#qrow spat out his coffee

[siriuslystargazing]

Becoming Human: Chapter 1

Chapter 1 ~ A New Lease on Life

James never thought death wouldn't come to him so quickly. One moment he was upstairs with his fiancé, Lily Evans; the next, he was on the bottom floor dead. At first, death was lonely. He had to sit in the living room watching everyone mourn him. He watched his mother cry ugly tears, and his friends Peter and Severus console his mourning wife. It wasn't until Lily pulled away that he saw the bump. Lily was pregnant, and now he's dead, and now the pipes in the house are groaning with anger, his anger. Lily looked up, unsure of what was going on. Still, by then, the wake unanimously decided to finish early, and now the house was empty again. James Potter died at 21, which was 4 years ago. 

Remus was 15 when it happened, 15 years old when everything went wrong when Greyback broke into his tent during a family camping trip and cursed him with his wolf. His next encounter with the supernatural was at 20; he worked at a small café in Portsmouth, waiting on tables and pouring coffee. Simple job. It brings in money until 4 masked figures come in, called themselves the Death Eaters, dragged Remus out of the café and beat him to a pulp on the street. Luckily fate intervened, and he was saved by a stranger. 

"I suggest you leave him alone", the Irishman drawled. 

"Why on earth would we do that? He's a filthy mutt that needs to be put down. We're just doing the world a favour, wouldn't you agree?" one of the death eaters spoke; Remus couldn't tell who thanks to all the cryptic masks they wore, but heavens above, he was shit scared and wanted to die right then and there. 

"No, I disagree, but you're playing a dangerous game. His boss will wonder where he went in a matter of minutes, and I don't think the Aurors need another reason to cover up your messes; leave him to me" Aurors? What the fuck is that? Remus thought he had never heard of them. Still, considering the 5 people in this alleyway smelled like blood and something undead, he concluded it had something to do with them. He was right; Aurors were a network of vampires that kept the population in check. If they had done their job correctly, Remus wouldn't be surrounded by Death eaters. 

"you're a coward betraying your kind like this for an oversized dog", another death eater spat "let's just get out of here", and with that, they all left, flitting from the scene. The Irishman stepped out of the darkness and into the neon glow of the café sign; he was tall and handsome, but something lingered behind his eyes. 

"Why help me? Why not let them kill me?" Remus's voice shook 

“Everyone deserves death, I just thought you’d want to go out on your terms and not to some deranged Vampiric Nazis, so I decided I want to help you" The Irishman held out a hand. Remus hesitated to take it, but something in him urged him to trust the man "Qrow, I'm like them, a vampire. Don't panic, though. I'm off the red stuff," Qrow huffs a laugh helping Remus up.  

"Remus Lupin, so what now?" Remus fixes his clothes the best he can. 

"Well, I think fate brought us together for a reason...I found a nice house in Camden, cheap rent. I have a job at the hospital. I'm sure I can get you something" Qrow pulls out a pack of cigarettes and offers one to Remus, who, in turn, accepts. 

"Why do you think I'd just join and live with you at the drop of a hat" Remus takes a drag clutching his ribs in a defensive stance. “Just because I'm a … werewolf doesn't mean I roll over and expose myself to the first guy that decides to take pity on me.” Qrow looks around, trying to think of something to say.  

"Look, something just tells me you're trying to be human; I want to help you. That and I lost a very old friend. He told me to make a new one" Qrow bares his teeth in an awkward smile that makes Remus stifle a small laugh. “You might not want to trust me, but at least give me a chance; look, the moment you want out, fine, you can go. But please, I'm asking for one chance. I know I was supposed to find you. Call me crazy, but when you’ve been around as long as I have you-” Remus holds his hand, silencing the word vomit Qrow produced. 

"And if I accept your lavish offer, what will I-. We do about my time of the month?" 

"Hospital basement, it's just been cleared out for renovations and knowing the NHS as it stands, that won't be for another 10-15 years yet." Remus weighed his options; he was about to get kicked out of the house share he was in, Landlord Was being a massive cunt and raising the price, he had to drive miles out to change, and no one helped him... what's the worst that could happen? 

"Fine, when do we leave?" Remus takes a drag letting his guard down; Qrow smiles "we can go now if you want" Qrow points over to his car. 

The drive back to London wasn't as bad as Remus expected; he managed to call his flatmates and tell them he was leaving and coming to pick up a few things. He wasn't fussed about his old car. It was practically scrap, so it was theirs to deal with. He spoke with the café owner, took the rest of his wages from the till, and then hit the road. Not even halfway, they stopped at a service station to grab food. Remus was in awe that Qrow so casually ordered food and ate it. "I thought you lot need blood to survive and well eat, I guess." 

"Common misconception, as I said, I'm off the stuff. Human blood it's like a drug, but I'm doing better than I was. I eat for show this stuff,” he gestures to the big mac meal on the table “it has no taste, it's been a tough couple of years... adapting but I'm getting there” Qrow's voice was low. 

"Oh, what about daylight?" Remus was far more interested in learning more about vampires than anything else. 

"It's bright, so I wear sunglasses, and as for the other questions you have, watch" Remus watches Qrow manifest, his fangs descend, and his eyes go black. Blink. Human once more. "Holy shit! And you can do that running thing those guys did, too?" 

"Yeah, it's called flitting; you run fast, that's about it, really" the two continued to dine on their French fries "can I ask how old you are? I mean, if you want to tell me that it is." 

"Around 127 years old, give or take a few months. I was recruited at 21 during the first world war. Was a medic, got caught, and well” Qrow gestured to himself. It was true. He was caught out and sent to a prisoner-of-war camp. “What about you? How do you become a creature of the night?” 

Remus sighed; it was an incredibly sore subject. Losing his mum that night and then his chance at everyday life thanks to some creep by the name Greyback "I was 15, camping trip" Qrow didn't press for more he could sense it wasn't a story ready to be told. For some reason, he found Qrow to be easy to talk to. 

****** 

They finally arrived at the flat just before the morning rush of commuters entered London; Camden was an exciting place, Remus thought. The house Qrow managed to get cheap was even nicer than he thought. It was a simple townhouse defiantly worth over a few million pounds; Remus supposed a few million a month was cheap to a vampire. "Here it is, home sweet home", Qrow mused, slamming the car door." I must admit I thought it would be a slum of some sort, but this is nice" Remus peered into the front window into what he assumes is the living room. "I feel a trip to Ikea is needed. Where's the closest one?" 

"Wembley, I think, help me with the Tv, would you" Qrow opens the boot pulling out a nice flatscreen box ", 42 inches. Picked it up from the Tesco; it was on them Clubcard prices right cracker steal." 

"Well, at least we have a tv", Remus mused, helping Qrow pull the Tv from the car. It wasn't long until another car pulled up to the house; it was a fancy automobile considering Qrow and Remus drove up in a vintage Ford consul. Stepping out was a tall hooked-nosed man. He didn't look all too welcoming but gave off a prick of a property owner. 

"You must be Mr Rosewood?" The man drawls with the foulest look on his face 

"oh Yeah, hi, umm, you don't look like a Lily, mind you, no judgement here", Qrow bares his teeth in what he thinks is a smile "no Ms Potter is busy, so she sent me, any issues with the building you are to contact me, My name is Severus Snape" Snape holds out a card with his name and number on, Qrow takes it "Qrow, and my roommate Remus…." Qrow smiles, helping Remus carry the Tv into the house. 

"Lupin, Remus lupin", Snape simply sneers at both "pleasure to meet you" Snape grinds out "it's a nice 3-bed house. Lily has said the rent has been negotiated; any issues, call me directly I'll respond, or I'll send Peter around. Oh, and if a little punkish delinquent named Sirius Black bothers, you tell him to fuck off" Snape grimaces once more, handing a set of Keys over to Qrow "you might want to get another set cut for him" With that, Snape leaves the house. Remus is in awe of the place; it is lovely. Something about it felt so inviting and safe. "Well, I guess that's the maintenance of the lot sorted", Remus huffs 

"Aye, well, home sweet home, I guess. You take the first pick of the rooms. I'll set this bad boy up, and then we can head to that Ikea place you were talking about." Remus stops at the stairs 

"Wait, you've been alive for over 100 years and never been to Ikea?" Remus was in awe 

"Yeah, never needed to, I haven't done many things, but now that's all going to change." 

"Fair enough", Remus laughs continuing up the stairs ", you have bought a Tv license and an aerial for that, right?" Remus shouts from the landing 

"The fucks a TV licence, and I thought you just plug these things in", Qrow huffs reading over the instruction booklet; it clearly said it needed Wi-Fi and a tv aerial to function. "Fuck's sake!" 

Remus shook his head, looking around the 3 bedrooms, but something felt off; it felt like someone was following him. He peered into the master bedroom. It was huge and perfect. Qrow said he got first dibs and might as well go for it. He threw what belongings he managed to grab from the old house into his room and turned to leave. He still couldn't shake the feeling someone was watching his every move. 

A few days later, the house was slowly coming together; Qrow had realised that Remus had acute OCD and kept the place looking clean and insisted that everything had a home. He claimed it gave him control, so Qrow didn't mind. In return, Qrow decided to fix anything broken in the house; the pair weren't overly fond of Snape and weren't in the mood to meet new people. The only thing that refused to be fixed was the upstairs toilet; Qrow called Snape, who said he would send Peter over as soon as possible. "I spoke with some people over at the hospital; it looks like a porter job is going; you want it?" Qrow spoke between bites of toast. "Really? Yeah, when do I start?" Remus beamed. "Today, I'll make sure you are close to my ward; thanks for the tea this morning." 

"I didn't make you tea. I thought you made it?" Remus and Qrow look at each other, confused, both taking a sip from the mysterious tea. "Oh... then who made the tea? Unless..." Qrow set his mug down; looking behind him, the sudden feeling of being watched had returned, and they could both feel it. 

"Unless what Qrow-" 

"Shhh-" Remus was taken aback; Qrow kept scanning the kitchen, waiting for something or someone to appear "you going to tell me what you're doing, or is this some weird vampire trick?" 

"Do you get the feeling that someone is watching us? I had it since we returned from," Qrow holding in his shudder ", Ikea." 

