Just a quick note that the next chapter might take a week or so as number 50 is a really important one and I don't want to rush it. It'll be longer than my usual chapter lengths, and probably hit the length of three mashed together.
With that, see ya next time everyone, and happy reading.
Cheers, Searoar.
"Why do I have to spend the whole day with Uncle Hawkins?" Yang stomped her feet and crossed her arms.
Stuck on the porch of the Xiao Long household, Summer and Tai did their best to ease the situation, but dealing with their little sun dragon's temper proved to be quite a headache.
"It's because you've done nothing but avoid him," Tai sighed with a smile. "Trust me, he's not as bad as you think he is, all you have to do is give him a chance."
"But he's going to say mean things about me again!"
"Then I'll be sure to set him straight if he does." Summer quipped. "Now hurry along, your uncle is waiting for you in the backyard and he's prepared all sorts of exciting activities for you to enjoy."
"The only activities Uncle Hawkins can think of is watching paint dry," Yang grumbled, though her resolve faltered at the upset faces of her parents.
"That's enough, Yang, any more bad words out of you and I'll ground you for the rest of the month understand?" Summer put her hands on her hips as her daughter kicked the ground.
"...Fine."
"It's going to be a fun day, I promise," Tai soothed and put on a bright smile.
Both parents patting their little sun dragon's head, Yang hurried away to the backyard and hesitated when she saw her uncle sitting on the swing beneath the old oak tree. Her lilac pupils focused on the ropes that held the swing, Yang's ahoge twitched back and forth as a mischievous idea fluttered to the forefront of her mind.
She approached the magician in the most normal manner possible, but she'd underestimated his levels of awareness.
"So you're finally here," Hawkins said as he placed another row of cards on the strands of straw that protruded from his back. Checking his peripherals for the young brawler, he sighed as she seemed apathetic to see him. Then again, Hawkins couldn't really blame her for feeling this way, after all, he was the one to sow the seed of doubt in her mind in the first place.
"Yeah..." Yang muttered as she positioned herself on Hawkins' right.
"Have your parents spoken to you?"
"They told me I had to spend the day with you," she huffed, "so what are we going to do? I'm bored."
"Some patience would do you well." The magician grunted. "However, seeing that they've chosen to put you under my care I must assume responsibility. Have you had breakfast? We'll be venturing along the lake paths today."
"Yeah, I ate," Yang grinned as she reached an arm toward one of the wrinkled knots that held the swing to the tree branch.
"Then we have nothing else to discuss here. I'd advise we get a move on before the summer heat kicks in, I don't want to deal with a cranky child on the return from our day out."
"Alright, then how about we get a swinging start!" The young brawler cheered as she yanked on the knot.
Unfortunately, her uncle had already done several tarot readings in regards to devious deeds and knew full well that Yang would try to prank him. So while the swing did break free from its supports, Hawkins had maintained his sitting position with the straw protruding from his back, which meant his rump would not be meeting the ground while a bundle of gathered leaves fell upon Yang from the top parts of the oak tree.
The young blonde squealed as her face was muffled in leaves, spitting out small twigs as her uncle shot her a displeased glare.
"That is the only warning I intend to give, should you attempt any folly from this point on, I'll report your poor behavior to your parents and they'll take care of the rest. Understand?"
Yang pursed her lips and stomped her feet, but said nothing and reluctantly followed her uncle out of the backyard and onto the hiking trail paths. Picking the clumps of foliage out of her hair while doing so, she spotted another head of blonde who wore a pearly smile and waved at her from behind a windowpane.
"Granpa, where's Yang and my dad going? I thought we weren't going on a hike today." Jaune tugged on the deer Faunus' pant leg as he read the morning paper at the kitchen table.
"They're just going out for a nice stroll," Sam said, "but while they tend to their business we'll be having an adventure of our own."
"Just us?" Jaune looked around the room to find that only he and his grandpa occupied the space.
"Not exactly," Sam sipped from his coffee cup, "your uncles are going to join us while Summer and Carla enjoy the day with Ruby and Trifa. So hurry up and finish your breakfast or we'll be late."
