Truth, Lies, and Silver Eyes (A Sequel to STRQ) [Book 2]

Chapter 16: Qrow

Deacon roughly dragged me out the door by my wrist. He was a lot stronger than I had anticipated.

"Uh... Deke? Maybe you could be less rough? You're quite strong," I said.

He quickly released his grip.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Uncle. I didn't mean to hurt you," he replied quickly.

"It's okay. Honestly I'm glad you're so strong. That'll be handy if you ever need to fight one day."

Deacon grinned. "So are you going to teach me how to fight?"

I nodded. "Of course. There's something I have to first, though."

I knelt in front of him and placed my hand on his shoulder. I closed my eyes and began to activate my aura.

"W-What are you doing?" I heard Deacon ask.

I didn't answer his question. Instead, I began to recite:
"For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee."

I felt my energy go way down instantly. When I opened my eyes again, I saw Deacon staring at his hands. His body was glowing a faint purple.

"What did you do?" he asked.

I stood back up. "I used my aura to unlock yours. I'll teach you how to use it once you learn some basic fighting and defense moves."

"Oh. What does aura do?"

"We'll get more into that later. Right now, I would like to focus on your fighting stance as well as some basic punches. Ready to get started?"

Deacon nodded slowly. "I guess so."

"Good. First, let's work on your fighting stance. Since you seem to more right handed, you'll want to have your left shoulder facing your opponent. Keep your hooves shoulder length apart and your knees slightly bent. Hold your right fist by your chin and your left down in front of your face. Keep your chin down and eyes up. Like this."

I mimicked the fighting stance and watched Deacon try to do the same. I had to guide his arms to the correct position, but other than that, he seemed to have the fighting stance down.

"Like this?" he asked.

I nodded. "Exactly. Now, we're going to practice some basic punches. The first one we're going to work on is called the jab. It's useful for keeping your opponent at a distance."

I demonstrated the move by quickly doing a few quick punches. Deacon tried to duplicate, but he accidentally ended up hitting me in my chest, making me skid back a few feet.

"I'm so sorry, Uncle!" he cried. "Are you okay?"

I couldn't help but grin at him.
"It's okay. That was actually pretty good for your first attack. I think you'll be a natural at this."

His eyes lit up. "You really think so?"

"Yeah, I do. Why don't you show me that again?"

We practiced doing basic jabs as well as how to block them. This went on until I heard Summer call out for us.

"Dinner is ready," she said.

Deacon and I abruptly stopped sparing and headed inside. The table had already been set and there were three bowls of ramen waiting.

"I hope you both don't mind, but I reheated the ramen I made."

I smiled at her. "I don't mind at all. It really is delicious."

Throughout dinner, Deacon was telling Summer all about the training he did earlier. I stayed mostly quiet. Nothing that bad had happened yet. But I knew it was inevitable. The longer I stayed here, the worse my feelings got. Something bad was going to happen. I could feel it.
The sound of Summer's voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Qrow? You're very quiet tonight. Are you okay?" she asked.

"Huh? Oh... yeah, of course. I guess I'm just getting tired."

Summer was silent for a moment before she turned to Deacon.
"Deke, if you're done eating, you can head to bed. You're going to need the extra sleep for tomorrow."

"Okay. Goodnight Uncle Qrow. Night Summer."

Deacon gave Summer a hug and she gave him a gentle kiss on his head.

"Goodnight, darling," she said, smiling at him.

Once he left the room, Summer looked at me, her face more serious.

"Qrow, I know something is bothering you. I want to help."

I glared at her. "Summer, you can't help with this. There's nothing you can do to prepare for misfortune. It's always going to be there as long as I'm here. Maybe I should leave and let you handle things..."

"No!" Summer yelled, startling me a bit. "I won't let you do that to Deacon. He looks up to you. He's lost his parents, he doesn't need to loose you, too! And besides, I can't train and teach him at the same time."

I sighed. "But—"

"But nothing. We're supposed to be a team, Qrow. I know you're constantly worrying about me and Deacon because of your semblance, but it won't help if you end up leaving us. Salem's forces are after me. What if someone comes for me and you aren't there? Besides, living in these ruins wouldn't be any fun without you here."

I sighed in defeat. "You're right. Like always. I'm sorry I worry all the time. I just... I couldn't stand it if someone hurt you or if something happened to you or Deacon."

Summer wrapped her arms around me. "I know you can't help it. But everything will be fine as long as we're together, right?"

I smiled and kissed her gently.
"Right. Of course."

Summer smiled. "That's more like it. I'm going to patrol the area for Grimm. Get some rest, okay?"

I nodded. "Sure. See you in the morning."

I watched as she left out the front door. After a few minutes, I went to the lounge area and saw Deacon sprawled out on one of the couches. I couldn't help but smile as I sat on one of the nearby chairs and closed my eyes.