Desert Sand

They moved as fast as they could out of the caravan. The changing of the guards would happen soon and when it happened they would see the dead guard and know that an intruder was present. So close to a perfect job. Wish we could have gotten more supplies, but main priority now is getting out alive…getting Weiss out alive.

They came to a grinding halt when Weiss stopped them as guards were present, moving as soon as the coast was clear. Blake followed close on her partner’s heels, letting the white-haired girl direct them out of her former home. The pair had reached the final ring of carts. They were almost out of the caravan and to the open ground surrounding it. 

But like with any good plan they could never prepare for all of the unforeseen possibilities. 

It was faint, even to her heightened Faunus hearing, but Blake heard a sound that made her stomach drop: the sound of a hammer being drawn back on a gun.

Looking over her shoulder, she saw a well dressed figure aiming a handgun at them. 

No he’s aiming at Weiss. 

Blake heard the gun fire. Without thinking she sprinted the few feet separating her from Weiss and pushed the other girl to the ground.

She couldn’t believe they’d actually done this, and what’s more, they’d actually succeeded in it. Her thoughts were racing as quickly as her feet and her heart.

Running is the easy part. We’re almost in the clear. Just a bit further.

She kept stealing glances behind herself to make sure Blake was following. There was a small outcropping of rocks not far ahead now, and they sprinted towards it at top speed, their boots kicking up plumes of dry sand as they went.

“Come on,” Weiss grunted. “We’re almost-”

Bam.

The shot rang out with deafening volume across the still, silent desert twilight.

Weiss felt her heart seize at the sound of it, terrified that they’d been found out so quickly. 

But before she could react by any conscious decision of her own, she felt a weight slam against her back, pushing her down into the sand.

She could tell it was Blake. No assailant would’ve put their arms around her so protectively.

Weiss scrambled to get up again, unable to feel any pain on herself, so she knew she’d been spared that first shot.

“Come on! We have to- Blake?!” She froze dead in place as she looked down at her partner.

Blake was cringing in the sand, hissing in pain as blood leaked from the unseen gunshot wound, the blow she’d taken to defend Weiss.

“No, no, no- Damn it!

She crouched beside the Faunus girl and grabbed her arm, pulling it across her shoulders. Weiss staggered to her feet with Blake’s weight at her side as she desperately tried to pull her towards cover.

“Blake, stay with me! Don’t you give up, do you hear me?”

The sound of the gunshot sounded distant in her ears as she felt a sharp sting in her stomach that bloomed into a searing pain. Blake fell to the ground the air leaving her in a pained hiss as her blood poured out of the wound, soaking the parched earth she rested upon.

Well it looks like this is it, I doubt I’ll be able to outrun them with this wound. Blake thought with grim resignation as she closed her eyes. It was only when she heard Weiss next to her, picking her up as best as the smaller girl could and dragging her behind a rock did Blake open her eyes and attempt to speak. 

“Weiss get out of here, I can’t run while i’m losing this much blood and they’ll only catch both of us if you try to help me. Just take my pack and get out of here, I’ll cover you and buy you time to run and hide somewhere.

She could see the defiance in Weiss’ blue eyes and a fear of going back to her father and a fear of losing a friend, though Blake was most likely imaging that. “Hey I said I’d protect you didn’t I?” She said with a pained chuckle, laughing only hurt her wound more.

Desert Sand

Blake followed behind Weiss, her footsteps barely making a noise as they moved through the caravan group. When they reached the cart that Weiss had designated as the food cart, the Faunus girl was ready to jump in until Weiss stopped her and indicated that she would be the one to go in. 

Standing outside the cart, all of Blake’s muscles were tensed. She was expecting a patrolling guard to come around the corner at any moment and sound the alarm. Weiss will be punished by her father and then married off to the highest bidder. As for me…let’s just hope that doesn’t happen. Blake thought as her eyes scanned the area around the cart.

She heard the sound of feet hitting dirt directly behind her and was about to pull her knife until she heard Weiss’ voice. Turning around, she accepted the bag of food Weiss handed her and let the girl lead the way silently towards the ammo cache.

When they reached it, Blake stopped Weiss before she could jump in. “I’ll go in this time. I know what ammo we need for our weapons.” She said before she jumped in. Immediately she knew this wouldn’t be as quick as the previous cart. The guard in this cart was on alert and immediately jumped at her when she entered in an attempt to subdue her.

Blake dropped and dove underneath the larger guard, ending up behind him. As she jumped at his back she pulled her knife from its sheath and stabbed him in the back of the head, ending his life as quickly and painlessly as she could.

She grabbed all the ammo they needed, not caring if they noticed it was missing at this point. “We probably have twenty minutes before all hell breaks loose, so we should make ourselves scarce.” She hissed as she dropped out of the cart next to her partner.

Waiting was probably more anxiety-inducing than being the one to go into the cart. Weiss was jumping and jolting at every little sound, her hand braced over her knife as she prepared to draw it at every waking second. 

She heard noise from behind her and knew that Blake had gotten into a skirmish inside. Weiss sucked in a breath, preparing to climb in to help her. But it wasn’t long before all fell silent, and a thudding sound was heard. Weiss knew it was a body, probably too heavy to have been Blake’s.

A few seconds later, Blake emerged, and Weiss remembered how to breathe again.

“All right, let’s go. Now!” She began leading the way out, skidding to a halt to avoid getting in the line of sight of some of the guards, then rushing forward the second they looked away, Blake hard on her heels.

They moved as fast as they could out of the caravan, the change of the guard would happen soon and when it happened they would see the dead guard and know that an intruder was present. So close to a perfect job, wish we could have gotten more supplies but main priority now is getting out alive...getting Weiss out alive.

They would have to come to grinding halts when Weiss stopped them as guards were present, moving as soon s the coast was clear. Blake followed close on her partner’s heels, letting the white haired girl direct them out of her former home.

The pair had reached the final ring of carts, there were almost out of the caravan and to the open ground surrounding it. But like with any good plan they could never prepare for all of the unforeseen possibilities. It was faint, even to her heightened Faunus hearing but Blake heard a sound that made her stomach drop: the sound of a hammer being drawn back on a gun.

