Thoughts were quite mushy.
I propped myself up on the floor with my elbows and looked at the tense back of the Big Sis. She was covering me with her snowflake - the glyph - from the gunfire, opened by some unknown freaks in masks.
For some reason I remembered that she was my sister, though I'd never had an older sister in my life.
For some reason I thought I was male, though I did wear an uncomfortably short skirt and heels right now, and - I shifted my knees and rubbed the inner parts of my thighs against each other - there are absolutely no desired sex characteristics here. This body thought it was a girl, until the very hit to the head as a result of these terrorists smashing the window in my favorite cafe, with a grenade at that!
I was slightly carried away by the shock wave - it was a dust grenade...
What does dust mean?
We - me and a bunch of civilians, of course - were saved by my sister's impeccable reaction.
Snowflake - by the name of the Twins, it's a glyph, not a snowflake! - was a great way to protect, as it turned out.
"Winter," I whispered, and winced at the surrounding screams and wails.
There weren't just civilians here, Atlas specialists-huntsmen - who are the specialists-huntsmen? - they were shooting back hard. Some of them couldn't tolerate the sight of civilians with shrapnel wounds and went into close combat.
"Winter!"
I said that louder and realized that my voice gained raspy quality, although it was very squeaky, compared to what I was used to...
And what am I used to?
"How long until the arrival of backup?" I asked.
Winter squinted at me and spoke through clenched teeth.
"They will arrive on the alarm beakon in three to five minutes, the police as well. You've been unconscious for over five minutes, so... Weiss, hide for now, okay? Don't do anything stupid!"
Her attention shifted back to the fight, she swore softly, and then fired summoned nevermores at enemies unseen.
What the devil are nevermores?
And what is the devil?
The big sis obviously took someone out, because I noticed her satisfied smile, and after that she immediately disappeared from my sight.
Wow, the speed!
I leaned back, trying to sort out all this fantasy setting happening, while feeling terribly tired - it felt as if the best choice would be to continue lying unconscious. I also bumped the same place on my scull again, it had knocked me out before.
Was it just some kind of grenade that took off my aura so quickly?!
W hat the fuck is aura?!
I was ready to simply growl from the unknown of what was happening, my emotions, my thoughts - everything was mixed up. Here were feelings like the effects of green fairy, lifting the current mood and setting up a further positive feelings.
I'm alive! Yes! I'm alive again!
And there was a strange tearfulness and disturbance from helplessness.
What to do? Civilians got hurt because of me, and so did the cafe. My father was right...
"Fuck father", I muttered, touching the bloody back of my head. My aura kept working on the wound - the pain gradually dissipated.
My eyes stopped on a frightened girl with a clearly noticeable red fluffy tail. She was in a waiter's apron and, like all the other civilians, tried to flee somewhere, but apparently her injured leg prevented her escape.
I kept muttering to myself - well, apparently it seemed to be a shock-induced verbal diarrhea, so in the end, even if someone hears, they'll just have to understand, forgive my rudeness and let it go.
"Wow! There are furries here! This is plus hundred to will for life! Need to help. I'll just have to get up now..."
I groaned like some old grandma, well, more like a pug, but grandma sounds better. And I got on all fours, trying to get up. The knees, in no way covered with anything but tights, did not like the treatment, because the shards were everywhere. But my Aura was certainly enough not to get hurt...
What the hell is this Aura?
What the hell is hell?
"A-a-ah, bitch!"
I tried to get up and doubled up, naturally, after a couple of steps in this crouched position. That's how I tried to make sure that these terrorists, who are already screaming in horror induced by my sister, by the way, did not notice me.
"Oh, hello, pretty girl! How's it going?"
I obviously fell next to this canine girl, but she no longer listened to my questions that were too joyful for this reality. She gasped for air immediately after my "bitch" comment, almost crying in shock. Of course, I didn't get what she thought right away, but apparently she took it personally. That's weird.
"I'm not!"
Her voice was pleasant, not as hoarse as mine, but she was not as much sprinkled with the plaster from the ceiling. It literally fell down on me from the explosion, so.
"Couldn't we just..." she continued.
"We could do anything honestly, but only after we, hopefully supporting each other, go through the back door. You have no concussion, and I got two legs. That okay?"
I spoke confidently, without negativity, because I needed her to agree as soon as possible, and not to cause more of a circus.
I stretched out my small hands to her.
That's how it started.
Half-bent, we half-hopped after the other civilians who had already left the place. I'd never know if what my sister said there was rational - any moron understands that staying at the same place in case of such an attempt on life would be suicidal.
After a couple of minutes of hobbling, this canine girl thought of something ridiculous and spat it out.
"You took me with you because it's White Fang, and they won't kill the faunus?"
I thought for about three seconds - I was still trying to grasp what she meant while I was consulting with an inner voice who exactly these faunus were - and rasped in her ear, almost growling with irritation.
"You don't know the terrorists very well, dear... Uh-uh... By the way, what's your name?"
"Mei. Mei Herd," she muttered.
"Herd, you mean, like Feuer Herd?" I raised my eyebrow.
"Yes, this is my father's cafe."
"We will restore it," I said confidently and pressed her in this - slightly gusty - half-embrace to me, and the tip of her tail curled nervously under my arm. "I hope faunus don't flirt like that? Now is not the time, although I wouldn't mind much..."
With these words, I kicked the back door, briefly thinking that I would definitely change my wardrobe from skirts to pants, because suits are stylish forever, and dresses lift up like no other.
"Schnee!"
