Thank you to LightInside for her help

Yang lingered outside the police station as the sun barreled down on her relentlessly. Not a cloud in the sky to offer her any respite as she waited for Qrow to finish up.

It was strange to Yang that Qrow was the one summoned here to check on Luna. That he'd been the one to have this information before any of them even knew. Yang knew that Qrow was close with all of his contacts, but she never imagined it was this close.

Still, she was glad he was here if only to help her through this sort of thing. Yang didn't handle death well – she hadn't since she was little and was forced to guide Ruby through it. The more intuitive part of her mind imagined that was because she hadn't been able to fully process Summer's death. The more straight-forward part of her mind decided that it was simply because death sucked and was too unpredictable and uncaring. People like Mom and Pyrrha and Luna certainly didn't deserve it. Not when others like Cinder Fall and Adam Taurus were still breathing.

"Alright," Qrow's raspy voice grabbed Yang's attention and she turned to see her Uncle coming up behind her with a key in his hand. "Key to her home – she had some things she wanted to get to her family in Vacuo so I've got to go pick it up."

"Why did they give it to you?"

Qrow stuck his hands in his pockets and started walking. Yang followed him closely. "I'm the only one Luna really trusted after her marriage fell apart. She kind of isolated herself out here and would talk to me if she heard something. Luna had contacts all over Remnant, but nobody really close. Her family kinda dumped her after her marriage, they…didn't agree with her choice in partner and it caused a lot of problems."

As Qrow spoke, it occurred to Yang that she didn't really know anything about Luna.

Because you never asked. You were so fixated on an escape.

Eventually, they found a taxi and rode out to where Luna's home was in the outskirts of the city attached to the resort. It was set in the middle of a nice stretch of homes surrounded by tall trees and freshly cut grass. Every inch was perfect and clearly meant to match all the surrounding homes.

Luna's was just a little bit different. There were dreamcatchers and wind chimes hanging all around the front. In the garden there were tall daisies. When Yang stepped on the door mat, she looked down and read the words 'Don't Knock if You Don't Have Food' and smiled.

Yang loved this home already – a home Luna would never come back to.

"Did the police…tell you what happened to her?" Yang asked as Qrow dug out the key and opened the door.

He looked back at her and nodded. "She was out on her boat in the dark…something took the boat down and took her along with it.

Yang knew he was dancing around the specifics. "It was that Grimm, wasn't it?" He nodded once before stepping into the home.

The inside of Luna's home was a bit messy, but nothing too crazy and nothing worse than any dorm room team RWBY had shared. The windows were mostly uncovered and bright light shined in through all of them. It didn't feel like the home of someone who had died, it still felt very much alive. There was fresh fruit on the counter and coffee still in the pot. The legs of a recliner were still up and even the box underneath the television had a red light in, indicating that something was recording to be watched later.

It was all a little surreal and painfully familiar. Yang could vaguely remember when she was little and Summer didn't come home – the things they'd planned to do together. Summer was supposed to teach her how to braid her hair.

"There are dozens of ways we can braid it to make you look beautiful, Sunshine."

Taking a deep breath, Yang forced those thoughts away. This was still a job, after all and now the Grimm they were hunting had taken another victim. The job was even more dire and if she were being honest, the four of them had been too focused on each other to actually do the darn job they were hired for.

Qrow had disappeared down a hallway beyond the kitchen and when he returned, he was holding a few tan folders and some kind of red wood box. Yang wasn't sure what they were and she wasn't about to ask. All she knew was that Qrow knew exactly where to find them.

"How's the hunt going?" Qrow asked and Yang was a bit surprised he'd go to business like that as he carried a poor woman's belongings out of the home she'd never come back to.

She felt her mouth fall open to speak, but had no idea what to say. "I—um, we…I mean we haven't made much progress. It's only been three days."

"You mean it's already been three days and there's another victim."

