After an... oddly quiet shift spent with Yang at The Perch, it was finally time for another therapy session.

Bidding her friend farewell for the day - and only receiving a sad-looking smile and wave in return, which she would definitely have to look into at a later date - she made her way into the back room, where she met Raven, and the pair headed out. While she was certainly not looking forward to the therapy session, she could also not say she was quite dreading it, which was... at least something.

It was true opening up to a person she did not know was quite difficult - just like Raven had told her - but the longer that she did, the easier it became. Glynda had proven that she had no intention of just peeling apart her feelings or examining her like an experiment, instead actually wanting to... help her. After starting things off by sharing her own story of loss, she spent the rest of the time asking Cinder about various aspects of her life, like her current situation, suffering from insomnia, and much to her dismay; what happened with the accident and her horrible step-family. They were not exactly pleasant topics to discuss, but she got through it, and honestly, she felt a little better after doing so.

"Alright, ready for round two?" Suddenly came Raven's voice from next to Cinder, pulling the younger woman from her thoughts as she felt the vehicle come to a stop.

Turning to face her boss, Cinder timidly nodded. "As I'll ever be."

Raven offered a small smile as she turned off the car and unbuckled her seat belt. "Just remember, you've got nothin' to worry about."

Cinder managed a slight smile in response as she unbuckled her own. "Believe me, I've been attempting to tell myself that all day."

"Well, did it work?" Raven asked.

Looking down at her hands, Cinder found that they were shaking - as she expected - but not nearly as much as the first time she was there for therapy. Though that did not mean she was not scared, far from it actually. The fact that Glynda had taken it easy so to speak during the prior session only served to worry her more. What was she planning to ask Cinder about this time? How deep into her life was she going to dig? Just how was she going to make her cry today? Such questions had been filling her mind all day... Which was a pain. It was too bad that Cinder could not run away and hide, like she once did in high school. Plus, if she were to do that, Emerald would not be there to come find her like she used to...

Cinder let out a sigh. "Not exactly." She finally answered, shaking her head.

"Too many voices to shout over?" Raven wondered.

Cinder raised her brow. "You're familiar?"

"I've started naming them." Raven answered with a slight grin.

What a similarity to have. Cinder thought to herself. I wonder... "Do you have one that's constantly horny?"

Raven laughed. "Big time."

"What's its name?" Cinder inquired, genuinely curious, as she had never thought about naming her own voices.

"Daisy."

Cinder raised her brow again. "Daisy?"

Raven shrugged. "Yeah, kinda ditzy, definitely the slept with the teacher to get better grades voice."

Cinder thought for a moment at the answer. "I never had any hot teachers."

"I had one, he was gay though." Raven commented.

Cinder let out a small chuckle. "How unfortunate."

"Didn't stop me from fantasizing though." Raven added.

Cinder furrowed her brow. Fantasizing about a gay man as a woman? "How would you even have done that?"

"I closed my eyes and imagined being bent over a desk." Raven explained, in more detail than the younger woman would have liked. "Come on Cin it's not rocket science."

"I meant it would have been difficult if you knew he was..." Cinder began before trailing off, realizing what her boss has just said. "Cin, huh?"

"Yeah, is that okay?" Raven wondered.

Cinder nodded. "Of course, I just... didn't expect it is all..." Then her gaze fell. "I haven't been called Cin in quite a long time..."

Raven offered a tired smile. "It's a cute name, suits you."

As much as she tried to fight it, Cinder's cheeks heated up at the statement. "I... Th-Thank you Raven..."

"There's that smile, feelin' better?" Raven inquired.

After a moment, Cinder nodded again, her smile becoming more prominent. "I think I am. Thank you."

"No prob." Raven acknowledged. "Now come on, Glynda's probably waiting for us."

Leaving the car, Cinder almost jumped as the doors shut behind her, anxiety returning full force. Still she soldiered onward, following her superior across the small parking lot, but noticed something as she did. It was like something was... missing. The previous time Raven had taken her to therapy, she did not hesitate to take Cinder's hand when she had stopped dead in her tracks out of fear, so walking in without that connection felt... weird.

As the pair approached the modest building, Cinder found her gaze wandering down to Raven's hand, unable to look away. Perhaps... I could take her hand this time... No no that would be weird... Although... she did do it first... Several seconds ticked by while she contemplated grabbing her boss' hand, but they were getting closer to the building, which meant she would have to make a decision soon...

Fuck it.

Walking a little faster to catch up to Raven, Cinder - almost against her better judgement - Cinder reached out to take the older woman's hand in her own, instinctively intertwining their fingers. A next moment seemed to pass in slow motion as her heart rate began to increase, almost fearing what exactly Raven was going to. Would she accept it? Would she let go? Would she pull away? Luckily Cinder received a response fairly quickly, but it was not at all what she was expecting. Rather than saying something about it, or hell even looking at their connected hands, Raven just... gently squeezed. It was... reassuring to say the least, and so warm... Much like the previous time they held hands, it made Cinder feel... safe, as if the impending therapy session was not so scary anymore.

Once again, with Raven taking the lead, the pair made their way into the building, where they were met by Glynda's assistant, Gwen, who quickly fetched her boss from her office. After hugs were exchanged - at least between Glynda and Raven, Cinder received a simple handshake - they were led into the same small room that the prior therapy session took place in. There were a couple other rooms located in the office that Cinder had not seen, and while a bit dumb, she was curious as to what they looked like on the inside.

