#so whenever qrow came back from scouting missions

[strqyr]

do you ever just plan fics in your head and eventually coming up with an idea, no matter how big or small, that completely takes over everything else and is the only thing you can think of anymore?

cos i'm there rn

and yes, it's... kind of angsty... this is me after all why wouldn't it be lmao

[homogrimoire-archive]

Exhausted Wings / Good Luck

Chapter 2: Thunderous Despair / Grandma

Qrow and Raven take on a large group of Nevermore at a Dust Mine. Things get intense.

Qrow always appreciated being able to turn into a crow and let any troubles from down below mostly melt away. His and Raven’s avian form dulled most of their ability to think like a human, leaving them only smarter than the average crow. It was enough to counteract the bird’s instincts. Qrow, strangely, did not feel the bird’s instincts kick in and override most of his human mind. Just my luck. Again. No bird brain to distract me. He resorted to looking at the sky and barren tundra. Boring and dull, but it’ll do. It had to be the most boring flight he had in a while. He liked to fondly reminisce on his most beautiful flight whenever resting in human form. Though, after a few more minutes staring at the mind-numbingly empty landscape, he noticed that Raven seemed a bit smaller. He also began to notice that he felt heavier, but still just as agile as before. Must be the pact. he reasoned.

Just then, he felt a small drop in his aura. His wings faltered, more from the surprise than anything else. Aura? Birds don’t have aura. The mountains where a dust mine lay were quickly approaching, so he began his descent. Why do I have an aura right now, and why- no. It’s fine. Just focus on the mission. They landed in human form, gazing into its wide entrance. Atlas outposts were visible, but abandoned. Closer inspection revealed that they left in a rush. He knew that Raven picked up on this too.

“They left because Ironwood declared martial law and was gonna fly Atlas into the sky and leave everyone else behind. Bastards didn’t wanna be stuck down here.” Pathetic soldiers only trying to save their own behinds just so they can serve their immaculate General Ironwood, only to end up dead… He was hoping Raven would have a reason to take him out soon. He’d gladly volunteer if she ever needed it done.

“Let’s go and scout first. Locate any dust deposits, and dispose of any grimm.” the sister said, stoic as ever.

“I doubt there’s any grimm. If they were here, that means it was cleared of grimm.”

“And how do you know?”

“I killed them myself.” With Clover. An image of a smiling face with vibrant green eyes flashed in his mind, but before he could fall into any more sadness, he heard a shrieking sound overhead.

“Do me a favor Qrow, and shut up.” she said as she readied her weapon, sounding exasperated. Damned luck. They both dodged a Nevermore as it tried to crush them. With little effort, Raven jumped to slash the bird in its face, turning it to ashes. The death of a comrade only summoned even more Nevermore. Qrow knew he would not be as skilled as Clover when he decided to take Kingfisher over the sword he could only assume was his, and was also the weapon that killed Clover. He at least has some idea of how to use the rod after seeing Clover use it so many times. Besides, he was a well-trained huntsman. He knew he would figure out how to use it well soon enough. He tried to remember how Clover would use the weapon in the situation. He could see Clover moving the rod in a circle, increasing the length and force of the line so he could use it to grapple to higher ground. He could also see taut muscles move as they flung the hooked blade to sink into a ledge above. The pants that seemed to fit all too well did not hide the solid calves and thighs that he used to launch himself off the wall to slash and kill a grimm below him. As he threw the line and hook to catch another ledge, he could see the signature smile and wink that really made his heart throb. Alright. Enough. He moved to begin the movement, letting the line gain length and power. He felt that he was doing well, all things considered. It was a miracle the other Nevermores hadn’t started attacking him. But suddenly, a voice came to him.

What did happen to you? To us? He faltered, letting the line weaken, and leaving himself open to an attack. He was certainly skilled enough to dodge the Nevermore as it flew past him, but the weapon’s hook lodged itself onto one of feathers on its underside that was frozen solid by the Solitas cold.

“Qrow! Quit doing nothing and help!” Raven yelled as she slaughtered Nevermore after Nevermore, jumping off projectile feathers and stabbed grimm just before they turned to ash to ascend higher and higher.

“Well there go my evening plans!” He couldn’t see it, but he knew she was rolling her eyes at the comment.

