AN: I briefly contemplated updating the story on Mother's Day. Seems fitting, right? Story about motherhood on the day that's about Mothers? But, the theme of this chapter didn't really fit with the theme of Mother's Day, at least in my mind. So, we're updating it now. Hope y'all enjoy it!
Also, thank you to all who expressed their sympathies over the recent loss of my friend. They are greatly appreciated.
Beta: EmperorLuffy
Cover Art: Kimmy77
Raven couldn't figure out what was going on in Yang's head. Things had started out so promising, but that warm and fuzzy feeling that enraptured her had quickly faded into a cold sensation of emptiness.
For starters, Yang had refused to break away from her choice of Candyland. It had been a revolting experience for Raven, but one she put up with for Yang's sake.
Then came the smaller things.
When Raven had tried to pick the red colored plastic character, Yang had insisted that she take the blue one instead. Not because Yang wanted the red one, oh no. But because, in Yang's own words, 'Mommy always picked the blue one.'
It had all gone downhill from that moment onward. When Yang won the stupid game, she had insisted that Raven reward her the way Summer used to. Pat her on the head, declare her 'Queen on Candyland' and sneak her a piece of candy.
She had reluctantly complied with her daughter's wishes, though she wished now that she hadn't. Yang would not accept her awkward praise and informed her that 'Mommy did it this way.' Then there was the fact that she didn't have any candy on her, nor did she know if or where any candy would be stashed around the house. You would have thought that Raven had killed the ungrateful brat's pet lizard or something with the way she threw a fit.
It hadn't gone very well since then. Yang would not play any games other than what Summer had always played with her and she would not accept Raven acting in any way that wasn't how Summer would have acted.
Raven felt her temper begin to rise. That good feeling she had felt earlier was dying a miserable death and it was all because Yang didn't want her. She wanted Summer. The fact that Yang would only play that infernal Candyland game was also fast wearing on her nerves.
"Let's play something else," Raven said when Yang began to reset the board for what must've been the twentieth time.
"But I wanna keep playing!" Yang protested.
"We can keep playing, just not this game. We've played it enough, don't you wanna try some of the games that Ruby and I were playing?"
Yang scowled at the mention of her younger sibling.
"No," she growled. "Those aren't mommy's games."
Raven's eye twitched. Oh yes, Summer was mommy. But Raven herself? She was other mommy.
"Look Yang, I'm done with this game," Raven said with barely concealed impatience. "We can either find a new game or we can find something else to do."
Yang's scowl deepened.
"Mommy would keep playing with me," she muttered.
"Well, mommy's not here, is she?" Raven snapped.
Yang recoiled like she had been shot. Raven immediately cursed herself for so casually throwing Summer's death out, especially in front of the person whom Summer had raised like one of her own.
Yang lips clenched in a vain effort to hold back a high pitched whine and her chin began to tremble while her eyes filled with tears.
"Fuck," Raven breathed standing from the bed. "Yang, I'm sor-"
"I hate you!" Yang screeched.
Now it was Raven's turn to recoil. Three simple words… yet they did so much damage. She felt as though a dagger of ice had been stabbed into her gut and then ruthlessly twisted.
"You're mean! You won't play with me! You only care about Ruby!" Yang yelled.
Raven recoiled once more, this time in surprise. Ruby? What did she-
"Daddy was right about you! You're a mean, bad person!" Her rant over, Yang threw herself from the bed and ran away, slamming the door behind her. Raven was left to stand alone as Yang's footsteps thudded down the hall. She winced as Yang slammed her bedroom door closed, rattling the whole house it felt like.
Raven was left alone with her thoughts and another blend of confusing emotions that left her feeling stupefied and hurt.
Yang hated her. What a shock that was. Despite expecting such a reaction, that did not lessen the sting.
Weak. Dammit, these emotions made her fucking weak. Yang had held that bewildering power over her even before she had been born, filling Raven with a sense of vulnerability that she had gone her entire life without until the day she found out she was pregnant.
Every little thing Yang said or did always seemed to have an emotional impact on Raven. Clearly, her time away had not lessened that feeling. If anything, it almost seemed amplified, like her body was craving the emotions that she had so painstakingly worked to remove from her life. Now she absorbed every little thing like a man dying of thirst, whether it was positive emotion or negative emotion.
Not for the first time, Raven cursed her Semblance. It would have been much more convenient if she could just teleport, but no. It had to be limited only to those she shared a bond with. Worse still, her Semblance deepened the connection of that bond far more than she had ever been comfortable with.
Her connection to Yang let her feel all of the anger and sorrow her daughter was experiencing at this very moment, as if they were her own emotions. It simultaneously made her feel guilty and bitter, creating an emotional storm that she always hated dealing with. She was tempted to blame Summer once again for this poor development, but she knew now that the blame laid solely at someone else's feet. As hurt as Raven was by Yang's words and feelings, it didn't distract her from the other two things that she had mentioned during her little tirade.
The most confusing part was Ruby. What had that been about? She wasn't purposefully spending time with Summer's brat, nor did she wish to. The little pest just wouldn't leave her alone. What was she expected to do, punt her into the next room until she got the hint? Sure, that was a perfectly acceptable response. Yang and her crybaby father would just love if she had gone that route with Ruby instead.
Speaking of Taiyang…
An audible growl tore itself from Raven's throat as Yang's final rant began to filter in.
"Taiyang… you no good, dirty, rotten, hypocritical, piece of shit, bastard!" Raven snarled to herself.
That miserable waste of space had purposefully turned her own daughter against her. He had been filling her head with nonsense and influencing her into forming an opinion of Raven before the two had actually had a chance to get to know one another.
