Part Thirteen
Qrow had been forced to do a little reading after Oz had come out to him - he'd heard of demis before but didn't know all of the terminology Oz had thrown around as he tried to describe himself - and there were something like three different spectrums to measure against: Romantic to aromantic, replused to horny-as-fuck, and the LGBT spectrum - which of course was the one he wasn't sure where he stood. Just Qrow's luck.
But at the same time, Qrow had been the first person Oz had ever come out to, and that sparked something warm in his belly that made him smile. He remembered when he'd come out to Raven, still under their parent's thumb and still trying to get an edge in life. She'd taken it so casually, said sure whatever, what do you want me to do about it - and the casualness of it impressed him. When he realized what Oz was saying, he'd made sure he was as casually accepting as he could be.
The internet said erasure was a thing for people on the ace spectrum, same as bi's, and that made Qrow silently swear to himself that he would kill that bitch if he ever talked about there being something wrong with him. That was another thing he had gone through, this time in college, and had led to two different fights before Tai and Summer told him it didn't matter because they believed him. To live with someone for years who said there was something wrong with you… Fuck he hated that woman and he hadn't even met her.
Tai, of course, knew something was up, but Qrow respected Oz not yet being comfortable with being out, and kept it to himself as they prepped for the cookout. Instead he bought buns for both hot dogs and burgers, extra ketchup, and two twelve-packs of soda for the cooler.
Labor Day dawned hot and muggy, and Qrow helped wrangle his nieces that morning. The volleyball net was still up and the girls knew this was their last day with it.
"Greetings!" came a call when Tai was pulling out the charcoal.
Qrow couldn't help but smile. Of course Oz came early. "Hey Oz," he waved a hand in greeting.
Oz came over smiling while Oscar immediately went to the picnic table to start organizing it. "I hope neither of you mind, but it occured to me that a grill is similar to an oven. I made some pizza dough last night and brought the various accoutrements. Perhaps we can make a proper pie?"
Qrow and Tai glanced at each other. Tai immediately smiled. "I think I've got a pizza stone somewhere in the house. Ruby! Come here, we need to find something!"
"Coming, Dad!"
They disappeared, and with Yang on her phone texting someone, Qrow had a small amount of privacy with Oz. "Meant to ask earlier, but the girls are a handful. How'd 'the talk' go with Oscar?"
"About as expected," Oz said, a soft smile on his lips. "He had a lot of questions, and I, only a few answers, but he said it was good to know that having a partner didn't have to be a priority in someone's life."
Qrow smirked. "Sounds like he takes after his dad," he said.
Oz smiled softly again, leaning on his cane. "I can only hope he turns out better than I did. I didn't realize how… light I would feel, saying it out loud."
Qrow smiled. "Self-acceptance, right? A little goes a long way. Explains why you're always half a step behind in the innuendo department. I should warn you, though, Clover's coming and half of what he says is innuendo."
"Then thank you kindly for the warning," Oz said. "Who else is coming?"
"The Belladonnas," Qrow said. "Have you met them yet? We've only seen them, like, twice."
"They were the ones who greeted us when we came home from the lake house, right? Young Miss Blake holding a sign saying, 'welcome home.' I remember the stark height difference."
"Okay, so you've met. We got them, Clover, you and Oscar, the four of us. The Schnees said no for obvious reasons."
"How unfortunate. How are things going for them?"
"Ruby and Yang are better informed than me, you'd have to ask them. They say Weiss is a lot happier though, and after the election she might have some breathing room."
"Election?"
"Geez, professor, don't you watch TV?"
"Not overly, I spent the summer writing papers and being harrassed by my department head."
Qrow rubbed his face. "Schnee put his name in the hat for the city elections. I'm pretty sure it'll be my first time voting since college and it'll be for whoever the other guy is."
Ozpin sniffed. "What kind of platform is he running? Who's his opponent?"
"Do I hear talk of politics? Why, Blake made it sound as though everyone here would be completely apolitical."
Qrow and Oz turned to see a giant of a man in denim and a tiny woman beside him: Ghira and Kali Belladonna had arrived. Qrow leaned to the side, saw Blake in a t-shirt about two sizes too small with a thin line of her midrift showing, skinny jeans, and - were those heels? - adolescence looked like it had probably hit, but she was moving immediately to sit with Yang, and Qrow held in a grin.
"Not political," Qrow said to Ghria, "Unless cynicism is a party I can join. I just hate Jacques Schnee."
"Qrow, be polite," Oz admonished. "Forgive my friend, he is sometimes refreshingly without tact. It would be more accurate to say that what we know of Mr. Schnee leads us to believe his leadership would leave the community somewhat wanting. Professor Ozpin Ozma."
"Oh," Ghira said, offering a hand. "One of your essays is in a book we have: Treaties on Social Movements Through Studies of Humanities."