Yang was thrown by his frustrated tone. "We don't have much to go on…"

"Do you have any leads beyond Luna?" Yang shook her head and Qrow sighed. "Have you investigated the previous attacks? Talked to anyone about what they've seen?"

She knew where this was going. Qrow's lectures were always like this. Just questions he already knew the answers to. "No," she said, defeated.

He took a deep breath and guided her out of the house. She waited and listened as he locked the door behind him. He sat down on the top step leading up to the front door and gestured for her to do the same.

Yang did and put her head in her hands. The night before, she didn't sleep. Not one wink, because all her mind could do was race. She couldn't stop herself from wondering if this was somehow her fault. If she'd done something different, or done nothing at all, maybe Luna wouldn't have ended up dead.

It was silly, and Yang was smart enough to know that she was just searching for a reason for all of this to make sense. It needed to because the world couldn't always be this awful. Every time someone came into her life, it couldn't always end this way, right?

Sometimes Yang wondered if she was cursed.

Whatever it was, the guilt and weight of the night before and lack of sleep was catching up with her. She wiped away the tears as they threatened to fall - not wanting Qrow, of all people, to see her cry.

"What's that about?" He asked, but sounded genuinely concerned.

Concerned enough that Yang felt her emotions spike again and she slammed her metal fist into the concrete of the step they were sitting on.

"How do you do it?" She asked and Qrow merely raised a brow in response. "How do you deal with losing people? I love this job but gosh...it's so hard sometimes."

His expression softened and he rested his elbows on his knees. He was quiet for a moment and Yang took the time to reign her emotions in - something that proved to be a challenge even on a good day.

When he spoke again, his voice was quieter than she'd ever remembered. "I don't think you ever deal with it." He shrugged. "The day you can lose someone on the job and not feel it is the day that you need to leave the job."

"It sucks so much though."

This made him smile. "It definitely can sometimes. I think the thing you have to remember kiddo is that...you can't take everything personally."

"This was personal though, Luna and I-"

"Had one date, I know."

Yang's mouth fell open and she stammered a bit. "Y-you knew?"

This time, he laughed. "She called me right before to make sure I was okay with it."

"Really?"

He nodded. "I told her that I wasn't your father and even if I was, you were an adult who could make your own choices." Given recent life choices, Yang doubted her own maturity at times. "She was an adult too, and every choice she made was her own. Not yours."

Yang was glad Luna had spoken to Qrow and not Tai, mostly because she knew that her actual dad wouldn't have responded the same way. Then again, maybe that would have been better. "You should have told her no."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because I'm in love with my partner and had no business using Luna to make myself feel better." She ran her hands through her hair, fighting the urge to scream. Nothing was ever simple and happiness was never easy. She could have told Blake how she felt days ago, long before Luna and everything would have been fine.

"Ah," Qrow patted her on the back. "I don't think you need to worry about that. Luna was pretty stubborn - to a fault. She was set in her ways and it's what drove a lot of people away from her. Recently she started making the effort to change that. She wanted to reach out to more people and...see the world differently - bunch of other shit like that. It was hard for her, she'd been through alot and dealt with a lot of shitty people. Still, I don't think she'd consider you one of them."

Yang shrugged, it had only been one night and one mistake – it probably didn't mean much. "Still sucks though."

"Yep." Qrow pulled out his flask from the side pocket of his pants and twisted the top off. He extended the flask in her direction.

"I'll pass," she said, waving him off. "I've done my heavy drinking already. It's caused me enough trouble."

Qrow chuckled. "So from the sounds of it, you girls have done everything here except your job?"

"That's not—" he raised a brow at her protest. "I mean…we've…been waiting."

"For what?"

"The monster to make a move."

Tucking his flask away, Qrow stood up and pulled Yang along with him. "Now it has, and someone else is dead. I'm not blaming you and I'm not teaching you, but I'm telling you, as a fellow hunter – this is sloppy, kid."

