Part 6

Oscar both loved and hated school. He thought this was probably an unusual dichotomy. Most kids either loved school (ex: Weiss, Ruby, Pyrrha) or hated school (ex: Yang, Blake, the kids who never showed up). Oscar loved the learning part of school. History, language, science (especially botany), math. It probably wasn't a surprise given that his dad encouraged learning, even Before, and always took time to sit with him on homework and teaching him how to learn, if not necessarily the subject. He was already in Algebra 1, even though he was in seventh grade, and he knew that next year, he'd probably be in Geometry. (Though he did wonder if the geometry teacher would come to the middle school or if he was going to go to the high school. No one had said yet, but he wasn't going to ask.) The end of the school day and seeing Ruby and her sister and their various friends was always fun. Ruby just brought so much positivity and life wherever she went, it was infectious. Seeing his dad smiling and chatting with Mr. Qrow was probably the best part of the day.

But he hated school because of the bullies. Cardin Winchester and his crew, Russel Thrush, Dove Bronzewing, Sky Lark, and Jaune Arc. Oscar was certain several of them were held back to repeat a grade. In Cardin's case, probably twice. He was way too big to be a seventh grader.

"Come on, Oscar, pull over! Show us your driver's license!"

Oscar sighed. He was currently in gym class, and they had these little scooters, a flat square on a set of wheels with two handles jutting out, to play a sort-of soccer. Oscar was decent at gym. He did love gardening and had done a lot of digging, to say nothing of the larger chores his dad just couldn't do any more that required some level of strength or agility. But he was known for being a brain in his grade.

"Winchester! Close the mouth or take it to the sidelines!"

Since Cardin had insulted his dad so badly at the beginning of the year that Oscar threw a punch, the teachers seemed to be aware of Cardin and kept trying to keep things civil. It was an improvement, but teachers couldn't be everywhere. Between classes was the worst, as Oscar was often shoved around, or Jaune would meekly come over and knock his books out of his hands. Notes or whispers had gone around his seventh grade team and Oscar just knew that Cardin and his cronies were behind it.

"Jaune!" Cardin called out to his teammate.

Oscar finally had the soccer ball and was trying to spin himself and the ball around to kick it down the court when he was slammed into from behind, his fingers that were holding the handle pinched between the two boards. He cried out, but apparently the person slamming into had too much momentum and rolled forward, pushing him off his scooter and landing on top of him, an elbow digging into his ribs and a knee on his hip.

Crying out in pain, Oscar could already hear the gym teacher blowing hard on the whistle and having everyone stop, before rushing over.

"Get off!" Oscar hissed.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry!"

"Jaune!"

Jaune finally pulled his weight off of him, and Oscar was at last able to sit up. His fingers burned and his side was sore. Would he be able to write after this?

The teacher kneeled over and gently took Oscar's hand. His fingers were carefully bent and Oscar couldn't hold back the hiss.

"Your fingers can bend all the way," the teacher said. "That's a good sign. You're going to the nurse."

Oscar nodded and held his hand close to his chest as he got up and walked out of the gym.

"Jaune! Penalty! You're out of the game. Blue team, you get a penalty kick!"

Oscar just held back tears as he walked down the halls.

He was so tired of this. Cardin's bullying, always getting Jaune to do it, the others laughing in the background. He'd fought back once and ended up on suspension. His dad had had a long discussion with him, asking questions, and offering his own advice and analogies. Oscar used his good hand to scrub at the tears. His dad understood. He understood because they had both survived and escaped from his mom.

And his dad was great. Always knew just what to say, pulled advice from fairytales they'd both enjoyed when he'd been a baby. But his dad wasn't here.

"Oscar, the hardest lesson I had to learn, was to stand up for myself to your mother. It is far easier to nod, accept whatever has been given to you, and let it all slide away. I'll talk to the school, make sure your teachers are looking out for you, but ultimately, the only way it will stop is when you take your power back and stand up to the bullies. It won't be easy. Indeed, it may be the most difficult challenge you ever face. But once you do, once you take your power back, once you keep your power and don't succumb to what they want, it will get easier every time."