"Well, I did feel something when I was picking a room" Remus could feel and hear the tremble in his voice ", but-" Qrows' Alarm blares out. "Jesus' fuck!" Qrow silences his phone "guess the ghost hunt can wait; time for your first day." 

Qrow grabbed his coat, leaving his plate and mug. "Leave it, Rem, or we'll be late!" Qrow shouts from the hallway. Remus stares at the messy table, itching to clean "ugh, fine! But promise me you won't leave them again!" Remus follows Qrow out of the house; as he closes the door, he could have sworn a messy-haired man was standing in the kitchen holding two mugs of tea. 

James liked having roommates again. It reminded him of when he lived with Sirius and Peter at university, except back then, he wouldn't hide; he would be joining in on the banter, even starting it, but the moment James heard them both talking about Vampires and werewolves, he got freaked out. Was it true this whole time that they lived amongst them? James didn't know why he was questioning it; he was a ghost for crying out loud! So, James did what he always did: clean the pots, make a cup of tea, wait for Sirius, and act like he was alive and human again. 

"Bye guys have a good day's work," James said to the empty kitchen as he watched his new housemates, well tenants, he guessed, leave for work. James was used to people moving in and out, so he wasn't expecting this couple to stay long. So, he sighed, picked up the leftover pots, and began washing them, just doing odd domestic chores hoping they would last longer in the house if it felt like a magic cleaning fairy exhausted. Even if Remus had started putting him out of a job with his manic cleaning episodes. By 10am, the house was spotless, meaning Sirius would be over to sit on the porch before his shift at the hospital. The kettle had boiled, and James made Sirius his tea and waited on the porch; just like always, Sirius stubbed out his ciggy and sat down at the porch to pick up his tea. 

"Thanks, mate." he laughed into his cup  

"It's okay; we got new tenants the other day. I think you will like them. One’s got a killer black trench coat and boots. The other is, well, he's defiantly a dog person." James sat beside Sirius his arm wrapped around Sirius's shoulders. Even though Sirius can't see or hear him, James hopes that Sirius feels comfort when they have one-sided conversations.  

"You know I don't believe much in ghosts, but I know you can hear me. Can you make sure Padfoot is okay up there? He-" Sirius choaks on his sob "well, I thought the big doofus was going to make it, but the vet said his cancer spread, so he crossed that rainbow bridge." Sirius tried to hold it together but failed; it broke something in James to see his best friend like that. "Oh shit, I gotta go, mate; I love you, and I miss you so fucking much" Sirius wiped his face and downed his cuppa, heading for work and leaving James alone again. "I know, mate, I miss you too" James stayed on the porch for 2 hours 

****** 

"Your self-control is insane if you can work in a hospital" Remus sat down in the breakroom opposite Qrow "oh, and thanks again for helping me get this job; how much rent do I owe you?"  

"Nothing, it's fine. I can cover it; you just buy food and furniture" Qrow sips on his coffee as he watches the other nurses and doctors rush around the canteen getting food. Remus joins him, observing the room "speaking of food, I managed to nip to the Co-Op and grabbed steak for dinner. I'm guessing you want yours raw?" Remus smiles at his joke as Qrow chokes on his coffee, laughing, "that's a good one, Lupin; yeah, the steak sounds good.” Qrows pager beeps; he pulls it out, reading the call. “I'm gonna be down in paediatrics this afternoon. I'll see you at six” Qrow leaves again, rushing through the corridors to the ward. 

“Oh, so you’re the new Surgeon”, Sirius Coo'd from the ward reception desk; he waltzed over to Qrow, handing over the patient's file smugly. “Male, 16, shattered his leg, you must be pinning it back in place. Doctor Black, the pleasure is all mine.” Qrow takes the file scanning over the information  

“Not the worse break I've seen; you want in on this?" Qrow gestures to the operating room. 

“Wait; really?” 

“Yes, really, Doctor Qrow Rosewood, but Qrow is fine, honestly” Qrow offers a hand Sirius accepts, giving his winning smile “nice to see the hospital put a specialist in orthopaedics' on the books for a change. Sirius.” the two make their way into the surgical suit. 

Sirius and Qrow stand over the patient gloved and ready to roll. “Have you done this before?” Qrow looks up at Sirius, who simply states, “no, I haven’t; I've read about it that’s as close as I've gotten to something like this.” 

“Well, like I always say, see one, do one, Teach one. Not my first pinning and it's not as fucked as your notes made it out to be, so the chances of amputation if we fuck up are slim to none,” Sirius could hear the smile behind Qrows mask. “Sirius is quite the unique name if I must say.” 

Sirius scoffs “coming from you? You're named after a bird but spelt it with a Q.” 

“Yeah, I was pretentious little shit when I changed it. But I'm just putting two and two together here; you don’t know a Severus Snape, would you?” 

“I do”, Sirius spat the words out at Qrow “why?” 

“Oh, it's just my Landlady’s Maintenace man, possible lover or something has told me to tell you to fuck off. If I see you near my house.” Qrow begins his insertions of the metal rods  

“he’s a slimy git, that’s all, And I would really appreciate it if you still let me-” 

“of course, you can sit in front of our house until you die. I really don’t care. Though I can’t speak on behalf of my roommate, why not come around for dinner tonight? I think we're having steak.” 

Sirius was stunned but let the offer hang in the air as he focused on the procedure. Watching Qrow move the pins into place gracefully and with little effort was mesmerising. It wasn’t long before the process was finished, and the patient was wheeled out. “My offer still stands; we’re having steak tonight at six; you look like a medium rare kind of guy anyway” the two walk down the corridor back to the ward.  

Remus was contently mopping when he heard the familiar sound of Qrow talking. He looked up to see him walking with another doctor. “I suppose I could join you. My shift finishes at 5:30 today, so why not” Sirius smiles.   

“Speaking of my roommate, Remus, over here.” Qrow waves Remus over. “Sirius, this is Remus, Remus this is the guy we’re supposed to shout fuck off to, I have invited him for dinner. You don’t mind, do you?” 

Remus wasn’t as stunned by Qrows abruptness as he used to be. He held out his scarred hand to Sirius, who gracefully accepted. Sirius’ beauty encapsulated Remus, the way his hair framed his face to the deep grey of his eyes that reminded him of a summer storm. “Yeah, hi, your good with steak, right?” 

Sirius couldn’t for the life of him formulate a response. The taller man in front of him. He was utterly beautiful even if he was littered with scars. “Yeah, sounds pretty, guy - Good sounds good”, Remus tried to conceal the blush spreading across his face by laughing. Oh yeah, this being human thing is going to be so easy. 

#maruaders x reader #wolfstar fanfiction #jegulus fanfiction #x male oc #marauders x male oc #remus x sirius #sirius black angst #harry potter fanfiction #marauders au

[synvamp]

HAPPY PLACE 3

I am living in fanfiction forever now. Come to a happy place - Vol 7 Ep 5… a little after <3

Slow burn, lots of flirting and fluff.

(Part One HERE)

Title: Healing

Fair Game – Part Three / 4? More?

Rating: M

---xxx---

  Qrow had no intention of going to the training room to meet Clover. His mind was firmly in bed, in the dark, contemplating the void. His body opened the training room door and stepped through.

  Damn it.

  “You came,” Clover grinned, Kingfisher slung casually over one shoulder.

  “No shit,” Qrow said, not mentally prepared for this at all, “So, what did you have in mind?” he asked warily from the door.

  “Best of three.”

  “Really? You want to fight me?” Qrow said, sceptical.

  “I want to kick your ass,” Clover winked.

  One eyebrow slowly rose and then Qrow finally smiled. He put one hand on Harbinger and felt the comfort of the cold steel in his palm, “Well, bring it on,” he said.

  After a few rounds, the world seemed like a better place. Qrow knew he was a good fighter but it was always nice to have a little confirmation. He enjoyed using his body so much. The comfort of sweat and steel, warming his muscles and making him feel like he was in control again.

  Clover’s moves were so graceful and fluid but he lacked the instinctual reflexes that took a fighter from good to near-psychic. In a lot more than three matches, Qrow wouldn’t have lost at all if it wasn’t for Harbinger slipping at just the wrong time and leaving him open to being trussed up like a damn turkey.

  He struggled against the line as Clover unravelled him, “Finally, one to me,” he grinned, sticking out a hand to help Qrow to his feet.

  “I can’t even tell if it’s my bad luck or your good luck,” Qrow sighed, accepting the hand and standing.   

  “Well…” Clover looked at him as if was weighing up his next comment, “It’s like the General assigning me to you in the first place. Your bad luck IS my good luck.”

  Qrow felt relaxed, all the anger worked out of his system. He tried to be annoyed at the reference to Jimmy but instead, he smiled.

  “So, you still on babysitting duty tomorrow then?”

  “Yep,” Clover smiled, “So you’ll just have to look at my gorgeous visage a little longer.”

  “Just my luck,” Qrow replied.

---xxx---

Qrow woke up late, his body feeling sore but strong after the work out the night before. He had a two minute shower, threw his clothes on and headed to the briefing without breakfast.

  At first he thought that Clover hadn’t noticed him skulking in late but he looked up from his scroll just as Qrow sat down.

  “Ah Qrow, you’re here,” he said, a little smile playing on his lips, “Not too sore after last night?”

Jaune spat his coffee all over Marrow, who sighed, “Dude. Gross.”

  Qrow just about fell off his chair, “SPARRING WE WERE SPARRING THANKS CLOVER I’M FINE,” he growled.

  Clover had a little moment at the front of the room. Vulnerable Qrow – adorable. Cocky Qrow – flirtastic. Fighting Qrow – impossibly hot. But angry Qrow – just… wow.

  He’s SO cute when he’s angry…

  Somehow Clover managed to make it through all the team assignments for the day without staring at Qrow for too long. It was hard but he was a highly trained professional, after all.

  And then there he was, at the very last team assignment, “And I’ll..”

  “Be with Qrow, right?” Yang asked, suppressing a smile.

  “Lucky guess,” Clover grinned.

  “Not really,” she replied.

  “Ok then, let’s move out!” Clover shouted.

  After everyone had left, Clover was left with just his little thunder cloud. Qrow looked at him, those perfect red eyes smouldering, “Thank you for that. What I really need in life is my nieces gossiping about my sex life.”

