Blood Red, Snow White

[Ruby Rose]

CHAPTER 6
PAGE 1

Dear Diary,

I kinda lost my fight with the mohawk-guy... Wakka, I think my ear caught his name? I dunno. But... I realised something in there... this world isn't as nice or accommodating as I had originally anticipated. No, I had originally suspected, rather naively, that auras took effect here. I was mistaken in the arena. Every single blow that studded ball crushed me with burned like an inferno, every single broken bone was well and truly snapped - no special shield to absorb damage, no limits as to how much damage could be dealt...

The only word I had for it was hell... and man, if you know me, that's a word I think I've never spoken.

But I wasn't the only one suffering. Oh no, I had done twice - no, three times the amount of damage to my opponent than I thought I had... lemme recap what happened nearing the end.

---

My hand shook wildly as it rummaged within the potato sack-like bag. My dainty, pale fingers finally clasped around the rickety wooden shaft of the final bolt, and my digits savoured the feeling, much like one might savour the remaining drops in a bottle of wine. This last bolt could have been my saviour. Clenching my teeth in a last-ditch effort to halt my devilish vibrating, I locked the missile into place and drew it back until the satisfying click resounded from the weapon. I peeked out waving the spearhead towards the center of the battlefield, bolt head poised to impale my opponent...

Wait, impale? It had taken me long enough to realise. Had I noticed such a scary notion earlier, I might not have been so devastated... but once it eventually hit, all signs of rational thought escaped my eyes. While my mind was busy beating itself up with a spike club over the fact that I had actually sunk a projectile into another living thing's flesh, my body escaped the leash it had been bound by and rushed at the mohawked man.

Golden orbs wide with fear from the sudden change in tactic, the man backpedaled, pushing his ball out as if wishing some form of protective barrier would magically sprout from the sky-coloured pattern. Despite his extremely fruitful defense, a crude spear head tore a ragged chunk out of his hip, and a muffled scream escaped his lips.

---

I might have had a feral front... but my mind was dark... I could see myself, crouched against a pitch black wall, unaware of the murder my body was attempting to commit. Make it stop, make it stop! Were the words that resounded off of the walls of what was presumably an ebony box. Every single savage movement could be felt in my head, like a bolt of lightning striking my pain receptors with each maniacal swing I made. I was changing... was I really going to go insane?!

She's a hazard to my health!

Weiss's voice stung like a wasp... was I really a hazard? No... I had to be strong and fight through this, like all those heroes from the fairy tales!

Unfortunately, the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale.

Blake this time... why?! WHY ME?!

What are you, insane?

Weiss again. The memories kept hitting me, like a punch with spiked knuckles... but then my head perked up when a new, comforting voice arrived.

Ruby. I've made more mistakes than any man, woman, and child on this planet. But at this moment I would not consider your appointment to leader to be one of them. Do you?

"O-Ozpin..." I mumbled, and began reaching out, as if attempting to grasp some tangible piece of the headmaster. "N-no... y-you're wrong... I-I'm a disgrace to team RWBY... they s-should be thankful I'm gone..." I complained, sobbing lightly. I knew it was only a memory, but I responded nonetheless... but my steady downpour of tears abruptly halted with Ozpin's next spoken words.

Being a team leader isn't just a title you carry into battle, but a badge you wear constantly. If you are not always performing at your absolute best, then what reason do you give others to follow you?

He was right... if I didn't try to overcome something like this, what was the point in Weiss, Blake and Yang following my lead in the first place? "T-they don't have any reason." I agreed, wiping my soaked eyelids with an ebony sleeve. "I-if I don't try at all, there was no reason for them to follow me from the start... but they did anyway." I could feel the suffocating box of shadow begin to brighten, and one final sentence filled my ears.

You've been burdened with a daunting responsibility Ruby, I advise you take some time to think about how you will uphold it.

"Will do." I replied, grinning brightly once more.

---

My silver eyes focused once more... but sadly to the image of an oblique, round object... it wasn't very pleasant being sent straight back into blackness.

---

Dim torchlight filtered in through my eyes as they creaked open like a duo of rickety drawbridges. I groaned, as if waking up on a normal morning in my dangerously perched bunk bed back in Beacon. It took me quite some time to regain my bearings, but after laying prone for a minute or so, I actually felt bothered to swing my legs out of the infirmary bed I laid in. I yawned and stretched, head groggy and most of all sore.

