Chapter 15:

Be Our Guest

Bloodborne is property of Fromsoftware. RWBY is property of Rooster Teeth

"Talking"

"Mental Speech"

/+/+/+/+/

Qrow thanked the gods that Summer and Tai hadn't asked too many question about how he got Gehrman to agree to the dinner—he wasn't entirely sure himself—instead handing the phone to Yang and Ruby so they could pester him about whatever the hell came to their minds—ranging from favorite colors to the best weapons (that one was mostly Ruby)—until midnight (Tai, it would seem, was still pissed about the week-long sugar rush he gave the girls before hightailing it out of Patch).

Getting to Patch was another, easier matter entirely. When word got around that the 'Butcher' was booking a bullhead, all the other passengers found some reason or other to cancel their trips for the day. Even the ones not heading to Vale.

Of course, that left him alone with Gehrman in a confined metal box flying miles above the ground. On the bright side, if he disappeared, people would quickly notice.

…Ah, that wasn't fair. Gehrman was creepy and didn't bat an eye at killing or crippling someone, but he wasn't a monster. He did save Summer, after all. Ideally, that should have earned him brownie points for life. But…well, then he went on to become the 'Butcher of Sanus' (he upgraded from the 'Butcher of Vale').

Gehrman didn't seem to mind the silence, though. He was content to read his scroll, not making a peep. That was a different kind of creepy.

Deciding to extend the olive branch (because Summer would give him a disappointed and exasperated stare if she found out he spent hours with the man and didn't even try to talk with him) Qrow asked, "What are you reading?"

"An article on the differences between Faunus and Human genetic material."

"…Ah."

"It's really quite fascinating," the tall man said without looking up from his phone. "There's actually very little difference between the two species; which is obvious given the fact that they can interbreed and produce fertile offspring. The specifics of it all are quite fascinating."

"Really?" Qrow asked, cursing his big mouth (and Summer for instilling an intense fear of disappointing her).

"Indeed." Gehrman looked up, then, and arched a brow, "Are you actually interested, or simply being polite? Because there is no wearier a conversation than one with an unwilling participant."

Gods the man was long-winded. But Qrow was bored, and he didn't want to get drunk right now, so he said, "By all means, go on."

Gehrman stared at him, before nodding, "Did you know there is no rhyme-or-reason as to whether a child born of a human-faunus pair will be a human or a faunus?"

Qrow considered the question, "No, but it makes sense." He crossed his arms, "Mankind used to keep faunus as slaves, and more than a few people, er…" he trailed off,

"Raped them," Gehrman concluded with a wave of his hand, "We're both adults, Qrow."

The red-eyed man chuckled, "Fair enough…But yeah, if either species had truly dominant genes, one would be nearly wiped out by now."

"Correct."

"But…there's a lot of humans out there that have a faunus ancestor somewhere down the line. Pretty sure I have one." It's the most likely reason, Ozpin had told him, why he and Raven could transform into birds. Otherwise they would have become something like a dog or cat or even a fish. Which brought something else to mind. "What about aquatic and amphibious faunus—the ones that have to live near water?"

Gehrman blinked, "That…is not something I've come across." He looked back at his screen, eyes narrowing, "…Ah, here we are…oh."

"Find something?"

"Some of them lay eggs."

"What?"

"Yes," Gehrman moved closer, showing Qrow his scroll. On the screen were (clinically tasteful) photos of different type of aquatic faunus. Some had gills, others scales, or webbed hands and toes. And, strangest of all, perhaps, were the ones that didn't have legs, but fish (or dolphin) tails. To be honest, he thought that last type was a myth humans made up to mock faunus.

Gehrman took back the scroll, scowling as he typed on it, "…There doesn't seem to be any literature on the subject." He hummed, looking away from the device, "Well, obviously, the ones with only gills and such would be able to breed with humans. But the ones with fins, the ones that lay eggs? How are they inseminated? Does a male just ejaculate on a clutch of eggs and call it a day?" Qrow cringed at that mental image. "Considering how emotionally vital the act of intimacy can be for the majority of people, it doesn't seem like those type of faunus would come across that many willing partners."

