Belle could barely breathe, all the air in her lungs had been knocked out of her as one of her sisters tried to help her up. She could hear the roar of blood pounding through her head as she felt one of her younger sisters help her up. Belle leant on Kitty, as the two girls shakily made it down to the dusty basement rooms; which was where they lived.

Kitty pushed open the door to Belle's bedroom, which was where the girl had spent most of her life. The dingy room had only a small bed, a dusty bookcase on the wall, a sofa in the middle of the room that had the stuffing poking out through numerous rips and holes in the fabric, and a vanity table that had its white paint cracking and peeling off. Kitty gently helped Belle onto the bed as Belle took off her own headband, exposing a miniature set of pointed, furry-black bat ears poking through her dark hair.

She sat on her bed, trying to recover from the recent attack. Faint purple marks were beginning to appear around her neck from when Drom had thrown her on the ground.

"What was the reason tonight?", Kitty asked weakly. The pair knew that the abuse was frequent. Belle could stand it, but she knew her sisters shouldn't have to deal with such horrible treatment, and so she made sure to protect them from Drom's rage whenever she could, to save them from anything.

Of course, the ones who should have been protecting the girls was the Vale police force, although there were little to no law enforcement in the area. This was because the Tavern was located in a small village on the coast of the Kingdom of Vale, called "Kurakora", but the area was owned by both the Vale and Mistral, leaving the police force to be almost non-existent. Crime ran free in the town, which was why there were so many "inns" in the village, as they all hid secret brothels.

Luckily, Belle had managed to keep herself and her family afloat, so she didn't have to resort to such a job, or not yet at least.

"I just was just talking to a customer too long, and Drom got pissed because he wanted to close up the inn". Belle said it as if it had been no big deal, but both her and Kitty knew better. A small cough came from the slightly-open door, and a small girl of about 13, with white poodle ears, was hiding in the archway shyly. Belle smiled at her youngest sister, and beckoned for her to come in.

"Eavesdropping isn't a good habit, Mariah", even though she was reprimanding her sister, Belle still smiled and stroked the young girl's soft blonde hair. Mariah was clad in a white cotton nightgown, and reached up to gently touch the new bruises around Belle's neck.

"He hurt you again". It wasn't a question, but a statement.

"Yes, he did. But I will never let him do anything to you, or Kitty, or any of us", Belle said reassuringly and beckoned for Kitty to sit with them. Mariah hugged Belle tightly, as if doing so would protect her from any future harm. Kitty sat down next to the pair and joined the hug. The door creaked open, and another girl entered the dingy bedroom. Evie, a 22-year-old girl whose faunus feature was a tiny pair of translucent butterfly wings, came into the room; as her normal smiling face turned sad and distant when her pale pink eyes spotted Belle's neck. Belle patted the space on the bed next to her, as the new sister joined the group. Evie patted the eldest sister's shoulder as she hugged the rest of the girls. "What happened this time?" the butterfly faunus asked in her usual soft, understanding tone.

"It doesn't matter what happened, it was better to have it been me instead of any of you", Belle assured the group, who all instead looked on and doubted the eldest's words. Belle hugged her family close, and tried to explain.

"The worlds not fair, dearests. We have to struggle harder for who we are", she indicated to each girl's Faunus feature, which were ears, tails and spots, "but it shouldn't be this way, and it's very important we stick together, help each other and everyone else in need, whether they are like us or not".

"Easy for you to say", came a snide voice from the hall. The group of girls looked up to see the last remaining member of the household, a sharp-tongued fox-faunus called Sai, and she was the second eldest out of the 5 girls. "You're the most gorgeous out of all of us, don't act like you've got it hard".

"Be quiet, Sai. It's not easy for any of us, so stop being sour", came Kitty's irritated reply. The fox faunus retreated back out the room and walked off muttering to herself.

"Come, let's all get to bed", Belle said tiredly; too weak to want to continue the conversation. Evie took hold of Kitty's shoulders and steered her off towards their own bedrooms, leaving Belle and little Mariah alone. Belle got up and pulled her hair out its usual bun, letting her long dark curls free as the rolled down her back, and began to wipe off her eye makeup, exposing her badly bruised face. All she wanted was to collapse and drift off into sleep, although she knew that she still had a few more things to do.