"I can't do that."

"I had to. It hasn't been easy, but it gets easier every time."

Well Oscar just couldn't do that. The one time he'd stood up, he'd thrown a punch and gotten suspended. Standing up for yourself didn't work. Besides, it was only a few hours a day. He'd only be in school for another five years. He could survive that.

He would.

Cardin would get tired of his favorite prey eventually.

Right?

"Oscar?"

Oscar looked up. He was almost at the nurse and Blake was just turning the corner and was obviously surprised to see him.

"Hey, Blake," he said softly, averting his eyes downward.

"Gym class?" she asked.

"Yeah," he shrugged, attempting for nonchalant. "You?"

"My parents dropped off my lunch in the office."

"Oh. Well, it was nice seeing you."

"Oscar."

Oscar paused, still staring at the floor.

"Was it Winchester?"

Nope, definitely not fighting back tears again. Oscar was totally fine.

"You need to say something."

"It's fine," he replied, and started walking to the nurse again.

"It's not fine. It's obviously not fine."

"I'm okay."

Blake stepped in front of him and he looked to her black boots and purple leggings. "You need to talk to someone. I'll walk you to guidance."

"I'm going to the nurse. I need ice. I'll be fine." And he stepped around her.


Later, with his swollen fingers, Oscar was forced to text his dad about what had happened so that maybe ice would be waiting for him. Wintersession had finally finished and February would be starting next week, meaning he was back to picking up Oscar. That was fine with him. The car ride home was their time. Oscar could talk about his day, rant, rave, scream, cry, all in the safety of the car. His dad would listen, only ask clarifying questions, and let him just get it all out.

Once they got home would come the advice. Some sort of snack. Then he'd do his homework. Maybe read a book after that. Mr. Qrow had been loaning him a series, one book at a time, and Oscar was plowing through it. He met up with Ruby and Yang at the main door like usual. Weiss was there, as was starting to become usual. Unusually, Blake wasn't there and Oscar just let out a very silent sigh of relief. She was the only one who seemed to notice what he was going through. Or rather, the degree. Ruby and the others knew he was being picked on by Cardin and his followers, but they didn't seem to get the depth of it and that's the way Oscar wanted it to stay.

There was the usual chatter, Yang complaining about homework, Weiss snipping at Ruby, the sisters teasing each other. Oscar just smiled and watched as they all headed out. Out past the busses and in the parking lot was the usual sight. Mr. Qrow was sitting on the hood of his car, chatting with Oscar's dad, who had braved the frigid January air and was leaning against the passenger door to converse.

And Oscar watched his dad smile a carefree smile that he so rarely saw and Oscar was so grateful for Mr. Qrow because of that. Oscar didn't have any memory of such a smile until After. He always smiled when he saw that.

Of course his dad was the first to see them coming, he always was, and had already turned to greet them as Ruby shot forward to tackle her uncle. The girls were already chittering with Mr. Qrow as his dad leaned over awkwardly to hug him close. "Cardin, I assume?" he asked softly.

Oscar nodded as his dad pulled back.

The look on his face was so sad as his dad nodded. "Home? Or with Qrow and the girls?"

Oscar considered. "Can we meet up with them?"

His dad gave a soft, gentle smile. "Of course." He turned to where Mr. Qrow was trying to wrangle the girls into his beat up junker. "Qrow, Oscar and I will meet you there. We need a father-son talk for a bit."

Mr. Qrow frowned for a moment but nodded. "Sure thing. Send me a text and I'll make sure all the estrogen here gets settled."

"Uncle Qrow!"

Oscar kept his laugh quiet.

Both Oscar and his dad waved Qrow's crowded car away before settling into their own.

With a smile, his dad turned to him and asked, "Ice cream?"