Qrow grunted, "There's other faunus of that type, you know. They tend to be close-knit communities—can't be a shortage of potential partners."

"Ah," Gehrman raised a finger, "but we're discussing how human-faunus crossbreeding works."

Qrow hummed, surprising himself when he actually considered the problem. Was he…actually getting along with Gehrman? About the intricacies of faunus/human reproduction? He decided to move on and accept the weird, before it swallowed him whole. "Well," he said after a moment, "with the advent of the internet, and the global connection that came along with it, it'd be easier for aquatic faunus to find a willing partner. There's all kinds of people in the world."

"But what of the children?" Gehrman asked, "Would non-aquatic children risk drowning? Is it even possible for a pure, technically at any rate, human to come to term under such circumstances?"

Qrow clicked his tongue, further drawn into the second strangest conversation he'd ever had to pleasure of participating in (the first being the time Ozpin asked him and Raven if they'd like to gain magic powers to fight a shadow war against a genocidal maniac).

/+/+/+/+/

Summer let out a breath, smoothing out her jeans, and readjusting her eyepatch (a plain black one, no matter how much she wanted to show off Ruby and Yang's drawing 'skills'), "Everything ready?"

"We can still call this off," Tai said in lieu of a response.

Summer sniffed, lightly slapping his shoulder, "Too late for that, they landed this morning. And we bought that wine on Qrow's recommendation."

"We can say the girls have the flu."

"Yang and Ruby are looking forward to this more than we are," she reminded him.

Tai grimaced, "That's not a good way to change my mind."

"All they know," Summer said, brushing some lint off his dress shirt, "is that the man that saved my life is coming over for dinner."

"Yeah, yeah," her husband sighed, "…They don't know what he's been doing, right?"

"I'm sure," Summer nodded, "Yang would've started yelling at us for putting Ruby in danger."

Tai smiled, "At least one of us has a good head on their shoulders."

Summer pat his cheek, "And what a surprise, it's the other blonde."

"Hey, we're Xiao-Longs! We're trendsetters!"

Summer blinked, "Yang's using your last name?"

A shrug, "I've been looking through her schoolwork. She's been signing stuff as 'Yang Xiao-Long' more often than 'Yang Rose'." He looked down at her, a frown on his face, "Is that a problem?"

"Nope," she replied, smiling up at him. "It rolls off the tongue better anyway. Besides," she crossed her arms, "Ruby's probably taking my name."

"The alliteration is appealing."

Summer smiled softly, "And she's already preferring red clothes."

"Does make her easier to shop for than Yang." They chuckled, remembering the lost shopping trip they took their children on, which their eldest daughter quickly took over. Even though their finances took a bit of a hit (Yang having just started learning to weaponize her pout, and teaching Ruby to do the same) Summer still considered the day a win. She'd only banged her legs on three things that day!

Ding-Ding-Dong-Ding-Dong-Ding-Ding-Dong

Summer took a deep breath, "Into the breach we go." Tai smirked, leading the way to the front door.

Ruby and Yang came zooming in from their room. Ruby wore a simple red sundress, and Yang wore a new outfit she'd bought—a green floral blouse and a long (stopping just below her knees), purple plaid skirt. Ruby smiled at them, "They're here?!"

Tai stopped before them, smoothing out their youngest child's dress, "Yes. Now remember, be polite. Uncle Qrow said that Gehrman's a quiet person. So, don't get mad, Yang," he sent a flat stare at their eldest, "if he doesn't tell you everything you want to know."

Yang huffed but kept silent. She wasn't a brat, but their little girl had a temper on her. The most consistent trigger seemed to be when her flowing, golden blonde hair got dirty or mussed up (Summer feared the day when they finally went to get her a haircut).

Leaving Tai to fuss over the girls, Summer strode over to the door. She opened it, smiling at Qrow's lanky form. Only for her lips to into a frown at the nervous quiver in his lips. "What's wrong?" she asked.