After everyone had taken their seats - with Cinder and Raven on the couch, and Glynda on the chair opposite from them - the therapist offered a smile. "Why don't we begin with something simple?" She offered. "How have you been feeling recently?"

That was an easy answer. "Dull, overall."

"Why do you say that?" Glynda inquired.

"I have little to occupy my free time." Cinder simply answered.

"Do you not have hobbies?" Glynda continued.

Cinder just shook her head. "I never did."

Glynda's brow furrowed slightly as she wrote something down on her notepad. "Has something changed recently to make you feel this way?"

Cinder thought for a moment. Had anything changed recently? "Not... in particular..." She somewhat hesitantly began. "I suppose I simply feel... more."

"Can you elaborate on that?" Glynda requested.

"It's nothing concrete, I think I feel more secure, the pressure no longer stifles me." Cinder explained.

"What sort of pressure?" Glynda asked.

"To... fight." Cinder clarified after a moment.

Glynda tilted her head a bit at the response, likely confused as to what it meant. "To fight?"

Cinder let out a sigh, her gaze falling to the floor. "Every day... It felt like I fought everything."

"Why do you say that?" Glynda wondered.

With her gaze still glued to the floor, Cinder shook her head slightly. "Nothing was simple anymore, nothing went my way."

"And do you still feel this way?"

Cinder just shrugged. "It comes and goes, rarely."

A pause followed that answer as Glynda proceeded to silently write a few things down in her notepad. Once finished, she merely looked over the notes for a few moments before looking back up at the younger woman. "Do you have any friends?"

Cinder nodded. "I believe so."

Glynda furrowed her brow. "What makes you say that?"

"There are always doubts." Cinder admitted, as much as she would have preferred not to. Especially in front of Raven.

"Doubts if they're really your friends?" Glynda pressed.

Cinder once again found her gaze falling, not wanting to continue. "A-Among other things."

"What do you mean?" Glynda inquired.

"Sometimes I doubt them, sometimes myself." Cinder sighed, which caused Raven to suddenly let out a breath.

"Ouch."

Glynda immediately shot a glare at her. "Raven, quiet." She ordered, to which the other woman quickly shut her mouth, even shrinking a bit in her seat. Damn. "Why do you doubt those who you believe are your friends?"

In truth there were many reasons why Cinder doubted people, though she could likely spend hours discussing that. So she would go with the short version. "My friends in school we're sycophants, my coworkers in the office abandoned me, I no longer hold much in the way of hope."

"I see." Glynda acknowledged, taking pausing again to write in her notepad. "Yet you still believe those around you are your friends? What makes them different?"

That's obvious. "They are all I have. Without them I have nothing... without them I am nothing."

Once again, Glynda paused, this time looking over her notes. "If it's alright with you, I would like to go through each of your current relationships, to see just how they've affected you."

That doesn't sound so bad. "I suppose."

Glynda nodded in response. "How about we start with Raven here? Unless you'd rather begin somewhere else of course."

Talk about easy. "It seems fair."

"How would you describe your relationship with her as it is right now?" Glynda asked.

"Close." Cinder simply answered. There was not really a better way to describe it.

"Can you elaborate on that?" Glynda requested.

"I trust her, more than most, and she doesn't judge me." Cinder explained.

"And how was it that you came to trust her so much?" Glynda continued.

Cinder almost felt the need to scoff. What an obvious question. "When she invited me into her home instead of firing me."

"Is this when you passed out?" Glynda wondered, to which the younger woman merely nodded. "Is it simply gratitude, or do you feel a deeper personal connection?"

That... was a good question. "I... don't know..." Cinder mumbled. "Of course I'm extremely grateful for what she's done for me, but I'm unsure about what I feel..."

"Respect? Admiration? affection?"

"Certainly the first two, but I don't know about the third..." Cinder admitted, feeling a slight blush tint her cheeks.

Glynda offered a gentle smile. "Affection is natural, platonic or otherwise. There is no shame in embracing it."

Cinder blinked. "Oh... then I suppose the third as well..."

Raven chuckled a bit. "I feel affection for you too Cin."

Cinder managed a slight grin in response, and the blush that had previously been disappearing began to return. "Shush."

Glynda let out a short yet annoyed sigh. "Unless you have something truly helpful to add, I would prefer it if you would please stay quiet."

"Yep, sorry Glyn." Raven quickly apologized, once again shrinking back in her seat a little. Cinder could not help but smirk at how the therapist could put Raven in her place so easily. She remembered being able to do that to other people once upon a time...

"How do you view Yang?" Glynda inquired.

Cinder opened her mouth to respond, but realized that finding that answer was a bit harder than she thought. What did she think of Yang? Well, she was kind, fun to be around, extremely attractive... overall just a good person that Cinder was fortunate to know. "I've only known her briefly, but I can easily say that she's been the best part of most of my shifts, and a wonderful friend."

"Have you spent time with her outside of work?" Glynda continued.

"Aside from texting, not yet." Cinder answered, then she smiled. "Though I'm sure she's just waiting for the chance to hang out with me."

A brief silence followed before out of the corner of her eye, Cinder saw Raven raise her hand, which caused Glynda to let out a slight sigh. "Yes Raven?"

"Yang's always up to hang out, just ask her what she's up to on the weekend." Raven informed.

Cinder nodded in response. "I will."

"Was that all?" Glynda wondered, clearly not fond of Raven's interruptions.

"Yep, shutting up now."

Glynda then turned back to Cinder. "You said last time that Yang had a partner, Neo?"

Cinder found her smile quickly disappearing, knowing that that was no longer the case. "She... used to. Neo recently dumped her."