Looking over her shoulder she saw a well dressed figure aiming a handgun at them. No he’s aiming at Weiss Blake thought before she heard the gun fire, without thinking she sprinted the few feet separating her and Weiss and pushed the other girl to the ground.

Desert Sand

Blake could see that Weiss still wasn’t fully comfortable with this idea of stealing from her father. The expression on her face was one of reluctance. Blake reached out and put a hand on her partner’s shoulder. “Hey, it’ll be fine. In, out, and no one will even know we were there till they check the supplies and notice they’re missing some.”

With that, they went over to the ridge and watched the guards move on their patrol routes, waiting for Weiss’ signal to go. When Blake heard the whisper, she nodded and moved forward quickly, staying in a low crouch to avoid detection. She aimed towards the back of the caravan so the horses wouldn’t give them away.

Weiss had told her in her briefing that the majority of the patrolling was done on the perimeter and it was significantly lightened once inside the caravan group. Not too worried about someone getting in. Only makes it easier for us that they’re so lax. She pressed herself against the back of a caravan once they had made their way in.

Looking towards her partner, she lowered her voice and whisper. “Alright, you know the layout better. Let’s hit food first then get ammo. If we have time we’ll get some other stuff, but we need the essentials first in case we are seen.”

Weiss couldn’t believe they’d made it as far as they had. But then again, Blake was an infamous thief of sorts; she’d stolen Weiss, after all. And Weiss knew this particular group better than anyone.

She guided Blake toward the cart that typically contained their food, one right at the heart of the group. Once there, she crouched down and pulled on Blake’s sleeve to have her do the same.

“We can’t both go in,” she hissed. “I know it best. I’ll go in and you stay put and keep watch out here. If something happens, I’ll yell, and you just run, got it? It won’t matter if they catch me, but if they get you, you’re dead.”

With that warning, Weiss climbed up onto the cart before Blake could protest or stop her. Moving like a cat, Weiss kept light on her feet as she slipped beneath the tarps at the back of the cart, keeping close to the sides as she ducked inside. 

There was a guard inside, but he was asleep, as they always were at this hour. Weiss knew these men always lazed around and never took their posts seriously with so many other eyes open around the camp. 

Still, Weiss’ heart was pounding so hard and so loudly she feared it might wake him. 

She hurried for the supplies, which consisted of various bags of food items, mostly non-perishables. She wasn’t dumb enough to take just one bag of one kind of food, because that would give away the fact that they’d been robbed right away. Instead, she took an empty bag and filled it with one or two of each items: canned beans, some wrapped meat, and a few random vegetables.

Every noise she made sounded too loud, and she kept glancing back at the guard every other second. 

It felt like the entire night had passed by the time she’d finished grabbing all she could carry. She slipped back out from the tarps and jumped down, glad to find Blake was still there. Before she could turn on Weiss thinking she was an enemy, she whispered to her.

“It’s me! I’ve got what we need.” Weiss handed Blake one of the bags of food to carry and kept the other for herself. She let out a heavy sigh, swaying a little bit as she tried to get her bearings. “O-Okay… let’s go get ammo…”

Blake followed behind Weiss, her footsteps barely make a noise as they moved through the caravan group. When they reached the cart that Weiss had designated as the food cart, the Faunus girl was ready to jump in until Weiss stopped her and indicated that she would be the one to go in. 

Standing outside the cart all of Blake’s muscles were tensed, she was expecting a patrolling guard to come around the corner at any moment and sound the alarm. Weiss will be punished by her father and then married off to the highest bidder. As for me...let’s just hope that doesn’t happen. Blake thought as her eyes scanned the area around the cart.

She heard the sound of feet hitting dirt directly behind her and was about to pull her knife until she heard Weiss’ voice. Turning around she accepted the bag of food Weiss handed her and let the girl lead the way silently towards the ammo cache.

When they reached it Blake stopped Weiss before she could jump in. “I’ll go in this time, I know what ammo we need for our weapons.” She said before she jumped in. Immediately she knew this wouldn’t be as quick as the previous cart, the guard in this cart was on alert and immediately jumped at her when she entered in an attempt to subdue her.

Blake dropped and dove underneath the larger guard, ending up behind him. As she jumped at his back she pulled her knife from it’s sheathe and stabbed him in the back of the head, ending his life as quickly and painlessly as she could.

She grabbed all the ammo they needed, not caring if they noticed it was missing at this point. “We have probably twenty minutes before all hell breaks loose, so we should make our selves scarce.” She hissed as she dropped out of the cart next to her partner.

Desert Sand

Blake smiled when Weiss agreed, if somewhat reluctantly, to the plan of action. Setting up in a position where they could see all of the caravans, Weiss began pointing out all the pieces of relevant information for the infiltration mission. When she was done, Weiss looked at Blake with an expression of slight exasperation at the eagerness in Blake’s eyes.

“Nothing will go wrong, Weiss. I’m the pessimistic one and I have a good feeling about this. With my skill and the info you gave me, we should be fine.” The Faunus girl tried to be confident as she made sure her revolver and knife were in convenient places to reach. 

“That doesn’t mean I’ll need them, but better safe than sorry,” Blake quickly said before Weiss could say anything about her adjusting her weapons. “Anything else I need to know or do you think we are ready to go to this?”

Weiss found herself mumbling under her breath again as Blake braced herself to go through with this. She was appalled to see Blake readying her weapons, and was about to snap at her until Blake reassured her.

Weiss didn’t like the idea of stealing from her father’s caravan, even despite how awful he’d been to her. Though he’d been planning to sell her off to the richest man he could find, she didn’t want anything bad to happen to any of these people. She’d lived with them all her life, and she knew there were at least a few good souls among them.

“No,” she murmured. “That’s all you should need to know.”

She couldn’t believe they were really going to go through with this. But she’d consented to it, and there was no going back now.

Weiss watched and waited, keeping her eye on the guards in the distance, sitting on top of a few of the carts. She motioned for Blake to move toward the back of the group so their approach wouldn’t potentially alarm the horses.

“Ready?” Weiss whispered. She crouched low, ready to run forward and enact this plan.

Blake could see that Weiss still wasn’t fully comfortable with this idea of stealing from her father. The expression on her face was one of reluctance, Blake reached out and put a hand on her partner’s shoulder. “Hey it will be fine, in, out and no one will even know we were there till they check the supplies and notice they are missing some.”