He looked her up and down, "Oh, uh, it's just that…Gehrman," his voice dropped to a whisper.

Summer gasped, paling—oh god, had he killed someone in Patch?!

"Nothing like you're thinking!" he reassured her. "It's just…uh…"

"Is something the matter, Qrow?" came a smooth, low voice that Summer could just barely recognize. Qrow sighed and stepped aside revealing—oh!

The first thing that struck Summer was the top hat. She'd heard that he liked to wear one while…in the field, but this one was pitch-black, with a shiny, red velvet trim. A fancy man's hat.

He wore what she wanted to call a tuxedo, but she knew that wasn't it. It was…fancier than that, more colorful than a standard penguin suit. Not to say that it was tie-dye or anything, but he had on a dark brown coat, a red vest with silver accents, and a white dress shirt on underneath it all. His pants were plain black, but his shoes were shiny black, had buttons, and came to a sharp point.

It looked like he was going to an Atlesian ball.

Gehrman tilted his head, looking Summer up-and-down. He turned to Qrow, "…Perhaps I did overdress."

"You're fine!" Summer said, even as her cheeks reddened over the comparison to her very, very plain attire. She cleared her throat, stepping aside and beckoning his and Qrow forward, "Please, come in."

Qrow burst forward without further preamble, Yang and Ruby shouting his name when he entered the living room. Gehrman took his time, taking off his hat and looking at their house as he walked up to her. Oh gods, was he secretly royalty or something? Would he make snooty remarks about how lacking they were out in the boonies?

Her fears were for naught, however, when he directed his gaze to her, smiling slightly, "You have a lovely home."

Summer smiled, relaxing a bit. "Wait until you see the inside!"

"You seem to be adjusting well," he said as she closed the door behind him.

Summer nodded, smile fading a touch, "It's gotten better, over time. I'm just glad I've got Tai, the girls, and Qrow to help me through it."

"Yes," she couldn't see his face, but his shoulders slumped a bit, voice dropping to a sort of melancholy, "A good, supportive base can work wonders for the healing process." Before Summer could even think about prying further, Gehrman's spine straightened, and he picked up the pace.

She had to admit, the dumbstruck look on Tai and the girls' faces (the latter two's jaws even falling open) was hilarious. A giggle burst past her lips before she could stamp it down. Tai subtly shook his head, but instead of glaring at her, he gestured to the left wall, "There's a rack for you to hang your, uh, things."

"Thank you," Gehrman bowed—bowed!—and walked over to the coatrack. He placed his hat atop it, and took off his coat with an impressive flourish, revealing that the back of his vest was solid gray, but bore the same silver markings as the front.

"Are you a king?" Ruby's voice broke through the silence. Summer looked down her to see Yang nodding her head.

Gehrman smirked, "No, child. I am not royalty."

Ruby blinked, "My name's Ruby."

"Of course." Gehrman turned to Yang, raising a brow.

The blonde girl startled, snapping her jaw shut, an easy smile forming on her face. "I'm Yang!"

Gehrman bowed—this was the guy people called 'The Butcher'?—once more, earning a giggle from the girls. "A pleasure to formally make your acquaintance."

"You talk funny!" Ruby said amidst giggles.

Gehrman smirked once more, saying, "I've been appraised as to the loquacious manner with which I speak," and earning another round of giggles. Like a wave, the tension hanging over the remaining three-fourths of team STRQ oozed out of them.

Tai especially; he sighed, loosening his spine as he walked up to the girls, "Why don't we take our seats?" They nodded, Ruby grabbing his hand as they walked to the table. Qrow followed after them. Summer made to follow, only for Gehrman to tap her shoulder.

She turned, blinking at his stern expression, "I can assume," he whispered, "you haven't informed your children as to the particulars of what it is I do."

Summer nodded, narrowing her eye, "That's right. And we plan on keeping it that way."

"Of course." The tall Huntsman's lips pulled into a polite smile, and he offered his arm out to Summer.

