The hairs on the back of Blake's neck stood on end as they neared the mouth of the red-rocked canyon. She knew what it meant ̶ ̶ her instincts had been honed by incessant use ̶ ̶ they were being watched. In the glare of the burning sun it was hard to see, but she found the origin of her uneasiness.
Dozens of feet above on top of the cliffs a scope glinted as it tracked the pair of them. Blake did her best to keep walking normally as Yang muttered out of the side of her mouth.
"I hate this part."
Blake nodded. They'd experienced it before, but it didn't make it any easier. It just wasn't in her to let someone point a gun at her without reacting. There wasn't even the assurance that she'd be able to survive should she be considered a threat. The satrapy of Airtafae took its defence seriously.
It was an attitude that had paid off. Airtafae was one of the oldest cities in the world and it had never fallen. Not to the Grimm and not to its neighbours. Even in modern times, it was considered close to impregnable. It wasn't hard to see why.
The city itself was cut into a maze of sheer cliffs, homes and even a palace were carved painstakingly from the rock. The only way into or out of Airtafae was through a passage barely ten feet wide. Even a handful of troops could hold it indefinitely and, in the middle of the desert, the besieging army would be the one to die of thirst. Despite its importance as a trading hub, and the riches associated with it, throughout history few had even made the attempt to take it.
Vacuan military technology was not as advanced as Atlesian, but it was more than sufficient to ensure no threat was able to breach the sanctity of the city. Thankfully the marksman didn't consider them one and the scope moved on to scan the caravan of camels a few hundred metres behind them.
It had taken the pair of them almost three weeks to travel from the depths of the desert to something approaching civilization. They hadn't come directly. They'd stopped to pick up a few contracts along the way but, even so, over the past two years they'd had to get use to travelling slowly. Out here there was no market for public transport, and purchasing a pair of horses was still beyond them. Where they could they'd negotiated passage on the rare wagon they encountered, but most of the time they walked. At least they'd traded sand for something approaching a proper road.
As they neared the gap that heralded the entrance to Airtafae, the shadow of the cliffs fell across them. The relief on the few parts of her skin that had been exposed to the sun was heavenly and Yang let out a groan. Blake almost joined her. It wasn't just the shade. They were nearly home. Or at least what passed for it these days.
There was a small crowd gathered at the security checkpoint flanked by machinegun nests. Yang shrugged off her pack, searching it for her ID and paperwork, while Blake did likewise. The documents were one hundred percent genuine, only the Valesh papers they'd used to originally apply had been fake.
Living under an assumed name again was grating, but Ozpin hadn't left her much choice. She was just lucky that, once they'd been able to prove their talents, their application for residency had been fast-tracked. They were still on temporary visas, but with the number of contracts they'd completed it shouldn't be too hard to renew.
"What's your business in Airtafae?" The miserable-looking official didn't bother with a greeting, but even Yang had the sense to bite back any smart remarks that came to her mind. Petty bureaucrats lived for the day where someone decided to make a scene.
"We're residents, sir." Blake handed over her photo card. She'd already pulled down the material obscuring her face and thankfully he didn't ask her to remove her shemagh entirely. Even though Ozpin had massacred thousands of her kind, the Faunus had still come out from Vale appearing the bad guys.
Just as she'd known it would be, the backlash against Faunus right after the fall of Vale had been as severe as it was unjust. Ozpin had set a precedent; all over the world the populations had sought to copy him. Anyone who had even the slightest rumour linking them to the White Fang had been arrested at the best, lynched at the worst. It was likely she was among but a handful of former White Fang members who had survived.
The prejudice still existed but, as the years had passed with the Faunus too scared to even protest for their rights, it had died down somewhat. It was still easier for her to hide her heritage though. Not only would Ozpin be looking for a Faunus huntress, she could do without the associated complications.
"You're hunters right?" It was a redundant question. They'd handed over their licences as well.
"Yes, sir."
"Then you know the drill, get your weapons booked. Other than that everything appears in order." He stamped their papers and gestured them towards another official before looking past them. "Next."
Blake removed Gambol Shroud from her back and laid it on the table. In Airtafae there was no chance of a Grimm breach and, as such, no need for even hunters to carry weapons on the streets. However, unlike the general populace they weren't banned from doing so, theirs just had to be made safe first.
Normally the officials used the yellow wire ̶ ̶ stamped with a unique number ̶ ̶ to merely ensure that the weapon couldn't transform or be loaded. Gambol Shroud's sharpened sheath presented them with a larger problem. The man made his annoyance at her design obvious as he began winding the wire in an intricate pattern around the entire sheath. It wouldn't stop her using it, but if she did the breakages in the wire would be noticed the next time she left the city.