With that they went over to the ridge and watched the guards move on their patrol routes, waiting for Weiss’ signal to go. When Blake heard the whisper she nodded her head and moved forward quickly, staying in a low crouch to avoid detection. she aimed towards the back of the caravan so the horses wouldn’t give them away.

Weiss had told her in her briefing that the majority of the patrolling was done on the perimeter and it was significantly lightened once inside the caravan group. Not too worried about someone getting in, only makes it easier for us that they are so lax. She pressed herself against the back of a caravan once they had made their way in.

Looking towards her shorter partner she lowered her voice and whisper “alright you know the layout better, let’s hit food first then get ammo. If we have time we’ll get some other stuff but we need the essentials first in case we are seen.”

Desert Sand

She knew Weiss was going to be opposed to her idea, she just didn’t think that she would so vehemently disagree. Almost as soon as she had finished her suggestion, Weiss started to shout at her. Even despite Weiss trying to intimidate Blake with talk about the bounty on her head, Blake could only see the upsides to her idea and the glint in her eye turned eager.

It was only when Weiss’ voice dropped and tears had already begun to fall down her cheeks when Blake realized the true extent of her partner’s hesitation and fear. Taking a step to close the distance between her and the shorter girl, Blake pulled Weiss into a hug. 

“Hey, I’ve already robbed your father once and succeeded. There’s no reason to think I can’t do it again, especially with your help. It doesn’t matter if they have more weapons. If they can’t use them as well as I can, it only takes a single bullet. Besides, if this goes as planned we won’t even be seen.” 

Blake reached her hand down and wiped the tear away from Weiss’ cheek. She didn’t know what possessed her to do such a thing, but it just felt right to her. “Listen, Weiss. Trust me. I promise you that I won’t let your father do anything to you. They don’t call me a cat burglar just because I’m a Faunus.” she said, trying to lighten the situation with some humor.

With a cocky smile, Blake looked over at the caravan now that the light had died and night had fallen. “So what do you say? Want to give your dad a reason to make the bounty on my head two million lien?”

Weiss wasn’t sure which was more unexpected - Blake’s words or her actions. An embrace had been the absolute last thing she’d been expecting from the person who’d once been her kidnapper, carrying Weiss around and throwing her down like a rag doll, always arguing.

Was this really the same person?

As quickly as Blake had pulled her in and wiped her tears, she stepped back and released her, leaving Weiss to wonder a million different things. But Blake’s suggestion took precedence in her mind. 

She hated to admit it, but Blake had a point. A few, actually. If they succeeded with this ludicrous plan, they’d be set for a long time. And with Weiss’ knowledge of the carriages and guards, coupled with Blake’s stealth and skill, it almost seemed possible.

Weiss wiped the last of her tears onto her sleeve and sighed.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this. But fine. Let’s do it. We’ve got nothing to lose, anyway…”

From there, she began pointing out which carriages hid which supplies - some weapons, some stock, and some food rations. She instructed Blake on how to get around the guards undetected, how to keep to small blind spots near the horses. Once she felt she’d covered everything, she looked back to Blake.

“Got it? If this goes awry, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Weiss readied herself, prepared to take off at Blake’s side. And despite the prickle of fear seeping into her blood, she couldn’t deny the faint drops of excitement that was mixing in with it.

Blake smiled when Weiss agreed, if somewhat reluctantly to the plan of action. Setting up in a position where they could see all of the caravans Weiss began pointing out all the pieces of relevant information for the infiltration mission. When she was done Weiss looked at Blake with an expression of slight exasperation at the eagerness on Blake’s face.

“Nothing will go wrong Weiss, I’m the pessimistic one and I have a good feeling about this. With my skill and the info you gave me we should be fine.” The Faunus girl tried to be confident as she made sure her revolver and knife were in convenient places to reach. 

“That doesn’t mean I’ll need them but better safe than sorry,” Blake quickly said before Weiss could say anything about her adjusting her weapons. “Anything else I need to know or do you think we are ready to go to this?”

Desert Sand

Blake carefully handed the binoculars to Weiss, knowing the other girl would be just as dismayed if not more at the sight before them. It was only a moment before Weiss started cursing their luck at the appearance of her father’s caravan right in their path.

Her partner began to speak quickly, a jumble of words pouring out of her mouth as she was thinking of a way out of this situation. Blake began to form her own plan, though much different from Weiss’, a gleam in her eyes and ears twitching.

“Follow me on this. We need to get to Vale without him seeing us. If we wait for your father to move, we have to hold out here, and as you’ve noticed we don’t have the supplies to do that and still make it to Vale.” Blake paused a moment to make sure that Weiss was on the same page as she was.

“However, if we go through him and his caravan, not only can we cut some time off our journey, we can also steal the supplies we need. After all, you know which carts are holding what supplies. We just have to sneak our way through, so what do you think?” Blake’s amber eyes glinted in the dying light as her mind worked out the kinks in the plan.

Weiss’ jaw nearly hit the sand beneath her feet. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing from this girl’s mouth.

“What?” she gaped, somewhere in between incredulous and outraged. “I don’t believe this! You’re not really suggesting that we raid and steal from my own father’s caravan, are you? Must I remind you he’s searching for- no, hunting us? There’s probably a million-lien bounty on your head right now! And not to mention he’s got dozens of men and they have dozens more weapons!”

Despite her rantings, she could already see the eager glint in Blake’s eyes. Weiss did everything within her power to yell some sense into her.

“Blake, you listen to me. You’ve already robbed my father once and succeeded. You’re the first person to attempt such a feat solo, and you’re the only person to succeed. And you didn’t just steal ammo or whatever - you stole me. You’ve done it once. You won’t get that lucky again. Do you know what they’ll do to you if they catch you? Do you know what they’ll… what he’ll do to me?”

She looked away, her feistiness fading as her stomach twisted. If her father accused Weiss of voluntarily teaming up with a Faunus bandit and then attempting to rob him, he’d probably kill her himself or sell her to the highest bidder. And it wouldn’t be as a wife as he’d initially intended - it’d be as a plaything.

And he’d surely kill Blake in the cruelest way possible.

Weiss lifted her gaze once more, but lowered her voice.

