Taiyang was dealing with a particularly stubborn patch of weeds when he heard a noise behind him.

Suddenly alert, he glanced behind him. No Grimm to be seen. The only thing he noticed was a black bird perched on a tree branch at the edge of the clearing. The bird's head darted side to side, it's red eye taking in its surroundings. To an outsider, nothing was remotely suspicious, but Tai knew better. He frowned, then stood, wiping his hands on his jeans. He walked closer to the bird, who cocked its head and watched him approach. Tai folded his arms and waited. After a few seconds, he sighed.

"Raven, I know it's you. You might as well admit it."

The bird stared at him for a few more seconds, but Tai's face was set. With a caw that sounded like the equivalent of a sigh, the bird flew to the ground. Halfway down, the bird changed; a moment later, Raven landed in a crouch in front of Tai. Standing straight, Raven folded her arms as well and stared at Tai, her Grimm mask concealing her features.

"How did you know it was me?"

Tai stuffed his hands in is pockets. "Raven, I'm a Huntsman. I notice things. And how many times have I seen you turn into a bird?" He waited. "Well? Are you going to take off that ridiculous thing?"

Raven glared (or at least Tai thought she did) at him for a moment, then raised her hands to her mask and lifted it from her face. She shook out her hair, placed it under her arm, and leaned back on one leg, all projecting an aura of bored impatience. It was a picture Tai had grown to know well with Raven. Maybe because of this, he immediately noticed a change. While Raven glared at him, she wouldn't look him in the eye. She was also more fidgety, tapping her arms and grinding her heel against the ground. Minute details an outsider wouldn't have noticed, but Tai did.

Something drove Raven to Tai, and he didn't think it had completely to do with her many enemies.

Raven ground her teeth together. After the battle with Cinder in the Vault and her confrontation with Yang, she was forced to use her Semblance to escape. Trying to elude the rest of Cinder's and Qrow's gang was possible, but unlikely. Better for Salem to think she had died in that chamber. It wasn't likely that Qrow would chase her down for revenge either, as long as she kept her distance.

However, with the death of Vernal, her travel was now limited to just Qrow, Oz (if that was even possible in his new reincarnated state), Yang, and Tai. Raven berated herself for not adding someone else from her tribe. She should just turn around and leave. She had escaped and she needed to get back to her family as soon as possible and...

Family.

Her memory of Yang's face surfaced in her head. Strength, determination and fear had flashed in her eyes. Her demand to Raven to hand over the relic. And her turned back as Raven finally relented and ran.

A small tear formed at the corner of her eye. Shocked, Raven brushed it away under the pretense of brushing back her hair. She studied Tai for a moment. He hadn't changed much since their Huntsmen days. Her gut twisted with an unfamiliar feeling. She needed to leave, now. She didn't need Tai to express his disappointment and waste her time.

Tai looked at her for another moment, then sighed. "Well, come in."

Raven blinked. "What?"

Tai had already turned around and began walking inside. "It's late in Mistral isn't it? I'll make some tea. I was just in the mood to have some." He walked inside, leaving the door open. Raven hesitated, then relented. A cup of Tai's tea was likely the last bit of luxury she would have for a while. She walked inside.

It was like stepping inside a memory. Almost everything was exactly like she remembered; the spacious living room, the flowers in the window box, the too-high cabinets Tai had insisted he could build. A few things were different, like the group picture of Yang's team at Beacon and the dog bed next to the couch, but apart from that, it was nearly the same when she left almost twenty years ago.

A black and white corgi trotted around the corner. It approached Raven, it's face bright and tongue lolling with blissful happiness, then stopped, his ears flattening as he growled softly. Tai's voice made a sharp, short command, and the dog whined, skirting the edge of the room before lying in its bed, it's small dark eyes watching her closely. Raven entered the kitchen and sat at the table as Tai bustled around the stove. She placed her mask down and tried to relax.

Tai got out the teapot and checked his pantry for cookies. He had picked up a few tricks from the best cookie maker herself, Summer Rose, and knew Raven had a weakness for them.

After all, who didn't?

As he worked, he glanced at her. He really hadn't expected Raven to actually stay and he was almost as uncomfortable as her sitting at the table as if nothing had ever happened. They were silent as he worked until finally the kettle whistled and he set everything down and sat, facing Raven. She looked tired and her eyes were slightly red.

"Well, Raven," said Tai. "How have you been?"

Raven glowered. She didn't want to make small talk and she definitely not going to tell Tai about where she escaped from. To give herself time, she poured herself a cup of tea and drank. It warmed her up, but she still felt the cold twisted feeling in her stomach.

"Just great," she said finally. "Thought I'd pop in and see what you were doing." Her lie rolled off her tongue carelessly with no attempt at sincerity.

Tai sighed. "Raven, you wouldn't be here if you didn't have to be."

The comment stung, which surprised Raven again. Was it not true? She had decided to cut all ties to her life as a Huntress and hadn't looked back since. She didn't get Tai's willingness to help those who were too weak and lazy to help themselves. He was the one who turned away from her, refusing to go back with her to the tribe when she gave him the chance. He just couldn't see the big picture; what they could have accomplished and what they could have avoided. He was a fool for following Ozpin. Grimm don't stay dead forever. People did.