"Oh dear, is she handling it well?" Glynda asked, a visible look of concern on her face.

"I'm not sure." Cinder sadly admitted. "I know she stayed at her sister's apartment after it happened, but since then she's seemed fine, aside from today. Though I'm unsure if that's related or not."

Glynda appeared as though she was ready to respond, but found her gaze shifting over to the woman beside Cinder instead - who, unbeknownst to the younger woman, looked downcast at the mention of her daughter's recent mood. "Raven?"

The woman in question shifted uncomfortably in her seat - which her employee could awkwardly feel. "I'll uh, I'll talk to you a bit after this."

Glynda simply nodded, likely having some idea as to what was going on. "Very well, a distraction may be helpful. In times of emotional turmoil, just having someone to speak to can do wonders for a wounded heart."

"It really can..." Cinder mumbled.

"Now, you spoke of your friend Nora quite fondly, was she the first to reach out to you?" Glynda inquired.

I guess it's time to change topics. Cinder thought to herself as she nodded. "She was. Well, after attempting to see if I was interested in... um... h-hooking up."

Glynda's brow raised a bit, as the younger woman expected. "Rather forward, yet not uncommon in this day and age."

Cinder almost felt the need to chuckle. "I would say forward is a bit of an understatement for that girl."

"I take it you were overwhelmed?"

Cinder nodded slightly. "Mostly due to the fact that someone as attractive as her showed a genuine interested in someone who... looks the way I do..."

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, Cinder." Glynda assured.

"I know, though I'm sure most would agree that... this isn't beauty." Cinder sighed as she looked down at her body, aware of the... disgusting scars that lied beneath her clothes.

"Evidently, Nora disagreed." Glynda noted.

"And she tells me so practically every day." Cinder added, a slight smile spreading across her face.

"And how does she make you feel?" Glynda continued.

That was easy. "Like none of the problems that plague my mind even matter."

Glynda raised a brow slightly. "She affects you so deeply?"

That girl could deeply affect anyone. Cinder thought as she nodded. "I've only know her for a few months, but the way she treats me... it's as if we've been best friends for years."

Glynda's brow proceeded to raise higher. "Best friends? Nothing more?"

"I... I don't know..." Cinder somewhat shamefully admitted. "She had told me she's wanted to be more in the past, but... I feel like it would be taking advantage of her in some way..."

"How so?" Glynda asked.

Damnit. Cinder felt her eye move away from the therapist, unable to meet her gaze. "She has done a great deal since I first moved into that apartment building, so if I were to tell her I wanted more, it would be for the wrong reasons..."

"You feel guilt for all she has given you?" Glynda wondered.

Cinder shook her head, almost hanging it in shame. "I feel guilt for not having anything to give in return."

"Have you not?"

"I try, but... nothing I can do will ever compare to what she's given me..." Cinder mumbled, despising the fact that it was a true statement. Nora deserved so much better than just being a prostitute, living in some shithole of an apartment that was located in arguably one of the worst areas in all of Vale. Unfortunately, much like Cinder herself, life dealt her a terrible hand.

"Friendship, Cinder, is a valuable thing in itself." Glynda assured. "After all, look at me. Perhaps you should speak with Nora about how you feel."

Yeah... that's probably a good idea... Maybe then I could figure out what I can actually do for her. "Okay... I will."

After writing some more in her notepad, Glynda looked back up at the younger woman with another gentle smile. "If I may, would you be comfortable speaking about Emerald?"

Not particularly, but it's not like I can really say no. "Y-Yes..."

"There is no shame in refusal, Cinder." Glynda promised.

Yes, but if I don't talk about her now, you're going to make me eventually. "No, no... it's okay..."

Glynda simply nodded in response. "How did the two of you meet?"

Well, that depends on what meeting you mean. In truth there were two separate times that could be considered first meetings. The first occasion was coincidentally on their first day of high school. Cinder and her... friends had been on their way to a class that they shared, when an - at the time - unknown green-haired girl came rushing around the corner and proceeded to run directly into her, causing both of them to drop everything they were holding onto the floor. Emerald then kneeled down to pick the various items up as she apologized profusely, all as Cinder just... watched. Once the two girls each had their belongings, Cinder, in her infinite wisdom, merely told her to watch where she going before walking away with her friends.

Unfortunately that was nowhere near the last time Cinder would be unpleasant to Emerald. In fact she was just as bad the next time the two met. As it turned out, the pair had several classes together, and the first of them had students partnered up for work. Of course they were paired together, but Cinder did not want anyone dragging her down, so she did everything herself, leaving Emerald to just go along with it.

That was one of the many reasons Cinder had not noticed her future fiancé for so long. She was quiet until spoken to, liked to keep to herself most of the time... and the fact that Cinder was so narcissistic certainly did not help. It was sad really. Emerald had nursed a crush on her almost since the day they met, yet she treated her like nothing more than a lackey for years.

"We had a couple classes together high school..." Cinder finally explained. "But that was when I was a different person..."

Glynda tilted her head a bit in confusion. "How so?"

Cinder let out a sigh. "I was... popular, vain... cruel... thinking I was somehow superior to those around me. I viewed her as a convenience, a reality I tolerated."

"What made you treat her this way?" Glynda inquired.

"She followed me everywhere, did as I said, hung onto my every word... She loved me, and I treated her... like a pet." Cinder shamefully continued, cringing at the final word.

"When did things change?" Glynda asked.