“Blake. Please. The risk is far too high. We’d never make it…” She blinked, and a tear trickled down her cheek. 

Weiss had seen enough death in this world. She didn’t want to have to see Blake’s, too.

She knew Weiss was going to be opposed to her idea, she just didn’t think that she would so vehemently disagree. Almost as soon as she had finished her suggestion Weiss started to shout at her. Even despite Weiss trying to intimidate Blake with talk about the bounty on her head, Blake could only see the upsides to her idea and the glint in her eye turned eager.

It was only when Weiss’s voice dropped and tears had already begun to fall down her cheek did Blake realize the true extent of her partner’s hesitation and fear. Taking a step to close the distance between her and the shorter girl, Blake pulled Weiss into a hug. 

“Hey I’ve already robbed your father once and succeeded, there’s no reason to think I can’t do it again especially with your help. It doesn’t matter if they have more weapons if they can’t use them as well as I can, it only takes a single bullet besides if this goes as planned we won’t even be seen.” 

Blake reached her hand down and wiped the tear away from Weiss’ cheek, she didn't know what possessed her to do such a n action but it just felt right to her. “Listen Weiss, trust me I promise you that I won’t let your Father do anything to you. They don’t call me a cat burglar just because I’m a Faunas.” Blake said trying to lighten the situation with some humor.

With a cocky smile Blake looked over at the caravan now that the light had died and night had fallen. “So what do you say, want to give your dad a reason to make the bounty on my head two million lien?”

Desert Sand

They walked for the rest of the day. Blake led the way while Weiss followed close behind, checking their backs every so often. They lucked out; neither a mutant nor a raider crossed their path as they traveled in silence, the dry air parching their throats too quickly to make talking pleasant.

Blake also wasn’t sure where she stood exactly with her new partner. She knew the other girl had no other course but to stay with Blake. Yet at the same time she thought there was a genuine bond forming between the two of them.

After several more hours of walking, the day was starting to die, with the sun falling below the horizon and dimming the world around them. As she was about to call for them to make camp, Blake felt a tug on her sleeve.

“Let me check,” she replied to Weiss, pulling out a pair of binoculars from her pack and bringing them up to her face. Looking through them, she saw they hadn’t arrived at a settlement, the change in landscape came from a group of caravan’s that had formed a defensive position for the night.

“Oh shit,” Blake mumbled in dismay as she saw a familiar snowflake banner draped across the caravan’s wagons.

“What? What is it?” 

Weiss tensed, preparing herself for a pack of Mutants or bandits, her fingers bracing above the knife concealed beneath her shirt. But as Blake offered the binoculars for her to see through, Weiss realized the reality before her was infinitely worse than what she’d imagined it could be.

She couldn’t believe it. It had only been a few days since Blake had kidnapped her, but since then, Weiss had gone from hostage to partner in her eyes.

So for her father’s caravan to be blockading their path was much worse than having to face a pack of Mutants.

“No…” Weakly, Weiss took a step back. “No, no… Why is he here? There’s a whole god-forsaken desert for him to be in, so why here? Why now?” She’d wished it had been a herd of monsters or raiders. Anything but this…

The possibility that they’d run into him on his way to Atlas had always been on the table since the second they themselves had decided to head for Vale. But Weiss had never truthfully thought they’d cross paths. After all, the speed at which she and Blake were traveling on foot was very different from the speed of a caravan with horses and wagons.

“We’ve got to go around them. Far around them. The guards have telescopes set up at night. They’ll see us from miles away, and if they recognize either one of us, they’ll be on our tails in seconds. We’ll never be able to outrun them on foot. We should go back a ways and set up camp, then if they leave tomorrow we can keep going…”

She was concocting several different scenarios in her mind, thinking of ways to avoid her father’s people, but still get Blake and herself to their destination unscathed. However, as she looked to her partner, she could see Blake’s ears twitching slightly, a faint gleam in her eyes. Weiss stiffened.

“What are you thinking about? It’d better not be something stupid.”

Blake carefully handed the binoculars to Weiss, knowing the other girl would be just as dismayed if not more at the sight before them. It was only a moment before Weiss started cursing their luck at the appearance of her father’s caravan right in their path.

Her partner began to speak quickly, a jumble of words pouring out of her mouth as she was thinking of a way out of this situation. Blake began to form her own plan though much different from Weiss’, a gleam in her eyes and ears twitching.

“Follow me on this, we need to get to Vale without him seeing us. If we wait for your father to move we have to hold out and as you’ve noticed we don’t have the supplies to do that and still make it to Vale.” Blake paused a moment to make sure that Weiss was on the same page as she was.

“However if we go through him and his caravan not only can we cut some time off our journey, we can also steal the supplies we need after all you know which carts are holding what supplies. We just have to sneak our way through, so what do you think?” Blake’s amber eyes glinted in the dying light as her mind worked out the kinks in the plan.

Desert Sand

Blake could feel the tension in the air. It hung between her and Weiss, smothering them as if it were physical. It was all because of what Blake had said - she had opened up too much to Weiss; an inevitability that she wished had come later.

As she was getting ready to say something else, she looked at her partner and could see that there was a desire to do something; to say something. Their hands remained together a moment longer than they needed to be, a small sign of companionship before Weiss turned on her heel.

Blake was taken back by the comment. She wasn’t sure how to feel that someone else cared about her. It felt warm, a certain sense of comfort as if to tell her that she wasn’t on her own against the world; that now she had help, someone to watch her back who wanted her to live.

“Yeah, let’s go. We still have a few hours of daylight left before we need to find shelter,” Blake agreed as she picked up her own supplies, walking past Weiss to lead the way. 

The entire interaction only lasted a few moments from the end of the fight to their departure, but Blake felt as if something had radically changed for her.

Weiss followed behind her partner for a while longer. Their temporary rest and their mock fight had served to rejuvenate them a bit, and despite the midday heat, Weiss felt more energized than she had previously.

Luck seemed to be on their side for the time being, because they didn’t encounter any other Mutants or any other people. Interaction with strangers in this world was either good or bad - there was no in between. And now that Weiss had found herself on Blake’s good side, she wasn’t too keen on risking it to speak to anyone else.