She blinked, chuckling, and taking the arm, "My, such a gentleman."

"I've found that elegance is the height of humanity," Gehrman replied as she led them to the dining room, and the large round table where they would be having their meal.

Qrow—pouring out the wine he told them to buy—stared at the two of them, cursing when the wine almost spilled over. Yang and Ruby—sitting right next to each other as usual—hunched closer together, whispering as they stared at Gehrman. Summer was able to catch the words 'liar' and 'secret' and 'royalty'—something Gehrman must've heard as well, given the way lips twitched into a wider smile.

Tai walked in with their dinner—roast beef, pasta salad, and (despite the girls' protests) a large mix of vegetables. Summer separated from Gehrman, taking a seat to the right of Yang, a space for Tai to her left. Gehrman sat next to Qrow—directly across from Ruby.

Gehrman pulled his seat out with an amount of grace Summer didn't think was possible (and was almost certainly unneeded). He sat down, arms on his lap, nose twitching as Tai put the dishes down, but he kept silent. He did move when Qrow slid a glass of wine in front of him. He raised his left arm, taking the glass and giving it a soft sniff. He blinked, took a sip, and smirked at Qrow, "I see you've informed them of preferences."

"There's only, like, four different types."

"Actually, there are five different types of wine, crafted depending on the occasion, each type having their own multiple subtypes based upon the kind of grape, the amount of time spent fermenting it, the specific mixtures and—" he broke off into a chuckle, "My apologies, I appear to be boring you all."

Summer blinked, breaking out of her bored (not that she would ever admit it) stupor and blushing heavily. She opened her mouth but failed to come up with an appropriate response (she'd expected stunned silence at least once this evening, but not over wine!).

Tai, thankfully, picked up her slack. "Uh, me and Summer don't really drink."

"I prefer harder stuff," Qrow added, taking a drink of his glass, scrunching his face, and downing the rest of it.

"Me and Ruby are kids," Yang piped up.

Ruby nodded, "We only drink milk!"

Yang huffed, "Only you keep drinking that."

"Cause I wanna grow to be big and strong Huntress!" She beamed at Gehrman, "Like you, Mister Geh—Gee—Gah," she stumbled over Gehrman's name.

"Gehrman," the man supplied.

"Mister Geerman," Ruby said, only for her face to pinch, knowing she mispronounced it.

"Gehr-man," the tall Huntsman repeated.

"Grrman." Yang failed to hide a giggle behind her hands.

"Gehr-man."

"Gremlin." That one might have been on purpose.

Gehrman's eye twitched. He sighed, waving a hand in the air, "You may call me 'Mr. G' until you gain a better grasp on the pronunciation."

Ruby nodded, "Okay, Mr. G." She tilted her head, "What were we talking about?"

"You were saying that you wish to be a strong Huntress. However," he held up a finger, stopping Ruby from blasting off, "I believe talk of the future can wait. The food shall not be warm forever, after all." Ruby frowned, but she did nod, leaning back into her seat.

Tai took that as his cue. Clearing his throat, he said, "Please, dig in." And they did. At least, they tried.

Summer knew it was rude, but her eye kept getting drawn to Gehrman. Now even she entertained the thought that he was some sort of king-in-disguise. He did everything with a subtle flourish; putting his napkin on his lap, getting his servings, eating his food, drinking his wine, wiping his mouth! It was absurd and, honestly, made her a little self-conscious.

"No, I think it's like this."

"Nuh-uh, like this!"

Summer blinked at the harsh whispers, turning to spy her daughters trying (and failing) to emulate Gehrman's fancy table manners.

"Children," Gehrman's calm voice made them freeze (and Tai jump in his seat. Qrow managed to stay in his seat, though his eyes did narrow slightly). Gehrman looked at the blushing girls, holding his hands out, "hold them like this. See how the knife rest against my fingers? The fork against my palm?" The girls hummed in understanding, mimicking his actions. At his approving nod, they started eating with gusto.

