XxX-XxX-XxX

Official Supporters:

Obsessive Readers, Laurel

Compulsive Reader, The Impossible Muffin

Intrigued Reader, Archer

Commissioner, Gib, Death Daddy, Le Spork, Polemoduke

If you want to be on the Supporter list, PM me for details or join our private server for details. Hope you enjoy reading my stories, please leave me a comment to let me know if you did, or where I can improve. Link here, where able to be seen : /2UZncAm

Second link here, remove ( and ) and it SHOULD work : D(i) (slash)kfhkfUb

I have a kofi account now, too, under this name for those interested.

Beta(s) :

XxX-XxX-XxX

Requested By : Polemoduke

XxX-XxX-XxX

The 'Untakeable', as it was apparently called, was a long cargo ship, with a tall rear end split in its lower half by a sheltered paddle-wheel. Their rooms were above it, where Yang could hear the water turning constantly as the wheel helped propel them along, backing up the big sail built closer to the front of the ship than the rear, secured to a big mast with a little wheel around its base covered in spokes like she'd seen in old pirate movies. A couple long ropes ran from either end of the horizontal mast the sails ran up from, connected to winches at the edge of the ship that usually had someone standing by them. Behind the mast was a wide set of double doors you could fit a car through, with a wooden pulley folded down at its back, its nose tucked down against the deck while the rest stuck up into the air.

The cargo hold was actually half full, from what she'd seen peering between the big doors covering the deck-entrance, so… She figured it was heading their way already, to trade on Menagerie. Maybe?

"They don't look like traders, though…" She murmured, sitting on top of the raised back deck with her legs through the gaps in the railing, dangling while she watched scar-covered men and women working the deck, keeping the ship moving.

"That's pretty judgey of you, Blondie." Yang flinched and turned as the other girl, Vernal, flopped onto the deck beside her, turning to lean back against the railing and watching the cloudy sky.

"How do you do that…?" Yang muttered, rolling her eyes and turning back to watching the crew work. "And besides, don't sailors wear, like, uniforms?"

"In the military maybe…" Vernal shrugged, "And I'm a good sneaker because, unlike some, I grew up where you had to be."

"Ah." Yang smirked, "Alley rat then?"

"Forest rat." Vernal corrected her, shooting her a little glare before she rolled her eyes and shrugged. "And there you go, being all judgey again. Who gave you the right?"

"Free speech?"

"We're not in Vale…" She sighed, rolling her eyes and letting out a long breath. "I grew up poor, and poor kids tend to be hungry kids. Take a guess how some poor brat out in fuck-knows-where forest gets by, Blondie."

"Foraging…?"

"That's how a poor brat in fuck-knows-where gets dead." She shook her head, fishing a little white cylinder out of her pocket and playing with the ear-buds that ran off its side. "Nah. You find a group, follow 'em, and steal what you can off 'em until they catch wise and run you off. Or down, I guess, but that's also how you get dead or… Well, it's better not to get caught when you're too little."

"I guess…" Yang muttered, flicking a look along the deck and, for a second, considering trying to ditch the other girl. But honestly, where could she really go? She was on a ship, that didn't offer a lot of things to do at the best of times, much less when she wanted to avoid someone. So, resigned, she asked, "So, I'm guessing you didn't get caught?"

"Oh, nah, I got caught."

"But you just said-"

"I said getting caught was bad, not that you always died." Vernal rolled her eyes, "Honestly, you city-folk. Always black and white with you, eh?"

"I'm not even from the city?" Yang scoffed, "I'm from an island. Not Vale herself."

"Potato, tomato." Vernal shrugged, "I'm the one that lived through the shit, so you should just listen to me when I say how it is."

"Or," Yang sighed, "you could leave me alone?"

"Why would I do that?" She snorted, "Never had a cousin before. Always seemed fun."

"We're not cousins, though?!" She sighed, exhausted already - Vernal had been on this 'cousin' thing for the last couple days, and today didn't look any different. Vernal just shrugged again, as usual, and Yang knew she wouldn't explain anything if she asked. So, rather than bother, she sighed and asked, "So, what happened then?"

"I was following this big group of people, swiping what I could off their carts and horses whenever they settled in for the night." Vernal explained, sounding way too bored, in Yang's opinion, for someone describing a life on the road, stealing from people to get by. "Turned out to be bandits! Found out when one caught me and I recognized his bandana- Never saw 'em in the light, since I kept far behind, you know?"

"Not really…"

"I guess you wouldn't, yeah." She sighed, "Anyway, I nut-clocked him with a hammer-"

"Ow…"

"Oh, he squealed." Vernal laughed, "I swear, he sounded like a pig. All high and shriek-y and stuff."

"I bet, yeah." Yang chuckled, "Dad always says never to hit the boys at school there…"

"Why the hell not?"

"He says it's not fair fighting…"

"Screw that.' Vernal scoffed, "Nut-punching is a hobby- No, a past time. 'Sides, if they start shit, they deserve it. Yeah?"