  “I assure you that the thought that my comment could be misinterpreted never entered my mind,” Clover said, furiously trying to keep a straight face.

  Qrow’s eyes widened just a little, “You did it on purpose!”

  Clover leaned over him, “So what if I did?”

  “Are you trying to annoy me?”

  “Maybe a little,” Clover grinned.

  Qrow noticed just how close the other man was to him… just how his muscles moved underneath the criminally thin Specialist uniform… how he smelled…

  “Uh… Why did you pick this mission?” Qrow asked, awkwardly.

  “Time to talk,” Clover said, looking at him with those stupidly green eyes.

  “All you do is talk,” Qrow managed, fighting the urge to lift his arms and pull the man even closer… just a little taste wouldn’t hurt…

  “All you do is brood and look gorgeous but you don’t hear me making a big deal about it,” Clover smiled.

  A shiver ran down Qrow’s spine and formed a warm puddle in his stomach. Say something oh for the love of ass say something! “Uh, you’re kinda making a big deal about it.”

  “I’m really not,” Clover grinned, “I’m a dramatic guy. If I was making a big deal about it, the whole of Atlas would know.”

  Qrow looked past the perfectly defined shoulder muscles to see Yang waving at him frantically from the end of the corridor, making thumbs up gestures. At least that’s what he hoped they were.

  “Yeah, I’m pretty sure that they know,” Qrow sighed, “You should probably stop though.”

  Clover felt his chest contract. This was it. This was the moment that Qrow told him that he wasn’t interested. This was the moment where he got the bitter sweet joy of watching Qrow walk away.

  He tried to ask why but the words just wouldn’t come. All he could see was the top of Qrow’s head as he tucked his chin down, avoiding eye contact. This is it. This is it.

  Why the hell did I try to rile him up? I’ve got it all wrong!

  Finally, Qrow spoke, his chin buried in his chest, “My semblance. Don’t underestimate it… we saw in the dust mines that you’re not immune. I get that you’re Mr Confidence and all but two weeks with me would really knock that out of you.”

  “Please…” Clover whispered, he didn’t know what to say… his whole heart felt like it was going to climb up his throat and suffocate him… it has to be right… Qrow looked at him, his gorgeous red eyes were wide.

  This is not helping…

  “Please… don’t say that. Don’t bury everything you’ve done like it doesn’t matter. What you’ve done for those kids, what you’ve done for this country… You’re so skilled. You’re so important to them… to all of us. You are so much more than just a semblance, Qrow. Don’t ever forget what you’ve done… who you are.”

  Qrow just looked at him open mouthed with those wide, perfect OH GODS WHY IS HE SO BEAUTIFUL eyes.

  Finally, he turned away, “Yeah, yeah. Just warning you.”

  “Very considerate,” Clover said, he reached out a hand… he wanted to lift Qrow’s chin… look again into those pained and beautiful eyes, “So… two weeks?”

  “What?” Qrow asked.

  “Two weeks. You said two weeks would change my mind. Do you want a bet?”

  Qrow smiled nervously and shook his head, “You’d just use your semblance.”

  Clover leaned in, his lips close enough to puff warm air on Qrow’s ear, “I will use everything.”

  Qrow turned, their faces so close their lips were nearly touching, “You’re kind of intense, you know that?”

  “Do you like it?”

  “I… think I do,” Qrow said, his gaze lingering on Clover’s lips.

  “So…” Clover tried so hard not to lean further… not to press his lips against Qrow’s… “Deal?”

  “And if I say no?”

  “You know I’ll just hang around anyway…”

  Qrow smiled, “Well you’re doomed either way then, I guess.”

  Clover finally gave in. He lifted his calloused hand and cupped that gorgeous alabaster cheek, lifting Qrow’s chin, he kissed his lips. At first he was hesitant, gentle, then he felt Qrow’s lips closing on his own, returning the kiss. He held Qrow closer, wrapping him up in an embrace, clasping his slim waist and feeling the heat of his body as they pressed together.

  Down the corridor, Yang gave herself a high five.

  Finally, they parted, dazed… breathless.

  Doomed, thought Qrow, I am absolutely doomed.

  ---xxx---

Part Four

#qrow branwen #clover ebi #fair game #rwby spoilers #rwby 7 #fanfiction

[ask-the-rose-schnees]

"Little Red"

-mafia godmothers!au snipet #1-

(Warning: Graphic depiction of violence)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

City of Remnant, Vale district. 9:00 pm. A tall red headed man carrying a cane, followed by a tiny girl with long wavy hair of pink and brown, walking down the darkened streets. Roman Torchwick, the biggest crime boss in all of Vale and his trusty partner and bodyguard Neopolitan. The two had a "business" meeting scheduled for tonight, but said meeting was taking place dangerously close to his biggest rival's territory. The Belladonnas. Therefore, Roman decided it would be wise to give a call to his good old "friend", Weiss Schnee, to hire some extra "help".

The two were to meet this new hire tonight, they continued walking for a little while before stoping in front of a quiet little cafe in a backstreet. ("Is this really the place?") Neo signed at Roman in sign language with a raised eyebrow. "Yep. The ice queen told me the person she'd send us specifically requested to meet up here." The tall redhead huffed while gesturing at the small building. He opens the door. "Ladies first!" Neo rolled her eyes at the cheesy line, but flashed her dum-dum a smirk all the same as they both enter the cafe.

The place wasn't terribly packed, but still surprisingly full for this late at night. They were ten or so minutes early, so the melon hat donning duo decided to order something. Roman, a small coffee with two milk, two sugar and Neo a cappuccino with a pink glaced donut. The two sat down and began chatting. Or rather, Roman talked and Neo passively listened, seeing as she had her hands occupied by her sugary treat. "I sure hope Schnee sent us someone decent this time." He sighed, leaning back into his seat. "First that drunk jackass Qrow, then that crazed pyromaniac Cinder. Its almost as if every high ranking members in the Schnee family are either mentaly unstable or incompetent!" He said, while lighting himself a cigar. "And don't even get me started on that gingerheaded maniac with the grenade launcher!" He complained, while mashing his index against the table. Neo, having finished her donut finally replies: ("If you hate them so much then why don't we just jump ship?") "Because I don't want my testicles impaled at the tip of Schnee's rapier!" Roman retorted. "Also I don't hate them. I just hate working with them." He explained.

They're casual banter continued for a couple minutes, until they heard the cashier call out an order that made both their stomach sink. "One large moka with extra sugar and two double chocolate chip cookies!" Roman and Neo looked each other in the eyes. There was only one person that they knew of that could ever ingest such a sickening amount of sugar. Neo looked past Roman to see who was at the counter, her crunching face was all Roman needed to confirm his fears. (Please don't be who I think it is. Please don't be who I think it is!) He though to himself. Roman took a deep breath, then turned around on his chair. "Oh fuck my life." He muttered quietly.

Silver eyes.

Gothic lolita dress.

And the ever present hooded red cape.

Ruby Rose.

Weiss Schnee's bodyguard and favorite attack dog. A relatively recent arrival in the Schnee family, but already known by many names, the reaper, the collector, the blood rose. But to Roman, she was known as: "Little Red!" Roman called out with a nervous chuckle. "Its SO good to see you!" He continued with gritted teeth, while opening his arms. "Torchwick! Neo!" Ruby replied as she bounced over and put her order down on their table. "OOOOOOH I'm so happy to see you twooooooo!" She exclaimed as she exchanged hugs and cheek kisses with the both of them before sitting down. Now. From an outside view this girl seems rather cute and harmless right? On one hand she's cheerful, affectionate and as a love for milk and sweets. Cute. But on the other hand you've got: an obssession with weapons, a very large knife collection and a disturbing affinity with violence. Not so cute anymore. This girl is as sweet as she is dangerous. Two sides of the same messed up, contradictory coin. And THAT. Was the girl Torchwick and Neo had to work with. "Sooooooo." Ruby spoke up, tilting her head.

"I was told you two had a job for me?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After Ruby had been filled in, the three headed out and made their way to the meeting point. They took a turn into a dark alley, at which point a butterfly knife was suddenly in Ruby's hand. Causing Roman to jump a little and Neo to instinctively move in between him and Ruby. (When did she even pull that out!?) Roman though. The short girl in red just stopped and stared at them with a blank look for a bit, all while she flicked the knife to and fro. Openning and closing.

*click* *click* *click*

She took a moment to take in their unnerved expressions. Before smiling and asking in an innocent tone. "Are you guys okay?" Roman knew the girl liked to fidle with her knife, but the sight of her with a sharp object in her hand will never not but him on edge. "Y-yeah. I'm fine!" He said, quickly regaining his compossure. They then continued walking down the alleyway for a bit, Ruby continuing to open and close that knife of her's.

*click* *click* *click*

To Neo, a connoisseur of knifes and other sharp objects herself. She found the sound rather relaxing. But she also knew it made her dum-dum nervous. So Neo struck up a conversation to lighten up the atmosphere. ("So, is this a new one?") Neo signed at Ruby, pointing at the butterfly knife. "Hmm? Oh naaaah! Its the same old one I always have on me! Though I did get a really really nice looking dagger at an auction last week! Its got really cool engravings on it and-" Ruby continued to ramble on, never stopping the flicking of her knife, as Neo occassionally replied in sign language. The ceaseless chatting somehow managed to calm Roman down a bit. Until...

The three of them stopped. Dead in their tracks. Ruby stopped flicking her knife and put it away in her pocket.

Five men had appeared in front of them from around the corner. Armed with pistols and metal pipes, Belladonna thugs. Then, out of a door on the side of the alley came three other men. One much bigger them the others, weilding a broadaxe, a rogue huntsmen. "Took you guys long enough!" Torchwick spoke up in a cocky tone. "I was almost getting bored." He continued while throwing away the butt of his old cigar and lighting up a new one. The leader of the thugs walks a couple steps foward. "Bold words from someone who's surrounded and outnumbered!" The thug leader barked. "Sooo quantity over quality huh? Cute." Ruby replied dryly, her smile gone. "Huh? You trying to say something bitch!?" The thug leader spat out in a threatening manner. Roman pulls a deep puff of his cigar before speaking up. "What she's trying to say is, you're all going to die. Neo? Red? If you would."