"Okay!" Jaune grinned at the idea of a day without tarot tests and lengthy paragraphs. Chomping down his scrambled eggs and toast at a breakneck pace, the blonde hurried to his shared bedroom with Trifa and was surprised to find both his best friend and a cookie-loving reaper fiddling with coils of string and shiny beads.
"Hi guys," Jaune greeted, "what are you doing?"
"Hi Jaune!" Ruby beamed with a bright smile. "I'm picking out the beads for our friendship bracelets and Trifa's putting them together."
"Uh-huh," Trifa mumbled as she poked out her tongue and squinted one eye. Apparently getting the feeble string through the tiny bead holes was a lot harder than it looked.
"Cool, can I make one later?"
"Sure, but the only colors we have left are blue and green." Ruby pointed to a bundle of beads huddled in the center of the carpet.
"Why were those colors left out?"
The little reaper shrugged. "Yang doesn't like those colors that's why."
"Apparently those colors are gloomy," Trifa added, "plus Yang called dibs on yellow, orange, and purple."
"So my bracelet is going to be made of the tints that Yang doesn't like?" Jaune frowned. His relationship with the young brawler was already rocky, to begin with, so he needed every advantage he could get.
"It's not that bad," Ruby jumped off her bed and plucked a booklet from the drawing desk hitched beneath the window.
"I wrote down all the stuff Yang wanted to do this week and added a lot of extra details too!"
A sparkle in his cerulean eyes, Jaune gladly took the booklet and flipped it open. Unfortunately, the little reaper's writing skills were long from reaching their peak, thus the boy struggled to comprehend even the more basic sentences.
Trifa, growing annoyed at her inability to weave a bracelet, peeked over Jaune's shoulder and furrowed her gaze on a picture made of red crayon. It was supposed to be an image of Yang punching a Beowolf, but all Jaune and Trifa saw was an oddly shaped circle and a stick figure.
"Jaune? Where have you gotten off to? Your uncles already got a head start on us." Sam's voice echoed from the lower stairs.
Scratching his head, Jaune thanked Ruby for the notes and bid both her and his best friend a polite farewell. Rushing down the stairs, he snagged his backpack and fetched a quick chocolate cookie from the kitchen then joined his Grandpa.
Unlike the simple pants and T-shirt he wore when he first arrived, Sam adorned himself in his regular working overalls while carrying a blue metal box. A fishing rod in his other hand, he patted Jaune on the head and the two made their way down the dusty trails toward the lake.
/-/
"I don't want to have this conversation, Qrow," Tai grumbled as he picked up an oar and tossed it into the fishing boat.
"This is the only chance we're gonna get to talk, so being a little more compromising wouldn't hurt," the ravenette shot back.
An uneasy tension between the two, neither man could come to an agreement on how to react to the sudden danger of their former teammate.
"We should be discussing this with Summer, she is our leader and my wife you know." Tai threw the last oar and began to load the fishing bait.
Qrow whipped out his flask and took a long swig. His gaze focused on the calm waves of the lake, the warm reflection from the water helped to ease his rattled nerves, if only just a tad. Nevertheless, while nature was a beautiful miracle that needed to be appreciated, the storm of emotions that were brewing in Qrow's mind demanded all of his attention.
"We already tried last night remember? But all we managed to do was make Summer cry her eyes out and shut herself in your bedroom. Then we had to try and explain it to Carla and Sam, and Oum help us when the kids start asking questions."
His partner felt disgusted to admit it, but the direction his family was headed towards held only despair. Yet what could he do? Raven's psyche was an enigma he could never quite understand despite having a wedding and conceiving a child with her, but he liked to think he knew her mannerisms better than most, whatever that was worth anyway.
His nails digging into his palms, Tai slouched on the rim of the boat and sighed.
"We need a new plan," Qrow said, "the chances of my sister coming back are high and we can't risk getting ambushed."
"You make it sound like we're going to war." Tai scoffed.
Qrow shrugged. "Can you think of a better definition for our predicament?"
Receiving a shake of the head in response, Qrow continued.
"It's a pain that my sister is a competent fighter, but I'm certain we can take her if we catch her off guard."
The brawler cupped his chin, though his frown remained. "We can't really catch Raven unguarded, I mean, her semblance literally lets her go to wherever we are at her choosing. It's really frustrating that despite having the numbers, Raven has the element of surprise which is an incredible advantage."
