Ruby stared at her calculus homework as she spun her pencil between her fingers. The sound of about a dozen people eating and chatting acted as static noise for Ruby. Little Miss Fortune was probably the town's best local restaurant, it's maroon polished floor and spotless wooden furniture gave it a warm and welcoming aura. Many families dined here on special occasions and even more people came simply to have a good meal and maybe even chat with friends and coworkers.

Ruby's uncle really outdone himself after being fired from Beacon. He had saved money his entire life just for his long held dream of opening a restaurant. It was also one of the many things Ruby missed after moving to the city. Her uncle's cooking was always something she and her family looked forward to every Friday.

She hung her head, mentally exhausted after such a horrid day. She had thought that she could distract herself with math, but boy was she wrong. At this point, she'd rather watch paint dry than to see another number for the foreseeable future.

Deciding it was futile to continue, Ruby put away her math homework in her backpack and simply resigned to watching the customers and resting her head in her hand. She did everything in her power to keep herself distracted. Counting the amount of customers, making up their conversations in her head, she even resorted to trying to eavesdrop on the family eating in the booth behind her. Despite all this, she eventually ran out of things to do and went to her last resort. Her phone.

She began digging into her backpack for her phone along with her earbuds. She opened up a tower defense game she enjoyed and logged in. It was a pretty basic game, nothing too special aside from being based off of a show she enjoyed. Using a deck full of characters from the show, the goal was to destroy the enemy's towers before the timer ran out.

After a few winning rounds, Ruby's luck ran out and she began having a losing streak. In her current game, her opponent spammed a bunch of cheap but weaker cards, which mostly consisted of monsters or minions rather than actual characters, and overwhelmed her. When the match was over and she lost, Ruby huffed and dropped her phone onto the table.

Having exhausted all her options to keep herself distracted, Ruby began fiddling with her thumbs. The urge to cut creeped up on her as the stress and emotions she felt earlier slowly returned. School was probably over by now and she was sure her uncle would come to Little Miss Fortune before heading home, meaning Raven will soon tell him about her cutting. All she could do is wait, alone with her thoughts and nothing to keep her mind occupied.

Then, almost as if the world could feel Ruby's fear, it decided to do exactly that as she saw her Uncle enter the restaurant, along with a rather unhappy looking Yang as well. Ruby sunk deeper into her seat as she watched Qrow gesture for Yang to go sit with Ruby and then he headed off into the kitchen where Raven was sitting in a small office. Yang sat across from Ruby, keeping her hands stuffed in her leather jacket. She then started absent mindedly searching the pockets of her cargo pants.

"Crap, no gum…Hey Rubes, you got an-"

"Nope." Ruby didn't bother looking at Yang as she resumed using her phone to keep herself busy.

Yang looked at her for a moment, no doubt bothered by her attitude. "Geez, what's your problem?"

Ruby's grip on her phone tightened as she shot Yang a glare. The urge to yell was strong. She wanted to go off on Yang for her irresponsible behavior lately, for being unreliable and acting like such a child around Raven. But she held her tongue and returned her gaze to her phone. "Nothing…"

"Whatever. Oh! You want to go to the beach with me? Sun's having another concert with his band, they're trying to go have one each day seven days in a row, todays their third day and-"

"Nope." Ruby hated parties, and a concert was no different, even if it was only a couple dozen people at most. Besides, the last time she went to one...no, she didn't want to think about that, she needed to focus on the mobile game.

'Don't think about it, just focus on destroying this guy's towers and not on Reese's-Damn it!" The game over screen appeared after her central tower was destroyed, big red letters spelling out "DEFEAT" in the center of the screen. Ruby closed the game and took out her earbuds before shoving the phone back into her backpack.

"Calm down, it's just a game." Yang chided with a laugh.

Ruby didn't say anything. Yang was right of course but that didn't change the fact that she's angry right now. If she didn't cut herself soon...damn it, she didn't know what to do if she didn't. It's not like she's tried other things to calm herself down, they just never seemed to work. At the moment she's a like bomb just waiting to go off and with a sensitive fuse to go along with it.

'Yang didn't really do anything wrong right now, no need to get angry over spilled milk and then take it out on her.' Ruby took a deep breath and finally looked at Yang. "Why did Qrow bring you here anyways?"

"Oh he just wants me to work here, thinks it'll be good for me and all that."

"Maybe it would..." Ruby looked over at the doors that led into the kitchen, there was no doubt that Raven and Qrow were talking about her right now. A sudden guilt creeped up on her as she imagined Qrow's reaction upon finding out that she cuts herself.

"Welp, I don't know about you, but I got places to be." Yang suddenly stood up and left the booth. "I'm going to Sun's concert, your welcome to join me sis if you change your mind."

"Wha-wait! Yang!" Ruby stood up from her seat but didn't follow, staring daggers at the back of her sister's head. "Damn it, Yang! Get back here!"