As soon as Roman finished his sentence, the rose pulled out her torn, her scythe Crescent Rose. Then, in a flurry of rose petals, she dashed straight trough two of the five thugs in front of her, beheading one and cutting the other in half at the waist, blood gushing out of them. The three remaining thugs turned around to find Ruby behind them. Neo took this opportunity to stab one in the back, then another in the throat as he turned around. While all this was happening Roman turned to face the big guy and his two cohorts. Roman was never a big fan of fighting, thats what he has Neo around for. But alas! Getting your own hands dirty is inevitable in this career. The large thug moved towards the smug cane weilding man in front of him and took a downward swing, a very slow and predictable downward swing. Roman simply dodged to the side and retaliated by hitting the rogue huntsmen in the side of the knee. The knee produced a wet cracking sound at the impact of the metal cane causing the large thug to fall and double over in pain, much to Roman's surprise. (No aura? Looks like this is gonna be easier then I thought!) Once realising that what he saw as the biggest threat was not even a threat at all, he promptly pressed the tip of his cane onto the brute's head and pulled the trigger, blasting blood all over the concrete. The other two thugs looked at each other and started running away, Roman quickly shot one in the back and pulled the other one in with the grapple side of his cane. He wasn't going to kill this one...oh no. Roman casually slaps the weapon out of the thug's hand, then wraps his arm tightly around his shoulder. And brought him towards his two acolytes. Neo, standing amongst the dead thugs, casually wiping the blood of her blade and Ruby, with a blank expression and sharp eyes, slowly walking in circles around the terrified leader of the gang whose knees were both shot out, while dragging the tip of her scythe's bloodied blade across the ground, causing sparks to fly out. Like a shark circling its prey.

Truth be told. Ruby's job wasn't to protect Roman, it was to help him set an example. "Hey friend. You want to live right?" The crime boss gently wispered to the trembling thug, who merely knoded in response. "Alright. Then I just need you to tell miss Belladonna something for me." He said before giving Ruby a knod. To that signal, Ruby raised her scythe in the air, then swung it down sideways, slicing the thug leader's legs clean off. To which the man let out a blood curdling scream. Ruby then slowly wiped the blood off of Crescent Rose before putting it away. Then back out came the butterfly knife.

*click* *click* *click*

She flicked it absentmindedly while calmly observing the man whose legs she just cut off, he was trying to crawl away crying and panicking, but Ruby didn't stop him. She just started slowly walking circles around him again, occassionsly kicking at his open wounds just to see his reaction. Like a cat toying with at bug. This went on for one or two minutes.

*click* *click* *click*

Then the clicking of the knife stopped.

Ruby kicked the man onto his back and straddled him. Then locked her dark, empty silver eyes with his terrified, tear filled ones. Gently, she put her knife to his throat and slowly slit it open. Never breaking eye contact. She watched as life quickly drained from the man's eyes.

Then, she slowly stood up. She turned to her left to face Roman, who made sure the surviving thug could see everything very clearly. She stared at the thug with something resembling a smirk. Then the knife started to click once again.

*click* *click* *click*

"See that friend?" Roman said in a soft tone. "I want you to tell your boss everything you just saw." He followed in a more threatening voice. "I want you. To tell her. That THIS, is what happens when you mess with us. Capiche?" The thug knoded frantically, while trembling like a leaf. "Good." Roman said before letting go of the thug. "Run along now! I've got other things to attend to!" He says dismissively. For a moment the thug's legs couldn't move, he was petrified by fear, like a deer in the headlights. He couldn't take his eyes off the bloodied silver eyed girl in front of him. Girl whose subtle smirk had turned into a genuine smile. One of innocence and purity, completely out of place on the face of someone covered in the blood of people she just killed. It wasn't until Ruby pulled out Crescent Rose and shot at his feet that the thug started running. And running and running. Still earing the clicking of that damn knife echoing through the alleys.

*click*

*click*

*click*

*click*

*click*

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ruby watched intently as the man ran away. Continuing to flick her bloodied knife until the sound of echoing footsteps died down.

Once everything turned quiet. She cleaned her knife and put it away once again, then stretched herself. "Hrrrrmmmm!" "I dunno about you guys but I'm pooped!" She said turning around to face Torchwick and Neo. "You guys don't need me for the actual meeting right?" Ruby said, tillting her head to the side. (The way this girl can just snap back to her usual cheerful self so quickly will never stop creeping me out...) Roman though to himself. "Nah. Your job here is done Red! You can run along now!" Roman replied as he passed some wet wipes to Ruby, which she used to clean her face and hands with. "Alright then! See yaaaaa!" The girl said as she ran off. "Oh! Remind me to treat you to some icecream for this!" Roman called out. "YAAAAAAAAAY!" Ruby exclaimed from the distance before disapearing around a corner.

"This girl just keeps getting weirder!" Roman complained, as Neo let out a silent chuckle.

#rwby #ruby rose #roman torchwick #neopolitan #mafia godmothers!au

[yanagi-uxinta]

What Tomorrow Brings Chapter One

Rating: T

Status: Two shot, complete

Word count: ~3,500

Summary: The first night in Atlas Blake can't help but think of her final confrontation with Adam. Grief and guilt and relief are complicated things, but there's one other person in the group who can help Blake work through her trauma.

Notes: As you may or may not have guessed from my previous fics, I have... complicated feelings about the end of Volume Six - and no, I don’t mean the giant robot. I imagine Blake’s feelings would be just as complex and conflicted, so this is my attempt at delving into her head in the aftermath of the Adam fight. Hope you enjoy!

WARNINGS: Spoilers for the end of volume six! Blood and injury, flashbacks to character death, scars and discussion of abuse. If I need to tag more let me know.

The others were asleep. The rooms Ironwood had assigned them when they turned up in a stolen atlas jet were nice, just not nice enough for them to forget they were all under house arrest until the morning and he could figure out what to do with them all.

It was a barracks. Two bedrooms, men and women, with a conjoining living space. Maria and Qrow were their adult chaperones. Nora had been the most annoyed, but Ren had soothed her with assurances that it wouldn’t be for long.

He didn’t know that. None of them did.

Atlas. They’d only seen a few people – all human – other than Ironwood on arrival for how late it was, but she’d had her ears pressed flat to her skull more often than not when she caught the looks they gave her.

That had only been less than an hour. What would it be like tomorrow, or the day after that, or after that? What had it been like living here, looked down on, spat on, whipped, abused, branded-

For all his scars, he’d never looked small before. Young, innocent even, but never small. He had on his knees, blood beating out of his back, shoulders shuddering as he fought for breath – for his last-

Blake grabbed her furred ears and pulled, hard, her lower lip trapped between her teeth so she wouldn’t make a noise to disturb the others.

The pain eased, but it hadn’t chased away her thoughts the way she’d hoped. All it had done was bring the tears trapped in her throat since he’d fallen out of view back to her eyes.

He would have killed you. He would have killed Yang, and Weiss if he’d found her, and if them then why not Ruby. Everyone, he’d said, and everyone except her parents, Ilia and Sun had been there…

But it was still Adam. The boy she’d admired, the man she’d loved, the hero she’d worshipped, and it was his blood that had trickled down the shattered remains of Gambol Shroud to track down the creases between her knuckles and the fold between her thumb and forefinger. His blood that had picked out the tiny lines in her skin, staining them until they had reached Atlas and Yang had gently pushed her to the shower first.

She’d wanted to scour her hands until it was her blood running, not his. She’d wanted to leave his blood there, untouched, because once that was gone so was he, and how, how, how-

A hand touched her shoulder.

Don’t be Yang.

In an instant she knew it wasn’t; the hand too small, too delicate, with calluses from a sword. But that feeling had been true, and strong, and was followed with relief.

It was stupid. Yang would understand. She had understood, when the strength had gone out of her legs and she’d grazed her knees through her trousers on the stone ground and the only reason she hadn’t screamed was because sobbing hadn’t left her with enough breath.

But that had been in the moment. This was hours later, when the adrenaline had died, when she should be relieved, nothing more, and instead tears were rolling across the bridge of her nose to soak into her hair.

Weiss was standing over her, a finger pressed to her lips, her head tilted to the bedroom door. It led to the small living room that conjoined the two bedrooms.

She couldn’t really say no.

They padded barefoot out of the room, leaving the bunk beds so reminiscent of Beacon behind, and closed the door behind them.

Weiss guided her to the sofa – entirely unnecessary, Blake could see better than her in the dark even with conjunctivitis – pressed her down onto one of the sofas then headed for the kitchenette.

The kettle was quiet, as kettles go, but in the silence it sounded too loud. Blake tensed, hands clenched in her lap, waiting for one of the bedroom doors to open and for someone to come out, wondering what all the noise was at- where was the clock- four in the morning.  

But the doors remained closed, and soon the smell of coffee rose. Coffee, and more subtle-

‘Tea. No milk, no sugar,’ Weiss murmured, voice pitched low to match the quiet of the room.

‘Thanks,’ Blake whispered, voice hoarse.

Weiss settled neatly on the sofa beside her, graceful even after only three hours sleep. ‘Do you want to talk about it, or should we finish these and go to bed?’

Blake stared into her drink, watching the tiny ripples as the water settled.

She didn’t even bury him. Didn’t think of it, didn’t even try to find his... him. Didn’t try to find him, pull him out of the water, just let him get washed away like the garbage and waste pumped out by so many Dust processing plants to flow away to the ocean.

He didn’t deserve that. For all he’d done, for what he’d become, he didn’t deserve that. He deserved something better, even just a cairn of stones over him. Something peaceful, instead of being battered to pieces by the current.

‘I know he was an awful person. I know he’d become a monster and refused to change. I know all that, I know it wasn’t my fault, but I can’t help but think I should have done more, or done something differently. I can’t help but think he didn’t deserve what happened. And I feel guilty for feeling that way.’

Weiss nodded, hands curled around her mug. ‘You loved him?’

Her heart clenched, her eyes burned. ‘I did. Even at Beacon, before... before the fall. I always loved him; I just couldn’t condone his actions anymore. I’d hoped he’d change, I wanted the best for him, but that best couldn’t be me. I tried to move on, and hoped he would too.’