"It is?" Oz said, reaching out to shake hands. "I hadn't realized. I don't overly pay attention to where my work goes after its initial publication in the periodicals. That's for the campus publisher. I'm curious now, which piece?"
"Don't ask, or he'll go to the car and bring out the entire book, and that doesn't include the Philosophy of Trauma, either. Or some of the other papers you're written," the tiny woman, Kali Belladonna said. "We're not here for work and Blake made us swear up and down that we wouldn't talk politics and embarrass her."
"Then we'll leave the elections on the shelf once we all agree that Jacques Schnee is a jackass and a bastard," Qrow said, reaching into the cooler for a can of soda and popping it open.
"The more we learn about him the more we're inclined to agree," Ghira said. "We brought salad, fruit bowls, cheese boards, and some fish for Blake to eat. We're pescatarians."
"Uh-oh," Qrow said, "Better check to see if Tai has any veggie versions of burgers and dogs." He shook Ghira's hand and moved back into the house. "Hey Tai! Did you know we got some vegetarians here?"
Tai was in the kitchen, making burger patties and looking up in slow-dawning, wide-eyed horror. "What?" he asked.
"The Belladonnas, they're vegetarians."
"What?" Tai asked, face whipping to Ruby. "Did you know?"
"Yeah," Ruby said brightly. "They're vegan, no animal products at all, except for Blake who didn't want to give up fish. Why?"
Tai bit out a curse and started washing his hands. "I have to go to the store," he said quickly. "Qrow, keep making patties. Why don't people tell me these things!"
"It's your big-dad energy!" Qrow called after him, smirking. "You here to supervise, pipsqueak? Or are you gonna help?"
Ruby moved to the counter and they started making patties, Ruby mushing her hands through the ground meat and Qrow measuring the spices and pouring them in. Until the salt shaker broke open and the entire thing fell into the bowl. Cursing he fished it out and put it in the sink, Ruby giggling. They finished the patties and brought them out. Qrow knew better than to touch the grill - he would set the house on fire with his luck, but he watched Ruby run off to the net to join her sister and friends. Oz was in the wicker chair, cardboard "for the professor" sign at his feet. Ghira and Kali were sitting across from him on the bench, and Qrow pulled out some water bottles to offer them. Kali shook her head, holding up an aluminum water bottle.
"Sorry," she said, "we're trying to go zero waste, too."
"So you make a lot of decisions based on ethics, then," Ozpin was saying as Qrow sat down.
"I suppose that's one way of looking at it. On paper we're community organizers - but we try to be so much more than that. If we're going to have any voice as a part of the community then we have to lead by example. That's why we're so keen on the environment - we don't want Blake or any other children to live in a world that can no longer sustain them. We don't want them to have to struggle for health care like we did, or have equal rights like so many people don't."
"Politics, dear," Kali said, sipping her water. "It also works out that being vegan is generally healthier for you, and some of the zero waste swaps we've made have been amazing. If any of us had the faintest clue how to keep plants alive we'd save so much money by having our own garden."
"Better talk to Oscar then," Qrow said, jutting his chin over to the boy, sitting in the shade with a book. "He keeps a garden in the back of Oz's house and it's a thing to behold."
"Really?" Kali asked, looking over. "Oh, he looks just like his father with that ascot. You must be so proud of him."
"Prouder every day," Ozpin said, smiling brightly. "And he very firmly informs me that it's a gardening scarf. He can and will correct everyone."
"Oh, that's adorable. How old is he?"
"Thirteen October first. He has emphatically told me that he will be a teenager, and to treat him accordingly."
The adults all laughed.
"I wonder if he realizes just what he's asking," Qrow said, leaning back and hooking an ankle over a knee. "Bitter sarcasm and flat 'no's, simple facts in the face of hormonal drama, ear breaking screaming matches, or rolling the eyes and the idiocy of kids."
"Don't we know about the screaming matches," Ghira said, knocking his head back as he laughed. "The things Blake has done since turning thirteen!"
"Careful dear, any louder and she'll start demanding to know what you're talking about," Kali said, sipping her water. "What about your girls, Mr. Qrow?"
"Only kids call me Mr. Qrow, and I'm the uncle, not the dad. Tai's out getting veggie burgers for you." He sipped from his can, feeling the carbonation bubble down. Not the same as a burn, but it felt good. "They're little angels compared to Tai and me - especially me. They have good heads on their shoulders and good hearts to boot. Only thing I'm worried about is how long it'll take Yang to figure out she's as gay as I am bi. She's crushing on Blake pretty bad, and she hates the boyfriend without even seeing him."
"Wait," Kali said, suddenly leaning forward. "My daughter has a boyfriend?"
Qrow blinked, eyes flicking to Oz, but his eyes were wide, too. "You… didn't know?" Qrow asked.