Yang didn't listen as she made her way to the exit and disappeared. Ruby plopped herself back down and slammed her fists on the table, causing a loud bang that didn't go unnoticed by the restaurant's dozen or so patrons. "God damn it."

Raven sat at the desk in the small office of her brother's restaurant, reading the so-called Parent-Fact Sheet that the school counselor gave her. It was rather simple and short, telling her a bunch of do's and don'ts. She had reread it several times already, wondering what the hell she's gonna do. She may be Ruby's Guardian from a legal standpoint, but she wasn't stupid. She's an over-glorified babysitter for her ex's kids and nothing more. If it wasn't for Qrow guilt tripping her, she would have never agreed to take Yang and Ruby in.

"If only Qrow didn't drink so much, the fucking judge would have let him have them." Raven crumpled the paper in her fist before tossing onto the desk. She'd be lying if she said she didn't care about the kids, but that's exactly what she'd do. Lying was the only thing she was good at, well, other than fighting her way out of a bar brawl and riding a motorcycle that is. She's been lying her way out of so much crap all her life, that was until her luck ran out and she couldn't nearly lost the old Branwen Family homean and couldn't find a job, forcing her to run to the one thing she never relied on. Family.

Her own parents were pretty much useless, a bunch of good for nothings that somehow thought it was a good idea to have a couple of kids with low end careers while doing shady work whenever it popped up. Karma had them in her crosshairs though and Raven's parents died not too long after her and her brother became adults, leaving the Branwen twins nothing but their troublesome family legacy, including the ire of the town's ever so influential Schnee family.

Raven sighed and chugged the rest of her can of beer, drowning the useless thoughts away. She looked up at the ceiling, feeling helpless for the first time in a long time. "Summer...what the hell am I supposed to do?"

"The day's been that bad, huh?"

Raven didn't take her eyes off the ceiling, she didn't need to know that her brother was leaning in the doorway. "Ruby's cutting herself."

Raven glanced over at Qrow to see his reaction. His usual cocky but relaxed smile disappeared in an instant and looked to be at a loss for words. "Are...are you sure?"

"Yep. got called in by the School Counselor. Saw her scars myself." Raven swirled her can of beer, a small amount left at the bottom. "I could tell she's been at it for a while, judging by how old some of the scars are."

"Damn…" Qrow walked over to the minifridge by the desk where he kept his alcohol and took out a can of beer for himself as well as a second one for Raven. He tossed her the second can and she caught it effortlessly.

"Yeah. The counselor advised that Ruby gets professional help."

"But we can't afford it."

"I know."

"I'm already paying a lot of money for Tai's lawyer for fuck sake."

"I know." Raven opened her can of beer and chugged it all at once, finishing it off with a sigh. "On the bright side, the counselor also wants to have her come in for some sessions or whatever. So at least that's something."

Qrow was silent as he took his time taking a few sips from his own can. "I guess it looks like we're gonna have two new employees instead of one."

Raven quirked a brow. "What?"

Qrow took a longer swig before answering. "I was gonna have Yang come in and work as a waitress, keep her busy outside of school. I wasn't considering it before, but it looks like Ruby might end up needing it too, that way someone's keeping an eye on her and it'll help, who knows."

"I guess…" Raven wasn't sure she liked the idea of having Yang work at Little Miss Fortune, she knew her brother was right but that only made her hate the idea more. Yang was already tough to deal with without having to see her for most of the day, and she's already way in over her head with Ruby's self harm issue to deal with.

Just then, a knock came from the doorway of the cramped office and both Branwens turned to see Ruby standing in the doorway, looking rather angry.

"Yang ran off. Again."

"Damn her!" Raven snapped. She has had it with Yang's bullshit. She got up from her chair and grabbed her coat off the back of it. The sun was setting by now and so it was sure to be a bit cold outside. "Do you know where she went?"

"The beach, again." Ruby stated it was obvious, as if there was nowhere else Yang would be.

"I swear, if she has a single drop of alcohol in her mouth by the time I get there, I'm gonna-"

"Ground her?" Qrow interrupted her before she could even finish the threat. Honestly, what she had in mind was much worse than Qrow's suggestion.

"That's the problem, she's already grounded."

The sound of rock music and people cheering and chanting drowned out any other sounds. If she was asked what the song was about, Yang couldn't give a straight answer, something about the morning light if she had to guess. Honestly, Yang didn't really care much for the song and in fact, wasn't even paying attention to it as she was more focused on the can of beer in her hand. She was finally getting a slight buzz after her eleventh can of beer. Or at least she thinks it's her eleventh, it could have easily been her fifteenth.