‘Well, your rapscallion was an improvement.’

She expects grudging, she expects censure, but all she sees is Weiss’ gentle, teasing smile. The word doesn’t hurt anymore.

‘Or should I say ‘is’ an improvement?’

Blake sipped her tea, trying to hide her hesitation. ‘I don’t know. Not... not yet. Maybe when we see each other again. Right now...’

‘You need to figure things out. You need to heal. And, Blake, feeling like this is part of it.’ Weiss sighed. ‘My father is a... difficult man. Cruel. It took me a long time to realise that. I want nothing more than to take the company back from him, erase every sign he ever held it... but he’s still my father. The idea of him dying is hard to deal with. The idea of being responsible for it makes me terrified. I can’t see it coming to that, our situations are too different in that respect, but... I understand the way you feel. How complicated it must be, how easy it is to feel guilty for feeling anything but anger or hate towards him, because there was a time when you loved him and it’s hard to forget that.’

‘Thank you,’ Blake said quietly, shoulders dropping. It didn’t make it easier, the ache in her chest and the churning guilt hadn’t faded, but it helped. Weiss understood. That was at the heart of it. Weiss understood, and the others-

‘What is it?’

Her ears tilted back, she turned away. ‘I feel like I shouldn’t say it.’

‘That’s never stopped you before,’ Weiss said gently.

She took a breath. Another. ‘The others wouldn’t understand. Yang in particular. Adam was never a person to her; he was a monster and a nightmare. She was wonderful when it happened, but I feel like if I went to her with this, she wouldn’t... I... I don’t want to talk to her, to trust her with this, and then see in her face that she doesn’t understand why I’m upset about it, even as she tries to help. Especially when she said-’ she stopped, stifling her rambling, reaching for composure.

‘During the fight, Adam said something about how I promised I’d always be by his side, and that I’d broken that promise. Yang said that I’d promised that to the person he was pretending to be. But she didn’t know him. She barely knows anything about him, she just assumed that. He was like that once. He wasn’t always a monster. He changed into something horrible, but he did change. And I feel so ungrateful for feeling angry about it, because she saved me, but she didn’t know him and I can’t-’ she closed her eyes, tears rolling free again. ‘I can’t forget what he used to be like. And that he will never be that way again, because of us. Because of me.’

Weiss’ hand landed on her knee, squeezing. ‘Because he didn’t give you a choice. Because you did what you had to do to survive. No one is saying you should forget him, Blake, or that you should throw away the good because of the bad. But you should forgive yourself for what you had to do.’

‘But I didn’t,’ she whispered. ‘I panicked. But I got there first, I could have stepped away, I could have stabbed him somewhere else to bring him down but leave him alive, I could have-’

‘You could have died trying to do any of those things. You ended the fight as quickly and as cleanly as possible, and that meant fighting to kill someone who pushed you into that situation in the first place.’

‘What if...’ she swallowed the lump in her throat, tried to clear it. ‘I spent so long acting out of anger, and out of hate. I stayed with Sienna’s White Fang for so long because it was the easy choice. We were fighting so hard to break the status quo, but I spent so long trying not to upset the internal one, because they were all older, they knew better, and they were getting results. It took me years to do what was right, not what was easy, and what if that’s what I did yesterday? What if I killed him because it was the easy choice? If this was the right one, why does it hurt so much?’

Weiss was quiet for a long moment. ‘I don’t know,’ she said finally. ‘I think only you can answer that, in time. All I can say is that whatever choice led to you being here with us, safe, was the right one. And that I’ll be here for you for as long as you need me.’

Her vision clouded over completely. She put her cup down on the coffee table, fumbling for the edge. It had been easier when Dad had been there to do that for her. She turned for the pale blue and white blue that was Weiss, heard the second clunk that was Weiss’ mug tapping the wood, then sank into Weiss’ arms with a stifled sob.

The Ice Queen was warm.

‘Thank you,’ she whispered into Weiss’ hair, not minding that strands were tickling her nose or getting in her mouth. ‘And I’ll be here for you, the whole time. Being back here can’t be easy for you.’

They both pulled back, Weiss with a put-upon grimace. ‘Yes, well. I’d have to come back at some point to reclaim the company. I just didn’t expect to barely arrive in Mistral only to turn around and head straight home. Father will have barely finished ranting.’

They both shared a small, pained smile. But Weiss had brought up something important. Something she needed to know.

‘Your father... do you know what the company has done, under his control? Do you know the worst of it?’

Weiss closed her eyes, resigned, before reaching for her mug again. ‘I know it’s bad, but I don’t know the full extent. I’m not allowed access to certain files, even before I was disinherited, and a lot of it simply isn’t on record. All I’ve heard are rumours, and seen how people – particularly Faunus – react to the SDC. You were a big part of why I started looking into it more,’ she admitted, before taking a healthy swig of coffee. She wouldn’t be sleeping tonight, unless that was decaf.

Her smile felt hollow. ‘I’m glad you did. Weiss... can you promise me something?’

Weiss’ eyes narrowed. ‘I can try. Am I going to regret it?’

Blake chuckled. ‘I hope not. You’re already planning on taking back the SDC. That’s part of it, but...’ she faltered, trying to find the words forward. ‘Adam was from Atlas, you know. Couldn’t tell you where. He was born in the Dust mines. To two Faunus slaves for the SDC.’

Weiss’ expression had frozen, her eyes cast down at her coffee. Only the steam moved.

‘He never told me the full story, but I know the conditions were horrific. And I saw the scars. Burns, whips... but the worst was here.’ She swiped her fingers across her left eye; spread enough to encompass her eyebrow and the top of her cheekbone. ‘SDC. Branded onto his face, blinding him in that eye for fighting back against an overseer when he was barely more than a child. That’s why he always wore a mask. Everyone would stare, and the skin was so badly damaged it shouldn’t be exposed to direct sunlight for long. So he covered it up, and he escaped, and he struck back at the SDC at every chance he got. But he got out. There are hundreds of Faunus, undocumented, who don’t officially exist, hidden at these mining sites and abused and exploited by your father’s employees, encouraged by his policies, and it needs to stop. You need to stop it.’

That jerked Weiss’ head up. There was a burgeoning look of panic on her face.

Blake took her hand. ‘Not alone,’ she said. ‘I’ll help. The White Fang needs to change too. I love my father, but his methods didn’t work. That’s what hurts. Sienna Khan’s and Adam’s did, until Adam went too far. But even Sienna’s led to too much death and pain. There needs to be a middle ground, and we need to focus not just on our rights in concept, but on our people who are alive and suffering now. No more Adams. All the pain he caused was his fault. He could have chosen differently, and he chose to continue the cycle of abuse he was born into. But the cycle didn’t start with him. It started with Jacques Schnee’s SDC. So I want to help you take the Schnee Dust Company back, and to free my people while we’re at it.’

Weiss’ hand was warm from her coffee. She set the mug back on the table and grasped Blake’s hand with both of hers. The panic was gone. In its place were determination, and that familiar defiance. ‘I promise. When I take back my grandfather’s company, I will find all of those sites, and I will free the Faunus there and help them in any way I can. Integration into society, housing, anything.’

Blake smiled, squeezing her hands. ‘And in the meantime, I’ll contact the White Fang here in Atlas. Adam wasn’t the only one to escape over the years. There’s bound to be people who know where some of these sites are. If we can organise the White Fang, rally them to the cause, we could start making a difference much sooner. If we can liberate even one site, then we’d have the bulk of evidence needed to prove this is happening. It’s easy to dismiss individual people trying to tell the truth, but hundreds? If we have photo and video evidence? The world can’t ignore that.’

‘And the staff members there?’ Weiss ventured, concerned.

Family, friends disappear. Board members… executed.

What about the crew members?

‘Will be given the choice to surrender. We will strive to restrain, not harm or kill. But…’

When you fight, people get hurt!

People hurt me long before we met... All sorts of people in all sorts of ways...

There were so many scars on his body. It had taken a long time for him to trust her with even seeing them; for the defensive hunch of his shoulders to ease when he realised she wasn’t going to mock or treat him like some charity case. He’d told her bits and pieces, never details, never everything. But enough for her to tell the whip marks from the marks left by squeezing through too-tight gaps in the mine tunnels. To spot the pale white stars of small burns left by stray embers or cigarettes, long healed and hard to see. The slightly crooked set of his fingers on his left hand, easily disguised by his gloves. And the brand. Always the brand. The skin had been so tight, shiny, but fragile beneath her fingertips. The bone had felt scarily close to the surface, like there was no fat there to cushion it. In some places there hadn’t been. ‘This is what happens when you resist,’ he’d said. ‘But I was alone then. Not anymore. Together, with the White Fang at our backs, we’ll strike back twice as hard, and when they resist they will just have to pray we’re feeling merciful. Just like we did.’

‘But I won’t pretend that this will be easy, or bloodless. The overseers there, Weiss... they’re the worst of humanity. As bad as Cinder or worse. So if they try to stop us freeing slaves, if they refuse to stand down... yes, we’ll fight. And they may get hurt, or die. But there was one thing Sienna and Adam were right about. Sometimes peaceful protest isn’t enough. My parents tried so hard to do things peacefully, to prove we deserved equal rights because we were doing things their way, by their rules – we weren’t embodying the stereotype we’d been branded with. But it didn’t work. Sometimes you need to fight for what is right. I don’t agree with Sienna or Adam’s methods, and I think their focus was misdirected, but if we must use violence, then using it to liberate our people is the best cause. The Great War wasn’t won by appealing or peaceful protest. Neither was the Faunus Rights Revolution – and that’s what we need. A revolution – not a plea for better treatment, because they aren’t listening.’

Weiss nodded; her mouth still in a troubled moue but her resolution firm. ‘I understand. And if this is what the Faunus have been dealing with all along, if this how bad it was... I don’t like what they did in response, many of the people they killed – my family – didn’t deserve what happened to them, but I can see why they got so desperate to resort to that.’

They both sank into a contemplative silence. Their drinks were cooling, but they sipped them anyway. The clock ticked to itself until their mugs were empty and the first birds started singing.

Blake roused herself first, silently collecting their cups and rinsing them in the sink. They headed back to the bedroom, pausing only for a tight, grounding hug before they had to sneak back in and pretend tonight had never happened.

