Chapter Text
The first thing that happened was that some of the staff took each person's horse reins. They'd be taking the mounts to the small barn. As for the squad themselves, they could finally finish their journey and enter the cabin. There was a strong blast of heat first thing. Just one taste of the warmth made everyone rush inside and close the door behind them. There was a fire going in a furnace towards the center of the room, Renee was the first to huddle around it. When Renee looked up, not only was everyone else from the squad also huddled around the furnace, but someone entered from a separate room of the cabin. It was Captain Flock, and she was smiling a proud smile. "Squad leader May, I congratulate you and your squad. You six are the first to arrive." The idea of it didn't seem real at first. After all of their roadblocks they were still the first team to arrive. The captain outstretched her hand, expecting the flag, which Filippa gave to her. "There's hot cider and food. I do have to warn you, though, the premade cider is hard cider." Captain Flock walked over to a table adorned with food and large thermoses filled with drink. Renee thought she must've missed it being too preoccupied with the fire. "Hard?" Renee tilted her head like a puppy. "You all just had to climb up a mountain in a blizzard. In a bit of time you'll be fighting for humanity's continued survival. The least I could do is offer you a bit of drink." Captain Flock certainly wasn't forcing this, there were non alcoholic options, and each was clearly labeled and plentiful. Renee grabbed a cup and looked at her options for a moment. She thought back about everything she had gone through this night. Renee poured herself a bit of the hard cider and sipped it gently. After that she filled her cup up. "Thank you ma'am." She smiled before going back to sit by the furnace.
After a bit, each of her squad members sat with her. Each had a cup, some even grabbed food. Renee didn't know who grabbed hard or normal cider, but she didn't care, she smiled. "I think I can actually feel again." Renee said to no one in particular. "Cheers to that," Clay smiled back at Renee. "It's freezing out there." There was a bit more silence, real silence not interrupted by any horses or howling winds, before May spoke up. "Is everyone alright? We went through a lot back there." He was surveying each of his fellow cadets. "Great!" Filippa was the first to respond, as she did so excitedly. "I've got food, drink, and a fire. It can't exactly be worse than out there." Clay smirked. Renee just nodded with a smile as her response. "I'm all good." Emel spoke before deciding to add, "thanks to Thalia." Clay looked at Emel like she was crazy. To be fair, her hair was an absolute mess and she hadn't bothered to fix it. Emel looked at Thalia. "Do you wanna tell it or should I?" Thalia motioned for Emel to go on, evidently not wanting to talk. "Well, obviously, there I was on my horse. I mean, that's where we were supposed to be. To be honest, I don't think I've ever been more scared in my life. I mean, this was the first time in my life I could actually get really badly injured or, if I was really unfortunate, die." Emel paused for a second. She didn't quite let the fact sink in in the moment, so it was hitting fully her now. She continued, trying to act like she didn't pause at all. "Uhm. Yeah, so there I was. I mean I think I almost ran directly into that bear, but it was scary so my horse ran in the opposite direction. I guess I didn't have a good grip or something cause when a wolf showed up right in front of us and my horse went all crazy I fell off. I kind of thought I was done for, but then there was Thalia. She didn't hesitate to jump off her horse and tackle the wolf. I mean it was reckless, probably really stupid, but I wouldn't be okay if she didn't act immediately." Renee looked at Thalia when she heard of what she did for Emel. Thalia looked back, her cheeks were a bit red with embarrassment. "My adrenaline dulled a lot of the pain." Thalia finally pipped up, unable to make eye contact. After seeing she got a few odd looks Thalia slid off her jacket just a bit to show that her arm was bleeding from stripes of rough cuts, claw marks. "Here," May stood up, "I'll help you get patched up." Thalia nodded and the two headed into another room, presumably with the captain, to apply some first aid to Thalia.
This left a slightly awkward air in the room. Emel was the first to speak up. "I know I'm mean. I know I don't treat any of you kindly, but please don't think anything else. I'm happy, really happy, that you all made it through tonight okay. I think, just for the rest of tonight, I'll try to be nice." Emel couldn't help but smile. "Wow! That's actually so mature of you, sharing your emotions and what not." Filippa giggled taking another sip of her drink. "I think we did a half decent job." Clay spoke up. Clearly, some part of him was still thinking of elsewhere, but now some part of him is living in the moment. "If this is the squad I go to the northern island with I can't complain all too much." Which is a very big compliment coming from someone as sarcastic as Clay. "I'd be happy too." Renee looked at all of her squad members, her fellow cadets, her friends. She was happy.
