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Winter was never really big on having “allies”, at least not like this. Not with the enemy.
But being stuck with Cinder for a while - she'd stopped counting the days when she realized they also counted the last time she had seen her sister alive - had made her come to terms with the fact that Cinder seemingly had no desire to kill her, at least not yet.
They had eventually decided the best thing to do would be to try to find more people, something other than the random village the portal had spat them out at. Vacuo seemed like the best place to head, so with only a map and what supplies Winter's remaining lien could afford, the pair set out to find the former citizens of Mantle and Atlas.
“We've been walking for two days, Schnee. Can we rest yet?” Cinder complained after a while of trudging through seemingly endless forests.
“What, eager to use me as your pillow again so soon?” Winter retorted, hiding a smirk at the huff she could hear Cinder give behind her.
That was certainly new, the banter. Usually without any real malice, though those moments were surely still there. It felt odd, but Winter found she didn't entirely mind the shift from their constant attempts to hurt and belittle one another. In a strange way, she almost preferred it to their old exchanges.
“Alright, you can keep going if you want, but I'm taking a break for the night.” Cinder eventually decided after some hours. She shoved past Winter and sat down stubbornly on a fallen log, arms crossed over her chest.
Winter took a few more steps before stumbling to a stop, glancing at the parting of trees ahead and then the woman sat just out of arm's reach a few times over before sighing and begrudgingly sitting down a little ways away.
“That's what I thought. Now, gather up some wood so I can get a fire going.” Cinder ordered, waving her hand towards Winter dismissively.
“Why am I automatically the one that needs to do all of the hard work?” Winter frowned.
“Oh, I'm sorry,” Cinder said with faux sympathy, creating a small flame from the tip of one of her fingers, “Can you do this?”
Winter shoved to her feet, glaring at the other woman while Cinder only smiled after her like she'd won something until the Winter Maiden was out of sight.
By the time she'd returned, Cinder was resting against the log on her back, idly burning a leaf and blowing the ashes off of her palm. If she were anyone else, Winter might think she looked rather pretty like that, with the setting sun reflecting against her dark hair and framing her face nicely.
But it was Cinder, her enemy, the woman who killed Weiss, so she would never think such a thing. Of course.
“Oh, you're back.” Cinder hummed, sitting up and crossing one leg over the other at the knee.
“Here.” Winter tsked, dropping the small twigs and fallen branches unceremoniously onto the ground at Cinder's feet so abruptly the Fall Maiden yelped and quickly shifted to move out of the way.
Cinder glared for a moment, jaw set tight. “Thank you.” She muttered, leaning forward to shift the wood into a neater pile before shooting a small amount of fire to set it ablaze.
Winter sat down across the fire from her, close enough to feel warmed. Her gaze flickered from the flames licking along the wood to Cinder across from her, watching as the other woman shed her cape and stretched before catching her gaze. Winter quickly looked away.
“Come on now, Schnee. Surely by now you know I don't bite.” Cinder teased, a chuckle poorly hidden in her words.
“I don't know a thing about you.” Winter spat back, cheeks warm despite being further from the fire. “Only that you're dangerous, and destructive, and a murderer.”
“Still on about that?” Cinder sighed. “Listen, I wasn't exactly aiming for your sister, you know. I was after that cape-wearing brat she always insisted on standing too close to.”
“So what, you're telling me my sister just got in the way?” Winter scoffed. “You're unbelievable.”
“I don't know what else I can say!” Cinder threw up her hands in frustration before crossing her arms and glancing off away from Winter. “Do you want an apology? Is that it?”
“That certainly wouldn't hurt.” Winter rolled her eyes.
“Fine, then! I'm…” Cinder trailed off, mouth moving a few times before she let out a growling sigh and pushed to her feet. “I'm going for a walk.”
“A w-? You don't even have the map!” Winter stood as well.
“So what? Wouldn't it be better for you if I get lost?” Cinder turned back to glance at her for a moment before stomping off into the dark night.
Winter watched for over a minute before snatching the map from the ground beside her and hurrying in the direction she'd seen Cinder disappear into.
She had barely left the immediate light of the fire when she heard rustling to her side, turning just in time to block an attack from Cinder herself. They stared at each other for a moment before Cinder resumed her attempts to land a hit on the other Maiden, with Winter just barely managing to dodge at each turn.