"Belle?" a quiet voice came from the bed.

"Yes, darling?", she replied cheerily, showing much more positivity than she had ever felt during her time at the inn. Mariah was holding Belle's hairbrush. "Do you want me to comb it for you?", she asked the young girl who nodded and gave a small smile. Belle climbed over to her bed and sat down, and began to brush the girl's soft hair thoroughly.

"Have you washed yet?" she asked.

"No, the bathroom door was locked. I didn't know if someone was in there so I knocked, and Sai told me to go away". The young girl paused, "she said a bad word".

"Don't take any notice of Sai, darling. She's just tired, same as everyone else".

"Are you tired?", Mariah's white fluffy ears dropped a little. Belle stopped brushing her hair.

"Yes, I am tired". A long silence followed as the two girls sat in the candle-lit room. Belle shook her thoughts away. "But that's nothing for you to worry about, dearest. Don't worry about me, I'm going to make sure I'll stay awake to look after you". She smiled and hugged the little girl. "There, all done now. I'm going to run you a bath in the morning. Do you have school tomorrow?". Mariah nodded. Belle tried to change the subject.

"The market is tomorrow too, isn't it? Do you want me to get something for you?", Belle asked kindly as she got up from her bed and checked the amount of coins she had in her apron. She only had 27¥ lien, that wouldn't even pay for a small crust of bread, which was 60¥ lien. If she couldn't get at least 120¥ by the next evening then there would be nothing for lunch the next day.

"That can wait until tomorrow, she told herself. Belle made up the sofa into a tiny bed for Mariah, padding it down with soft blankets, and wished it could be more for the young girl. Yet sure enough, she made no complaints about her lumpy bedding. Belle began to undress herself, took off her apron, her embroidered top and skirt, leaving just her black tights, her bra and her underwear.

A very short, furry black tail stuck out from her lower back that usually was hidden under her skirt. This was the main reason that Belle becomes such an important part of the history of remnant, as she was the first Faunus ever known to have two different animal traits. The leading scientists in Atlas who were the most advanced in the entire world knew very little about the Faunus species themselves, such as why they had an animal counterpart and where they originated from. In Remnant's mythology, there had once been described among other heroes, such as the Legendary silver-eyed Warriors, Faunus with two traits were deemed some of the most powerful and intelligent fighters known to mankind, and its legend was kept a secret from the world, with every Kingdom searching for any mythical heroes surfacing and demonstrating power. This was of course because, the legends of Remnant were very real, and every great superpower was searching the far corners of the world so they could be the first to harness the power of these heroes.

Belle however, was unware of her supernatural powers. Her parents, which had both been dedicated fighters themselves, knew of her unusual traits but believed them to simply be rare. Belle had never heard any stories or legends (being kept in her quiet village hid her from the world, and from the evil powers of Salem, so she had remained safe to this day), but what she did know was the prejudice and discrimination that the Faunus had to endure, so instead she concealed her tail (which was quite unnoticeable anyway and very short) by wearing skirts that hid it easily, and by wearing a thick black headband or a black hooded cloak while in public to stop other's seeing her small ears.

No-one knew about her double-faunus traits except her sisters, as Drom had always been either too drunk or too full of inexplicable rage to realize that she had both bat ears and a short furry cat tail, which was currently poking through her underwear as she changed into sleepwear in her bedroom.

Belle pulled on a dull white t-shirt that had been faded to a light grey from so many years of use and washing. It was tiny but she still fit in it.

She picked up her dirty clothes and put them in the laundry basket in the hall, before blowing out the candles and leaving the place in darkness. Belle peered around the hall, the other girls had already gone to sleep, and the basement was nearly pitch black, and felt cold and creepy. She closed her door, pulling on the handle to make sure it was shut. Mariah's pale blue eyes stared at her from the sofa, wide awake and trembling slightly, and Belle knew what is was, so she turned around and locked the door, and placed the chair from her antique vanity table up against the handle, to make sure it would take a very hefty shove to get it open, in which the noise would wake her up to stop the intruder.

