Qrow's Moving Castle (A Fair Game AU)

Chapter 5

A/N: TW: self harm scars. (and slime. I felt like I should mention that since I know people who absolutely hate slimy things and it makes them very uncomfortable. There will be quite a bit of slime in this chapter.)

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The groceries were basically all put away when Clover heard a door slam upstairs. 

"Clover!" Qrow shouted, the words echoing through the castle. Ruby physically jumped where she was standing in surprise. 

Qrow came running down the stairs, wearing nothing but a towel around his waist. His face had an expression that was a strange mix of panic and anger. 

"I told you not to get carried away!" Qrow said, getting in the old man's face. "But you touched my bathroom, you ruined my potions!" 

"I didn't mean to ruin it!" Clover stuttered, taking a step back from the upset wizard. "I was just trying to organize things." Qrow slumped into the nearest chair, placing his head in his hands. 

Clover looked down and couldn't help but notice little marks on Qrow's arms. Marks that weren't there before. It didn't take but a second for Clover to recognize them as scars,  each carrying a story of sadness and depression. Clover put two and two together, realizing that the potions probably magically covered up the scars or made them disappear all together. Guilt washed over Clover like a crashing wave.

"Qrow, I'm sorry." Clover went to place a hand on the wizard's shoulder, trying to comfort him. But when his palm touched the bare skin of Qrow, a sticky substance covered him. Clover instantly pulled away, unsure of where the slime came from.

Suddenly, the room seemed to have lost all it's warmth. A darkness so thick you could feel it enveloped everything. The house seemed to shake and moans from unknown sources filled Clover's head.

"He's calling the spirits of darkness!" Ruby said. "I read about it once, it happens when a wizard is so depressed he gives up!" 

"You've read about it, I've seen it!" Yang replied. "Once before, when one of Qrow's closest friends died!" The slime on Qrow seemed to thicken.

"What are we going to do Clover?" Ruby asked the older man. Clover just shook his head, unable to find words, barely able to breath. His body was stiff with panic, his mind clouded with fear. Clover slowly turned to the door, and then ran out of it suddenly, going outside for air.

Clover found himself in the Waste, rain pouring down by the gallon. Clover let the freezing drops fall on his face, not caring about the fact that he was soon soaked to the bone. He heard Turnip Head's familiar bounces behind him and then the rain stopped falling on him. Clover looked up to see Turnip Head holding an umbrella over his head, keeping him from getting any wetter. Clover smiled at the scarecrow, thankful for his friend. 

"Clover, you need to come inside!" Ruby shouted, running out of the castle. The little girl tugged on Clover's arms. "We need your help." Clover took a deep breath and followed Ruby back into the castle.

Inside, Qrow had slumped against the hearth, the slime slowly making it's way towards Yang.

"Thank god you're still here!" Yang said. "Can you take care of him before he puts me out?" She scooted as far away as she could, but it wasn't very far. 

Clover took a deep breath in and sighed. "Okay, Ruby, help me out. I'm going to pick up Qrow and carry him upstairs, you start a bath. Yang, would you heat up some hot water real quick?" The two nodded and began to do their assigned tasked. Clover rolled up his sleeves and stared at Qrow for a minute, pondering how he was going to get an unresponsive Qrow up the stairs. He couldn't just pick him up and carry him, since Clover was weak in his older state, and he couldn't have Qrow walk up, since Qrow had basically passed out. In the end, Clover slung Qrow's arm over his shoulders and dragged the wizard up the stairs. A slime trail followed the two through the house, something Clover would have to clean later. 

Clover quickly bathed Qrow and put him in bed, immediately leaving to go clean up the mess that was left. This job took him all evening and Ruby and Clover had a quiet dinner, letting Qrow rest.

~

The next morning, Clover made breakfast for everybody, this time with Yang's willing help. He made a separate plate and after he had made sure Ruby had eaten, he headed up the stairs with the plate and toward's Qrow's room. 

Clover stopped outside to knock on the door, but didn't wait long for an answer. He gently opened the door and was greeted by a nod from Qrow, who was laying in his bed. Qrow hadn't left the comfort of that bed since the incident the night before. 

"I brought you breakfast, I thought it might cheer you up." Clover walked over to the side of the bed and sat in the nearest chair. 

Clover tried to hand the plate to Qrow, but the wizard just gently shook his head. Clover set the plate down on the bedside table and sat quietly, staring at his hands. 

"Okay then," Clover said awkwardly. "I'm gonna go and clean up after-" 

"Clover wait." Qrow grabbed onto Clover wrist, holding it gently, but firm enough to keep Clover from pulling away. Clover moved back to the seat and waited for Qrow to say something.

"The Witch of the Waste is trying to find my castle." Qrow said, staring up at the ceiling. 

Clover's eyes widened. "I saw her yesterday, at the harbor."

"I use so much magic to keep this place hidden. I'm such a coward." 

"Qrow, why is the Witch of the Waste after you?" 

Qrow sighed, taking a moment before answering. "She is technically my sister. We were super closed and I looked up to her, followed her everywhere. But had all these ambitious plans, and I was scared. So I ran away. She was livid, she felt more betrayed than ever in her life. She's been trying to find me ever since." 

"That's terrible!" Clover said.

"Well, I can't run for much longer. I have to report to the palace as both Branwen and Harbinger. She is bound to find me there." 

"Then don't go. Refuse the King's invitations." 

Qrow rolled his eyes. "I can't. See that, right there?" Qrow pointed to a document that was pinned to the wall right above his bed. "That's the oath I took when I first became a wizard. I must report whenever summoned." 

"Then I think you should go." 

Qrow sat up in his bed, surprised. "What?"  

"You should go see the King and tell him what you think! Tell him that you feel that this war is dumb and refuse to take part of it! He's the King and he should want to hear what his people think!" 

"Do you know anything about politics? That's not exactly how this works." Qrow thought for a moment, trying to figure how what do it. 

"I got it!" He said excitedly! "You should go to the palace in my place! Say that your my father or something and tell them that your son is too much of a coward to show his face. Then Madam Schnee will have to give up on me, she'll realize that I'm a lost cause!" 

"Madam Schnee?" Clover had so many questions, but Qrow had made up his mind. Tomorrow, Clover would be visiting the royal palace.

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A/N: Hey everybody! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

In the movie, Howl (Qrow in our case) freaks out because Sophie (Clover) messes with the potions in the bathroom and changes his hair color on accident. He also summoned the spirits of darkness before when a girl broke up with him. He's super vain, but I felt like that didn't really reflect Qrow in this situation, so I changed it to the self harm scars and Summer's death. 

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and if you did, leave a vote or a comment! I love hearing your reactions and thoughts! Thanks!