"Still, we have someone she doesn't."
"Who? I'm well aware that Summer can hold her own if need be, but you saw the way she acted when Raven appeared, she's not in the fight on a mental level and I don't want to stress her out unless absolutely necessary." Tai replied.
Qrow deadpanned. "I wasn't talking about Summer..."
His partner tilted his head then widened his eyes. "You're not serious, are you? Hawkins made it crystal clear that he isn't going to involve himself in our family affairs, and I'm quite thankful for that."
"Yeah, but knowing our luck, Hawkins is going to get involved whether he likes it or not. Don't forget that it was him and his son who found me duking it out in the middle of nowhere." the former bandit took another swig of whiskey but earned a scowl from his friend for doing so.
"Plus, Hawkins doesn't have any history with my sister, so I'd bet my top lien that he'd have no emotional issues in regards to fighting her. I'm not saying that we should depend on Hawkins to deal with our current problem, but if the sun decides to smile on us he'll be there when we're in a bind."
"So what," Tai threw his hands in the air, "we're supposed to have Hawkins with us at the exact time that Raven decides to reveal herself? The chances of that happening are zero to none, and I don't even have to ask our tarot reader to calculate the odds."
"We can pray," Qrow sighed as he sipped the last of his alcohol. "Because if I know my twin like I think I do, then Raven will be back for more information."
"Information? What knowledge do we have that she could possibly want?"
Qrow pocketed his flask and rested a hand on his hip while using the other to brush his dark hair. "I don't know where Raven's been snooping, but she's picked up a few interesting tidbits in regards to my last mission in Mistral."
"Oh, you mean the secret mission that you refuse to tell Summer and me about?" Tai smirked as his partner turned away from his scrutinizing gaze.
"Hey, don't go blaming me for the importance of secrecy. If Ozpin needed more than one hunter for this job then he'd ring you guys up no questions asked. But to tell you the truth, I haven't really uncovered anything of interest. It's kinda boring really because I'm practically following a lead that doesn't exist."
"Hey, if it's honest work that pays the bills, then you shouldn't stress about it too much." Tai grinned. "After all, paying bills can be rather taxing wouldn't you agree?"
"That pun was horrible," the two men broke into a laugh while shaking their heads.
"Hah... We really need to get our acts together, for ourselves, and more importantly Ruby and especially Yang." The blonde spoke wearily but did so with a smile.
"It's as Hawkins said," Qrow nodded, "it's up to us to give the little firecracker the full story. I just wish it didn't have to be so bloody soon."
"By the way," Tai paused as if muddled by his own question, "was it a good idea to have Yang spend the entire day with that stoic magician?"
"What's there to be afraid of?" Qrow curled a brow. "She's probably safer with him than with us at the moment, and I don't think Hawkins planned anything spectacular to begin with. If it makes you feel better, we're probably going to have to deal with Yang's whining when she talks about how boring her day was."
/-/
"Uncle Hawkins, I'm tired." Yang huffed as she trailed her uncle's shadow.
"Is complaining the only thing children are capable of?" The magician muttered under a tired breath. Sure, Jaune had his moments, but all it took were a few stern words and the boy was back in line.
So why was Yang such a conundrum? While she may not possess the blood traits of her mother, there was still influence to be had in regards to her upbringing. Surely Summer and Tai would have bestowed positive traits on the young girl right?
"We've arrived," Hawkins said flatly. Atop a hill on the western edges of the island, a rare ensemble of cottony clouds fluttered in the great canvas that was the sky. The sun peeking through just enough to grace the dewed grass, the warm rays trickled over Hawkins' pale skin as he drew a deep breath and closed his eyes.
"Why did we come here anyway? I don't see anything-" Yang bit her tongue as her lilac eyes registered the majestic elegance of nature before her.
The songs of birds flowing in rhythm with the gentle breeze, never before had the young brawler felt so at peace. Not in her warm bed during a chilly winter, nor even in the presence of her favorite dessert. The beauty of nature had a different kind of power, not one that could be associated with the heart, but rather the soul.
"I found this spot during my first visit to this island. You were too young to remember, but it was during the same season and on the same day." Hawkins stated after a short pause.
