Hello everyone, I hope you enjoy todays chapter after the delay. it took me a while since I get less done during the week vs the weekend. I hope the wait was worth it. I do not own Bloodborne or RWBY and they belong to their own respective studios.

Bold is for emphasis on speech or actions

Italics are for internal thoughts

Hunter's Work With a Drunk For a Partner.

The man just smirked "I'll tell you on the way. In the meantime can I ask what's with the getup?" Alaine pulled back, a little offended. Sure her outfit was worn but it was still formal and wonderfully designed, much like his own clothes. Miss. Goodwitch looked at Qrow disapprovingly and she seemed to understand that he was rude here.

"It's formal and practical attire. I should go and get it repaired for some of the holes in the cloak but the cloth is somewhat rare." Qrow raised his eyebrow at her before taking another drink from his flask. Alaine trailed behind him while gazing back at Ozpin and Miss. Goodwitch and it looked like they were waiting for them to leave before they discussed something. It couldn't have been helped.

She entered the elevator and she couldn't quite understand the man, he looked hung over yet he was still holding onto that flask which she presumed to be alcohol. He must need it to function at this point. "How could this man be a hunter?" She pondered. Then she remembered just moments ago the way he tried to pick up on every little detail of her. "Like what you see?" Qrow said to her and Alaine felt heat rise to her face at what he implied before she could feel disgusted at the action.

She leered at him, trying to pin him down when the light flickered overhead and Qrow suddenly went pale and looked up at it as if in anticipation of something happening. After about twenty seconds he finally unfroze and let out a breath that seemed frozen in his lungs. She was puzzled, she felt no abnormalities in the elevator through her feet, it ticked and clicked just fine.

He stared at her, was about to say something but his mouth hung open for a few seconds and then closed. It seemed he changed his mind about something. "What an odd man."

When they reached the bottom floor she was the first to step out, only to stop and then turn back to Qrow. "I forgot to introduce myself" she bows shallowly in a style she knew as the hunter's salutation. "My name is Alaine. I am a hunter of beasts, I will be your partner for this assignment so I hope to be able to trust that you will have my back just as I'll have yours."

Qrow looked rather put off by her sudden professionalism; he then nodded before smiling at her. Alaine had a sudden but important thought that she needed to voice. "Oh, and one more thing. I need to stop by my room to pick up something I left." Qrow rolled his eyes at her, thinking she left something unimportant behind. He just gestured for her to lead the way, albeit a bit of a mocking way.

Alaine headed for the room she stayed at and then when she arrived she shut the door behind her, telling Qrow to wait for her. She reached down to the floor and called upon the messengers, the little ones. They clapped as they saw her and she just reached her arm out and whispered. "Can you get the others and bring me my cannon quickly?"

She patted the messenger on the head as a show of appreciation, it nodded up at her before bending over and melding with the floor in a faint white light before disappearing without a trace. It took about ten long seconds before she saw the white light reemerge and her decorated cannon rise from the floor on a bed of small arms.

Alaine happily grabbed the cannon with her left arm, she then smiled even brighter when they brought her more quicksilver bullets to go with it. She let them stash those away in her pack and with a small nod and a soft "Thank you."

She stood up and turned back to the door. She set her hammer down to work the knob and then opened the door to walk out and see a surprised Qrow staring at her and then the cannon in a bit of disbelief. "'That' is what you needed?"

Alaine nodded simply and lifted it up as if it were a fraction of its weight. "If we find something monstrous, it's best to have a weapon made specifically for such monstrosities" Qrow was speechless, sure he saw a huntress in training using a minigun handbag but even then she used two hands, or maybe it was just light since it could be a handbag. He doesn't even know how that works and at this point he's afraid to ask.

He decided to apply the same thought process to this. He took a swig of his drink. "Well hopefully we won't need it." He started to walk again without another word on the subject.

She allowed him to take the lead where he led them to the area that she guessed was designated for launching and landing those flying machines by her second visit. She bit her lip, she wasn't afraid of heights, she was rationally afraid of falling. She just sighed and followed him on the machine.

Qrow then unexpectedly stepped out and then said "It's better I don't go with you, I'll meet you there! Just sit tight!" He had to raise his voice to try and yell over the machine starting up and making its unique but very loud sound. She just looked at him dumbfounded as the door closed and gripped the chair next to her tightly as it began to rise.

"Was I just ditched?" She wondered to herself. She set her cannon down next to her as she sat. Just as she was about to try to relax she heard a voice come from above and she nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard it. "Taking off for onyx. It will be a two and a half hour flight."

Alaine shook her head and then looked around for a bit but she couldn't see where it was coming from. She sat tight and closed her eyes to rest them for a while. While rummaging through miscellaneous time flew.

"Approaching the town of Onyx, prepare for landing." She looked for the source to see some strange grate in the wall. She heard that clasping sound that ended the sentence again and she couldn't help but marvel at something she didn't understand.

