My thoughts keep coming back to this story...
And even if it isn't doing as well as I would like...
I'm invested into telling this story.
Here is the next chapter.
She felt utterly disgusted…
These people… Were the absolute worst.
Despite having learned to always be weary and to not trust anyone over the years, she somehow missed that these were slave traders. The conditions of those they kept were horrible… Everyone was malnourished. Bruised… Beaten… She suspected that even a few were…
Velvet's jaw clenched as she kept her eyes focused ahead, trailing behind the caravan they were escorting back to their base… Which was in a very familiar direction. Were they using…
She breathed deeply to calm her nerves, wincing and shaking off the dull ring she felt from her Faunus ears. Occasionally, she would get sensations that felt like she could hear again…
After a few more breaths, her nerves calmed, and the ringing stopped. She glanced over the sands and scowled. Over the years she had spent traveling the wastes, she had seen so many horrible things since the world had changed… And she still had not become accustomed to it. She didn't think she ever would…
This world was so far detached from what she remembered it was. Sometimes, it wasn't easy to believe they were the same…
Taking a moment to take in the sights, her focus wandered. Usually, this would be dangerous as at every turn, there was danger in the Wastes, but she hadn't often traveled in a group setting like this. It felt safe… Safer.
The Wastes were never truly safe.
As her mind wandered, she winced. After all this time… She could fulfill one of her promises… Yet…
Blake didn't even notice her existence before he took her away ahead of everyone. She was just… So… Carefree… Curious… Unaware…
Vacant.
Velvet blanched at the thought. What could have happened to cause her to become like that? There were so many different possibilities she didn't know where to start. All she knew was…
She couldn't help but gasp as the dust and sand settled in front of her as they drove. She let off her throttle for a moment to gaze into the distance.
There it stood… Like the first day she had seen it. A little more tattered and worn… With stouter walls and new gates… And what looked like a small town within the walls.
Many things had changed… But the tower in the middle remained the same.
Beacon still stood… Perhaps there was a ray of hope left in this depraved world.
After so long… She couldn't believe she was back.
She thought the Fall was the end, but here it stood tall… And she was within its premises once more. It was surreal. Never once did she think she would return here and see people actively walking through the campus filled with people…
Even if they had converted the facilities into a makeshift town. She absently wondered what the classrooms would be like… She doubted the dorms were used for anything but housing…
Maybe her team's old room was still vacant? Perhaps she could swing by…
And find they were here all along… That Sun was here…
Her ears curled as she hung her head in despair. She knew not to hold onto hope… Until she had seen Emerald, she hadn't run into anyone she knew in the last seven years…
Then, to find Blake…
"Where did he take her?" Velvet mused, looking through the dusty sands of the campus, noticing the variety of people walking through and others stationed at each building.
A few sent her some odd glances in her direction, but they didn't bother her. Faunus were rare… And outsiders were never trusted in established camps.
"I should head over to the Health Centre… That's likely where they are taking everyone." Velvet mused, taking in the sight of the campus-turned-settlement before sighing, slowly trudging through the sands in that direction.
Only to stop as a cold voice echoed behind her. "Where did you get that motorcycle?"
Brown turned to meet a cold and calculating crimson gaze from a weather woman with long black hair that reminded her of a friend. Her gaze became even more callous as her hand grasped and pulled her left wrist with a snarl. "And this does not belong to…"
"Raven, that's enough." Velvet's eyes shimmered as a voice she recognized spoke sternly. "Everyone uses what they can to survive the Wastes… You should know that better than anyone."
Gasping as her wrist was released, clutching it to her chest, she slowly turned, her heart thundering in her chest. Her eyes flickered in and out, and she lost her breath at who was approaching. She was still…
"Professor?"
"I haven't been called that in forever…" Glynda muttered, her lips quivering before her face steeled as she faced Raven. "Ms. Scarlatina is our guest here. I would appreciate it if you didn't harass her."
"Those are my daughters…" Raven snarled, boring her seething gaze into Glynda's before staring into Velvet's, causing her to gasp.