Raven glared into her mug. Finally, to break the silence more than anything, she blurted out, "Yang found me."

Tai's fist clenched for a moment in surprise and relaxed with relief. "Did she? I was wondering if she tracked you down yet."

Raven looked at him in mild amusement. "Did you think she wouldn't make it? She's my daughter after all. She's strong."

Tai gave her a very patronizing look. "Of course I thought she'd make it. But it's natural for a parent to worry about their child."

Raven knew that sort of remark was coming and was prepared for it. "I looked after her when I could. As Qrow might have told you, I saved her life during the first Grimm invasion of Vale."

Tai leaned back in his chair. "If you knew about the train attack, you probably knew the rest of Cinder's plan. I suppose it was your day off when Adam Taurus cut off her arm?"

Raven leapt up, knocking her chair to the floor. "You expect me to know every time she's in trouble? I'm not you Tai, I don't hover over people like a mother hen whenever they get a bruise. And besides," she jabbed her thumb to her chest. "I saved her once. In the tribe, we aren't so generous. You're weak, you're dead. That is the oldest law of the land. It's how we remain strong."

"Raven, your tribe is a bunch of cutthroats who would trade you for a bounty without turning a hair." Tai didn't shift from his position. "The only reason they don't is because you'd kill them first."

"You don't know a thing about my tribe! They would lay their lives for me! THAT'S loyalty."

"No, that's fear. Is there a single person you could name who'd do it for any other reason?"

Raven opened her mouth to respond, then remembered Vernal's blank eyes staring at her. She dropped her gaze. Tai took this as an answer. "So where is Yang now?"

Raven hid her hesitation by sitting down again and gripping her tea. "She's with Qrow," she spat. "Apparently, she's joining Ozpin's insane crusade."

Tai blew out a breath. "Qrow and Oz managed to contact me and shared that Ruby and her friends did. As much as I want to join them, Ozpin needs someone at Signal Academy." He watched her closely. "I can assume you are still against the plan?"

"What plan?" countered Raven. "Protect the relics? The Maidens? How are we supposed to do that? We can't kill Salem and she has an infinite army of Grimm. Sooner or later, you WILL lose. The best thing to do is lay low. I would think, if you cared so much about your girls, you'd understand."

Tai sipped his own tea. "That's true. I'm horrified that they are wrapped up in this. At their age? They haven't even completed school. They are inexperienced, naïve, and innocent." He looked at her straight in the eye. "But they have the right to decide things for themselves. And I believe in them, just like they believe in Oz and Qrow."

Raven snorted. "Decide for herself, huh? I guess that Yang wasn't influenced at all by you about me?"

"Of course she was Raven, I'm her father," Tai said. "But I never steered her opinion of you. She was angry and sad that you left us and made her own choice on how to handle it. I don't suppose you apologized, or she forgave you?"

"No," Raven said shortly.

Tai stared into his tea. "Of course you didn't."

Raven tapped her foot impatiently. "For God's sake, Tai, I just told you I sent her to Qrow. I gave her what she wanted. I could have refused. Stop acting like I don't have a heart. I even told her about Oz and what he did to us."

Tai looked up, a flicker of temper in his eyes. "That was not your right to tell her."

"Oh, really?" Here, Raven finally had some ground to dig her heels in. "So my daughter should blindly follow Ozpin without knowing everything about him?"

"You know as well as I do, Yang wouldn't be so gullible. But it was not your secret to share. Oz would have told them himself and if he didn't, Qrow would. And stop sounding like you didn't accept his gift reluctantly or against your wishes. You did it for the self-serving purpose of power. You squander it."

Raven glared at him, then stood. "It was clearly a mistake coming here."

Tai stood up as well, staring straight into her eyes. "Yes, it was. So why did you?"

Raven began to turn away, but Tai reached across the table and grabbed her arm. Raven looked at his hand, then back at him. "Let go of me Tai, or you will regret it."

"Then answer me Raven! Or are you a coward?"

"How dare you? I have faced death a hundred times! I am NOT a coward!"

"Then which is it, Raven?" Tai demanded. His words echoed Yang's down in that horrible chamber. "Were you nostalgic for your real home after nearly fifteen years? Or are you just running away from the next problem? Or is it something else? Why are you here?"

"I DON'T KNOW!"

It was this statement, this admission from the always certain Raven, that caused Tai to release her.

"You don't know?"

Raven took several deep breaths, fighting with the decision to explain. She really didn't have an idea why she stayed. She should have flown off the instant she teleported there. But...

She finally turned to Tai.

"Yang certainly had a lot to say when she found me. She was pretty immature; I'm a little surprised you didn't teach her how to speak to adults."

Tai grimaced. "Yang is hotheaded and doesn't always take the tactical approach. That's just her personality."

"She accused me of being weak, heartless, and a traitor."

Tai raised an eyebrow. "Where could she come up with that?"

