(ง •̀_•́)ง (ember_celica) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2018-03-28 22:45:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, qrow branwen, yang xiao long |
Who: Yang and Qrow
What: Road Trip to look for Yang's mother
When: 3/28
Where: Pahrump, NV
Rating: PG-13
Status: Complete
Yang hoped this would make her feel better. She wasn’t entirely sure it would. The multiple ongoing whammy of Blake’s everything, her dreams, her phantom pain, her mother had made her realize that no, she wasn’t actually as okay as she’d thought. And if she had any hope of helping Blake she needed to take care of herself first. She just need to, you know, find someone professional to talk to.
Once they found her mother and she yelled a lot.
Popping some road trip beef jerky into her mouth, she looked over at her Uncle. “So how badly do you want to strangle my mom?”
Getting out of Orange County and away from everything was something both Yang and Qrow needed. A change of scenery. A breath of fresh air. The chance to stretch their legs and get their thoughts in order. And, most importantly, the opportunity for some questions to receive some much needed answers. Would those answers make Yang feel any better? Probably not at the outset, but at least she would have them and she could make of them and use them however she wanted. No matter the outcome, she had her uncle in her corner all the way.
“Strangle isn’t quite the word I’d use,” Qrow answered, though he had used that very word several times in regards to his sister, even when speaking directly to her face. Not that she hadn’t made equally violent threats directly to his face. Psh. So what else was new? The relationship between the Branwen twins was...complicated...at best. It always had been. The passage of time and the maturity that came with age had done nothing to smooth out those wrinkly complications. Raven had very particular and staunch ways of viewing the world and the two of them often disagreed over those views. Family was an especially touchy subject.
“She’ll probably want to strangle me, though,” he went on with a lopsided grin, glancing at his niece in the passenger seat of the car. Hell, she’d probably even try.
Yang couldn’t imagine falling out like that with Ruby. Sure, at times, Ruby frustrated her and they argued on occasion, but not to that extent. She hadn’t even had to use the ‘mom voice’ in years!
“..so when was the last time you saw her?” She offered Qrow some jerky. Road trip jerky was the law.
Qrow glanced at Yang again, this time out of the corner of his eye. Less than a year had passed since the last time he’d seen Raven, which was why Qrow even had an idea about where to find her. However, he wasn’t sure if that was something Yang needed to know: that her uncle had seen and spoken with her mother and had never said thing one about it. Nevermind the fact that Qrow had sought his sister out to get information he needed to complete an assignment. Qrow’s other life as an information broker was still something his nieces didn’t need to know about. Finally after a moment of debate, he decided to go with the truth (damn Tai and that stupid Christmas wish). The part that pertained to Raven specifically, at least.
Returning his eyes to the road he took a hand from the wheel and reached into the bag and pulled out a sizable piece of jerky. “She and I ran into each other year or so ago in Vegas,” he admitted before he tore off a bite. “She wasn’t exactly happy to see me, but she hasn’t been happy to see me for a long time.”
Yang’s eyes flashed red for a brief moment before her anger evaporated. She sank back in her seat with a sigh, “Why didn’t you tell us?”
She meant her, and her dad, and while she could guess at the answers she still wanted to hear them out loud.
Qrow figured she would. He had expected her anger and was impressed to see it flash and then evaporate. His car was good, not new, but in good shape. Good enough to take them to Nevada, but not good enough to withstand a full on temper tantrum.
So, now that his car was still in one piece, he had to answer Yang’s question and she did deserve an answer. The jerky was still in his hand and he took the opportunity to eat it while he figured out the best way to explain. As he chewed he shifted his position so he could pull a pack of cigarettes out of his back pocket. He pulled one out with his teeth before tossing the rest of the half-crumpled pack onto the dash. Then he fished a cheap blue plastic lighter from the center console.
The driver’s side window was rolled down before Qrow lit the cigarette. By the time he’d taken the first drag -- less than a minute after Yang had asked her question, Qrow was ready to answer. “I didn’t tell your dad because I was afraid he’d go after her,” he said. “And I knew if he did, she’d see him coming a mile away and she’d take off again. I knew if that happened it would open up old wounds.” He took another drag and let the smoke out in a puff. “It tore him open when she left. Your dad really did love Raven and I think a part of him...a small part of him...still might. I didn’t want to see him to go through that again. I don’t want him to go through that again.”
