Ruby tried to struggle against her sister's grip, but the Huntress' hold on her hand would not be broken.

"You'll be fine," Yang assured Ruby, leading her down the stairs of their inn. "Nobody's gonna notice you. And if they do, then they'll have to fight all three of us!"

Blake rolled her eyes, following close behind the sisters. "Don't drag me into this."

Yang shot her a smirk. "You don't haveto come."

Blake glowered at the Huntress, which only seemed to brighten her look. "I'm not fighting anyone tonight."

Yang stopped, nearly causing her sister to trip into her. She turned to Blake with a challenge in her lilac irises. "If you're coming with us, you're standing with us, understand?"

The fay— who had bandaged herself once more to hide her identity— met her gaze. The two stared each other down for a long moment.

"She defended you," Yang whispered, unhanding her sister as she approached the fay. "You could've been killed,or worse."

"That doesn't mean—"

Yang pressed a finger to Blake's chest. "That is precisely what that means. Like it or not, you two are in this together."

The way Yang said that last word made Ruby cock her head. It wasn't in a romantic or suggestive way, but carried some other kind of implication— like they knew something Ruby didn't, and Blake didn't want her to know. Blake shuffled under her cloak, amber eyes turning away with… sheepishness? Guilt? Frustration? Past the bandages, she couldn't tell.

Blake grunted, seemingly conceding to Yang's proposal.

"Great!" Yang said with a bright smile. She grabbed Ruby's hand once more and dragged her fully out of the inn.

"Where are we even going?" Ruby groaned.

Yang looked back at her and smiled. "We're going to celebrate!"

"Celebrate?" Ruby questioned, trying to keep pace with her sister. When her rushed steps finally brought her to the blonde's side, her crushed hand was graciously freed.

"You're a runner-up, now!" Yang proudly stated. "Your first real fight, and here you are— winninga bloody tournament!"

Ruby winced as her sister loudly laughed, drawing eyes in the streets. "I-it's not that special."

Yang punched her in the shoulder, eliciting a pained hiss. "Don't say that! It's a huge deal!"

"You are quite impressive," Blake admitted with a nod. "You've defeated opponents who've doubtlessly spent weeks training under experienced Knights and fighters."

Ruby blushed at the complements. "Well, when you put it like—"

"There!" Yang interrupted, stopping suddenly. She beamed up at the building before them. Its ground level consisted of stacked grey stones framed by timber, with a dingy wooden door that had a rusted ring for a handle. The floor atop that one stretched a good few feet past the walls of the first, and had half-timbered walls with crossed bracings over off-white plaster. The sparse windows on the front were just open wooden lattices, freely spewing forth a cacophony of dissonant tunes and tones.

"Uh…" Ruby really didn't know how comfortable she was with this place. A creaking noise drew her eye to the hanging sign, but its contents continued to elude Ruby, especially since the already-indecipherable glyphs were scratched and well-faded

"The Crow's Nest," Blake sarcastically read, disgust palpable. "Very classy, Yang."

The Huntress threw her a smirk and a thumbs-up, then charged inside.

Ruby stood before the swinging door, unsure of herself. Behind her, Blake sighed.

"Come on, Red. Let's make sure she doesn't burn the thing down.

Ruby gulped and nodded, then fought a blush when Blake's hand landed between her shoulder blades, urging her forward. She turned to meet Blake's encouraging eyes, but a burst of movement drew her eye— something shrinking around a building's corner.

The hand pushed her forward, breaking her focus away from whatever she'd seen. The door creaked as it swung, welcoming Ruby into The Crow's Nest.

It was, quite possibly, the most repulsive environment she had ever entered.

Ruby looked around the rowdy interior with a crinkled sneer, Blake's hand guiding her aside until her rear landed in a dingy stool, at a dingy table, tucked into the tavern's dingiest corner. The air was stuffy and rank with an acrid mixture of urine and vomit.

Yang crashed into their table, throwing angry shouts behind her while she juggled a trio of metal tankards. She dropped into the seat beside her sister, one drink set for each of them.

"Uh…" Ruby looked at her sister, unsure.

Yang waved her off. "It's fine!" She insisted, words slightly mumbled— how had she already started drinking?

Ruby looked down at the metal cup before her, observing the amber liquid inside. It had a light foam at the top. She smelled it, then recoiled at the sour scent. Desperate for solidarity, she looked to Blake.

Blake pulled her bandages away from her tattooed mouth and took a deep draught from the cup, startling the smith.

Yang whooped as the fay poured the drink in her gob, fist pumping. She took a swig of her own to match, then turned expectantly to Ruby.

Ruby wilted under the stare. She wrapped both hands around her own cup, and brought the unfamiliar drink to her lips.

The moment the sharp flavor spread across her tongue, she sprayed it back out. "Crook!" She half-cursed, dropping the cup back onto the table. "Can I just have some water, instead?"

Yang deflated slightly, but nodded nevertheless, quickly fetching a clay cup of water from the bar.

Ruby looked into the cups contents and grimaced.

"Yeah," Blake's sidelong mumble complemented Ruby's disgust. "I would trust the beer better than the water, here."

A loud gulping noise drew Ruby's eye back to her sister, who set down her second empty tankard— wait, when had she gotten a second? Yang sighed, gaze challenging and confident as it found Blake's.

"I challenge thee to a duel!" Yang boisterously claimed. "Where the only weapon is booze!"

Blake sighed, mumbling something that sounded a lot like 'dust, I fucking hate humans' before she raised her tankard.

A few patrons separated from their tables and orbited theirs, leering gazes on the dueling lasses. Ruby shrank under the extra attention. Her arms wrapped tightly around herself, the stale stench of piss burning her nose. She hated this.

Blake nudged her, shaking her out of her reverie. "You can go, I'll make sure she doesn't get into trouble. You know the way back to the inn?" She whispered, the genuine care in her voice made Ruby blush.

She had confidence she could navigate back to the inn. The walk here couldn't have been too far. Ruby nodded, then turned to her sister, who was busy getting a head start on her game against Blake. "I'm, uh, going to the restroom," she assembled after a few seconds, her unsure voice completely belying the deception.

Yang, thankfully, was either too inebriated or too focused to notice, and sent her sister a thumbs-up. Without further hesitation, Ruby fled the table and escaped into the night air. She took a deep breath.

Finally, the stench of stale urine was purged from her nose.

AN: yes its the crow bar, yes i had to hold qrow back, yes i am sorry