The scent of the vodka lingered in the air around the tavern. Qrow was glad to be back, and this time; he was going to be asking some questions. Taking his usual spot on the empty balcony, Qrow waited for his favourite waitress to deliver. The dark-haired girl came up the stairs in the same outfit she had been wearing the last time he had visited.

She placed his usual concoction on the table, and he spoke, meeting her straight in the eye.

"So, what happened to you?" he asked very matter-of-factly. The girl was in the midst of pouring his drink when he asked, and replied to his question with a blank stare.

"Don't worry, the noise in here is loud enough for your boss not to overhear us", he examined her expression, "So let me ask again, what happened to your eye?". She paused, before replying with one of the most pathetic excuses that Qrow could have ever imagined.

"I walked into a bar", she had a surprisingly clear voice, and she spoke in a very tough manner for someone her size. And he couldn't help but poke a bit of fun at it.

"Well, you're still in one now, sweetheart" he laughed, very cocky. Her face cracked into a small smile.

"So, what brings a gorgeous man-magnet like you to a shady place like this?". She turned solemn and said, "Don't call me sweetheart, I've had just about enough of that shit".

"What should I call you then?" His red eyes gleamed mischievously at her. Her face softened a little, and she answered in a truthful tone.

"I'm Belle. Belle Thornton". Her name was as beautiful as she was, and it made him even more attracted to her. He remembered "Thornton" from somewhere, but the name evaded him at that moment.

"I'm Qrow Branwen", after a pause, "And I'm here to help". She looked unconvinced, and studied his scythe.

"You're a Huntsman".

"Yes, I sure am".

"Why are you here then?" He looked up at her, slightly suspicious. She sat down opposite on the stool that was next to him and set down her tray.

"What do you mean?", he eyed her curiously.

"If you're a Huntsman, you work with the police. And if you're a Huntsman, you must be clever- "

"I try to be", he smirked. "When I'm not in a bar like this, I mean". She ignored him and carried on.

"Then you'd know what kind of a place this is. So why are you here? Are you going to arrest us?". He paused and considered.

"Who is 'us'?", he questioned.

"Me, and my sisters who work here"

"There are more of you?"

She stopped, and covered her hand with her mouth quickly, irritated that he had managed to trick her into leaking information. Not that she wanted to keep anything a secret; it was only if she said even the smallest detail, then… he would become a little more than 'displeased'. Belle shook her head in defiance.

"Why am I telling him anything!? I've always managed to keep my mouth shut before, so why is this cocky huntsman any different!?"

She noticed he was still staring at her, waiting for a reply, with his big, gorgeous red eyes that practically glowed out of their sockets at her. Her heart seemed to melt a little as she became distracted, absorbed, with his beautiful features. "I…I can't tell you anything else"

"Then let me ask you one other thing; if this place were to be…. noticed by me and my fellow huntsman, what would happen to you if this were shut down?". Belle considered his question for a minute.

"We would be out of a home, with no jobs, no food, and no money. You would've left us with nothing except…. the one job that we would be left with…" her voice broke, a single tear rolled down her face. Qrow reached over and clasped her hand in his calloused palms; then cleared his throat and said, "Don't worry, I won't let things come to that. But if you don't mind me asking, is that not already your job?". She shook her head quickly, composed herself and replied with,

"No, we're supposed to be escorts…. we have somehow managed to survive without sinking that low…. yet".

"Then, how did you end up here? You can't be much older than 20"

"I'm 28, actually. But no, I wasn't born here. My entire family have been huntsman and huntresses, or at least my real parents told me..." Belle's grey eyes were downcast and empty, as she recalled some of her past life.

Qrow could barely make out her low voice, "This used to be a Café. It was beautiful and the lady who ran it had adopted me and my foster sisters, but then she hired…him for some unimaginable reason and then everything went wrong".

Belle whispered quietly in the tiniest voice Qrow had ever heard, like all her confidence had been broken from her soul. "I… I think you've probably guessed what he does to us every night after the Tavern closes".