Belle knew what Drom did after hours, he would sit on his own in the bar area upstairs and drink until 3am or the early hours of the morning, and then retire to his bedroom whenever he regained consciousness, where he would remain hungover for the next 6 hours. Or sometimes, when his temper rose to the surface, he would grab the nearest girl and pull her into his room where they would remain for at least half an hour until the poor, scared thing would be pushed away by him and would run half-naked to her own room or to her sisters to be comforted. Belle hated him with every fibre of her being, but knew that now, after years of trying to defy it, she gave up.

The last time Drom had been in one of his "moods", he had grabbed Kitty from behind and practically pulled her arm out while he took her to his bed. Belle had stepped in and shouted at him, telling him to leave her sister alone, and stood up to him after everything he had done to them. She had felt every proud of herself then, until he broke her nose and left her shivering in a pool of her own blood, to then go to the nearest brothel and calm his mood there. Belle thought of that moment now, she knew she did the right thing and now didn't care what he did to her, as long as she kept her sisters out of harm's way.

Belle tiptoed over to the sofa and kissed Mariah's forehead before crawling into her own rickety bed and blew out the candle on the dresser next to it. She stared into the darkness, as she could hear the quiet sounds of Mariah's gentle sleepy sighs. Wishing that she could be at peace like that, Belle turned over onto her side, facing the wall. In the darkness, her faunus eyes could make out scrawls on the wall that had been made with pencil when she was much younger. She used to like to draw then, in a time when she didn't have to look after others and she could daydream her days away with fantasies of adventure, excitement and romance.

(Scene-Change)

Belle awoke with sunlight streaming into her room through the tattered cloth curtains that covered the ground-level window; no matter how hard she tried to patch up the holes, more would appear from the large moths that sometimes flew in during hot weather. It was summer, yet her bedroom still managed to stay at an odd climate; on rainy or cloudy days, with no sun to warm up the tavern (which relied on the sun to provide its heat from a special panel on the rooftop) her room would be frightfully chilly and drafty, and yet in the boiling summer the room would be like a sauna.

Something move on her stomach made Belle realise that Mariah's cold little body was shivering in bed next to her, the young girl likely had experienced some bad dream during the night and climbed in with Belle for comfort. She wrapped her own arms around the cold little girl and held her closely, trying to warm her up. Mariah shivered and opened her pale blue eyes, and blinked up at Belle, who smiled warmly down at her. Belle peered over at the clock on her dresser, the time read 06:47am, and Mariah started school at 8:30am.

"Come darling, we need to get up now if you're going to be on time for school". Mariah sat up and rubbed her sleepy eyes. Belle wrapped herself in her black silk kimono and put on a little pair of soft flat ballet-pumps that were her night shoes. She unlocked the door and peered around into the hallway, the gas lamps were lit so someone was up. Belle turned back to Mariah and mouthed "Wait here" as she slipped out the room and went up the stairs. The smell of coffee met her nose, and in the kitchen, she found Evie in her own dressing gown and boiling rice on their stove. Belle eyed the boiled coffee pot on the counter and breathed in the smell of roasted coffee with rapture.

Heading back downstairs into the basement, Belle crept silently to the end of the hall, to one bedroom that she hated entering. She listened at the door, and could hear the drunken, raspy breathing that came from inside. Belle cracked open the door open a fraction, and with one grey eye, peered into the room; it was dark, but she could make out Drom's hulking figure that lay on the bed in a drunken dream. He grunted in his sleep and murmured some things that I cannot say in this, but what can be revealed was:

"Ggnh…Belle…. You belong t-to…me"

The phrase caused the faunus to shut the door quickly in fright and retreat back down the corridor. Going back into her bedroom, she called Mariah to get up, and led the child into their bathroom. With a bucket of water that had been drawn from the town's well and warmed in a small oil burner, Belle ran the bath, which was a hand-made wooden tub, and let Mariah use it. Belle joined her and helped Mariah wash herself, and let the younger girl get out quickly to dry and get dressed in time for school.

