RWBY Through Worlds

101: Moment to Die?

Oh, wait, there was one from Raven asking if she'd died...

"Schnee!" Qrow scared her by saying sternly.

Winter almost dropped her scroll--for a second there he sounded just like Ironwood, too.

"Qrow?!" She was angry.

"Where have you been?" Qrow was mad. "Raven said you disappeared."

Raven noticing in the first place was a surprise, Winter thought to herself.

"I just went for a walk," she said, crossly. "Was there any reason to startle me like that?"

"We literally just had a Maiden kidnapped, and you think it's a good idea not to report in for hours?" Qrow said.

Dang it...that was a good point.

"I apologize then," Winter said much more meekly. "It slipped my mind. I lost track of time."

Not the most pleasant thing to admit--but better than just saying she could not be bothered to report in. How disgraceful.

She thought that would be the end of it, but it wasn't.

"And what were you doing that was that engrossing, your hair?" Qrow was still not appeased and was also sure that there was no way Winter would have forgotten to report if things were normal.

Winter had completely forgotten that she'd participated in that "frivolous activity" and put a hand to her hair. Why hadn't she put it back?! This looked so unprofessional!

But it was no time to show it, so she replied stiffly, "Nothing."

Silence.

"Then don't explain." Qrow was still mad. "Just don't go silent again."

"You're one to talk!" Winter snapped. Being tired wasn't making it easy to keep her temper.

"It's different when there was a crisis just 24 hours ago," Qrow argued.

That was also a good point--unfortunately.

Winter sighed and walked to the edge of the wall again so she wouldn't strangle him.

But this just brought the conversation memory back in full force.

"Something is eating you." Qrow didn't miss this unusual behavior. "Don't know what we missed between last night and now, but something. Maybe Likstar knows--"

That got a reaction.

"Leave her out of this!" Winter said sharply.

Qrow gave her a blank look.

Right...blurting that out without explanation made no sense at all.

[Anyone else wonder if Winter and Weiss' constant over analysis of their own words is an anxiety induced habit caused by a strict upbringing/military etiquette?]

Winter hated it, but now she was going to have to explain or else this looked really bad.

Composing herself as best as she could, she said, "Miss Likstar and I had a...puzzling conversation last night. I was thinking it over. I wasn't tired. That's all. Don't bother about it. She'd only blame herself for causing a scare. It's my fault for not checking the time."

There, that should do it.

"What did you talk about?" Qrow wanted to know.

Winter should have seen that coming. "None of your business."

"It was bad enough to keep you out here for that long, and it's classified?" Qrow said. "Must have been pretty bad then. Fine, have it your way."