Whose fault is it that you don't already know each other?
Raven began to pace back and forth, trying to run away from the treacherous thoughts that filled her head.
What had happened before was irrelevant. It was over and done with, she couldn't take it back. Regardless of what had been done before, that did not give Taiyang the right to fill their daughters head with nonsense and lies.
"Fucking piece of shit," Raven growled to herself. This was exactly why she had left the hypocritical bastard. He could care less about what happened to her or anyone else, so long as he got his happy little ray of sunshine. What she wouldn't give to have her full strength back at this moment. She'd skewer the lying fucker.
Her adrenaline began to pump as she imagined the various ways she could physically punish Taiyang if she had the strength to do so. Her aching and tired muscles went unnoticed as her furious pace increased and her breath came in harsh pants.
She was itching for a fight. Spoiling for it, even. The angrier she became, the more she began to question if she even needed to wait for her injuries to heal. Who needed their full strength to take on a little crybaby bitch like Taiyang Xiao-Long?
The more she thought about it, the more it sounded like a good idea, until she was finally convinced that it was exactly what she would do when Taiyang next walked through that door.
Screw the fear of being tossed out and possibly killed in her weakened state. She was a warrior. There were lines you didn't cross with a warrior and Taiyang had leapt across that line with a death wish.
Spending time with Ruby almost made Taiyang forget about the world of tragedy that had surrounded them since Summer's death. Watching the way she excitedly darted back and forth across the kitchen had brought a smile to his face, while seeing the way she dug into chocolate batter and loudly announced how good it tasted had given him a hearty laugh.
He considered taking her and Yang to the playground before it got too late. He and Summer had learned very quickly that it was best to let Ruby run off any sugar rush at the park before she could cause too much chaos at home. Her high energy levels had proven quite devastating to all of the glassware they had if she so much as narrowly bumped the corners of any table or stands.
Ruby was incredibly fast for her age. She looked less like a little girl and more like a red blur as she sprinted across the kitchen, determined to be as helpful as she could while making the brownies.
She was always like that. Wanting to be as helpful as she could… Just like her mother.
The reminder was enough to bring him out of his happy moment and back to the harsh world of reality. Ruby wanted to be helpful, that was true. She wanted to help without asking or expecting anything in return. Summer had left a good example for Ruby to follow.
Raven was a bad influence who threatened to derail that good example.
Taiyang didn't miss the way Ruby copied certain behaviors off of those shows Raven had made them watch. While it had been cute and endearing to see Ruby make comically cliché martial arts moves and noises as she helped him mix the chocolate batter, it had also been a source of potential worry for him.
Today it was just a martial arts move. What would it be tomorrow? How long before Ruby and Yang started trying those moves out on each other? How long before Raven's bad behavior caused them to act like a pair of juvenile delinquents? He had to put a stop to it and he had to do it now.
As he slid the dish of fresh chocolate batter into the preheated oven and set the timer, he decided that now was as good a time as any to have a much needed discussion with Ruby.
Or so he would have, if he wasn't distracted by the sudden and loud declaration of hatred from Yang.
"I hate you!" Yang's voice screeched from upstairs, followed by a few more unintelligible shouts. The whole house seemed to shake a moment later as the sound of a door slamming echoed all the way to the kitchen.
Just like that, all of the warm and positive energy had been sucked out of the house.
Typical Raven.
Taiyang sighed, then turned to Ruby as she let out a low and distressed whine.
"Hey, it's alright little rose," Taiyang said quickly, kneeling down to scoop Ruby into a tight hug.
Ruby shook her head and pushed away, looking towards the ceiling with a worried expression.
"B-But Yang said the H word," Ruby whimpered. "Mommy said that's a bad word. She said it hurts people's feelings."
Ah… that was right. Summer had always abhorred the word 'hate'. It was one of the earliest lessons she had drilled into the heads of the children. He and Qrow had backed her up on that one, determined to lead by a positive example, under the hopefulness that neither of them would ever know what it meant to hate anyone.
But it looked as though life truly never worked out the way people intended it to. Just as he had expected, Raven had done something to hurt Yang. Now he had to go and pick up the pieces.
But at least he had probable cause to keep her away from the girls, now.
"That's… You're right," Taiyang said. "But we don't know what Yang is upset about right now. We need to be there for her."
Ruby gave him a look that he couldn't place. It instantly made him uncomfortable, even if he couldn't figure out why.
"But what about Miss Raven? Her feelings are hurt," Ruby said.
"I doubt that," Taiyang said dismissively. "She probably said something that hurt Yang's feelings and that's why Yang said what she did."
Ruby frowned at him. She stepped away from him then, sticking out her bottom lip.
"Mommy said a bad temper is no excuse for mean words," Ruby replied.
Now it was Taiyang's turn to frown.
"Ruby, you're not being nice to your sister," he said firmly.
"Uh-uh," Ruby protested. "Sissy isn't being nice to Miss Raven. We're supposed to be nice to our mommy's."
"Raven is not Yang's mother!" Taiyang snapped.
Ruby jumped and recoiled, shrinking away from him.
Taiyang opened his mouth to say a quick apology, but settled for simply shaking his head. He had to quit snapping at his girls, it wasn't helping the situation. He was wound up too tight. All the more reason to keep Raven away from them. The sooner she was out of the picture, the better off they would all be.
"Stay here," Taiyang said. "I'm going to go see your sister. We'll talk more later."
Ruby crossed her arms and gave an angry frown.
"I don't wanna talk if you're being mean," she growled.