***
About half an hour passed before the front door to the cabin opened again. Renee shivered as the cold wind rushed in. Thalia was especially cold, as now she was only wearing a sleeveless shirt that showed her bandaged bicep. Maru started laughing cheerfully as she felt the warmth overtake her with the door closing. Her forever smile was ear to ear. Eden rushed to the furnace and threw off his jacket. The vegetation on his body grew closer to the warmth. Dylan looked around and raised her eyebrow when she saw May's squad. "Y'know somehow I didn't think you guys would be here first." She tossed the flag to Captain Flock on the other side of the room. "I knew they could do it." Soko got right close to the furnace alongside Eden. "Once these guys have the momentum, they never stop." He smiled and patted Renee's shoulder. Philip looked at the fire in his palm and waved his hand till it was gone. "I'm just glad I don't have to be the furnace anymore." He chuckled. Etsu had already found the food and was stuffing his face. "This is amazing, absolutely amazing." Etsu looked at the drinks available and started pouring his squad mates cups of cider. Based on requests, most were hard. Philip was the only one who asked for regular cider. Maru sat besides Renee. "Have you ever had alcohol before?" She asked, sipping her first drop of the night. Renee shook her head. "No, but I think after tonight I deserve it, plus it's a controlled environment right?" Renee smiled back at Maru. Maru nodded in agreement. It was another twenty minutes after Maru's squad arrived that the final cadets walked through the door. Renee quickly got up to hug Caleb. Sage leaned their face on Renee's shoulder. "Good to see you alright, Blood." Imelda smirked and tapped Renee on her head. "Alright and comfortable it looks like." Hosuh added. The other four could tell Hosuh was happy, despite his lack of outward expression. Lily decided to lay down cause she needed it. Elham walked over to Clay, sitting beside him and leaning against him. "There's hard cider." Clay handed Elham his cup. "Oh thank god, I need it." She took it and drank it. Maru bent down to Lily and handed her some (non alcoholic) cider. "Thanks Mo- Maru." Maru chuckled softly.
A few minutes later everyone had taken off their winter coats and gotten comfortable. Imelda sat next to Renee, who was leaning against her slightly. She had only just finished her first mug of cider. Everyone could hear the howling blizzard outside, it just made them warmer. Imelda started humming softly. It was a bit quiet, so this caught most people's attention. She added words to the tune. Renee didn't recognize the song, but the lyrics felt meaningful. Imelda sang about camaraderie, hope, and comfort despite hardships. When Imelda once again looped back to the chorus, this time Maru joined in the singing. By the end of the chorus, so had Etsu, Filippa, Caleb, Lily, Philip, and Thalia. Everyone rocked along to the next verse. Renee got up to get herself and Imelda a refill of drink. She sat back down right next to the singing girl, handing her the mug. Imelda clinked her cup against Renee's and put her arm around her as she started to sing the chorus once more. Renee joined in, quite enthusiastically, this time. As did others. Clay, Emel, and Eden sang right at the start. As the chorus drifted along everyone started singing. Some people stood up to sing better. Clay already had rosy cheeks, plenty visible thanks to his pale skin. For the first time since the academy had started, everyone in the class was happy, genuinely truly happy.
As the night drew longer there was more drinking, more eating, more singing. The warmth was overwhelmingly comfortable. Renee's cheeks matched her eyes in color. She was giggly and excitable. She sat next to the window sill and looked out into the night. She awed at the beauty of the outside. Filippa sat beside her and together they watched as the blizzard began to dissipate. For a moment Caleb started working in his notebook about possible winter adjustments to his grapple gear, but Hosuh patted his shoulder. Caleb chuckled a bit and nodded. He closed his notebook and stood up. He joined whatever song was being chanted at the time. Renee looked back at everyone in this one small room. At this point most people had rosy cheeks filled with smiles. These were the people whom she was going to spend the next big chapter of her life with. These were the people whom she was going to save humanity with. She joined the singing as well. Some people could even swear they heard the captain humming along from the next room over. Renee could feel her heartbeat. In that moment, she felt as though she could feel everyone's heart beat as one. It was a force so strong that all fear, all doubt, all discomfort was replaced with hope. Pure, genuine hope.