"No," Kali said, her voice low as she looked over at her daughter. "She spends every day staring at that darn phone of hers, when we take it away she runs off for hours, and when we ask where she's been she lies and says she was with you - which I know isn't true because you two always call to say she's there. She barely said two words all summer, and we can't understand why. If she has a boyfriend…"
"That would explain so much…" Ghira said. "Her attitude, her mannerisms, her clothes."
"Clothes?" Ozpin asked, turning slightly to have a look. "She seems fine now."
"Oh, you've no idea," Kali said, leaning back on the bench and crossing her feet at the ankles. "She came down in those jeans and one of her bikini tops - we almost didn't come the fight was so bad. Ghira nearly punched a wall he was so mad - it took the entire drive to cool down."
"Kali, they don't need to know that," Ghira muttered, face red.
"It's been terrible, we're at our wits end," Kali continued, pressing a hand to her breastbone. "I knew teenage years were supposed to be difficult but this!"
"Sounds to me like she's spending her spare time with her boyfriend," Qrow said. "I take it you haven't seen him."
"Not to our knowledge. Do you know anything about him?"
"Unfortunately, no," Ozpin said, placing his chin on his cane. "Oscar hasn't yet awoken to matters of the heart yet. Such observations tend to go over his head - which at this age, it should."
"Girls might have seen him," Qrow said, running a hand over his stubble. "Hey Ruby!"
"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby darted away from the party and ran up, side hugging his shoulders and nearly knocking him over - again. "What's up?"
"The adults were reminiscing over our adolescence," Qrow answered easily, "talking about all our first crushes. We were curious, how many of you girls had crushes or boyfriends yet?"
"Well," Ruby said. "Yang always wants to spend time with Blake, does that count?"
"Sure," Qrow said. "Is Blake into her?"
"No, she's all about her boyfriend."
"Pfft," Qrow scoffed, waving his hand. "I call bull. Never had a boy over except Oscar. Pics or it didn't happen, that's what the kids say, right?"
"Ouch, that actually hurt to hear you say that," Ruby said, wincing. "But he does exist. They text all the time."
"That's cute, do they hang out at their lockers or something?"
"No, not really. He graduated last year."
All of the adults straightened. "What?"
Ruby took a step back, realizing she'd fallen for a trick. "Uh-oh…" she muttered.
"Blake Belladonna!" Ghira said, standing to his full height.
Kali grabbed her husband's arm. "Dear, not at a cookout!"
Blake came over, face sullen. "What?" she demanded.
"What's this we hear-" Ghira was suddenly cut off by his wife.
"About you having a boyfriend? How sweet! I remember my first crush back when I was your age…"
Blake rolled her eyes. "Really? You bellowed and you want to ask about old news?" She offered a dark look to Ruby. "I don't want to talk about it." Then she turned and stalked away.
"Eheheheh…" Ruby rubbed at the back of her head. "Um…." she quickly ran back to the other teens. "Team Rose Garden versus team Bumblebee!"
"You're going down," Blake replied firmly.
"Ehehe, I was expecting that….."
Ghira sat down, fuming.
Kali leaned forward, whispering in his ear to help him calm down.
"Hey!" came a voice from the front of the house. "Look who I found in the driveway!"
"We're in back, Clover!" Qrow called, getting up and moving around to the corner of the house. With Clover was Tai, still cursing over having to go out to the store as he brought in two cloth bags of groceries. Qrow and Clover clapped hands together and gave each other a one-armed hug. "Glad you could make it."
"Almost didn't," Clover said. "Harriet was all worked up over something and Marrow was this close to making her hit someone."
"I can only imagine," Qrow said, leading him back around the corner. "What'd you bring?"
"Beer."
"Ha, ha. What'd you actually bring?"
"My cute little ass."
"Ha, ha, again."
"Pie: apple and blueberry, whipped cream - that you may not use for ulterior motives - and some ice cream - that you also may not use for ulterior motives."
"You're a real riot, anyone ever tell you that?"
"That's why you love me."
"Why I hate you, more like," Qrow said, smiling. Tai was already at the grill taking the patties and new veggie burgers and putting them on. The girls were all clustered by the net under the shade of a tree, talking, while Oscar was nose deep in a book. Over at the picnic bench with the adults he saw Oz watching his son fondly as Kali kept talking to Ghira. "Lady and gentlemen," he said, "This is Clover Ebi."
Ghira looked up, still sour, but put on a better face and stood with his wife. "Hello," he said brightly. "Ghira Belladonna. This is my wife Kali."
"A pleasure," Clover said, all smooth charm.
"Professor Ozpin Ozma," Oz said, finally working his way to his feet, reaching out a hand. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Qrow's said a lot about you."
"And I promise not one word of it is true," Clover said brightly. "He's said a lot about you, too, professor. But apparently not enough."
Oz smiled, uncertain what to say, and his eyes flicked to Qrow in askance. "I don't believe Qrow is particularly secretive, so you have me at a slight disadvantage."
