The sun sweltered on the little town known as Patch, which resided in the most central country known as Vale. Today was a day like no other as the temperature hit a hellish high of 90 degrees, something that was usual for this time of day in the summer. Most people hid inside, or in pools, or in their backyards.

But not Weiss Schnee, a fresh face to the little town. Hailing from the northern country of Atlas, this sort of temperature was definitely unusual to the snowy-haired girl. Weiss wandered the streets of the little part of the suburbia she lived in. Ever so curious, now that she was free. Though, if there was one thing that couldn't set her mind free was how hot she was.

Maybe it was a bad idea for her to wear tight skinny jeans and a jacket that covered her t-shirt on this boiling day. Either way, Weiss was not used to any of this. Not the heat, and not this neighborhood. In fact, it seemed like after aimlessly wandering for awhile Weiss had completely gotten lost.

She wiped her forehead, sweat covering almost every inch of her. She wasn't sure how long she'd last. It wasn't like she could call anyone for help, or even send someone a text to let them know where she was. Her mother was at work, and the last thing Weiss wanted was to be a nuisance once again. Her fingers anxiously tugged at her jacket's zipper, quickly removing it from her torso and tying it around her waist.

After several more agonizing steps, she blinked wildly. Her vision spurred for the moment. It never occurred to her that every step she had taken had made her dizzier and dizzier. Her legs buckled underneath her as she finally collapsed on someone's front lawn. She breathed out heavily and closed her eyes — darkness soon consuming her.

Now, Yang Xiao Long wasn't necessarily the coolest kid on the block, but she sure had a way with how she rode her 6-speed bike down the middle of the street after coming back from the convenience store several blocks down. With two plastic bags swinging from her arms and a backpack filled with Oum knows what on her back, she peddled back home as if her life depended on it.

Little did she know, it was not her life that depended on it, but that of a random girl who happened to be passed out in her front lawn as she pulled up to her empty driveway. She quickly tossed her precious bike to the ground and rushed to the young, pale stranger.

"Hey, hello? Are you okay?" She kneeled beside the smaller girl, who seemed to be out cold. Yang started to feel her face; the girl looked completely flushed, and was burning hot to the touch. Without hesitation, Yang lifted the girl up in a bridal position and carried her inside, the bags still hanging from her arms all the while.

Using her foot to knock on the door, it opened almost immediately. "Yaaaaa-Oh?" a feminine voice greeted her from inside. Ruby, Yang's younger sister, had a look of confusion upon her face as Yang slid past her without a word. "Who's that?!" Ruby followed behind her sister, closing the door behind Yang.

Yang shrugged, and placed the unconscious girl down on the couch. "Don't know. She was just in our front yard." Yang pushed stray pieces of hair out of the girl's face. "I think she had a heat stroke or something. Hey, Rubes?" She turned her head to her sister. "Can you get me some water and an ice pack? Oh, and take these to the kitchen." She handed Ruby her plastic bags and tossed off her backpack.

Ruby nodded, grabbing the bags and running off toward the kitchen. Rustling sounds could be heard in the kitchen as Yang turned her attention back to the mystery girl on her couch. She hadn't seen her before, and as small as this town was, Yang usually noticed everyone, as she had lived in this town for as long as she could remember.

Every inch of the girl's appearance, to Yang, screamed "Atlesian". The snow-white hair, the pale skin, the expensive looking combat boots that she wore. Yang knew a foreigner when she saw one. But if there was one thing that had surely gotten the attention of the blonde, it was the scar that ran across the girl's left eye. Surely, something unusual for someone from a place that was known to be as pristine and perfect as they come.

Yang lightly lifted the girl's wrist to check her pulse, and could tell that with time, she would be alright as long as she had gotten rest and water. Ruby soon returned with the requested items and handed them off to Yang. "I don't think I've seen her around here before," Ruby stated, taking a seat in front of the couch, now staring, perplexed, at the girl passed out on her couch.

