Next Update: Tuesday, May 22nd

Chapter 14
(Time: Day six of the cracked lunar year.
Location: Wilds of Mistral.)

Qrow began to realize the full extent of his burdens, and he doubted things would get any easier for them so long as he had to keep an eye on Winter and her little brother. The boy in question seemed to be more trouble than he was worth. In Qrow's humble opinion finding Weiss would be no easy task either, and he needed to do that quickly.

The huntsman made his way from the city, new information safe in-hand. He didn't like what he had heard, and he frowned as he realized his beloved flask was already empty again. Making a mental note to buy a bigger one, he stopped at the first inn he came across. He wasted no time pushing open the door and letting himself inside. It was dimly lit, the only real light coming from the flickering lamps and the open windows. The floor creaked underfoot. The people sitting around the table breaking bread and drinking from deep cups.

The sweet smell of grog filled the air, same as the undercurrent of stew that was likely bubbling away in the kitchens. Scantily clad waitresses gathered up the plates and served more drinks, the tired men and women gathered at the tables paying them no mind. This was a hunter's establishment. Qrow could tell. It was in the way everyone acted. An aloofness among loners. Comradery among teams. The playful banter of a hard day's work showed the young an inexperienced. The older hunters enjoyed their meals more quietly. Entertaining themselves with all of the vices found within the confines of such a place.

Gambling, drinking, hookups, and more.

Qrow knew well of the tribulations vagabonds suffered when looking for a place to rest. He didn't begrudge them looking for a bedmate for the night. He would never look down his nose at these people, so much like himself. Exhaustion lingering in their features, and the slightest of nods were enough to convey one simple message. He understood. Without hesitation, he approached the bar, setting his flask down onto the smooth wood.

"Fill it up, whiskey. Bottom shelf will do." He said to the man tending the bar. Old and grey as he slouched forward. His beard was kept short, one eye covered by a patch. Scars covering his arms. This man too, had seen the days of hardship head-on. Grimm likely his primary foe. Qrow would never ask though, so, he would never know.

The bar tender looked to him. There were very few inns that didn't know Qrow Branwen. Fewer still who didn't know of his famed habits for drunk and disorderly conduct. Still, men like them considered likeminded folks comrades, brothers to the bone. It was what made huntsmen what they were. Comparing battle scars and vices were daily conversations, the same as convicts comparing prison sentences.

The bearded man looked down to the flask. "On the road?"

"Yep."

"Long journey ahead of you?"

"Something like that."

"You got any food for a journey like that?"

"Nah. If I need it, I'll catch it myself."

The man nodded and reached for a bottle behind him. Half empty, thick glass protecting the product. He looked at the amber liquid. It wasn't even close to high quality, rough on the tongue as well as the stomach. He placed it in front of Qrow. "Take the whole damn thing. You'll need it more than I will."

Qrow nodded, tossing a few plastic cards with lien into the empty space. Then, he pocketed his flask. Unscrewing the bottle Qrow took a swig, feeling the burn as it slid down his gullet. He nodded to the man, and turned to leave. Heading out the same way he came in. Wordlessly, and respectful of the people who sacrificed so much, all for the good of Remnant.

With his prize in hand, the long walk back into the woods was made more enjoyable, even if only slightly. It took hours, and several swigs of alcohol, the smell thick on his breath. When he finally reached his campsite, it was to find Winter knelt over a roaring fire watching fish cook. Stepping forward, he set down a plastic bag of supplies. "There's a bottle of soda in there for the squirt." Qrow said quietly as he sat down. "We'll be out here awhile, comforts from the city will be hard to come by."

Winter nodded wordlessly. She suspected that already. "Did you find out anything?"

Qrow studied Winter for a few long moments, trying to decide if she was exhausted as she looked. "I know you're used to barking orders, but that isn't how it works around here. A lot of things are implied." He began, sitting on tree stump, hunching over to catch the fire's warmth. "You got to listen to what isn't being said. All the little hints people can't say."

"Well, have you gained any meaningful insight from that at least?"

"On the surface, nah, not really." He stretched slowly before reaching into his pockets, the tickets unharmed. "Put your ear low enough to the ground though, and the Faunus are murmuring. Little things, nothing huge, but they know your baby sister is away from home. Seems like your dear old dad isn't too happy about it."