Either way, Yang was just glad she finally had some beer and friends to hang out with. Being stuck in her mother's home for a month until her and her sister's transcripts went through so they could attend school was beyond agonizing. Sure her uncle Qrow was fun to be with but he wasn't exactly the type of uncle to go to concerts or parties, not that there were any to attend in Vytal. Plus, he wasn't always around as he lived separately and had a restaurant to run

So, when she heard that some guy named Sun likes throwing a concert at the beach last week, Yang made it a habit of going to the little concert whenever she could. Just over the weekend, Sun and his friends did a concert two days in a row, with today being their third. Apparently they were trying to challenge themselves, trying to have a concert seven days straight.

Going to school and coming home to see Raven was not exactly fun for Yang, and Ruby just studied or moped around in her room after school, leaving Yang to find her own fun. And Sun offered the best fun she could find in the small town of Vytal.

The beach was pretty much empty, aside from the dozen or so fangirls and guys. Yang had kept her party-going attire simple, a form fitting tank top underneath her favorite and only leather jacket and a pair of jeans with a few small holes in them that may or may not have been there when she bought them. Yang honestly couldn't remember.

The ocean was a mere 10 feet away from where Sun and his friends had set up their makeshift stage that seemed to be made of nothing but plywood. The waves, however, were drowned out by the sound of music and the cheering crowd that Sun's band had managed to attract.

Yang cheered at Sun and his friends as they finished off their final song on stage, though her voice was drowned out by the dozen or so people surrounding her. Sun and his friends weren't really famous or anything, just a local band that was apparently pretty popular with the girls if the crowd was anything to go by. Hell, some were even holding up hand-made posters of the band members.

After another can of beer, Yang could finally say she was drunk. It wasn't the first time as she had gone to plenty of parties before, despite her Stepmother and-No, Summer is her mother, Raven isn't her mother regardless of what her DNA or birth certificate said, Summer was the only woman whom Yang could and would call her Mother. Summer was the one that raised her and treated her as if she was her own daughter after all. Not that...other woman.

Yang groaned at the thought of Raven and grabbed another can of beer. "Nope, not drunk enough…"

"Hey, might want to slow down there, blondie. Don't want to ruin your pretty hair now."

a random guy stumbled upon Yang and he was reek with the smell of booze. The guy was casual yet he was obviously trying to break the ice to flirt. Yang had practically heard it before, maybe not those exact words but it was essentially the same regardless. A drunk man in China is the same as a drunk man in Germany, or at least that's what her Uncle once said while also being drunk himself.

"Shut it pal, I just want to get drunk and forget about my problems." Yang didn't even bother to look at the guy as she chugged the entirety of her new can of beer in one go.

"Maybe I could help you forget all about your problems. How about you and I-"

"One more word and the only thing you're gonna be fucking tonight is the fish at the bottom of the ocean." Yang continued to not look at the guy as she grabbed another beer from the ice chest sitting in the sand.

"Excuse me?! Who the hell do yo-"

"Shay!" Sun cut in between Yang and the guy now known as Shay. "Why don't you just go to a bar if you're gonna hit on girls all day. Besides, pretty sure she can kick your ass from mainstreet all the way to Schnee Manor, she aint worth it."

Shay scoffed and grumbled as he walked away from the two blondes. Sun then turned to face Yang and grabbed a beer of his own.

"Sorry about that. Anyway, what do you think, Yang? Pretty cool concert, right?"

"It's pretty good, the music was decent but I have to admit, I stayed for the beer." Yang gave Sun a toothy grin before taking a drink from whatever number her current can of beer was.

"Hey at least you enjoyed yourself, Right?" His smile slowly turned to frown as he noticed all the empty cans of beer littered all across the sand near Yang's feet. "...By the way, um, how many beers have you had? Cuz you're looking a little tipsy there."

"Eleven...I think? Maybe fifteen-wait no, definitely nineteen." Yang finished her current can of beer and grabbed another. "I think. I honestly haven't been counting, been going by how drunk I feel instead."

Sun did a spit take, and luckily no one was in front of him to get hit by the torrent of beer that erupted from his mouth. "Geez, you've only been here for like fifteen minutes at most!"

Yang shrugged. "What can I say, a girl needs her beer." Yang took a sip of her beer before eyeing Sun's attire. He wore an unbuttoned shirt and rolled up the sleeves of his jeans, showing off his calves and ankles. "Aren't you cold dressed like that?"

Sun did a shrug of his own. "Nah, I'm used to it anyways. And besides-" Sun pointed at his abs with both hands and wore an overly proud smile "Gotta display the goods to the ladies, right?"

Yang let out a confident laugh as she crushed her now empty can. "I've seen better."

Sun puffed out his chest with his fists on his hips. "Oh ya? Who's got better abs than Sun Wukong?"

"That's easy." Yang lifted her tank top up, stopping just below her breasts and revealing her own set of abs. "This girl does!"

Sun's eyes shot open at the sight of Yang's abs, slack jaw and almost speechless. "Holy shit…. those are pretty damn good abs."

Yang shrugged as she pulled her top back down. "Eh, six years of boxing and going undefeated in my last school's boxing team does that to ya."