I wanted to check out the results for the rest of the Colosseum, but wasn't exactly sure how mobile devices worked in the Omniverse. Oh well, only one way to find out! I decided... had I said it out loud it would have been much more of a moan than a fully-fledged shout as my thoughts had implied. Focusing was a painful practise in my predicament (okay, how many times have I alliterated already?), but my mind's eye visualised a phone in due time, reminiscent of those we used back in Vale.

A familiar wait inserted itself into my palm and I laid eyes upon a transparent device, presently sleeping, with a grey casing and holographic screen. Grinning softly, I clicked the device to life, but my smile warped to an expression of confusion as I was brought to the 'Dataverse'... it sounded strange, but I could only guess it was the Omniverse's edition of our internet. I scrolled down the menus until I arrived at the Colosseum results.

I scanned the names, searching for one in particular... and unluckily enough, Rin lost against his opponent, Tartaros... grim name, really.

My curiosity getting the better of me, I searched more names... Black Star... Dante... Beside Dante, I noticed Wakka and gave him a silent congratulations, before realising something.

"Thank you." I whispered, as if the device would relay the message to Wakka. "If you hadn't have knocked me, I dunno what I would have done." My sign of gratitude finished, I scanned for more names... I noticed Shulk also lost, against Kakashi...

And who would have thought? Kanda had entered. To my slight delight, he, too, lost against Ms. Marvel... sounded like a woman who'd boast about herself but who was I to judge?

One final scan... I noticed more unfamiliar names... Adam Gaite won against Ballad, whoever they were... Oko-

No. Way. My heart leaped into my throat, and possibly raced there for a few moments, too. Beside Okor... was the unmistakable name, 'Weiss Schnee'.

Frowning, I dumped the device into a pocket on my skirt and glided off of the bed, racing along the dusty stone floor, frantically searching for a sign, a clue as to where-

Who needs clues? I skidded to a halt, kicking up at least half a kilo of dust. Before me stood a head of snow white hair, facing away from me. The girl's jacket was discarded, revealing the major cuts, burns and bruises she had racked up from her battle with Okor.

Only four words left my mouth:

"W-Weiss? Is that really you?"

[Weiss Schnee]

Weiss shut her good eye for a moment, trying to ignore the wave of pain coursing through her body. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been this hurt. Probably because she'd never been this hurt.. The doctors had focused on healing the majority of the internal trauma and dealing with the various diseases she'd been dealing with. and mostly stopping the leaking from her bad eye. Something about "Prime biology healing everything in the long run".

Weiss hadn't really been conscious enough to hear much else, though she'd at least felt them make the shrapnel in her head disappear, somehow. She couldn't really remember how, only that it was just as painful leaving her head as it was entering.
"Embarassing, Weiss." her own voice drifted in her head.
Enter the arena, and win... Try "get utterly humiliated in the first round". What did she think she could do with this little aura left to her? Did she think she could honestly change anything? By herself?
And if that wasn't enough she was still hallucinating, and this time, it was just in time to give her false hope about winning her fight with that metal-plated zombie.
Maybe... It was a sign to give up? That she wasn't going to-

"W-Weiss? Is that really you?"

Weiss's head turned wearily to the side, already knowing it was just another hallucination. Something her brain made to keep her going as she saw the familiar redheaded girl. She'd kicked up a bunch of dust right in front of her bed-
Wait a minute.
Weiss's eyes widened, as she squinted through the cloud of dust. She could feel it hitting her face.
"Please god, this can't be a dream right now, this can't be..."
The Snow-haired huntress, ignoring the pain in her arms, in her torso, in every part of her body, pushed herself upright, before sliding her legs off the bed.
With the same stare, she got up, ignoring the agony her body was giving her as payback.

"Um... Weiss, what-"

Weiss didn't give the girl any time. She reached out for Ruby's shoulder, waiting for her hand to pass through air.
It gripped solid fabric, and Weiss felt tears leaving her eyes.

"You're..."

Weiss couldn't help it. For all of her self-control, it was all she could do to stay upright as she cried, and pulled her teammate into a hug.
"You're alive. Oh thank god. You're alive."

