Weiss leapt backward as the beowulf before her swiped a claw through the air, the bony hooks on its fingers just missing the edge of her combat dress. In mid-spin, the huntress threw a leg out and engaged the mechanism within her heel to fire off a blast of pressurized gas, engulfing the beast's face and neck in flame. The creature reeled back, pawing ineffectually at the front of its body to douse the flames as Weiss raised her high-caliber sidearm and took careful aim. With a deafening blast, a spinning slug flew forth from the barrel, shattering the skull of the beowulf and causing its burning body to rapidly disintegrate, scattering ash all over the singed carpet of the hallway.

"Down the steps and straight out the gap in the wall," Weiss ordered as she pointed Myrtenaster to the nearby door. "You'll be safe there. Look for Marrow Amin of the Ace Ops- he can tend to your injuries."

The young couple standing behind Weiss, a pair of female faunus with catlike tails clinging desperately to each other, nodded wordlessly. Without a second of hesitation, one of the two pulled open the door and helped the other through before turning to face the huntress.

"Thank you for coming to save us, but… why?"

Nothing more needed to be said. Weiss felt nothing but fury at the question, though it wasn't directed at the women standing before her. She knew what was meant, and she knew why the question had been asked. The inquiry was a valid one, and the fear in the eyes of the faunus wasn't caused only by the fire and grimm all surrounding the pair. Weiss' eyes began to sting as sweat from her hairline trickled down into them, but they continued to sting for another reason entirely.

"Because your lives are just as important as mine," Weiss answered. "I swore an oath to protect them as a huntress. Don't waste the opportunity given to you. "Get yourselves out, and do it quickly. I have more people to rescue upstairs."

One of the faunus pushed the door open further to allow Weiss through. As she watched the former heiress begin to ascend the steps, she cupped a hand to her mouth to call out over the constant crackling of the fire.

"Stay safe! Please!"

Weiss didn't reply as she ran up the steps. Her heart was racing as she spun her revolver back into its holster. She gripped the railing as she ascended, using momentum to yank herself around the bend and get up the steps faster. As Weiss started up the next flight of steps, her earpiece jingled with an incoming call and she tapped a finger to the side of the device.

"Schnee."

"Weiss!" Marrow's panicked voice called over the line. "Are y-"

"I'm fine," Weiss interrupted as she shoved the door before her open using her hip and shoulder. "Marrow, you need to remain outside. I've got more wounded headed your way, and I can't have you fretting about me. We've got a job to do. No distractions."

"I'm not…" Marrow began, clearly flustered. "…you're right. Just be careful, alright? Cinnamon's in there with you, and… well, you know…"

"I know," Weiss acknowledged as she began to check the doors in the hallway around her. All of the ones she passed were open- some apartments had been voluntarily abandoned, while others had their doors torn off the hinges and the occupants dead on the floor inside. The sight was enough to make Weiss shiver despite the heat of the flames, though she forced herself to continue forward. "I'll deal with her if I need to. Let's pray that I don't."

"Right," the faunus acknowledged. "Cinnamon and I found Sun, and I got him out- he's injured, but doing okay and waiting for us at the transport. I know you can handle this, Weiss. I trust you. You've got this."

"I've got this," Weiss repeated, more to herself than to Marrow. "I'll get it done. Thank you, Marrow."

"This might be bad timing and superstitious, but just in case we never get the chance… I love you."

The admission was enough to get Weiss to stop in her tracks in the middle of the collapsing, smoldering hallway. For just a moment, the warmth she was feeling had nothing to do with the fire.

"…I know, you said no distractions, but…"

"No, no," Weiss said lightly as she resumed her jog down the hall. "I like this distraction. I… am very much in love with you as well, Marrow."

Though she thought the notion ridiculous, Weiss could have sworn that she could hear Marrow's expression turn into a smile on the other side of the call.

"I'll let you go. The people you sent down are coming out of the building. Good luck, Weiss!"

"You're wagging right now, aren't you?" Weiss asked.

"…so hard."

"See you soon," Weiss said lightly as she ended the call. She did her best to refocus as she continued to move forward, where she found a closed door. With a balled fist, she pounded on the obstruction and called out. "Hello!? Is anyone inside!?"

"What!?" came the reply, before the door swung open to reveal a mustached man in a tan suit and red tie. He was slightly overweight and sporting a combover, his face shining and collar damp with sweat. "Who… Weiss Schnee?"

"Yes, but spare me whatever you think of that fact," Weiss ordered as she stepped away from the door. "We need to get out of here, right now. I've only got a few more rooms to check, a-"

"There's grimm here! I'm not leaving!" the man declared confidently as he grabbed the door handle and began to shove it closed.

"I'm a huntress!" Weiss yelled as she put her hand out to stop the door from closing in her face. "Follow me, now!"

A bestial roar from the floor above caught the attention of the huntress and the civilian, and both looked up at the ceiling in response.

"Coming!" the man said. "Just let me get m-"

"No, we leave now!" Weiss denied as she turned around and began to run once again. "There's only one more floor, and when we reach the staircase, you need to evacuate on your own. Stay close to me, and if grimm show up, I'll handle them!"

"There's only one other room on this floor!" the man announced as he hurried after Weiss, a winter coat clutched tightly to his chest. "You're sure the way down is clear?"

"You have my word," Weiss reassured as she made her way toward the door. The metal was warped and halfway off the hinges, swinging lightly back and forth. Weiss mentally prepared herself as she approached the room, drawing her revolver once again as she walked. "Hello…?"