Sun bowed towards Yang, mocking many kung fu movies Yang guess he has probably watched. "I admit defeat, Yang Xaio Long. You definitely have the better looking abs out of the two of us."

Yang laughed at the sight and she could finally feel the alcohol kicking in. "Sweet! What do I win?"

"How does being locked up in jail for underage drinking sound?" a third and much older, stern voice joined in.

Yang didn't need to turn around to know who was standing behind her. Yang turned around to face Raven, nearly tumbling over in the process. Yep definitely drunk enough now. Even her voice was already slurred. "The fuck do you want, Raven?"

Raven could have easily just hoisted Yang over her shoulder and simply tossed her into the back of her brother's pickup truck and took her home. But sadly, that wouldn't be very motherly of her, maybe, she honestly was still trying to figure out where the fine line between good parent and bad parent was. Hey, at least she's trying! The boy her daughter was talking to had slowly sneaked off and Yang either didn't notice or didn't care, maybe a mix of both judging by how many empty cans were loitering around her. Either way, Raven wasted no time to grab her daughter's arm.

"Come on we're leaving."

"Fuck that!" Yang ripped her arm away from Raven and took a step back. "Since when the hell do you care, anyways?"

"Get in the truck, now!" Raven commanded, she didn't have time for this, Ruby was waiting in the truck and she needed to get both of the girls home before the police decided to show up and crash whoever's beach party this was.

Yang simply chuckled as she was about to take another sip of the beer that was still in her hand. However, just before she could bring it to her lips, Raven snatched the beer from her hand and tossed it on the ground. "Hey, what the fuck do you-"

"You're not allowed to be drinking. Last I checked, you're not twenty one." Yang suddenly burped and Raven was almost impressed, almost. "How many beers have you had?"

Yang suddenly had a lazy looking smug smile on her face. "Says the woman who had her first beer at the age of thirteen. Also... twenty four beers. I think."

Raven cursed Qrow's name under her breath. Obviously he told Yang and probably even Ruby that story from when she and him were children. Having lost her patience with her daughter, she went to grab Yang's arm again, but missed as her daughter whipped her arm out of the way. "Yang, I am warning you."

"Or what? You're gonna-Ruby? Hey, what are you-"

A loud crack was heard over all the chatter among the party goers, causing some of the people in the vicinity to turn their heads to the source. Raven couldn't believe what she just saw. Ruby had just came out of nowhere and slapped Yang across the face open handed.

"Ow! What the fuck, Ruby?!" Yang held her hand up to her cheek, a red mark partially visible underneath her hand.

"Stop being such a fucking idiot! Do you think dad would want you to be out here!?" Ruby, the girl who Raven had shrugged off as nothing but a quiet wallflower, looked furious. Her eyes were like daggers aimed only at Yang as they glistened from the tears that Ruby was no doubt holding back.

"The fuck are you talking about!?" Yang was the last person Raven ever suspected of being able to be angry with Ruby, yet here they were. The two sisters looking like they we're ready to tear into one another.

"You act like you're the only one who's suffering! But you're not! You're not the one who lost their mom!"

Yang nearly flinched at that, but her anger was quick to cover it up as it only got stronger. "She was my mom too!"

"You still have your mom! You have Raven, and unlike you, I can actually see that she's at least trying!"

"Fuck that!" Yang got right up to Ruby, now inches apart from each other. "Summer is-"

"Dead! My mother is dead! Not yours, mine!"

That was the last straw for Yang. Raven didn't see it coming and had no time to intervene. And neither did Ruby. Yang grabbed a hold of Ruby's shirt by the callar with one arm, which caused Ruby to swiftly grab onto her sister's arm with both hands as she was lifted up in the air. Raven knew she should put a stop to this, but she was just too awed by how all of this just wasn't right. She never thought she'd ever see these two fight like this. Ruby tried to swing her right arm at Yang, but Yang caught it in a tight grip that made Ruby wince in pain.

"Yang!" Raven yelled at the top of her lungs, causing Yang to look at her, then back at Ruby before her eyes widened in fear. Just underneath Yang's grip on Ruby's forearm, there was a dark red stain on the pure white sleeve of Ruby's dress shirt. Yang let go and dropped Ruby who landed on her butt in the sand. Yang looked mortified as she watched Ruby clutch her now bleeding arm, with Ruby only giving her a tear stained glare.

"R-Ruby...I…"

Ruby got up and ran without a second thought. Yang was about to run after her but Raven grabbed onto her arm. She lifted her free hand, ready to slap her daughter for what she had done. But Raven couldn't bring herself to do it. Not after seeing the monstrous guilt Yang had in her eyes as she too started to cry. Raven slowly lowered her arm and dragged Yang to the truck. The only bright side she could find was the fact that Ruby had run towards the same direction as said truck.

But relief filled Raven's very being when she found Ruby, leaning against the passenger door of the truck while holding her forearm where Raven remembered there being bandages. It now occured to Raven that she never did ask about those bandages as she suddenly recalled how the school counselor mentioned that Ruby's friend found her bleeding.