Oscar smiled. "Yeah."

It was another of the small moments. Before, baking had been some good time without Oscar's mom, but if she had been in a mood, his dad took him out for ice cream. A tiny little escape before things got bad to let things calm down. It didn't always work, but it got the two of them away.

Ice cream time was also heavy talk time. His dad would often explain what his mom had suffered just growing up, how it made her who she was, how they both needed to try and support her, even when it was the most difficult thing in the world. At the end, when Oscar had to bring the ice cream to the hospital, his dad didn't try and talk about his mom any more. Instead, it was more about endurance, when a marathon was over, and other allusions that Oscar hadn't understood meant that his dad had started planning the Escape.

But as much as it meant a heavy talk, it was something Oscar had looked forward to, because for so long it had meant being away from his mom.

So they went to a locally owned ice cream shoppe. His dad, as always, ordered soft-serve, dipped in chocolate. Oscar stared at the menu for a while before asking for a neapolitan covered in caramel and chocolate. The ice cream lady didn't say anything, just nodded and got their orders. They sat in the car outside, licking the ice cream, and just letting the radio play.

Once the ice cream wasn't in any danger of dripping anywhere, his dad turned slightly to pin him with a look over his shades. "Mr. Winchester again?"

Oscar sank in his seat. "Yeah." He went through everything that had happened, from Cardin picking on him during gym, to Jaune slamming into him on the scooter. His dad held out a hand and Oscar offered his bruised and swollen fingers. Gingerly, his dad pressed his fingers, felt the bones, bent the joints, and examined the fingers. The middle finger had the most swelling, as well as the pointer finger. The ring finger was okay, and his pinky almost looked normal.

"I agree with the nurse's assessment, that nothing is broken, but it likely is strained in some way."

"It's fine," Oscar replied. "I don't write with this hand anyway."

But his dad held his cool fingers over his swollen ones. "You shouldn't be going through this, Oscar."

"It's fine."

And his dad sighed, all the way down. They sat in the quiet for a while, before he spoke.

"Once upon a time," his dad said softly, still holding Oscar's fingers, "there was a fool. Of course, he didn't know he was a fool. That's the thing with fools, they don't know that they're fools because they think they know what's going on and a fool thinks they know everything. Now this particular fool, he chose to live in a toxic jungle. Every day he breathed in noxious fumes and did his work and lived his life. He didn't think anything at all of the poisonous air he was breathing. When asked, this fool said that all was well. It was doing no harm, everything was fine. 'See?' the fool would say, taking in a deep breath, 'it's not hurting me.' He didn't notice how others wore masks or brought oxygen tanks, that they wore protective gear. 'They must be sensitive,' the fool thought, 'how sad for them.' The fool had reasons for anything that was pointed out to him."

His dad took a moment to have more of his ice cream and Oscar frowned. He hadn't heard this fairy tale before. He'd have to go digging through more books.

"One day, this fool needed to travel outside the toxic jungle. His work took him far away to a land where the air was clean, the water was pure, where one didn't need protection against the very environment. And as he breathed unadulterated air for the first time, he realized that he could breathe easier. That he could work for longer before getting short of breath. And for the first time, the fool wondered. 'Is this how it is for others?' he asked. 'Do they always breath so easily? Do they always have such clear water? Do they always see vast distances through the air?' But the fool was a fool. And the fool got scared. The fool returned to the toxic jungle."

Oscar blinked. "Why? Why go back to what was so bad for hi-oh."

His dad smiled softly. "While back with the toxic jungle, the fool couldn't help but think about that far away land. The clean air. The pure water. And then the fool did something very unfoolish. He learned. He left. And he never looked back."

"You're talking about you and mom."

"Yes," he said with that gentle, soft smile. "But it is a fairytale. It can apply to more than just me. Tell me, Oscar, why do you keep going back to the toxic jungle?"