‘Thank you,’ Blake whispered, holding the girl she had once blamed for so much, and grateful to her bones that she was here.

‘You’re welcome,’ Weiss said, but there was none of her old haughtiness anymore. Of all of them, she’d probably changed the most.

Together they slipped back into the room of sleepers, to the two empty bottom bunks. They shared a grimace at Nora and Maria’s snoring, and slid under the covers. They fell asleep facing each other, reassurance only a glance away.

Whatever tomorrow brought, they would be together, and they would be ready.

#my writing #my fanfiction #rwby #rwby spoilers #rwby volume six #Blake Belladonna #Weiss Schnee #Adam Taurus #blood tw #death tw #character death #scar tw #PTSD #abuse tw

[ask-beacons-finest]

“You,” A woman clad in white trembled before her team, nearly dropping the large scythe gripped within her hands, “You killed him...”

Two men stood beside the woman, watching as a shimmering red blade slowly hid away in its sheath. The wielder, a tall and strong looking black haired woman, glared down at a freshly made corpse, the body silently breaking apart and fading away into glowing dust as the life finally leaves the horrified eyes. Her burning red eyes showed no notion of regret or mercy as they turned their sights on her teammates, staring in particular at a seething blonde man. A deafening explosion could be heard from somewhere within the compound they occupied, and in seconds the room they stood in began to shake, rubble crumbling down around them

“It happens.”

“Our mission,” The blonde man finally speaks up, his bare fists clenched tight and shaking, as his body flares with a powerful aura, his deep lilac eyes intently glaring upon his uncaring partner, “Our mission, Raven, was to capture that man alive.”

“If I didn’t kill him,” Raven shouts back over the sound of a column collapsing near them, smashing her foot down upon the body, causing a flurry of sparks of life to spread out and illuminate the crumbling room, an action that nearly makes the white-clad huntress wretch, “We’d all be dead! His intent was not to take prisoners.”

“Hey, hey,” the last of the group to speaks up steps between his two teammates, holding his hands up in an attempt to defuse the situation, “Raven was right, that guy was coming at us to kill. She did what she had to do, she saved the team, now let’s g-”

“Shut up Qrow,” the blonde pushed his way past the disheveled man and stepped right up to stand face to face with Raven, who glared up at him without fear as his eyes pierced down towards hers, both ignoring the world falling apart around them as they continued to battle with eyes alone, “And you. You killed him with such ease. He was a fellow Hunter. How could you?”

“Tai,” Qrow spoke up again, his hand reaching behind his shoulder and gripping hold of the hilt of his sword, “Let’s all just drop it.”

“You just watched your own sister kill a man,” Taiyang turned from Raven as he spoke, the immense aura flaring around him growing in intensity and size, “And you dare pull your weapon on me?”

“All of you,” the white hooded huntress spoke up again, despite the shakiness of her voice, it remained strong enough to grab the attention of all those before her, “We need to get out of here...this place is gonna come down and then we’ll all be gone.”

“Fine, Summer’s right,” Taiyang spoke in agreement yet stood still, retaining his glare down to Raven’s eyes as his aura slowly dies down, “Let’s go.”

The group stood quietly in the humble Patch home, none dared speak as they watched the scroll sitting on the table. The tension within the room weighed down on each and every one of them. Raven stood leaning against the counter, her arms crossed and eyes closed, seemingly as uncaring now as she was earlier. Qrow stood by the door, his eyes quickly switching between the silent scroll and his fellow teammates, trying desperately to judge their emotions as time drags on. Summer sat at the table, her head hung in shame as she hid within her hood, it was certainly not her team’s first failure, but it was the first that had ever resulted in a death. Taiyang, however, sat glaring at Raven, his eyes only lose track of her to glance at a small crib sitting in the corner of the room.

“Well,” Everyone’s attention suddenly shifts towards the scroll, as the voice on the other end finally speaks up after it’s long silence, “Forgive me for that. I had to start a fresh pot of coffee.”

The voice sounded almost jovial, setting Taiyang’s nerves on end as his eyes shoot back towards Raven, who has remained still.

“So there was a casualty was there? Shame, but these things do indeed happen. Miss Branwen was correct on that.”

“Oz-”

“Ah ah ah, Mr. Xiao Long,” the voice silenced Tai’s protest and continued on, “It is upsetting, I know. But death it ultimately a part of life. Oh, and Miss Rose?”

“Yes,” Summer didn’t bother even lifting her head, her voice was small and cowered before the possibility of what could come to her, Taiyang noticed Raven open a single eye and glare at her leader with the same animosity she held towards Tai himself earlier in the day.

“Don’t blame yourself my dear, this is entirely on Miss Branwen. Isn’t that right, Raven?”

Raven stood still for a moment, before shifting forward towards the scroll, her eyes set ablaze with such malice that even those in the room who picked up on it were surprised, “Of course. My fault.”

“Very well, I’d like you all to try and get some rest. Oh, and Tai, give my hellos and goodbyes to the little bundle of joy now living in your home. I assure you I will visit soon, but for now, Beacon needs me. In other news, I’m putting Team STRQ on a small suspension, think of it more as a vacation. Use it to relax. Reconnect with each other. Goodbye.”

The scroll beeped once and turned blank, the team sat perfectly still watching it as though they expected more. They watched on in fruitless anticipation as the screen turned black. The tension within the room however, remained.

“So. Care to defend yourself?”

“I killed him. I saved all of you.”

“You murdered a man,” Taiyang shouted, his fists slamming down onto the table as he jumped from his chair, causing Summer to nearly collapse off her chair in shock, Qrow lunging forward to catch her, Taiyang continued his verbal assault as he pointed an accusing finger to Raven, “And the way you did it. The way you killed a fellow Hunter...I’m thinking...I’m thinking you’ve done it before.”

“Tai,” Qrow hissed from his spot level with the table, his hands tightly gripping Summer’s arms, she could only watch on in fear as her team fell apart just as the compound did hours before, “I suggest you watch how you spe-”

“Maybe I have,” Raven responded, her arms still crossed tightly, a snarl on her face, “And if I hadn’t done it, no one else would have, and we’d all be dead. Is that what you want Taiyang? For our daughter to grow up with no parents at all?”

Taiyang stood there, his eyes scanning Raven’s face, his eyes growing sad as he comes to realize the truth.

“It was you...wasn’t it?”

“Tai,” Summer questioned, slowly pulling herself up to her seat with Qrow’s assistance, “Tai...what was her?”

“Tai,” Qrow sternly warned, “Don’t step into this.”

��Jerimyah Mire.”

“That Junior that went missing when we were freshmen,” Summer’s face grew more and more worrisome, “Tai what are you saying?”

“You killed him, didn’t you. I’ve seen that fighting style you used against our target today. It was his. He was the best swordsman in Beacon and-”

“He wasn’t the best,” Raven shouted, throwing her hand out, the faint murmur of a cry could be heard coming from the crib, “I was.”

“Raven,” Summer shook her head, her voice pleading, “Raven...Raven no...no no you can’t mean that.”

Raven stood strong against the counter, her eyes staring out past her team into space, she continues on dryly, “Killing Grimm is easy. When you come from a bandit tribe you learn how to kill Grimm the second you can swing a pointed stick. You learn or you die.”

“Raven,” Qrow narrows his eyes to his sister, speaking out a warning, “You know what Oz said about talking about this.” 

“I know his word means next to nothing,” Raven spat out her response, another faint cry sounding out from the crib, “And I know what I was sent here to do. What we were sent here to do, Qrow.”

Qrow shied away from Summer as both her and Taiyang jerk their heads towards him. Summer’s eyes watered, her heart snapping beneath her chest, she silently pleaded for Qrow to tell her something that could reassure her faith in the team, meanwhile, Taiyang’s eyes burned into Qrow's skin as they glared at him.

“And I learned I do it well.”

“Murder,” Taiyang spoke, his eyes not moving from the ashamed Qrow, “You two were sent her to learn how to kill?”

The cries from the crib began to become more frequent, and quickly grew into a full tantrum of tears and sobs, Taiyang broke his line of sight from the room to turn towards the crib, gently walking his way towards it. His face softened as he came into view of the small infant sobbing within, his hands slowly reaching down and takes hold of the baby, slowly lifting it up out of the crib and cradling it in his arms.

“Shhh, shhh, don’t worry my little fire dragon, daddy’s here,” Tai’s voice flowed smoothly, his eyes betraying his face as they well with sadness, “But mommy, she’s gone, left. Abandoned you, both of us.”

“Excuse me,” Raven stepped forward, her fists clenched in anger, “She’s just as much my daughter as yours, you can’t-”

Raven stopped in her tracks as Tai turned his head, giving off a look over his shoulder that sent a chill even down her spine. Both Qrow and Summer rose in anticipation of violence, but both were stopped as Raven lifted a hand. A flash of defeat quickly appearing on her face before being replaced by a stone wall of apathy.

“Fine,” Her voice came out dry, uncaring, though there was a hint of regret in her eyes that Tai wished he didn’t pick up on, “Consider this goodbye. To all of you.”

#rwby #team strq #summer rose #taiyang xiao long #raven branwen #qrow branwen

[blckandbruises-a]

tagging for mention: @nowgrim, @fataltune (Qrow)

Cobalt almost spat his coffee, the bitter taste hanging on his tongue. Blue eyes flashed red as he glared at the man on the other side of the screen. “You two are where?”

Qrow Branwen raised a finger on the other end of the call, blue-tinted visage in the scroll hushing his son. That only seemed to make Cobalt’s blood boil more. “Yell louder, why don’t ya. You’ll get thrown out and give away our position.” 

Cobalt bit back a stern reply. His messy dark hair hung around him, a large coat covering his outfit. The sleeves were folded back to let Sinister and Dexter breathe, the gauntlets freshly tuned just for this little adventure. But it was an adventure in trying to keep up with his family, apparently, which just made him all the more furious. Still, he took a deep breath, settling deeper on his ride side into the booth of the café. Distant announcers called for the departing flights to Atlas, a word that still made his stomach tight. 