Using the rod’s mechanisms, he swiftly reeled himself in so that he could propel himself forward to hold onto the black feathers that weren’t slippery with ice. The Nevermore began flying wildly as it felt Qrow latch on. With one hand grasping on, he used the other to launch the hook to wrap around the Nevermore’s neck, causing it to fly more frantically. His other hand let go and he used the momentum to swing himself to land on its neck. He had to admit, it was a very fun weapon to use. With the line wrapped around its neck, he wrangled with he grimm, managing to jump off as he sent it flying into a cliff face. As the grimm turned into nothingness, he retracted the line and at the right moment, shifted the mechanisms to propel the hook to its next target with greater force. Lodged in the shoulder of another Nevermore, he retracted the line to propel himself towards it at high speed, unhooking the line so that he could land square on its back. After stabbing the hook into it, he loosened the line and ran across its back. As the grimm began to ascend in attempts to knock him off, he jumped off and locked the line and yanked the rod down, causing the hook to tear through its icy back and kill the giant.

Qrow couldn’t help but smile. Now I’m getting the hang of it! He swung the line to latch it onto another Nevermore, swinging underneath it and releasing the hook as he was just above it to to a spin while retracting the line, causing hook to slash right through its neck. When I meet Clover again, I am so not giving this back. IF you meet him again, he reminded himself. He’s already been through enough because of me being around him. He moved his arms to toss the line to its next victim. Wherever you are, know that I love you. Good luck.

“What?” he whispered, almost afraid to hear that voice again. He could see the face of the man he loved, the man he would protect from his love. It held a rare somber look. He was distracted again, and moved the rod too late. Instead of piercing a neck, it ricocheted off a stone mask, leaving Qrow free falling with nothing in reach of Kingfisher. He hated to to this, but he had no choice. He transformed into a crow.

One would think that the Nevermore would feel some kind of kinship with the similar-looking black bird, but Qrow’s experience had taught him otherwise. It seemed like to a Nevermore, the black birds were an affront to their existence, a mockery even. They acted like the small black bird spit in their face and desecrated a statue of their goddess. In all fairness, Qrow would do those things if he could, but that didn't really explain the violent reaction they had to the much smaller black birds. Outmaneuvering a Nevermore in a place with obstacles was easy, and meant he could escape one in bird form. Outspeeding one in the open was not a possibility. Fortunately, the Nevermore were uncoordinated, driven by a frenzied rage and crashing into one another, allowing Qrow to weave amidst the frenzy, but not allowing enough space to transform and use Kingfisher. He could feel himself gaining speed, moving faster than he ever had before. He was soon able to out speed them, a feat he wasn’t sure how he was able to accomplish. Unfortunately, moving at such high speed left him unable to react to the Nevermore that flew in front of him. He tucked his wings in and braced for impact.

Instead of breaking half his bones and losing conscious, he felt himself pierce the grimm. He turned to see the hole in the grimm just before it vanished into thin air.

-

Raven climbed the mountain higher and higher, killing any grimm that dared challenge her, only using her magic to jump higher. The higher she got, the less and less grimm she faced. She expected this, but did not expect to be facing none until all were slaughtered. She stopped at a cliff-side when she realized none were following her, stabbing a sword into it to hold onto as she rested a foot on a small ledge. She had sensed Qrow shifting earlier, but thought nothing of it. She felt that there wasn’t much reason to think about it anyways. But now, she could sense him frequently shifting in and out of bird form.

“What is this dumbass doing now?” Ugh. Why couldn't I have been an only child. She turned to see something very interesting play out not too far below her. The rest of the Nevermore, were swarming Qrow, drawn in by the insulting avian form he took. At the moment, he was taking on at least ten. It would be a lot more very soon. In the near distance was another hoard of Nevermore. She could see him dodging their attacks, piercing them at high speeds, transforming back into a human when he could get a good slash of the strange weapon to connect and use the momentum to kill the Nevermore with its blade and pierce and kill another Nevermore. Why aren't you tired yet? The transformation took a bit of energy, though for her, it was hardly any with the maiden’s power. She tilted her head in wonder. How are you able to pierce them? And how hasn’t the bird’s instincts kicked in? … The pact! If it made him this strong, then I have much more to gain.