With their weapons secured they were finally allowed through the checkpoint and into the canyon proper. The walls loomed over them and Blake craned her head upwards. Only the smallest river of clear blue sky was visible above. Occasionally a figure was silhouetted against it, observing to ensure no trouble erupted where the narrow confines could cause tempers to flare.
The passage wasn't exactly crowded, not going by Vale's standards, but there were still more people here than they'd seen in entire days previously. She was a loner by most people's standards, but Blake found herself smiling as she listened in on the idle conversation of the traders with a pack-laden mule in front of her.
As they wound their way back and forth Yang nudged her. "What do you want to do first?"
Blake didn't need time to think about the question; she'd been fantasising about her return to civilization for the past few days. "I'm going to shower until I stop turning the water black, and then I'm going to lie in a nice hot bath until my skin shrivels up. Oh, and I want to eat something warm. You can bring it to me."
"I might just do that," Yang said shooting her a sly grin. Blake blushed as she tried to guess whether Yang was joking or not. Her comment had been an afterthought, but in their current situation Yang might not think twice of interrupting her in the bath.
"Right." Blake decided to treat it as a joke and forced out a laugh. "Or better yet, why don't we go to restaurant? I think we deserve it."
"Now that is a plan. But we should probably get our business out of the way first. Then we can relax."
Blake nodded. They had a couple of outstanding contracts to turn in, and the Falak venom they'd carried all this way would only continue to lose potency and value the longer it was left unrefrigerated.
At the other end of the pass they crossed through a set of metal gates and got their first view of the city in months. It might have been a modern city, but it hadn't lost its heritage. The various satraps who had ruled Airtafae over the centuries had resisted the urge to change what made their city unique.
The floor of the canyon was left mostly empty of permanent structures, and instead windows rose in tiers all around them. The houses here were more comfortable than Blake had originally thought they'd be. Sure there wasn't any natural light in the deeper rooms, but being deep within the rocks walls ensured they stayed cool in the day and warm at night.
Following the natural maze of chasms ̶ ̶ carved out by long forgotten rivers ̶ ̶ the city had little organised structure. It took them fifteen minutes to walk the district most frequented by hunters, and a further forty to negotiate the best prices from the number of shops located there. They left with their pockets metaphorically weighed down by the money transferred to their cards. The Falak might have come very close to killing her, but they'd made a killing from its venom.
Buoyed by the overall success of their trip the last few hundred metres became easier. Before long they'd ascended the four flights of stairs cut into the cliffs and reached a familiar door. Yang unlocked it and stepped through, dropping her pack to the floor. "Hello. We're back," she called into the darkness beyond.
There was a clatter from a different room and Blake was able to pick up hurried footsteps before a large figure burst into a corridor. "Yang!" Yang might have been six foot of almost pure muscle, but Taiyang made her seem little more than a child as he scooped her up into his arms. Yang completed the image by releasing a high-pitched giggle as she was swung around.
Blake smiled as she watched. The last two years had done wonders for their relationship. As it so often did, the realisation that they could have lost each other in Vale had made them reassess just how they had treated each other. Seeing them together never failed to raise Blake's spirits.
Taiyang lowered her to the ground before hugging her properly and kissing the top of her hair. They stayed that way for perhaps half a minute before he pushed her away. "You stink." His laugh took any real sting from the words.
"Well, unlike some we've been doing proper work. If you weren't so old, I'd say you should try spending a couple of months without seeing more than a cup of water at a time."
"True, true. I'd never be able to keep up with you youngsters. I'm just a frail old man." He put lie to the statement as he picked Yang up again. When he set her down he pushed her to the side and focused on Blake. "It's great to see you too."
Blake inclined her head in the slightest nod. With the given permission Taiyang gave her the same treatment as his daughter. He'd quickly learned that she wasn't always comfortable being touched, but he treated her like family all the same. It had come as surprise to Blake that she did view him as family. She'd long given up the thought of ever recapturing the closeness she'd once had. Taiyang in no way replaced her parents, but he was there for her in all the ways that counted.
"You were gone longer than I thought you would be." With their greetings completed Taiyang led them into the living room.
It was one of the rooms with a window and sunlight streamed through it. They'd been in Airtafae long enough to give it a personal touch. The walls were the standard rose-coloured rock, but the paintings Taiyang had hung gave them character. Yang flopped onto one of the comfortable sofas and Blake followed suit. The act of taking the weight off her feet almost caused her to groan out loud.
"Yeah," Yang admitted, "But you know how it is. You finish one contract and get wind of another. Then before you know it you're in the middle of nowhere chasing the largest Falak you've ever even heard of."
"Now that sounds like a story." Taiyang spoke from the kitchen. "What do you want? Tea, coffee, a beer?" Yang's head snapped around. "They're not mine. Your uncle brought them round."