Atlas. Where it had all gone so wrong. The beast inside growled furiously somewhere near his heart, and he could feel it writhing angrily as if stirred. Of course he was tense. Every memory of Atlas was painful, and those were the ones that came to him in quiet moments when he closed his eyes and was drawn back to the slab, machines overhead...

His coffee was getting cold. He took it in hand and took a sip, trying to ignore the burn. Airport coffee was the worst. “You didn’t wait? You didn’t even bother telling me?”

“Call it fatherly impulse,” Qrow said looked back at him through the screen, hunched over his scroll in a bar. Cobalt could hear the distant sounds of the trains outside, of commuters going hither and yon, and, most painfully, a familiar pair of voices chirping in excitement. For a moment, as they both heard them, their faces softened in that same way. It was like looking into an aged, more haunted reflection of himself. “I didn’t want to drag you back there.”

“I’ll be okay,” Cobalt said, but Qrow’s brow only furrowed. His father was always good at picking out lies. Cobalt was forced to look away, compounding the guilt. “It’s not your baggage to carry, Pop. It’s mine. I’m not gonna burden you, Rubes, or Yang with it. Alright?”

Qrow sighed, a hiss through the signal. “That’s not how that works, kiddo,” He said, Cobalt looking back to his scroll at last, “Ruby won’t let you hold that weight yourself. Neither would Yang. And sure as Hell me. We’re family. Family looks out for each other.”

“There’s a but coming, isn’t there?”

Qrow frowned. “But, it’s more than just us on this mission. The sooner ‘it’ is safe, the better. We couldn’t delay, or make a detour. And I know where you’d want to go. It’s the last place you should. You leveled that lab, anyway, right? What could you possibly get there?”

Cobalt froze up. Suddenly, he was back on the slab, the light shining down, the machines pumping something evil into him. The result snarled protectively in his stomach. What business was it of Qrows? He was too much trouble, was that it?? “Closure, maybe,” Cobalt finally said, lowering his head as his messy bangs hid the red bleeding into the blue of his eyes, “or a way to get better.”

His father didn’t speak for the longest time. Cobalt could tell Qrow was weighing what words to say. “Then wait until we finish this. Okay? We’ll come get you once this is over.”

Cobalt snorted, raising his eyes again. Fury boiled in his blue hues. “What did Professor Ozpin call it? The never-ending battle?”

Qrow snorted, a smile creeping onto his weathered face. It wasn’t sly or cheeky-just a genuine, sad smile. “Doesn’t mean I’m leavin’ you outta the fight. Someone’s gotta keep an eye on the homefront.”

“Uncle Tai can do that. So can Aunt Raven, or just about anyone else. Don’t pretend this isn’t about you not wanting me to tear myself apart over what they did to be in that lab.”

The smile faded. “It’s what I’d do. And you didn’t fall far from the tree, kid.”

“No,” Cobalt said, his throat tight, “neither of us did.” They were quiet for a long time. And then, Cobalt looked to his father. “Can I see her?” Qrow lifted the camera, the screen rising to show the top of his head, and in the distance, a familiar flash of red. Ruby and Yang were busy conducting tug-of-war with a bag of some kind, Weiss sitting with them, along with their friends. For a moment, the most agonizing pride and happiness came into his chest. “It’s not fair.”

Qrow pulled the camera back to his face. “Cobalt, we’ve already discussed this-”

“Not that.” Cobalt choked a little on his words. His eyes burned, but with another sort of red this time. A smile broke his face wide in half-just like his father’s. “When did she get so big, Pop? Now she’s off saving the world. Remind you of anyone?”

Qrow laughed a little, but it felt held back. “Yeah. She’s a dead ringer for Summer, alright.”

“Yeah. But she’s not the only parent she took after.”

Qrow smiled, just a little. He opened his mouth to say something, but a voice cut instead. “Cobalt Branwen?” Cobalt turned, looking up to meet a sea of white. A clean-cut, dark-haired man stood in a clean, immaculate white suit, the symbol of Atlas’ Specialist Corps on his black tie. A battle harness was over the suit, various weapons sticking out of it. He was flanked by the newer generation Atlesian Knights, some of the patrons recoiling from them. No wonder, after how they saw what they did in Vale. 

Cobalt scowled. “I’ll call you back.”

“Hey,” Qrow barked over the line, “don’t make a scene, alright? No need to, y’know, go Beast Mode.”

Cobalt whirled, giving his father an incredulous look. “I am not calling it that.”

“Why not?” Qrow shrugged, grinning through the screen, “It works. You could even put a hashtag in front of it.”

“Dad.”

The Specialist cleared his throat. “Mr. Branwen.”

“Tell ‘em I’m busy,” Qrow said, chuckling. A glass clinked out of frame, before he pulled it to his lips. “Remember: no Beast Mode.”

“Dad!” But Qrow had already hung up, the screen timing out to his background. A picture of Ruby, Yang, and Cobalt looked back at him. Better days, when Yang had just been accepted into Beacon. When the world was as young and innocent as they were, at least to their eyes. 

“Mr. Branwen,” the Specialist repeated more sternly, stepping forward. 

Cobalt slowly looked to him, turning off his scroll and pocketing it. He was pretty much cornered in this booth. Maybe this was why Dad stuck to barstools instead. “Just hung up, remember? But if you want me to pass a note along, I’ll try to remember it.” He picked up his coffee, taking a sip. Ugh, it’d gotten lukewarm. Somehow it tasted even worse. 

He heard the Specialist bristle. Good. “Cobalt Branwen, my name is Lance Corporal Wilhelm Braun of the Atlas Specialist Corps, Asset Retrieval Division. By order of General Ironwood-”

“Wait, what?” Cobalt said, looking shocked at the Specialist, “Dude, I am so sorry to hear that.”

The Lance Corporal blinked big brown eyes. He must’ve been new, or not properly filled in about Cobalt’s disposition. “Excuse me?”

“Your parents must’ve hated you. Who the hell names their kid Lance Corporal?”

Wilhelm balked. Cobalt saw his spine stiffen and shoulders tense, and heard gloved hands ball into fists. It drove his predatory smirk wider. “I-It’s not my name, it’s a rank! Now, by order of-”

“-General Ironwood and the Council,” Cobalt parroted, speaking in perfect synch with the Specialist (but in a much more deadpan tone, “you are hereby placed under arrest to be returned to Atlas to face charges of vandalism and murder’. Yeah, yeah, Will, I’ve heard this bit before. So, what, I get charged for my work now that I’m not a Specialist?”

“Vandalism and a bad attitude will not be tolerated-” Wilhelm paused. “Wait, you were a member of the Special Ops?”

Cobalt blinked big blue eyes. He snorted into Dexter, trying to cover his laugh with a hand. “Did you even read the file on me?”

The Lance Corporal’s blush went to the tip of his ears. Customers had already started to file out behind him and the machines. The well-collected Specialist was ruffled now, looking to the side. “I...may have skimmed it. It doesn’t matter!” He said, looking back to Cobalt as he furrowed his brow. “Knights! Seize him!”

A knight reached out a robotic hand, electric handcuffs open for his wrist. Cobalt reached out his right hand to meet it, turned his palm to face it. There was a flash and eruption of blue energy as his palm repulsor fired once, the beam taking the Knight’s head clean off. Turning as the knight fell backwards, neck smoking and sizzling from where it’s head used to be, Cobalt grabbed the warm coffee and tossed it at the Lance Corporal. Wilhelm yelped and recoiled, his suit stained with the dark ichor, giving Cobalt enough time to slip past him and start towards the door. 

“Freeze!”

A knight grabbed the back of his coat as Wilhelm barked, stumbling as he tried to recover from the shock of the soaking defense. Cobalt turned into the machine’s grip, Sinister and Dexter’s claws deployed. Sinking six long blades into the robot’s middle, Cobalt tugged hard and grunted. The Knight fell into two pieces, it’s hand vainly gripping at the coat and tugging it from Cobalt as it fell. The final machine lunged forward, and Cobalt met it in a flurry of strikes. One slash went through it’s head, another through it’s outstretched hand, shoving it into it’s own chest. In a frenzy of cuts and slices, the Knight fell, maimed and ruined. Cobalt turned to face Wilhelm. 

He could feel the Lance Corporal’s fear. His eyes were wide, pupils shrunk in delicious terror. Fear. Despair. Shock. So good. So very good to the Beast. It smelled blood in the water, and wanted a taste. Cobalt bit back a sigh, trying to remember who he was. The Grimm in him felt those negative emotions, drawn to them like a moth to the moon. But Cobalt could resist it.

For now. 

Cobalt turned back to the door, only to freeze at once to take it all in. Lines of Knights and Specialists met him, making a wall between him and the rest of the airport. Cobalt stepped to the door, as humans and robots raised their blades and rifles. “Cobalt Branwen!” A voice snapped amid the crowd, “By Order of General Ironwood and the Council-”

“He already said that!” Cobalt snapped, looking back to the Lance Corporal. Seemingly, Wilhelm had recovered, enough to take in the large force outside. 

“I-I don’t understand. I thought it was just me and a few Knights.”

Cobalt looked to the Lance Corporal, so eager to prove himself, to the massive force outside. For just one man, this was gross overkill. But for Cobalt, for what he was inside, it was a proportional response. But Wilhelm hadn’t been told that much. “Because you were the lure, Lance Corporal,” Cobalt said, blue eyes becoming a more solid red as he looked to the scared man once more, “You, scared and in over your head, with all those negative emotions-you were bait. It’s how the Special Corps operates.”

Wilhelm looked to Cobalt, eyes shrinking again. “But I-”

“Freeze!” The voice snapped over the speakers, “Lance Corporal, stand down! We will open fire!”

“But I’m on your side!” Wilhelm said, shocked and terrified. So much terror, so much despair. 

The Beast in his stomach growled, and it came out of Cobalt’s lips. It echoed off of the empty airport, silencing everything with it’s inhuman delight. Cobalt’s body began to shake, skin growling pale, veins growing black. 

No Beast Mode. No Beast Mode. 

“Fire at will!”

Okay. Beast Mode.