[Ruby Rose]

PAGE 2

Weiss... what in Vale had happened to her?! It took the shreds of willpower I was spared after the bout with Wakka to keep from pouring waterfalls from my eyes. The whole side of her face... it was peppered in furious crimson spots, as if struck by heated shrapnel. But what caused my entire being to shiver in terror was the fading green tinge circling every individual marking, as if each emanated a cruel, consuming disease.

"Um... Weiss, what-" I began to question concernedly, but my vocal chords denied the last of the sentence exit. I struggled again, but nothing more than squeaks of pain pushed out of my hanging mouth. Tears emerged at the corners of my eyes, glinting like the silver of my irises, and rolled gracefully down my cheeks. A dainty, pale hand grasped my shoulder, as if checking the reality Weiss had been experiencing up until now, and the reality she was finally pulled into.

"You're..." Weiss didn't finish the rest of her sentence. Whether in agony or unwilling to allow the words to flow, I had no clue, but what I did know is she was desperate to speak to me, to at least say something that will prove, once and for all, that I existed.

No words were required, however, not even the most minuscule of sounds. A simple gesture was all it took; a straightforward, undemanding embrace was the evidence Weiss was searching for. As if reading her mind, I could tell she had searched for me for days upon days... as if her only aim was to find me.

"You're alive. Oh thank god. You're alive." Were the words she spoke as she sobbed into my shoulder, and I followed suit, arms wrapping around her slim figure with ease, flooding tears onto her shoulder. The usual me would have said something witty, although crazy right at that moment.

Emotional me, on the other hand, cried, "I-I was never gone... y-you know..." I left the sentence hanging there, desiring for Weiss to understand. "W-Weiss... y-you don't know how much I missed you... and Yang... and Blake..." I pressed on, sobbing heavily after each word. "T-this world took me f-from all o-of you... and now i-it's taken you t-too..." I continued to cry, a steady stream rolling from each silver eyes. Weiss only said one last sentence before we drifted into a sorrowful embrace;

"We all missed you too."

[Weiss Schnee]

Weiss closed her eyes. She thought of everything that had happened - Ruby disappearing, Ozpin calling off the search, quitting her training, spending endless days searching for some sign, any sign, of her teammate, getting sent to the omniverse, fighting a corrupted knight of death, getting beaten within an inch of her life.
She'd wondered so many times if she was lying to herself, if it was worth standing back one more time, if it wasn't easier to just give up on everything.

she wasn't wondering that now. All she was thinking of, was how grateful she was that her partner was with her, and safe.
"...You're alright. I'm glad." Weiss said, thinking with a slight smile to herself that this was probably the most emotion she'd ever shown to her team leader without reservation since the two met. Back then, she was so concerned about keeping herself at arm's length from everyone, especially her dork of a leader.

"But back then I didn't know I'd miss this dork so much." She thought to herself. She wouldn't make that same mistake again. She was determined to try her best to enjoy every moment she had with the scarlet-haired girl from now on. Especially since she knew Ruby needed her support now, too.

Unfortunately, her legs had other plans, and the heiress found herself suddenly slipping as her knees buckled, her injuries starting to catch up to her as she suddenly slipped, the floor coming up rapidly to meet her as she fell backwards, and the ice queen heard a shriek as she fell.
"Weiss!" Ruby shrieked, and Weiss blinked as Ruby's hands grasped her back tightly, halting her fall. the girl's silver eyes were screwed up in concern, and Weiss saw fresh tears flowing from her face.

Weiss felt her own exhaustion coming at her now, trying to push her to sleep, but she fought it with all her might, as she forced herself to smile as best she could. "I just slipped." She lied. "I'm fine, honest."

Weiss hoped she'd fooled the red-haired girl, but one glance in Ruby's watery eyes told her she'd failed at that, too.

[Ruby Rose]

PAGE 3

I laughed sorrowfully for a fleeting moment into Weiss's shoulder. "Of course I'm safe, you dunce." I told her, sniffling. "Hey, that's my line..." Weiss mumbled into my hood, also following suit with a chuckle. We had argued so often in the past, we had even been 'mortal enemies' early into our relations. But now... the two of us were flooded with an angry desire to stay with one another, every step of the way. Wherever Weiss was going, I was too.

A sudden weight tugged Weiss from below forthwith, and I yelped her name as she plummeted, my arms painstakingly narrowly snatching her slim figure back up; tears sprung forth from silver mirrors as I stared down at the weakening girl in my arms. Whatever she had been through had damaged her in excess of any injuries I had witnessed in the past.