Yang sat back. "A coffee will be fine." The foundation of their improved resurrected relationship had been Taiyang's abstinence of alcohol. He hadn't drunk since before Vale and he was so much better for it.
"One coffee coming up. Blake?"
"Do you have anything cool?" After baking all day the last thing she wanted to do was warm her body up more.
Taiyang rummaged around in the fridge. "Uhh… iced tea, fruit juice, or some soda."
"The tea please."
"Coming right up." A few moments later he set them down along with a platter of cupcakes. "So…" he said sitting back in a comfortable armchair. "Don't keep me waiting, tell me about that Falak."
Around one of the cakes that Yang had just stuffed into her mouth, she dived into the story, leaving out only the more intimate parts. It was a good one and Blake mainly listened, only offering up the occasional correction when it threatened to get too outlandish. Yang was a fan of embellishment.
Of course, parts of the story only sounded fabricated. Taiyang set down his mug and stared at Blake. "It ate you?"
"A little bit." She could laugh about it now. They both could.
"Damn…" Taiyang appeared genuinely impressed. Then he grinned. "Well that excuses Blake smelling, but not you Yang." Yang scowled at him. "Do you want to jump in the shower?"
"I will." Blake rose. Though she had been looking forward to getting clean, she mostly wanted to give Yang and her dad some time to catch up in private. She left them talking and made her way to the bathroom. Taiyang's flat wasn't enormous, but it was comfortable. Most importantly it gave both her and Yang somewhere to come home to.
When she left the bathroom it was with skin rubbed raw. Her belief had been correct; grime, dust, and dirt had been ground deep into her flesh. Seemingly only after removing the first few layers of her skin had the water stopped turning black on contact. Though, if her skin had been bad, her hair had been worse. A month of near-neglect had ensured it had the apparent texture of dried straw. Even after four separate shampoo and conditioner routines it wasn't much better.
The sensation of not being covered in dirt was good, but being able to step into some actually clean clothes was even better. The cotton was so soft it was almost as if she was wearing nothing at all. Being a huntress had perks, but it had drawbacks as well; the lack of available hygiene was definitely one of them.
Padding into the hallway on calloused feet she paused when she heard the distinctive sound of someone trying to hold back tears. The door to Yang's room was slightly ajar. She'd already showered in her dad's ensuite and was sitting on her bed with a scroll in her lap. She sniffed again.
Blake knocked softly. "Yang?"
Yang wiped her eyes before turning towards her. "Hey. You look pink." Her tone was one of false cheer.
Blake pushed the door open and sat on the bed next to Yang. "Is there still no news?" It was easy for her to deduce why Yang was crying over a scroll. This wasn't the first time this scene had played out.
Yang's face crumpled and she shook her head. The all familiar guilt reared up inside of Blake. It was only because of her that Yang had to live under an assumed identity. If not for that, she could have plastered her name and location all over the internet.
"She's ok Yang."
"How can you know that?" Yang rounded on her.
"I... I can feel it." In all honesty she couldn't. She had no supernatural sense as to whether Ruby was alive or not, but such pragmatism wasn't what Yang needed to hear at this moment. "What do you think? In your gut?"
"…That she's ok."
"Exactly. You need to trust your instincts here. Ruby's strong enough to cope with whatever is thrown at her."
"Yeah but ̶ ̶ "
"No buts." Yang definitely did not need to revisit the path of 'what if?' Blake knew from copious amounts of experience that it was entirely futile. "Ruby is ok, and one day there will be a message waiting for you." With a careful thumb Blake wiped away the solitary tear that had escaped onto Yang's cheek. "And no tears either. Do you think your dad wants to see you like this? We should be celebrating."
"You're right. You're right. Just like always." Yang leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. Yang's lips had been chafed and split by the harsh winds of the desert, but it didn't lessen the sensation for Blake. It seared through her nerves.
They hadn't really had all that much time to do anything romantic on the road. At the end of the day they'd been too exhausted, and during it they'd had to concentrate on the act of walking. Now they were both clean, and though still tired, they had an opportunity. Blake stared deep into Yang's eyes.
A heavy footfall in the corridor caused them to spring apart guiltily. Just like two teenagers, they looked at anything and everything but each other. Taiyang poked his head around the door. "I've booked the restaurant. I guessed you're both starving so we'll need to leave in about half an hour. And your uncle's just arrived."
Needless to say Qrow was just as thrilled at their safe return as Taiyang had been. Blake had found that he was a very difficult person not to like. He was funny, always had an amusing anecdote prepared, and had a dose of healthy cynicism that she could relate to perfectly.
He might not have given up drinking like Taiyang had, but he'd never visited them while drunk. The only times Blake had seen him like that was whenever he decided they needed to lighten up, and took them on a crawl through the city's bars and pubs.