"This is... really cool." His fellow blonde replied with wide eyes, head still turning to absorb all that she saw.
"Only one other person other than us has knowledge of this location. Do what you will with it, but I'd prefer to keep this place between you and I."
Yang slowly nodded, "who else knows about this spot?"
"...That's not important," Hawkins grunted, "your parents have demanded that I speak to you about certain events that you do not wish to discuss."
Yang furrowed her brows and looked up at her uncle. There was something amiss about his stone visage when he stared down at her. Though his lips and brows were set in a neutral line, upon closer inspection, the fire that burned in his crimson pupils was tame and almost... heartwarming? Yang wasn't quite sure how to describe the unusual scene.
"What I don't want to talk about?" She wondered.
"Tell me truthfully," Hawkins' tone wasn't his usual stoic one either, as his voice could be described as soothing, sympathetic even.
"Do you love your parents?"
Yang was clearly taken aback. How was she supposed to respond to such a question? The answer was actually a lot simpler than she imagined. Even in the presence of the most disliked person on her family tree.
"Yup!" For the first time, the young brawler beamed a pearly white smile at her honorary uncle with two thumbs up, and he couldn't help but feel the corners of his lips twitch upward in turn.
"Then what I said when we first met doesn't matter anymore. I don't care what you think about the subject, but Summer and Tai have done nothing but give you unconditional love. That is something that is very difficult to find, and I assure you that you should hold onto it whenever possible."
Silence reigning over the two once more, a thought needled at Yang's conscience. Staring at her uncle when she thought he wasn't looking, she contemplated whether to open up to him or not. As it stood, Hawkins was a puzzle for everyone he met. He served as a deterrent for all things lively, but he never went out of his way to do so.
The more she thought about it, the more Yang wanted to open her mouth, but when she did no words came out. Puffing her cheeks, she crossed her arms and kicked the dirt. Why was it so hard to talk to her honorary uncle?
Still staring upward, Yang froze when Hawkins tilted his gaze down at her. Panic gripping her heart, she blurted the first thing that came to mind.
"Why do you always look so sad?"
Raising a single brow, the magician's stare increased in intensity and his eyes gained a curious glint to them.
"I-I mean," the young brawler gripped the hem of her shirt but maintained eye contact, "you always look so gloomy and lonely even with people around you."
Hawkins took a deep breath and Yang raised her arms on instinct. When her body remained unharmed, she lowered her defenses and peeked at her uncle once more. However, the magician's eyes were no longer upon her. Instead, they opted to stare at the longing beauty of nature as the mind controlling them had a memory come forward.
"I apologize if my demeanor puts you on edge." He said calmly. "It's just the way I am."
"But why though?" Yang took a brave step and tugged on the former pirate's pant leg. "My mom always says that you should smile when you're around the people you like. You do have friends and stuff like that right?"
A nerve twitched in Hawkins' stoic heart. The innocence plastered on Yang's face was similar to that of Jaune, which didn't help the cold furnace of emotions that she'd just stoked.
"I've lost a great deal before you could speak or understand, so it wouldn't be fitting to bestow my past on such a naive child. Especially one that's been fortunate enough to not have endured true loss. However..."
His visage vexed, the magician managed a short smile, but sadness still lingered on his lips like an iron anchor.
"As it currently stands, I am... around the people I consider tolerable, but I've abandoned the notion of getting too close to them. For both your sake and mine."
This sentence only increased Yang's curiosity. Tugging on her uncle's pant leg excessively for an answer, he simply put a gloved hand over his mouth and lowered his pale lids.
A memory, one of a mistake he wished he'd never made, flashed to the forefront of his mind. Among the corpses of his dead crewmates that littered the planks of his dismantled ship, a single flower stood quietly at the tip of the bow. The moonlight reflecting off her fair skin, her red-tinted locks, and bright silver eyes caused his heart to waver between bitterness and an emotion he was afraid to allow in his life.
"U-Uncle Hawkins?" Yang veered her sights to her trembling hand, but it wasn't trembling because of her.
Lilac eyes wide, the young brawler's jaw slacked as she witnessed a sight she thought impossible to conceive.
Though his closed eyes and silence did well to deter his stirring emotions, there was no doubt in Yang's mind...
That her Uncle Hawkins was crying.