His ears buzzed at every word, and his fist clenched at the thought of that…. pig doing something so horrific to some poor, defenceless girls. Belle winced suddenly, as Qrow realized he had still been caressing her hand for comfort before he started squeezing it tightly in anger.

"Sorry, I forgot that… never mind" His mind spun with the new information.

"These poor girls… he's been abusing them for god-knows how long. I need to help them, but I have to be sure first"

"But didn't she… try to stop him?", he asked carefully.

"She…she died. It was the week after their 'wedding'. I was only 12, and I'm the oldest. Everything was stripped down and sold, then turned into this shithole. I had to look after everyone else, and every week he got worse and worse to us, until..." she began to cry again, until she mentally kicked herself. "I'm sorry. You're just a poor man trying to enjoy your drink and I'm spouting off on a pointless story, and I don't even know you!". Belle's expression turned to fright. "You won't…. tell anyone will you!?"

"Not if you don't want me to, but I promise, I can help you"

"I know you can. I see the same men come and go all the time, and they have no problem 'helping' us" she spoke bitterly, staring at the floor and not looking at Qrow.

"I'm not like that, and I promise," he came off his stool and knelt down in front of her so he could meet her eyes, "I promise I will protect you from any harm. It's kinda my job"

"What if you go back on your word?"

Qrow laughed, "Then you can complain to the Huntsman recruitment office about not being satisfied with my services!". She began to smile, and laugh along with him. "But seriously, there isn't actually a huntsman HQ office". A few previous stray tears rolled down her cheeks, but with the emotion they were present for gone. Belle immediately felt better, as if things were finally beginning to change for her, and the people she loved, until a cold voice sneered up at them.

"Am I interrupting something?". Belle immediately became frozen with fear.

"Nothing at all! I was just leaving!" Qrow called down, as he put back on his cloak and weapon, and made his way down the staircase. Belle sprang to her feet and started to noisily gather up bottles from his table. The inn was empty, and Qrow practically pranced past the innkeeper's glare. He gently brushed past Belle, almost reassuringly, cheerily waved goodbye at the pair of them and made himself scarce after a "goodbye". Or so the man thought.

He turned on Belle as soon as he saw the immature rebel leave the hall.

"What were you doing messing about with that rogue?" he demanded.

Her eyes widened. "N-nothing. We were just talking," she thought for something before saying "That's my job, isn't it?"

"YES, it IS your job. But your job is supposed to bring me money!". A crow flew in from the nearest window and perched itself on a table. Both looked at it curiously. "The money that this bar makes, the money that YOU make, is what keeps all of us from being thrown into the streets!" The huge man began to yell obscenities at the girl, but the crow let out a loud squawk. The innkeeper tried shout, but yet again, the crow interrupted him. Every time he tried to yell at Belle, that…. damn crow would keep squawking its little head off at the huge man, as if it was almost trying to annoy him. It even made Belle want to laugh, if not for the situation she was in.

"Drom, please. It's just a bird-"

Her employer was a man of little patience and he ran towards the crow with terrifying speed, which caught the bird off-guard, seized its little black body, and threw it at the wall in effort to kill the little creature. Belle cried out to stop him, but her efforts were useless against the hulking giant who knocked her out the way with one swing of his beefy arm. The crow flapped its wings and flew out the window to escape its attacker; who turned and grabbed Belle by the neck. He lifted her off the ground and shook her fiercely. She was thrown about so suddenly and violently, Belle feared that he might break her neck at this force; until he threw her down like a toy. She curled up into a ball on the floor, quivering. Drom bent down to her height, grabbed her by the hair to make sure she could hear him, and hissed,

"You belong to ME Belle. You are mine, and mine alone. Never forget that!". He stomped out to the back, sending furniture and anything near him crashing to the ground, as another waitress, a shy deer-faunus who was (rather oddly) named Kitty, ran forward and helped her sister get up from the dirty tavern's floor.