RWBY: Lex Talionis - Male Reader x Harem (Complete)

Part 6

Y/N's chest rose and dropped with a deep breath. Opening his eyes, he was greeted with a clear blue sky where birds and insects flew freely.

He heard a gentle wind blow through a field of grass, carrying a sweet aroma that belonged to various blossoming flowers.

Sitting from his prone position, Y/N scanned his surroundings. His eyes widened in surprise, and his expression shifted to a confused one.

Slowly standing, he got an accurate scope of the unknown land. A plain of grass surrounded him with a rainbow of colors that only ended from mountainous terrain blanketed in snow.

And ahead was a dip in the mountains; what was on the other side could not be seen due to a glaring sun.

Sighing in content, Y/N's eyes softened while his shoulders dropped. He felt an overwhelming sensation of relaxation wash over him.

Taking one step forward and then another, Y/N began to make his way to the light.

Feeling an unfamiliar burden, Y/N unsheathed his knife, dropping it without a second thought, joining it in the dirt was his revolver.

Taking a deep breath to soak in the environment, he continued forward. His tense body finally began to relax, every pain he kept hidden slowly faded away, and his overwhelming grief was replaced with peace.

Finally...

His heart was at ease, his mind calm. He could finally rest after traversing the endless abyss for so long.

Not once did he turn back, nor did his mind think of those that he left behind. All that mattered now was him basking in the release he so desperately craved.

At the tip of his fingers, he felt long grass blades tickle his skin and the wind whisper into his ears while flowing freely in his hair. It all screamed a single word to Y/N. Freedom.

As he walked closer and closer, he heard a voice, uttering his name, calling out to him.

"...Gretchen?"

His feet dug into the dirt as he began to jog lightly; the voice grew in volume until all he could see was a beautiful valley of green with a rushing river beside him.

And there, standing beside a cliff's edge, was Gretchen. She was just as Y/N remembered, bright as the morning sun and as strong as a mountain.

His breath hitching for just a moment, Y/N slowly and hesitantly approached.

Please. I beg you...

Stopping just short of arms reach, Y/N's lips trembled into a smile, once that the woman shared.

"Gretchen." He uttered her name near a whisper while pleading that what he saw was real and not another cursed dream.

Looking down to him, she spoke, her voice laced with happiness. "Hey, partner."

Biting his tongue with a shake of his head, Y/N wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug; she did the same with a joyful laugh.

Feeling her presence paired with the sound of her beating heart put Y/N in a fit of tears. After so long, he was finally reunited with his lost friend.

Feeling his shoulders tremble with his sobs, Gretchen comforted the man as he had begun to ramble.

"I-I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!"

He showed it all. All the pain, the nightmares, the sorrow. The guilt that ate at him every night he closed his eyes. All of it.

It broke Gretchen's heart to see her friend like this. All these years of bottled-up emotions were finally let loose. It pained her greatly, knowing it was because he blamed himself every passing day.