He flicked the ash out the window. That had been the easy answer. “I should have told you,” he said, “but I wanted to protect you from that same kind of hurt. But…” another puff of smoke and a look in Yang’s direction, “that was selfish of me. I’m sorry, Yang.”
Turning her gaze out the window, Yang waited patiently for Qrow to speak. Controlling her temper had been a large part of her recovery and while she wasn’t entirely there she was a lot better than she had been. Dream!Tai had been good at that.
“Dad would have gone after her. And he’s not exactly subtle.” As if Yang was much better. “I don’t know. Last year? I might have messed it up too. Maybe it was meant to happen now anyway.”
No, subtlety was not one of Tai’s strong suits and Yang seemed to have inherited that from her father. It was just part of their personalities: gregarious, outgoing, bright.
“Maybe it was,” Qrow nodded, though who knew for sure? Raven certainly hadn’t been interested in coming back to California when she and Qrow had last spoken. It was a conversation (or argument, if one was to be truthful) that inevitably came up whenever they spoke. Raven wanted him to come with her back to their clan. Qrow wanted her to come back to California. Neither wanted to do what the other asked. It frustrated Qrow that Raven would talk about their clan in terms like “family” and yet refused to even ask him about her own daughter. Oh, Raven knew things, of course. Qrow wasn’t the only Branwen who could get information when he wanted it. Still, the hypocrisy of it was maddening.
Qrow’s grip on the steering wheel tightened and his eyes narrowed. Maybe “strangle” was a term he’d use.
His grip slackened when their exit came into view. A tiny little town west of Las Vegas, barely a spot on the map, the perfect place to live if someone wanted to not be easily found.
“Fortunately, I’m a little better at the subtlety than your father is,” he gave Yang a smile before maneuvering towards their exit.
“Pahrump?” Yang asked, her expression and mood lightning at the ridiculous town name. “Pahrump-a-bum-bum!”
Okay, so it was probably named by Native Americans and she shouldn’t make fun, but she felt suddenly in a better mood. The town was fairly spread out, with a population of about thirty-thousand. Much smaller than what Yang was used to and the craziest thing was that she couldn’t actually believe there were that many people. The town just didn’t look that big.
A sign caught her eye. “...wait, this place has an erotic heritage museum??”
Other signs advertised actual brothels and she started cackling and taking pictures.
Anyone who believes that wild-west towns don’t still exist have never actually gone out into the desert and visited the towns out there. Qrow had never been to Pahrump specifically, but he’d been through plenty of towns like it. When you were out in the middle of nowhere you relied on what you could to get people to come and spend their hard earned cash in your stores and keep your economy afloat. These were hard towns with a different sense of law and order. Qrow, when he’d still been a member of the clan, had often found sanctuary in these types of places.
His eyes caught on the sign advertising the erotic heritage museum. “Apparently it does,” he mused aloud with a chuckle. “Among other things. Might want to leave that out when you talk to your dad about this later.”
It was tempting to drive through the heart of the town so Yang could “see the sights” as it were, but Qrow had done his research before embarking on this adventure with his niece. Raven wasn’t alone here. The clan wasn’t what it had once been when the twins had been younger and Qrow didn’t have the same fears as he did back then, but he had no desire to run the risk of being recognized and have what remained of the Branwen Clan descend upon the traitor and his niece before they’d had the chance to do what they’d come here to do. Still, he was prepared for that very real possibility. His weapon was tucked away in the trunk along with their bags.
With the assistance of the GPS navigation on his phone, Qrow took them through the backstreets and finally to the motel where they would be spending the next couple of days.
“Are you kidding me?” Yang laughed, “There’s material here to keep me amused for like a month.”
She didn’t know the full dangers present, but she’d known her uncle had taken his weapon, so she’d worn Ember Celica. Her arm was already … armed … so she was never without at least half of her weapon, but to most people it was just a slightly gaudy bracelet on her left wrist.