They walked for a few more hours, occasionally pausing to rest in between. They didn’t talk much so they wouldn’t dry out their throats, but as the cooler evening hours approached, speaking would become easier.

By the time the smog-choked sunlight had begun to fade, Weiss noticed a change in the landscape ahead. Rather than flat desert sand and barren landscape, there seemed to be shapes and structures in the distance now. Praying it wasn’t just one of those infamous hallucinations, she halted for a moment and tugged on Blake’s sleeve.

“Blake…? Is that…?”

They walked for the rest of the day, Blake led the way while Weiss followed close behind checking their back every so often. They lucked out though and neither a mutant nor a raider crossed their path as they traveled in silence, the dry air parching their throats too quickly to make talking pleasant.

Blake also wasn’t sure where she stood exactly with her new partner, she knew the other girl had no other course but to stay with Blake. Yet at the same time she thought there was a genuine bond forming between the two.

After several more hours of walking the day was starting to die, with the sun falling below the horizon and dimming the world around them. As she was about to call for them to make camp Blake felt a tug on her sleeve.

“Let me check,” she replied to Weiss, pulling out a pair of binocular from her pack and bringing them up to her face. Looking through them she saw they hadn’t arrived at a settlement, the change in landscape came from a group of caravan’s that had formed a defensive position for the night.

“Oh shit,” Blake mumbled in dismay as she saw a familiar snowflake banner draped across the caravan’s.

Desert Sand

“It was a mock fight, and you did really well, Weiss. I can already see you improving,” Blake said as she took her partner’s hand, standing up with her help. Looking out at the sun, Blake nodded her head in agreement. “Yeah we should get going. We can still make some good progress before we settle down for the night.” 

Blake handed Weiss her knife back as she sheathed her own. “That was a good hit, Weiss. Though you don’t need to worry about if it hurt me; I’ve had worse done to me.” There was a slight pause before Blake lowered her voice and continued speaking.

“But… thanks for the concern. I don’t remember the last time someone cared if I was alright. Most people are only concerned that I’m not dead.”

Weiss sensed the drastic change in the mood and quietly sheathed her knife. She’d had half a mind to say something in response to Blake’s comments, but she quickly thought better of asking questions. Blake’s personal business was none of Weiss’. Not right now, anyway. The Faunus girl didn’t seem too keen on opening up, not even to her new partner.

Weiss wanted to ask, but she held herself back, choosing to leave the wound alone rather than irritate it. She kept her fingers around Blake’s for a moment longer than necessary before whipping around.

But she felt the need to say something. Just… something.

“Well I care,” she mumbled. “So you’d better get used to it.”

She said nothing more than that on the matter.

Weiss scooped up the bag of supplies she’d been carrying earlier and slung it across her shoulder, not making eye contact with Blake right away.

“Let’s be off then. Lead the way.”

Blake could feel the tension in the air, it hung between her and Weiss; smothering them as if it her physical. It was all because of what Blake had said, she had opened up too much to Weiss; an inevitability that she wished had come later.

As she was getting ready to say something else she looked at her partner and could see that there was a desire to do something; to say something. Their hands remained together a moment longer than they needed to be, a small sign of companionship before Weiss turned on her heel.

Blake was taken back by the comment, she wasn’t sure how to feel that someone else cared about her. It felt warm, a certain sense of comfort as if to tell her that she wasn’t on her own against the world; that now she had help, someone to watch her back who wanted her to live.

“Yeah let’s go, we still have a few hours of daylight let before we need to find shelter.” Blake agreed as she picked up her own supplies, walking past Weiss to lead the way. 

The entire interaction only lasted a few moments from the end of the fight to their departure; but Blake felt as if something had radically changed for her.

Desert Sand

She charged at Weiss, knife held at the ready as her partner avoided her strike at the last minute. As she passed the white-haired girl by, she felt a punch dead center between her shoulder blades that knocked her down to the ground and the air out of her lungs.

Staying motionless on the ground, she did her best to catch her breath. Good hit Schnee, she groaned to herself as she could already feel the bruise forming on her back. Not even a moment later, Weiss had knelt down beside her, trying to offer assistance.

Blake flipped around, knocking Weiss’s legs out from underneath her and pushing forward. As she fell on top of the girl, she grabbed her fallen knife and put it and her own knife against Weiss’s throat. From her straddled position, she looked down at Weiss. “Never let your guard down until you know the fight is over.”

Weiss choked on her breath as Blake suddenly attacked her, bowling her over to land hard in the sand. The Faunus girl pinned her down with all her weight, and Weiss coughed as the dust and sand rose up around her eyes. She could feel the cold metal of not one but two blades pushing against her throat as she struggled to lift her eyelids.

Swallowing past the dryness in her mouth, Weiss squinted up at her partner and sighed. “My bad,” she grumbled. “I thought this was just a mock fight…”

She rolled herself onto her side and pushed Blake off, then got to her feet and began dusting off her clothes and hair. “I guarantee you I wouldn’t have hesitated to kill anyone other than you.” Honestly, she was just amazed at herself for managing to get Blake on her knees.

Looking to the sun overhead, she’d noticed it had started to sink a bit. Weiss offered her hand to Blake with a grunt. “We should get moving before we attract more Mutants our way, don’t you think?”

“It was a mock fight and you did really well Weiss, I can already see you improving,” Blake said as she took her partner’s hand, standing up with her help. Looking out at the sun Blake nodded her head in agreement with the shorter girl. “Yeah we should get going, we can still make some good progress before we settle down for the night.” 

Blake handed Weiss her knife back as she sheathed her own. “That was a good hit Weiss, though you don’t need to worry about if it hurt me; I’ve had worse done to me” there was a slight pause before Blake lowered her voice and continued speaking

“But... thanks for the concern, I don’t remember the last time someone cared if I was alright. Most people are only concerned that I’m not dead.”

Desert Sand

Blake watched her partner ready herself for their mock fight. She could tell the white-haired girl’s thoughts were racing. “Calm down, and just fight. I see you lasting fifteen seconds before I disarm you, if it’s any consolation.” Blake replied with a grin right before Weiss dove at her, knife held in front of her in the grip that Blake had showed her.

At least she learns fast, Blake thought as she quickly sidestepped the knife, the steel flashing by her by chest less than an inch away from her clothes. Her eyes stayed trained on Weiss, watching her hips and the arm that held the knife.