Clover smiled his "this is going to be fun" smile and Qrow felt an immediate urge to groan.
"Oh, you misunderstand, professor. He just failed to mention what a tall glass of water you are."
Oz turned bright red, blinking rapidly and Qrow grabbed his sponsor's shoulder. "Play nice," he warned, "Or I use the whipped cream on you, and not in the fun way."
Clover smirked. "Define 'fun,'" he said brightly, sitting in the chair Qrow had vacated - the one next to Oz. "Shouldn't you be helping your brother-in-law? Don't worry, I'll keep everyone here entertained."
"I immediately regret inviting you," Qrow muttered.
"No you don't!" Clover called over his shoulder.
"Tell me about yourself, professor," Ebi said, and Oz watched the man lean back in his chair with such an air of confidence he wasn't quite sure how to react.
"If you've talked to Qrow you likely know there isn't much to tell," Ozpin said, fingering his cane. "We moved here from the west coast around four years ago, I'm a professor of philosophy at Beacon, and we met in the school parking lot. We're good friends."
"Friends," Ebi said, a sly quirk to his lips. His eyes darted over Oz again, and he was still fighting off the last blush. "Gotta say, professor, Qrow doesn't have that many friends - and those he does have are usually because he failed at trying to date them."
Oz blinked. "I beg your pardon?"
"First was Summer, then Tai, and then there was me, and this isn't including the flings he had in college or during his rough patch. That's his pattern, you know."
Oz shook his head. "Well, then it appears I'm the exception that proves the rule. He has made no untoward advances."
"Yeah," Ebi said, "That's the part I don't get." He hooked a well muscled arm over the back of his seat, and Oz noticed a pin on his shirt - a four leaf clover. "He only gets the message when he comes on strong enough to get a hard 'no.' I'm curious what makes you different."
"There seems to be an assumption there," Oz said after a moment's thought. "You are presupposing that he is at all romantically interested, and as I've already stated, he has made no such advances. He has said prior experience - from his rough patch, as you've described - has made romantic relationships meaningless to him, and none of us here are teenagers. History has proven that carnal drives fade over time."
Ebi tilted his head back and laughed. "Carnal drives!" he repeated. "This keeps getting better and better!"
Oz frowned, shifting his weight. "Am I under interrogation?" he asked.
"No, no, professor," Ebi said, waving a hand. "Nothing like that. We're all a little protective of Qrow over the years, and more often than not he's the cause of his own problems. It's good to see him making some mature decisions. Although I have to admit, if you swing my way I would love to have an extended conversation about 'carnal drives.'"
Oz sensed the innuendo but it took him several seconds to put it together, and he turned bright red all over again. Mrs. Belladonna laughed, a small hand covering her mouth. "Mr. Ebi," she said, "so forward!"
"Clover, ma'am," Ebi said. "But rest assured, your husband isn't my type."
Mrs. Belladonna laughed again, and Mr. Belladonna finally looked up from his dark glower. "What?" he asked, and Mrs. Belladonna laughed again.
"What do you do, Clover?" Kali asked.
"A lot of things," Ebi replied. "Counseling, social work, I'm also an AA sponsor. I like helping people."
"Oh!" Ghira said. "Thank you for all your service. You never get enough credit for what you do and the world barely knows you even exist."
"And those that do think we're simpering milk sops," Clover said brightly. "But they're not the people whose opinions matter. I have a folder full of personal letters from clients thanking me for how I've helped them - that means more than any elected official's lip service, positive or negative."
"So true, not enough people practice gratitude these days. Validation is so important, but that requires empathy and-"
"Careful, honey," Kali said, "Or you'll start quoting that book in the car - or worse, Professor Ozma's essay in it."
Tai was at the grill, starting to set things out for dinner. It had been a lively cookout so far, especially when Yang pulled out the hose to "cleanse Ruby" from whatever sin she had committed against Blake, which had led to Blake grabbing the volleyball to throw to Ruby as well. Until it had drenched Ozpin and Oscar roared (and laughed) as he went after the hose, wrestled it away, and sprayed all the girls. Of course, since Ozpin had been soaked, Qrow got involved, and things had devolved quickly and gotten muddy.
Qrow had dragged himself into the house for a shower and a fresh change of clothes, with vows of not getting involved in childish shenanigans. But with the sun setting, the energy levels were setting as well. The children were gathered around the volleyball net, trying to figure out how to put it away neatly so that it wouldn't have to be detangled next summer. The Belladonas were watching, talking quietly together with Ozpin, who was still in damp clothes.
(The Belladonnas had said they wouldn't mind if he stripped off his shirt given the drenching and muggy heat, but Ozpin had politely declined.)
Tai was grilling up some veggie burgers when Clover came over.
"Hey, Tai."