“QROW!” The sound echoed down below.

“BUSY!” he replied when he got the chance.

“JUST FLY UPWARD AND HAVE THEM CHASE YOU!” Apparently, he heard, as she saw him begin to rise at incredible speed, a column of grimm in pursuit. She waited until there was enough distance between him and the avain grimm, and that all the grimm were present. With the distance great enough, and the grimm present, she withdrew her sword out of the rock-side and jumped, slashing her sword beneath her to open a portal to Qrow. He was smart enough and skilled enough to get out of her way as she appeared before him and began to summoned a bolt of lightning. With a shout, glowing red eyes, and the sound of thunder rumbling, she sent the bolt straight through the grimm just before reaching the flying mass, taking the rest of Nevermore out in one fell swoop. She landed in a crouch on the ground below to soften her landing. She arose as black ash fell from the now cloudy sky. Qrow was at her side as he transformed back to a human.

“Fancy moves back there but what happened to your beloved Harbinger?” She turned to face him, noticing that his right eye was now a green color. “And when did your right eye turn green?”

He immediately perked up at the last question. “Green? What kind of green?”

“I don't know. Teal or sea green. What does it matter?”

“Hm. I’m sure its nothing.” She could tell it was far from nothing, but she found no reason to be concerned. Why is he so intent on hiding it? That green charm alone spells it out as plain as day. It stands out so much its like he’s not even trying to hide it. Dumbass. The missing ring was more subtle, but also as clear as day to anyone who had known Qrow long enough. They began their walk to the mine entrance in silence. Just as they were about to enter, they noticed that the ashe was no longer falling, but rising.They turned around to find it coalescing into a giant sphere, the ash swirling chaotically around. As it began to take form, they noticed what appeared to be long wings and a long tail. They readied their weapons, waiting to see how to react. Hmm. can’t retreat into the mines. It will just trap us there.

“What the hell is that?” he said. She noticed that his voice seemed less… rough, and that his flask was missing.

“It’s grandma.” she deadpanned, sill focusing on the mass and readying her weapon. The swirling stopped, and the beast unfurled itself. Eyes littered its body, some of them distorted, and as red markings also covered its body.. The texture on its back seemed off somehow. Ice. It’s covered in ice. It had three large eyes one on one side, and two on the other. It had three legs and a sharp, long beak that rode up its face to make its grimm mask. It opened its mouth to reveal sharp teeth, and a deafening screech blew that away the clouds summoned by Raven to reveal the sun behind it. The sun allowed the red markings in its body to refract through the ice, making it almost appear entirely red.

Raven launched herself upward and transformed. From her view, the beast was easily nine times the size of an average Nevermore. She also saw Qrow try to launch himself from a fence with the fishing rod and land face first into the snow when said fence broke from the force. He managed when he hooked onto a heavy dust transport machine and flew to meet her. The beast had yet to liftoff, so they flew in opposite directions to scout for any weaknesses. Its back was covered in ice at least ten feet thick. On its back, she could almost make out a symbol, though the refraction made it hard to make out, but with no other relatively noticeable features, she decided that the center of the unknown mark was the best place to attack.

“Qrow, keep it busy and throw in any attacks you can. I’ll go for the seal on its back” The colossus begun to rise now, almost ready to fly. Raven landed on its back, embedding in it a fire dust sword that quickly cooled. It let out a screech, though not nearly as loud as before. It began to pick up speed as it chased Qrow. So even this thing hates our bird forms. She began chipping away at the ice that protected the seal with another fire dust sword. As it turns out, the ice was more like 15 feet. She was about to switch to use magic when she found that the colossus was going for a loop, no longer following Qrow. This one’s smart. It’s trying to protect its mark. It must be a weak point! With a last bit of effort, she slammed a fist of flames into the ice, almost exposing the mark. She let go of the colossal grimm and flew just high enough above it, and transformed, summoning clouds for another lightning attack. With glowing eyes and a smile, she hit it dead center, revealing the seal. Salem’s emblem. Now this had to die. She landed on its back jabbing a sword in the ice and readying another sword to finish it off, but an eye opened from its center where the emblem was exposed. A shriek louder than the first tore through the sky and dispelled the clouds to summon the sun. The light seemed to refract through the ice more brilliantly now, despite the crater exposing the seal. Raven found herself losing her grip, and crashed on the ground below, costing her a good chunk of aura. Qrow was thrown out of his avian form by the shrill sound and landed on the ground below, losing some aura. Eyes glowing, she leaped to its back and pulled out a sword to finish it.