Of course, Qrow always had a few good-natured jabs ready for his old teammate. He perhaps didn't understand why Taiyang was content teaching at a local school rather than heading out for the occasional thrill. Blake got it though. Taiyang wanted to ensure that he was here. Ensure that should Yang ever need him, he was available. Ensure that Yang, and she supposed by extension her, had a warm home to come back to.
There was a knock at the door. "I'll get it." Blake heaved herself up from the sofa. She was nearest anyway. When she saw who their unexpected guest was it took her a few moments to gather herself. "Raven."
"Good evening Blake." Raven was often overly formal, as if she didn't know how to act otherwise.
"I mean… yeah, good evening." After the very visceral initial impression Raven had made on Blake, it was still weird to see her in civilian attire. The comfortable blue dress and flats just felt out of place with neither garish mask nor sword in sight.
"Is Yang with you?" The question was tentative. Like with the rest of her family, Yang's relationship with her birth mother had improved. Though not quite to the extent it had with her dad or uncle, they at least were trying.
Yang must have overheard for she came abreast of Blake. "She is. Hi Raven." Raven hadn't yet earned the honorific of mum and Blake doubted she ever would. Some crimes were simply unforgivable. "You're actually lucky you caught us. We only got back from a hunt a couple of hours ago."
"Then I count myself as doubly fortunate. I only arrived in the city this afternoon."
For a moment Yang appeared as if she were going to ask where Raven had been, but she stopped herself. It was a pointless question. Raven only ever gave one answer, 'that it wasn't her place to tell them'. Whatever she did was secretive enough that she often disappeared for weeks or months at a time without a message but in Yang's words, 'At least she comes back.'
"Do you want to come in?" Blake asked. Raven was still standing on their doorstep. It was a fitting metaphor; despite all their efforts Raven hadn't been fully integrated into their lives yet.
"Yes, please."
"No you're not." Qrow brushed past them, set his hands on his sister's shoulders, and spun her around. "We were just about to get something to eat, and you're coming with us."
"I'll tell you what I've never met anyone so self-entitled in my entire life. He actually tried to set the guards on me when I knocked him on his ass for the first time." Blake sipped her wine as she listened to Qrow's latest story. "I mean, what did he think was going to happen? Luckily His Grand Excellency Satrap Aatish, as I was pointedly informed I am always to address him, gave me permission to knock his son on his ass as many times as it takes for him to learn to fight. You know, I thought it would take a month, maybe two. Now I'll be happy if he can swing a sword by the end of the year. I'm not even sure why I'm bothering!"
"Undoubtedly it has something to do with the piles of cash you're being paid," Taiyang said.
"You know what? You might just be right." He, Taiyang, and Yang burst into laughter.
Blake mustered a smile. So did Raven. The two of them had a lot in common. They both had a dark past, they both preferred listening to speaking, and they were both somewhat uncomfortable in social situations. She'd learned to cope and enjoy them, but it didn't appear that Raven had. Or maybe it was just spending an extended period with her daughter. That couldn't have been easy.
If it was ever going to get easier, she would have to continue to suffer through situations like this. A nice restaurant, a few drinks, and a good meal. Unfortunately, being thousands of miles from the sea, there had not been a single fish on the menu, but at least the only option hadn't been goat prepared a hundred and one different ways.
Just being able to chill out and relax was a novel experience. Her stomach was full, her head was swimming pleasantly, and tonight she'd be able to go to sleep with a book. It was at times like these that she realised just how lucky she was. Her life could have gone a completely differently and yet, she was here with people who cared for her.
"So Raven, how long are you in Airtafae for?" Raven jumped when Taiyang said her name. It appeared that her mind had been miles away.
"Umm… A few days, maybe a week. It depends how the negotiations go."
"Negotiations?" Qrow asked, his sister was never this forthcoming.
Raven's eyes widened and she set her almost empty wine glass down. "Please, forget I said anything. It's not ̶ ̶ "
"Your place. We know." Qrow finished for her.
Raven blushed. "Look, I don't have a choice."
"It's ok. You don't have to tell us if you can't," Yang spoke up. Though there was undoubtedly an element of truth to her words, Blake knew it wasn't the whole truth. Yang wanted to know what Raven was still involved in just as much as any of them, perhaps more so. At night she'd confided that she was worried that her trust was misplaced. Blake wasn't so sure any longer. Raven had been right about Ozpin. What else did she know?
An uneasy silence descended on the table. The source was obvious. Raven made them all uncomfortable. There was simply too much baggage between them for her not to. A resurrected sibling, a runaway lover, an abandoning mother. Looking in from the outside, Blake was able to see just how messed up they all really were. Not that they were prepared to give up.