And if she was honest with herself, she wouldn’t mind a fight. It had felt a little liberating beating the crap out of those bandits and being in control of herself at the same time.
She got out of the car, eyeing the motel dubiously. “This looks like one of those places where murders happen.”
Qrow glanced at the motel. Yang’s assessment was probably fairly close to the mark, but it was out of the way, cheap and the staff wasn’t likely to bat an eye should things get a little dicey. “It’ll do,” he said as he reached up and took his sunglasses from off the top of his head and placed them over his eyes. Hardly a fool-proof disguise, but at least his reddish eyes (his most distinguishing and recognizable feature) were hidden from view.
“Let’s check in first,” Qrow suggested, “then we can figure out what our plan is.” As they started moving towards the front office Qrow could already feel eyes on them. A glance over his shoulder didn’t reveal anyone standing outside the local business across the street staring at them obviously, but the older man meandering down the street with a couple of shopping bags kept casting glances in their direction. Maybe it was Qrow’s own paranoia, but it seemed to be more than mere curiosity that kept those glances coming. They’d been noticed. Whether or not they’d been recognized still remained to be seen. Qrow’s eyes narrowed behind his sunglasses.
Quickly, Qrow caught up with Yang, catching her good arm lightly with his hand to get her attention. “Stay sharp, Firecracker,” he said in a low voice to her. “And for the time being, it’s probably best that you don’t call me Qrow while where here.”
Yang grabbed her backpack - she’d only packed clothing, her tablet and Nintendo Switch, along with a book Blake had given her - and started towards the motel. When Qrow grabbed her, she gave him a look, then glanced around casually. Okay. So that was suspicious. “Okay, Corvae.”
She flashed him a grin, but it was a nervous one.
Uncle would have been fine, but so long as Yang kept her sense of humor. The clan wasn’t something Qrow had talked about much with his new family. The truth of it was when he was with them, he hadn’t had any reason to think of that old life, even when he was doing less than legal things to help support the family after Summer passed. That had probably been a mistake. A selfish one.
“I’ll explain,” he promised. “But not here. When we’re in our room and not out in the open.”
“Okay.” Yang angled her phone up,taking pictures of the mountains in the distance, then followed him into the motel room. It was cleaner than expected.
She felt antsy, and shuffled from foot to foot after she’d tossed her bag onto one of the beds. She’d chosen the one near the window, an instinctive need to put herself between possible danger and the people she loved.
Yang tossed her bag onto the one closest to the window and Qrow placed his duffle on the floor between the remaining bed and the wall. Then he had a seat at the foot of the bed. His fingers itched to reach for his flask, or in the very least, light up another cigarette, but he reached for neither. It wasn’t he No Smoking decal that was stuck to one of the corners of the mirror on the wall that gave him pause. Explanations first, then maybe he’d give in to one of his bad habits.
He motioned to the other bed across from him. “Have a seat, Yang,” he said. “I haven’t told you or your sister much about my life before I met your father, mainly because I never wanted to think about it. But, if we’re going to do this, you need to know where I -- and your mother -- come from. We were born into a Romani clan. Despite what you may have seen on TV or read or whatever, the Romani aren’t all thieves and con-artists. That being said, our clan is known for doing those exact things and your mother and I were used as kids to lure in unsuspecting marks. People can’t help but to trust children, especially young children who look lost, underfed, or scared. My bad luck didn’t just manifest when the Dreams started. It’s always been there and was considered a curse for a long time, though a useful one when aimed in the ‘right’ direction. We were taught at a young age how lie, steal and manipulate. Anyone outside of our clan -- even other Romani people -- were considered nothing more than potential marks and we were to get what we wanted from them by any means necessary.