Raven pulled Yang towards the truck and had her stand beside Ruby, with both of their backs against the passenger side door. Ruby took a small step away from her sister as she struggled to maintain control over her sniffling and silent crying.

"Yang." Raven didn't hide how angry she was, nearly growling as she said her daughter's name. Yang barely moved as she stared at the ground, prompting Raven to take a deep breath and try again in a calmer voice. "Yang, apologize. We aren't leaving until you two settle this."

It took longer than Raven's anger allowed, but Yang eventually managed to lift her head and faced Ruby. She slowly raised her arm as if to touch Ruby, her hand just about to reach Ruby's shoulder. "R-Ruby...I-I was, I mean, I'm drunk...I didn't mean to-"

"S-Shut up…" Ruby cut her off, her own voice just barely coherent. "M-Mom always hated it whenever you went to parties and then came home a little drunk."

"I know…she'd probably have my head if she saw me now..." Yang retracted her hand before it even got to Ruby's shoulder. She then looked down at Ruby's arm that was bleeding. "What happened?"

"None of your business…" Ruby tried to hide her arm from Yang's view, but it was a futile effort. There was a brief silence as Yang furrowed her brows a bit before widening in realization.

"You're cutting again...aren't you?" There was pain and fear in Yang's quiet voice and Ruby's only response was a choked sob as she swiftly nodded her head. Yang was quick to wrap Ruby into a tight hug, with Ruby struggling at first but quickly gave up. "I've been a shitty big sister."

"N-No shit." There was a weak laugh hidden under Ruby's trembling voice and Raven saw her lips just barely resemble a smile.

The sight before her made Raven realize that she really hasn't been trying as hard as she should have in order to take care of these two girls who were both still hurting over Summer's death and the sudden changes in their lives. When they first showed up, Raven had no idea what to do with them, Yang wouldn't listen to her and Ruby barely interacted with her at all. Raven had to wipe her own eyes upon seeing the two girls seem to make peace with each other. She let Ruby and Yang have their moment a little longer before finally walking up to the two of them and crossing her arms.

"Well, it's nice to finally see you two settle things, but you're still in deep trouble, Yang."

"I know." Yang glared at her mother, but it had no bite behind it. Whether it was because Yang was softening up to her or because she didn't have the energy, Raven couldn't tell.

"And Ruby." Raven uncrossed her arms and bent over a little to be level with Ruby, who sadly didn't look back at her. "I'm not gonna pretend to be Sum- um, your mom. She was my friend, or I at least hope she still thought of me as such after all these years. Anyways, the point I'm trying to make is that I'm trying my best, and I'll be the first to admit that my best isn't really gonna win me parent of the year award, let alone parent of the week."

Yang scoffed. "That's one way to put it."

"Shut it." Raven gave her a brief glare before returning her attention to Ruby. "What I'm trying to get at is that I want you to know that if anything's troubling you, either of you, I'll do whatever I can to support you two."

Ruby still didn't look at her, but at least she didn't look as distraught anymore. "O-Okay."

"Okay, now let's head on home. I'm sure Ruby would like a new bandage on her arm."

And with that, Raven, Yang, and Ruby all climbed into the truck. Yang sat between Ruby and Raven, like usual, and kept an arm around Ruby who was content to lean against her sister. For the first time since Raven had taken them in, both girls looked at least somewhat peaceful. Yang didn't look like she was ready to beat the crap out of someone and Ruby didn't look completely like a hollowed soul. Now Raven just had to figure out how to maintain this fragile peace after such a painful process of acquiring it.

"Ow ow ow!"

"Don't be such a baby,."

Ruby winced as her cut stung like a thousand needles from the hydrogen peroxide. "Still, it hurts like hell…"

Raven began wrapping Ruby's arm in a fresh roll of bandages while Ruby herself sat on one of the wooden chairs in the dining room. Yang meanwhile sat nearby, staring at Ruby's scars with a grim expression and drinking a glass of water. Once the bandages were wrapped, a silence fell before them, none of them knowing what to do or say. Ruby wanted to get up and just go to bed without saying anything but she knew, or rather expected, Raven or Yang would want to talk about the proverbial, depressing elephant in the room.

"So…" Raven began with a stern expression. "You want me to go through your room looking for your knife, or are you going to cooperate and give it to me?"

"How do you know I have a knife?" Ruby tried to feign ignorance. A stupid thing to do as she quickly realized.

"Ruby." Raven glared.

"I don't-"

"Ruby...just give her your knife…" Ruby glanced over at Yang who wore a pleading look. "Please."