"Well," Taiyang continued, "Why don't you tell us about something you can? What have you been doing to enjoy yourself?"
"Umm…" The look on Raven's face was one Blake recognised perfectly. It was one of someone desperately searching the halls of their memory for an activity that they thought others might find interesting. Blake was forced to admit it was another facet of their personality they had in common. Despite her ideal weekend being one where she could curl up with a book and do nothing, it simply wasn't an answer that was socially acceptable.
"Anything?" Qrow prompted.
"I… I went to a concert."
"Really?" Yang couldn't keep the scepticism out of her voice. Frankly it was a thought Blake shared. It would be hard to imagine Raven in the middle of a mosh pit. "Who was playing?"
"The Royal Symphonic Orchestra of Alfurat." That made much more sense for Blake. It also gave them another titbit of information. Raven's travels had taken her to the Vacuan capital.
"Since when did you like classical?" Qrow asked.
"It's something I picked up. In case you haven't noticed, rock died about twenty years ago."
"Too true." Taiyang smiled. "You should hear what these two listen to. And they have the nerve to try and call it music."
"Oh god, please save us your stories of how great everything was in the good old days. Just admit you're too ancient and decrepit to appreciate real talent." Yang stared down her father who only laughed.
"Real talent? Come back to me when they can play something without running it through a computer a dozen times. You might as well just sit there and listen to static from the amps. It's pretty much indistinguishable."
The argument brought Raven a welcome reprieve. It was one she took gratefully, leaning back in her chair, whatever secrets she held protected. Not that she was entirely silent. In music they had found a topic that she could contribute to.
The conversation carried them until after their desserts had been taken away and they were onto their second pot of coffee. The caffeine was the only thing keeping Blake awake. Her eyes were drooping when Taiyang looked at her slyly over his mug.
"So…" he let the word hang in the air. "Have you and Yang got anything to tell us?"
Blake choked on her drink, her fatigue suddenly entirely irrelevant. "What?"
"You know exactly what." If he'd only had suspicions before her reaction confirmed them.
"Really?" Qrow gave them the once over before going back to Taiyang.
"Yep. You should have seen have how they leapt apart when I interrupted them."
"Dad…" Yang put her forehead in her palm.
"So it's true?"
"We… decided to give it a trial run. Not that it's any of your business."
"Fair enough, but can I say one thing?"
"Fine," Yang made the concession through gritted teeth.
"I think I speak for everyone here when I say it's about time. No one could have gone through everything you two have, and stuck together through it, unless they had something special. You need to cherish what you have while you can, because you never know when it will be taken away." His eyes flickered towards Raven for a heartbeat, before he seemed to realise what he'd just said. "Not that I'm saying it's going to end badly, just…"
"We get it dad," Yang saved them all from his bumbling. "And thanks."
"Yeah, thanks," Blake added. She'd never really believed that Taiyang would have a problem should her and Yang's relationship move to the next level, but it had always been a nagging doubt.
Qrow raised his coffee in a toast. "So I guess we are celebrating then. To Yang and Blake. May they have many more successful hunts, both in the desert… and between the sheets."
"Qrow!" Taiyang spluttered. He might have accepted his daughter's choices, but that didn't mean he wanted to go into details. Qrow, entirely lacking of any form of propriety, wiggled his eyebrows.
As much as Blake wanted to curl up and die, she thought again on just how lucky she was to be here, sitting at this table, in a position to be the butt of a lewd joke. They all treated her like family and, even if things didn't work out with Yang, she was sure they wouldn't push her away.
In fact, at that moment, she was probably more like family than Raven was. Even if she raised her cup and smiled, she was on the periphery of the scene ̶ ̶ almost like looking through a window. There, but not quite. While she held onto her secrets, there would always be a barrier between her and everyone else. Blake had found that out the hard way.
They got kicked out of the restaurant and into the darkened street by the time-honoured fashion of their waiter asking if they desired the bill while the rest of the staff started stacking chairs. The coffee had helped somewhat, but Blake was still a little unsteady on her feet. Without realising it she'd really indulged herself on the wine.
They all had, and they'd all come to the same realisation when they'd seen the bill. The restaurant Taiyang had picked had not been cheap. Despite the price they'd all insisted on paying for it. Taiyang and Qrow had wanted to treat them, she and Yang wanted to spend some of their hard-earned lien on what really mattered, but it was Raven who had settled the argument, merely stalking off to the register. Whatever her job was, it obviously paid well.
They'd stayed until well after most other establishments had closed, only a handful of windows remained lit showcasing elaborate handbags from the catwalks of Dione and the latest must-have gadgets. Despite the rose walls of the canyons rising around them, the customary chill of the desert at night had returned. Perhaps not to the extent that they'd experienced it, but enough that Blake was thankful for her embroidered headscarf. She hadn't had a religious revelation, it was just a convenient way to hide her ears from sight.