“When we were...I don’t know...about 15 or 16, some poor well-meaning outsider decided he wanted to save a bunch of us. He couldn’t just take us away, not if he wanted to continue living, so he introduced us to MMA, in hopes that the practice would get us to want to leave the clan on our own. In a way, it kind of worked. We did leave the clan in favor of fighting. For a while. Raven was good, better than most boys our age. I wasn’t bad, but my bad luck didn’t exactly make me popular, so after about a year or so, I quit, but I didn't go back to the clan. I stayed with Raven. Up until then it had always been the two of us. We were never close -- not like you and Ruby -- but we were all we had. She was all I ever had. Then she met Tai and had you. I don’t know why she didn’t return to the MMA circuit after you were born. I don’t know what was going on in her head, and she certainly didn’t tell me when I asked. A short time later the clan caught up with us. We were given the option of returning to them and we would have been forgiven for leaving. Raven went back. I chose not to. For that I was marked a traitor, the only thing worse than being an outsider.”
Qrow’s eyes moved towards the window of their room for a moment then back. “The clan can be dangerous, Yang. Very dangerous. I was hoping to get in and out of Pahrump without incident, but now that we’re here, I’m not sure I can promise that. What I can promise is that if you still want to do this, I will do whatever it takes to get Raven to sit down with you.”
That was A Lot. Yang leaned forward, her elbows on her knees, trying to absorb what Qrow was telling her. It was more information than her father had ever given her, and for the first time in her life she found herself interested in that half of her heritage. Maybe having more details helped, or the thought of being closer to her mother and uncle. Maybe it was how badly she wanted to belong somewhere, lately and suddenly knowing more at this point in her life...
Her team was splintered, both in her dreams and in real life, and she’d never gotten to have even a single day in the waking world where she could have felt that connection with them before all the Bad Dreams happened. It was really all she’d wanted for so long. Her, Ruby, Weiss and Blake, together as a found family. She’d dreamed alone for so long, built so much up in her head that reality had proven to be disappointing at best. It was lonely.
She’d never tell any of them that, though. The last thing she wanted was to make them feel bad for her own messed up feelings. She already felt bad enough about her romantic feelings for Blake. At least she’d had the time to burn out her anger towards the Faunus.
But… belonging, wanting to be a part of something. Coinciding with where her dreams had left off, seeing her mother for the first time… ever. It was a powerful feeling and she could feel tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. She already knew this wasn’t going to go the way she’d hoped and dreamed, but that didn’t make it any easier.
Why was the clan more important than her own daughter? Why couldn’t she have just taken her with her? But if she had, she wouldn’t have met Li or Ahsoka, or Blake. Or Ruby. God, she couldn’t imagine life without Ruby.
Yang took a breath, closing her eyes and forcing herself to calm down. No use in letting her emotions win - that never ended well. “I still want to find her. I still want to talk to her.”
If there was a time for emotion, this probably would have been it. Despite how far she had come in controlling her temper, Qrow wouldn’t have blamed Yang if she’d let any of those tears spill. It was hard to hear that you are not the most important thing in your mother’s life. He knew that reality all too well. He wished he was able to give Yang the answers she so desperately needed. He thought he knew what they were. The twins’ childhoods had been spent proving themselves to the clan. For him, it had been a constant struggle to show that it was worth keeping both of them when one would have sufficed. The clan had been their entire world back then, especially for Raven. For her, strength was everything. Strength meant survival. There was strength with the clan and she had been one of the strongest within it. Without it, what was she? The world beyond the clan was much larger and scarier than either of the twins could have ever imagined. For Qrow it had been freedom. For Raven, a prison.
But he could only speculate. The twins hadn’t had a civil conversation since Raven had taken off. Qrow could blame her for that, but he was every bit at fault as she was. Besides, even if he did know the truth without a shadow of a doubt, it wouldn’t have done Yang as much good hearing it from him. It had to come from Raven’s own mouth.
He nodded. “Alright,” he said. If that was what Yang wanted, Qrow would do whatever it took to make it happen, the rest of the clan be damned.
Sitting on the bed, Yang leaned back, brushing a corner of the curtain away to sneak a peek out of it. There was a beat up old semi-truck parked across the street and she could see someone looking in their direction from within it. “Why do I have the feeling she’s gonna find us before we find her, anyway?”
Suddenly, she wondered if this whole thing was worth it.