Yang cast her eyes down to the concrete at her feet. She felt so terrible and guilty. "Sorry, Uncle Qrow. We'll do better."

"I know you will," he said simply before picking up Luna's things. "Now, let's get you back to the resort and I'll have a quick talk with your sister before I go."

"Wait, you're not staying?"

He shook his head before starting down the road to find another cab to drive them. "Like I said, I'm not teaching. This is team RWBY's mission and you're expected to get results. You girls aren't students anymore – you're huntresses."

"You sure you're okay?" Ruby asked, with that doe eyed look she had that made it hard for Weiss not to pinch her stupid cheeks.

"I'm fine, Ruby," she pinched her stupid cheeks. "Just reveling in the trauma of my childhood and my inability to look Blake's parents in the eyes without guilt."

"You know they like you," Ruby said as she wrapped her arms around Weiss and cuddled into her even more. "Blake's told them good things and I'll tell them good things too. You're a good Schnee. The bees Schnee. That's what I'd tell them."

Weiss picked up Ruby's chin with her index finger to look into those silly silver eyes. "Don't say that to anyone ever."

"Aw, I think it's clever!" Ruby pouted and Weiss shook Ruby's head side to side with her finger. "No?"

"No."

"Bees Schnees, it could be like…a new team attack!" Ruby would have leapt out of Weiss' arms if she wasn't holding her so tight. "Oh! Now you three need an attack so we can use this!"

Weiss rolled her eyes. "If that's the name you're going to use, then I refuse to do any team attacks with Yang and Blake."

Ruby scoffed, almost comically and swatted Weiss' arm. "You're so mean to me."

"And you're quite dramatic." Weiss said, even as she pulled Ruby in and kissed her forehead. "You know," she kissed just over her left eye. "I would do anything for you," she kissed Ruby's nose. "It's very annoying."

There was a very cheeky smile on Ruby's face. "I know," Ruby surprised Weiss by lifting herself up and kissing Weiss hard on the lips. Weiss lost her breath at the sensation, her hands suddenly shaking and losing their grip on the girl in her lap. Ruby held onto the front of Weiss' shirt to keep them close.

A second later, she felt Ruby's tongue slip between her lips and her mouth was filled with the taste of coffee and strawberries. Weiss tried to breathe, but Ruby was right there to take it away from her. The contact made her head spin and Ruby's sudden aggressiveness was intoxicating. She felt small, strong hands moving to her shoulders and grasping them tightly. The kiss broke apart and Weiss inhaled every drop of breath she could before Ruby was on her again.

She tumbled back on the bed, bringing her girlfriend down with her. Suddenly, Ruby's legs were straddling Weiss' waist and Ruby was pulling her head up to meet hungry lips. Those same hands moved into her hair and pulled out her ponytail to let Weiss' hair fall free. Ruby ran her hands through it, fingers gently digging into Weiss' scalp before they moved back to Weiss' arms.

As soon as Ruby's lips moved to Weiss' neck, she cried out at the contact. Louder than she would have liked, but her mouth had been covered seconds before and she didn't expect to make so much noise.

Before Weiss could even begin to process that Ruby's hands were inching their way up her shirt, the door to their hotel room opened and Yang's squeal filled the room. "Ruby? Qrow wants to – oh my gosh!"

Weiss practically threw Ruby off of her. For all she knew she'd sent out a panic glyph and flung Ruby across the room. Weiss couldn't see this though, because she ended up face first on the floor after topping off the bed.

"Well," that was Qrow's voice and Weiss wished she were dead. "I guess she's not exactly our innocent little rose anymore, is she?"

She heard Yang groan and stomp into the room. "Will you just stop and concentrate for ten seconds, Ruby."

"What?" Ruby seemed upset and as Weiss dragged herself off the floor, a pair of violet eyes were glaring at her.

"We're supposed to be helping people, and we've been doing a pretty crummy job of it."