"Ah, Yang," Tai sighed when their eldest daughter started stuffing her cheeks.

"It is quite unseemly," Gehrman said, eyes returning to his food, "to stuff your mouth with as much food as you are able."

Yang looked down, chastised, only to glare as Ruby grinned at her, "Yuh, Yuhng!"

"As is speaking with your mouth full." Now it was Ruby's turn to look down, though Yang limited herself to a satisfied smirk.

The fell into silence once again, the scraping of utensils against plates (from everyone but Gehrman, somehow) filling the room. No one said anything until Qrow (finishing first, as usual) sighed, leaning against his seat and patting his stomach. He gently elbowed Gehrman, "Nothing like a homecooked meal, eh?"

The sharply dressed man jerked, the napkin he was cleaning his lips with pushing against his mouth. He narrowed his eyes at Qrow (who's smile faltered under the intense gaze), before huffing through his nose, pulling away the napkin to reveal the smile spreading across his lips. "While I do prefer my meat to be rare, this was a delectable meal. Perhaps the best one I've had in years. My compliments to the chef." He looked between Tai and Summer.

"Don't mention it," her husband said.

"We helped!" Ruby cried, Yang nodding eagerly beside her.

"Ah," Gehrman nodded, eyes crinkling, "I thought it had a…special touch." The girls giggled, and Summer felt a slight pang in her heart. Normally, everyone cooked together, but she still didn't trust herself around sharp objects in a small space. Soon, though. Soon things would really get back to normal.

Tai cleared his throat once more, "Anyone care for dessert? Got a cake in the fridge."

"No thank you," Gehrman replied. Summer and Qrow offered similar, if silent, responses.

"We do!" Yang shouted. "I mean," she coughed into her hand, straightening her back and crossing her hands on her lap, "We would like some dessert, yes."

"Yes, we would," Ruby nodded, mimicking her sister mimicking Gehrman.

Summer resisted the urge to coo, instead rising to her feet, saying, "I've got the dishes." Tai nodded, heading for the kitchen.

"Let me help," Qrow said, gathering his and Gehrman's used dishes.

He followed her to the kitchen, where Tai was cutting up the cake—strawberry, at Ruby's insistence. Her husband chuckled when they got closer.

"What is it?" Summer tilted her head, putting the dirty dishes in the sink.

"Just," Tai shook his head, a wide smile on his face, "the girls learned more table manners in the last hour than their entire lives."

"Yeah, that's weird," Summer agreed. She turned to Qrow, "Did you—"

He cut her off with a shake of his head, "I didn't know he could put a Schnee to shame, no."

Tai blinked, "'A Schnee'? Why is that your default? You meet any of them recently?"

"No," their teammate shook his head, "But you know any other famously hoity-toity families?"

Summer hummed, "…You know, not off the top of my head."

"To be fair," Tai said, grabbing the girls' plates, "they are the richest family on Remnant. Can't go five miles without seeing their logo slapped onto something."

"At least it's nice to look at," Qrow shrugged, she and him following Tai back to the table. Where they saw that Yang and Ruby taken the seats on either side of Gehrman, staring up at him in awe (Ruby especially).

"—was a genius feat of engineering, if I do say so myself. I—ah," Gehrman nodded at their approach, "I believe your desert is here."

But to Summer's surprise, instead of immediately grabbing the sugary sweet, Ruby started hopping in her seat. "MommyMommyMommyMommy!" she shouted, "Mr. G made his first weapon by himself!"

Summer smiled, reaching out and ruffling her daughter's hair, "Most Huntsmen make their first—if not every—personal weapon."

Yang rapidly shook her head, "No, Mom. He actually made it. Every part with his own two hands!"

Summer cocked a brow at that, "Really?"

"Wait," Qrow said at the same time, "…Yeah, I remember. Your weapon's handle was originally wood, right?"

Gehrman nodded, "Correct." Summer furrowed her brow; wood? Either he was a fan of classics (which, given his current clothes, he very well may have been) or he couldn't afford better materials when he started out.

