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The crater’s condition was more awful than Winter previously imagined. The area that expanded as far as Atlas’ shadow stood hundreds of shacks that seemed very unstable and a few old factories.
As Robyn suggested, she guided her summoned Manticore Grimm to land in front of the three white tents that had the Happy Huntresses’ symbol on them. The blonde vigilante told her beforehand that most Mantle’s citizens were gathering here to avoid the Grimm in the city and to get warm, but Winter certainly did not expect the place to be so crammed.
The Manticore surely drew some attention to her and the two prisoners she escaped from Atlas with. Some people stared at the Grimm while the others ran away, yet these reactions could not compare to when the three of them got down from the back of the white creature.
“What are you doing here?!” a man with glasses shouted the question in Winter’s direction in a hostile manner, which caused Robyn to step in front of her.
“Hey, it’s okay. She’s on our side now,” the violet-eyed woman explained.
“How could you abandon us?!” an old woman chimed in and pointed at Winter’s face.
“I-...,” Winter started, but before she could finish the sentence, two women walked out from the tent in the middle.
She recalled they were Fiona Thyme and Joanna Greenleaf, and the two members of the Happy Huntresses instantly grinned when they saw their leader. Winter got to witness the Huntresses embracing one another while she was also receiving glares from every direction at the same time.
She waited until the vigilantes finished talking to each other and approached them with Qrow.
“Are my nieces and their friends here?” the black-haired man asked.
“Yang, Jaune, Ren and Oscar haven't come back from the East of Mantle, and the other kids are in Atlas with May,” Joanna replied.
“Weiss is in Atlas?” Winter asked in panic.
“Yes. With May,” the green-haired Huntress said and crossed her arms, and judging from her expression, she was not very happy that Winter was here.
Fiona cut in and explained in a friendly tone. “What Joanna meant is they’re in safe hands. May’s Semblance can hide them and they’ll come here as soon as they launch the Amity Tower.”
“Do you know where they are right now?” Winter asked the sheep Faunus.
“Don’t tell me you’re going to see them,” Robyn spoke up. “We barely managed to get away from Atlas and you look like you can pass out any minute, Snowflake.”
Winter was surprised by the nickname, but her concern for Weiss mattered the most at the moment.
“I can’t call my sister since the General blocked my scroll from any contacts. I’m just really worried about her and her friends,” she told the blonde.
Qrow said from next to her. “They can take care of themselves. Trust me. I’ve seen those kids fight so many times with my own eyes.”
The words put Winter’s mind at ease. She wrapped her arms around herself since the cold weather was starting to affect her. It seemed that most Mantlers were in front of the tents, so she figured that it would be best if she just walked away from this spot. There must be an empty shack where she could borrow and stay there since the majority of people did not want her here.
Before she could move, Joanna’s voice stopped her.
“I’m going to check on Yang and the other three in the East. They’re taking too long.”
“I’m coming with you,” Qrow volunteered and added once he was facing Winter. “I’ll ask Jaune to help you heal later if… when I find him and the other kids.”
“Thank you, Qrow,” Winter said appreciatively.
“I’m going to Mantle too,” Robyn offered.
“No, Robyn,” Fiona said and placed her hand on her leader’s shoulder. “Crimson said he would call me after he secures Sector Eleven. He’ll probably want to talk to you too.”
“All right,” the blonde noted.
“Why don’t you take Miss Schnee to my uncle’s house and find some new clothes for her?” the Faunus woman suggested. “You know, the ones that’ll stop people from stabbing her with their eyes.”
“Sure. Come get me when Crimson calls,” Robyn agreed and turned to Winter. She then canted her head to a side. “Let’s go.”
Winter followed the taller woman wordlessly to a shack that was made of bricks and rusty zinc plates. Robyn knocked on the door once and was greeted by an old mole Faunus man. The man’s eyes widened as soon as he saw Robyn before they hugged each other tightly.
“I’ve missed you too, Uncle,” the tan-skinned woman said softly and added. “And before you panick, Winter here just helped me escape from Atlas’ jail cells, so I’d appreciate it if you lend her some clothes.”
Robyn stepped aside and revealed Winter who was standing behind her. The Faunus man only blinked at Winter a few times and gestured for them to follow him inside. It seemed that his entire residence was simply a single room with all necessary facilities put together in the same space, yet the place was tidy and clean.
The old man opened his cupboard to retrieve a brown fur-lined coat and a black sweater. He handed the items to Winter a few seconds later.
“Thank you, sir,” Winter told him.
“Don’t mention it,” the man replied and added. “You’re welcome to stay here as long as you’d like. I’m going to see how Fi is doing.”
The mole man left through the only door before Robyn turned to Winter.
“You should rest,” the blonde said and motioned to the couch in the middle of the room.
Winter’s initial thought was to protest and offer to help out in the area, but she realized that she had not fully recovered from her injuries and her presence would still bother some Mantle’s citizens regardless of what she wore.
She gave Robyn a nod and inspected her own right hand. It got even more rigid since she arrived here as opposed to when she was staying in the warm and comforting room at the Medical Center. And with only one movement when she removed her glove, she whimpered in pain.
“You’re okay?” Robyn asked with concern.
“I will be,” Winter replied despite being unsure of what she said.
“What happened to your hand?”
“Frostbite,” she said curtly and started rubbing on her injured hand with her left one.
She hoped that Robyn would not ask for more details because it would be difficult to avoid mentioning Fria and the four Maidens. To Winter’s relief, the head of the Happy Huntresses only pursed her lips and approached her.