"Clover," Tai greeted. He jutted his head to where Qrow was standing by Ozpin, chuckling at something that was said. "So, now that you've met him, what do you think?"
"Very academic," the redhead replied. "I never would have seen our bumbling, rough and tumble bird fall for a quiet, studious professor. I would have wagered a bodybuilder. He likes curves, and our dear philosopher is a stick."
Tai nodded. "I don't think he started attracted. I suspect it grew over time."
"Probably better for Qrow that way," Clover nodded. "Start with friendship, then build. Not just falling in love. That hasn't worked for him." Clover gave a wry grin. "I did make for a good practice run."
Tai winced. "Please don't remind me of that disaster. Hearing about it once was enough."
Clover chuckled. "But that's not why you're asking for my thoughts."
The blonde nodded. "I can't tell if Ozpin is interested in Qrow or not."
"Yeah."
Tai flipped the veggie burger then switched spatulas to flip a regular burger. "I think it's pretty clear he's close to Qrow."
"Oh yeah. See how he always asks Qrow a question, or looks to him?"
"And it's pretty clear that Qrow is interested."
"Hangs on his every word, small little touches."
"But Oz….."
"... Yeah."
Qrow nodded at something Oz said and wandered over to the grill. "Hey. Oz was wondering about the pizza dough he brought over."
"Crap. Right! Sorry! The vegan thing got me all turned around." Tai switched things around by the grill and started to prep for when he pulled the burgers off.
Clover immediately leaned right in, wrapping a large arm around Qrow's shoulders. "Why Qrow," he said lightly. "I don't believe I've once seen you make a move on Oz. And he is a dish. I never would have seen him as your type. Long sleeves on a day this muggy? Ascot? It's like he's modeling for a magazine."
Tai's brother (in-law) rolled his eyes. "You two know he's got scars. He's making sure the Belladonnas don't see them."
That actually made Tai still. "Really? That says something. He didn't have a problem letting us see back on Memorial Day."
Qrow offered a flat look. "Last I checked, he's hung out with us for almost a year. I already knew the low-down on the physical damage."
Tai and Clover shared a Look.
Clover ran a hair through Qrow's hair. "You aren't that oblivious. It's because he's comfortable around you. He's got a thing for you, same as you've got a thing or him."
Qrow slumped forward. "You're kidding, right? Interrogating him wasn't enough, now you gotta interrogate me?"
"Someone has to look out for you, brother," Tai smiled blandly. He'd finished greasing down the grill and started to stretch out the pizza dough. "Ozpin has been good for you, and we want you to be happy."
A frown flashed across Qrow's face. "I doubt he'll look at me that way."
Tai blinked, wondering where the hell that had come from.
Clover, however, smiled widely and leaned forward. "Why Qrow! This is the first time you haven't proclaimed how straight he is, that he has a son so he must be straighter than a laser. Tell me, is the professor bi?"
Qrow scowled at them. "Oz won't be interested that way."
"And what do you mean 'that way,' hmmm?" Clover poked at Qrow's cheek.
Tai's brother(in-law) gave a flat look. "Geez, you two are persistent. At least the girls leave it at teasing."
"That doesn't answer the question, Qrow," Tai said softly. He reached out and gripped his shoulder. "How do you know?"
Qrow shrugged out of Clover's grip. "We had a talk. No, I won't share, that's his decision. But I know my luck. Oz won't be interested."
Tai frowned as Qrow looked away, resigned and wistful.
"Qrow…"
But his brother walked away, put on a smile, and sat down across from Oz, sliding neatly into conversation. And it wasn't a sad smile. Just a wistful one.
"Damn," Clover muttered.
Tai kept his mouth pressed into a firm line. He was going to have to be more supportive.
"Ruby, I need you to do me a favor. Can you give this packet to ISS?"
"Sure."
"Do you know where it is?"
"Um, no."
"Go to the office, past the secretaries' desks there's a hall. Go to the end of it and hook a right. The door at the end of that right."
"Okay," Ruby said, taking the packet of work and getting a pass written out. She waved to her sister and left class, following directions to go to the ISS room and wondering if there would be students there this early in the year. It was still October! Still, she made it to the office and down the two halls and knocked on the door before entering and-
"Blake?"
"Ruby?"
Her friend turned violently to the side and crossed her arms, cheeks coloring and hunching forward. Ruby glanced at the ISS teacher, not knowing the name, and putting it on the desk before darting over to her. "Why are you here?" she asked.
Blake stared down, not looking up. "I don't want you to see me here," she said.
"Okay," Ruby said, pulling a chair over to sit and leaning forward, trying to see her friend's face. "I understand that but why are you here? You're not the type of person to get ISS?"
"... It's stupid," Blake said, ducking her head down even further. "Don't even worry about it."
"Blake…?"
"..."
"I'm sorry, what? I didn't hear you."
"I said it's s stupid dress code violation," Blake said, louder, finally looking up. "Okay? Are you happy now?"
