Riding at full gallop, it didn't take long for the group to come within view of Vale proper. The day was growing old, but the sun was still bright in the afternoon sky. Whether they were being followed, they didn't know, but none of them seemed too keen on looking back and finding out.

Blake rode slightly ahead, but began to drop back and motioned for Weiss to come closer. The heiress kicked up and matched Blake's speed as the fay shouted over the wind.

"We have to stop in the city!" She yelled, one arm tight around Yang's waist as a strong gust pushed against them.

"What! Why?" Weiss loudly replied, her voice sharp.

Blake looked at her like she was an idiot. "We need food, water! We won't make it to the forest, let alone survive init. Not to mention these two!"

The fay nodded to the unconscious smith in front of Weiss, and she immediately found her arguments wavering. If she lost Ruby, this whole ordeal would be pointless. "Okay!" She yelled over another gust. "We'll go to the city!"

Blake shook her head. "Don't be stupid, princess! They'll be looking for you! They probably don't have much more than a vague description of me, but I can gate myself out if I do get caught!"

Weiss began to ask a question, but Blake answered it without even looking over.

"I can gate myself just fine!" She yelled. "The only problem is moving humans like you!"

Weiss scoffed at that, but didn't say anything else. She couldn't logically argue with any of Blake's points, and she was growing an uncomfortably burgeoning respect for the fay's dedication; she didn't know her kind was capable of this kind of selflessness. Either that, or Blake was a very good liar.

Blake slowed to a trot as they approached the outer limits of the city, giving Weiss an opportunity to speak while the winds were eased. "What's to stop you from just running away from all this? If you really can just gate yourself away, why haven't you?" After a quick moment's thought, she added, "And what promise do I have that you won't?"

Blake's head fell back as she released a long-suffering groan. "I'm not gonna run away, princess, despite whatever insane platitudes you humans spread about my kind."

"That wasn't an answer to any of my questions, Blake," Weiss intoned. "If we're going to be doing this, there needs to be a modicum of… trust."

Weiss visibly and audibly sneered at the word, making Blake scowl. She turned her horse around and stomped it up to Weiss, then jabbed a finger into the heiress' chest. "Trust? You expect me to show someone like youeven the barest shred of faith? The only reason I'm going to Vale is because of them," she pointed to the unconscious Huntress in her lap. "And I know that, unlike me, you don't have a choice in this. Youran away from a life us peasants could only dream of; a big palace, a full stomach, more money than I could even comprehend— all for which you haven't toiled a day in your life."

Weiss recoiled, batting the finger from her chest. "I— you really think it's so easy? Try living that life yourself. Your suffering is of the body, mine is of the soul and the mind; that's the only difference! Whenever you got a cut or had to run a day's toil, I had to exemplify perfection, purity, and the Schnee name, all while my own bloody parents assailed me with verbal and physical abuse! I could never be what they wanted, and I gave up everything Iactually wanted in lieu of pursuing that unachievable goal. Worse still, I was constantly paraded around for suitors like a prized slave— the tournament was just a way to get me married, carted off to some man just so he could put a baby in me! I never wanted to be married, but they made that choice anyways!"

Blake watched her fume, unimpressed. "Oh no, not an arranged marriage!" she drawled, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "My heart bleeds for you, princess,but guess what: everything you said, every 'suffering of the soul and mind', it isn't fucking special. Your pain isn't monolithic. You're not the only person harmed by their own family, you're not the only person burdened by expectations, and you're not the only one who's been forced to be with someone you hate. The only difference is that you don't have to wonder if you can afford your next meal."

Weiss gawked at the woman before her, who had pulled her bandages away just to show the venomous conviction that had grown over her face. She felt like Blake had scooped her body out from under her skin, leaving her hollow, vulnerable, and weak. Her mind tripped over itself trying to think of a rebuttal, but the fay continued.

"Go that way," Blake commanded, her deadpan voice ignoring the lampooning she'd just dealt. She pointed off into the hills as she pulled her bandages back over her face. "Take my horse with you, I'll just gate there when I have some supplies."

Weiss' mouth flapped as she was forced to recover from her verbal lashing. "What am I looking for?" She mumbled, defeated.

Blake dismounted her horse and wrapped it with her chains again, then handed them off to Weiss. "An abandoned guard tower. The door's locked, but it's easy to open. Just take one of Ruby's knives and jiggle the lock until it opens."

Weiss slowly nodded, unsure of what she could say to Blake now. Her mind was still buzzing with the fay's words.

Blake turned back towards Vale, but not before sending a look over her shoulder. "If something happens to Yang, or if you do anything to fuck me, I'll show you 'suffering of the body' that will make your fucking ancestors whimper," she promised with a sharp amber glare.

Weiss gulped and nodded, then quickly trotted herself and Blake's horse in the designated direction, leaving the fay behind. Weiss didn't look back; she could feel Blake's eyes between her shoulder blades.


AN: didn't think id update with just *two* chapters, didja? fr tho, ive been fiending for these updates. sorry for the spam lol.

also sorry this one's hella short, but the next one... HOOOOOH MAMA she's big. even by twilight concerto standards, its sitting at the upper end of average. I could've broken it up, but it's also the end of the arc and i hit a crazy flow for like 10 straight pages, so it's beefed to hell. Plus im gonna take a break with the arc ending, a proper one. At least a few weeks or something, just to keep myself from burning out and give my gf time to catch up editing TC. just figured a long one would help tithe y'all over. oh and this shit is bangin, too, in my frank opinion. i even introduce a couple of familiar faces- well, one familiar face. one kind of familiar face, in a way. yall wanna guess who it is?

but hey thanks for reading! love yall. see you tomorrow ;))))))))