When my sorry ass was put in its place. "I dated Neo for a time." Cinder answered. "She was similar to me, popular, attractive... I saw her as an equal... then she dumped me like I was nothing... I fell apart, and... E-Emerald was the only one who cared."

"And what followed?"

"I stopped feeling comfortable just... being around people, talking to them... it made me feel... small." Cinder admitted, her gaze falling once again.

Glynda then wrote a couple things down before looking back up. "Why was that?"

Cinder took a deep breath. "Emerald... called it social anxiety... she said I tore down others to protect myself."

"Was that accurate?"

Cinder nodded slightly. "It hurt, to hear it so plain, I was angry, and... I took it out on her..." She took a shaky breath, recalling the abuse she hurled at the poor girl. "When she left, the anger faded... and I was scared... I was always scared." Memories of the hours after Emerald left her began to flow through her mind, feeling the dawning reality that she was all Cinder had, the only person she trusted, the only one that truly cared for her...

"Scared of what?" Glynda wondered.

"Everyone, everything... Being alone, being hated, being looked down upon... She was right, gods she was always right..." Cinder grit her teeth. "Emerald was the only person who ever gave a shit about me, and I treated her like..." A lump grew in her throat, escaping as a sob, she wanted nothing more than to crawl into a ball and sink into the floor, letting the darkness consume and protect her as she fell apart.

Glynda quickly put her notepad down, reaching for the tissue box on the table between the three women. "Would you like a tissue, Cinder?"

Cinder just shook her head, rubbing her eye with her sleeve.

Nodding, Glynda sat back in her seat. "You changed, for the better." She assured.

"Emmy... Emmy always told me, be nice, even if they don't deserve it, because it makes life easier on everyone, even yourself." Cinder sneered, shaking, glaring at the floor through fresh tears. "But look what life did to us. She's dead, and I'm halfway there, barely crawling along, treading water in an endless ocean, shark fins in my peripheral, and no matter how my body screams to just give in, everyone around me keeps dangling hope above my reach as if it'll keep me motivated." Cinder spat the final word with malice, coughing into her hand harshly, she felt Raven's hand on her shoulder, and resisted the urge to thrash it off. "I'm tired, sick and fucking tired of false hope and pain. It hurts to fucking breathe, and people still come to me with their problems as if I should give a shit? Fuck them, every last one of them and their insignificant troubles. What point is kindness if life only gives you misery in return..." Cinder's voice faded with those final words. She curled in on herself, fingers clenching her hair, pulling harshly at their roots, the burning pain mingling with the guilt and awareness of her present company. She did not want to look at Raven, she could not handle the disappointment.

"Anger is natural, Cinder, bottling it up only serves to cause us more pain in the long run." Glynda pressed.

"I'm sorry..." Cinder managed, her voice barely audible. She received only a shaking head from the therapist.

"Don't be, this is what you need Cinder, to be honest about your feelings. Now we can begin to address them, openly this time."


In truth, it was not often that Pyrrha felt the need to return home as soon as physically possible - aside from when she received the occasional naughty photo from her usually-lingerie-clad wife - but ever since bringing Coco to their apartment the prior afternoon, she had been anxious to leave their friend alone while she and Ruby were at work. It was only eight hours, but still, she wished that even one of them was able to stay at home with her. After all, that woman had been able to get herself into trouble with a lot less time than that.

Thankfully, after an aggravatingly long day, it was finally time for work to be over. Packing up her things as quickly as she could without appearing as if she was rushing to get out of there - which to be fair, she was - and bidding her work friends farewell for the evening, Pyrrha made her way down to the office's parking garage, practically jumped in her car, and headed home. Luckily there was little in terms of traffic, so her normal drive of over half an hour was reduced to about twenty minutes. Sure, it was not that much of a time difference, but that was okay, anything that allowed her to get home to Coco faster.

Upon arriving at the fifth floor of their apartment building, the metal doors of the elevator opened with a bing and Pyrrha stepped off into the hallway. A short walk later she reached the door labelled 502: that being her and Ruby's apartment. Pulling her bundle of keys from her purse, she located the correct one, inserted it into the lock and let herself into the apartment... stopping dead in her tracks upon seeing what lay within.

Currently sprawled out on the main living area couch was a still-pyjama-clad Coco - which of course was no problem, as the brunette was not required to be dressed if she was just staying at home. What was very much a problem was the fact that her friend was loosely holding what appeared to be a half-empty bottle of vodka. The mere sight itself made her blood boil. When she and Ruby had first brought Coco back to their apartment, Pyrrha gave her a small list of simple rules: absolutely no alcohol, no smoking - she would buy her nicotine patches if need be - and to call one of them immediately if she needed anything. Now, it had barely been one day, and she had already broken what was probably the most important rule, as if not even attempting to resist.

As Pyrrha gently closed the front door - having to refrain from slamming it - Coco's gaze shifted from idly staring at the television to the redhead glaring at her from the apartment's front entrance.

"Oh hey Little Red." Coco greeted, offering a slight smile and a wave as she tried to move the alcohol out of view with her cast-covered arm, attempting to hide the fact that she had it in the first place.

Pyrrha merely continued to glare at her friend in response. Truthfully, she wanted to get angry, to yell about how Coco was unable to follow a simple rule, but she was able to stay calm... at least on the outside. On the inside... that was a different story. Instead, Pyrrha decided to silently approach Coco, who's smile began to disappear as she grew closer, stand above her for a moment, a look of pure disappointment on her face, before quickly - and perhaps a bit too roughly - snatching the bottle of vodka from its place next to her, causing the brunette to flinch as she did so. Pyrrha then quietly headed into the kitchen, where she proceeded to uncap it and dump the remainder of the liquor down the drain. Once finished, she just placed the empty bottle aside and moved over to the fridge to take something out for dinner.