Ruby shook her head. "No," she said, "No I'm not happy. I would never be happy to see a friend here. What was the violation? You look fine to me."
"It's nothing. It's stupid. I just wanted to wear something my boyfriend got me."
Ruby…. She was a year younger than everyone else but she wasn't stupid either. She'd seen Blake's wardrobe slowly change over the summer, and she knew that even Yang wouldn't be comfortable with some of what she wore. If Blake was wearing a school hoodie now she had a good idea of what the violation was. She looked down, reaching out and touching the back of Blake's hand. "Did you know it would be a dress code violation?"
"... Yeah," Blake admitted. "I didn't wear it on the bus, I knew my parents wouldn't let me go to school in it. I changed in homeroom."
"But… if you know you'd get yelled at, then why did you do it?"
Her gold eyes fell, and her head dipped again. "... Adam asked me to," she admitted.
Ruby shook her head, leaning further forward. "But why did he?" she asked. "He graduated last year, right? So he knew all about dress codes. And why did you say yes?"
"Ruby, I didn't want to disappoint him," Blake said, shaking her head.
"You not wearing something at school would disappoint him?"
"You wouldn't understand. You don't know him like I do. He's very sensitive."
"Blake," Ruby said, "I know you always say that he's sensitive, but I don't really understand what that means. Dad and Uncle Qrow and Professor Ozpin, they're sensitive, but I get the feeling that's not what you mean when you talk about Adam."
"I told you," Blake said, straightening. "You don't understand. He's been through a lot, and he gets hurt very easily. It's not easy for him, he's finally away from his parents but that doesn't mean he's automatically fixed. He hasn't made it on his own, he owes a lot of money to a lot of people and he's trying to figure out how to make everything work out and no one understands him. I'm the only one who does, and I'm the only one who can calm him down when he gets in a mood."
"Ooooh, Blake," Ruby said, feeling something in her heart break. "You don't know this but that's a line Yang's mom used to say to Dad all the time. He said he was the only one to calm her down when she was in a mood, and he said that it was never supposed to be his job to manage her emotions like that."
Blake didn't say anything, just stared, an angry frown on her face. "Blake," Ruby said, "I'm really scared for you."
She huffed. "Don't be. I know what I'm doing."
And she couldn't change her mind. Ruby left ISS and somehow made her way back to class. Yang passed her a note asking what happened, but Ruby didn't know how to explain it, and she just shook her head. They separated for the last class of the day and Ruby tried to figure out how to explain why something in her head was so worried for Blake. She didn't know a lot about Adam, but Blake had just said he was having money trouble, but he kept buying her expensive gifts and… specific clothes for her to wear, and jewelry. Something wasn't adding up in her head, but she couldn't put her finger on it.
Blake didn't join them on the walk to the middle school, in fact Ruby watched her get into a car that wasn't her parents and drive off just as Yang caught up to her. They said their goodbyes to Weiss and started walking.
"Are you gonna tell me what happened in ISS?" Yang asked.
"It's just… Blake was there for a dress code violation."
"Wait, Blake was here today?"
"Yeah. I… guess she spent the entire day in ISS. She was trying to wear something her boyfriend got for her. I kind of got the impression he wanted her to wear it to school. She changed into it during homeroom."
"Really?" Yang said, huffing. "I swear, the more I hear about that guy the more I don't like him. He's so clingy and controlling. I don't know what she sees in him."
"I tried to talk to her," Ruby said, "And she said… she said she was the only one who could calm him down when he was in a mood. Didn't Dad say your mom used to say that?"
Yang's eyes widened as she cast her thoughts out. "You know, I think you're right. Mom…" She shook her head. "I think we need to talk to Uncle Qrow," she said, "He knew Mom best, and he would know if this Adam guy is good news for Blake or not."
"But that's the problem," Ruby said, worrying her hands. "What good is finding out if this guy is bad news if she still decides to stay with him? What if we can't convince her that he's bad news? What if… what if she decides not to be friends with us?"
"... I don't know, Ruby," Yang said. "I don't know…"
Uncle Qrow was at his spot in the middle school lot, chatting with Professor Ozpin right as the bell rang and the middle school let out. Ruby and Yang crossed the parking lot, Ruby watching the two of them smile as they talked and Oscar coming up to hug his dad. The warm scene made her smile, a little, but she was still worried about Blake and unsure what to do.
"What's this?" Uncle Qrow asked, smirk on his face. "Not tackle? Don't tell me you're too old for public displays of affection so soon?"
"Uncle Qrow," Yang said, stepping forward. "We need to talk. About Mom."
The smile wiped off his face in an instant, and Ruby saw Professor Ozpin still as he was moving around to the driver side of his car.
"What do you mean?" Uncle Qrow asked, and his rough voice was lower, darker, brushing against a long-fuzzy memory of what he was like before rehab.