She was… Yang's mother? Velvet flinched, and her posture slumped. She could understand why she was so upset… But if Blake was still alive… That meant…
"I do not care." Glynda matched Raven's stare. "I understand and sympathize with your sentimentality… But they are simply tools. If someone else can use them to fight, they, by all means…"
"I made the promise… When I came upon everyone's gear within the Wastes when I woke up… That as soon as I see her again, I'll return them." Velvet stared at the ground before gradually lifting her gaze to meet Raven's. "I—had honestly lost hope that I would ever see them again. But now… Seeing Blake again…"
Velvet stiffened as she felt her shoulder grasped tightly, and she cringed, leaning back as Raven pulled her face within mere inches. She could feel her heated breath… But upon seeing her trepid expression, a slight sense of understanding washed over her.
For Yang… Blake was everything.
"Where is she?!"
The Health Centre had received a technological upgrade in the past seven years. She had only visited the building a few times each year for check-ups and… Feminine matters… But this overhaul even surprised her.
She had heard Pietro had escaped the Fall of Atlas and survived the Flash, but was he devoting his entire attention to building machinery? Was he perhaps… Trying to… Recreate…
"Peach, what's wrong with her? Is it the same that is wrong with…"
Velvet struggled upon seeing yet another of her old Beacon Professors standing over Blake as she lay on a medical bed, several monitors strapped to her monitoring her vitals. How many people that she knew survived the Flash? Did more people survive further from the epicenter? …It made sense if that was the case…
"No. She was awake when Naruto brought her in. This is something entirely different." Peach focused on a separate monitor, one Velvet didn't quite understand. However, noting that the Professor adjusted a band on Blake's forehead, she theorized it has something to do with monitoring brain activity.
"What?" Raven sternly glared at Peach with a snarl. "Just tell me straight then! If it is something different, what is wrong with her?"
"I don't know." Peach clenched her jaw, sneering at Raven. "If I knew, I would tell you and make a report of it! I don't understand anything I'm reading at the moment… There is so much feedback from her brain activity I can't make heads or tails of a thing. If I didn't know better…"
"Ms. Scarlatina." Velvet's stomach leapt to her throat as she jumped forward, feeling a hand touch her shoulder. She could feel her chest pounding as she turned to see Glynda standing behind her. "I apologize for frightening you."
"Ah, it's fine… Should have heard you coming…" Velvet grimaced, her tattered ears curling on her head before she reached up and softly rubbed her ears.
Glynda frowned, carefully observing her former student for a moment before shaking her head and sympathetically sighing. "Come… Let's give them a moment to settle things here. She isn't going anywhere. You can visit her tomorrow morning."
"But let's get you settled in and meet with the head of our camp."
This was uncomfortable.
She hadn't been in this office in forever… And it felt wrong to see anyone but Headmaster Oz behind the desk.
Perhaps Professor Goodwitch, but even then…
For what happened at the Fall and then the Flash, the room looked surprisingly well preserved. Glynda likely had something to do with that…
"Ah, sorry!" Naruto stood up and away from the work on his desk, walking in front of it while chuckling nervously and rubbing the back of his head. "Don't mean to make the atmosphere so tense! Was getting a few things taken care of… You alright? You look a little… Out of it."
Fidgeting in place, Velvet shrunk in embarrassment. Her nerves were showing, but she was never good at meeting people. Add in everything that happened… "I apologize… I just… There's a lot to take in…"
Gingerly smiling, Naruto slightly nodded, his head lowering and his eyes glistening. "Yeah, I can get that… Living in the Wastes all this time with limited contact with others, unsure who to trust and whatnot… Never knowing if you'll see someone you know again… I get that."
"But, let's just not waste time." Naruto shook his head, making eye contact with Velvet and holding her gaze. "I know this is sudden, and I understand if you want to think about it as you probably don't trust me personally… But I want you to join the settlement."
"I know it is sudden to ask you something like this. I get it, but we could use someone with your skills. Anyone that can survive the Wastes on their own as long as you have… We would be glad to have ya. Glynda has already vouched for your character, and I trust her judgment." Naruto continued to make his case. "With the world as it is, we need more people like you if we want a chance to survive as the world continues to evolve and change around us. We need every hand to keep people of this settlement safe and to bring in other survivors… That one in particular, as we don't have enough people. There is only so much each of us can do…"
"Even I can't do everything on my own…" Naruto muttered, finishing his pitch as he glowered at his own inability.
Velvet's heart thumped. He was just straight-up asking her to join? It was surprising, to say the least. She understood why Glynda would vouch for her. But to see him so easily trust her despite not knowing her in the slightest…
And did she even want to stay here? Velvet shrank, grimacing at the notion.