After a deep breath, Ruby barely nodded before slowly rising from the wooden chair and made her way to her bedroom upstairs, with Raven and Yang close behind. She felt like a prisoner being escorted to her cell, with the two guards just behind her on both flanks. Once in her room, they watched her get on her knees to open her bottom drawer and dug out her knife from underneath her underwear. It was a small thing with it's blade sheathed inside the grip, It could easily be concealed if she made a fist while holding it. The grip itself was black with a rose engraved in it's tough plastic furniture. Out of instinct, she pressed a small button, causing the blade to swing open in a flash. It's red metallic surface complimented it's black grip nicely, with "Crescent Rose" engraved on the side of the blade in fine cursive.

Ruby looked over at Raven and Yang and then back at the knife before closing it. She stared at it for another few seconds before holding it out with her hand for either of them to take it. Raven walked over and grabbed one end of the sheathed knife, with Ruby unable to let go of the other end.

"Ruby, you need to let go."

For a second, Ruby didn't let go and only tightened her grip before finally releasing her tight hold and letting her arm drop to her side. Raven walked back over to the doorway where Yang stood and whispered something to Yang before leaving the room. Ruby remained where she was and sat with her legs crossed, unsure what to do with herself now. She ignored the sound of Yang's footsteps before she was suddenly wrapped in a hug from behind, with blonde hair visible in the corner of her eyes.

"Why didn't you come to me?" Yang asked, almost pleading really. "Why didn't you tell me that you started cutting again? I'm your big sister, it's my job to help you, to protect you…"

Ruby didn't say anything, it wasn't hard to figure out and she knew Yang already knew the answer, she's a lot smarter than she looks after all. But Ruby's silence only made Yang hug her tighter.

"I promised dad that I'll take care of you…" Ruby still didn't budge as Yang spoke, simply sitting there like a lifeless doll. "God I'm such an idiot…"

"I didn't want you to worry about me...I can take care of myself." It was a lie, mostly to herself. She couldn't take care of herself, not if she was trying too hard to keep her problems locked away inside her.

"But we're family, Rubes." Yang turned Ruby around a bit so that she could look into her sister's eyes. "And family takes care of eachother, no matter what."

Ruby stared at Yang's warm but glistening lilac eyes that just radiated love. However, despite Yang's obvious guilt and talk of family, it didn't change the fact that Yang didn't really give her the opportunity to go to her for help. "Is that why you always ran off, feeling sorry for yourself ever since we came back to Vytal? Leaving me alone?"

Yang's guilt grew, visibly so as she was caught off guard. "I-I...I didn't know that you-"

"That I was cutting again?" Ruby began glaring at her sister, that anger from earlier slowly rose again. "You had plenty of opportunity. What about over the summer? You know, right after dad was arrested and we had to be watched over by child services? You know, when they had to place us in an orphanage until Qrow managed to convince Raven to take us in? Where were you then? Oh that's right! You were sneaking out with your so called friends to drink your sorrows away! Do you have any idea how scared I was!?"

"I-I…"

"I thought I'd never see you again! That I'd never see dad again!" Ruby didn't bother suppressing her tears, she didn't care. She had been bottling all this up for nearly a year and she just couldn't hold it in anymore. "I know you were dealing with mom's death in your own way, but I needed you!"

"R-Ruby...I'm sorry…" Yang herself was crying now, but Ruby couldn't bring herself to care. In fact, Ruby felt somewhat glad that she was crying, finally realizing just how much she fucked up and hurt her.

Ruby looked away from her sister and hugged herself, folding her knees to her chest. "Being sorry doesn't change anything."

"Ruby, p-please...I-" Yang was about to reach out but Ruby slapped her hand away.

"No! ...I don't want to talk to you anymore."

A painful silence fell between them as Yang managed to suppress the little sobs she was making, with Ruby sitting silently and staring at her closet where a box of her belongings sat idly and untouched. Yang slowly got to her feet without a word and walked over to the door that had never been shut since they entered. She looked back at Ruby, wiping a fleeing tear away.

"I promise...I'm here for you now, whenever you need me I'll be here."

Ruby didn't bother responding, anything she said now would just continue to fuel her anger even more. She heard Yang close the door behind her as she left and Ruby continued to sit with her knees pressed to her chest. She wiped away her tears that were quickly replaced by more, her heart beating against her ribcage as her anger loitered within her.

After what felt like an eternity, Ruby crawled over to her closet, feeling too weak to get up and walk over. Once at her destination, sitting before a rather large box that still had tape over it's flaps, she stared at her own handwritten label. "Ruby's stuff." written in appropriately red ink, large and hastily written as if in a hurry. Ruby felt herself become tense the longer she stared at the box. She knew what was inside, obviously, but that was why she was so hesitant to actually open it.

If she opened it, there was no going back. She promised herself that she wouldn't open it after coming back to vytal. That she would try her hardest to pretend like the past didn't happen. That she wasn't broken, hoping that Weiss and her other old friends would still be her friends. The mere thought of how her friends might react, how Weiss would see her if she saw what kind of person she had become over the years scared her in a way. But Weiss already saw her at her most vulnerable state, and she betrayed her, ratted her out to the school counselor. So why was she still worried about what Weiss or anyone else thought?