“Can I sit with you?” Robyn asked.
“Umm, of course,” Winter agreed even though she could not tell the other woman’s intention.
They walked to the couch and sat down next to each other, and after that, Robyn spoke again.
“Can I see your hand?”
Winter gave an answer by reaching her malfunctioned hand out, then the blonde took it gently between her gloved palms. It felt nice, incredible even, when Robyn rubbed her hand up and down slowly, but most of all, it felt strange that someone she considered an enemy of the state a few days ago, or even a few hours ago, was giving her this kind of attention.
They were both quiet for what felt like a full minute while Winter did not know what to do or say. Fortunately, the taller woman broke the silence first.
“Feeling better?”
“Y-Yes,” Winter replied awkwardly.
She assumed that Robyn would let go of her hand, but surprisingly, the vigilante moved on to pressing her thumbs lightly on Winter’s palm.
“You, umm, you seem to know what you’re doing,” Winter observed as she could feel warmth spreading out from under Robyn’s touch.
“I have to,” the blonde said and shrugged. “Since we got that hole in the wall, I took some night shifts to guard it.”
The words stung as it reminded Winter of how badly Ironwood had been treating Mantle and it only deepened her guilt for standing by his side for so long.
“I’m sorry,” Winter said and looked up at the other woman’s face.
“For what?” Robyn asked as she flipped Winter's hand over and carefully took the small finger between her thumb and index finger.
“For everything. For how we treated you and Mantle. For not doing enough. For… for ever thinking Ironwood was doing the right thing.”
“Thanks for saying that,” the blonde said and looked into Winter’s eyes. “But I mostly blame your boss. I mean, your former boss.”
“But I stood by and did nothing for years. I’m as bad as he is,” Winter argued.
The movement on her hand stopped and Robyn spoke up.
“I said I mostly blame your boss, which means I also blame you a little, Snowflake.”
“Oh,” Winter noted and glanced down at her lap.
“Hey,” Robyn continued in a softer tone and bowed her head down slightly so she could search for Winter’s eyes. “What matters is that you’ve come around and you’re going to help us now. That’s all I care about.”
Instantly, Winter’s hand was between Robyn’s palms again and it caused her to look up into the violet eyes. Their gaze remained on one another’s before the blonde’s lips curved up into a smile, and for some reason, Winter’s breath caught in her throat by the sight alone.
She quickly broke the stare she was sharing with Robyn only to find her pinky finger being under the vigilante’s skillful touch again. Robyn began her short and even strokes, starting from the tip and up towards the knuckle. The situation suddenly felt so intimate, even more than when Robyn’s arms were around her when they were flying on the Manticore earlier, and all Winter could feel at the moment was a warm sensation that was running through her whole body.
Robyn was working on her index finger now, so it would not be long until the process was done and Winter could save herself from embarrassment. Her eyes started to scan the room as she desperately tried to look anywhere that was not at their joint hands or Robyn, but her attempt ended in vain when the blonde spoke again.
“Huh, who would have known?”
“What… what do you mean?” Winter asked and brought her gaze back on the taller woman.
“Nothing,” Robyn replied and smirked at her.
The action only made Winter’s heart beat faster and she could feel her face heating up as Robyn continued to shamelessly stare at her. Since Robyn had massaged all of her fingers, Winter took that chance to ask her question.
“Is it done?” she mumbled.
“One last thing,” Robyn told her and her playful expression was gone. “We have to stretch your fingers.”
“Right,” Winter said as she recalled the procedure she previously received at the Medical Center.
The blonde warned. “It’s probably going to hurt.”
“I know,” Winter replied and thought of how awful it felt when the physical therapist pushed her hand backwards at the hospital. She took a deep breath and lifted her right hand up. “Do it.”
“All right,” Robyn said and pressed her own palm against hers.
Winter braced for the pain that was coming and held her groan when her fingers were bent towards her. The dreadful feeling disappeared when Robyn stopped pushing, and to her surprise, the violet-eyed woman wrapped both of her hands gently around Winter's injured one instead. When Winter found Robyn’s face, it seemed that her cheeks were in a shade of pink.
“You know, Winter, I really-...”
Before Robyn could say anything further, the door burst open with Weiss behind it.
“Winter, Fiona said you-...” the girl said and paused abruptly once she saw Winter and Robyn who were freezing in their places.
Winter immediately retracted her hand and told her sister. “This is… this is not what it looks like.”
She could hear Robyn chuckling next to her, which caused her to turn to face her.
“What do you think it looks like, Snowflake?” the blonde asked and gave her a wink.
“I…,” Winter was lost for words as she got flustered again.
Fortunately, Robyn did not let her embarrass herself for too long because she then turned to give Weiss an explanation.
“I was just giving your sister a hand massage, Little Schnee.”
“I see. Thank you, Miss Hill,” Weiss acknowledged her and looked at Winter again.
“I’ll let you two talk,” Robyn announced and stood up.
“Wait,” Winter said after she got up on her feet as well. “Did you want to tell me something earlier?”
“Maybe... I’ll tell you some other time,” the taller woman said and scratched the back of her head.
“Well, thank you for the massage and the talk,” Winter told her and added with hesitation. “Robyn.”
“Sure thing,” Robyn replied and headed to the door.
It did not take long until Weiss rushed inside and tackled Winter with a hug. Her body was sore from the impact, but it was worth it. She then opened her eyes and searched for Robyn who was in the middle of closing the door.
The blonde gave Winter one more smile, and this time Winter returned it.