Taiyang's eyes widened in disbelief, both at Ruby's expression and tone. He had seen her adopt that pouty look before, but he could safely say that it had never been aimed at him. He had always been the fun loving dad, the one who doted on the girls hand and foot. Summer had always been the disciplinarian, a role they both agreed suited her best. He was, as Qrow had so helpfully put it, a complete pushover when it came to the girls. It kept him from being stern when he needed to be.
Summer on the other hand had a good moral conscience, something she was adamant about teaching the girls. It gave her the authoritative edge she needed when it came time to discipline them. Taiyang of course played the supporting role to back her up and the girl's had learned good manners very quickly. They hadn't appreciated it during the few moments where the rules needed to be enforced, but they had grown to live by them and even make a game out of some of them, Ruby's swear jar being just one example.
This was uncharted territory for him, but something he should have seen coming. Summer wasn't around to be the disciplinarian anymore, so the unpleasant task fell to him now. As much as he didn't want to fulfill that role, he wanted even more for the girls to continue living by Summer's example. If that meant he had to put his foot down, then so be it.
"Ruby, I do not appreciate the attitude," Taiyang said sternly.
Ruby looked away nervously, her shoulders hunched. But she didn't back down.
"You're attitude," Ruby mumbled.
Even if her delivery was off, the disrespectful backtalk was clear.
"Alright, young lady!" Taiyang snapped. "Timeout!"
"No! You're timeout! You keep being mean!" Ruby yelled back, stamping her foot.
Taiyang growled. He wasn't going to have this argument right now, he needed to go and speak with Yang. Standing up straight, he reached down and gripped Ruby by the arm. Ignoring her protests and the guilt he felt rising up as she complained about his grip being too tight, he marched her out of the kitchen and into the living room.
Sitting in the far corner of the room was a single stool, one that hadn't seen use in a long while. Yang was the usual occupant of that stool, but today it seemed that Ruby would be the one sitting in it.
Taiyang picked Ruby up and sat her down on the stool, making sure she was facing the corner.
"You can come out when you learn to behave yourself," Taiyang said firmly. "We'll talk more about this later. I'm going upstairs to talk to your sister. You stay right here until I say otherwise. Understand me?"
Ruby turned to look at him, her silver eyes now red rimmed and swimming with tears. But there was no hiding the resentful glare she sent his way.
"Mommy would be mad at you," she whispered.
Taiyang bristled.
"Ruby… do you need pow-pow's?" Taiyang asked seriously.
At once, Ruby returned her gaze to the corner, refusing to meet his eyes. Her tiny form trembled in place and her sniffles echoed from the corner.
Taiyang sighed and walked away, feeling emotionally drained. As he slowly made his way up the stairs, he couldn't help but take one last glance at Ruby.
Sitting alone in the large living room, her little puffs of sniffling still reaching his ears, she looked so tiny and alone. His heart ached at the sight and he wondered if perhaps he had gone too far. This was his first real time being the disciplinarian, so he wasn't entirely sure if the punishment fit the crime.
Then again, this was the first time he could ever recall Ruby acting so disobediently. He may not like it, but he had to be stern with her now, before she could start to lose the positive influence Summer had left behind.
He knew exactly where Ruby had gotten such a disrespectful attitude. For that, he blamed himself more than he blamed Raven. It had been foolish of him to leave her alone with either of the girls for even a moment. No, it had been foolish of him to even allow her back into this house.
He couldn't do anything about her being here now. He had let her in, so that was damage done. As loath as he was to admit it, kicking her out while she was still recovering would only send a bad message to the girls. Above all else, he wanted them to be influenced correctly.
But that didn't mean he had to let her be around his children.
With that thought in mind, Taiyang steeled his resolve and marched up the stairs, tearing his eyes away from his youngest. The next few days wouldn't be easy, but at least they would all be okay in the long run. For now, he had to go and comfort Yang. Afterwards, he would make it clear to both Raven and Ruby just what their new boundaries were.
Raven would never be given the chance to corrupt his girls any further.
Ruby huffed in the corner, sucking in air to stop her runny nose and angrily wiping away the tears in her eyes.
Stupid Daddy, she thought, before pinching herself less than a moment later.
Her eyes watered further from the pain, but she didn't stop the pinch. Mommy would be angry at her for thinking such a bad thing.
Still, Daddy was being naughty and mean. Ruby knew that if Mommy were still here, she would have put him on the couch. Or, as Mommy had called it, 'grown-up timeout'. Mommy had told them that Daddy was put there when he was bad.
And he was being bad now! He wouldn't stop being mean to Miss Raven! Mommy would be really mad at him if she saw! Now he was being mean to her, too!
Why was she in timeout? She didn't do anything wrong! She just told Daddy to stop being such a meaneyhead!
Ruby pinched herself again, wincing and whining at the stinging sensation.
"It's not nice to call people names," she muttered to herself.
See? She was a good girl. Mommy would be happy with her. So why wasn't Daddy?
Ruby pouted into the corner. She didn't understand why her Daddy was acting so weird. He wasn't doing what Mommy had taught them to do. They were supposed to be nice to guests, especially when they had boo-boo's.
Ruby remembered a time when Uncie Qrow had come home with boo-boo's and Yang wouldn't stop calling him old names. Mommy had been upset and sat Yang in this same corner, then told them later why it was bad to pick on people who were hurting.
Miss Raven was hurting. She might even be hurt worse because Yang said the H word! Mommy would want everyone to be nice to Miss Raven. It was the rules!
