As for Dopinder, he finally had a good enough guess as to what Yang's "Husband" did for a living. If her remark on killing Grimm was anything to go by, then the Cab Driver was left to conclude with only one answer. A Huntsman, or something close to that regard. And he'd be lying if he ever said that this wasn't getting him excited. After all, how often does a civilian come close to meeting a professional Grimm slaying warrior? Granted he believed that this was merely the wife, but it was pretty close enough for him.
"And there you have it, Ma'am." He continued with a smile both sisters could see in the rearview mirror. "I'm not asking you not to worry, because it's everyone's right to worry for a loved one." He made sure to glance at Yang when he said this. "But I am asking you to have faith. Faith in your husband and faith in him returning to you, to the both of you, no matter what."
Man, this is turning out to be better than I expected it to be. The young Rose thought to herself as her grin grew into a toothy smile. She glanced towards Yang and saw something that made her cheery mood even more cheery. Oh heck yeah, it got even better!
Ever since Gerald had returned from his latest Hunt three days ago, Yang would always have this look whenever Gerald's name would be mentioned in her vicinity. The kind of look that made you think you were about to get socked in the jaw if you so much say one wrong word to her. Well, Ruby knew she was an exception but she still worried about other people. And their respective jaws. But now, however, Yang barely looked upset after talking about their problem. Yes, she was biting her lip, a sign that she was deep in thought, but she wasn't doing it in a way that looked like she was angry. In fact, Ruby would swear that this was the calmest she had seen her sister in the past three days.
Whoop-whoop, plus points for Humanity. Ruby cheered in her head as she silently looked and raised her first up towards the sky. Or well, in this case, the roof of the Cab. And they say kindness is an endangered species. Ha! Take that, Cynics! Right after, Ruby looked back to Yang with the full intent of talking with her some more. However, she stopped short when she noticed something off.
Huh? Is Yang...is she blush-
"And we're here!" Dopinder announced with enthusiasm as the Cab slowed to a stop in front of a huge building that looked to be mostly made out of bricks.
This same building also had a huge signboard that read; "Stark's, you think it's good enough? We'll make it better!".
"Stark's weapons shop." Dopinder continued with a smile. "I hope you two enjoyed the ride."
"Oh did we, ever," Ruby said happily before opening the door on her side, the side that was facing the Stark's building, and quickly hopped off the Cab. And as soon as her boots touched the pavement floor of the sidewalk, she stared up at the three-story building before looking away and walking up to the front seat of the Cab. "Hey, Mr. Dopinder?" She addressed the man that had been driven solely by the goodness of his own heart to help them out. "Thank you so much for the talk, you have no idea how much this has helped us." The young Rose thanked him with a short bow.
"Oh shucks," He waved off with a small laugh as Yang made her way out of the Cab on the other side. ", it was no problem, Miss."
"Hey Rubes," Yang called for her little sister's attention as she stood in front of the driver's side window. And when her little sister looked to her, Yang nodded towards the building. "You go on ahead inside, I'm just gonna pay for our ride first then I'll catch up to you, all right?"
"Well, okay." The young Rose agreed pretty easily with a nod and a smile. "Again, thank you, Mr. Dopinder, for everything." She gave him one last short bow before activating her Semblance and speeding past the building's double doors and disappearing inside. Leaving only a trail of red rose petals in her wake.
"Oh wow, " Dopinder remarked, astonished. ", neat Semblance."
"Hmm." Yang hummed in agreement as she grabbed her wallet from her back pocket. "So, how much do we owe you?" She asked, opening her wallet and grabbing a card.
"Oh, just about..." Dopinder reached out to the taximeter and turned it towards her so she could see. "...957 lien."
He was about to offer her to cut that down to at least 500. For a number of reasons. But mostly because, A. he got to have a blast in talking with them and B. he wanted them to know that his help was free of charge. It was, for him, the humane thing to do. But alas, before he could even open his mouth, Yang held out a shiny card that had him stopping and zeroing in on it almost immediately.
It was a Silver Card. A kind of credit card that didn't get its name just by the all too obvious material it was made of. No, this was a kind card that only the Elite of society had in their pockets. But the surprise quickly turned into understanding when Dopinder remembered what kind of work Yang's "Husband" had.