"Is there anything specific you would like for dinner?" Pyrrha simply inquired, not even looking back toward the living area. As expected, she received no response from her friend, though that might have been a good thing. After all, Pyrrha would rather Coco not say anything than have to hear her sorry excuses for why she had drank over half a bottle of vodka, alone. In truth - and she realized that it was a horrible thing to imagine - she wanted for Coco to stew in her guilt until she was ready to apologize. Thankfully it seemed that she would not have to wait very long. As she continued to search their fairly large fridge - Perhaps we should have chicken tonight - she heard a quiet voice from the living area.

"I uh, I'm sorry."

Taking a couple packages of raw chicken out of the fridge - not even looking behind her - Pyrrha placed them onto the counter and began retrieving the cookware and ingredients. "And why might that be?"

A brief pause followed. "For... day drinking?"

Pyrrha just frowned, still not turning around to look at her friend. Playing difficult I see. "Are you certain that's the only thing?"

Another pause. "Not asking if you wanted any?"

Pyrrha let out a sigh, putting down the spices she was currently holding. "Try again."

A third pause followed, likely from the other woman hesitating on her answer. "I got thirsty." Coco tried to defend. "And water wasn't helping."

"So you believed vodka could quench your thirst?" Pyrrha questioned.

"There wasn't anything else around, and I... couldn't find a good way to distract myself." Coco answered, attempting to justify her decision, which of course the redhead was not buying. She understood very well how difficult it was to keep thoughts of lost loved ones out of her head, but she also knew that alcohol did absolutely nothing to make things better - which was precisely why every bit of wine and other alcohol in the apartment had been hidden and locked away the prior day.

"You could have called one of us." Pyrrha reminded, resuming her task of preparing dinner.

"Didn't wanna bother you with my shit." Coco mumbled.

Pyrrha sighed again, ceasing her preparation of the chicken once again. It seemed that dinner would have to wait. "Coco, why do you think you're here?"

"'Cause I can't take care of myself?" Coco guessed.

Making her way over to the living are, Pyrrha positioned herself behind the main couch to look straight down at her friend, who hesitantly met her gaze. "Because we care about you, we love you, dearly. I'm unsure how many times I'll have to tell you, but I'll say it as many times as I need to. I understand you're in pain, I want to do everything that I possibly can to help you, but I cannot sit idly by and allow you to keep self destructing like this!" She stressed, louder than she meant to, causing the younger woman to flinch and avert her gaze.

"I just..." Coco began after a moment before sighing. "I just wanna have one day where I don't have to think about her..."

"That's the problem Coco, it's not how the heart works..." Pyrrha stressed, slowly walking around the couch and sitting down next to her friend. She then placed a hand upon one of her pyjama-covered legs, thankfully getting her to look at the redhead once again. "Do you think I go even a single day without memories of Jaune filling my mind? Or those of Velvet?" After a moment of silence followed, Coco's gaze fell out of shame, so Pyrrha took the opportunity to continue. "I know you miss her, we all do, not a day goes by where I don't wish she was still with us, but your neglect for your own health has gone far enough." She informed, her tone becoming more stern as her eyes began to narrow. "You and I both know very well that the last thing Velvet would have ever wanted was to watch the love of her life drink and smoke herself to death!"

Another brief silence followed, with Coco still merely staring down at her thighs. The redhead waited for her to say something, anything, but no such response came, which caused her to quietly sigh. As much as she wanted to go easy on her friend, she realized the prior day that that was no longer an option. She just found it so mentally taxing to work so hard to help Coco, only to watch her spiral back down again the moment she was gone.

It almost reminded her of Yang's situation, something that Pyrrha was unfortunately quite used to. Of course it still concerned her quite a bit, but at least her sister-in-law was - for the most part - able to take care of herself, only needing the occasional pick-me-up as it were, such as the recent incident with Neo. Coco meanwhile was actively self-destructing due to her loss, which Pyrrha could sadly relate to, as she could have also lost Ruby in that fire.

Taking a deep breath, the redhead attempted to calm her nerves. She did not want to be as stern as she had been with Coco, but her friend's recent behaviour had left her no choice. Reaching up to the brunette's face, Pyrrha cupped her cheek - as gently as she could manage - and forced her to look at her. Coco tried to avert her gaze from the two emerald eyes staring at her, but Pyrrha easily kept her head in place. "Why do you continue to do this to yourself?"

Coco almost appeared to be on the verge of tears, and in truth, the redhead could feel a lump in her throat as well. "I don't know what else to do." She weakly managed, tears beginning to fill her eyes. "Drinking makes me think of how much Velvs hated it, but being sober just means I can't stop thinking about how disappointed she'd be in what I've become..." The moment Coco was finished talking, she began to break down into a quiet sob, tears streaming down her face and over Pyrrha's left hand. The redhead had to resist comforting her, as unfortunately, she was not finished yet. Though she could not help but wipe away some of the tears with her thumb.

Taking another deep breath, the older woman kept her gaze as stern as she could. "There is a measure of trust in this arrangement, Coco. If we cannot trust you to accept our help alone, there are AA meetings every week, and we will escort you to them." She warned.

With tears still streaming down her face, Coco nodded after a moment. "Okay..."

