Part 2

Oscar grunted as his alarm went off. Sleeeeeeep, he needed more sleeeeeeep! But he was too well trained and Oscar was always a morning person. When spring came, he would handle the garden or the lawn, and it was always better to do it in the morning, when the air was still cool. So his body, on autopilot, got up, turned off the alarm and went to the closet to grab clothes for the day.

He had just finished combing his mess of hair and was reaching for a scarf when his brain caught up with where he was and what had happened the previous day.

Against his will, his eyes went to the scars on his neck, the jagged lines that had choked him.

After… well, after, he always made sure to wear a collared shirt or a scarf. People had joked that he was taking after his dad's more academic look. He was just glad no one noticed. It was harder in the summer, especially when he was out in the garden with sweat dripping down his neck, but he just… he didn't want anyone to see them.

The scars ached this morning.

With a heavy sigh, he wrapped the scarf. It was getting colder and colder out, no one would pay attention to him wearing a scarf.

Besides, he just wouldn't go to school. Oscar doubted his dad had gotten much sleep or would be going in, so Oscar planned to stay home and help. Already, he was making a to-do list in his head. Yesterday would normally have been a laundry day, but that hadn't been done. So laundry. He'd cook all the meals so that his dad didn't have to get up or move around. The miscellaneous chores had been piling up, so maybe he could make a dent in those….

Plan in mind, Oscar was able to give a small smile to himself in the mirror and headed downstairs. He doubted his dad would wake up, so get something to eat for himself first…

He paused on the stairs. Did Oscar smell…. eggs? And bacon? Blinking, Oscar rushed downstairs. His dad only ever cooked his favorite breakfast for special occasions, what-

"Hey kid," Qrow stood in the kitchen, casually flipping eggs in a skillet. "I remember Ozpin mentioning once this was your favorite breakfast."

"Ahhhh, um… huh?" Oscar offered intelligently.

"Ozpin made it clear," Qrow continued, flipping the eggs again. "You're going to school today. Your breakfast is ready. Your backpack is good from when we got here last night. I don't know when your bus gets here, but you should have plenty of time to brush your teeth after breakfast."

"Wait, what?"

"Oscar, just sit and eat. I'm trying to give your dad more time to sleep."

"But, um, wait, huh?" Oscar stepped forward, utterly flustered as he took his seat at the table. Qrow put down a plate and slid the eggs off the skillet on to it, bacon sliding on immediately after.

"What's your dad's favorite breakfast?" Qrow asked.

"Mr. Branwen, while I'm very grateful, why are you still here?" There, he was able to spit out the question. "I thought you left last night?"

"I probably should have," Qrow replied lightly. "But… I saw Ozpin last night. I've been there. The two of you need a friend after whatever the hell happened yesterday. What's been happening to cause whatever spooked you so bad yesterday." Qrow was flipping eggs on the skillet again. "So I'm going to be what I needed. I'm going to be a friend. It's up to the two of you on what you need. But whatever either of you need, I'll provide."

Qrow dished out his own eggs and sat down. "So, your dad needs sleep. He needs you to go to school. You need to hang out with my nieces or any other friends you have and distract yourself. So I can support you two by at least making breakfast and getting you out the door."

Oscar slowly put down his fork and stared at his plate. Because really? Who did that? Who just stopped their lives to support someone else? When…. everything had happened, Oscar didn't remember anyone helping then. But then, looking back now, was there even anyone to help? Is this what normal people did? Oscar wasn't sure.

He knew he wasn't normal. Normal people didn't need to hide scars on a neck. Normal people didn't feel their own bodies constrict on themselves at the text of their father being late. Normal people didn't live in fear of being found. Normal people didn't live in fear of conflict. Normal people didn't have to worry about restraining orders. Did normal people just… offer to help like this?

Did normal people feel touched when this happened? Did normal people want to cry?

Because Oscar could feel tears in his eyes, he could feel his throat choke up, he could feel his cheeks start to burn. He tried to take another bite of his breakfast, and he just kept sniffling.

"Here's some toast."

Oscar nearly choked.

He somehow swallowed, gulped down his juice and managed to push out words. "You don't have to do all this… It's too much…. It's…"

"It's what I'm willing to do. And cooking breakfast doesn't seem like much, but I know how much that meant to me, once upon a time," Qrow replied softly. "Now finish up. Wash up. You're going to school like your dad said, and you're stuffing more knowledge into that brain of yours, because that's what any grown up wants for their kids."

