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"Amber," Layla breathed the name, as if saying it much louder was going to break her. Layla slowly stepped towards Amber, who slowly stood up to greet her best friend and roommate. Hearing Amber's voice broke her, and she tackled her best friend back onto the couch, wrapping her in a large bear hug.
"Whoa, whoa!" Amber cried out as she fell back onto the couch, crushed by Layla's bear hug. It was definitely a pleasant surprise to see her best friend again, but at the same time it was really painful to have to endure such a brutal attack shortly after waking up. Then again, Amber didn't have the heart to say anything; from listening to Layla's sobs, she figured that she must have been knocked out for quite awhile. She knew that Layla would be very upset for having worried her, so Amber took her pains as a means of payback. They remained embraced on the couch for two hours until Layla's sobs finally subsided. Amber wrapped her arms around Layla and gave the girl a reassuring squeeze to show that she was very much still alive.
"You are a butt, you know that," Layla grumbled as she clutched Amber closer to her, afraid to let her go. She could feel the reverberations of Amber's laughter through her chest. The feeling soothed her, reaffirming that her friend was very much alive.
"I know. I'm sorry," Amber apologized, despite doing nothing wrong. They continued to remain huddled together, the silence no longer terse and painful to endure. It was now a relaxed and peaceful silence that the two girls simply felt comfortable to enjoy together. That is, until Blake busted down their front door in a panic with Weiss standing behind her.
"I heard a bunch of noise coming from your room and I couldn't get the door down and... oh...," Blake's superbly quick speech trailed to a halt as she found Amber underneath Layla who was still only covered in a bathrobe. Weiss felt her face heat up as she continued to stare at the very suggestive scene. Both girls remained standing at the door, faces flushed and minds trying to process what was going on. At the same moment, Amber and Layla looked behind them to find their front door busted open with Blake and Weiss peering through. They then proceeded to look at one another, and watch each other blush for a good three seconds before Layla scrambled off of Amber, clutching her bathrobe as Amber quickly sat up as well.
"Girls, this is NOT what it looks like," Layla quickly said.
"Girls, this is EXACTLY what it looks like," Amber said just as fast with a straight face, sarcasm leaking out of every word.
"Amber!"
"What? You were just extremely happy to see me awake and tackled me back down the couch in only your bathrobe. What else could that possibly look like?"
"AMBER! DON'T MAKE IT SOUND WORSE!"
"Why is it worse? It isn't like we were doing anything like fondling each other and-"
"STOP THAT! STOP THAT RIGHT NOW!" Layla was now close to fuming in sheer embarrassment as Amber continued her running gag with a smile to her face. Blake tried her best to stifle a smirk while Weiss could only look on in flustered confusion.
"Good to see that you're still up and kicking," Blake greeted Amber, still trying to keep her composure. Amber smiled back and gave a thumbs-up despite Layla smacking her shoulder. Weiss gave a single nod to Amber as well to show her satisfaction with the Guardian's recovery. They caught up for a little bit to allow Amber to learn what exactly happened the day that she had been seriously injured. Including how Amber had conked out for two whole weeks of their winter break with a ton of homework to do.

"So I've nearly died, K.Oed for about two weeks, and Layla didn't even bother helping me with my homework?" Amber summarized albeit a bit childishly. Layla gave a huff and pouted towards Amber, who raised her hands in surrender.
"Kidding, kidding. I know you were worried for me and I should do my work. Got it," she conceded. Blake smiled at the girl's antics. It really was a relief that Amber didn't kick the bucket so soon. She had been fighting solo for years and to have her Guardian pass on so soon would be devastating to her, especially considering how long she had to endure her heritage of being Amber's Knight and waiting so long just to meet her.
"Anyway, glad I didn't miss out on anything else, especially a few Ire hordes," Amber continued, stretching her arms, "Cuz that much sleep should keep me up for weeks."
"Unless Layla pulls another one on you," Blake cracked a smile towards Layla, who blushed intensely and slapped Blake in return. Amber laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation. She was aware that Blake meant that as a joke, but to see Layla react so flustered when she was normally calm and collected was so worth it.
"But really, Amber, you scared me when Layla and Blake brought you back to the dorms," Weiss asked, "For a moment I thought that you were going to die on that couch two weeks ago. Seriously, are Ires really that dangerous to you guys? Even Layla?" Amber's grin faded at that moment, unsurprisingly to Weiss. Then again, she was aware of the severity of her question since Layla and Blake gave her grim expressions as well. Again, the three girls knew that it would be hard for Weiss to understand, but at the same time it was almost a blessing in disguise that Weiss was as normal as any other person.
"Yeah, they are," Blake answered, facing Weiss.
"I guess it's really hard to explain when you can't see for yourself," Layla added on, looking over Amber and Blake knowingly. She and Blake exchanged glances and nodded to each other before turning to Amber. Weiss looked on in mild confusion as she tried to figure out what was on their minds.
"Weiss," Blake called out to Weiss. She turned her attention to Blake, noticing that the normally stoic girl was showing signs of... nervousness? What's going on, she wondered, Blake being nervous is like seeing a leprechaun with a pot of Irish gold at the end of a rainbow.
"Have you ever noticed Blake being in pain every now and then whenever you're at home?" this time Layla spoke. Weiss raised an eyebrow and looked over to Blake. At first, she was thinking that it was some sort of joke. From Blake's serious demeanor to Layla's question to her, something told Weiss that she should probably remain serious about it as well.
"I... no, I haven't really noticed," she admitted honestly.
"Figures. It's usually best that way," Blake mused understandingly as Layla nodded in agreement. Amber gave a terse smile to Weiss.
"Well, since what you see with me is an extreme result of what Ires can do, then the stuff Blake's got is gonna make you feel a lot of pain. And I mean a lot," Amber piped up, motioning with one hand to Blake. Weiss' eyes widened. How on Earth can Amber's injury be seen as something extremely light. Blake rolled her eyes in irritation.
"Amber, she didn't-" Blake started.
"Oh don't you start. She's your friend and she's worried for you. It's the very least you can tell her," Layla interrupted, holding up a hand in front of Blake's face. Amber nodded vigorously as Blake sighed, facing Weiss again. A part of Weiss was beginning to feel terrified, but at the same time, she had never really paid any mind to Blake's pain even during the time they were trapped by Melody together. She had always figured that the pain was from Melody alone, but their story was beginning to tell them otherwise. Weiss shifted her weight nervously as she interlaced her fingers in an attempt to calm herself. Something about their conversation was feeling extremely off to her and the fact that she didn't know why had scared her. Blake must have understood that, because she pursed her lips, keeping her eyes shut as she took off her t-shirt.