Mommy's rules were important. Daddy told them that Mommy was still watching them, all the way in Heaven. Ruby didn't want Mommy to be upset with her, even when they couldn't see each other. She wanted Mommy to be proud of them all, always.
And Mommy would be proud if they were all nice! Ruby just knew that her Mommy would be upset with Daddy and Yang, but proud of her. Mommy wouldn't have put her in timeout!
Ruby glanced down at the timeout stool with a scowl. Daddy told her not to move from it… But why not? He was the one being mean, not her. He was the one who deserved time out!
Her heart beat nervously in her chest as she slowly pulled herself off of the stool and glanced around the empty living room. Disobeying her father's orders filled her with a sense of nervous trepidation, as though she were robbing a store with a cop just down the aisle.
A parent's orders were absolute to a girl so young. But for Ruby, Summer's rules were more important to abide by. They were the way of life she had been brought up on, but even more importantly than that, they were one of the few precious things that Ruby still had of her lost mother.
Nothing was more important to Ruby than the memory her mother had left behind. With that resolve in place, the young girl slowly shuffled her way across the living room and began making her way up the stairs.
Daddy and Yang could be mean all they wanted. She wouldn't be mean! She was going to be Miss Raven's bestest friend ever!
Raven heard Taiyang's footsteps marching up the stairs and down the hall. Her entire body tensed as they approached the door of the guest room, her every muscle poised and ready to pounce.
Better to catch the bastard by surprise than let her injuries weigh her down. By the time he even realized what was happening, he'd already be thoroughly pummeled.
She was left disappointed when Taiyang's footsteps continued past her door and straight to what she assumed was Yang's. The muffled sound of Tai knocking on the opposite door and the sound of his voice confirmed her suspicions.
Raven briefly contemplated whether it would be worth it to just exit the room and attack him from behind. She sighed and began pacing in agitation once she realized that would only prove whatever Taiyang had said about her. She wouldn't give the rat bastard the pleasure. That didn't mean she still wouldn't beat his ass, of course. She was just going to refrain from doing it in front of Yang.
As if she won't hear what's happening just down the hall, Raven thought to herself.
She growled as frustration began to eat away at her. Damn it all to hell, why did she have to come back here? Why did she have to be stuck in this damn house full of bittersweet memories?
She wished she had opened a portal to Qrow instead. Hell, even that old man Ozpin would have been a better choice. At least then she wouldn't have to pretend not to loathe her temporary host.
What was she going to do, then? She couldn't leave. Even though she could walk, it was still painful to do so and even the slightest bit of exertion made her feel tired. She couldn't beat up that ungrateful two-timing prick Taiyang, either. What then? What was she meant to do?
Her thoughts drifted to the past, the absolute last thing she wanted to think of. Once upon a time, she had an entire team to rely on whenever she had moments like this. A brother, a lover, and a friend.
Summer had always been especially intrusive when it came to Raven's personal wellbeing. Always sticking her nose where it didn't belong, pestering her constantly with that annoying goody two-shoes attitude of hers, until Raven eventually snapped and just roared whatever had been frustrating her at Summer, hoping the annoying pest would just take the hint and back off.
Summer never did, though. She always took Raven's explosive temper in stride and did whatever she could to help Raven limp past her troubles.
Raven had resented her for that in the beginning. For a long while, in fact. It made her feel as though she couldn't stand on her own two feet and solve her own problems without the help of someone else.
Yet somehow, Summer had always managed to take even that negative feeling away from her. Always assuring her that admitting your flaws took real strength, in place of running away from them and pretending they didn't exist.
Summer had never betrayed her trust, either. Whenever Raven had allowed a moment of weakness and confided in Summer, whatever was said between them, stayed between them. As far as she knew, Summer had taken all of Raven's secrets to the grave.
Yes… to the grave.
And there it was. Yet another bitter reminder of the loss, as fresh as if it had just happened yesterday.
She couldn't understand why it still bothered her so much. It wasn't as though she and Summer still had such a close bond anymore. No, their bond had been severed the moment Raven had tried to confide in Summer the worst feeling of all, only to he belittled and blown off because she had a fucking kid growing inside of her.
The familiar swell of emotions began to ache in her chest once again. It was too much. This house was too much. Yang, Taiyang, this house, Summer's memory. It had all been an emotional battering of her psyche, making Raven feel more overwhelmed than she could ever remember feeling.
A painful lump formed in her throat. Her vision began to swim. She felt her heart beating in her chest, hammering away at the painful knot that formed as she desperately tried to push these unwanted feelings away.
It was during moments like this where she would quietly find Summer and vent her woes. But there was no Summer left to speak to. Raven had no friend to rely on, no lover who trusted her, no brother who tolerated her, no daughter who loved her.
She was alone.
The doorknob of her room turned. Her head snapped up, her red eyes wide and startled. She quickly sniffled loudly and wiped at her watery eyes, determined not to let Taiyang of all people see her like this.
No weakness. No weakness. No weakness.
The door opened. Instead of Taiyang standing on the other side, it was Ruby. She had stood on the tips of her toes to reach the door handle and stumbled inside as the door swung open. She quietly eeped and glanced nervously behind her, staring into the hallway. She sighed in relief a moment later and quietly closed the door behind her, making sure that the doorknob was turned slowly so that it didn't make any clicking sound upon closing.
Red eyes stared blankly at the little girl as she turned to stare right back. Those silver eyes bored into Raven's very soul, giving her a sense of vulnerable exposure she hadn't felt since Summer had given her the same look. Raven hated that look immediately, just as she had when Summer had first done it.
"What do you want?" Raven bit out through clenched teeth, turning away from those prying silver eyes.