Renee rushed back to the group and hung her arms around her friends as they all sang loudly. Mugs would clash together with cheers from their holders. Everyone took large sips of cider. The cadets could only pray that this night would last forever. They wished that they could experience this feeling over and over again. Suddenly, Filippa ran outside giggling. Everyone seemed to follow her without question. The blizzard was gone. Even the clouds that might've blocked the sky were evaporated by the brilliant diamond-like stars. But there were even more than stars tonight. As the cadets looked up they could see a stunning display of greens and purples in the sky. The southern lights danced as if they shared the hope of each of the cadets. Despite being outside in the middle of the night, no one was cold. They all laughed and awed towards the scenery. Renee thought that this must've been the most beautiful thing she's ever seen. She felt a hand softly grab hers, it was Imelda's. Before long, a snowball fight started. It was childish, but it was so fun that the captain had to call them back inside after half an hour so no one would get too cold. As they all walked back inside the energy was the same, just much more tired. Slowly, one by one, each cadet started to drift off to sleep.
***
Renee wasn't sure what time it was when she woke up. It was still dark, and she was suddenly cold. She decided to get up as quietly as she could as not to disturb anyone else. She grabbed her mug and carefully filled it up with more warm cider. Taking a sip she felt the cold melt away. When Renee's eyes adjusted to the dark, she could see out the window, and sitting outside was May. Renee wasn't sure why they were out there. Without thinking much about it she walked over to the door. Carefully, she slid her boots on and opened the door quietly. She turned the corner of the cabin to see May. They were sitting in the snow, without any more protection from the cold than Renee herself. May seemed to almost jump when they saw Renee. "Sorry." They kept switching between looking at the beautiful sky and the snow covered ground. "It's okay." Renee sat besides May, taking a sip of cider. She offered the cup to May. "It's still nice and warm." They took it and sipped it slightly. "Why are you out here?" May asked Renee. "I dunno. I saw you. I came outside without thinking." Renee looked up at the sky. May took a moment to examine Renee. "You're drunk aren't you." Renee didn't shift at all. "Probably." Renee watched her breath, not feeling cold at all. "You're interesting, Renee. I don't think I understand you." May shook their head. Renee shrugged. "I'm just human, we all are." May just chuckled a bit. "Why are you out here?" Renee asked May the same question they asked her. May took a moment before responding. "Just thinking."
"About?"
"You. And everyone else in my squad." May kicked the snow a bit. "I mean we went through all that together, and yet here we are... Can I tell you something?" May finally looked at Renee directly who finally looked back. "When you grabbed that hatchet and made yourself a shield. I mean you were confident. You killed a wolf before I could even get a shot off. You didn't hesitate to protect us. When you got up on your horse, I didn't see you how you were. I swear, when I looked at you then I saw you adorned in shining, metal armor. Your shield was mighty and indestructible, and your hatchet was a great claymore. In that moment, I could've sworn you were some kind of knight from a fairy tale." May looked back at the ground feeling a bit embarrassed to mention this. "And then I realized I. I realized I'd have to... Look, you're good. You're good and I don't think anything can stop you. I'm just afraid, that I'm not so good." May sat in silence for a bit before handing the mug of cider back to Renee. "I think I might be a bit drunk too..." Renee didn't have much to say. She didn't know how to respond. She took another sip of cider and let the warmth fill her. "Were you happy tonight?" Renee finally asked. May took a minute to consider the question before nodding. "Then forget about your worries. We're your comrades and nothing will change that. In that cabin, when we're together, when we sing as one, nothing can stop that. Let your worries go, and come back inside. Because when we're together, we're safe." Renee smiled and stood. She offered her hand to May who took it. The two of them headed back inside. Renee stayed up just a bit more to finish her cider, but once she was sure May was asleep, she let the warmth blanket her, and Renee fell into a deep, safe sleep.