"Have you got somewhere to stay Raven?" Qrow asked.
"Yes thank you. Though I would like to walk you all home."
Qrow laughed. "You think we'll get into trouble without you?"
"No." Raven turned her head away and looked down what surpassed for a street in Airtafae. "It's just been a pleasant night."
And she didn't want it to end. That was what Blake took away. She had to wonder just how many times Raven got to do something like this. Go out for a meal, a drink, just talk. After what she'd done to Yang, Blake never should have felt sorry for her, but she did. She very much doubted Raven had any friends at all.
"We should definitely do it again if you have time before you leave," Taiyang said. "Shouldn't we Yang?"
Yang didn't take long to answer. She would have enjoyed the evening anyway, but it had given her another opportunity to find out just a little more about Raven. "Definitely, it's been fun."
The simple statement couldn't have meant more to Raven. Her eyes glittered and she started away to hide the tears. As a group they descended from the terrace of restaurants and shops to the floor of the canyon. With an ever growing population Airtafae, had been forced to grow up rather than out. Most of the city only had two or three levels of buildings carved into the walls, other parts had far more.
Like the rest of the world, the density of the population almost perfectly correlated with wealth. Taiyang's flat wasn't in the most expensive part of the city, but his steady job, coupled with a portion of what the two of them earned, meant that it wasn't in the cheapest either.
Vacating what would be referred to as the downtown district in other cities, the number of people they saw dropped dramatically. One of the things that Blake noticed living here was that the nightlife was close to non-existent. The intolerable heat in the middle of the day meant that most jobs started before dawn and took an extended lunch.
In the midst of her mind wandering Blake's ears swivelled beneath her headscarf. "Did you hear that?"
Yang looked around from her conversation with Qrow. "What?"
"I … nothing." She would have thought she'd had too much to drink, if not for the fact Raven's body had tensed up. Blake moved forward to walk next to her. "Did you?"
Raven replied with a finger on the lips. Everyone else came to a stop and stared at the pair of them. Blake heard it again. A quiet but high-pitched sound. Almost like a muffled shriek. It might have been barely audible, but while actively listening for it she'd managed to pick up a direction.
"It came from over there." Raven nodded her agreement.
Blake ran towards the source. It wasn't easy for even her to pinpoint. The noise echoed from the maze of rock. They'd passed into one of the cheaper living areas and small dwellings rose up above them. Blake charged past the doors, heedless if she woke the occupants within. Her sole focus was listening for the disturbance again.
She skidded on the floor as she rounded a corner into a chasm that only had doors on one side. Most of them were broken or boarded up. Right up at the far end, in the gloom away from the lit street behind her, two figures grappled in the shadows.
It wasn't much of a contest. One was tall and muscular. The other was small, barely more than a child. She was wearing a blue dress and fighting to free herself of the hand over her mouth. The teenager dragged her towards one of the abandoned buildings.
"Hey!" Blake shouted putting on a fresh burst of speed. The teenager looked up, his eyes widening at the sight of her and Raven sprinting towards him. He pushed the girl away and she stumbled in the dirt. Trusting Raven to deal with the aggressor Blake caught her before she fell.
The girl trembled against her, her pigtails shaking with fear. "You're going to be ok. He's not going to be able to hurt you any longer." She didn't think the girl believed her. She was terrified.
Raven hadn't attacked the teenager. What struck Blake most was the complete lack of fear in his stance. Interrupted by a group of five in the middle of an attempted rape of a child, she would have expected him to be cowering away from vigilante justice. Instead he just stood impassively ten feet from them.
The reason for his demeanour became apparent a moment later. Another figure in dark clothes stepped from one of the seemingly abandoned buildings trapping them in the alley. So he had a friend, no wonder he didn't seem afraid.
The pair of them made a very large misjudgement though. They saw five people. One large guy who would be a problem, a skinnier guy who might be, and three women. In the dresses and shirts suitable for a fancy restaurant they didn't seem like much. There was no way their attackers could have known they were sharing the alley with five hunters. They were in for a shock.
Taiyang turned to face the one behind him. "I'm going to give you a chance. Leave or you're going to get hurt." Taiyang's voice was deep enough the ground almost seemed to shake.
If the threat had any effect on their ambushers they showed no reaction. In fact the pair of them seemed almost emotionless.
"Blake," Raven said in a deliberately calm voice, "Step away from her."
What? Blake looked down the girl she was cradling. Now she looked more closely she noticed that the terror on her face entirely failed to make it all the way to her sapphire eyes. The next thing she knew she was landing in a crumpled heap a dozen feet away, her vision flaring with the white of agony.