"Yang, I don't—"

"You need to focus, Ruby. You're our leader."

Weiss didn't like the way Yang was talking to her sister. Yes, they hadn't done much since they'd been up here – but Ruby had worked with what little they'd been given. "That's not fair, Yang. You've been just as preoccupied with amorist activities as your sister has!"

"Don't start with me, Weiss." Yang pointed a finger in Weiss' direction. She was about to retort when Qrow cleared his throat.

"If you girls don't mind, I'd like to talk with your leader for a minute."

Shifting her focus from Yang, Weiss met Qrow's eyes and remembered just how much Qrow protected Ruby. Now that she was dating his niece and he'd just walked in on them stuck together like two pages of wet paper, it made being around him undesirable for an entirely new set of reasons.

"Come on, Weiss," Yang's black and yellow hand grabbed her arm and started pulling her out of the room. "Let's go check on Blake."

She was dragged out of the room and into the hallway.

"Yang!" Weiss jerked her arm away and Yang let go immediately. "Did you really have to berate your sister like that?"

A flash of guilt washed over Yang's face, but she immediately removed it. "I was yelling at all of us. We've been messing around and now Luna is dead!"

"That's ridiculous, that's not our fault. A monster that has been killing people here is why we were summoned in the first place. While it's unfortunate that Luna was the victim, she's just that – a victim and simply because we met her once doesn't suddenly make that our fault!"

Yang's glare seemed to fade a bit, but Weiss could tell that she was still upset. "We didn't do anything to help her."

"How could we? Yang, I understand that you're upset but if you blame yourself for every person that dies you'll never survive as a huntress. You'll drive yourself insane."

Weiss knew that Yang could be emotional, but it seemed that something about Luna dying had really set her off. Could they have been more proactive in their work since arriving? Absolutely and Weiss knew that – but it wasn't as if they had leads beating down their door. It was quietly known amongst the four of them that this mission wouldn't start until another victim turned up.

Thankfully, Yang's anger seemed to have subsided and she ran a hand through her hair in frustration. "We need to do something now. We need a plan."

"We have one," Weiss said simply. "Ruby has decided that we're going to go to that rock formation that Luna took us to on arrival and wait for the Grimm to show up. It's the only place that this beast has been to multiple times."

"You…want to go there and wait for the monster to bring Luna's corpse to that place?"

When put that way, it sounded horrible – but that's exactly what she and Ruby had discussed. "It's our one point of interest, Yang."

Weiss knew she'd won. She knew that Yang knew they were right and when Yang nodded, Weiss reached up and patted her on the head. "It'll be okay."

"What are you doing?" Yang asked with furrowed brows.

"I'm comforting you." Weiss said. "Is this not good enough? I'd offer a hug but you squeeze too hard and a high five might break my hand."

Yang smiled and removed Weiss' hand from atop her head. "You know, you're strangely the only person I think I'd approve of dating my sister."

A strange combination of pride and confusion swept over her. "Well of course, I'm quite the catch." She spoke with exaggerated haughtiness that made Yang laugh.

As they reached Blake and Yang's room, the door opened and Blake's parents came out without their daughter in tow. Yang immediately perked up at the sight of them but Weiss could only hug herself and take a step back.

They were so intimidating and for Weiss, she couldn't shake the idea that they probably hated her and had every right to. Her family had mistreated Faunus for generations and for what? It wasn't as if the Schnee's were better than the Belladonna's, or any other Faunus. Case in point being how caring Blake's parents were compared to her own.

"Alright you two," Ghira's voice was deep and commanding - yet everything he said seemed to be so welcoming. "We're expecting you girls to take care of each other. I know you're huntresses but it's always a good idea to be vigilant!"

Yang rolled her eyes but laughed all the same. "Don't worry, sir – we can handle it."

"Also try to have fun." Kali swatted her husband's arm. "The work you do should be fun. If it's too serious you end up a cranky mess." Kali hugged Yang tightly and Weiss watched Yang easily return it.