It happened all at once. Cobalt leaped at Wilhelm, skin turning to deep black fur, white horns growing out of his lengthening mane. His face elongated into a muzzle, white fangs flashing as his fingers turned to claws. His clothes grew with him, legs growing digitigrade as a long, tufted tail grew from his back. He was on Wilhelm in an instant as the rifles opened fire. His body soaked up every blast as the Beast shielded Wilhelm from the initial onslaught. But the terror, the fear-it was so much. It was so close. His mouth opened, a sigh leaving him with steam on his breath. He needed it, need to taste more-

A blast shook his side, and Cobalt turned to face the tide. The Beast rose to meet them, a roar on his lips as he charged forward. He shoved his head downwards into one soldier, goring their middle with a horn. The screams went up as Cobalt cut through machines and men alike, a flurry of fur and claw. Repulsors were forgotten in favor of tearing through everything between him and the exit. 

For a moment, Cobalt lost himself in his berserk fury. But his senses came back slowly, as he slammed a line of robots into a wall. Four paws hit the pavement as he loped down one long tunnel. There were too many negative emotions here. He tried to clear his head, the Beast racing into the shadows, out of sight of cameras and soldiers. The monster slipped away, and began to shrink in the shadows. Cobalt dived into a pile of luggage as he shrunk to his human form, the Beast boiling away into ashes. The huntsman tried to catch his breath, feeling sick to his stomach at his delight, even as the monster roared inside him. 

Cobalt looked up as soldiers and machines swept by the luggage bay. In the distance, he could make out a military transport, sparsely guarded. They’d deployed everything to find him. He watched as the soldiers began to spread out, searching for him. One came near, armor hiding his features. He was just about Cobalt’s size.

Perfect.

With both of them out of sight, Cobalt tugged the soldier into the pile, wrapping an arm around his neck. His other hand slid under the helmet, pushing it off as he covered the man’s mouth. He kicked and shook, but then slowly stopped, unconscious. Cobalt looked around, and started to take apart the man’s armor. He tried not to think about the fear and anxiety surrounding him now, like a woman’s perfume or the tempting flavor of drink. He tried to ignore the sick feeling in his stomach, the need to pounce, to strike, to kill. He placed the armor on over his clothes, and pulled hard on one thought, one single objective: Ruby. 

He had to get to Ruby.

And he had to be better than this when he did. 

#t: prose #t: brawl in the branwens (Branwen AU)

[quothxbranwen]

Fic Teaser: Raven/Tai

Based on how I have always played Raven, and how Volume 5 would have gone without Raven returning to the tribe.  Suppose this means Vernal wouldn’t have been a part of the picture, but this is a draft, wondering if I should continue this or not.

Either way, I wanted to get this sample out before Volume 6 aired.

   How long ago was it that Raven had returned to Patch?  She didn’t know.  Hell, she barely remembered getting here.  The fight against Cinder had done damage to her soul, ripping a part of it away.  Arriving and falling out of the portal to a blurry Taiyang approaching her was something that felt more like a dream.  Passing out, feeling arms support her to prevent her from hitting her head is Raven’s best guess.  She couldn’t make out what the man said, but maybe it’s better that way.  She felt safe enough to succumb and not resist the dark coming for her.

    Raven noted the bandage on her arm and across the chest.  Knowing her aura broke at the end of that fight before freezing Cinder in her tracks, a recollection of a broken aura.  If it was injury pain or just from the soul mending itself back together, Raven shrugged.  It hurt, that’s what it meant.  

    The window open, Raven smirked to herself.  IT would be too easy to run away again.  As if she had never been back.  Nevermore, her weapon could be reforged, but Taiyang was owed more than that.  Let him have the choice on booting her for what she’s done or not.  She owes that to him.  However, it’s still dark out there, and there was someone she had to go say hello before the blond woke up.  

    “Half expected him to have me restrained to this bed.” she muttered, shaking her head.  She knew Taiyang wasn’t that sort of person.  She’s certain he’s probably pissed that she’s here though.  She picked up a pen and peice of paper then set them aside.  No, not knowing where her weapon is, he wouldn’t be expected to believe that she meant to just visit Summer and come back, would he?  

    Raven noted that she was dressed in a loose shirt and a pair of pants, likely belonging to  Yang. Shirt might be Tai’s based on how loose it was.  Did the idea of him seeing her naked bother her?  No, Tai’s not a sort of man who would harm her, and he’s done more than dress wounds and see her naked.  Oh yeah, fun times.

    “My track record?  Ha!”  She’d whisper and set them aside.  Raven wanted to go tell Summer that she’s back, intended to try and make amends.  Not care if she’s accepted back or not.  You know, talk about goals with no real expectation on following through.  Raven wants to fix things, help keep the girls alive, but who in the nine shades of hell would believe her when she left a rift in things?

    Raven did manage to walk to the living room, but realized that she hurt to much to walk the distance, and flying would be exhausting.  Maybe she will just go sit on the porch, watch the sunrise.  Still, she might not be able to visit Summer, but an idea hit.  She could always grab a steak knife, open a small portal and at least look at the marker.  Nah….  Better to visit in person, isn’t it?  

   Raven crossed through the living room quiet enough, years of banditry in her teens helped hone that skill.  Go outside to the porch.  Too many memories in this room.  It’s changed, but it hasn’t at the same time.  The quiet ended when the door creaked, causing Zwei to wake up.  In the middle of the night, the corgi started barking.  Well, looks like Taiyang will be up shortly, likely ready to beat the ever living shit out of a potential intruder.

    She didn’t stop leaving.  Outside was better.  She slipped through the door and headed towards the steps to sit back down.  Door shut to prevent insects from getting in the house.  

   “Oof,” she’d mutter, bones protesting the action.  Raven may not have seen or heard what was going on in the house, but Zwei was barking around the door.  

   She’d look to the left.  The vestige of dawn rising over the horizon started to highlight the sunflowers growing there.  Oh yeah…  He was working on those when she non ceremoniously practically crash landed in his lap, wasn’t he?  Their in good shape.  Even though she felt the glare, Raven couldn’t help a small smile at them.  Oh yeah, there’s a glare.  IT felt like Taiyang was looking right at his soul and not liking the sight.

    Again, could Raven really blame Taiyang for this?  She’s the intruder here, not him!  Raven couldn’t bring herself to look at him, to move much.  The woman would exhale slowly though.

     “Planning to run so soon?” Taiyang broke the silence, tone that wasn’t hostile, yet let her know that he’s not in the mood for her bullshit.  Raven had to assume that he was standing behind her with his arms crossed too.  

      The maiden would shake her head, still a lack of will to look at the man.  “No,” she’d calmly explain, remembering her previous thoughts of leaving long enough to see the grave.  “You deserve the right to oust me yourself.  I left you, came back to you injured, and you took care of me.”

     He didn’t say anything, but perhaps he is looking for the right words.  If Raven had to assume anything, he’s likely practiced this scenario a thousand times in his head.  Face to face, it’s how to tell her off that’s puzzling?  Who knew?

     “Why not go get coffee before we get into this.”  Raven finally glanced his way.  The smile from the sunflowers was gone.  Not looking forward to this.  “I’ll be here.  My gear is inside, no idea where my weapon is.  I’m not going to make it very far if I try to bolt.”

      Tai seemed to contemplate it for a moment before nodding.  He’d cross the distance.  “Coffee is good, but I’m not letting you out of my sight.  Inside where I can watch you.”

       There wasn’t any intent to harm, Raven knew Tai better than that.  However, unless the flash of memory and now, it was as if she were a stranger to him.  That’s to be expected.  Raven didn’t want to be inside with the memories.  It was pointless to argue that.  She walked and let him lead her inside, to sit on the couch and stare at the tv and fireplace.  Lights came on and Tai made his way into the kitchen without saying anything else. Raven didn’t break the silence either.  The tension?  Thick…  It would probably take a chainsaw to cut it.

    “Why?”  

     Raven knew this question was coming.  Didn’t make it any easier to answer.  “I had no other choice.  At the time, I thought it was the best one.”

   “The best?!” a voice of disbelief and the sound of spat coffee hit Raven’s ears.  He’s angry, one didn’t need to look at him to know that.  “You just up and decided that your BEST option was to get up and WALK out of here?  I should have known…  Known you would say that.”

    “You and Yang were the best thing that had ever happened to me.” Raven started, unable to look at him again.  “I know I caused you pain, and I’m not trying to gaslight or invalidate that!  It’s hard to explain, hard to put into…”

     Taiyang cut her off with a cynical laughter.  “You?  You…  honestly expect….”  Then the laughter grew louder, almost bordering on insanity with this one.  “BULLSHIT!!!  That’s like Qrow saying he’s never had a drink in his life!!!”

     “It’s OZPIN’S FAULT!!!” Raven spoke out, breaking loose with that truth.  It earned her a shake of the head.  Tai’s expression was about the same of why am I even bothering with this.

      Raven closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath.  Her state of being is probably the only reason she’s not being thrown out the door, knowing Tai.  Just pick up and heft.  Then again, if he chose to do that, who would blame the man?  Anyone who would form an opinion would side with him, legit or not.  She could only hold the flare for a moment, careful not to wreck the house with magic before it shut off.

     She had Tai’s attention.  

     “Magic Tai.  The story of the maidens is true.  Spring got attacked and this bullshit was forced on me.  Naturally I was pregnant, thought Ozpin was to be trusted.  He said that doing this would put you and Yang in danger.  I believed him.  I thought that I was doing the right thing, and the secrecy caused me to lose everything.”

   “...”  Tai didn’t say anything, seemed to be thinking.  What?  Raven didn’t know.  She did continue though.

   “That’s not the only thing you should be angry about.  It gets worse….”

   “How.”  Tai’s brows furrowed and his arms crossed again.  Coffee cup placed on the table.

    “Salem’s group found me and forced me to work with them for a bit.  I was under surveillance and had to set a counter trap.  Yang and Ruby are working with Oz and was involved in it.  Their safe at the moment, but there ya go.  They have the relic at Haven and are heading into more danger at Atlas.”

   Raven flinched when Taiyang’s fist went through the wall that connected from the living room to the kitchen.  He’d pick her up and drop her on the bed.  No words was said, but anger was definitely flaring.  He needed to go punch something, and judging from the sound of the footsteps leading outside, Tai deemed the trees a better target for his anger than the house, and he’s not the kind of man that would strike a woman outside of combat.

#drabble