"A weapon reflects its wielder's personality and soul in the most direct way of how one designs it, and uses it in a battle."
"Qrow! Qrow! Wake up, do you have any idea what time is it right now?" Taiyang rapidly knocking on the door and his constant urging kept ringing in Qrow's ears, forcing him to sit up, rubbing his tired eyes.
"What?" He snapped, walking sluggishly to the bathroom and closed the door behind him, just in time before Taiyang burst into his bedroom.
"We have a mission today, remember? The one Ozpin asked us to prepare fore weeks ago, the one which YOU agreed upon?"
"So?" Qrow answered nonchalantly, searching his memory for what Taiyang just told him, but to no avail.
"So? It's 8:30 already, and we were supposed to be in Forever Fall in 30 minutes, now how do you suggest we get there in time?" Taiyang snapped angrily outside Qrow's bedroom, pacing back and forth while occasionally banging on the bathroom's door.
"Just calm down, it's not the end of the world Tai." Qrow answered calmly, checking himself in the mirror for the last time as he stepped out, facing an impatient Taiyang staring him down.
"Easy for you to say Qrow," he sighed in defeat, knowing nothing could budge his friend's hard-headed nature, "Fine, let's move out now, the aircraft should be here any second."
And with that, Taiyang dashed outside, while Qrow lazily dragged himself across the floor, mentally cursing himself for accepting such mission in the first place. But as he walked past Ruby's room, he curiously peaked inside to find her room was in a complete mess, while she was nowhere to be found.
Recalling Ruby telling him she had an important mission today, he retraced his step and made his way steadily toward the main door, where Taiyang was waiting for him.
"The ship is here, come on!" Taiyang yelled impatiently and dashed off first.
Qrow followed behind, yet never picked up his pace. But as he glanced to the left of the front porch to where his weapon was supposed to be after last night late training with Ruby, all he could see was a red scythe, burning in his eyes like a small flame.
"Tai?" Qrow shouted at Taiyang, trying to catch his attention.
"Hurry up Qrow!" Taiyang just rushed him, and hoped straight onto the airship without looking back.
Scratching his head, Qrow looked at Ruby's overly-red weapon awkwardly, unable to imagine himself on the battlefield with this eye-catching scythe being the target of every Grimm he could think of. Maybe I should have kept her from going overboard with the coloring, Qrow sighed in defeat.
"Oh boy," picking up Crescent Rose with one hand and hitching it where his weapon usually was, Qrow took off and lept toward the ship just before it left the ground, landing safely on the ship in the nick of time.
Before Taiyang could start his nagging, Qrow asked him with a tired voice, "Tai, did you see Ruby off today?"
"No, she said she will leave early today, why?" Taiyang raised his eyebrows, confused with his sudden question.
"She took my weapon by mistake," Qrow rubbed his temple, trying to process everything that was happening through his sleepiness and confusion.
"What?" Taiyang exclaimed, staring at the stunning red piece of metal hitching at Qrow's belt in disbelief.
"She must have overslept and took mine in a rush," judging from how much he understood her, Qrow was sure his wild guess was going to be pretty close to what really happened.
This time, Taiyang was the one to sigh at his daughter's recklessness. He was especially worried as well for Ruby, who had going on and on how dangerous this mission could be and how it would prove her ability as a Huntress. With a weapon she wasn't used to, Taiyang didn't dare to think of the bad things that could happen to Ruby as his father instinct became stronger, urging him toward the Emerald Forest where team RWBY was.
"Do you think…"
"She'll be fine Tai," Qrow cut him off with a reassuring voice, "Ruby is a strong girl, she'll be able to handle herself. Besides, her teammates are there, and Yang too, they'll keep her safe, so stop being a worry-wart."
Taiyang calmed himself with a deep breath, agreeing with Qrow, "You're right, Ruby can take care of herself, she's a big girl already."
A hint of sadness in Taiyang's voice didn't escape Qrow's ears, and he said reluctantly, "You know no matter how old she is, Ruby needs you, Yang as well, they both do. So stop feeling bad about yourself and give Bartholomew a call, tell him to keep an eye on the girls."
"You're right," Taiyang took out his scroll and walked away to make a call, but turned back at his friend at the last moment, hesitatingly said, "Thanks, Qrow."
"Don't mention it," Qrow dismissed him with a wave of hand and watched as Taiyang left to the further end of the airship.
Left alone at last, Qrow took out Crescent Rose with one swift movement, holding it the exact pose he had taught Ruby. Never would Qrow think that one day he would use Ruby's weapon to fight for his own life, and it left him bewildered for a while.
Giving the scythe a few swings, he could feel it as a part of him, like extending out another body part which could cooperate perfectly with the rest of his body. Qrow was quite surprised to how easily he could use her weapon. Sure enough he was the one to help Ruby create Crescent Rose and teach her how to use it, but it was quite some time since back then, and Ruby herself had made some modification to it as well.
As he tried out some more moves he normally did with his own weapon, Qrow realized that the weapon wasn't as fit for him as he first thought it did. Crescent Rose's color was too vibrant, easily spotted by the enemy, lighter than his which made it easier for him to lose his grip on the weapon, and most of all its massive recoil was too much for his liking. Unlike Ruby, propelling himself into the air wasn't something Qrow especially fond of.
But in some way, Qrow wasn't in the least annoyed with Crescent Rose. He admired the weapon upclose, surprised at how much it resembled Ruby – beautiful, powerful and most of all, more striking than anything or anyone he knew. With Ruby's weapon in his hand, he could feel her presence closer than ever, as if her soul and his were connecting as one, cheering him on. In that moment, Qrow felt like he was more powerful than ever, and there was nothing stopping him – not even the worst Grimm he could face or even Salem herself.
"Qrow, we're about to land," Taiyang called out for him, but caught off guard as he saw Qrow's usual cocky smile replacing the weariness he wore early this morning.
"Let's go," Qrow shrugged confidently, leaping off the airship and landed flawlessly on the ground without a single scratch.
"Oi, wait up!" Taiyang shouted at his friend, who had left him in the dust as he charged forward with an incredible speed, slicing every Grimms that stood in his way in half.
Upon landing, he took off toward the noises, hearing all sort of roaring and growling as he quickened his pace. Shaking his head at Qrow's recklessness, Taiyang wondered to himself, was he wrong allowing Ruby to be with this crazy old crow he called friend.