"I guess…?" Yang shrugged, unsure, really, of what else she could say there.

"There ya go." Vernal smiled, "We'll take the city outta you yet."

"And… After that? A-After you got caught, I mean?" She asked, at least more interested in the story than she was in watching the big man dozing over by one of the mast-cranks along the edge of the ship. Not that she'd ever admit even that much to Vernal - the brat would never shut up if she did. Moving on, she asked, "Did you get away?"

"Nah, got caught, but…" She shrugged, "Ran into the boss, after a while, and she took me in."

"So, Raven is… A bandit?" Yang asked, piecing the tidbits together and giving Vernal a look when she didn't answer.

The girl was just a bit red-faced, hand tight around her music player. But, when she caught Yang looking, she just snorted and waved her off, laughing brightly, "No, no… I-I mean, really? A bandit?"

"But you just said-"

"Raven bought me." Vernal cut her off, shooting her a sharp look - one that warned Yang not to ask about the 'bandits' anymore - and went on, "Her group- I mean, the boss leads mercenaries, more like."

"Mercenaries…?"

"Yeah, you know." She waved a hand, wiggling her fingers lazily, "Protecting villages for food and clothes and the like, wandering the roads and helping travellers get where they're going safely for some Lien, maybe even taking out a couple Grimm when they get in the way. That sort of, uh, stuff. Mercenaries, yeah. I-I, uh, figured that's why we were here, too."

"Here, on the boat…?"

"Here helping you, idiot." Vernal snapped, hopping up and popping her ear-buds in. "Anyway, I got work to do."

"I've never seen-"

"Sorry!" Vernal yelled, walking away and waving a hand over her shoulder while something loud and… Vaguely fancy sounding crackled out of her ear buds. "Can't hear ya!"

Yang watched her go, confused, until she vanished into the door that lead into the rooms below. Finally, she shook her head and turned, watching Raven herself pace up the stairs in front of the cargo-doors, looking up and down the ship warily and barking orders at whoever wasn't moving fast enough. When she flicked Yang a look, she frowned… Then smiled, stiffly, and waved anxiously, like Ruby did whenever she saw Yang with her friends back on Patch. After a second, Yang waved back and, suddenly looking… Uncomfortable, Raven spun to continue barking orders to her crew.

Yang just shrugged, laid back on the decking to watch the clouds, and tried to place Vernal's music. It sounded so familiar…

She lay there for maybe an hour, enjoying the warm sun and the sound of the waves, before a shadow passed over her and she turned, smiling and saying, "Hey, Dad."

"Hey, little dragon." He grunted, sliding his legs through the bars like she had and flopping on the deck with a sigh. "What are we doing?"

"Cloud watching."

"Ah." He smiled, "Always important. Dunno when the pesky things will finally decide it's time to rain on our parade, eh?"

"Ugh." She groaned, "Go away if you're gonna make bad jokes…"

"Hey, that one wasn't even a pun!"

"And yet," Yang sighed, "it still hurt me."

"Brat." Her dad grunted, reaching out to cuff her hair gently. "Keep it up and I'll shave you while you sleep."

"That's not funny."

"Nah," her dad chuckled, "it's hi-hair-ious."

"Oh my god, I am going to drown you." Yang groaned, sitting up and spinning on the spot, scowling at the old man and asking, "What do you even want, dad? I was enjoying the sun…"

"And I was enjoying teasing my daughter." She raised an eyebrow and he sighed, sat up, and spun on the spot the same way she had. Though he made it look way easier, resting his knuckles on his knees and sighing tiredly. "Okay, fine, real talk time. I spoke to Rae, and she agreed. You are going to spend the last week or so at sea helping out around the ship."

"Wait…" Yang blinked, "Seriously?"

"We both think it'll be good for you." He nodded, "Let you learn a useful skill, something not related to Hunting, get some proper exercise in through the day. And in the evening, you and I will spar. Or you and her, uh, her kinda-but-not kid, Vernal, will."

"Really?" She smiled, "That sounds awesome!"

"I know, I know-" Her dad blinked, looking up at her suddenly, "Wait, you like the idea?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Kicking Vernal around the ship sounded great, after how much she'd talked down to Yang the last couple days. She wasn't dumb, she knew the brat was just trying to hang out, but still. She couldn't not look forward to getting to knock her down a peg or five. And besides, "I've been so curious about the boat… I can't wait for them to show me how it all works!"

"A-Alright, well, uh…" Her dad chuckled, scratching at the back of his neck, "Not how I expected this to go, but… Great! Just be patient, okay? It'll be slow learning, since they can't risk you breaking something while we're out at sea."

"Yeah." She nodded, "Makes sense. Anyway, it's kinda late, so…"

"Oh-ho, yeah? That eager for me to swab the deck with your face, brat?" Her dad smirked, hopping up in one fluid motion, like a coil unspringing, and turning to look down at the deck below with a sort of 'hmm' face. Like he was considering it. "It could use a good mopping… Just look at all that bird poop. Unrelated- how absorbent is your hair again?"

"Ewwwww, dad!"