"What is that?", Mariah asked, pointing to Belle's bare back. Just managing to look, she could tell it was a large scar across her back that had happened many years ago. She felt humiliated to have let Mariah see it.

"It's just a nasty scratch from a long time ago" she tried to answer truthfully. Trying to change the subject, "Tell you what darling, just let me finish here and why don't you go see Evie and ask her for an extra-big amount of breakfast? I'll make some tea for you when I get there". Mariah disappeared off upstairs, leaving Belle alone. She had some time by herself, it was the quietest part of the day for her, before going to the market and trying to bid for over-priced produce, or long hours of cleaning and maintaining the tavern.

Belle felt a slight sudden twinge of pain in her stomach, she felt cramps begin to seize up her insides like fire. Trying to relieve the pain, she rubbed herself which made it subside but only slightly.

"I've been having the same pain for about a week now every morning. God, what if I'm coming down with something?"

The stomach cramps kept her in the tub for a good 5 minutes, until the pain numbed a little. It was a sick, squeezing pain that made her feel like someone was stretching her stomach like an elastic band. Trying to ignore it for now, Belle stepped out of the now-cold water and changed into her usual satin bodice-dress, with black knee-length boots. Belle tied her corset-strings to the door-handle, then moved away from the door to have them lace up her bodice firmly. She brushed her hair and pinned it up into a bun, and tied her silk ribbon around her ears to hide them securely. Belle then picked up her powder-puff covered up the bruises on her face with more pale make-up. She dipped a small paintbrush into black paste and dragged it around her eyes to make cat-style eyeliner.

When she was satisfied with the results, she got up from her vanity table and opened her curtains. The morning June sunlight streamed through the glass, as Belle opened the tiny window to let in some air to the room. There was a sweet summer breeze that swayed through the trees around Kurakora. The summer brought back some childhood memories of swimming and playing on the beaches near the town. Those happy days were all before Drom arrived….

Belle shook her mind free of him, pushing his very existence to the back of her mind as she focused on something new. A bird landed on the ground just outside her window which was ground-level. It was something that would never have been seen out-of-the ordinary, except Belle saw something… uncanny about the bird. It was a crow, with big black, glossy feathers and beady red eyes that stared at her transfixed, as if it was trying to catch her eye.

She outstretched her hand to the bird, wondering if it wanted to be fed (even though the sisters were very poor, they always left crumbs or some food out for the wildlife around the village, such as old fish for the local cats or breadcrumbs for any birds), and was surprised when it flew up to her and landed on her arm gently as if Belle had been its handler for years. Shocked, but slightly cheerful from it's calm nature, she took the bird inside and let it land on her dresser. The crow rubbed his black beak against his leg, where she noticed there was a tiny vial attached to the bird's foot.

Belle picked it up off the bird's leg, and stared at the vial intently. A rolled-up piece of paper fell out, with a seal she had seen somewhere recently. The scroll was written in black ink, and hastily made. The note read:

"Meet me in the marketplace at 10:00am tomorrow, we'll discuss your private affairs. Look for the bird,

Qrow

X"

She stared at it in disbelief. "He put a kiss at the end of it". Unbeknownst to her, it made a soft blush come to her cheeks as she put it down and softly stroked the bird's back.

"Is this from your master?", she asked it, wondering if it would reply. The crow tilted its head as if to say "yes" to her. The bird then flapped its wings twice and flew back out of the window the way it came, and Belle watched it as it flew out of sight. Making sure that no-one would find the note, Belle hid it in her underwear draw, thinking it would be the last place anyone would look. She then made her way upstairs where the smell of breakfast was being emitted from.

All the girls were seated on patchwork cushions at the low wooden table, Belle picked up the coffee strainer and poured herself a cup. It was very dark and bitter but they couldn't afford milk or sugar, which such delicacies being expensive in the village of Kurakora. Mariah was dressed in her soft white cotton dress and petticoat (as the local school was very poorly funded and had no uniform), and Belle patted her head as she finished her own coffee.