Oscar could only nod.


Qrow watched Oscar from the house when the bus came to pick him up. The kid had been so grateful that he'd cried for a good ten minutes; then had to use the bathroom again to wash up and run out to wait for the bus. If he was that hyper-emotional… well, he either needed to see his guidance counselor or he'd better have some damn good friends.

Qrow went onto the group text with his family and informed them where he was and how things were going. He also emphasized to Ruby and Yang that Oscar had to approach them if he wanted to talk, not the other way around.

He also - very deliberately - did not mention the fact that he needed a drink. He'd dreamt of Raven last night: the whole debacle, and the first thing he did was go right to the fridge - didn't even matter that it wasn't his house - to see what the stock was. Seeing nothing snapped him out of his need, and he had shaken his head and kicked himself. He'd stayed over so Ozpin could have a friend, not so he could make bad decisions that he'd already promised several times over to never do again.

But it hurt, thinking about Raven; what she did to Tai and Yang, what she did to him. Damages to the soul… geez, Qrow's soul was probably a roadmap of stitches and tears and frayed edges. He knew exactly what Ozpin was talking about, on every level one could think of probably, and he was not going to indulge when someone needed him.

Someone needing him had been what pulled him from the brink: teary eyed Yang and Ruby asking when he was going to leave. His eyes welled just thinking about it, and he rubbed his face and cursed himself. He stretched out on the couch - middle cushion was the softest - and turned the TV on low, surfing for something to kill his brain cells while he waited for Ozpin to wake up. He also pulled out his phone and reworked his schedule - he'd already given up his day off when Ozpin texted yesterday, now he had to make sure there was another day he could spare in case Ozpin needed more than a few hours to put himself back together again. He also sent a text to his sponsor, telling Clover today was probably going to be a bad day, and he might need to come over when everything was said and done.

It was seven-thirty when he heard noise in the downstairs bedroom. Sighing, he got up and went back to the kitchen to make more eggs and bacon.

"Oscar, I hope you don't expect me to call the school because-oh."

Qrow turned, saw Ozpin in a green turtleneck and loose-fitting dark wash jeans. He blinked to realize the professor could dress in something other than a three piece. The man's hair was wet, swept to one side with stray hairs already falling into his face, and his dark eyes were staring at Qrow and the frying pan.

"Morning," Qrow said, offering a cheeky grin.

The other man blinked once, twice, seemed unable to process what he was seeing.

"... Mr. Branwen…"

"Qrow, remember?"

"... Qrow…"

Well, that wasn't any better. Qrow let the man boot up his brain and flipped the eggs and bacon as he had for the boy. Plate dished out, he turned and motioned for the tiny kitchen table. "Breakfast isn't going to eat itself," he said, setting the dish down.

Ozpin was still staring at him, but he finally shook himself out of it. "Mr. Bra-Qrow, I must confess you have me at a disadvantage. I fail to see why you are still here, let alone cooking breakfast and-" he froze again. Straightening and tilting his head. Listening. "... and seeing my son off to school," he finished.

Qrow sat at the table, gestured for Ozpin to join him, but he was still staring. Qrow realized the guy was on the defense, unable to see kindness for what it was, waiting to hear the angle. He was so like the old Qrow it hurt.

"No ulterior motive," he answered. "No strings, no favors. Just a guy seeing another guy hurt and deciding to do something about it." Ozpin said nothing, still stared, leaning on his cane. Qrow sighed. "You said last night… Look, I've been in a place like yours okay? I know what a 'bad day' looks like for me and I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Family, friend, or otherwise. I had good people that pulled me back before the worst happened, and I promised myself I'd do that for other people if I ever found them."

Ozpin finally sat - more like fell - into the chair. His eyes were so wide, Qrow could see the resemblance to Oscar. For a split second he thought the guy would cry like his son, but something finally managed to tell his brain to work and he delicately took a fork and started eating his breakfast. Qrow gave him time, pulled out his phone again for a few games. The silence hung over them, and Qrow couldn't tell if it was heavy or not. He thought it might be okay, but silence usually hurt his head after a while, and he finally asked a question.

"You got any booze here?"

Damn, not the question he wanted to ask. Definitely having Clover over.

"No," Ozpin said softly. "We don't drink in this house."

"Good," Qrow said, nodding. "I would have raided it this morning."