Ruby dithered, unsure where to start, "It's not really about Yang's mom so much as something Dad used to say she said. Only I don't know if that makes sense but I heard it today from someone else and I think something bad is happening but I don't know for sure but I'm really worried but I don't want to lose a friend over something that might be nothing but…" she ran out of words.
"Oz, I'll take a rain check," Uncle Qrow said. "The girls and I need to have a talk."
"I understand. Text me if you need me."
"Yeah… Come on girls. Let's go somewhere quiet."
Yang put Ruby in the passenger seat and climbed into the back, and Uncle Qrow started up his junker and pulled out of the school. Ruby explained seeing Blake in ISS and what she said and how it sounded. She had just about finished when they arrived at Uncle Qrow's apartment, and they walked the three flights up. He flung his keys on the counter of the kitchenette and grabbed a soda out of the fridge, popping it open and taking several long gulps before sitting on his couch, Ruby and Yang joining him on either side.
"Have you two ever met the guy?" he asked.
"No," Ruby admitted. "She won't even let us read her texts."
"I think the background on her phone is him," Yang offered. "But it was weird, photoshopped or whatever. You couldn't really see his face." She looked down. "I asked her about it once, and she got all prickly."
"Okay, what's Blake said about this guy?"
"Well," Ruby said, "I remember when we first learned about him he said she was mature. She always smiled when she said that, and she says he's been through a lot."
"Yeah," Yang agreed. "Said he hated his parents and was trying to make it on his own."
"He's a high school graduate - or at least I assume he is - so what's he doing for work if he's on his own?"
Ruby frowned, thinking back. She looked to her sister on the other side of Uncle Qrow, but she was frowning, too. "Transportation, I think," she said after a long pause. "But I don't remember for sure. He's always texting her and saying he needs her. He's really clingy - we barely saw her over the summer because she was spending all her time with him."
"And here's the question," Uncle Qrow said. "You two are in high school, right? Do you want to spend every waking minute with a fifth grader?"
"Eww, no," Ruby said, "They're little kids, they make weird jokes and are too loud."
"Then why's a seventeen year old so into a thirteen year old?"
"Because Blake's mature, Blake said he said so."
"But you two are her friends. Do you really think she acts that much older than you?"
"That's just it," Yang said. "She's cool and collected, but she's still just like us. She laughs at our jokes, she doesn't think we're too young for her, she's fine. She didn't even like the high school parties she went to and-"
Uncle Qrow snapped to his attention to Yang. "High school parties?" he asked, and there was the low, dangerous tenor in his voice again. Ruby was getting more and more worried.
"It was fine," Ruby said quickly, trying to make this sound better than what it was. "He protected her, she said so, so nothing bad happened, right?"
Uncle Qrow's eyes were closed, and he tilted his head back for several long seconds. Ruby looked to Yang, but she was just as worried and just as lost. She shook her head.
"New question," Uncle Qrow said. "About Raven. What did Blake say that made you think of her?"
"She… she said that she was the only one who could calm him down, that he said that a lot. She said we didn't know him like she did - but that doesn't really sound fair, because we've never seen him and never talked to him so we can't know him like she does."
"Christ," Uncle Qrow swore, opening his eyes and looking up at the ceiling, "I'm such an idiot. I owe Tai and Clover an apology." He straightened, looked at both Ruby and Yang, and his face was as serious as it had been in the weeks leading up to the parole hearing. "Let me tell you a story about Raven. Yang, I gotta warn you, you're not gonna like it."
Yang shook her head. "I can take it," she said, shifting her weight to face him more fully. "I know what she really is now."
"There's one thing you've gotta understand about Raven and me, we were both pretty fu-screwed up when we were kids. Our mom and dad weren't the nicest people in the universe - they were the same color of jerks Weiss' dad is, but there wasn't any veneer to hide it. Growing up with people like that messes with your head, and we were both pretty twisted when we met Tai and Summer in college. You know all the mistakes I made - I was drinking, playing, dating the worst kind of people, figuring out I was bi, picking fights any time I thought I had to prove myself - which was constantly. Raven… she did a better job of flying under the radar. She was quiet - if she was mad she didn't say anything until later, and then she would rip you to absolute pieces. The two of us would get into knock-down, drag out fights, the ugly kind that no one wants to see or hear. We did it all the time because that was all we knew how to do, but one day we started having that kind of fight in front of your dad and he stepped in with all his Big Dad energy and turned the fight right off. Threw us both for a loop - that had never happened before.
"Well, Raven didn't take kindly to being wound up and then not getting to let off the steam. She picked a fight with him two days later, but he cooled her down again. And again. Raven couldn't get it, she'd never had anyone talk her down before. She was pissed at first, then frustrated, then obsessed. We both thought it was true love or something. We were idiot kids. I don't know how to explain it - Raven and me, we'd never known what healthy people were; and Summer and Tai, they'd never known unhealthy people. It was a disaster waiting to happen."