Yang moved the ice pack underneath her neck, gently lifting her up and placed water on the coffee table next to her. "That's because she isn't from around here. Nobody as pale as her lives here in Patch, or in Vale for that matter. She's definitely from up North." Yang eyed the very red-faced, yet pale girl who slowly seemed to be returning to a somewhat normal complexion. Well, as normal as such a placid tone could be for this girl.

Ruby made a small sound of realization. "Oooh…" She lifted herself to her knees, looking more closely at the stranger. "She's really pretty though. You think all of the Northerners are as pretty as her?" She turned to look at Yang who had raised an eyebrow at the unusual observation.

Yang let out a small cough. "How would I know? I've never really ever met one. Besides, my assumption could be wrong." She turned her attention back to the girl who was slightly stirring in her sleep. Yang motioned Ruby to move herself away from the girl, to give her space. "Do you know when dad's coming home?" Yang asked as she leaned back into the couch, noting how much smaller the girl was, even shorter than her sister.

Ruby shook her head. "I think it's another late day shift for him. Didn't he say he would double it up?" She climbed into the nearby armchair, her hands fidgeting as she spoke, this new stranger clearly causing her sister a bit of unease.

Yang sighed and nodded. "Yeah, I think you're right. I'll cook us dinner tonight." She eyed her sister curiously. "Have you finished your homework for the summer?" Ruby responded with a sheepish, telling smile. "Ruby…" Yang warned, her tone doting, almost motherly.

Ruby hopped up from the chair, her eyes darting around the room as she refused to meet her older sister's gaze. "ItoldyouIwasalmostdoneokay-byeeeee!" She quickly ran off to her room, hoping she wouldn't be badgered by her older sister any longer. It wasn't like Ruby had a lot of summer homework left, and it wasn't that hard, either. She just really didn't feel like doing it, not while there was a much more interesting situation with a stranger in her living room.

Shaking her head, Yang once more leaned back on the couch, her eyes struggling to tear away from the pretty stranger. Yang couldn't lie, there was certainly something beautiful about this girl. Like a porcelain doll that had a slight crack on her face, but by no means did that subtract from the doll's beauty. It only added more mystery, more character. And Yang wanted to know it all.

But this girl was no doll. She was a real life person, who had happened to pass out in Yang Xiao Long's front yard. Here she laid, on the couch where Yang patiently awaited for the girl to wake up. Though, Yang herself had had quite the long day as well, and she could feel it catching up to her as her eyes started to get heavy. She let out a yawn as her eyes closed, promising herself she'd only rest for a minute.

Some amount of time later, Yang found herself waking to the sound of a loud thud at her side. Her eyes shot open just as quickly as she remembered closing them, and she turned her head and noted the girl, who had fallen off the couch in a panic.

"Hey, hey! Whoa!" Yang stood up, the girl's eyes turned to meet her as if she were a deer in the middle of a large hummer's headlights. Terrified, blue doe-like eyes met a concerned lavender pair for the first time. The girl backed up toward the couch, as far as she could away from the blonde. Yang held her hands out in front of her defensively as she tried to calm the girl, who was clearly still in some sort of panicked state. "Hey, hey! You're okay," she assured her, her voice lowering, now. "You just passed out in my yard, and you're inside my house. I promise you everything is okay."

The girl's eyes darted back and forth, clearly searching for some sort of exit. She then closed her eyes, and let out an unheard sigh. Opening them, she now met Yang's eyes once more and gave her a very weak and timid smile.

She moved her left hand over her mouth, her hand flat as she moved it downward. Her mouth, while moving, made no sound, but the words "thank you" were clear as Yang read her lips.

Yang stood there, momentarily shocked at the action, not sure which direction she should take this. "Uhh, not a problem." She eased her own stance, moving away from the girl.

Still, the stranger remained in a terrified state, but there was no way she could clearly communicate with the blonde. It had seemed that everything Yang had done for her was done in a genuine manner, so there was no shame in thanking her. But as far as the rest of her situation was concerned, the stranger had no idea how to go about it.

"I'm Yang, Yang Xiao Long," Yang had added, quickly introducing herself. She didn't seem the slightest bit concerned that the girl before her seemed to be mute.