Ruby reached out and ran her fingers over the tape that held the box shut. What was the point of it all? Why hide? It wasn't the first time she asked herself those questions in the past couple of weeks after returning to Vytal. She kept telling herself that it was to start over. To meet her old friends again. To forget all about her life in the city...even if it meant forgetting all about the good things that happened.

Anxiety managed to slowly pervade it's way into her body as she struggled to decide what to do. Her heart continues beating against her chest, her fingers trembled and her breathing became heavy as the loose clothing of her button up shirt and skirt suddenly felt suffocating to the point where she frantically started taking them off, leaving herself alone and lying on the floor of her room in nothing but her underwear and bra. She felt vulnerable now, the scars on her wrist and the necklace resting between her breasts on complete display, her personal secrets free for anyone to see.

"Fuck it..." Ruby shot up as her anxiety quickly sent her over the edge, glaring at the box with determined eyes. The contents of her Pandora's Box aren't something to hide away. They were the things that made her who she was. They were mementos, memories that both haunted her and gave her joy.

All hesitation she had earlier left her completely, she crawled back over to her dresser and tossed her folded up underwear left and right as she dug through her bottom drawer. After tossing out every pair, she finally found what she was searching for. She held it delicately in her hand, it's baby blue grip that fit in the palm of her hand was tremendously light. She pressed a small button, causing it's blade to swing out effortlessly and with beautiful speed. Ruby traced a finger along the side of it's white blade, admiring how pure and innocent it looked. Unlike her other knife, She never once used this specific knife for anything. No one actually knew of its existence, having bought it custom made with money she managed to save from doing chores back before her mother died.

"Sorry...I never, ever wanted to use you…but I really need that box open..."

Ruby did her best to ignore the burning urge as she stared at her knife's blade, but her will was weak and her eyes darted down to her wrist, staring at the scars that plagued her. She shouldn't, they will no doubt search her for new scars now whenever they feel the need to. But it burned so badly, as if her body or mind was begging her. Her anger still boiled inside her, fueling her anxiety and fear.

She didn't want to hear Yang say how sorry she was again while trying to help her, not after being so useless to Ruby for so long. Weiss betrayed her, ratting her out the very second she caught her. And Raven knew nothing of her problems. Ruby was left with no other choice but to rely on the one thing that always made her pain go away. The one thing that made her feel relief.

She bit her lip and shut her eyes tight, one last effort to fight it off as her grip on the knife tightened. "I-I shouldn't…"

She could hear her heart pounding in her ears, her hands trembling slightly as they moved on their own accord down to her right thigh. She had never cut there, the only place she dared to do so was her right arm. But there are few places she could cut now without getting caught. If they found a new scar on her arm, everyone would worry about her even more, she'd be a bother to everyone as they tried to figure out what's wrong with her. Ruby finally opened her eyes, her hand holding the knife resting in her lap, her knuckles turned white with how tight her grip is.

"See? I told you she'd look good in red."

"I don't deserve to be your friend…"

Ruby shook her head violently as memories invaded her vision.

"I love you, Ruby…"

Her eyes shot open and were instantly glued to the pure white, stainless steel blade. No one was there to help her, Yang constantly proved to be unreliable. She didn't know Raven nor trust her enough to go talk to her. She's alone.

"I can't take it anymore, Ruby! They won't leave me alone!"

"Ruby, stop fighting them! You're only making it worse!"

Acting on instinct, Ruby pressed the knife against the soft flesh of her thigh, just an inch or two away from the band of her underwear. It's cold, unused blade caused goosebumps to ripple across her body as it easily drew blood. The pain was instant, like the area she was cutting burned and stung all at once. But in that pain she felt relief. Her blurry eyes watched the small trail of blood go down the side of her inner thigh and she immediately choked out a sobbing cry, causing her to bite her lip harder in an effort to stay quiet so that Yang and Raven wouldn't hear her.

"It's okay, sweetie...I know, it's gonna be okay…"

Adrenaline raced through her veins and she felt like she could finally think straight as her mind focused on the pain she felt in her thigh. It was much more intense than when she did it on her wrist, less of a sting and more of a powerful burn. With a heavy breath, she lifted her knife in her trembling hand and stared at the blood that stained it's previously pure and innocent blade, a drop slowly gliding it's way down it's edge.

Despite the light tears in her eyes and the intense pain in her thigh, she felt relief. Her anger slowly dissipated and her anxiety lessened. Fuck her sister, fuck Raven and fuck anyone who claimed to want to help her. If Yang wanted to be there for her, she wouldn't have constantly ran off! If Weiss wanted to help, why couldn't she be there for her herself? Why run straight to the counselor?

The only thing she could rely on is her knife.

And she hated relying on it. She made so much progress before her mother died and now look at her. Sitting in her so-called room wearing nothing but her underwear while continuing to ruin all that progress she made.