"He chopped down a giant tree all by himself!" Yang shouted pumping her fists, "And then he grabbed a shooting star and carved his blade out of it!"

"What?" Tai asked with a chuckle.

"I found a meteorite in the woods one day," Gehrman supplied. "I didn't immediately use it to make a weapon—when I was younger, I just liked to look at it as it shone in the sunlight." He shrugged, "When I decided to devote my life to hunting beasts, I decided, instead of buying metal or trying to mine it out of the ground myself, I'd just roll the metorite over to a blacksmith that owed me a favor."

Summer blinked, "Wait…you're telling us that…you're weapon—"

"It's a space sword!" Ruby shrieked. "Have you ever heard of anything so AWESOME?!"

Tai looked at Ruby, then Summer, "…Honestly?"

Summer smiled and shrugged; the Silver Eyes were very useful, but she and Ruby were just one of many who had it throughout history. A space weapon was, truly, unique. And awesome.

"Can we see it?!" Yang asked, leaning closer and smiling up at Gehrman.

"I think not," Gehrman said.

"Why?!" Ruby whined.

"I doubt your parents would appreciate a weapon out on the dinner table." As one, Yang and Ruby turned to her and Tai, pouting and staring up at them with their best puppy-dog eyes. Summer tried not to grimace—one of them she could rebuff. Both of them? It'd be easier to pluck out her other eye.

"…Maybe after desert," Tai said, breaking first (he always did, to Summer's eternal thanks).

Their daughters' eyes brightened, and they tore into their cake with gusto.

"Ah-hem," Gehrman coughed into his hand before Summer or Tai could scold them. Yang and Ruby paused, both midbite, to see Gehrman dab at a piece of icing on his sleeve.

"Shurrey," the girls mumbled bashfully through their food.

"Oh, it's quite alright," Gehrman deadpanned, though his lips twitched upward.

The girls ate in a much more civilized manner. But when they finished, they leapt out of their chairs, each tugging on one of Gehrman's arms. "C'monC'monC'monC'mon!" they shouted.

Gehrman looked up at Summer and Tai, gaze questioning. Did they want Ruby and Yang to squee over a weapon that had…been used to kill people? Of course, that same weapon also saved Summer's life. Tai looked over at her, and after a minute, she nodded. His eyes widened, before narrowing. But she stood firm. Rolling his eyes, he nodded his consent.

When Summer nodded at him, Gehrman finally allowed the girls to lead him away.

Qrow sighed beside her, "I remember when Ruby got all starry-eyed when she first saw Harbinger."

Tai smirked, "How's it feel being replaced?"

"Oh, I could die," Qrow exclaimed, clutching his heart and pressing the back of his hand to his forehead.

They walked to the living room, where Gehrman was sitting on the couch, Yang and Ruby on either side of him. He looked up at Summer and Tai one last time. "You are both comfortable with this?"

Summer nodded. Tai sighed but gestured for Gehrman to continue.

The tall man grunted, lifting his right arm, and snapping his fingers.

Nothing happened.

Gehrman frowned, snapping his fingers again.

Nothing.

Summer heard Qrow hum, looking over to see him narrowing his eyes, lips dipped into a frown.

"…the next five seconds or I swear…"

Summer turned back in Gehrman, not quite catching his frustrated mutter, in time with his third snap. The final one, as it were, because his weapon—a large, beautiful, and above all sharp silver scimitar appearing out of this air, hovering above the coffee table.

"So cool!" Ruby exclaimed, Yang silent, but just as enthusiastic. The former reached her hand out towards the blade.

Only for Gehrman to snatch it up in his hands, bringing it close. "I would not," he said gently. "Both edges are very sharp, you could cut yourself."

"He's right, Ruby," Tai scolded, "You know better than that."

"Sorry," their youngest daughter responded, her eyes glued to the weapon.

"What's its name?" Yang asked. A good question, in Summer's opinion. All the best weapons had names.

"This," Gehrman lifted the blade up, tip pointing towards the ceiling, "is the Burial Blade."

