The Huntsman of Red V2

Chapter 37 Prelude: 'Sword of Remnant' (3)

The sound of shuffling fabric and hastily clunking materials echoed inside the Branwen Tribe tent as Yang made a shoddy rucksack out of a piece of cloth tied to a stick. In this sack, she piled in any food she could scrounge from within the tent, knowing full well that after they escaped the Branwen Tribe's camp, that they'd need food and supplies to make the journey back to civilization.

Ruby, Emerald, and Weiss watched Yang work in silence. None acting to stop her. For Ruby and Weiss, it was more out of shock, but for Emerald, it was because she agreed with Yang on this point. They really did need to get out of the bandit tribe before her Semblance was seen through.

It was only after Yang finished tying up the rucksack and gestured mutedly to Ruby that Weiss snapped out of her daze.

"Excuse me?" Weiss's features pinched as she anxiously tried to rationalize what was happening. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I said we're leaving," Yang replied curtly.

Weiss wet her lips; her mouth dry. "Yes well, I'm in full agreement with such an arrangement, but shouldn't it start with undoing my restraints if we are to escape? Y-Your discipline and candor as rescuers is bad enough, but you obviously can't be planning to just leave me here!"

Emerald had no reaction, while Yang was too preoccupied to register anything Weiss had just said. Therefore, the only one who reacted was Ruby whose eyes shifted suspiciously.

Weiss stared.

Ruby stared back, flinching, while twiddling her thumbs.

"A-As if we'd ever think of leaving you and putting up with you for the entire journey back to Vale. O-Of course not. Not in our lives unless we had no choice and oh nonono!" Ruby's eyes had swirling patterns as she hooked an arm around Yang's, startling her. "Yang's dragging me away- Yang pull me, hurry."

"I can hear you, you immature brat!" Weiss felt the urge to cry, but beyond that was frustration as she balled her hands into fists.

"Hey! That's my sister you're talking to!" Yang rebutted out of instinct, momentarily breaking her out of her single-mindedness.

Weiss gnashed her teeth, feeling ganged up on. "Weren't you trying to leave?" She ground out, only to regret it a second later.

"Yeah, you're right actually." Yang's features grew anxious once more. "Ruby, get what you can and let's go."

"Wait, you're supposed to take me with you!" Weiss protested, causing her to topple over, but it didn't stop her from inching over the floor towards them due to the ropes and rum barrel casing that bound her. If asked at a later point, she'd argue vehemently that she 'inched' forward and not 'rolled' in a demeaning manner when everyone ignored her whining.

"Idiots," Emerald palmed her face.

Well, this really could have gone better, but she agreed with Yang and began helping to look for anything useful in the tent in hopes of successfully retreating out of the Branwen Tribe.

As for the question of what happened to demoralize Yang so much? The only one dwelling on the issue was Ruby out of concern for her elder sister.

"Yang?" Ruby called.

"It's nothing Ruby, don't worry about it," Yang countenance darkened, but beyond it was a glimmer of apprehension.

It was one thing to confidently demand an explanation from her mother who left her as a child, but it was another thing to already know the reason why and know that she hadn't been good enough.

'You're not wanted. You're too weak.'

Her inner voice hauntingly resounded in her head as they did the first time that she'd heard those words. Different from before though, she'd had support from someone who could understand what she was going through.