"She knows nothing about me Tai! This was her chance to ask whatever she wanted and all she wanted out of me was to take her to Qrow." Raven felt she was finally at the edge of figuring out something important. "I was proud of her that she managed to track me down. Most Huntsmen couldn't or had the courage to. I told her that! And she took my praise and compliments and threw them back in my face. I offered her a place at my side, where I could teach her, train her, protect her, and she just left!"

"You know she couldn't Raven," said Tai. "She wouldn't leave Ruby behind."

"Ruby left on her own," snarled Raven. "From what I understand, she left without telling either of you. She made her choice. Yang had no reason to chase after her."

Tai stood motionless for a second. "Raven...are you jealous?"

Raven stared at him. "Jealous? Of what?"

"You couldn't believe Yang wouldn't abandon her sister. Were you hoping she would? To stay with you?"

Raven folded her arms. "I would have been happy to have her join us. She's proven herself a competent fighter. I could have trained her to take over my tribe. My legacy would live on."

"That's what you were hoping for?" asked Tai incredulously. "After you abandoned her with nothing?"

"It was to make her stronger!" said Raven.

"No, it was because you couldn't handle it! You ran back to your tribe with your tail between your legs because you couldn't walk away from that life. Being a respected Huntress wasn't enough for you. You had to be feared, you had to be 'strong,' you had to be rich. How has that been for you? Do you have everything you want? Does robbing innocent people and being in charge of a bunch of thugs really make you happy?"

Raven drew her blade, quick as lightning, and pointed it at Tai. "Do not insult my tribe...my family...like that again."

Tai stepped closer, the tip of her sword nearly jabbing at his throat. "You've never had a family Raven. You just pretended to. You had a chance before, and you threw it away when it got hard. We made a vow once. And you broke it as easily as you broke Yang's heart when she found you."

"HER heart?" shouted Raven, but her sword arm was shaking just a little. "She broke-" She stopped herself there. Tai raised an eyebrow.

"She broke your heart? Did you think when she found you, that was going to make things better? That she would treat you like a normal daughter would?"

Raven thought about denying it. She never admitted she was wrong. She never broke down. She never cared about being hurt. She never—

Raven lowered her sword, a hint of tears appearing in her eyes. "I thought we could start over. I thought if she came to find me and I explained, she would understand my actions. She lost her friend, her sister, her school, her arm. I thought she wanted a fresh start, since she lost everything. I thought she wanted to leave her life behind."

"That's just it, Raven," Tai explained. "She didn't lose everything, not by a long shot. She suffered defeat, but she has her sister and her friends. When Ruby left, she did it to stop things like this from happening. She's helping her sister by ending this crazy war and giving her closure. She's doing this FOR Yang. And Yang knows this. That's why she chased after her. They love each other so much, they would dive headlong into battle to protect themselves and their friends. You give up too easily. That is what makes Yang and Ruby so much stronger than you. That is the difference between strength and power."

Tai stood tall as Raven stared at him. He had seen tears shimmering at her eyes. Something had finally penetrated that steeled heart that had been there for as long as Tai could remember. Raven looked at him, eyes downcast.

"So what now?" asked Tai. "This is your choice Raven. Will you help us? Or will you run to live another day?"

Raven's shoulders were slumped. She suddenly looked very tired. "I...I don't know. I need to think."

Tai stepped up to her and lifted her chin. For a moment, he remembered all those years ago when they had finally admitted their feelings. Those feelings were threatening to surface again.

No. This has to be said and done.

He stepped away again. "Raven, until you decide, you are no longer welcome here. And your portal will not be able to teleport you here again."

Raven looked at him in shock. One of her Semblance's restrictions was that it only worked when someone with a strong bond gave their permission, albeit with very loose terms. Yang's portal was fueled by her desire to find her, Qrow's was his desire to see her come back. With both of them seeing her as an enemy and Vernal dead, her last portal access was connected to Tai. Now, with him refusing to allow her to come back, her last guidance point was erased. She was literally cut off from her escape ace in the hole. While Tai didn't know all of this, he knew he was cutting her off one of her most secure escape routes.

"If you want to return, it will be Yang's decision. No more will you be able to use us for your personal use." He turned his back to her, staring out the window. "I'm tired waiting for you to come home. When you are ready, once you've proven to Yang you truly want to be her mother, you can come home. Together."

Silence filled the room. Behind him, Tai eventually heard Raven picking up her mask from the table and turn away. She paused at the door. "There was a girl who came to my camp a long time ago. She was devoted to the tribe and eventually became my right hand. She was willing to risk everything for me, even putting herself in the crosshairs just to protect me. I want to think...was that a kind of love, Tai?"

Tai didn't turn. "I don't know her, or what you've done to inspire that kind of respect." He softened a bit. "But if you trusted her, told her everything, and defended her as best you could with no regrets, I imagine it could have been."

He heard the sound of her crossing the room, opening the front door, and the sound of wings. Turning, he walked to the door and looked out. A black speck was already disappearing over the trees toward the harbor. Zwei emerged from his bed and trotted over sitting at Tai's side. Tai absently scratched behind his ears. He wondered if he would ever forgive Raven for abandoning Yang. He wondered if this would be the last time he ever saw her. He returned to his flower garden with a heavy heart.

Raven always loved sunflowers.