A masked guy tried to run me with a sword, obviously guarding the back door for just such a meeting - they let the rest of the civilians get out, it was a terrorist attack aimed specifically at our anti-Addams family... What the Addams had was much better, honestly, than the thoughts that come to me in response to these not-my-own-but-mine memories.
His hit didn't work out, because Mei turned out to have both the Aura and the Semblance, and it was apparently protection and strengthening of the body exterior, extended to whatever or whoever she touched. My Aura level was still below the necessary, although I wasn't as shaky anymore. Apparently, this girl went to some Atlas combat school and therefore assumed - in her much less clouded brain - that we could be having some joyous meeting right at the exit of the building.
Unfortunately, this masked genius realized that this is not my feature.
Damn snowflakes!
Glyphs!
Why is it so fundamental?!
Those were quite visible when they did something magical.
It's not magic!
For me, everything that is not on the laws of physics will be magic!
I blinked, because I've gotten a little carried away with my thoughts again, and instead of solving the questions of reality, for some reason I started a conversation with myself.
The tail disappeared from around my forearm.
The girl already patched up her wound due to the fact that the shard passed her tangentially. And we had time to rest while we were limping towards the exit. So she decided to shield me with herself and try to start a conversation. She obviously still believed that they wouldn't try to kill her because of her faunosity or whatever, but I was less naive.
I quickly threw my phone - a multifunctional scroll - on the floor behind me, right after I put it on the record.
I felt it was important.
This will prove the arse of all this terrorism in all its glory, and will probably become one of the hits in the destruction of this radical cell...
The girl got in huge trouble. There was clearly an adult man with burning eyes and the Aura that was open for much longer than hers. But the most epic and most ingenious dialogue prevented the fight from ending in a couple of blows.
"She's a SCHNEE-E-E!" he screamed.
Aw, I'm going to go so, so deaf because of him, although it seems even from my vague memories, this is the first time I don't have to do anything at all to have money, except to agree with my father. And this is the only thing that will definitely be difficult for me to do...
Why did they decide to attack his family? Don't they understand how this guy is? Even his real name translates as "frostbitten" or whatever, what else do they need to understand how he will not give a shit about the death of his daughters, as long as he has his own dick in his pants and a son who kisses his ass at every opportunity?!
"She just carried me out of the building you blew up!" the girl shouted back.
Well, she shouldn't exaggerate, she'll make me blush! Though her face was contagiously inspired when she said it, maybe she believed it.
"Why are you defending her, you're faunus!" he roared.
The man dodged the girl's fist - she demolished a lamppost because of his dodge. Then his sword tried to sweep off her hand, but once again the aura did not allow the maximum fcukery to happen - I have not yet seen the dismemberment today.
Although, judging by the mood of this idiot, who didn't even think of calling for his colleagues - or was too proud to call - it's quite possible that everything could end with dismemberment.
Maybe not even mine? Ugh, why do I even have doubts, we're basically schoolgirls, so what could we be talking about here at all? It totally ends with bloodbath!
"Because she is a person!" the exchange continued.
The dude's ass was blown by these words, and I realized that the PR team of the father of this body would kiss me wherever I point, if I wouldn't die here.
Just for the sake of it, I will try not to die.
"Gra-a-a-a!"
Well, it's not a bighorn, but a bear.
Well, then let it be Ursa!
What the hell is Ursa!
When I blinked, instead of the darkness of my closed eyelids, for some reason I saw a short flash of the image of that very Ursa in the photo in the scroll. Mine, by the way, continued to record, so...
And I did the stupid.
I followed the girl who got flung into the wall, rushed to her even, and not to the enemy - like an honest to gods civilian idiot. That is why I received a blow from this masquerader a step before getting to her. But she waved her tail, as if expecting his actions, anticipating their simple direction. Her fluffy appendage managed to touch my ankle.
I crushed on top of the girl anyway - she passed out, and for a moment it seemed to me that she was not breathing. That is why I quite justifiably lost my temper in a way that Weiss had never done before. In any case, such a feeling was new to both this body and myself, because Aura was an extremely unfamiliar concept...
Anyway, I remembered at least that for sure!
Out of the corner of my eye, I realized that a snowflake, familiar to everyone but me, had formed behind my back.
YES, IT'S A FUCKING SNOWFLAKE, SHUT UP!
And for some reason, the faunus who opposed me, instead of continuing the onslaught, spent precious seconds to grab his sword more tightly and move back...
Heck! He decided to use his Semblance, whatever it was, damn it!
Come on, I've already died before, I certainly don't like it, but judging by what I got here from my memories, this world is not the best place to enjoy culture and recreation. And being here without special qualities of a fighter is somehow not very safe, especially as an heir...
"What a nonsense!" I snapped, trying to stall for time.
For some reason, I felt the sweeping cold from behind.
The man with the sword growled something indefinite, and for some reason his eyes widened. He shook his head strangely and then made some kind of indefinable face.
I was getting carried away, and I was afraid of losing eye contact with my only spectator, so I was carried along all the ravines there were.
"We are all people, we are all being attacked by the grimm, you have just ruined one of those rare Atlas cafes where the faunus are positively treated, simply because you wanted to get to me and my sister! How did you have the fucking audacity and stupidity?! This will only make the situation worse! What does it have to do with me at all? Are you an overgrown moron or are you pretending? I can see that you're twice my age!"
"You are SHNEE-E-E!"
The man finally found the rage he had been looking for all this time, lit up with his Aura, and rushed at me.
My own rage - from the understanding I will have to die again, and from the fact that the tail of my recent savior went limp, and she herself was right behind my back - my own rage solved the outcome of this clash.
I freaked out.