Pyrrha offered a smile in response, her expression easing. "Thank you." She then raised another hand to cup Coco's other cheek, pulling her closer to plant a soft kiss on her forehead, causing the younger woman to manage a smile as well. After that, she wrapped her arms around Coco's shoulders to pull her into a gentle yet still firm hug, the brunette's arms quickly making their way around Pyrrha's waist.

"We love you, Coco."

"Love you too Pyr."

"Would you like to help with dinner?"

Coco just chuckled slightly.

"Like you could ever need help with cooking."


Out of all the times that Cinder had been the passenger in Raven's car, none of them were as... awkward - for lack of a better term - than the current one. After nearly an hour straight of just talking about her past with Glynda, it felt almost... weird to go more than a couple minutes without speaking at all. Though with everything she had said - and especially how she said some of it - she felt like she should say something to Raven. Otherwise it would likely end up hanging over her for a while.

"I'm... sorry for the way I acted during the session." Cinder finally managed.

Raven just laughed in response, which certainly confused the younger woman. "Don't worry about it, I uh, kinda expected somethin' like that would happen actually. Glynda used to explain her process to me back in the day."

"And does her process normally end like it did today?" Cinder wondered.

"Oh yeah." Raven confirmed, a slight grin spreading across her face. "So you don't need to worry about getting emotional or angry or whatever, Glynda's seen it all."

"That's good to hear..." Well, I hope that means I didn't embarrass myself in front of both of them. Cinder thought to herself, beginning to think back on the therapy that she had just gotten out of. After her little... outburst, Glynda decided it would be best to take a short break, before returning to continue their discussion on Emerald. The therapist first asked her about how their dynamic went from what was essentially master and servant to loving equals, and even while describing it years later, the younger woman could still not believe it actually happened.

After her... fight with Emerald - if one could even call that one-sided berating a fight - and Cinder had been left alone, she made what was likely the most important realization of her entire life: that girl was all she had, the only one that ever truly cared for her, and she treated her like garbage. Then once she was gone, Cinder fell apart. Hell, she only made it until the middle of that same night before rushing over to Emerald's dorm room to apologize - and just like she deserved, the door did not open before she did exactly that. More accurately, it was not until Cinder was on her knees and in tears, leaning against the door that Emerald had finally let her in. After that, they - for the first time since meeting - had a real conversation, rather than just Cinder just telling Emerald what to do.

It started with a fair amount of crying and blubbering rants - mostly from the older girl - but eventually it calmed into more understandable confessions of fear and loathing. They each made their feelings clear; how Emerald always hated the way she was treated, but stayed due to her love for other girl, and how Cinder herself regretted every horrendous thing she had said and done to her, not even thinking she was worthy of any kind of forgiveness. But, just like she would prove over and over and over again, Emerald was too good for her, forgiving Cinder after only the first apology. Though that was not enough for her. After spending the night in the younger girl's arms - neither one of them wanted to be alone - Cinder decided that she needed to properly repay Emerald for everything she had done for her, more than just mere words, because that girl deserved absolutely nothing less. And somehow, Emerald still felt the need to do more for her. Of course Cinder certainly attempted to keep the focus away from herself, but as the pair began to spend more time together, Emerald worked just as hard to help her gain her confidence back as she did trying to repay her.

And she could not have been happier.

While it definitely took time, and a lot of comforting on Emerald's side due to the breakup with Neo, the two girls were eventually able to completely move past their prior... relationship - if one could even call it that - to one where they were finally equals, finally friends. Cinder stopped hanging around with those stuck-up jerks that she once called friends - the very same ones that were quick to call her weak for being hurt by the mute - and began spending all her time with Emerald, doing everything in her power to make that girl feel as appreciated as possible. Helping her study for classes, buying her thoughtful gifts every once in a while, taking her out for her favourite food when she was stressed... Truth be told, Cinder did not even realize that she had apparently been courting Emerald the entire time at first. Hell, it only clicked after the girl had asked her out on what she later found out was a date!

It was honestly rather dumb on Cinder's part, considering there were several things that totally screamed that it was a date. First, Emerald asked her out to dinner, which she had never once done before. Lunch? Tons of times, but never dinner - and at a rather high-end restaurant as well, which should have made it obvious on its own. Plus, the fact that it was planned for the same day as Spring's Bounty definitely should have set off some alarms. Next their was her choice of outfit. While Cinder went with a blouse and skinny jeans... if her memory served, while the other girl showed up in an absolutely lovely green open-back, knee-length dress. Of course she had thought of Emerald as naturally pretty - beautiful even - many times in the past, but never so... stunning. Normally she was able to keep her eyes focused, but on that particular night, she just... could not stop staring at her friend, like she had laid eyes upon an angel.

And the way Emerald kissed her after the date... It lasted only a few seconds, but to Cinder it felt an eternity. She wished she could have stayed there forever.

"Hey, what are ya thinkin' about?" Suddenly came Raven's voice, pulling the younger woman from her reminiscing.

"Just... what we discussed during the session with Glynda." Cinder answered, just then realizing that they were still in the older woman's car.

"The nice stuff or the... not so nice stuff?" Raven hesitantly wondered.

Cinder managed a smile. "Don't worry, it was nothing unpleasant. Glynda may have brought up a number of memories that I would... rather not have to think about, but this particular time wasn't so bad, at least after a certain point."

Raven offered a tired smile of her own in response. "Glad to hear that. Glynda mentioned how it's been a while since she's seen someone smile during a session."

That actually reminded Cinder. After they had finished, the therapist pulled Raven aside to discuss something while the younger woman was left to wait in the front area. "Speaking of which, what exactly did she want to talk to you about?"