Ruby didn't say a word. She quietly moved forward until she reached the bed, then crawled on top of it and positioned herself so that they were sitting side by side.
"You're bothering me. Get out!" Raven snapped, just as she had at Summer once upon a time.
Again, Ruby didn't say anything. She just waited for a few moments, then reached out and took hold of Raven's hand.
Summer had done that once, too. It was stupid. It was pointless. What good did hand holding do? What help was it supposed to offer? It was a waste of time!
It's just to let you know that you don't have to deal with these things on your own.
That was what Summer had told her all those years ago, the first time she had attempted to comfort Raven.
Now here her brat was, all of these years later, trying to convey the same message. It was stupid. Ruby was just a child. She didn't know a damn thing about-
Raven froze as Ruby's tiny arms wrapped around her midsection, clutching her tightly.
"I'm sorry Yang hurt your feelings," Ruby whispered.
Raven's teeth clenched until she felt pain. She blinked her eyes furiously as her vision began to swim more and more, determined to hold back the storm that had been building up within her. She locked a hand over her chin to keep it from trembling.
Feelings? She didn't have any feelings! She was a warrior! A bandit! She was strong! The strong had no use for such useless notions like feelings!
She grunted to hold back the emotions threatening to break through, but the sound that came out sounded more like a scarcely concealed whine than anything else. It triggered yet another memory of Summer, one that Raven used to rely on during her moments of weakness and doubt.
You know it just looks and sounds more pathetic when you try to hold it back, right? Just let it out, Raven. You're too tough to sniffle and whine. Shouldn't a strong person like you decide when and how you cry? I always thought that the really strong people never cared about who saw them cry, because they weren't afraid of showing emotion.
What a stupid thought process that was. Raven knew even during her moments of vulnerability that Summer was playing her. Still… it had worked. To this day, she couldn't say if it was emotional exhaustion or Summer's words that had pried the outburst from her, only that it had happened and that Summer never once told Taiyang or Qrow. It had made any future moments of doubt more tolerable and easy to deal with, up until the moment she left Team STRQ.
Now here she was again, facing an emotional crisis brought on by a number of different things that were entirely out of her control. Raven didn't like not being in control. Not with herself, not with others, not with any situation. Yet that's exactly what she was and what she had been ever since the ill-fated raid on that old man's village. She was completely out of her element and it had worn on her significantly.
She couldn't help but note the irony. That even though Summer was no longer here to help her limp through this moment of emotional vulnerability, a small piece of herself that she had left behind was.
Ruby Rose truly was Summer's daughter. If not in appearance, then most certainly in personality. The similarities were enough that Raven felt the instinctual habit to lean on Ruby the same way she once had with Summer. Before she knew it, Raven had reached out and pulled Ruby closer against her, holding her tightly against her side.
Unbidden, Raven let the tears spill from her eyes and let out a shuddering breath.
She was emotionally compromised. There was no sense in denying it. Despite her best efforts, Yang was still a crippling weakness that made her buckle with extreme ease. No amount of fighting that feeling would make it go away, so she let the pain flow out of her.
She didn't allow herself to become a sobbing, snot covered mess. If moments like this absolutely had to happen, she much preferred to control how they happened and retain some sense of dignity.
So she just let the tears flow and held onto Ruby, keeping her close. The young girl hugged her even more tightly as the wet drops of Raven's tears landed upon her head.
Whether it was just the relief of letting loose her pent up emotions or the strong reminder of the friend she no longer had, Raven's lips tugged upwards to form the tiniest of smiles.
This little brat was alright, she supposed.
Yang had been teary eyed and sniffling when she answered the door. It pained Taiyang's heart to see her that way, especially at the hands of her own mother.
Not her mother, Taiyang reminded himself. Just the woman who gave birth to her.
He held her as she threw herself at him, patted her hair as she sobbed and listened as she told him what had happened.
He was fuming by the end of it.
Honestly, what the hell was Raven's problem? Throwing Summer's death in Yang's face like that? Every time he thought she couldn't possibly reach a new low, she went and proved him wrong.
But at least he didn't have to worry about the girls being misled by Raven anymore. This was all the reason he needed to keep her locked away from his precious little angels for the rest of her recovery. He felt relief for that, if nothing else. Now he just had to focus on being there for his daughters.
"It's alright, Yang," Taiyang gently said, patting her head. "You don't need to talk to Raven anymore. Daddy won't let her be mean to you again."
Yang sniffled and then looked up at him with red rimmed eyes.
"B-But what about Ruby?" She stammered.
Taiyang winced. Ah, yes… Ruby. He could already tell just by her little outburst from earlier that she was going to be the more difficult one to manage. Wasn't that an odd thing? Yang the more reasonable one, Ruby the rebellious one. He was honestly thrilled that Ruby saw the good in everyone, he truly was. But Raven Branwen didn't have any good in her. Ruby was too young and too naïve to see it now, but if he let her continue to be around Raven, she would find out soon enough.
He couldn't let that happen. He wouldn't let that happen. If that meant he had to be the disciplinarian and keep Ruby away from Raven by force, then he would. At least this way, she could continue to have the mindset that Summer had instilled upon her and not have the earth shattering truth about the true nature of certain people dropped on her at such a young age.
Summer had always lectured him about how soft he was with the girls. Now with her gone, it was up to him to carry the role of two parents. Like Summer had always told him, sometimes the parent had to be the bad guy. But in the end, the kids would appreciate it someday. Ruby would too.
"Don't worry about Ruby, sweetie. I'll make sure she stays away from Raven. But I need your help with that. Remember what we talked about at the ice cream store? You're Ruby's big sister, Yang. It's up to you to look out for her. Your mother would want you to," Taiyang said.