With honed reflexes, Blake positioned her knife so that it blocked Weiss’ blade as the shorter girl pivoted to try and slash at her. “Good work, though you’ve gotten yourself in a slight predicament haven’t you?” Blake asked rhetorically as she pushed her arm forward, inching the interlocked blades closer to Weiss.

Changing tactics, the white-haired girl spun away and kicked at Blake’s ankles, her foot connecting and knocking the Faunus to the ground. “Excellent. If you fight fairly you are fighting to lie. Everything is permitted as long as you survive.” With that Blake stood up and darted towards Weiss, a predatory gleam in her eyes.

Had Blake given her half a second, Weiss might’ve enjoyed the praise, but she wasn’t given the luxury. As the Faunus girl lunged at her, Weiss quickly stepped aside and managed to dodge the strike. 

Don’t think just fight, don’t think just fight-

As Blake passed her by, Weiss gathered herself and aimed a blow at her exposed back.

With a short cry, Weiss punched Blake between the shoulder blades with all her might. She’d gotten so caught up in the fight that she’d forgotten it was fake for a moment. As Blake was knocked into the sand, Weiss gasped and dropped her knife.

“S-Sorry! I didn’t-” Weiss quickly knelt down and tried to help Blake up.

She charged at Weiss, knife held at the ready as her partner avoided her strike at the last minute. As she passed the white haired girl by she felt a punch dead center between her shoulder blades that knocked her down to the floor and the air out of her lungs.

Staying motionless on the ground she did her best to catch her breath. Good hit Schnee she groaned to herself as she could already feel the bruise forming on her back. Not even a moment later Weiss had knelt down beside her trying to offer assistance.

Blake flipped around, knocking Weiss’s legs out from underneath her and pushing forward. As she fell on top of the girl she grabbed her fallen knife and put it and her own knife against Weiss’ throat. From her straddled position she looked down at Weiss. “Never let your guard down until you know the fight is over.”

Desert Sand

This time when Blake told Weiss, something she didn’t fight back, instead this time she listened to the black-haired girl. She loosened her muscles and stopped tensing up so much.

Watching closely, she corrected Weiss’ form whenever she noticed a flaw, this time doing it calmly and avoiding using a harsh tone that would turn Weiss against her again. After a few minutes of training under the sun, Blake stepped away from Weiss and watched the girl strike out with her knife.

“It’s much better than it was, though your form is only half of the equation when it comes to fighting. You also need to feel the rhythm of battle, it’s like dancing, and that means you need to be able to read your partner. You need to be able to predict their next move based on their body language and react.”

Standing across from her white-haired partner, Blake readied herself with knife in hand. “So are you ready to dance, Schnee?” she asked, a smile on her face.

Weiss felt she’d gotten the hang of things - at least as much as she could’ve within such a short amount of time. It would be her first time wielding a knife when she’d actually have to think about what she was doing. In the past, she’d often found herself in perilous situations with no time to think, and she’d been forced to just stab and slash as much as she could.

But now it was different. She was intent to demonstrate her own skills to Blake, and also keep a close eye on her partner’s moves.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” she replied. “Though I can already see you disarming me in about ten seconds flat…” Blake was an expert, after all.

Still, Weiss could charge into this little mock battle of theirs now knowing Blake wasn’t doing this just to humiliate her. They’d argued enough, but more than that, they’d talked, and learned about one another. Weiss knew Blake wasn’t going to ridicule her even if her performance did end up being poor.

Weiss dove forward wit her knife, not trying to actually wound Blake, but she didn’t even need to worry about that. The Faunus girl had dodged even before Weiss’ blade could’ve reached the materials of her clothes. Whipping around, Weiss flashed out her arm again, and her blade clanged with Blake’s. She tried to keep her muscles loose, but firm.

While her arms and eyes were locked with Blake’s, Weiss could already discern she’d be overpowered, so she tried something else. Giving a spin, she quickly aimed a kick at Blake’s ankles, both in an effort to unbalance her and as an excuse to jump back from her.

Blake watched her partner ready herself for their mock fight, she could tell the white haired girl’s thoughts were racing. “Calm down, and just fight. I see you lasting fifteen seconds before I disarm you if it’s any consolation.” Blake replied with a grin right before Weiss dove at her, knife held in front of her in the grip that Blake had showed her.

At least she learns fast Blake thought as she quickly sidestepped the knife, the steel flashing by her by chest less than an inch away from her clothes. Her eyes stayed trained on Weiss, watching her hips and the arm that held the knife.

With honed reflexes Blake positioned her knife so that it blocked Weiss’ blade as the shorter girl pivoted to try and slash at her. “Good work, though you have gotten yourself in a slight predicament haven’t you?” Blake asked rhetorically as she pushed her arm forward, inching the interlocked blades closer to Weiss.

Changing tactics the white haired girl spun away and kicked at Blake’s ankles, her foot connecting and knocking the Faunus to the ground. “Excellent, if you fight fairly you are fighting to die. Everything is permitted as long as you survive.” With that Blake stood up and darted towards Weiss, a predatory gleam in her eyes.

Desert Sand

Weiss stared her down, searching her face for any sign that her kindness was an illusion; a trick before the anger returned. With a deep breath, Weiss wiped her eyes on her sleeve and accepted her blade back and that Blake was on her side.

“Okay,” Blake replied, watching her partner take up her stance, holding her blade cautiously. “First thing’s first, you’re too tight. I can just tell by looking at you that you’re tensing up. Relax. You want to be fast when using a knife. Think fluid.” 

Blake stepped next to Weiss and pulled out her own blade, demonstrating how to hold it and how to stand for her shorter partner. “You don’t have strength on your side Weiss, so you want to be fast. Strike quickly and end the fight before it draws out and you start to tire.” 

Weiss watched Blake’s demonstration closely, doing her best to study and then copy the motions. She’d never thought it was possible to have a stance that was “too tight”, but Blake was the expert here. So she loosened her muscles and her hold on the blade, not enough to drop it, but enough to be able to maneuver it with ease.

She took every word of advice and criticism to heart, trying to perfect her technique. If she wanted to prove her worth and her partnership to Blake, now was the time to do it.