The sisters soon departed from each other's company, Kitty would stay to clean the tavern, Evie would head into the forest surrounding the village to forage for anything that could be found useful, and Sai would travel the hourly walk to the farms in the area and see if they could bargain for food in return for sewing or cleaning. Mariah would be at school during the day, so Belle would take on any other jobs that needed doing, such as going to the weekly Friday market and doing the household's chores which included cooking, laundry, and washing dishes.

Belle grabbed her dark cloak and wrapped it around herself. Although it was summer, she still pulled the hood up as the climate between Vale and Mistral was mostly chilly and mountainous. Mariah waited by the door, holding a patchwork satchel that Belle had made with a few scraps of cloth she had found on the floor in the Tailor's shop, and managed to sneak them into her pocket before anyone had noticed. The young girl was deep in thought with a tense expression on her face. Belle flicked her on the nose playfully, making the young girl giggle a little.

Taking Mariah by the hand, Belle grabbed a wicker basket and filled her pockets with the little money the girls had, and stepped out into the open world outside. She hated leaving the tavern, while home-life was more than terrible, at least it was her own place with her sisters, a sanctuary that they could be shielded by the world, and no one's hatred for Faunus could harm them through the walls of the dingy inn.

Nothing could harm them; except for Drom.

The walk to the town square was only a few minutes, and was the central of the small village. The local church, school-house, market and water-well was in the square. As they neared the school-house, Mariah became increasingly tense with each step. It was a pretty building compared to the rest of the village, a zen-style hall with a playground out the front where about 30 children were playing hopscotch and talking to each other. Mariah stood still as she watched all of them. Belle was right behind her and knelt down beside.

"Do you want me to go in with you?", she asked kindly. Belle was known throughout the village as a mysterious figure, as she never went outside without a long black cloak, leading to many rumours about her. Belle had already been spotted by some of the children in the playground, and many were staring, pointing and whispering to each other. Mariah turned pink and tried to hide her face from their view. Belle's bat ears could still hear what they said from underneath her headband and hood,

"Isn't that the weird lady who stays in that house on the edge of the village?"

"I heard that she's a witch and makes magic spells and turns people into animals!"

"Wow, is that what happened to the girl with her then? She's got floppy dog-ears"

"My papa told me all about the animal-people. He says they're called Faunus and apparently they eat kids that are bad!"

"That sounds scary!"

"Apparently she wears a hood because she looks really ugly and if you look her in the eyes you'll turn into stone!"

"Eek! Don't look at her!"

All the children in the playground ran to the back of the schoolhouse where they began to stare terrified at Belle in her dark cloak. Mariah covered her poodle-ears in shame. Belle took her hands away from her ears, and bent down to the little girl's level.

"Never be ashamed of who you are, darling. Don't let them change you, okay? Be yourself, and they'll have no reason to keep away", she said softly from under her hood. Mariah nodded, blinked back tears, and held onto her shoulder bag tightly. With a little pat on her back, Mariah walked through the school gates and sat down on a bench at the edge of the playground. Belle looked on sadly. She knew that it was more than difficult to be one of the only Faunus in town.

She clutched onto her basket and turned away to walk to the market that had already been set up. There were already stalls selling everything that had been gathered at the start of the summer, were the beginning of the harvest was taking place. There was a greengrocer full of freshly picked fruits and vegetables, a fishmonger crammed with squid, octopus, crab and baskets of shiny silver fish, a tailor displaying many different satins, cloths and silks in every colour, and many more stands which had half the entire village crowded around. Belle spied the town fountain and stuck her hand in to secretly scoop up a fistful of change. It was all done so quickly that if someone had watched the act, they would've mistaken the grab for a splash of water or just a glimmer of sunlight. Belle's Faunus reflexes allowed her to move much faster than the average person, which allowed her to swipe small objects and get away with it easily.

The market was the one place that every member of the town came to visit and come together every stage of life, from farmers, to fisherman, to the shady mayor's handymen who bought their boss his meals. Even Belle, being an outsider from the village life, still found her way into the crowds and managed to get to the front of the queues at the grocer's.

She was met with the face of a smiling man, "What can I do for you today?", he asked politely.

"6 eggs and a jug of milk please", she said quietly from under her hood. She rarely spoke to people outside of the tavern, but many knew the rumours of the mysterious girl who always kept her hood up.