Ruby, with trembling hands, leaned over and reached for her first aid kit that sat in her now empty underwear drawer. She quickly pulled out a small box of band-aids and placed a few over her cut. It wasn't big enough to warrant using gauge and band-aids would help control the bleeding well enough. But now that she sat there, with her mind clearer, she remembered why she got the knife out in the first place. All she wanted to do was cut open that stupid box, and yet she let her emotions take control.

Once again, she slowly crawled her way over to the box and cut the tape with her bloody knife. She then gently placed the knife on the floor and pulled out one of the first items she was looking for. A bright, red leather jacket.

Ruby frowned upon seeing it, but quickly hugged it as it brought back both good and bad memories. She then set it down on the floor beside her and began digging through the box again. She quickly pulled out her skateboard to make it easier to search for the smaller things she wanted. She briefly admired the art of scattered rose petals on the bottom of the board before setting it down next to her leather jacket. She peaked her head back into the box and searched some more.

"….where is that choker?"

Heavy guilt weighed on Yang like a boulder as she walked down the stairs, slowly moving one leg after the other. She was on autopilot as her mind wrapped around the fact that she failed as a big sister. She failed her father. And most importantly, she failed Ruby.

She stumbled into the dining room like an undead corpse, where Raven was sitting at the table with Ruby's knife sitting in front of her. She eventually noticed Yang and gestured for her to sit, with Yang doing so without a word.

"I could hear Ruby's yelling from down here. Honestly, she has every right to be angry with you."

Yang didn't have it in her to argue. She hated that her mother was right. Ruby's anger is justified. "I'm a fuck up of a sister…"

Raven scoffed. "Ha, you aren't a fuck up. Trust me."

"What do you mean?" Yang glared at her mother. "Ruby is cutting herself again and I was too busy feeling sorry for myself that I wasn't there for her! I had one job and I fucked it all up."

Raven shook her head and sighed. "It's been a heavy day for her, lots happened. From her perspective, I'm sure it's like her whole world is falling apart because we found out. Just give her some time to calm down and then try talking to her again. Just don't push it, though."

Yang's glare disappeared as she now narrowed her eyes. "You're...surprisingly calm."

"I've been around the block, seen a lot of people who are worse off then you and Ruby combined." Raven picked up Ruby's knife off the table and inspected it, releasing it's blade and ran her fingers along the side of it. "This is custom made, where did she get this?"

Yang stared at the knife solemnly as she recalled the day she first saw the knife. "It was a gift…for her fourteenth birthday."

"From who? And who gives a little girl a knife for her birthday?"

Yang didn't answer. There was no reason for her to tell Raven anyways and besides, it didn't matter where the knife came from. She did her best to fake a yawn and stretched out her arms. "I think I'm gonna go to bed…"

"Yang-"

"Look, I'm not really sure I can answer your question, okay?" Yang avoided staring at the knife now and instead looked at the table. "It's kind of a sensitive topic for Ruby, ya know? And I really don't know if it's my place to say anything..."

"I got that much, but that wasn't what I was going to say." Raven closed the knife and set it back on the table. "Sit."

"But-"

"Sit. Now." Raven clearly wasn't messing around, so Yang reluctantly did as she was told.

They sat there for a moment in silence as Raven gathered up her thoughts. Yang was patient, but only because she really had nothing better to do. Eventually, Raven took a deep breath and placed one hand over the other on the table. "I know that you're not really...happy, to be here. Especially after how I kind of left you and Tai when you were a baby, but-"

"Ha! That's an understatement."

Raven pursed her lips as she tried to ignore her daughter's comment. "Right. Anyways, what I'm getting at is that you and I need to work together. For Ruby's sake. I can't do this alone and neither can you, and I think it should be obvious that our fighting all the time isn't helping Ruby in the slightest."

Yang furrowed her brows. "Why do you care?"

"What?"

Yang shot up from her chair and slammed her hands onto the table. "Why do you care? Ruby isn't related to you at all and last I checked, you ran off as soon as you could after I was born. What makes you think you can start being a mom-no, what makes you think you can just be part of this family again? You left us, me and dad both. Summer, the woman who treated me as if I were her own flesh and blood, dies and all the sudden you just magically appear and want to help us?"

Raven didn't say anything as she stared at Yang, her eyes furrowed as if she was angry, but her lips quivered slightly. "Well…"

"You're full of fucking shit, you know that?" Yang knew she was still affected by the beer she had earlier, but it didn't change the truth. Raven abandoned her and never bothered to show her face again for the last seventeen years.

Raven looked down at her hands, making it difficult for Yang to see her face. But Yang didn't need to look at her face to know that Raven was emotional right now. Her strained voice easily did that for her. "I made mistakes...a lot of mistakes, and I admit to them...I was an idiot back then and now…"

Raven lifted her head, a single trail of a tear marking her cheek down to her jaw. "Now I just want a second chance."