Oscar didn't have an answer for that. He looked down at his ice cream, thinking about Jaune and Cardin and his swollen fingers. "It's… just hard, I guess," he said. "I don't know how to stop it. Standing up for myself got me suspended and…" And what was he supposed to do? Like, yeah there were all the words about taking your power back, it's not like his dad hadn't explained it all before. But knowing what to do and doing it were two different things, and the gap between them felt like an ocean, and Oscar was just trying to keep his head above water.

His father reached out and took the bruised hand, Oscar looking up and seeing such a knowing look on his face.

"You are, perhaps, a little young to hear this," he said, voice soft and in the tone he had when he first came home from the hospital. When he saw… Oscar shut down the thought, refused to bring his hand to his turtleneck. "But I deeply, deeply understand the position you are in. When I realized that things didn't have to be as they were, I was faced with the realization that things could change, and I didn't know what that change would look like. Other people might shake their head and say, 'it will be better. Just do it,' but change is something precipitous to disaster for people like us, who have experienced what we experienced. We can't be normal in light of that."

Oscar looked back down. "I want to be normal," he said.

"I did, too," his father said. "Trying to be normal turned my hair white."

Oscar winced; the very act or remembering all of that hurt, scrapped over his heart with needles.

"What I'm getting at, however, was there came a point when I had to choose: make the change, or keep things as they were. That had always been the choice, I suppose, but…" His voice trailed off, and Oscar knew what he was going to bring up, and he did bring a hand up to his brown turtleneck, remembering the look of horror on his father's face when he saw it for the first time, saw what had happened since he had been in the hospital.

"... In the end, I simply realized that change - any change - was infinitely better than the toxic jungle I was living in. You'll have to come to that realization, too, Oscar. With Mr. Winchester and his friends. I will wait however long it takes, and I will help you in the meantime. But in the end you have to choose."

"I know, Dad. I… I know."


Yang had a list. It was all planned out. She'd be home sick on Valentine's Day. She knew that her dad and Qrow wouldn't let her stow away in the car to follow them to parole hearing, but she could dutifully stay home and alone. She was old enough to be home alone, after all. Then, once they were gone, all she had to do was walk seven miles to the bus station. She had her wallet slowly filling with money for the bus fare and she was slowly stowing away bags of snacks for the journey. She'd printed out directions at school and had them buried in her mess of a folder so no one could find them. She was set.

What Yang wasn't expecting, however, was the week before the parole hearing to be sat down by both her dad and Uncle Qrow.

She wasn't expecting her dad to lay out everything she'd been stowing away, she wasn't expecting the looks of disapproval, and she wasn't expecting to get caught like this. At least Ruby was over at Pyrrha's. This was going to get ugly.

Her dad was sitting across from her, looking sad and disappointed, and Uncle Qrow stood behind him, scowling.

"Firecracker, you weren't even subtle."

That's not what Yang took issue with.

"You searched my room? You went through my stuff?!"

"Yang," her dad said, "you've been on your best behavior since you learned about your mother. Of course you were planning something."

"What gives you the right to rummage around through my stuff?" she slammed her fist on the table. "Why the hell don't you trust me?"

Qrow leaned forward, fuming. "Why the hell should we when you're pulling shit like this?"

"Why the hell wouldn't I 'pull shit like this' when you lied to me?"

Her dad never raised his voice. "We said we'd tell you at your mom's next parole hearing because you'd be sixteen then. We didn't take into account her trying for an early parole."

"That's still lying!"

"Don't turn this around to make us some sorta villains," Qrow growled. "Not when you've clearly been lying to us about your plans to go up to the parole hearing."

Yang whirled to her uncle. "That's not the same thing!" she shouted. "You both were already lying! I just didn't tell you!"

"That's the same fucking thing and you know it!"

"Then why the fuck don't you just tell me? What did Mom do that was sooooo bad that you won't even talk about it? Why is she in jail?"