"She isn't a child." Winter replied, her eyes glancing over to the nearby tent. "She's an adult now. What about Whitley, has he made that little matter public?"

"Too soon for him to take something like this to the press, especially with you involved. He's not that stupid." Qrow grumbled. "Doesn't mean he won't let it make the papers if he thinks he can spin it in a light that makes him look good though. If you want my opinion, I think you should hide someplace where your dad won't find you."

"He'll find us, eventually. He'll stop at nothing to get Whitley back. Without him, my father has no reasonable male heir. Weiss and I are women. We're expendable compared to that."

Qrow cleared his throat, another gulp from the bottle in his hand helped to quiet his thoughts. "Why'd you run away with him, anyway? What's the point of taking a brat like him away from the only place that he's ever called home?"

"That home is a cage." Winter retorted. "I don't think a man like you has the capacity to understand the situation."

"But look at me. Here I am, helping you out anyway." He groused. "Humor me."

"It's hardly humorous." Winter sighed as she dusted her hands off. Her once white uniform marked with the perils of the woods. "As a Schnee, I don't make excuses for my harsh upbringing. In some ways, I believe it made me strong, for better or worse. However, as a person in a position to change things, you have to take a few steps back. You have to consider the things you see right in front of you, and couple that with the things that don't add up. I did the math, and I didn't like the conclusions I reached. Therefore, it only made sense to take Whitley with me."

"What do you hope to accomplish, doing all of this?"

"Things are changing, I can feel it. The Faunus in Atlas are blinded by their rage. They're acting out, they want change, but, at what cost? The malcontent seeps into the hearts of people like a plague. They turn on each other, more civil unrest mounts atop everything, suppressing the more moderate minds from maintaining some level of composure. The unrest spreads. It's been happening for years in the communities where Faunus have been forcefully oppressed, and now, it's happening in Atlas."

"Conspiracy theory aside, why should all of that crap concern you?"

"A better question is, why shouldn't it?"

"Winter, you sit above all that. Kiss your dad's ass, you'll be sitting pretty for your whole life. That's more than I can say for some."

"Do the math, Qrow, you're that smart at least. What happens when a monopoly crumbles under its own weight? Furthermore, why would anyone want that to happen, knowing what that could mean?" Winter asked, causing Qrow to uplift his eyebrow in question. "There's a reason why the law makers turn a blind eye to my father's treatment of the Faunus. A reason more important than the desires of the people. It's a fickle thing, Qrow, too fickle for the long run..."

"Sounds like a straw man's argument, but alright…" He said darkly. "You got my attention…"

"If the SDC goes under, the world's largest supplier of dust fails to exist. It'll be much harder to distribute. Take down the SDC, the smaller companies would likely be crushed soon after. Take out enough of them, and our defenses against Grimm will have effectively been cut off at the knee. That's not something that we can easily contend with."

"You're being too simple minded, there's always a way to get dust, winter. Even if I need to dig it out of the ground myself, I've never gone without."

"You're the one being simple minded." Winter shot back. "Think beyond hunters and huntresses. Think to the people in the kingdoms, where the true danger rests. Our lives of luxury depend on that dust." She bit her lip, having thought long and hard about all of it. "Consider how many ways we use it. About every little way we've come to depend on it. If dust were suddenly that much harder to get, it would no longer be common enough to fill our households at whim. We'd be on the verge of a dark age, the tipping point only a matter of our defenses."

Qrow looked at the amber liquid in his bottle, glaring into it. "And, by your logic, without a copious supply of dust, that would eventually weaken too."

"Inevitably, yes. Without question. The people have grown accustom to a particular way of life. Take the comfortable lifestyle away, make the people feel as though there isn't any hope, and you attract Grimm by the herds. If there are enough of them, any Kingdom would easily be overwhelmed."

"You have any proof something like that's going to happen?"

"Not yet, but that's only a matter of time." Winter went on to say, looking over her back to notice the fish she had been cooking were now burnt. It didn't matter, she wasn't hungry anymore. "Somethings out there, pulling the strings. Whatever it is, it's insidious. I don't want my siblings anywhere near it. That means keeping them out of Atlas."