She had been living alone for so long that she didn't know if she could live with others any longer. Trust them. And here, of all places? A place she knew well… A place that lingered in her memories for what happened…
But she also held some of her fondest memories working alongside her friends…
"When you rescued me… You said you recognized me." Velvet frowned. "What happened? All I remember was waking up in the Void… What was left of Vacuo…"
Meekly exhaling, his gaze dulling, Naruto shook his head but met her gaze. "I know I found you with that wreckage and brought you back to a rescue camp I built with Emerald, Mercury, and Trivia's help. On one of my many trips back into the Void to rescue more people… Nyghtmares descended during the night. They held them off as best as I could, but when I got back…"
"You were gone. I couldn't find you anywhere, no matter how hard I looked. Everyone thought you were a casualty, and we ended the search."
Velvet winced, her jaw clenching as she ducked her head. She understood his reasoning… She would have done the same…
"I see…" Velvet rubbed her temple, sighing as her eyes darkened. "I don't know what happened either… I occasionally get these glimpses and hear voices, but I don't remember what happened immediately after the Flash."
"I can imagine… I couldn't wake you up even with my Yin-Yang release." Naruto exhaled once more before he pursed his lips, gazing upon her ears. "Did you… Get caught in a storm unprotected?"
"Yes… I lost hearing a long time ago." Velvet nodded, her ragged ears curled, and she winced.
What she would give to have her full hearing restored…
"Ah, should have noticed that when I restored your energy," Naruto growled at his incompetence before stopping himself from reaching out. "I can restore your hearing if you would like. It's not much of a…"
"What?" Velvet stumbled, her eyes flickering. She felt it was odd when he rejuvenated her… Strange as the sensation was, she felt a little better. Even her ears felt a little better than they did before.
The tinnitus ringing that was constantly ringing… Had he…
"Yeah, I know that look." Naruto chuckled, seeing the emotions rapidly shift over her eyes. "Just let me…"
"Ah!" Velvet recoiled from Naruto's touch on her ears.
Everything was so loud! From the lightest taps to the rattling of the elevator's gears…
Velvet's eyes shimmered as she caressed her ears. Even the sensation of touch had returned… She could…
"It's just what I do." Naruto lightly smiled. "It's always what I have done… If I can help someone, I will. That's why I'm searching for people like me who want to help and can do something about it."
"Everyone needs that help, and I can't do it alone."
It had been so long… To think she would be rooming in the dorms once again almost ten years after the Fall of Beacon…
It was beyond words to describe. This may not have been her team's old room, but that was likely for the best. She dwelt on the past enough… Staying in a room that reminded her of those memories…
She absently wondered if she would have bunk mates like before. Glynda had stated that only solo rooms were granted to married couples and families, something she could understand. Otherwise, unless it was a guard unit, everyone was assigned to bunk with others…
So, as she came to her new room, she gently slid her key into the lock. But before she could even turn to open the door, it snapped open, and she was greeted by the resident inside.
After having to look down a full head to see her unnerving smile.
"Ah, figured you would stay!" Heterochromatic eyes shimmered as she placed a hand on her hips and grinned. "Bout time they gave us another roommate! Oh, maybe I can convince you to share him with me! Bree is a stick in the mud and never wants to join in!"
Velvet rocked back, leaning far away from the petite woman standing before her. It was her? She was rooming with…
Her face flushed as her words fully dawned on her. She was both filled with indignant rage for suggesting such a thing and bothered by it…
"Trivia, enough." Another woman's voice echoed from behind Trivia, annoyed as she walked up. "Let her in without frightening our new roommate… That isn't something to worry over too much about since he lives in the old teacher apartments."
"You never let me have fun!" Trivia stuck her tongue out and blew a raspberry at the oak-skinned woman as she walked beside Trivia. "If you just join us, you might not be such a tight ass… I know it would wid…"
"I live a monogamous life, unlike you." Bree scrunched her face and shot Trivia a glare, causing her to flippantly wave and walk away from the door.
"Whatever! More fun for me."
"Yeah, hope you can deal with that…" Bree squinted at her petite roommate, turning to Velvet and offering her hand. "Ah, I think I remember you a little… Good to see you made it out of the Wastes."