"You're too young for that shit!" Qrow retorted. "You deserve so much better than-"

"That's my decision to make-"

"-learning the shit she pulled-"

"-but you won't let me-"

"-on innocent people-"

"-I'm thirteen for god's sake-"

"Qrow. Yang. Stop."

"-who didn't deserve those scars-"

"-I can make my own decisions-"

"-or all the bullshit that came after-"

"-because I'm almost an adult!"

"-because Raven does nothing but fuck people over!"

"Qrow!" Her dad stood and grabbed Qrow but the shoulder, pulling him back. Yang, huffing from screaming so much, blinked and realized just how in each other's face's she and her uncle were.

"Tai-!"

"Take a walk," her dad said loudly. "Call Clover. Call Ozpin, I don't care right now, just go. Cool off."

Hurt flashed over Qrow's face and Yang was angry enough to hope it hurt a lot. But Qrow stepped back, looked around, and scowled. "You're right. I'll be back."

And just like that, Qrow left.

Yang turned to her dad. "And?" she asked sullenly.

He looked at her measuringly. "You want honesty, Yang."

"You think?" she growled.

He nodded, looking at her and measuring her. Yang straightened her spine and glared because she was a teenager now. That meant she was almost an adult. She should be treated as such.

"Will you believe what I tell you?"

Yang narrowed her eyes, considering. The problem was they weren't saying anything. Both her dad and Uncle Qrow had avoided all questions for years. There was always that promise. "At her parole hearing. At her parole hearing, when you're sixteen." Now they were outright refusing. What if they said something to shut her up?

"Maybe," she grunted.

"Hm." Her dad nodded to himself. "Stay here." He looked hard at her. "Don't move."

And her dad left. Yang looked at her stash, still on the table. She looked to where her father disappeared, heard him go upstairs. How long was he going to be? She should leave now. Pockets! She needed pockets to hold all her food! She lunged across the table and grabbed her wallet and her printed map. If she left now, she could start going to the station. Buses would still be running, right? Buy food on the way. Get in to see her mom, and ask. She was at the coat closet grabbing her heavy winter coat (deep pockets, grab something!) when her father came down the stairs.

"I see trust isn't working right now," he said heavily.

Caught, there was nothing Yang could do. She glared up at him. He was way taller than her. He'd catch up if she ran now. He held his hand out and she scowled at him. He waved his fingers. Growling, she yanked off her coat and threw it at him, stomping back to the table, grabbing one of the pieces of junk food and ripped it open.

Her dad sat down across from her and put a folder on the table. "Here are all the news clippings of what your mother did. Including transcripts from the trial." He slid them over to her. "Since you won't believe me, you can read these." He leaned back. "I'll wait. And I've removed the restrictions on the house network and your phone. You can search online to see if it's true or not." He offered a grim smile. "I'll wait."

"Right here? In front of you?"

"You've proven untrustworthy," he said softly, holding up her coat. "And no matter what you think of what you've read, you're well and truly grounded. No friends are coming over. No phone after this. No games or internet. Just you, books, and homework."

Yang growled at the punishment. She could work out how to get around that later, first she grabbed the clippings.


House Fire on Season Avenue

One Dead and Several Injured, Suspected Arson

A fire broke on Saturday on Season Avenue. Firefighters rushed to the scene at one a.m. to put out the fire, but when they arrived the fire had already spread to the second story. The family living in the home was asleep when the fire started, and an ambulance was quickly added to the call. One body has been found, unnamed, and two people were rushed to the hospital...

Victim of Seasonal Avenue Fire Name Released

Cause of the Fire Still Under Investigation

Vernal Spring, 26, was killed Saturday in a fire at her home on Season Avenue. She is survived by her sister Amber, who is in critical condition in the hospital as a result of trying to escape the fire that consumed the family home. Another injury has been reported, though next of kin have not yet been notified...