"Pretty morbid," Qrow said, looking everywhere but the weapon (he'd probably seen it 'in use' more often than he'd have liked).

"It is a weapon, Qrow. A tool with but one purpose, to end things." He tilted his head, staring at his blade with an indescribable expression, "No aspect of it should be treated lightly."

Perhaps not, but Summer couldn't help but think such a topic could wait until the girls hit the double-digits. She cleared her throat, gesturing to the weapon, "What are those symbols etched onto the blade?"

Everyone (Qrow especially) leaned closer to the blade to better see the symbols. Gehrman blinked, "Oh. Those are just…scribbles from a dead language. I thought they looked nice."

"You don't remember what they mean?" Qrow asked, eyes alight with suspicion.

"It was years ago—I was a boy, staring out into the horizon, more important thoughts filling my mind."

"Like what?" Ruby asked.

"How to better protect my fellow man—and faunus," he quickly added, before scowling, "There must be a colloquial term that encompasses both species."

"People?" Tai supplied.

"I suppose…" Gehrman trailed off, scowl lessened, but still present.

"Can I hold it?!" Ruby burst, jumping up and down on the couch.

Gehrman huffed, "It's at least half your height," he said.

Ruby tilted her head, "And?"

"You are incapable of holding it—"

"Am not!" Ruby pouted, hands to her hips.

"Safely," Gehrman concluded. "The same goes for you," he said, turning to Yang, deflating the girl before she could even begin her question. Qrow snorted, and the girls glared at him.

But then Yang smirked, crossing her arms, "Don't know why you look so happy, Uncle Qrow. Mr. G's blade is cooler than yours."

"Way cooler!" Ruby shouted, mimicking her sister.

Qrow gasped, clutching his chest and falling back against the wall, "H-How could you?" He tilted his head up, "Oh, I can feel…my heart, it's breaking! I could die!"

"No!" Ruby shouted, rushing forward and hugging her Uncle's leg. "Don't cry Uncle Qrow! I didn't mean it! Harbinger's really cool too!"

"Ruby," Yang whined, shaking her head. Summer and Tai just laughed at the scene before them. Gehrman didn't laugh, but his eyes did shine with mirth.

/+/+/+/+/

Yang and Ruby ended up pestering Gehrman about his weapon for another hour. They probably would have gone all night if they hadn't started yawning up a storm around ten.

"Okay," Tai scooped them both up, "time for you two to go to bed. I've got'em," he said when Summer moved to help him.

"G'night Mr.G," Yang said, leaning on Tai's shoulder with a lazy smile.

"Nice meeting you," Ruby added, trying and failing to keep her eyes open.

"The pleasure was all mine," Gehrman said, bowing. Yang and Ruby giggled tiredly, finally disappearing behind the corner to their room. She, Gehrman, and Qrow fell into a comfortable silence. Gehrman eventually broke it, turning to Summer with a smile, "They are lovely children."

"I know," Summer reciprocated the smile. Gods, did she love Yang and Ruby. She…She would never understand Raven's decision to run away. But (and she'd never admit it to anyone) she was thankful for it. She'd never have come to love Yang as she had or go on to have Ruby otherwise.

"They wish to become Huntresses, yes?"

She nodded, "Well, Yang's talked about it. Ruby's still a little young to really think about stuff like that."

Qrow sniffed, "Given how much she goes on about weapons, she might decide to become a blacksmith."

"Whatever they become," Gehrman cut in, "I'm certain they shall achieve it with great zeal."

"I'll let them know you think so highly of them," Summer said.

Tai returned to the living room soon, after, Summer shifting over in her seat to let him sit close to her. Summer leaned against him, kissing his cheek, "They settle in okay?"

"Yeah," Tai chuckled, "they were too tired to try and fight me on it." He turned to Gehrman, an easy smile on his face (something Summer was glad for), saying, "Though they did ask if we could have you over again."

"Truly?" Gehrman asked, eyebrows rising.

"Yup."