Raven remained silent for a moment, before seemingly remembering that the event happened. "Oh yeah, she... Well, I think uh, I think Glynda kinda confessed to me."

Turning to look at her boss, Cinder raised her brow. "What?"

"I mean, I was kinda dense back then but I knew she liked me, I just thought it'd be bad for her if I tried something, so I didn't." Raven explained, her expression one of regret. "Today she asked me why I never called to ask for a date."

That would explain their past couple interactions. "So what did you say?" Cinder wondered, genuinely curious.

"Well it didn't really register at first." Raven admitted, bringing a hand up to run through her hair. "I just hugged her and said I'd keep better contact."

Cinder offered a smile, even though the older woman would likely barely see it since she was driving. "You should call her then. Don't keep her waiting so long this time."

"I know, I will just..." Raven began before letting out a sigh. "I don't wanna lead her on, she deserves better than that."

"Then don't lead her on." Cinder recommended.

Raven did not answer immediately, instead just staring at the road in front of them. "But... I don't know if I'm ready for that."

"Believe me, you never know when you're ready. It... it took a lot longer than it should have to properly find Emerald..." Then she let out a slight sad chuckle. "She was right in front of me the whole time..."

Raven let out another sigh. "I don't know... I just... don't know how I feel about anything, I never have."

Cinder attempted to offer another smile, hoping her boss would see it. "You'll never know until you try."

"I'll... I'll see how things go but..." Raven started, pausing before shaking her head. "I'll see how things go."

"That's the spirit." Cinder encouraged, glad to see that she was at least planning to give it a shot. After all, from what she had seen, Raven and Glynda seemed like they would be a good couple, so the younger woman could only hope that everything went well. It almost made her chuckle. I feel like a matchmaker. Cinder thought to herself, wondering what exactly she may have just set in motion.

"Yaaaay..." Raven tiredly smiled, her voice chalk full of sarcasm, eliciting a chuckle from her employee. "Ah shut up. Let's talk about somethin' else."

Cinder chuckled again. "If you insist." She agreed, before quickly realizing that she had no idea what they could talk about. Perhaps they could discuss work? No, no that was stupid. There was no way that Raven would want to talk about their jobs at a time like this. Plus, there would not be much to discuss anyway, since there was not really anything that went on in the bar that Raven did not see, thanks to that one-way mirror she had. But then... what else could they talk about? Well, there was always the bring up a random topic and hope it sticks option...

Wait a minute.

During the session, the topic of Yang had been briefly brought up. After Cinder informed Glynda that the blonde had not been doing well over the past day, Raven mentioned how she would talk to her once the session was over. While Cinder was indeed curious as to what they discussed, she was also not sure it was any of her business. Though at the same time, she had just helped her boss with one of her issues, perhaps she could do it again...

"If I may, what exactly was wrong with Yang earlier today?" Cinder hesitantly inquired, hoping she was not crossing any lines.

Raven remained silent for a moment, merely staring ahead of them with a disheartened expression on her face. "Yang's..." Then she sighed. "Yang's not happy, Cin. She says she is but it's bullshit, and I don't know how to help her."

Oh boy. "Perhaps she could speak to Glynda?" Cinder suggested.

"Thought about it, might've brought it up, but we just fought instead." Raven sadly answered.

"What happened?" Cinder inquired, her face quickly shifting to one of concern.

"I said the wrong words, or went the wrong direction..." Raven attempted to explain. "She thought I was trying to push her away... I just want her to put more thought into her future..."

That would explain a lot. "Is that why she was a bit downcast today?"

Raven nodded slightly. "Kinda hard to bounce back from being told you're not happy by your own mother."

Even though Cinder had not experienced that sort of thing before, as she could not give a shit what her ex-parents thought of her, she did however understand why Yang would be hurt. "Well, have you talked to her since then?" Cinder wondered.

Raven shook her head. "No, I don't know what to say, and she's still gonna be pissed at me."

"It's very likely, but so what? Raven, you can't fix this by just letting things be." Cinder informed. "You have to talk to her."

"I suck at talking, Cin, always have." Raven admitted. "It's what got me into all sorts of shit when I was younger, and I'm even worse when it involves feelings."

Boy do I know what that's like. Cinder thought to herself. "Unfortunately it's your only option, unless you want to potentially lose what you have with your daughter."

"Shit, we barely have anything..." Raven almost mumbled. "She works for me, and sometimes we chat..." Then she sighed once again. "My drinking almost cost me what little chance I had with Yang... And since I had already driven Tai off, it was only Summer's endless patience that actually got through my thick skull... That woman was always a better mom than me."

"But that doesn't mean you're a bad mother, Raven." Cinder quickly tried to assure, hating that fact that her boss was saying such things about herself, especially after a therapy session that would not have happened without her. "Answer me this; do you love Yang?"

"Of course I fucking love Yang!" Raven exclaimed. "She's the best damn thing I ever made in my life!"

Due to the older woman's suddenly raised voice, Cinder was hesitant on continuing, but she pushed forward nonetheless. "Then tell her that!"

"It's not that simple!" Raven near-yelled, slamming her fist on the steering wheel of the still-moving car, causing the younger woman to flinch. "This shit has always got stuck in my throat, my brain gets all numb and I end up sticking my foot in my mouth instead. It's just easier to be a bitch than having to say how I feel."