A pause. Qrow threw a glance to see Ozpin looking at him again - but not the wide eyed awe but a narrower, more shrewd gaze.

"It's rather early in the morning."

"Yep."

"One wonders if such a question has a high proclivity."

"Don't big-word me, Oz," Qrow said. "I know defense mechanisms when I see'em. I invented half of them."

Oz deflated, sinking back in his chair and weighing his head in a hand. "Forgive me. I'm not trying to be defensive," he said, and his voice was low.

Qrow leaned back. "We start small. Do you want to be here in the kitchen, or somewhere else?"

Ozpin flashed a small smile. "I suppose if stories are to be told, the living room would be a better locale."

"Good," Qrow nodded. "Finish up. I'll get your fireplace going. It doesn't take much to see winter is coming."


Ozpin settled into his chair, overstuffed and plush, and still sporting the veritable mountain of pillows that Oscar had provided the previous night. The fire Qrow had started was still small, but it was already providing warmth to Ozpin's bad leg and that felt so much better than going back to his room to get the heating pad. Qrow sat across from him, settled comfortably on the couch and relaxed in a way that Ozpin hadn't been able to do in years. The silence was awkward, and Ozpin set his cane to its usual place beside his chair.

"All you need to tell me," Qrow said softly, "is what you need. That's it. I'm here to do what you need. You need help with laundry, I'll do your laundry. Just need me to get the hell out, I'll leave. Need me to handle Oscar today, I'll pick him up and take him home with the girls. Today is about what you need."

"You always have what you need! I never have any of my needs met."

Ozpin held back a flinch.

Qrow was all open honesty. He didn't hide the pain of his life. He'd talked about his sister going to jail, that he avoided alcohol, Ruby's mother's sudden death. He may never have entered the depth of those various tragedies, but he acknowledged them as a part of himself. Ozpin had too much shame and guilt to do so.

But…

Ozpin wished he could be as open as Qrow. To be in a place where he could say what he'd been holding in for years. Decades.

He let out a long sigh, leaned back, and looked to the ceiling. "Once upon a time," he said flatly to the ceiling, "I had hair as dark as charcoal, much as Oscar. Within one year, I bore hair as silvery white as fresh fallen snow." He closed his eyes, feeling nothing but numbness and apathy. "Once upon a time, I was very young and very in love. A fair maiden hidden away in need of help. Once upon a time, I married a maiden of such devotion and care. A maiden so damaged and twisted and utterly normal. Once upon a time, it was normal to devote my entire life to her happiness. To do her every wish and whim, to do whatever it took to return those rare smiles to her face. Once upon a time, I thought it normal to schedule my entire life around her, I thought it normal to run every decision by her and worry if anything made her mad or set her off."

Ozpin opened his eyes to the ceiling again.

"Once upon a time, as things started to change drastically, I realized my life was not normal. I realized that it was damaging. And Oscar didn't deserve even a second more of that."

"You left."

"Crossed the country to land here. But I'm moderately known in academic circles." Ozpin lifted his head and shifted carefully to sit up properly and finally face Qrow. "Yesterday she came to my 8:00. I ignored her. She tried to talk to me after the class and followed me to my next and started to cause a scene. And for the next class. Things went badly. I spent a good portion of yesterday first at the police going over everything from the past and making my statements, then I had to go back to campus and explain things to the dean."

"Needless to say," Qrow offered quietly, "this brought up a lot?"

"That would be putting it mildly." Ozpin's mouth twitched to a smile. "I'd have never pondered you as a master of an understatement."

Qrow's smile was brazen. "Oh, if it falls under sarcasm, I might have a passing familiarity."

Ozpin's twitched smile lasted a little longer. "Ah, you are of a more caustic nature?"

"More like mockery."

"A jester of jeering then?"

"Or a sage of satire."

"Oh, very acerbic of you."

"Hey, I banter with barbs."

"Or cast aspersions."

"I'm above such disparagements. I ridicule with rancor."

"Ah, so you are superiorly supercilious."

Qrow stuttered. "Okay, you got me there, Ozpin." He sat back with a large grin. "Supercilious? I'll have to remember that one to throw at the girls."

Ozpin offered a large smile and, for a moment, felt good.


To review: Ozpin had an abusive ex that was so stressful his hair turned white inside a year, and left only after Oscar got dragged in.

No parallels there, nope, not at all.