Gehrman grew silent, before sighing, "Alas, I may have to decline."

"What?" Summer leaned forward, "Why?"

"I do have a certain…reputation," the man said with a wave of his hand. "It would be in your best interest to not associate with me more than necessary."

Ah…That was a fair thought…

"I'll admit," Tai spoke up, "I was…reluctant to have you over in light of your recent…deeds. If we hadn't offered to have you over before you started…you know…" he trailed off, before shaking his head, "But, over the course of this night, I've come to realize that you're…you're a good person, Gehrman. Even with," he grimace flashed over his face, but his smile held firm, "what you do, I for one, would love to have you over again."

"Seconded," Summer said, smiling at Gehrman.

The tall man tilted his head, lips curling into a soft smile, "Thank you." He then reached into a vest pocket, pulling out a…pocket watch (gods, if he wasn't actually royalty, he really committed to the bit). He opened the watch, frowning, "It's getting late. I should not keep you any longer."

"Oh," she shook her head, "it's no trouble!"

"I have an early flight."

"You do?" Qrow cocked a brow, "I don't remember you making a reservation."

"I have not," Gehrman said. "But I prefer to travel early, and," his smile grew devious, "my reputation means that all flights are private. I believe the pilots even push the bullheads to the upper limit, so they don't have to spend too much time locked away with me."

Qrow nodded, "That was nice."

"Where do you plan on going?" Tai asked.

"I want to go back to Vacuo, I left before I could visit the jungles up north."

"Pack bugspray," Summer said, "there's an ungodly number of mosquitos over there."

"I'll be sure to pick some up."

"And after?" Tai asked.

Gehrman hummed, crossing his arms, "Atlas—it's the shorter trip."

"Be careful up there," Qrow scowled, "Atlesians are so uptight rule-following's practically a religion."

"Then my trip should be a short one," Gehrman said with a low smirk. Summer coughed awkwardly at the morbid joke (Tai and Qrow just looked away). The Huntsman rolled his eyes, "And with that, I've overstayed my welcome."

"Oh, no!" Summer shot up to her feet, waving her hands. "You don't—"

"It's fine," Gehrman cut her off, not unkindly. "My tongue waggles on certain matters when it should be still. In any case," he rose to his feet, "I should leave. I plan to be in the air just after dawn."

"…Alright," Summer nodded, "We won't keep you." Gehrman inclined his head, heading over to the coatrack.

Tai gestured to Qrow, "You staying?"

"I'm his ride," their friend said, "but sure, I can crash here for a night or two."

"I do have my own car," Gehrman said, adjusting his coat, holding his hat under his arm.

Qrow huffed, "I'm not letting you drive that hearse within one-hundred miles of my nieces." Well, there's a story there. Still, she and Tai led them to the front door.

Once outside, Gehrman put on his hat, and bowed at them (like the king he might be). "My sincerest thanks for allowing me into your home." He lifted his head, lips pulled back into a warm smile, showing off his teeth, "I had a wonderful time."

"So did we," Tai said, pulled Summer close, "and the girls."

"We'll try and see you off in the morning," she smiled back.

Gehrman straightened, "Please, do not go out of your way." He tipped his hat to them, "Goodnight."

"Night!" Summer waved. Tai just nodded his head with a smile.

Qrow jerked his head at them, "I still got a key, so feel free to head to bed," and walked with Gehrman to his (rented) car.

She and Tai waited until they were down the road before heading back inside. Tai closed the door, sighing deeply, shoulders slumping. "That," he chuckled, "was not what I was expecting."

"Told you it'd fine!" Summer teased. Her husband huffed, gathering her up in his arms and marching for their room. She had to clamp a hand over her mouth to keep her joyful shriek from waking the girls.

/+/+/+/+/

A/N: For those of you that don't recall, mermaid faunus are a thing, and they make no goddamn sense. RWBY's world has a rule that faunus can only have one animal attribute, but how is a fish tail instead of legs 'one' attribute? Anyway, be sure to leave a review. Later.