Staring at her boss' clenched fist for a moment, Cinder timidly reached out and placed her gloved hand upon it. "I understand it's hard to admit one's feelings, but you can't keep avoiding it, and I promise it will be worth it in the end." Emerald's own words flowed from her mouth thoughtlessly as she gave the older woman's fist a reassuring squeeze. A couple seconds ticked by, with Raven just focusing on the road, before her fist loosened, opening up to take gentle hold of Cinder's hand before lowering them to a more comfortable position. It made her smile. She's holding my hand again! "Try this; pretend I'm Yang. What would you say to her right now?"

Raven took a moment to think, though sadly to no avail. "I dunno... I'd probably say somethin' stupid like are you ready to talk now?"

"Which is of course not the right way to go." Cinder suggested. "Just... tell me what you want to tell Yang."

Taking a deep breath, Raven gave her employee's hand another gentle squeeze. "I want to tell her I love her, and that... I don't really care if she doesn't do much with her life, I just want her to be really happy, and right now, she's not... and it hurts that she can't tell me that."

"Then that's what you tell her." Cinder instructed. "No beating around the bush, just let her know how much how much you love her."

Raven just sighed. "It's not that easy Cin..."

"I know it isn't, but I know you can do it." Cinder encouraged, offering a smile.

A few seconds passed before Raven let out a sad chuckle. "This is supposed to be my job."

"Excuse me, you don't have a monopoly on helping people, Raven." Cinder joked.

"Yeah, but I'm the boss." Raven defended. "I'm supposed to be all strong and independent and shit."

"That doesn't mean you're not allowed to need help every once in a while." Cinder reminded, to which she received only an eye-roll and a small grin from her boss. It was then followed by a brief silence, which was absolutely fine with her, as she had been talking almost nonstop for nearly two hours - and her voice was tired. Actually, she was just all around tired. Perhaps I should take a nap when I get home...

"Hey uh, I was watching the news last night and your neighbourhood came up." Came Raven's voice, breaking the silence.

Cinder scoffed. "Generous to call that place a neighbourhood."

"Some people got shot, Cin," Raven stressed. "Newscaster called it a gang dispute."

"I'm aware, I saw it from outside my window." Cinder informed. "A few shots actually hit my building, and somehow didn't make it look worse."

Raven's eyes suddenly snapped open wide, her entire body tensing, which was felt by the younger woman through their connected hands. "Bullets hit your building?!"

"Believe me, the news probably made it sound much worse than it actually was." Cinder attempted to defend.

"People still shot at your building, Cin!" Raven loudly countered.

"And the guy down the hall from me sells guns with filed serials, I've grown used to it." Cinder added.

Raven looked like she could not believe what she was hearing. "Grown used to it?! How do you even live in a place that has shit like that going on?!"

Cinder just shrugged. "Sleeping, mostly."

Raven's mouth merely hung open, dumbfounded at her employee. "How are you not lying awake every night, afraid for your life?!"

"Because gangs don't break into random apartments." Cinder answered.

"And what would've happened if you got shot yesterday?" Raven questioned.

"Bled out, or called an ambulance." Cinder guessed.

"And then what am I supposed to do?!" Raven continued, her voice remaining loud. "How are you so calm about this?!"

Cinder shrugged again. "I've been living there for months without incident Raven, Nora for even longer. We've been fine."

"Just because you've been fine doesn't mean you are fine." Raven pressed. "Cin..." Then she sighed. "Yang and I are worried about you."

Cinder smiled in response. "I know you are, it's why I trust you two."

"Then look for another place, for your own sake." Raven told the younger woman. "It's not safe there."

"It's not exactly cheap Raven, Vale is a popular city." Cinder sadly countered, wishing that she could indeed move out.

Raven stayed quiet for a moment. "There's gotta be somewhere that's better than that shithole... and affordable." She responded, briefly looking over at Cinder. "You could always try splitting a place with your friend, Nora. Cheaper that way."

Cinder just let out a small sigh, knowing that was not possible. "She has enough to worry about without me intruding on her life."

Raven actually managed a chuckle. "Even with the little I saw of that girl, I can bet that intruding is the last thing you could ever do with her."

Cinder shook her head. "Regardless, I will not interfere with her business, it's not an option."

"Then please, find a way out of there." Raven urged, not looking at the other woman, but making her worry perfectly clear with another gentle squeeze of her hand.

"I'll have a look through the classifieds, but I may need a raise." Cinder mentioned, a small grin spreading across her face.

"If it helps you to move out, gladly."

Holy shit that actually worked. "I'm glad we could come to this conclusion."

Raven laughed. "Hey, this is only for helping you afford a new place. You haven't been around long enough for a raise raise."

Maybe I can go further... "Perhaps if I dodge enough bullets, I will qualify." Cinder wondered aloud.

"If you get shot at again, I'm takin' you in." Raven promised.

Cinder chuckled a bit. That would sure be nice. "I'll hold you to it."

"Trust me, I'm a woman of my word." Raven assured. "Just don't get yourself shot at anymore, or the deal's off."

"I'll ask the gang members nicely to put their safeties on." Cinder suggested through another chuckle.

"Good, 'cause if you don't, I'm gonna ask 'em myself." Raven added.

Cinder's chuckle quickly evolved into a laugh. "They'll be shaking in their baggy jeans."

"If they're shooting at my employee? They'd better be."

Cinder just rolled her eye. "Such a mom, you are."

Raven flashed a smile over at the younger woman. "Best worst mom ever."

"I'd drink to that."


Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed! Let me know what you think!

Because as always, your feedback fuels me!

P.S.

Spring's Bounty is essentially Valentine's Day