"I just slipped. I'm fine, honest." She told me, but no words could describe my rightful skepticism with such a ruse. I gave her a playful, soft tap on the cheek. "Stop lying Weiss." I ordered, grinning somberly for a couple of seconds, before frowning. "Stop lying, you hear me? You always... always lied about your own... your own well-being... j-just to keep us happy..." I sobbed, bringing my face close to hers. "You're strong; I know that Weiss, w-we all know that... a-and that's why you c-can't fake strength when you're being beaten down." I told the heiress, my forehead gently laying against hers. "You need to learn to g-give up on your own strength every once in a while... otherwise y-you'll end up fooling y-yourself, too."

I could hear a sigh of acknowledgement flow from Weiss's lips, and I pulled her into a tight embrace once more. "You won't believe what I've been through here, Weiss..." I began, my breathing shakily slowing as my nerves began to reluctantly calm. "I nearly fell into a pool in a giant hat upon arriving." I chuckled softly into her snow white hair. "Thankfully I was saved by a kind detective; Mister Layton... a-and then I met another guy, Kanda... he was a little bit cold at first, but I knew we were quickly warming up to each other." My eyes shut and screwed up at the memory. "B-but he left in the night in the Tangled Greens after we took down a dino... he's here though, I saw it on my phone." I told her, cooling off gradually.

"Then I went to the Ashen Steppes, I heard it's called." I continued, before snickering. "It was real hot there... Yang woulda loved it, but I'm not sure you, dear Ice Princess, would survive one minute in there." Subsequently a sharp slap hit my hip, forcing a wince out of me, but I pressed on. "I met two more boys there... one's Shulk, who has a weapon that looks kinda like something from Vale, and the other was Rin... he can control these cool blue flames and everything, and he took me here!" I elaborated, laughing at the memories of racing the boy.

"Looks like our precious leader's got herself a boyfriend." Weiss replied snidely, and I scoffed. "Pfft, as if!" I shot back, and we began giggling in unison. "So, we both signed up... and I was up against this guy with a crazy mohawk... Wakka, I think his name was." I pondered. "And he didn't seem like the killer type... so I feel extremely guilty after I blacked out and went berzerker mode... it was like I was watching myself in third person." I visualised my imprisonment in my own head as I watched my body wildly throw attacks blindly at the ball-player. "I'm just glad he sent me to bed before I could actually really hurt him..." I alleviated myself.

"Sounds like you had fun." Weiss hissed bitterly. Grinning grimly, I pulled back and looked into her alabaster globes. "C'mon, Weiss, tell me what happened to you." I asked, curious as to her story.

[Weiss Schnee]

Weiss smiled in spite of herself. It already felt like old times with Ruby again. Right down to her being an utter pest.
"C'mon, Weiss, tell me what happened to you."
Weiss shook her head a bit, her smile gone.

"There... isn't much to tell, really." Weiss said quietly. "I got here, I stayed at the fountain for a while, then I came here and entered the tournament. And now I'm here talking to you." She explained.
"Nuh-uh.' Ruby said to her.
"Wh-what?' Weiss asked.
"Nuh-uh. Ruby said with a smile, "I just gave you a big story, you have to give me a bit more detail than that."
Weiss sighed. "That really is all there is to it, Ruby. I can't tell you a lot more.
" There's got to be a little more!" Ruby insisted.

"What is this, a bedtime story?" Weiss grumbled. "alright... I stayed at the fountain for a few days..." Weiss chose not to elaborate too much on that horrible time. "Eventually... I just chose a portal at random and walked through. I came here, and after talking with this really creepy guy who wanted to make a mask out of my face, I found out about this tournament. I kind of did a pre-show with this big wolf they brought in to see how much aura I'd lost... as it turns out, I think I've lost almost all of it. It doesn't seem like anyone else in this world even knows about it."

Weiss explained. "Then I got into the arena and lost my fight with a man... thing... named Okor. and then I lost and came here."

Ruby seemed like she wanted to ask a question of some sort, but left it alone at the last minute. "Well, that's one short story."
Weiss rolled her eyes with a smile. "Well unlike you, I haven't had six months to build up a collection of stories.
Ruby's eyes widened, and her smile dropped. "S... Six months?"