She didn't have time to do that as she felt the machine touch the ground and she felt relieved at that fact. The doors lowered into ramps and she stepped down and onto the ground. She looked around, finding that she was just outside of what she could only guess was a mining town by how shabby it was. She had been to one once because her father wanted to show her where they got the gunpowder from.

The flying machine closed up behind her and then flew off. She stood and watched it leave for as long as she could before it disappeared past the trees. She turned around and back to the town, she didn't exactly look the friendliest while holding her weapons. That wasn't something that could be helped right now.

She continued forward into the town and she saw something different, mainly people were smiling and there were children playing. She solemnly looked away from that scene and then people eyed her as they took notice of her presence. She kept her cannon lowered and she had her hammer relaxed on her shoulder.

She called out to the nearest man who was dressed finely enough, he was an older man in his forties wearing a light brown vest over a gray long sleeve shirt and gray dress pants to match. "I was sent here as a hunter, is there someone I could talk to about the situation here?"

The man stared at her for a moment, looking confused. It would seem Alaine asked the wrong question. She stared back at him, looking to get an answer out of him. He sighed and then took a few steps closer. "There's Douglass, the town's mayor. He should be at town hall right now."

Alaine asked him for directions before giving a thank you. She began walking towards town hall using the directions she received from that older man when she felt an arm on her shoulder. Panic filled her system but she didn't hesitate to elbow her assailant behind her but when she hit the persons stomach she heard a familiar voice behind it. It stopped her instincts just enough for her to not swing around and have her hammer meet Qrows head.

She relaxed her tense muscle and then she turned around to look at him. He had backed up and then bent over while holding his stomach. "Oouhh… hold back a little would ya?" She just sighed and then turned around and got back to walking. Qrow put his hand up and walked after her.

"You don't even know what we're doing here yet." To that Alaine slowed to a stop, sighed again and then turned around to look at Qrow. She was slightly annoyed at him for a number of things, scaring her for one, ditching her for another. To be completely honest she wondered how a drunk could be a hunter of his age without kicking that bad habit or quitting. Despite all that, he was right.

"I would have known if you didn't decide to leave me on the machine." Alaine wasn't one to pout or be trivial but it was hard not to be irritated at him for leaving her in the dark.

Qrow just shook his head before cracking a smile. "Why'd you miss me that much?"

Alaine just shook her head back at him. "Auh.. why do you have to be so improper." She then went on to just began tapping her pointer finger on her weapon's cool iron shaft.

Qrow just sighed. "It's better that we don't stay together all the time. Because of my semblance, bad things happen around me and to people around me." This was supposed to get a reaction out of her but all it got out of her was a confused look. The answer he gave was vague and ominous and all it did was give her more questions.

"I come from a place where there wasn't anyone with a semblance. Could you explain what they are?" It was Qrows turn to look confused now before realization dawned on him. She was auraless, of course she didn't know anything about semblances.

"They are oddities about a person, they are an extension of a person's personality and range from… Well, just about anything is possible. Not too much is known about why people have them other than that they only are with people who have their aura unlocked." As he explained Alaine just nodded, taking in and absorbing that information.

This world was so odd to her. She had more questions but one needed to be answered compared to the other questions that was more curiosity than anything. But is what he was saying really true? cursed with bad luck? that sounds like the exact kind of drivel she heard back in Yharnam.

"Well. What are we doing here… Qrow was it?" Alaine said that out loud and that was the first time she really thought about it, what was with her and meeting people associated with crows? This was the third one. First the hunter of hunters Eileen the crow, the second time was the Bloody crow of Cainhurst, the only survivor of the Cainhurst slaughter who stood openly against the church and was untouched by them because of his status as a hunter of hunters.

Now she knew a third, who so far didn't stand on the same level as the other two. He just shook his head like he had better things to do. "We're here to keep people safe from Grimm. Simple guard duty… although I'd rather be in the field and not babysitting you."

Alaine didn't know what he meant by being in the field so it came off even more insulting that he wanted to just go do nothing in a field than actually work with her. She grit her teeth and then put up her neck gaiter as a way to say that she didn't want to talk anymore. "Fine. Just tell me where the beasts are likely to come from."

At that Qrow took a swig and then shook his head. "The forest behind us, then they can come by air.. even from the ground, particularly the mines." Alaine hadn't seen anything like those, flying and even beasts that come from the ground, terrifying to think about.

"Just hold it. We're here to guard, doing what you did in Emerald forest won't work, the forest is a training ground for a reason, it won't be as easy." Alaine padded her pouch, counting her vials and bullets as she listened to Qrow's warning. She could always get the little ones to get what she needs. Emerald forest was great to learn what she will be dealing with, intelligent beasts that aren't insane with bloodlust. They act more like predators with humans as their prey.

"Yes I know. I've been doing this my whole life, born into this profession. Even if instead of going out hunting these things I'm having to defend…" Saying that out loud she realized, she had never defended anything, not even herself. She was nimble, she slipped under blows, dived, rolled or side stepped any attack.

This was different, it wasn't just her life, it was more akin to her work when the public was still sane. Even then it was different since her work was complete annihilation of the scourge and that protected people by proxy.