Qrow was in a bad mood when he left - after the initial adrenaline of seeing a near-stranger in his house Ozpin lost all energy to interact - the broad brush strokes of his life had petered out and Qrow had quickly switched to sarcasm - and wow the other man had wit to spare, but even that couldn't keep Oz engaged and he just… drifted off. Qrow couldn't blame him - those were the days he needed someone in his apartment - usually Clover - to make sure he didn't start drinking again. But with no booze in the house there wasn't much more Qrow could do, and he took his leave.

He did, however, insist that he would pick up Oscar and handle him for a few hours so Ozpin could have more time to himself. Sometimes a guy needed to sit in the numbness for a while, explore it and reacquaint before setting it aside. Oscar seemed to expect this, didn't even ask where his dad was and just piled into the junker along with Yang and Ruby and a new addition.

"Uncle Qrow, this is Blake."

"Yo," he said, not really in the mood to be welcoming. "Don't tell me we're having a sleepover?"

"No," Yang said quickly, turning bright red.

"Blake turned her down," Ruby clarified.

"Ruby!"

Teenagers. Qrow rolled his eyes and started his car. The engine creaked and groaned before finally waking up, and he listened to three girls talk aimlessly about nothing. Oscar was in shotgun again, and he looked out the window, just as empty of energy as his dad. Qrow filed them all up to his apartment and let them loose - most of them sitting automatically at the TV with the exception of Oscar asking for the bathroom, phone in hand.

Right.

Qrow hid in his bedroom, door closed to drown out the girls as he could, and called Clover.

"How bad was the day?" was the automatic question.

"Not the worst," Qrow answered after a thought. "Not the best. Tried to be there for a guy. He wasn't really up for it. Dropped enough hints, though, and my head isn't in a good place."

"Do you need me to come over?"

That was the question, wasn't it? Qrow closed his eyes, took in a deep breath, and assessed. "Got the kids with me right now," he said, "They'll make for a great distraction. But tonight, after I drop them off. I won't like the quiet."

"Well, my night's free. Lucky you."

Qrow snorted and hung up, giving himself a few minutes before calling Tai.

"How'd it go?" Another automatic question.

"Fine, I guess," Qrow said. "He didn't really talk, but he said enough. Can you pick up the girls instead of me dropping them off? I got the kid with me and he doesn't have a ride back otherwise. Oz is probably laying in bed questioning his life decisions right now and I don't want him to get up for anything today."

"Sure. I'm almost done anyway. One more call and I can end early."

Qrow nodded and they said their goodbyes. Qrow leaned back, flattening himself on the bed and staring up at his ceiling and its popcorn texturing.

At six o'clock he was back on Pine Wood, putting his car in gear only after he saw Oscar enter the house and close the door. He almost wanted to follow in, see how the professor was doing, but he could only breach so many privacy barriers before he stopped being helpful and started being pushy. Cursing, he drove back to Tai's and sat with chinese take out, three teenage girls, and his best friend that was still alive. Blake left at eight to take the bus to her house, wherever that was, and the girls were put to bed at nine, leaving Tai and Qrow to sit in the kitchen.

"You okay?" Tai asked.

"Why's everyone asking that?" Qrow asked, tired. "I wasn't the one who had a bad day."

Tai snorted, leaning back in his chair and spinning his chopsticks. "Qrow, you have a bad day when anyone has a bad day. I remember the mood you had when Raven was being prickly, and I remember how you got when Summer was mad, and I know exactly how bad it got when I couldn't…" his voice trailed off, and both of them remembered the darkest days. "You tend to spin your wheels when someone close to you is in a mood."

Qrow shook his head. "We're not close," he said. "I barely know the guy."

"Liar," Tai said, weak smile on his face. "When all of that garbage went down, who did he think to call? You."

"Because he knew I'd be at the school."

Tai snorted. "Qrow, not all of us can be bisexual disasters like you," he said, rubbing his face. "Some of us actually like the idea of settling down and raising a family. You're going to pull a double shift for this guy, right?"

"First of the month."

"Name one random guy you're not close to you would do that for."

"You."

"But you're close to me."

"Clover."

"Need I remind you of the 'disaster' part of bisexual disaster?"

Qrow growled low in his throat. He saw Tai's point but he would die before he admitted it. He didn't really think of being close to Ozpin - not like he was to Tai and the girls and even Clover after they got over that mess. Oz was just a guy he saw every day when he was picking up his girls. He was witty in a big brain way, and he loved his son. He didn't really know the guy enough to consider himself close to him.