She rather liked how Blake didn’t see Weiss’ stature as a disadvantage. Rather than ridiculing Weiss for not being as strong as other people might’ve been, she motivated Weiss to focus on her superior speed instead.

They trained for several moments under the sweltering sun. Weiss listened to everything she said, mimicked Blake’s strikes, and did her best to improve her own stances. She flashed her arm out in a series of swift, sharp jabs, cutting through the air with her dagger with fierce precision. 

“How’s this?”

This time when Blake told Weiss something she didn’t fight back, instead this time she listened to the black haired girl. She loosened her muscles up and stopped tensing up so much.

Watching closely she corrected Weiss’ form whenever she noticed a flaw, this time doing it calmly and avoiding using a harsh tone that would turn Weiss against her again. After a few minutes of training under the sun Blake stepped away from Weiss and watched the girl strike out with her knife.

“It’s much better than it was, though your form is only half of the equation when it comes to fighting. You also need to feel the rhythm of battle, it’s like dancing and that means you need to be able to read your partner. You need to be able to predict their next move based on their body language and react .”

Standing across from her white haired partner, Blake readied herself with knife in hand. “So are you ready to dance Schnee?” She asked, a smile on her face as she looked at Weiss.

Desert Sand

Blake half expected Weiss to push her away, yell at her or anything else but how she actually reacted. She could hear the quiet crying as the other girl rested her head on Blake’s shoulder. She stood there silently and let the girl cry, the sound of a knife falling to the ground loud in the quiet.

Eventually, she felt Weiss clutch her shirt, trying to regain some of her composure as she spoke to Blake again. “Hahaha,” Blake chuckled at the sentiment Weiss shared with her. “Thank you Weiss, but I don’t fight my past anymore. I escaped it a long time ago and it can’t find me again.”

Pulling away from the hug gently, Blake stooped down and picked up her partner’s fallen blade. Holding it out to her, she looked into Weiss’ blue eyes. “So, are you ready to move on?”

Weiss searched her eyes for a moment. Blake was different now than she had been a moment ago. Their brief heart-to-heart had worked wonders, and Blake’s intense annoyance had dwindled and faded along with Weiss’ frustrations.

Blake sounded confident in what she said about escaping her past. It was a nice sentiment for Weiss. Blake might’ve already escaped, but Weiss herself had only just started running yesterday.

Maybe one day she’d escape too. With Blake’s help, maybe it would be possible.

She accepted the blade, wiping her eyes on her sleeve as she inhaled slowly.

“Alright,” she grunted. “Alright. Let’s do this, then.” She took up her stance and readied her blade experimentally. “Okay. So… can you help me with my stance?”

Weiss stared her down, searching her face for any sign that her kindness was an illusion; a trick before the anger returned. With a deep breath Weiss wiped her eyes on her sleeve and accepted her blade back and that Blake was on her side.

“Okay,” Blake replied, watching her partner take up her stance holding her blade cautiously before looking back at Blake. “First things first you’re too tight, I can just tell by looking at you that you are tensing up. Relax, you want to be fast when using a knife, think fluid.” 

Blake stepped next to Weiss and pulled out her own blade, demonstrating how to hold it and how to stand for her shorter partner. “You don’t have strength on your side Weiss, so you want to be fast, strike quickly and end the fight before it draws out and you start to tire.” 

Desert Sand

She wasn’t used to situations like this, where emotions and feelings were the problem that needed to be solved instead of mutants and raiders. It was halfway through the angry rant that Weiss was giving her that Blake realized not all of the tears and frustrations were being directed at her.

Blake knew she was at a crossroads with her relationships with Weiss. If she followed in the steps of her mentor she would drive her new partner away less than a day after they had started to work together. Against her instincts that had been driven home with painful kicks and punches, Blake lowered her knife, placing it back in the sheathe.

“No… No, I won’t, Weiss. I won’t hit you if you don’t listen to me. We’re supposed to be equals, so I won’t use brute force to get you to agree with me,” Blake replied slowly. Then she did something that she hadn’t done in years.

She walked up to Weiss and hugged the smaller girl, pulling her close so she might feel a moment of safety in this brutal world. “I’ve made peace with the demons of my past, Weiss. I had to do it by myself. I can tell that I’m not the one you’re mad at. You don’t have to fight your demons alone like I had to.”

She could hardly move. And it wasn’t that Blake’s embrace was painful or restrictive. Nothing of the sort. Weiss was merely too baffled to move from that spot. Her feet were rooted to the dry sand, her arms limp at her sides as the knife slipped through her fingers and fell into the dust.

Part of Weiss expected Blake to stab her then and there for her disobedience. But Blake’s arms stayed in place around her back and shoulders, keeping her close. Weiss almost tried to wretch herself free, unwilling to believe Blake’s sudden act of kindness.

But she wanted to believe.

Little hiccups started to bubble up in her chest, and Weiss tried in vain to swallow them. She rested her chin on Blake’s shoulder and simply cried.

She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been hugged. Blake was so warm, made her feel so safe somehow…

By the time Weiss had finally found her voice again, it was still interspersed with sobs. She clutched Blake’s shirt shakily and mumbled into her human ear.

“Then… y-you don’t have to do it alone either, Blake. Not anymore.”

Blake half expected Weiss to push her away, yell at her or anything but how she reacted. She could hear the quiet crying as the other girl rested her head on Blake’s shoulder. She stood there silently and let the other girl cry, the sound of a knife clattering to the ground loud in the quiet.

Eventually she felt Weiss clutch her shirt, trying to regain some of her composure as she spoke to Blake again. “Hahaha” Blake chuckled at the sentiment Weiss shared with her. “Thank you Weiss but I don’t fight my past anymore. I escaped it a long time ago and it can’t find me again.”

Pulling away from the hug gently Blake stooped won and picked up her partner’s fallen blade. Holding it out to her she looked into Weiss’ blue eyes. “You ready to move on?”

Desert Sand

Blake sighed as Weiss lowered her own weapon, indicating that she was not about to take part in the training Blake was talking about. Before she could say anything, though, the white-haired girl started to yell at her, barely contained tears filling her eyes as she vented to her partner.