“What's gotten into you?!” Winter asked when Cinder aimed for her head and cracked the trunk of the tree behind her.
“Come on, Schnee. You should be used to this, right? After all, I'm just a dangerous, destructive, murderer.” Cinder said, emphasizing each of Winter's echoed words with another swipe to the head with her Grimm arm. “That's all you know about me.”
Winter's brows furrowed together in confusion. “Are you…upset?” She said, noticing the way Cinder faltered momentarily. “Brothers, you're upset by a few words? If I had known how easy it is to get you this riled up I would have-”
“Just shut up!” Cinder shouted, only to drop her arm with a wince a moment later. “You don't know me. You don't even try to. I'm just a monster, right? So just leave me be and get back to your people in Vacuo.”
Winter pursed her lips in a thin line, watching from the corner of her eye as Cinder's Grimm arm writhed despite Cinder's best attempts to look unbothered. She sighed and pressed a bit of her Maiden powers into her palm, pressing it to Cinder's shoulder too quickly for the other woman to react. Within moments, the look of discomfort vanished from Cinder's face, but the anger remained.
“I didn't ask you to do that.” She muttered.
“I realize.” Winter said, retracting her arm as if she'd touched hot metal.
Cinder glared at her for a moment before turning around. “I'm getting some sleep.” She announced, heading off back towards their campsite.
Winter waited a beat before following, keeping a distance from the woman ahead of her and keeping quiet. She knew better than to run her mouth when the Fall Maiden was this angry.
Cinder cleared out space by the fire and laid down her cape, which Winter could only assume was fireproof, seeing as the dying flames couldn't manage to take hold when they lapped away at the fabric.
“Well?” She asked expectantly, back turned to Winter while leaving part of the cape free.
Winter blinked, not expecting Cinder's invitation so soon after a fight. She sat down slowly, averting her gaze from the woman's back when Cinder turned to glance back at her. “I think I'll keep watch first.” She said, only partially lying. Truth be told, she just wasn't certain she could trust Cinder to not attempt to attack her once she fell asleep.
Cinder rolled her eye before turning back over. “We're two Maidens with extensive combat experience, I think we'll be fine.”
Winter stayed quiet, unable to refute that. Even with their powers somewhat dimmed without a way to replenish them, both could still hold their own should anything happen. She laid back slowly, keeping some space between them until her back felt uncomfortability hot from the embers behind her.
She eventually fell asleep, feeling warm from both sides as a human arm wrapped around her waist, dark locks of hair tickling her chin and lips. She was sure she should be concerned with how comforting the sensations of Cinder were becoming, but those were thoughts for a Winter not actively dozing off.
Winter woke slowly, eyes kept shut to remain resting just a bit longer before she'd allow herself to continue the trip to Vacuo. She felt Cinder stir against her, her head tilting up just slightly and sigh a warm puff of air against her lips far too close.
“I'm…sorry.” Cinder whispered, something Winter knew she wasn't meant to overhear. So she stayed silent, still, pretending to be asleep just a bit longer. It wasn't often Cinder woke up before her, and part of Winter was curious to let things play out just a bit longer.
Cinder brushed hair back from Winter's face, and the Winter Maiden let out a hum she hoped sounded convincing at the action. “Annoyingly attractive Atlas elite.” She muttered, hand still rested against the other's temple.
Winter allowed one eye to peek open, landing on Cinder's amber eye as the Fall Maiden blinked and retracted her hand.
“Look who's finally awake.” Cinder said, all softness gone from her voice as she cleared her throat and sat up. “We should start moving.”
Winter watched Cinder stretch and stand before slowly standing, for the first time not denying to herself how pretty Cinder could be at times - like when she was trying desperately to seem like she hadn't just had a tender moment with what she assumed was a sleeping Winter.
“Well? Let's go, I want to find a town so we can restock on supplies. We won't last much longer with the food we have left.” Cinder said impatiently, holding out her good arm to help Winter up as she tugged the other woman to her feet impatiently.
“Right.” Winter nodded, gathering her things together before setting out.
She and Cinder walked in silence, though Winter found she didn't entirely mind.