Someone might have called her name. She couldn't be sure. Gingerly her hand probed her side. One… two broken ribs. She'd had more than enough experience to recognise that delightful pain. It didn't seem possible, but Raven's warning had saved her. She'd caught the movement of the girl's arm the instant before she's struck. Her Aura had flared instinctively. Without it Blake had no doubt she'd be dead.
Someone shook her. Her vision wasn't clear, but she knew it was Yang. She ignored the questions about her state. "Help me up," she growled. It hurt so much she could barely think, but she knew the worst place to be in a fight was immobile on the ground.
The little girl who'd catapulted her through the air with a single palm had retreated to stand next to her attacker. Her façade of terror had been replaced by cool neutrality.
"Her presence was not foreseen." The girl's voice was as high-pitched as her shrieks had been. They were staring at Raven.
"No." Her attacker answered.
"Does that mean?" The one behind Blake spoke.
"Most likely." It was almost as if they were sharing more information than the mere words conveyed.
"She…"
"…is here." The girl finished the other's sentence.
"Do we proceed?"
"Yes."
The nuances of what they were talking about were beyond Blake in her pain filled state, but she'd deduced what they were and Yang had as well. "Tinmen," she whispered under her breath.
Cold dread sank into Blake's stomach. She'd always known this day would come. Ever since she'd seen her picture on the news. Throughout all of her time at Beacon she'd been right under Ozpin's nose. He'd known that some part of her backstory wasn't true, but she'd always been able to deceive him, lie straight to his face. After his massacre of the White Fang she was one of the last. He wouldn't be content merely to arrest her. If he couldn't have her, a death in an alley would likely be sufficient, and who would carry it out but his enforcers?
She hadn't even believed that the imaginary line on the border with Vacuo would provide her refuge. Some might have thought it not worth causing a diplomatic incident to hunt down a fugitive, but she wasn't just a fugitive. By tricking Ozpin she'd made it personal. Pride was a cruel master, and cruellest amongst those with absolute power.
She couldn't fight them. She was good, but they were better. The shaky videos online had failed to reveal a weakness, a way of fighting them off, winning, and to her knowledge, no one had managed it. There was only one way they were going to get out of this alive.
"I'm going to draw them away. You need to run." Of course Blake harboured no suspicions about her ability to lose them in her current state. She only hoped to buy the others enough time.
Yang's grip on her upper arm tightened until the fingers were rigid points of additional pain. "You promised!"
Blake had the sudden realisation of what Yang was referring to. She had promised, and this time she'd actually meant it. But that was before they'd landed in this scenario all because of her. She would willingly give her life if it meant Yang survived, but Yang was also right. She had to try to keep it, at least before it was necessary to break it. "I'm sorry." She didn't pull away, but she also hadn't relaxed her stance.
"You will be when we get through this."
"Yang, stay behind me." Taiyang had closed in on them, shielding them with his bulk.
"Are any of you armed?" Raven didn't bother to whisper. The Tinmen would have heard it anyway.
The question only compounded Blake's feeling of stupidity. She'd thought she was safe in the city. Gambol Shroud was leant against the wall in her room. She didn't even have a knife strapped to her arm. All the lessons she'd learned in the White Fang about being prepared at every instant had been forgotten. It brought her little solace that no one answered in the affirmative.
"Then I'll take the two in front. We can't let them leave here. Qrow, Tai, try and hold up the other one. They aren't invincible. I promise you that." Her tone was dark, leaving them to guess just how she knew. Raven might have sounded calm, but she wasn't armed either.
"Where is she?" The girl asked.
"You won't find out," Raven hissed leaping forwards. A black and red portal flashed into existence, and Raven thrust her arm through it, withdrawing it a moment later with a long sheath in her hand. A crimson blade flared into existence, a dull light in the alley.
Raven may have been fast, she might have summoned her weapon and attacked in an instant, but the Tinmen were faster. The girl leapt away from the strike that would have decapitated her as the panels on her back swung open. Floating swords flew out, spinning in the air and launching themselves at Raven. Fire erupted where they were parried.
Taiyang's arm knocked both Blake and Yang away and to the ground. The impact was not kind on her ribs, but Blake managed to carry some of her momentum and roll to her feet. The two blades that had only just missed them reverted in their course and speared straight towards her.
Her Shadow died horribly as she reappeared a few feet away. With a roar Taiyang threw both his fists at the ground. Rather than rebound they plunged straight into the stone. A moment later he rushed at the Tinman, his arms covered in a layer of the red rock the city was known for.
With his impromptu gauntlets he batted a sword away and threw a jab at the Tinman's face. He wasn't even close to being fast enough. The Tinman dodged his blows effortlessly, and returned his attack in kind. The half dozen blades were too numerous and too fast for Taiyang to block. They were mere flashes in the street as they bounced from his Aura. Only pure strength of will kept him on his feet and the Tinman away from his daughter.