It reminded her when she saw her father in the workshop, he was well respected even if some of his ideas were outlandish even to the new generation of oto workshop hunters that called themselves the powderkegs. He always thought that they needed to find a way to defend the people even if hunters weren't there. He thought up home defense plans, and he became particularly curious about the electricity that came off of the fabled dark beasts.

Ah, she got lost in thought. Qrow was currently staring at her face like he was waiting. "If you're done trying to come up with a way to brute force it, it's not happening." He then smirked and she shook her head. "Good."

"Even so, waiting around is something I can't do. The mines, the forest… and the air." Alaine pondered out loud with a dangerous glint in her eye and a smirk stretched on her face. She could definitely set something up.

As she thought about some ideas that would make any powderkeg proud, Qrow looked at her like she was about to commit a murder. "Don't do anything rash." Qrow said to Alaine who had a bit of a disappointed look on her face.

"Well. Since it's a two person job I should ask your opinion. How would you handle this?" Alaine asked but Qrow didn't answer right away, he just smirked, turned and began walking. For now Alaine walked with him.

"I'm gonna get a drink" Alaine's face showed visible disappointment but she walked with him. When they got there Alaine stopped and just thought about it. "How were they gonna guard anything here if they're here." Alaine thought with an exhale. "Maybe I should just relax." She felt a grim smile creep across her mouth since when was the last time she even thought of the word.. 'relax'?

She thought about that as she sat down at the bar table next to Qrow. She set her cannon gently between Qrow and her and then leaned the boom hammer against the table on her right side. She pretended not to notice the stare she got, she was used to them, just as she got them back in Yharnam.

"Get me some whiskey, and get her… sorry do you drink anything harder than a glass of tea?" Qrow taunted her as he got the drink he came here for. She just scoffed at him this time with a much healthier smirk.

"I've seen a lot of availability… Do you by any chance have something sweet?" Alaine asked the bartender. Since coming to this world she has noticed an abundance of just about everything, food, drink, metals, stone, just about everything.

She wondered how these people struggled against those beasts called grim. Lack of effort? No they had an entire school dedicated to making hunters, could only a bit of intelligence really keep these people down? Or maybe she had seen nothing yet.

The bartender nodded and then poured a drink for Qrow before he began making something she couldn't recognize. He poured some from the same bottle of whiskey into an odd shaped glass, added what looked to be a wine of some kind? then something she couldn't pronounce, and ended with bitters before a lot of ice.

She thought it was done but he stirred it for a while and then poured it into a glass that looked similar to Qrow's. Finally he stabbed a cherry covered in some dark red liquid and put it into the drink. He flipped his hand and gestured that he was done. Qrow paid him and he began cleaning up what he had taken out.

Alaine stared at her drink, something so complex for something so small. That's just how powderkegs did it. She smiled solemnly and raised her drink into the air, staring at it as the light gleamed through it. To her fellow powderkegs and to the old oto workshop. She sipped her drink, setting it down before qrow looked over to her. "What was that to?"

Alaine tightened up her emotions, just as she suspected. The blood was so much harder, but she very much enjoyed her drink, sweet with spice, she was glad she only took a sip. "To family I never got to say goodbye to." She thought about it for a few seconds more, realizing the double meaning it had for herself. Her eyes lost the usual shine of excitement or hardness when she was cautious. She looked back at Qrow and for a brief second there was nothing but pain in her eyes.

They stared at each other for a moment and then Alaine looked down at her drink, taking another sip. "It seems I've overindulged. You'll have to forgive me." She swished her glass slowly in front of her face.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Qrow asked, suddenly serious in tone. Alaine pondered his question for a bit.. staring at her glass absently as she waited a moment to answer.

"No" She put her drink down. An hour or two here wouldn't hamper her. She took her third sip, about a third of the way through her delicious drink.

"Go take a round." Qrow said, understanding what she was going through. Even if he didn't know her personally the pain in her eyes was real.

This was something she shouldn't do again, it's too painful to be out drinking like old times with no one left but her. Before the blood became so ingrained into Yharnam, back when hunting beasts was simple. Back when ignorance became bliss, for what they were hunting weren't just beasts, they were people and the very blood that was supposed to heal, became a poison backed by the church that was supposed to be benevolent.

She couldn't bear her own thoughts. She downed the rest of her drink, squinting and coughing for a couple seconds before she picked up her weapons and left for the door. "I'm going to go do a patrol."

Thank you for reading this chapter, I am sorry for the delay. please don't be afraid to post a review, I read all of them and try to take them into account when i'm writing. speaking of, I do love writing these and I won't stop even if i'm slow, i'll keep writing and I'll keep you guys updated if there is a problem. I won't just dissapear without letting you guys know. I hope you like the direction I am going to be taking this. See you all in the next chapter.

Hello again, I reread and revisted my story and saw that there were some things that conflicted with how a character would act (Qrow) and changed it some to make it fit more. hopefully this improves the reading experience.