No answer came as Weiss stepped in front of the broken door and aimed her revolver inside. Several bodies- six that she could see- were strewn about the living room. Some were draped over the furniture, some were missing pieces, and others had slash marks across their bodies. Blood stained the carpeting and drapes, and the majority of the furniture and décor around the room was broken. Cinnamon Shoal knelt over one of the bodies, her hand upon the chest of one of the victims. Her camouflage pants were streaked with blood and ash, and flecks of scarlet were scattered about her face. Small flakes of black were hanging in the air, as though a grimm had been killed only moments before. Upon hearing Weiss' heels click into the room, Cinnamon rose and turned to face her.

"…we meet again," the woman said solemnly as the blades attached to her wrist flicked backward to form the arms of her wrist-mounted crossbow. "It's been a while."

"Not long enough for me," Weiss muttered. "But Sun trusts you…"

"Does he?" Cinnamon asked.

"Oh, shit," the man in the suit said as he arrived behind Weiss in the doorway. He took several steps back, his face growing pale as he pointed a shaking finger at the faunus. "We've gotta run! She's been doing shady shit here for weeks! She killed these people! I know it!"

Weiss didn't even bother to look back at the man, instead lowering her revolver and keeping it at an angle halfway between herself and Cinnamon.

"… that's enough out of you. Get downstairs," the huntress ordered. "Now."

"I swear, I've seen her around, causing trouble!" the man insisted as he backed away toward the stairwell door. "Don't listen to her!"

"I've got this," Weiss reassured as she guided her revolver back into its holster, keeping a firm grip upon Myrtenaster in her left hand all the while. "There's one more floor to clear above this one. If you're really with us, then come and help me get this done."

"I already cleared it," the older woman said calmly as she began a slow approach toward Weiss. "I figured you would be working your way up, so I went to the top and started working my way down after rescuing Sun from the rubble."

"And you cleared one floor," Weiss stated plainly. "In all this time."

"My semblance isn't effective against grimm," Cinnamon replied in an equally neutral voice. "It wasn't easy for me. Not like it has been for you."

Weiss swallowed hard, well aware of the venom that had punctuated the final word as Cinnamon stopped mere feet from her. They were both sweaty, dirty, and exhausted, each of them covered in grime, ash, and blood. Weiss knew that as much as she wanted to ask whether or not the people before her had been killed by grimm, she knew she either wouldn't get a straight answer, or wouldn't fully trust the one that she received. The hatred in the faunus' eyes that she had veiled so well in Mistral was on prominent display, uncovered and presented without shame. Weiss wasn't surprised, nor did she blame the other woman for her feelings. All that was left up in the air was what would happen next, and there were only two possibilities in her mind.

"…so it's just you and me still in here…" Weiss said slowly.

"Just you and me," Cinnamon confirmed as the finned spines along her upper arms flexed. "Here, at the end of it all, in a burning building and surrounded by dead Atlesians. Just as I'd envisioned it, really. The building is a different one than I'd imagined, but the scene itself… it's almost exactly what I wanted for years on end."

"And what is it that you want now?" Weiss asked.

"I think we can both agree, despite our differences, that now is not the time," Cinnamon said dismissively. "It might be down to the two of us, there's bad blood here, and despite the fact that I'd love to resolve it once and for all… we both have people who need us. Good people. People better than you and me."

"I can't fight you on that," Weiss admitted. "My team is made up entirely of people better than me, Cinnamon. I know that my family h-"

Weiss trailed off as Cinnamon raised a finger and shook her head.

"Not the time. Tempting, I know, to show me your bleeding heart and try to win me over… and believe me, I have a lot to say, as well. We'll get there, eventually… after we settle things with Salem. You and I will get our resolution, but it needs to wait. Let's go."

Weiss hesitated for a moment before she finally turned her back to exit the room. For a second, she was filled with fear, knowing that she was totally exposed to a woman who had quite literally tried to kill her several weeks before. Somehow, the fear quickly subsided, and she began to jog for the door to the staircase.

"You're really coming back to Ironwood with us?" Weiss asked. "I cannot guarantee he'll be as tolerant or forgiving as Sun."

"I don't expect him to be," Cinnamon agreed as she followed along. "But that's my problem, not yours. If he makes a move against me, I'll handle the situation."

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Weiss replied as she opened the door and stepped into the stairwell. She couldn't help but let her gaze wander to the final flight of upward steps. "You really cleared the top floor?"

"I did," Cinnamon confirmed. "I managed to get six people out. Several others… didn't make it. That includes the party in the room behind us."

"…Sun will vouch for you if you really did pull him out of the rubble, and you've had a clear shot at me for several minutes," Weiss considered before she moved for the descending staircase. "I hope that whatever resolution or ending you're seeking with me can be with words, rather than weaponry. I know you've suffered, even if I don't know how, and I know that my family is somehow responsible. I don't mean to sound dismissive, but there's a lot I don't know about what my father has done. This isn't easy for me, though. None of this is."

"…I see," Cinnamon considered as the two women began to run. "All I know for sure anymore is that it's all going to get a lot harder, soon."

"Maybe more than you know," Weiss replied. "None of us are ready for what's to come. At this point, I simply hope we all survive the night…"

Author's Note:

Next time, the groups reunite and head for Ironwood in Chapter 198. What could 199 be, if the big confrontation with him isn't until 200?

Mysteries abound.

-RD