Lightly, Weiss felt the ropes around her loosen.
After hours of tight constriction, she could finally breathe properly. Weiss sucked in a deep breath, only to cough from a sudden pang. Her world spun in a dizzying haze as the darkness constantly tugged on her vision. Somehow, she shook it away.
Weiss strained to look up and see Yang, who was locked in fierce melee combat with her father. They hadn't won yet. They were still stuck in this version of hell. Blake was to the side, tossing up scattered darts on the higher platform. That's when she spotted Ruby, who adorned a stern gaze on her.
Briefly, Weiss wondered why she was being looked at with such intensity. Until she felt the ropes around her unravel, completely undone. It was so sudden that Weiss dropped with no time to brace herself. She would have hit the unforgiving ground if supportive arms didn't catch her.
"Snowflake," a familiar, faint call of her nickname. "Weiss, tell me you're okay."
A thin groan escaped Weiss and she cracked open blurry eyes. "Mom?"
This was a dream. It had to be a dream.
"I'm here," Willow whispered and coaxed her into her chest. "Let's get you out of here."
Firmly, Willow stood with her daughter in her arms. She made a slow dash for the exit, but a weak tug on her arm stopped her. She peeked down at her daughter, who looked troubled.
"No."
That one word was all Willow needed to hear. She didn't need a thorough, in-depth explanation as to why she didn't want to leave. The girls who came to save her were astoundingly strong. They were probably the people who watched over her in Willow's absence.
"Okay," Willow muttered.
From how hurt her daughter was, Willow glowered at her husband in the distance. He didn't see them yet as she internally debated her next steps. Thinking on her feet, she hid them behind a pillar and out of sight from almost everyone.
Willow stared up at Ruby, who gave her a knowing nod.
Carefully, Willow lowered her daughter to sit and lean onto the concrete pillar. Weiss almost fell to the side, but her mother held her upright by her shoulders.
"What injuries should I be aware of?" Willow asked slowly in case she didn't hear.
"Arm, head hurts…" was all Weiss could muster.
Willow noted to avoid those parts when she carried her next. Now that she had some time, she examined her daughter and almost cried from her weakened state. She choked back a sob. If she got here sooner, Weiss wouldn't be so miserable and hurt. Her face and body were red, black, and blue.
To give her comfort, Willow attempted to wipe away a stream of blood that trickled down her face. All that did was smear it into her platinum blonde hair.
"I'm sorry…" Willow whispered and caressed her cheek.
Weiss faded in and out, but she caught those regretful and guilty words. Willow was sorry for everything. For allowing Jacques to abuse them. For her inaction. To lift her spirits, Weiss held her hand and squeezed as tightly as she could.
"You're here now."
"That's right," Willow agreed and held her hand. "And I'm not going anywhere."
Carefully, Willow lowered her daughter's hand. When she was certain there was nothing she could do to heal her injuries right now, she glanced to the side. To her shock, a gang member with a crowbar was limping over to them with a crazed look in his eyes.
"Shit," Willow cursed and gathered Weiss in her arms. "Brace yourself."
She intended to keep her rebellious vow to Jacques. She'll protect Weiss. No matter the cost.
"Where ya goin', Miss Schnee?" the battered gang member taunted as he fumbled after them. "Hand her over. She needs to die!"
Willow bolted over to Ruby, but the goon was faster since she had extra weight in her arms. When he raised the crowbar to smack her back, Willow screamed and shielded her daughter. The hit never came since he was yanked back by his hoodie. Expertly, Blake knocked him out with the blunt end of her katana and he dropped to the floor.
"Are you okay?" Blake asked.
Willow gazed at her cat ears and looked down at her daughter. "It's her you should worry about. Are you okay? You're just a child."
Splotches of blood tainted her shirt and pants, but Blake only shrugged. "Watch three children bring your husband to his knees."
Together, they took cover under the partial platform. Ruby called down to them.
"Stay there, where I can protect you."
"Yang…" Weiss muttered.
Cat ears perked up from the call, which caused her to smile. Weiss appeared to be resting, so she must've called to her in her sleep. Gently, the faunus soothed her fingers through her platinum blonde bangs to put her at ease.
"She's okay. Rest. That's all you have to do right now. When you wake up, this nightmare will be over."
Across the room, Jacques landed what felt like the millionth punch on the boxer. Yang fumbled back, but kept her footing and heaved for breath.
"Stay down, you insect!" Jacques yelled.
Yang put her hands on her knees. "You're gonna have to make me."
Frustrated, Jacques scanned his surroundings. He was beyond stunned to see his wife and freed daughter together. On top of that, they were next to a faunus. Did Willow travel all the way here from Argus just to spite him?