A part of Weiss wondered if Kali would hug her too. Probably not, since Weiss had the audacity to avoid them both upon arrival.

Kali didn't hug Weiss after she finished hugging Yang. Instead, she put her hands on Weiss' shoulders and stared into her eyes with the warmest smile Weiss had ever seen. "Our daughter has said a lot about you. Told us how hard you try and how much you take care of everyone."

"Oh no," Weiss waved her off, shaking her head furiously. "That's really more Yang – she's the one—"

"Nonsense, I see the way you're always lingering around making sure that everyone is alright. I know your name and our people don't go well together – but you are not your family's past burdens. Trust me, I know what it's like to carry wounds passed down from previous generations." Weiss wanted to ask what that meant. She wanted the story and something about Kali made Weiss want to sit down and talk with her for hours.

But she knew they couldn't, instead she just tried her best to smile. "You've raised a wonderful daughter."

"Thank you," Kali then did pull Weiss in for a very gentle hug. Over Kali's shoulder, Weiss could see Yang and Ghira with broad smiles and both giving thumbs ups at her. She wanted to glare at them both but she was just so happy. "I'm not sure who raised you, but they did a wonderful job as well." When they pulled apart, Kali reached up and brushed at Weiss' cheek. At some point she'd started crying, because of course she couldn't properly handle an actual parent showing her any kind of affection. She quickly reached up to brush them away, feeling embarrassed and silly. It was just a hug, nothing to cry over.

"We'd better head out, dear." Ghira said and Weiss forced herself to take a step back. A part of her was desperate to cling to Kali and to feel whatever it was she'd felt. Something she'd never felt from her own mother before.

Weiss watched them leave, her heart heavy as they waved before taking the elevator down.

"Come on, Weiss." Yang put an arm over her shoulder. "Let's go round up our girls."

Blake couldn't shut her mind off.

No matter how far she ran and no matter how much good she did, the sins of her past never seemed to let her rest. The White Fang was always something that Blake knew would come back to haunt her. It was simply a matter of when and Blake should have known that when would be 'the worst possible time'.

A selfish part of her wanted to let it go. She wanted to forget and ignore the coming storm because everything in her life now was what she always wanted. She'd fixed the broken relationship with her parents. She'd found friends and a true purpose – a way to help people and make money to support herself.

But she couldn't, not with Adam out there. Not knowing what he was capable of and that all of these things that she loved were in danger.

Everything you love.

He'd said it and he'd meant it and Blake wanted to cry because she was so scared.

Adam had a way of consuming her life. There was such peace that came from separation that Blake would often go weeks, even months without thinking about him. Then something would come up, as it always seemed to, and he was front and center again.

It bothered her so much how easily he could control her, even from afar. She would question every move and doubt every smile because of the chance that she might care about something too much and he would see it as a weakness and take it from her.

She just wanted to be rid of him, and the darkness in her mind when she thought of how far she'd be willing to go to find that peace only added to her fear.

The bathroom door opened and Yang stepped out, hair down and in nothing but a tank top and short white shorts. She looked so beautiful, even at such a late hour with such little effort. When their eyes met, Blake remembered that they'd revealed their feelings and that she could actually stand up and kiss Yang right now if she wanted to.

She did want to, but her legs wouldn't move. So she sat and watched as Yang sashayed out of the bathroom and smiled at her. "Do you think I could get one of these mattresses to that little island we're going to tomorrow?"

"Not sure we could get it on the boat."

"Even if we pay extra?"

"Even still," Blake rolled her eyes but couldn't stop herself from laughing. "You'll be fine. We've slept in the dirt before during our exams for Professor Grills' outdoor survival classes."

Yang winced as she sat down next to Blake. "Those classes sucked. I can't believe Ruby talked us into taking them. Eating bugs and using leaves to wipe after the bathroom."