Arson Confirmed on Seasonal Avenue Fire

Investigators Still Looking Into Motive

Accelerants were confirmed on the Seasonal Avenue fire last week, and investigators are now shifting their investigation to determine who and why someone would want to set the fire. Vernal Spring, 26 and her sister Amber, 28 were living in the home. Amber is still in critical condition and cannot give information, forcing investigators to use other methods...

Person of Interest in Seasonal Avenue Fire Named

Police Looking for Information on Woman, Raven Branwen

After two weeks of investigation, police have released a person of interest in the case of the Seasonal Avenue Fire: Raven Branwen, 26. Police have determined that she was in a relationship with the victim, Vernal Spring…

Sister of Seasonal Avenue Fire Wakes, Accuses Woman of Murder

Amber Spring, Previously in Critical Condition, Now Accuses Sister's Fiancee of Murder and Arson

The house fire on Seasonal Avenue last month has now experienced a break in the case with the waking of Amber Spring, sister to the deceased Vernal Spring, 26. Spring provided investigators more information to the relationship between Vernal and Raven Branwen. Branwen's brother, Qrow, is also helping police in the investigation though he declined to comment…

Suspect Arrested in Arson, Murder Case

Police Now Have Accused Killer Raven Branwen in Custody

Raven Branwen, 26, is now under arrest and being held as a suspect in the murder of Vernal Spring in the Seasonal Avenue fire two months ago. Police say that Branwen has a history of burglary and con artistry. It was believed that Branwen was trying to go straight while in a relationship with the deceased, but it is now believed that Branwen was instead working another mark. Details have been supplied by her brother, Qrow Branwen, and her former fiance, Tai Xiao Long, about her modus operandi. It has been revealed that she was the sole inheritor of Spring's estate, initially leading investigators to name her as a person of interest. After the deceased's sister, Amber, woke from critical condition as a result of the Seasonal Avenue fire and was interviewed, more details came to light.

Police arrived at Branwen's apartment and arrested her for arson, murder, and other charges yesterday…

Justice Brought to Spring Family

Branwen Sentenced to Life

Raven Branwen, convicted of conning Spring Vernal out of her inheritance and then killing her, was sentenced today to life imprisonment. At the sentencing was Spring's family: Amber Spring, Sister, Fria Neige, Grandmother, and Pietro Poledina, engaged to Amber. Also at the sentencing was Qrow Branwen, the perpetrator's brother, and Tai Xiao Long, the perpetrator's prior fiance…


Yang's hands shook as she went article by article through everything her dad had laid out. This… couldn't be. No! Her mom couldn't be like this! A con artist? A… an arsonist? A murderer? No way!

"This isn't right!" she shouted. "No way in hell! She's my mom, she couldn't have done all this!"

Her dad raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" he asked in a deceptively light tone. "Because you know her so well, you know she wouldn't do all this?"

"But she's my mom!"

After a heavy sigh, her dad leaned forward, elbows on the table. "Yang, even after your mother left, I never would have thought this of her either. Yeah, she and Qrow were honest about their upbringing once they trusted us, but Qrow was past that. He was devoted to all of us. I thought your mother was too-"

"Then you must have pushed her away! Done something!"

He shook his head. "No. Your mother is a complicated, ambitious woman. Maybe if she stayed she'd be better. But she got cold-feet and she ran."

"That's my mom you're talking about!" Yang hissed.

"Sweetie, shut up," her father said firmly. "You're talking like you know your mom. You don't. She left months after you were born. You don't know her. You've built up an image from fairy tales of what a mother is supposed to be and your mom won't ever live up to that. No mother could."

"But she's still a mom!"

And her dad looked at her so sadly. "Being a parent doesn't guarantee love for a child. It should. But reality isn't that kind. When I was in high school I volunteered at a social services center. I saw a mother who was sick of how her life was going be asked to choose between her two-year-old child or brand new lover. She chose the lover without hesitation."

"Yeah, fine, there are people like that, but my mom..."

