Qrow grunted as he grabbed his side, feeling warm blood dripping out. He hadn't gotten here in time.
The pink and brown haired girl moved to strike again, but was interrupted by a new figure. Qrow looked up to see a new woman standing before him. She held out her sword towards the girl, smirking. The two rushed towards each other, both gracefully dancing around as they fought.
It was obvious that the two knew each other.
Qrow took the opportunity to run over to Amber. The maiden was out cold, but she was breathing.
He looked back over at the two right as the girl hit the woman, knocking the tight bun out of its clip. Her long hair was dark blue at the top and faded as it went down, ending with a light blue almost white color. It was beautiful, just like her. He could have looked at his new ally for hours, but now wasn't the best moment to do so.
The girl smirked, knowing she had frustrated the women. The two were communicating without saying a word. Their facial expresses told it all.
The girl appeared before the woman, her hands empty. The woman froze as the girl held her hands over the woman's eyes. When the woman opened her eyes, one of them was her normal blue, and the other was a lighter blue. It was just like the girl with her one pink eye and one brown eye.
The enemy was told to retreat. The girl smirked and nodded at the woman before disappearing. When the woman blinked, her eyes back to normal. She waited until the four were gone before she ran over to Qrow and Amber.
"Is she alive?" she asked, kneeling down beside Qrow.
"Barely," Qrow replied. The pain in his side was starting to get to him. He needed a drink.
She looked over at him, seeing the blood on his side. "I can carry her. Can you make it?"
"Of course dear," he smirked.
It was slow going, but they made it to a safe house. Qrow sat on the ground, leaning against the wall while he called for backup. She left the room, coming back with medical supplies.
"So, I'd know if I'd seen a beauty like you before. So who are you sweetheart?" Qrow asked, watching as she looked over Amber.
"Adele," she replied, not looking over at him.
"You look fresh out of the academy," he smirked.
"I'm 24," she said.
Qrow paused. She was young, but only five years younger than him. "Not going to ask my name?" he asked.
"No need. Flirty old man that smells like alcohol? You're Qrow," she said, smiling as she glanced over at him.
"Oh, you're good," he laughed. "So, tell me about how you know umbrella girl?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," she shrugged.
"Yes you do," Qrow said, frowning. "I'll find out even if you don't tell me."
Now it was her turn to laugh. "Good luck with that," she said. She walked over to him, kneeling down beside him again. "Better clean up that scratch."
"Na, this is nothing," Qrow shrugged.
"No arguing. Shirt off," she said, grabbing the medical things.
"Oh, demanding. I like that," he smirked.
"Just do as I say," she said, shaking her head. She reached up to put her hair back up in a bun, but he grabbed her hand to stop her.
"Leave it down, it looks nice," he said when she looked back at him. The two looked at each other for a few seconds in silence. "Why don't you take it off for me?" he asked eventually.
She rolled he eyes before moving to sit on his lap, one leg on each side of him. Qrow's eyes grew wide as he watched her begin to unbutton his shirt.
"Wasn't actually expecting you to do it," he said, winking at her.
"We don't have time to play around," she replied.
"Maybe later then?" he asked, laughing.
"You're funny," she said, but she was smiling.
"And you're cute," he shot back. Which was way too true. He liked the view of her sitting on his lap like this, her being so close.
Her cheeks tinted pink, but she didn't reply. She finished getting his shirt off instead. The blood on the wound had stopped flowing and had mostly dried. She reached over, grabbing a can of disinfectant. "You may want to hold onto something," she told him.
He grabbed her hand. As she sprayed his side, he gripped it tighter. He tried to not show that it hurt, but it stung a lot. When she finished, she set the can down. As she reached to grab the bandages, he threaded his fingers with hers. It felt nice holding a hand so warm and soft. He couldn't remember the last time he had shamelessly flirted with a girl like this, or even held someone's hand.
"Later," she said softly as she took her hand back. "Gotta bandage you up."
Qrow tried not to think about it as her hands touched his skin, but it was hard not to. He hadn't met someone that had affected him like this in so long. He was a loner. She was intoxicating and he hardly knew her.
"All set," she smiled before standing up. Like when she took her hand away, he instantly missed her presence. She went to put the medical supplies away.
As she walked back into the room, Qrow noticed she was limping slightly.
"You're hurt," he said as she sat down beside him.
"Oh, it's just a sprain. I hurt it a few days ago, but carrying Amber must have hurt it again," she replied. She yawned, closing her eyes. She probably had been out on a mission. Either way, Qrow was glad she had jumped in to help, but now she looked exhausted.
"Go to sleep," he said, taking her hand again. He hated to admit, but since he didn't have alcohol, this was a nice replacement. It made him feel calmer, safer.
"They could be following us to finish the job," she argued.
"You're no good to us if you're too tired to fight," he shot back. She was playing with his fingers almost absentmindedly. It was distracting.
"Okay," she said softly. She leaned back against the wall, resting her head on his shoulder. She fell asleep pretty quickly.
Qrow checked his scroll, seeing he had a new message from Ozpin.
Qrow, if they come back, transfer the fall maiden's powers to Adele and run.
He frowned, his stomach feeling sick. How could Ozpin even suggest something like that? Before he could reply, Ozpin did, as if reading his mind.
She's the next candidate for the winter maiden. She knows what to do.
Qrow set his scroll down without replying. He looked down at Adele, asleep on his shoulder. She knew more than he thought. He couldn't put such a young girl in that position. Not after he had failed Amber like this.
He sighed, leaning his head back. How could he already be getting too attached? Normally he would run before things could even get this far.
Yet, he didn't let go of the hand he was holding.
She awoke suddenly. "Someone's here," she jumped up, grabbing her sword. She looked down at him, her expression more serious than before. "You know what to do if it's not our allies," she whispered.
Qrow walked into Ozpin's office, having to hide his shock when he saw Adele there. It had been over a week since he had last seen her.
"Thank you for the report Ms. Green," Ozpin said.
Adele nodded. She turned to leave, pausing when she saw Qrow looking at her. The two looked at each other in silence for a few seconds. He remembered that he never did figure out how she knew the other two color eyed girl.
"Ms. Green, if you have a moment, we are bringing in the candidate for the fall maiden. It'd be…good for her to meet you," Ozpin said, breaking their silence.
"Okay," she said, finally looking away from Qrow.
G brought in the girl. Qrow was shocked at how young she was. She was only in her first year at Beacon. There was no way they could force her to make a decision like this. Normally, when the situation wasn't so dire, they wouldn't.
The girl was stunned silent after the explanation. She turned to Adele as if she was looking for help.
"It was a tough choice, but it's one you need to make on your own," Adele said.
"And you didn't care about the risks?" the girl asked.
"It's not that I don't care. I know the danger, but I am a huntress. Protecting people is my job. If I lose my life in battle, then I will be at peace."
Qrow frowned as he looked at Adele. She sounded older than she looked. She sounded like the people he had lost before.
The girl left, leaving an uncomfortable feeling in the office. Adele quickly excused herself, Qrow following once she was gone.
"Well, that was a tense meeting. I need a drink," Qrow said, walking up to her.
"You always need a drink," she laughed.
"Exactly," he smirked, doing the exact thing his brain was telling him not to. "Would you like to join me?"
She sighed, looking away from him. "I guess one drink wouldn't hurt."