Tai's eyes slowly widened. "You really don't see it, do you?" he asked. Then he banged his head on the table. "How is the guy who got laid before me that oblivious? How is your luck this bad? Qrow…" he looked up. "Tell me you at least think the guy is hot."

"Tai, I think everyone is hot."

White hair, soft cheeks, eyes that flickered gold sometimes in the afternoon light. Qrow shook the thought away.

"Oh, my god," Tai moaned. "How do you always do this to yourself?"

Qrow left shortly thereafter, not in the mood for Tai's teasing. It was almost ten when he got back to his apartment, and he had maybe two hours before he had to leave for his shift. And when he saw the open apartment door and the shoes on the foyer he knew those last two hours were not going to be peaceful.

"You know I wear shoes in my own apartment," he said, striding in and locking the door behind him.

"So?" Clover asked, stretched out on Qrow's couch like he owned it. "It's bad luck to have shoes on in Japan or something."

"We're not in Japan."

"Doesn't mean I'm going to cultivate bad luck - especially when I'm about to have a talk with you." Clover winked at him, crossing one leg over his knee and patting the cushion next to him. "Soda's in the fridge. Put a pair in the freezer for half an hour and we can talk."

"I regret ever texting you."

"You like the attention and you know it," Clover said brightly.

"I wish I'd never met you."

"Ah, there's the classic Qrow Branwen cynicism," Clover replied. "Knew it was going to come out at some point. Better to get it over with early."

"I hate you."

"You not-so-secretly love me."

"Jesus," Qrow cursed, going to the fridge and putting two soda's in the freezer. "What's with you and Tai today?"

The bright smile faded a little, and Clover's green eyes turned serious. "Qrow, you reached out. We both know how hard that can still be for you. Forgive us if we want to indulge in mothering you."

"Might I remind you that neither of you are my mother?"

Clover shrugged as Qrow settled himself on his couch. "Doesn't matter. Wouldn't want to be her anyway, from the stories. I'd rather be a real mom to you anyway - nurturing, encouraging, teaching you how to live your life without bad habits. Kissing your owies away."

"Ugh, don't make it weird," Qrow said, wincing. "That's my job."

Winning smile: "And you were so good at it," he said playfully. The smile faded again, however, and his tone became more serious. "How are you, really? You said your friend brought up some old memories."

… Tai couldn't do this. Tai was too close to everything that happened, and he couldn't cut through the bull the way Clover could. He had the girls, too, needed to function even when Qrow really lived up to the "disaster" part of his honorary title, and sometimes Qrow didn't feel right dumping his problems on him. Clover, though, he could dig through all the dusty corners of Qrow's life and put it in perspective; he had a knack for knowing exactly what question to ask and what sentence to say to recontextualize whatever hellscape Qrow's life currently took. Just saying the word "old memories" brought up everything Qrow had felt that morning. Watching little Oscar sobbing over breakfast and Ozpin's flat surprise that someone had done something nice for him.

He remembered the flat tire, Oz taking the girls and watching them while he got it fixed.

"Oz," he said, looking down. "Last night he said something about wounds to the soul. This morning he said his hair went white in the span of a year, and that when he learned his kid was getting it too he left."

Clover nodded. "Sounds like the guy has been through a lot."

"Took everything in him just to say that much," Qrow said.

"Sounds familiar," Clover said - gently this time, not a tease. "Did you have any dreams during the sleepover?"

"No… but my head was really loud last night, took a while to get to sleep. You shoulda seen the kid. Cried for ten minutes to see a guy make him breakfast."

Clover winced in sympathy, but nodded. "I can see why this got to you," he said. "Which things were you thinking about?"

"Raven, mostly," Qrow admitted, eyes lost in memory. "How bad it got before she got arrested, how bad it was after." He snorted. "It's stupid. It's not even the same thing."

"But it's the same pain," Clover said. "That's why you always get in a mood when one of your friends is having a bad day. You know the pain, and you feel every inch of it in the moment. Well, you're either doing that or projecting your feelings onto other people, but this time it's pretty obviously the former." He tilted his head slightly, his green eyes narrowing as he asked his next question. "How'd it feel?" he asked. "Helping this Oz guy?"

"I don't know, good I guess."

"You guess?" Clover asked. "Was it open for debate?"

Qrow shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. Just.. Tai couldn't do much for me when things got bad - he had his own stuff to deal with and he couldn't handle another problem. Raven usually helped me through my disasters and after she left, Summer tried to take up the job. And after her… I didn't really have anybody. And it sucked, being that alone, not having someone there. I didn't want that for Oz."