Yang's tiny hands clenched into fists. She inhaled sharply to stop her runny nose and wiped away the tears in her eyes. She had a fierce look in them, a determination that made him swell with fatherly pride. She'd keep Ruby safe, he knew she would.
"That's my girl," Taiyang chuckled, ruffling her hair.
Yang grumbled and pushed his hand away, blushing all the while. But there was no mistaking the tiny smile she had. He gave her one last hug then left her alone. That was one step done. Now, he just needed to make it clear to Raven that she had boundaries she was not permitted to cross for the rest of her stay here. Then he could worry about what to do with Ruby.
Reaching the door to the guest room, Taiyang hardened his expression as he opened the door.
"Alright, Raven," he growled. "You and I need to have a ta-"
Taiyang's voice trailed off, his stern face dissolving into a look of surprise, before turning to fury.
Sitting on the bed right next to Raven, clutching onto her side, was little Ruby. She had her face buried into Raven's side, but he could see enough of it to tell that she was frowning at his arrival.
"Ruby Rose!" Taiyang snapped. "You're supposed to be in timeout!"
Ruby pulled away from Raven's side and glared at him. On such a young girl's face, the look was hardly intimidating enough to take seriously, but the honest anger radiating from her silver eyes had him growling.
"You're timeout!" Ruby screeched at him.
Taiyang was too angry to feel shock. He stormed forward and reached out to snatch Ruby away from that vile woman and put her right back in timeout where she belonged.
Raven's fist slammed into his forearm just before he could reach Ruby. Bony knuckles dug into a cluster of nerves, causing a sharp pain to lance all the way up to his shoulder. He hissed in anger and took a step back, giving Raven all the room she needed to stand up and put herself between him and Ruby.
Red and blue eyes clashed as the two adults glared at one another. They stood barely an inch away from each other, the tips of their noses almost touching. Taiyang growled and Raven bared her teeth in response, cracking her knuckles loudly. Both were just about to make a move that would surely result in violence, when they felt their hands grabbed by smaller ones.
They both looked down and made eye contact with Ruby, whose anger had dissipated and been replaced with sadness. Her silver eyes swam with unshed tears and her bottom lip was sticking out, bobbing up and down.
Taiyang's anger was forgotten as the father in him reacted to his daughter's pain. Ruby had made sad expressions before, but this one was a look of pure hurt, a look he could never forget. Ruby had made the same expression when she finally asked if Summer was never coming home.
Taiyang's face softened and he knelt down until he was eye level with Ruby. He pulled her close to him and she threw her arms around his neck, sniffling loudly.
"It's okay, Ruby," Taiyang said softly, patting her back.
"N-No fighting," Ruby whimpered.
"It's alright, we won't fight."
"Y-You p-promise?"
"I promise. Here, pinky swear, alright?"
Taiyang held out his pinky for Ruby to grab with hers. She wiped away the tears in her eyes and wrapped her little pinky around his, still sniffling loudly.
"I-I'll go timeout," Ruby whispered.
Taiyang shook his head. "No Ruby, that's alright. Just go to your room with Yang. Give her a hug, I think you both need it."
Ruby nodded once then wiped her eyes again. She paused to briefly look up at Raven. Taiyang followed her gaze and noticed that Raven wasn't even paying attention to him anymore. Her murderous red eyes had softened and she didn't appear to be even registering his presence at the moment. Ruby threw her arms around Raven's legs and hugged her tightly, but to Taiyang's surprise, Raven patted her head and even seemed to give Ruby a small hug back, squeezing Ruby's shoulder with her free hand.
Ruby let go after a moment and quietly shuffled towards the door. She paused in the doorway and glanced back at them one more time. Taiyang gave her a reassuring smile and nodded at her to go on. Ruby nodded back and quietly closed the door, leaving Taiyang and Raven alone in the same room. But Ruby had successfully broken the tension before she left.
Raven sighed and stalked over to the bed, sitting down with a slumped posture.
"What's the matter, Raven?" Taiyang asked. "Too used to kids her age running away from you and screaming in terror?"
Red eyes snapped back to Taiyang and filled with anger once more. But, they weren't as angry as they were a moment ago. There didn't seem to be any real threat of violence breaking out anymore, not that such a thing would stop the confrontation altogether.
"Is that what you've been telling Yang?" Raven growled. "Is that why my own daughter won't even look at me now?"
"You lost any right or privilege with Yang the moment you walked out on her," Taiyang growled back.
"The hell I did! I'm the one who carried her inside my fucking body for nine months! I'm the one who had to go through hell to squeeze her out!"
"Nice to see you talk about the miracle of life as though it grants you some special privilege. Most people would, oh I don't know, simply cherish the fact that they were able to bring such a beautiful gift to the world."
Raven spat on the ground. "Yeah, well I tried to cherish that gift today. Started out great until she threw in my face how much of a bad person you told her I was!"
Taiyang winced, feeling an instinctive sense of guilt twisting his gut. He hadn't told Yang that specifically… but it still didn't feel right to him to just badmouth Yang's mother right in front of her, even if it was Raven.
No… that was wrong. It was exactly because it was Raven that he wasn't wrong. Maybe he did feel guilty, but that was only because he had never wanted such a thing to come between him and the woman he once loved.
But that bond was dead now. Dead and gone. In its place was bitterness and resentment, while in the place of the Raven he knew stood a vile, murderous, unrepentant bandit. Why shouldn't he tell Yang the truth? It was no different than telling her the difference between a friendly house dog and a feral wolf.