"Here, " Yang held the silvery card in front of Dopinder to take. ", use my card and punch in the tally. And..." She glanced towards the building her little sister had disappeared into before letting out a soft sigh. "...and punch in a few extra thousand if you want. As a tip."
Dopinder was halfway from grabbing the silver card when that last part fully registered in his mind. "O-oh no, " He shook his head at her, stammering a bit as he tried to decline her offer. ", I-I can't really do that, Ma'am. I mean...d-don't you think that.." He swallowed. "..don't you think that you're giving away too much money?" He finished with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Hey come on now, " For the shortest of seconds, the busty blonde smiled down on Dopinder. ", where'd that sage-like bravado of yours run off to?" She finished with a chuckle.
This got Dopinder to chuckle too as he rubbed the back of his neck, a little embarrassed. "I mean, it's just..." He gestured to the silver card Yang was still holding out to him. "...don't you think its a little too much?"
"Well..." Yang thought about it as she gently tapped the card on the opened Cab window with a hand of her hip. "...no, actually. It's not." She finally answered out after a few seconds. "You know, my little sister was right, " She followed up with a mirthless chuckle. ", you have no idea how much your help meant. And.." She shrugged, one hand still on her hip in and the other holding out the card. "...this is the least I can do to repay you for it."
He was about to argue about it some more, to tell her that helping others out was free of charge. The kind of talk that would have the young Rose beaming if she were here to hear it. Which is why Yang moved to intercept it before he could a word out.
"And before you start saying stuff like how kindness is free, I really appreciate the sentiment, but that's not really gonna help you with the Bills," Yang explained. And with this seemingly adult insight and his admittedly lack of knowledge on women, it further solidified Dopinder's idea that Yang was this experienced Mother. "And besides, " She inched the silver card in her hand closer to Dopinder. ", it's not like I go around doing charity work all the time. This is a one-time thing. So I wouldn't pass this up if I were you."
Dopinder hummed with pursed lips as he thought on it. He really wanted to stand by his moral code, but Yang was right. Cynical as it may sound, money made the world go round. Among other things. So with a sigh and a nod, he took the silver card and inserted it in the card reader built into his taximeter.
"You sure about this Ma'am?" Dopinder asked as his fingers hovered just above the number keypads of the taximeter. It had beeped its confirmation that it had successfully read the card and all that was missing now was for him to type in the amount. "I mean, can I really..." He let the sentence hang in the air as he nodded to the taximeter.
"Yeah sure, just don't go too high up. I'd say 5000 lien is your max." The blonde freely advised with a wave of her hand.
"Oh, uh..okay then." With a shrug, he punched in his desired amount. He didn't want to actually have it reach all the way up to 5,000, that was just asking for too much. No matter how much Yang was saying it was okay. "3, 957 lien." He spoke out loud as he pressed the process button before looking back to Yang. "Is that okay with you, Ma'am?"
"Yeah." The blonde confirmed with a nod. "But you know, you could've added some more. " As Dopinder ejected the card from the reader after it had beeped in confirmation, Yang continued.
"Yeah, you did." Dopinder easily agreed with a nod to the blonde as he handed her back the silver card. "But to ask for much in return for wisdom defeats the purpose of giving it in the first place."
"Oh wow, " Placing back the card in her wallet and then sliding that too in her back pocket, Yang scoffed playfully at the man. ", where'd you get that from? A fortune cookie or something?" She asked with a grin.
"Nah, " He waved off. ", the back of a Pumpkin Pete's cereal box." He finished with a chuckle as he turned the ignition.
The busty blonde chuckled too. This by no means made them instant pals or anything. She just found it nice to discover people like Dopinder out there in the world. The kind of people that are willing to help and stammer their heart out when paid for it.
"Thanks again, Dopinder. For this." Yang thanked the man one last time before he'd leave.
"Don't mention it, Ma'am." He waved off with a smile as he moved to step on the gas pedal. "I know this may sound a little...uncanny, but I hope Lady Destiny leads our paths to cross once again in the future. I'd be thrilled to meet the man of the house himself."
