha partook another piece. "You're just used to it being warm, and covered in maple syrup. They probably smoke it this way so it can be eaten without heating it up."

"You'd be right." Ruby nodded. "Though I don't know what kind of wood they use. It's not evergreen or pine, I know that."

"Maple or oak." Coco replied.

"What?" Nora asked perplexed. "Really?"

It was Fox who nodded. "Those are the few trees that grows well enough in the southernmost tip of Atlas. It's also an invasive species. The reason they haven't been removed is because they just grow along the borders. Besides that, they make great cooking logs."

"Huh, never knew that." Ruby said with a laugh. "Anyway, the miners around here love this stuff. They put it on everything from hamburgers, to wrapping steaks with it. Best to eat up while we can, the more north we go, the less food there is."

"I don't like the sound of that...Ruby, how bad is it going to be once we leave this cave?" Coco asked.

"Well, uh…" She looked outward at the clouds. "Do you want the good news, or the bad news?"

"Both of them, succinctly as possible if you please."

"Good news is, it doesn't look like it's about to snow. Bad news is, once we leave this cave, I don't know if we'll be able to find another one. We may not be able to make a good camp for a while."

"As the old saying goes, nuts to butts. We can put two people a sleeping bag." Nora said bluntly. "Bet that'll keep us warm."

"Actually, we should probably zip all of them together and pile in. We've got only a flimsy tent as shelter." Ruby said this all too seriously. "The temperature is already negative two, and it's only late afternoon…ask me what it'll be like when the sun goes down."

"I'd rather not." Coco said, gathering from the implication. The bitter cold that would chill them all to the bone. "Shared sleeping bags it is."

"No fair!" Nora protested. "Pyrrha clings in her sleep."

"You talk in yours." Pyrrha accused knowingly.

"Honestly, I think we'll all be too cold to care…" Ren sighed, not looking forward to the chilly weather. "Then again, Ruby clings too, if we stick the both of them in the middle, then maybe they'll cancel each other out."

"Even if we don't, this isn't like the normal hunts you're used to, Nora." Everyone turned to the youngest of the group. There was an edge in Ruby's voice. "This feels off somehow. Something isn't right. We all need to start thinking less like hunters, more like survivalists. Might as well accept things as they are. It's only going to get harder from here on out." Ruby considered slowly. "We should all make our final calls. By nightfall, we'll be out of range. So, let's make this last one count guys."

It wasn't good news they were calling with, but with great effort, they put on a strong face. They took turns calling scrolls and informing their families. Forcing smiles and assurances, the same as any hunter did while away at work. The problem was, when married to another hunter, thin little lies of omission were easy to spot. Still, they all played along, because it hurt too much not to.

Even so, the hard truth reared it's ugly head.

"Jaune, we're almost outside of range. A little more north, I won't have access to my scroll."

"Shit. There must be something you can do."

"Afraid not. There's a northern town that still sends outbound mail. When we arrive there, we'll start sending letters."

"Pyrrha…"

"Don't do that, Jaune. Don't say my name like that..."

"I don't want you out there."

"I know."

"I love you."

"As I, you…now, listen, there's been a development. You aren't going to like it, but I need you to stay calm."

"What happened?"

"Nevermore flock, the likes of which we've never seen before. To put it bluntly, we overestimated our firepower. We managed to take out a sizeable chunk of the flock, the rest made a retreat. The problem is, they're huge. I've never seen Grimm this size before. They must have been in existence for quite some time. Ruby's making a formal report to Weiss, but, I thought that you should know the situation. They aren't the only overgrown Grimm we've heard reports of, either."

"Let me guess. You guys are still going hunting, knowing that..."

"What choice do we have?"

"I don't know, but there's got to be a better way."

"If there is, Jaune, I'd love to hear it. We've been putting our heads together on this as well. The only thing to do is eradicate the threat and exterminate any Grimm we happen to come across."

"I think that if the situation is already that bad, you should consider just evacuating the norther towns. Come home, where it's safe."

"And where exactly would we put all of the people? Even I'm struggling in these conditions. The only ones who'd be able to deal with this terrain for any length of time would be nomads. They won't move anyway. They'll be content enough to stay on their trails, Grimm infestation or not. I'm a huntress, it's my duty to defend the people who cannot defend themselves."

"I don't know where you'd take them…but I think that – never mind…the girls are asking for you…I'm going to pass the scroll off to them, okay?"

"Of course, Jaune…I love you. Always know that."

"Yeah, I love you too..but, Pyrrha...swear to me that you'll be careful."

"You have my word, Jaune. I promise I'll be as careful as I can. We all will."