"Was I wrong to tell Yang that?" Taiyang demanded, crossing his arms and standing his ground.
"Yes!" Raven snapped.
"Oh really? So I wasn't supposed to tell Yang that her own mother is a monster? A criminal? A thief? A murderer?!"
"That's… that's not the point-"
"That's exactly the point! Honestly, I can't believe what I'm hearing from you right now. You sit there and cry to me about not being able to connect with your daughter, the daughter that you ran out on, but you don't even stop to think about whether or not you even deserve to connect with her after the things you've done."
"Quit putting the blame on me for leaving you behind! If you hadn't ignored me, I wou-"
"NO!" Taiyang roared, storming forward and shoving Raven backwards. "We're not talking about who's to blame for you leaving, we're talking about the kind of person you chose to be after you left! How many people have suffered because of you? How many children will never get to see their mother again because of the things that you did? How many bonds between family and friends have you severed because you chose to be such a terrible person? How many, Raven?! Did you even keep count? Do you even remember any of their faces?!"
Raven stumbled backwards as Taiyang advanced on her, constantly trying to retort as Taiyang went on his rant. Try as she might, she couldn't get a word in. Even worse, she couldn't stop the effect they were having. Already she could feel that ever present cold pit of emotion growing wider and colder, causing her insides to painfully clench as all of her sins were thrown back in her face.
"You have the nerve to cry about the bond you can't have with Yang," Taiyang continued. "Well let me tell you something. You don't fucking deserve to have a bond with Yang. Not after destroying so many of those same bonds for who knows how many different people. You said you tried to bond with her today? Tell me Raven, how did that feel? Did it feel good? Did it make you happy? Did everything that's wrong with the world wash away, until all you were left with was that single, good feeling? A feeling that you wished would never end?"
Raven's back hit the wall and she fell silent. But judging by her expression, he knew the answer. Yes, it had felt good. Yes, all of her troubles seemed to just vanish and become irrelevant in that one single moment she had shared with Yang. Yes, she had wanted that moment to last forever.
"Tell me, Raven," Taiyang said quietly. "How did it feel when that good feeling was ripped away from you? Think long and hard about that, because you gave that very same terrible, horrible, awful feeling to everybody you've ever hurt. Think about that and then tell me if you think you deserve to have that same bond after depriving so many others of it."
Raven was speechless. She had never stopped to consider the harm she had caused others. Never even cared to consider it. Why would she? They were just sheep to her. Little lambs put in her path to be devoured at her whim.
But now, having experienced the same sensation of having someone precious to her be ripped away, she couldn't stop imagining all of the people she had so ruthlessly put down during her reign as a Bandit Queen. How many raids had she gone on during her time with the Branwen's? How many people had she personally cut down? How many children had she torn out of the grasp of loving parents?
The memory of Alban, the man who had caused her so much damage, flashed through her mind. Specifically the memory of his grandson, whom she had taken just to hurt the old man.
No man or woman had come forward when she had taken him, only Alban. Did the boy even have any other guardians to look after him? Had she taken the only living relative he had left?
"That's what I thought," Taiyang muttered, bringing Raven out of her brief moment of self reflection. "I don't want you around my girls anymore," Taiyang continued. "Either of them. You can stay in the guest room until you recover, but I don't want you out of that room for the rest of your time here. You're going to be alone, just the way you chose to be. No more dinner with my family, no more television with my family, no more even talking with my family. Do I make myself clear?"
Raven tried to glare at him, but her face fell and she chose instead to stare at the floor.
"Transparently," she muttered.
"Good," Taiyang said before turning to leave. He paused after he opened the door, glancing back at Raven one more time. His expression had melted from furious to almost mournful. "I never wanted things to be this way, Raven. We could've been a family. We should have been a family."
Raven glanced up then, her eyes filled with bitterness and resentment.
"Yeah, we should have been," she replied. "But don't think that I left you just because I'm a terrible person. I left you for a reason, Taiyang Xiao-Long. Regardless of what kind of person I may be now, my reason for leaving you, for leaving Team STRQ, will always be justified. The fact that you still don't even know why I left just proves that you haven't changed. I regret leaving Yang, there's no point in denying that now. But I don't regret leaving you."
Taiyang stared at her for a moment longer, amazed that even after so many years of hating her, that her words could still cause him hurt. Finally, he turned away and walked out the door.
"At least I was there for Yang when it mattered," he muttered. Done with the conversation, he walked out the door and made to close the door.
Just before the door closed, he heard the faintest whisper in reply.
"I needed you there for me, too."
Qrow Branwen slumped into his seat, exhaustion settling in as he was finally allowed a brief moment of rest. He reached down to his hip for his flask, unscrewing the lid and tilting his head back to take a quick swig of the brandy he had filled it with. A cane came to rest on his hand just before his lips could make contact.
"You've been drinking far too much lately, Qrow," the Headmaster of Beacon Academy, Professor Ozpin, said.
"You would too if you were in my shoes," Qrow grumbled in reply, shoving the cane away. He did acquiesce to Ozpin's request however, capping his flask and putting it away.
The two Huntsmen were currently seated in the clock tower that made up Professor Ozpin's office, sitting across from one another at the Headmaster's desk. Qrow never liked this position. It wasn't just because the constant loud tick-tock of the tower gave him a headache, but because sitting across from Ozpin while he was seated behind his desk made Qrow feel as though he were back in his freshman year of Beacon, in trouble with Raven for the umpteenth time.