"Name's Harriet Bree, vice-captain of the Night Watch. Nice to officially meet you."
"Oooaahhh!"
Velvet cringed, and her head withdrew into herself. Blake was awake and curiously fiddling with the machinery around her. Her gold eyes sparkled with wonder and amazement, picking up tools left and right and examining them before tossing them to the side without a care in the world if they would break.
She was simply fascinated by everything around her.
Why was she even here… Velvet sunk further into herself.
She had wanted to see how Blake was… See if they had figured out what was wrong with her… Instead…
Her heart clenched, and she gritted her teeth, watching Blake zoom across the room, playing with everything in the room. All she could think about was how she used to be… And how Sun would always glow when talking about her…
"I'm assuming she wasn't like this before." Naruto scratched the side of his head, wincing as tools and equipment clattered against the floor as Blake enthusiastically tore through the room.
"No," Velvet responded in unison with Glynda as bewildered Raven stood vacantly, unsure how to react to the situation, turning toward Naruto, and her gaze narrowed at him.
"Can't you do something about this?"
"It's the same reason I can't do anything for her." Naruto exhaled, the glint in his eyes dampening. "I can take care of physical ailments with no problem… I did what I could, but the mind and spirit are something entirely else. …If my partner were here, maybe we could pull off the impossible together…"
"Dammit!" Raven cursed, clenching her fist as she kept a watchful eye on Blake as she wandered about freely with a bright smile on her face.
Then it faded as she stopped at the door, and without notice, she bolted through it.
"Blake!" Velvet shouted, sprinting after her behind Raven, calling out to her as she ran through the building, taking a variety of turns as if she knew where she was heading. "It's okay! We're your friends!"
"Hey, hey, hey!" Raven wrapped an arm around Blake's waist and restrained her from running further. "Let's not go back there…"
"I don't think she is running from us…" Naruto kept in stride with them, carefully observing Blake's movements, stopping as Raven wrestled with the struggling Faunus and frowned as he made eye contact with Glynda. "Ya think she…"
"It's possible." Glynda nodded, glancing at Blake. "Raven… Let's take her back to see her."
"Wait, you think she…" Raven's eyes flickered wide, glancing at the Faunus trying to escape her grasp.
"Worth a shot." Naruto's intent was fully focused on Blake before glancing at a door ahead. "She was making a beeline in this direction and avoiding everything else on its way… We don't know what's wrong with either, but maybe… She can feel a presence she recognizes."
Velvet's body went rigid. What did that mean? A presence she recognized? Was there… Someone else here?
"Got it… Hey, you want to come with me?" Raven gently took Blake's hand, and her voice softened to a tone Velvet had not heard from the women. "I'll take you to her. You don't have to go on your own…"
Upon those words, Blake's thrashing ceased, and she began to visibly calm as she made eye contact with Raven. Her eyes gleamed, and she gently pulled Raven forward, gazing upon the same door Naruto had glanced at.
"So she is coherent… At least a little bit." A thin smile graced Naruto's lips as Raven helped guide Blake ahead.
"There's a chance then… That's all we can hope for." Glynda looked on in wonder, following behind as the door to the room opened.
Velvet could feel her heart in her throat. She felt like hyperventilating… She wanted to understand what was going on here… What was wrong with Blake… Why she rushing back here specifically…
But the only answer that came was a shrill shriek from Blake as the door, and she rushed ahead.
A cold shiver traveled down Velvet's spine as she stepped into the room to see Blake weakly push up against a glass pod similar to suspension pods she had seen develop in Atlas when she visited her father at work.
"Oooaahhh!" Blake mewled, her eyes glimmering as she gazed into the pod, excitement vividly brimming from her.
Velvet stayed rooted to the spot, unsure of what to feel as she saw one of her friends suspended in a viscous liquid, floating within as if she was some sort of experiment.
"Yes, she's here, Blake…" Raven's eyes misted as she looked at the individual in the pod, a faint smile gracing her lips. "She's here…"
"Ruby is just sleeping."
Like always, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and it brought you some joy today.
If you got a moment, I would love to hear back from ya.
Even if I write for myself, hearing from you helps keeps my motivation burning bright.
I'll have a Q and A for comments the next chapter. My bad for not answering as much. Been busy and spending hours most of my time working or writing.
But for now, I will see you soon my friends.
Peace.