Blake had heard the whole exchange. She couldn't help it because of her ears. She knew some might consider it an invasion of personal space. That's why even when she could hear calls being made around her, she acted ignorant. She sipped her water, keeping quiet. Focused instead on the chess match in front of her. She wasn't in love with the game, but she was rather adept at the mechanics behind it.

If nothing else, it kept Weiss busy, and her wife needed the distraction.

"So, what did Ruby have to say?"

"I don't even want to think about it." Weiss murmured, moving her piece, finger resting on the tip of her bishop. "I'm only going to say it isn't good. Let's leave it at that."

Blake knew she was prying, but she was hoping Weiss would have confided more. "You do realize, Jaune was just talking to Pyrrha in the hallway."

"Then you have some idea as to the situation." Weiss murmured darkly. "Leave it at that, please."

However, Blake knew better. She couldn't just drop the matter. "This isn't your fault, Weiss."

"The SDC has eyes and ears all over the place!" Weiss roared, her final bit of resolve breaking under the gentle pressure. "Where were they when I needed them? Why wasn't I getting reports!? Ruby's not the only one with her ear to the ground. When it comes to Grimm attacks, all of Atlas should know. Where the bloody hell are my men!?" It was all rhetorical.

Blake didn't know any more than Weiss did, but it was the desperation that drove the questions forward.

The ticking time bomb that was Weiss Schnee exploded, the remnants of her rage scatted across the floor, the table over turned and the chess pieces along with it. There was no need to answer. Because those fallen pieces were the unspoken reality. Many were probably lost, buried under the snowfall. Easily forgotten. It was the plight of most hunters and huntresses.

The fate they accepted, when they decided to live that life.

There was no way of knowing how many SDC hunters were lost in the growing death tolls, but, Weiss hated not being there herself. She had just sent her friends, her family, to do battle with those oversized monstrosities. People she couldn't afford to lose. Her voice rattled in her fury. "I should be there…"

"I need you here." Blake said, already embracing the shaking madness as it came. The raw, unbridled self-hatred that clawed at Weiss on the worst of days. Blake wished that Weiss might turn some of that anger at her, but Weiss wasn't that sort of person. Everything, bad luck included, would always be turned inward. Always, unquestionably, the shorter woman's burden by default.

"It's not that easy to quantify, Blake…" Weiss said through gritted teeth.

Jaune needed Pyrrha. Velvet needed Coco and Fox. There was nothing fair in Blake's request to keep Weiss at home. It had been selfish, narrow sighted, but everyone else be damned, it was the choice Blake made. With no words for comfort, the best she could do was lock the door to their private chambers. She unbuttoned her clothes, uncaring where they fell.

This called for something primal, something mindless.

"Mark me, Weiss." Blake begged, lips ghosting over her wife's own. "Etch it into me…"

"Blake, don't ask me that…I don't like it when you ask me that…"

"I don't care." Nails sharp, her eyes dark with desire, she ripped that snow blue blazer in half, watching as three silver buttons clattered to the floor. "Turn that rage into something else, Weiss. I need you to do that for me...it can be anything else, but it can't be this."

"No."

"You're hurting, I can't stand to see that."

"I'm fine."

"You're not." The shredded garment followed, landing on the floor. "You haven't been since that call." The pencil skirt followed, before nails ripped lines in white pantyhose, red streaks across pale skin causing a satisfied groan from her lover. "I'm here, you're allowed to break." That heated kiss where fang and tongue met was the thing that boiled her lover. "It's okay to break."

"I don't...want to."

"Just shatter, baby…let go." Blake breathed, thumbing away the tears that spilled over from glacial eyes. "I'm right here…I'm right here."

Weiss acted, melting into Blake. Into the kiss, and beyond the frozen fears that spilled out her control. There was nothing soft about it, but there didn't need to be. Not in the nails down Blake's back. Or the bite in her shoulder, where a Weiss muted a scream. Not when Blake claimed her. Not even in the aftermath, where a cold hard rut on the floor left rug burns to be tended to, and bruises that neither one of them remembered exactly where they came from.

None of that had to be gentle, none of it needed to make sense.

It just had to be something else. Something besides the numbness Weiss was trying to feel. The heartless anger she wanted to drown herself in at that moment. But as long as she was in Blake's arms, she couldn't do that. She couldn't force herself into the cool, collected box of a Schnee family figurehead.

She couldn't become her father...with all of his calculated logic, and backwards justification.

And in the aftercare of it all, as Blake tended her, Weiss was too exhausted to think. Too tired to hate herself. Too focused on cleaning the scratches on Blake's back, and wincing as Blake did the same for her rug burns. There was no time to think of anyone but themselves. Of each other. Of the vows that they'd made…for better or worse…

They couldn't take that for granted. Not ever. She cried herself to sleep in Blake's arms, the only place it ever seemed right to do so.