Come to think of it, he'd been having a lot of thoughts about Raven, lately. He put the blame for that on her recent and very sudden reappearance. Or maybe it was because his thoughts had been too caught up in the past recently, wishing for times he could never get back.
"Once upon a time, I did," Ozpin agreed. "But that was a long time ago. Several lifetimes, in fact."
"Heh, don't compare your life to mine. We both know that you got a special sort of experience that I can't even begin to compare to," Qrow said.
"True enough. So then, what news from Lionheart?"
"Not much on the Salem side of things. Leo's been a bit busy dealing with Jimmy."
Ozpin sighed, taking off his glasses and pinching the bridge of his nose.
"I was afraid of that," Ozpin muttered.
"The guy Raven bumped off. Alban, was it? Who was he?" Qrow asked.
"A rather minorly known, but no less important, hero of the last Great War. Many people with ill intentions see the chaos of war as an opportunity to make life easier for themselves, but at the expense of others. With all of the soldiers off killing each other, many innocents fell prey to highwaymen and bandits with nobody to protect them. Alban was a young man with no social standing or great military prowess. Just a concerned citizen of the then-named Kingdom of Mantle who felt it was his duty to defend those who couldn't defend themselves. So, he proposed and volunteered for a special mobile task force made up of other volunteers to intercept and repel any would-be bandits. The task force was composed mostly of previous victims of these many raids, with the odd retired Huntsmen and Huntress here and there."
"Cripes, how old was this guy? Wasn't the last Great War eighty years ago?"
"It was. Alban was a young man when the Great War happened, though it is no less impressive that a veteran of his experience lived as long as he did."
"You can say that again. This guy was pretty much the perfect foil for Rae, wasn't he?"
"Indeed. Though Mantle was the primary antagonistic force of the Great War, Alban did not let his citizenship determine what was right or wrong. He played a large part in keeping many settlements from being destroyed during the war."
"This guy must've seen some stuff. I mean, bandits are bad and all, but the Grimm had been going berserk during a war of that magnitude."
"Indeed, they were. Alban's little task force took on many difficult odds and accomplished many noble deeds."
"And then Raven went and killed him."
"Yes. And then that."
Ozpin sighed again, leaning back in his chair and taking hold of his mug to take a long, drawn out drink.
"What's that uptight prick Ironwood got to do with the old guy?" Qrow asked.
Ozpin finished off his coffee with a loud exhale, setting the empty mug aside and putting his glasses back on before turning to address Qrow once more.
"Alban was a special source of inspiration for James, as well as a mentor to him," Ozpin explained.
"Fuck."
"Indeed. James was well aware of what Alban intended to do and whom he intended to do it to."
"Double fuck. Shit, this isn't good. So Jimmy knows that it was-"
"The Branwen Tribe? Yes, he does. It wouldn't surprise me if he's personally taken it upon himself to round up the rest of the stragglers left over from Alban's assault."
"Dammit!" Qrow stood from his chair and began pacing around in agitation, running his hands through his black hair.
"My, my, Qrow. I did not expect this adverse reaction of yours. Is it possible you still harbor some lingering feelings for your old tribe?" Ozpin asked.
"Hell no! Those guys were bastards who deserved what they got. The world's better off without them."
"Concern for your sister, then?"
"No... not really. Don't get me wrong, Oz. Rae's still my sister no matter what she's done. But I can't condone the decisions she's made in life. Whether I love her or hate her, she deserves the cage. I'm more concerned about who Ironwood has to go through to put Raven in that cage…"
"Ah. Your nieces, then."
"Dammit all to hell, Oz. Yang just lost Summer. Now she's gotta lose Raven, too?"
"You assume that Raven will want to be a part of Yang's life. Did she not run out on Yang when the girl was still in infancy?"
Qrow looked exasperated and gave a helpless shrug.
"I was kinda hoping that maybe, with the tribe gone and all, that Raven would choose to stay," Qrow said.
"It's good to have high hopes, provided you don't place too much thought into believing that they might become true when in all likelihood, they won't. Do you truly believe that Raven intends to stay?"
"I don't know. Maybe? I spoke to her before I left and Yang seemed to be a sore spot for her. She freaked when she thought that Yang was in trouble, so I'd like to believe that she still feels something for her."
"I must admit, I am glad to hear that. It had pained me to see one of the students I had grown so close to choose the path that she did. Perhaps time with Yang will help to serve as a sort of rehabilitation for young Raven."
"Not if Ironwood has his way, it won't."
"Leave James to me. The Branwen Tribe has been mostly eliminated as a threat to Mistral, so Alban's final campaign was a resounding success. James will find it difficult to accept, but there is no sense in wasting a life that could be in the process of changing for the better. Raven has been punished enough with her physical injuries and the loss of her status. That should be enough for James."
"And if it isn't…?"
Ozpin threaded his fingers together and calmly laid them on the table. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When they opened again, they had an edge that Qrow rarely saw from the old Headmaster.
"Then I will handle it accordingly. Young Yang and Ruby have been through quite enough already. I'll not stand to see them suffer any more. Not while I can stop it."
AN: Conflict! While the last couple of chapters have been fun to write and the positive reviews fun to read, y'all had to know that such wholesome moments couldn't last forever. With this chapter, we officially mark the beginning of proper conflict within the story, both in the Xiao-Long household and outside of it.
Will Raven and Yang make up? Will Taiyang and Ruby clash? Will Ironwood have his revenge? Find out next time on Mama Raven Z!
P.S. Just a quick reminder that the GoFundMe for my deceased friend is still up on my profile. His family has been beset with tragedy this year, so any small amount is appreciated, as well as sharing the link through social media. Please and thank you.