He couldn't manage much, but he could manage more than Qrow. No birds roamed this deep in the desert and his lithe form didn't have the raw strength of his old partner's. He might have been unarmed, but he wasn't a coward. He ran in and at least tried to be a nuisance. It didn't work. One Tinman was more than a match for the pair of them. Despite the precariousness of the situation their protective instincts remained. Taiyang twisted and turned, keeping himself between the Tinman and his daughter. It wouldn't have made much of difference even had he allowed her to fight. Unarmed as they were the Tinman was a match for all of them.
They were just lucky that the other pair was concentrating on Raven. There was something truly terrifying about seeing such a young girl involved in such an act of barbarity without showing the slightest hint of emotion. Not battlelust, not horror, not enjoyment, and not fear. Absolutely nothing marred her face, no matter how close Raven's blades came or even sank in. Armed with a weapon she at least was giving as good as she got.
The alleyway was chaos. Dozens of swords flew through the air, pulses of lasers melting rock. Raven fought furiously, barely more than a flicker as she dived in and out of portals trying to strike the Tinmen. It wasn't working. Blood matted her dress, the thin material hanging limp from a rent in its side. Only a few shallow silver scores marked where Raven's attacks had been successful.
Blake knew they couldn't win here. She could barely breathe through her broken ribs, and even armed she doubted she could have bested one of the Tinmen. They were designed and engineered for combat. Even Raven seemed inferior to them.
The promise she'd made Yang floated through her mind, taunting her. In that exact moment she knew she had to break it. The two Tinmen in front were focusing on Raven, but the other was still trying to kill her. His blades flying towards her whenever they managed to get past her three defenders. He would follow her if she ran. She could at least give Yang and the others a chance at life.
Raven cried out as a sword sank home, lasers flashed into her limbs, burning her flesh dark. She stumbled backwards, her legs unsteady and her fair skin matted with blood. She threw out an arm and a portal flared into life. "Run!" Raven shouted with the last of her strength.
Taiyang and Qrow didn't need a second invitation. They were both veterans and weren't too proud to admit that there were some battles that simply couldn't be won. Taiyang threw Raven over his shoulder and leapt through the portal. Qrow grabbed Blake roughly by the arm and dragged her and Yang through a heartbeat later.
Blake's stomach flipped over and her eyes tried to adjust the sudden brightness. The portal collapsed, but not fast enough. Three figures jumped through, the last diving through a hole barely larger than her hips. She rolled to her feet, her swords in position at her back.
Their escape had carried them into a large room, but it wasn't enough. Raven leant heavily on Taiyang, Blake could barely stand, and the rest weren't much better. She knew they were done for. The Tinmen looked over them, deciding who to finish first. Blake gritted her teeth. The one thing she was sure about was that she wouldn't die on her knees.
The soft humming from the floating blades intensified and they shot forwards. They hissed straight past Blake and towards the other side of the room. Incandescent light flared, searing Blake's retina. Through it all she witnessed the swarm of swords get disdainfully slapped aside.
A figure stepped through the fire and the smoke. Her red dress aflame, her raven hair streaming out behind her. The woman raised her hands. The two nearest Tinmen staggered backwards, tendrils of magma wrapping around them, burning through the synthetic flesh and slicing into the bodies beyond.
Only the girl remained. The woman gave her no chance to surrender. An inferno hotter than any before surged into life. The carpet burned, the curtains caught alight, and Blake's clothes and hair smouldered. Her primal fear of fire took precedence in her mind. She cowered away from the conflagration. The woman didn't. She stared at what she was doing and there wasn't a trace of pity on her face. Only an intensity of fury that Blake had never witnessed in her life.
The crackling roar ceased and, of the girl, only molten liquid remained. The woman closed her fist and all the fires in the room were quenched in an instant. She turned towards the last of the intruders, her skin glowing bright white, and Blake felt the full force of her rage. It was almost a physical thing. She'd known dangerous people in her life, deranged people, but never before one had caused her heart to stop with a look. It was as if the weight of presence transcended that of a mere mortal. Blake recognised her of course, after what the display of power she'd seen in the fall of Vale, she'd never forget.
Cinder's gaze lingered on all of them, before coming to settle on Raven. "What is this meaning of this?"
Raven looked at her before giving a small helpless laugh. With blood dribbling down her chin she turned towards her daughter.
"Yang, meet your grandmother."
A/N: I can pretty much guarantee you weren't expecting that. I'm also certain this is the only story in the fandom where Cinder is Yang's grandmother. I wonder if you saw the hints. I doubt it. Please let me know what you think and remember to follow/favourite if you enjoyed.