"Hm, yeah." Stepping back from the window, Yang answered back with a grin. "I actually think he'd like to meet you too." Well, he'd question you and glare you down for a bit before he'd fully trust you, the blonde didn't say.
"Well, " He a gave her a crisp salute. ", I'm off." Right after saying that, he fully stepped on the gas pedal and sped away into the distance.
"Hmm. Pretty nice enough guy." The blonde remarked as the Cab disappeared from her view. "He got a ton of stuff all wrong, " She turned towards the building and stepped onto the sidewalk as she grabbed her scroll from her other back pocket. ", but fuck it. That really was a good talk."
And getting Yang to admit that wasn't a minor feat by any means. Ruby, along with so many others, has tried to calm her down in the past three days and they all more or less irritated her more. And yet, one talk from a total stranger, and she's the calmest she's ever been. Not completely, of course. She and Gerald had more to say to each other. But she would admit that she felt a lot better now. Was it because three days have passed already and she wasn't as angry anymore? Was it that little story Dopinder had told that softened her? Or was their little Driver friend really that good? Maybe. But the busty blonde didn't mind the results either way.
"Proof of his love, huh?" Yang recounted in a soft whisper the words Dopinder had said as she looked up at the clear blue sky. "Damn romance crap." She cursed as she quickly rubbed her face to lessen the reddening of her cheeks. Once her face had cooled down enough for the red to diminish, she let out a breath before dialing a number on her scroll.
She waited for a few seconds for the call to connect. And on the sixth ring, her scroll beeped.
"Yang! Gurl, where are you?" A feminine voice emanated from the scroll's speakers. "The movie's about to start, come on!"
"Hey, girl," Yang answered back and unconsciously cocker her hip. "I know this is super late notice but there's been a change of plans."
"Aw, what? Why what happened?" The girl on the other side asked.
"Family stuff. And..." She looked towards the doors leading inside the Stark's building. "...some sister bonding time. And you know me, I can't really miss either of those. Sorry, girl." The blonde continued, rubbing her neck with a chuckle.
"Ahhhhh, gotcha-gotcha." The girl on the other end of the line acknowledged. "So you and Gerald finally patched things up again?"
"Well..." Yang shook her open palm in a "so-so" manner as she started slowly walking towards the Stark's doorway. "...not exactly, yet. But yeah, that's kinda why I'm calling to say I can't make it. Starting things up again, you know?"
"Hm-hm. Honestly, girl, it's about damn time you finally got this sorted out with your bro. This was like..the longest you've ever been mad at him. I and the gang were kinda starting to feel worried for little Ruby."
"What?" With a raised brow, Yang stopped just a few steps short from the doorway. "Worried for Ruby? Why?"
"Oh Yang-gurl, you know why. You and him are like her Mommy and Daddy, and you two be out there giving each other the silent treatment. That's no good for your baby, you know. Think about how she'd feel." Though Yang couldn't see it, she had a good feeling the girl on the other end of the line was moving her head in that side to side motion whenever she disapproved of something.
Yang gripped the bridge of her nose and sighed. "Yeah-yeah, I get it. I'm not oblivious, you know." And with a shake of her head and another sigh, she walked forward to place her hand on one of the door handles. "That's just one of the things I'm gonna talk about with him later. So don't you worry about that."
"Hm-hm. Well you better, Yang-gurl." On the other end of the call, a voice that Yang also knew called out for the girl. "Yeah-yeah! I'll be there! Just a sec!" The girl shouted back, most likely to the person who had called for her. "Well, movie's starting now, gurl. Call me later when you've got it all sorted out with Gerald. See ya."
"Yeah. See yah." And with that, the call ended with the girl on the other end clicking her scroll off.
Yang then slid the scroll back into her back pocket and paused for a bit and doing nothing other than listening to the sounds of her own breathing as she stared at the non-see through-glass of the double doors. And after sifting through the whirlwind of thoughts in her head for almost an entire minute and a half, Yang placed her other hand on the second door handle and pushed both doors open before walking inside.
Apologies for the Chapter split. Techincial issues is all I have to say.
Now, onward.