"You don't know your mother."

Yang scowled.

"Think of it this way," he said patiently. "Do you think Weiss's father loves her?"

"No! You heard the things he's said to her!"

"But he's her father."

"Well, yeah, but-"

"And that's it right there." Slowly, her dad sat back and looked so damn tired. "Raven is your mom. Well, yeah, but."

Yang huffed. "Then why didn't either of you tell me?" she screamed. "Why let me build a mom from fairy tales just to shred them with this," she shoved the clippings across the table, letting them flitter and scatter to the floor. "I deserved to know!"

"Yes, you did," her father nodded. "And I've told you."

"No you didn't!" she screamed. "You didn't say a word till today! A week before her parole hearing! I should have known earlier!"

"When?" he retorted. "When you were three and she first attempted to get early parole? That was denied summarily. It's been a decade and her initial parole was set for when you were sixteen. Should we have-"

"Anything would be better than this!"

"Any time we told you you would be like this."

"How can you say that!" Yang was still screaming and she was ignoring how hot her cheeks were and how damp her eyes felt. "Why did it take this to tell me? You were looking for signs? I'm thirteen, I'm almost an adult! Surely I've proven that I should know!"

And her dad held up the coat she'd tried to sneak away in, gestured to all the snacks that she'd been stowing, and pulled out the wallet she'd been hiding money in and her now rumpled map. "Since when is running away a sign of being an adult?"

"You didn't give me a choice! You weren't going to let me come with you, you were lying to me, you were avoiding even talking about her, Uncle Qrow wouldn't-"

"You don't get to talk to Qrow about it unless he brings it up and you will respect his boundaries on this."

"Why the hell should I?"

Another heavy sigh. "Tell me, Yang, if you had a broken bone, would you want others hitting the cast?"

Yang stuttered at the change in subject. "No, what the hell?"

"Qrow has a cast around anything to deal with Raven." He looked at her hard. "Don't break that open. Let him tell you as he sees fit. You've heard enough of how he grew up to know that it's a touchy subject."

"Oh, so Uncle Qrow can have secrets now?" Yang said bitterly.

"No, your uncle has scars and he doesn't need you ripping them open with a dull spoon."

"That doesn't make any sense!"

Her dad rubbed at his chin and beard. "Hmmm, I think you need to work at a crisis center this summer. That will be part of your grounding. You need some sensitivity pounded into that head of yours."

Yang was so furious! "This is entirely beside the point! You never told me about Mom! This-" she held up one of the clippings she'd rumpled, "-can't be her!"

Outside they heard a car pulling up.

"Ah," her dad said softly, leaning forward to start sweeping up the clippings, including the ones on the floor. "Ruby's home now. So Yang, how do you want her to find out about Raven?"

Yang stuttered again, thinking of Ruby's bright smile and quiet belief in everyone. And for the briefest of flashes, she wondered what hearing this would do to that bright smile.

"Well?"

"I hate you!" she screamed with all her might and stomped to her room.


Author's Notes: Well, that could have gone better. Yang has some very legitimate issues and Tai is alternating between doing what he'd promised to do when she was sixteen and damage control at the same time. Qrow starts digging his own grave before it even starts and Tai gets him out of the house before it all gets even worse. For reasons to be discussed next chapter things don't resolved neatly - as a commenter on AO3 pointed out, however well-intentioned, Tai and Qrow didn't exactly go about this the best way, and now Yang has to mentally resolve the mom she had built up in her head and the mom she actually has. Hmm, wonder who'll be babysitting her the day of the parole...?

Also Oscar, we start to see a little bit of what his story arc will be for this chapter. He has a lot of internal growing to do and the show came with pre-packaged bullies for exactly this kind of scenario. Cardin Winchester is basically a youtube comments section, so Oscar certainly gets provoked enough. Also, hi Jaune! We don't use you nearly as much as we should...

Next chapter: a diatribe on the philosophy of "just right."