"Wh-" Weiss' breath hitched as she looked on in horror. Blake held her black t-shirt in her hand, revealing a black sports bra underneath to match her indigo jeans and sneakers, slowly opening her worried eyes to Weiss. She could tell Weiss was horrified at what she saw. After all, she had been very careful not to reveal anything at all. Weiss looked over thousands of scars that laced Blake's body, the many scars from years of fighting alone and the newer scars from adventures with Amber and Layla. Some parts of her body were also wrapped in bloody bandages, tell-tale signs of open wounds. Weiss felt her eyes water as she tried to calm her breathing, her breath shaky and choking. Amber remained seated on the couch looking solemn as Weiss choked back sobs. She knew this would happen despite the truth to Layla's words. Layla didn't look too chipper about it either; to see Weiss crying was something that hit her hard.
"This is what I didn't want you to see," Blake forced through her teeth, turning to Layla, "This is why I didn't want to show her Layla."
"She has to know eventually. You couldn't have thought to hide this from her forever," Layla returned, not much anger from her voice, "Keep in mind that what happened to Amber could have happened to you. This isn't something you can keep secret from someone who lives with you, Blake."
"But I could damn well continue to try now wouldn't I?!" Blake's voice rose in anger. Layla's eyes widened at the sudden hostility and Amber rose to her feet as well, stepping in front of Layla.
"Hey. Calm down. Now," Amber stated slowly, eyes boring into Blake. She didn't like the way this was going, and if there was one thing Amber learned, it was that Blake being angry held a much darker secret than what was just shared. Amber let out an angry breath.
"I know that it would be hard for Weiss to see, but she deserves to understand the truth of the Ires," Amber reasoned, "Layla and I have only been fighting them for about seven months now. Weiss knew you for longer and I'm damn sure that you refused to show your scars then as well." Blake winced at the accusation, the flames in her eyes quickly put out. Weiss tried to process everything she'd just seen. In hindsight, during the times that she had been with Blake in their imprisonment, she had only seen Blake keep her clothes on her. Even when she was injured she had refused to allow Weiss to treat her. Now that she saw why, it hurt her. So much so she began to cry in silence.
"Blake," was all she could choke out, barely audible. But it was loud enough for Amber and Blake to return their attention to her. Layla sighed as she walked to her bedroom to change. Amber and Blake exchanged guilty looks at one another and made their way over to Weiss to explain.

After a few hours of hugs, apologies, and dozens of mugs of hot cocoa later, Weiss finally calmed down. She had cried so much that she had fallen asleep against Blake's shoulder, hugging the girl close as if scared to let her go. Blake had put her shirt back on, her attention solely on Weiss. Out of all the pain she had endured over the years, she never would have imagined that Weiss' cries were the worst she would ever endure. A quick glance to an uncharacteristically somber Amber indicated that the Guardian felt a similar emotion.
"Hey Amber," Blake finally spoke after an awkward silence, "I'm... sorry, alright? For everything." Amber didn't bother to look, but a small twitch from her eyes told Blake she was listening. Blake sighed and continued, "Starting from what happened at the meadow and all the way to now. You know I would never do anything that would hurt people, simply because I know it would result in something like this." Blake looked over to Weiss as a prime example of her worries. Amber understood to some extent, and decided it was time to talk. About everything that had happened with Blake meeting Layla and eventually herself, all the way to the present day.

"Blake, I think everyone should talk," Amber replied, noticing Blake's attention to her, "I think it's about time we really talked about what we're going to do from now on. It's long overdue."