"That will be 80¥ please, Miss". Belle took out her cloth money-bag and counted her coins, which had grown from her change that came from the fountain. She had 95¥, and still needed to get some rice and ramen for tonight's supper. "I guess I'll have to resort back to my old efforts" her mind told her as she swallowed a lump in her throat. The guilt still was with her to this day, the guilt of her stealing things. At first it had started with a few essentials, such as change from people's pockets and a small loaf of bread from the bakers, but soon the girls needed more things than their weak allowance could afford, such as new clothes and shoes, soap, toothpaste, etc. Belle knew it was wrong to steal, and she ensured it didn't become a habit; unless she and her family became desperate for the occasional soap bar or piece of food.

Belle always hated taking things from people, she knew it was wrong, and she had been detained once before by an angry shopkeeper, but managed to escape the situation by offering him her "services" in return for him not contacting the police. She gulped, and thought of the decisions that had led her here. She always told herself that one day she would pay the people back for everything she had taken, because one day she would manage to get out of town and take her sisters with her, and they could get proper jobs, somewhere, anywhere, else. But as the years had gone by, Belle was believing less and less that she would ever get out of Kurakora, and ever get away from Drom.

The grocer gave her the eggs and milk, as she handed over the money and made her way through the streets. Walking past each stand, Belle rehearsed her art. She would stop at every other stand, and she would blend herself in with the crowd, keeping her face hidden, and would pick up something, pretending to inspect it, and then slip it into her basket or pocket and then walk away if nothing ever happened. With her very quick and nimble hands, and with all the shopkeepers being so busy fetching and showcasing their merchandise to the crowd of villagers, they didn't notice the small, dark figure dart her way about their stalls.

Belle stopped under a tree for shade, the heat of the day beginning to set in. Rifling through her basket, she looked what she had picked up: a few packets of egg ramen, a scrap of embroidered linen that could be made into curtains or a rug, three small loaves of bread and a small bag of rice. Half-guilty and half-satisfied, Belle turned away from her spoils and stared instead at the large copper clock on top of the town hall. It read "10:30am". Belle's mind cast itself back to the note from Qrow. "Look for the bird" he had said. What the hell was he trying to tell her?

A loud screech came from nearby. A stall that belonged to a travelling merchant from Vacuo, whom sold many different types of small exotic animals, which included snakes, mice, and…birds. Belle walked quickly over to the tent, the sign above that read "Avery's Emporium". A quick look about inside, it was hot and humid in the tent, and had the walls lined with shelves crammed with cages full of serpents and reptiles and birds, some that screeched, some that cooed, and some that sat in silence and stared with their gigantic golden eyes. But all Belle cared about was the fact that Qrow wasn't in there.

"Excuse me", she said to a thin, wizened old man who stood behind the counter. He looked a little startled at her appearance and tried to peer into the dark shadows of her hood to make eye contact, although still tried to smile awkwardly not to appear rude.

"Have you seen any huntsman come through here? He's about this tall", Belle indicated with her hands, "And he has dark spiky hair, red eyes and has this massive scythe". The elderly man put his hand on the goatee on his chin, and adjusted his spectacles, clearly deep in thought.

"Oh yes! That tall fellow who came early and looked about. He didn't buy anything, he left in that direction, Miss", the emporium owner stepped outside and pointed towards a grassy path that led to the only docks in the island. "That's the last I saw of him, I'm afraid".

"Thank you, sir", Belle said. She stared at the path. Knowing that if Qrow went to the docks, he had probably taken a boat far away.

"He's left town already, and he said he would help us. I guess he was lying"

Wanting to cry, she left the tent and began to walk back home in the direction of the tavern."Why am I so upset? He hasn't committed a crime. I just…thought he wasn't like everyone else in this pathetic excuse of a village".

But Belle's thoughts came to a halt as a tall, dark figure appeared in front of her. She almost collided with their chest as she was so absorbed. Trying to mumble a "sorry" and move out the person's way, the person blocked her path. Becoming irritated, she let her grey eyes glare up at the stranger's glowing red ones, until she realized whose face she was staring at,

It was Qrow