Weiss moved her hands in movements that Yang couldn't yet understand, but she was damn good at reading lips, so it had seemed. "I'm Weiss Schnee," she had signed, her lips forming the words as her hands spelled them out. Never had Weiss seen someone so intent on listening to her as closely as this girl — Yang — suddenly had.

Yang grinned, glad to finally be getting somewhere. "Weiss to meet you, Weiss!" she joked, hoping her humor would help ease the tension in the room, still trying to show Weiss she was in no apparent danger.

Weiss looked at her a little funny, unsure about how to respond to such a joke. Usually, no one had bothered to even try to get this far with her, much less in a lighthearted manner. This had taken Weiss by surprise, but if anything, it had frightened her even more. People usually avoided someone mute, thinking that they're lame or dumb. Most of the people in Atlas, anyway, usually considered Weiss just another nuisance. Not someone who was worth their time.

Yet this was the first time outside of Weiss's own family that she had been able to sign more than one word to someone without them walking away. Maybe moving here was truly for the best.

Yang, on the other hand, was growing more intrigued with this girl the longer she stood there watching her. She suddenly wanted to know more about her. Her name was Weiss Schnee, but who exactly was this Weiss Schnee, and why did she move to Patch? A podunk town, on the outskirts of the major city to which they'd both have to commute to school come Fall. Yang had to admit, this girl could be living it up rich as a model, but to come here? Yang knew better than to be assumptious, but with someone as new, and as pretty, as Weiss, it couldn't be helped. She promised herself right then that she would properly learn how to speak to Weiss. Someone in this town had to.

"Eheh," Yang began again, a little nervously this time as she awkwardly smiled. "So, Weiss… I'm pretty sure you'd like to go home, right?" She didn't want to keep the new girl here against her will, surely she'd see her again. She would make sure Weiss would get home safe and sound. It would be easy to walk her home if they waited a little bit for the temperature to go down.

Weiss simply nodded.

"You don't want to stay for dinner or anything?" She paused. "Just thought I'd quickly throw that out there. Didn't know if you wanted to refuel or anything."

Weiss's eyes widened, as if she was actually considering the idea. Her eyes narrowed after a moment, and she shook her head no. As much as Weiss would've liked to eat, all she wanted to do was get out of Yang's house and back into her own home. She wanted to escape the bizarreness of this whole situation as fast as she could. While Yang seemed to be a gracious host, Weiss's own comfortableness was low in any sort of social situation, and her body was beginning to cramp from holding herself in a fetal position for so long.

"Alright, well…" Yang began. "Before I can let you leave I'm going to have to let you drink some water, as well as take a water bottle. I'll walk you to your house, if you don't mind. I…I just don't want you passing out again."

Weiss grabbed at the water on command, and chugged it down in a few gulps. She just wanted to get out of here.

"Whoa, okay. I'm pretty sure you're supposed to drink it slowly… or something like that," Yang said cautiously, trying to ease her once more. She studied Weiss, her expression now mimicking that of a timid puppy.

Weiss put her hand near her chest, making an A shape, and she drew it in a clockwise circle, mouthing 'Sorry'.

"W-what? There's no need to apologize. I'm not…" Yang shook her head. This girl was truly something else… and Yang continued to grow more and more interested. Weiss had drank the water as if on command, as if she was some sort of robot following directions. "Look, let me just go get you a water bottle and we can walk to your place, okay?" Yang ran off into the kitchen, rummaging through the fridge.

Weiss had begun to slowly mope toward the door. She wasn't even sure if she knew how to get home at this point. She knew her address, but at the same time she knew she had been wandering for hours. Maybe she purposely wanted to get lost… To pass out… And end up in stranger's home.

She shook her head at the thought. She was just so glad to finally, after all this time, be free.

Yang appeared next to Weiss, backpack over her shoulders and two water bottles to go. "So, where are we headed, stranger?"

Weiss sheepishly smiled and shrugged.

Yang huffed, "Well shit."