Blake could remember every disgusting detail. "I thought Weiss was going to kill her that first night we spent in the woods."

"She would have if Ruby hadn't offered to let her use the good sleeping bag." Blake could see the wheels spinning in Yang's head. "They even shared it…" her eyes went wide and Blake gave her a knowing look. "Even back then?"

Blake nodded. "Even back then. Weiss has had it bad for a long time." Seeing her partner in distress at this new information, Blake rested her head on Yang's shoulder. "Almost as long as I've had feelings for you."

She felt Yang's arm wrap around her waist and a kiss press into the top of her head. "All the craziness I nearly forgot about last night."

"Oh?" Blake peeked up at her. "Am I so forgettable?"

Yang's hand touched under her chin, tilting her head up. When they kissed, Blake let herself sink into it. She wanted to enjoy this so much. She'd wanted it, craved it and dreamed about it for so long. To have Yang now, to be with her and be able to do this was everything. It felt so wrong to kiss Yang with plaguing thoughts of Adam lurking around in her head. She forced them away – he didn't belong here. Yang was too good and beautiful and perfect for that bastard to tarnish any moment they had together.

Still, as the kiss broke – she realized she'd been thinking of him the entire time and it made her sick. So long as he was out there, nothing with Yang would ever feel safe.

She would fix it. Like she'd always meant to - she would deal with Adam because it was her responsibility.

For now, though, she had Yang alone and one night before they dove head first into this hunt.

Reaching out, she took Yang's hand and lifted it up against her cheek. "I wish we'd done this sooner."

"Me too," Yang answered so quickly it felt almost pre-loaded. Fortunately, her smile proved just how honest she was. "Sleep with me tonight?" Yang asked and Blake felt her eyebrows rise towards the broken moon. "I mean sleep sleep," Yang stammered quickly. "After this stuff with Luna and all that I just…I'm in no hurry for any of that."

Luna.

Yang hadn't really spoken about her much at all – though she'd seemed distraught about everything once they'd found out. She was quiet and distant, as Yang could be when her mind wouldn't let her rest.

"Okay," Blake nodded before standing up and taking Yang along with her. Together, they readied the bed and Yang tossed away two of the three pillows on her side. "Might need to pack those for tomorrow." Blake said and Yang seemed to be considering it. "I'm joking."

"I don't think you remember how crummy it is to sleep in the dirt." Yang chuckled as she took off her mechanical arm before they climbed in.

Blake had slept on concrete in the cold next to Adam and more when their broken branch of the White Fang was starting. Though she wouldn't tell that to Yang – she didn't want to think of him at all around her, let alone mention his name.

Once they were under the covers, Yang's warm body drew Blake in and soon she was cuddling around her…partner.

For now, that was the best descriptor of what Yang was. Her partner, in every sense of the word.

"Are you okay?" Blake asked, the darkness giving her courage.

Yang's hand, that had been running along Blake's shoulder, stopped. "What do you mean?"

"Yang."

A sigh, "I'm…processing. It's not feelings for Luna, but it's just…guilt. If I'd tried harder to talk to her. I don't want to think that she ran off on her boat in the middle of the night because of what I did – I'm not that arrogant. But what if I'm at fault in any way? What if I set her on that path? And I never got to apologize and I just—" her words broke off and she sniffled and Blake cuddled her closer.

Yang always struggled to control her emotions. "It's not your fault, Yang. At all – you didn't do anything to put her in that position and you couldn't have done anything to prevent it."

Blake's heart was racing and her hands were shaking. Even in these circumstances, to be this close to Yang was wonderful. To hold her and comfort her and have it mean more than friendship was even more beautiful than she imagined.

"If I'd killed that monster sooner it might have."

Smiling sadly in the darkness, Blake held Yang a little tighter. "Then that mistake is on all of us – not just you."

Deep down, Blake knew she was the only one with mistakes that were entirely her fault.

Thoughts?