[Ruby Rose]

PAGE 4

"S... six months?" I felt my heart sink to my stomach. I had been gone... for six months? What had happened while I was gone? How did Yang and Blake take my disappearance? What about JNPR? What were they doing while RWBY was in ruins? "Yes, Ruby. Six. Months." Weiss emphasized every word uttered, and she soon began to tear up again. "Ruby, Yang and Blake never gave up searching for you... never left a moment to spare... until Ozpin forced us to stop." She explained, raising a snow-complexioned arm and wiping away the salty residue leaking from her eyes.

"W-wait, Ozpin stopped you?!" I snapped back, stunned at the choice the headmaster had made. "Y-yeah... Yang and Blake went back to their studies, and I had a choice to make... to graduate or find you." Weiss's tears began to freely flow down her cheeks now, and her speech broke into sobs. "I-I looked forever... I had to find you, because I-I'd never forgive myself if I didn't." Her pale lips trembled as she pressed on.

"A-and then I was tricked... by a faunus... and w-was attacked by White Fang!" Her last words were more of a shout than a sob, and so was the dialogue that followed. "Why couldn't I have just died there?! Save Yang and Blake the pain of missing two of us! Why did we have to-" But before Weiss could finish, I leaned forwards...

And pressed my lips to hers, holding the position for some seconds. She tensed under my arms, but relaxed in the end.

I pulled away and grinned at her, before poking my tongue out and giggling. "Hue hue~" I cooed, and Weiss smiled softly in gratitude. "Thanks Ruby... I needed that." She replied, and snickered to herself, red highlighting her marble cheeks.

[Weiss Schnee]

Why couldn't I have just died there?! Save Yang and Blake the pain of missing two of us! Why did we have to-

The emotions that finally raced through Weiss physically hurt, and so many spoken and unspoken words suddenly raced through her. Even now, all I was doing was causing my friends pain. It's all I ever managed to do with my worthless life. for all the fronts I put up that I was strong, and intelligenct, and classy, in the end I was just a weak, pompous little girl who deserved to-
Weiss's internal monologue was immediately interrupted by the feeling of lips pressing against her.

"wh-what?"
A few seconds later Weiss was still blushing a bit. "You're terrible, you know that?" Weiss asked with a slight smile. Ruby just stuck her tongue out in response.
She might have been worthless. But she'd finally found her best friend. And she wasn't going to cry anymore.

Weiss smiled gently as she quietly added. "I missed you so much."
Ruby stuck her tongue out. "Does that mean you're going to be less of an ice queen?" Ruby asked jokingly.
Weiss's face fell a bit, and Ruby's face immediately shifted to that of panic. "I-I'm just joking, Weiss... Please don't be like that..."

Weiss smiled. "I know, Ruby. But... Yeah, I'll do my best to be less of a jerk. I... The last thing I want to do is spend my time with you fighting."

Ruby's eyes started to water, and Weiss smiled in spite of herself, putting a finger to Ruby's face in a gesture of silence. "Remember what I said, back at beacon? We'd just had a big fight, and I'd acted like a... Well, a jerk after class... for real this time. Starting now, I'm going to be the best teammate you'll ever have."
Ruby moved like a blur, and suddenly the embrace she found herself in was oh so much tighter. "Weiss..."
Even as they hugged, though, neither noticed Weiss's eyes briefly change to a shade of emerald green, before going back to normal.

[Ruby Rose]

PAGE 5

Starting now, I'm going to be the best teammate you'll ever have.

Yes... of course I remember her saying something similar. I never doubted her, either; knowing Weiss, if she ever said something even reminiscent of that, I bet my cloak she would be telling the truth. My arms had already found themselves wrapped tightly around her thin torso before my mind even had a chance to catch up.

"Weiss..." I whispered... from then on, I knew she was going to stay by my side every step of the way, face any danger beside me, help me up when I'm knocked down. What kind of a leader - no, friend would I be if I didn't return the favour? "Weiss, I will do my best to be the best leader you will ever have." I vowed, clenching her tighter.