"What?" He smiled, bouncing towards the stairs, "I was just asking."

"Uh huh." She rolled her eyes, "You should be more worried about your hair, old man. 'Cus you're gonna lose."

XxX-XxX-XxX

A few hours later, legs sore from the spar - Yang was so short, she tended to aim for his knees and thighs - Tai dropped onto the edge of the narrow prow and sighed, letting them hang off and enjoy the spray of the water breaking around the prow below. It was nice. Refreshing, even. Almost as refreshing as the long drink of ice cold beer he threw back, sighing and relaxing as he sat it aside and watched the sunset in the distance. Behind him, he could hear the men and women Raven had brought along working, one of them rambling about different sail-knots to Yang who, when he looked, actually seemed interested. But, even so, he heard the figure stalking up beside him and sighed.

"Hey, Rae." He grunted, turning back to watching the sunset. "Where'd you get that little dude with all the tattoos, anyways? He knows a lot about knots…"

"Smuggling operations run up and down the coast." Raven shrugged, dropping onto the deck beside him and hanging her leg over the edge like he had. He noticed, though, that she laid Omen out on her other side this time, instead of between them. She shrugged and took a drink of her own beer and sighed, "When I figured we'd need a ship, I sent out word and they… Acquired one for us."

"Do I wanna ask…?"

"No." She frowned, "I'll tell you no one died, and you'll feel better, and we'll move on."

"Mmm." He nodded, "Fair."

For a short while, they sat in silence, and Tai turned to watch some of the anglers casting eel-lines off the sides of the ship. They were little baskets filled with half-rotten food that could lure the snakey creatures in from the nearby coast, on occasion, and sometimes snagged a few fish. It wasn't much, and they weren't pressed for supplies, but Tai knew it was tradition in a lot of places. And he could see men making bets on each basket, on who would catch what.

Surprisingly, it was Raven who broke the silence, murmuring, "She's… A good kid."

"Yang?" Raven nodded and he hummed, taking another drink and smiling. "Yeah. It's… I don't get much credit, honestly. Raising kids is a group effort and, much as I hate it, what happened to Ruby is a lot of why Yang is so damn responsible."

"I know." Raven murmured, "She… Saw a need, and stepped in."

"That pride I hear?" He smirked, shooting her a side-long look, "Or jealousy?"

"...Both." He was surprised to hear her admit, leaning forward to rest her arm against the wood and her forehead against her arm, watching the water and frowning. And very pointedly avoiding looking anywhere near Tai when he choked on his drink and shot her a look. Sighing, Raven said, "I… It's hard, Tai. Being here."

"I figured, but…" He frowned, "Why are you telling me this now?"

"I want to tell her the truth."

"But-"

"I know, I know." She murmured, waving him off and taking another drink. "I just… The more I'm around her, the more I want her to know. I know she'd hate me for leaving, for lying, and I don't want her to know for that reason, but…"

"It's confusing." Tai nodded. He'd wrestled with the same dilemma over the last few days. Yang obviously knew something was going on, she'd made that clear and he could see it from how she acted. But what to do about it was where he just… Wasn't sure. Finally, he said, "I… I think we shouldn't say anything."

"What?" She blinked, turning to him, "Why?"

"We already decided to keep it quiet and focus on our job, here." He shrugged, "Didn't we?"

"But-"

"That solves it then, doesn't it?" He shrugged, finishing his can, crushing it, and setting it beside him. Raven just stared at him, for a while, and he sighed and asked, "What?"

"You're the one that pushed me, for so long, to come clean to her." Raven argued, "Now I want to, you… Change your mind?"

"It's been a while since I pushed that." He pointed out, giving her a look and frowning. He could read the fight coming in her body language, in the way she scoffed oh so quietly and shook her head gently. She still didn't know she did that, but it was a tell he'd learned quick, in Beacon. Still, he couldn't avoid it and shrugged, "You made your bed, Rae. It's too late to rock the boat, upheave her whole damn life, because now you want to be mom."

"Fuck you, Tai."

"Yeah, I figured-"

"No." She snarled, shooting up and shouting, "Fuck. You. What did I think, coming to you to talk? But hey, at least I know we're both cowards."

"Rae, sweetie-" He started, age old, built in habits rushing to the fore as a familiar old argument started to roll into place. He caught himself before he said anything else, though, shaking his head and shrugging, smiling and offering, loud enough for Yang to hear, "Sorry I couldn't be more help."

She just snarled, scooped Omen up, and stalked away while he stood and picked up both their cans to toss in the bin. As he turned, he met Yang's eyes…

She was frowning, but her face was flat otherwise. Her brows furrowed when he raised an eyebrow at her, but she didn't say anything to him. Instead, as the man next to her cleared her throat, she just blinked, shook her head, and turned to listen to him again. Tai watched her for a minute before he trailed along in Raven's wake and sighed.

Out of earshot, he murmured, "Maybe beer wasn't a great idea…"

And maybe trying to give Raven his opinion hadn't been, either.

XxX-XxX-XxX