Raven? Said an old woman’s voice.

“Grandma?” She held the sword above the red and black eye, but could not bring herself to slam it down.

Oh Raven. Look at how much you've grown from the cowardly little girl you once were.

“Yes grandma. I have. I wanted to make you proud. I wanted to make my family proud.

Dear, you misunderstand. You've grown from a cowardly girl into an even more cowardly woman! You abandoned your own Daughter! Your family! You run from the problems you've encountered! And your brother? Where to begin? He leaves you AND the tribe, and he’s still alive? How pathetic of you. As his family, it is your duty to see that he is punished. Cowardly AND shameful. You DARE call yourself a Branwen?

“I’m doing what’s best! I’m keeping us safe! Its-”

Silence! You pathetic, weak, coward. I thought I raised you better than this. If even I, the most renowned Branwen cannot make you strong, no one can. Pfft “I’m gonna be just like you grandma!” Such a failure. I always despised you. And to top it all off, you couldn’t even be there for your *dear* friend Summer.

She lost her grip on the sword and tears began to form as she fell. As she hit the ground, her aura broke, and let out a wail as she broke down.

And you. Said the voice, shifting from the elderly woman’s voice to a man’s. Always such a nuisance. At least they expected such from you. Bringing misfortune to everyone around you, to everyone you love. Everyone you love had left you, and they’re much better off without you. Its a miracle anyone ever loved you. I thought I did, and look where it got me. Dead in the snow because you decided to side with the homicidal maniac. Stupid and filled to the brim with bad luck so bad, not even the person with the opposite semblance could withstand it. The only smart thing you've ever done is isolate yourself. Though I suppose you were also right to be so cynical and put yourself down so much. It was the truth after all. The world is a terrible place, and you are hardly worth anything. And now that I think about it, I don’t think I ever really did love you. I pity you. In fact, I-

The words were cut short as a black streak cut through they eye in the center. He walked over to where she lay weeping, hands in his pockets and slouching. He did not know what to do. He was never particularly good at comforting people, especially someone like Raven. Soon, her crying ceased and he rose to meet Qrow’s eyes. He had been crying too. And there, they sensed it again. She turned to find eight small spheres, identical to the first.

“DIIIIIE!”she screamed as she ran towards them, fire dust sword in hand and eyes glowing red in furious wrath.

“DIE!DIE!DIE!DIE!DIE!DIE!DIE!DIE!”she slashed repeatedly and wildly at the eight miniature swirling orbs of pain. Even as they had turned to dust, she continued to slash, and she slashed into the air and snow until she fell to her knees and began to cry again. As he approached her again, she screamed and wailed. She had now words to convey her feelings. She continued slamming her fist into the snow. He knew there was a chance she would slash at him with a sword, a very good chance, but he still decided to go through with it. He knelt down, and hugged her. To his surprise, she leaned into it, and together, they cried. They remained on the ground like this for a few minutes. Eventually, she broke away and broke the silence.

“Why?” she sniffled as she wiped her tears, “Why didn’t you succumb to it?”

“I’ve told myself worse. And I know that I can be a better person. It was my choice to change my self. I didn’t do it alone though. At first, it was hard. I was only around the kids then, so I couldn't push any more problems onto them. All I had done then was stop drinking. Then I met someone who wanted to help me because I was me. I wasn't Qrow the drunk, uncle Qrow, or Qrow the harbinger of bad luck to him. I was just Qrow. With them, it was easier. Still hard, but easier. I learned a lot from him. He saw things in me even I couldn’t see. I started smiling more, laughing more, and made the girls more proud of me than ever. I started to accept myself a bit more. I realized that I was wrong about myself. There are people who do love me for who I am, and I’m not undeserving of that But none of that wouldn’t have mattered or been possible if I didn’t want to change though. You have to want to change. We can do it alone, but if we’re lucky, we’ll have people to help us.”

I love you too, Clover.