When she was finished, Weiss just looked at Blake with blue eyes that held a dozen emotions - the one Blake could see clearest was frustration. Lowering her own knife, Blake didn’t say anything for a moment. This isn’t working. She’s fighting me at every turn, but not in the way I want her too. Is it my fault?

“I’m not trying to ridicule you, Weiss. I’m trying to help you. You’re right, I am more experienced at this than you, and I’m trying to show you what I know the only way I know how.”

“I’m sorry about you feeling belittled. You’re my partner Weiss, but I’m also the seasoned one here. So I’m trying to make sure you can survive long enough for that to mean something. This was how I was taught how to fight. The man who trained me; my friend.” Blake choked on the words slightly, a complex mix of emotions all tangled together fought for dominance in her mind.

“He would train me with every weapon we had in our possession. If I argued or complained he would beat me before forcing me to train anyway. Eventually I stopped complaining and learned to fight so it wouldn’t happen.”

Staying silent for a moment, Blake looked up so golden eyes met blue eyes once more. “So Weiss will you fight me now?”

Weiss gave her a hard stare. She didn’t want this hostility between them. She didn’t want to give it anymore than she wanted it to receive it.

Even so, it didn’t really seem she was getting through to Blake the way she wanted to.

“It sure seems like you just want to ridicule me. My first fight’s not three seconds over and you jump down and demand to test my skills like you own me. We’ve only been together one day, and all you ever seem to do is glare at me like I’m a nuisance. I’m doing my best, you know! Why can’t that ever be good enough?!”

She wiped her sleeve over her eyes furiously, realizing she wasn’t just talking about Blake anymore. 

She hated this. Despite the circumstances they’d met under and the initial animosity between them, Weiss had thought all of that might’ve been behind them already. She’d just wanted to be Blake’s partner. Perhaps even her friend. She just wanted to be worth more than a price to someone for once in her life.

“He beat you…” she mumbled disgustedly. “Your mentor beat you if you didn’t listen, if you didn’t fight him when he ordered you to.” She met Blake’s eyes warily. “So would you do the same to me if I refused?”

She needed to know. Blake was her only chance at survival now, but if she too was a lost cause, the Weiss would much rather die.

She wasn’t used to situations like this, where emotions and feelings were the problem that needed to be solved instead of mutants and raiders. It was half way through the angry rant that Weiss was giving her that Blake realized not all of the tears and frustrations were being directed at her.

Blake knew she was at a crossroads with her relationships with Weiss, if she followed in the steps of her mentor she would drive her new partner away less than a day after they had started to work together. Against her instincts that had been driven home with painful kicks and punches Blake lowered her knife, placing it back in her sheathe.

“No...No I won’t Weiss, I won’t hit you if you don’t listen to me. We are supposed to be equals, so I won’t use brute force to get you to agree with me.” Blake replied slowly, then she did something that she hadn’t done in years.

She walked up to Weiss and hugged the smaller girl, pulling her close so she might feel a moment of safety in this brutal world. “I’ve made peace with the demons of my past Weiss, I had to do it by myself. I can tell that I’m not the one you are mad at, you don’t have to fight your demons alone like I had to.”

Desert Sand

Blake stared her partner down, the glare she was being given not affecting her as she kept her knife at the ready. “I will compare your skills when fighting Mutants for two reasons. First, if you get soft in any situation you die, and second, not every Mutant you meet is going to be ‘brainless’ as you put it, and then what will you do?” 

While Weiss continued to talk Blake stretched herself out, making sure each limb was loose. “You done yet?” Blake asked as she finished stretching out her right arm. “We are going to practice now. Someone trying to kill you isn’t going to be considerate about how hot it is.”

“Right now we’re clear of Mutants and we aren’t going to stay much longer. By the time we take refuge for the night you’re going to want to sleep.”

Weiss stomped her foot in frustration as Blake ignored every word she’d said. Why did she always have to be so mean? They were supposed to be partners, weren’t they? Blake could’ve at least shot her down a bit more gently…

Weiss scrunched her nose up as she felt her eyes begin to sting. She lowered the hand that held the dagger, symbolizing she wasn’t about to engage in a fight with the Faunus girl.

“No…” she muttered. “I don’t want to. Not here…” She felt Blake’s ferocious glare on her and knew she was about to yell again. Weiss quickly went on, letting out her frustrations in with voice. 

“Why should I have to train with you when all you’re going to do is ridicule me? You know you’re infinitely more experienced with this kind of fighting than I am, so you’re just going to disarm me in two seconds flat and then rub it in my face! Why must you belittle me at every turn? We’re supposed to be equals, or so I’d thought!”

She refused to let herself cry. The truth was, she’d rather liked the idea of being Blake’s partner in all of this, but Blake just seemed to think she was incompetent in everything she did. Everything was a test or a competition. Weiss refused to let herself be made a fool of again in a mock knife fight now.

“Don’t fight me…” she mumbled. “You’re going to win and we both know it. You don’t need to show me that much. Instead… why can’t you just train with me instead of fight against me?” She looked up to meet Blake’s eyes with imploring blue, hoping she understood.

Blake sighed as Weiss lowered her own weapon, indicating that she was not about to take part in the training Blake was talking about. Before she could say anything though the white haired girl started to yell at her, barely contained tears filling her eyes as she vented to her partner.

When she was finished Weiss just looked at Blake with blue eyes that held a dozen emotions, the one Blake could see clearest was frustration. Lowering her own knife Blake didn’t say anything for a moment This isn’t working, she’s fighting me at every turn but not in the way I want her too. Is it my fault?

“I’m not trying to ridicule you Weiss, I’m trying to help you. You are right, I am more experienced at this than you and I’m trying to show you what I know the only way I know how.”

“I’m sorry about you feeling belittled, you are my partner Weiss but I’m also the seasoned one so I’m trying to make sure you can survive long enough for that to mean something. This was how I was taught how to fight. The man who trained me; my friend.” Blake choked on the words slightly, a complex mix of emotions all tangled together fought for dominance in her mind.

“He would train me with every weapon we had in our possession. If I argued or complained he would beat me before forcing me to train anyway, eventually I stopped complaining and learned to fight so it wouldn’t happen.”

Staying silent for a moment, Blake looked up so golden eyes bet blue eyes once more. “So Weiss will you fight me now?”