Ruby tucked her head into her uncle's shoulder, hugging his arm and curling into him. It might have been a little immature for a high schooler, but she sensed that her Uncle needed something as he was telling this. Yang was drinking in every word, always starved for information on her mom and listening to new insight after new insight as it was revealed to her.
"Raven… she never really left the house. Like, we were on campus, in college, but her heart was still twisted up and locked away with our parents. She didn't know how to break out, and instead she just did the same thing over and over, and we never noticed that it hurt people around us. Raven spent every waking minute with Tai, talked about all the sh-stuff we went through and how he had to be sensitive to her, without ever once realizing she had to be sensitive to him. And Tai…
"Tai, damn him, he was too good to realize he was the only one giving to the relationship." He took a long guzzle from his soda, finished the can in fact, let it hang limply from his hand. Ruby looked up to his face, saw that it was the face that wished for something stronger, and all she could do was cuddle closer, sad because her uncle was sad, hurting because her uncle was hurting.
"The second Raven started to give to Tai, she got scared."
"Why would she be scared?" Yang asked - not the indignant rude tone she took when asking about her mom, but a softer, curious tone that seemed to make Ruby hurt even more.
"She only knew one kind of life, firecracker," Uncle Qrow said, leaving the empty can on his lap and running his hands through her hair. "Jumping into another one is terrifying. So she ran to what she knew. I wasn't much better, I chased after her to try and drag her back instead of looking after the two people who showed me that new life was better than my old one. Tai and me… we never really talked about the break up after it happened. I was chasing Raven and Summer had to pick up the pieces. You know the rest… After it was all settled I was a mess, and Tai and Summer kept giving. I wasn't… I can't really say I was good about giving back then."
Ruby winced to hear Uncle Qrow admit something so painful, and she didn't know how to hug him more. Yang was looking down at her lap, hands twisted into fists, and she leaned into Uncle Qrow, adding her head to his other shoulder.
"We did talk, finally," he admitted, and his voice was rough, almost wet. "After rehab. We were both smarter by then - or at least Tai was, and he talked about what it was like to be with Raven. He said it was tending a fire that could feed itself. She was warm and bright and a little dangerous, but he realized over time his only job was to make sure she didn't burn the place down. Fire's supposed to feed you warm food, keep you safe from danger, prove to the world how smart you are, and Tai wasn't getting any of that - he said he was just a bucket of water to dunk on her when things were too hot to handle. He wasn't her partner, he was her temperature gauge, and there wasn't anyone to take his temperature.
"I hated her so much when he said that…" he confessed. "'Cause he is literally the best guy you could know and have in your life, and she never treated him like it…"
His arms came up and wrapped around Ruby's shoulders, probably Yang's, too, and he squeezed as hard as he could. Ruby hugged him even tighter, and she felt Yang snake her arms around to do the same, and for a small eternity they held each other, helping their uncle through a bad day.
There was an ugly sniffle, and then Uncle Qrow loosened his grip and let go. Ruby and Yang pulled back, looking up, but his face was dry. Haunted, but dry. He pulled out his phone.
"I gotta be honest, girls," he said. "The stuff you've just told me about Blake, her parents need to know. I know to you guys they look strict and unreasonable, but they're scared and want her safe, and this guy Blake is seeing... he is not safe."
Yang hesitated, unwilling to break, but Ruby knew how hard it was for Uncle Qrow to talk about Yang's mom, and she knew he did it for a good reason, because she saw Yang's mom in Blake's boyfriend, and if it hurt him that much then it couldn't be good. "Go ahead," she said, reaching out and grabbing Yang's hand. "We won't say anything to Blake."
Uncle Qrow called the Belladonna's.
Author's Notes: Connecter chapter. The summer disappeared in the blink of an eye. as we switched over to an outlined format, and having the Memorial Day and Labor Day cookouts almost back to back is a little awkward but the pacing finally starts to even out from here. OzQrow gets pushed at a little more by Tai and Clover; Qrow is in full Pining Mode, and Clover continues to be the best thing in every scene he's in.
But more than anything else, we finally start to build up Blake's arc - we've been dancing around it in the background for how many chapters? A lot of readers already know what's happening and this chapter makes it obvious for everyone else.
And we have the ability to link this back to Raven. She might not being in anyone's lives anymore, but that doesn't mean she hasn't affected everyone in the family. It hurts for Qrow to bring it all up - he'd rather be numb, but he knows exactly where that will get him - but something we've learned in the course of our own lives is that just because the type of abuse differs from person to person the experience of abuse is universal to all of the survivors - and they can pick up on the bad signals faster than other people. The result is that Qrow makes a good decision.
Next chapter: Oz gives Weiss a philosophical dissertation on Snow White. Also, Halloween: Revenge of the Drama.
