The Wilted Rose

Chapter 12: Tremors

Solitas Tundra

12:30 AM

3 years to the fall

Winter Pov

How did these two men end up the way they are? The whole time we have been walking , they have done nothing but help the faunus stay warm and moving. The one in the red mask even gave his hoodie that was over his combat gear to the young wolf boy. The one named Arsenal used his semblance to keep the area around us insulated while Red would use fire dust taken from the cargo freighter to start a fire. They even took my cuffs off, didn't give me my sword back though....

Even back on the ship, when I lost my temper on Arsenal, he sat quietly and listened without interruption. He could have just put the gag back in and be done with it. Instead he waited and when I was done, he moved the topic away from my family. I still wasn't happy that they knew my family intimately but what could I do about that?

Then there was Red. He struck me as a no nonsense kind of individual.... That was until the Outlaws foolishness. Oum, he reminded me so much of Qrow that it was terrifying to even think about them being in the same room. I remember that on one occasion when Qrow was particularly drunk, he had revealed that he had a son...

Flashback

2 years prior

I was walking through the halls of a high-class civilian airship. I was assigned to be the head of security for the night. It was a very simple job that even a dullard could do. So far, the only issue that we had was that someone was offended by fuanus waiters in the dining hall. It was a horrible feeling having to punish someone for not just doing their job but for being different. While the job was security, it was also to placate guests who had issues of any kind. That included issues with the person who issued the complaint.

The waiter was dropped from a waiter to a janitor because the people running the event was not going to give a free ride too "Filthy animals". I felt the urge to shower and scrub as if that would clean me of any association with these people. The faunus man took it in stride and moved about his new task, but not before I took some of my lein and handed it off to him. A form of apology for having to do what I did. 

That was a regular occurrence at these events. By the end of the night, all was quiet. Most of the guests had moved on to their room accommodations for the rest of the night. Now the job was just making sure that everything was running as it should. The time was fifteen past one. All was well and quiet. I made my way to the dining hall while making my rounds. The lights in the dining room was dimmed since it was not in use. The only lights on was in the kitchen and the bar. 

After checking the kitchen, I made my way to the bar room. I expected the bartender to be in there cleaning glasses and taking inventory since the music was still playing, but instead I found the second issue of the night. Qrow was sitting at the far end of the bar, in the corner really, drinking a dark colored alcohol that was so strong, I could smell it from the other side of the room, and the bartender was nowhere to be seen.

He was supposed to be on the other side of the ship making his rounds. Instead he was here, drunk... again... It was enough to get my blood boiling. He was so Irresponsible and unreliable, it was absurd that he was even allowed to be a Huntsman in the first place. He had the skills, in spades, but his attitude and general disregard for his job was staggering. I couldn't understand how Ozpin could put up with such behavior.