"Willow!" Jacques shouted in a fury. "How dare you! You betrayed me?!"
"I warned you," Willow simply replied. "I told you I'd protect her with my life."
And that was the straw that broke the camel's back.
While Yang attempted to compose herself for the next round, she carefully watched her opponent. Jacques approached an unconscious gang member and grabbed the nearby knife. Now that he had a lethal weapon, Yang prepared to switch her technique.
"What happened to a fair fight?" Yang asked.
"The world isn't fair."
When Jacques lunged at her with the knife, he expected her to dodge. Instead, Yang used her brass knuckles to deflect the blade. Her fingers were cut, but superficially. When he was open, she struck another punch into his side.
Jacques gasped from the low blow and launched the next slash. When Yang dodged, Jacques grabbed her hair and forced her into an unrelenting headlock. Yang struggled against his brute strength and sputtered through clenched teeth.
"You wanna snap my neck?"
The knife threatened her throat. When Yang felt the sharp blade cut her skin, she gulped and was still.
"I'm gonna slit your damned throat!"
In the background, the girls watched in fear. Above, Ruby had a perfect view of the battle. The knife indented Yang's neck, which made her squeal. Jacques grew erratic and lifted her from the ground, swinging her back and forth.
He'll kill her, Ruby thought as she grabbed an item from her bag. My slingshot won't cut it this time.
Earlier, Blake robbed Whitley of his gun and tossed it up on the partial platform. Ruby was grateful she had the weapon now as she checked if the safety was on.
When Blake strayed from her spot to help Yang, Ruby softly called down to her so the enemy wouldn't hear.
"Don't."
The faunus stopped and met her gaze. Ruby definitely had a plan. Quickly and quietly, Ruby positioned herself on the edge of the elevated platform. The pistol was light- exactly like her slingshot. It was easy to aim.
With Jacques backed into a corner, this was his last resort. A hostage.
"One step and she dies!" Jacques warned and pressed the knife tighter against her skin.
Yang could only hold onto his arms in a feeble attempt to loosen his grip.
"Is that what you want?!" Jacques screamed as his hostage grunted.
Ruby closed one eye and narrowed the other to focus.
All those hours with dad on the shooting range better be worth it. Sorry, mom. This is what must be done.
In the past, Taiyang encouraged Ruby to practice shooting with a gun. Meanwhile, Summer was against it. Ruby figured this was a good compromise if it meant she could save her sister's life.
After she took a deep breath, Ruby pressed down on the trigger. A bullet whizzed out the canister and gouged his leg, which forced him to release Yang.
"Agh, fuck!"
Jacques dropped to the floor and clutched the wound in agony. Meanwhile, Yang limped away from him. At last, sirens blared in the distance. The sound they all waited for. They couldn't believe it'd only been fifteen minutes.
"That was a hell of a good shot…" Yang mumbled as she watched her enemy writhe on the ground.
In mere seconds, the sound of a helicopter beating gravity into submission soared above the building. Through the cracked ceiling, a bright light beamed on the gang leader.
"Jacques Schnee, the building is surrounded. Surrender immediately."
The authoritative voice boomed through the warehouse.
"Never!"
"Give up," Weiss yelled as loud as she could. "It's over! You lost!"
"No, no, I didn't!" Jacques shouted, sounding desperate. "I won- I won!"
To bring this to an end, Yang approached the notorious gang leader and looked down at him. Disgruntled blue met determined lilac.
"This… is for Winter and Weiss… asshole…"
Swiftly, Yang brought her leg up and crushed her heel into the back of his head. At last, Jacques Schnee was knocked out in a puddle of blood.
"Made it easier for ya," Yang said up at the helicopter.
The world was slow after that. Yang limped out of the light as police rushed inside. She checked on Blake, who gave her a smile. Ruby sat on the edge with her legs casually swinging. They looked okay. Her friends said some words of encouragement, but Yang drowned those out to focus on one thing.
Tenderly, Yang caressed Weiss' resting face. She looked serene. She was finally free from this nightmare and could now dream peacefully.
"She's okay," Willow informed and adjusted her in her arms. "She'll take a while to recover, but she'll be okay."
"Thank god…" Yang was elated to hear that and kissed her forehead. "I promise… I will never let this sick world harm you again."
After she said that, Yang released a breath she didn't know she'd been holding and fell unconscious. Fortunately, Blake was there to catch her. Since she was exhausted as well, Blake sank to her knees.
A rest well-earned.
Above, Ruby called down to them.
"Hey, uh, anyone wanna help me down?"
Lyrics from Redo: "I promise I will never let this sick world bring you harm again." "I'll come back. To your future." "This time, I'll protect you, I swear- with my life!"
Stay dandy,
~Toto