"How'd you know he even needed it?"

"The kid, Oscar," Qrow said. "You should have seen him after school. Sat perfectly still, barely spoke, waited for the world to explode around him. He looked like Raven and me, when we were kids. Said he made sure his phone and id were on him at all times, that his dad made sure of it."

"What about his work friends?"

"He lives an hour from the university he works at," Qrow said. "And I don't think the campus really knew before yesterday. He crossed the country to get his job here. Said something about having to explain it to the dean."

"Qrow," Clover said, getting up and going to the freezer for the sodas. He tossed one and Qrow caught it. His sponsor sat down and his can opened with a hiss. "This guy has an ex that stalked him to his job to make trouble, and he kept that fact a secret until she came to make the scene. Do you think he would have told you any of this before you forced him to?"

"I didn't force him to do anything."

Clover rolled his eyes. "Qrow, you slept on his couch and saw his kid off to school before making him breakfast. Explain to me how he didn't feel obligated or pressured into telling you anything."

Qrow blinked. "You think it was a bad idea?"

"No," Clover said quickly, sipping his soda. "Not a bad idea. Your heart was pretty obviously in the right place, and not a lot of people would do something like that. But I've got to be honest with you, you can sometimes push your feelings onto other people."

Qrow winced and hid it behind drinking his soda. "I never meant to do that," he said softly.

"I know that," Clover said, not unkindly. "That's why we're still friends. I'm not saying you shouldn't do stuff like that, I'm just saying the next time you see him ask him if you accidentally crossed any boundaries. And if he says yes you back off. But back to my question: did helping him make you feel good?"

"... I don't know," Qrow admitted, sipping the soda and feeling the carbonation bubble down his throat. Not the same as the burn of hard liquor, but it was as close as he was allowing himself to get. "I just wanted to be what I never got: I wanted to be there for a guy when no one was there for me. I tried, but I felt like trash by the time I left. I was thinking about all my baggage."

Clover nodded. "Welcome to the trials and tribulations of being a sponsor," he said. "You have to have your own head on straight before you can be something like that for someone else. Tell me, how long until your five year coin?"

"Seven months."

"Hold on to that. Remind yourself how far you've come since you were in that place. Think about how often you smile now compared to then, and how much Yang and Ruby appreciate having you in their lives - bad luck bisexual disaster or not. Think about how much you learned from Tai and Summer. You have to take care of yourself first before you can take care of someone else." Then he smirked. "Wouldn't want your disaster energy rubbing off on this Oz guy."

"Oh, damn you to hell," Qrow said, kicking his friend from across the couch.

"Can't go there," Clover said brightly. "Too busy damning you."

He pulled out a pack of cards, and they played (re: Qrow lost) until he had to leave for his shift.


Author's Notes: So, a commenter on AO3 pointed out that our fic has a very similar set up to a different fic on the site. The conversation after reading that comment went something like this: "Really? What fic are they talking about? After V7 we've picked through just about everything..." "What about Promises of an Unknown Coast by TigerMoon?" "Oh, we love that fic!" "Yeah, but there's a college professor Ozpin who limps on a cane who meets Qrow because Oscar got in a fight at school..." "... damn it."

Which is a long way of saying we somehow accidentally lifted a premise off of a different fic without even realizing it. That's never happened before in twenty years of writing fanfiction... what even is the process for that? We've PM'd the author TigerMoon to ask their opinion. Until they reply, for now take it on faith that we go in a different direction: Unknown Coast clearly has an outline and a mood while this is us entertaining ourselves during a pandemic and yoyo-ing kind of every where. The premise might be (uncomfortably) similar but we go in a very different direction.

This chapter starts to point that out. Qrow is four years sober here, almost five - his issues come up but they've mostly been worked out by now. We were vaguely playing with the idea of role reversal, a little: that instead of Oz being the guiding force for Qrow instead of the other way around, that Qrow is (mostly) healthy and Oz has some issues that keep popping back up. More on that later.

Also: Clover as Sponsor. This idea for some reason tickles us to no end. We're big Oz/Qrow shippers so we never got behind Qrow/Clover, but we did enjoy their dynamic and wanted to incorporate it here. Clover can and will steal every scene he's in, so he'll be used sparingly.

See you (tentatively, determined by PM) next week.