"Ruby, you'll be the onl-" She attempted to say, but I cut her off with a simple, "Ah-pa-pa..." She silenced pretty swiftly. "Let's not get into the details, Ice Princess." I teased her, chuckling into her shoulder. At last I released her once more, holding her marble hand tenderly. "Whaddya say we get out of here?" I offered, before jerking a thumb over my shoulder, "I kinda need to go grab Crescent Rose first." Rubbing my neck, I released Weiss's hand and spun on my heel, prior to striding through the infirmary-like bunker towards where I thought my bed was.

It took me quite some time to actually spot the crimson machine, since I hadn't previously checked its location; turned out to be standing precariously against the bed... right where I jumped out. Grumbling at my obliviousness, I trudged up and snatched the scythe from her perch, before backpedaling to a clear junction. With the flick of a switch, the scarlet casing erupted into the full size, blood-hued scythe... but she was dusty, and majorly scratched and dented in some areas.

"Oh, come on!" I shouted, bringing the head of the weapon down to my eyes, allowing the silver globes to wander closely over the edge; Wakka knocking Crescent Rose into the trench had chipped her edge. There were nasty, triangular chunks taken out of the sharp curve, and scratches ran along the ebony blade. "Aww..." I whined while I delicately folded her up and carefully attached her to the back of my belt. "I'll need to fix her soon..." I quietly mumbled to no one in particular.

I began to make my way to the exit (I could tell it was the exit, because it was a rectangular doorway with loads of light shining through, there are no 'plot conveniences'!), but I halted at the sound of someone clearing her throat. I whirled around, agitated, to see Weiss with her left hand at her waist, as if grabbing a rapier... a rapier that probably should have been there. Facepalming, I trundled back towards Weiss and trailed her to the weapon, also laying against her bed.

THEN we made our way to the exit, encountering no hindrances this time! I raised a black sleeve to my eyes to protect them from the Camelot light, and the clicking of heels assured me that Weiss had successfully followed. It seemed the hospital was situated directly below the Colosseum, as when my vision spun one-eighty, I was faced with a colossal wall of brown, weathered stone.

"Well... guess our job here's as good as done." Weiss's chilly voice rang out below my vision, and I returned my attention to her. "Yeah, let's go find somewhere else to explore! I think I've had enough here for one day... oh! Actually, I have someone I need to meet up with!" I shouted, remembering I still had to bit Rin farewell! I jogged off, not intending to leave Weiss behind... but I just really wanted to see if he was okay!

"Come on, Weiss!" I called back over my shoulder, "I'm sure you'll like him!"

I could have sworn I heard Weiss call back to me, "Him?!"

[Weiss Schnee]

I shouted, remembering I still had to bit Rin farewell! I jogged off, not intending to leave Weiss behind... but I just really wanted to see if he was okay!
"Come on, Weiss!" I called back over my shoulder, "I'm sure you'll like him!"


I could have sworn I heard Weiss call back to me, "Him?!"

Weiss ran as fast as she could, but she couldn't quite keep up with Ruby's speed. Who is him, anyway? Is it that Rin guy from earlier?" Weiss thought to herself. She remembered teasing Ruby about getting a boyfriend, but she wondered if she hadn't been a little more accurate than she'd actually meant to be. Not that Ruby's relationship status mattered to her at all! She just... Couldn't help but worry about her teammate, especially given her occasionally questionable decision making skills. That was all. Really.

This all reminded her of the time they'd gone to the Cross Continental transmit tower to check up on the white fang. Ruby'd rushed off a lot like this to go and find Penny, without even giving her a seconds warning. It looked like her teammate hadn't changed at all... She was still brash, impulsive, reckless, cocky, and completely unpredictable...

Weiss had missed it. Since the first day she'd gotten up without hearing her leader's chipper voice wake her up with an enthusiastic "good morning", and the first afternoon she'd spent without hearing one of her smug partner's jokes or hair-brained ideas or sister-induced tantrums. It was all so boring... so cold Without the energetic Rose. It was only after she'd left, after Weiss had tried to live without her partner, that she realized just how much her leader broadened her view of the world. Even if she was dragged kicking and screaming, she'd gotten to have so many new experiences, meet so many people, because Ruby had refused to let the Ivory-haired huntress feel alone for a second.

For the first time in a long while, she felt warm, and she found herself smiling still as she followed her leader's pace as best as she could with her injuries.
"Ruby, would it kill you to wait up for even a second? " She yelled with a grin. For the first time in more than six months... Weiss Schnee felt alive.